Business insights and networks

Innovation

recombination of

conceptual and physical materials that

were previously in existence”

(Schumpeter, 1934, p. 88)

Organizations

are (I) social entities, (II) are goal-directed, (III)

and designed as systems of activities that are consciously

structured and coordinated, (IV) and which are connected to the

external environment” (Jansen, 2019).

social comparison theory

Firms evaluate their performance relative to peers or competitors.

learning theory

firms evaluate performance relative to their own past performance.

Service dominant logic

service only of value when used by customer

Customer journey through service encounters

the ordered sequence of interactions a customer has with a service provider before, during, and after the core service.

transaction cost economics

Governing structures that minimize transaction cost survive.Firms choose between:

• Make (internalize)

• Buy (market)

• Ally (hybrid / partnerships)

Decision depends on:

• Uncertainty (Can you predict outcomes?)

• Frequency (How often do transactions occur?)

• Asset specificity (Are investments specialized and hard to redeploy?)

Resource dependence theory

Organizations depend on external resources they do not fully control. In uncertain environments, firms seek closer ties to:

• Improve information exchange

• Increase commitment

• Gain legitimacy

• Ensure exchange stability

Key drivers:

• Resource importance (How critical is it?)

• Control (Who controls it?)

• Alternatives (Do you have other options?)

👉 Networks reduce vulnerability and dependence.

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What is the central focus of Kilduff & Brass (2010)?

Outcomes are explained by social relations and network positions, not just individual or organizational attributes.

What does social relations vs. attribute-oriented approaches mean?

Performance depends on who you are connected to, not only on attributes like size, skills, or resources.

What is meant by structural patterning?

Networks have systematic structures (e.g. centrality, clusters, bridges) that shape access to information, power, and opportunities.

What is the utility of network connections?

Network ties create both opportunities (information, resources) and constraints (dependence, obligations) that affect outcomes.

What is the agency critique by Kilduff & Brass?

Network theories often underplay actors’ ability to intentionally build, shape, and use networks.

What actor characteristics are neglected according to Kilduff & Brass?

Differences in self-monitoring, strategic choice, and social skill, which affect how effectively actors use networks.

What is the cognition critique of Kilduff and brass?

Actors are assumed to have accurate knowledge of others’ ties, but in reality network perceptions are often incomplete or biased.

What is the boundary specification problem?

It is often unclear where a network begins and ends, making empirical analysis and theory imprecise.

why do Kilduff & Brass criticize network theories for treating networks as static?

Because many network theories model ties as fixed snapshots, while in reality social relations are dynamic, evolving, and strategically reshaped over time.

Front: Kilduff & Brass (2010) in one sentence

They argue that outcomes depend on social network positions but criticize existing theories for neglecting agency, cognition, actor heterogeneity, unclear boundaries, and network dynamics.

Network

a set of nodes and the set of ties representing some relationship between the nodes.

embedded tie

A relationship that is close, ongoing, and socially rich, embedded in trust and mutual expectations.

arms length tie

A relationship that is impersonal, transactional, and limited to the exchange itself.

Governance

The use of institutions, structures of authority and even collaboration to allocate resources and coordinate or control activity in society or economy

social capital

the advantage created by an actors location in a structure in relationships. It explains how some actors gain more success in a particular setting through their superior connections to other actors.

characteristics of social capital

productive, specific, least tangible