Partnerships: The role that power plays in shaping collaborative buyer–supplier exchanges

•Many theoretical perspectives underpinning definitions of partnerships marginalise the role of power in relationships.•A partnership is based on ‘a commitment to the equal sharing of the costs, risks and rewards derived from working together’.•Partnering is more likely to succeed when there are equal power resources, or interdependence, between collaborating parties.•Understanding the underlying power dynamics in buyer–supplier relationships has important management implications.•A more nuanced power model based on Cox et al.'s (2000) ‘Power Regimes’ methodology is introduced.

The role that power plays in collaborative buyer–supplier exchanges or partnerships is explored in this study. The paper argues that research into business-to-business relationships, although rich, largely marginalises the impact that power differentials have on the formation and long-term success of partnerships. To address this, five cases are presented, drawn from the UK food industry, that show how power dynamics shape partnerships. In addition, the research contends that partnering is more likely to succeed when there are equal power resources, or interdependence, between collaborating parties and this leads us to a more robust definition of partnerships.