Emerging‐Market Firms Venturing into Advanced Economies: The Role of Context

Sociocultural, economic, political, and institutional differences between countries increase uncertainty and complexity in today's highly competitive international business environment. Moreover, the “West‐Leads‐East” to “West‐Meets‐East” shift in the global economy requires firms in both advanced economies and emerging markets to seek sustainable solutions by collaborating across geographic boundaries. Such novel collaborative partnerships may help build a stable, resilient, and sustainable world economy by leveraging the resources and capabilities of firms from both advanced and emerging economies. This article has three general objectives. First, we seek to show that context has been a long‐standing issue in management, organization, and international business research and provide an overview of the puzzles that informed and motivated this special issue. Second, we highlight the key insights and contributions of the articles included in this special issue by reviewing their theoretical underpinnings, methodological approaches, and empirical findings. Finally, we outline a future research agenda on emerging‐market firms venturing into advanced economies that can help advance international business and management studies. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Strategic ambidexterity and its performance implications for emerging economies multinationals

Emerging market multinational enterprises (EMNEs) are attracting significant scholarly attention in the international business and general management domain. The extant research has provided important insights into the EMNEs’ internationalization processes and whether the existing theories adequately explain their outward investment motives. This special issue aims to provide a platform suited to extend the current understanding of the rapid rise of EMNEs and examine the vital role played by strategic ambidexterity and its performance implications for the EMNEs. The current research on EMNEs has failed to adequately leverage strategic ambidexterity and link it with the post-entry performance of EMNEs. We argue that the strategic ambidexterity perspective offers valuable opportunities to understand the post-entry performance of EMNEs as they expand into developed and developing markets. The article also highlights important areas for future research by taking into account the current COVID-19 pandemic crisis.     

Risk in international business and its mitigation

While risk mitigation and management preparedness of MNEs have escalated to the top of the corporate agenda, international business literature is lacking pertinent conceptual and empirical studies. As an opener to this special issue, we offer several perspectives on country risk and its mitigation. We discuss conceptual and empirical challenges in researching risk in international business. We conclude with a commentary on the six papers included in this special issue on international business risk.     

Predictive and effectual decision-making in high-tech international new ventures – A matter of sequential ambidexterity

This study investigates the international opportunity exploration and exploitation processes of high technology international new ventures (INVs) operating in the global medical devices sector. Drawing upon the effectuation and causation perspectives, we contribute to the micro-foundations of international entrepreneurship research in the early innovation development space by focusing on decision-making logics of techno-entrepreneurs of INVs. Specific focus is afforded to the phases of their exploration and exploitation of international opportunities leading to international new venture creation. In the pre-start-up and start-up stages of international new ventures, we find that sequential ambidexterity applies to how the subject firms manage the exploration and exploitation of opportunities in the delivery of their innovations to global markets.This research advances prior international entrepreneurship studies by focusing on the opportunity and innovation processes on the individual level. We identify different decision-making logics in the different phases and contrary to earlier findings in the international entrepreneurship (IE) area, we found causation logic to dominate the initial stages of exploration and effectuation logic, in the latter stages. Prior commercial experience presented itself as a key determining factor in the decision-making path chosen by international techno-entrepreneurs. Our study further extends the view of organizational ambidexterity by offering empirical insights into the relevance of sequential ambidexterity for understanding the processes of innovation exploration and exploitation in high-tech INVs and the decision-making logics driving these processes.     

How and when does co-production facilitate eco-innovation in international buyer-supplier relationships? The role of environmental innovation ambidexterity and institutional pressures

Eco-innovation is an important element of a firm's environmental sustainability strategy and provides both competitive and environmental benefits, resulting in a win-win solution. Although previous studies have examined the influence of co-production on innovation, little is known about how and when co-production affects eco-innovation in the context of international buyer-seller relationships. Building upon the resource-based view, the dynamic capability perspective, and institutional theory, this study develops a conceptual model focusing on the effects of co-production on eco-innovation, the mediating effects of environmental innovation ambidexterity, and the moderating role of institutional pressures. The research was carried out using a survey-based quantitative study and the proposed hypotheses were tested using the hierarchical regression analysis. The results of a survey of 124 OEM suppliers in Taiwan show that co-production has a positive effect on environmental innovation ambidexterity. Our findings also show that the direct relationship between co-production and environmental innovation ambidexterity is stronger when institutional pressures are high as opposed to when they are low and that environmental innovation ambidexterity mediates the relationship between co-production and eco-innovation. This study contributes to a theoretical understanding of why some firms develop more environmental innovation ambidexterity than others, by analyzing co-production as a predictor and institutional pressures as a moderator. We discuss the theoretical and managerial implications of our findings.     

International ambidexterity and firm performance in small emerging economies

Conventional IB theories stress the importance and implications of a firm's exploitative strategy. However, the unprecedented competitive nature of contemporary business necessitates firm “ambidexterity” — the simultaneous execution of exploitation and exploration activities. Using balanced panel data of 207 Taiwanese firms spanning six years, this research examines the effects of international ambidexterity on firm performance. Findings reveal that ambidexterity promotes a firm's performance. For firms from small emerging economies, international ambidexterity is highly vulnerable to environmental complexity and sensitive to previous international experience and the firm's capability to conduct international business. These factors significantly moderate firm performance.     

Organisational ambidexterity and firm performance: burning research questions for marketing scholars

ABSTRACT

Organisational ambidexterity is an important topic in management research having grown meteorically over the past 17 years. Yet, very few studies in marketing examine organisational ambidexterity. Where studies do exist, seldom do they do justice to its theoretical richness and complexity. This complexity is a significant hurdle for scholars and managers alike, but theory and practice on organisational ambidexterity can benefit substantively from the input of scholars outside the realm of management. This paper provides scholars and managers with a detailed analyses, documentary and corpus of reference material documenting the development, definition, theoretical assumptions and conceptual treatment, measurement and empirical findings to do with organisational ambidexterity. Drawing on this detailed analysis, the paper identifies the burning research questions marketing scholars should give urgent attention to advance theory and practice on organisational ambidexterity.     

Managing cross-border knowledge transfer for innovation: An introduction to the special issue

This introduction to the special issue maps the extant research on managing crossborder knowledge for innovation and classifies it into four clusters: knowledge spillovers and location, international alliances and R&D networks, knowledge transfer and absorptive capacity, and learning organization and capabilities. The eleven articles that compose the special issue are introduced, and a future agenda for international business research is proposed.     

The micro-foundations of strategic ambidexterity: Chinese cross-border M&As,Mid-View thinking and integration management

Chinese cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As) display several unique properties in relation to the ways in which their international business operations are organised and managed. Their seemingly puzzling ‘light-touch’ integration approach can be significantly understood from a strategic ambidexterity perspective: on the one hand, the ‘light-touch’ enables the exploitation of the targets’ existing knowledge bases; on the other hand, elements of the ‘light-touch’ facilitate the exploration of the new knowledge arising from the collaboration between targets and acquirers. However, an important theoretical gap remains: why do Chinese companies deploy such a strategic ambidexterity approach in their post-acquisition integrations? This paper aims to fill this gap by proposing Mid-View thinking as a micro-foundation of strategic ambidexterity in integration management from a cultural and philosophical perspective. To illuminate our conceptualization and argument, we conducted qualitative in-depth interviews with CEOs/high-level managers of acquired German companies. Communication approach and organizational control—as two critical aspects in integration management—reveal how Mid-View thinking can serve as a micro-foundation of strategic ambidexterity. We conclude this paper by presenting its theoretical contributions, managerial implications, and future research directions.     

Market entry into Africa: Acquisitions and international joint ventures. Studies of foreign firms' market entry strategies,challenges, and performance in Africa

While the interest in investing in Africa is rising, the know‐how of business on the continent is very limited. There have been only recently few special issues focusing on sub‐Saharan Africa in the top international business journals: “Sub‐Saharan Africa at a key inflection point” (Thunderbird International Business Review 2009); “Contemporary developments in the management of human resources in Africa” (Journal of World Business 2011); “Contemporary challenges and opportunities of doing business in Africa” (Journal of Technological Forecasting and Social Change 2016); “Critical perspectives on international business in Africa (Critical Perspectives on International Business 2016); “Strategic Management in Africa (Global Strategy Journal, 2017); and “The internationalization of African firms (Thunderbird International Business Review 2016). The aim of this special issue is to advance understanding of international business in Africa and specifically focus on how foreign firms enter African markets via acquisitions and international joint ventures and extend knowledge of these market entry strategies and performance in Africa for research and for foreign firms intending to, or currently doing business in Africa. This guest editorial provides a summary of the five articles and one book review in this special issue categorized into three broad thematic issues: International joint ventures and acquisitions as market entry strategies in Africa; cross‐border investments of African firms; and theoretical underpinnings.     

Strategic ambidexterity and innovation in Chinese multinational vs. indigenous firms: The role of managerial capability

In this study, we challenge the conventional understanding of ambidexterity as an unquestionable contribution to better performance. We combine the concept of ambidexterity and the notion of managerial capability to explore different effects of ambidexterity on innovation performance in the context of emerging markets. We investigate this ambidexterity-innovation effect, and how this effect is moderated by managerial capability, on a sample of 74 Chinese multinational enterprises (MNEs) vs. 60 indigenous firms that are both in high technology industries. We find that, surprisingly, ambidexterity has a negative effect on the innovation performance of indigenous firms, although this effect is less so in the case of Chinese MNEs. More importantly, strong managerial capability increases the positive effect of ambidexterity on the innovation performance of Chinese MNEs, but not so for indigenous firms. We discuss the implications of these findings on research on ambidexterity and product innovation.     

Organizational Ambidexterity and Innovation Performance: The Moderating Effect of Entrepreneurial Orientation

The influence of organizational ambidexterity on innovation and the growth of enterprises has gradually become an important research topic in the field of strategic management and organization theory. This paper builds up a theoretical framework of the relationship between organizational ambidexterity and innovation performance with regards to corporate entrepreneurship orientation. We select 175 companies from high and new technology industries in China’s three large cities, Beijing, Tianjin and Dalian, as samples to carry out an empirical test. We find that the balance and complement of organizational ambidexterity are positively correlated with the innovation performance of enterprises; a corporate entrepreneurial orientation has a significantly moderating effect on the relationship between the balance dimension of organizational ambidexterity and innovation performance, yet it has no significant positive moderating effect on the relationship between the combined dimension of organizational ambidexterity and innovation performance.     

制造企业创新网络与双元性学习——基于垂直、水平创新网络的比较研究

文章将制造企业创新网络分为垂直创新网络和水平创新网络，构建有调节的中介效应模型，探索了两类创新网络对双元性学习的差异化影响机制，揭示了有效提升企业双元性学习的相关创新网络特征。实证研究发现，网络强度主要通过提升网络质量，间接促进双元性学习，且垂直网络的效果优于水平网络。垂直网络规模对双元性学习有正向的直接和间接效应，而水平网络规模对双元性学习的效应均不显著。网络管理能力强化了垂直网络强度对双元性学习的积极影响，弱化了水平网络规模对双元性学习的消极影响。     

Synergies and tensions between and within domestic and international market activities of firms

The distinction between domestic and international market activities has an idiosyncratic meaning for international business research. This study examines the significant yet unclear role of domestic market activities for the internationalizing firm through the theoretical lens of exploitation and exploration. By means of five qualitative case studies, we show that both the dynamics between domestic–international market activities and the interplay between exploitation–exploration are intrinsically concerned with synergies and tensions. Our findings uncover how firms leverage these synergies and manage these tensions that manifest between and within their domestic and international markets. Synergies and tensions are found to revolve around ambidexterity, networks and organizational market information processes.     

State-of-the-Art Research on Technology Innovation Management in China

The two latest Five-Year Plans of China call for an increasing focus of the whole country on technology-based innovation. Moreover, China’s ambition to become an innovation-oriented nation has attracted widespread international interest and academic studies in technology and innovation management. However by now, there is still not a rigorous amount of the research in this field as regards to China. This paper reports a comprehensive review of the research published between 2002 and 2011 in twelve top technology and innovation management international journals. Overall, a sample of 241 relevant articles in 780 issues is used as the basis for the study. The result is a map of the main research topics, their influence, and the availability of tested empirical data, which traces a state-of-the-art research on technology innovation management in China. Discussion on the map draws avenues for further research and insights for both researchers and policy makers on why, where and how to advance knowledge in the field, with a particular focus on implications for developing cooperation at the enterprise level.     

Business model innovation: How the international retailers rebuild their core business logic in a new host country

Although research into the business model has received increasing attention, few studies have so far been conducted on business model innovation in an international context. The purpose of the study is to identify different patterns of business model innovation which enables international retailers to rebuild their core business logic in new host countries. On the basis of comparing and contrasting the business model changes of 15 international retailers from various home countries to one single host country (China), our study provides an in-depth understanding of business model innovation in the context of international business. By looking at the firms’ capabilities in rebuilding their core logic in the setting of a host country, we reveal six routes of retail business model innovation. Utilizing the lens of organizational learning theory and internationalization, we identify three patterns of resource deployment by international companies in the process of developing business model innovations. Our study, therefore, provides insights and guidance for multinational companies in general, international retailers in particular, as for how to successfully adapt their business model from home country to host country.     

Knowledge-oriented leadership and open innovation: Role of knowledge management capability in France-based multinationals

This paper discusses the links between knowledge-oriented leadership, open innovation and knowledge management in the international business context. Open innovation has become crucial for an increasing number of multinational enterprises (MNEs) to gain and maintain competitive advantage and become a market leader. Despite the recent proliferation of papers dealing with open innovation practices of MNEs, there is limited work investigating the role of knowledge management (KM) capability on the relationship between knowledge-oriented leadership and open innovation. Given MNEs’ growing interest in open innovation, the lack of research on knowledge-oriented leadership and KM capability in the open innovation context is a significant research gap in our knowledge. In response, we conducted a study on the mediating role of KM capability in the linkage between knowledge-oriented leadership and open innovation (inbound and outbound), using data collected from 172 subsidiaries of MNEs based in France. A structural equation modelling approach is employed to study the impact of the latent variables associated with knowledge-oriented leadership and KM capability on open innovation. The results indicate that higher levels of knowledge-oriented leadership can lead to enhanced KM capability and improved open innovation outcomes. That is, knowledge-oriented leadership has a direct, positive impact on KM capability and open innovation. Also, KM capability is found to mediate the linkage between knowledge-oriented leadership and open innovation. This study provides useful insights for managers who wish to enhance open innovation activities in MNEs, and offers useful guidance to international business scholars, encouraging further research in this area.     

Rethinking Management Theory and Practice for the Indian Context: An International Management Perspective

The Indian economy characterized variously as a slumbering giant, powerful tiger, and the most promising market has witnessed a slowdown, occasional disturbances in the industrial relations space, and attention of the world in the last five years. In this special issue, we raise pertinent questions and present research on multiple dimensions of the dynamic and rapidly changing business environment of India. The suitability of management models and frameworks developed in the North American contexts in emerging markets like India and China is questioned. One example of how the well‐established models in the literature on success of international joint ventures were insufficient to explain the success of three international joint ventures in the insurance space in India is presented as case in point. Finally, the nine papers that materially contribute to the theme of this special issue are introduced. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Determinants of Successful IT-Enabled Business Innovation： A Case Study from the Perspective of Institutional Entrepreneurship Theory

As the role of information technology （IT） in business innovation becomes increasingly important, an increasing number of organizations have started to consider how to promote IT-enabled business innovation. Although extant studies have identified organization, environment, and innovation＇s characteristics as substantial determinants of IT innovation, they do not emphasize the accompanying innovation in processes, products or services, which distinguish IT-enabled business innovation from general IT innovation. Therefore, the reason why few companies succeed in realizing IT-enabled business innovation remains obscure. Anchored on the institutional entrepreneurship theory, this paper examines determinants of the success of IT-enabled business innovation in a fast-growing company using the case study approach. Our findings indicate that IT-business coordination competency, degree of institutionalization, participation of business managers, top management team＇s （TMT） attitude towards the innovation, and the innovation＇s relative strength, have significant impacts on the success of IT-enabled business innovation. Our findings also contribute to IT innovation research by identifying special determinants of IT-enabled business innovation and redirecting research ranging from innovation in IT itself to IT-enabled innovation in business processes, products or services.     

Unpacking the impact of innovation ambidexterity on export performance: Microfoundations and infrastructure investment

When designing and managing routines for their innovation activities firms often face a challenge. Either they can concentrate their efforts on one approach i.e. exploring new ideas or exploiting its existing capabilities, or they can try to do both, i.e. becoming ambidextrous. In this paper, we aim to explore first the effect of exploration, exploitation and ambidexterity on export performance and second the moderating role of investment in infrastructure. Using firm-level data from the UK’s innovation survey (CIS) we find that both exploration and exploitation improve export performance. We also find that investment in infrastructure weakens this relationship. Counterintuitively, we find that ambidexterity has a negative effect on export performance, and that it is negatively moderated by investment in infrastructure. We use microfoundations arguments (the routines firms employ and the actions taken by individuals and groups within them to shape their exporting capabilities) to explain how efforts to achieve ambidexterity can improve export performance.