Coopetition relations

: cases and applications : conditions and characteristics for companies to successfully coopete

Abstract

Due to the difficult and extremely competitive environment our economy is facing, solutions for companies to be able to bread are each time more scarce, and a lot of them seems to be unable to succeed on their own. Strategic alliances are becoming more attractive and representing the best cost-benefit strategy. Nevertheless, the right partner is not easy to find and the best solution seems to be the craziest one, which is to partner with your own competitor. This study provides and extent analysis to the essence of the collaboration relations and more specifically to the coopetition. Due to the complexity of the topic the format of case study was chosen, in order to understand the applicability and the behavior of partners in this type of relations. The case study is divided in three parts each one with a different perspective of the alliance with the competitors. From the case study, some adding to the literature review is made and some frameworks are proposed. The objective of the study is to analyse if it is possible to collaborate and compete simultaneously, with your own competitors and if yes, under which conditions is that sustainable and beneficial. It is concluded that a set of characteristics and triggers are required for the relation to succeed and believed that if those conditions are there and the factors on the pyramid triggers of collaboration, any group of companies in any market in Portugal can increase their chances of success as a coopetitive alliance.

Date of Award	28 Apr 2015
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Susana Frazão Ferreira Fernandes Pinheiro (Supervisor)