Business-to-business relationships: the variables in the context of success

Bagdonienė, Liudmila; Žilionė, Rasa. Business-to-business relationships: the variables in the context of success // Social Sciences = Socialiniai mokslai / Kaunas University of  Technology. Kaunas : Technologija. ISSN 1392-0758. 2009, nr. 4 (66), p. 16-25.

Download the paper

Abstract:

Distinctive feature of a modern market is close relationships among business companies seeking their goals. It is possible to achieve the goals when success of the relationships is ensured. The aim of the article is to systemize the success variables of business to business relationships. After the discussion about reasons of building and sustaining business to business relationships, business to business relationship types and formats, as well as the essence of success in the relationships, analysis of business to business success variables is carried out in two parts of the article: at first, the variables that affect the success of relationships sustained by different business subjects (buyers-sellers, supplier-distributor, producer-dealer, service providers and institutional consumers) are examined; secondly, the variables that have impact on different dimensions of relationships and thus lead to relationship success, are analysed.

Factors of KIBS providers’ innovativeness

Bagdonienė, Liudmila; Jakštaitė, Rasa; Kazakevičiūtė, Agnė. Factors of kibs providers’ innovativeness // MSKE 2009 : Proceedings of the International Conference on Managing Services in the Knowledge Economy : Universidade Lusíada de Vila Nova de Famalicao, July 15th to 17th 2009. Famalicão : Centro Lusiada de Engenharia e Gestao Industrial, 2009. ISBN 9789896400460. p. 431-440.

Download the paper

Abstract:

The paper deals with KIBS’ roles and key dimensions in the context of innovations as well as factors, making influence on KIBS providers’ innovativeness. The aim of the paper is to highlight main factors influencing the innovativeness of KIBS provider. The comparative and analogy analysis of scientific literature has showed that innovations and orientation toward innovativeness are inspired by the KIBS provider’s strategy, organization culture, low hierarchy and flexible value networks, close and trusting client relationships. Human resources in KIBS play the most important role: innovativeness is related with organizational learning and experts’ knowledge and individual skills. All these factors make a complex that maintains the process of knowledge sharing that is a vital for creating innovations.
In the paper the dimensions of innovativeness in KIBS are characterized and theorized. The research draws attention to the impact of factors contributing service provider’s innovativeness. Designed framework of main factors influencing the innovativeness of KIBS provider could help service providers to identify success factors in their activity leading to innovations, to create value for the
client as well as increase their competitiveness and improve business performance. Taking them into account, KIBS providers have to manage their business insomuch that would be able to get as much information and knowledge as possible in order to create useful services for the client and beneficial ones for the company.

Žinioms imlių verslo paslaugų esmė ir jų vystymąsi sąlygojantys veiksniai

Hopenienė, Rimantė; Jakštaitė, Rasa; Langvinienė, Neringa; Kazlauskienė, Eglė; Mačerinskienė, Irena; Railienė, Ginta; Sekliuckienė, Jurgita; Sližienė, Gelminė; Zemblytė, Jurgita; Žitkienė, Rima. Paslaugų verslas Lietuvoje : mokslo studija / Kauno technologijos universitetas. Verslo administravimo katedra. Kaunas : Technologija, 2009. 223 p. ISBN 9789955257257.

Abstract:

Žinioms imlios verslo paslaugos (toliau – ŽIVP) – yra nuolat augantis paslaugų subsektorius. ŽIVP vertę Europos Sąjungos (toliau – ES) ekonominiam vystymuisi iliustruoja statistiniai duomenys: nuo 1999 m. iki 2004 m. 25 Europos Sąjungos šalyse ŽIVP sukurta pridėtinė vertė išaugo net iki 6,8 proc., užimtumas ŽIVP sektoriuje iki 7,9 proc. Tačiau šių paslaugų indėlis skirtingose ES šalyse labai skiriasi. Pavyzdžiui, 2004 m. Jungtinėje Karalystėje ŽIVP teikėjų indėlis sudarė 9,3 proc. sukurtos pridėtinės vertės, o Lietuvoje – vos 3,1 proc. (A. Arundel ir kt., 2007). Tai rodo, kad Lietuvai yra dar ką nuveikti siekiant pasivyti labiau išsivysčiusias šalis, kuriant daugiau pridėtinės vertės. Remiantis šiomis tendencijomis, tikėtina, kad ŽIVP bus viena iš svarbiausių prielaidų tolimesniam Europos Sąjungos vystymuisi. Tai akcentuoja ir A. Arundel ir kt. (2007), G. Wen, X. Xueqi (2007), M. Toivonen (2005) teigdami, kad ŽIVP yra novatoriškas, vienas iš sparčiausiai ir dinamiškai besivystančių paslaugų subsektorių. Dėl to daugelio tyrėjų (I. Miles, N. Kastrinos, K. Flanagan, 1995; I. Miles, 2005a; J. Kuusisto, M. Meyer, 2003; M. Tomlinson, 2001 ir kt.) dėmesys nukreiptas į šių paslaugų koncepciją ir jų klasifikaciją, šio sektoriaus augimo ekonominius rodiklius. Nors šio subsektoriaus augimą Vakarų šalys tiria nuo XX a. 7-ojo dešimtmečio, tyrėjams aktualu, ar šis subsektorius turi tendenciją augti ir toliau. Anot M. Toivonen (2005), yra priežasčių, dėl kurių galima tikėtis ir tolesnio dinamiško augimo. Nors ŽIVP akivaizdžiai lemia ekonomikos vystymąsi, tik nedaugelis tyrėjų (M. Toivonen, 2005; G. Schienstock, T. Hämäläinen, 2001, ir kt.) stengiasi išsiaiškinti, kokios priežastys ar veiksniai skatina ŽIVP subsektorių dinamiškai augti.
Šio tyrimo tikslas – mokslinės literatūros lyginamąja analize atskleisti žinioms imlios verslo paslaugos esmę ir šių paslaugų vystymosi pagrindinius veiksnius.

Success variables in business-to-business relationships

Bagdonienė, Liudmila; Žilionė, Rasa. Success variables in business-to-business relationships // Development of Services World: New Thinking, New Actions [elektroninis išteklius]: proceedings of 4th international scientific seminar, October 16-17, 2009, Kaunas, Lithuania / Kaunas University of Technology. Kaunas: KTU EMTC, 2009. ISBN 9789955257264. p. [1-8].

Download the paper

Abstract:

Many contacts are based on human relations. The relationship might be considered as a process of developing mutual understanding and the mutual creation of value with clients over the lifetime of an association. The businesses of relationship age are leveraging knowledge about their network of relationships, including customers and other market‟s actors (e.g. employees, partners, providers, investors) for transforming their products and services into memorable experiences that create unique value. The wealth embedded into customer relationships is now more important than the capital contained in the land, factories, buildings, goods and even bank accounts. According to Galbreath, the relationship age is the pathway of economic success.
In most business-to-business (B2B) exchanges, seek for building and sustaining long-term relationships serves as a key target for successful business activities. Companies more and more often pay attention to the successful relationships among business partners for mutual benefit. Importance of relationships between B2B firms and their customers is stressed by Turnbull et al. (1996). Ford et al. (2003) highlight that management of organisation relationships among all business partners and its position in the business network have become the critical task on which a company‟s very existence stands or falls.
Different aspects of business-to-business (B2B) relationship development – lifecycle of relationship, client involvement, confidentiality, relationship quality, trust, commitment and etc. – are analyzed in publications.
Although there are numerous researches in field of business-to-business (B2B) relationships and its impact on business success or failure, but still success variables in business-to-business (B2B) relationships are not investigated in detail. Thus, problem of the paper may be identified in the following: what variables affect relationships and how they lead to business success?
The aim of the paper is to systematize what variables affect the success of business-to-business (B2B) relationships.

Trust as basis for development of relationship between professional service providers and their clients

Bagdonienė, Liudmila; Jakštaitė, Rasa. Trust as basis for development of relationship between professional service providers and their clients // Ekonomika ir vadyba – 2009 = Economics and management – 2009 : tarptautinės mokslinės konferencijos programa ir santraukų rinkinys / Kauno technologijos universitetas. Ekonomikos ir vadybos fakultetas, Kaliningrado valstybinis technikos universitetas. Ekonomikos fakultetas, Rygos technikos universitetas. Inžinerinės ekonomikos fakultetas. Kaunas : Technologija, 2009. ISBN 9789955256625. p. 82-83.

Abstract:

Knowledge managed by professional service providers helps companies to create competitive products and / or services (Gao et al., 2008). Professional services are customized, related to the risk as they often have delayed and difficult to predictable consequences; as well as focused on the customer problem, requiring a high competence of service provider (Thakor & Kumar, 2000; Mills, 1999; etc.).
Professional services belong to the group of knowledge intensive business services (Miles et al., 1995; Toivonen, 2004; Stahlecker & Koch, 2004; Muller & Doloreux, 2007, Koch & Strotmann, 2004, 2005, Simm & Strambach, 2006; Thomas & Bohn, 2003; etc.); although they are provided using the latest technology, the key performance still falls on human resources, specifically on competence, experience, insight, creativity, and etc. Without professional services, innovation is almost impossible, because providers of these services are experts in critical (unusual) business situations; therefore different from corporate executives and its professionals, they can help to find and to implement innovative solutions (Löwendahl, 2005).
During professional service provision, mutual learning process between these service providers and their clients is established when knowledge of both sides is combined, new explicit and tacit knowledge is created, and dissemination of knowledge is performed (Koch & Strotmann, 2004; Stahlecker & Koch, 2004). According to Gebert et al. (2003), in process of collaboration between professional service providers and their clients, knowledge for clients, knowledge about clients and knowledge from clients are circulated.
In most cases, the knowledge, information and data available to service provider are confidential, thus trust in the service provider is necessary for provision of these services (Christopher et al., 2002; Morgan & Hunt, 1994; Liljander & Roos, 2002, Sharma & Pattersson, 1999). Patton & Jösang (2004) maintain that trust may be considered as catalyst for human collaboration. Moreover, trust in service provider determines if client maintains relations with service provider in the future (Doney & Cannon, 1997) and what is the value of the relationship (Gounaris, 2005). According to Christopher et al. (2002), trust is influenced by common values, effective communication, and fairness.
Until now, scientists paid more attention to investigation of trust between standard products sellers and buyers. In other words, they disregard to the influence of specifics of the product on trust. Professional services distinguish by its distinguishing features (secret or confidential information, unprecedented situations, the need to objectively assess the situation, and etc.), which, in our opinion, have influence on the formation of trust, and this – the development of the relationship.
The aim of the paper is to highlight the characteristics of professional services and the influence of trust on the development of relationship between service providers and their clients.
The following methods of the research have been used: analysis of scientific literature, methods of comparing, analogy and generalization.
Findings: the paper provides the concept of professional services, nature of trust and it’s determining factors; shows how trust affects the development of relationship between professional service providers and their clients.

Trust as basis for development of relationships between professional service providers and their clients

Bagdonienė, Liudmila,  Jakštaitė, Rasa,  Trust as basis for development of relationships between professional service providers and their clients. // Economics and management = Ekonomika ir vadyba [elektroninis išteklius] / Kaunas university of technology. Kaunas : Technologija. ISSN 1822-6515. 2009, no. 14, p. 360-366.

Download the paper

Abstract:

In the world professional services dominated by knowledge represent a large and rapidly increasing sector of the economy. Professionals have the scope to focus their resources on narrow fields of expertise, gain experience across diverse range of clients, and innovate in the process of their engagement. Because of reason that knowledge and relationships are being the true sources of sustainable competitive advantage, professional service providers and clients need continually to enhance the development of their relationships. Knowledge-based relationships can be deepened by mutual trust. The aim of this paper is to point up the importance of trust in professional service providers’ and clients’ relationships dynamics. The paper is divided in three parts. First part addresses for conceptualization of professional services, second one reveals the nature and dimensions of trust; and the third part examines the different trust dimensions in dynamics of relationships between professional service provider and client.

Relationship between knowledge intensive business service providers and their clients: relationship marketing

Bagdonienė, Liudmila,  Jakštaitė, Rasa,  Relationship between knowledge intensive business service providers and their clients: relationship marketing. // Ekonomika ir vadyba – 2008 = Economics and management – 2008 : tarptautinės mokslinės konferencijos programa ir santraukų rinkinys / Kauno technologijos universitetas. Ekonomikos ir vadybos fakultetas, Kaliningrado valstybinis technikos universitetas. Ekonomikos fakultetas, Rygos technikos universitetas. Inžinerinės ekonomikos fakultetas. Kaunas : Technologija, 2008. ISBN 9789955254621. p. 75.

The relationships between providers and clients of knowledge intensive business services and its marketing

Bagdonienė, Liudmila,  Jakštaitė, Rasa.  The relationships between providers and clients of knowledge intensive business services and its marketing. // Ekonomika ir vadyba – 2008 = Economics and management – 2008 : 13-osios tarptautinės mokslinės konferencijos pranešimų medžiaga [Elektroninis išteklius] / Kauno technologijos universitetas. Ekonomikos ir vadybos fakultetas, Kaliningrado valstybinis technikos universitetas. Ekonomikos fakultetas, Rygos technikos universitetas. Inžinerinės ekonomikos fakultetas. Kaunas : Technologija. ISSN 1822-6515. 2008, p. 220-226.

Download the paper

Knowledge intensive business services (KIBS) are rapidly growing service sub-sector. Increasing number of KIBS providers (these services are provided not only by specialised service enterprises but also by IT companies, universities and etc.) leads to necessity of strengthening their competitiveness. Competitive advantage of knowledge intensive business service providers depends on flexibility, reputation, high quality, specialisation in knowledge, innovation and creativity. But relationship between KIBS providers and their clients as assumption of competitiveness is seldom researched. The aim of the paper is to reveal peculiarities of  relationship between knowledge intensive business service providers and their clients and of marketing tools depending on development of the relationship.
In the first part of the paper essence, distinctive features and variety of knowledge intensive business services are revealed. In the second part of the paper traits of relationship between KIBS providers and their clients and the process of relationship development are described. Relationship between KIBS providers and their clients can gain different forms but its success depends on commitment and trust, client orientation/empathy, experience/satisfaction and communication. The relationship dynamics require adequate marketing tools. In the paper the use of market segmentation, pricing, branding and communication for KIBS
providers’ and clients’ relationship development is revealed.

Impact of cultural values stability on strategy of intercultural advertising

Jakštaitė, Rasa  Podoski, Kristina B.  Impact of cultural values stability on strategy of intercultural advertising. // Global Academic Society Journal: Social Science Insight. ScholarArticles.net. ISSN 2029-0365. 2008, Vol. 1, no. 1, p. 4-13.

Access the paper

Abstract:

Although phenomenon of advertising is researched for several decades but intercultural advertising is rather new scope of research. One of the key elements that characterise culture is cultural values. The paper proposes two different points of view towards cultural values and their impact on advertising as one of marketing elements. Therefore, the aim of the paper is to reveal how stability of cultural values can impact strategy of advertising.
Cultural values doubtless affect both: customer behaviour and marketing solutions of advertising. Thus cultural values are the crucial element while making decisions concerning with segmentation and positioning. Two different approaches regarding stability of cultural values are represented in scientific literature. Some authors believe that within changing environment mutations of consumption appear, respectively, cultural values undergo changes as well. This means that some values are changed with the other ones. Despite of this, some of scientists highlight that values are basis of culture, so they cannot change. Impact of these two approaches on advertising is revealed in the paper.

Estimation of loyalty programmes from customers’ point of view: cases of three retail store chains

Bagdonienė, Liudmila,  Jakštaitė, Rasa,  Estimation of loyalty programmes from customers’ point of view: cases of three retail store chains. // Engineering economics = Inžinerinė ekonomika / Kaunas University of Technology. Kaunas : Technologija. ISSN 1392-2785. 2007, no. 5(55), p. 51-58.

Download the paper

Abstract:

Long-term relationships between organization and customers and their loyalty become the most significant assumption of nowadays business success. To achieve customer loyalty and enhance it loyalty programmes are created and implemented. It gains special importance in those fields of activities where competition is strong and supply is standard. But loyalty programme by itself does not guarantee success. Whether it reaches organization’s aims first of all depends on the main thing if the programme is beneficial to its participants. The article deals with how loyalty programmes are estimated by Maxima, Iki and Norfos mažmena retail store chains’ customers.
In the first part of the article concept of customer loyalty, essence of loyalty programme and how its value is perceived by customer are analyzed in theoretical level; in the second part – results of Maxima, Iki and Norfos mažmena retail store chains’ loyalty programme content analysis and questionnaire investigation of customers are presented. Research shows that Maxima, Iki and Norfos mažmena retail store chains’ loyalty programmes are closed; basis of reward (most often financial) is amount of points which depend on how much money customers spend on buying goods. Similar forms of investigated retail store chains’ loyalty programmes do not create special attractiveness which would stimulate customers to be loyal to certain retail store chain.
Results of questionnaire investigation prove hypothesis that through discounts investigated retail store chains’ loyalty programmes more stimulate sales than enhance loyalty. Most respondents point that participation in loyalty programmes is beneficial financially but none of them mentioned getting emotional or social value. It means that loyalty of programme participants is rational, so it can be not long-term. Almost one third of respondents states that declared benefit of loyalty programme is bigger than a real one. Possibility of retail store chains’ loyalty programmes to grow loyal behaviour is doubted because only half of respondents buy in the store in which they have loyalty card. Almost one third of respondents has loyalty cards of two-three retail store chains; most of them do their shopping not far from their living/work place or where goods are cheaper. Just a little bit more than a third of Maxima LT and Iki retail store chains’ loyalty programmes participants are satisfied by the services they get but only half of them have intent to recommend these programmes to people they know. Value of loyalty programmes is doubtful even to the respondents who do not participate in any investigated programme while investigation was in progress. Loyalty programmes orientated into sales stimulation and offered by retail store chains lose their attractiveness in the eyes of a customer. It means that to attract independent customers and even more important “to tie” them, retail store chains need a lot of organizational efforts and financial resources. All of that will increase costs of creating and implementing loyalty programmes, that is why retail store chains should choose another type of loyalty programme or look for new instruments to enhance loyalty.