Study On The Formation Mechanism Of Enterprise Cluster's Core Competencies From Social Network Perspective

In the global economy, enterprise cluster have shown remarkable vitality in the current national economic systems and provided a powerful driving force for regional economic development as well as establishing national competitive advantage. Many local governments begin to use cluster as a key strategic tool to promote regional economic development.With the rise of new economic sociology, social network theory has been attentioned by sociology, economics and management. As enterprise cluster has the properties of social network to some extent, social network as an important factor which helps cluster develop stably is gradually appearing. However, view from enterprise cluster research and development status in China, the study of core competencies (confidence) of enterprise cluster is insufficient, and the level of trust between enterprise cluster is generally not high. Successful clusters abroad are inseparable from the good trust mechanisms in these regions. Therefore, it is necessary to study the enterprise cluster and its core competencies, including how trust formats and how to foster the trust, to promot regional economic development even better.Firstly, the paper defined core competencies of enterprise cluster on the analysis of social network theory and core competence theory from the existing social network theory and the enterprise cluster theory, combined reviewing and ordering the relevant literature. It is deemed that the core competence of enterprise cluster is the trust which formed in long process of trading in cluster to some degree. On the basis of trust, the paper elaborates the effects of cluster trust which is helpful to reduce transaction costs, enhance decision-making efficiency, prevent opportunism, and promote innovation. It shows that it is necessary to construct the trust of cluster.Then, from the social network theory perspective, this paper establishes a reputation model to explore the formation mechanism of cluster trust by analyzing how enterprises game with each other to maintain a long-term cooperation relationship in the absence and existence of dissemination mechanisms of reputation. By means of amended KMRW model, it is regarded that in order to maintain long-term cooperation with other enterprises and maximize their own interests, enterprises in cluster networks must take a rational trading behavior, which requires companies to obtain the trust of other enterprises in the cluster networks. As reputation is spread in the cluster networks, enterprises in cluster networks only when set a better reputation than those out of cluster networks can maintain trusting relationships and cooperate with each other in a long run.Finally, the article proposes some related suggestions on the trust cultivation in cluster from three main levels including the enterprises in cluster, intermediary agencies and industry associations, and the government. Then, the paper summarize the conclusion and future research directions of the paper.