Flexibility in supply chain (SC) is desired not only for countering and handling uncertainties but also for planning strategies, to gain competitive edge by the corporate firms. Recently extensive work is being reported in Supply Chain Flexibility (SCF) focussing mainly on its multi dimensional aspects and how to obtain and implement it. However SCF is no free lunch and it may require huge inve...

In this paper, the interacting effect of formal contracts and relational governance on vendor profitability and quality in the software outsourcing industry are examined. We focus on a critical manifestation of relational governance—the presence of relational flexibility in the exchange relationship—and argue that the enacted observation of relational flexibility is driven by perceptions of exc...

The \double-marginalization" problem associated with linear wholesale price contract has long been recognized as a threat to vertical channel coordination. Many solutions involving more complex contract formats have been proposed to address this problem. Extant economic theories predict these solutions to be revenue and division equivalent in that they all restore full channel e±ciency and give...

In this research, two risk hedging strategies, the option contract and the advance purchase discount contract, are investigated within a manufacturer–retailer two-echelon supply chain context. This study offers three contributions. First, the optimal decisions under the two contracts from the perspectives of both the manufacturer and the retailer are determined. Second, circumstances under whic...

We document some recent changes in the market for loan sales. We use a Tobit model to characterize the determinants of loan sales and purchases by banks, relating quantities bought and sold to bank size, capital, risk, and fbnding mode. The results, though not definitive, broadly confirm the Pennacchi model of sales. Other data cast doubt on the importance of mergers and acquisitions for this m...

This paper analyzes an explicit protocol of contract negotiation between a principal who has all the bargaining power and an agent who holds some private information about his preferences. It extends the framework of the Coase conjecture to situations in which the seller and the buyer must determine the quantity or the quality of the good being sold. The results also provide a foundation for re...

In this article we present a framework to analyze the efficiency-enhancing impact of contingency contracts. At the beginning of the contract, market session in period 0, the seller announces a two-part tariff applicable to obtaining options on slots of his capacity. This entitles the buyer to a non-storable good or dated service provided by the seller. The buyer in turn decides how many options...

The Internet's simple best-effort packet-switched architecture lies at the core of its tremendous success and impact. Today, the Internet is firmly a commercial medium involving several competitive service providers and content providers. However, current Internet architecture neither allows (i) users to indicate their value choices at sufficient granularity, nor (ii) providers to manage risks ...

I examine the incentives of firms to communicate entry into an industry where the incumbent writes exclusionary, long-term contracts with consumers. The entrant’s information provision affects the optimal contract proposal by the incumbent and leads to communication incentives that are highly non-linear in the size of the innovation. Entry with small and medium-to-large innovations is announced...