Supplier Partnerships in Manufacturing Versus Non‐Manufacturing Firms

While the concept of partnerships has received much attention in the literature, the focus has primarily been on the manufacturing firm. This paper explores the similarities and differences in partnerships from the perspectives of manufacturing and non‐manufacturing firms. Findings indicate that non‐manufacturing firms have had longer relationships with their partners than manufacturing firms. In addition, non‐manufacturing firms considered a reduction of procurement and administrative costs, in addition to price and reliability, as important reasons to enter partnerships, while manufacturing firms emphasized the price, quality, and delivery of products.