Dark Sides of Intra-Organizational Coopetition. Perspective of Coopetition Within Business Groups

Purpose: Coopetition is a relationship that arises both between independent companies and within complex organizations. It is seen as a success factor generating many benefits for the parties involved. However, at the same time, it is a risky relationship that does have its downsides. The purpose of this study it to identify the main dark sides that appear in coopetitive relationships between subsidiaries within business groups. Design/methodology/approach: This study follows the quantitative approach. A computer-assisted diagnostic questionnaire survey was used and data were collected from 121 parent companies of large business groups listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Findings: The findings prove that coopetition at the intra-organizational level does not generate many negative effects. Those that appear are similar to the negative effects of inter-organizational coopetition. The most important three dark sides of intra-organizational coopetition are: loss of trust, conflicts, and asymmetry in benefits distribution. Research limitations/implications: This study offers a more profound insight into intra-organizational coopetition and its dark side. However, it has some limitations which may indicate directions for further research. The limitations refer to the sample size and its origin as well as the adopted perspective of the parent company. Originality/value: The value of the paper is to draw attention to the dark sides of intra-organizational coopetition. The study provided contribution to the literature on both coopetition and business groups as so far only a few studies have comprehensively dealt with the dark sides of coopetition, especially at the intra-organizational level.