Hybrid alliances and radical innovation: the performance implications of integrating exploration and exploitation

In this paper we examine the innovation performance of hybrid alliances, that is, alliances that combine exploration and exploitation activities. While previous research has emphasized the tensions engendered by the combination of exploration and exploitation, we claim that the integration of these two types of activities can generate synergies as well. We argue that, in the case of alliances involving academic spin-offs (ASOs), these synergies may outweigh the tensions under specific conditions, and thus improve alliance innovation performance. Specifically, we hypothesize that the relative performance of exploitation activities is greater in hybrid alliances when the alliance has radical innovation outcomes. Conversely, the relative performance of exploration activities is greater in hybrid alliances when the alliance has incremental innovation outcomes. These hypotheses are tested using fine-grained data on a sample of 149 alliances involving European ASOs.