Interorganizational Networks

What to Expect After the Honeymoon: Testing a Lifecycle Theory of Franchise Relationships

by Christof Backhaus

Markus Blut, Christof Backhaus, Tobias Heussler, David M. Woisetschläger, Heiner Evanschitzky, and Dieter Ahlert. Journal of Retailing, forthcoming.

This research examines the evolution of interorganizational relationships in a franchising context. Using U-curve... more This research examines the evolution of interorganizational relationships in a franchising context. Using U-curve theory, we develop three hypotheses and contrast them with traditional lifecycle theory. Three groups of constructs are affected by lifecycle: cooperation variables, dependence variables, and relationship variables. Four distinct stages emerge, with highest levels of variables in the honeymoon stage, lower levels in routine and crossroad stages, and increasing levels in the stabilization stage. Franchisors should strive for “stability on high levels” before operational realities influence the franchisees. Franchisees’ intermediate lifecycle phases are most critical for the system, since opportunistic behavior and switching are most likely.

MARTINEZ M., CANONICO P., DE NITO E., MANGIA G, Interorganizational relationships in Italian logistic platforms: the role of Meta Logistic Operators, 88-902124-0-3; Euroma

by Marcello Martinez

MARTINEZ M., PEZZILLO IACONO M., MANGIA G., GALDIERO C., Knowledge creation and Inter-Organizational Relationships: the Development of Innovation in the Railway Industry International Forum on Knowledge Asset dynamics on Knowledge-Based Foundations of the Service Economy; ISBN 978-88-96687-05-5; IFKAD; Pagg. 206-212, 2011

by Marcello Martinez

Factors affecting RFId adoption in a vertical supply chain: the case of the silk industry in Italy

by Pigni Federico

co-authored with Cristina Quetti and Alessandro Clerici, forthcoming in Production Planning & Control, 2012

Radio Frequency Identification (RFId) adoption process is receiving a lot of attention in literature; studies... more Radio Frequency Identification (RFId) adoption process is receiving a lot of attention in literature; studies assessing its potentials in supply chains (SCs) are now well documented. Despite this rising interest, the diffusion pattern of RFId systems in the vertical SCs has been only scarcely addressed and theoretical contributions explaining dynamics and drivers are still missing. This study shows that the diffusion of innovation theory can be effectively used to explore these questions in a vertical SC. However, three major considerations emerged: (1) the factors influencing, facilitating or inhibiting the adoption process change over time and during the adoption process; (2) facilitators such as business associations play an important role in the SCs composed of small and medium enterprises; and (3) the position of adopters within the SC greatly influences the diffusion process.

To Facilitate or Intervene-A Study of knowledge management practice in SME networks

by Johan Magnusson

Change management implications for network organizations

by Johan Magnusson

SME Network Taxonomy: A qualitative study of network practice in the EU

by Johan Magnusson

Interorganizational collaboration among small and medium-sized enterprises: a pan-European study of the influence of type of collaboration on SME practice

by Johan Magnusson

SME Network Practice A qualitative study of network management practice and design implications for ICT-support

by Johan Magnusson

EVALUATING SME INTERORGANISATIONAL SYSTEMS–towards an extended framework

by Johan Magnusson

Evaluating Interorganizational Systems for SME's

by Johan Magnusson

The Use of Exponential Random Graph Models to Investigate the Micro-Level Processes of Inter-Organizational Network Formation

by Michael Siciliano

The response systems that emerge after large-scale disasters like the Haitian Earthquake on January 12th, 2010, or the... more The response systems that emerge after large-scale disasters like the Haitian Earthquake on January 12th, 2010, or the recent series of events unfolding in Japan, are defined by the complex interactions of organizations.  These response systems are often analyzed by investigating the structure of the network and the consequences of its structural properties.  While there is a growing body of work on the consequences of response networks, there is limited research on the antecedents of these networks.  This paper provides statistical inferences on the selection processes that exist among organizations entering the response system and highlights the micro-level processes that give rise to the global structure. Part of the reason for the lack of research on the antecedents of disaster response networks has been due to limitations in the statistical modeling of networks that required the researcher to investigate potential generative processes in isolation.  Recent advances in exponential random graph models (also referred to as p* models) provide a flexible statistical framework to examine multiple interdependent processes simultaneously.  This paper proposes and tests theoretically driven micro-level processes believed to be responsible for generating the global structure of the observed response networks that emerged after recent earthquakes in Indonesia, Haiti, and Japan. These findings offer fresh insight into the mechanisms driving tie formation between organizations in emergencies and provide guidance on future research into the antecedents of networks

Social capital: Its relationship to innovation in science and technology

by Jane Fountain

THE CONCEPT OF 'RELATIONAL CONTRACTING'AS A TOOL FOR UNDERSTANDING INTER-ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS IN CONSTRUCTION

by Nasruddin Faisol

To cite this paper: Faisol, N., Dainty, A. R. J., and Price, A. D. F. (2005) The concept of 'relational
contracting' as a tool for understanding inter- organizational relationships in construction. In:
Khosrowshahi, F (Ed.), 21st Annual ARCOM Conference, 7-9 September 2005, SOAS, University of
London. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, Vol. 2, pp 1075-1084.

Managing the relationships between the various parties involved in construction is becoming
more crucial as the... more Managing the relationships between the various parties involved in construction is becoming
more crucial as the industry moves away from fragmented and adversarial ways of working.
Under less-adversarial procurement routes and contractual arrangements such as partnering, it
is essential that the parties develop mutually beneficial objectives and a high level of
commitment, cooperation and trust. When disputes do occur, without good relationships
between the parties they are likely to refer back to the clauses of the contract which, in turn,
may start a return to adversarial ways of working. The concept of ‘relational contracting’ has
been developed by Macneil (1974, 1980, 1981 and 1983). This considers a contract to
represent a relationship between the parties and introduces a degree of flexibility into the
contract on the basis of understanding the other party’s objectives. Based on a review of recent
literature, this paper explores the dimensions of relational contracting that are applicable to the
construction industry. Since the principles of relational contracting have received relatively
little attention in the construction management literature, work from other disciplines have
been explored in order to promote a fuller understanding of its implications to understanding
the way in which people from different organizations work together. It is suggested that
previous work has viewed the concept of relational contracting in isolation rather than as an
integrated set of relational principles. It is argued that when viewed as a joined-up set of
dimensions, relational contracting has the potential to facilitate a better understanding of interorganizational
relationships within the industry.

Keywords: relational contracting, long-term relationship, construction supply chain.

PERCEPTIONS OF CONSTRUCTION ORGANISATIONS ON DEVELOPING SUCCESSFUL INTER-ORGANISATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS.

by Nasruddin Faisol

To cite this paper: Faisol, N, Dainty, A R J and Price, A D F (2006) Perceptions of construction organisations on
developing successful inter-organisational relationships.. In: Boyd, D (Ed) Procs 22nd Annual ARCOM
Conference, 4-6 September 2006, Birmingham, UK, Association of Researchers in Construction
Management, 471-479.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the general perceptions of UK construction
organisations on... more The purpose of this study is to investigate the general perceptions of UK construction
organisations on developing successful inter-organisational relationships, with the
paper reports on five case studies of different construction organisations, which
include the main contractors, a specialist contractor and a managing agent contractor.
The investigations explored their business relationships with other organisations in
the supply chain including clients, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers. The
findings show that the organisations realise the importance of developing good
relationships with their partners, which in turn increases their financial performance.
The results also revealed the practices that lead to successful relationships and
barriers to the successful relationships. The implication of these preliminary findings
show an evidence of a successful relationship can be achieved even though in the
context of a temporary organisation structure. This paper adds some important
elements of inter-organisation relationship from construction organisations
perspective to the current body knowledge.

Keywords: inter-organisational relationships, long-term relationship, successful
relationship.

Innovation and Innovators Inside Government: From Institutions to Networks

by Jenny Lewis

Published in Governance 2007, 20(4): 581-607
Co-authored with Mark Considine

A Maturity Model for B2B Integration (BIMM)

by Norbert Frick

Co-authored with Petra Schubert

Electronic data exchange along the supply chain has been discussed in the academic IS literature for many years and... more Electronic data exchange along the supply chain has been discussed in the academic IS literature for many years and remains a practical problem for enterprises worldwide. In this paper we are presenting a Maturity Model for B2B Integration, the so-called BIMM. The model is a result of a longitudinal research project on B2B integration. The BIMM was developed to assess the capability level for electronic document exchange of players in a supply chain and addresses current challenges of exiting maturity models. The a-priori BIMM was developed from an extensive literature review and an explorative study of 112 company cases (current state of research presented in this paper). In the next step it is our intention to validate the model using real-world data from leading B2B integration providers.

The patterns of interorganizational networks in the development of data communication technologies

by Pek-Hooi Soh

Technology & Knowledge Transfer Under the Open Innovation Paradigm

by Pedro Parraguez Ruiz

The Tigray Anti-Malaria Network Case Study. Addressing complex problems through collaborative strategies

by Denita Cepiku

The literature on general interest networks has considerably grown in the past decade and a half, although... more The literature on general interest networks has considerably grown in the past decade and a half, although practitioners have sprinted ahead of academic research. The paper contributes to this stream of research with the aim of improving our understanding on how a network is created, how it functions and develops over time, what exogenous and endogenous factors influence its performances.

This paper presents a case study that proved useful in answering these research questions. A general description of the network, its organizational structure, governing and leadership mechanisms and performances achieved is provided. The research continues with two papers, to be presented at the IRSPM annual conference in April 2011, in which theoretical and operational implications will be drawn. The first one focuses on the most relevant performance dimensions and the way which these are influenced by exogenous and endogenous factors. The research findings are synthesised in an interpretative multidimensional model of network performance, which is innovative as compared to the existing theory on network performance in several regards and has relevant implications for future research. The second analyzes the very interesting combination of the organizational structure and leadership style of the network.

The case study – a network active in the fight of malaria in the northern Ethiopian region of Tigray – is particularly appropriate for the research aims as there is high complexity of both the problem it tackles – malaria in a developing country – and of the characteristics of the network established to deal with it. The network includes a highly diversified pool of actors (public, private and nonprofit, operating globally and locally, located in Europe and Africa).

In five years activity, this network achieved exceptional results, contributing to save lives and improve the health of hundreds of thousands of people. With a limited investment of less than US$570.000, the network served 130.000 people in their villages in north Ethiopia, leading a 40% reduction in malaria deaths in the intervention district compared with the control district, with malaria case load for health facilities reduced of one fourth and the innovative diagnostic tool saving US$1,41 per patient examined (WHO, 2009).

The research covers a five-years timeframe during which the partners – Novartis Italia, the Italian Ministry of Health, the World Health Organization, the Tigray Health Bureau, the San Gallicano Dermatological Institute and the Italian Hospital of Makallè – worked together in two areas: the network management activities, which are the focus of this paper, and the in-field clinical and project management activities. It is worth noting that the performance of the network, analysed in-depth, is the result of the commitment and enthusiasm of the partners in both areas as well as of the continuous coordination between these two.