Firms use repeated partnerships to gain the benefits of shared experience such as improved coordination, collaboration, and adaptation. However, there are downsides to partnering repeatedly, including vulnerability to opportunistic partners upon whom the firm becomes dependent, muted efficiency...

This paper considers how a firm's system of exchange skills including internal technical expertise and supplier governance mechanisms influence supplier performance, both independently and jointly. The core question is whether inter-firm governance mechanisms, including both relational and...

Substantial work has described downstream distribution systems for subsistence markets, but little is known about how upstream supply chains support these efforts. We suggest that a multinational corporation (MNC) entering these markets must resolve the institutional voids in product, labor, and...

Transaction cost economics, neoclassical economics, and the firm capabilities literatures propose theories of the firm that typically depict firm boundaries determined by a dichotomous choice: the make or buy decision. However, none of these theories presents a satisfying explanation as to why...

Interorganizational relationships (IORs) encompass a broad array of collaborative exchanges, including strategic alliances, joint ventures, buyer-supplier agreements, licensing, co-branding, franchising, cross-sector partnerships, networks, trade associations, and consortia. Scholarly work in...

Current theorizing assumes business models are developed to match firm resources and capabilities to existing market conditions. Consequently, entrepreneurs who successfully introduce new business models that significantly alter existing market preferences and structures are viewed as an...