How business usage center members' self-concepts affect their perceptions and assessments in organizational usage processes

Abstract

In business-to-business settings, purchasing dominantly takes place within customer-supplier relationships. Therefore, from a supplier perspective, it is important to understand what drives customers' rebuy decisions. Here, the value in use that individual representatives of a customer organization, based on the achievement of their individual and collective goals, experience in their usage processes has an important impact on the firm's loyalty. However, only little is known about how the various users in a customer firm, the members of a business usage center (BUC), perceive value in use and how these perceptions are influenced by their interactions. In two studies with 18 interviewees using the repertory grid technique in combination with means-end chaining, this paper investigates how actors' self-concepts influence their attributed reasons for actions of other BUC members and in turn the perceptions of their behaviors. Eleven attributed reasons for action are elicited that are grouped into four clusters covering competence profile, emotional profile, job requirements, and personal motivation. The findings of this study complement existing research that mainly uses hierarchical positions and organizational roles to explain individual assessments and decision-making specifically related to business buying behavior. Based on these insights, theoretical as well as managerial implications are discussed and avenues for further research are presented.