Question: Human Resources- answer the question with three or more paragraphs. In 1996, Danone, the giant French food company, entered into a joint venture for bottled
Human Resources- answer the question with three or more paragraphs.
In 1996, Danone, the giant French food company, entered into a joint venture for bottled water with Hangzhou Wahahaa leading Chinese milk-based beverage company originally owned by Hangzhou city government but controlled by a local entrepreneur Zong Qinghou.
Wahaha owned 49 percent of the new venture (in exchange for contributing its trademark and four out often subsidiaries), with Danone and Peregrine (a Hong-Kong investment company) holding the rest. Following the 1998 Asian financial crisis, Danone bought out Peregrine's share and took control of the JVs boardbut Mr. Zong continued to run the JV operations. Within just a few years, Wahaha became the leading bottled water brand in Chinabut the JV collapsed in 2007 amid unusually bitter recriminations between the two partners.
Danone accused Wahaha of competing with the JV through its other subsidiaries controlled by Zongs family but sharing the same trademark and distribution network. In turn, Wahaha accused Danone of competing against the JV by investing in other local beverage companies, and that Danones part-time representatives on the board did not understand the reality of business in China. Indeed, when Danone attempted to take a legal action against Zong, it came out that the authorities never approved the original trademark transfer. After Zong
resigned from the JV, the employees refused to recognize the authority of the new chairman appointed by Danone. To settle the dispute, Danone sold its interests in what has become nearly $2 billion business back to Wahaha at a substantial discount to its market value.
There are four types of alliances: complementary, learning, resource, and competitive. Alliances are dynamic, migrating from one strategic orientation to another. Very few alliances remain complementary for long. Alliances among competitors are increasingly frequent, but they are also the most complex and why?
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