Imitation of Management Practices in Supply Networks: Relational and Environmental Effects

• Published date: 01 January 2020
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jscm.12216
• Date: 01 January 2020

IMITATION OF MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IN SUPPLY

NETWORKS: RELATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL

EFFECTS

EVELIEN REUSEN

Erasmus University

KRISTOF STOUTHUYSEN AND FILIP ROODHOOFT

KU Leuven and

Vlerick Business School

ALEXANDRA VAN DEN ABBEELE

KU Leuven

HENDRIK SLABBINCK

Ghent University

This study investigates the imitative use of management practices across a

multitier supply network. Although imitation may take the form of any

management practice, operationally, we focus on whether the buyer’s con-

trol practices used with first-tier suppliers results in similar control prac-

tices being used by these first-tier suppliers with the second-tier supplier s.

Drawing on institutional theory, we identify relational context (i.e., affec-

tive commitment) and environmental context (i.e., environmental uncer-

tainty) as two important factors influencing the extent to which such

imitation takes place. Using unique survey data of vertically linked sup ply

chain triads, we generally find support for the occurrence of imitation and

more so in cases of high affective commitment. The results regarding envi-

ronmental uncertainty further reveal selectivity in imitative behavior, call-

ing attention to the level of deliberateness in imitation decisions in

supply networks. Besides contributing to theory on imitative behaviors in

the supply chain, this study also generates practical implications on the

spread of management practices across multiple tiers.

Keywords: buyer/supplier relationships; supplier management; organizational learn-

ing and knowledge acquisition; survey methods; regression analysis

INTRODUCTION

Companies are increasingly concerned with creating

strategies for managing complex supply chains and

are working toward intensified collaboration with sup-

ply chain partners. Despite a growing interest in the

management of supply chain networks, what happens

within multitier supply chains, and, particularly, how

one link affects another link, remains largely unex-

plored (Mena, Humphries, & Choi, 2013). This is an

important omission since firms embedded in such

networks of interconnected relationships are likely to

influence each other, rather than to operate in isola-

tion (Borgatti & Li, 2009). There are many aspects of

and mechanisms for this, but one prominent mecha-

nism is interorganizational imitation, where organiza-

tions mimic the practices of others (Ordanini, Rubera,

& DeFillippi, 2008). Although prior research has high-

lighted the value of imitation in explaining the usage

of supply chain management practices (Turkulainen,

Kauppi, & Nermes, 2017), we know very little about

January 2020

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54

Journal of Supply Chain Management

2020, 56(1), 54–72

©2019 The Authors. Journal of Supply Chain Management published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

its determinants. This study seeks to provide further

context regarding the imitation of practices across

multiple tiers in a given supply chain.

Our theoretical framework is guided by institutional

theory, which emphasizes the importance of an orga-

nization’s social context in the form of network

arrangements, and has led many to examine the

mimetic adoption of organizational practices (Brass,

Galaskiewicz, Greve, & Tsai, 2004). The diffusion of

management practices in supply chains has been

shown to operate through activation of network ties

when a focal firm is facing a highly complex environ-

ment and is uncertain about the best response (McFar-

land, Bloodgood, & Payan, 2008). Not all adoptions

of practices by others, however, carry equal weight for

a given firm’s adoptions. Organizations are more influ-

enced by organizations to which they are strongly tied

and about whom they have positive sentiments (Tate,

Ellram, & G€

olgeci, 2013). We therefore argue that imi-

tation in supply chains is not devoid of relevant affec-

tive content and, more specifically, that imitation

increases with increased levels of affective commit-

ment. Moreover, given the context-dependent nature

of many supply chain practices (Sousa & Voss, 2008),

this study suggests that the common belief that envi-

ronmental uncertainty enhances imitation does not

apply to all types of management practices. Building

on organizational contingency theory, we posit that,

when faced with uncertainty, firms’ tendency to imitate

certain practices will be lessened or amplified depend-

ing on their relevance to the specific situation.

The overarching purpose of this research is, thus, to

understand how both relational and environmental con-

textual factors affect the imitation of supply chain man-

agement practices. Our general contention is that, while

network ties create the conditions for imitation to take

place, it is the level of affective commitment along with

environmental uncertainty that determines the extent of

imitation of management practices in the supplychain.

To test our expectations, we conducted a survey and

obtained a unique data set consisting of vertically

linked buyer–supplier–supplier triads. In our empirical

study, operationally, we focus specifically on control

practices imitation. The test design considers imitation

as an intended decision on the part of the first-tier

supplier in response to observing the buyer’s controls,

resulting in similar controls being used by the first-tier

supplier with the second-tier supplier.

By investigating imitation effects in this setting, our

study demonstrates the importance of considering influ-

ences from outside the buyer–supplier dyad and incor-

porating multiple tiers into our understanding of certain

supply chain management phenomena. This responds

to recent calls for more multilevel conceptualization and

research in supply chain management (e.g., Carter,

Meschnig, & Kaufmann, 2015b). Prior research has

noted, moreover,that in order to get a better grasp of the

use of supply chainmanagement practices, the wayorga-

nizations select supply chain management best practices

needs to be studied in more depth (Sousa & Voss,

2008). Applying theories that incorporate mimetic pro-

cesses is an important step in that direction, as it brings

new perspectives on the preferences that organizations

develop regarding certain practices, and how these pro-

cesses shape supply chain management patterns across

multiple tiers. Not only is the empirical literature on the

occurrence of imitation across multiple tiers quite lim-

ited in general, the questions of whom suppliers imitate,

when they are more or less prone to do so and, particu-

larly, whether suppliers are selective in what they imitate

under specific conditions have been left unanswered,

constituting thefocus of this study.

Overall, our findings provide new insights on how

the relational context affects the transfer of organiza-

tional practices, with greater imitative behaviors being

found in situations where the supplier is more com-

mitted to the buyer firm. Moreover, while environ-

mental uncertainty is generally thought to increase

imitation, our study suggests that mimetic influence

depends on relevance judgments. The result is a selec-

tive imitation of supply chain management practices

to situations where this is considered most effective.

Importantly, while this study specifically tested for

control practices imitation, the insights from this

study have application to the imitation of other sup-

ply chain management practices as well.

From a practical standpoint, such insights should

improve firms’ recognition of their own but also their

supply chain partners’ imitative tendencies and, more

generally, contribute to a better understanding of the

enablers as well as barriers to spreading various man-

agement practices across the supply chain.

The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. In

the next section, we review relevant literature and intro-

duce our researchsetting. We then outline the theoretical

framework and develop our hypotheses. The empirical

part of the study follows, including a description of the

sample and data collection, measurement validation,

analyses, and results. We conclude by discussing the aca-

demic and managerial relevance of the study, its limita-

tions, and directions for further research.

LITERATURE REVIEW AND RESEARCH

SETTING

Interorganizational imitation occurs when the use of

certain practices by an organization increases the likeli-

hood of other organizations using similar practices

(Haunschild & Miner, 1997; Ordanini et al., 2008). One

of the most powerful sources of influence for imitative

behavior and mimetic processes is an organization’s

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Imitation in Supply Networks

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