There is a significant research gap in the theory of the nature of relationships between companies and other organizations (including NGOs) when collaborating on projects to support sustainable development goals. In particular, the company perspective has not yet been analyzed in depth. This paper therefore presents these relationships from the company’s point of view, and particularly in terms of how company representatives describe the roles of each partner in the collaboration and the outcomes it generates for the company. The empirical research is theoretically grounded in the Activities–Resources–Actors (ARA) model developed by Håkansson and Snehota. The study adopted a qualitative approach and was conducted using semi-structured individual in-depth interviews in 18 companies; the companies represented different industries and were involved in different types of projects related to sustainable development goals. The paper contributes to developing the theory in various ways. It contributes to the understanding of processes related to company involvement in sustainable development. It also contributes to the theory of the essence and substance of inter-organizational relationships, and specifically the ARA framework. Moreover, it explains the specificity of such inter-organizational collaborations and identifies to what extent these relationships vary from other types of inter-organizational collaboration, especially from business-to-business relationships. The paper also contributes to the discussion on the role of personal bonds within such inter-organizational relationships. The practical implications relate to the ways in which the activities and resources of a company and its partner may be combined in projects addressing social and/or environmental problems. Therefore, the paper offers guidance to companies and their potential partners interested in undertaking joint sustainability initiatives.

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Purpose There is a research gap regarding frameworks identifying the specific activities and resources used by companies to build and enhance social ties between them and business actors. The purpose of this paper is to identify those activities and resources and propose a model of them for referring to successive stages of business relationship-building. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative research was conducted in the form of 16 semi-structured in-depth individual interviews in four companies operating in Poland, representing the construction, chemical, alcoholic beverages and automotive industries. Findings Resources and activities used by companies to build and strengthen interpersonal bonds within business relationships may be categorised according to the dimension of relationship-focused (RF) vs deal-focused (DF) approach. In the companies analysed, the RF approach appeared dominant, while some symptoms of changes towards a DF approach were observed. Research limitations/implications The proposed model of resources and activities used in companies at successive stages of business relationship-building extends the understanding of how high-quality relationships are built. The study is exploratory in nature and aims to inspire further in-depth analyses, including cross-cultural comparisons. Practical implications The paper helps managers in their day-to-day management of B2B relationships. It provides particular guidelines for business people seeking a potential business partner in Poland and other countries with a communist past. Originality/value The paper’s originality results from combining the behavioural approach to B2B relationships with the concept of the RF vs DF approach. The latter concept is based on the experience and observations of its author and, as such, has so far received limited attention in the literature.

Purpose This paper aims to examine corporate volunteering as a form of social responsibility carried out by companies in relationships with non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Applying the value creation concept, the success of such relationships is based on value created between the focal company, its employees engaging in the volunteer work and the collaborating NGO actors representing the beneficiaries of the volunteer work. However, how to meaningfully engage employees and strategically manage company–NGO relationships in corporate volunteering has received less scholarly attention. The study hence asks the question: How is mutual value created in corporate volunteering collaborations between business organizations and NGOs? Design/methodology/approach Two qualitative case studies of company–NGO relationships involved in corporate volunteer programs for social benefit in Poland and Finland are analyzed. Findings Corporate volunteering offers value creation opportunities for each of the three actors in the relationships, namely, the company, the NGO and the employees who participate in the volunteer work. Particularly, employment and volunteering relationships appear to be catalysts for the creation of mutual value in the organizational relationship between a company and NGO. Originality/value The present study contributes to the current understanding of company–NGO relationships by emphasizing the role of individual employee volunteers in creating relationship-level value. The study adds also to existing research on corporate volunteering by identifying the way value is created in company–NGO relationships within corporate volunteering.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in companies is advancing rapidly. Consequently, multidisciplinary research on AI in business has developed dramatically during the last decade, moving from the focus on technological objectives towards an interest in human users’ perspective. In this article, we investigate the notion of employees’ trust in AI at the workplace (in the company), following a human-centered approach that considers AI integration in business from the employees’ perspective, taking into account the elements that facilitate human trust in AI. While employees’ trust in AI at the workplace seems critical, so far, few studies have systematically investigated its determinants. Therefore, this study is an attempt to fill the existing research gap. The research objective of the article is to examine links between employees’ trust in AI in the company and three other latent variables (general trust in technology, intra-organizational trust, and individual competence trust). A quantitative study conducted on a sample of 428 employees from companies of the energy and chemical industries in Poland allowed the hypotheses to be verified. The hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results indicate the existence of a positive relationship between general trust in technology and employees’ trust in AI in the company as well as between intra-organizational trust and employees’ trust in AI in the company in the surveyed firms.