AIB 2012 Conference Proceedings - Academy of International ...

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undertake research and development activities as well as the approaches that the firms adopt in sharing of
information and conflict resolution. We find that institutional embeddedness of partner firms significantly
influence inter-partner dynamics in international strategic alliances. (For more information, please contact:
Swetketu Patnaik, University of Kaiserslautern, Germany: patnaik@wiwi.uni-kl.de)
Coordination Modes and IORs Relational Outcomes: The Mechanisms in between
Pei-Li Yu, National Cheng Kung University
Effectively governed inter-organizational relationships (IORs) are characterized by high interfirm adaptation and
low ex post opportunism. Promoting interfirm adaptation and attenuating ex post opportunism is increasingly an
important coordination function in collaborations. However, evidence for the role of interfirm governance
mechanisms in engendering such a managerial focus is scarce. To address this issue, I link transaction cost
economics and social learning perspective, and propose an integrated model for specifying the link: coordination
mechanisms, interfirm adaptation and ex post opportunism. This model involves the interorganizational learning
process as a mediator and cultural differences as a moderator. The general thrust of our reasoning is that
interfirm relationships perform better because the parties involved have developed a valuable knowledge
transfer mechanism, which may facilitate better interfirm adaptation and mitigate ex post opportunism. While
there seems to be little doubt about the positive impact of learning processes on interfirm relationships, I posit
that the direct effect is mitigated by a variable specific to the interfirm context, namely cultural differences. I
find empirical partial support for our developed theory in the context of Taiwanese high technology industry.
The results shown that hierarchical mode of coordination mechanisms influences interfirm adaptation through
knowledge exploration; feedback mode of coordination mechanisms influences ex post opportunism through
knowledge exploitation when a lower cultural difference exists. (For more information, please contact: Pei-Li Yu,
National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan: h4584933@ms24.hinet.net)
Session: 1.5.15 - Interactive
Track: 14 - Methods in IB Research
Novel Perspectives on Research Methods: Emerging Markets, Born Globals & Linguistics
Presented On: July 1, 2012 - 16:15-17:30
Chair: Ilan Alon, Rollins College
Show, Don't Tell - The Combination of Qualitative In-Depth Interviews and Metaphor Analysis in International
Research Settings
Stefanie Paluch, TU Dortmund University
Modern information technologies alter not only the nature of services and their delivery process but also the
interaction at the interface between service provider and customer. This research focuses on the exploration of
a new type of technology-mediated services, remote service in a B2B-context based on a combination of
qualitative in-depth interviews and metaphor analyses in three different countries. This study intends to
contribute to literature by exploring how business customers perceive and evaluate remote services; revealing
how transformation from close personal contact to technology-mediated interaction affects the relationship
between provider and customer and by using qualitative techniques and metaphorical analysis to better
understand customers attitude towards service technology in international research settings. (For more
information, please contact: Stefanie Paluch, TU Dortmund University, Germany: stefanie.paluch@tudortmund.de)
AIB 2012 Conference Proceedings
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