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Introduction
In a complex and turbulent environment, business relationships are often subject to random factors, or even incidents, in particular within the supply chains. When they occur, all is not frozen, but the business relationship is slightly changed; it deteriorates and its outcome is uncertain. The theme of deterioration is rarely studied in literature, as it is often focalised on extreme situations: on the one hand, on durable relationships based on mutual satisfaction, linked in particular to a reciprocal attraction, and on the other hand, on breakdowns linked to obvious conflicts between partners (Vaaland et al. , 2004; Ellis, 2006; Yang et al. , 2012). However, the interactions between supply chain members are often linked between these two poles, and the business relationships often go through a period of weakening that can be fatal. Therefore, it would be appropriate to lead new research on deterioration. The improvement of knowledge in this field would help managers detect the business relationships that are threatened and to anticipate the continuity of the deterioration process. This would make the establishment of measures aiming at preserving deteriorating business relationships easier and prevent the breakdown with customers the company wishes to retain.
Different approaches can be considered to contribute to a better understanding of the deterioration phenomenon. It would be useful, for example, to focus on the trigger of the deterioration process by studying its causes and looking for the signs indicating the beginning of the deterioration: does the deterioration come from a mutual lack of understanding regarding the compliance of supply conditions, or is it a more profound result of a one-shot opportunistic attitude of a supply chain member that alters the climate of trust? It would also be enlightening to define the diversity of reactions the customers are likely to adopt once the deterioration has started: is a constructive dialogue retained to find a solution to the cause of the deterioration, or do we witness the rapid establishment of retaliation measures? This would allow the supplier to treat its customers in a differentiated manner and help prepare an answer that would take into account the specificity of their expectations, when they are confronted with the deterioration of a business relationship.
It is the latter approach that is retained here....