A Failure to Collaborate?

This article comments on the failure of companies to collaborate. Pundits have been saying for at least the past 6 or 7 years that company-to-company collaboration is going to be huge in the business world, and that information technology will be the prime enabler. While collaboration among companies is not as widespread as it should be, some individual information technology executives recognize the power of working together for a common goal. Energy companies collaborate, sharing in the exploration and development of oil fields. Collaboration happens in aerospace as well. Boeing works with European aerospace companies to jointly design airframe components. However, these sorts of endeavors are huge, expensive undertakings that would be cost-prohibitive for one company to tackle alone. In these cases, the efficiencies of collaboration are significant enough to overcome the logistical hassles, security issues and general mistrust that tend to isolate U.S. companies. This cost-efficiency dynamic applies to health care as well. Hospitals, insurers, pharmaceutical companies all have enormous costs and considerable pricing pressure from their constituents. In fact, if any industry needs collaboration, its healthcare.