PhD Defence Silviu Tierean
In his dissertation 'Mind the Gap: The role of psychic distance and supplier’s reputation in international buyer-supplier relationships' Silviu Tierean investigated the effects of the psychic distance on supplier selection and quality of the business-to-business relationships, and assessed whether the corporate reputation of the supplier firm can reduce the negative effects of distance. Silviu defended his dissertation on Thursday, 16 June 2022 at 13:00. His supervisors were Prof. Cees van Riel (RSM), Prof. Gerrit van Bruggen (RSM), and Dr Guido Berens (RSM). Other members of the Doctoral Committee were Prof. Joep Cornelissen (RSM), Prof. Ting Li (RSM), Prof. Sorin Krammer (University of Exeter), Prof. Eric Waarts (RSM), Prof. Taco Reus (RSM), and Dr Merieke Stevens (RSM).
About Silviu Tierean
Silviu-Horia Tierean was born in Fagaras, Romania, in 1986. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree (2008) and a Master’s degree (2010) in marketing from Transilvania University of Brasov. After gaining some industry experience, he moved to the Netherlands, where he obtained a Research Master’s degree in economics and business from University of Groningen in 2012. The same year, Silviu started his PhD project at Erasmus University Rotterdam.
Silviu’s research interests are international marketing, consequences of corporate reputation, psychological effects of money and digital marketing. He has presented his research at various international conferences. Besides research, Silviu has taught on several academic courses and has supervised numerous master dissertations.
Currently, Silviu is working as a lecturer in management at Queen’s University Belfast.
Thesis Abstract
By taking the perspective of a buyer firm when evaluating exporting suppliers, the main goals of the present dissertation are to investigate the effects of the psychic distance on supplier selection and quality of the business-to-business relationships, and to assess whether the corporate reputation of the supplier firm can reduce the negative effects of distance. The effects of distance on importer-exporter relationship creation and quality were assessed using data from Dutch, German and North American companies, in both early and mature stages of the business relationship.
International marketing theory and practice can benefit from understanding the special characteristics of cross-border relationship building from the perspective of purchasing managers within the importing firms. Our findings that psychic distance negatively influences the international supplier selection and quality of the importer-exporter relationships, even beyond the effect of country image, and that the reputation of the exporter acts as a protective umbrella against the negative effects of distance represent valuable contributions to both the academic community and to managers.
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Photos: Elise Ntoremi / Your PhD Photo
