Twentieth International Conference on Knowledge, Culture, and Change in Organizations

Abstract

In China, Guanxi is considered as a unique construct and a product of Confucian values and the contemporary political and socio-economic systems in Chinese society, with which Chinese exchange a lifetime of favors, resources, and business leverage. In this paper, Guanxi is introduced, and its effect is examined in lowering the uncertainty in a supply chain. Interviews with two firms from different supply chains were conducted, and data of questionnaires was collected and analyzed with the Likert scale. Results reveal Guanxi, a unique socio-cultural product that constructs Chinese social network, has a strong impact on intra and inter-enterprises cooperation, and furthermore on the effectiveness, which in turn lowers the uncertainty of the supply chain.