If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -This paper seeks to explore how Indian buying firms practise an open book (OB) policy in supplier relationships in three industries, i.e. the vehicle industry, the construction industry and the information technology industry. It also aims to study determinants of open book practices. Design/methodology/approach -Application of the OB policy is operationalised as the nature of open book practices, the extent and stage of data disclosed, the form of data disclosed, the direction of data disclosed, the attitude towards cost data disclosed, and the purpose and conditions of data disclosed. Determinants of the open book policy comprise characteristics of the exchange, the product, the buyer, the supplier and the supply market. Qualitative data were collected in the form of 22 interviews with representatives of three buying organisations and several of their suppliers in order to build three case studies. Findings -The results suggest that the OB policy is used by buyers for diverse purposes ranging from strategic to operational, for example value engineering at the product development stage, to ensure supplier margins, for self improvements and cost reductions, and country entry decisions. Similarly, the data shared ranged from narrow to wide in scope and scale. Suppliers' attitudes ranged from fairly neutral to very negative towards open books. Power asymmetries, the number of alternative suppliers, product performance characteristics and value, incentives offered, and buyer efforts were found to influence OB practices. Practical implications -Experiences gained from employing an OB policy in vehicle manufacturing suggests that firms in other industries can better leverage the use of open books for joint problem solving, equitable profit sharing and supplier selection. Originality/value -The paper highlights that an OB policy can have broader applicability than recognised by many past studies and indicates that it can serve purposes of strategic decision-making. It can also be an integrated part of a buyer's risk reduction strategy. Further, the study provides specific recommendations for Indian companies with regard to the application of an open book policy.Open book pra...

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Despite the implication of organizational resources and the resource-based view of the firm, the market orientation literature has not examined associated constructs. Additionally, while it is recognized that emerging economies (e.g., India) are key drivers of economic growth, this literature has not paid sufficient attention to such markets, with few exceptions. We examine the impact of proactive market orientation on innovation capability, and performance in a sample of predominantly service firms, in a culture characterized by high power distance and low uncertainty avoidance. We contribute by conceptualizing and demonstrating the moderating impact of intrafirm causal ambiguity, drawn from resource-based theories of the firm. Based on Structural Equation Modelling analysis of responses to a survey of marketing managers, we find that intra-firm causal ambiguity moderates the proactive market orientation-innovation capability relationship, while this strategic orientation is linked to business performance through innovation. We discuss these findings, limitations, implications, and directions for future research.

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The extant review studies on the Base/bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) have paid inadequate attention to the producer and entrepreneur roles of the poor. This review article exclusively focused on BoP producers and subsistence entrepreneurs provides an overview of the current state of research on BoP producers and subsistence entrepreneurs. It encompasses 130 articles from 67 peer-reviewed academic journals and develops an organizing framework for classifying these articles. The conceptual model of entrepreneurship in poverty contexts presented in this article illustrates the drivers, barriers, facilitators and consequences of subsistence entrepreneurship. The conceptual model helps to highlight the relevance of contextually informed public support and advocates adopting a collaborative approach for addressing various challenges faced by BoP producers. We also discuss the implications of our article and provide directions for future research.