Knowledge transfer in business-to-business customer relationship development

Inter-organizational knowledge transfer is crucial in developing business-to-business (B2B) relationships between supplier and customer firms. Despite its importance, prior research has not fully explored various knowledge transfer mechanisms and the process through which they impact B2B relational outcomes. Drawing on knowledge-based theory and the relationship marketing literature, we propose a conceptual model to examine how formal versus informal mechanisms of knowledge transfer affect the extent of knowledge transferred by a supplier (extent of KNTS) and, in turn, influence customer loyalty through two types of trust, namely cognitive and affective trust. We examine our model using survey data from 204 business customers of a Chinese medical equipment supplier. The findings reveal that both formal training and informal coaching positively affect the extent of KNTS. Contrary to conventional expectations, we find that affective trust does not play a role in building relationships through the extent of KNTS, even in the Chinese context where relationship-building is deeply rooted in cultural traditions that highly value affective connections. Instead, cognitive trust is the primary mechanism in facilitating relationship-building through the extent of KNTS. Furthermore, we show that tie strength moderates the effects of both formal training and informal coaching on the extent of KNTS, with customer size further influencing these effects. Our research contributes to the literature by articulating the effects of formal and informal knowledge transfer mechanisms and their respective boundaries and highlighting the nuanced roles of trust and contextual factors in developing B2B relationships.