Business ecosystems. What do they mean for your company? And how do they impact your role as a leader?

Abstract

Recently, two competing Belgian telecom giants, Telenet and DPG Media, announced an intensive strategic collaboration in response to the increased competition from global players like Netflix, Disney + and Apple TV. Such strategic partnerships between organisations are not new. Think of the collaboration between Douwe Egberts and Philips, which led to the introduction of the Senseo coffee machine. Most of these strategic collaborations consist of clearly defined and formalised projects, in which the legal departments are closely involved in delineating the partnership as well. But the world is changing rapidly. And so is the way in which organisations partner with each other. Changing customer expectations, increased regulation, new technologies, and the societal risks that come with a globalising economy shape the strategic agendas of many CEOs. These evolutions force organisations to rethink the way in which they collaborate with partners.