Bilateral Collaboration and the Emergence of Innovation Networks
Summary. This paper models how innovation networks form through bilateral partnerships between firms. Firms choose collaborators based on knowledge production rather than network strategy. The success of collaborations depends on cognitive fit, prior relationships, and information from shared contacts. The study shows that network structure varies with how knowledge decomposes into tasks and how firms learn about partners—dense networks emerge when innovation breaks into separate subtasks, while cliquish networks form when indirect information matters most.
Cite this article
Cowan, R., Jonard, N., & Zimmermann, J.. (2007). Bilateral Collaboration and the Emergence of Innovation Networks. Management Science. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618
Cowan, Robin, et al. “Bilateral Collaboration and the Emergence of Innovation Networks.” Management Science, 2007. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618.
Cowan, Robin, Nicolas Jonard, and Jean‐Benoît Zimmermann. 2007. “Bilateral Collaboration and the Emergence of Innovation Networks.” Management Science. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618.
@article{cowan-2007-bilateral-collaboration-emergence-innovation-networks,
title = {Bilateral Collaboration and the Emergence of Innovation Networks},
author = {Robin Cowan and Nicolas Jonard and Jean‐Benoît Zimmermann},
journal = {Management Science},
year = {2007},
doi = {10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618}
}
TY - JOUR TI - Bilateral Collaboration and the Emergence of Innovation Networks AU - Robin Cowan AU - Nicolas Jonard AU - Jean‐Benoît Zimmermann JO - Management Science PY - 2007 DO - 10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618 UR - https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618 ER -
Details
- DOI
- 10.1287/mnsc.1060.0618
- Countries
- Netherlands, France
- Regions
- Europe
- Categories
- innovation-networks, innovation-theory, general-innovation
- Added
- 2026-04-28