Multicultural leaders from emerging markets: transforming international acquisitions and corporate social responsibility
International Journal of Emerging Markets
ISSN: 1746-8809
Article publication date: 14 June 2021
Issue publication date: 19 May 2022
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the influence and advantages of leadership multiculturalism on global strategy development through cross-border mergers and acquisitions (CBA) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) from emerging market multinational companies (EMNCs) expanding into emerged markets. The key contribution of asymmetric multiculturalism is a novel finding based on inductive research. We fill a gap by further linking business leader characteristics and corporate strategic actions and examining how multicultural business leaders from emerging markets can be highly effective at CBA and CSR.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper draws on in-depth interviews, observations and documentary evidence analyzed with iterative coding, construct definition and thematic development to understand how leadership multiculturalism affects CBA and CSR in an EMNC over time.
Findings
The new construct of leadership asymmetric multiculturalism describes strategic advantages accruing to leaders from developing markets who are culturally fluent in both emerging and emerged market milieus. The construct contributes to emergent research on the rise of multicultural leaders and their strategic advantages and delineates a pathway toward identifying advantages of emerging over emerged market business leaders.
Research limitations/implications
The research addresses specific CBA and CSR strategies within one emerging market region and EMNC. Future research should further articulate and validate the key construct of asymmetric multiculturalism, further examine its sources, draw more explicit comparisons with data from emerged market leaders, and explore the applicability of these findings to strategic actions and advantages in both emerging and emerged markets.
Practical implications
Emerging market corporate leaders should identify and develop pertinent aspects of their own asymmetric multiculturalism in enacting CBA and CSR strategy with respect to EMNCs and firms from developed markets. Emerged market leaders should become more aware of and cultivate their own multiculturalism.
Social implications
Asymmetric multiculturalism can be accompanied by heightened awareness of global citizenship — including codes of ethics, environmental challenges, community outreach and fair labor practices — which, in tandem with CBA, can strengthen emerging market firms’ performance and reinforce their global stature and reputation.
Originality/value
Asymmetric multiculturalism is a new explanatory construct in the sociological, economic and management disciplines. Emerging markets corporate leaders utilize their multicultural competence to accelerate global CBA and CSR activity and advance strategic opportunities for their firms. The identification of advantages deriving from emerging market leadership capabilities is an unusual finding given the more typical emphasis on the privileges of emerged market leaders and firms.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors thank John Carroll, Alvaro Cuervo-Cazurra, David Kroon, Anthony Nyberg, the journal editors, and three anonymous reviewers for their encouragement and formative recommendations. Kathleen Park thanks the Boston University MET Office of the Dean, the BU Chadwick Fellowship, and the MIT Sloan School of Management Office of the Dean throughout the span of the research. We thank graduate students Feras Alnasrallah, Faisal Alreshaid, Hanan Alyousef, Abdulaziz Albahar, Hessa Alsabah, Abdulaziz Alzain, Hamad Alwazzan, Yousef Alghanim, and Muhammad Alnasiri; esteemed colleagues Sulaiman Alwaqaian, Nizar Aladsani, and Salem Altuhaih; and the College of Business Administration of the Gulf University for Science and Technology. Earlier versions of this paper appeared at the Strategic Management Society workshop in 2018, the European Academy of Management 2019 and the Academy of Management 2019. This paper is dedicated to the memories of Hiroaki Izumi and Phyllis Wallace, who launched and inspired the research.
Citation
Park, K. and Wallace, F. (2022), "Multicultural leaders from emerging markets: transforming international acquisitions and corporate social responsibility", International Journal of Emerging Markets, Vol. 17 No. 5, pp. 1336-1370. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOEM-01-2019-0074
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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