The limits and promises of embeddedness as a strategy for social value creation
Critical Perspectives on International Business
ISSN: 1742-2043
Article publication date: 23 January 2019
Issue publication date: 25 February 2020
Abstract
Purpose
Multinational enterprises (MNEs) attempting to create social value in base of the pyramid (BoP) economies are encumbered by unique market and institutional barriers. To overcome these challenges, BoP scholars have advocated the strategy of using embeddedness as a replacement for inefficient formal institutions. Reliance on informal social ties for coordinating market exchange, however, leads to costly investments, exposure to opportunism and the creation of nontransferable capabilities. This paper aims to investigate these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors argue that embeddedness should be used as an intermediate step toward developing more enduring formal institutions rather than as a replacement for them.
Findings
The authors put forward the notion of proto-institutions as a useful concept for exploring how MNEs can engage in co-designing efficient and inclusive institutional forms aimed at engendering long-term social value creation.
Originality/value
The authors identify three institutional fields wherein MNEs can leverage social embeddedness to develop proto-institutions that are potentially transferable to become formal institutions. First, MNEs can build governance institutions that can enhance coordination among local actors. Second, MNEs can experiment with small-scale change and adaptation of market institutions that reduce transaction costs and facilitate market exchanges. For example, improved institutional practices in value chain governance can boost business performance while also improving the livelihoods of supply chain partners. Finally, the authors discuss the potential for developing favorable socio-cultural institutions by introducing new principles of organizing or educational practices.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This study is part of the research agenda of the Knowledge Platform Development Policies, which was funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs through NWO-WOTRO. The authors gratefully acknowledge NWO-WOTRO for making available the resources that made the research possible.
Citation
Lashitew, A.A. and van Tulder, R. (2020), "The limits and promises of embeddedness as a strategy for social value creation", Critical Perspectives on International Business, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 100-115. https://doi.org/10.1108/cpoib-02-2018-0021
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited