Inter-Organizational Theory

Question 1

Which article?

Answer 1

Fink et al (2006)

Question 2

The customer’s decision to form a relational inter-organizational exchange is
negatively related to supplier resource concentration”.

Answer 2

Higher levels of resource concentration lower uncertainty
levels, resulting in a lower likelihood of relational tie formation.

Question 3

The customer’s decision to form a relational inter-organizational exchange is positively related to asset specificity.

Answer 3

Both RDT and TCE address the subject of the firms’ dependence on external organizations. RDT explicitly defines dependence as the degree of external control of the organization.
Both theories, then, recognize the importance of external resources, the need for discretion over resource allocation, and the importance of resource concentration.

Question 4

The customer’s decision to form a relational inter-organizational exchange is positively related to supplier resource availability uncertainty.

Answer 4

Firms, which are in environments with low resource uncertainty, have reduced interdependence and less conflict due to their relative ease of their access to required resources.

Question 5

The customer’s decision to form a relational inter-organizational exchange is positively related to supplier resource interconnectedness.

Answer 5

Resource interconnectedness is defined as the number and pattern of linkages among organizations (Pfeffer and Salancik, 1978). High inter-firm interconnectedness increases organizational interdependence and uncertainty since unforeseen environmental changes can arise with unanticipated consequences for the initiating organization. Therefore, in environments with a high degree of supplier interconnectedness, customers are more likely to form relational exchanges as a mechanism for uncertainty reduction.