How to behave in the company's "multifaceted relationship" when a supplier, customer or partner is also a competitor? The dilemma faced by a growing number of firms, especially in the high technology and global industry. Addition to technology and globalization, trends in regulation, diversification , the characteristics of the product, and outsourcing often lead to these multifaceted relationship. Which methods to control them? One Response to "stay out or get out", but avoiding or leaving the complex relations can be costly. Another way is to "divide and rule", carefully separating individual modes of interaction with another firm, the company can act as if the multifaceted relationship exists. alternative approach is to "centralize intelligence," or having different departments or divisions, which cooperate with a competitor to keep each other, or by creating a task force or committee whose function is to pool all the information about relationships. This simplified to encourage all businesses to start is at ease in a multi-faceted relationship.;, but when such a relationship is inevitable, companies that have learned to live and to receive from them can stake out the best position for the future "Hide
by Barbara A. Carlin, Michael J. Dowling, William D. Roering, John Wyman, John Kalinoglu, Greg Cliburn Source: Business Horizons 7 pages. Publication Date: September 15, 1994. Prod. #: BH017-PDF -ENG
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