Authors: Anne Jalkala; Juha Haimala; Minna Oinonen
ABSTRACT
This study examines the ways in which dissolved and unsuccessful earlier business
relationships shape the buyer-seller relationship atmosphere. A re-buy situation after negative
experiences in earlier purchases is challenging for both the buyer and the supplier. The
negative experiences shape the buyer’s purchase strategy and also influence the suppliers’
actions and the resulting relationship atmosphere. The findings are based on an in-depth
analysis of a revelatory case, in which the buyer re-buys a highly important IT system after
two failed projects with previous suppliers. We examine the case from multiple perspectives
by combining interview data from the customer, the first (failed) supplier, the second (failed)
supplier and the third supplier entering a relationship with the buyer and taking responsibility
over the project. The findings suggest that previous negative experiences shape the
relationship development and may lead to totally different power and dependence relations
due to exceptionally high uncertainty, which increases the buyer’s need for formal agreement
and strict specifications.
KEYWORDS
Relationship atmosphere, buyer-seller relationship development, network effects
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Conference: Glasgow, Scotland (2011)