Title: Organising cooperative institutional forms in knowledge transfer across borders – a transaction cost approach to comparative firm performance

Authors: Saba Khalid

Addresses: Department of Marketing, University of Vaasa, PL-700, FIN-65100 Vaasa, Finland

Abstract: Organising cooperative institutional forms such as alliances, mergers, joint ventures and acquisitions on the basis of their comparative performance is critical for firms dealing in make or buy decisions. The decision may appear more significant if managers decide by comparing performance aspects of production activities of alternative cooperative forms. This study presents a less rigid view of the framework of transaction cost approach to develop its implications for organising cooperative governance forms. This framework adapts |capability| as one of the transactional dimensions where transaction costs could be minimised within the exchange conditions of complementarity between the partners. This transactional dimension is conceptualised to minimise the risks of moral hazards, as the framework further translates the transactional dimension into complementary capabilities and complementary investments. Thus, the relationship between capability, complementary capability and complementary investments is conceptualised as a key performance measure of the cooperative relationship development process.

Keywords: cooperative governance; corporate governance; cross border; capability; comparative firm performance; complementary capability; complementary investments; cooperative institutional forms; knowledge transfer transaction costing; alliances; mergers; joint ventures; acquisitions; make or buy; performance measures; inter-firm cooperation; collaboration; inter-firm relationships.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2006.009415

International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2006 Vol.2 No.1/2, pp.166 - 182

Published online: 30 Mar 2006 *

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