Value cocreation in new service development: a process-based view of resource dependency

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiang Wang ◽  
Ilan Oshri ◽  
Xiande Zhao

Purpose This study aims to examine value cocreation in terms of interfirm collaborations between service firms, their business customers and business partners at different stages of a new service development (NSD) process. Design/methodology/approach The study develops and tests hypotheses that examine the roles played by business customers and partners in NSD, assuming resource dependency of the focal firm during three NSD stages (ideation, development and deployment). Empirical data were collected from 200 NSD projects and structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses. Findings The results show that business customer collaboration has a positive effect on ideation performance and development performance, whereas business partner collaboration has a positive effect on deployment performance. These finding support the notion that the value cocreating roles of business customers and partners vary across NSD stages. Research limitations/implications Future research should focus on how business partners can be actively involved in the NSD process and how the interests of different parties can be safeguarded. The use of longitudinal data will allow a better examination of the process dynamics. Practical implications The study provides managerial implications for service managers in terms of acquiring and allocating resources needed from business customers and partners during different NSD stages. Originality/value The study contributes to the growing literature on value cocreation in NSD by empirically demonstrating the respective performance contributions of business customers and partners during different stages of NSD. Moreover, the results also shed light on interfirm collaboration mechanisms from the perspective of resource dependence theory.

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (9) ◽  
pp. 2107-2134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hung-Tai Tsou ◽  
Colin C.J. Cheng ◽  
Hsuan-Yu Hsu

Purpose – While co-innovation with third parties (e.g. customer or supplier) has been widely documented, the literature seems to pay scant attention on co-innovation with business partners. Building on the resource dependence theory (RDT) and the input-process-output model, the purpose of this paper is to examine how four criteria of business partner selection affect service delivery co-innovation, which, in turn, influences firms’ competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach – A mail survey was sent to 600 IT service firms in Taiwan, the target respondents being senior marketing managers in charge of collaborative new service development. A total of 120 usable questionnaires were collected, for a response rate of 20 percent. Findings – The findings support the argument that all four criteria of business partner selection have positive relationships with service delivery co-innovation. Meanwhile, adopting these criteria, firms’ service delivery co-innovation is able to create superior competitive advantage. Research limitations/implications – The findings enrich the existing literature by proposing and empirically confirming that the use of appropriate criteria to select business partners enhances the effectiveness of firms’ service delivery co-innovation and competitive advantage. Practical implications – Managers must be aware of the criteria to select their business partners, in terms of developing service delivery co-innovation. Originality/value – This study adds to the service innovation literature by providing support for the RDT that partner reliability, partner complementarity, partner expertise, and partner compatibility are important business partner selection criteria to create service delivery co-innovation and achieve firms’ competitive advantage.


2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (12) ◽  
pp. 1909-1939
Author(s):  
Karen Lorraine Wontner ◽  
Helen Walker ◽  
Irina Harris ◽  
Jane Lynch

PurposeThis study aims to illuminate the challenges involved in implementing community benefits (CBs), a sustainable public procurement policy that ensures that there are positive social and economic outcomes for the local community when public money is spent on goods, works and services.Design/methodology/approachInterviews and focus groups were conducted with public sector buyers and suppliers in Wales with experience in implementing CBs. Resource dependence theory was used to examine the extent to which dependence on resources effects CBs implementation.FindingsWhilst the study confirms that implementation of CBs improves economic and social outcomes, there can also be challenges for public sector organisations and their constituent supply chains. These include tensions between CBs and other policies, differing views between buyers and suppliers, and the unintended consequences of promoting one form of CBs over another.Research limitations/implicationsThe research found that Welsh Government influences the buyer-supplier dyad through regulatory and financial power. We elaborate on resource dependency theory by adding four constructs (powerful stakeholders, intra and inter organisational issues, challenges and enablers) to better understand the flows of power and resources in this research context.Practical implicationsBuyer and supplier practitioners and policymakers may find the factors leading to successful CBs implementation useful, such as ensuring closer communication and liaison at early contract stages.Social implicationsCommunity benefits are aimed at improving socioeconomic issues through public procurement.Originality/valueThis study addresses the need for research into how public sector organisations and suppliers seek to implement socio-economic sustainability measures, and the lack of research on CBs implementation to date. It is also novel in adopting a dyadic approach and a resource dependency perspective.


2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing Lu ◽  
Jie Wu ◽  
Mark Goh ◽  
Robert De Souza

Purpose The ramp-up in humanitarian logistics operations is a stage when the demand surges, often at the start of an emergency. In response, agility is a key strategy used by the humanitarian organizations (HOs). However, the HOs are constrained by their existing resources and have to respond in the ramp-up process under their resource dependency. The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework on agility-building strategies used by HOs for the ramp-up. Design/methodology/approach This study applies both the dynamic capabilities perspective and resource dependence theory to humanitarian relief operations, and develops four testable propositions to explore the agility-building strategies of the HOs for the ramp-up process. A multiple-case study is conducted on six international HOs operating in Indonesia to verify them, in addition to an extensive literature search. Findings The case study shows that the human resource management, pre-positioning, standardization and supplier management of the HOs are all related to their resources and environment in the ramp-up process. The authors highlight the practical differences between the few super large, resource rich and centralized HOs with the second-tier HOs. Research limitations/implications Given the small sample size and single country as the site of study, some findings may not be applicable to the other HOs or in other regions. Practical implications The propositions could be applicable to other HOs operating under similar environments, and potentially to the commercial enterprises operating in a highly volatile environment with severe resource scarcity. Originality/value This study provides new insights into ramp-up operations and into how HOs build their agility and reduce their resource dependencies. Theoretically, the paper applies two established theories in the strategic management literature to a new field.


2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 85-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elodie Jouny-Rivier ◽  
Javier Reynoso ◽  
Bo Edvardsson

Purpose This paper aims to identify and analyze factors that determine firms’ commitment to co-create new services with business customers. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative study based on a scenario method, involving an online survey of French service companies, reveals the determinants of commitment to service co-creation. Findings Customer benefits and organizational sacrifices, as well as firm-related factors (specialization, partners’ involvement and innovativeness) correlate with firms’ commitment to co-create new services. The proposed, empirically grounded model details factors that determine firms’ commitment to co-create new services with business customers, including innovative culture as a key determinant. Practical implications The identified factors that affect firms’ commitment to co-create services can guide managers’ efforts to improve customer relationships and thus their service innovation processes. Originality/value This study identifies and analyzes characteristics of committed firms, as well as the benefits and sacrifices they face in co-creating new services, in a novel way. Thus, it helps define the fit between a service offering and business customers’ participation in new service development contexts.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yibo Wang ◽  
Bai Liu

PurposeEither buying or making is predicted by the existing literature for firms to reduce dependence. However, firms in the rapid globalization are found to adopt a pattern of buying and making. Specially, they critically rely on foreign firms for needed materials and goods, and invest in innovation against the uncertainty of potential supply disruptions simultaneously. Therefore, this paper seeks to investigate how the depth and width of supplier globalization shape firm innovation together. Moreover, the moderating effects of institutional distance and market competition are also examined in the paper.Design/methodology/approachGrounded on the resource dependence theory, this paper develops a theoretical framework and tests the proposed hypotheses by Poisson model using secondary data from 502 Chinese listed firms with foreign suppliers.FindingsThe depth of supplier globalization has a positive impact on firm innovation, while the width of supplier globalization weakens firm innovation. The depth and width of supplier globalization further interact negatively to influence firm innovation. Moreover, this relationship is enhanced when firms establish relationships with foreign firms with greater institutional distance and is weakened when firms face fiercer product competition.Originality/valueThe authors contribute to the literature by evidencing that the existence of foreign suppliers results in firms' enhancement of innovation to secure their operations and showing that diversifying the country origins of foreign suppliers is an effective means to reduce firms' uncertainty about supply disruption. We also advance the understanding regarding the contextual factors in which firms are more likely or less likely to manage the uncertainty about supplier globalization.


2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 514-535
Author(s):  
Huei-Wen Pao ◽  
Cheng-Yu Lee ◽  
Pi-Hui Chung ◽  
Hsueh-Liang Wu

Purpose The industry-wide adoption of a novel practice is often considered to be an institutional change. Although research on institutionalization has been accumulating, how and why embedded actors in the field become motivated to embrace change that remains sidelined. Viewing the introduction of a new human resource management practice, the recruitment of non-compulsory certified manpower, which is still in its infancy in the service sector of Taiwan, as a new institution, the purpose of this paper is to identify the distinct motives behind firms’ hiring decisions, and examine the extent to which such hiring decisions are contingent on institutional conditions and firm attributes. Design/methodology/approach The data used to test the hypotheses were drawn from a survey on service firms in Taiwan in the second half of 2011. Hypotheses were examined through moderated hierarchical regression analyses in a sample of 254 Taiwanese service firms across major sectors. Findings Integrating the resource dependency and social contagion views, the study contends that resource scarcity drives, or legitimacy enables, service firms to deviate from traditional hiring patterns and instead adopt new preferences toward certified manpower. The study not only shows that social factors should be incorporated into the diffusion of a new HR recruitment practice in the service sector, which is traditionally based upon economic considerations, but also sheds light on the context-dependent nature of the process of institutional innovation. Originality/value This study is an attempt not only to test a dual-theoretical model on the extent to which a service firm’s new hiring pattern is influenced by two distinct types of motivation, but also to evidence how an institutional innovation, in terms of the regime of service manpower certification, takes root and spreads in the field. The managerially discretional account of the resource dependence theory needs to be reconciled with social contagion theory, which highlights the influence of collective actions and so provides a better understanding of the diffusion of new HR recruitment practices in the service industry.


2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Myhren ◽  
Lars Witell ◽  
Anders Gustafsson ◽  
Heiko Gebauer

Purpose Open service innovation is an emergent new service development practice, where knowledge on how to organize development work is scarce. The purpose of the present research is to identify and describe relevant archetypes of open service innovation. The study views an archetype as an organizing template that includes the competence of participants, organizing co-creation among participants and ties between participants. In particular, the study’s interest lies in how open service innovation archetypes are used for incremental and radical service innovation. Design/methodology/approach For the research, a nested case study was performed, in which an industrial firm with nine open service innovation groups was identified. Forty-five interviews were conducted with participants. For each case, first a within-case analysis was performed, and how to perform open service innovation in practice was described. Then, a cross-case analysis identifying similarities and differences between the open service innovation groups was performed. On the basis of the cross-case analysis, three archetypes for open service innovation were identified. Findings The nested case study identified three archetypes for open service innovation: internal group development, satellite team development and rocket team development. This study shows that different archetypes are used for incremental and radical service innovation and that a firm can have multiple open service innovation groups using different archetypes. Practical implications This study provides suggestions on how firms can organize for open service innovation. The identified archetypes can guide managers to set up, develop or be part of open service innovation groups. Originality/value This paper uses open service innovation as a mid-range theory to extend existing research on new service development in networks or service ecosystems. In particular, it shows how open service innovation can be organized to develop both incremental and radical service innovations.


2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 784-809 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitra Kalaitzi ◽  
Aristides Matopoulos ◽  
Michael Bourlakis ◽  
Wendy Tate

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the implications of natural resource scarcity (NRS) for companies’ supply chain strategies. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the resource dependence theory (RDT), a conceptual model is developed and validated through the means of exploratory research. The empirical work includes the assessment of qualitative data collected via 22 interviews representing six large multinational companies from the manufacturing sector. Findings When the resources are scarce and vitally important, companies use buffering strategies. Buffering and bridging strategies are preferred when there are a few alternative suppliers for the specific resource and when there is limited access to scarce natural resources. Research limitations/implications The research focuses on large multinational manufacturing companies so results may not be generalised to other sectors and to small- and medium-sized firms. Future research needs to examine the implications of NRS for organisational performance. Practical implications This research provides direction to manufacturing companies for adopting the best supply chain strategy to cope with NRS. Originality/value This paper adds to the body of knowledge by providing new data and empirical insights into the issue of NRS in supply chains. The RDT has not been previously employed in this context. Past studies are mainly conceptual and, thus, the value of this paper comes from using a qualitative approach on gaining in-depth insights into supply chain-related NRS strategies and its antecedents.


2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 239-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Qamar ◽  
Mark Hall

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to robustly establish whether firms are implementing Lean or Agile production in the automotive supply chain (SC) and, by drawing on contingency theory (CT) as our theoretical lens, independently determine whether Lean and Agile firms can be distinguished based upon contextual factors.Design/methodology/approachPrimary quantitative data from 140 firms in the West Midlands (UK) automotive industry were obtained via a constructed survey. Analysis incorporated the use of logistic regressions to calculate the probability of Lean and Agile organisations belonging to different groups amongst the contextual factors investigated.FindingsLean and Agile firms co-exist in the automotive SC and Lean firms were found to be at higher tiers of the SC, while Agile firms were found to be at lower tiers.Originality/valueThe originality of this study lies within the novel methodological attempt used to distinguish Lean and Agile production, based upon the contextual factors investigated. Not only is the importance of CT theoretically approved, but “received wisdom” within SC management is also contested. Extant literature propagates that the automotive SC is comprised of organisations that predominantly adopt Lean production methods, and that in SCs comprised of both Lean and Agile organisations, the firms closer to the customer will adopt more flexible (Agile) practices, while those that operate upstream will adopt more efficient (Lean) practices. The findings from this study have implications for theory and practice, as Lean and Agile firms can be found in the automotive SC without any relationship to the value-adding process. To speculate as to why the findings contest existing views, resource dependence theory and, more specifically, a power perspective, was invoked. The authors provide readers with a new way of thinking concerning complicated SCs and urge that the discipline of SC management adopts a “fourth” SC model, depicting a new Lean and Agile SC configuration.


2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 414-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zach Zacharia ◽  
Michael Plasch ◽  
Usha Mohan ◽  
Markus Gerschberger

Purpose Increasing environmental uncertainty, more demanding customers, rapid technological growth and rising capital costs have all forced firms to evolve from collaborating with buyers and suppliers to collaborating with their competitors and that is called coopetition. The purpose of this paper is to better understand the antecedents and outcomes associated with coopetition. Design/methodology/approach Building from the existing literature and three theoretical foundations, resource-based theory, resource dependence theory and game theory, the authors develop a model showing the antecedents and outcomes of coopetition and associated propositions of coopetition. Using a semi-structured interview process of 21 industry executives, the authors offer empirical support for the proposed coopetition model and propositions. Findings Firms are increasingly dependent on the knowledge and expertise in external organizations to innovate, solve problems and improve supply chain performance. This research suggests that there is a value for firms to consider coopetition as a part of their inter-firm strategies. Research limitations/implications The semi-structured interview process used in this research provided a wealth of information and executive experiences in coopetition. The interviews, however, only provide a single perspective of collaborative engagements with competitors. Multiple perspectives of each project would add value to this research. Originality/value Collaboration among buyers and suppliers have been well researched; however, there has not been as much research on coopetition. This research provides a new area for future research for academics and offers suggestions for managers to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of their coopetition projects.


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