Synopses & Reviews
What enables some organizations to routinely perform better than others? Conversely, what makes some firms consistently perform worse than their competitors? Within a single corporation, what enables some teams or individual firm members to outperform their counterparts? Through the concept of social capital, this book addresses these questions by studying the effects of relationship networks on the ability of corporate players (firms and their members) to attain their professional goals. The idea of social capital has become one of the premier approaches to studying networks in the context of organizations but the literature still lacks a conceptual paradigm that connects the various approaches, definitions and measure of social capital into an integrated analytical model. By explicitly connecting social networks to the goals of corporate players, this book provides a unifying framework to the study of social capital in an organizational context. In this volume `social capital' is defined as the resources that accrue to an actor through his or her social relationships and that aid in the attainment of goals. The book introduces the new notion of `social liability' as a framework to analyze the negative effects social networks can have on the attainment of goals by firms and/or their members. Corporate Social Capital and Liability thus presents a new way to tie together findings and approaches in the literature by explicitly addressing the distinction between networks and outcomes, the distinction between networks at the level of firms and networks at the level of individuals, and the distinction between positive outcomes of social structure (social capital) and negative outcomes (social liability). The book's contributors are forty-six acclaimed scholars from around the world with backgrounds in management, business and sociology. Together, they describe how social relationships within and between firms positively affect the ability of corporations to achieve fruitful alliances; gain access to information, resources, knowledge and financial capital; and recruit qualified personnel. The book makes an explicit distinction between networks at the level of firms and networks at the level of individuals. The outcomes of networks are also considered at these different analytical levels by addressing such questions as: how do social relationships between firms assist firms and individuals in the attainment of their goals? How do these relationships obstruct goals? What is the effect of networks between individuals (within and between firms) on the performance of these individuals and the firms they work for? Can networks be managed to yield social capital rather than social liability? The unifying framework of social capital and social liability is helpful in studying business enterprises, and also useful in other disciplines which analyze social networks and organizations, such as community studies, economics, and political science.
Synopsis
In studies of inter-organizational relations (lOR's), there is a tendency to look at dyads of flrms, and to consider networks as aggregates of such dyads. But there are several roles for a third party; a go-between. This chapter looks at a go-between not in the sense of a middleman who intermediates in existing production or trade, such as an agent, wholesaler, retailer, and not in the sense of an entrepreneur who intermediates in the realization of new potential in connecting supply and demand. It looks at a go- between in the sense of a relationship counsellor for the development and maintenance of social capital; providing support in setting up, adapting and ending cooperative relations between others. Or, in yet different terms: to help in the embedding of relati- ons, in Granovetter's (1985) sense (Uzzi 1997a). Such roles may be performed by middlemen or entrepreneurs, but also by specialized agents who do not playa direct role in linking stages in a chain of production and distribution, as middlemen and entrepreneurs typically do. Indeed, some of the roles require an independence that is served by not having a direct stake in the relations that need to be developed. I propose that the analysis yields a perspective for looking at the roles of trade and industry associations in European business systems, and of banks and trading houses in Japanese enterprise groups (Kigyo Shudan).
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [495]-543) and index.
Table of Contents
Introduction: CSC: The Structure of Advantage and Disadvantage; S.M. Gabbay, R.Th.A.J. Leenders. Section I: Conceptual Issues - Theory, Models, and Measurement. 1. Organizational Networks and Corporate Social Capital; D. Knoke. 2. Social Capital of Organization: Conceptualization, Level of Analysis, and Performance Implications; J.M. Pennings, K. Lee. 3. A Relational Resource Perspective on Social Capital; L. Araujo, G. Easton. 4. Social Capital by Design: Structures, Strategies, and Institutional Context; W.E. Baker, D. Obstfeld. 5. Corporate Social Capital and Liability: a Conditional Approach to Three Consequences of Corporate Social Structure; I. Talmud. 6. Dimensions of Corporate Social Capital: Toward Models and Measures; S.-K. Han, R.L. Breiger. 7. Organizational Standing as Corporate Social Capital; P. Doreian. 8. Customer Service Dyads: Diagnosing Emperical Buyer - Seller Interactions along Gaming Profiles in a Dyadic Parametric Space; D. Iacobucci. Section II: Structure at the Individual Level - Social Capital in Jobs and Careers. 9. The Sidekick Effect: Mentoring Relationships and the Development of Social Capital; M. Higgins, N. Nohria. 10. Social Capital in Internal Staffing Practices; P.V. Marsden, E.H. Gorman. 11. Getting a Job as a Manager; H. Flap, E. Boxman. 12. The Changing Value of Social Capital in an Expanding Social System: Lawyers in the Chicago Bar, 1975 and 1995; R.L. Sandefur, et al. Section III: Structure at the Individual Level &endash; Social Capital and Management. 13. Generalized Exchange and Economic Performance: Social Embeddedness of Labor Contracts in a Corporate Law Partnership; E. Lazega. 14. CEO Demographics and Acquisitions: Network Effects of Educational and Functional Background; P.R. Haunschild, et al. 15. Public Service Organizations &endash; Social Networks and Social Capital; E. Ferlie. 16. The Dark Side of Social Capital; M. Gargiulo, M. Benassi. 17. Social Capital, Social Liabilities, and Social Resources Management; D.J. Brass, G. Labianca. Section IV: Structure at the Firm Level &endash; Social Capital in Collaboration and Alliances. 18. The Triangle: Roles of the Go-Between; B. Nooteboom. 19. The Management of Social Capital in R&D Collaboration; O. Omta, W. van Rossum. 20. Technological Prestige and the Accumulation of Alliance Capital; T.E. Stuart. 21. Networks and Knowledge Production: Collaboration and Patenting in Biotechnology; L. Smith-Doerr, et al. 22. Supply Network Strategy and Social Capital; C. Harland. Section V: Structure at the Firm Level &endash; Social Capital and Financial Capital. 23. Choosing Ties from the Inside of a Prism: Egocentric Uncertainty and Status in Venture Capital Markets; J.M. Podolny, F. Castellucci. 24. Corporate Social Capital and the Cost of Financial Capital: An Embeddedness Approach; B. Uzzi, J.J. Gillespie. 25. Venture Capital as an Economy of Time; J. Freeman. Conclusion. References. Index. Contributors. Editors.