COOPETITION STRATEGIES IN THE BRAZILIAN HIGHER EDUCATION

ABSTRACT Coopetition is a relationship strategy between firms or institutions that compete and cooperate simultaneously in different areas. Coopetition occurs in several inter-organizational arrangements. This article establishes theoretical propositions about coopetition strategies based on the Consortium of Community Universities in the South of Brazil (Consórcio das Universidades Comunitárias Gaúchas - Comung), which is formed of 15 higher education institutions (HEIs) located in the South of Brazil. This article investigates a single case with multiple analysis units conducted through in loco interviews with the President of the Comung and the managers of the HEIs, along with secondary data. The results indicate that coopetition has been used as a mechanism for market protection and to gain access to unavailable resources individually from the dynamic interactions between the Comung HEIs.