Anna Dubois’s research while affiliated with Chalmers University of Technology and other places

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to inquire into how conceptualising is done in the industrial network approach (INA). Design/methodology/approach The description and analysis of conceptualising is based on key INA references and an example illustrating the characteristics of conceptualising in individual studies. Findings The paper concludes that there is an open and interactive way of conceptualising in the INA. The empirical and theoretical grounding achieved through combining concepts in individual empirical studies interplays with conceptual development in the research community over time. Research limitations/implications Three paradoxes are suggested for further discussion of conceptualising as a key element in theorising in the INA community. Originality/value By explicating how INA researchers engage in conceptualising both in individual empirical studies and as a community, the authors identify characteristics similar to the empirical phenomena in focus of the research: interaction, combining and heterogeneity of concepts.

The turbulent business environment highlights the need for strategies for mitigating, responding to, and recovering from (that is, managing) supply chain disruptions. Resources are central in these strategies but remain unspecified in the literature. This paper shows how the resource interaction approach (RIA) can help understanding resources in this setting by acknowledging their interactive and networked nature. Based on a conceptual discussion that compares key assumptions within the supply chain risk management (SCRM) and supply chain risk resilience (SCRes) literatures with the RIA, we propose an alternative approach to strategies for managing supply chain disruptions. We challenge the SCRM and SCRes literatures by emphasizing interdependence (as opposed to independence) and pointing to relationships as key resources in strategies for managing supply chain disruptions. Collaboration relying on an interplay between temporary and permanent organizing is suggested as a starting point instead of being just one of several alternative strategies.

In view of the pressing need to reduce the negative environmental impact of freight transportation we argue that it is essential to take account of the organization of the freight transportation system when considering how to address various individual activities and parts of the system. To support a transition to a more sustainable freight transportation system this paper examines the way in which different parts of the system interact and the way this can impact the scope for profound change. Taking loosely coupled systems (Weick, 1976) as a starting point, we scrutinize the couplings within and between three system layers of the freight transportation system: the supply chain layer, the transportation layer, and the infrastructure layer. In addition, we address two interfaces connecting these layers: the market for transportation services, and the traffic using the infrastructure. We find that tight couplings dominate in the supply chain and infrastructure layers and that these couplings depend on loose couplings in the transportation layer and the two interfaces. The pattern of couplings identified in the freight transportation system can explain several positive outcomes, such as flexibility and efficiency. But there are also major negative aspects of the loosely coupled nature of the system that create resistance to change and present a barrier in the drive for increased sustainability. The paper concludes that the identified couplings and system features have important implications for policies aiming to change the freight transportation system in ways that lead to significant reduction in the reliance on oil.

Purpose The purpose of the paper is to analyse how transport activities are embedded in supply chains and networks. Design/methodology/approach The paper is empirically grounded in a single case study that describes and analyses a supply chain of a particular product, Geocloth, focussing on how transport activities are organised in the supply network. Findings The paper concludes that transport activities are embedded in two related settings – the supply chain setting and the transport network setting – with implications for how adjustments can be made to increase transport performance. Furthermore, the paper shows how transport performance can be analysed as a function of how business relationships are connected vertically (i.e. how transport activities are sequentially connected within supply chains) and horizontally (i.e. how transport activities are connected across supply chains with regard to joint resource use). Originality/value The paper contributes to the understanding of how transport is integrated in supply networks by focussing on the connections between business relationships in supply chains and by pointing to how transport activities are embedded both in supply chain settings and in transport network settings.

In the present chapter, we focus on how start-ups become embedded in the university and industry context(s) in order to suggest a research agenda for a more systemic approach to university and industry actors when studying start-up development in entrepreneurial universities. More specifically, the story should not end in business formation but an entrepreneurial university also has roles in the further development of start-ups originating both from the university and industry. We base our suggested research agenda on a case study of the automotive and transport cluster in Western Sweden, which is established as both an academic context and an industry context. We relied both on secondary data about the case as such as well as primary data about the relationship development patterns of the 9 start-ups in the cluster. We identified 5 different patterns of how start-ups become embedded. Arguing that the development and success of university-based start-ups have to be understood in terms of how they embed in their context(s) entails several important implications for further studies connected to additional details of the development patterns, the roles universities play in the networking and embedding of start-ups and the design of collaborative platforms for collaboration between various actors.

Purpose The purpose of the paper is to describe and analyse the evolution of the supplier base of a buying firm and the reasons behind these changes. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on a case study of the changes over 52 years in a sub-set of the supplier base of a firm manufacturing fork-lifts. Findings The study shows that some relationships feature substantial longevity. However, the duration of one-third of the total relationships is shorter than five years. There was considerable variation over time in the dynamics of the supplier base in terms of entries and exits of suppliers. Owing to this variation, research findings and conclusions in short-term studies are heavily dependent on the specific conditions at the time of the study. Finally, no less than one-fourth of the terminated supplier relationships were reactivated later. Research limitations/implications The study was designed in a time when purchasing was considered entirely from the perspective of the buying firm. Further studies, therefore, must increasingly emphasise the role of suppliers and the interaction in the buyer–supplier relationships, as well as the embeddedness in networks. Originality/value The findings of the study are unique in two ways. First, they are based on systematic observations over more than 50 years. Second, the study involves the purchases of 11 components representing different technical and economic features. The (few) previous studies are based on much shorter time periods and involves fewer suppliers/components. Moreover, the findings regarding re-activation of terminated relationships represent unique contributions.

Based on the combination of an interorganizational perspective and a processual view of solutions, this paper analyzes the provisioning of solutions in business networks. Drawing on a case study in a transportation industry setting, the interdependencies between solutions are uncovered. The case illustrates how 1) firms are simultaneously involved in the provisioning of multiple solutions, 2) firms take on multiple roles in the provisioning of solutions in the business network, and 3) solutions are subject to interdependencies via connected relationships and thus form “networks of solutions.” The paper concludes that interdependence among solutions is a significant characteristic, adding to previous research on solutions. Consequently, it is suggested that firms' interaction with various parties in the provisioning of solutions needs considerable managerial and theoretical attention.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyse how different ways of organising transport and logistics activities in construction impact on efficiency. The paper scrutinises three particular transport and logistics configurations: the de-centralised coordinated configuration, the on-site coordinated configuration and the supply network coordinated configuration. Design/methodology/approach Three configurations are derived from the literature and from case studies. The efficiency of the three configurations is analysed on three levels of analysis: the construction site, the supply chain, and across supply chains and construction sites. Findings The paper concludes that there are possibilities to enhance efficiency on all three levels of analysis by widening the scope of coordination beyond the individual construction site. Practical implications The analysis points to efficiency potentials in applying the supply network coordinated configuration, although this configuration puts high demands on collaboration amongst the actors involved. Originality/value The paper provides illustration, and explanation, of the efficiency potentials involved in the three configurations.

Purpose The purpose of the paper is to identify and discuss the transport service triad (TST) as a key unit of analysis to understand the operations and conditions for change in freight transport systems at the micro level, i.e. at the level of analysis where business decisions and change interaction take place. Design/methodology/approach The theoretical framing is rooted in the IMP approach and in the literature on triads. A case study approach is used to illustrate the TST by analyzing a case involving a wholesaler of installation products, tools and supplies, a main construction company and a transport service provider. Findings The paper shows how the connections between the business relationships in the TST, influenced by connections to relationships outside the triad, impact on the efficiency in freight transport. The paper illustrates how analysis of TSTs can be applied in micro-level studies of change in freight transport systems and in supply networks. Research limitations/implications The triadic approach is instrumental to understand change in the transport system because it includes all relevant parties and relationships of concern, as well as the logic framing of their actions. However, while arguing that TSTs are generic to their nature, each TST is unique and needs to be identified and analyzed in its specific context. Practical implications The suggested framework may contribute to an understanding of the embeddedness of transport services in supply/business networks. The framework may support the development of new ways of operating and creating value for customers and offering sustainable transport solutions. Originality/value From the transport policy makers’ perspective, micro-level analysis is important to understand behavioral adjustments to new policies.

This paper focuses on the process of starting up in the Swedish energy system and in particular how existing resource structures both facilitate and hinder commercialization of new innovations that may contribute to renewable energy solutions. The Swedish energy system is an outcome of many years of investments being made in both public and private infrastructures that can be seen as a ‘heavy resource structure’. However, the current ‘heavy resource structure’ containing for example refineries that generate products from fossil fuels is now subject to huge challenges and must open up for new actors and resources to meet the new demands. By using a case methodology this paper aims to explore how to capture the starting up process in the Swedish energy system and specifically the interplay between organizational and technical resources as a way to embed new technical solutions in already established resource structures. The theoretical starting point is the Industrial Network Approach and especially the concepts of resource interaction and resource interfaces.