THE PHYSICS OF BUSINESS RELATIONSHIPS 1 Jens Geersbro Copenhagen Business School Birk Centerpark 40, DK-7400 Herning Denmark Geersbro@cbs.dk Laurids Hedaa Copenhagen Business School Paul H. Schurr State University of New York at Albany Keywords: relationship change, relationship management, interaction episode analysis, entropy, dynamics Abstract According to legend, Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727) was sitting under an apple tree when an apple fell on his head and he suddenly thought of the universal law of gravity—a theory that explains attraction between large bodies. In this paper we use such laws of physics as metaphors for understanding fundamental aspects of business relationship dynamics. Gravity, for example, evokes ideas about attraction between individuals and companies that leads to and sustains relationships. Furthermore, we think that Newton’s three laws of motion together with the law of gravity and the law of entropy provide useful analogies for discussing how and why business relationships change over time. Thus, our purpose is to create a deeper understanding of actor interactions that contribute to relationship change. We build on the work of Schurr, Hedaa, and Geersbro (forthcoming) that frames interaction episodes as engines of change. 1 The authors are listed in alphabetical order. All authors contributed equally.