What is Relational Rent

The concept of the organizations as value creators is not new. The capacity to create value in a sustainable way is just recognized to the organizations that are able to innovate and to find other forms of continuously combining their resources, capabilities, and processes. Value creation corresponds to a complex exercise that appeals to a global and transversal analysis of the organization and its environment as well as to the knowledge and control of the variables that leads or affects its creation (value drivers) or destruction. For a question of efficiency and/or flexibility, organizations cannot perform all value chain activities and do it in a better way. Concentration in activities or knowledge areas in which they are competent enough and rely on the other members of the network’s other responsibilities is a way to strengthen their own resources and capabilities; at the same time they preserve the flexibility to face change. On the other hand, firms do not control all the fundamental resources needed for the value creation process. In this way networks are not only important, but also critical to the success, or even the survival of the organization.