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PurposeThe purpose of this study is to increase understanding about the causes of conflict in intercompetitor cooperation.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical part is based on two case studies within two different industries in Finland: the transportation industry and the natural products industry. Interviews with managing directors were carried out in 2003‐2006.FindingsThe findings of the study show that causes of conflict in intercompetitor cooperation can be related organisationally, relationally or externally. Organisational causes of conflict in intercompetitor cooperation can be either operational or normative, while relational causes can be strategic or normative. On an external level there are several actors that may influence conflicts in intercompetitor cooperation: suppliers, salesmen, customers and political actors.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitations of the study derive from the scarce possibilities for generalisations and the risk of a fairly case‐specific study. Further research should focus on external network actors and their impact on conflict in business‐to‐business relationships. Another avenue for further study would be to investigate the extent to which the findings from this study can be related to vertical business relationships with minimum levels of competition.Practical implicationsCooperating competitors usually have a history, which is mainly based on competition. This history appears to be hard to forget since there is a tendency for competitors to act individualistically by focusing on what is best for their own company instead of the industry as a whole.Originality/valueThe study focuses on two research areas, neither of which has been adequately researched in the existing literature about interorganisational relationships: conflict and intercompetitor cooperation.

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to increase understanding about vertical coopetition from the perspective of interrelated conflict episodes on multiple levels.


Design/methodology/approach
The empirical part is based on a qualitative single case study of a coopetitive buyer-supplier relationship in the manufacturing sector.


Findings
Conflicts in vertical coopetition evolve from being merely functional and task-related to becoming dysfunctional and relationship-related, as the level of competition increases. The nature of conflict episodes influences the development of vertical coopetition, and therefore, the interrelatedness of conflict episodes is important to acknowledge.


Practical implications
Although a conflict is considered functional within a company, it may still be dysfunctional as far as the coopetitive relationship with the buyer or seller is concerned. Competition may trigger conflicts related to protecting own technology and knowledge, which may lead to termination of the cooperation, therefore coopetition should be managed in a way that balance sharing and protecting important knowledge to get advantages of coopetition.


Originality/value
The findings enhance prior research on vertical coopetition by offering new perspectives on causes of conflicts, their management, outcomes and types. The value of taking a multilevel approach lies in the ability to show how conflicts occur and influence other conflicts through the interrelatedness of conflict elements on different levels.

PurposeAddressing fundamental sustainability challenges has now become strategic for multi-national corporations. However, such challenges by their very nature are complex and require resources that are frequently beyond those that are traditionally accepted as relevant and crucial to a firm's core business operations. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how firms identify and integrate diverse groups of actors using social intelligence to build an ecology of resources to tackle these complex challenges.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical part is based on qualitative single case study research of a packaging company and its waste management program.FindingsOrganizing for sustainability requires business activities to be conceptualized as a continuous process of project building, involving actors in diverse settings and responsibilities divided thematically and spatially forming nets within a network to solve problems, collectively. There is a fundamental analytical problem of integrating a diversity of value spheres, and society has a set of rational methods for planning and action where decisions are made to privilege one aspect to the exclusion of others. Artificial separation of activities that are interdependent and failure to allow these activities to evolve through interactions in time and space could threaten sustainability.Research limitations/implicationsThis is a single case study within a certain context, therefore ways for orchestrating resource ecologies need further investigation.Practical implicationsFor managers, it is very important to recognize and appreciate the interconnectedness of resource ecologies but also that interactions resulting in joint actions can often have different rewards and benefits for the diverse range of actors implicated in such networks. This kind of social intelligence offers managers options to experiment with transitional pathways that match the objectives of diverse network actors and provide unique resource combinations for building competitive advantage. There is only so much that is under the control of managers or even firms, which means both must embrace uncertainty and the phenomenon of emergence.Social implicationsFrom a societal perspective, the findings of the study show how the open and transparent activities for the sustainability of one firm spread through different layers of the society through connecting, sharing and developing resources. Therefore, it is important for societies to enable and support the open sharing of resources for sustainability. Investments in large programs for transitions to sustainability tend to spread from a focal company into various projects for sustainability involving several layers of actors within society. This ensures that awareness, behaviors and attitudes related with sustainability become rooted in society and give rise to valuable innovations.Originality/valueThis study illustrates how resources are created and shaped through nets during transitions toward sustainability using social intelligence.

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to develop intellectual capital theory to include competitive aspects that influence value creation of the network.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical part of the paper is based on a qualitative case study of a network of collaborating competitors within the natural products industry in Finland. A total of 29 interviews are conducted involving 11 informants. The empirical material is examined through Verna Allee's value network analysis.FindingsBusiness relationships include both collaborative and competitive dimensions. By adding a competitive dimension to Allee's value network, a more exhaustive picture of the network emerges. Hence, the relationships not only consist of collaborative tangible and intangible flows between the actors of the network, but also of competitive flows that per definition may only be intangible.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper is based on a single case study. The paper includes collaborating competitors, but opens up interesting avenues for further research as competitive elements surely are present also in other types of business relationships.Practical implicationsKnowledge received from partners is not always trustworthy. Still, managers gain more from getting access to knowledge they do not know if it can be trusted, than to be excluded from the collaboration.Originality/valueThis paper brings forward the notion of competitive elements in collaborative relationships. IC research has tended to mostly focus on the positive aspects of the knowledge economy, but has much to gain by realising that there are also negative aspects that affect the creation and distribution of value in a network.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to increase the understanding of the process of ending inter‐organizational cooperation by identifying the underlying reasons and stages of the ending.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical context of this study is a joint company amongst a group of competitors. The findings of this paper are based on a longitudinal case study within the construction industry in the region of Ostrobothnia in Finland. Interviews with managing directors were carried out in 1998, 2000 and 2004.FindingsThe reasons for ending a co‐operational relationship can be found on three levels: external, relational, and organizational. When taking into consideration the underlying reasons as well as time, the process consists of the following stages: pre‐start, harmony, consideration, disengagement, communication and post‐ending.Research limitations/implicationsThere are rare opportunities for generalizations, resulting in a risk of a fairly case specific study. Further research on this subject should focus on whether and under which circumstances do similar reasons and stages of the process exist.Practical implicationsThe process of ending inter‐organizational cooperation may start at the very beginning of the cooperation. Although a stage of harmony exists the ending process may already have begun. There is a need to invest more resources in order to preserve cooperation.Originality/valueThe empirical context of cooperation between competitors is both unique and important within the research of business relationship ending. A longitudinal perspective was used and the stages of the ending process are based on identified reasons for the ending. Thereby a holistic view of the ending of business relationships is presented.

Competition and cooperation are two fundamental market processes and are often viewed as independent opposites. However, there is evidence that they are interdependent, and this interdependence affects market dynamics. To understand market dynamics, we need to explicitly consider the interaction between competition and cooperation. A philosophy that might be helpful is Taoism according to which opposite elements of Yin and Yang continuously interact. The purpose of this article is to investigate how Yin–Yang principles in terms of the interaction between competition and cooperation might improve our understanding of market dynamics. The theoretical reference frame is based on a business network perspective on markets and literature on the interaction between cooperation and competition. An exploratory case study of relations between four Finnish small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is also used. Based on the Yin–Yang principles, the literature, and the case study, propositions about the nature of interaction between competition and cooperation are developed. These propositions are then used as a basis to outline further research opportunities on market dynamics.

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore interactional and procedural practices in managing tensions of coopetition (simultaneous collaboration and competition between firms).


Design/methodology/approach
Through an in-depth literature review of prior research within coopetition and strategy-as-practice fields, and by using two illustrative empirical examples, the authors develop a framework for preventing and managing coopetitive tensions through combinations of procedural and interactional practices.


Findings
The authors identify tensions related to strategizing, task and resource allocation, as well as knowledge sharing. Furthermore, they demonstrate potential ways of how these tensions can be prevented, resolved and managed.


Research limitations/implications
The findings show that the analysis of tensions in coopetition would benefit from a holistic, multilevel approach that recognizes practices that are interactional (i.e. face-to-face interactions) as well as procedural (i.e. organizational routines). Coopetitive tensions and their resolution are related to the use or neglect of both types of practices. Furthermore, interactional and procedural practices are mutually interdependent and can complement each other in tension management in various ways.


Practical implications
The findings of this study shed light on the roles and activities of actual practitioners involved in coopetition, and shows how their work and practices in-use contribute to coopetition, related tensions and their resolution.


Originality/value
By adopting the strategy-as-practice approach, this study generates valuable insights into the practices and tensions in coopetition, as well as illuminates the roles of the practitioners involved in managing coopetition relationships.