Internal and lateral communication in strategic alliance decision making

Butler, Colin

doi:10.1108/00251741011043885

Cited by 15 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…The interorganizational exchange, combination and generation of resources, particularly knowledge, drive NPD in alliances (Grant and Baden-Fuller, 2004). These knowledge-transformation processes strongly depend on communication processes (Butler, 2010;Javidan et al, 2005). Communication describes the process of exchanging information between a sender and a receiver (Samovar et al, 2009).…”

Section: Divergent Communication Schemesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of divergent communication schemes in new product development alliances

Pesch

Bouncken

Kraus

2016

Management Research Review

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Purpose – Firms build new product development alliances to cope with the demands of continuous and rapid new product development. Such alliances allow surplus access to complementary capabilities and knowledge. However, the successful use of specialization advantages requires coordination and effective communication between alliance partners. Communication is vital to alliance success, as it allows a timely flow of information and resources across partners and supports the coordination within the alliance. The aim of this study is to research how divergent communication schemes influence firms’ new product development performance in alliances. Design/methodology/approach – A paper-and-pencil survey about firms’ collaborative new product development performance in the German medical device industry was conducted. Results are derived from a survey of n = 184 new product development alliances in the medical device industry. To test the hypotheses, structural equation modeling (SEM) using the Mplus 7.0 software was applied. Findings – The empirical results indicate that divergent communication schemes enhance product innovativeness and speed to market in new product development alliances. The development of new insights and solutions through joint sensemaking builds the theoretical fundament for the supportive effects of divergent communication schemes. Divergent communication schemes go hand in hand with ambiguity, that is, the source of joint dialogues and discussion through which alliance partners refine and adapt their different perspectives and interpretations. However, the supportive effect of divergent communication schemes on speed to market declines with increasing collaboration intensity. Research limitations/implications – The assessment of divergent communication schemes and new product development performance of the dyadic relationships in this survey is only based on one respondent. Furthermore, the study’s focus on a specific industry sector, albeit one fitting particularly well to the research question, may further limit the generalizability of the empirical findings. Future research should thus strive to take both firms of the dyadic relationship into account and moreover attempt to investigate mediating effects such as joint sensemaking or creativity. Practical implications – The results indicate that alliance managers should become aware that different ways of communication are not per se dysfunctional. To achieve beneficial effects, they should enhance dialogues and constructive discussions through which the alliance partners develop novel insights and solutions on the fundament of occurring misunderstandings that root in divergent communication schemes. Regular meetings and conferences as well as inter-organizational teams should be applied because they stimulate joint dialogues and discussions in alliances. These instruments also enable learning processes and the development of trust that are both crucial for sensemaking processes in alliances. Originality/value – Prior research has stressed the importance of interorganizational communication for the success of alliances. However, little is known about the effect of divergent communication schemes in alliances. This study shows theoretically and empirically that divergent communication schemes can improve new product development performance in alliances. The supportive effect of divergent communication schemes is contrary to the argumentation that communication problems and misinterpretations hamper alliance success.

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Section: Divergent Communication Schemesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of divergent communication schemes in new product development alliances

Pesch

Bouncken

Kraus

2016

Management Research Review

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“…However, in the last decade or so, academic and managerial thinking has moved from a predominant view of individual firms and transactions to one of interaction and networked firms pursuing long‐term relationships as illustrated by the large number of studies in alliances and relationship marketing (Pateli, 2009; Dilk et al , 2008; Teng and Das, 2008; Gulati, 2007, 1998; Möller et al , 2005; Ritter and Gemünden, 2003b). There are also studies, which propose the transition from interfirm dyadic relationships to strategic partnerships and networks (Butler, 2010; Rahman and Korn, 2010; Dodourova, 2009; Ploetner and Ehert, 2006; Ritter and Gemünden, 2003a; Ritter et al , 2002). This new perspective assumes that actors are embedded within networks of interconnected relationships that provide opportunities for learning and also constraint on their actions (Das and Kumar, 2010; Teng and Das, 2008; Brass et al , 2004; Ellis and Mayer, 2001).…”

Section: Inter‐firm Market Orientation (Imo)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Inter‐firm market orientation as antecedent of knowledge transfer, innovation and value creation in networks

Cambra‐Fierro

Florín

Pérez

et al. 2011

Management Decision

106

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PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to establish a framework for clarifying and extending the concept of inter‐firm market orientation (IMO) and to complement the relatively small body of literature related to this concept.Design/methodology/approachThe conceptual framework is informed by empirical research based on a longitudinal multi‐case study.FindingsThis research identifies a nexus linking IMO with value creation in inter‐firm partnerships. The findings also suggest that IMO has an impact on companies' performance in terms of knowledge transfer, innovation and market access.Research limitations/implicationsIMO contributes to value creation processes in the context of strategic networks.Originality/valueA discussion of these findings, together with implications for practice and proposals for further research, is provided.

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“…This was consistent with the thinking and findings of others (Alpkan, Bulut, Gunday, Ulusoy, & Kilic, ; Arroyo‐Barrigüete, Ernst, López‐Sánchez, & Orero‐Giménez ; Fuentes Fuentes, Ruiz Arroyo, Bojica, & Fernández Pérez, ; Fuller‐Love, ; Hsueh, Lin, & Li, ; Pechlaner & Bachinger, ; Santos, ; Tolstoy, ). Importantly, however, when the firm pairings involved were confined to firms based in the same country, similarity of assets was more likely to be associated with alliances than M&As (Bras, Costa, & Buhalis, ; Butler, ; Das & Kumar, ; Dodourova, ; Lee, Liang, & Liu, ; Lowensberg, ; McLeod, Vaughan, & Edwards, ; Pateli, ; Rahman & Korn, ; Tjemkes & Furrer, ; Tsuchiya, ; Zehrer & Raich, ). Finally, when the firms were each based in different countries, Ortiz‐de‐Urbina‐Criado et al (this issue) showed that complementary of assets were associated with the use of alliances over M&As.…”

Section: The Content Of the Special Featurementioning

confidence: 99%