跨国经营海外子公司业务发展中企业的战略选择——辉瑞制药中国公司在华生产范围发展路径(1993~2002年)的启示

经济全球化给更多企业带来了跨国经营的机会与动力。本文着重分析在跨国经营中海外子公司在当地的业务范围如何演化、其发展路径通常受哪些因素的影响,而企业又可以通过做出哪些战略选择来更好地调节其发展路径。通过对辉瑞制药中国公司在1993￣2002年期间在华生产范围发展路径的描述和分析,本文提出两个观点。一是在跨国经营中企业通常面临保持公司在全球的业务整合以及适应当地市场具体条件的双重压力,当两者之间存在较大差异时,由于决策者的认知受有限理性的制约,海外子公司的业务并不会按现有文献中所提出的按母公司已有业务从强到弱顺序发展,而是呈现迂回发展的路径。二是企业可以通过对战略变量的参数的选择来调节其海外子公司的业务发展,而这样的参数调节过程有助于企业通过试探逐渐积累关于当地市场的知识,从而在跨国经营的双重压力中获取平衡。通过上述分析,本文希冀对中国企业开展国际化经营提供的启示是当企业在海外扩张中面临陌生的环境时,对当地市场的特性给予足够的关注并保持战略上的灵活性是取得成功的关键。

Strategic Choices for Firms in Expanding Overseas Business

The trend of economic globalization over the recent decade brings companies more opportunities and stronger incentive for international expansion. In this paper, we focus on analyzing how multinational corporation (MNC) subsidiaries in overseas markets expand their business over time, what factors influence their development paths, and how companies could make strategic choices to better facilitate the development of their subsidiaries. Based on a case study of Pfizer's production scope evolution in China during 1993 to 2002, we propose that MNCs usually have to face dual pressures of keeping integration among global businesses on the one hand, and remaining responsive to local market conditions on the other. When there is large discrepancy between the two, due to the bounded rationality of the decision-makers, the development paths of the subsidiaries are likely to exhibit recursive pattern, instead of the sequential mode as suggested in the extant literature. Secondly, we argue that companies could make strategic choices to facilitate the development of their overseas subsidiaries. By experimenting with the adjustment of the strategic parameters pertaining to the content and processes of their development paths, companies could accumulate knowledge about the local market and strike a balance between the dual pressures they have to face. The implication of our study for the indigenous Chinese companies in their international expansion is that when facing alien business environment in overseas market, paying attention to the idiosyncratic local market condition and keeping strategic flexibility are pivotal to their success.