Value Co-Creation in Industrial Buyer-Seller Partnerships ... - Doria

4.1 Theoretical positioning of the researchThe theoretical ideas of industrial marketing have their roots in inter–organizationaltheories, as inter-organizational theory focuses on activities and processes that go onbetween organizations. I start theoretical discussion by providing some of the most basicassumptions of inter-organizational theory, in order to set the scene for my laterargumentation.4.1.1 Inter-organizational theoryIn the 1960 ś theoretical models of organizations underwent a considerable change fromviewing organizations as closed systems - focusing on internal matters - to viewingorganizations as open systems recognizing the importance of processes external to theorganization (Scott 1992, p 100). In contemporary literature on organizations it iscommonly recognized that organizations are in constant interaction with external actors andthat it is through interaction that organizations acquire raw materials, hire employees, securecapital, obtain knowledge, and get access to buildings, facilities, and equipment (Hatch,1997).In inter-organizational theory, “ the organization is seen as part of a group of interactingunits” (Ford 1990, p. 8). According to inter-organizational theory the organization is seen asdependent on other organizations. The way in which the organization answers todependency is by establishing relationships with partners through interacting with them.Ford categorizes literature on inter-organizational issues into three different categories:organization based studies, studies based on several organizations, and studies of theorganization in a societal context (Ford 1990).In what is labeled “ organization based studies” the organization is viewed as beingdependent on its environment for obtaining access to certain inputs, while at the same timeseeking to manipulate and control parts of its environment. Consequently the characteristicsof the environment influence the shape of the internal organization structure. (Dill 1958,Burns & Stalker 1961, Thompson 1967, Emery & Trist 1968, Aiken & Hage 1968, Hall1972). The current viewpoint in marketing called the ” organizational system perspective”shares this perspective and assumes that buyers are passive and only react to the stimuli ofthe seller by buying or not buying (Kotler & Levy 1969, Ford 2002).According to Scott (1992) who builds on the ideas of Galbraith (1973) and Lawrenceand Lorsch (1967) organizations are seen as open rational systems. A school that has beengrowing out of the systems school is the contingency theory according to which there is no62