Designing a Model for the Role of External Social Capital in Competitive Advantage Acquisition (Case Study: Color and Resin Industry)

This research is conducted on the basis of the relational view of competitive advantage. In this view، competitive advantages are created by not only corporate-level resources but by inimitable capacities and mixed into dynamic relations. The main purpose of this paper is to analyze and quantify the impact of external social capital dimensions on organizational competitive advantage. For this purpose، after an extensive study of literature، the initial conceptual model was designed. The questionnaires were distributed among senior executives and board members of Color and Resin Company and 64 questionnaires were returned and the data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics، inferential analysis and Structural Equation Modeling. Results show that the size of a firm impacts innovation and external social capital significantly affects the organizational competitive advantage. Also، structural dimension of external social capital is the most effective among the dimensions of competitive advantage، and strategic flexibility dimension is the most impressible dimension of external social capita. Additionally، the cognitive dimension of external social capital has the minimal impact on competitive advantage. It seems that the warm personal relationships، business relationships and working closely with many diverse groups and work teams in complex industrial organization are the most important tools for achieving the desired organizational results.