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The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the discussion on how multinational company (MNC) headquarters (HQs) can manage the existing coopetition paradox to ensure innovation within the MNC. In contrast to the rather scarce previous research, the authors argue that HQ needs to solve the coopetition paradox under the sway of a parenting paradox. Hence, HQ faces a dual paradox.

Drawing on the literature on HQ’s role during MNCs’ innovation processes, this conceptual paper revisits the previously suggested HQ measures to enable coopetition among subsidiaries. By applying a sheer ignorance perspective, the authors contribute with a more nuanced understanding of the HQ’s role in innovation activities.

The article identifies four challenges as the HQ faces a parenting paradox that hinders its ability to solve the coopetition paradox: context specificity of subsidiaries’ innovation work, normative expectations of subsidiary managers, potential opportunistic behavior of HQ manager and HQ underestimation of needed resources. The article suggests that HQ needs to become more informed and preferably even embedded in the local innovation networks of its most important subsidiaries and that coopetition should not be managed solely on an HQ level.

Advocating a sheer ignorance perspective, the article pioneers in discussing the role that HQ plays in managing coopetition among subsidiaries in innovation activities.

The authors’ contention in this paper is that the expression of subsidiary strategy in IB literature has become fragmented and incomplete. Therefore, this study aims to propose a rethink on how IB scholarship approaches the important issue of subsidiary strategy by holistically examining the discrete and integrated set of activities, choices and decisions that constitute the subsidiary strategy process for, in this context, assuming a competence-creating role within the multinational enterprise (MNE).

A conceptual model is designed to illustrate the holistic process of subsidiary strategy from assigned to assumed role and how a subsidiary can navigate a pathway to elevated performance and survival.

The paper identifies the key integrated elements that constitute a holistic strategic process that can enhance a subsidiary’s standing within the MNE and maximise its survival prospects.

Particular focus is placed on subsidiaries that strategise to advance their internal corporate role to competence creator via upgraded knowledge capabilities.

This paper offers a roadmap for IB scholars to contribute to a future discourse around the subsidiary strategy process for assuming a competence-creating role.

This study aims to examine whether and why subsidiary-unit managers’ prior international work experiences across multinational enterprises’ (MNEs) home and host countries impact their subsidiary-unit performance, considering the mediating effect of their advice networks.

A survey on 222 subsidiary-unit managers (154 parent country nationals [PCNs] and 68 host country nationals [HCNs]) of a Korean MNE operating in China, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Hungary and Slovakia was conducted. The authors analyzed the data using partial least square structural equation modeling, multigroup analysis and bootstrapping techniques.

PCN subsidiary managers with more prior international work experience manage better-performing units due to the strength of the manager’s advice networks across local parties. However, for HCN subsidiary managers, this study did not find such mediating roles of the size and strength of their advice networks in the MNE home country.

This study provides novel insights and empirical evidence about the effect of the length of prior international work experience of subsidiary managers on their advice-seeking networks and subsidiary-unit performance. In addition, it draws on and add to social capital theory about how international work experience impacts dealing with local businesses and the relationship with corporate headquarters.

This study aims to investigate the drivers of political embeddedness and the possible outcome in terms of autonomy and subsidiary unique competences.

This study draws on resource dependence theory and applies structural equation modeling on a sample of 193 subsidiaries.

Political embeddedness is confirmed as a source of potential autonomy and the development of competences and is usually boosted by previous existing networks at the internal and external levels.

The authors investigate and discuss how multinational corporations can leverage political resources in host-country political arenas, extending their understanding of the interplay between political activities and market strategies.

Acknowledging previous scholarly focus on functional attributes in understanding technology acceptance behaviour, the current study aims to offer a novel perspective by integrating eight different dimensions of utilitarian and hedonic attributes to examine their influence in delivering a holistic web-based retail shopping experience.

The research model was tested and validated through data collected from 370 online shoppers across both hedonic and utilitarian product ranges. Hypotheses were tested using covariance-based structural equation modelling with multi-group analysis to examine the moderation effect.

The findings strongly support the model confirming eight new utilitarian and hedonic dimensions that influence web-based retail shopping behaviour. The findings also confirm that hedonic attributes remain important even for utilitarian product purchasing.

The key managerial implication is the demonstrated need to balance utilitarian and hedonic attributes in web-based retail platforms, where previously, there has been an overemphasis on functional features. Web-based retailers should consider the optimal blend of utilitarian (e.g. information quality) and hedonic (e.g. aesthetic) attributes in the design of a retail shopping site, irrespective of the product category.

This study integrates multiple dimensions of utilitarian and hedonic attributes into a single model and highlights the interplay of these attributes, thus extending the technology acceptance model. This paper also advances scholarship through its identification of attribute impact across different product categories.

Previous research has identified factors that enable lean change to be sustained. What remains unknown is how the interaction effects amongst these factors vary as lean change programmes mature. When are particular factors at their most influential?

Using a data and investigator triangulated qualitative research strategy, this paper tests an a priori model of change sustainability factors. In phase one, the research reveals the influence and significance of the model's change sustainability factors within 13 manufacturers. In phase two, four factors (Leadership, Political, Individual and Managerial) were selected for in-depth case study analyses in three manufacturers.

These point to when in the lean change, certain factors have the most influence on its sustainability. The Leadership factor and political factor are essential at the beginning and remain influential throughout. Employees' individual commitment (Individual factor) is significant in sustaining the change but it is at its most influential in the later stages. The Managerial factor (management approach) is influential in the mature stages of the programme.

Recognising where to put maximum focus during a lean change programme as it matures is crucial for management.

Sustaining lean change has not been studied from the perspective of what factors need to be emphasised at different stages in the programme for successful maturity to occur. Through empirical validation, this study helps address this knowledge gap.

Interesting because – Researchers have found that the majority of lean implementations fail – changes to structures and working practices are made only to see the gains dissipate. Previous research has suggested that multiple factors including leadership, culture and politics influence the change towards a lean organisation. While studies have shown that such factors play a role, what has not been studied is the time, that is, when the factors influence the change process. This study investigated when 11 factors have the most influence on lean implementation. Theoretical value – The study extends the state-of-the-art understanding of implementation of lean in organisations by adding a time element. It is found that in order to have a change that is sustainable, that is, lasting at least 18 months, factors that indicate the importance to the organisation are influential during the entire implementation process. This includes how central the change is to the organisation, the influence of leadership that sets vision and goals, and the implementation methods. Factors that can set things in motion such as the influence of important stakeholders are important at the beginning of the implementation process but then decline in influence over time. While factors that seem to have to do more with how companies operate have less influence at the start but become more influential over time. These include employees' commitment, the managerial style and approach, the organisational policies and structure, and the organisational culture. Practical value – Introducing lean into an organisation and gaining its sustained benefits is often not successful. While factors have previously been identified that influence the success of lean implementation, this study provides additional practical insight. It helps manufacturers be more effective by pinpointing which factors should be focused on during the various stages of the implementation process.

Prior institutional duality research asserts that ceremonial implementation of organisational practice protects multinational corporations’ subsidiaries. However, the temporal dynamics of the safeguarding function has been under researched. Public sector organisations have also been ignored. This research aims to explore how the safeguarding function is created, maintained and disrupted using the overseas offices (OOs) of a bilateral development agency (BDA) as a case.

A multi-case study, underpinned by neo-institutionalism, was conducted. Data obtained from in-depth remote interviews with 39 informants from the BDA OOs were analysed using the “asking small and large questions” technique, four analytical techniques, cross-case synthesis and theoretical propositions.

A three-phase process was identified. The first phase is the appearance of discrepancies due to institutional duality. The second is the emergence of ceremonial implementation as a solution. In the third phase, “the creation, maintenance and disruption of a safeguarding function” begins. When ceremonial implementation successfully protects the OOs, the safeguarding function is created. The OOs are likely to repeat ceremonial implementation, thus sustaining the function. Meanwhile, when conditions such as management staff change, ceremonial implementation may not take place, and the safeguarding function disappears.

The BDA OOs may not face strong host country regulative pressures because they are donors to aid-recipient countries. Hence, the findings may not directly apply to other public sector organisations.

Development cooperation practitioners should understand that ceremonial implementation is not exclusively harmful.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first institutional duality research that explores the temporal dynamics of safeguarding functions targeting public sector organisations.

The phenomenon of social withdrawal, known as the hikikomori-like idiom of distress (HLID), has been reported in many countries. This study aimed to explore profiles of Omanis who have HLID.

A cross-sectional online survey of 673 out of 1,529 Omanis identified with HLID using the Hikikomori Questionnaire (HQ-25) score of 42+.

Two profile groups were determined through cluster analysis according to socio-demographic and HQ-25 outcomes. Subjects in cluster 1 (n = 168, 24.9%) are significantly younger (p < 0.001) and more educated (p = 0.019), spend more time online (p < 0.001) and are living alone (p < 0.001) than subjects in cluster 2 (n = 505, 75.1%). More subjects in cluster 1 had a past mental illness (p = 0.037) but less previous childhood physical/emotional abuse (p = 0.029) than subjects in cluster 2. In contrast, subjects in cluster 2 had a low lack of socialization (p < 0.001), less active isolation (p < 0.001) and total HQ-25 scores (p < 0.001) than cluster 1. Subjects in Cluster 1 have more serious social withdrawal issues than those in Cluster 2, especially on a lack of socialization and isolation.

One limitation that might influence the results of this online study was that information was collected via self-report, and a cross-sectional design limits its results because it cannot assess causal inference. This study has contributed valuably to exploring different profile groups of HDLD, especially in the Arabian Gulf. The authors’ findings facilitate the development by creating innovative interventions strategically tackling different hikikomori groups.

While social withdrawal characterized by HLID has been reported proliferating in different parts of the world, little research has been forthcoming from Arabian Gulf countries. These findings suggest that there are two orthogonal clusters of HLID among Omanis. This study provides a foundation for further research on HLID, which has recently been reported in different parts of the world.

In the wine industry, maintaining superior quality standards is crucial to meet the expectations of both producers and consumers. Traditional approaches to assessing wine quality involve labor-intensive processes and rely on the expertise of connoisseurs proficient in identifying taste profiles and key quality factors. In this research, we introduce an innovative and efficient approach centered on the analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) signals using an electronic nose, thereby empowering nonexperts to accurately assess wine quality.

To devise an optimal algorithm for this purpose, we conducted four computational experiments, culminating in the development of a specialized deep learning network. This network seamlessly integrates 1D-convolutional and long-short-term memory layers, tailor-made for the intricate task at hand. Rigorous validation ensued, employing a leave-one-out cross-validation methodology to scrutinize the efficacy of our design.

The outcomes of these e-demonstrates were subjected to meticulous evaluation and analysis, which unequivocally demonstrate that our proposed architecture consistently attains promising recognition accuracies, ranging impressively from 87.8% to an astonishing 99.41%. All this is achieved within a remarkably brief timeframe of a mere 4 seconds. These compelling findings have far-reaching implications, promising to revolutionize the assessment and tracking of wine quality, ultimately affording substantial benefits to the wine industry and all its stakeholders, with a particular focus on the critical aspect of VOCs signal analysis.

This research has not been published anywhere else.

This study aims to address this unexplored influence of international assignment types on the development, transfer and utilization of career capital by assigned repatriates from host to home country. In response to existing literature gap, it aligns with the need for qualitative case studies that delve into threats to the self-reinforcement of repatriates' career capital.

By mean of a qualitative case study, this paper deepens understanding of linkages and processes in career capital development and clarify the interplay between individual interpretations of career actions and the organizational context in which they unfold. Nineteen qualitative interviews with assigned repatriates explored the impact of exposure to new career contexts.

This study provides valuable insights into the complex dynamics of career capital development and transfer during international assignments. It elucidates the impact of career context on assigned repatriates' career capital, emphasizing challenges in career capital generation, dispersion and absorption within multinational enterprises. It contributes to understanding the complexities of (new) managerial capacity development by revealing varied effects that international assignments can exert on individuals' immediate competencies and career capital.

If the assigned expatriate/repatriate’s understanding of the firm’s assignment motive, and their own motive (understanding/reason) for the assignment corresponds then expectations of outcomes can be better managed. Organizations otherwise run the risk of perpetuating inequities in the career development opportunities of employees.

Studies on career capital emphasize its qualities or examine different globally mobile employee types. Yet there's a gap in understanding how the type of assignment impacts career capital development, transfer and utilization. This research fills this void by investigating the international transfer of career capital from host to home country specifically for assigned repatriates.