Collaborative R%D in Russian companies: empirical evidence on successful partnerships

Companies from emerging economies are going global at a growing speed, making the competition over customers increasingly challenging for all participants. In the modern competitive landscape, a firm's capability to innovate is highly stressed. In this context, interorganisational cooperation has become one of the most important keystones in contemporary business management. Collaborative activities provide broader premises for R%D and innovation activity to create sustained competitive advantage and financial success for business firms. Collaborative R%D, especially in the context of Russian companies, has received only minor academic attention. We have used a survey of 206 Russian companies to analyse the R%D cooperation setup implemented in companies that are gaining success in markets, as well the common breadth and depth of these partnerships. The results reveal that the demand for differing R%D partners in different markets is obvious, as there is a strong dispersion in the importance of different R%D partners with respect to successful operation in different markets. Furthermore, Russian companies succeeding in developed markets form mid- to long-term partnerships for R%D and also reinforce the partnerships with contracts or written agreements on a highly regular basis.