The alliance evolutionary model: reconciling the hierarchical and developmental approaches to explaining alliance behaviour for small firms

Lars Bengtsson, Damian Hine and David Parker

International Journal of Management and Decision Making, 2006, vol. 7, issue 6, 661-676

Abstract: This paper conceptually investigates innovative relationship between different types of alliances and their relative competitiveness. Three alternative approaches are developed in the paper: a static approach, a developmental approach and finally a synthesis: the Alliance Evolutionary Model (AEM). This approach suggests that alliances could be thought as either strengthening firms' competitiveness through upgrading of differentiation or upgrading of low-cost capabilities and that they are based on either a local network of firms or a knowledge network of firms. The second approach provides a developmental model for a move from the most basic form of collaboration, the conventional supply system, characterised by transaction cost exchanges motivated by self-interest, to the establishment and maintenance of long-term social networks characterised by trust, commitment and mutual benefit. In the third section, the two approaches are synthesised to produce a hybrid model of alliance development. It is argued by the authors that the hybrid model the 'AEM', best approximates practice and provides guideposts for firms in their pursuit of the more sophisticated form of alliances as a means to long-term competitiveness.

Keywords: alliances; alliance evolutionary model; AEM; networks; small firms; innovation; social networks; supply chains; knowledge networks; long-term competitiveness; core competencies; supply chain management; SCM. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2006
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.inderscience.com/link.php?id=11075 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ids:ijmdma:v:7:y:2006:i:6:p:661-676

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in International Journal of Management and Decision Making from Inderscience Enterprises Ltd
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sarah Parker ().