Decision-making in international business

This paper distinguishes three domains of international business theory: the boundaries of the multinational enterprise, the external environment of the enterprise and its internal structure. The central concern of internalisation theory is the boundaries of the firm. Any general theory of international business must analyse the external environment and internal structure as well. Competition dominates the external environment whilst co-operation dominates internal structure. Different models of decision-making are required for each. Different theories of decision-making must therefore be integrated in order to transform internalisation theory into a general theory of international business. This paper examines how this can be done

What we talk about when we talk about "global mindset": managerial cognition in multinational corporations

Recent developments in the global economy and in multinational corporations have placed significant emphasis on the cognitive orientations of managers, giving rise to a number of concepts such as “global mindset” that are presumed to be associated with the effective management of multinational corporations (MNCs). This paper reviews the literature on global mindset and clarifies some of the conceptual confusion surrounding the construct. We identify common themes across writers, suggesting that the majority of studies fall into one of three research perspectives: cultural, strategic, and multidimensional. We also identify two constructs from the social sciences that underlie the perspectives found in the literature: cosmopolitanism and cognitive complexity and use these two constructs to develop an integrative theoretical framework of global mindset. We then provide a critical assessment of the field of global mindset and suggest directions for future theoretical and empirical research

Market-seeking MNEs in an emerging market: How parent–subsidiary links shape overseas success

This study extends research on parent–subsidiary links, applying new theoretical perspectives – those of resource dependence and dynamic capability – to the new empirical setting of an emerging market. We suggest that parent–subsidiary links help to mitigate emerging market threats by reducing external dependence, and help to capitalize on emerging market opportunities by enhancing local responsiveness.We identify four dimensions (resource commitment, information flow, local responsiveness and control flexibility) to parent–subsidiary links, and examine environmental effects in moderating the contribution of these dimensions. The analysis of 196 Multi National Enterprise (MNE) subsidiaries in China shows that a parent firm's control flexibility, resource commitment and local responsiveness exert a strong and positive influences on subsidiary performance. These influences are weaker when regulatory interference is higher, but stronger when industrial opportunity is richer. Journal of International Business Studies (2003) 34, 290–309. doi:10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400027