Giovanni Battista Dagnino

Untangling the Rise of Coopetition: The Intrusion of Competition in a Cooperative Game Structure

Strategy research on inter-firm cooperation has been commonly affected by a collaborative bias, implicitly assuming that firms interact among each other on the basis of fully converging interests and goals. Yet, plenty of empirical evidence shows that cooperation is affected by the intrusion of competitive issues and that consequently results in a game structure that actually moves away from the ideal circumstance of complete convergent interests. The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it proposes the notion of cooperation as a truly coopetitive game, where firms interact among each other on the basis of a partially convergent interest structure. Second, it develops a series of propositions linking the rise of coopetition to a set of, respectively, environment-related and firm-related factors in order to explain the drivers of the intrusion of competitive issues within a cooperative game structure. The study eventually provides relevant implications for strategy research that we discuss in the final section.

Coopetition strategy: A new kind of interfirm dynamics for value creation

The purpose of this paper is threefold. First, by proposing a first definition of coopetiton, it aims to move away from the mere recognition of the oversimplified conventional conception to a deeper understanding of the nature of coopetition. By suggesting that coopetition is a matter of incomplete interest (and goal) congruence concerning firms interdependence, the authors stress that coopetition does not simply emerge from coupling competition and cooperation issues, but rather it implies that cooperation and competition merge together to form a new kind of strategic interdependence between firms, giving rise to a coopetitive system of value creation. Second, the researchers advance a typology of coopetition based on the differing explanatory variables of this incomplete interest (and goal) congruence. Third, with the support of a number of coopetition microcases, especially referring to firms operating in the automobile industry, the contribution and the potential of coopetition strategy to the advancement of both strategic management, organization theory and managerial practice was clarified.

The Development of the Resource Based Firm Between Value Appropriation and Value Creation

Various authors have brought forth the idea that the increase in context turbulence and the relentless change in todays economic and competitive environments have rendered it essential for an effective firm strategy to combine both value appropriation and value creation (Porter, 1996; Moran & Ghoshal, 1999; Venkataraman & Sarasvathy, 2001; Hitt, Ireland, Camp, & Sexton, 2001b). Nonetheless, the methodological bases and the assumptions that characterize contributions concerning value appropriation and value creation are notably different and in many respects opposite to one another. These profound methodological differences hinder the possibility of a combined consideration of value appropriation and value creation issues within a coherent interpretative framework. By reinterpreting more conventional strategy studies in the light of the Austrian process view, this article builds a process framework which is able to consider and render mutually compatible both value appropriation and value creation within the unitary process of firm development. In addition, the use of the Austrian approach as an interpretative lens enables an evolution and extension of the resource-based theory that consents it, not only to grasp the mechanisms behind value appropriation, but also to suggest new ways of viewing post-industrial firm behavior that help to interpret its dynamic and proactive role in the value creation process.

Interorganizational network and innovation: a bibliometric study and proposed research agenda

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the latent structure of the literature on interorganizational network and innovation as well as to map the main themes and empirical advances in this research stream. Design/methodology/approach – Using bibliometric coupling, the authors analyze the citation patterns in 67 management studies regarding innovation networks, published in ISI-journals from January 1996 to October 2012. Findings – The authors identify the conceptual orientations that studies share. Bibliometric analysis allows us to draw an overview of how this field of research has developed, recognizing in essence six main clustered research themes: networks as a framework that sustains firm innovativeness in specific contexts; network dimensions and knowledge processes; networks as a means to access and share resources/knowledge; the interplay between firm and network characteristics and its effects on innovative processes; empirical research on networks in highly dynamic industries; and the influence of...

Asymmetric R&D Alliances and Coopetitive Games

In this paper we show how the study of asymmetric R&D alliances, that are those between young and small firms and large and MNEs firms for knowledge exploration and/or exploitation, requires the adoption of a coopetitive framework which consider both collaboration and competition. We draw upon the literature on asymmetric R&D collaboration and coopetition to propose a mathematical model for the coopetitive games which is particularly suitable for exploring asymmetric R&D alliances.

Unpacking the champion of acquisitions: the key figure in the execution of the post-acquisition integration process

This chapter focuses on the human side of the integration phase between the acquiring and the acquired firms. We contribute to the MA (2) a leaders personality able to guide change in the acquiring firms desired direction; (3) networking capabilities to facilitate or reduce the two firms’ boundaries permeability; (4) communication skills and relational capabilities necessary to facilitate the interface activity between individuals who are critical to the integration phase; and (5) the knowledge of (and the access to) the power centers necessary to obtain the indispensable legitimacy of his/her roles and actions.

Evolutionary Dynamics of Inter-firm Networks: A Complex Systems Perspective

This chapter aims to identify the main determinants that define the architectural properties of network emergence and significantly influence the dynamics underlying network evolution in time. The identification and analysis of these determinants, as well as the dynamic processes tied to them, allows to appreciate the competitive bases and consequences of network morphology. To this purpose, using a complex systems perspective as an integrative conceptual approach, we represent networks as complex dynamic systems of knowledge and capabilities. We perform a comparative in-depth analysis of the processes underlying the emergence and evolution of STMicroelectronics global network and of Toyotas supplier network in the US so as to allow an elucidatory empirical assessment of the theoretical representation elaborated in the article.

Structural Dynamics and Intentional Governance in Strategic Interorganizational Network Evolution: A Multilevel Approach

This article aims to shed light on the drivers underlying the role and scope of intentional governance of the structural dynamics of whole interorganizational networks. Prior research has distinguished networks that are emergent from networks that are orchestrated. While empirical studies have shown situations in which the role and scope of intentional governance of whole interorganizational networks has changed in time, and there is a growing interest regarding the endogenous drivers of network dynamics, the dimensions that influence intentional governance of network structure dynamics and the way this is carried out remain still to be elucidated. In order to pinpoint these drivers, we leverage the models of network structure dynamics elaborated within studies conducted at the intersection between network research and complexity science to propose a multilevel interpretive framework that clarifies the role and scope of intentional agency at different structural levels of interorganizational networks. Our framework advances a twofold conceptual contribution: on one hand, we tackle the change in the role and scope of intentional governance of network structures in both the early stages and the later stages of network evolution. On the other, we interpret the network of formal ties as resembling the accelerating network model, with the network of informal ties being akin to the scale-free (or truncated scale-free) network model of complex networks theory.

Knowledge creation and application in high-technology firms: the role of communities in the Italian experience

This paper aims to contribute to the advancement of firm knowledge theory and practice by emphasising and assessing the substantial role of communities of practice in generating new knowledge and promoting its application in high-technology firms. Drawing on Brown and Duguid’s study, we argue that high-tech firms are composed of a myriad of overlapping communities (i.e. internal and/or external to the firm; virtual or distributed, comprising individuals located in partners, suppliers, distributors, universities and colleagues) each of which presents a dominant mode of learning and collective behaviour, and each of which, both individually and collectively, favours the processes of knowledge creation and application. On the ground of an in-depth biannual longitudinal study of the Italian subsidiary of a large high-tech multinational firm operating in the Information and Communication Industry, we eventually show how the observation and reconstruction of significant evidence of community interactions convey various compelling managerial consequences.

In search of coopetition consensus: shaping the collective identity of a relevant strategic management community

While research on coopetition has lately experienced a flourishing chapter, it has developed in rather disjointed and bewildering fashion. This paper aims to explore the various definitions of coopetition and how such variety of definitions might hamper the knowledge accumulation about the concept. We organise the paper in two key steps. First, by means of a survey analysis involving participants to a relevant international strategy conference, we explore the status of implicit consensus on coopetition. Second, drawing on a systematic review of extant coopetition literature, we investigate the explicit consensus of coopetition as it emerges from previous studies. Finally, we juxtapose the two consensus building segments and clarify how from a remote corner of the strategy domain, coopetition has recently turned into a relevant area of strategic management for theorising multifaceted strategic relationships that is developing a sense of collective identity.