1st Edition
Business-to-Business A Global Network Perspective
Contemporary business-to-business (B2B) industries consist of networks of customers, competitors and other stakeholders. Firms which manage their relationships with these important stakeholders are more likely to enjoy a sustained competitive advantage in the international business environment. This book is the first to provide a comprehensive overview of the field from a broad and accessible perspective.
The authors bring an authoritative, scholarly understanding to the subject, taking readers through the entire process of creating, developing and maintaining B2B networks. Case studies illustrating each chapter include: Apple, Panasonic, Johnson & Johnson, Epson and Samsung.
In providing a single and explicit established academic framework for understanding business networks in a global setting, this book is vital reading for students and researchers involved with international management, international marketing and strategic management.
Chapter 1: An introduction to Business-to-Business 1.1 Dynamics of the global business environment 1.1.1 Opportunities 1.1.2 Challenges 1.2 Understanding business-to-business as networks 1.2.1 Why a business-to-business focus in this book? 1.2.2 Strategic imparatives in a business-to-business context 1.2.3 A relationship perspective to business-to-business 1.3 The concept of business-to-business relationships 1.3.1 Relationship types 1.3.2 Interaction within relationships 1.4 Corporate social responsibility and business network relationships 1.5 Relationships, portfolios, and networks - defining the level of analysis Chapter 2: Characteristics of Business-to-Business Markets 2.1 The business-to-business product 2.2 Industrial buying behavior 2.3 Structural aspects of business-to-business markets 2.3.1 The business-to-business value chain 2.3.2 Derived demand 2.3.3 Business market concentration 2.4 The buying and selling center as a part of global integrated value chains 2.4.1 The buying center 2.4.2 The selling center 2.5 Implications for management and marketing practice 2.6 Chapter Case: Supplier relationships of Apple Inc., USA Chapter 3: Developing Business Relationships 3.1 Trust and commitment as antecedents of relationship development 3.2 Value in business-to-business relationships 3.2.1 Value dimensions 3.2.2 Value as the fulfillment of relationship functions 3.2.3 Value perceptions 3.2.4 Joint value creation and the service-dominant logic 3.3 Building business-to-business relationships as a portfolio strategy 3.4 Chapter Case: IPS Alpha Technology (Japan) - building relationships of trust and commitment over time Chapter 4: Analyzing Business-to-Business Industry Networks 4.1 Positioning in business-to-business networks 4.2 Network terms, variables, and relationship interdependencies 4.3 Network properties and structural characteristics of networks 4.3.1 Relationship intensity 4.3.2 Relationship reciprocity 4.3.3 Clarity of expectations from the actors’ relationship 4.3.4 Multiplicity and multiplexity of relationships 4.3.5 Structural characteristics 4.4 Network centrality, eigenvector, betweenness, and closeness centrality 4.5 Global business-to-business networks: Implications for the management 4.6 Chapter Case: A network analysis of the global solar photovoltaic industry Chapter 5: Networks and Innovation 5.1 The innovation process 5.2 Firm-specific resources and capabilities 5.3 Capabilities for innovation 5.3.1 Idea generation capability 5.3.2 New product and process development capability 5.3.3 Technological capability 5.3.4 Market capability 5.4 Cooperative innovation in networks 5.4.1 Why firms use external sources of innovation 5.4.2 Knowledge transfer between network partners 5.4.3 Inter-organizational learning for innovation 5.4.4 The effect of network configuration on firm innovativeness 5.5 Chapter Case: Johnson & Johnson (USA) and the network-based accumulation of technological knowledge Chapter 6: Networks and International Market Entry 6.1 Uncertainty and market entry 6.2 Contractual arrangements related to foreign market entry 6.2.1 Export 6.2.2 Licensing 6.2.3 Franchising 6.2.4 Contract manufacturing 6.3 Market entry through cooperation 6.3.1 International joint venture 6.3.2 Absorptive capacity 6.4 Market entry through foreign direct investment 6.5 Chapter Case: Network driven market entry modes of Seiko Epson Corporation (Japan) Chapter 7: Networks, Early Internationalization, and the Role of the Entrepreneur 7.1 Internationalization and the factor of time 7.1.1 International incumbents and young internationalizing firms 7.1.2 Small- and medium-sized firms, international new ventures, and born global firms 7.2 The role of the entrepreneur 7.2.1 Personal relationships 7.2.2 The value of personal relationships in times of economic crisis 7.3 Chapter Case: ‘Powertron GmbH’ (Germany): An early internationalizing SME Chapter 8: Implementing a Relationship Perspective 8.1 Conventional projects 8.1.1 Project mission 8.1.2 Project stakeholder relationships 8.1.3 Project specification 8.2 Agile project management 8.2.1 Methodology 8.2.2 Project stakeholder relationships 8.3 Six Sigma project management 8.3.1 Customer relationship focus 8.3.2 Six Sigma process steps 8.4 Chapter Case: Six Sigma Management at Samsung (South Korea)
Biography
Mario Glowik Professor of International Strategic Management at the Berlin School of Economics and Law, Germany.
Sarah Maria Bruhs is Research Associate at The Free University of Berlin, Germany.
'This book provides a comprehensive treatment of "global" B2B networks at theoretical as well as practitioner levels. I am particularly impressed by the book's balance between depth and breadth, and highly recommend this relevant and timely volume to anyone interested in this important and growing area of business activity.' - Hemant Merchant, University of South Florida, USA
'Applause to Mario and Sarah Maria's book! It thoroughly understands the B2B market, both academically and pragmatically, and is theoretically rigorous, yet still highly readable. Mario and Sarah Maria's book gives us not only what happened, but also why it happened in international B2B markets. It is the prominent, nothing else.' - Masaaki Takemura, Professor, Meiji University, Japan
'Business students, researchers as well as practitioners will find valuable insights into concepts of and mechanisms in business-to-business networks in a global marketplace. Conceptual clarity, illustrative examples and comprehensive case studies make this textbook an indispensable resource for the field of business-to-business marketing and management.' - Anja Geigenmüller, Professor Ilmenau University of Technology, Germany
'This book provides an excellent overview of academic insights into the management of business-to-business networks. In addition, it provides illustrative cases that help to understand the practical challenges that managers face when trying to implement a business-to-business network strategy. As a result, this book is valuable for both academics and practitioners who are interested in phenomena such as open innovation, co-creation and network collaboration.' - Dries Faems, Professor, The University of Groningen, the Netherlands
'In light of global competition, this new book by Glowik and Bruhs allows for the interpretation of the new global strategies, both corporate and competitive. Tracing the main literature on the "competition-cooperation relationship literature" between market actors and focusing on the implications of their analysis throughout the use of case studies, the book offers a deep understanding of the importance of relationships in the actual and complex context of the development of companies and markets.' - Marco Tutino, Roma Tre University, Italy
'This book provides an extensive overview of Business-to-Business networks and gives a well-structured outline of the relevant factors of success. They look at a wide set of impact factors: from behavior and trust to six sigma, innovation and portfolio management, yet the reader doesn’t get lost in the details and the case studies are very helpful. I highly recommend this for managers as well as for students to enable them to initiate and manage global networks successfully.' - Günter Hofbauer, Technische Hochschule Ingolstadt, Germany
'Effective new business models in the global economy are emerging which match digital and physical transactions to form temporary and permanent global business networks. The use of new technologies makes it possible to conduct business electronically. Business to business models evolve in the electronic market place. Drawing from their extensive experience, Mario Glowik and Sarah Maria Bruhs outline the main key areas of evolution of business to business models that will change business in future, providing a wealth of practical examples and business strategies.' - Fiorenza Belussi, Padua University, Italy
'Business-to-Business from a network perspective is a useful resource for any practitioner or student of international business. Explanatory theories are well balanced against insightful cases illustrating the multilevel complexities inherent in dynamic business networks.' - Peter Zettinig, Research Fellow, University of Turku, Finland
