This paper focuses on the relationship between learning, skill acquisi
tion, and strategic alliances to build competitive advantage. In parti
cular, we focus on how senior management can structure their alliances
as learning platforms to assimilate new technologies and skills to re
vitalize their core operations and to find new uses for existing skill
s. Firms that enter strategic alliances without recognizing how knowle
dge and skills form the basis for future competitive advantage are lik
ely to lose not only their technologies and skills, but also their abi
lity to shape future products in that industry. Co-operation or intera
ction with an alliance partner to enter new markets or to develop new
products also leads to competition in learning new skills and insights
from one another.