What is a Virtual Enterprise

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What is a Virtual Enterprise ?
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Defining Virtual

• Different definitions of the concept of
  virtual
• Virtual means unreal, looking real
• Virtual means immaterial, supported by ICT
• Virtual means potentially present
• Virtual means existing, but changing

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Defining the Virtual Organization

•  definitions of VO from literature
•  "A Virtual Organization is an organization
  network, which is structured and managed in such
  a way that it operates vis à vis customers and
  other external stakeholders as an identifiable
  and complete organization".

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Defining the Virtual Organization

• "The Virtual Corporation is a temporary network
  of independent companies linked by information
  technology to share skill, costs and access to
  one anothers markets. The companies quickly
  unite to exploit a specific opportunity and will
  disperse afterwards".

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Defining the Virtual Organization

• A Virtual Organization is a combination of
  various parties (persons and/or organizations)
  located over a wide geographical area which are
  committed to achieving a collective goal by
  pooling their core competencies and resources.
  The partners in a Virtual Organization enjoy
  equal status and are dependent upon electronic
  connections (ICT infrastructure) for the
  co-ordination of their activities.

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Defining the Virtual Organization

• "A virtual organization is primarily
  characterized as a network of independent,
  geographically dispersed organizations with a
  partial mission overlap. Within the network, all
  partners provide their own core competencies and
  the co-operation is based on semi-stable
  relations. The products and services, which a VO
  provides, are dependent on innovation and
  strongly customer based.

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Different kinds of Virtual Organizations

• Internal VO
• This sort of VO applies to one organization which
  aims at operating with internal teams. Such a VO
  consists of several business units. The
  management tasks are often carried out
  decentralized by the autonomous teams. The
  employees are available on many different places.

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Different kinds of Virtual Organizations

• Stable VO
• This sort of VO is based on the co-operation
  between different organizations and aims at
  contracting non core-competencies out by a
  main-organization (often a core partner). These
  non core-competencies are contracted out to the
  several committed suppliers.

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Different kinds of Virtual Organizations

• Dynamic VO
• A dynamic VO co-operates on a large scale basis
  with other organizations. The relations with
  these other organizations are based on
  opportunism and are always temporary.

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Characteristics of Virtual Enterprise

• no creation of a new legal entity
• limitation of scope (one or more specific
  projects)
• complementarity of partners
• use of information and communication technology

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Virtual Enterprise is...
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How to regulate a Virtual Enterprise?

• The ways in which a Virtual Enterprise may be
  structured are infinite. If Virtual Enterprise is
  regulated by agreement only, subject to basic
  contractual law, the parties can define the
  arrangements to suit their particular needs. The
  Virtual Enterprise agreement will serve as the
  constitution for regulating the relationships
  between the parties, covering not only activities
  contemplated initially but future acts which may
  not even be foreseen by the participants.

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Joint Venture

• There are at least three different structures
  under which a joint venture may be established
• Joint venture companies
• Corporate partnerships
• Contractual joint ventures
• Contractual Joint Ventures are probably the most
  suitable form for Virtual Enterprise

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MAIN EXTERNAL LEGAL ISSUES

•  Legal identification of Virtual Enterprise
•  Legal validity of electronic communications
•  Security and validity of electronic transactions
•  Liability against third parties
•  Intellectual and industrial property
•  Computer crime

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Validity of electronic communications
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Security
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MAIN INTERNAL LEGAL ISSUES

• Confidentiality of the information
• Intellectual and industrial property
• Term and termination
• Liability
• Governing law and jurisdiction
• Settlement of disputes