Cooperation trends in horizontal business networks:: the example of retail networks in Germany

Abstract

Germany is one of the countries where business cooperation has reached the highest level of development and organization, especially in the form of horizontal business networks. The number of cooperative arrangements and the results achieved by the business networks over the past several decades are significant. Therefore, they can be used as an interesting example in relation to the recent development of Brazilian networks. This paper presents the status of cooperation in horizontal business networks in Germany at present, as well as their future organization and management trends. The study was based on secondary data and in-depth interviews with German experts: academics, organizational consultants, business network managers and representatives of organizations. The results highlight the professional management of networks, a trend toward centralized governance as a way to coordinate big networks, and a trend toward mixed models of organization, combining the cooperative system with the branches system and the franchise system. Other trends highlighted by the experts are the establishment of networks alliances, the merger of cooperative groups and their internationalization. All these changes contribute to the metamorphosis of business cooperation models, and maintain these models as an important strategy for the survival and competitiveness of independent enterprises in Germany.