Power

Question 1

Pfeffer & Salancik (1978)

Answer 1

OPEN Systems Model

BORCA
B - Resources are the basis of power
O - Resources are obtained from the external environment
R - power is relational: other organizations exist in the environment (what one organization needs is often in the hands of another organization). Org A’s power over Org B = Org A’s resource dependance on Org B
C - Dependencies constrain behavior (through power). Even without contracts one Org can have power over another.
A - motivated to reduce dependence and to be autonomous by reducing uncertainty and interdependence by restructuring /alter their environment

• Has been mostly applied to
  M&A activity
  board composition
  executive succession.
  Could also be used for employee recruitment, networks, social capital, financing of firms (crowdfunding).
• Shares similarlity with TCE & Institutional Theory, could be linked to ValueCreation (Priem)

Question 2

Oliver (1991)

Answer 2

Compared institutional theory and resource dependence
Where do they agree/disagree?
Envirnmnt: IN]invisible pressure.conform RD]visible-cope
Choice: IN] No choice RD] have choice to reconfigure
Survival / Legitimacy: IN]Isomorphism RD] Control

Question 3

Brass (1993)

Answer 3

Applied structuration (Barley, 1986), Social Network Theory, and resource dependence to look influence tactics of an individuals
METHOD: social network measures on 75 people from a federal agency
Key findings:
There are 2 positions that serve as the basis for power
a) Formal position in the hierarchy conveys power without the need for behavioral tactics
b) Informal centrality of network position conveys power but requires the use of influence tactics

Question 4

Vickers (2005)

Answer 4

Case study of a US acquisition of a smaller UK chemicals company
- networks of micro actors can coalesce, divert, delay, and influence strategic change

Question 5

Bode (2011)

Answer 5

How do firms reduce uncertainty in their supply chain environment?

1) Buffering: build up slack resources and make oneself less dependent on info processing with suppliers
2) Bridging- engage the boundary; create internal to the relationship, share information, invest in joint risk management systems, etc.
- Identified supply chain orientation and trust in partner as moderators

Question 6

Hickson (1971)

Answer 6

Strategic Contingency Theory of Power
- The organization is an open System and Subunits depend on each other, which ever unit is most dependent on others is the least powerful.

Question 7

Saunders

Answer 7

• This is a variant of Resource Dependance Theory (Pfeffer)
• Good theory (parsimonious & fasifiable)
  2 main Critiques
  1) how do you measure control of a strategic contingency?
  2) Limited to the department level vs Resource Dependance which can be applied to many levels.

Question 8

Jasperson, Carte, & Saunders (2002)

Answer 8

Review of Power and IT using Metatriangulation

Question 9

Resource Dependance ValueCreation/Demand Side Theory of Competitive Advantage (Priem, Butler, & Li, 2013)

Answer 9

• Managers throughout the organization understand their success is tied to customer demand. Thus customers are the ultimate resource on which companies depends.
• Firms can create new value for customers (rather than simply trying to capture value)
• The absence of attention to value creation (creating Schumpeterian Rents) in strategy is a mistake, rather than simply focusing on how to capture value from existing markets (Ricardian Rents) that saw its downfall start with Peteroff 1993 squarely positioning RBV around Ricardian Rents.