| Summary: | Inter-organisational relationships have been considered an important tool in seeking to develop a competitive advantage. The Department of Health and Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry have proposed a long-term leadership strategy calling for greater partnership working between the NHS and the pharmaceutical industry. This management project seeks to consider the risks, benefits, barriers, enablers and potential opportunities for partnership working between four global pharmaceutical companies and a mental health NHS Foundation Trust.
A Social and Economic Strategic Alliance Model is proposed and considers that the interaction between economic and social theories influences the formation, governance, evolution, performance and management of the strategic alliance. Qualitative research methods were used to test the proposed Social and Economic Strategic Alliance Model. This involved a series of 17 face-to-face interviews with Board Members and senior managers from Central and North West NHS Foundation Trust and four global pharmaceutical companies.
This study demonstrates that there is a significant gap between the rhetoric of the government and Department of Health with regard to the mandate of partnership working between the NHS and the Industry. The analysis of the fieldwork using the proposed Social and Economic Strategic Alliance Model has been useful in highlighting potential reasons why such a gap exists and in forming the basis of recommendations to increase the likelihood of successful strategic relationships between the Trust and the Industry
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