What is the difference between an alliance problem and an alliance symptom, and what does this difference mean in terms of managerial intervention

Inserts His/her Inserts Inserts Grade Inserts Here (Day, Month, Year) What is the difference between an alliance problem and an alliance symptom, and what does this difference mean in terms of managerial intervention?
Strategic alliance is a collaboration between two organizations in which both the organizations agree to work together in order to achieve a common set of goals. Strategic alliance is gaining importance in today’s competitive business world as in such alliances the highly qualified and trained personnel of two organizations work together and devise strategies, policies and plans that increase the ratio of profit and success for both the organizations. Though strategic alliance is very beneficent for the business world but it has got certain disadvantages or problems related to it.
Most of the time differencing between alliance problems and symptoms becomes a challenge for the organization. There is always a difference between these two. Problems are usually not visible on the front line and symptoms on the other hand are quite clear and are a constant reminder of an upcoming problem. In strategic alliances the organizations usually consider a symptom as a problem and instead of doing an in-depth analysis of that symptom they take initiatives to solve it. This false interpretation of problems and symptoms can lead towards greater hazards. An example of difference between alliance symptom and problem is: when an organization observes an unenthusiastic change in the behavior of its partner it should not immediately take initiatives to change this behavior instead it should try to find out the root cause of this change. This change in behavior can be a result of lack of trust among the partners, in-competitive behavior of one of the partners, difference in the atmosphere of the two organizations or a difference between work schedule and strategies of the two organizations. If the organization over-looks these core problems and misinterprets the symptom as a problem then it can endanger the alliance. This misinterpretation is the cause of failure of more than 66 percent of the alliances.
Even though the above mentioned factor can be a hurdle in the success of an alliance but proper and effective senior management is the most important factor for overcoming these hazards. If the top management is committed to the success of the alliance then it should take proper steps in order to avoid these problems and their misinterpretation with the symptoms. The management should try to understand the philosophies of the management of their partner organization. If the attitudes and thinking of both the managements would be similar then most of the core problems would be avoided. Another important factor is effective leadership. The manager should be able to control the workforce efficiently with out errors in communication. The goals and objectives should be well defined by the managers to the work force of both the organizations. This will eradicate the problems related to the misinterpretation of goals and objectives. While selecting the partners the managers must be very cautious. They should keep a strong check on the compatibility between the two organizations. If the difference between the working behaviors of two organizations is very prominent then the management must avoid forming an alliance with that organization as this difference may lead towards a chain of problems in future. In addition to that effective and proper communication between the two partners should be maintained as this communication leads towards healthy professional relationship and a successful alliance.
Strategic alliances play an important role in the business era. They help the companies in minimizing their costs and maximizing their profits. But most of the companies do not have a very clear idea of why they have entered into an alliance and this ambiguity leads toward the failure of the alliance. In order to make the alliance successful the companies must have clear and well defined objectives and in addition to that the companies must be well aware of each other’s behaviors, work schedules, strategies and policies.
Work Cited
Elmuti, Dean, and Kathawala, Yunus. “ An Overview of Strategic Alliances.” Management Decision (2001). Web. 20 Sep. 2011.