Annalisa Tunisini

Exploiting and creating knowledge through customer–supplier relationships: lessons from a case study

Through an in-depth analysis of a customer–supplier relationship in the information technology market, we illustrate the complexities of vertical coordination processes. We focus on the strategic and organizational criteria that suppliers and customers must design in order to favour interaction between their heterogeneous competencies. In the examined case, the supplier provides general purpose knowledge to be utilized and enriched through the contact with, and fertilization by, application abilities available at the customer level.

Mid-sized manufacturing companies : the new driver of Italian competitiveness

The structure of the Italian industry is characterized by the prevailing of small sized companies and the presence of very few large companies. For a long time a shared conviction was diffused among scholars and practitioners that the strength and the safety of Italian industry were based on the industrial districts, i.e. a system of interdependent and co-localized small companies deriving their competitive power from an effective and efficient division of labor. This book stresses the idea that the new, vital and promising phenomenon for the competitiveness of the Italian industry is now that centered on the mid-sized companies and on the system of their interconnected firms that represent a constituent part of their business model. Mid-sized companies, frequently emerging from the context of an industrial district, that have grown and developed internationally thanks to an original business model that combines the advantages of both the large and the small size. These companies do represent a strong entrepreneurial force that accompanies the district force that has characterized and made famous the Italian industry worldwide. The book analyzes the business models and the strategies implemented by a number of Italian successful mid-sized companies that have registered very high growth rate in the period 2006-2008 and had then to face the dramatic changes of the economic and competitive context. A quantitative and qualitative analysis of the phenomenon of the mid-sized companies is reported in the book with consequences in terms of management and industrial policies. The book is structured in three parts: the first part introduces the debate existing in literature on the role of the mid-sized companies, setting the basis for the guidelines and the interpretative framework developed in the book. The second part gives a quantitative interpretation of the phenomenon, analyzing the Italian mid-sized companies according to their competitive and financial performances. The third part of the book deeps into the details of the business models of 23 mid-sized companies focalizing on their: trajectories of growth; competitive and innovation strategies; inter-organizational network, international strategies and positioning.

A value perspective on relationship portfolios

As portfolio models have evolved in the area of business marketing scholars have turned their attention from traditional product-based and transaction-oriented portfolios to portfolios based on business relationship considerations. However, the conceptualization of relationship portfolios has remained vague, and the applications of these analyses in business practice are quite limited. In a parallel stream of studies, the Industrial Network Approach (INA) has increasingly explored the concept of relationship value and highlighted the need to take into consideration the interdependent and dynamic features of business relationships as well as the phenomenological and situational nature of value perceptions. Although judgements in terms of relationship value applied to a set of business relationships are foundations of portfolio investment decisions, the connection between the two streams of research has not yet been explored in depth. This study introduces five critical elements of relationship value stemming from INA that have important consequences for business relationship portfolio management. Developing the concept of Relationship Value Portfolio provides the foundation for a discussion about the need to integrate the two fields of research – namely, relationship value and relationship portfolios – into a more grounded conceptual framework. This framework allows for propositions to be developed, which contribute to enriching the theoretical debate on both streams while offering important implications for managerial practice.

Made in Italy”.The Italian contribution to the development of business marketing discipline and practices

ABSTRACT Purpose: The authors analyze the main contributions of Italian literature in the business-to-business field as it relates to the characteristics of the Italian industrial manufacturing system. Even if not directly labeled as business-to-business marketing, Italian and other scholars who have studied Italian business experiences have largely faced the topic of business marketing management with innovative approaches and distinctive benchmark examples. In particular, the analysis of the Italian contribution to business marketing relies on the specific nature of the Italian industrial structure as recognized by the international literature. In this respect, the authors argue that three main areas of interest progressively arose from the peculiarities of the Italian industrial system: industrial districts, subcontractors/subcontracting relationships, and mid-sized manufacturing companies. These three research topics have been thoroughly investigated by both Italian and international scholars. They analyze the contributions that Italian researchers provided to advance business marketing discipline and practices. Methodology/approach: The authors reviewed the literature of the main contributions developed in the three individual areas of research that have a strong focus on the Italian experience. The methodology was in three steps. First, the review planning process was guided by the three areas of research that were assumed to have a major contribution to business marketing discipline. Second, the SCOPUS database was used as a primary source for paper identification by using a keywords search method. Third, the dataset was refined by excluding non relevant contributions (not focused on business management and marketing or not specifically dealing with the three areas of interest) and validating/integrating the original dataset by using other complementary sources (e.g., Google Books, Google Scholar). Finally, a set of 268 products were taken into account in the analysis. Findings: The results of the analysis suggest that the Italian contribution to the field of business marketing is valuable in light of the three chosen areas of research. These three empirical arenas—industrial districts, subcontractors, and mid-sized firms—contribute to providing a better understanding of business market structure and dynamics as well as the improvement of business marketing studies. Originality/value: The article is an original and first attempt to elaborate and reflect on the contribution of the Italian business experience literature to the advances of business marketing discipline. The authors develop an original comprehensive review of “Made in Italy” business marketing and management research that has not been used in previous studies. The review will increase international knowledge of Italian practices and theoretical frameworks that can contribute to the reinforcement of the business-to-business marketing discipline.

Innovative and networked business functions: customer-driven procurement

Purpose – This paper aims to highlight the evolving and articulated role of purchasing as a “mediator” between the company’s customers and suppliers, thus showing the opportunities connected to the evolution of purchasing from a business function to a strategic business for companies. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reports on an in-depth analysis to investigate the case of IBM, which turned to the offering of services to transform itself from a pure product manufacturer into an outstanding service provider. Findings – The paper shows that as the company’s business strategy becomes focused on client value, its success is strongly dependent on the development of a customer-driven procurement. The evolution of the role of procurement is accompanied by the growing integration between the company’s procurement and sales functions, as well as by the growing interconnection and interaction between the procurement function and the company’s clients. Originality/value – The paper applies the conceptual ap...

Formalizing in business networks as a tool for industrial policy

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the issue of “formalization” in business networks as an instrument of industrial policy. Formalization in business networks is not a debated topic but it can affect organizational and inter-organizational dynamics considerably. The aim of the paper is to understand if the introduction of a normative tool that enhances formalized networks can be effective to promote network aggregations among SMEs. Second, the aim is to understand if this formalization supports good-working networks, i.e., capable to introduce new products or to enter new markets/customers. Design/methodology/approach The paper refers to a review of the literature and mainly to an empirical research on formalized network contracts (NCs) that have been conducted in the latest two years. This research has used both secondary data, collected accessing to databases and reports given by institutions and the government, and primary data, collected in specific direct interviews. These interviews have been concerned both institutions such as Chamber of Commerce, Confindustria and the Ministry of Economic Development and the Small Business Association, and 15 cases of NCs in Italy. Findings The formalization has consequences both internally and externally to the NC. Internally it can act as an element to reduce ambiguity and building elements of “fragile trust,” in the absence of basic elements of “resilient trust” and in the presence of changes in the competitive environment. Externally, the formalization through the NC allows the policy maker to identify more clearly companies’ aggregations in order to let them being destination of specific industrial policies. However even if the formalization has in some cases enhanced new networks’ creation, in many cases formalization has generated positive results when companies had already experienced networking outside the frame of the NC. Research limitations/implications Further research on formalization in networks should be developed following the “history” of formalized networks over time in order to understand how much formalization should be used as a long-term tool for industrial policy. Practical implications The paper can be useful both for companies that want to sign a NC and for the institutions developing industrial policies devoted to support companies’ aggregations in the form of NC. Originality/value The paper presents a new legal tool – the “NC” – introduced in 2009 by the Italian Government to enhance firms’ aggregation; second, the paper debates the topic of formalization in networks that is not much debated in literature; and finally, the paper also adopts an industrial economic approach and is among the few attempts to integrate industrial policies and industrial marketing and purchasing thinking.

Marketing e intangibles per la competitività delle medie imprese italiane

Il paper analizza il ruolo del marketing soprattutto nelle sue componenti piu intangibili nelle strategie competitive delle medie imprese industriali italiane di successo. In particolare, si individuano le scelte di posizionamento di queste imprese e si esamina attraverso quali politiche di branding, pricing e comunicazione e quali relazioni di canale esse sono realizzate. Finalita ultima del paper e l’identificazione dei modelli di successo nella gestione del marketing e l’analisi dei casi mira ad evidenziare come a) l’eccellenza di marketing segue a un generale recupero di competitivita che si basa sul distacco dai modelli imprenditoriali tradizionali e sull’adesione a un modello d’impresa manageriale che gestisce direttamente il rapporto con i mercati, b) l’eccellenza di marketing esprime di rado una via italiana al marketing in senso stretto, quanto piuttosto una corretta applicazione dei principi del marketing tout court in grado di valorizzare il patrimonio di risorse cui sono applicati. Sul piano metodologico il paper si avvale dell’analisi dei risultati di 29 casi di studio di medie imprese con performance superiori alle medie dei rispettivi settori (alimentari, prodotti per la persona, prodotti per la casa, meccanica leggera, cantieristica). La ricerca e stata promossa dalla Societa Italiana di Marketing e ad essa hanno partecipato 29 gruppi di ricerca di 21 atenei diversi.

Cambiamenti nel comportamento d’acquisto delle medie imprese industriali: un’indagine sul settore meccanico

Questo lavoro si propone di presentare i risultati di una ricerca condotta su un campione di imprese meccaniche italiane di medie dimensioni finalizzata a individuare ed a comprendere i maggiori cambiamenti che stanno intervenendo nei loro comportamenti d’acquisto. In particolare l’attenzione si focalizza sui processi di cambiamento nelle strategie e nelle politiche di approvvigionamento che si traducono in una profonda revisione dell’organizzazione e della modalita di gestione delle relazioni con i fornitori. L’articolo mette in luce come le nuove sfide poste dai mercati internazionali con i quali le medie imprese analizzate si confrontano implicano una crescente criticita dei processi di approvvigionamento e delle relazioni con i fornitori e piu in generale la necessita di una riconfigurazione della supply chain ove esse operano nonche strategie volte a rafforzare e ad affermare il loro ruolo ed il loro posizionamento nella stessa. Key words: industria meccanica, comportamento d’acquisto del cliente industriale, supply chain management

Customer-driven Supply Chains under IMP lens: a systematic literature review and conceptual framework.

Purpose This paper explores the most recent contributions to interpreting customer-driven supply chains (CDSCs) under the IMP lens, focusing on the main characteristics that emerged from a review of the relevant literature. The purpose of this paper is to offer a holistic interpretative framework of major topics covered by the CDSC literature, highlighting both some shared issues and emerging elements using the IMP conceptual framework’s ARA (actor bonds, activity links and resource ties) model. Design/methodology/approach The paper reviewed the literature by searching selected journals using a combination of specific keywords in order to find the most recent contributions on the CDSC theme. The presented analysis allowed an interpretation of the findings through a conceptual framework. Findings The findings suggest that the ARA model could be a useful method through which to structure an interpretation of the most recent contributions, in both IMP and the general literature, on the discipline. In particular, three streams of research were identified: the customer closeness strategy, relational strategy, and intra-organizational strategy. Research limitations/implications These clusters can be deeply analyzed using the major knowledge on CDSC dynamics. By studying these issues in an integrated way, the implications in terms of competition, generalization of results, constraints, problems, and difficulties of the customer-driven approach could be enhanced. Limitations are the restricted period of time and the absence of empirical research. Practical implications Each identified cluster presents the tools that have to be improved in order to implement the customer-driven orientation, which increases the performance and brings an added value for the same supply chain. For this reason, an emerging need is to develop studies on the empirical side that consider the implications in terms of an integrated framework among the three issues. Originality/value The paper increases the understanding of CDSCs by using conceptual and interpretative tools developed by the IMP literature. The ARA model allows the creation of a conceptual framework that clarifies, in a holistic way, the most important characteristics that have to be developed in order to improve the CDSC perspective. Recommendations and a research agenda for the implementation of the customer-driven view are derived.

Il contratto di rete: opportunità e trappole da evitare

Il lavoro discute le condizioni di efficacia del contratto di rete e, in particolare, a quali condizioni il contratto di rete puo essere un strumento efficace a supporto della strategia competitiva. Si ritiene che il contratto di rete sia un abito confortevole per chi abbia gia assorbito il valore profondo della cooperazione inter-aziendale, che consiste nelle ragioni strategiche per cui un certo numero di piccole imprese puo acquisire un vantaggio aggregandosi. L’aggregazione deve fondarsi su un progetto concreto e condiviso che indirizza e da priorita all’azione delle imprese. Dopo avere introdotto il contratto di rete nel percorso di crescita tipico della piccola e media impresa italiana (il modello di crescita relazionale), il lavoro evidenzia come il contratto di rete possa impattare sulle dinamiche relazionali proprie delle reti inter-organizzative che vedono coinvolte le imprese sul mercato. Si mettono in luce le caratteristiche principali e le criticita delle reti inter-organizzative e si evidenzia come il contratto di rete possa consentire di superare queste criticita. Successivamente si sottolineano i punti di forza delle reti tra imprese e si discutono le trappole da evitare qualora le imprese si relazionano a mezzo di contratti di rete.