Interorganisational Relations and Cooperative Structures

Since the early 1980s, firms in the West have shown greater interest in forming cooperative ventures with other companies. Such inter-firm arrangements are nothing new, but as we suggested in the previous chapter, this development is part of the more comprehensive structural response to rapidly changing environmental conditions. (Chapter 10 below considers aspects of inter-firm cooperation in an international context.) Thus, companies are focusing on developing core capabilities and deeper knowledge bases that can be used in combination with those of other firms to pursue a common strategic objective, such as developing a new product or process or penetrating a different market. Inter-firm structures also help to mobilise the financial resources needed to meet development costs (Chapter 4), but, fundamentally, the proliferation of strategic alliances reflects the need for firms to combine their learning abilities.