"Management and Implementation of Strategic Alliances in the Canadian High
Tech Industry," Dr. Micheal Kelly, Foreign Affairs Department of Canada, ,
May 21, 1996

Dr. Kelly discussed his recent study to understand the attitudes of
Canadian high technology executives toward strategic alliances and the role
they play in their competitive strategies. The key findings of the study
include:

Executives saw strategic alliances as being important to their current
competitive strategies. They expected that alliances would be more
important in the future.

The key ingredients of a successful alliance were: the right partner, clear
and mutually reinforcing objectives, a clear definition of roles and
responsibilities, and good personal relationships between key individuals
in the venture.

The major factors important in implementation and performance were: senior
management commitment, good communication between partners, clear
definition of responsibilities and deliverables, strong and stable alliance
champions.

The most immediate benefits were: increased access to new markets,
increased R&D investment and growth in market share. Most respondents met
these goals in the first year.

The major operational problems in the early stages were: relationship
building, in particular, communications, role confusion, and cultural
conflicts between the partners and meeting initial expectations.

After the third year of operation, the major alliance challenges were
related to renewing or refocusing the strategic direction of the venture.

Executives in the study rated their alliance management abilities as
strongest in the area of strategic planning and weakest in the area of
alliance implementation. They also rated themselves favorably in partner
selection, negotiating partnerships, and learning from partners.

In terms of the future importance of alliances, Canadian technology
executives put the strongest emphasis on marketing alliances, technology
licensing alliances, distribution alliances, and customer alliances.