Abstract

This paper tries to analyze the association between cooperation with suppliers and the level of innovation achieved by the customer. Therefore, a supplier may serve as an external source for innovation and this paper studies the different models set up by a company with its suppliers. Special attention is drawn to the competitive and cooperative models. Next, the Spanish companies responding to the Spanish Business Strategies Survey (SBSS) are categorized according to the level of cooperation with their suppliers. The results suggest that the higher the level of cooperation, the better results the company achieves regarding innovation. A closer look shows that among companies that cooperate with their suppliers, those with a higher level of innovation get better financial performance.

Key words: Suppliers, cooperation, performance, purchasing supply chain.