هیجانات در برون سپاری. یک مطالعه تجربی در صنعت هتل

This research aims to analyze the role of positive and negative emotions in decisions about supplier switching in the hotel industry. It shows how, in addition to switching costs and relational norms, positive emotions, such as happiness, empathy, gladness and satisfaction, also act as switching barriers and influence the likelihood of supplier switching. The findings also provide evidence that psychological factors moderate the influence of economic and relational factors. The empirical study was conducted in hotels and restaurants in two tourist areas of Asia and Europe: the Antalya Coast in Turkey and the French Riviera.

For decades, research conducted into outsourcing has significantly improved our understanding of the determining factors in “make” or “buy” decisions (Walker and Weber, 1984), the most appropriate modes of inter-firm governance (Heide, 1994), as well as the consequences on organization's boundaries (Holmström and Roberts, 1998). Studies into the impact of outsourcing have highlighted how it helps to improve firm's performance; by focusing on core competencies, by increasing the competitive advantage, and by reducing the internal costs (Jennings, 1997). The latter issue is central in the hotel industry, which is known for its high level of fixed costs. With sales and profit margins decreasing, due to the economic recession in Western countries and the intense rivalry between resorts in the tourist areas, hotel managers are attempting to lower their operating costs (Lam and Han, 2005). This explains why outsourcing is occurring more frequently in this industry, bringing in its wake both the potential for superior performance and the overall consequences of increased buyer–supplier dependence. The buyer–supplier problem of dependence is central for the supply-chain managers in many industries. For instance, a purchasing manager in the automobile sector attested on this issue: “Our market is hyper-competitive and since we have outsourced 75% of our product manufacturing, our suppliers are the ones that set profit margins. Needless to say, decisions to switch suppliers are very strategic”. Although the hotel industry is less advanced in outsourcing management compared to the automobile industry, it is still necessary to define an effective supplier switching decision-making process in order to limit the negative influence of suppliers’ action and benefit from outsourcing.

Previous studies have stressed the need to explore outsourcing contexts in hotel industry and to delve deeper into the question of supplier choice and relationship continuity (Anderson and Weitz, 1989 and Ganesan, 1994; Hauglanb, 1999; Wathne et al., 2001). By identifying several factors driving supplier switching, this paper contributes to the development of our knowledge on the subject. The arguments and findings provide evidence that, as well as switching costs and relational norms, positive emotions also act as switching barriers. The findings also provide evidence that emotional factors moderate the influence of economic and relational factors. This paper sets out to contribute to both practice and theory in several respects. Firstly, this study has several implications for practitioners. The findings must be put into the context of hotel managers in charge of outsourcing decisions and forming relationships with suppliers. We have noticed in previous research that most purchasing agents state that they base their decisions on suppliers on economic criteria alone. Some managers recognize that they also manage their relationships with suppliers by establishing trust and relational norms. Notably, they mention the role of interpersonal relationships in avoiding opportunistic behavior and in fostering a kind of “relationalism” with their suppliers. In contrast, managers who acknowledge their sensitivity to factors stemming from their emotions are few and far between. In general, they concede that emotions may play a role in other firms but that, in their case, emotions have no influence. Yet, these findings show that positive emotions such as happiness, satisfaction or gladness have both a direct and indirect impact on supplier switching. Likewise, from a supplier's perspective, this study shows how a supplier can continue to work with a buyer firm if it induces positive emotions in its buyers, in addition to reducing switching costs, and fosters strong relationships.