 Sustaining Inter-organizational Relationships Across Institutional Logics and Power Asymmetries: The Case of Fair TradeAlex Nicholls and
Benjamin Huybrechts
Post-Print from HAL Abstract: This paper explores an empirical puzzle, namely, how inter-organizational relationships can be sustained between organizations that draw upon distinctive--and potentially conflicting--institutional logics under conditions of power asymmetry. This research analyses cases of these relationships and suggests some key conditions underlying them. Examining relationships between 'Fair Trade' organizations and corporate retailers, a series of contingent factors behind the dynamic persistence of such relationships are proposed, namely: the presence of pre-existing 'hybrid logics'; the use of boundary-spanning discourses; joint tolerance of conflict; and co-creation of common rules. These four elements are supported by a fifth mediating factor, i.e. the presence and use of a Fair Trade certification system in the collaboration. The latter appears as a central vehicle facilitating cross-logic relationships--it can be seen as a 'boundary object' embodying a series of narratives and discourses that are open to multiple interpretations corresponding to the dominant institutional logics of each partner organization. Keywords: social enterprise; cross-sector partnership; fair trade (search for similar items in EconPapers) Published in Journal of Business Ethics, 2016, 135 (4), 699-714 p There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it. Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02312323 Access Statistics for this paper More papers in Post-Print from HAL |
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