Globalization and international management: in search of an interdisciplinary approach

Ana Lucia Guedes,Alexandre Faria

doi:10.1590/s1807-76922007000200003

Abstract

This paper, based on the international relations and international political economy literature, shows that the international management field has been influenced by certain national interests, particularly from the United States, and also that it reproduces a particular theory of globalization that benefits the interests of transnational corporations. One of the most concerning outcomes of this dominant perspective is the suppression of governance issues 'managed' by these corporations and the interests of other key agents, such as governments. The interdisciplinary approach outlined in this paper challenges the hegemonic influence of the globalist theory within the international management field. The approach proposed addresses the domains of management and governance by recognizing from a multidimensional perspective on globalization, the political and economic interfaces between public and private, and more specifically, between government and transnational corporations. This could make the knowledge produced by the field relevant not only to transnational corporations but also to local governments, local managers, public administrators and policy makers in developing countries.

Highlights

Globalization was depicted in the early 1990s as the ultimate stage of development for the field of international management
As globalization headed towards placing an extraordinary amount of power in the hands of large corporations, international management became a major concern to business firms and their managers, and to governments and other institutions (Boddewyn, Toyne, & Martínez, 2004)
international relations (IR) academics do not agree with their belief in the erosion of the power of the government to the task of ruling the national economy in a borderless world ruled by non-national ‘market’ forces

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Globalization was depicted in the early 1990s as the ultimate stage of development for the field of international management. In spite of the importance of these transformations and events, the international management (IM) literature – led by the United States (US) – fails to address the increasing power of transnational corporations (TNCs) and the corresponding implications for managers and other social constituents This problem is important in developing countries and has been pointed out by a key US scholar as a major challenge to the IM field. From the particular standpoint of those authors, globalization means unlimited competition, access to markets and progress for all – as a result of the fall of boundaries between nations, cultures and organizations and between the public and the private Such an underlying theory of globalization rationale suppresses governance matters related to supranational institutions, international regulations and international law (Contractor, 2000). The authors of this article understand that interdisciplinary developments and the recognition of governance issues could contribute towards increasing the expected relevance of the IM field in developing countries (see Rocha, 2002)

A Historical Understanding of the National-International Issues in IM

Findings

A Better Approach on Globalization