Search results

This article takes stock of interdisciplinary research on Multinational Corporations (MNCs) by elucidating paradigmatic shifts in the world of MNCs in the new millennium and analysing more recent developments in the disciplines of International Business (IB) and Organization Theory (OT). The article also introduces the altogether 14 individual contributions of this 49th volume of the Research in the Sociology of Organizations series. It closes by looking into the questions of where interdisciplinary OT/IB research on MNCs is now and where it is likely to go in the future.

The multilingual MNC provides a promising territory for enhancing the dialogue between organization theory and International Business. We draw parallels between research on the multinational corporation and that on the multilingual corporation. Our review shows that the changing conceptualizations of the MNC toward a network model have carved space for language-sensitive research in International Business. We scrutinize this stream of research from the viewpoint of three organization theory lenses: the role of language in organizational design and architecture, in identity building and culture, and in organizational political systems, and comment on future research.

Derived from work conducted on the topics of Lean‐thinking and Lean‐Kaizen some management practices or techniques, such as the 5Ss, have recently become important in this research. The reason for this is that more and more of the companies that apply Lean‐thinking and Lean‐Kaizen are using the 5Ss as an essential step in their implementation. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the implementation of the 5Ss in multinational organisations in Mexico empirically, in order to analyse and compare them against the respective theoretical frameworks. The research question that governs the study is: “How are the 5Ss implemented in an organisational context such as that of a multinational company in Mexico?”

An exploratory multiple case study was conducted. Three multinational companies, which have been established in Mexico for at least 20 years, were selected. Two of these companies were from the automotive sector (suppliers) and the third was a company manufacturing hygiene and cleaning products. Four methods were used to gather data: direct observation, participative observation, documentary analysis, and semi‐structured interviews.

Based on cross analysis findings, a group of reasons was found for applying the 5Ss in the multinational organisations analysed, along with a group of drivers and inhibitors responsible for enhancing or blocking the successful implementation of the 5Ss. Finally, a conceptual framework was also established, based on the results of comparing theory and fieldwork: this provides a glimpse into the relationship of the 5Ss with other improvement programmes, known as Lean‐thinking or Lean‐Kaizen, in the organisations analysed. In particular, the framework show the importance between do (way: philosophy) and jyutsu (techniques) during the implantation process of 5Ss.

Derived to describe three case studies on how to implement the 5Ss within a programme or model for the Lean‐thinking or Lean‐Kaizen approach, it may prove to be of value to practitioners and managers involved in the field. Similarly, a section on managerial implications has also been included.

The study contributes to the limited existing literature on the 5Ss through research that seeks to understand how this technique is implemented in a context of multinational organisations, particularly emphasising the main drivers and inhibitors that enhance or block it during the implementation process. It also includes a theoretical framework that can demonstrate the relationship of the 5Ss with the Lean‐thinking and Lean‐Kaizen programmes in this context: In particular for Latin America and Mexico, where virtually no academic studies of this type have been conducted.

For knowledge transfer in multinational organizations, knowledge management studies draw on diverse practices, such as employees’ language proficiency or environments, such as cultural contexts, but pay little attention to the practical role of external agents, i.e. translators. The purpose of this study is to analyze how translators facilitate knowledge transfer, using their professional identity in relation to employees’ cultural competence and organizations’ Human Resource Management (HRM) practices.

This study examines survey data on 182 translators and 206 HRM managers who work in multinational organizations. Regarding common method bias, comparing people with different views and inclusion of control variables collected from archival sources will help the empirical results to be robust.

This study finds that translators’ business-oriented professional identities complement employees’ cultural competence and eventually promote knowledge transfer. Furthermore, translators’ business-oriented professional identities are enhanced by organizations’ commitment-based HRM practices.

This study expands knowledge management studies by incorporating external agents into the analysis of knowledge transfer. Particularly for the language approach in knowledge management, the framework of this study sheds light on the critical dimension of translators’ professional identity for organizational goals. Practically, this study suggests that multinational organizations should design commitment-based HRM practices to motivate translators’ business-oriented identity for knowledge transfer.

This paper aims at comparing teleworking adoption decision processes of multinational firms operating in Malaysia and Malaysian indigenous firms. It shows how to make comparative statistical analyses of teleworking adoption decision for the top managers of a firm.

A total of 98 organizations (represented by the CEO or Director of Human Resource Division) furnished usable responses for this study, out of a total of 162 organizations registered with the Penang Development Corporation (the registrar of companies that participated in the survey).

The results of statistical tests show that, in both multinational and Malaysia firms, the nature of work, organisational design, transportation problems, and relative advantage are important telework drivers. Availability of teleworking infrastructures is an important determinant of adoption in Malaysian firms but not in multinational firms, while workforce limitations have a strong influence on teleworking adoption in multinational firms but none in Malaysian firms.

The interest in teleworking as a new work arrangement among practitioners, government policy makers and organisations (foreign and local) in Malaysia, triggered by changes in society, has resulted in an unprecedented interest in research in this area, including the current effort.

This is a review article on the effectiveness of cross‐cultural managements of multinational companies. Analysis is based on the relationships between national and corporate culture and these corporate cultures vary across nations and how multinational companies can adopt the national differences.

The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical evidence regarding the springboard regionalization strategy implemented by multinationals entering Latin America and the organizational networks developed to serve this end.

Using the organizational network approach, a typology is developed to explain the Springboard network. Quantitative analysis is used, in the form of logistic binary regression, to study these networks composition.

From a sample of 154 subsidiaries extracted from the AMADEUS intelligent database, three categories for multinational’s networks are created, with the Spanish subsidiary acting as the leader: strategic centers (SCs), administrative centers (ACs) and regional headquaters (RHQs). Findings provide evidence of cultural features, industry behavior and the multinational’s size and entry mode influence these networks organization.

It is proposed that culture and historical ties have evolved together and management scholars should be aware of this phenomenon. Specific limitation that this study exhibits is the data provided by AMADEUS and the fact that R&D information for both the Spanish and the Latin American subsidiary were not available.

Staffing composition and expatriate corporate policy should consider the springboard effect to manage springboard networks.

Industries and authorities in all countries involved should be aware of their role in MNC strategies for regional expansion.

It is argued that a network of subsidiaries within the multinational can participation in the springboard behavior, which is determined by the culture that the multinational originates from, as well as the Spanish culture, creating a particular type of leadership.

Multinational structure has been linked to operational flexibilities that can improve corporate adaptability and a knowledge‐based view suggests that multinational resource diversity can facilitate responsive opportunities. The enhanced maneuverability from this can reduce earnings volatility and hence the corporate performance risk. But, the internationalization process may also require irreversible investments that increase corporate exposures and leave the risk implications of multinational enterprize somewhat ambiguous. Hence, the purpose of the paper is to present an empirical study of the implied relationships between the degree of multinationality and various risk measures including downside risk, upside potential, and performance risk.

The paper provides a brief literature review, develops hypotheses, and tests them in two‐stage least square regressions on archival data to control for pre‐selection biases.

The analyses indicate that multinationality is associated with lower downside risk as well as higher upside potential and leads to reduced performance risk. The study finds no trace of diminishing effects from higher degrees of multinationality.

The empirical study uses a sample of large US‐based corporations, which could affect the generalizability of results. However, this is consistent with other studies and eases comparability of findings.

The findings add to the ongoing debate about the risk effects of a multinational corporate structure and confirms that a diverse multinational presence is associated with positive risk outcomes.

The paper complements a limited number of studies with equivocal results and adopts alternative risk outcome measures. The study extends the industry scope by introducing a comprehensive sample of firms operating in different manufacturing and service businesses.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges to information and communication technologies (ICT) implementation in multinationals. The paper focuses on contextual variables relevant to the understanding of the implementation of ICT in organizations operating in the Middle East, such as organization culture and power relations.

The study is based on interviews with 31 employees of a multinational company that operates in the Middle East. In addition, 60 days of electronic mail of two senior managers were studied and random samples of messages from the computers of six participants collected. Altogether 200 e‐mail messages, spanning seven months were surveyed.

It was found that the transplantation of ICT was based on the construction of technology as symbolizing the value of modernity. Although employees did not resist the implementation of ICT tools, several problems related to language and access to data had an impact on their work. Furthermore, the ICT tools implicitly assumed a utilitarian discourse that values computer‐mediated more than face‐to‐face communication, but the organization rejected this aspect of the tools.

We argue that more flexible designs of ICT should take into account the particular discourse system employed in order to achieve a better fit between the ICT tools and the users.

The paper focuses on a neglected area of research, the implementation of ICT tools in culturally diverse organizations and discusses contextual variables relevant to the understanding of the implementation of ICT in organizations such as organization culture and power relations which have not been extensively discussed in the literature.

The purpose of this paper is to compare the importance and performance of managerial training in India among different industrial sectors in the light of asynchronous industrial growth in last two decades which has unevenly touched various business organizations.

For the purpose of analysis organizations are divided at two levels. At the first level, they are divided between multinational and Indian origin category and at the second level between service and manufacturing category. A 2×2 full factorial design with unequal numbers is used to analyze main as well as interaction impacts. A sample size of 542 is taken which comprises training professionals, top/general managers and trainee employees.

Study concludes that Indian origin organizations fall short in terms of importance given and performance of training function compared to multinational companies. Further, it is found that service companies have an edge over manufacturing companies in terms of importance and performance of training.

Study is mainly focussed on large organizations in India and may not be representative of small organizations. The major implication is that Indian origin organizations as well as manufacturing organizations have to devote more time and financial resources to training to compete in the era of globalization.

It is implied from the findings that a concerted effort by training professionals in Indian and manufacturing companies is required to improve the content as well as image of the training function to get the due attention and resources within the organization.

The paper presents an original perspective on situation of training function in Indian organizations and will be of importance to training professionals and other stakeholders.