Collecting rich qualitative data on business relationships and networks in CEE countries: Challenges and plausible solutions

Maria Ivanova-Gongne , Nikolina Koporcic , Olga Dziubaniuk , Tibor Mandják (1)

1 Métis Lab EM Normandie

Collecting rich qualitative data in business-to-business market context, where respondents are more reluctant towards investing time in academic research, may impose several barriers for researchers. In particular, challenges may emerge in collecting data and establishing its trustworthiness in Central Eastern European (CEE) countries, due to a distinct business context that has developed over several historical instances. The aim of this paper is to investigate and understand the methodological challenges of collecting rich qualitative data on business relationships and networking in CEE countries. The countries in focus are Russia, Croatia and Hungary. In order to achieve our aims, we critically reflect on personal experiences and consult the literature on conducting research in the aforementioned countries. The contribution of the paper lies in context-sensitive implications for methodological specifics and plausible solutions to overcome barriers to conducting qualitative research on business relationships and networks in CEE countries.

Keywords: Qualitative methods; Context; Business networks; Business relationships; Interviews; Central Eastern European countries

Domains: Humanities and Social Sciences; Business administration

Maria Ivanova-Gongne, Nikolina Koporcic, Olga Dziubaniuk, Tibor Mandják. Collecting rich qualitative data on business relationships and networks in CEE countries: Challenges and plausible solutions. Industrial Marketing Management, 2018, 70, pp.193-204. ⟨10.1016/j.indmarman.2017.07.007⟩. ⟨hal-01885635⟩