Effectiveness of horizontal strategic alliances in technologically uncertain environments: are trust and commitment enough?

Turbulent competition and sweeping regulatory changes in high-technology industries fuel many firms' desire to develop horizontal strategic alliances (HSAs) for offensive and defensive reasons. To a greater extent than in vertical alliances, collaborating firms in horizontal alliances are direct or indirect competitors. The coordination difficulties and risks inherent in alliances are magnified in horizontal alliances, posing a greater challenge for partners. Conclusions from our survey of 106 firms highlight important relationships among trust, commitment, termination penalties, technological uncertainty and alliance effectiveness. Trust and commitment are the building blocks of alliance effectiveness, while trust and termination penalties may be effective tools to motivate commitment and enhance alliance effectiveness. (C) 2002 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.