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A study of ABB, Shell and CP Group of companies in Thailand found that the scope and management of environmental scanning activities within organizations evolve continuously as a result of volatility of the environment and the diverse nature of businesses. In the case of ABB and Shell the respective regional head office along with global head quarter participate actively in the process of environmental scanning in order to make strategic choices and grant approvals for operating budgets and new investments. The regional head quarter, in the case of ABB and Shell, plays the intervening role as information and capital resource provider whereas the country offices collect specific information at the industry and market levels and use it for implementing specific programs. In the case the of CP Group, the president and several vice presidents at the head office in Thailand play the bulk of the role in environmental scanning. All companies use business performance indicators to review the scope and the management of their environmental scanning practices.

The research on medium‐sized finance companies in Thailand shows that companies with well‐organized and managed environmental scanning practices are recovering from the impact of the 1997 financial crisis and are able to respond to the hypercompetitive market context. The industry leaders and followers show two distinct approaches in responding to business environment. The industry leaders focus on short‐ and long‐term horizons, look at a broader set of factors, are able to influence and better foresee changes in the environment and respond towards these movements more pragmatically. The industry followers are slow in capturing changes in the business environment, do not influence industry regulations and can only comply once the policies are handed out by the regulators. The leaders have managed to overcome the debt burden and are looking forward. The followers have to devote attention to cleaning up the past.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the nature and the evolution of manufacturer–supplier relationships in Thailand's automobile industry and to identify the factors that influence the evolution of these relationships.

The study is based on case research method involving in‐depth interviews with 120 local and expatriates of 7 companies and their 14 suppliers.

In Thailand, the manufacturer–supplier relationship starts out as a market‐exchange‐type relationship, and then gradually moves to a partnering type. The stages in evolution involve constant efforts on the part of foreign manufacturers to develop the suppliers by offering resources, training, feedback and solutions. The supplier capability building programs, bridging of cultural differences and formation of trust provides the basis for enduring partnerships. These partnerships are symbiotic relationships in which manufacturers benefit from suppliers' knowledge of local production and market factors and suppliers benefit from manufacturer's technical and managerial support. Additionally, closer collaboration with suppliers helps to prevent the leakage of business intelligence and theft of intellectual property and to prevent suppliers from working with competitors, thus allowing manufacturers to devote undivided attention to smooth supply of parts without any shortage.

In emerging markets, the local suppliers play key role in the success of foreign automobile companies. However, the local suppliers need technical and managerial support from manufacturers. The process of building a network of competent local suppliers consumes time and resources, therefore manufacturers should take a long‐term view of the market. The undeniable importance of overcoming cultural differences and building trust is the hallmark of successful partnerships.

The paper highlights the importance and process of developing local suppliers in emerging markets using Thai automobile industry as an example.

The purpose of this paper is to substantiate Porter's ideas through multiple case studies of firms in one of Thailand's potential niches – Thai silk.

This study examined upgrading strategies adopted by six companies involved in the production and distribution of silk and silk products in Thailand. Information was gathered from company documents and interview statements given by company executives and government policy makers. Standard approaches to organizing and analyzing qualitative case study data, including description, pattern identification, concept categorization and generalization were utilized.

The companies have implemented upgrading strategies in the following four main areas: first, balancing efficiency and old customs in production; second, innovating new products while preserving unique traditional features; third, developing modern marketing and distribution techniques with a cultural flare; and fourth, building linkages and clusters.

Stakeholders of traditional- or cultural-related industries may increase their chances of successfully renewing their businesses’ competitive advantage by carefully balancing the needs to both preserve and modernize key processes in their industries’ value chains.

The paper's findings and recommendations may to be useful to other traditional industries that share similar challenges both in Thailand and in other Southeast Asian countries.

This paper aims to investigate the effect of several valuable resources (organizational reputation, human resource management (HRM) practices, networks, and vertical integration in production) in explaining the performance of rice-milling firms in Thailand.

Resource-based view (RBV) theory was used to explain that the particular bundle of firm resources can become the source of sustainable competitive advantage and thereby improve the business's performance. Semi-structured in-depth interviews and questionnaire were used to collect data from Thailand rice exporters. Then regression technique was employed for data analysis.

Results from a survey of rice mills involved in international export showed that organizational reputation, some HRM practices, and networks were significantly related to firm's performance, but vertical integration was not.

This study supports the basic assertion of RBV theory that a set of firm specific resources could be applied in ways that enhance sustainable competitive advantage.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of organizational learning capability in relation to leadership tasks performed by executives and organizational performance by bridging the concepts of organizational learning and NSD.

The NSD processes of seven telecom service providers in Thailand are adopted as the research context. Conceptual framework is developed based on literatures and expert interviews. Multi‐item questionnaires are designed mostly based on interviews with 12 experts involving in NSD processes of those seven providers. Survey is conducted with 497 executives and employees in NSD processes of those providers. The structural equation modeling and LISREL 8.72 application are employed in data analyses.

Leadership tasks performed by NSD executives significantly affect the development of organizational learning capability, which in turn significantly affects organizational performance. The effectiveness of executives' leadership tasks and organizational learning capability development are symbiotic.

The validation and generalization of the results are still limited to the context of NSD processes of telecom service providers in Thailand. The analyses based on second‐order factors and perceptual data.

In today's context, NSD process should be managed as the dynamic learning process. The integration of executives plays a key role in facilitating the development of organizational learning capability in such a process.

The integrative framework of collective and collaborative leadership tasks, organizational learning capability, and organizational performance are tested empirically and discussed based on real practices. The complementary role of organizational learning capability is introduced.

To analyse the scope of localization strategies and corresponding benefits of these strategies to subsidiaries of international companies in the automobile industry in Thailand.

The authors have adopted the case research method to investigate localization strategies of subsidiaries of seven companies (Toyota, Hino, Honda, Isuzu, DaimlerChrysler, BMW, and Auto Alliance) as well as 14 of their dealers and suppliers in Thailand. The information was gathered by conducting in‐depth multiple interviews with 120 local and expatriate employees at various levels in the organizations; by referring to annual reports, policy documents and internal reports of these companies; and by observation during plant visits.

Contrary to the belief that international companies implement localization strategies to simply match the local market environment, it was found that these companies implement a wide range of localization strategies to achieve multiple benefits. The paper identifies nine areas of localization: localization of strategic decision making; building and exploiting the local knowledge pool; deployment of local human resources; localization of R&D; localization of products; use of local supplier networks; adaptations to manufacturing processes; local deployment of subsidiary profits; and localization of corporate image. These localization strategies are not just based on the principle of “cost‐based localization” but are based on “value‐based localization.” These strategies work in tandem and create value through a system of multiple benefits, such as managements' ability to comprehend and deal with uncertainty in the operating environment; make informed decisions to respond to challenges in developing efficient local assembly and marketing systems; cost reduction; higher degree of commitments by local employees; product customization and acceptance; and greater brand equity and image as a good corporate citizen.

Based on concrete illustrations of seven companies, this study identifies nine distinct areas for planning and implementing localization strategies and their corresponding benefits. The managers of subsidiaries can benefit by focusing their localization efforts in these areas to gain maximum advantage from host country context and then translate these advantages into a competitive international strategy.

CEOs of subsidiaries in emerging markets can learn how to build and harness local advantages for global competitiveness by implementing a wide range of localization strategies.

The increase in environmental consciousness around the world since 1970's pushed firms to engage in socially responsible behaviors. The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has naturally gained attention in the academic and business world (Colvin, 2001; Harrison & Freeman, 1999; Sen & Bhattacharya, 2001; Waddock & Smith, 2000). The reasons for these socially responsible behaviors are not only the external obligations or regulatory compliance but also the firms desire to increase competitiveness, to improve stock market performance (Bansal & Roth, 2000; Drumwright, 1994, 1996; Klassen & Mclaughlin, 1996; Russo & Fouts, 1997; Waddock & Smith, 2000) and to create a positive self‐image among consumers. There have been numerous studies on CSR suggesting a link between social initiatives and consumer's positive product and brand evaluations, brand choice and brand recommendations (Brown & Dacin, 1997; Drumwright, 1994; Handelman & Arnold, 1999; Osterhus, 1997; Sen & Bhattacharya, 2001). Moreover, the consumers are continuing to become more interested in CSR and green product market is fast growing so the use of CSR initiatives by the firms to receive the support of the society and to influence consumer behavior has become quite common. However, these socially responsible steps must also have an effect on corporations' major objective: maximizing the profits.

In this article, we try to extend previous research on socially responsible practices by investigating the effectiveness of the environmental communication of an organization. The work is mostly based on the results of a qualitative research about the environmental efforts of a supermarket chain, particularly through its replacement strategy of nylon bags by biodegradable ones. There are many studies in the marketing literature on corporate environmentalism emphasizing the advantages of communicating the socially responsible practices (Detchessahar, 2001; Gabriel, 2003; Kolk, 2000; Krogh and Roos, 1995) but there are also risks related to communication strategy. Therefore, it is very crucial to know the possible impacts of this kind of communication in order to be successful in the market (Brown and Dacin, 1997; Creyer and Ross, 1997; Sen and Bhattacharya, 2001). The impact of this communication has to be analyzed by different points of view such as the consumers, the employees and the managers. The results of this study will provide various managerial insights and recommendations for companies willing to succeed in their socially responsible actions as the responsible business practices can build sales, develop the workforce, boost enthusiasm, and enhance trust in to the company by increasing its reputation.