This book explores customer-supplier relationships in B2B markets focusing on interaction between parties. Drawing on three fields of research - studies of relationships in marketing, social interactionism in sociology, and sense-making in social psychology - the author explores the concepts and roles of actors in business relationships and how the behaviour of actors within an interaction affects the development of those relationships. Based on a review of prior research and an original empirical study, the author argues that the presence of continuous close relationships between the customer and supplier organisations bestows features of a business network on B2B markets, with distinct interdependencies and ubiquitous interactions. Exploring buyer-seller interactions, the author contends that actors' mutually perceived identities - continuously emergent and relationship-specific - are the main factor in the development of business relationships and discusses the implications for management practice and research.

This book examines healthcare innovation processes, shedding light on the controversies endemic to innovation, which make such processes notoriously challenging. While, in the heat of action, controversies may be seen as barriers to innovation, observations reported in this volume point to controversies also having an energizing role. Students and academics studying innovation, organization, and health management and economics will find this book a valuable read as it provides empirical case studies on innovation processes in practice. Controversies in Healthcare Innovation will also appeal to practitioners of health care management, innovation project managers and policy-makers in the health care sector.

This book offers a novel perspective on starting-up new business ventures through examining the process by which they become part of the existing business environment. The book highlights the importance of inter-organizational business relationships. Asserting that new ventures need to interact and connect with customers and suppliers, alongside policy actors and universities, Starting up in Business Networks demonstrates how beginning a new venture demands initiating and developing business relationships. Noting a lack of prior research into the process by which start-ups embed into an existing business network, this book presents examples from countries such as Sweden, Italy, the Netherlands and China to analyse the emergence and evolution of start-up business networks.

This is the fourth of a series of research volume of papers from the Business and Information Technologies global research network. The BIT network comprises 21 partners from 17 countries, and conducts studies on the impact of new information and communication technologies on business practice, industry structure and economic change. This volume contains papers from BIT partners in Taiwan, New Zealand, Chile, USA, Italy, South Korea, and Switzerland. The papers address a range of subjects including the diffusion of mobile apps in the health area, role of trust in e-commerce, impact of digital technology in the role and practice of product management in technology intensive companies, new digital business practices in Taiwan, social media marketing, social activities of a B2B community with the case of BTicino, product-service system, and information diffusion in social networks.

This book explores customer-supplier relationships in B2B markets focusing on interaction between parties. Drawing on three fields of research - studies of relationships in marketing, social interactionism in sociology, and sense-making in social psychology - the author explores the concepts and roles of actors in business relationships and how the behaviour of actors within an interaction affects the development of those relationships. Based on a review of prior research and an original empirical study, the author argues that the presence of continuous close relationships between the customer and supplier organisations bestows features of a business network on B2B markets, with distinct interdependencies and ubiquitous interactions. Exploring buyer-seller interactions, the author contends that actors' mutually perceived identities - continuously emergent and relationship-specific - are the main factor in the development of business relationships and discusses the implications for management practice and research.

This book offers a novel perspective on starting-up new business ventures through examining the process by which they become part of the existing business environment. The book highlights the importance of inter-organizational business relationships. Asserting that new ventures need to interact and connect with customers and suppliers, alongside policy actors and universities, Starting up in Business Networks demonstrates how beginning a new venture demands initiating and developing business relationships. Noting a lack of prior research into the process by which start-ups embed into an existing business network, this book presents examples from countries such as Sweden, Italy, the Netherlands and China to analyse the emergence and evolution of start-up business networks.