Mutualism and Competitive Advantage: Smart Trends in Intelligence Research

by Vince Kellen

A company is a collection of distinct units that are supposed to collaborate well with each other in order to deliver a superior product or service. But do all the parts work together well? In times of transition and significant change, how firms do things can also change significantly, requiring the units within the firm to learn how to realign and collaborate in new ways. But how well do the different units learn from each other and improve each other? Do managers of these separate, often competing, units stop to consider the possible benefits of learning together? Are all parts of the firm performing in a superior fashion? Before I explore these questions further, I want to refer not to the study of group performance, but individual cognitive performance, which may help us look at the problem differently.