scholarly journals An extended dual economy model

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 586-602 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajneesh Narula

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new theoretical framework called the “extended dual economy model”. Based on the seminal work of Lewis (2014), the author uses it to explain the sectoral specialisation of home countries and their firms and MNEs. Design/methodology/approach The paper is multi-disciplinary and entirely conceptual, with cool ideas but very few numbers and equations. Findings Emerging economies exhibit a “duality” in their economic structure that reflects itself in two largely different sets of location (L) characteristics. They are simultaneously home to both “traditional” sectors, which are resource and labour intensive, as well as “modern” sectors, which are knowledge and capital intensive, each of which can be analysed as having two sub-economies. These different sets of location advantages shape the firm-specific advantages of EMNEs and their FDI. Research limitations/implications This analysis helps to underline what shapes the ability of home countries to “emerge”, and the ability of their firms to grow and their MNEs to become internationally competitive. Few EMNEs can thrive in international markets without concurrent growth in their domestic markets. Maintaining the appropriate location assets to optimally support both types of sectors is costly. Each type of sub-economy requires different kinds of support sectors, infrastructure and policies, with little overlap. Weaknesses in its home country L advantages hinder the long-term competitiveness of their EMNEs. Practical implications Few EMNEs can thrive in international markets without concurrent growth in their domestic markets. Weaknesses in its home country L advantages hinder the long-term competitiveness of their EMNEs. Originality/value The extension of the Lewisian dual economy model allows a number of interesting new insights because it allows us to consider firms, non-firms, informality and the bottlenecks associated with promoting knowledge-intensive sectors in a globalised world. It emphasises structural change, and the need to manage pathways and effectively channel growth.

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 249-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajneesh Narula ◽  
Tiju Prasad Kodiyat

Purpose This paper aims to discuss the opportunities and limitations that the location-specific advantages of the home country represent for infant multinational enterprises (MNEs). The systemic weaknesses of the home country can constrain the long-term competitiveness of its firms and, ultimately, the competitiveness of its MNEs. Many emerging countries have a constrained set of location-specific (L) assets from which their firms are able to develop ownership-specific assets. Design/methodology/approach The authors examine data for the case of India, an economy regarded as having considerable potential to expand to knowledge-intensive sectors, using a “systems of innovation” framework, merged with an analysis of L advantages. Findings At the macro level, India’s performance is not different from countries of similar economic structure, and its current pockets of excellence are a reflection of its L assets. The analysis suggests that the failure to foster and upgrade the L assets of emerging economies is likely to stunt the growth of their domestic firms and, ultimately, any new MNE activity in the long-term. Research limitations/implications In the case of India, systemic policy changes are needed to upgrade the knowledge infrastructure and institutions to support a shift in the competitive advantages to new sectors outside existing pockets of excellence. Indian firms are unlikely to be able to rely on the knowledge infrastructure of their home economy and will “exit” the Indian milieu because of weaknesses in L assets, as much as to seek markets and customers elsewhere. There will be few opportunities for new generations of firms to venture abroad from a position of strength, rather than as a means to overcome their home country disadvantages. Originality/value The evidence would suggest that – like other emerging economies – Indian firms are unlikely to be able to rely on the knowledge infrastructure of their home economy and are “exiting” the Indian milieu because of its weaknesses in L assets, as much as to seek markets and customers elsewhere. Most importantly, India faces a potential shortage of skilled human capital in the medium term.


Author(s):  
Linda Jessica De Montreuil Carmona ◽  
Giancarlo Gomes

Purpose The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to validate the global competitiveness project (GCP) framework in the Brazilian context; second, to describe the competitiveness levels on a sample of Brazilian firms, searching for heterogeneities of size, age and industry. Design/methodology/approach The study used the theoretical-empirical GCP framework, comprising the dimensions: human capital, product, domestic market, networks, technology, decision-making, competitive strategy, marketing, internationalization and online presence (Lafuente, Szerb and Rideg, 2016; Lafuente et al., 2019) and applied descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and cluster analysis, on a survey data set of 55 Brazilian firms from different sizes, ages and industries. Findings The GCP framework was found robust, reliable and useful in emerging economies as the Brazilian. Three clusters of competitiveness were identified. Heterogeneities were detected in knowledge-intensive business services results. This work allows a better understanding of competitiveness through the identification and measurement of dimensions, which can help managers to identify/audit capacities to plan/improve firm performance. Practical implications Findings may support managers to identify, estimate and manage their competitiveness pillars, and thus increase their competitiveness levels with a focus on strategic long-term goals. Originality/value This paper contributes to knowledge production in two ways: to the validation of the framework in the Brazilian scenario and the understanding of the dynamics of competitiveness of firms.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings This case study-led research paper examines the ability of Kosovan family firms to build value through international social networks, when seeking to expand into selling products in new international markets. This internationalization was achieved in incremental steps as the family firms continued to learn and refine their strategies for each country. The family firms gravitated to long-term relationships with partners who committed to helping them enter new markets, sometimes at the cost of future innovation. The authors recommend that family firms seek out innovative distributors, while also actively nurturing their networks to keep themselves up-to-date with market developments. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 290-303
Author(s):  
Marta Mori ◽  
Ronan McDermott ◽  
Saut Sagala ◽  
Yasmina Wulandari

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how culture, including traditions and social structures, can influence resilience and how culturally sensitive relief operations can put affected people and their context at the core of any interventions. Design/methodology/approach A case study of the Mt Sinabung volcano area in Indonesia was undertaken. As part of the case study, an analysis of interventions was conducted, which was complemented by semi-structured interviews with Karo cultural experts and humanitarian organisations. Findings Culture influences the manner in which the Karo people react to volcano eruptions with varying implications for recovery. In addition, relief organisations which understand people’s actions through a cultural lens have better managed to tailor programs with long-term impact, thereby avoiding aid dependency. Practical implications Practical examples of disaster management activities that adequately account for the beneficiaries’ way of living prior to the eruptions are provided. Aid actors are provided with guidance concerning how to better tailor their activities in line with a cultural lens. Originality/value The study provides empirical grounding for claims concerning the role of culture in planning interventions in Indonesia and other similar contexts.


Author(s):  
Alvaro Cuervo-Cazurra ◽  
Ravi Ramamurti

Purpose The purpose of this study is to use the rise of emerging-market multinationals as a vehicle to explore how a firm’s country of origin influences its internationalization. Design/methodology/approach This paper is a conceptual paper. Findings We argue that the home country’s institutional and economic underdevelopment can influence the internationalization of firms in two ways. First, emerging-market firms may leverage innovations made at home to cope with underdeveloped institutions or economic backwardness to gain a competitive advantage abroad, especially in other emerging markets; We call this innovation-based internationalization. Second, they may expand into countries that are more developed or have better institutions to escape weaknesses on these fronts at home; we call this escape-based internationalization. Research limitations/implications Comparative disadvantages influence the internationalization of the firm differently from comparative advantage, as it forces the firm to actively upgrade its firm-specific advantage and internationalize. Practical implications We explain two drivers of internationalization that managers operating in emerging markets can consider when facing disadvantages in their home countries and follow several strategies, namely, trickle-up innovation, self-reliant innovation, improvisation management, self-reliance management, technological escape, marketing escape, institutional escape and discriminatory escape. Originality/value We explain how a firm’s home country’s comparative disadvantage, not just its comparative advantage, can spur firms its internationalization.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nga Thi Thuy Ho ◽  
Hung Trong Hoang ◽  
Pi-Shen Seet ◽  
Janice Jones ◽  
Nhat Tan Pham

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the determinants of career satisfaction of professional accounting returnees who have studied and/or worked abroad and then returned to work in different types of international workplaces in their home country.Design/methodology/approachA survey of professional accounting returnees in Vietnam was undertaken and multiple regression analysis was applied to test the proposed relationships.FindingsThis study finds that career satisfaction is affected by career fit, career sacrifice, types of international workplaces (domestically headquartered firms versus globally headquartered firms) and cross-cultural work readjustment. Further, cross-cultural work readjustment partially mediates the effect of career fit and career sacrifice on career satisfaction.Practical implicationsThe research provides the basis for designing career-related employee experiences to support career satisfaction of professional accounting returnees.Originality/valueThis study integrates dimensions of career embeddedness with cross-cultural work readjustment and employee experiences, which are normally studied separately, in different types of international workplaces. It contributes to the limited research on contributors to well-being in the form of career satisfaction among professional returnees in an emerging economy.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lakshminarayana Kompella

Purpose This paper aims to explain transitions in a socio-technical system characterized by non-economic entities that influence economic activity, i.e. embeddedness and coalitions. The selected socio-technical system is an Indian electric network with an interventionist policy. Its embeddedness and coalitions drive the transition. The insights from such analysis expand socio-technical transition theory and provide valuable insights to practitioners in their policymaking. Design/methodology/approach The authors need to observe the effects of non-economic institutions in their setting. Moreover, in India, the regional policies influence decision-making; therefore, selected two Indian states. The two Indian states, along with their non-economic entities, provided diverse analytic and heuristic views. Findings The findings show that coalitions, with their embeddedness in the absence of any mediating policy systems, act as external pressures and influence innovation and the socio-technical system’s transition trajectory. Their coalitions’ embeddedness follows a shaping, not selection logic. Thereby influence innovations in cumulating as stable designs. Such an approach provides benefits in the short-term but not in the long-term. Research limitations/implications The study selected two states and examined two of the four trajectories. By considering other states, the authors can obtain more renewable energy investments and further insights into the transformational trajectory. Practical implications The study highlights the coalition dynamics specific to the Indian electric power network and its transition trajectories. The non-economic entities influenced transition trajectories, innovation and policymaking of the socio-technical system. Originality/value The study expands the socio-technical transition theory by including embeddedness. The embeddedness brings a shaping logic instead of a selection logic.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Buell Hirsch

Purpose The purpose of the viewpoint is to examine the various ways in which the pandemic has exposed structural vulnerabilities in global business infrastructures that have long existed and been long ignored. It urges business leaders not to return to a “new normal” but make fundamental changes to ensure that their businesses are truly resilient and can withstand future threats more effectively. Design/methodology/approach The viewpoint looks at the various kinds of vulnerability to which businesses are exposed – such as supply chain, human capital, cyber security and climate change – and proposes ways to ensure that businesses, as well as shareholders and government entities work together to build true resilience. Findings At its core, the viewpoint exposes the various ways in which businesses have turned a blind eye to vulnerabilities that have always lurked just below the surface and suggests. The argument is that to secure the long-term future of our global business system, we can no longer remain oblivious to fundamental weaknesses in our infrastructures. Research limitations/implications The viewpoint looks selectively at the available data and is, therefore, by definition, subjective and non-comprehensive. Practical implications If businesses and shareholders truly take the recommendations of this viewpoint to heart, we can build a more resilient future through long-term investments in risk management infrastructures of all kinds that will secure a more prosperous and stable future. Social implications Developing a more resilient and stable global business infrastructure will help reduce the business volatility deriving from last minute responses to predictable threats. This will, in turn, help provide more stable, fulfilling employment, especially in developing countries that will act as a fly wheel for the secure development of human potential around the world. Originality/value While there has been much speculation of what the “new business normal” will look like once the pandemic has been conquered, this is, the author believes, the first piece to look concretely on how we can not only “build back better” but build back more soundly for the long term.


2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 22-30
Author(s):  
Aaron Gazley ◽  
Hamish Simmonds

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of outsourcing and offshoring on brand loyalty in a service recovery context. In addition, the effect that consumer ethnocentrism has on these relationships is examined. Design/methodology/approach An experiment was designed using a series of service recovery scenarios that manipulated whether the recovery effort was conducted by an in-house/outsourced or local/offshored party. Findings The study shows that while outsourcing service recovery within the home country has no effect on loyalty, outsourcing to an offshore location does. In addition, the effect of offshoring of loyalty is greater for consumers who hold ethnocentric tendencies. Practical implications This research suggests the need to consider the delivery channel of service recovery to recover a service failure and retain customer loyalty. The results show that outsourcing within a local country may be effective, but the risks associated with offshoring are much greater. Originality/value Despite previous attempts to understand outsourcing and offshoring in a range of service scenarios, their role in service recovery is not well understood. Similarly, the impact that ethnocentrism might have on this process is overlooked. This paper therefore responds to calls within business theory, practice and consults for further study in this under-researched area.


2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 641-654 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bryan A. Rodgers ◽  
Jiju Antony ◽  
Zhen He ◽  
Elizabeth A. Cudney ◽  
Chad Laux

Purpose The purpose of this paper, builds on previous studies that explored the research patterns over 15 years, is to consider the current status of the integration of Lean and Six Sigma. More specifically, this research addresses whether Lean and Six Sigma are stronger together and explores the reasons why Lean researchers and practitioners may be less likely to integrate Six Sigma in their work. Design/methodology/approach The research utilises a survey of 25 established and respected academics and practitioners from 16 countries. The questionnaire is analysed using a direct content approach and coded in NVivo. Findings The findings suggest that challenges may lie in the perception and understanding of statistics as well as short-term rather than long-term focus on improvement. The findings also suggest that academics and practitioners believe that Lean Six Sigma has developed over time and will continue to develop and improve as a methodology rather than being replaced with a new methodology. Research limitations/implications The survey has a sample size of 25, albeit all respondents are established and very experienced practitioners and academics. Practical implications For organisations that are introducing or refreshing their continuous improvement initiatives, this research identifies some of the challenges and provides the opportunity to address them to maximise the opportunities for success and sustainability. Originality/value The value of this paper is that it further addresses the debate over the integration of Lean and Six Sigma for many organisations which still employ Lean alone, but beyond this it explores how they will continue to develop and whether they are a permanent edition to the quality management landscape or a transition to something else.


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