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Increasingly, senior executives who wish to expand their company's product, geographic, or customer reach consider alliances to be the strategic vehicle of choice. In the past five years, the number of domestic and cross-border alliances has grown by more than 25% annually. But the term alliance can be deceptive: in many cases, it really means an eventual transfer of ownership. The median life span for alliances is only about seven years, and nearly 80% of joint ventures end in a sale by one of the partners. Based on the author's experience with more than 200 alliances in various stages, they have developed a way for managers to diagnose whether an alliance is likely to lead to a sale and to devise an appropriate strategy--to assess bargaining positions and the risks of unplanned outcomes, and to plan for the partnership's evolution. They distinguish six types of alliances based on their probable outcomes: collisions between competitors, alliances of the weak, disguised sales, bootstrap alliances, evolutions to a sale, and alliances of complementary equals.

War stories about failed alliances make executives wary of forging new joint ventures. However, the strategic benefits of cross-border alliances are compelling. A study of 49 cross-border alliances found several patterns that have managerial implications. For example, alliances must be free to evolve as the environment changes and opportunities arise. Contrary to conventional wisdom, fifty-fifty ownership of joint ventures improves decision making, and most alliances end with one parent acquiring the venture.

As 1992 approaches, markets are opening in Western Europe and throughout the world. U.S. experience with the competitive dynamics of deregulation over a ten-year period provides valuable lessons for managers debating whether and how to expand into new markets. To thrive in the competitive environment an open market creates, many executives must exchange their companies' roles as broad-line players for new roles as low-cost entrants, focused segment marketers, and providers of shared utilities. They must also be prepared to make new strategic choices as the structure of the industry changes.