Alliance Portfolio Management: A Model Based on Dynamic Capabilities

Abstract

Alliances established by firms are increasing since three decades and these firms have to manage an important alliance portfolio. Researches have demonstrated that alliances contribute to the improvement of the firm’s performance via savings in coordination costs, access to new resources and competencies, the development of new activities and new markets, or the reinforcement of the competitive position. The increasing contribution of the alliances to the turnover and the organization of the activities of the firm make the portfolio as a key strategic asset. Our research question relates to the definition of an integrating model which takes the multidimensional nature of alliance portfolio management into consideration. In an attempt to improve it, our objective is to suggest a modeling of the portfolio management based on recognized and complementary corpuses: the resource-based approach and the evolutionary model. Specifically, we develop an emerging approach based on the concept of dynamic capabilities (Teece et al., Strateg Manag J 18:509–533, 1997) using business intelligence, networking, alliance management, and absorptive capabilities. The creation of an “alliance unit” plays a crucial role in the development of the alliance portfolio management capabilities. This model aims to optimize the composition and the management of the alliance portfolio to improve the value creation linked to the alliance strategy and the firm performance so that it obtains a specific advantage.