While making and buying are usually regarded as being mutually exclusive in extant theory, in reality, making-and-buying is employed in various contexts, such as industrial manufacturing, the media, and clinical trials. <br> <br> After assessing transaction cost economics as the most important theory of the make vs. buy decision, Anna Krzeminska develops an extension to the TCE framework which spotlights uncertainty as a main explanatory variable. This approach not only allows distinguishing different types of make-and-buy but also enables an explanation of determinants, management mechanisms, and performance implications of each make-and-buy type separately. Empirical analysis with data from the German automotive industry shows predominant support for the hypotheses. Thus, this work contributes to a better understanding of the categorization of economic institutions. <br> |