Coopetition in healthcare: Heresy or reality? An exploration of felt outcomes at an intra-organizational level.

Abstract

This paper deals with coopetition in the healthcare sector, where in developed countries providers are experiencing a growing paradox between cooperation, as encouraged by authorities, and competition, in terms of resources or market share. Via comprehensive research methodology, we carry out a case study on a French Cancer Control Unit that simultaneously competes and cooperates with other local cancer treatment providers. We focus on different professional groups and their perceptions of coopetitive outcomes. Firstly, we show that different generic coopetitive situations exist and can be distinguished according to their degree of spontaneity, complementarity and value creation. Depending on these situations, felt outcomes differ from one professional group to another, highlighting that coopetition is a very complex reality and experienced differently by different individuals. Secondly, harmony created by coopetition is generally under-estimated, whereas it could be used as a catalyst to help managers implement coopetition.