The Impact of the market pioneer's leadtime on market share

http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/35748/2/b157646x.0001.001.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/35748/1/b157646x.0001.001.tx

Tradeoffs between quality and productivity: Cross-category differences in the relationship between perceived quality and productivity.

In recent years, productivity and quality have been the focus of much attention among business practitioners, as well as scholars in a variety of disciplines. However, there is little consensus regarding the nature of the relationship between the two. The traditional perspective is that increasing quality increases costs and thereby reduces productivity. Conversely, recent scholars, particularly in production and operations, have argued that quality improvements increase productivity by reducing rework, complaints and returns, and other failure costs. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether (and when) superiority in productivity is compatible with superiority in quality, or whether (and when) there are inherent tradeoffs between the two. Drawing from literature on productivity and quality, as well as literature on the relationship between costs and quality, a model is developed that analyzes the productivity and quality relationship for various industry sectors. Hypotheses are introduced predicting sector differences in the relationship. Using data from firms in the Swedish Customer Satisfaction Barometer database, the analysis finds a positive relationship between relative productivity and relative perceived quality for manufacturers of tangible goods and some service industries. The relationship is negative for most service sectors. The study provides an exploration into an important relationship that links marketing with production and operations. It provides interesting insights for both researchers and managers, and identifies a number of interesting topics for future research.Ph.D.Business AdministrationUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/104133/1/9500948.pdfDescription of 9500948.pdf : Restricted to UM users only

Opportunism as the Inhibiting Trigger for Developing Long-Term-Oriented Western Exporter-Hong Kong Importer Relationships

Notwithstanding the extensive literature on opportunism in buyer–seller relationships, scant empirical attention has been given to this issue in both international and Chinese contexts. Using a sample of 202 Hong Kong Chinese importers, this article highlights the harmful effect of Western exporters' opportunism on importers' long-term orientation through the intervening role of key behavioral constructs. The study confirms almost all hypothesized associations between the constructs examined, indicating that an exporter's opportunistic behavior reduces trust and generates conflict. In turn, low trust reduces commitment, and conflict impedes communication. Low levels of both commitment and communication reduce importers' satisfaction, which inhibits their long-term orientation. The importer's proactive initiation of the relationship moderates the link between opportunism and trust but not that of opportunism with conflict. The study also confirms the moderating role of importer dependence and exporters' marketing adaptation on the association of satisfaction with long-term orientation. The authors find moderating effects on this association through the Chinese constructs of renqing and mianzi, albeit in the opposite direction to that hypothesized