IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wsi/ijitmx/v13y2016i01ns0219877016500036.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Why Research Partnerships Fail in the Biotechnology Sector — An Empirical Analysis of Strategic Partnerships

Author

Listed:
  • Uwe Kehrel

    (Institute of Business Administration, Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Muenster, 48149 Münster, Germany)

  • Kai Klischan

    (Institute of Business Administration, Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Muenster, 48149 Münster, Germany)

  • Nathalie Sick

    (Institute of Business Administration, Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Muenster, 48149 Münster, Germany)

Abstract

Over half of all research-oriented partnerships in the biotechnology industry fail due to problems in inter-organizational relationships. The analysis of factors that determine the success of strategic partnerships can help companies to reduce the high failure rates. Based on the resource-oriented and relationship-oriented approach, this study examines the influence of three structural factors and three dynamic factors on the success of strategic, research-oriented partnerships in the biotechnology industry. In the empirical study, data of 48 research collaborations by 28 companies were collected and analyzed. The results confirm the significant influence of the factors “complementary resources”, “operational compatibility”, “bilateral exchange of information” and “opportunistic behavior”. On the basis of these findings, companies can find approaches to influence the success of their own research collaborations. In particular, appropriate recommendations for action can be formulated in the areas of the structural design of partnerships and the dynamic exchange process.

Suggested Citation

  • Uwe Kehrel & Kai Klischan & Nathalie Sick, 2016. "Why Research Partnerships Fail in the Biotechnology Sector — An Empirical Analysis of Strategic Partnerships," International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management (IJITM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 13(01), pages 1-23, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:wsi:ijitmx:v:13:y:2016:i:01:n:s0219877016500036
    DOI: 10.1142/S0219877016500036
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.worldscientific.com/doi/abs/10.1142/S0219877016500036
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1142/S0219877016500036?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Joel A. C. Baum & Tony Calabrese & Brian S. Silverman, 2000. "Don't go it alone: alliance network composition and startups' performance in Canadian biotechnology," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(3), pages 267-294, March.
    2. Tarun Khanna, 1998. "The Scope of Alliances," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 9(3), pages 340-355, June.
    3. Ann-Marie Nienaber & Gerhard Schewe, 2014. "Enhancing Trust Or Reducing Perceived Risk, What Matters More When Launching A New Product?," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 18(01), pages 1-24.
    4. Maurizio Zollo & Jeffrey J. Reuer & Harbir Singh, 2002. "Interorganizational Routines and Performance in Strategic Alliances," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(6), pages 701-713, December.
    5. Nicole Vom Stein & Nathalie Sick, 2014. "Technological Distance In Academic Collaborations: Evidence From Battery Research," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 18(06), pages 1-22.
    6. John Hagedoorn & Geert Duysters, 2002. "External Sources of Innovative Capabilities: The Preferences for Strategic Alliances or Mergers and Acquisitions," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(2), pages 167-188, March.
    7. John Hagedoorn, 1993. "Understanding the rationale of strategic technology partnering: Interorganizational modes of cooperation and sectoral differences," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(5), pages 371-385, July.
    8. Frank T. Rothaermel & David L. Deeds, 2004. "Exploration and exploitation alliances in biotechnology: a system of new product development," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(3), pages 201-221, March.
    9. Anoop Madhok & Stephen B. Tallman, 1998. "Resources, Transactions and Rents: Managing Value Through Interfirm Collaborative Relationships," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 9(3), pages 326-339, June.
    10. Jakki Mohr & Robert Spekman, 1994. "Characteristics of partnership success: Partnership attributes, communication behavior, and conflict resolution techniques," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(2), pages 135-152, February.
    11. Yadong Luo, 2007. "Are joint venture partners more opportunistic in a more volatile environment?," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 39-60, January.
    12. Keith W. Glaister & Peter J. Buckley, 1996. "Strategic Motives For International Alliance Formation," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3), pages 301-332, May.
    13. Morgan, Steve & Grootendorst, Paul & Lexchin, Joel & Cunningham, Colleen & Greyson, Devon, 2011. "The cost of drug development: A systematic review," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(1), pages 4-17, April.
    14. Dirk Fornahl & Tom Broekel & Ron Boschma, 2011. "What drives patent performance of German biotech firms? The impact of R&D subsidies, knowledge networks and their location," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 90(2), pages 395-418, June.
    15. J Michael Geringer & Louis Hebert, 1991. "Measuring Performance of International Joint Ventures," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 22(2), pages 249-263, June.
    16. Nielsen, Bo Bernhard, 2007. "Determining international strategic alliance performance: A multidimensional approach," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 337-361, June.
    17. Seung Ho Park & Michael V. Russo, 1996. "When Competition Eclipses Cooperation: An Event History Analysis of Joint Venture Failure," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 42(6), pages 875-890, June.
    18. Prashant Kale & Harbir Singh, 2007. "Building firm capabilities through learning: the role of the alliance learning process in alliance capability and firm‐level alliance success," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(10), pages 981-1000, October.
    19. Burton, John, 1995. "Partnering with the Japanese: Threat or opportunity for European businesses?," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 13(3), pages 304-315, September.
    20. Jiang, Xu & Li, Yuan & Gao, Shanxing, 2008. "The stability of strategic alliances: Characteristics, factors and stages," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 173-189, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Müller, Dirk, 2010. "Alliance Coordination, Dysfunctions, and the Protection of Idiosyncratic Knowledge in Strategic Learning Alliances," EconStor Preprints 41039, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    2. Kolloge, Konstantin, 2009. "Die Messung des Kooperationserfolges in der empirischen Forschung: Ergebnisse einer Literaturstudie," Arbeitspapiere 76, University of Münster, Institute for Cooperatives.
    3. Haeussler, Carolin & Patzelt, Holger & Zahra, Shaker A., 2012. "Strategic alliances and product development in high technology new firms: The moderating effect of technological capabilities," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 217-233.
    4. Fabio Sorrentino & Francesco Garraffo, 2012. "Explaining performing R&D through alliances: Implications for the business model of Italian dedicated biotech firms," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 16(3), pages 449-475, August.
    5. Jorge Walter & Christoph Lechner & Franz W. Kellermanns, 2008. "Disentangling Alliance Management Processes: Decision Making, Politicality, and Alliance Performance," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(3), pages 530-560, May.
    6. Park, Gunno & Kim, Marco JinHwan & Kang, Jina, 2015. "Competitive embeddedness: The impact of competitive relations among a firm's current alliance partners on its new alliance formations," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 196-208.
    7. Golonka, Monika, 2015. "Proactive cooperation with strangers: Enhancing complexity of the ICT firms' alliance portfolio and their innovativeness," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 33(3), pages 168-178.
    8. Pak, Yong Suhk & Ra, Wonchan & Park, Young-Ryeol, 2009. "Understanding IJV performance in a learning and conflict mediated context," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(5), pages 470-480, October.
    9. Heimeriks, K. & Duysters, G.M., 2004. "A study into the alliance capability development process," Working Papers 04.21, Eindhoven Center for Innovation Studies.
    10. M. C. Guardo & K. R. Harrigan, 2016. "Shaping the path to inventive activity: the role of past experience in R&D alliances," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 41(2), pages 250-269, April.
    11. Jongkuk Lee & Glenn Hoetker & William Qualls, 2015. "Alliance Experience and Governance Flexibility," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 26(5), pages 1536-1551, October.
    12. Jacob, Jojo & Belderbos, René & Lokshin, Boris, 2023. "Entangled modes: Boundaries to effective international knowledge sourcing through technology alliances and technology-based acquisitions," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 122(C).
    13. Kavusan, K., 2015. "Essays on capability development through alliances," Other publications TiSEM 8eb736a5-b217-4718-ac13-d, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    14. Koen H. Heimeriks & Geert Duysters, 2007. "Alliance Capability as a Mediator Between Experience and Alliance Performance: An Empirical Investigation into the Alliance Capability Development Process," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(1), pages 25-49, January.
    15. Gagalyuk, Taras, 2012. "Goal achievement in supply chain networks: A study of the Ukrainian agri-food business," Studies on the Agricultural and Food Sector in Transition Economies, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), volume 64, number 64.
    16. Qin Yang, 2018. "Geographical Diversity of Alliance Portfolio and Firm Innovation: The Roles of Resource Characteristics and Governance Structures," International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management (IJITM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 15(06), pages 1-22, December.
    17. Van Wijk, Raymond & Nadolska, Anna, 2020. "Making more of alliance portfolios: The role of alliance portfolio coordination," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 388-399.
    18. Wilfried Zidorn & Marcus Wagner, 2012. "Too Much of a Good Thing: The Role of Alliance Portfolio Diversity for Innovation Output in the Biotechnology Industry," DRUID Working Papers 12-10, DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Industrial Economics and Strategy/Aalborg University, Department of Business Studies.
    19. Heimeriks, K. & Duysters, G.M. & Vanhaverbeke, W.P.M., 2004. "The evolution of alliance capabilities," Working Papers 04.20, Eindhoven Center for Innovation Studies.
    20. Zhang, Jing & Baden-Fuller, Charles & Mangematin, Vincent, 2007. "Technological knowledge base, R&D organization structure and alliance formation: Evidence from the biopharmaceutical industry," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 515-528, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wsi:ijitmx:v:13:y:2016:i:01:n:s0219877016500036. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Tai Tone Lim (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.worldscinet.com/ijitm/ijitm.shtml .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.