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The devil you know? A review of the literature on the impact of prior ties on strategic alliances

Ana Valdés-Llaneza (Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain)
Esteban García-Canal (Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain)

Management Research

ISSN: 1536-5433

Article publication date: 16 November 2015

344

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a comprehensive view of the role of previous cooperative relationships between partners at the different stages of development of strategic alliances: formation, design and post-formation, as well as their effect on alliance performance.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is a comprehensive review of the literature.

Findings

This paper shows that the relationship between prior ties and alliance outcomes is more complex than what it seems at first sight. The impact that prior ties have on alliance performance and organizational adaptation is not always positive.

Research limitations/implications

The main implication of this paper for researchers and managers is to show the need to consider the risks of repeated relationships between partners. This research could be developed by conducting a meta-analysis.

Originality/value

This paper provides a comprehensive view of the impact of prior ties between the partners in strategic alliance outcomes. This paper sheds light on some inconclusive results of previous research on this topic.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support provided by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (Project ECO2013-46235-R).

Citation

Valdés-Llaneza, A. and García-Canal, E. (2015), "The devil you know? A review of the literature on the impact of prior ties on strategic alliances", Management Research, Vol. 13 No. 3, pp. 334-358. https://doi.org/10.1108/MRJIAM-09-2015-0608

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2015, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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