IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jscmgt/v57y2021i4p26-62.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How Informal Exchanges Impact Formal Sourcing Collaboration (and What Supply Managers Can Do about It)

Author

Listed:
  • Jiachun Lu
  • Lutz Kaufmann
  • Craig R. Carter

Abstract

The interplay between informal and formal mechanisms has frequently been analyzed in the general management and supply chain management disciplines. The same is true for linkages between past and present events. However, the extant supply management literature largely conceptualizes formal cross‐functional sourcing collaborations as free from influences emanating from prior encounters. This compartmentalization is in sharp contrast to sociology and social psychology research, which demonstrates that overlooking previous interactions limits our understanding of team dynamics. Boundary‐spanning supply managers continually engage in formal and informal interactions with colleagues from other functions both before and during formal collaborations in sourcing teams. Our research focuses on the effects of informal exchanges that have taken place prior to the formal establishment of the sourcing team. We investigate how a colleague from another function reacts to a supply manager’s rejection of informal advice, and how the supply manager can mitigate the potential negative effects of this reaction on future formal sourcing collaborations. We use social exchange theory and impression management theory to derive hypotheses, a scenario‐based experiment to test the hypotheses, and a sequential explanatory strategy based on interviews to delve more deeply into the experimental findings. The results suggest that previous informal advice‐rejection reduces both an advisor’s willingness to provide formal advice to the advice‐receiving supply manager in an ensuing cross‐functional sourcing team and the expected cohesion of such a team, as compared to when the advice was heeded. We differentiate between five types of advisees’ mitigation strategies and find that the negative implications can be mitigated but that the degree of mitigation effectiveness partly depends on the advisor’s expertise level.

Suggested Citation

  • Jiachun Lu & Lutz Kaufmann & Craig R. Carter, 2021. "How Informal Exchanges Impact Formal Sourcing Collaboration (and What Supply Managers Can Do about It)," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 57(4), pages 26-62, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:jscmgt:v:57:y:2021:i:4:p:26-62
    DOI: 10.1111/jscm.12241
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/jscm.12241
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/jscm.12241?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hengchen Dai & Katherine L. Milkman & Jason Riis, 2014. "The Fresh Start Effect: Temporal Landmarks Motivate Aspirational Behavior," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 60(10), pages 2563-2582, October.
    2. Bozeman, Dennis P. & Kacmar, K. Michele, 1997. "A Cybernetic Model of Impression Management Processes in Organizations," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 69(1), pages 9-30, January.
    3. Kevin J. Dooley & Andrew H. Van de Ven, 1999. "Explaining Complex Organizational Dynamics," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 10(3), pages 358-372, June.
    4. Jesse Chandler & Danielle Shapiro, "undated". "Conducting Clinical Research Using Crowdsourced Convenience Samples," Mathematica Policy Research Reports c0fd2ad7be9c4bdb8b396aa7e, Mathematica Policy Research.
    5. Rob Cross & Lee Sproull, 2004. "More Than an Answer: Information Relationships for Actionable Knowledge," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 15(4), pages 446-462, August.
    6. Harvey, Nigel & Fischer, Ilan, 1997. "Taking Advice: Accepting Help, Improving Judgment, and Sharing Responsibility," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 70(2), pages 117-133, May.
    7. Peterson, Randall S. & Behfar, Kristin Jackson, 2003. "The dynamic relationship between performance feedback, trust, and conflict in groups: A longitudinal study," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 92(1-2), pages 102-112.
    8. Neil Stewart & Jesse Chandler & Gabriele Paolacci, "undated". "Crowdsourcing Samples in Cognitive Science," Mathematica Policy Research Reports c63e922cf7554604a919e1f18, Mathematica Policy Research.
    9. Fehr, Ryan & Gelfand, Michele J., 2010. "When apologies work: How matching apology components to victims' self-construals facilitates forgiveness," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 113(1), pages 37-50, September.
    10. Jay R. Galbraith, 1974. "Organization Design: An Information Processing View," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 4(3), pages 28-36, May.
    11. Stephanie Eckerd & Kenneth K. Boyer & Yinan Qi & Adam Eckerd & James A. Hill, 2016. "Supply Chain Psychological Contract Breach: An Experimental Study across National Cultures," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 52(3), pages 68-82, July.
    12. Yun Shin Lee & Yong Won Seo & Enno Siemsen, 2018. "Running Behavioral Operations Experiments Using Amazon's Mechanical Turk," Production and Operations Management, Production and Operations Management Society, vol. 27(5), pages 973-989, May.
    13. Elcio M. Tachizawa & Chee Yew Wong, 2015. "The Performance of Green Supply Chain Management Governance Mechanisms: A Supply Network and Complexity Perspective," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 51(3), pages 18-32, July.
    14. T. Russell Crook & Christopher W. Craighead & Chad W. Autry, 2017. "Hold Back or Held Back? The Roles of Constraint Mitigation and Exchange Diffusion on Power “Nonuse” in Buyer–Supplier Exchanges," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 53(2), pages 10-21, April.
    15. Felix Reimann & Tobias Kosmol & Lutz Kaufmann, 2017. "Responses to Supplier-Induced Disruptions: A Fuzzy-Set Analysis," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 53(4), pages 37-66, October.
    16. Dabholkar, Pratibha A, 1994. "Incorporating Choice into an Attitudinal Framework: Analyzing Models of Mental Comparison Processes," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 21(1), pages 100-118, June.
    17. Fisher, Robert J, 1993. "Social Desirability Bias and the Validity of Indirect Questioning," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 20(2), pages 303-315, September.
    18. Joseph K. Goodman & Gabriele Paolacci, 2017. "Crowdsourcing Consumer Research," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 44(1), pages 196-210.
    19. Laura Poppo & Kevin Zheng Zhou & Julie J. Li, 2016. "When can you trust “trust”? Calculative trust, relational trust, and supplier performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(4), pages 724-741, April.
    20. Yaniv, Ilan, 2004. "Receiving other people's advice: Influence and benefit," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 93(1), pages 1-13, January.
    21. Linda Argote & Bill McEvily & Ray Reagans, 2003. "Managing Knowledge in Organizations: An Integrative Framework and Review of Emerging Themes," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 49(4), pages 571-582, April.
    22. Lenth R. V., 2001. "Some Practical Guidelines for Effective Sample Size Determination," The American Statistician, American Statistical Association, vol. 55, pages 187-193, August.
    23. Driedonks, Boudewijn A. & Gevers, Josette M.P. & van Weele, Arjan J., 2014. "Success factors for sourcing teams: How to foster sourcing team effectiveness," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 288-304.
    24. Kathryn Sharpe Wessling & Joel Huber & Oded Netzer, 2017. "MTurk Character Misrepresentation: Assessment and Solutions," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 44(1), pages 211-230.
    25. Jesse Chandler & Danielle Shapiro, "undated". "Conducting Clinical Research Using Crowdsourced Convenience Samples," Mathematica Policy Research Reports c9ae2ea1c9b249deadb0c7c0d, Mathematica Policy Research.
    26. Michael Rosen, 1991. "Coming To Terms With The Field: Understanding And Doing Organizational Ethnography," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 1-24, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lutz Kaufmann & Moritz Schreiner & Felix Reimann, 2023. "Narratives in supplier negotiations—The interplay of narrative design elements, structural power, and outcomes," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 59(1), pages 66-94, January.
    2. Marta Pizzetti & Lucia Gatti & Peter Seele, 2021. "Firms Talk, Suppliers Walk: Analyzing the Locus of Greenwashing in the Blame Game and Introducing ‘Vicarious Greenwashing’," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 170(1), pages 21-38, April.
    3. Overstreet, Robert E. & Morgan, Tyler R. & Laczniak, Russell N. & Daugherty, Patricia J., 2022. "Stemming the tide of increasing retail returns: Implications of targeted returns policies," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 551-562.
    4. Stephanie P. Thomas & Monique L. Ueltschy Murfield & Jacqueline K. Eastman, 2021. "I Wasn’t Expecting That! The Relational Impact of Negotiation Strategy Expectation Violations," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 57(4), pages 3-25, October.
    5. Stephanie Anne Nicole Bedard & Carri Reisdorf Tolmie, 2018. "Millennials' green consumption behaviour: Exploring the role of social media," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 25(6), pages 1388-1396, November.
    6. Gehrig, Thomas & Güth, Werner & Leví0nský, René & Popova, Vera, 2010. "On the evolution of professional consulting," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 76(1), pages 113-126, October.
    7. G. Rejikumar & Aswathy Asokan-Ajitha & Sofi Dinesh & Ajay Jose, 2022. "The role of cognitive complexity and risk aversion in online herd behavior," Electronic Commerce Research, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 585-621, June.
    8. Sheehan, Ben & Jin, Hyun Seung & Gottlieb, Udo, 2020. "Customer service chatbots: Anthropomorphism and adoption," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 14-24.
    9. Patt, Anthony G. & Bowles, Hannah Riley & Cash, David W., 2006. "Mechanisms for Enhancing the Credibility of an Adviser: Prepayment and Aligned Incentives," Working Paper Series rwp06-010, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    10. Gino, Francesca, 2008. "Do we listen to advice just because we paid for it? The impact of advice cost on its use," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 107(2), pages 234-245, November.
    11. John Hulland & Jeff Miller, 2018. "“Keep on Turkin’”?," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 46(5), pages 789-794, September.
    12. Abigail B. Schneider & Bridget Leonard, 2022. "From anxiety to control: Mask‐wearing, perceived marketplace influence, and emotional well‐being during the COVID‐19 pandemic," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(1), pages 97-119, March.
    13. Ajay Agrawal & Christian Catalini & Avi Goldfarb & Hong Luo, 2018. "Slack Time and Innovation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(6), pages 1056-1073, December.
    14. Najafi-Tavani, Zhaleh & Robson, Matthew J. & Zaefarian, Ghasem & Andersson, Ulf & Yu, Chong, 2018. "Building subsidiary local responsiveness: (When) does the directionality of intrafirm knowledge transfers matter?," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 53(4), pages 475-492.
    15. Alison Wood Brooks & Francesca Gino & Maurice E. Schweitzer, 2015. "Smart People Ask for (My) Advice: Seeking Advice Boosts Perceptions of Competence," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 61(6), pages 1421-1435, June.
    16. Thomas, Rodney W. & Esper, Terry L. & Stank, Theodore P., 2010. "Testing the Negative Effects of Time Pressure in Retail Supply Chain Relationships," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 86(4), pages 386-400.
    17. Bonaccio, Silvia & Dalal, Reeshad S., 2006. "Advice taking and decision-making: An integrative literature review, and implications for the organizational sciences," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 101(2), pages 127-151, November.
    18. Palmeira, Mauricio, 2020. "Advice in the presence of external cues: The impact of conflicting judgments on perceptions of expertise," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 156(C), pages 82-96.
    19. Tippmann, Esther & Sharkey Scott, Pamela & Mangematin, Vincent, 2014. "Subsidiary managers’ knowledge mobilizations: Unpacking emergent knowledge flows," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 431-443.
    20. Julia Hartmann & Sebastian Forkmann & Sabine Benoit & Stephan C. Henneberg, 2022. "A consumer perspective on managing the consequences of chain liability," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 58(4), pages 58-89, October.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:jscmgt:v:57:y:2021:i:4:p:26-62. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=1523-2409 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.