Cross-level effects of buyer-supplier collaboration and competition on individual gains and individual skill utilization

Organizations increasingly engage in interorganizational projects. Individuals working on such projects are likely to be influenced by this context. This study investigates the effects of the team processes of collaboration and competition on individuals' gains and skill utilization. Drawing on social identity theory, we proposed that collaboration would positively affect individual-level outcomes, while competition would result in negative individual-level outcomes. Using hierarchical linear modeling, the cross-level hypotheses were tested on multiple informants' data pertaining to 55 projects. Surprisingly, positive effects were found for both contextual variables, indicating that collaboration and competition result in greater skill utilization and individual gains.