Communicating Relational Capital

The importance of international markets is constantly emphasized for small and medium enterprises(SMEs). In previous studies, technological innovation capabilities were emphasized as a factor that enables SMEs to compete in the international market. To this end, SMEs need to cooperate with external partners to strengthen their technological innovation capabilities to thus improve their international performance. With the perspective view of open innovation, this research explores the effects of relational capital and technological innovation capability on international performance, with a particular focus on the moderating effect of alliance proactiveness. Building on previous literature regarding internationalization, technological innovation, and alliance proactiveness, research hypotheses were developed and tested using data collected from 175 SMEs. A hierarchical regression analysis was applied. The analysis showed that, first, relational capital had a significant effect on the technological innovation capability. Second, technological innovation capability has a significant influence on the international performance. Third, technological innovation capability mediated the relationship between relational capital and international performance. Finally, alliance proactiveness was found to moderate the relationship between technological innovation capability and international performance. The key research findings imply that relational capital and alliance proactiveness are the key factors of international performance, as they improved the development of the technological innovation capability.

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Effects of relational capital on relationship between place attachment and resident participation

Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology ◽

10.1002/casp.2531 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Kai‐Chih Chang ◽

Han‐Shen Chen ◽

Chi‐Ming Hsieh

Keyword(s):

Place Attachment ◽

Relational Capital ◽

Resident Participation

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Relationship lending and the use of trade credit: the role of relational capital and private information

Small Business Economics ◽

10.1007/s11187-021-00537-x ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Pierluigi Murro ◽

Valentina Peruzzi

Keyword(s):

Private Information ◽

Business Models ◽

Trade Credit ◽

Banking Regulation ◽

Manufacturing Firms ◽

Soft Information ◽

Relational Capital ◽

Relationship Lending ◽

The Impact ◽

Italian Manufacturing Firms

AbstractUsing a unique sample of Italian manufacturing firms, we investigate the impact of relationship lending on firms’ use of trade credit. We find that firms maintaining close and long-lasting relationships with their main banks are associated with higher amounts of trade credit extended by suppliers. This result is robust to alternative measures of trade credit and relationship lending, and to different estimation techniques. We also analyze the mechanisms driving the association between relationship lending and the use of trade credit. Regression results suggest that the positive link between accounts payable and relationship lending is especially significant for firms that use to provide soft information to their lenders and for companies with greater relational abilities.Plain English Summary The existence of close and long lasting lending relationships positively affects the amount of trade credit manufacturing firms receive from their suppliers. By relying on the Survey on Italian Manufacturing Firms, we show that the positive link between relationship lending and the use of trade credit is driven by two channels: private information and relational capital. In a policy perspective, our findings reveal a need for banking regulation and supervision to encompass banking business models in evaluating banks. The current approach might not be suitable for local banks investing in soft information acquisition and could weaken SMEs’ chances to receive both bank financing and trade credit from suppliers. Moreover, from a managerial point of view, our results uncover the relevance of firms’ ability to create strong relationships with banks, suppliers, and other companies that may help alleviating financial constraints.

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