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Trust and the Achievement of Strategic Alliance Goals: The Mediating Role of Resource Complementarity within a Resource-Based View

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  • Talaja Anita

    (University of Split, Faculty of economics, business and tourism, Croatia)

Abstract

Background Because of path dependence, companies often cannot generate new resources and capabilities internally. In that case, the best way to acquire them is through external mechanisms, such as alliances. To make an alliance successful, trust between alliance partners is crucial, but on its own, it cannot achieve alliance goals. However, if inter-organizational trust is low, companies will be less willing to share their resources with alliance partners. Objectives This paper aims to analyze the role of trust in achieving alliance goals and examine the mediating influence of sharing complementary resources, capabilities, and knowledge. Methods/Approach The data were collected from large Croatian companies with experience in strategic alliances. Hypotheses were tested using SPSS with the PROCESS macro. The robustness of the results was checked using SEM-PLS. Results The results show that trust has a statistically significant impact on achieving strategic alliance goals, indirectly through its effect on sharing complementary resources. Conclusions Resource complementarity fully mediates the impact of trust on alliance goal achievement. Although trust alone cannot lead to higher goal achievement, companies with greater trust in their strategic alliance partners will share more complementary resources within the alliance and achieve more goals. The findings contribute to strategic management literature and provide practical implications for companies engaging in strategic alliances by highlighting the role of mutual trust and the importance of resource complementarity.

Suggested Citation

  • Talaja Anita, 2025. "Trust and the Achievement of Strategic Alliance Goals: The Mediating Role of Resource Complementarity within a Resource-Based View," Business Systems Research, Sciendo, vol. 16(2), pages 274-295.
    • Handle: RePEc:bit:bsrysr:v:16:y:2025:i:2:p:274-295:n:1013
    DOI: 10.2478/bsrj-2025-0028
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    JEL classification:

    • L1 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance
    • L2 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior
    • M1 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration
    • O3 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights

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