A C T A U N I V E R S I T A T I S L O D Z I E N S I S FO L IA OECONOM ICA 17, 1982
Iren eu sz R u tk o w s k i *
C O -O PER A TIO N AND C O N FLIC T IN D ISTR IB U TIO N CH A N N ELS
1. INTR OD U CTO RY REM ARKS
To tr e a t d istrib u tio n ch an n els as socio-econom ic system s im plies th a t th e y a re ch ara c te riz e d b y a basic fe a tu re of such system s i.e. existence of functional relationships b etw een su bjects form ing a given channel. In te rre la te d c h a ra c te r of activ ities p e rfo rm e d by economic su bjects form ing a d istrib u tio n channel causes th a t a change in b e h a -v iour of one su b ject g e n e ra te s a change in b e h a-v io u r of o th e r subjects. S uch a change in beh av io u r of a given su b ject m ay be in line w ith p referen ces and ex p ectatio n s of o th ers or it m ay be incom patible w ith those p refe re n c e s a n d expectations. F o r th is reaso n d istrib u tio n c h a n -nels tre a te d as socio-econom ic sy stem s a re open to tw o c h a ra c te ristic phenom ena p re se n t in a n y econom ic a c tiv ity i.e. conflict a n d co-ope-ratio n .
As d istrib u tio n ch an n els c re a te in stitu tio n a l and technical conditions fo r organization and im p lem en tatio n of th e m ark e tin g process th is cha-r a c te cha-r of cha-rela tio n sh ip s b etw een econom ic su b je c ts as w ell as th e acha-reas of conflict or harm o n io u s co-operation are of g re a t im p o rtan ce for th e m ark e t.
A b ility of each su b je c t to co operate (ability of a d a p ta tio n to fu n ctio nal re q u ire m e n ts and m u tu a l a d a p ta tio n ) as w ell as a need a n d w illin g -ness to co-operate a re of decisive significance fo r c h a ra c te r of m u tu a l re la tio n s b etw een su b jects form ing a d istrib u tio n channel. A fter all a d istrib u tio n chan n el m ay be form ed b y su b jects able to co-operate and feeling a need for such co-operation to a bigger or sm aller e x te n t. C ooperation of econom ic su b jects op eratin g in th e sp h e re of m a rk e -tin g m ay be a rra n g e d according to d iffe re n t principles. T hese prin cip les
* D r, C h a ir of Econom ics an d O rganization of M arketing, M ain School of P lan n in g an d S tatistic s, W arszaw a (Poland).
are d efined by th e existing system of m an ag em en t of m a rk e t p a rti-cipants.
C o-operation of econom ic subjects, u n d erstood as harm onious co- -o p eratio n , is possible only w hen th e re a re p re se n t conditions fo r am a l-gam ation of th e ir activ ities in an in te g ra te d system . C reation of such in te g ra te d system of activities in th e m ark e tin g sp h ere m ay ta k e place in d iffe re n t o rg anizational system s delim iting a fram ew o rk fo r th e object scope and c h a ra c te r of co-operation of su b jects form ing a d is trib u tion channel. In te g ratio n of activ itie s rem ain in g w ith in th e m a rk e tin g sp h ere (developm ent of p ro ducts and th e ir supply, tra n s fe r of p ro -d u cts to stores an-d offering th em to consum ers, sales prom otion, m a r-k et rese a rc h and m an ip u la tio n of consum er needs) m ay be m ost often c a rrie d out in tw o types of o rg anizational system s:
— w ith in th e fra m ew o rk of econom ic organizations perfo rm in g p ro -duction and tra d e activ ities and
— in conditions of in stitu tio n a l isolation and sep aratio n of pro -duction and tra d e links.
In a situ a tio n w h en in te g ratio n of activities tak es place w ith in th e fra m ew o rk of com plex econom ic organizations such co-operation w ill encom pass all activ ities belonging to th e m ark e tin g sphere. In such a case it is easier to fu lfil all re q u ire m e n ts in th e field of m u tu a l co- -operation of all links p a rticip a tin g in th e flow of goods to th e consu-m er. This co-operation consu-m ay be in ten sified b y a desire of th ese lin k s to p rese rv e cohesion of th e w hole system a n d e n su re hig h effectiveness of its functioning. H ow ever, th is w ay of organization of m a rk e t a c ti-vities does not rep re s e n t a com m on phenom enon in p ractice so far. On th e o th e r h and, in p rac tic e th e re prev ail solutions consisting in o rgani-zational isolation and sep ara tio n of production and tra d e com panies, w hich ten d to apply differing concepts of pro g ram m in g and organization of m ark e t activities. In o rd er to avoid conflicting situ atio n s in coopera tio n of econom ic su b jects th e re a p p e a r in pcooperactice ten d en cies of su b -o rd in a tin g rea l a c tiv ity sp heres -of p a rtic u la r su b jects (d ete rm in a ti-o n -of th e a c tiv ity sp h ere and im p lem en tatio n of th e p rinciple of exclusive rig h ts of o p eratio n of one su b ject in a given m a rk e t or a given sphere). Such situ a tio n allow s to obtain a considerable c la rity of th e su b ject m a rk e t s tru c tu re and of s tru c tu re s of econom ic subjects. T hat, how ever, does not a u to m a tic ally lead to im p ro v em en t in conditions of h a rm o -nious co -operation of su bjects fo rm in g a d istrib u tio n channel. Such conditions are cre a te d not only by o rg anizational solutions b u t also by th e system of m anaging m a rk e t p articip a n ts, s ta te of m a rk e t eq uilibrium , a ttitu d e s of m a rk e t p a rtic ip a n ts etc.
fu n ctio n s and actions form ing th e m ark e tin g process a re p e rm a n en tly a ttr ib u te d to p a rtic u la r econom ic su b jects a n d a re w ith in th e rea c h of o p e ra tio n of d iffe re n t subjects. This kind of situ a tio n produces a n a tu -ral need for co-operation of d istrib u tio n links h aving a t th e ir disposal d e fin ite in stru m en ts. S uch co-operation m ay be, nonetheless, ham p ered especially w hen th e re a re d e te rm in e d a s tru c tu re of task s and ran g e of a c tiv itie s p erfo rm ed b y ind iv id u al su b jects as re su ltin g from allocation of tasks b etw een com panies form ing a d istrib u tio n channel. E xistence of d istin c t disproportions and excessive co n cen tratio n of some activ ities in one lin k h in d e r a g e n eratio n of a need for a n y a b ility of p rese rv in g a harm onious co-operation.
P e rm a n e n t d efin itio n of th e ran g e of activ ities to be perfo rm ed by econom ic su bjects causes th a t th e object of th is co -operation c a n n o t u su ally be functions and activ ities w hich can n o t be tra n slo c a te d b etw een d istrib u tio n channel links. If re stric tio n s ap p e ar in th e a re a of h a rm o nious cooperation connected w ith lau n ch in g d efin ite in stru m e n ts r e -m aining a t disposal of p a rtic u la r links and w ith conducting d efin ite m a rk e t activities th e n such co-operation m ay cover only th e field of p rep a ra tio n of these activities. W hen th e a tte n tio n of economic su bjects is focussed exclusively on these activities and in stru m e n ts w hich a re a t th e ir disposal th e n th e outcom e is often „autonom ous” fo rm u la tio n of th e m a rk e t a c tiv ity program m e. T his m ay c o n stitu te an essential facto r re stric tin g co -operation also in th e field of p re p a ra tio n of m a rk e t a c ti-v ities.
In conditions of o rg an izatio n al isolation of lin k s fo rm ing a d is tri-b u tio n channel one of consequences of in co rrect task s allocation is ineffective perfo rm an ce of m an y functions and activ ities a ttrib u te d to th ese links. Im p ro v e m e n t in effectiveness of such activities m ay be possible w ith changeable s tru c tu re of tasks and resources and speciali-zatio n of links in perfo rm in g some activities being ju stified by econo-m ical, technical, and social reasons.
N onetheless, specialization of individual su b je c ts increases th e degree of functional dependence and conseq u en tly g e n e ra te s a need for th e ir m ore intensive co-operation. In o rd er to e n su re a d esirab le c h a ra c te r of operation th e re m u st be assum ed operation of m echanism s co-o r d in a t in g th e perfco-o rm an ce co-of all p a rtic ip a n ts co-of a d istrib u tico-o n channel.
In m an y cases th e process of co-ordination m ay ta k e place in a w ay sp o ntaneously, being g e n e ra te d by conditions of a c tiv ity or it m ay r e s u lt from visible in te re s t rev ealed by all channel p articip an ts. S till it is qu ite often connected w ith a need for developing an d lau n ch in g special co-ordination m echanism s. In b e tte r organized system s it m ay be rev ealed th ro u g h estab lish m e n t of form al co o rd in atin g or in te g ra
-tin g u n its (e.g. u nits of jo in t purchasing, m a rk e t research, a d v e rtisin g etc.). F un ctio n in g of d istrib u tio n channels, w hich a re not so w ell org a-nized, m ay be co-ordinated on th e w ay of agreem en ts concluded betw een su p erio r units, b ran c h and te rrito ria l a g reem en ts etc. R eq u irem en ts in th e field of co-ordination of economic su b jects activities and of m a in ta i-ning a d esirable level of co-operation m ay be also fu lfilled by creatio n of a m a rk e t lea d e r or in te g ra to r assu m in g resp o n sib ility for fo rm u la tio n and im p lem en tatio n of a com m on concept of m a rk e t a c tiv ity for a ll lin k s co n stitu tin g a given d istrib u tio n channel.
2. RANGE O F CO -O PER A TIO N BETW EEN IN D U STR IA L AND TRADE CO M PA NIES
The re m a rk s p rese n ted above point out th a t th e re m ay ex ist such conditions w hich h in d e r or exclude harm onious co-operation of eco-nom ic su b jects op eratin g w ith in th e m ark e tin g sphere, reg ard less of fu n ctio n al rela tio n sh ip s occuring b etw een them . The in te n s ity w ith w hich these conditions a re rev ealed e x e rts a su b sta n tia l influence on th e n a tu re of m u tu a l rela tio n s b etw een th ese su bjects and it d e te rm in e s th e object scope of th e ir co-operation.
D evelopm ent of v arious co-operation form s is u su ally lim ited if econom ic su b jects o p e ra tin g w ith in th e m a rk e tin g sp h ere do not h av e possibilities of estab lish in g h o rizontal contacts. E xperience gained by econom ic p ractice show s th a t existence of re stric tio n s in estab lish in g horiz o n tal ties is a q u ite com m on phenom enon. T h a t is co n firm ed by r e -su lts of em pirical research es conducted in in d u stria l and tra d e com pa-nies and concerning ru le s of op eratio n of com papa-nies in th e m a rk e t *. 69 p e r cen t oi all exam ined in d u stria l com panies and 72 p e r c en t of tra d e com panies confirm ed th a t th e y do not have a n y or h ave only sm all freedom in selection of b u y e rs or su p p liers of goods.
R estrictio n of freedom in selection of b u y e rs or su ppliers of goods, being a re su lt of o ftentim e indispensable c e n tra l allocation of goods, co n stitu tes one of im p o rta n t facto rs d e te rm in in g th e c h a ra c te r of applied concepts of p rogram m ing and organizing activities of in d u -s tria l and tra d e com panie-s. M ark et activitie-s in -such -situ a tio n m ay be u n d e rta k e n w ith o u t tak in g in to consideration possibilities an d p r e -feren ces of o th e r sp heres of th e econom ic a c tiv ity . It m ay co n seq u en tly
1 T he rese arch e s w e re co n d u cted in 64 in d u s tria l an d 65 tr a d e co m p an ies w ith in th e fra m e w o rk o f a key re se a rc h p ro je c t M arket o f C o n su m er Goods and S ervices in th e Process o f Socio-E conom ic D ev elo p m e n t o f Poland, su b je c t g ro u p 13.2.03.
lead, as it w as a lre ad y m entioned, to u n d esirab le autonom ization of th ese sp h eres and su b je c ts o p e ra tin g w ith in them . In practice it m ay m ea n th a t econom ic su b je c ts do n ot tr e a t th e m a rk e tin g sp h ere as a com plex of activities. As a re s u lt activ ities, w ith in p a rtic u la r elem en ts o f th e com plex, a re u n d e rta k e n on th e basis of d iffe re n t and often con-tra d ic to ry prereq u isites. T hus both possibilities and scope of co-opera-tio n of p ro d ucco-opera-tion and tra d e lin k s m u st be analyzed ag ain st th e b ack-g ro u n d of th e w ay of p ro ack-g ram m in ack-g and orack-ganizinack-g m a rk e t activities as assum ed by them . The po in t h e re is n o t so m uch co-operation as su c h b u t such co -o p eratio n w hich prom otes im p lem e n ta tio n of o b jec ti-ves facing econom ic subjects, and solution of com prehensive problem s in th e m ark e tin g sphere.
In conditions of organizational isolation of pro d u ctio n and tra d e lin k s th e p ro d u cer is a su b ject responsible for p ro d u ct d ev elopm ent and supply. D epending upon th e accepted concept of fo rm u la tio n of th e m a rk e t a c tiv ity program m e, p ro d u ct d ev elopm ent and supply m ay be p erfo rm ed w ith bigger or sm a lle r degree of co-operation w ith tra d e com panies. It should be, how ever, u n d e rlin ed th a t th e scope of th is co -operation is not only d e te rm in e d by th e p ro d u c e r’s w illingness to c o -o p e ra te w ith tra d e com panies b u t also by w illingness and possibilitie s of tra d e com panies to p a rtic ip a te in cooperation w ith th e p ro -d u cer.
A degree to w hich tra d e com panies a re included in th e p ro d u ct d e -velo p m en t process is, as a ru le , d e te rm in e d by th e p ro d u ct de-velop- developm e n t developm odel applied by th e producer. In th e situ a tio n w hen it is re la tiv e ly easy to sell m a n u fa c tu re d p ro d u cts th e re pred o m in ates a te c h -nical-technological m odel according to w hich p ro d u cts a re developed, f ir s t of all, on th e basis of c rite ria ensuing from th e sp h ere of te c h n i-que and technology of p ro d uction a n d o th e r conditions of production (provision of m aterials, w o rk organization, level and q u alifications of w o rk ers etc.) 2. A pplication of th is m odel in p rac tic a l o p eration of in d u s-tria l com panies does not prom ote developm ent of co-operation w ith tra d e com panies in th e a re a of p ro d u ct d e v e lo p m e n t3. On th e other hand, such possibilities a re afforded by u tilizatio n of th e m a rk e t m odel
2 W. W r z o s e k , W spółdziałanie u c z e stn ik ó w r y n k u w d zie d zin ie k s z ta łto -w a n ia p ro d u k tó -w , [-w:] W spółdziałanie u czestn ik ó -w r y n k u ja k o c z y n n ik p o stęp u w za sp o k a ja n iu potrzeb ludności (C o-operation b etw e en M a rk e t P a rtic ip a n ts in
P ro d u c t D evelopm ent [In:] C o -o p era tio n b etw e en M a rk e t P a rtic ip a n ts as a F a c to r of Im p ro v e m e n t in S atisfa c tio n of th e P o p u la tio n ’s Needs), W arszaw a 1977.
* E.g. P re re q u isite s of la u n ch in g p ro d u ctio n re su ltin g fro m in te rn a l situ a tio n of ex a m in e d in d u s tria l com panies ac co u n ted fo r 52% of all th e ab o v e m en tio n ed p re re q u is te s.
elem ents in w hich c rite ria of p ro d u ct developm ent flow from th e m a r-k et and the sp h ere of consum er req u irem e n ts. P ro d u c tio n co m panies m ay be encouraged to apply this m odel by grow ing d ifficu lties w ith selling th e ir products or increasing u n c e rta in ty of sales. D ue to d iffe-re n tia tio n of m a rk e t conditions am ong p a rtic u la r b ranches application of th e m a rk e t m odel of p ro d u ct d ev elopm ent corresponds to th e scale of u n c e rta in ty or difficulties in selling a concrete p ro d u ct or group of products.
U tilization of th e m a rk e t m odel elem ents provides fav o u rab le con-ditions for co-operation b etw een production and tra d e links both in p re-p ro d u ctio n and post-p ro d u ctio n stages of p ro d u ct developm ent. T h e economic practice show s th a t in th e p resen t conditions in d u stria l com -panies co-operate w ith tra d e com -panies m ain ly in th e p re-p ro d u ctio n stage connected w ith expansion of in fo rm atio n basis for th e p ro d u ct d ev elopm ent process and su p p ly of products. The scope of th is co-ope-ra tio n and sh are of tco-ope-ra d e com panies in provision of in fo rm atio n ab o u t m a rk e t phenom ena depends on in te n sity of needs in th e field of u tili-zation of th is in fo rm atio n in p ro d u c t d ev elopm ent and th e level of know ledge ab o u t m a rk e t phenom ena possessed by th e producer.
In practice co-operation in th is field is revealed, firs t of all, in jo in t p re p a ra tio n of p ro d uction decisions. 77 p e r cen t of all exam ined com -panies avail them selves of th is fo rm of assistance of tra d e com -panies. Due to th e fact th a t a v a ilab ility of indispensable in fo rm atio n basis is of special im p o rtan ce in a situ a tio n w h e n th e m an u fa ctu red p ro d u ct an d th e s tru c tu re of its fu n ctio n s as w ell as consum er needs a re su b ject to rap id changes and d iffe re n tia tio n , th e assistance of tra d e com panies is m ost w elcom ed by com panies producing footw ear, clothing, house-hold appliances and chem ical articles. T his assistance boils dow n to su p p ly of in fo rm atio n about c h a ra c te r of consum er dem and, opinions ab o u t products, and propositions as reg a rd s a sso rtm e n t a n d p a tte rn s. O ver 70 p e r c en t of all com panies a d m itte d th a t assistance of tra d e com panies w as b ringing d efin ite advantages. In m ost cases these are connected w ith possibilities of m ore effective d e te rm in a tio n of p ro -duction i.e. a d ju s tm e n t of th e s tru c tu re of p ro d u c t functions to needs and p refe re n c e s of consum ers, d e te rm in a tio n of a sso rtm e n t ran g e of products, and len g th of series in a given p a tte rn .
D evelopm ent of p ro d u cts and d e te rm in a tio n of th e ir su p p ly encom -pass both q u a lita tiv e and q u a n tita tiv e phenom ena. H ow ever, th e form s of co-operation applied in p rac tic e cause th a t tra d e com panies p a rticipate especially in d e te rm in a tio n of q u a n tita tiv e phenom ena. T h a t r e -fers p rim a rily to volum e and s tru c tu re of production. C onsidering, ho-w ever, th a t a p red o m in an t form of tra d e p articip a tio n is su b m ittin g
ord ers fo r d e liv e ry of goods, its sh are and im pact on th e volum e and s tru c tu re of p ro d uction corresponding to m a rk e t re q u ire m e n ts should not be overestim ated . R esearch findings ten d to show th a t in d u stria l com panies base th e ir pro d u ctio n on dem and figures su b m itte d b y tra d e com panies. O ver 70 p e r cen t of exam ined com panies said th a t th e ir p ro d u ctio n decisions w ere based on received orders, and 69 p e r cen t said th a t th ese ord ers d e te rm in e th e len g th of p ro d u ct series. S im ila r in fo rm a tio n concerning p articip a tio n of tra d e in m aking production de-cisions in line w ith m a rk e t re q u ire m e n ts w as disclosed b y 67 p e r cen t of exam ined com panies. H ow ever, d etailed analysis of em pirical m a te -ria l and o b servation of th e econom ic practice prove th a t th e ro le of tra d e and its sh are are m uch sm aller. O nly 1.5 p e r cent of all ex a m i-ned tra d e com panies confirm ed an opinion about big p a rtic ip a tio n of tra d e in m aking production decisions.
T he fa c t th a t in d u stria l com panies stress th e ro le of o rd ers as a form of cooperation in p rep a rin g pro d u ctio n decisions is u n fo rtu n a te ly connected w ith q u ite a com m on phenom enon of changing s tip u la tions of tra d e a g reem en ts d u rin g execution of deliveries. All tra d e com panies u n d e r su rv e y confirm ed th a t in d u stria l com panies w e re in tro ducing changes concerning stip u latio n s m ade earlier. C orrection of th e -se stip u latio n s w as confirm ed by 95 p e r cen t of exam ined in d u stria l com panies. C orrection of stip u latio n s an d failu re to c a rry out com m it-m en ts w e re dislocating h arit-m onious co-operation and h ait-m p erin g deve-lo p m en t of d esirable form s of th is co-operation.
A re la tiv e ly sm all p a rtic ip a tio n of tra d e in d e te rm in a tio n of q u a -lita tiv e phenom ena, irre sp e c tiv e of th e applied m odel of p ro d u ct d ev e-lo p m en t, is also a re s u lt of th e accepted m a n n e r of concluding tra d e contracts. C o n tracts a re u su a lly signed d u rin g n a tio n a l fa irs a t w hich th e in d u stry is displaying a d efin ite tra d e offer (in q u a n tity and a sso rt-m ent). As th e p rese n ted offer cort-m prises fu lly developed p ro d u cts th e tra d e can p a rtic ip a te only in tak in g decisions concerning p ro d uction of d efin ite p a tte rn s by selecting those w hich in its opinion correspond best w ith consum er req u irem e n ts. In th is situ a tio n of special im por-tance is th e know ledge about consum er needs and p referen ces posses-sed by trade. It app ears th a t th is know ledge is not alw ays sufficient. This m ay h a m p e r p erfo rm an ce of th e info rm ativ e fu n ctio n b y tra d e in th e process of p ro d u ct d e v elo p m en t and supply. M u ltib ra n c h s tru c tu -ra l system of t-ra d e , striv in g fo r ce n t-raliza tio n of p u rch a se s in in d u stria l u n its etc. m ay pose an obstacle in an alysis of m a rk e t p h enom ena and fu lfilm e n t of th e in fo rm a tiv e function.
W ith predom inance of th e technical-technological m odel of p ro d u ct developm ent th e s tru c tu re of p ro d u ct functions is being d e te rm in e d
in d ep e n d e n tly of selling conditions of products. T he s tr u c tu r e of p ro -d u c t functions is best a-d ap te-d to con-ditions of selling w h en -d istrib u tio n ch an n els a re v e rtica lly in te g rate d . B ut th is situ a tio n is not v e ry com m on. In d u stria l com panies a re only to a sm all e x te n t involved in selling th e ir products. O nly 20 p e r cent of in d u stria l com panies u n d e r su rv e y a re selling a p a rt of th e ir p ro ducts th ro u g h th e ir ow n netw o rk of stores. These are com panies producing m ain ly clothing, footw ear and household appliances. A m uch bigger n u m b er of com panies sell th e ir p ro ducts th ro u g h b ran ch stores and rack jo b b in g alth o u g h the sh a re of th is form of selling does not exceed several p e r cen t of pro -d u ction value as a rule.
Sale of p ro d u cts to end users is u su ally c a rrie d out by tra d e com -panies. These com panies also c a rry th e m ain b u rd e n and resp o n sib ility in th e field of p rogram m ing and organization of d istrib u tio n . In d ep e n -d e n t fo rm u la tio n of m a rk e t a c tiv ity program m es accounts fo r th e fact th a t in th e field of d istrib u tio n th e re have n ot been developed a n y clear form s of co-operation b etw een in d u stria l and tra d e com panies. So far th is co-operation is basically lim ited to lau n ch in g jo in t activ i-ties in th e field of ratio n alizatio n of physical flow of goods. This form of co-operation is, how ever, h in d ere d by th e a lre a d y m en tio n ed correc-tion of c o n tra c t stipulacorrec-tions.
S m all p articip a tio n of in d u stria l com panies in th e selling process and sm all in te re s t tak e n by these com panies in p ro ducts tu rn e d out by th em does not fav o u r developm ent of d iffe re n tia te d form s of co-ope-ra tio n in th e sp h ere of sales prom otion eith e r. T he p re s e n tly existing rela tio n s b etw een in d u stry and tra d e a re c h aracterized w ith a lim ited scope of assistance ren d e re d by in d u stria l com panies to tra d e com pa-nies in th e a rea of consum er m an ip u latio n . This reflects a conviction th a t in conditions of th e s e lle r’s m a rk e t such m an ip u la tio n is n ot in -dispensable. As a re s u lt of it, in d u stria l com panies only to a n insigni-fican t e x te n t conduct in d ep e n d e n tly sales prom otion activ ities despite th e fact th a t th is form of co-operation is w elcom ed and p o stu la te d by tra d e com panies. T hey expect, firs t of all, th a t in d u stria l com panies w ill provide fu lle r in form ation ab o u t th e ir products, provide assistance in educational and a d v ertisin g activities, sh are th e costs of sales p ro -m otion, d iffe re n tia tio n of p ro d u cts and th e ir packaging, secure a b e tte r a fte r-sa le service, p a rtic ip a te in research es on consum er needs and b e-haviour.
R esearches com pleted by us show th a t 56 p e r cen t of exam ined in d u stria l com panies provide assistance fo r m iddlem en in th e field of consum er m anipulation. This high in d ex fig u re of assistance does n ot reflect, how ever, its rea l scope and significance. T he resp o n
-d e n ts stre ss th a t in -d u stria l com panies provi-de a sm all -degree of assi-sta n c e and th a t in a lim ited form . O nly 30 p e r cent of tra d e com panies confirm ed receving such help. The assistance is p rim a rily rev ealed in provision of d iffe re n t leaflets, folders and in stru ctio n s how to use products, and in sh arin g th e costs of conducted activities. A lm ost a h a lf of exam ined tra d e com panies w ere u n d e rta k in g activities in the field of consum er m an ip u latio n jo in tly w ith in d u stria l com panies. It encom passed, firs t of all, jo in t ed ucational a c tiv ity (shows and food tasting), ad v e rtisin g cam paigns, sales prom otion in sto re d e p a rtm e n ts supplied d ire c tly by producers, and tra in in g of selling and su p p ly personnel. W hile positively assessing such form s of co-operation, th e re w ere also pointed out o th e r possibilities of co-operation in th e sp h ere of consum er m anipulation.
3. CO N FLICTS A R ISIN G IN D IS T R IB U T IO N CHANNELS
E xistence of functional rela tio n sh ip s b etw een activ ities of p a rtic u -la r su b jects o p eratin g w ith in th e sp h ere of m a rk e tin g causes th a t be-h a v io u r of one su b ject affects tbe-h e bebe-h av io u r of rem a in in g subjects. In th is situ atio n a desire to secure conditions p rom oting harm onious co- -o p era tio n and co-ordination of activities of all lin k s form ing a d is tri-b u tio n channel m u st tri-be connected w ith a possitri-bility of u n d e rsta n d in g a n d p red ic tin g th e beh av io u r of th ese links. S uch a possibility arises w h en th e re a re defined ru le s of behaviour of all su b jects holding d e fin ite positions w ith in a channel, reflec tin g th e accepted role and m u -tu a l exp ectatio n s of all chan n el p a rtic ip a n ts 4. U n d e rsta n d in g of m u -tu a l ex p ectatio n s m akes possible a d ju stm e n t to these expectations. If a be-h a v io u r of a given su b je c t corresponds to exp ectatio n s of o tbe-h ers tbe-h ey can an tic ip a te th is behaviour. C onsequently it m ay fac ilita te fo rm u la -tion and realizatio n of jo in t activ ities in th e m ark e t.
The b ehaviour of p a rtic u la r econom ic su b je c ts is, how ever, a fu n c -tion of th e ir ow n roles, p lans and exp ectatio n s and, th erefo re, th e ir b e h av io u r m ay in p ractice often d iffe r from th e roles assigned to th em by th e ir p a rtn e rs. D ivergencies b etw een th e ir own ro le and those assi-gn ed by o th ers lead in m ost cases to conflicts h a m p e rin g or excluding a harm onious co-operation.
4 F o r a w id er discussion of th e p roblem see I. R u t k o w s k i, W p ły w s tr u k
-tu r y kanałów d y s tr y b u c ji na w spółdziałanie u cz e stn ik ó w r y n k u , [w:] W spółdzia-łanie u cze stn ik ó w r y n k u ja k o c z y n n ik p o stęp u w za sp o k a ja n iu potrzeb łudności
(In flu en ce of D istrib u tio n C hannels S tru c tu r e on C o-operation b etw e en M a rk e t P a rtic ip a n ts [In:] C o -o p eratio n of M a rk e t P a rtic ip a n ts as a F a c to r of P ro g re ss in S a tisfa ctio n of P o p u la tio n s Needs), W arszaw a 1977.
Each su b ject w ith in a d istrib u tio n ch an n el possesses a d e fin ite capa-c ity of in flu en capa-cin g th e b ehaviour of rem ain in g subjecapa-cts. .T h is capa-capacapa-city m ay re s u lt from : position held w ith in th e channel , (e.g. position held in re la tio n to th e m a rk e t, o p eratio n of a given su b ject in a situ a tio n sim ilar to a m onopoly), c h a ra c te r of task s and p erform ed functions, and econom ic position (possession of larg e resources, re p u ta tio n etc.). P ra c tic a l possibilities of u tilizing capacities of a given su b je c t to d i-re c tly a ffe c t th e beh av io u r of o th ers a i-re also d e p e n d en t on a degi-ree of su b o rd in atio n of these su bjects an d th e ir acceptance or to le ran c e of such activity.
U tilization of th is capacity of d ire c t influencing th e beh av io u r of o th e r su b je c ts m ay pro m o te indispensable u n ity and co-operation gua-ra n te e in g sm ooth and effective satisfactio n of consum er needs of th e society. S till w h e n th is capacity is utilized in co n siste n tly w ith th e accepted roles and m u tu a l ex p ectatio n s conflicts w ill u su a lly arise.
I t should, how ever, be u n d e rlin ed th a t ap p earan ce of conflict si-tu atio n s in d istrib u tio n ch an n els can n o t alw ays be tre a te d as a n ega-tive phenom enon. If a conflict arisin g in a d istrib u tio n chan n el is of a fu n ctio n al c h a ra c te r (revealed w ith in th e sp h ere of p a rtic u la r fu n -ctions) th e n it m ay often re p re s e n t a fav o urable phenom enon. A ppea-ran c e of conflicts e.g. in m ethods of a c tiv ity m ay pave th e w ay fo r effective innovations, elim in atio n of ro u tin e actions. In such situ a tio n th e m ost im p o rta n t th in g is n ot so m uch to p re v e n t or elim in ate con-flicts b u t r a th e r to use th e m c re a tiv e ly in o rd e r to im prove and raise th e lev el of effectiveness of m a rk e tin g operations.
C onflicts arising in d istrib u tio n ch an n els m ay be, how ever, of d is- fu n ctional c h a ra c te r w hich is p re se n t w hen economic su b je c ts con-c e n tra te th e ir a tte n tio n on fu n con-ctio n s w hicon-ch a re m ost im p o rta n t fo r th e m b u t less im p o rta n t for o th e r econom ic subjects. In such a case a desire to cre a te conditions p rom oting harm onious co-operation of all su b je c ts form ing a given d istrib u tio n ch an n el m u st be accom panied by actions aim ing a t solution and p rev e n tio n of such conflicts.
T he economic practice show s th a t conflicts in re la tio n s b etw een in d u stria l and tra d e com panies a re a com m on phenom enon being m ost o ften of disfu n ctio n al c h a ra c te r. A ppearance of such conflicts w as con-firm e d by 69 p e r cent of all ex am in ed in d u stria l com panies and 97 p e r cen t of tra d e com panies. I t should be noted h e re th a t such conflicts ap p e ar a lre ad y a t th e stage of p re p a ra tio n of m ark e tin g activities. This, as a ru le , is due to insu fficien t q u a n titie s of goods offered b y in d u -stria l u n its in com parison w ith th e dem and re q u ire m e n ts of tra d e . A ppearance of conflicts a lre a d y a t th e stage of establishing tra d e contacts is a phenom enon n e g a tiv ely affectin g th e c h a ra c te r of m u tu a l r e
-latio n s and th e scope of co-operation b etw e en in d u stria l and tra d e com panies in im p lem en tatio n of tra d e a g reem en ts and sale of p ro d u cts to consum ers.
I t ap p ears th a t th e m ain a re a of conflict is rep re se n te d by ex ecu-tion of c o n tra cts for d e liv e ry of goods. T h a t am ong o th ers re su lts from often im proper process of p rep a rin g production and excessive incli-n atioincli-n of iincli-n d u stria l com paincli-nies to coincli-nclude c o incli-n tra cts w ith o u t e a rlie r analysis of th e ir capacity of executing th em (e.g. availab ility of raw m aterials, packaging, tra n sp o rt capacities etc.).
U n p u n c tu a lity of d eliv eries holds a p red o m in an t position in th e group of causes of conflicts arising d u rin g im p lem en tatio n of c o n tra ct s tip u -lations. To a sm aller e x te n t, th ese conflicts a re caused by: changes in size of deliveries, changes in a sso rtm e n t of supplied products, changes of stip u latio n s concerning q u a lity of products, and changes in raw m a-te ria ls used in production. T he above m entioned causes can in a w ay be blam ed on in d u stria l com panies. Som etim es conflicts arise also w h en tra d e com panies u n d e rta k e d efin ite activ ities w hich a re n ot approved by in d u stria l com panies (e.g. changes in c o n tra c t stip u latio n s in tro d u -ced by trad e, im p ro p e r ex p lo itatio n of p ro d u cts in tra d e u n its etc.), and in re s u lt of activ ities of th ird p a rtie s (e.g. dam ages occuring in tr a n -sport).
A desire to elim in ate or re s tric t n egative effects of conflicts fo r im p lem e n ta tio n of objectives set b y econom ic su b jects and fo r sa tis-faction of consum er needs produces a n a tu ra l necessity of u n d e rta k in g various activities aim ed a t c o u n te rac tin g or solving th ese conflicts. A ctivities of th is ty p e a re in itia ted by a big p a r t of in d u stria l and tra d e com panies. A nalysis of th e se activities show s th a t th e y can c o u n te ra c t conflicts only to a v e ry sm all degree. T hus e.g. actions ta k e n by p ro d u -cers to satisfy re q u ire m e n ts posed by b u y e rs a re tak e n on a v e ry lim i-ted scale. A re stric te d ran g e of activities elim in atin g causes of con-flicts d e te rm in e s th e kin d of actions w hich can be u n d e rta k e n to solve a given conflict b u t it also decreases th e effectiveness of th e ir im pact. As m ost causes of conflicts ensue from fa ilu re to ex ecute th e agreed c o n tra c t stip u latio n s, th e actions w hich a re u n d e rta k e n aim a t cushio-ning th e resu ltin g conflicts. As reg a rd s th e c h a ra c te r and kind of th ese
actions th e y can be divided into th re e groups: negotiations and d ire c t stipulations, in te rv en tio n actions, and application of legal and adm inis-tra tiv e rem edies. M ost fre q u e n tly th ere are taken actions of th e first type, w hich consist in estab lish in g d ire c t contacts b etw een su p p lie rs a n d b u y e rs in o rd er to seek com prom ise solutions of m a tte rs in dispute. P oor effectiveness of such actions m akes it often n ecessary to in itia te in te rv e n tio n actions in su p erio r u nits, a d m in istra tiv e a u th o rities, o r
appeal to th e public opinion. In e x tre m e cases of discrepancies b etw een d eliv eries and stip u latio n s m ade e.g. those concerning q u a lity tra d e com panies em ploy legal and a d m in istra tiv e rem edies (e.g. re tu rn in g goods to th e producer). S tip u la te d penalties, on th e o th e r hand, a re em ployed r a th e r seldom as an in stru m e n t of se ttlin g disputes. It is m ain ly a re s u lt of fe a r of econom ic su bjects, especially tra d e Compa-nies, th a t th e pro d u cer m ay tak e actions w hich w ill fu rth e r a g g rav ate m u tu a l contacts. This decreases th e effectiveness of using th e con-tra c tin g system to shape m u tu a l rela tio n s b etw e en in d u stria l and con-tra d e com panies, and develop co-operation in pro g ram m in g and organizing m ark e tin g activities.
Ire n e u sz R u tk o w s k i
W SPÓ ŁPR A C A I K O N F L IK T W K A NA ŁA CH D Y STRY BU C JI
W a rty k u le p o ddano an a liz ie za k res i fo rm y w sp ó łp racy p rze d sięb io rstw p rz e -m ysłow ych i h an d lo w y ch w op arciu o p rz e sła n k i te o re ty cz n e oraz n a p o d sta w ie b a d a ń em pirycznych p rzep ro w ad z o n y ch w p rze d sięb io rstw a ch p rzem ysłow ych i handlow ych. O m ów iono d alej źródła i c h a r a k te r k o n flik tó w p o w sta jąc y ch w k a -n a ła c h d y s try b u c ji a zakłócających ow ą w spółpracę. Zw róco-no u w ag ę -n a m ożli-w ości i p o trzeb ę przezożli-w yciężenia lu b e lim in a cji ty c h k o n flik tó ożli-w ożli-w op arciu o o k reślo n e in s tru m e n ty o d d ziały w a n ia i p o trzeb n e w ty m z a k resie decyzje.
