The dynamic nature of innovation partnering: a longitudinal study of collaborative interorganizational relationships

Abstract

This paper provides insights into the initiation and early development of collaborative interorganizational relationships (IORs) for innovation and new business creation. Data were gathered from field observations of three ongoing collaborative IORs. A conceptual framework previously developed by Ring and Van de Ven served as a means of restructuring and analyzing the data. The results reveal an emergent process that is dependent on the comparative achievements in negotiation, commitment, and execution. Three organizational practices were identified: volatile agreements, continuous reevaluation and reorganization through real practice, and a process wherein “co‐participants” were challenged to work on their relationships. The limited prospects of specifying agreements ex ante, combined with continuous variation in conditions, entail active management and continuous re‐design of the relationship. This suggests that managers play the role of the architects of relational linkages.

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