Embrapa’s alliance department: role and position

This article offers an empirical base regarding the elements that make up alliance capability. Specifically, it attempts to understand the activities of the alliance portfolio management and its relationship to the rest of the organization. To accomplish this, it relies on premises in the literature relative to dynamic capabilities, the knowledge-based view, the competence-based view and the theory of organizational learning. The research method was a case study, using semi-structured interviews, analysis of documents and participative observation. The results show the importance and the role of the area in charge of managing the alliance portfolio. It points out this area’s functions related to the structure of the organization, provides empirical evidence of those functions, and demonstrates how the management process effectively proceeds in its different stages.