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The purpose of this paper is to provide a case study of Huawei's leadership role in the Internet Protocol Multi‐media Subsystem (IMS) international standards effort while it developed its own proprietary Softswitch solution. This strategy of leading the standards bodies, developing proprietary standards, and being the low‐cost provider is helping Huawei to become the number one telecom company in the world.

For this case study over 20 industry experts, both outside of Huawei and within were interviewed, and web resources utilized. The big challenge was the nebulous name IMS which combined technical standards with a vision for the future of the telecommunications.

It is a common assumption that China is a copier of technology and not one of the world's leaders in terms of technical innovation. China's Huawei Technologies Company Ltd (Huáwei Jíshu Youxiàn Gongsi) is rapidly becoming one of the world's largest telecom manufacturers and one of the key innovators in the telecom field. For example, Huawei is the world's largest supplier of Softswitch products, the software‐based solution that is the backbone for VoIP switching and is also being used in mixed Public Stitched Telephone Networks (PSTN) and VoIP networks. Huawei also plays a leading role in the standards committees for developing Next Generation Network (NGN) solutions and in 2008 Huawei had 300 engineers working on international standard committee bodies. One of the core technologies of NGN is a group of standards grouped together under the title of IMS that makes possible multimedia solutions across a wide number of platforms: cell phone (both GSM and CDMA), landlines, and television. Ultimately, most carriers have continued to invest in the old Time Division Multiplexing technology and have not stepped up to either IMS or proprietary technology. Huawei's foray into IMS demonstrated that though it is a low‐cost provider, it can be counted on to provide a pathway to the most advanced telecommunication capabilities if the customer decides they need them.

China is now a leader in the development of global telecommunications standards.

The originality in this paper is its thesis that Huawei's ability to be at the forefront of standards while being the low‐cost provider is critical to Huawei's ability to become the number one telecommunications manufacturer in the world.

To understand the rationale for foreign direct investment of Chinese electronic companies, their location decisions and entry mode choices

Secondary data on foreign direct investment of the top 100 companies in China’s electronics industry are analysed. The first part covers an exploratory analysis of the industry and the second part presents a comparative longitudinal analysis of three case studies of representative companies: Haier, Huawei, and Lenovo.

The three key findings are: (1) market-seeking is the primary motivation for foreign direct investment of Chinese companies in the electronics industry, yet the strategic-asset-seeking gains importance as the internationalization of the company advances; (2) foreign investment path normally starts at adjacent foreign markets, but more distant markets are gradually targeted and become more important for the company; (3) wholly owned investments are the preferred market entry modes in the international expansion.

This research is based on secondary data, and more in-depth, interview-based studies are needed to explore the perceptions of decision-makers, and a plethora of contextual factors, which result in specific market entry decisions. As only the 100 largest companies were studied, future research should put under scrutiny also internationalization of smaller firms.

Implications of such findings are discussed in the light of classic internationalization theories as well as the current research on internationalization of companies from emerging/developing countries.

Provides an account of foreign direct investment in a context of a substantial and growing importance for the practice of international business, and identifies an agenda for promising future scholarly inquiries.

This case study is focused on strategic management of Huawei in sustaining the competitive position in the smartphone market. The discussions in the case study begins with the big picture of “Made in China 2025” policy and China’s 14th Five-Year Plan 2021–2025 attempting to change the country’s image from imitation to innovation. The case study then focuses on Huawei, the major provider of network equipment and smartphones, with the alignment of the national policy. The case demonstrates the difficulties faced by Huawei as a result of US ban. The students are challenged to perform in-depth discussions on various issues guided by the instructor using this Teaching Note. The teaching objectives are as follows: students should be able to analyse Huawei business environment and its strategic capabilities in the smartphone market; students should be able to evaluate the extent to which the effects of US sanction would have on Huawei smartphone operation; and students should be able to evaluate the strategies for Huawei to regain a leading position and achieve competitive advantage in the global smartphone market.

Huawei is the leading company in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector. Ren Zhengfei, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Huawei, has set the vision of building a global company that could rival the best in the world. Huawei’s heavy investments in research and development (R&D) have brought the company to be a leading brand in the international market. Huawei was charged as a security threat by the Donald Trump administration in 2019. The USA and its allies banned Huawei products, causing the smartphone shipments plummeted dramatically. The case presents a protagonist, Ren Zhengfei, CEO of Huawei, who built the business from a small company to a leading global ICT company. The growth of Huawei was struck by the US sanction with the supply chain being disrupted by a shortage of advanced chip technology to run the smartphone business. The dilemma addressed in this case study is concerned with how Ren Zhengfei could steer the company out of the crisis.

This case study was written for use in the courses of Innovation Management and Technology Strategy. The case is designed to support learning at various levels including the graduate, postgraduate and executive classes. Apart from the guided questions (assignment questions provided in the next section), the instructors should consider which specific areas of Huawei should be further explored to support the class discussions to benefit the students at different levels.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CCS 11: Strategy.

This paper aims to theoretically and empirically demonstrate the role played by business continuity management (BCM) to address risks such as trade conflicts and natural disasters. This paper also answers whether compliance with international standards such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 22301 is adequate.

A case study of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei is conducted to examine how a robust end-to-end BCM system has been established in two decades and in what way it has helped Huawei to efficiently maintain growth under pressure, such as being added to the “Entity List” and the pandemic.

Huawei case contributes to BCM theory in its approach to establishing the BCM system and its well-established BCM model. Huawei establishes and continually improves its BCM system by applying the Plan (establish), Do (implement and operate), Check (monitor and review) and Act (maintain and improve) cycle. Characterized as 4Ps: BCM policy, BCM process, incident management plan and business continuity plan, Huawei BCM system is shaped into a loop with end-to-end BCM process, covering all steps along its value chain – from suppliers and partners to Huawei itself and then on to its customers – with key initiatives for all domains such as R&D, procurement, manufacturing, logistics and global technical services. In practice, implementing international standards such as ISO 22301 enables Huawei to develop business continuity but not enough. Optimizing the BCM system is an ongoing effort, and BCM maturity is ever present: continually improving Huawei’s own BCM system and benchmarking against best practices available worldwide.

Apart from the case study, other methods such as counter-factual analysis can be used to further test whether Huawei’s BCM system is cost-effective. Another direction for future study is whether suggested BCM maturity levels should be supplemented into ISO 22301. In the digital age, how to use digitalization to ensure business continuity is a current issue not just for practitioners such as Huawei but also for researchers worldwide.

In practice, implementing international standards such as ISO 22301 enables Huawei to develop business continuity but not enough. Optimizing the BCM system is an ongoing effort, and BCM maturity is ever present: continually improving Huawei’s own BCM system and benchmarking against best practices available worldwide.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies to focus on how an organization continually improves the suitability, adequacy and effectiveness of its BCM system, with special attention to standards compliance.

The aim of this article is to describe Huawei's internationalization process in Venezuela and show how socio-political and economic conditions helped to expedite the company's development in this Latin American nation between 2006 and 2019. Through this internationalization process, Huawei participated in a large technological transition in Venezuelan telecommunications.

This research uses an integrative approach, developing a quasi-case study from a review of the academic literature, contemporary news stories and institutional and practitioner documents.

The review indicates that Huawei was engaged in business with the Venezuelan phone company before its renationalization. Secondly, Huawei's internationalization was a beneficiary of the increased relations between the Venezuelan and Chinese governments, mainly through “oil for loans/goods” agreements. Lastly, this internationalization process includes wholly owned subsidiaries, direct export, greenfield and government joint ventures.

This research provides an understanding to other firms and strategists about the benefits of strong bilateral economic relationships between home and host countries.

This paper is among the first academic articles that describe the internationalization process of Huawei in Venezuela. Considering the host country's changing political and economic conditions during the last 20 years, such research may provide a perspective for considering other Chinese business expansions in Venezuela and Latin America.

The paper aims to identify the challenges faced by Huawei Technologies, China's biggest telecommunications equipment manufacturer, as it makes the transition from an indigenously‐owned business to a potentially competitive global giant.

This is an inductive, interpretative case study complimented by hands‐on experience with the industry.

The paper finds that Huawei lies at a crossroads in a transitional telecommunication sector that is no longer isolated from global reforms and advancement. Through internationalisation the company has learned to compete by adjusting their mechanisms, learning instruments and focus.

The paper is useful for practitioners in that it shows how indigenous companies in latecomer industrialising countries like China can overcome the late mover position in some of the advanced markets they have entered. For academics it highlights the role of government in helping to construct competitive indigenous firms that could take on global giants.

With the current rise of multinational enterprises (MNEs) from emerging economies (EE), more attention is now being directed to EE MNEs and what drives the internationalization of these companies. In this article we aim to provide more insights into the strategies and development of EE MNEs by conducting an in‐depth study of a Chinese high‐tech company in the communications equipment industry: Huawei. Our case study proposes that EE MNEs (1) tend to nurture their capability in the domestic market as a base before internationalization; (2) prefer to enter markets with fewer barriers in cultural, technological, economic, and institutional distances to accumulate experience and move up the value curve; and (3) use inward and outward linkages to complement their strengths and offset their weaknesses in the global market. Our study on the internationalization patterns of EE MNEs enriches and broadens current MNE theory.