Papers by Luis M de Castro
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2014
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2018
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2017
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2016
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2015
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2017
Research reported in literature is scarce in conceptual analyses of relationships between banking... more Research reported in literature is scarce in conceptual analyses of relationships between banking institutions and (non-financial) client firms. Where dealt with, these relationships have been approached in a very superficial manner, either by stressing operational and administrative aspects or by taking relationships as just another competitive or managerial weapon that banks can wage more or less at will. A considerable number of papers have taken the relationships between banks and their customers as one of the strategic decision variables that banks can manage, as if it were still another component of their "marketing-mixes". Very seldom has the relationship been taken as the focus of analysis, capable of explaining by itself a great deal of the trading behaviour of both bank and client. The authors believe that the banking relationship concept, as presented in the literature, is a poor conceptualisation of a rich and a complex phenomenon inasmuch as it only stresses t...
Revista Gestão Universitária na América Latina - GUAL, 2015
Este artigo analisa e visa entender as relações de governança nas Instituições do ensino superior... more Este artigo analisa e visa entender as relações de governança nas Instituições do ensino superior no Brasil, como mecanismo de integração e reprodução dos interesses dos diversos stakeholders, dentro e fora do ambiente organizacional. É explicado que os parceiros das IES no Brasil, com os quais estas estabelecem relações privilegiadas, permitem-lhes acessos através dos quais elas mobilizam recursos e se coordenam com atores externos, em alguns casos influenciando as agências de regulação e avaliação. Na sua prática, as IES desenvolvem suas estratégias conforme as informações obtidas através desses stakeholders ou informante-chave. Como parceiros interessados, os diversos stakeholders influenciam e por vezes determinam as escolhas feitas pelas organizações, por exemplo, as ofertas de cursos superiores (Licenciaturas, Bacharelados, Tecnólogos, Stricto Sensu e Lato Sensu). Os parceiros externos, vistos como stakeholders, podem ser as agencias reguladoras do ensino superior (MEC), as empresas, outras entidades governamentais e grupos profissionais e corporativos da sociedade. A pesquisa realizada teve como objeto de estudo (Yin 2010) uma IES privada sediada em São Luís, no Estado do Maranhão-Brasil, onde coletamos informações e conseguimos observar e identificar alguns stakeholders, aos quais forneciam informações necessárias para organização e, em contrapartida beneficiavam, em termos de imagem e de criação de capital social, desse relacionamento. Tomamos o conceito de capital social que, conforme o que nos diz (Nogueira and Catani 2007), é um conjunto de recursos atuais ou potenciais que estão ligados à "posse" de uma rede durável de relações mais ou menos institucionalizadas de interconhecimento e de interreconhecimento ou, em outros termos, à vinculação a um grupo, como conjunto de agentes que não somente são dotados de propriedades comuns, mas também são unidos por ligações permanentes e úteis [...] o volume de capital social que um agente individual possui depende então da extensão da rede de relações que ele pode efetivamente mobilizar e do volume do capital (econômico, cultural ou simbólico) que é posse exclusiva de cada um daqueles a quem está ligado [...] os lucros que o pertencimento a um grupo proporciona estão na base da solidariedade.
RePEc: Research Papers in Economics, Jul 1, 2005
The Industrial Networks Theory (cf. Axelsson and Easton, 1992, Hakansson and Snehota, 1995) sets ... more The Industrial Networks Theory (cf. Axelsson and Easton, 1992, Hakansson and Snehota, 1995) sets out to describe and explain the business relationships and markets in which the focal firm is deeply embedded. One of its major propositions pertains to the (time-varying) significance of business relationships for the focal firm (Gadde et al., 2003), i.e., business relationships influence to some extent the focal firm's survival. Such significance seems strongly related to the role played by business relationships and consequently the relationship outcomes accruing to the focal firm. The theoretical justification underlying this proposition is outwardly oriented, somewhat overlooking the inside of the focal firm-in particular the influence of business relationships on what the focal firm does competently within and across its boundaries. Arguably, the creation and appropriation of relationship value by the focal firm is a necessary but not sufficient condition for relationship significance. A supplementary (internal) explanation supported by Knowledge-based Theories of the Firm (e.g., see Kogut and Zander, 1992), we suggest, may be missing. Our aim here has been to intuitively pinpoint a theoretical flaw, further suggesting a feasible path for its solution.
This paper presents a paradigmatic case of Strategic Outsourcing-the case of an industrial firm t... more This paper presents a paradigmatic case of Strategic Outsourcing-the case of an industrial firm that specialized in producing packages / containers for its industrial clients in modular manufacturing units located in the clients' premises, wall-to-wall or even inside their factories. The company provides a complete in house service in various dimensions: package / container development (CAD-CAM, quick prototyping, mould and packaging design), production (JIT), quality control, technical advice, all integrated with each of its clients operations. These solutions are provided to clients that operate in a variety of industries: food and drink stuff, body care, home care, lubricants, and PET pre-moulding. The analysis of the case shows fluid firm boundaries as there seems to be a great deal of integration with its clients in terms of operating competences and dynamic capabilities in production activities in order to sustain the close vertical buyer-supplier relationships. We discuss the supplier-client relationship, the organizational and administrative tasks and the main characteristics of this industrial and services outsourcing. The research seeks to discuss how companies may develop and manage such characteristics and to debate the outsourcing theory or the boundaries of the firm. The case study research is based on managers' interviews, observation of the production activities and the analysis of documental material.
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2015
The access to technological resources and capabilities by a company may involve the establishment... more The access to technological resources and capabilities by a company may involve the establishment and development of business relationships with specific suppliers. These relationships may reflect both general, prescribed or formal purchasing orientations (i.e. adversarial vs cooperative approaches) and more specific evaluation criteria of suppliers. This paper aims to analyse the relevance of inconsistencies between the two levels for the emergence and search for solutions to failures in the accomplishment of functional specifications in the stage of series production, i.e. when both parties are interdependent. The starting point for the empirical study was non-accomplishments of functional specifications involving an auto manufacturer and some of its suppliers, followed by an exposition of the searching processes for solutions, often by trial and error, involving several departments and firms. The results of the study suggests that these processes may reflect the tensions between ...
Portuguese Journal of management Studies, 2016
Industrial Marketing Management, 2019
Within the industrial network approach, new business formation is a cumulative process of relatin... more Within the industrial network approach, new business formation is a cumulative process of relating the new business to the existing business network over time. This paper combines the literatures on industrial networks and projects (management) to explore the roles of two different types of (temporary) inter-organizational projects in the embedding process. The paper examines the embedding in a network of a new project-based firm that went from being a new entity to becoming capable of taking a stronger network position by using different types of projects as embedding tools. Embedding of the new firm in the business network required the combining of different but complementary types of projects to build a stronger network position. We find that (temporary) inter-organizational projects are tools for embedding the firm in a network of relationships. The inter-organizational projects can provide the firm with opportunities to both discover and develop not only its own resources but also the resources of others, leading it to change perceptions and principles on what resources are useful to access and who possesses those resources.
Environment and Planning A, 2004
A resurgence of interest in industrial agglomerations can be found among many different academic ... more A resurgence of interest in industrial agglomerations can be found among many different academic disciplines. This trend has been accompanied by a focus on how spatial proximity and the emergence of links between colocated actors may generate benefits for firms, namely, in the generation and diffusion of knowledge. By conceiving industrial agglomerations as territorially based networks, we argue that the dynamics in connections internal to those networks affect and are affected by local institutions as well as connections external to the territory. Our study of the injection mould industry cluster at Marinha Grande in Portugal suggests that firms profit from the emergence of relationships between colocated actors and other agglomeration benefits. However, we suggest that the potential of the industry to generate new knowledge appears to be founded on the patterns of interfirm connections, which selectively connect diverse capabilities both within and outside the agglomeration.
Journal of Business Research, 2016
This study examines the configuration of resources and activities among firms as a strategy to im... more This study examines the configuration of resources and activities among firms as a strategy to improve their position in a network through the replication of a template. The conceptual background combines the network approach to strategizing with the capability approach to replication. Using a longitudinal study of a large wholesaler, this study demonstrates that change in a network position can result from two interwoven processes: the development and replication of a template in some sections of the network, and a rearrangement of the web of relationships among counterparts.
Franchising, especially business format franchising also known as the McDonalds approach has been... more Franchising, especially business format franchising also known as the McDonalds approach has been seen by practitioners and also by some academics simply as a straightforward approach for the creation (and replication) of one’s own business – i.e. as one of the ways for entrepreneurship (and growth). Several trade associations were created for the promotion of this kind of business using a combination of “recipes for success ” and entrepreneurial “bias for action”. The prevailing explanations for the franchising phenomena, especially the initiative of franchising, the propensity to franchise, and franchise performance, are mostly based on two orders of reasons or a combination of them: franchising as a means to deal with resource scarcity and / or mechanism for franchisor and franchisee to align incentives between both. However, empirical studies have shown limited support for such claims, especially in face of the so called plural form. The mixed nature of the plural form, where pr...
Journal of Strategic Contracting and Negotiation, 2016
This article aims to study the influence of customer reference marketing on capital buying decisi... more This article aims to study the influence of customer reference marketing on capital buying decisions in the context of firms with highly complex contractual frameworks. It presents the case of a thermoelectric power plant in which customer referencing did not influence a relevant buying decision. Evidence suggests that the implicit governance mechanism of project financing nullified the referencing effect. Project finance restricts managerial discretion over free cash flow, which influences organizational buying behaviour at the level of capital equipment goods. This research identifies the presence of this singular kind of governance system and draws managerial consequences for suppliers who wish to sell to project firms. A clear understanding of the legal and contractual framework can help suppliers to fulfil the potential customer’s needs and expectations.
The concept of connectivity between inter-firm relationships underlies the network view of market... more The concept of connectivity between inter-firm relationships underlies the network view of markets. Dyadic relationships are partly counterpart specific and affect each other. It is usually stressed, within the industrial networks approach, that the heterogeneity of relationships and their specificity are a source problems and opportunities for management (Håkansson and Snehota, 1995). In this context, we can expect that setting priorities between relationships should be one of the central issues for managers to influence their firms' trajectories. In this paper, we discuss this issue considering two interrelated dimensions of firms' trajectories: the counterpart/relationship dimension and the production system (activity & resource) dimension. Changes in both dimensions and development of capabilities make sense in a temporal context. Therefore, we conducted longitudinal case studies of producers of moulds for the injection of plastics, analysing how their contrasting trajectories in terms of product specialization can be related to how variety was used and learned in both dimensions. Our study suggests that the relevance of the interdependencies and variety found within a set of relationships should be seen in the context of firm's idiosyncratic capabilities, which include their interpretations and experiences in using and influencing variety. Awareness of this could be important when managers evaluate the composition of their firms' portfolio of relationships with customers and act to influence its evolution. This is also important because its may propagate and impact on the firm' relationships with other direct and indirect counterparts.
The current literature on organizational buying behaviour presents customer references as a sourc... more The current literature on organizational buying behaviour presents customer references as a source of competitive advantage (Jalkala & Salminen 2010) and suggests that they have a positive impact on vendor reputation (Helm & Salminen 2010; Salminen & Möller 2003; Salminen 1997; Salminen & Möller 2006). It also suggests that customer references play an important role in increasing vendors' credibility and brand equity by raising their perceived competence. At the same time, customer references decrease buyer uncertainty and perceived risk. The literature on industrial buying does not have the empirical support necessary for a theory of customer referencing. This is because, when it comes to the study of customer reference practice, the potential customer's point of view is altogether absent (Morgado & de Castro 2015a). Empirical research has favoured the supplier as its unit of analysis while ignoring the other constituents of the reference triad: the reference customer and the potential customer. Empirical work that features the potential customer as the unit of observation remains an open research opportunity and would allow for a deeper understanding of both the customer reference network and its impact on the buying behaviour of industrial firms. This research aims to contribute to filling this gap by responding to the following question: ―How does customer referencing influence capital equipment buying decisions?‖ To achieve this aim, this study adopts as its theoretical framework the conceptual model offered by Morgado and de Castro (2015b), adapted to the context of a capital equipment buying decision. The main purpose of this research is to contribute to the literature on customer referencing by studying the case of EDP, which features the acquisition of a pump hydro energy storage system by an incumbent firm operating in the field of electrical power production. The study draws on empirical research and uses a case study research strategy. The data were gathered via interviews with key people and analysis of secondary data sources, such as corporate reports and other relevant documentation.
Fleetwood (Lancaster University Management School) and the insightful comments of two anonymous r... more Fleetwood (Lancaster University Management School) and the insightful comments of two anonymous reviewers on a slightly unrefined version of this paper. The usual disclaimers apply. 2 The Industrial Network Theory aims to describe and explain the business relationships and networks in which the focal firm is deeply embedded. One of its major propositions is that business relationships somehow influence, to different extents and over time, the focal firm’s survival. This pertains to the diverse and time-varying significance of business relationships for the focal firm. It has often been implicitly sustained that such significance is strongly related to the role played by business relationships and consequently the relationship outcomes accruing to the focal firm. The logic underlying the relationship significance proposition is outwardly oriented, somewhat overlooking the focal firm’s inside and in particular the conspicuous influence of business relationships on what the focal firm ...
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Papers by Luis M de Castro