Interorganizational developmental processes : governance and interaction in continuous negotiated agreements

Abstract

This report explores how long-term interorganizational relationships are managed as they evolve over time. A conceptual framework is developed, drawing on contract theory and negotiation theory. Long-term relationships represent incomplete contracts, causing a chain of joint decision episodes to unfold. The perspective adopted here view these events as negotiation incidents, and long-term relationships as continuous negotiated agreements, where contractual aspects and negotiation strategies evolve in a state of mutual constitution. The framework is applied in a longitudinal study of three evolving interorganizational relationships in the Norwegian retail sector, and several developmental aspects that the current literature has awarded little attention are identified.