In this paper, the authors analyze 91 key account relationships and 206 ordinary supplier–buyer dyads regarding differences in suppliers' relational behaviors and customers' perceptions of relationship quality (satisfaction, trust, and commitment). The results suggest that while – as compared to ordinary relationships – suppliers put significantly more effort in “value-creating behaviors” in ke...

Supplying chain cooperation has already become an important strategy that enterprises use to tackle market competition; however, the supply chain crisis caused by supply chain risk makes the supply chain operation of enterprises very fragile. This paper applies Portfolio Theory to explain the suppliers’ combination plays an important role in dispersing the supplying chain risk and controlling i...

kecarassembly plants which have adopted `lean production' trading with `lean' parts suppliers? Or are they using suppliers as buffers and as sources of low cost labour? This paper examines these questions empirically by using official statistics in the UK, US, Germany and Japan. In the UK, there is evidence of parallel reduction in inventories at suppliers and assemblers in the 1980s, but also ...

The main purpose of this chapter is to develop an exploratory proposal for identifying innovative suppliers, creating knowledge in an area not very deeply explored. Based on a literature revision based on the innovative supplier identification and management, the study suggests that innovative suppliers are highly specialized and technically competent companies, located nearby their customers a...

Evaluation of biomass suppliers is a time-dependent problem that requires assessment of different supply schemes in different periods. This paper presents a hybrid method for evaluating biomass suppliers that combines Intuitionistic Fuzzy Sets (IFS), linear programming (LP) and multi-periodic optimization (MPO). IFS allow evaluators to express their hesitation when they assess alternative suppl...

Purchasing and suppliers are of major strategic importance to most companies today. This is because a substantial amount of the resources used by a company are made available through its suppliers. Purchases from suppliers account for more than half of total costs for most companies and in some industries, such as electronics, telecommunications, construction, and automotive, this portion is no...

In many important high-technology markets, including software development, data processing, communications, aeronautics, and defense, suppliers learn through experience how to provide better service at lower cost. This paper examines how a buyer designs dynamic competition among rival suppliers to exploit learning economies while minimizing the costs of becoming locked in to one producer. Strat...

Adopting a contingency framework, this paper explores consequences of manufacturing outsourcing and product/process newness for R&D–manufacturing coordination. Based on case-study findings, the following coordination challenges are outlined: accessing manufacturing competence and understanding suppliers’ processes (outsourcing of manufacturing and high newness); receiving feedback from supplier...

The Internet-driven electronic marketplace has been presented as a mean of enhancing collaboration between buyers and suppliers while generating significant advantages for both parties. Nevertheless, the introduction of online reverse auctions (ORA) in the negotiation process has been perceived as a resource that decreases inter-organizational trust, limiting the possibilities of collaboration....