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Institutional duality incidence on subsidiaries: configuration, differentiation and avoidance strategies

Akiebe Humphrey Ahworegba (Magellan Research Centre, IAE Lyon School of Management, Jean Moulin Lyon 3 University, Lyon, France)
Christophe Estay (EM Normandie - Campus du Havre, Le Havre, France)
Myropi Garri (Faculty of Business and Law, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK)

Journal of Organizational Change Management

ISSN: 0953-4814

Article publication date: 15 October 2020

Issue publication date: 7 December 2020

316

Abstract

Purpose

To illustrate how threats of institutional duality (ID) incidence subsidiaries confront are converted to opportunities, by conceptualizing how subsidiaries attain operational legitimacy at both their headquarters (HQs) and host countries.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a systematic literature review, the authors build on institutional theories by analyzing the ID literature along its structure, main processes and outcomes. The authors configure frameworks of both HQ control systems and host countries' institutional threats, showing how subsidiaries contingently navigate across them using configuration, differentiation and avoidance strategies.

Findings

The authors’ findings show that “foresighted” subsidiaries attain operational legitimacy through configuration, differentiation and avoidance of threats incidental to ID, by strategizing along certain formal and informal institutional variables including legal, sociocultural and technical factors.

Originality/value

The authors propose “structural configuration of ID incidence” and “subsidiary path to legitimacy” frameworks. The former configures how the interaction between HQ and host countries' variables constitute ID incidence threats. The latter highlights how “foresighted” subsidiaries use configuration, differentiation and avoidance strategies to attain operational legitimacy.

Keywords

Citation

Ahworegba, A.H., Estay, C. and Garri, M. (2020), "Institutional duality incidence on subsidiaries: configuration, differentiation and avoidance strategies", Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 33 No. 7, pp. 1499-1511. https://doi.org/10.1108/JOCM-02-2020-0040

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited

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