Labor Rights and Multinational Production investigates the relationship between workers' rights and multinational production. Mosley argues that some types of multinational production, embodied in directly owned foreign investment, positively affect labor rights. But other types of international production, particularly subcontracting, can engender competitive races to the bottom in labor rights. To test these claims, Mosley presents newly generated measures of collective labor rights, covering a wide range of low- and middle-income nations for the 1985-2002 period. Labor Rights and Multinational Production suggests that the consequences of economic openness for developing countries are highly dependent on foreign firms' modes of entry and, more generally, on the precise way in which each developing country engages the global economy. The book contributes to academic literature in comparative and international political economy, and to public policy debates regarding the effects of globalization.

Reflecting on the evolving organisation of multinational enterprises (MNEs) and their growing presence in international business, this book focuses on value creation by subsidiaries in transition economies, and uses Poland as an example. Drawing on internalisation and business network theory, the author analyses the role of the subsidiary with the aim of explaining the mechanisms of subsidiary functional specialisation and its operationalisation. The book presents an innovative model illustrating the determinants of the functional responsibilities of subsidiaries, whilst providing an empirical analysis of foreign subsidiaries in Poland. Addressing a vital topic in international business and management studies, this Palgrave Pivot will be useful for researchers, students and practitioners.

The rise of the Japanese multinational company (JMNC) marked, from the 1980s onwards, an historic change in the structure and in the dynamics of the international economy. For the first time, businesses from a non-Western nation established a competitive global presence, and they did so by bringing their advanced products and management systems to the developed economies of Europe and North America. In the last 30 years, our interpretations of JMNCs have undergone a series of revisions. Korean firms followed JMNCs in the 1990s and the Chinese likewise in the 2000s. A seeming decline in JMNC competitiveness and developments in the structure of the international economy challenged a business model of parental company direction, control and capabilities. Both trends asked questions about how Japanese subsidiaries should operate in global production chains increasingly reliant on contracting out and off-shoring, and how JMNCs might engage more in strategic cooperation and empower subsidiary decision-making. The contributors to this volume consider a wide range of relevant issues: they demonstrate the long-term evolution of JMNCs; they compare the experience of JMNCs with firms from the other two major Asia Pacific economies, Korea and China; they evaluate the applicability of established foreign direct investment (FDI) theory to MNCs from Japan and the Asia Pacific; and they reflect on the internal organization of JMNCs at the global, national and subnational level. This book was originally published as a special issue of Asia Pacific Business Review.

Firms in the clothing industry engage in global sourcing and operate in global markets. Their global production networks have often been subject to scrutiny as the power relationships between buyer firms in developed countries and supplier firms in developing countries raise issues concerned with "fast fashion," the role of brands, labor standards in developing countries, job losses among the most vulnerable workers in Europe and the US, and the growing differentiation within the bloc of developing countries between the least developed and fast developers, such as China and India.
This book analyses the way British, American and German firms in the clothing industry (manufacturing and retail) co-ordinate and govern their global production networks/value chains. It offers a multi-level study, concerned with processes of economic interaction between international, regional, and national economic institutions and actors. This combines an analysis of international/regional regulatory systems, global markets and conditions in the developing countries where suppliers are found, with a focus on the recent development of the clothing industry in three western countries. The analysis of firms' global networks focuses on the power relationships between western producers and retailers on the one hand and between buyer firms in developed and supplier firms in developing countries on the other, as well as their impact on labour.
Utilising over one hundred interviews in six countries on three continents, it follows the value chain from developed to developing countries and studies the many issues which confront students of globalization at the current time. The study combines theoretical perspectives from economic sociology, political economy and management and seeks to utilise the complementary strengths of the Varieties of Capitalism approach and that of Global Production Networks/Value Chains. It will appeal to advanced students and academics interested in processes of economic globalization and the way firms manage them, as well as to those looking for a study of the clothing industry which combines theoretical depth with broad empirical coverage.

Hitherto, the organization of international business has been studied mostly from a managerial point of view or by examining the relationship between firms and the economy. Yet, the development of the modern, multinational firm - the most important type of business organisation - has been strongly influenced by the conflicts that bedeviled the twentieth century. The volatile macroeconomic and political environments experienced by international business point to how important it is to study political risk. Consequently, Multinational Enterprise, Political Risk and Organisational Change: From Total War to Cold War breaks new ground: it argues that non-market elements and historical context are key to understanding the way international business has been organised. This edited volume offers an historical approach to analysing how multinational enterprise has developed over time and around the world, through a series of well-crafted chapters, on important topics in international economic and business history, written by authorities in their respective fields of study and research. The study is based on the underlying premise that the coming of the two World Wars, the devastating and long-term consequences of such total wars, and the ideological challenge of the Cold War acted as a pivot points in shaping the nature and character of multinational firms. By examining such phenomena, this study offers insights to anyone who has an interest in business, economic or political history, management and business studies, or international relations.

First Published in 1998. This book examines the transferability of Japanese organizational practices to Japanese owned industrial transplants in the United States, and demonstrates that relations of power and conflict on the corporate structural level are equally as significant as the social and cultural differences between American and Japanese practices in the workplace. The research is based upon extensive ethnographic fieldwork at automotive transplants in the Midwest and high-tech transplants in California, as well as a case study company in New Mexico, and focuses primarily on their adaptation to the US industrial environment. Extensive interviews demonstrate that organizational practices of Japanese transplants are significantly different from either their Japanese or American counterparts. Relations of power at the case study company are examined in depth and reveal two contrasting forms of control. American managers tend to exert hierarchical control in the manufacturing department using a top down approach and clear distinctions between work and private lives. In contrast, the Japanese managers utilize what the author calls "poka-yoke" (fail-proof) control over the repair department. Poka-yoke control is characterized by strict attendance and dress codes, emphasizing loyalty and dedication to work. At the same time, the US. headquarters in New York and the parent company in Japan impose remote control, thus limiting the autonomy of local managers.

This book examines the relationship between multinational firms and emerging markets, a relationship which has changed profoundly in the period from the 1950's to the late 1990's.
Governments and multinational firms have moved from a situation of conflict to one where government policies were seen as a constraint on the activities of MNE's, and finally to an era of cooperation. This relationship has been reflected in (and driven by) academic writing on the subject, of which this book is a selection of the best examples. The readings in part one show how the critical conflictual elements of the relationship were emphasized in the period 1950 to 1975. Latterly, writing has emphasized cooperation, even harmony, and writers have pointed out that free trade based on cooperative advantage can bring benefits for all.
The most profound change in the world economy in the early post-war period was the emergence of successive waves of Asian 'newly industrializing countries' (NIC's) as key players, bringing new competition to Western nations and fostering the notion of a 'loss of competitiveness' in the developed countries, as well as changing the nature of FDI in the developing countries. These issues are covered in part two. As outward oriented policies replaced protectionist ones, emerging country multinationals became salient: the analysis of their strategies is the subject of part three. Part four examines how the policies of host governments towards inward investment have been shaped by the increasing interdependence of global economic activity. Asian emerging countries went beyond NIC status to become full global competitors, and the post-communist nations began to enter the worldeconomy as new NICs. The danger facing many economies was that of being left on the fringes as globalisation drew countries together, either through expanded world trade and FDI or through the creation of trading blocs (EU, NAFTA, ASEAN-AFTA). The wholly new issues which have inevitably been thrown up by these changes are examined in the final part of this collection.

Cost accounting traditions differ across countries, especially between Germany and the US/UK. Consequently, multinational companies often face cross-national differences in the design of their subunits' cost accounting systems. To improve comparability and facilitate control, multinational companies seek to globally align these systems. In this respect, they have to balance the needs of the headquarters and the subunits. By the means of a mixed-method approach, this study analyses the design of cost accounting systems from both perspectives. It finds empirical evidence for cross-case and cross-country differences in the complexity and standardization of cost accounting systems in subunits of German multinational companies and identifies important determinants and success factors. The findings have implications for researchers and practitioners in the field of management accounting.

This book, first published in 1988, examines the impact of multinational companies on the British economy and the British government's policy responses. It assesses the effects of multinationals both on the national economy and on different regions and evaluates the benefits and problems brought by overseas companies. It looks at how government has attempted to entice multinationals to invest, and the UK government's success in these attraction efforts as compared with other countries. Regulatory aspects of policy are also reviewed and evaluated, and consideration is given to possible new policy approaches. This title will be of interest to students of business studies.

One of the reasons for the success of multinational enterprises in their ability to create in their supranational organisations "internal markets" which eliminate the imperfections of external world markets caused by tariffs on trade, restrictions on the flow of capital, information costs and so on. The method multinationals use to create and sustain internal markets is transfer pricing. Multinationals use to their advantage the difference between nominal accounting and real transfers from their head offices to a subsidiary in different countries to overcome transaction costs and restrictions on trade and capital flows. This book, first published in 1985, examines these and other aspects of multinationals' use of transfer pricing. It puts forward original thinking and research findings by leading experts in this area. Empirical results are related to the activities of multinationals in less developed countries. This volume covers the economic theories of transfer pricing, accounting and fiscal practices and implications for government policies and regulations, and will be of interest to students of economics and business studies.

This book, first published in 1987, outlines the motives and methods of overseas operations by international contractors. Drawing on an economic analysis of the industry and on elements of international investment and production theory the book discusses the problems of both individual enterprises and the major nationality groups in the industry

Human resource management (HRM) has a significant impact on companies' performance, as evidenced by research conducted in multinational companies (MNCs) based in Central Europe. This book provides a unique perspective of activities conducted in the HRM field in local subsidiaries of such enterprises. It also presents results verifying many hypotheses for each of the six models for single HRM subfunctions and their four relationships with the results of company performance. Particular chapters are devoted to activities including staffing the organization, shaping employee work engagement and job satisfaction, conducting employee performance appraisal, employee development, managerial staff development, and employer branding. The author used the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling to verify the research hypotheses. Readers will acquire knowledge about HRM practices in organizations in which the overwhelming ownership capital belongs to MNCs headquartered in Central Europe. The research findings presented confirm the positive impact that HRM activities have on the results of this type of enterprise in such areas as finance, quality, innovation and HRM itself. The research also sheds light on the new, interesting regularities identified in this regard, e.g. the perception of human factor as a competitive factor. This book will be of interest to academics, researchers, and advanced or postgraduate students who are interested in the latest research on HRM in MNCs in the region of Central Europe. The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

Despite the current crisis, Asian economies remain an important market for firms around the world and continue to be stiff competitors in world business. One reason for the region's strength, and a predictor of Asia's endurance, are its business networks-- DEGREESIkeiretsus DEGREESR in Japan, DEGREESIchaebols DEGREESR in Korea, and other forms that connect single firms, entire industries, and which interlink the region as a whole. Richter and his contributors examine the origins of business networks, their effects on the economies, and the implications of their presence and growth in Asian economies. Corporate strategic planners, marketing executives, and other decision makers will find here an important contribution to their understanding of why Asia's economies will pick up again and how they will continue to grow.

The book examines the promises of business networks and the role of transaction costs, interdependence, and membership commitment. The contributors do not automatically assume that past successes of these networks will mean future successes; rather, they define the outlines of new and innovative forms of networks, and see in their configurations an even better platform for further economic development in Asia and for the globalization of Asian multinationals. Contributors offer a critical approach to theory and practice of Asian networking, and because of their national diversity are able to provide a variety of viewpoints on them. Research-based and presenting the thinking of scholars and practitioners alike, the book supplies expert knowledge and a basis for academic discourse on managerial policy not easily found elsewhere.

This book gives students a new perspective on entrepreneurial venturing in an international context. By analyzing the dynamics in international companies, they will be armed with the skills they need to build successful strategies for entering new international markets. Williams presents a framework built around four contexts for international venturing: headquarters-driven through internal capabilities; subsidiary-driven through peripheral capabilities; headquarters-driven through external capabilities; and subsidiary-driven though external capabilities. Through this, students gain insight into the conditions that enable venturing in different types of MNEs, the mechanisms by which MNEs pursue international opportunities, and the leadership and managerial challenges of developing entrepreneurial capabilities across borders. Following a definition and analysis of each context, the book synthesizes the outcomes in an integrative way, providing implications for strategic leaders in international firms as well as for researchers and students. These contexts are used to frame the literature and engage with eight topical cases, which are also published in full in the Appendix of the book. With case studies from around the world that focus both on smaller and larger enterprises, Venturing in International Firms will give students of international entrepreneurship, corporate entrepreneurship and international business an edge when venturing internationally in the real world.

Focusing on international entrepreneurship, this research book explores the accelerated internationalization of young firms. Known variously as international new ventures (INVs) or "born globals," such firms have come to be viewed as legitimate actors on the global stage alongside large multinational enterprises (MNEs). However, the current approach taken by scholars - studying large MNEs and born globals separately - is questionable. This book explores the crucial MNE/INV interface - a fascinating, yet under-researched relationship in international entrepreneurship. Drawing upon a decade of case-based research, the author argues that the MNE influence on born globals must be considered more carefully and suggests how new ventures can leverage MNE networks in the pursuit of their rapid internationalization. Furthermore, it demonstrates that, as firms enhance their levels of innovation, new pathways emerge via multinational corporation networks, a phenomenon vividly demonstrated in the emerging economy context of the Bangalore software industry. This innovative research text will be of interest to academics, researchers, and advanced students with an interest in international entrepreneurship and business, strategy, innovation, and new ventures.

The rise of the Japanese multinational company (JMNC) marked, from the 1980s onwards, an historic change in the structure and in the dynamics of the international economy. For the first time, businesses from a non-Western nation established a competitive global presence, and they did so by bringing their advanced products and management systems to the developed economies of Europe and North America. In the last 30 years, our interpretations of JMNCs have undergone a series of revisions. Korean firms followed JMNCs in the 1990s and the Chinese likewise in the 2000s. A seeming decline in JMNC competitiveness and developments in the structure of the international economy challenged a business model of parental company direction, control and capabilities. Both trends asked questions about how Japanese subsidiaries should operate in global production chains increasingly reliant on contracting out and off-shoring, and how JMNCs might engage more in strategic cooperation and empower subsidiary decision-making. The contributors to this volume consider a wide range of relevant issues: they demonstrate the long-term evolution of JMNCs; they compare the experience of JMNCs with firms from the other two major Asia Pacific economies, Korea and China; they evaluate the applicability of established foreign direct investment (FDI) theory to MNCs from Japan and the Asia Pacific; and they reflect on the internal organization of JMNCs at the global, national and subnational level. This book was originally published as a special issue of Asia Pacific Business Review.

Why have relatively poor and underdeveloped countries been able to spawn so many global firms in the last two decades? Are emerging market multinationals (EMNCs) really different from successful multinationals from developed economies? This book tackles these and other fundamental theoretical questions about EMNCs. A distinguished group of researchers assesses the unique strategies and behavior of successful EMNCs, from the Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei to the Indian conglomerate Tata, to the South African beverages firm SABMiller. They address a range of topics, such as the drivers of internationalization by EMNCs; their distinctive process capabilities; how they catch up with established rivals on technology; how state ownership or business-group affiliation affects their behavior; and why they sometimes relocate their headquarters to advanced economies. This book will appeal to scholars and graduate students in global strategy and international business, as well as consultants of multinational companies, looking for state-of-the-art analysis of EMNCs.

The McDonald's Corporation is not only the largest system-wide sales service in the world, it is a phenomenon in its own right, and is now recognized as the most famous brand in the world. By providing a detailed analysis of the extent to which the McDonald's Corporation adapts or imposes its labour relations policies in Europe, this volume represents a real life case study revealing the interaction between a global multi-national enterprise and the regulatory systems of a number of different European countries. Key features include:

* an overview of the McDonald's Corporation's development and structure
* an analysis of its corporate culture and the issues of franchising
* an examination of key union strategies, including systems of co-determination, consultation and collective-bargaining
* a chapter dealing specifically with European legislation, in particular the McDonald's European Works Council
The author systematically analyzes the conflict between the McDonald's Corporation and the industrial relations systems of the European countries within which it operates, and exposes this conflict as an 'unequal struggle' between economic liberalism and collectivism.

In the past two decades, the international community has shown an increased proclivity to engage in programmes of post-conflict reconstruction in the aftermath of wars. During the same period, increased globalisation has meant that multinational companies have grown greatly in size and influence and have begun to challenge existing notions of governance at a global level. Here Peter Davis explores the reconstruction processes that have taken place in Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Rwanda. Based on extensive field work as well as existing literature, this book plots the recovery of these countries from conflict, and examines in detail the role that international companies have played in that process. The book also explores how companies' impacts on reconstruction are governed, both by the companies themselves, and by the host government and international agencies managing the rebuilding process.

The Handbook brings together leading scholars in international business as well as other disciplines to contribute state-of-the-art thinking on emerging markets. The volume extends theoretical and conceptual thinking, looks at operational practices and their implications and provides a research agenda to move the field forward.Contributors include a mix of new and established authors from around the world, for a diverse and current set of scholarly perspectives on emerging markets. Combining academic and operationally focused chapters, they offer a multifaceted, in-depth look at specific geographies and functional areas to enrich our understanding of emerging markets. This energetic and varied look at a burgeoning field will be an invaluable resource for academics and for students at the post-doctoral, PhD and MBA levels. Contributors: C.G. Alvstam, O.E. Annushkina, A. Arslan, M.S. Balakrishnan, E. Berselli, N. Bhatnagar, K. Braunsberger, I. Buciuniene, A. Cuervo-Cazzura, M. Demirbag, R.O. Flamm, M.W. Hansen, P.D.O. Jensen, S. Joshi, A. Karna, R. Kazlauskaite, C. Landau, J. Larimo, H. Merchant, K. Nair, W. Newburry, D. O'Reilly, B. Petersen, J. Prabhu, I. Pupieniene, K. Ramachandran, A. Soleimani, P. Strom, E. Tatoglu, F. Taube, L. Trevino, R. Trinca Colonel, C. Vithessonthi, R. Wentrup

Based on a six-year project at INSEAD, top scholars put these developments into perspective. Written for general managers as well as personnel executives and students of management, this book breaks new ground in helping them to address the emerging challenges of international human resource management.

Affinity to the Chinese culture, personalized social networks and a firm control of ownership and management have often been considered the key ingredients for the success of many diaspora Chinese transnational enterprises in South China and Southeast Asia. In view of the recent Asian crisis and the rapid changes imposed by globalization, scholars are increasingly concerned whether these family-owned Chinese transnational enterprises would survive the challenges in the new millennium.

The function of the state as a symbol of identity has become increasingly important as major powers of the pre-Cold War era have given way to self-determination. The conventional role of the state has, however, simultaneously been challenged by the process of globalisation which transcends such national boundaries. Barbara Emadi-Coffin seeks to explain this contradiction through a radical new theory. There are now 37,000 multinational corporations in the world, many of which are increasingly seen as being among the new centres of political and economic power. Barbara Emadi-Coffin analyses the increasing interaction of multinational corporations, international organizations and transnational interest groups, such as Greenpeace and Amnesty International, in processes of the global political economy. Using examples of the free trade zones in Korea, the UK and the People's Republic of China, the author demonstrates these interactions. In so doing, she challenges prevailing notions surrounding International Organization theory.