Environmental jolts, which are unanticipated and disruptive changes in the external environment, can render firms’ strategies ineffective. Despite their frequency, research examining how firms become resilient to this negative impact of jolts remains scarce. Drawing on the knowledge-based view of international alliances, the authors propose that international alliances are a source of novel knowledge and resources, and in learning the routines and processes to assimilate them, firms acquire dynamic capabilities that enable them to overcome the lack of strategic fit with the environment triggered by jolts. Using a quasi-experimental research design and data from firms exposed to the dot-com bubble burst, the authors find that emphasizing value creation in international alliances attenuates the negative impact of jolts on sales growth. Additionally, for sales and profit growth, international alliance partner diversity positively influences resistance to jolts, while market diversity shows no effect. This study contributes to the literature by demonstrating (1) how international alliances enhance the knowledge, resources, and dynamic capabilities of the firm, (2) the impact of international alliances on firm performance in the face of severe environmental turbulence, and (3) the importance of obtaining competencies from value creation activities and collaborating with diverse partners as resilience-building strategies.
AbdiMajidAulakhPrees S. (2012), “Do Country-Level Institutional Frameworks and Interfirm Governance Arrangements Substitute or Complement in International Business Relationships?” Journal of International Business Studies, 43, 477–97.
2.
AbdiMajidAulakhPreet S.MaZicheng (2024), “Exploratory Search and International Performance: When Do Local Alliances Matter?” Journal of International Marketing, 32 (4), 1–20.
3.
AnandBharat N.KhannaTarun (2000), “Do Firms Learn to Create Value? The Case of Alliances,” Strategic Management Journal, 21 (3), 295–315.
4.
BahadirS. CemBharadwajSundarParzenMichael (2009), “A Meta-Analysis of the Determinants of Organic Sales Growth,” International Journal of Research in Marketing, 26 (4), 263–75.
5.
BarkemaHarry G.VermeulenFreek (1997), “What Differences in the Cultural Backgrounds of Partners Are Detrimental for International Joint Ventures?” Journal of International Business Studies, 28 (4), 845–64.
6.
BeamishPaul W.KachraAriff (2004), “Number of Partners and JV Performance,” Journal of World Business, 39 (2), 107–20.
7.
BelloDaniel C.KatsikeasConstantine S.RobsonMatthew J. (2010), “Does Accommodating a Self-Serving Partner in an International Marketing Alliance Pay Off?” Journal of Marketing, 74 (6), 77–93.
8.
BierlyPaul E.IIICoombsJoseph E. (2004), “Equity Alliances, Stages of Product Development, and Alliance Instability,” Journal of Engineering and Technology Management, 21 (3), 191–214.
9.
CallawayBrantlySant’AnnaPedro H.C. (2021), “Difference-in-Differences with Multiple Time Periods,” Journal of Econometrics, 225 (2), 200–230.
10.
CastroIgnacioRoldánJosé L. (2015), “Alliance Portfolio Management: Dimensions and Performance,” European Management Review, 12 (2), 63–81.
11.
ChurchillGilbert A.FordNeil M.WalkerOrville C.Jr. (1974), “Measuring the Job Satisfaction of Industrial Salesmen,” Journal of Marketing Research, 11 (3), 254–60.
12.
Ciszewska-MlinaričMariolaSiemieniakoDariuszWójcikPiotr (2024), “International Dynamic Marketing Capabilities and International Performance During the Pandemic: A Study of Export Manufacturers from Poland,” International Marketing Review, 41 (1), 162–98.
13.
ColomboMassimo G.PivaEvilaQuasAnitaRossi-LamastraCristian (2021), “Dynamic Capabilities and High-Tech Entrepreneurial Ventures’ Performance in the Aftermath of an Environmental Jolt,” Long Range Planning, 54 (3), 1–23.
14.
ConnellyBrian L.ShiWei (2022), “Threats and Responses in Organizational Research,” Journal of Management, 48 (6), 1366–81.
15.
CuiAnna S.O’ConnorGina (2012), “Alliance Portfolio Resource Diversity and Firm Innovation,” Journal of Marketing, 76 (4), 24–43.
16.
D’AgostinoLorena M.MorenoRosina (2018), “Exploration During Turbulent Times: An Analysis of the Relation Between Cooperation in Innovation Activities and Radical Innovation Performance During the Economic Crisis,” Industrial and Corporate Change, 27 (2), 387–412.
DasT.K.HeIrene Y. (2006), “Entrepreneurial Firms in Search of Established Partners: Review and Recommendations,” International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 12 (3), 114–43.
19.
DasT.K.TengBing-Sheng (2000), “A Resource-Based Theory of Strategic Alliances,” Journal of Management, 26 (1), 31–61.
20.
DeleersnyderBarbaraDekimpeMarnik G.SarvaryMiklosParkerPhilip M. (2004), “Weathering Tight Economic Times: The Sales Evolution of Consumer Durables over the Business Cycle,” Quantitative Marketing and Economics, 2, 347–83.
21.
DunningThad (2012), Natural Experiments in the Social Sciences: A Design-Based Approach. Cambridge University Press.
22.
DuystersGeertDe ManArd-Pieter (2003), “Transitory Alliances: An Instrument for Surviving Turbulent Industries?” R&D Management, 33 (1), 49–58.
23.
EisenhardtKathleen M.MartinJeffrey A. (2000), “Dynamic Capabilities: What Are They?” Strategic Management Journal, 21 (10–11), 1105–21.
24.
EmdenZeynepYaprakAttilaCavusgilS. Tamer (2005), “Learning from Experience in International Alliances: Antecedents and Firm Performance Implications,” Journal of Business Research, 58 (7), 883–92.
25.
FainshmidtStavNairAnilMallonMark R. (2017), “MNE Performance During a Crisis: An Evolutionary Perspective on the Role of Dynamic Managerial Capabilities and Industry Context,” International Business Review, 26 (6), 1088–99.
26.
FainshmidtStavWengerLucasPezeshkanAmirMallonMark R. (2019), “When Do Dynamic Capabilities Lead to Competitive Advantage? The Importance of Strategic Fit,” Journal of Management Studies, 56 (4), 758–87.
27.
FletcherMargaretHarrisSimonRicheyRobert GlennJr. (2013), “Internationalization Knowledge: What, Why, Where, and When?” Journal of International Marketing, 21 (3), 47–71.
GaurAja S.LuJane W. (2007), “Ownership Strategies and Survival of Foreign Subsidiaries: Impacts of Institutional Distance and Experience,” Journal of Management, 33 (1), 84–110.
GladsteinDeborah L.ReillyNora P. (1985), “Group Decision Making Under Threat: The Tycoon Game,” Academy of Management Journal, 28 (3), 613–27.
32.
GoerzenAnthonyBeamishPaul W. (2005), “The Effect of Alliance Network Diversity on Multinational Enterprise Performance,” Strategic Management Journal, 26 (4), 333–54.
33.
GrantRobert M.Baden-FullerCharles (2004), “A Knowledge Accessing Theory of Strategic Alliances,” Journal of Management Studies, 41 (1), 61–84.
34.
HoffmannWerner (2007), “Strategies for Managing a Portfolio of Alliances,” Strategic Management Journal, 28 (8), 827–56.
IrelandR. DuaneHittMichael A.VaidyanathDeepa (2002), “Alliance Management as a Source of Competitive Advantage,” Journal of Management, 28 (3), 413–46.
37.
KalePrashantSinghHarbir (2007), “Building Firm Capabilities Through Learning: The Role of the Alliance Learning Process in Alliance Capability and Firm-Level Alliance Success,” Strategic Management Journal, 28 (10), 981–1000.
38.
KalePrashantSinghHarbir (2009), “Managing Strategic Alliances: What Do We Know Now, and Where Do We Go from Here?” Academy of Management Perspectives, 23 (3), 45–62.
39.
KatsikeasConstantine S.MorganNeil A.LeonidouLeonidas C.HultG. Tomas M. (2016), “Assessing Performance Outcomes in Marketing,” Journal of Marketing, 80 (2), 1–20.
40.
KimMinyoung (2013), “Many Roads Lead to Rome: Implications of Geographic Scope as a Source of Isolating Mechanisms,” Journal of International Business Studies, 44 (9), 898–921.
41.
KnightGaryCavusgilS. Tamer (2004), “Innovation, Organizational Capabilities, and the Born-Global Firm,” Journal of International Business Studies, 35 (2), 124–41.
42.
KogutBruceSinghHarbir (1988), “The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode,” Journal of International Business Studies, 19 (3), 411–32.
43.
KrasnikovAlexander V.ShultzClifford J.IIRebiazinaVera (2022), “Consumer Response to COVID Policy Across the World: The Role of Community Resilience,” Journal of International Marketing, 30 (4), 60–77.
44.
LaiJung-HoChangShao-ChiChenSheng-Syan (2010), “Is Experience Valuable in International Strategic Alliances?” Journal of International Management, 16 (3), 247–61.
45.
LavieDovevMillerStewart R. (2008), “Alliance Portfolio Internationalization and Firm Performance,” Organization Science, 19 (4), 623–46.
46.
LavieDovevRosenkopfLori (2006), “Balancing Exploration and Exploitation in Alliance Formation,” Academy of Management Journal, 49 (4), 797–818.
47.
LeeHannah SoobinGriffithDavid A. (2019), “The Balancing of Country-Based Interaction Orientation and Marketing Strategy Implementation Adaptation/Standardization for Profit Growth in Multinational Corporations,” Journal of International Marketing, 27 (2), 22–37.
48.
LiLeeQianGongmingQianZhengming (2014), “Inconsistencies in International Product Strategies and Performance of High-Tech Firms,” Journal of International Marketing, 22 (3), 94–113.
49.
MakkonenHannuPohjolaMikkoOlkkonenRamiKoponenAki (2014), “Dynamic Capabilities and Firm Performance in a Financial Crisis,” Journal of Business Research, 67 (1), 2707–19.
50.
MamédioDiorgenesRochaClarissaSzczepanikDayanneKatoHeitor (2019), “Strategic Alliances and Dynamic Capabilities: A Systematic Review,” Journal of Strategy and Management, 12 (1), 83–102.
MarcusMichelleSant’AnnaPedro H.C. (2021), “The Role of Parallel Trends in Event Study Settings: An Application to Environmental Economics,” Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, 8 (2), 235–75.
53.
MarkovichAmiramRabanDaphne R.EfratKalanit (2023), “The Differential Effect of Environmental Jolts and Information Sources on Dynamic Capabilities,” European Management Review (published online December 13), https://doi.org/10.1111/emre.12631.
54.
MeyerAlan D. (1982), “Adapting to Environmental Jolts,” Administrative Science Quarterly, 27 (4), 515–37.
55.
MeyerAlan D.BrooksGeoffrey R.GoesJames B. (1990), “Environmental Jolts and Industry Revolutions: Organizational Responses to Discontinuous Change,” Strategic Management Journal, 11, 93–110.
56.
MeyerKlaus E.EstrinSaulBhaumikSumon KumarPengMike W. (2009), “Institutions, Resources, and Entry Strategies in Emerging Economies,” Strategic Management Journal, 30, 61–80.
57.
MizikNatalieJacobsonRobert (2003), “Trading Off Between Value Creation and Value Appropriation: The Financial Implications of Shifts in Strategic Emphasis,” Journal of Marketing, 67 (1), 63–76.
58.
MorganNeil A.FengHuiWhitlerKimberly A. (2018), “Marketing Capabilities in International Marketing,” Journal of International Marketing, 26 (1), 61–95.
59.
MorganNeilRegoLopo L. (2006), “The Value of Different Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty Metrics in Predicting Business Performance,” Marketing Science, 25 (5), 426–39.
60.
MurrayJanet Y.ChaoMike C.H. (2005), “A Cross-Team Framework of International Knowledge Acquisition on New Product Development Capabilities and New Product Market Performance,” Journal of International Marketing, 13 (3), 54–78.
61.
NathPravinKircaAhmet H.KimSaejoon (2021), “A Study of the Internationalization–Performance Relationship in Global Retailing: The Moderating Role of Brand Standardization and Cultural Diversity,” Journal of International Marketing, 29 (1), 57–76.
62.
OsiyevskyyOleksiyTaoQingjiu TomJiangRuihua JoySantoroMichael D. (2017), “Opportunity Is in the Eye of Beholder: Behavioral Drivers of Alliance Portfolio Adaptation to Performance and Environmental Jolts,” International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 18 (2), 115–27.
63.
ParkNamgyoo K.MeziasJohn M. (2005), “Before and After the Technology Sector Crash: The Effect of Environmental Munificence on Stock Market Response to Alliances of E-Commerce Firms,” Strategic Management Journal, 26 (11), 987–1007.
64.
PerraillonMarcelo CocaLindroothRichardHedekerDonald (forthcoming), Health Services Research and Program Evaluation: Causal Inference and Estimation. Cambridge University Press.
65.
PtokAnnetteJindalRupinderReinartzWerner (2018), “Selling, General, and Administrative Expense (SGA)-Based Metrics in Marketing: Conceptual and Measurement Challenges,” Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 46, 987–1011.
ReuerJeffrey J.RagozzinoRoberto (2014), “Signals and International Alliance Formation: The Roles of Affiliation and International Activities,” Journal of International Business Studies, 45, 321–37.
69.
RobsonMatthew J.KatsikeasConstantine S.BelloDaniel C. (2008), “Drivers and Performance Outcomes of Trust in International Strategic Alliances: The Role of Organizational Complexity,” Organization Science, 19 (4), 647–65.
70.
RobsonMatthew J.SchlegelmilchBodo B.BojkowszkyBrigitte (2012), “Resource Deployment Stability and Performance in International Research-and-Development Alliances: A Self-Determination Theory Explanation,” Journal of International Marketing, 20 (1), 1–18.
71.
SchilkeOliver (2014), “Second-Order Dynamic Capabilities: How Do They Matter?” Academy of Management Perspectives, 28 (4), 368–80.
72.
SchilkeOliverHuSongcuiHelfatConstance E. (2018), “Quo Vadis, Dynamic Capabilities? A Content-Analytical Review of the Current State of Knowledge and Recommendations for Future Research,” Academy of Management Annals, 12 (1), 390–439.
73.
ShiWeiConnellyBrian L.CirikKubilay (2018), “Short Seller Influence on Firm Growth: A Threat Rigidity Perspective,” Academy of Management Journal, 61 (5), 1892–919.
74.
ShiWeilei (Stone)SunJingPrescottJohn E. (2012), “A Temporal Perspective of Merger and Acquisition and Strategic Alliance Initiatives: Review and Future Direction,” Journal of Management, 38 (1), 164–209.
75.
SilvaSusana Costa eBradleyFrankSousaCarlos M.P. (2012), “Empirical Test of the Trust–Performance Link in an International Alliances Context,” International Business Review, 21 (2), 293–306.
76.
SineWesley D.DavidRobert J. (2003), “Environmental Jolts, Institutional Change, and the Creation of Entrepreneurial Opportunity in the US Electric Power Industry,” Research Policy, 32 (2), 185–207.
77.
SivakumarK.RoySubrotoZhuJianJunHanvanichSangphet (2011), “Global Innovation Generation and Financial Performance in Business-to-Business Relationships: The Case of Cross-Border Alliances in the Pharmaceutical Industry,” Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 39, 757–76.
78.
StawBarry M.SandelandsLance E.DuttonJane E. (1981), “Threat Rigidity Effects in Organizational Behavior: A Multilevel Analysis,” Administrative Science Quarterly, 26 (4), 501–24.
79.
TeeceDavid J. (2007), “Explicating Dynamic Capabilities: The Nature and Microfoundations of (Sustainable) Enterprise Performance,” Strategic Management Journal, 28 (13), 1319–50.
80.
TeeceDavid J. (2014), “A Dynamic Capabilities-Based Entrepreneurial Theory of the Multinational Enterprise,” Journal of International Business Studies, 45, 8–37.
TowerAnnette P.HewettKellyFenikAnton (2019), “The Role of Cultural Distance Across Quantiles of International Joint Venture Longevity,” Journal of International Marketing, 27 (4), 3–21.
83.
TowerAnnette P.HewettKellySabooAlok (2021), “Reexamining the Tradeoff Between Value Creation and Value Appropriation: The Role of Internal Organizational Resources vs. External Strategic International Alliances,” Journal of Business Research, 123, 302–12.
VapolaTerhi JohannaPaukkuMarkusGabrielssonMika (2010), “Portfolio Management of Strategic Alliances: An International Business Perspective,” International Business Review, 19 (3), 247–60.
86.
WanWilliam P.YiuDaphne W. (2009), “From Crisis to Opportunity: Environmental Jolt, Corporate Acquisitions, and Firm Performance,” Strategic Management Journal, 30 (7), 791–801.
87.
WassmerUlrich (2010), “Alliance Portfolios: A Review and Research Agenda,” Journal of Management, 36 (1), 141–71.
XiaJun (2011), “Mutual Dependence, Partner Substitutability, and Repeated Partnership: The Survival of Cross-Border Alliances,” Strategic Management Journal, 32 (3), 229–53.
90.
XueRuiLiLee (2023), “Strategic Alliances and Firms’ Chances to Survive ‘Black Swans’ in B2B Industries,” Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, 38 (3), 444–62.
91.
YeniyurtSengunTownsendJanell D.CavusgilS. TamerGhauriPervez N. (2009), “Mimetic and Experiential Effects in International Marketing Alliance Formations of US Pharmaceuticals Firms: An Event History Analysis,” Journal of International Business Studies, 40 (2), 301–20.
92.
YuanRuizhiLuoJunLiuMartin J.YuJiang (2022), “Understanding Organizational Resilience in a Platform-Based Sharing Business: The Role of Absorptive Capacity,” Journal of Business Research, 141 (1), 85–99.
93.
ZahraShaker A.GeorgeGerard (2002), “Absorptive Capacity: A Review, Reconceptualization, and Extension,” Academy of Management Review, 27 (2), 185–203.
94.
ZahraShaker A.UcbasaranDenizNeweyLance R. (2009), “Social Knowledge and SMEs’ Innovative Gains from Internationalization,” European Management Review, 6 (2), 81–93.
95.
ZajacEdward J.KraatzMatthew S.BresserRudi K.F. (2000), “Modeling the Dynamics of Strategic Fit: A Normative Approach to Strategic Change,” Strategic Management Journal, 21 (4), 429–53.
96.
ZhangHaisuShuChengliJiangXuMalterAlan J. (2010), “Managing Knowledge for Innovation: The Role of Cooperation, Competition, and Alliance Nationality,” Journal of International Marketing, 18 (4), 74–94.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
