Kenneth H. Wathne earned his Ph.D. at the Copenhagen Business School. Prior to joining the faculty at BI Norwegian School of Management, he worked as an Assistant Professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison.
He has published several highly cited articles in the Journal of Marketing and the Journal of Marketing Research, contributed to book chapters on interorganizational relationships, and currently serves on the Editorial Review Board of the Journal of Marketing, International Journal of Research in Marketing, Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing, and Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management.
Wathne's teaching interests include interorganizational relationships, marketing channels, business-to-business marketing, marketing research and marketing management. He is four-time recipient of the Mu Kappa Tau Marketing Professor of the Year award.
Prior to entering academia, Wathne worked as a project consultant and project manager with the Norwegian Institute for Research in Marketing. Wathne earned his MS in marketing and strategy and a BS in marketing from BI Norwegian School of Management in Oslo, Norway.
Purpose This paper aims to identify promising areas for future business to business (B2B) governance research. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses a theoretical approach. Findings Most governance research in marketing is conducted within the context of value chains (Porter 1985). There are great opportunities for governance researchers in marketing to improve the understanding of B2B relationships in problem solving and networking services. Moreover, rapid innovations taking place in networking services are changing the institutional environment across all forms of value creation. This in turn impacts how the nature and governance of relationships in the broader economy are understood. Originality/value The literature on B2B relationship governance is primarily rooted in one particular form of value creation, namely, the “value chain” (Porter, 1985). The authors examine whether the current conceptualization of B2B relationship governance is equally applicable for firms that have a different value creation logic and therefore engage in exchange relationships that differ in their object of exchange.
Wathne, Kenneth Henning; Heide, Jan B., Mooi, Erik A. & Kumar, Alok (2018)
Relationship governance dynamics: The roles of partner selection efforts and mutual investments
The article studies interfirm governance in the context of supplier–reseller relationships. Using a longitudinal study, the authors examine the roles of supplier selection efforts and mutual specific investments with respect to (1) motivating a supplier to make incremental investments and (2) safeguarding these investments from supplier ex post transaction costs. The authors also examine the joint effects of selection efforts and mutual investments on supplier ex post transaction costs. From a practical standpoint, the findings suggest guidelines for channel strategy. Theoretically, they provide new insights into relationship dynamics, including evidence regarding the effects of a firm’s governance choices over time.
Alliance Termination and Firm Idiosyncratic Risk: The Role of Governance Misfit
[Academic lecture]. 23rd Nordic Workshop on interorganizational research.
Sande, Jon Bingen; Wathne, Kenneth Henning & Ghosh, Mrinal (2017)
Microfoundations of Value Creation and Relational Contracting in B2B Relationships: the Role Cross-understanding
[Academic lecture]. SIOE 2017 (Society for institutional & organizational economics).
Sande, Jon Bingen; Wathne, Kenneth Henning & Ghosh, Mrinal (2017)
Microfoundations of value creation and relational contracting in B2B relationships: The role of cross-understanding
[Academic lecture]. Nordic Workshop on Interorganizational Research.
Sande, Jon Bingen; Wathne, Kenneth Henning & Ghosh, Mrinal (2016)
The Micro-Foundations of Value Creation in B2B Relationships: The Role of Cross-Understanding
[Academic lecture]. ISBM Academic Conference 2016: Advances in Business-to-Business Marketing.
Sande, Jon Bingen; Wathne, Kenneth Henning & Ghosh, Mrinal (2016)
Does interorganizational cross-understanding matter in buyer-supplier relationships?
[Academic lecture]. EMAC.
Koval, Mariia; Wathne, Kenneth Henning, Hunneman, Auke & van Oest, Rutger Daniel (2016)
Termination of R&D Alliances: The Role of Formal and Informal Governance
[Academic lecture]. Knowledge & Innovation, Cooperative Strategy, and Entrepreneurship Paper Development Workshop at Strategic Management Society Annual Conference.
Koval, Mariia; Wathne, Kenneth Henning, Hunneman, Auke & van Oest, Rutger Daniel (2016)
Termination of R&D Alliances: The Role of Formal and Informal Governance
[Academic lecture]. EMAC 2016 Annual Conference.
Koval, Mariia; Wathne, Kenneth Henning, van Oest, Rutger Daniel & Hunneman, Auke (2015)
Termination of R&D alliances: the role of formal and informal governance
[Academic lecture]. The 6th Israel Strategy Conference.
Koval, Mariia; Wathne, Kenneth Henning, van Oest, Rutger Daniel & Hunneman, Auke (2015)
Termination of R&D alliances: the role of formal and informal governance
[Academic lecture]. SMS Annual International Conference.
Koval, Mariia; Wathne, Kenneth Henning, van Oest, Rutger Daniel & Hunneman, Auke (2015)
The Stability of R&D Alliances: Complementary Role of Formal and Informal Governance
[Academic lecture]. NFB Research School Conference 2015 in Trondheim (Norway).
Koval, Mariia; Wathne, Kenneth Henning, van Oest, Rutger Daniel & Hunneman, Auke (2015)
Governing alliance portfolios: alliance termination decisions under relational risks and structural constraints