EMERGING WITH ALLIES: THE ROLE OF TOP MANAGEMENT STRATEGIC CONGRUENCE IN THE CREATION OF INTER-FIRM RELATIONSHIPS
As new and enabling technologies allow for the opening of market and resource opportunities in many industries, the importance of building and developing inter-firm alliances has become a business necessity. Entrepreneurial firms that are able to define their internal core competencies and strategies as well as work side-by-side with complementary partners may be able to exploit many of the opportunities existing in the marketplace. Moreover, those firms able to continuously improve their businesses and competencies as well as their alliance structure will also be at an advantage in meeting the next new opportunity. The purpose of this paper is to examine the value realized from strategic alliances in terms of product/service innovations, future strategic planning, and technology infrastructure advantages. By utilizing strategic alliances, entrepreneurial growth in terms of external capabilities as well as operational effectiveness may be realized.