Ernest L. Nichols

Organizational Learning in Global Purchasing: A Model and Test of Internal Users and Corporate Buyers*

This research examines a model centered on organizational learning in purchasing. Two different studies are conducted to test the hypotheses among purchasing users (Study 1) and buyers (Study 2). The user sample consists of users representing 355 strategic business units of a Fortune 500 multinational corporation. The buyer sample consists of corporate buyers of 200 multinational corporations drawn from the membership directory of the National Association of Purchasing Management (NAPM). In each study, the focus is on the learning relationships between corporate buyers and internal users in the purchasing organization. Based on the two studies, the results suggest that organizational learning in the purchasing process is influenced by the organizational culture factors of localness, transformational leadership, and openness. Organizational learning has a positive effect on information processing in the purchasing system, which, in turn, has a positive influence on the cycle time of the purchasing process.

Predictors of relationships among buying and supplying firms

Analyses responses from over 700 suppliers about their relationships with one of five different manufacturing firms. Finds that co‐operation, years as supplier, and perceived dependence were the strongest predictors of the suppliers′ assessments of their business relationships with the manufacturing firms. Participation in joint programmes, ratings of the manufacturers′ quality programmes, and perceived dependence were the strongest predictors of the transfer of cost and technological information from the supplier to the buying firm. Discusses implications for companies seeking stronger relationships with their exchange partners, as well as information sharing behaviours from them.

The organizational buyer behavior learning organization

Abstract This study develops a framework of integrated propositions of organizational learning in organizational buyer behavior. The focus is on the communication activities and relationships between and within the strategic business units operating within the purchasing process. Field support for the proposed relationships is provided in a series of case studies based on interviews with 30 managers of 10 strategic business units of a major publicly owned global services organization. Implications are discussed based on the framework and the case studies.

A study of team orientation in global purchasing

Develops and tests a model of team orientation in the global purchasing process of a Fortune 500 multinational services organization. Based on a sample of 179 domestic and 167 international strategic business units (SBUs), the results indicate that team orientation in a purchasing unit is influenced by transformational leadership behaviors and the SBU user’s flexibility in mental models, which, in turn, affects customer orientation, relationship commitment, and cycle time in the process. The results appear to be strategically robust across the domestic and international purchasing settings, while the tactical implications of the results differ somewhat depending on the purchasing scenarios.

Meeting the demand for IT employees: can career choice be managed?

Statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics suggest that the demand for IT workers will continue to increase for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, the supply of IT graduates, as measured through a sample of universities in the southeastern U.S suggest that the number of IT majors appears to have leveled off at level that will not meet the demand. This paper presents one organizations efforts at designing an innovative student internship program that will hopefully both entice students to major in IT, but also serve as the conduit to place these IT majors into IT positions. Social Cognitive Career Theory, a variant of Banduras Social Cognitive Theory, is enlisted to help explain how such a program can serve both as a recruiting tool as well as a retention tool.

The Human Supply Chain: Mapping and Modeling the Flow of Human Capital for Navy 'Seabees'

We propose that managing the flow of people through an organization shares many of the same characteristics and challenges as managing the flow of materials through a traditional supply chain, and that supply chain management principles and practices can be fruitfully applied to talent management. In particular, we focus on the application of value stream mapping to aid organizations in understanding their people-related processes and identifying opportunities for improvement, and on the use of simulation modeling to help organizations evaluate and make decisions about improving talent flow. We discuss the applicability of supply chain principles to human capital, and then illustrate the applicability of value stream mapping and simulation modeling using a real-world case study of a large, complex organization.