Building and maintaining business relationships is becoming increasingly important as organisations seek to improve their competitive advantage by entering long-term relationships with strategic business partners. It is suggested that the quality of the relationship determines the likelihood of maintaining an ongoing relationship between buyers and sellers. Research in the area of business-to-business relationship quality is still in its infancy with limited agreement of the dimensions of relationship quality or even the definition of relationship quality in a business-to-business context. The aim of this Interpretivist study, set in the financial services industry in Australia, was to develop an understanding of what participants in a dyadic business relationship perceive to be the attributes of a high quality relationship. Methodologically the research took a case study approach to the collection of primary data through the use of open-ended depth interviews. Epistemologically the research derived categories and concepts from the social actors engaged in the mutually constructed social reality of the business relationship dyad. This formed the basis for understanding the quality concept by describing relationship-based activities and meanings. The findings indicate that some dimensions of relationship quality are identified dyadically whereas other dimensions are buyer or seller specific. Some dimensions of relationship quality suggested by the literature emerged from the data generated for this study, while others were previously unidentified, including good product, reciprocity, face-to-face contact, problem resolution, efficiency of service, staff consistency, business support and hierarchy of contacts. The findings suggest four implications for professional practice: the need for face-to-face contact; the importance of establishing a hierarchy of contacts across the business relationship; the suggestion that relationship quality is a continuum rather than a destination; and the suggestion that problem resolution may be a catalyst for relationship strength.

The global marketplace has become highly integrated, and global competition is increasingly intense and dynamic. To be successful in this competitive and hostile environment, international firms must be able to foster and maintain successful cross-border inter-firm relationships. At the same time, service exports have remarkably emerged as a crucial component of international trade, underpinning the future growth and prosperity of national economies worldwide. Yet scholars and business practitioners alike have recognised the significant paucity of research on the performance of service exporters. Similarly, despite the recent growth in research interests in international relationship marketing, theoretical development in this area has failed to keep pace with the increase in both volume and magnitude of inter-organisational transactions across national borders. This study addressed the key research question of “What are the key factors driving the export performance of service firms?”, based on an integrated theoretical foundation comprising the resource-based view of the firm, transaction cost economics, and the relational exchange theory. The study took into account the potential role of: (1) organisational characteristics, (2) market characteristics, and (3) the governance mechanisms deployed by service firms in their management of cross-border relationships with their business clients. A multi-method research design was utilised for this research, including two main studies. An exploratory study was first conducted, involving 10 in-depth interviews with service exporters in South Australia. Drawing from the outcomes of the exploratory study and a review of the international services marketing and international relationship marketing literature, the researcher proposed a conceptual framework and a set of testable hypotheses. These hypotheses were then tested in the second research phase, in which the researcher conducted a self-administered mail survey, utilising both postal and online means. An effective response rate of 32.77%, or 254 usable responses, allowed the researcher to further analyse the data using the principles of structural equation modelling in AMOS. Thereby, the researcher identified 17 pairs of significant relationships between the variables. The research findings show that the performance of an export venture of a service firm is directly influenced by the size of the firm, their export experience, their managerial commitment, and the performance of the relationship with a major overseas client. Such relationship performance is determined by both contractual-based governance, including contractual complexity and contractual explicitness, and relational-based governance, a higher-order factor incorporating relationship trust, relationship commitment, information exchange, relationship flexibility and relationship harmony. In turn, these governance mechanisms are determined by various organisational and market characteristics. Whilst firm size, resource commitment, and assistance programs by home government influence the level of contractual complexity, contractual explicitness is determined by management commitment, competitive intensity, and the favourability of host government policies. Furthermore, relational-based governance is driven by the export experience of the firms, their managerial commitment, and the favourability of host government policies. The study contributes to advancing the scant international services marketing literature and draws further research attention to the international relationship marketing paradigm. With regards to international business practice, the study provides service exporters with an understanding on the potential role of organisational characteristics and market characteristics in their exporting success. Finally, a successful management of cross-border relationship management and governance mechanisms will also lead them to superior export performance. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1379910 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, Business School, 2010

[Executive Summary]: The purpose of this thesis is to describe business-to-business communication and the characteristics of an open standard for electronic communication within the Australian timber and wood products industry. The current issues, future goals and strategies for using business-to-business communication identified by respondents in a questionnaire are discussed. The study addresses these questions, by using a self-administered questionnaire which was constructed and mailed to 2000 organisations. The questionnaire was used to ascertain a base-line of information systems’ use in the Australian timber and wood products industry, and to establish how to make successful the introduction of a more accessible means for system to system interoperation between organisations. A prototype domain specific ontology was engineered using content analysis of a representative timber and wood product organisation product listing. A visual representation of the ontology modelled using unified modelling language is presented. The formal specification of the ontology was constructed using an ontology editor, Protégé. The outcomes of the questionnaire include that the industry has a small number of large enterprises and a large proportion of small to medium enterprises. Computer and Internet use in the industry is comparable to that in other Australian industry sectors. For both intrabranch and business-to- business the established communication modes of postal service, telephone and facsimile are those most frequently used. However where advanced information technology modes exist, it is used extensively. Use of electronic data interchange is now used mostly by organisations employing over 100 employees, whereas supply chain management use is limited. Small to medium enterprises have failed to adopt an information systems strategy plan, while organisations employing over 100 do have plans in place. Attitudes toward information technology, business-to-business communication and information systems security are dependent upon organisational size while compliance to information systems’ standards was not. Barriers to adoption of technology specific communication identified in the study are location, lack of resources, organisational size and a lack of planning. Drivers to increase the bandwagon effect in the industry are education and the availability of a simple low-cost complete package to demystify technology intensive electronic business-to-business communication. For the ontology to proceed to a standard a collaborative effort must be made by industry partners to reach consensus on an acceptable standard.

Universiẗat, Diss.--St. Gallen, 2006. / Auch als Buchhandelsausg. u.d.T.: Interaktive Markenführung : der Persönliche Verkauf als Instrument des Markenmanagements im B2B-Geschäft. Zsfassung in engl. Sprache.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität St. Gallen, 2002.

Diss. Lund : Lunds universitet, 2010.

Master-Arbeit Univ. St. Gallen, 2006.

Diss. Nr. 3107 Wirtschaftswiss. St. Gallen, 2005. / Literaturverz.

Master-Arbeit Univ. St. Gallen, 2008.

Zugl.: Düsseldorf, Univ., Diss., 2008