Internationalization of State-Owned Firms: Do Governments Help or Hinder?

Abstract

The internationalization of state-owned firms has gained increasing scholarly attention, as well as promoting a key theoretical debate — whether the state enables or limits these firms’ internationalization. This question is vital to the international management literature because the extant theories have been severely challenged by the shifting landscape of the international business field. Reflecting this, the panel will focus on clarifying various, sometimes conflicting, findings generated in the current literature. In doing so, we will make explicit theoretical assumptions in conjunction with the evolving political and economic reality. Specifically, there is a lively debate on the role of the state in firm internationalization. On the one hand, because of potential government appropriation and tension between owners and managers, some scholars predict a negative relationship between state-ownership and firm internationalization. On the other hand, given preferable treatment from the state, others argue that the internationalization of state-owned firms benefits from state ownership. To better understand the literature, our discussion is grounded in three relationships: within the firm, between the firm and home government, and between home and host governments. The ultimate goal of the panel is to inspire new research ideas on internationalization of state-owned firms and advance international management scholarship