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Interorganizational Exchanges in China: Organizational Forms and Governance Mechanisms

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2015

Jianjun Zhang  and
Hean Tat Keh
Jianjun Zhang
Affiliation:
Peking University, China
Hean Tat Keh
Affiliation:
Peking University, China
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Abstract

This article discusses how organizations exchange with one another in China, focusing on the type of organizational ownership and the form of governance mechanism. The theoretical foundation builds on institutional theory, resource dependence theory, agency theory, and evolutionary theory. Given the three main forms of organizations in China – state-owned enterprises, privately owned enterprises, and foreign-invested enterprises - we show how these organizations choose between two types of governance mechanisms, contracts and guanxi, to manage interorganizational exchanges. We then analyze the possible modes of interaction between organizational forms. We argue that the relative importance of guanxi is likely to decline or that guanxi will shift from being primary in some organizations to complementary in all organizations with the progress of market transition. This conceptual framework is expected to help provide the momentum for further theoretical exploration and empirical study in this area.

Keywords

Chinafirm ownership formsgovernance mechanismsguanxiinterorganizational exchange中国、企业所有制形式、治理机制、关系、组织间交易
Type
Articles
Information
Management and Organization Review , Volume 6 , Issue 1 , March 2010 , pp. 123 - 147
Copyright
Copyright © International Association for Chinese Management Research 2010

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