scholarly journals Are multinationals and governments from emerging economies configuring global value chains in new ways?

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 111-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claes Alvstam ◽  
Inge Ivarsson ◽  
Bent Petersen
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Multinational Firms ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Cost Efficiencies

Purpose The hallmark of today’s global value chains (GVCs), still dominated by multinationals from advanced economies, is a sophisticated international division of labor based on scale economies and prevailing factor endowment differences between countries. However, GVCs led by multinationals from large emerging economies may be configured on the basis of considerations that supplement factor cost efficiencies, namely, those of societal objectives as formulated by political actors in the home country. In this context, the purpose of this paper is to examine the implications of political and socio-economic factors on GVC configuration of multinational firms. Design/methodology/approach This paper provides an in-depth case study of a leading Chinese car manufacturer, Zhejiang Geely Holding Group (ZGH) and its value-chain configuration, with a special focus on the acquisition of Volvo Car Corporation. Findings The authors show how ZGH’s configuration of its GVC, including that of acquired Volvo Car Corporation, takes place in symbiosis with political actors. The advantages and disadvantages of this symbiosis are highlighted. Research limitations/implications The study focuses on GVC configuration of one company, ZGH, in one industry, the automotive industry, in one emerging economy. The external validity of the study may therefore be limited. Furthermore, the focus is on the geographical/locational configuration of GVCs and ignores the ownership aspects. Originality/value The paper provides novel empirical evidence to better understand GVC configuration of multinational firms from emerging economies.

scholarly journals The intensification of foreign trade in post-socialist countries and their role in global value chains

2016 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 465-487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ewa Cieślik ◽  
Jadwiga Biegańska ◽  
Stefania Środa-Murawska
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Trade ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Global Value Chain ◽  
Western European ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Complex Methods ◽  
The Eu

This article presents the transformation of foreign trade in 10 post-socialist countries, current members of the EU. Special focus is given to the more significant role these countries began to play in global value chains (GVCs) as a result of liberalisation processes and integration within the EU. In addition, the article evaluates their place in global vertical specialisation. To locate each country on a global value chain and to compare them with selected countries, more complex methods of measuring the level of participation of European post-socialist countries in GVCs were employed. These methods allow the position of a country downstream or upstream in GVCs to be established. We concluded that (a) post-socialist countries differ in the levels of their participation in GVCs. Countries that have stronger links with Western European countries, especially with Germany, are more integrated; (b) a large share of post-socialist countries’ exports pass through Western European GVCs; (c) most exporters in Central and Eastern Europe are positioned in downstream segments of production rather than upstream markets.

Value-chain activities and individual wages

2018 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Márquez-Ramos
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Wage Premium ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Skilled Workers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Advanced Economies ◽  
Micro Level ◽  
High Skill

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of whether emerging economies benefit or suffer more because of value-chain activities than advanced economies do. Specifically, it focuses on the consequences in terms of individual wages. Design/methodology/approach Panel data techniques are used to estimate an expanded Mincerian wage equation over the period 1995-2007. The analysis is performed using micro-level data for two countries that represent two different experiences of value-chain activities in Central Europe: Germany and Slovenia. Findings Increasing value-chain activities reduce wages for low-skilled workers in high-skill-intensive industries in Germany, hence driving up the skill wage premium. Conversely, evidence is found of a decreasing skill wage premium as a consequence of increasing value-chain activities in Slovenia. Finally, increasing value-chain activities reduces the wages of workers in low-skill-intensive industries in both Germany and Slovenia. Originality/value This paper analyses the effect of value-chain activities on wages. It is the first empirical assessment that brings individual wage data directly into the picture for an international comparison focussed on two Central European countries that represent “two faces” of value chains. This paper shows that the effects of increasing value-chain activities on wages differ by country, by industry and by individual skills.

A case on Global Value (Supermarket) Chains and Small Producers: Governance, Participation, and Strategies

2005 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 104-128
Author(s):  
Sukhpal Singh
Keyword(s):  
Trade Liberalization ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Specific Focus ◽  
Small Producers ◽  
Gain Access

Whether or not local producers can gain access to global value chains and at which point is likely to be an important factor in determining whether they will benefit from trade liberalization. Understanding how these chains/networks are organized, controlled and governed is key to understanding how gains from them are shared across the chain participants. This paper analyzes the functioning of these chains with special focus on the implications for small producers in Asia. Besides defining and discussing the various aspects of the value chain framework and its utility for analysis, it also examines the context in which governance of these chains has acquired importance. It profiles the governance mechanisms and the issues involved, with specific focus on chains originating in Asia. The paper concludes by outlining some of the ways through which the participation of the small producers in these chains can be facilitated.

Lead firm’s reconfiguration decision and performance of the value chain

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Gelei ◽  
Magdolna Sass
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Organizational Design ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Performance Consequences ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Lead Firm

Purpose This paper aims to trace the performance consequences of within-lead firm reconfigurations of global value chains with respect to business performance and upgrading. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on two detailed company case studies which are analysed in an organizational design approach. Findings Lead firms systematically separate and internalize high value-added activities in otherwise low value-added processes leading to constant reconfigurations and reorganizations of the production processes in global value chains. The study finds that similar reconfigurations may trigger different changes and changes and performance consequences may differ considerably according to the level of analysis. The two cases help to understand the specific roles of the outsourcing and offshoring decisions in shaping actual global value chain structures. Originality/value The consequences of within-lead firm reconfigurations are rarely analysed in the literature.

scholarly journals The tortuous ascent of global value chains – the case of pharmaceutical R&D in China

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 244-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham Hollinshead
Keyword(s):  
International Business ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Social Factor ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Emerging Economy ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Industrial Enterprises

Purpose This paper aims to explore the micro-political complexities of operating over institutional distance in a modern international enterprise. The focal sector of the study is the pharmaceutical industry, which, in its latest phase of global development, has engaged in “internal sourcing” of research and development (R&D) talent from China. This paper contributes to emergent “socio-political” theorization in international business through revealing complex forms of workplace segmentation and conflictual forms of practice at micro-organizational level. Design/methodology/approach The author of this paper and a UK-based research associate visited the Shanghai-based R&D facility of a major Western owned pharmaceutical concern to carry out interviews with key managers, expatriates and scientists to “hear their stories”. Access was gained to the research site through insider contacts. Findings It was discovered that, in the context of an enterprise intent on innovation, motivational logics themselves emanate from the embedded positions of diverse organizational actors, in turn bringing to the fore issues of power, resistance, ethnicity and language. Research limitations/implications Generalizations from a single case study may have limited significance. However, the unique case setting provides the scope for a novel contribution to the field of international business by examining contradictory and asymmetrical factors in the social construction of a Global Value Chain extending from West to East to source emergent local talent. Practical implications The case offers the possibility for managerial learning in the areas of working across cultures, managing expatriation, dealing with linguistic and etymological differences and formulating international business strategy (integration or differentiation in the MNC). The study highlights the significance of critical realist perspectives in fostering reflexive behaviours of actors in multilayered and complex micro-environments. Social implications The work has significance concerning the devolution of both managerial and medical responsibilities to local agents in China. This is a vital social factor in the emerging economy context. The work also casts light on social and personal issues confronting international managerial and scientific migrants. Originality/value To date, the phenomena of Global Value Chains have been approached in a relatively transactional and economistic fashion. The paper shed light on GVCs as humanistic and political phenomena. A relatively new departure of the study is to demonstrate that workplace actors in modern and modularized industrial enterprises located in the emerging economy setting respond to environmental volatility through engaging in variant and conflictual forms of institutional entrepreneurship.

scholarly journals MNE’s THEORY AND GLOBAL VALUE CHAINS

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. Rogach
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Multinational Enterprises ◽  
Multinational Enterprise ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
International Production ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Trade In Tasks ◽  
The One

This article analyzes a multinational enterprise (MNE) theories from the first pioneering papers of S. Hymer and the modern approaches to studying these institutions. A special focus is placed on the one of the research schools that studied the fragmentation of international production and the global value chain (GVCs) creation. In this context, various theoretical approaches to the study of modern global MNE networks are considered, the theory of trade in tasks and the macroeconomic approach to the evaluation of fragmentation effects. The paper argues that the concepts of MNEs international production and GVCs are interlinked, although not equal. Sometimes they are used as synonyms, but they characterize the contemporary process of internationalization from different perspectives. It shows the various types of organization of global value chains, such as the horizontal and vertical integration of production. Within such networking systems of multinational enterprises there are complex hierarchical relationships between individual participants and links. Technological slicing of production into separate fragments requires MNE to use not only own equity- controlled affiliates, but also the offshore production of partner firms.

scholarly journals Environmental Upgrading and Suppliers’ Agency in the Leather Global Value Chain

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (23) ◽  
pp. 6530 ◽  
Author(s):  
De Marchi ◽  
Di Maria
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Global Value Chain ◽  
Sustainability Strategies

The paper explores the role of suppliers in the process of environmental upgrading (EnvU) within global value chains (GVCs). Theoretical contributions to EnvU have highlighted, in particular, the role of global buyers in supporting the EnvU of products and processes, while limited attention has been given to suppliers as proactive actors within GVCs. This paper approaches EnvU through the lens of innovation and focuses on the agency of suppliers. Through the analysis of innovations developed within the leather GVC, with a special focus on the Arzignano cluster (Italy), the analysis shows how suppliers can autonomously develop sustainability strategies to maintain their competitiveness and achieve higher value in the GVC. However, results stress the limits of green strategies as buyers and suppliers do not share the same vision of how to foster sustainability.

A pragmatist perspective on sustainable global value chain governance – the case of Dr. Bronner’s

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hedda Ofoole Knoll ◽  
Sarah Margaretha Jastram
Keyword(s):  
Field Study ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Theoretical Development ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Global Value Chain ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Sustainable Value

Purpose This paper aims to highlight the challenges and opportunities of sustainable global value chain governance, it demonstrates strong theoretical deficits in this field and offers new pragmatist conceptual perspectives. Design/methodology/approach The empirical analysis is based on document analyses, 47 expert interviews and on field observations in Ghana, Africa. Findings Based on an in-depth analysis of a US firm operating a fair trade value chain in an intercultural environment, the authors show that universalistic value chain-oriented governance instruments often fail because of strong institutional and cultural distances. Against the prevailing strategies of top-down management, the authors suggest a more bottom-up, pragmatist and collaboration-based approach to sustainable global value chain governance. Research limitations/implications The results of an in-depth case study are not generalizable. Instead, they provide holistic insights into a so-far insufficiently examined field and an empirical fundament for further research on sustainable governance in global value chains. In particular, research on pragmatist, collaborative, dialogue based, bottom-up approaches of sustainable value chain governance will be of great value to further theoretical development of this field. Practical implications This study is relevant to researchers and practitioners in the field of sustainable value chain governance. It reveals several misunderstandings about the effectiveness and impacts of sustainable governance in less developed countries and thus builds a foundation for better and more effective problem-solving approaches in international sustainable management activities. Social implications Nontransparent supplier networks and (illegal) sub-contracting, as well as the strong influences of institutional, cultural and sub-cultural factors, make responsible value chain management a challenging task for any firm with international value creation activities. This leaves workers in local factories vulnerable to infringements of their fundamental human rights and the environment unprotected against long-lasting damages. Addressing these challenges and developing new solutions, therefore, can have strong impacts on the lives of workers in international supply chains. Originality/value The authors contribute, first, a differentiated empirical description and analysis of a sustainable value chain approach in a less developed country in Africa. Second, using an example of the field study, the authors highlight limitations of value chain-related governance theory based on a field study by illustrating the challenges and barriers and a lack of existing concepts concerning effective sustainable governance in global value chains. Third, the authors show different managerial responses to these cultural and institutional challenges between universalism and relativism, and, fourth, the authors suggest a more collaborative, bottom-up and pragmatist approach to sustainable value chain governance.

Ecosystems 4.0: redesigning global value chains

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Christin Schmidt ◽  
Johannes W. Veile ◽  
Julian M. Müller ◽  
Kai-Ingo Voigt
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Multinational Enterprises ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
General Tendency ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
New Organizational Forms

PurposeThe study analyses how Industry 4.0 and underlying digital technologies influence the design of ecosystems in global value chains (GVCs).Design/methodology/approachA qualitative-exploratory research design is used. It deploys a multiple case study based on semi-structured interviews with 73 German managers of multinational enterprises. Applying a qualitative content analysis, the expert interviews are inductively analyzed and triangulated with secondary data to develop a synthesized data structure.FindingsThe analysis reveals a general tendency towards decentralization of value chain activities. Depending on the nature of each activity and several contextual factors, however, hybrids between centralization and decentralization of processes can be observed in Industry 4.0 environments. Consequences for global ecosystems are altered cooperation with business partners, new organizational forms and novel market environments.Research limitations/implicationsGiven inherent limitations in scope and methodology, the study calls for cross-industry and cross-country analyses. Further studies should research implications of Industry 4.0 changes in ecosystems and GVCs, and the role digital platforms can play in this context.Practical implicationsThe results help companies to analyze and adapt their role in ecosystems and associated GVC activities to Industry 4.0 environments, thus staying competitive in changing market conditions.Originality/valueThis study is among the first to empirically investigate the influence of Industry 4.0 on ecosystems embedded in GVCs. Reflecting existing company environments, it adds an international and company-external perspective to Industry 4.0 research.

EAEU and Global Value Chains

2020 ◽  
Vol 144 ◽  
pp. 128-135
Author(s):  
Evgeny V. Semenov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Global Value Chains ◽  
Division Of Labour ◽  
Value Chains ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
International Division ◽  
Economic Agents ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Regional Features ◽  
Pros And Cons ◽  
Geographic Regions

The article describes position of the EAEU countries in the international division of labour, compares them with other geographic regions. The author reveals the pros and cons of deeper integration into global value chains, and also suggests various policy options with regard to participation therein. The paper also describes the EAEU regional features, on the basis of which advantages and disadvantages of the region in relation to external economic agents are specified. Special focus is made on the protectionist trend, which has both internal and external (global) dimensions and hinders implementation of effective coordinated macroeconomic policy of the EAEU countries for achieving higher redistributions in global production chains.

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