Managing alliance portfolios: lessons from social enterprise

Alliance capabilities refer to organizational abilities to successfully manage alliances, which organizations develop by acquiring and leveraging knowledge about alliance management. Alliance capabilities therefore support the effective development and management of alliances, generating a competitive advantage for organizations by supporting enhanced organizational performance. The challenges and success factors for developing alliance capabilities are well documented for profit-oriented firms, but in recent years scholars have turned their attention to the alliance capabilities of social enterprises because their organizational and contextual complexities present unique challenges for interorganizational collaboration. This chapter reports the findings of a multiple case study that examined the alliance capabilities that six Australian social enterprises developed through allying with business organizations. It enhances our understanding of alliance management approaches by identifying the different types of alliance management structures, processes, and tools applied by social enterprises. In doing so, the chapter provides insight into how alliance management approaches utilized by social enterprises evolve as both their partnership experience and portfolios grow, and are influenced by organizational factors such as size, stage of organizational maturity, and organizational hybridity