Helen Cripps

Collaborative Business Relationships and the Use of Ict: the Case of the Marine, Defence and Resources Cluster, Western Australia Helen Cripps

The research investigated the drivers and inhibitors of collaborative relationships and the factors that impact on the creation and sustaining of these relationships. The role of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in facilitating and sustaining collaborative relationships and the perceived benefits and drawbacks of collaborative relationships were also investigated. The research was conducted in the marine, defence and resources cluster located south of Perth, Western Australia. The research found that the drivers, inhibitors and benefits of collaboration varied by firm size and by industry. The role of ICT in these relationships was not significant due to a number of industry characteristics displayed across the cluster, such as secrecy, a high need for security and low ICT adoption. The research provides interesting insights into the application of economic development strategies, theories surrounding collaborative relationships and the use of ICT in the Australian setting, as the majority of the strategies, models and theories applied in the past were developed in Europe and the USA and were often unsuccessfully.