COLLABORATIVE NETWORKS IN INDUSTRY AND SERVICES: RESEARCH SCOPE AND CHALLENGES

Collaborative networks show a high potential for value creation in a modern society and raise important technical and socio-organizational challenges. Collaborative networks manifest in a large variety of forms both in industry and services, including virtual organizations, virtual enterprises, dynamic supply chains, professional virtual communities, etc. In order to support preparedness of organizations for participation in dynamic coalitions, breeding environments for virtual organizations are being developed in many application sectors in diverse geographical regions. A large body of empiric knowledge related to collaborative networks is already available, but there is an urgent need to consolidate this knowledge and build the foundations for a more sustainable development of this area. The definition of reference models and the establishment of a scientific discipline for collaborative networks are strong instruments in achieving this purpose. In this survey paper the main characteristics of the area are analyzed, current baseline is discussed, and future trends are pointed out.