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This paper relates the different motives for transferring employees internationally to the conduct of each major international strategy (multidomestic, global, and transnational), proposes seven hypotheses on these relationships, presents and discusses the results of a survey of heads of human resources or international operations in United States based companies, and concludes with theoretical and practitioner implications of the study and suggestions for future research. We found significant support for three hypotheses and directional support for two others.

Globalization, the multinational firm, and emerging economies have marked the world economic landscape during the last two decades. They will likely continue to define international economic activity in the foreseeable future. This opening piece of the conference on globalization, the multinational firm, and emerging economies helps frame these concepts in today's economic landscape. It explores the impact globalization and the multinational firm have had, and will continue to have, on the emergence of newly industrializing economies onto the world scene and critically evaluates policy options typically followed by these economies to arrive at sustainable economic progress. It concludes with recommendations for future explorations of the interplay of globalization, the multinational firm, and economic emergence.

Based on fifteen years of data on the annual Academy of International Business (AIB) best dissertation Farmer Award finalists, we find that these dissertations were done at a range of North American universities. Interestingly, dissertation topics differed from the topics covered in the three top IB journals with five‐sixths of the topics in management, organization, economics, or finance and two‐thirds set in a single country or region (U.S., Japan, North America, and Western Europe). Survey research is the most common methodology but analysis of secondary data is growing. As expected, the finalists are on average an extraordinarily prolific group.

Cross‐national strategy as opposed to country‐by‐country strategy may take place on a regional or on a global basis. This paper examines the European regional office experience of 16 large U.S. firms in terms of (1) the types of responsibilities they handle and why, (2) the problems of removing control and/or duties from country subsidiaries, and (3) the relationship between a regional and global strategy and implementation. The companies' experiences have been quite diverse, thus highlighting multiple opportunities but the need to approach the development of regional operations cautiously. In spite of some problems, the future for European regional management seems bright.

The design of bibliographic records for computer input is explored. The elements of a record provide bibliographic description, serve as retrieval keys, facilitate ordered filing, and indicate locations. The effect of each of these functions on the form of the record is discussed. Problems are raised that must be resolved before an optimal record can be designed.

This paper highlights the evolvement of international business curricula during the 1990s, with an emphasis on occurrences at IU. Because business students are increasingly entering universities with more international experience and international learning expectations than in the past, business schools must respond with course content changes; however, not all professors feel comfortable in adding substantial international content to their courses. Business schools have responded in three organizational ways – separation, infusion, and diffusion – none of which has been without problems. During the 1990s, IU followed a combination of the first two.

This paper explores the major factors influencing multinational companies’ (MNCs) propensity to change the level of resource commitments during financial crises in emerging markets. Favorable changes in the host government policies, market demand, firm strategy, and infrastructural conditions are hypothesized to influence the MNCs’ decision to increase resource commitments during a crisis. The hypotheses are tested with data collected in a survey of 82 MNCs during the recent Argentine financial crisis (late 2002). While all the above variables are considered by the respondents as generally important reasons for increasing resource commitments during a crisis, only favorable changes in government policies significantly influence MNCs’ decisions to change the level of resource commitments during the Argentine financial crisis. The research, managerial implications, and policy‐making implications are discussed.

This research analyzes two issues: (1) MNCs' foreign entry process, and (2) the relationship between foreign entry strategy and international technology transfer. The study is based on a comparative case analysis of ten U.S. high-tech manufacturers operating in the Asian Pacific Rim.We analyzed firms' foreign entry processes and compared them with the predictions of internationalization theory. We also studied the causal relationship between a firm's international technology transfer policy and its foreign entry strategy.We found support for companies' incremental Asian commitment in terms of operating mode; however, their reasons were different from those professed in internationalization theory. We also found that foreign entry process varies with the purpose and nature of foreign business activities. The stage theory is less applicable to firms that follow customers into foreign markets, firms whose foreign expansion is to improve customer service, and firms that must produce abroad to sell abroad. Finally, host government policies also tend to limit the applicability of the stage process model.In addition, we found that companies' desire to sell abroad was the overriding consideration to enter foreign markets. As such, they accepted operating modes to maximize their sales, even at the risk that collaborative partners could more easily appropriate the technologies they transferred. However, the danger of technology loss was mitigated by a belief that their core competency was the ability to develop ever-newer technologies rather than the product and process technologies they transferred.

In this study, we examine the location strategies (e.g., developing versus developed countries) of Chinese multinational firms (Pantzalis 2001). We argue that domestic firm‐specific ownership advantages of a firm, in the form of larger size and higher degree of diversification, will induce internationalization into developed countries rather than into developing countries. We also predict that internationalization into developed countries will help performance, but internationalization into developing countries will hurt performance. Based on an analysis of data on 154 Chinese‐listed MNCs from 1992 to 2002, we find support for our predictions.

This study examines the managerial attitudes of 322 Wisconsin manufacturers about the impact of the EC‐1992 on their business. A survey was conducted with small‐ and medium‐sized manufacturers inquiring about their attitudes about the potential benefits of EC‐1992; firm perceived strength in post‐1992 Europe; available strategic options to management responding to the changes in industry structure that the 1992 reforms promise to stimulate; and size characteristics of the firm. Research findings indicate that the majority of those surveyed do not foresee any change in their business with European nations. In addition, substantial differences occur between smaller manufacturers from the standpoint of size, planning activities, and their perceived strength in post‐1992.