Corporate strategies, business models and collaboration processes are changing rapidly. Digitalisation is a major contributing factor, but it is not the only trigger. Why it makes sense to consider deliberately cooperation and to focus on the impact of your own business activities on the environment.
All of a sudden, everything is different
The world has become complex. Dynamics are gathering pace. Crises are occurring at what feels like an increasing speed and in a simultaneous manner. Adam Tooze describes this as a polycrisis: the threats influence and reinforce each other, jeopardising the consensus on social achievements such as democracy and social cohesion that was taken for granted until recently. Seemingly in parallel, digitalisation and AI are turning all areas of life upside down, particularly in the economy. Companies must act quickly and decisively – despite increasing contradictions, such as the simultaneous existence of global digital networking, political nationalism and economic separatism.
The effects are obvious. Predictability and plannability are rapidly declining, decisions must be made in increasingly shorter periods of time based on ever fewer facts, and business models, production methods and processes that previously worked are suddenly useless.
But did this really happen suddenly? Were the previous economic models really useful? Or did they get us into this predicament in the first place? These are important questions, but they are not the most important ones. Right now, it is crucial to quickly find feasible ways for managers to deal with the situation.
Networking creates eco-systems
When talking to decision-makers today, there is one thing you hear again and again: we cannot do this alone. Without intelligent forms of cooperation, without entering into partnerships, without trust, we will not get out of this.
From a purely economic perspective, AI is fueling the emergence of new industries and business models, a network economy. But how can companies create value through new forms of collaboration? And how do internal and external networks need to be designed to achieve this? This requires letting go of cherished beliefs. Suddenly, it may be possible to cooperate with former competitors or find common ground with players who think differently and seem to have nothing to do with your own business.
From search engine to tech company: Let’s remember that Google was originally a search engine. Today, the tech giant is researching autonomous driving – Google Street View should be regarded in this context. In August 2023, its subsidiary WAYMO received approval to offer autonomous taxi rides without drivers in San Francisco. The car was developed in collaboration with Audi. The tech giant is contributing the software, platform solution and data. UBER is partly a partner and partly a competitor.
The partnership has the potential to revolutionise the way the automotive industry works. Self-driving cars are not produced for end users – customers pay for transport from A to B, not for the purchase of a car. The business is based on collecting and using data. WAYMO is in the process of rolling out its driverless car service throughout the US and opening its first location in Asia. Incidentally, the term ‘location’ feels anachronistic in this context.
And how does that solve the climate crisis?
Admittedly, not at all. It will change the image of cities (because the mobile data collection machines will remain in motion instead of parking), it will change the concept of ‘individual transport,’ and there are indications of where the economy may be headed. At least from today’s perspective and despite all the unpredictability. It shows the innovative potential that lies in cooperation.
But new forms of cooperation are needed for more than just this. The increasing complexity of our world is overwhelming individuals and companies alike. It is becoming increasingly clear that we can only succeed by working together.
The top-down organisation that has long defined our image of companies seems to have had its day. Alongside hierarchical structures, lateral connections are becoming increasingly important. Numerous researchers from a variety of scientific disciplines are examining this paradigm shift. Sociologist Dirk Baecker summarises it as follows: The structural form of the next society will no longer be functional differentiation, but rather networks.
Stand-alone solutions are something that hardly any organisation can offer anymore. Cooperation between equal partners is becoming increasingly important and is changing the logic of collaboration. One of the most important competitive factors in the globally networked economy is the joint development and use of knowledge to create new value.
A bold sustainability strategy:
For a long time now, it has been virtually impossible to talk about the energy-intensive paper industry without mentioning the ongoing economically difficult general conditions. In the wake of a change of generations, the Heinzel Group has opted for a bold sustainability strategy. The paper company wants to be part of the solution in the socio-ecological transformation and is developing its production towards a circular economy. This cannot be achieved alone. It can only be done with strong relationships in the supply chain and in cooperation with other stakeholders.
Analogue remains important
In the broadest sense, networking today also means connecting digital and analogue realities, for example when dealing with data. New technologies and data are important for effectively managing a network. On the other hand, people need spaces for personal exchange, reflection, joint thinking and learning. In this context, Nora Bateson talks about warm data, which offers an additional dimension of understanding to complement quantitative, cold data. When we connect thinking and feeling, even complex contexts can be communicated and challenges mastered.
Leadership that touches people
Successful business management is not just about solving practical problems rationally, but also about creating an emotional consensus. This requires leadership that has a positive impact and offers a sense of identity. It is always about recognition, respect and creating fairness. Participation creates a space for resonance in which people are heard. Being part of the community means being noticed – this is how belonging is perceived today. This in turn motivates employees to develop their potential within the organisation. The combination of digital and analogue developments can create emotional, social and cognitive closeness and strengthen the autonomy of local units.
Housing First: The Neunerhaus, a non-profit organisation in Vienna that was set up through private initiative, has succeeded in establishing the ‘Housing First’ concept through close cooperation with the municipal authorities, commercial enterprises, interest groups and NGOs. The fundamental insight (warm data) was that a regular tenancy agreement is a prerequisite for homeless people to get their lives back on track. Previously, those affected had to stabilise themselves psychologically and socially first and only then were they given a roof over their heads as a ‘reward’. Housing First is the result of cooperation between stakeholders from very different fields and with different approaches, united by a deeper understanding of the complex situation of homelessness that goes beyond numbers, data and facts. The Housing First principle was incorporated into the Austrian Ministry of Social Affairs’ homelessness strategy in 2024.
Network? Ecosystem or platform – a clarification of terms
Networks, ecosystems and platforms are no longer entirely new forms of organisation and are becoming increasingly common in the wake of digitisation. All three terms refer to the interaction of mainly organisations (sometimes also individuals) in a shared ‘field’. These forms of organisation overlap in many ways, influence each other, develop within and apart from each other, but there are a few relevant differences that are helpful to understand. (Source: Jörg Sydow, Caroline Auschra: Networks, Platforms and Ecosystems: Clarifications in Organisation Theory)
Networks are loose forms of organisation that primarily serve to exchange experiences and organise innovation or learning processes, or that strengthen cooperation between different organisations in other ways. There are jointly formulated goals and the aim is to achieve competitive advantages, even if the organisations are in competition with each other. There are relatively clear boundaries due to certain rules of membership and, in strategic networks, structures similar to hierarchies (Star Alliance, Toyota).
There are two types of ecosystems: entrepreneurial and business ecosystems. The former focus on establishment and growth. Business ecosystems are partnerships in which several companies that do not have common goals work together to provide products or services that each company could not offer on its own. There is usually an informal dependency between the partners. Example: Partnership between Gebrüder Weiss (logistics) and IKEA (furniture retailer) – delivery for IKEA home delivery customers in Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia is being switched to electric transporters. Microsoft also functions as a business ecosystem, while Silicon Valley is considered an example of an entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Platforms today are almost exclusively digitally organised and facilitate transactions between customers and suppliers, including complementary providers (providers of supplementary services). Platform operators usually have a profit-oriented goal and want to offer platform participants low-cost products and services. Control and co-determination rights are negotiated between platform operators and complementors – with significant consequences for the structure of transactions, depending on the relationship of dependency. There is usually strong competition between complementors. Examples: UBER, eBay.
This article was developed in collaboration with BUSINESSART – Austria’s magazine for sustainable business and future-oriented leadership. The English version is available as an e-paper here. Our shared goal: to show how dialogue, diversity of perspective, and a sense of responsibility can shape the future – especially in times of uncertainty.
