Torger Reve

Organization and governance in construction

Abstract Transaction cost analysis provides a viable theoretical perspective for the study of organization and governance in construction. The trilateral governance of a client, engineering consultant, and contractors commonly observed in industrial construction projects is detailed. The implications of a professional relationship between the client and the consultant and a clan-type relationship between the consultant and the contractors are discussed within the context of large construction projects.

Asymmetrical deployment of specific assets and contractual safeguarding in industrial purchasing relationships

The marketing literature based on transaction cost analysis (TCA) has only scantily explored whether the identity of the party (i.e., the buyer or the supplier) that employs specific assets is of importance in instances when alignments of contractual safeguards of specific assets occur in buyer ‐ supplier relationships. Imbalanced deployment of specific assets highlights the problem of asymmetrical dependence in purchasing relationships. This article draws heavily on TCA and related works in marketing in an attempt to analyze and compare interfirm dependence, exposure to opportunism, and formalization of purchase contracting (FORM) across channel dyads where the buyer and the supplier respectively carry out relation-specific investments. In particular, an investigation of 161 industrial purchasing relationships demonstrated that the level of formalized purchase contracting was significantly greater when the supplier unilaterally deployed specific assets in a relationship as opposed to situations where mainly the buyer employed assets at risk. This and other findings clarify the issue of asymmetrical dependence structures in industrial marketing relationships. D 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.

Contracts and Commitment: Economic and Sociological Perspectives on Employment Relations

This paper proposes a contract model of employment relations that integrates insights from economic and sociological perspectives on labor market transactions. The utility of the contract model is illustrated empirically using a large data set on organizations and their employees in U.S. and Japanese manufacturing industries. The results are consistent with many transaction cost and agency theory predictions, though they also indicate the need to supplement these economic theories with sociological explanations based on political, cultural, and other institutional differences.

Forming strategic alliances for asset development

This paper focuses on the formation stages of interfirm cooperation and adopts a processual approach. A four-step framework is suggested. The first step represents the decision of the focal company to cooperate or to protect its assets. The second step addresses the problem of choosing a development path. In the third step the focal company has to choose a partner or partners. The fourth step represents the decision about how companies should work together. The main idea underlying the four-step framework is to combine strategic, economic and social approaches when forming strategic alliances. More importantly, the study shows that cooperation between companies can comprise the unique assets of both parties and that ways can be found of protecting these assets while also including them in cooperative undertakings.

Organizational buying in the offshore oil industry

Abstract A model of organizational buying is advanced based on interview data from the offshore oil industry. The variable linking complexity and organizational participation was the criteria of evaluation in the buying process.

Price, authority and trust in international distribution channel relationships

This paper focuses on inter-firm transactions in international distribution channels. Special interest is paid to the governance of inter-firm transactions. We argue that price, authority and trust represent different governance mechanisms, which can be combined into a governance vector. Price reflects the use of market mechanisms, while authority means the reliance on organizational mechanisms such as rules and procedures. Trust, on the other hand, implies monitoring transactions by social norms and the development of personal relationships. A model is developed and empirically explored in the context of international distribution of Norwegian farmed salmon.

Guanxi, structural hole and closure

Purpose – Understanding Chinas economic success requires insights into its peculiar guanxi‐based market. Many scholars are confused about how to apply Western network theories to the guanxi‐based Chinese market. This paper aims to contribute to this comprehensive topic by theoretically exploring the differences among three fundamental network concepts: guanxi; structural hole; and closure.Design/methodology/approach – Following Heide, the present paper categorises networks into three dimensions: network initiation, network maintenance and network termination, each based on different time phases. The three fundamental network concepts in every dimension are compared, laying out their similarities and dissimilarities in detail.Findings – Although each of the three networks are initiated either naturally or artificially, guanxi is closely embedded in Chinese institutions. Unlike structural hole and closure, which can be applied at any level, guanxi is a special relation that only exists at the individual le...

Theoretical and methodological advances in cluster research

Purpose – This paper aims to assess the dissemination of cluster ideas advanced in the “Competitive Advantage of Nations” and three subsequent national studies and the reasons for their substantial public policy impact in Norway. Design/methodology/approach – The paper presents the theoretical and methodological novelties of each of the national studies, the inclusive study-organizing principle used and public policy impact. Findings – The papers finds that the dissemination of cluster thinking and the development of a successful cluster-based industrial policy in Norway is largely a function of the nature and extent of the cluster research efforts that took place in Norway. The national cluster research projects mobilized all the key industrial and governmental actors in a very effective way, making studies with both rigor and relevance. Due to advanced and demanding policy makers, the studies also evolved in terms of the theoretical models and methodologies used. Originality/value – The paper contribute...

Relations among Clusters

Abstract Many papers on economic geography have analysed industrial clusters, but few have addressed the relations among clusters. This paper discusses three types of relations among clusters to better understand why they occur and the roles that human resources, capital, knowledge and markets play in such relations. It provides theoretical ideas, empirical illustrations and suggestions for future research on the relations among clusters in a globalized economy.

Relations among Clusters in Six Chinese City Regions

Despite the considerable number of papers that have discussed industrial clusters, it is surprising that there is little research evidence on relations among clusters. This article collects longitudinal data on three low-tech and two high-tech industrial clusters in six cities in the dynamic Pearl River Delta of the Peoples Republic of China. The findings provide empirical support to both the Marshall–Arrow–Romer model, which argues for the importance of homogeneous (specialized) clusters and the Jacobs model, which argues for the importance of heterogeneous (diversified) clusters. Both homogeneous and heterogeneous clusters in the same region influence one anothers cluster size and economic output.