Relational Exchange Strategies, Performance, Uncertainty and Knowledge

This study tests both the purchasing and production performance benefits of relational exchange strategies under varying levels of environmental uncertainty. The results indicate that customers realize different performance benefits from relational exchanges in certain versus uncertain environments. In uncertain environments, all the customer performance benefits tested were enhanced through the use of relational exchanges, but in more certain environments, only the production performance benefits achieved through knowledge transfer were improved. The results suggest the need to develop exchange theory and conduct further research on the influences of both environmental and internal organization uncertainty on relational customer-supplier exchanges and the corresponding performance benefits.