Global Economy - Global Business Corporation – Global Adjustment
| Project status | definitely finished |
| Project time | 05.08.2002- 05.08.2005 |
| Funding source | VolkswagenStiftung |
| Keywords | Business Networks; Governance; Flexibility |
In the course of the internationalisation (globalisation) of economic activities, an organisational change is taking place to cope with the emerging requirements on flexibility, speed and economic size. A trend towards inter-organizational collaborations, embodied in various forms, can be proved empirically. How do the requirements on international collaborations look like? The optimal organisational embodiment shall be fathomed. An important criterion for according arrangements is the enabling of flexibility. To achieve international competitiveness, design and alignment flexibility are both of relevance. Virtual enterprises and virtual collaborations can be seen as extreme forms in this area. But to be successful on the long run, mechanisms for the stabilisation of inland relationships are essential. Therefore, a precondition for successful cooperation is to simultaneously provide flexibility and stabilisation. This trade-off is a major cause for failing cooperative partnerships. It has to be clarified if virtual organisations and collaborations are suited to cope with these parallel requirements. The analysis is conducted using the instruments of institutional economics and focuses on behavioural uncertainty and inconsistent incentive structures. To be able to conduct a more profound investigation, the instruments from institutional economics are supplemented by approaches form the fields of sociology and cultural studies. In accordance with the definition of the project, aspects of the fields of conflict research and (organisational) culture research will be in the centre of attention. Moreover, findings of ethics research will be incorporated in order to answer the question concerning the involvement of stabilising institutions in virtual organisations that are able to reduce uncertainties.
The rapid proceeding globalization of markets leads to an increasing number of cross-border business corporations. Different types of collaboration can be found in practice. These types differ in arrangements, level of agreements as well as value chain levels. However, collaborations do not always lead to better efficiency. Every collaboration inhibits the competition on the market, because of agreements. This tradeoff is one of the main tasks in the European competition policy. In this project the efficiency of collaboration is contrasted with the inhibition of competition. This analysis is used as an economic basis to evaluate the European competition policy. The objective of this project is the development of suggestions for an economic established legislation. This legislation ensures legal certainty in the scope of collaboration agreements for all stakeholders. In other words, this project intends an external stabilization of global business collaborations in economy.