The influence of product complexity on the purchasing structure

This article reports on the influence of product complexity on the purchasing structure within selected product types and phases of the purchasing process by using Analysis of Variance on data from Greek manufacturing and utility enterprises. Our study examined the influence of product complexity on four parameters of purchasing structure, across two different product types and four phases of the purchasing process. The results suggested that all but one parameter varied considerably among different degrees of product complexity and that their configuration depended on attributes such as product differentiation, technical complexity, specialized installation, and existence of after sale service.

[1]  R. Hill.  Marketing technological products to industry , 1973 .

[2]  R. Duncan.  Characteristics of Organizational Environments and Perceived Environmental Uncertainty. , 1972 .

[3]  Donald R. Lehmann,et al.  Decision Criteria Used in Buying Different Categories of Products , 1982 .

[4]  A Langley,et al.  In search of rationality: the purposes behind the use of formal analysis in organizations. , 1989, Administrative science quarterly.

[5]  Wujin Chu,et al.  Industrial Purchasing: An Empirical Exploration of the Buyclass Framework , 1987 .

[6]  Y. Wind,et al.  Industrial buying and creative marketing , 1967 .

[7]  Donald L. Mccabe.  Buying Group Structure: Constriction at the Top , 1987 .

[8]  Y. Wind,et al.  A General Model for Understanding Organizational Buying Behavior , 1972 .

[9]  P. Lawrence,et al.  Organization and Environment: Managing Differentiation and Integration , 1967 .

[10]  Frederick E. Webster,et al.  Management Science in Industrial Marketing , 1978 .

[11]  R. Hill.  The nature of industrial buying decisions , 1972 .

[12]  John R. Nevin,et al.  Performance Outcomes of Purchasing Arrangements in Industrial Buyer-Vendor Relationships , 1990 .

[13]  Daniel H. McQuiston.  Novelty, Complexity, and Importance as Causal Determinants of Industrial Buyer Behavior , 1989 .

[14]  James R. Stock,et al.  The industrial purchase decision for professional services , 1987 .

[15]  Richard K. Burdick,et al.  Purchasing Agents' Perceptions of Industrial Buying Center Influence: A Situational Approach , 1984 .

[16]  N. Campbell,et al.  An interaction approach to organizational buying behavior , 1985 .

[17]  Morry Ghingold,et al.  Testing the “Buygrid” Buying Process Model , 1986 .

[18]  Russell Abratt,et al.  Industrial buying in high-tech markets , 1986 .

[19]  Donald W. Dobler,et al.  Purchasing and Materials Management: Text and Cases , 1977 .

[20]  Ian R. Macneil.  The new social contract: An inquiry into modern contractual relations , 1980 .

[21]  T. Bonoma,et al.  The Buying Center: Structure and Interaction Patterns , 1981 .

[22]  Wesley J. Johnston,et al.  Purchase process for capital equipment and services , 1981 .

[23]  P. J. H. Baily,et al.  Purchasing Principles and Management , 1981 .

[24]  Gary L. Lilien,et al.  An Exploratory Investigation of the Structure of the Buying Center in the Metalworking Industry , 1984 .

[25]  Douglas J. Lincoln,et al.  The purchase of components: Functional areas of influence , 1984 .

[26]  Daniel J. Brass.  Being in the right place: A structural analysis of individual influence in an organization. , 1984 .

[27]  Lambros Laios,et al.  An Empirical Investigation of Institutional and Industrial Purchasing Structure , 1994 .

[28]  Joan C. Woodward.  Industrial Organization: Theory and Practice , 1966 .

[29]  Robert E. Spekman,et al.  Environmental Uncertainty and Buying Group Structure: An Empirical Investigation , 1979 .

[30]  Lambros Laios,et al.  An investigation into the structure of the purchasing function of state-controlled enterprises , 1994 .

[31]  Kjell Grønhaug,et al.  Exploring Environmental Influences in Organizational Buying , 1976 .

[32]  Terry J. Hillier.  Decision - making in the corporate industrial buying process , 1975 .

[33]  J. Bellizzi.  Organizational size and buying influences , 1981 .

[34]  J. Grashof.  Sharing the Purchasing Decision , 1979 .

[35]  O. Williamson.  Transaction-Cost Economics: The Governance of Contractual Relations , 1979, The Journal of Law and Economics.

[36]  P. Matthyssens,et al.  OEM buying process for new components: Purchasing and marketing implications , 1985 .

[37]  A. Woodside,et al.  Observations of centralized corporate procurement , 1981 .

[38]  E. Naumann,et al.  A Macro Contingency Approach to the Study of Purchasing Behavior , 1986 .

[39]  David Smith,et al.  Organisational Decision Making and Industrial Marketing , 1985 .

[40]  M. Mattson.  How to determine the composition and influence of a buying center , 1988 .

[41]  Jay R. Galbraith.  Designing Complex Organizations , 1973 .