Product details

This paper uses a case study approach to examine how a small business used large firm collaboration to enter a highly competitive global market. The small company had the know-how to develop specialist new products but lacked the credibility, the market capability, the distribution network and the finance to bring the product to the global market. The large company dominated the market in this particular specialist area but lacked the flexibility and innovation required to keep apace with customer requirements. The large company couldn''t afford to let the small company enter the market with a superior product. The small company hadn''t the resources to realise the full potential of its new product in a market that was completely alien to it. The solution was a collaborative arrangement - an arrangement that had mutual benefits for each of the partners. It allowed the large company to maintain its position as market leader and it allowed the small company to limit its risk and realise its potential. It is a case which illustrates the types of trading relationships which are becoming more and more popular with the growth of the global economy. It also illustrates how licensing and strategic alliances can be used to exploit the development of new technology and subsequently into global markets. It reveals that such collaborative arrangements are not bound by time and that the type of arrangement can change according to the degree of risk each party is prepared to take and the degree of control each party desires.