Post on 03-Apr-2018
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141The International Journal o Digital Accounting Research
Vol. 6, N. 12, 2006, pp. 141-158
ISSN: 1577-8517
Submitted October 2005
Accepted July 2006
Role of Shared Information Systems in
Distribution Channels
Jos M. Snchez. Universidad Pablo de Olavide. Spain
jmsanvaz@upo.es
Carolina Ramrez. Universidad Pablo de Olavide. Spain
cramgar@upo.es
Abstract. Some manuacturers are reluctant to rationally share their Inormation Systems
(ISs) with their dealers. Through a detailed case study analysis, we explore what could impel
a manuacturer to overcome its reluctance by analysing its control problems (lack o direction;
motivational; and personal limitations). We show that sharing ISs provides benefts derived
rom the collection o inormation in both quantity and quality that is in turn utilized by the
manuacturer. It ensures that the manuacturer controls operations with proper inormation, seeing
the market through dealers. Thereore, manuacturers could share ISs in order to proactively
manage their distribution channels in a non-coercive way.
Key words: Inormation Systems, Control Problems, Distribution Channel, Case Study.
. INTRODUCTION
Facing the challenges associated with getting a product to the right place at
the right time at the lowest cost, a manuacturing frm may sell their products
through a set o independent frms (Stern et al., 1996). These dealers have greater
market knowledge and exibility, giving the manuacturer cost and investment
reductions (Celly and Frazier, 1996). However, once the distribution channel
1 This research is partly unded by the research project SEJ-111 and SEJ2005-06652/ECON.
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is established, dierences in objectives arise (Stern et al., 1996) and there is a
lack o the advantages o a hierarchical structure (Gulati and Singh, 1998). This
may be aggravated by the inuence that a bad dealers service could have on the
manuacturers reputation.
In this sense, shared inormation, in terms o the extent to which channel
members proactively exchange inormation with each other, has been ound to be
critical or the eective unctioning o distribution channels (Li and Dant, 1997).
Thus, Inormation Systems (ISs) could enhance these inter-frm relationships (Ritter
and Gemnden, 2003), acilitating an efcient and eective inormational ow.
Integration and coordination via IS has become a key to improved distribution
channel perormance (Barut et al., 2002). However, although scholars andpractitioners in various felds have turned their attention to sharing inormation,
it appears that manuacturers harbor a disinclination to reveal more than minimal
inormation since such disclosure could be perceived as a loss o control. Owing to
the adversarial nature o business, managers tend to overestimate the possible risks
without seeing the potential benefts and thus are reluctant to share inormation
with their partners (Huang and Gangopadhyay, 2004). Previous research suggests
that shared ISs could create perceived risks rom privacy concerns, in turn making
the system vulnerable to raud (Papazoglous, 2000; McKnight et al., 2002).
Recognizing this gap, and according to Baiman and Rajans (2002) proposal,
our aim is to explore what impels a manuacturer to rationally share its ISs in its
established distribution channel. In this vein, to understand the need or shared ISs,
we distinguish three control problems: lack o direction, motivational problems, and
personal limitations, extending Merchant and Van der Stedes (2003) ramework
to distribution channels. This allows us to analyse whether Merchant and Van
der Stedes control problems, defned or intra-organizational settings, persist in
outsourced distribution channels. An exploratory case study approach (Yin, 1984)
has been adopted because it allows us to capture the complexities o distribution
channels. As a research site, we studied the distribution channel o a manuacturing
frm called CMD (an assumed name). This is because, during the period o study
1985-2004, the frm has opted to share its ISs with its dealers.
Our research contributes to the existing literature in dierent ways. We ocus
on the manuacturers perspective in a market-ocused relationship as a potential
ISs developer and inormation sharer to analyse what motivated it to develop shared
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ISs. Through the analysis o control problems, we deend that they persist in an
inter-organizational context. Thus, the need to manage these control problems
motivate that manuacturers develop shared ISs, in contrast to previous research
that deended the proposition that outsourced distribution channels avoided theneed or administrative systems. In addition to the assumption o existing literature
on sharing inormation that improves inter-frm coordination, sharing ISs can
also help the manuacturing frms to acquire increasingly reliable inormation to
better control its distribution channel members activities. We fnd that sharing IS
provides benefts derived rom the timely collection o inormation in both quantity
and quality that the manuacturers can then utilize. Thereore, manuacturers,
overcoming their reluctance, could share their ISs in order to proactively manage
their distribution channel in a non-coercive way, controlling the end-market through
their dealers.
The paper is structured as ollows. First, we analyse the distribution channel
context and its potential control problems, studying the role o shared ISs. Secondly,
we present a case study o how CMD introduced a set o shared ISs tools to support
its distribution channel management eorts. This case description is ollowed by
a discussion and explanation o case fndings, ollowed by conclusions.
2. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
As parts o supply chains, distribution channels are confgured as non-equity
contractual alliances, with closer interactions than arms-lengths relationships.
Within distribution channels typologies, we ocus on industrial dealers, who
have three distinctive eatures: 1. a revenue-sharing contract oered by the
manuacturer; 2. a production or inventory quantity and retail price decisionmade by the manuacturer; and 3. inventory consignment, i.e., ull ownership
o inventory retained by the manuacturer. Under the consignment contract,
a bigger upstream manuacturer delegates to smaller downstream dealers the
exclusive rights to a customers segment. Dealers give the manuacturer cost and
investment reductions, in addition to greater exibility and continuity (Stern et al.,
1996). Furthermore, dealers can generate synergies when they represent various
manuacturers (noncompetitors), and when they perorm tasks that a single product
cannot justiy. In this line, the literature on marketing supports the view thatully-owned distribution channels require investment in administrative systems to
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manage activities, and that manuacturers could choose to avoid these by opting
or a distribution channel (Anderson and Oliver, 1987).
Despite the beneits o distribution channels, the consensus o manyresearchers is that conict is pervasive throughout all distribution channels (Stern
et al., 1996). Distribution channels are composed o independent dealers with
individual preerences, which could imply that the manuacturer depends on
(and delegates authority to) a set o dealers to deliver goods and services to the
selling point. In this sense, dealers could ocus their behaviours on short-term
profts, abandoning activities with no immediate and concrete pay-o, which
could harm manuacturer objectives (Anderson, 1985). The problems could be
aggravated when the manuacturer eels that dealers are irreplaceable because
they have closer relationships with end customers or have better local market
knowledge. In this sense, we propose to extend to an inter-organizational context
the ramework proposed by Merchant (1985) and Merchant and Van der Stede
(2003). These authors argue that in an intra-organizational context, the need or
control systems is rooted in control problems. Establishing that control problems
can occur simultaneously, Merchant and Van der Stede (2003) classiy them into
three broad categories: (i) Lack o direction: when people do not know what
the organization wants rom them; (ii) Motivational problems: when people and
organizational objectives do not naturally coincide, and people are sel-interested;
and (iii) Personal limitations: when people are simply unable to do a good job
because o certain personal limitations, highlighting that a common limitation is
a lack o inormation.
Some authors argue that the eective management o distribution channels
requires manuacturers to increase inormation availability or internal users aswell as authorized dealers. Integration and coordination via ISs has been ound to
be key to improved distribution channel perormance (Barut et al., 2002). Thus,
ISs could represent a valuable inormation resource management philosophy rather
than just a technical systems issue (Arunachalam, 2004). ISs could allow efcient
and eective ows o both inormational and physical goods in a seamless ashion.
Sharing inormation enables frms to coordinate and pursue common objectives
(Arunachalam, 2004). Its inherent exibility could help frms to quickly adopt
new measures to adapt to changes in the environment (Chandrashekar and Schary,1999). Porter and Millar (1985) related ISs to the value chain, concluding that the
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main purpose o ISs was to coordinate activities in the chain. In this sense, ISs
ensures consistent inormation or all centres, avoiding inormation duplication
and enhancing decision-making processes.
However, although ISs have been adopted in a diversity o organizations and the
degree o penetration is exceptionally high, they are not so common in distribution
channels. Although scholars and practitioners in various felds have turned their
attention to sharing inormation, it appears that managers o manuacturing frms
have a disinclination to give away more than minimal inormation since disclosure
is perceived as a loss o control. Owing to the adversarial nature o business,
managers are reluctant to share inormation with their partners because they tend
to overestimate the possible risks without seeing the potential benefts (Huang
and Gangopadhyay, 2004). In act, some authors argue that a shared IS increases
perceived risks rom privacy concerns, in turn making the system vulnerable to
raud (Papazoglous, 2000; McKnight et al., 2002).
Nevertheless, studies concerned with the role o data interchange among various
partners have not received the attention they deserve (Lau and Lee, 2000). The large
investment in a shared IS and its inherent risks may be concerns or reasonable
managers, raising some questions that need urther research. The loss o resources
money and manpower when implementations are awed or ail is huge (Robey
et al., 2002). Thus, according to the above arguments, our research question arises:
What could impel manuacturing frms to share their proprietary ISs?.
3. DESIGN AND CASE STUDY RESEARCH
In order to provide an answer to our research question, ollowing a design byYin (1984), we conducted a case study rom the perspective o a manuacturing
frm called CMD (an assumed name). As a part o a larger research project, our
feld study was chosen based on two considerations: (1) the distribution channel
was successul, longstanding, and stable; (2) the case showed that CMD, during
the period o study 1992-2004, opted to share its ISs with its dealers. In line with
Yins (1984) suggestions, we ollowed three principles to provide validity and
reliability: using multiple sources o evidence; creating a case study database; and
maintaining a chain o evidence.
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3.. Data collection and analysis
The necessary inormation to establish the sequence o analysed events was
obtained by means o archival sources, direct observations, and interview data.The most rich and detailed archival sources were the dierent types o contracts,
the dealers evaluation system, the summary o all the periodical joint meetings,
and the projects and procedures documents. Supplementary archival data contain
a large number o fnancial and commercial reports, improvement project reports,
and internal and external newsletters. Interviews were employed to gain more
inormation and to complement and contrast the archival data, which served to
triangulate our fndings (Eisenhardt, 1989). On the basis o the revised literature,
a guide or semi-structured interviews was developed to ocus on the process
o data collection in the development o the ISs. Thus, the interviews with the
employees o CMD were carried out with a double aim: (a) to complete and to
contrast the previously gathered inormation; and (b) to deepen understanding o
aspects that were ignored and that were especially interesting in the study. We
interviewed 20 members o CMDs management team ace-to-ace (November
2002 to June 2003). Interviewees were chosen based on their direct relation to the
dealers IS development. All interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed, andthe completed write-up was sent to the interviewees or comment. We also assisted
in the our joint meetings (2001-2004), as well as several inormal meetings and
phone conversations with some o CMDs managers and dealers.
In our research, we analysed the case data, ocusing our eorts on the events that
appeared to have an impact on the shared IS development process, a technique that
can provide insight into what led to what, and when (Miles and Huberman, 1994,
p. 110). This procedure helped us to trace our events that were chronologicallyordered, in order to maintain the chain o evidence.
3.2. Distribution channel information system at CMD
CMD was established in the late 19th century and it is currently the leader
in its Spanish chemical sector. Its outsourced distribution channel is confgured
as a non-equity alliance with a set o dealers, who sell its products to a great
number o small and medium sized businesses. Dealers receive its products underconsignment, and are delegated the activities o commercialisation, warehousing,
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transport, and management o CMD customers portolios. Although its industrial
products are commodities that do not dier rom those o its competitors, CMDs
approach to working with its dealers is its main value. According to interviews, its
distribution channel management allows it to dierentiate itsel rom competitor
frms, provide its fnal customers with a satisactory service level, and maintain
market premium prices.
3.2.1. Distribution channel inormation system development
Antecedents. From its beginning, CMD entrusted in some transporters with
its delivery and warehousing tasks or two primary reasons: logistic costs andmarket positioning. From 1985 onwards, CMD began to establish the contractual
ramework o the relationship, ocusing on the legal and labour aspects. As a
result, a sole contract type is used or these independent entities, regardless
o their varying sizes, legal constitution, and other activities. Also, CMD took
advantage o the introduction o the contract to establish the sales commission
system. Thus, the dealers operate in exclusivity and they are commissioned by its
sales in a geographical area. However, on occasions, it is CMD who carries out
the deliveries to the customer. On the other hand, CMD established its commercial
department in the late 1980s to carry out the commercial unctions o direct sales
and attending to customers. CMD assigned each commercial employee a dealers
group to supervise all its activities.
Although the sales were carried out through the distribution channel, CMD
billed its customers directly. This is because CMD sent books o delivery notes,
which the dealers completed manually or each product delivery. These notes
were sent once a month by postcard to the dierent centres o CMD or their
records. With this system, CMD carried out the billing or its products to the fnal
customers, but it could neither oresee nor assign appropriate stocks to the dealers,
overstocking its own and dealers warehouses. At the same time, many errors o
billing were detected.
In order to preserve the chain o evidence, the acts are structured in order to
show the chronological evolution o IS development in the period o study, 1992-
2004. Figure 1 summarizes the time line associated with these events.
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Years 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002-04
Inormatizationproject
Electronic dataintegration
Dealers market-ing plan
Web-basedintegration
Figure 1. Main Landmarks Related to the Distribution Channel Inormation System
992. Informatization project
In 1992, CMD hired a consultant frm to analyse its entire business. Theconsultants recommended transerring the distribution channel to re-sellers (like
its competitors). CMDs managers considered that this option could acilitate the
administrative tasks and the dealers control, but that in turn they would lose the
control o the containers and o the fnal market, aspects that lead it to reuse the
proposal.
Instead, CMD decided to install computers and sotware in large dealerships
(more than 120 invoices o products/month delivery). The sotware specifcallydeveloped or these dealers allowed them to outsource the administrative activities
o product delivery and the release o invoices, which, rom that moment on, were
only the responsibility o the dealers. Also, with the inormation transmitted twice
monthly via modem, CMD was able to know the location o containers and to
obtain twice-weekly inormation on sales, stocks o dealers, and fnal customers.
Also, with the new systems, the dealers recorded all their invoices, which resulted
in the reduction o errors and reduced paperwork. This allowed CMD to carry out
gradual sta reductions, closing some own centres and reducing the workload oothers.
998. Electronic data integration
As a continuation o the above project, CMD installed new computers and its
own sotware, sharing it with all its dealers and delegating new unctions to them
(opening and maintenance o customers records, discounts in prices, invoice copies,
dealers and customers stock control, logistic management, complaints recording,
and customers debt control). Thus, they also increased the externalisation o
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activities, and maintained the control through the establishment o authorization
procedures and passwords. This system, with twice weekly reporting, allowed
CMD to increase their knowledge o the allocation o inventory between dealers,
gaining greater inormation and control o dealers. According to the interviewsand the documents, with these new systems they not only eliminated a signifcant
quantity o work, reduced stocks, and increased the rotation ratios in warehouses,
but they also avoided errors and increased the inormation rom (and the control
o) the dealers.
999. Dealers marketing plan
The dealers marketing plan was based on two key planks: (a) a dealers
scorecard; and (b) a data base:
-(a) Dealers scorecard. CMD established a computer application (dealers
control scorecard) to share commercial inormation with its dealers, which was
given the same name as the internal tool or the commercial department: gescom.
The intention was: to improve coordination between our commercial sta and
dealers. The inormation would allow the dealer to: (i) obtain better knowledge
o the evolution o its customers; (ii) plan and solve problems more quickly; (iii)coordinate its work with the sales network (Project Memory). This inormation
allowed dealers to have the necessary inormation to improve their sales activities,
and it included alls in consumption, signing o new customers, package contracts,
analysis o sales vs. previous year, analysis o sales by concepts, or the stock o
packages by the customers. The commercial department provided training in the
use o the new inormation, because although dealers already had access to it
(through customer invoices copies) this more organised and aggregated ormat
was more helpul. This inormation also allowed the establishment and pursuit
o the dealers objectives and improvement projects. This IS, in some cases, even
improved the manuacturers own commercial department activities by providing
an extra management tool.
-(b) Dealers database. This internal tool gathers inormation on the dierent
tasks and unctions o the dealers (e.g., sales, commissions, dedication percentage,
number o sales sta, capacity o trucks, or customer attention schedule). The
interviewees consider it a tool enabling them to carry out benchmarking analysis
and to evaluate each dealers evolution.
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2002. Web-based integration
At the present time, the ISs is completely integrated through dierent databases
with on-line access via the Internet. CMD has designed a web page that currentlyincludes all o the ormer tools, as well as some new services. As the dealers manager
comments in an e-mail o July 2002: The sections that compose the dealers web are:
the Dealers Handbook, inormation and operational norms o the unctions carried
out by the dealers. Dealers addresses, to locate and obtain the data rom dealers, as
well as the activities that develop. [...] CMD News: communication magazine or
dealers Services that CMD oers to dealers, such as civil responsibility insurance,
saety consultation, or ISO-9000. Dealer News: to publish opinions, applications
or oers. Basic computer applications, and email addresses or each dealer toacilitate communication with the customers and with CMD.
Since 1999, CMD observes a strong cost reduction and a sales increase (see
Figure 2). The cost reduction is mainly based on the closure o own centres and
on the reductions in CMDs sta. Likewise, the sales increase can be attributed to
several actors, among which are the evolution o the market itsel, the premium
prices policy, the dealers sales ocus, the introduction o new services supplied by
the dealers (services which are billed by CMD to the fnal customers), and to allowto CMDs commercial department to give more attention to another market unctions.
Finally, in the course o this shared ISs establishment, a reduction in the number o
dealers has been observed, alling rom almost 300 dealers in the late 1980s to 178
at present. CMD managers highlight the act that it has been necessary to reduce the
number o small dealers, assigning their area to other more medium sized dealers.
Year No. Dealers Direct Sales Dealers Sales Total
1997 220$MM 36 71 107
% 34% 66%
1998 218$MM 38 78 116
% 33% 67%
1999 214$MM 29 78 107
% 27% 73%
2000 201 -- -- -- --
2001 195$MM 40 78 118
% 34% 66%
2002 188$MM 47 84 131
% 36% 64%
2003 181$MM 45 95 140
% 32% 68%2004 178 -- -- -- --
Figure 2. Distribution channel evolution
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and vice versa. CMD fnds that this system o remuneration ailed to motivate
either the search or business opportunities or an optimal level o customer service
(Mishra et al., 1998). According to Anderson (1985), CMD observed the tendency
or some dealers to pay disproportionate attention to customers with a higher salesvolume that make the service more proftable. In this sense, another shortall o
the commission system is that it ails to motivate package collection; a act that
meant CMD was unable to reach its targets o container rotation.
Another problem arises rom the personal limitations o the dealers. CMD
took its frst steps towards dealers by recruiting existing transporters who already
acted as deliverers o its products. CMD detected lack o training, resources, and
capacity within the dealers group. Thus, lacking sale abilities and knowledge,some dealers ignored the dierent applications o the CMD products. In this sense,
the act that they were good transporting frms did not mean that they were good
dealers, according to the very well known Peter Principle. Furthermore, they did
not have the inormation that allowed them to work efciently.
CMD, motivated by the need to manage these control problems, opted to
share inormation and to supervise the critical aspects o the relationship better.
In so doing, they develop an interorganizational IS, in contrast to the literature onmarketing that argues that manuacturers should choose to avoid administrative
system investments (Anderson and Oliver, 1987). Thereore, the fndings show
that in an outsourced channel o distribution, the problems defned by Merchant
and Van der Stede (2003) persist in an inter-organizational context. Moreover, the
incremental delegation o unctions causes CMD to be more dependent on (and
vulnerable to) the behaviour o the dealers, according to Frazier and Antia (1995),
as well as increasing the necessity to manage its distribution channel.
During the period o study, CMD developed a more complex IS to deal with
its distribution channel. In contrast to the advice o the consultant frm, CMD
opted to control the end-market through the distribution channel. These new ISs
help CMD manage the problems o lack o direction by establishing the necessary
procedures to carry out activities, by defning the desired results rom those aspects
that CMD considers critical (new commercialization and administrative unctions,
container or customer management), when appraising dealers regularly, and when
establishing benchmarking systems with the aim o encouraging behaviour thatbrings desirable results.
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CMD has developed new IS tools that complete the direct supervision carried
out by the commercial sta, defning and transmitting acceptable limits o desirable
actions. CMD manages the problem o lack o direction and reinorces its direct
supervision by supplying its commercial sta with the necessary IS through which
they can perorm on the basis o solid inormation, which helps CMD to correct
dealers behaviour. Thus, CMD increases its confdence that dealers will carry
out certain desirable actions, or avoid undesirable ones, reducing the risk o a bad
service to the fnal customer.
Additionally, CMDs commercial sta training, assistance, and encouragement
to dealers to do the job properly helped to solve the problem o personal limitations.
CMD gathers inormation on its dealers need through ISs, detecting their needs. It
also osters dealer socialization through inter-organizational transerence o CMD
know-how. The shared character o the ISs provide the dealers with the necessary
inormation to make their decisions on a better-inormed basis.
The results o the case study show that when improving the inormation o
the dealers, CMD improves the coordination between both parties, increasing
the perormance o the distribution channel. Facilitating and increasing the
inormational ow, CMD tries to mitigate the probability o (and potential damage
rom) a bad dealers service. According to Baiman and Sivaramakrishnan (1991),
a dealer who has access to the best pre-decision inormation is able to use it to
make better decisions. In this sense, our case study confrms the act that shared
ISs help frms to coordinate and pursue common objectives (Arunachalam, 2004),
helping to quickly adopt and adapt to changes in the environment (Chandrashekar
and Schary, 1999).
But, as Spekl (2001) argues, we could understand that to share inormation
is not gratuitous. The value o sharing ISs is that improves the perormance o the
dealers or the attainment o its goals. As Baiman and Sivaramakrishnan (1991)
propose, a way in which the manuacturing frms can mitigate any negative eect
o improving the dealers inormation is to require them to communicate, in turn,
their private inormation. The case shows how a shared IS represents benefts to
CMD that are derived rom the inormation that was gathered rom the dealers. In
addition, the shared IS helps CMD to ensure the reliability o the data, reducingerrors, and guaranteeing that it is supervising with correct inormation. Thereore,
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in CMDs own interest, shared IS makes it possible to check i agreements are being
ulflled, as well as to detect their dealers weak points, reducing CMDs dependence
on its dealers. Furthermore, CMD also uses the inormation gathered by the IS to
benchmark the best dealers, reducing its dealers base. In this sense, integration
and coordination via ISs oers the advantages o a hierarchical structure (Gulati
and Singh, 1998). The case study shows how the manuacturer not only does not
suer a loss o control, but rather increases the level o control o its dealers and
its end-market; without fxed costs and large investment. Thus, manuacturers can
see the potential benefts, evaluate the possible risks, and overcome their reluctance
to share inormation with their partners.
In summary, a shared IS improves the management o the CMD partnership.
A shared IS completes and re-drives the agreement; in a exible and non-coercive
way, motivating the development o a partnership. With shared IS development,
CMD increases inormation ows, improves congruence o objectives and reduces
the number o dealers. CMD accepts the potential risk that dealers may use the
inormation against them, weighing it against the benefts o a consolidated
partnership such as shared interests and common targets, or distribution channel
dealer compliance.
5. CONCLUSION
This case study allows us to explore the role o a shared IS in inuencing
the ongoing management in an outsourcing context, extending the scope beyond
frm limits. We report on how shared ISs are developed in an already established
non-equity alliance to increase the extent o outsourcing, and to manage control
problems. A shared IS allows the manuacturing frm to continue as the leader in
market share and premium prices, which can lead to a sustainable competitive
advantage.
An inherent aspect o distribution channels is the conict o objectives. This
causes problems defned in an intra-organizational context (lack o direction,
motivational problems, and personal limitations) to persist in an outsourced
distribution channel, increasing when the manuacturing frm decides to enhancethe quantity and complexity o the tasks delegated to the dealers. This, in
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turn, highlights the need to develop and increase interorganizational ISs that
permit sharing inormation to coordinate and to monitor the key aspects o the
relationship.
Case fndings show how a manuacturing frm accepts the potential risk that
dealers may use the shared inormation against it weighed against the benefts
o developing a partnership. Sharing an IS represents benefts derived rom the
increased inormation that, in turn, the manuacturer collects. A shared IS increases
the data reliability, assuring that the manuacturing frm is monitoring operations
with proper inormation. Additionally, a shared IS permits a manuacturer to
oresee problems or correct them in a timely manner, as well as oering a wayto see the fnal market through the distribution channel, reducing manuacturers
dependence on its dealers.
Thus, the growth o partnerships demands an IS that could be a key enabler
o a strategic relationship. Although ISs have been traditionally seen as tools to
improve unctions and internal operations, they are necessary to acilitate the
administration o management problems that are not eliminated when carrying
out activities outside o the frm. In this sense, outsourced distribution channels
could also require ISs that allow the manuacturing frm to manage the operations.
The case study supplies empirical evidence showing how shared ISs complete and
ease the re-drive o inter-frm agreements and constitute a key tool or managing
and maintaining inter-frm relationships in a exible and non-coercive way.
Because most distribution channel improvement initiatives would be impossible
to implement without timely, eective inormation sharing among members.
Finally, we must mention some limitations and uture research questions. The
evidence presented is based on the criterion o a single in-depth study, and thereore
it would be interesting to complement these results with data both rom dealers
perspective, to analyse their ISs uses, and rom other case studies, with the aim
o analysing and contrasting possible dierences. At the end o our study period,
we have ound evidence o the coming implementation o a new SAP system. The
implications or its use with the dealers would be interesting to analyse.
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6. REFERENCES
ANDERSON, E. (1985): The salesperson as outside dealer or employee: a
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