Ariane von Raesfeld

A start-up in interaction with its partners

Purpose – Start-ups are companies that are not yet embedded in a pre-existing network of relationships. Studies that researched how start-ups act in their relationships focused on just one type of action and assumed that start-ups are autonomous in how they choose to act. However, organisational action in relationships is both interactive and dynamic. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate how a start-up interacts with its partners over time. Design/methodology/approach – The research aim is addressed through a longitudinal case study of a start-up in the medical device business. It was analysed how this start-up and its six key partners acted and reacted during 18 interactions episodes, what triggered these actions and what the outcomes of their actions were. In addition, the researchers explored if and how the subsequent episodes were related. Findings – First, the case shows that the past and the future affect current episodes. Second, it shows that action was triggered by both internal...

How Should a Small Company Interact in its Business Network to Sustain its Exchange Effectiveness

In this paper we followed the dynamic alignment between networking approaches and business development of a small firm in the printing industry, with the aim of investigating how a small firm embedded in its network can deal with networking paradoxes when developing its business, such that it efficiently maintains its existing business and keeps its flexibility to develop new business. The empirical contribution of this paper lies in the use of a longitudinal case study that enables us to show the intermediary functions of counterparts along the path of a small firms business and network development. Three mediating functions of counterparts are introduced: the relating, joining and insulating functions. In the study we saw that joining functions of intermediaries were especially used in opportunity creation, while insulating functions of intermediaries were especially used in opportunity exploitation. The case study indicates an evolution into an efficient sales network with an important partner who is not willing to develop new business with Atlas. An explanation for the unwillingness to see the focal firm as a development partner might be found in its network position, reflected in the moderate technological and business integration of their product in customer applications, the weak contact of focal firm with end users, and the insulating function of distributors and original equipment manufacturers, who isolated the focal firm from end users. Managerial implications are drawn and will be investigated in further research.

More with Less: Sensemaking of Controversies in Youth Care Reforms

In Chapter 9, von Raesfeld and van der Helm develop a framework to analyze sensemaking of controversies in innovation processes. Drawing on their framework, the authors investigate the controversies that arise when a group of municipalities used several management instruments to enhance innovation in a youth care system. Municipalities and care providers socio-cognitively constructed controversies: however, the engagement in the controversies was only marginal. The authors claim that the combination of socio-cognitive construction and the limited engagement in controversies hindered innovation in youth care. Explanations for limited engagement are the use of espoused theories instead of theories in use, the uncontested position of power taken by the municipalities, and the emergence of controversies that are not crucial to the actors.

Third actors initiating business relationships for a medical device start-up: effect on network embedding and venture creation processes

It is widely recognised that it is essential to the survival and growth of start-ups to initiate, develop and maintain business relationships (e.g. Aaboen, Dubois & Lind, 2011; La Rocca, Ford & Snehota, 2013). Only through establishing business relationships can start-ups embed themselves in the pre-existing developing, producing and using setting (Hakansson, Ford, Gadde, Snehota & Waluszewski, 2009). However, start-ups often experience difficulties in initiating the necessary business relationships (Prashantham & Birkinshaw, 2008). To cope with this challenge, Oukes and Raesfeld (2014) found that a start-up used the mediating function of its partners to initiate new relationships. They showed that after it was made aware of, introduced to or referred to a potential partner by one of its existing partners, the start-up could mobilise valuable resources from new partners.