Complementor Relationship Management

Complementor Relationship Management , CoRM for short, refers to the management of business relationships with complementors . The management of business relationships (relationship management) is generally understood to mean all management activities that pursue the coordination of goals and models of several companies and serve to identify, select, plan, control and monitor business relationships.

In the context of complementor relationship management, goals and models are coordinated between complementors in analogy to the business relationship life cycle of suppliers. This is based on an active and structured search for current and potential (future) complementors (scouting phase) as well as an assessment and selection of complementors. On the other hand, the contents of a potential cooperation (e.g. rules, contracts, etc.) must be negotiated and consequently optimized and monitored (agreement, monitoring / controlling phase).

Based on the established areas of Business Relationship Management (especially customer and supplier relationship management , CRM and SRM for short), Complementor Relationship Management is abbreviated as CoRM. It is a relatively young branch of relationship management. The origin of business relationship management is the SRM.

The starting point of all complementary relationships are not highly organized transaction relationships, but rather existing networks that result from the complementarity of the goods on offer. In contrast to CRM and SRM, CoRM does not require any transactions (exchange relationships, performance for money). Relationship management can also be one-sided, e.g. B. by aligning its product strategy to compatibility with certain complementary goods or by locating in close proximity to its complementor (e.g. a hotel near an airport).

Background and significance

In numerous fields of value creation such as B. Communication and information processing, mobility or health, complex (customer) needs arise that can only be covered by a package of several complementary goods and services. Since the providers of these services focus on their core competencies, independent and specialized providers have to "work together". This constellation of complex customer needs and the focus on core competencies makes the business relationship between the complementors very important (see graphic). This creates a high need for coordination and coordination between the actors, which is the subject of the CoRM.

Importance of Complementor Relationship Management

Areas of responsibility (domains of Complementor Relationship Management)

The CoRM's areas of responsibility consist of the following domains of organizational relationship management:

Configuration management

One of the concerns of this domain of relationship management is the identification of all current and potential complementors. The identification of complementors is more complex than the identification of suppliers, since the need for complements depends in particular on customer preferences and different customers can have very different needs for complementary services. For example, for business customers of IT solutions, the security of business data is indispensable, for private customers favorable financing conditions are in the foreground. The need for vendor parts and assemblies and thus the suppliers of these services can be z. B. determine exactly by drawing up a parts list . In addition, the customer's need for complementary services can only be latent; In other words, it sometimes does not manifest the need for complementary services at all. A company then first has to find out what needs the customer (also in the future) will have for complementary goods. This can e.g. By analyzing data collected in the CRM analytical system . Then it is necessary to identify which complementors (can) offer these services.

In terms of configuration management z. For example, a software company can identify potential complementors at trade fairs ( e.g. CeBIT ) (e.g. other software providers, hardware providers, intermediaries such as providers of billing systems, etc., see also the instruments for informational foundation below).

As part of configuration management, activities are carried out that include: B. from competition research (English. Competitive Intelligence ) or procurement market research are known.

The identified complementors are then assessed as part of configuration management. The supplier evaluation serves as a fund for evaluation instruments , but the key figures, criteria, factors and characteristics on the basis of which the complementors are to be evaluated differ. For the selection of complementors, it is not the absolute performance of a complementary that is decisive (e.g. the quality of software or the fastest possible placement of the product on the market ), but how "well" the complementary performance is integrated with the reference performance (e.g. that the software is compatible with other software such as operating systems or hardware, or a synchronous market launch). The selection or selection of suitable cooperation partners can, for. B. with the help of a requirement profile or checklists as well as vulnerability catalogs.

A systematic evaluation of complementors is also the starting point for a classification of the complementors into groups or clusters e.g. B. analogous to customer segmentation or the division of suppliers into A, B and C suppliers . The classification into A, B and C complementors can be done according to different criteria. For example, the benefit contribution for the customer that the complementary service provides can be determined, e.g. B. a car cleaning gives rather a small benefit compared to the benefit z. B. donates the fuel supply.

Based on supplier or customer portfolios, a complementary portfolio can be created in which the complementors z. B. in the dimensions "integration" (built-up commonalities such as integrated planning and controlling systems etc.) and "interdependence" (performance or business dependency) be positioned (cf. the compilation on the blog: Complementor Relationship Management and here especially the topic of diagnosis: Complementor Intelligence).

On the one hand, on the basis of the classification, a selection, i.e. H. Selection of certain complementors (e.g. from A complementors) can be made. On the other hand, in terms of managing a portfolio of business relationships, management capacities can be focused on business relationships and partners that offer high business potential (see CoRM objectives).

Configuration management creates the prerequisites for interaction management as a further domain of the CoRM. Through activities in the context of configuration management such as observation, market research or trade fair visits, z. B. the behavior of the parties as well as configuration-relevant technology trends (e.g. convergence , which among other things results in changed provider structures) can be discovered, which serves as the starting point for interaction management.

Interaction management

The interaction management domain includes business process management e.g. B. the acquisition of information or influence, for example in the context of negotiations, as well as the creation of common ground and transactions between actors.

The management decisions of complementors are networked with each other, as they influence each other e.g. B. Decisions regarding the market launch , product design or location decisions . This interaction network does not lead to an exchange relationship (money for performance) between the complementors. Rather, the interaction management consists of a mutual adaptation to the complementor or his (strategic) decisions. An example of such an adaptation is when video game manufacturers or publishers bring compatible games onto the market at the same time as a new generation of game consoles is launched. However, the "independent" interactions of the actors have an effect on the other value creation participants and in particular on the complementors and their economic situation. For example, poor quality of a complementary good can result in the customer not purchasing the entire service configuration (e.g. if there is insufficient Internet bandwidth available and Internet services are not used as a result) or sales of a product increase because the Complementor has lowered the price of the complement. One speaks here of so-called external effects , which are the starting point of interaction management. The (one-sided) coordination or integration efforts do not result in negotiations and contracts between the general partners.

Through bilateral and cooperative coordination in the form of negotiations, meetings, workshops, working groups, etc., the cooperation between the complementors and the integration of the complementary services can be improved. Complementors develop common standards for this purpose, conduct joint research and development on common research topics (e.g. the modularization of services) or invest in building trust, in particular to reduce transaction costs ( the higher the trust, the easier it is to gain transaction partners ).

As part of interaction management, the performance parameters (e.g. the marketing mix ) are also coordinated between the complements in order to be able to meet customer needs as best as possible. The prices, advertising, sales channels and product parameters are not separated for the complements, but rather integrated. This leads to an integrated marketing mix in bundle prices, joint advertising activities or joint sales channels.

aims

Complementary service configurations require cross-company coordination (coordination or integration, e.g. with regard to compatibility) of at least two services. In principle, the complementary services can also be offered by a company. However, there are several aspects that speak against this full-service provider model, such as B. Barriers to competence or high costs for building up competence with a provider and the (sales) risk.

If the services are well coordinated, potential opportunities (e.g. additional sales) can be tapped. If a complementor recommends a specific complementary service, sales of the provider of the complementary service increase (horizontal cross-selling).

On the other hand, there are also risks if the complementary services z. B. are not well coordinated with one another with regard to the time availability. This was the case with the launch of HDTV sets and television programs in HD (High Definition).

The aim of the CoRM is to develop these opportunities and avoid risks. The opportunity and risk potential is shown in the following table using a few examples:

	Opportunity potential	Risk potential
Coordination of the quantities	z. B. Increase in sales	z. B. Horizontal bullwhip effect
Coordination of prices	z. B. Bundle pricing	z. B. Customer budget for the service bundle is exceeded
Matching the quality	z. B. Interface standards, high integral quality	z. B. Loss of confidence in the bundle of services
Scheduling agreement	z. B. Synchronized Offers	z. B. Delayed Market Penetration
Coordination of costs	z. B. Economies of Scope	z. B. Costs from product flops

Source: Reiss

Tools

There is a pool of tools and instruments for planning and controlling services such as B. from the supply chain management , which represent the basis for the integration of complementary performance configurations. Existing tools must be adapted to the specifics of the CoRM, e.g. B. ensure that there is no transaction relationship between the complementors. The CoRM toolbox consists of three categories of instruments:

Instruments for the informational foundation

On the performance side, these instruments collect knowledge about complementary performance. The first thing to do is to determine which services are actually perceived as complementary by the customer. These instruments are assigned to the domain configuration management. There are also instruments for collecting information on the complementors, e.g. B. about their sales volume, strategies, R&D activities or their reactions to the activities of other market participants. Are used u. a. strategic diagnostic instruments such as early detection systems or SWOT analyzes .

Demand planning tools

Which sales volume of a primary product (e.g. a laptop or a car) enables which sales volume of a complement (e.g. a laptop mouse, various software applications or fuel quantities, child seats and other car accessories) is less easy to determine than the secondary and tertiary needs in procurement management. The need for complementary services is not highly determined (e.g. by a parts list ), but depends on the widely varying preferences of different customer groups. For example, for one customer, a video film is a complementary addition to the cinema film, for another customer the video film replaces a visit to the cinema, which represents a substitutional relationship .

From the IT industry z. B. the customer behavior " Leapfrogging " known, which also makes an exact determination of needs difficult. Technological changes such as For example, the market launch of tablets , smartphones, etc. in personal computing is also changing the need for complementary products (e.g. the need for broadband transmission capacities increases due to mobile devices, the need for external input devices such as a mouse decreases when touch displays are increasingly installed become). Methods of determining requirements are, for example, the RSU analysis and life cycle (cost) considerations .

Instruments for designing offers

When designing the offer, the pricing for the service configuration is particularly challenging, as the customer usually values ​​the configuration components to different degrees. Instruments that are used here are e.g. B. the retrograde price determination as part of target costing .

A conjoint analysis can be used to determine the customer's willingness to pay for the configuration components based on the customer's benefit assessment.

Last but not least, it must be clarified how the jointly generated revenues should be distributed in accordance with the (expenditure). In addition to commission payments for referring a customer, a determination can be made for B. be done based on the determination of intra-group transfer prices .

See also

• Supplier Relationship Management
• Customer Relationship Management
• Supply chain management
• Complementors
• Cormplementor Relationship Management Blog

literature

• D. Ahlert, T. Heussler, M. Michaelis, K. Möller, C. Schwab, M. Seiter: Instruments for the quantification of customer benefit as a basis for pricing hybrid products . In: Controlling: Journal for success-oriented corporate management . 20th year, no. 8-9 , 2008, pp. 473-479 .
• T. Bernecker, M. Reiss: Complementor Relationship Management. Organize cooperation in transport logistics efficiently . In: zfo - magazine leadership and organization . 80th year, no. 1 , 2011, p. 11-18 .
• AM Brandenburger, BJ Nalebuff: Competing cooperatively. With game theory to business success . Eschborn 2008, ISBN 978-3-924043-94-0 .
• JF Noonan, MJ Wallace: Improved optimization through advanced relationship planning . In: Supply Chain Management . tape 11 , no. 6 , 2006, p. 483-490 .
• JF Noonan, MJ Wallace: Complementors: fellow travelers in contract manufacture . In: Supply Chain Management . 8th year, no. 1 , 2003, p. 26-31 .
• M. Reiss: Complementor Relationship Management - Missing Link in Supply Chain Management . In: RM Samson (Ed.): Supply-chain management. Theories, activities / functions and problems . Hauppauge, NY 2010, ISBN 978-1-61668-284-2 .
• M. Reiss: Relationship Management . In: WISU - The Business Studies . 37th year, no. 7 , 2008, p. 997-1002 .
• K. Riemer: Concepts of relationship management using the example of supplier and customer relationships . In: HMD - Praxis der Wirtschaftsinformatik . 45th year, no. 259 , 2008, p. 7-20 .
• DB Yoffie, M. Kwak: With friends like these. The Art of Managing Complementors . In: Harvard Business Review . tape 48 , no. 9 , 2006, p. 89-98 .
• D. Yoffie, R. Casadesus-Masanell: Wintel: Cooperation and Conflict . In: Management Science . tape 53 , no. 4 , 2007, p. 584-598 .

Individual evidence

1. ^ W. Stölzle: Industrial Relationships . Munich 1999, p. 8 . M. Trumpfheller, E. Hofmann: Supply Chain Relationship Management. Relationship management as a constitutive element of network competence in supply chains . In: H.-C. Pfohl (Ed.): Network competence in supply basics and implementation of chains . Wiesbaden 2004, p.
    69 .
2. ↑ K. Riemer: Concepts of relationship management using the example of supplier and customer relationships . In: HMD - Praxis der Wirtschaftsinformatik . 45th year, no. 259 , 2008, p. 14 .
3. ↑ z. B. the joint marketing of a bundle of products
4. ↑ z. B. the mission statement of a solution provider
5. ^ W. Stölzle: Industrial Relationships . Munich 1999, p. 8 . M. Reiss: Relationship Management . In: WISU - The Business Studies . 37th year, no.
    7 , 2008, p. 1000 .
6. ↑ The configuration of goods and services is also referred to as a service configuration or service bundle or, in English, as a bundle or solution
7. ^ R. Reichwald, M. Wagner: Interactive initiation in company networks . In: IM - Information Management & Consulting . 19th year 2004, p. 57 (special edition).
8. ^ M. Reiss: Complementor Relationship Management . In: in: Economics Studies (WiSt) . 37 vol., No. 10 , 2008, p. 560 f .
9. ^ P. Hammann, B. Erichson: Market research . 4th edition. Stuttgart 2000, p. 560 f .
10. ^ Complementor Relationship Management. (No longer available online.) Complementor Relationship Management, archived from the original on September 20, 2017 ; accessed on February 12, 2019 . 
11. ^ Subject diagnosis: Complementor Intelligence. (No longer available online.) Formerly in the original ; accessed on February 12, 2019 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  
12. ↑ The aim of the portfolio analysis is to identify the most important complementary relationships on the basis of adequate evaluation criteria. The application of the “portfolio method” in marketing and procurement is still relatively new cf. PW Turnbull: A Review of Portfolio Planning Models for Industrial Marketing and Purchasing Management. In: European Journal of Marketing. Vol. 24, No. 3, 1990, pp. 7-22,
    R. K. Krapfel Jr., D. Salmond, R. Spekman: A Strategic Approach to Managing Buyer-Seller Relationships. In: European Journal of Marketing. Volume 25, No. 9, 1991, p. 22-
13. ↑ HM Dietl, S. Royer: Indirect network effects and value creation organization. An examination of the underlying efficiency and strategy determinants using the example of the video game industry . In: ZfB - magazine for business administration . 73rd year, no. 4 , 2003, p. 407-429 .
14. ↑ C. Köhler, D. Henkel: Partnership for net neutrality. New business models allow the networks to be monetized . In: Detecon Management Report, online portal o.y., November 11, 2010 . 2010, p. 1-12 .
15. ^ M. Reiss, A. Günther: Value Net Marketing - Key to Successful Marketing . In: Marketing Review St. Gallen . 28th year, no. 4 , 2011, p. 48 .
16. ↑ M. Reiss: Complementors Integration: Challenges and Solution Concepts . In: Journal for Planning & Corporate Control . 19th year, no. 1 , 2009, p. 44 .
17. ^ S. Gupta, DC Jain, MS Sawhney: Modeling the evolution of Markets with indirect network externalities . In: Marketing Science . tape 18 , no. 3 , 1999, p. 396-416 .
18. ^ M. Reiss, A. Günther: Complementor Relationship Controlling . In: Controlling: Journal for success-oriented corporate management . 21st year, no. 6 , 2009, p. 329 .
19. ↑ M. Reiss: Complementors Integration: Challenges and Solution Concepts . In: Journal for Planning & Corporate Control . 19th year, no. 1 , 2009, p. 61 ff .