Contextual Influences on Managerial Attitudes toward Supplier Integration: A Cross-Country Study

Abstract

Studies show the benefits of supplier integration, yet negative attitudes toward supplier integration may exist that constrain the initiative. The source of these negative attitudes is unclear, however. While literature tends to treat inter-firm management issues, e.g. supplier integration, separately from intra-firm management issues, we posit that with regards to attitudes, one is indicative of the other, and that the firm context influences how this occurs. Specifically, our research proposes that (A) characteristics related to intra-firm integration influence attitudes toward inter-firm integration, and (B) such influences have opposing strengths between the United States (U.S.) and China. Using theory about attitudes from social psychology literature and data from 224 U.S. and 117 Chinese manufacturing managers, our study finds that managerial attitudes toward supplier integration depend on the degree to which a collaborative organizational culture and synchronous manufacturing practices exist within a firm. Moreover, in the Chinese context, the influence of a collaborative organizational culture decreases and the influence of synchronous manufacturing practices increases. The opposite is found in the U.S. context. Our results suggest that overcoming negative attitudes requires more than simply espousing the benefits of supplier integration; looking deeper into an organization’s situational context is required.