Ulf Elg

The Role of Networks and Matching in Market Entry to Emerging Retail Markets

Purpose – The purpose is to investigate how a retailer identifies critical network actors and gains their support when entering an emerging market. and to examine the role of a firms relationships with different types of actors on the new market.Design/methodology/approach – The study is of an exploratory nature, and based on an inductive and qualitative research method. A case study of IKEAs entry into Russia and China was conducted.Findings – It is argued that IKEAs entry into China and Russia was successful because of its dynamic utilization of matching and networking capabilities. The study explains how the support of relationships with, for example, political actors, interest groups and media supported the entry and the development of a positive consumer image.Research limitations/implications – This is a qualitative, in depth study and future research is needed in order to test the generalizability of the proposed framework and models.Practical implications – The paper shows how retail managers c...

Decision Making in Inter-firm Networks as a Political Process

A political-process-oriented approach to decision making is applied to an asymmetric network of firms, based on the notion of resource interdependen cies as the prime motivator of inter-firm exchange, and on a multi-dimensional view of power. Empirically, the paper draws upon a case study of the introduc tion of a computer-based decision aid (DPP) in the Swedish food industry. A theoretical model is developed, demonstrating how motives, structural condi tions and moves made by powerful as well as more dependent firms interact in shaping the decision process. A central theme is that structural change as well as the adoption of innovations within inter-firm networks is influenced by political activities during the decision process. The relevance of subtle moves aimed at influencing the perceptions and beliefs of other actors is espe cially stressed. The paper also suggests that more dependent firms do not necessarily give priority to balancing dependencies since they may actually jeopardize privileges not attainable within a less asymmetric structure.

Market driving multinationals and their global sourcing network

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore how a global supplier network can support and contribute to a market driving strategy. Theoretically, the paper contributes by integrating the market driving strategy and the network approach. IKEA is considered one of the leading market driving firms. The paper studies its activities in establishing supplier networks in Russia and Poland.Design/methodology/approach – This is an exploratory study of four suppliers of IKEA in Poland and Russia. Data are collected through 11 in‐depth interviews with IKEAs corporate and middle level managers and with managers and technicians from its suppliers in Russia and Poland. Results are drawn through matrix coding techniques and pattern matching.Findings – Findings confirm IKEAs market driving strategy and how it has been able to restructure the market and successfully develop an efficient supplier network as a part of its market driving strategy.Originality/value – Market driving approach has been suggested as a mor...

Networking When National Boundaries Dissolve: The Swedish Food Sector.

Managing a set of relationships to other firms is a complex task, since each relationship is likely to have consequences on the other ones. Highlights the co‐ordination of interorganizational ties during a process of internationalization, and the consequences that different types of relationships have on a firm’s overall relational marketing opportunities. Systematizes the relational issues that face a firm when the boundaries surrounding its home market network dissolve. Presents a framework which stresses four types of relationships and the interplay between them. Based on the notion that a firm must co‐ordinate the management of horizontal and vertical dependencies, and pursue new marketing opportunities while simultaneously safeguarding its original relations. Illustrates the significance of the framework and the interplay between the four relational issues, by the alliances presently developed by two Swedish food companies to organizations in other EU countries.

Knowledge and knowledge sharing in retail internationalization: IKEA's entry into Russia

Abstract Research on retail internationalization and internationalization in general acknowledges the relevance of knowledge management and organizational learning, even though there is a lack of discussion about the specific constructs and approaches that would be most fruitful. The central role of knowledge sharing in the internationalization process is rarely stressed. Furthermore, the specificities of retailing are likely to require special considerations if we are to be able to develop a theoretical as well as a practical understanding of knowledge and knowledge sharing in the internationalization process. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to develop a tentative approach to knowledge and knowledge sharing in international retailing based upon previous literature about knowledge sharing and the internationalization process and a case study of IKEAs entry into the Russian market.

Retail market orientation: A preliminary framework

Existing market orientation frameworks are based mostly on studies of manufacturers. Therefore, there is a need of a modified approach that acknowledges the special conditions for retailers. A framework is presented that includes both internal and relational aspects. Inter‐firm market orientation is presented as especially relevant for retailers. Antecedents to market orientation on a relationship level are also considered. Kohli and Jaworski’s three basic components are used, but the paper then discusses indicators that are especially useful in order to capture market orientation in a retail context. The suggested framework is further developed using a case study of a major British food retailer.

International alliances: how they contribute to managing the interorganizational challenges of globalisation

This paper systematizes the benefits that can be attained from international horizontal alliances in managing the different interorganizational challenges that arise in the process of globalization. It applies the perspective of a firm in the early phase of internationalization, dependent on preserving its domestic position. The paper emphasizes that an alliance can contribute not only through the direct strategic advantages it generates, but also by supporting the firms management of other interorganizational dependencies – horizontal as well as vertical, domestic as well as international. A matrix is presented which highlights the potential contributions of an international alliance with respect to four types of interorganizational challenges. The paper then discusses different types of factors that influence whether these potential contributions can be realized. The theoretical approach is finally applied in an analysis of the strategic international alliances of two Swedish food companies.

The inclusion of female PhD students in academia: A case study of a Swedish university department

The article introduces a framework for understanding womens entry into the academic world and how it interacts with internal departmental structures and practices. It presents three specific strategies applied by a group of women to gain a doctorate and acceptance in their department. Few previous studies have stressed womens strategies to cope with the organizational setting in academia. The article draws on previous research on women in academia and how organizational characteristics influence womens careers. It is based on a case study of a Swedish university department. Sweden is often recognized for creating favourable working conditions for women. Yet the Swedish academic world is very male-dominated at the top and even the medium level. It is also more common than in many other Western countries that academics stay on at the department where they graduated. Therefore, a PhD is often a first step in a career within that department.

Relationships as entry barriers. A network perspective

Recent literature on the European Union has focused to a great extent on the growing competition that the creation of the union was expected to generate on the former national markets. And yet, as we have moved into the new millennium, cross-border competition in many sectors is still at modest levels. One explanation for this could lie in firm-level strategies that involve relationship-building on the home-market and abroad with a view to creating new entry barriers to deregulated national markets. However, entry barrier literature, is dominated by economics-oriented frameworks in which relationships and collaboration take second place to horizontal competition. The adoption of a network perspective helps to reveal what happens when a market is deregulated. Anyone in Europe can become an actor overnight, whereas previously all kinds of regulations limited the number of actors, essentially, to the national ones. However, to be able to establish itself on the new market, a firm needs to establish relationships. The main aim of a defending firm is then to strengthen its relationships to prevent entrants from establishing a position in the national network. This article, mainly theoretical and using a network perspective, seeks to develop a framework for analysing relations as entry barriers. It also presents some general propositions as to how relationships, as entry barriers, may influence firm strategies in general, and discusses some implications for mainstream entry barrier research and for policy-makers. The empirical material, namely strategic developments in the Swedish food industry during the 1990s, has had a purely illustrative function.

The Role of Corporate Branding in a Market Driving Strategy

The market orientation literature distinguishes between market driven and market driving approaches. Although, most of the companies provided as examples of the latter approach have strong corporate brands, the corporate brand and associated brand values have not previously been considered as a basis for market driving. We argue that the corporate brand provides a further source of the “leap” in customer value required for a market driving approach. Through a case study of Ikea we illustrate how the core values of the brand guide the behaviour and activities of internal stakeholders and relationships with external stakeholders, and explore the interactions between the global brand values and local market level activities.