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Journal of Service Research
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Managing Key Business-to-Business Relationships

What Marketing Can Learn From Supply Chain Management

Lynette J. Ryals

Cranfield School of Management

Andrew S. Humphries

SCCI Ltd.

Key account management (KAM) is a rapidly growing area of interest in business-to-business marketing. However, unnoticed by marketing, a quiet revolution has taken place in supply chain management (SCM), where the traditional emphasis on least-cost transactions has given way to a focus on long-term relationships with a few key suppliers. It is thus apparent that the two disciplines are converging. This article uses a cross-disciplinary approach to explore whether these developments from the field of SCM provide insights into key business-to-business relationships. A detailed case study of a long-term relationship between a business-to-business services provider and a key customer in the construction industry suggests there is a definable overlap. The supply chain model illuminates five important elements of KAM and offers a promising method for the evaluation of such relationships. As a result of the research, both supplier and customer companies implemented actions to improve and strengthen this important relationship.

Key Words: business-to-business services • supply chain management • key account management • collaboration

Journal of Service Research, Vol. 9, No. 4, 312-326 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/1094670507299380
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