On building effective symbiotic relationships between micro-organisations. A community OR perspective

Abstract

Building symbiotic relationships within communities is crucial. Community OR plays a significant role in this process. This paper views communities as integrative processes that foster supportive environments, enabling individuals to enhance their performance while maintaining their identity and pursuing collective goals. This balance is achieved through mutualistic relationships among members. The proposed methodology, based on an in-depth study of previous examples and the authors’ experience, integrates individual preferences and goals to systematically build knowledge. This leads to high-quality interactions that enhance both individual and collective performances. A key aspect is the concept of ‘language’, which analyzes and makes explicit interactions that facilitate community-building. The framework includes a ‘vocabulary’ of individual actions as shared resources and a ‘syntax’ of rules for their use. Three vignettes illustrate the framework, examining the languages of quid pro quo, customers’ needs, and interactions. The first two languages show limitations in fostering mutualistic relationships, while the Language for Interactions emphasizes collaboration and collective resource-building, enabling open-ended contributions and shared enrichment. This approach is a novel contribution to Community OR, proposing a self-organized framework for building supportive communities, addressing systemic challenges, and developing resilient collectives without external dependency.