跨国公司投资转移及撤退的实证分析

跨国公司在不同时期、不同阶段，对某一领域或地区的投资会发生不确定性的变化，投资转移和撤退是这种变化的表现方式之一。而且，相对于其它方式(如股权变动、组织或产品结构调整等)，这种方式是一种较剧烈的变动方式，对投资母国及东道国的影响均不可小视。因此，对跨国公司对外直接投资撤退的分析与对外直接投资的分析有着同等重要的作用。     

刍议世界跨国公司发展的新趋势

一、跨国公司的投资流向 二战以后,跨国公司的对外投资中,流向发达国家的比重越来越高。据统计,1938年全世界对外直接投资总额中,投入发达国家的占34.3％,投入不发达国家和地区的占65.7％;到80年代后期已分别占83％和17％。跨国公司的直接投资主要在发达国家之间进行,是因为发达国家经济发展水平高,接受投资的容量大,市场容量也大。另外,发达国家政局稳定,基础设施完善,法律制度比较健全,投资环境好,而且发达国家之间市场模式、消费习惯接近,它们既都是跨国公司的母国,又互为东道国,对跨国公司的政策也比较一致。     

跨国公司对外直接投资动机的理论与实证分析──兼论对发展中国家改善投资环境的启示

80年代末以来,随着国外跨国公司的大量涌入和我国企业跨国经营的初显端倪,国内有关跨国公司的研究日渐深入。然而,就跨国公司投资动机(或诱因)的阐述则尚显缺乏。本文试图从理论实证分析两个角度,对跨国公司对外直接投资动机作综合性阐述,并对发展中国家如何有的放矢地制定改善投资环境的战略措施提出若干建议。     

文化差异与对外直接投资

关于对外直接投资的决定因素的研究由来已久,从早期的垄断优势理论到国际生产折中理论,学者们力图从多角度分析跨国公司的对外投资活动。文章在3-D理论的基础上,分析文化差异和对外直接投资的关系,为理论研究和对外直接投资实践提供借鉴。     

外来者劣势、组织学习与对外直接投资绩效研究

基于信息不对称和组织合法性两个研究视角,分析外来者劣势对跨国企业对外直接投资绩效的影响路径。结合组织学习双元性理论,探讨利用性学习和探索性学习在调节外来者劣势与对外直接投资绩效关系上的时效性差异。在理论分析基础上构建关于外来者劣势、组织学习与对外直接投资绩效的概念模型,以138家中国上市企业为样本,采用SPSS 19.0对提出的假设进行实证检验。研究结果表明,外来者劣势对跨国企业对外直接投资绩效存在显著负作用;探索性学习强调知识信息逆向转移,能够促进跨国企业突破性创新来弱化外来者劣势对长期投资绩效的负作用;利用性学习旨在促进内部技能与外部环境的融合,推动跨国企业渐进性创新,进而显著弱化外来者劣势对短期投资绩效的负作用,但利用性学习的调节作用未通过验证。研究结论有助于更好地认识跨国企业对外直接投资过程中的外来者劣势,并从组织学习角度给跨国企业降低外来者劣势、提高对外直接投资绩效提供实践意义。     

对跨国公司实行控股经营的分析

一、跨国公司实行控股经营主要基于其追求长期利润最大化之目的追求长期目标利润最大化是跨国公司拓展对外投资并实行控股经营的主要驱动力。跨国公司通过对东道国的投资环境进行大量分析并对相应风险诈出预测后，选定适宜可行的投资方式进行投资并扩展其组织，形成其进入东道国战略。跨国公司进入我国所采取的策略主要是直接建立独资公司或建立合资企业实行控股经营。相比较而言，实行合资控股成功的机会要多于独资公司，这是因为建立合资企业比建立独资公司具有优势，特别是投资初期，这种优势更为明显，比如可以迅速进入原企业所在产业和…     

跨国公司知识转移：知识特性与转移工具研究

为了揭示知识特性和知识转移工具对跨国公司内部知识转移结果的影响程度,构建了一个包含知识特性、转移工具和知识跨国界转移结果的知识转移过程模型并做出相应假设,然后对跨国公司在华子公司做问卷调查,用结构方程模型对样本数据进行分析.实证结果显示,知识的默会性、简单嵌入性、初级转移工具对知识从国外母公司向中国子公司的跨国界转移起到了显著的直接作用,而高级转移工具对默会性起到了部分中介作用,对关系嵌入变量起到了完全中介作用.     

论我国政府在跨国并购中的规制行为

从20世纪初发展至今,全球一共经历了五次并购浪潮,跨国并购已成为跨国公司对外直接投资的主要方式。从80年代末开始,外资逐渐尝试以并购的方式进行对华直接投资,并对我国经济带来了正面和负面的双重影响。本文系统地论述了跨国公司在华并购的概况,发展趋势和对中国的影响。分析了我国外资并购中政府规制的现状及其主要问题。针对外资并购在我国的发展状况和趋势,本文对外资并购中国企业的政府规制问题进行了研究,并提出完善我国政府规制跨国并购行为的对策建议。     

跨国并购:我国入世后利用外资的重要选择

<正> 一、跨国并购的发展及影响随着经济全球化和一体化的不断深入,近年来,跨国公司的对外直接投资行为发生了重大的变化,跨国并购已成为推动对外直接投资的最主要力量。     

中国对外直接投资区位和产业选择分析

通过实证分析,可以看出,中国企业对外直接投资的市场规模敏感程度大于成本因素敏感程度,而技术竞争力的薄弱,东道国较高的技术水平对中国对外直接投资具有抑制作用,但双边贸易关系并不影响中国对外直接投资开展,东道国资源禀赋也不是中国对外直接投资的显著影响因素。所以,正确的区位、产业和市场份额选择都是中国企业扩大对外直接投资应考虑的因素。有选择的转移国内产能过剩的边际产业,可以为国内产业结构升级留出资源和推动产业结构升级。     

Knowledge transfer practices in multinational corporations in China's information technology industry

Abstract

The goals of this study were to explore existing practices used to facilitate knowledge transfer in MNCs in the information technology industry in China, and to investigate the frequency of use and the influence of each practice on knowledge transfer. In addition, this study examined which types of knowledge could be transferred by a given practice. The study used a two-stage method that included two surveys. The first survey was designed to develop an inclusive list of knowledge transfer practices. Thirty-three practices were identified in the first survey. The second survey found: 1) the frequency of use and the influence on knowledge transfer varied from one practice to another; 2) MNCs frequently used those practices with higher influence on knowledge transfer; 3) certain practices are better suited in transferring certain types of knowledge.     

The Processes of New Product Development Recentralization towards a Transnational Emphasis in Multinational Corporations

Studies on R&D internationalization have identified the decentralization-recentralization pattern of many multinational corporations (MNCs). Studies have also indicated that MNCs tend to pursue a transnational emphasis during R&D recentralization. This research focuses on recentralization of new product development (NPD) in MNCs and aims to reveal different processes of it towards a transnational emphasis. Through a qualitative case study of four MNCs, the NPD recentralization process was explored in two important dimensions – power centralization and pluralistic input. Four process variants were discovered, showing different approaches to power centralization and pluralistic input. The processes of recentralization are novel to the area of R&D internationalization. This study also advances our understanding of R&D recentralization with a focus on NPD fulfilling market demand, which has not been well addressed in prior studies. In addition, this study generates some insights into transnational management.     

Institutions and the Diversity and Prevalence of Multinationals’ Knowledge‐Augmenting Subsidiaries

Multinational corporations (MNCs) increasingly seek to gain access to, and exploit, locationally specific sources of advanced knowledge and technological capabilities, creating a need to explain (1) the diversity among these facilities and (2) how institutions influence MNCs’ abilities to invest in different subsidiary types. Extending debates on firms’ knowledge‐augmenting activities, the authors integrate institutions into their analytical framework to a greater extent than previous work has done. Moreover, existing contributions provide typologies of R&D subsidiaries. In contrast, the authors focus on a particular subset of subsidiaries, knowledge‐augmenting ones, and put forward a theory to explain their variety and their prevalence, enabling them to identify previously neglected subsidiary types that have important managerial and policy implications. By downplaying the diversity of these subsidiaries, existing work has not been able to capture the full range of managerial challenges as well as the costs and benefits of different subsidiary types to host countries. The authors, therefore, problematize firms’ abilities to gain access to foreign knowledge‐generating assets, highlight the importance of institutional environments, provide policy recommendations and identify areas for future research.     

Managing Knowledge Creation in High‐Tech R&D Projects: A Multimethod Study

R&D projects in high‐tech organizations bring together diverse knowledge domains to quickly develop new products and processes. The fast‐paced context of high‐tech organizations makes it challenging to create new knowledge and solve complex problems. Managing these R&D projects requires understanding both the mechanisms and the type of knowledge created to achieve project objectives. This research conducts a two‐phased multimethod study to understand knowledge creation in high‐tech R&D projects. The first phase uses qualitative data to develop a theory on knowledge creation in R&D projects. The second phase involves a survey that collects data from R&D projects to test the theory. Results from the case study find that R&D projects benefit from two types of knowledge – objective and intuitive. The case analyses show that intuitive and objective knowledge creation in high‐tech organizations occurs by creating not only diverse but also psychological safe project teams. The large‐scale survey finds that team diversity positively influences objective knowledge creation while psychological safety affects intuitive knowledge creation. Surprisingly, the results show that team diversity negatively affects intuitive knowledge creation. A post hoc analysis takes a more granular look at diversity and shows that different kinds of diversity have different effects on knowledge creation. This helps to better explain how to manage innovation across boundaries. Finally, the analysis shows that both objective and intuitive knowledge influence R&D project performance. Taken together, these results help explain how to manage innovation across functional boundaries to create knowledge and enhance R&D project performance.      

False foe? When and how code switching practices can support knowledge sharing in multinational corporations

The operating environment of multinational corporations (MNC) is multilingual, adding significant complexity to knowledge-sharing interactions between employees. In this paper, we explore how knowledge sharing in MNCs is influenced by code switching, or shifting between languages during interaction. Previous international business research has mostly described code switching as a behavior that has a negative impact on knowledge sharing by creating distrust and exclusion. Our case study of a major Finnish MNC from the perspective of faultline theory shows that in situations where organizational norms and routines help limit the potential impacts of code switching on subgroup formation and inter-subgroup animosity, it can also aid knowledge sharing by (i) supporting the development and maintenance of key technical vocabulary, (ii) enhancing inclusion in knowledge-sharing interactions, and (iii) supporting knowledge contextualization processes. Thus, code switching is not necessarily just a form of linguistic interference, but it can also be intended—and often functions—as a strategic behavior that draws on multiple languages to build efficient and successful knowledge-sharing interactions.     

Routines and transactive memory systems: Creating,coordinating, retaining,and transferring knowledge in organizations

This chapter compares and contrasts the effects of two knowledge repositories, routines and transactive memory systems (TMSs), on knowledge creation, coordination, retention and transfer. We provide overviews of research on the two knowledge repositories, with particular attention to how they form and change. We then discuss the relationship between routines and TMSs. We also compare and contrast routines and TMSs in terms of their capabilities to promote knowledge creation, coordination, retention and transfer in organizations. Routines can transfer across organizations, and they are resilient to member turnover. Although routines can be a source of inertia, they can also enable change. TMSs are susceptible to member turnover and are not easily transferred to other organizations. TMSs promote innovation and are particularly valuable under conditions of uncertainty. We argue that TMSs and routines are reciprocally related. Routines can seed TMSs and TMSs can crystalize into routines. We hope that our chapter stimulates future research on the interrelationship between routines and TMSs and their effects on knowledge creation, coordination, retention, and transfer in organizations.     

Subnational Location Capital: The Role of Subnational Institutional Actors and Socio‐spatial Factors on Firm Location

Firms do not simply locate, but rather seek to accrue location‐based advantages such as knowledge, market insidership and resource utilization. Adopting the lens of social capital, this paper explores how subnational institutional actors facilitate location capital for firms. Using qualitative case study analysis of six multinational companies (MNCs), we highlight the important role of subnational institutional actors in fostering three dimensions of subnational location capital – structural, relational and cognitive. We show that subnational location capital, defined as the economic and social assets accessible through relationships within a subnational location, enable firms to derive advantages via subnational engagement. These findings contribute to the growing literature on the dynamic interaction of firms with subnational location, particularly the nuanced role of subnational institutional actors with MNCs.     

Politics and Power within Multinational Corporations: Mainstream Studies,Emerging Critical Approaches and Suggestions for Future Research

Given the increased public interest in the use and misuse of power in multinationals in the aftermath of the financial crisis, it is notable that power relations in multinational corporations (MNCs) have not gained enhanced attention in the academic community. What is missing so far in the study of MNCs is a systematic examination of how power and politics within MNCs have been addressed in mainstream international business (IB) and sociological research studying the MNC. This paper starts by critically reviewing these two mainstream approaches in the study of MNCs as organizations and seeking to understand the shortcomings of former research. Next, it reviews new emergent critical perspectives, which the authors call socio‐political studies of MNCs, where power and politics are addressed not just more prominently, but also differently, from a more bottom‐up and actor‐centred perspective. After reviewing this emergent stream of research, the authors propose that future studies should take a more micro‐political perspective and focus in more detail on the micro‐foundations of power relations. In the concluding section, the authors show how future studies of MNCs can learn from both critical interactionist and discursive theories when analysing organizational politics and power relations. A framework is proposed for the study of micro‐level political game‐playing in MNCs, based on a three‐dimensional framework for organizational power (episodic, rules of the game and domination), and some key research questions for future studies are suggested.     

Transferring knowledge in MNCs: The role of sources of subsidiary knowledge and organizational context

We link up with the recent literature on the differentiated MNC and in particular with its stress on intra-MNC knowledge flows. However, rather than focusing on the characteristics of knowledge as determinants of knowledge transfer within MNCs, we focus instead on levels of knowledge in subsidiaries, the sources of transferable subsidiary knowledge and on the organizational means and conditions that realize knowledge transfer as the relevant determinants. We find largely positive support for the relevant hypotheses. These are tested on a unique dataset on knowledge development in subsidiary firms [the Centre of Excellence (CoE) project].