James Sallis

Promoting Relationship Learning

The authors develop a theory of how management can develop and promote the learning capabilities of targeted customer–supplier relationships. The theory suggests that a supplier and a customer can improve their joint learning activities by facilitating information exchange, developing common learning arenas, and updating their behavior accordingly. The authors suggest that learning within a customer–supplier relationship cannot be mandated by either organization, but rather learning depends on both parties’ willingness to cooperate in joint learning activities. Management can promote relationship learning by cultivating a collaborative culture, formulating specific objectives for joint learning activities, and developing relational trust. However, as relational trust develops, the effectiveness of learning is reduced as a result of “hidden costs” of trust. The authors use data from 315 dyads to test the theory empirically, and they find that the learning capability of a relationship has a strong, positive effect on performance. Their results also provide insight into how to address the hidden costs of trust.

Choice of Foreign Market Entry Mode in Service Firms

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between foreign market entry modes and hard- and soft-service firms. The paper investigated which foreign market entry modes service firms opt for, and if this is influenced by systematic differences between types of service industries. A secondary purpose is to test the generalizability of the research findings from manufacturing sector to service sector firms. Design/methodology/approach - Our sample consisted of 140 Swedish service firms. These firms were investigated using a mailed questionnaire survey, and logistic regression analysis was used for testing the hypotheses. Findings - The statistical analysis shows that, in general, soft-service firms are much more likely than hard service firms to choose a high control entry mode over a low control entry mode. Furthermore, as cultural distance increases, the likelihood of this choice increases even more. Research limitations/implications - The implications are that while hard service suppliers can learn from the experience of manufacturing firms going abroad, soft services are unique. Given the importance for soft-service suppliers to interact with their foreign customers, they should opt for a high degree of control over their foreign market entry mode. In future research on foreign market entry mode selection in service finns more attention should be given to social processes that exercise control. Originality/value - The findings enhance knowledge on foreign market entry by service firms.

Market scanning for new service development

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a theoretical model of narrow and broad market scanning in a service industry, including short‐ and long‐term outcomes.Design/methodology/approach – In a cross‐sectional survey, structural equation modeling is used to test the hypotheses on a sample of 126 hotel managers in Norway.Findings – Given that services often involve direct interaction between the customer and the provider, customers play a more active role in the service development process. This has ramifications for how service firms scan their environment and, in turn, for incremental and discontinuous innovation. It is found that narrow and broad scanning each affect the new service development process in a unique way. Narrow scanning has a strong positive effect on profitability through incremental service adaptation; broad scanning has a weak but significant effect on profitability through incremental service adaptation, and broad scanning positively influences spin‐off knowledge.Re...

The moderating effects of need for cognition on drivers of customer loyalty

Purpose – While satisfaction, value, image, and credibility are commonly assumed to drive customer loyalty, there is nevertheless reason to question whether their effects vary across groups of consumers. This paper seeks to explore how individuals with contrasting need-for-cognition (NFC) levels differ in using memory-based information when forming behavioral intentions towards a current service provider. Design/methodology/approach – The authors tested the hypotheses by means of survey data from customers of retail banks, and applied two-group analysis using structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the moderating effects of NFC. Findings – Satisfaction positively affects loyalty for high NFCs, but not for low NFCs. Image is insignificant in both groups. Value positively affects loyalty for low NFCs, but not for high NFCs. Credibility has a positive effect for low NFCs, but not for high NFCs. Research limitations/implications – The limited sample size affects the power of the test methodology, but Chow-...

Processes and outcomes of distributor brand new product development: An exploratory examination

Purpose – Most new product development (NPD) studies focus on manufacturer brands; few consider distributor brands. The purpose of this paper to investigate whether NPD processes and outcomes differ between manufacturers and distributors.Design/methodology/approach – Interviews within the grocery industry in Norway and analysis of sales numbers from an AC Nielsen ScanTrack database illustrate that through different NPD processes manufacturers and distributors reach different outcomes.Findings – Distributors differ from manufacturers in the NPD process in several ways: more in‐store interaction resulting in very market‐driven products. They usually outsource technical development, and launch brands with substantially less market communication through fewer marketing channels. Distributors, who mostly develop copycat products of large volume manufacturer brands, have lower failure rates. More surprisingly, the paper reveals that distributor brands achieve faster growth in market share than manufacturer bran...

Extrinsic cues and Consumer Judgements of Food Product Introductions: The Case of Pangasius in Norway

In this article, the authors explore how the extrinsic cues corporate social responsibility, endorsement, and country of origin affect consumer evaluations of product quality, value, and expected product popularity for frozen Pangasius filets, a farmed fish product just recently introduced into the Norwegian market. The effects of these three variables are tested on purchase intentions. By means of a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial experiment in combination with survey data, the authors find that the three extrinsic cues under study had different effects on the evaluative variables. Furthermore, these variables all had positive and significant effects on purchase intentions. Hence, the general conclusion is that importers of new food products like Pangasius can benefit from focusing on extrinsic cues when the intrinsic cues are hard to evaluate or are unknown. Through the indirect effect on purchase intentions, extrinsic cues play an important role when consumers judge unfamiliar and new products.