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PurposeIf stories can create promising practices, what does talk of "collaboration" mean in the context of what would appear to be market‐based inter‐firm relationships (IFRs)? How do managers trying to cope in industrial sectors make sense of supply chain relationships? This empirically driven paper attempts to shed some light on these issues.Design/methodology/approachThe stories collected here show how a subtle analysis of actors' "network theories" revealed within the language of IFRs can facilitate the study of collaboration. Discourse analysis of interview material is used to illustrate how managers draw upon a series of interpretive repertoires in order to make sense of IFRs within three contrasting "supply chains" or "marketing channels".FindingsManagerial accounts, often in the form of "micro‐stories", illustrate how these participants argue persuasively for a "landscape" of next possible actions. This is a landscape that, despite being moulded in part by ideas of network partnerships and "relationship marketing", is more strongly shaped by notions of chains and marketplaces. The paper argues that the discursively constructed network theories of managers constrain their thoughts and actions as they attempt to manage relationships in supply chain contexts. Ultimately, participants appear to forego the opportunities promised by collaborative partnerships; instead their accounts suggest that they retain a world‐view dominated by a competitive market orientation.Originality/valueStudies that reflect a better understanding of such stories of the marketplace may enable researchers to disseminate findings that help practitioners make more sense of the tensions inherent in inter‐firm collaborations.

This paper makes productive connections between two forms of representation—formal scholarship on professional service workers and their depictions in The Simpsons cartoon series. In considering the show's representations of Attorney Lionel Hutz and Dr Nick Riviera, I ponder the ways in which the market-based behaviours of these `expert' individuals are so repeatedly targeted for satire. Through a detailed dissection of The Simpsons' scripts, I demonstrate how, on the one hand, the show to a large degree reflects critical thinking on the nature of the `professional project' yet, on the other, offers some rather more ambivalent, even sympathetic, notions of professional identity.

PurposeThe purpose of this editorial is to provide an overview of content and process of development of the five papers collected in this special issue on collaboration and storying.Design/methodology/approachThis guest editorial discusses the five papers in terms of their contribution both to debates on the utility of stories as data and forms of knowledge as well as to developing understandings of the research and practice of collaboration. Findings – The special issue integrates aspects of research, issues of research and connects with implications for practice.Originality/valueReaders are provided with an overview of the utility of stories as data, different levels of conceptualization of stories and the kinds of insights that can flow from this form of research.

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relevance to situated managerial practice of the implementation frameworks contained in the global (key) account management (GAM) literature and to explore what specific GAM-related issues may be faced by key account managers working for an MNC based in Japan.


Design/methodology/approach
Following a critical literature review, including a discussion of sales management in Japan, an exploratory case study is conducted of a chemical supplier that claims to be making the transition toward GAM.


Findings
The findings confirm that intra-organizational contextual and cultural factors appear to influence the adoption of GAM programs by the focal firm. This suggests there is not a "one size fits all" strategic pathway to implementing GAM, and that western theoretical perspectives on KAM/GAM do not appear to have permeated the sense-making of some Japanese managers.


Research limitations/implications
While the study indicates that the US/European approach to KAM and GAM does not appear to fit well with the Japanese business culture, this conclusion must come with the caveat that this is not necessarily a generalizable case.


Originality/value
Much of the prior B2B marketing literature on KAM and GAM has investigated only western firms. This is possibly the first empirical research on GAM in a Japanese company. The paper offers a number of implications for theory and ponders the wisdom of making recommendations from such a culture-bound study.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the ways in which narratives of collaborations tagged as successful may be constructed around common characterizations of participants, in order to provide insights to the ways in which stories may be constructed as vehicles for the adoption or adaptation of good or promising practices.Design/methodology/approachQualitative interview data from three collaborative situations are analysed through a narrative‐centred procedure with a particular focus on micro‐stories.FindingsThe paper provides a set of recurring characterizations observed within narratives of successful collaboration and their employment within the stories offered by collaborating partners. It also suggests the relationship that these characterizations might have to the stimulation or retardation of good collaborative practices.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper is derived from interviews in the UK context and extrapolation to other contexts seems plausible but should be conducted cautiously and with reflection.Originality/valueThe particular style of narrative analysis conducted in this work has not been employed to the consideration of collaborative accounts and the characterizations derived may have utility as anchoring elements in stories of collaboration, helpful in both the elicitation and interpretation of such accounts.

PurposeManagers working within organizations that are part of public–private collaborations comment on their "diabolical" nature and seek guidance as to their administration. Set in an organization involved in a public–private "service delivery contract", the purpose of this paper is to report research into the collaboration and challenges experienced within the organization. It also seeks to consider to the significance of narrative and story‐telling in understanding these complexities.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using depth interviews and observation. The emerging discourse was analyzed using a machine‐based, lexigraphic tool to provide a framework for interpretive story analysis. The significance and value of each approach are illustrated as are the effective synergies between them.FindingsThe paper identifies a number of different competing interests, including the needs of the clients vs the governmentally imposed goals and performance metrics of the organization. The limitations of this network form are highlighted; through contrasting of manager and consultant stories it becomes plain that collaborative networking only occurs at the management levels.Research limitations/implicationsThe role of the story‐teller and the story context emerge as significant. Further research that pays greater attention to the stories' context, subtext, roles of narrator and others in the story is recommended.Originality/valueThe paper demonstrates the value of extending machine‐based analysis with more interpretive approaches. The significance of story analysis in understanding the embeddedness of narrative is highlighted as the range of synergies that can arise from multiple analytical techniques.

This article synthesises the experiential and meaning-based dimensions of loyalty to extend the brand loyalty canon. The experientially loyal consumer is defined as one who is sufficiently invested in a brand to find personal symbolic meanings in the act of consuming that brand and engage around these meanings, individually or within the context of communities of similarly engaged consumers in the pursuit of identity projects. Drawing on a particular type of consumer that epitomises experiential loyalty – the fan, the features of this new conceptualisation are highlighted. The foundations of 'experiential brand loyalty' in consumer research are identified and examined. The concept of experiential brand loyalty is articulated and set alongside existing research as a complementary position that bridges the gap between brand loyalty and experiential consumption literatures. Implications are drawn for future research and marketing practice.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to illustrate how the notion of "storying collaboration" can benefit democratic participation, collaboration among different social actors, and local development.Design/methodology/approachThe methodology relies initially on a hermeneutical epistemological view which also incorporates Aristotelian analysis of speech as a deconstructive tool. Initial findings suggest a further shift in approach towards the assumptions made by critical theory. The basic methodological tool is in‐depth interviews. The level of analysis is the individual who participates in collaborative processes.FindingsThe paper shows how collaboration is unlikely to be successful in situations where certain key conditions are absent. Ultimately, what may be seen as a conversion process reveals a circular sequence of ideals, acts and outcomes in which stories about the future become realities and realities become new stories.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that the creation of appropriate environments is required in order for individuals to become aware of their wishes and demands and make conscious choices. If the actors involved are aware of the rhetorical components of speech, then they can utilise them to persuade others. The storyteller must take into consideration which kind of assumptions, intentions and orientations respect individual and social notions of legitimacy and, thus, are likely to succeed.Originality/valueThe originality of the paper lies in the use of a bricolage of methodologies in order to shed light on the role of stories in the collaborative process.