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Is the development of local innovation capabilities enough for foreign subsidiaries in emerging markets to be able to integrate into global R&D projects? The authors argue that it is not. The purpose of this paper is to show the central role of R&D capacities when it comes to inserting foreign subsidiaries in emerging markets into global R&D projects.

The study investigated 131 foreign multinational subsidiaries operating in Brazil. For each subsidiary, the authors surveyed two to five directors or C-level executives from innovation, R&D, engineering, product development and projects. the authors used structural equation modeling for analysis.

The results indicate that product and process innovations alone do not guarantee the insertion of the emerging market subsidiaries into global innovation projects. Such insertion depends on the subsidiary’s accumulation of R&D capacities.

The results reinforce the central issue of building product and process innovation capabilities as the first step toward a blueprint for global projects. However, the effort is not limited to these initiatives. Product and process innovation efforts need be reverted in headquarters’ eyes in order for subsidiaries to gain R&D center status. To achieve this, subsidiaries must align their technological innovations with multinational corporations’ innovation strategies.

In authors’ view, this study contributes to the literature in three main areas: the evolutionary process of innovation capability in subsidiaries, the reverse innovation debate and the discussion of subsidiaries’ initiatives.

The last few decades have seen the rapid emergence of two transformative streams in large firms. The first is the development of project management, aimed at improving the performance of innovation management, while the second, the internationalization of innovation organizations and processes in response to strategies of redeployment toward emerging countries. Both streams have been closely analyzed in the fields of project management and international management, respectively. However, the links between the two have been less studied. The purpose of this paper is to consider the hypothesis that a firm’s projectification might have an important impact on its pattern of internationalization in innovation.

First, we present the models of internationalization of innovation processes used in the multinational corporation literature. This field essentially focuses on the components of permanent organizations: global internationalization strategy and legacy, R&D footprint, characterization of local subsidiaries and the role of central head offices. Projects figure only as a context in which those elements operate, not as a structuring variable of the global innovation process pattern. The authors challenge this view by exploring whether the specificities of the firm’s projectification pattern can influence how it builds its global innovation process. The paper is based on a longitudinal case where the authors analyze the organizational transition within the Renault group, an emblematic case of a multinational that implemented a spectacular internationalization transition in the 2000s.

Our results demonstrate project organizing’s major impact on the internationalization patterns of innovation processes within the firm. They show how the deployment of a polycentric innovation footprint has been the consequence of a specific projectification transition, giving the project and program functions the autonomy to transgress centralized product development norms to adapt their project to the local environment; use the initial breakthrough project as the foundation for a new and specific global product development network through a lineage logic; and sustain this innovation global network as a permanent process of the firm.

The paper demonstrates the importance of the organization’s projectification characteristics as an important vector for successfully implementing the most advanced internationalization strategies (i.e. reverse innovation) and innovation processes models (i.e. integrated networks).

The paper characterizes project management related conditions that can govern the success of innovation strategies in high-growth emerging countries: the autonomy and empowerment of project functions; colocation and integration of teams; existence of a program function; and HR policies capable of supporting lineage management and project-to-project learning processes.

Bridging project management literature with multinational management literature. Demonstrate the key impact of projectification on internationalization pattern of the firm. Longitudinal analysis of a firm internationalization transition on a ten-year period.

The purpose of this paper is to identify and explore alternative coping strategies that may compensate for the limitations of weak governance structure in a product development project.

The findings are based on a single case study, including interviews and documents, of a product development project that consists of two interlinked projects in a large multinational company.

Two distinct procedures are identified to cope and manage effectively when there are weak project governance structures. The first procedure is a horizontal process of operational consensus-seeking where conflicts between projects are negotiated and resolved through communication between independent actors such as two project managers who are at the same hierarchical level within the same organization. The second process is a vertical process of strategic escalation where issues that have failed to be resolved are shifted upwards to a new hierarchical level where a new round of operational consensus-seeking is attempted.

This paper complements the existing understanding of project governance with a project-as-practice perspective. Based on the findings the authors suggest that project governance needs to be nuanced in its understanding since a too-structured approach may in fact increase tensions in an organization.

Practical insights include how organizations may work with its project governance structures in order to avoid tensions. The authors suggest that, in particular, politically sensitive situations may be avoided by weak rather than strong governance structures.

The authors find that weak governance structures may be efficient for the organization, but harmful to personnel, who become too focused on the task at hand.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge very little research has been attributed to project governance from a practice approach. Moreover, most attention has been given to strong structures, thereby not examining the positive implications of weak structures.

China's research and development (R&D) internationalization has grown rapidly in the 1990s. However, academic research has not kept pace with it. The purpose of this paper is to study the development characteristics and evolution pattern of China's R&D internationalization, explore its challenges to China's traditional science and technology (S&T) system, and to give some suggestions for the reform of China's S&T system as well.

An in‐depth case study about Huawei is conducted by focusing on its strategy and development pattern of overseas R&D activities. It involves two methods of data collection: comprehensive interviews and administrative records and documents of the company. More information about China's R&D internationalization and S&T system is obtained through literature review, policy documents collection and a previous questionnaire survey of 28 leading Chinese firms.

Based on the literature review, previous survey and study of the strategy and development of R&D internationalization of Huawei, a three‐stage model is proposed to explain the evolution of R&D internationalization in China. The challenges to the traditional S&T system in China are summarized. In the future, R&D internationalization should be considered as an important factor in the reform of China's S&T system. Some suggestions are given as well.

This paper puts forward a three‐stage model to explain the evolution of R&D internationalization in China, which may add both academic and practical value to the field of internationalization of R&D. It brings some valuable implications to the reform of China's S&T system as well. This paper analyzes the challenges and opportunities brought by R&D internationalization to China's S&T system on the basis of case study and policy documents collection. The suggestions of the reform of China's S&T system are presented.

This study aims to look at the relationship of external embeddedness and institutional distance (governance aspects) with the foreign subsidiary research and development (R&D) capacity. Furthermore, it examines whether these relationships are mediated by subsidiary product and process innovation, and whether institutional distance plays a moderating role in the relationship between subsidiary innovation and R&D capacity.

The authors draw on survey data from 130 foreign subsidiaries operating in Brazil and test their model using variance-based structural equation modeling.

Results suggest that subsidiary (product and process) innovation fully mediates the relationships between: subsidiary external embeddedness and R&D capacity; and institutional distance and subsidiary R&D capacity, such that the relationship is positive in case of the former and negative in case of the latter. The relationship between subsidiary product and process innovation and R&D capacity is positive and stronger at lower levels of institutional distance.

The research ignores the underlying mechanisms of the external embeddedness and institutional distance relationship with subsidiary R&D capacity. Furthermore, institutional distance based on formal governance aspects and their impacts on subsidiary innovation and R&D capacity are rarely investigated. This paper contributes with regard to these aspects.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of government intervention on a firm's innovation activities.

On the basis of previous literature, this paper proposes a framework to explain behavioral changes in the firm resulting from government interventions. Using propensity score matching technique, this research tries to estimate the effect of R&D subsidies on Iranian firms (small and medium-sized enterprises and large-sized firms).

This paper identified that R&D subsidies have a significant effect on the innovation process. Furthermore, investigations indicate that behavioral variables (innovation capabilities, collaboration agreements and risk-taking) have been partly changed in both SMEs and large firms after subsidizing. The analysis of innovation outputs showed that although R&D subsidies significantly increase the number of new products/services or patents (especially for SMEs), it could not increase the total sale of the firms. These results show that the effect of R&D subsidies has not interestingly covered all variables influencing innovation activities.

The work used dynamic capability theory, transaction cost theory and behavioral theory of the firm to explain behavioral changes in the firm resulting from government interventions.

This paper proposes several policy concerns which can help the policymakers to stimulate the innovation support procedures in Iran.

This paper provides insights for improved policymaking which in turn can aid boosting social welfare.

This paper re-conceptualized behavioral additionality based on firms’ behavioral theories and evaluated the effects of Iranian R&D subsidies on their measures.

The purpose of this paper is to show that existing project portfolio management methods have failed to take firms' long‐term strategies into account. To overcome this limitation, it is proposed to suggest technology road‐maps (TRMs) as a tool to assist with project selection and planning.

Based on bibliographic and qualitative analysis, the paper develops a systematic process of building TRMs for project portfolio management. The proposed process was applied to the project selection and planning process of a Korean government R&D program.

The paper finds that the suggested process can support strategic planning by assuring that an organization is implementing the right projects at the right time. During this process, the selection of experts, the flexibility of the process, the periodical updating of the TRM, and TRM standardization are regarded as critical issues for high‐quality technology road‐mapping.

The approach in the paper does not deal with the cost and profitability aspects of a project as part of its evaluation, nor does it consider complex relations between technologies in different projects.

The findings in the paper are expected to be helpful in establishing R&D strategy and setting priorities among projects, and in fostering coordination in project implementation.

This paper is one of the earliest attempts to systemize TRM methods specifically for project portfolio management, and is expected to make it easier for companies to adopt and apply TRMs effectively.

The problem statement is how to identify and analyze the corporate risks involved in the relationships with external agents involved in the open product innovation process (OPIP)? Seeking to extend this investigation, the purpose of this paper is to analyze the enterprise risks identified in corporate relations with external agents of the OPIP. This study proposes the systematization of the process of identification and analysis of the enterprise risks involved in the process of open product innovation.

The case explored in this study is the OPIP of Volkswagen do Brasil (VWB), one of the most important subsidiaries of the Volkswagen Group. Criteria were selected to both assessing corporate relations with external agents of the open innovation of VWB and analyzing the enterprise risks identified in these relations. Data collection included interviews with management-level professionals engaged in the OPIP activities and technical visits to a VWB’s industrial plant.

Results demonstrate that the enterprise risks mostly affecting the OPIP have a critical impact on the manufacturing process and initial sales of the new product.

The originality of the study focuses on the proposal of a systematization of how to identify and analyze the corporate risks involved in the process of open product innovation. The study focuses on the theoretical frontier on the open innovation and enterprise risk management (ERM) in the open innovation process.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the core elements and their constitutive activities of innovation of high-technology enterprises (HTEs) in the context of China to embrace effective management processes for dealing with standards setting.

The basic methodology of the empirical investigation is a single case study of ZTE Corporation (ZTE), a leading Chinese manufacturer in the telecommunication industry. Interviews were conducted from November 2008 to July 2009 with ZTE’s managers and senior R&D employees, as well as with R&D personnel from ZTE’s partners. Interviews were carried out face to face or by emails and supplemented by telephone calls and online communications. Secondary data provide complementary information.

The key to innovation for HTEs pursuing dominant positions in high-technology industries is standardization-oriented innovation. To deal with special requirements raised by the peculiarities of standardization for HTEs’ innovation management, HTEs need to emphasize three core elements in innovation, i.e. strategic innovation planning, internal R&D practices and external co-operative innovation, and focus on their key component activities. Moreover, through the case study of ZTE, three enabling factors for standardization-oriented innovation – intellectual property rights (IPR) management, market focus and co-operation along industry chains – are identified.

This paper is an attempt to understand and configure key innovation activities within a standards setting. It proposes a model for innovation management of HTEs in the Chinese economy, with three critical elements and their key constitutive activities being highlighted and three enabling factors being identified.

Successful new product and service development increasingly relies on the ability to adopt an international perspective, throughout the development process itself, and by targeting international or global markets, rather than simply serving domestic customers. Yet, although there exists an impressive body of research concerning the management of new product development, the evidence base with respect to international (or global) new product development practices and management is largely in its infancy, and is, at best, fragmented. This guest editorial provides a synopsis of the main research streams in the broad field of international new product development, highlighting major gaps in current knowledge and understanding. The special issue is a modest attempt at tapping current thoughts and research investigations in this critical area, seeking, also, to stimulate much‐needed debate and further research. One article examines whether international diversity is positively associated with new product development performance. Two articles tackle the role that national culture plays in influencing consumer acceptance of new products (technology) on the one hand, and firms’ global new product development approach on the other. A final article investigates technology transfer as a special case of new technology adoption in developing markets.