Interorganizational Partnership, Switching Cost, and Strategic Flexibility in Supply Chain

Many studies work focusing on the interaction between the various dimensions of supply chain (SC) relationships (such as trust, commitment, satisfaction, investment, communication and collaboration) but far less on the impact of SC relationships on switching cost and strategic flexibility. The partnership interaction between the SC and the strategic flexibility is the most important factor when the manufacturer and subcontractors linked together. However, there has also been a few empirical researches that have examined the impact of switching cost and strategic flexibility. The effect of SC relationships on strategic flexibility has received less attention. As a result, it becomes the key issue in this study. To address these situations, we developed a conceptual framework incorporating dimensions of SC relationships, switching cost, and strategic flexibility. Data is drawn from the survey responses of 202 in Taiwan enterprises. Our findings provide considerable support for our conceptual model.