Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation: The Scaling Decision

In January 2020, Philippe Isler, director of the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation (Alliance), was preparing for the Alliance’s steering group meeting that spring. He needed to set forth a plan on how to scale Alliance operations to deliver on current and proposed projects. The Alliance had only three years left in its current funding cycle, and a long list of projects to complete. Isler knew that meeting the funding governments’ expectations with the current structure would be a challenge for the Alliance. He thus faced a complex organizational design challenge and had to reflect how to develop the efficiency of the Alliance. Isler considered three options to scale Alliance operations: growing organically, adding several arms-length implementing partners, and adding a new implementing partner into the Alliance secretariat. Alternatively, he could dial back the Alliance’s current growth plans.

This case is intended for master’s level courses on organizational behaviour and organizational design in business school programs and related programs (e.g., international relations and sociology), but it is also suitable for advanced undergraduate-level courses. This case can also be used in courses on human resource management, managing people, and leadership. It is particularly suited for teaching about trade-offs in organizational design, such as that between flexibility and chaos in networks. This case can also be used in workshops (including workshops with professional audiences) on the organizational design of alliances and on working in alliances. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following:<ul><li>Learn about alliances as a unique organizational form.</li><li>Learn about the relative contribution of organizational design and employees’ organizing efforts in alliances.</li><li>Reflect critically on the common managerial assumption that culture is a critical antecedent to organizational performance.</li><li>Vicariously experience the membership challenge for employees in alliances.</li><li>Develop procedural knowledge by creating an action plan for the alliance’s future.</li></ul>

• alliance
• public-private partnership
• not-for-profit