Toward A Typology Of Buyer-Supplier Relationships: A Study Of The Computer Industry

Buyer-supplier relationship typologies are useful analytical tools for purchasing managers in managing exchange relationships with suppliers and monitoring their purchasing portfolios. Existing buyer-supplier relationship typologies are mainly focused on either relational contents or power-dependence and have limited empirical support for their performance implications. In this study, we developed an alternative buyer-supplier relationship typology that integrates both relational content and power-dependence dimensions, resulting in four generic relationship types: market, power, autonomous-link, and constrained-link relationships. We then performed a longitudinal exploratory investigation of eight leading firms in the U. S. computer industry to explore the performance implications of the typology, using a combinatorial qualitative approach that leverages the strengths of case study research, content analysis, and quasi-experimental design. The results suggest three theoretical propositions. First, the association between the type of buyer-supplier relationships and buyer firm performance varies such that constrained-link relationships are superior in terms of operational efficiency while autonomous-link relationships are superior in terms of product innovation. Second, the positive association between buyer-supplier relational contents (i.e., relationalism) and buyer firm operational efficiency is strengthened as the suppliers' dependence on the buyer firm increases. And finally, the positive association between buyer-supplier relationalism and buyer firm product innovation is weakened as the suppliers' dependence on the buyer firm increases.