Anne Deering, Anne Murphy
ISBN: 0-470-85159-7
Cloth
166 pages
April 2003

The unpredictability of the e-business world is making the business of business much too complex for the old, mono-cultural organizations to cope with on their own. In this respect, the internet has become a crucial catalyst in the shift of emphasis away from acquisitions and towards partnering as a core strategy for building business. Additionally, in e-business itself, the ability to form and manage partnerships has become just as essential as speed and agility. The reasons for this are as follows:

• Globalization and convergence of technology oblige organizations of all kinds to seek partners among 'alien' cultures.
• Acquisitive internet developments do not work because they violate the philosophy of the marketspace. The internet is a huge, complex and rapidly growing partnership in which no single organization exerts significant control.
• The speed at which e-partnerships can be formed outstrips the time it takes to complete an acquisition. - Relationships between companies need to be more provisional because of the volatility of the market place.
• The stock market has, for the foreseeable future, effectively priced e-business companies out of the market for firms that lack internet-type price earnings multiples.

This book looks at the nature of partnering and e-partnering and describes how organizations must adapt their leadership, strategy and communications processes if they are to sustain innovative partnerships. It makes the case for partnering as a 'good fit' with the new e-business environment because it makes the enterprise more adaptable and creative than a conventional integrated business. The author introduces the skills needed in partnering to create and implement an e-strategy. Based on original research conducted with a wide range of partnering organizations, and a methodology that has proved effective in real-life business situations, the authors reveal the secrets of success in business partnering.