research publications and other research outputs Learning difficulties : collaborative inter - organisational information system use within UK retail supply net

Copyright and Moral Rights for the articles on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyright owners. For more information on Open Research Online's data policy on reuse of materials please consult the policies page. Learning difficulties: collaborative inter-organisational information system use within United Kingdom retail supply networks 1 Paper Title Learning difficulties: collaborative inter-organisational information system use within UK retail supply networks Track Inter-organisational relations Submission type Developmental paper final submission Word count 6490 words Learning difficulties: collaborative inter-organisational information system use within United Kingdom retail supply networks 2 Abstract Inter-organisational information systems (IOIS) have been introduced to support collaborative retail supply relationships, yet how these systems are used is not well understood. This paper presents analysis of an ideographic case study of a dynamic United Kingdom grocery sector supply network. Using Archer's (1995) social change theory, we explore how changes to buyer-supplier relationship structures reconditioned individual actors' situational logics in a way that created network learning difficulties. Our analysis shows how actors' inter-organisational information system use reinforced pre-existing bargaining positions and improved already powerful actors' relative negotiating strength. This paper demonstrates the value of multi-level analysis in furthering understanding of the complex relationships between processes of network and individual learning.