Temporary De-Embedding Buyer-Supplier Relationships: A Complexity Perspective

Many studies of interorganizational relationships assume that trust between organizations is symmetric. In this essay, we explore the origins of this assumption and examine relevant quantitative and qualitative evidence from the literatures on strategy, marketing, supply chain management, and information systems. We conclude that no systematic evidence currently exists to support the assumption that interorganizational trust is typically symmetric. We explore how the possibility of asymmetry complicates interpretation of previous research on the effects of interorganizational trust. We encourage further research to identify conditions under which symmetry is likely, and offer a variety of strategies that scholars may use to deal with potential asymmetry.

show abstract

“…Panico, 2017), simulations (e.g. Sting et al, in press), and content analysis of archival data (e.g. Malhotra and Lumineau, 2011).…”

Section: Research Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unrequited: Asymmetry in interorganizational trust

Graebner

Lumineau

Kamal

2018

Strategic Organization

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Our special issue does not include an example of this combination of research objective and design, though one case in point demonstrating process theory building combined with a simulation study is the paper Temporary De‐Embedding Buyer‐Supplier Relationships: A Complexity Perspective , by Sting et al (2018). The longitudinal case study part of this paper investigates how Nissan cut ties with a strategic supplier for a short period of time (i.e., “temporary de‐embedding”) and how that cut reinvigorated the relationship's joint performance.…”

Section: Combining Simulations With Empirical Methods Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Avoiding epistemological silos and empirical elephants in OM: How to combine empirical and simulation methods?

Chandrasekaran

Linderman

Sting

2018

J of Ops Management

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Progression of knowledge in operations management (OM) relies on researchers building and testing theories using data from practice. However, standalone empirical research designs have inherent limitations and may not adequately capture complex OM problems. This may result in researchers narrowing the scope of the problems that they create epistemological silos and study empirical elephants. In this introductory article to the special issue, we look at the ways simulation methods can augment and answer questions that are not addressed through traditional empirical methods. We offer a framework regarding how and when to use simulation methods for a given research objectives and design. We conclude by discussing the contingencies of using these methods as well as the role of reviewers and editors in evaluating papers that involve such methods.

show abstract

“…For example, Cisco used Opening Up strategy in its Open Daylight initiative (Appleyard and Chesbrough, 2017). In late 1990s, Nissan adopted Closing Down strategy when it `de-embedded` its keiretsu suppliers as part of the "Nissan Revival Plan" to focus on intrafirm goals (Sting et al 2019). BMW utilized Opening Up strategy in acquiring knowledge from external sources such as Microsoft (Majchrzak et al, 2019), when innovating their Internet-of-Things (IOT) platform to enable process innovation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dynamic openness for network-enabled product and process innovation: a panel-data analysis

Kesidou

Narasimhan

Ozusaglam

et al. 2022

IJOPM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PurposePrior research on open innovation has not investigated changes in knowledge acquisition strategies of firms over time overlooking how learning from past knowledge acquisition can change subsequent search strategies. Also, prior research has focused principally on product innovation overlooking process innovation. The purpose of the paper is to introduce the concept of dynamic openness, which is defined as temporal changes in external knowledge search strategy. We explore four dynamic openness strategies – closing down, opening up, persistent open and persistent closed – and examine the impact of these strategies on both product and process innovation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used a panel dataset of 16,021 firms based on five waves (2009–2017) of the UK Community Innovation Survey (UKIS). All models are estimated using firm and year fixed effects (FE) method to control for endogeneity that arises from unobserved heterogeneity. Endogeneity and robustness tests were carried out to ensure the validity of results.FindingsThe results show that firms do use dynamic openness strategies over time leveraging learning from past searches. Specifically, the study indicates that closing down is not an effective strategy for either type of innovation. For process innovation, firms should pursue opening up strategy rather than persistent open strategy, whereas for product innovation firms could pursue either strategy, highlighting important contextual differences.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the literature on knowledge acquisition in open innovation: (1) by theorizing the underlying reasons – learning from past collaborations, absorptive capacity and external knowledge heterogeneity – why firms pursue one dynamic openness strategy over another and (2) by extending literature by delineating the dynamic openness strategies that firms should pursue in process innovation vs product innovation.

show abstract

Temporary De-Embedding Buyer-Supplier Relationships: A Complexity Perspective

Cited by 5 publications

References 64 publications

Unrequited: Asymmetry in interorganizational trust

Unrequited: Asymmetry in interorganizational trust

Avoiding epistemological silos and empirical elephants in OM: How to combine empirical and simulation methods?

Dynamic openness for network-enabled product and process innovation: a panel-data analysis

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About