Introduction

Abstract

Faster technological development, shorter product life cycles, and more intense global competition have transformed the current competitive environment for most firms (Bettis and Hitt 1995). This new competitive landscape forces organizations to actively acquire knowledge since a firm’s competitive advantage is now more dependent on continuous knowledge development and enhancement (Santoro and Gopalakrishnan 2000). As competitive pressures increase, firms are often placed in positions where they have neither the time nor resources to internally develop the knowledge needed to achieve competitive success through product and process innovations. Thus, knowledge acquisition from external source partners has been identified as a key competency for sustained success in the competitive marketplace. A common and frequently viable option in this situation is the acquisition of technological knowledge from outside sources.