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Book part
Publication date: 30 November 2020

Kseniia Puzyreva and Nikita Basov

Owing to the climate change, the number of flood hazards and communities at risk is expected to rise. The increasing flood risk exposure is paralleled with an understanding that…

Abstract

Owing to the climate change, the number of flood hazards and communities at risk is expected to rise. The increasing flood risk exposure is paralleled with an understanding that hard flood defense measures should be complemented with soft sociotechnical approaches to flood management. Among other things, this involves development of a dialogue between professionals and flood-prone communities to ensure that the decisions made correspond to the peculiarities of local socioenvironmental contexts. However, in practice, establishment of such a dialogue proves to be challenging. Flood-prone communities are often treated as mere recipients of professional knowledge and their local knowledge remains underrated. Building on an illustrative case study of one rural settlement in North-West Russia, we examine how at-risk communities develop their local knowledge and put it to use as they struggle with adverse impacts of flooding, when the existing flood protection means are insufficient. Our findings showcase that local knowledge of Russian flood-prone communities is axiomatic and tacit, acquired performatively through daily interaction of local residents with their natural and sociotechnical environments. Even if unacknowledged by both the local residents and flood management professionals as a valuable asset for long-term flood management, it is local knowledge that informs local communities' practices and enables their coexistence with the treacherous waters.

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International Case Studies in the Management of Disasters
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83982-187-5

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 19 April 2017

Minyuan Zhao and Mazhar Islam

Firms are increasingly organizing cross-regional R&D collaborations among different units. Such collaborations should promote knowledge flows across distance and bring new…

Abstract

Firms are increasingly organizing cross-regional R&D collaborations among different units. Such collaborations should promote knowledge flows across distance and bring new knowledge to the local communities. However, the nature of cross-regional collaborations varies widely depending on the organizations within which they are organized. Compared with collaborations within small firms, collaborations in large firms tend to be routinized, which reduces the need for interpersonal interactions and increases the dependence on organizational structure. As a result, additional spillover from cross-regional collaboration is likely to be lower if the collaboration is within large firms. We extend this argument to the regional level and hypothesize that regions with a higher level of cross-regional collaborations tend to generate more valuable technologies, but when large firms dominate the formation of such collaborations, the marginal benefits of cross-regional collaboration are significantly reduced. Using a data set from the pharmaceutical industry between 1975 and 2001, we find support for our hypotheses. We conduct a series of robustness tests to check the consistency of our results.

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Geography, Location, and Strategy
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78714-276-3

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Book part
Publication date: 5 June 2017

Amy Vinlove

This chapter documents the steps taken in one teacher preparation program to foster culturally sustaining practices (Paris, 2012) in pre-service Alaska Native teachers, as well as…

Abstract

This chapter documents the steps taken in one teacher preparation program to foster culturally sustaining practices (Paris, 2012) in pre-service Alaska Native teachers, as well as in their non-Native peers. For pre-service teachers to develop the skills, understanding, and dispositions necessary to respectfully gather, honor, and use local knowledge in their future classrooms they must first recognize the value and significance of locally relevant curriculum; second, understand how to respectfully gather and document current “living” local knowledge; and third, become empowered with the skills and knowledge to purposefully integrate local knowledge into the curriculum. This chapter uses one semester-long assignment, and data gathered from work samples from that assignment, as the foundation of an exploration into how these three steps can be enacted in the teacher preparation process. The accompanying data show that living Indigenous knowledge exists in abundance in young Alaska Native pre-service teachers, and when appropriately supported, pre-service teachers can develop powerful curriculum that is rooted in local knowledge and also aligned with the academic goals of the curriculum.

Book part
Publication date: 8 June 2012

Kai Xu and Michael A. Hitt

This chapter contributes to the existing literature on institutional theory and international business research by integrating the concepts of polycentrism and institutional…

Abstract

This chapter contributes to the existing literature on institutional theory and international business research by integrating the concepts of polycentrism and institutional learning to examine how MNEs from emerging economies invest in developed countries. We argue that equity-based market entry modes and non-equity-based modes create different needs for learning about economic, regulatory and political institutions; entry modes with or without local partners lead to different levels of institutional embeddedness and institutional learning speeds. Finally, the content of institutional knowledge also determines its transferability and adaptability. We emphasize the importance of recognizing the integrated nature of economic, regulatory and political institutions from a polycentric perspective and discuss their change in different situations.

Details

Institutional Theory in International Business and Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-909-7

Book part
Publication date: 10 August 2016

Kazuhiro Asakawa and Tomomine Aoki

We investigate the extent to which headquarters’ perceived knowledge about overseas R&D subsidiaries influences the level of control over them. We confirm that headquarters’…

Abstract

We investigate the extent to which headquarters’ perceived knowledge about overseas R&D subsidiaries influences the level of control over them. We confirm that headquarters’ knowledge about its overseas R&D subsidiaries lowers the level of control over them. Surprisingly, however, granting legitimacy to R&D subsidiaries does not necessarily lead to a reduction in headquarters’ control. In addition, R&D subsidiaries’ legitimacy does not influence the effect of headquarters’ knowledge about them on the level of control. Although headquarters’ knowledge about R&D subsidiaries tends to grant them legitimacy, the effect of that legitimacy seems rather minimal. These findings imply that headquarters are reassured when it reduces its control over the subsidiaries based on updated knowledge about their current situations rather than on an already-established positive image of those subsidiaries.

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Perspectives on Headquarters-subsidiary Relationships in the Contemporary MNC
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-370-2

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 22 June 2011

Nicolai J. Foss and José F.P. dos (Joe) Santos

The role of knowledge, organizational learning and innovation as levers of competitive advantage is now a commonly acknowledged insight in research in international management…

Abstract

The role of knowledge, organizational learning and innovation as levers of competitive advantage is now a commonly acknowledged insight in research in international management, specifically in the emerging ‘knowledge-based view’. However, this view has not yet developed into a unifying framework and there are significant holes in the understanding of how knowledge may be turned into a source of competitive advantage for MNCs. In order to advance the knowledge-based view of the MNC – and particularly of the metanational company – we develop the notion of the MNC as a global knowledge system that links local knowledge structures and combines local knowledge elements that are complementary in order to achieve strategic advantage. These ideas are used to frame the changing environments, strategic intents and learning stances that characterize MNCs, and to derive a set of research challenges for MNC research.

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Dynamics of Globalization: Location-Specific Advantages or Liabilities of Foreignness?
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-85724-991-3

Book part
Publication date: 24 June 2015

Vittoria Giada Scalera, Alessandra Perri and Ram Mudambi

To investigate the impact of knowledge-intensive FDI in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry, this study analyzes the activity of foreign MNEs operating in this context by…

Abstract

To investigate the impact of knowledge-intensive FDI in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry, this study analyzes the activity of foreign MNEs operating in this context by exploring their innovative background, the organizational arrangements they use for local knowledge creation and the performance of their local innovative processes. Based on the analysis of the universe of USPTO pharmaceutical patents applied for between 1975 and 2010 and granted to foreign assignees utilizing the work of Chinese inventors, our results show that, while the presence of foreign MNEs in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry entails a strong potential for positive externalities that could enhance the performance of the local innovation system, such externalities do not completely materialize yet, likely because of local actors’ limited absorptive capacity.

Abstract

Details

Knowledge Economies and Knowledge Work
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78973-778-3

Abstract

Details

Making Aid Agencies Work
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-509-2

Book part
Publication date: 10 October 2011

Ariane Berthoin Antal and Eva-Maria Walker

Purpose –– The People's Republic of China has introduced policies to encourage Chinese who have worked or studied abroad to return and bring back the knowledge and skills they…

Abstract

Purpose –– The People's Republic of China has introduced policies to encourage Chinese who have worked or studied abroad to return and bring back the knowledge and skills they have gained. This chapter reports on the experiences of these returners as agents of organisational learning.

Methodology –– The exploratory qualitative study is based on a written questionnaire and telephone interviews with 24 returners in diverse organisations and industries in China.

Findings –– The study identifies a type of returner not yet addressed in the literature, ‘experienced self-internationalisers’, which we expect will grow significantly. We find that despite expecting returners to contribute to organisational learning, management does not organise the process. It depends on the individuals themselves, who develop various strategies for sharing their knowledge with local colleagues. Organisational learning is a cross-cultural process and requires bridging a gap between the kinds of knowledge the local employees are interested in gaining and what the returners feel the organisation needs. We note that organisational learning is more likely when the returners recognise their own need to learn rather than just to teach.

Research limitations –– The sample is relatively small; we describe how to take the research forward to more organisations and additional kinds of respondents.

Practical implications –– We formulate recommendations for policymakers, returners and human resource managers seeking to stimulate organisational learning more effectively.

Value –– The chapter generates new insights into organisational learning in China, and it shows how to addresses a phenomenon at the crossroads between the fields of organisational learning, intercultural communication and international human resource management.

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