How Networking Works for Networks: Framework and Case Study

Abstract

In the information age, the importance of material assets and values has decreased, while at the same time the importance of intangible assets has increased. On company level a number of instruments exists which allow for assessing intangible assets and hence utilising them in a purposeful way. The same is not true for networks, whose value is primarily based upon intangible assets such as skills of employees or IT and communication infrastructure. Within this context, this paper presents a framework, consisting of model and methodology, which accounts for intangible assets in networks. The model consists of three components, namely success factors which help to reach predefined goals, results which indicate the achievement of goals, reference measures which help to interpret results, and failure factors which could prevent the achievement of goals. The underlying methodology consists of 5 steps in which the components are filled. The result is a strategic instrument individually tailored to networks. The methodology and the model were applied in two case studies to prove their feasibility.