It is extraordinary to learn that alliances created $72bn in shareholder value over two years for a sample of 15 large companies.  And sobering to learn that alliances cost $43bn for another 15!  It is now common to see alliances account for twenty to fifty percent of corporate value - whether measured in terms of revenues, assets, income or market capitalisation.

Mastering Alliance Strategy is full of such gems. Many books and gurus on alliances peddle little more than a simplistic set of marriage guidance rules. This book goes a lot, lot further.

For starters, it brings together a wide range of empirical studies. Its dozen authors have measured the impact of alliances on the profitability of hundreds of companies.

It brings together the best research from some of the brightest academics.  But, unlike many compilations of academic research, the book speaks with one voice.  The book covers four main areas - alliance design, alliance management, using a constellation of alliances and building an internal alliance capability.

What are the main lessons to emerge?  The first is that alliances must be embedded in a company's strategy.  Too few companies have really thought through the raison d'étre behind their alliances. 

It also suggests that alliance designers must think beyond their day-to-day functional tasks. Lawyers must understand business objectives, competitors must also think like collaborators, risk must be defined broadly, negotiating teams must do more than bargain for the last dime.

An alliance will never take care of itself - the partners must continually adjust as things change.  The initial deal is merely an opportunity - it simply declares the ground rules for the growth of the relationship.

The book suggests that the success of external alliances often depends on having a supportive internal infrastructure. A firm that truly values its alliance capability will share best practices among its business units and develop special expertise. There are many interesting models. In a chapter by David Ernst, the book defines six types of alliance - each calling for a different approach.

Firstly, alliances can build new businesses - First Data Corporation formed a series of joint ventures with banks to perform credit card processing. Alliances can be a powerful tool to build a new business when risks are high, skills are incomplete, or speed is essential.

Secondly, alliances can access new markets. Think about the coffee chain Starbucks, which has moved into countries through alliances, moved into airlines with United Airlines and hotels with Marriott, and allied itself with Pepsico.

Starbucks' earnings from alliances reportedly jumped seven-fold between 1999 and 2000.  Done well, alliances can allow a company to remain focused on its core product, whilst reaching many new customers.

Thirdly, alliances can create skills and learning - the building blocks of future competitive advantage.  A number of large food companies, including General Mills and Pillsbury, formed alliances with the then-leading online grocer Webvan to learn how to sell over the Internet.