2008 Academy of Management Meeting
Anaheim, CA
Showcase Symposium - Alliance Portfolios: The Questions We Ask
Time: Tuesday, August 12, 2008 - 10:30 am - 11:50 pm
Location: Hilton Anaheim, California Pavilion B
Symposium website:
http://iew3.technion.ac.il/AOM2008/
Panelists:
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Ranjay Gulati, Harvard Business School
Werner H. Hoffmann, Vienna U. of Economics and Business Administration
Prashant Kale, Rice University
Dovev Lavie, Technion & University of Texas at Austin
Jeffery J. Reuer, University of North Carolina
Harbir Singh, The Wharton School
Symposium Objectives and Focus:
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The study of interfirm alliances and networks has drawn extensive
attention in strategic management, organization theory, technology and
innovation management, and related fields. In a first glance it seems that
most questions have already been answered. In recent years, however, firms
have become embedded in multiple simultaneous alliances, which raises new
questions concerning the management and performance implications of
alliance portfolios. An alliance portfolio refers to a firm's collection
of immediate alliance partners.
The questions we ask concern:
(a) Governance - how can a firm design an alliance program to coordinate
multiple alliances and manage related tradeoffs?
(b) Capabilities - how can a dedicated alliance function engage in
learning and dissemination of partnering know-how as well as leverage its
experience for repeatable success?
(c) Configurations - how do partner composition and tie heterogeneity
promote distinctive strategies? and
(d) Performance - how can a firm leverage its alliance portfolio to
enhance its corporate performance?
In addressing these questions scholars may emphasize the nature of
relationships or instead study patterns of ties in the firm's ego-network.
Perhaps, scholars should question these perspectives, juxtapose them, or
adopt new lenses. This symposium will gather a distinguished panel that
will raise the above questions and discuss recent developments in this
emerging field of research. The panel will (a) provide a coherent yet
multidisciplinary perspective on the phenomenon of alliance portfolios,
(b) report recent findings and offer new insights that advance this
research agenda, and (c) discuss the conceptual and empirical challenges
and set directions for future research.
Symposium Format:
-----------------
This symposium is designed to stimulate an interactive discussion and to
help the audience identify emerging research opportunities and spark
dialogue that can advance research on alliance portfolios.
The first part of the symposium will feature four presentations on the
following topics:
(a) Governance - how can a firm design an alliance program to coordinate
multiple simultaneous alliances and manage tradeoffs? (Jeff Reuer)
(b) Capabilities - how can a dedicated alliance function engage in
learning, dissemination, and utilization of partnering know-how? (Prashant
Kale)
(c) Configurations - how do partner composition and tie heterogeneity
promote distinctive strategies? (Werner Hoffmann)
(d) Performance - how can a firm leverage its alliance portfolio to
enhance its corporate performance? (Dovev Lavie)
The second part of the symposium will feature two discussants who will
integrate the previously presented themes from two perspectives:
(1) Relational perspective - examining the nature of relationships that
emerge with and across partners in the alliance portfolio. (Harbir Singh)
(2) Structural perspective - analyzing consistent patterns and properties
of ties in the alliance portfolio. (Ranjay Gulati)
The final part of the symposium will involve an interactive discussion on
the key issues and challenges in the study of alliance portfolios
following questions from the audience. In discussing these issues, the
panelists will offer their comments and the floor will also be open for
audience participation. We encourage you to submit your questions in
advance so that the panelists will be able to give sufficient attention to
them in their presentations and following discussion. The symposium will
conclude by identifying "the key questions we should ask", to guide future
research on alliance portfolios.
The Questions We Ask: Post Your Questions to the Panelists
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If you would like to post a question to the panelists, please visit the
symposium website at
http://iew3.technion.ac.il/AOM2008/
We look forward to seeing you in Anaheim
__
Dr. Dovev Lavie
Landau Fellow - supported by the Taub Foundation
Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management
The Technion - Israel Institute of Technology
Haifa 32000
Israel
Email:
dlavie@ie.technion.ac.il
Tel: 972-4-8294435
Fax: 972-4-8295688
Sloan Industry Studies Fellow
Assistant Professor of Management
The University of Texas at Austin
McCombs School of Business
Management Department
1 University Station B6300
Austin, Texas 78712-0210
Email:
dovev.lavie@mccombs.utexas.edu