Resources

Complementary Resources 



Think about your firm and other players in the sector. It is possible to gain strategic advantage through technological change – but very often the problem arises of lack of key resources to follow through on a chosen strategy. In particular knowledge resources are critical and many firms are seeking to find partnerships, joint ventures and other ways of working closely together with other firms, which can offer complementary resources.



If your firm wanted to move in a particular new direction, what resources could it bring to the party – and where is it weak and needing the support of others? Assuming it needed to access other complementary resources, who should it be looking to partner with? And what do you think would be the likely advantages – and disadvantages – of such an arrangement?

Try and capture the key points in a simple summary – you might like to use the chart below to help you structure your submission.



1.  Particular strengths (distinctive competencies) of your firm



2. Gaps which your firm needs to fill with complementary resources

 	

3.  Who might you partner up with – and how?



4.  Likely advantages of doing this?

 	

5. Likely disadvantages of doing this?

 

Textbook: Tidd, J. and Bessant, J. (2009). Managing Innovation : Integrating Technological, Market and Organizational Change 4th Ed. Hoboken, NJ:  Wiley & Sons.