Strategic alliances are a form of cooperation that guarantees independence to every partner, and at the same time enables the acquiring of key competencies for achieving competitiveness. Strategic alliances in pharmaceutical industry are most commonly forged in the process of research and development of a new drug and during commercialization of the drug. With regard to this, pharmaceutical companies join together amongst each other, as well as with biotechnological companies. Research of the best business practices in the international market has shown that a large number of pharmaceutical companies take advantage of strategic alliances. Pharmaceutical industry in Croatia faces a great challenge. Foreign pharmaceutical companies present a fierce competition on Croatian pharmaceutical market. Croatian pharmaceutical companies cover less than a half of the domestic market. Furthermore, the market position of domestic pharmaceutical companies is additionally jeopardised by the problem of insolvency, meagre sources of capital and lack of new technologies. The purpose of doctoral dissertation entitled Strategic alliances in the function of growth and development of pharmaceutical industry in Croatia is to answer the following question: can strategic alliances help the pharmaceutical industry in consolidating the market position of Croatian pharmaceutical companies on the domestic, but also in the foreign market? Consequently, a survey was carried out and the respondents were pharmaceutical companies in Croatia. The results have shown that strategic alliances can function as the catalysts of growth and development of pharmaceutical industry in Croatia. Eight out of nine hypotheses have been confirmed, and one has been refuted. Strategic alliances have a positive effect on the following factors of growth and development of pharmaceutical industry in Croatia: new technologies, new knowledge, expansion of the product lines, larger market share in the domestic and foreign markets and better business outcome. However, strategic alliances have no effect on product innovation. In accordance with the results obtained, a model of Strategic alliances influence on the growth and development of pharmaceutical industry in Croatia was proposed.