Title: Purchasing consortia: when money does not make the whole talk

Authors: Ole Stegmann Mikkelsen; Jan Stentoft Arlbjørn

Addresses: Department of Entrepreneurship and Relationship Management, University of Southern Denmark, Engstien 1, DK-6000 Kolding, Denmark ' Department of Entrepreneurship and Relationship Management, University of Southern Denmark, Engstien 1, DK-6000 Kolding, Denmark

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of the drivers, barriers and managerial challenges in connection with being part of purchasing consortia. The main focus is on the social interests in attending such consortia. The work relies on an extensive review of international peer-reviewed journals for articles covering purchasing consortia. The literature review identified a gap concerning purchasing consortia with a social interest profile. The paper includes data from a coordinator that manages a purchasing consortium with social motives as well as from three member companies. Primary drivers for participating in the consortium are potential cost reductions, the social profile of the network, and the ability to improve other conditions in the buyer-supplier interaction. Barriers found are lack of trust, switching from current suppliers to consortium suppliers, variety in participants' requirements and lack of an attractive business case.

Keywords: purchasing consortia; social interest; drivers; barriers; managerial challenges; cost reduction; social profile; buyer-supplier relationships; trust; supplier switching; participant requirements; business case.

DOI: 10.1504/IJPM.2015.069156

International Journal of Procurement Management, 2015 Vol.8 No.3, pp.326 - 343

Received: 17 Jan 2014
Accepted: 07 Mar 2014
Published online: 30 Apr 2015 *

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