How Do Firm Capabilities and Network Experience Affect Alliance Portfolio?

Abstract

Prior research about alliance portfolio mostly sheds light on the impacts of characteristic of alliance portfolio on focal firm’s performance such as innovation outcome and financial performance Different from previous studies this study focuses on the determinants of alliance portfolio which are further split into two dimensions alliance portfolio size and alliance portfolio diversity The unit of analysis of this study is firm-level Specifically this study proposed that firm’s capabilities (technological capability and international diversity) and network experience (prior alliance experience and top management team size) affect focal firm’s alliance portfolio size and diversity Drawing on a sample of alliance portfolios of 203 US public firms this study found that network experience including prior alliance experience and top management team plays important roles in determining size of alliance portfolio Technological capability is another critical element of expanding alliance portfolio size However in order to create a diversified alliance portfolio firms should engage themselves actively in internationalization as suggested by empirical results Moreover this study confirms the importance of prior alliance experience in building alliance portfolio functional diversity Managers can also draw insights from this study to better develop the alliance portfolios of their firms in order to utilize the best advantages that the portfolio offers

Date of Award	2017 Jul 27
Original language	English
Supervisor	Chiung-Hui Tseng (Supervisor)