Showing papers on "Multinational corporation published in 1984"

A Simple Theory of International Trade with Multinational Corporations

Abstract: Using the idea that firm-specific assets associated with marketing, management, and product-specific R & D can be used to service production plants in countries other than the country in which these inputs are employed, I develop a simple general equilibrium model of international trade in which the location of plants in a differentiated product industry is a decision variable. The model is then used to derive predictions of trade pattern, volumes of trade, the share of intra-industry trade, and the share of intrafirm trade as functions of relative country size and differences in relative factor endowments.

Multinational Corporations: Control Systems and Delegation Issues

Abstract: The paper has 2 major objectives: first, to identify control and delegation issues confronting multinational corporation managers; second, to develop a conceptual model to assist multinational corporation managers in selecting appropriate control systems and determining the extent of delegation to be provided to subsidiary managers. Finally, the paper suggests directions for future research.

Patterns of Strategic Control Within Multinational Corporations

Abstract: The management of multinational operations is often required to balance conflicting priorities between responsiveness at the national subsidiary level and central coordination for global competitiveness. Such balancing requires that relevant data be brought to bear on decisions, that consensus be created among key managers, and that relative power among them be carefully balanced. In large complex MNCs the balancing process can be institutionalized through the structuring of relationships between headquarters and subsidiaries.

Patterns of Control in U.S., UK and European Multinational Corporations

Abstract: This paper examines the type and level of control exercised by the parent headquarters of 50 U.S., UK, and European multinational corporations over their foreign subsidiaries. Patterns of control in the 3 national groups differ in significant ways, and these differences seem to have important implications for other characteristics of a company's organization design and managerial style.

Strategic management of human resources in the multinational enterprise

Abstract: The efficient operation of a multinational enterprise is contingent upon the availability and effective utilization of numerous strategic resources—technology, capital, know-how, and people. It is my contention that human power is a key ingredient to the successful operation of a multinational, without which all the other aforementioned resources could not be effectively and efficiently utilized or transferred from corporate headquarters to the various subsidiaries in the world; hence the need for multinationals to devote greater attention to the strategic management of human resources as part of the overall planning and control process in a firm. This article identifies the most common pitfalls to human resource planning in U.S. multinationals and offers guidelines for the development of a paradigm for the strategic management of human resources in the multinational enterprise.

The OECD Guidelines for multinational enterprises

Abstract: In July 1976 the OECD adopted voluntary guidelines for multinational enterprises. These guidelines deal, among other things, with transfer pricing and other transactions between companies which belong to the same multinational enterprise. The purpose of the present article is to analyze the OECD Guidelines from the point of view of business ethics. It is shown that inherent in the guidelines is a conflict between different goals. In the latter part of the article it is shown how this conflict could be solved.

Between Dependency and Autonomy: India's Experience with the International Computer Industry

Abstract: India's experience with the international computer industry serves as a key test of the “bargaining school” and the “Marxist-dependencia school” on relations between developing countries and multinational enterprises. India changed (and improved) its performance over time in reformulating its ties with the international computer industry. How did changes in international computer technology and industrial structure combine with Indian domestic institutional and political developments to yield an improved position for India in international computing? The case study illustrates the overall analytical superiority of the bargaining school over the Marxist-dependencia school. It also suggests a modest revision of the bargaining school's understanding of the speed at which certain developing countries are attaining the capability to negotiate successfully with multinationals in high-technology industries.

Strategy and Structure of U.S. Multinationals: An Exploratory Study

Abstract: Large U.S. multinational companies are classified by the structure through which their foreign operations report to headquarters. Structural groups then are compared by the use of such variables as...

Human Resource Planning in Japanese Multinationals: A Model for U.S. Firms?

Abstract: The efficient operation of a multinational corporation is contingent upon the availability of numerous—technology, capital, know-how, and people. In this paper, the argument is made that human power is a key ingredient to the successful operation of a multinational, without which all the other aforementioned resources could not be effectively and efficiently utilized or transferred from corporate headquarters to the various subsidiaries in the world. Hence, there is a need for multinationals to devote more attention to human resource planning, which is viewed as part of the overall planning and control process in a firm. The paper compares and contrasts the human resource development programs between a sample of U.S. and Japanese multinationals, and discusses the implications for U.S. multinationals.

Labour relations decision making within multinational corporations

Abstract: The extent of parent company involvement in subsidiary level industrial relations varies widely among different multinational corporations. This study examines the procedures adopted in a sample survey of thirty foreign-owned MNCs operating in the UK and the reasons for such inter-firm variations.

The Foreign Orientation of Management as a Central Construct in Export-Centered Decision-Making Processes

Abstract: The Federal Republic of Germany currently has an average export ratio of 33 percent and occupies the position as the second-largest trading nation in the world. In the past, this success apparently led many academicians in Western Germany to regard commitment to the field of international business and international marketing as superfluous. However, this perspective seems now to be changing. As in other industrial nations, the unfavorable development in the balance of payments as well as zero growth in the economy have caused increasing interest on the part of university economists in these questions. In conjunction with this development, and in deviation from the hitherto dominating concern with the multinational firm, increasing attention is being cast upon the export-related decision-making processes of small firms. [See Olson & Wiedersheim-Paul, 1978; Rabino, 1980; Steinmann et al., 1977, 1981]

U.S. Multinational Investment in Canadian Manufacturing Industries

Abstract: The primary objective of this study is to test the applicability of marketing variables to the explanation of U.S. multinational corporate market share of selected Canadian manufacturing industries. A secondary objective is to evaluate the use of a \"comparative variable\" approach whereby data from both the host and donor countries are considered in a relative context. Results indicate that U.S. advertising spillover, marketing management expertise and comparative advertising/sales ratios act as determinants of U.S. subsidiary market share in Canadian industries. Performance of the \"comparative variables\" in regression, while not as robust as the marketing specifications, is also encouraging.

Trends in Multinational Business and Global Environments: A Perspective

Abstract: This article reviews and synthesizes the emergence and growth of U.S., Western European, and Japanese MNCs in the postwar environment, the growing role of state enterprises, and the recent emergence of Third World MNCs. While U.S. foreign direct investments have expanded and continue to be highly significant, some important recent developments are the more rapid growth of Western European and Japanese MNCs, the increased role of the U.S. as a host country for investments, the emergence of multibusiness by MNCs, the more numerous actors involved in global business, and the dramatic, more rapid changes in the world environment. This article explores developments in host- and home-country policies, some of the other major actors in international business, “newer” forms of international participation along with some hypotheses, and concludes by analyzing a few major changes in global environments and multinational management.

Export Trading Company Legislation: U.S. Response to Japanese Foreign Market Penetration

Abstract: EXPORT TRADING COMPANY LEGISLATION: US RESPONSE TO JAPANESE FOREIGN MARKET PENETRATION The great industrial might of the US went unchallenged for many years, but as a result of changing priorities and spheres of influence, other countries, most notably Japan, have become world leaders in production and profits Until recently, the great internal market, raw materials, and sheer enormity of the US made it virtually unnecessary to seek profits from external markets Many companies have been "too preoccupied with domestic markets to respond to solicitations from foreign buyers" This lack of interest or ability in developing export capacity has put the US in the unfavorable position of having to catch up In 1983 the US trade deficit came to about $70 billion dollars The trade deficit could reach $130 billion dollars for 1984 Over the past five years (1979-1983), the United States has accumulated a merchandise trade deficit of more than $180 billion, while Japan has garnered a huge surplus In many successful examples over the last three decades--cars, trucks, optics, solid-state electronics--Japanese industry has capitalized on the high level of output which trade surplus promotes in order to create and maintain deep market penetration The foreign market entry strategy developed so successfully by the Japanese auto and consumer electronics industries is now being used by Japan all over the world Enter a market with the low end of the product line, build up and entrench with a good reputation, then offer higher quality products at higher prices The Japanese are targeting LDCs (lesser developed countries) and smaller markets that have high growth potential As a country grows and the market expands, the Japanese will have a solid presence and will, in turn capture much of the new business Japan's Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) fosters competition within the domestic market, and also does everything financially and politically feasible to ecourage exports For the most part, Japanese computer makers try to avoid international competition among themselves In the US, this could be considered trade restriction and a violation of the antitrust laws which prohibit "carving out" markets In Japan, business is much less fettered by regulations, and the government is a "general partner" that helps companies pentrate foreign markets A crucial difference between the US and Japan in the international sales arena is the structure of the export distribution mechanism The bulk of US exporting is currently done by a few large, multinational companies However, according to statistics published by the Department of Commerce, some thirty thousand small-and medium-sized domestic US businesses manufacture products with good export potential Many firms have not ventured into foreign markets because of their unfamiliarity with foreign customs, languages, and laws, and because of the tremendous costs and risks involved in developing overseas markets Only 1 percent of American companies account for more than 80 percent of the nation's exports On the other hand, three hundred trading firms are responsible for 80 percent of Japanese trade Sales generated by the big ten export trading companies in Japan account for 30 percent of the GNP in that country The two leading firms, Mitsui and Mitsubishi, have sales exceeding $20 billion in goods and commodities to and out of the US annually Mitsubishi, Mitsui and other Japanese trading companies are large because that island nation traditionally has had to trade in order to survive Since US industry, by and large, had been able to grow and profit by sticking close to home, and since foreign markets have usually bought US goods when they lacked their own supplies, there has been little need for a domestic mechanism that would facilitate international trade, ie, an integrated trading company …

US Multinational Involvement in the International Hotel Sector An Analysis

Abstract: This paper seeks to explain the structure of the international hotel industry and the involvement of US multinational hotel corporations in it. This involvement has taken the non-traditional form of management contracts and franchising agreements, with little, if any, direct investment. From the point of view of the multinational corporation this form of involvement can be explained by the desire to expand rapidly to gain a major share of the world market, while minimising capital outlay and the risk of operation in an uncertain environment. Obviously, however, such involvement by multinational corporations would not have been possible, had not host countries looked on it with favour. Interestingly, such involvement has not only been merely acceptable, but indeed desirable to host countries, for it maximises skills transfer and access to a global marketing system, while reducing the control of the multinational corporation on domestic industry.

Technology crossing borders : the choice, transfer, and management of international technology flows

Abstract: The empirical work in this book examines three issues in the transfer of technology: 1) how managers, public and private, choose the kinds of technology they import or export; 2) how multinational enterprises decide on the channels through which they transfer technology and how that choice affects the recipient firm abroad; and 3) how multinational enterprises manage certain of their relationships with overseas affiliates that import, use, modify, and generate technology. This book makes no attempt to summarize all the literature in the fields on which it reports; rather, it presents a group of clearly related empirical studies that draw on a common set of concepts. On some points the studies are in agreement with the conventional literature; on others, they depart strikingly from the more commonly accepted theories.

Transnational Data Flow Constraints: A New Challenge for Multinational Corporations

Abstract: This article examines the implications of transnational data flow constraints for international business. The need for a free flow of information across national boundaries—facilitating international business and reducing costs for multinational corporations—is discussed. Although both large and small firms are affected by transnational data constraints, companies that are managed in a decentralized fashion are affected to a lesser degree. Economic protectionism has emerged as a major reason for regulating transnational data flow by nation states.

Imperialism in Africa: A Case of Multinational Corporations

Abstract: The central issue this article attempts to discuss is how we should understand the imperialistic attitudes of multinational corporations in Africa; what implications they have for development; how African countries can curb or minimize the imperialistic role of the multinational corporations. The question in its simplest form, is how far multinational corporations promote imperialism in Africa. Many theorists associate imperialism with colonialism, neocolonialism, capitalism, and nationalism. J. A. Hobson (1972), the protagonist economic-political theorist of the heyday of colonialism (1885-1914), made colonialism the focal point of his book. He equated imperialism to colonialism. He saw in Britain the existence of “surplus capital as unprofitable means for investment.” The capitalists subsequently sought outlets abroad in the economically under-exploited continents. Britain, therefore, acquired colonies .in Africa as a dumping ground for surplus capital. Lenin agreed with Hobson by causally linking foreign investments with the acquisition of colonies. He understood that “imperialism is a stage of capitalist development.” One of the basic features of imperialism is “the formation of the international capitalist monopolies which share out the world among themselves” (V. I. Lenin

Nonstate Actors in International Politics: From Transregional to Substate Organizations

Abstract: One of the most notable trends in the study of international relations is the resurgence of interest in international organizations, particularly those outside the United Nations. Regional international governmental organizations, multinational corporations, international labor unions, and transnational ethnic groups have become increasingly salient actors in world politics. OPEC, NATO, EEC, and PLO, for example, are all widely understood acronyms, and even a casual review of the crises in Iran and Afghanistan reveals the pervasive involvement of NATO, the European Community, the Islamic Conference, the International Olympic Committee, and more than one hundred other international governmental and nongovernmental organizations. Although international organizations are not likely to replace nation-states as the primary actors in world politics, their growing involvement in global political and economic issues challenges the assumptions of the traditionalists' state-centric model, as well as those whose interests begin and end with the United Nations. This book goes beyond the traditional UN-focused studies of nonstate actors to provide students with a comprehensive analytical survey of the many other organizations that help shape today's events. A common framework is used to examine what each nonstate actor does, how it organizes to achieve its ends, and how it makes multilateral/international decisions. The degree of integration in each nonstate actor is evaluated.

Political Risk Management in Multinational Firms: An Integrative Approach

Abstract: Introduction During the last decade, political risk assessment has gained significance as a decision‐making variable in multinational firms as the political under‐currents shaping the global environment have impacted international business strategy. Political discontinuities in Chile and Iran, rising waves of instability in Central America and the Middle East, the crises in Poland and North Africa, and the explosive external debt of developing countries have underscored the impact of political events on international business.