客戶共創及價值鏈完整度對廠商績效之影響

Abstract

基於環境與策略因素考量，始於1950年，源自西方先進國家，乃至1980年起飛的外包策略進入了東方的台灣、爾後中國，造就了當地經濟的蓬勃發展，也造就了東方與西方不同的經濟成長路徑。環境持續變遷，西方試圖提出升級轉型策略，東方如台灣與中國也追隨倡議，譬如製造商服務化便為其一。只是製造商服務化策略可能需要廠商與客戶之間進行共創，以及一更完整的價值鏈做為前提。可是即便學界推崇客戶共創，現實文獻呈現結果不一，業界又常有因客戶害怕廠商成為潛在競爭者，使得廠商切割事業之現象，再加上東、西方在資源條件上或對服務與關係的期待不見得相同，西方策略未必適宜東方背景。西方企業一般來說擁有較豐厚的資源條件，也較東方企業訴求合約而非人際關係。然即便亞洲現已成為活躍的經濟參與體，學術文獻仍偏以西方為主流! 由於相關東方條件的研究缺口，為協助東方企業釐清是否能藉由西方所提策略升級轉型，本文引用適宜探討B2B關係的資源依賴理論與分工綜效觀點切入、採結構-行為-績效架構、B2B背景，以量化研究於台灣、中國大陸區域施放廠商-客戶對偶問卷，再經由結構方法模型偏最小平方法分析，期能平衡本學術領域偏向質化為重之現象、延伸資源依賴理論的應用層面、並且探討是否客戶共創和價值鏈完整度有助於公司績效提昇？再者，如果客戶共創與價值鏈完整度有益於廠商的績效表現，又有哪些因素可協助觸發客戶共創或價值鏈完整度？另外，本論文也將進一步分析，不同的客戶屬性(已開發中國家的客戶對比開發中國家的客戶)，是否以及其如何影響價值鏈完整度和價值鏈組成內容？最末，本論文將就兩個研究之發現，提出包括學術與實務上之建議、研究限制與未來研究方向的提議。

First sprouting in the 1950s and then really taking off in the 1980s for environmental and strategic concerns, outsourcing by developed economy firms has altered the economic development of many nations. Taiwan was amongst the first Asian economies to enjoy the benefits of outsourcing, and later the People’s Republic of China (PRC) became the “world’s factory.” More recently, Western client firms have been adapting to dynamic environmental conditions by upgrading and transforming their strategies, stimulating many of their developing economy suppliers to move towards more service-oriented business models. Theoretically, service provision and deployment requires customer co-creation and more complete value chain linkages between suppliers and clients. However, empirical results about the outcomes of servitization are mixed, and in practice the potential for customer co-creation is often feared by both sides. Clients often withhold cooperation because they worry that suppliers might become future competitors, while suppliers separate vital capabilities as spin-off businesses to appease client worries. In addition, Eastern and Western counterparts may have different expectations about services and business relationships. The mainstream literature has a Western orientation that views companies a being primarily concerned with resources and contracts, but Eastern firms often rely on relationships. So investigating customer co-creation and value-chain completion in this context can deepen and broaden understanding of this important and dynamic type of business relationship. This dissertation bridges the aforementioned knowledge gap in two studies that use the perspectives of dependency and (co-)specialization in B2B relationships. The research builds on the structure-conduct-performance (SCP) paradigm and adopts a quantitative research methodology that compliments the existing qualitative literature. Data for these analyses was collected using client-firm dyadic questionnaires distributed in Taiwan and the PRC. Analysis was conducted using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine whether customer co-creation and value chain completeness benefit firm performance. The key factors that contribute to customer co-creation and value chain completeness were also investigated. Furthermore, analysis was done to determine whether and how different clients (from developed countries versus from emerging countries) affect value-chain completeness and/or value-chain configuration. Finally, the theoretical and managerial implications, research limitations, and future research directions are discussed.