Strategic planning for value creation in business networks. Conceptual framework and theoretical proposals

This paper aims at providing some conceptual references to academics and practi-tioners useful for guiding the strategic planning process in alliance formation. Research on strategic networking is a multidisciplinary field drawing from differ-ent theoretical perspectives. It emphasizes the strategic value of alliances in its var-ious forms but rarely attempts to model the strategic planning process and to test its validity empirically. Most of the contributions are focused on specific aspects of strategy, rarely providing a holistic view able to address the strategic process and contents by explicitly recognizing the existence of different kinds of alliances. Drawing from three different but interconnected theoretical roots (strategic net-work, strategic analysis, and value chain management) and adopting a deductive approach, this conceptual paper proposes a comprehensive framework for strategic planning in alliance formation and four theoretical propositions. These propositions shed light on the relationships between strategic planning pro-cess and three different kinds of business collaboration, and focus on the implica-tions of the integrating process for network value creation. The different goals and complexity of such typologies, although not mutually exclusive, specifically influ-ence the strategic analysis contents, the process of negotiation, and the construction of strategic consensus between partners.