Title: Managing virtual R&D organisations: lessons from the pharmaceutical industry

Authors: Vittorio Chiesa, Raffaella Manzini

Addresses: CNR-ITIA and Politecnico di Milano, V. le Lombardia, 20/A, Milano, Italy. Libero Istituto Universitario C. Cattaneo, C.so Matteotti n. 22, 21053 Castellanza, Italy

Abstract: In this paper, the virtual organisation of R&D in Pharmaceuticals is studied. A virtual organisation in Research and Development is designed to access external knowledge and resources, necessary for generating and developing successful innovations. A survey has been conducted on nine pharmaceutical companies (from the USA, Europe and Japan), aimed to investigate the characteristics of Research and Development collaborations. It is argued that dramatically different criteria are needed for creating and managing the virtual organisation of Research activities and of Development activities. This is recognised as a key issue to ensure that a scientific and technological collaboration is successful.

Keywords: virtual organisation; R&D; virtual R&D; strategic alliances; research networks.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.1997.001677

International Journal of Technology Management, 1997 Vol.13 No.5/6, pp.471-485

Published online: 16 Aug 2003 *

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