Global Multinational Corporations Research Articles

Типология культур Геерта Хофстеде как научная основа педагогического взаимодействия с зарубежными студентами

This article is devoted to the urgent problem of improving the effectiveness of pedagogical interaction with foreign students, speakers of different cultures in the educational environment of a pedagogical university. In the social sciences and humanities, having experienced many crises and paradigm shifts, historically there have been different approaches to the definition of the category “culture”, taking into account its many forms and manifestations. Quantitative methods of studying such a phenomenon as “culture” present certain difficulties. The solution was proposed by Dutch psychologist and sociologist Geert Hofstede, who worked for a long time at IBM, a global multinational corporation with offices and subsidiaries around the world, traveled a lot and conducted research on company employees in different positions in different countries. The hypothesis of Hofstede's research was that the potential cultural differences of the company's employees could, in the short and long term, affect the financial performance of such a large multinational corporation as IBM. Hofstede defined culture as the collective programming of the mind that distinguishes members of one group or category of people from others. The scientist put forward the idea of “cultural dimensions” or special cultural parameters based on the values around which the national culture is organized. Hofstede's Cultural dimensions have become the basis of one of the typologies of cultures. To determine the main factors of human behavior in an organization, the researcher suggested using the following parameters as a support – continuums reflecting such characteristics of behavior as individualism – collectivism; power distance (degree of participation in decision-making concerning everyone); uncertainty avoidance; masculinity – femininity (masculinity – femininity); short and long – term orientation (short – long). One of the cultural parameters is considered in detail in the article. Such a cultural dimension (parameter), which is relevant for our work in the context of planning and organizing individual and group work with foreign students, is the index continuum “individualism – collectivism”. The scientific explanation of this parameter is given, the approaches of domestic and foreign researchers to its definition and measurement are presented. The study highlights the features of “collectivist and individualist cultures”. The regularities and interrelations between the student's belonging to a certain culture and the peculiarities of his teaching and learning style are revealed. The presented features became the basis for the development of methodological recommendations when working with foreign students in order to increase the effectiveness of pedagogical interaction with them. In individualistic cultures, the highest values are independence and selfconfidence. Individual achievements are noted, in contrast to the achievements of the group. There is a predictable emphasis on personality. Representatives of collectivist cultures value group harmony. The group is of paramount importance. Any individual achievement will be marked as an achievement of the whole group, since the members of the group (family, collective, etc.) played a certain role in this. Perm State Humanitarian Pedagogical University has an extensive practice of working with foreign students (Republic of Kazakhstan, People's Republic of China). Students study at all faculties, levels (bachelor's and master's degree), various areas of training. The staff of the Department of Foreign Language teaching methods basing on Hofstede's research have significantly revised and implemented methods, techniques and forms of work taking into account scientific provisions. The article presents a comparative analysis of the cultures of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, which became possible due to online tools developed by Geert Hofstede. The authors of the article introduce readers to these tools, which significantly expand the possibilities of pedagogical diagnostics when working with foreign students. The significance of Hofstede's research is that “cultural dimensions” allow to a certain extent to use mathematical quantitative methods of studying such an “abstract” phenomenon as culture, to obtain more reliable data for psychological and pedagogical research, to compare different national cultures, to better understand the values of different countries and more effectively build interaction with foreign students.

A Comparative Analysis of Legal Measures and Policy Recommendations for MNCs Regarding Transfer Pricing

As the global economy continues to expand, the rapid expansion of multinational corporations (MNCs) has spawned tax avoidance issues that must be resolved. This paper analyzes the challenges MNCs face with transfer pricing and investigates the legal implications of these practices under international law. The study examines transfer pricing hazards, U.S. legislative measures pertaining to transfer pricing, and the primary characteristics of U.S. tax audits. In addition, the paper provides recommendations for strengthening the international legal framework by highlighting the need for enhanced international tax supervision, cooperation, and transfer pricing management expertise. In order to achieve a balance between export tax revenue interests and sustainable development, the paper also advocates promoting innovation and providing tax assistance to global MNCs. It highlights the importance of MNCs adhering to international tax regulations in order to avoid potential tax penalties and reputational harm.

CURRENT ACTIVITIES OF TRANSNATIONAL BANKS IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

The article defines modern trends of transnationalization in the international banking sphere. The prerequisites for the formation and development of globalization processes in the financial and banking sphere are considered: economic factors, technological and international legal factors. The general definition of a transnational bank is substantiated, the essence of which can be considered in the context of quantitative and qualitative aspects of its definition. A general definition of a transnational bank is provided as a bank that carries out operations in more than one country. The most characteristic trends in the development of transnationalization of the international banking business are outlined, which include the universalization of bank activity, the growth of competition in the banking sector, the liberalization of banking operations, and the growth of innovative activity of banks. The negative consequences of the development of international banking operations are also determined. The characteristic trends of transnationalization in the banking sphere were studied and the leading transnational banks were selected by the level of market capitalization. The peculiarities of the development of the domestic banking system, which is considered as an attractive host area for transnationalization processes, are evaluated. The influence of transnational banks on the economy of the host country and its banking system is considered from the point of view of the consequences of financial liberalization of the world economy as a whole and the development of the domestic financial sector. Identified obstacles on the way to the formation of Ukrainian transnational structures: the instability of the economic and political situation in the state; underdevelopment of the legislative framework in matters of the status and activities of transnational corporations; strong competition from existing global multinational corporations; lack of an appropriate innovation base that could compete with the technologies of foreign multinational corporations; relatively low level of management; high «tinization» of the economy; high level of inflation, etc. The main reasons that caused the changes in the banking sector in modern globalization conditions are proven: the unification of the activities of the real sector of the economy and the financial system of the countries of the world, convergence of the rules for regulating internal and external operations; formation of a network of branches of transnational companies; transformation of the international capital market into an independent factor in the development of the world economy; increase in the share of international operations of banks in the total volume of operations. On the basis of the conducted analysis, suggestions are provided regarding the further development of the activities of transnational banks in the world economy.

Do you really understand me? An analysis of cultural intelligence in global projects

Modern global leaders must be culturally intelligent to effectively operate in complex multicultural environments. While there is significant literature in place regarding cultural intelligence in global project management, there are several areas where our understanding remains limited. First, there is a lack of knowledge relating to the antecedents of cultural intelligence. Second, there is a lack of empirical studies capturing real-world data from industry relating to cultural intelligence in global projects. Third, it is unclear what correlation, if any, there is between leaders’ characteristics and their level of cultural intelligence. To address these deficits, this study aims to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) for cultural intelligence in intercultural communication in the context of global projects and investigate the relationships between leader’s characteristics and their level of cultural intelligence. Data were collected and analyzed from 85 project leaders currently working in a global multinational corporation (MNC) in Europe, Middle East, and Asia (EMEA). The findings confirm that emotional intelligence, personality, and openness to learning, communication and empathy are key to cultural intelligence in complex multicultural environments. The results advance our understanding of the antecedents to cultural intelligence and present actionable insights for companies.

Dental Policy Lab 3: towards oral and dental health through partnership

The third and last of the successful Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future (ACFF)/King's College London Dental Policy Lab series, held in 2019, focused on outlining how dental and oral health industries could benefit from enabling positive behaviour change in patients and the public, allowing progress towards caries reduction. During a two-day event, experts from across public health, dentists, global multi-national corporations and dental industry start-ups discussed the issue, collaboratively developing ideas around policy, technology, messaging and engagement for change. An analysis of the current trends in oral health laid out how the implications for industry and corporate social responsibility were identified as crucial. The report and accompanying infographic explored in this paper have been well received and acted as a catalyst for future developments in the area.

Методологічні проблеми аналізу розмивання податкової бази та виведення прибутку з-під оподаткування (BEPS)

The article is devoted to the issues of the methodology of the analysis of the base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) for the development of managerial approaches to counteracting these destructive phenomena in Ukraine. Eleven types of data sources identified by the OECD that can be used for BEPS analysis are determined. It is shown that most sources of information for the purposes of analyzing the scale and effects of BEPS have significant limitations: their absence or limited representativeness in some countries; regulatory restrictions on access to data; lack of most financial data to reflect the activities of multinational corporations (MNCs). The indicators that testify to BEPS or dangerous phenomena of financial abuse, which are reflected in reporting, are analyzed, namely: 1) disconnect between financial and real economic activities; 2) high profit rates of low-taxed affiliates of top global MNCs; 3) high profit rates of MNC affiliates in lower-tax locations; 4) MNCs vs. "comparable" non-MNC effective tax rate differentials; 5) profit shifting through intangibles; 6) profit shifting through interest. It is proved that for Ukraine the calculation of a number of indicators can be complicated due to the delay in the publication of official data; lack of appropriate statistical reporting. In general, indicators show that they provide limited information about financial transactions and cannot reliably relate any changes and their reflection to BEPS. Therefore, the implementation of measures to combat BEPS should be based not only on the results of calculations of OECD indicators, but also on other empirical studies that provide reliable information on the development of income transfer between countries.

Development of the Functional-Sectoral Component of the National Tourist System of Ukraine

The development of the national tourist system (NTS) is analysed through the prism of its functional and sectoral component. The main goal is to conceptualize the functional-sectoral component of NTS, due to the intersectoral interaction of economic entities for the production, distribution, sale and organization of consumption of a complex tourist product, as well as the generalization of information and analytical parameters to ensure its effectiveness. Systematization of literature sources and approaches to solving these problems shows that the scientific discourse touches the sphere of functional-sectoral component of NTS very briefly. The relevance of the research is due to the fact that this component of the NTS is the basis of its effective development and ensures the consolidation of various economic activities, the cooperation of which contributes to the formation of synergetic and multiplier effects. The methodological basis of the study is tourism and integration economic theories, the tools of which are able to activate the components of the NTS and their relationships to improve its effectiveness. The object of the research is the process of realization of activity of functional-sectoral component of NTS. Accordingly, a vision of the definition of the functional-sectoral component of the NTS and strategic approaches to its development is presented. They form a functional-sectoral component of NTS: 1) subjects of tourist activity (production of a tourist product); 2) subjects of related types of economic activity; 3) subjects providing economic types of economic activity. The research of the functional-sectoral component of NTS is carried out on the basis of the assessment of the value chain in the tourist system, the basis of which is formed by the subjects of tourist activity, which provide: tourist information services, transport services, tourist accommodation services. It is determined that the market of tourist services of Ukraine is highly concentrated and amplify tendencies of independent planning and booking of travels on the basis of global information and communication services. The role of air transport in the development of NTS has been updated, the operation of which in recent years reflects the positive dynamic results, in particular regarding the diversification of air services and the volume of airports on external and domestic routes. Positive changes in the volume of services in accommodation facilities were also identified against the background of a reduction in their total number, which is explained by the growth of competition in the market and the improvement of the quality of service provision. The basis for the development of the hotel business in Ukraine is the presence on the market of global multinational corporations (TNCs). The contribution of subjects of tourist activity (production of a tourist product) to the consolidated budget of Ukraine is defined through payment of taxes. It is noted that there are problems with a comprehensive analysis of NTS due to the lack of consolidated statistics in state reporting. The research confirms and theoretically proves that the development of NTS and its functional and sectoral component is crucial for the national economy. The pragmatic results of this research should contribute to the intensification of modern and balanced approaches to the management of NTS, based on the values of civil society, democracy, partnership between the state, private and public structures despite the complex conditions of modern Ukraine. Keywords: tourism, national tourism system, functional and industry component, value chain of tourism product.

Unpacking the Reforms in Europe and UK Relating to Mandatory Disclosure in Corporate Social Responsibility: Instituting a Hybrid Governance Model to Change Corporate Behaviour?

Corporate social responsibility is a key point of intersection at the junctures of business, society and government. It has first been conceived of as voluntary or self-regulatory measures that address, at least in part, complex issues that entail from corporate activity, whether they relate to direct or indirect forms of externalities or indeed the provision of proactive ‘good’ for social causes and objectives. Global corporate activities are increasingly related to the provision of global public or collective goods,such provision no longer confined to public sector actors. This is arguably because the existence of the needs for global public goods is due to the externality-creating actions on the part of corporations that consume planetary resources and often fail to internalise social cost associated with their activities. Corporations suffer from a collective action problem in refraining from creating such externalities (as their competitors may persist in doing so) as well as redressing them- both are phenomena of the tragedy of the commons. Global public goods include environmental protection, sustainability in the use of planetary resources, adequate standards and protection of certain humanity conditions such as human rights, labour rights and communities,development, addressing the sub-optimal institutions in political economy (such as tax havens and corruption), and social transformations (such as consumerism). Voluntary corporate responsibility may not be able to keep pace with the intensity and range of social demands, not to mention that the incentives that drive corporations often diverge from social expectations. The needs for these global public goods arise in a polycentric space of actors and stakeholders including states, international organisations and other public and private sector stakeholders. States and law-makers are not necessarily able to command this space5 as the transnational context for global multi-national corporations and the complexity of issues that affect a wide range of stakeholders increasingly elude state-based authority and mechanisms. Polycentric governance is an important paradigm du jour for analysing these issues. The importance of polycentric governance is reflected in the development of reflexive means of governance in law and policy to be discussed shortly. However, commentators increasingly observe a ‘juridification’ of corporate social responsibility and the extension of regulation and legalisation (in various forms). This is largely due to increasing pressure for change in corporate behaviour over years of slow achievements in the voluntary efforts led by the corporate sector. A ‘new’ regulatory technique, which is found in the EU Non-financial Reporting Directive 2014 implemented in the UK Companies Act 2006, and to a lesser extent in the UK’s Modern Slavery Act 2015 seems poised to draw together the polycentric forces of governance in a new way and yet leverage upon the power of state-backed regulation to achieve changes to corporate behaviour. We suggest that such a new regulatory technique brings about new opportunities for corporate behaviour to be shaped by social input. This can incrementally result in cultural and behavioural change at corporations. Although this technique may appear ‘weak’ as corporate law is not significantly reformed, intrusive or ‘command’-forms of hard law need not be superior. What matters is whether behavioural change can be secured. This article makes a positive case for the social implications of the new mandatory disclosure obligation, although we acknowledge that this is not a silver bullet. The article does not take the view that other forms of hard law reforms such as in relation to corporate objective, directors’ duties etc8 are unnecessary. The complementarity between the case put forward in this article and other reform options is a subject for another discussion. In this article, Section A will discuss briefly the context for ‘juridification’ or ‘legalisation’ of issues of corporate social responsibility. Section B discusses the provisions in the EU Non-financial Disclosure Directive (and the equivalent in the UK Companies Act) and how procedural regulation for corporations is introduced via a form of mandatory disclosure. Section C discusses the UK’s Modern Slavery Act regime which employs less legalisation and compares this to the non-financial disclosure regime. Section D draws together a few broad critical reflections and concludes.

ASEAN’s TRADE AND FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT: LONG-TERM CHALLENGES FOR ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

This paper explores the long-term challenges for economic integration of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) through trade and foreign direct investment (FDI). The region has emerged as an important production base for global multinational corporations by joining East Asia’s supply chains. While proceeding to establish the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by the end of 2015, ASEAN has also forged five major free trade agreements (FTAs) with its dialogue partners (China, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, and Australia–New Zealand) and is currently negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. In addition, four ASEAN member states have completed Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations. Econometric evidence suggests that (i) trade flows and inward FDI mutually reinforce each other, i.e., an increase in trade flows stimulates inward FDI and vice versa; (ii) a larger market tends to attract more inward FDI; (iii) FTAs tend to help stimulate inward FDI; and (iv) strong institutions, good physical infrastructure, and low costs of doing business are critical in boosting inward FDI. The paper suggests that in the long run it is ASEAN’s interest to further integrate itself with the rest of Asia and the world (through a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific and an Asia–Europe FTA), while substantially deepening its internal integration (by moving from the AEC to a customs and economic union) and thereby maintaining ASEAN centrality.

Disclosure practices of foreign and domestic firms in Australia

Even while straddling the global economy, multinational corporations (MNCs) need to adapt to different institutional regimes in host country markets in which they operate. This research examines the extent to which MNC-subsidiaries are embedded in their local institutional context in terms of how they pursue local legitimacy and respond to local laws and standards of disclosure of executive remuneration in the host country. Drawing attention to key socio-economic influences on foreign MNC-subsidiaries, we examine whether global MNCs respond to disclosure requirements in a host country and address a higher level of information asymmetry associated with multinational operations. The analysis of disclosure levels of MNC-subsidiaries vis-à-vis domestic firms suggests that, other things being equal, MNCs are more responsive to increased disclosure requirements than their local counterparts if they have substantial economic interactions with domestic product-markets. These results demonstrate that MNCs are willing to incur the marginal cost of increasing disclosure if commensurate benefits justify it. Another interesting finding relates to the negative association between legal system type (common law) of MNC's parent country and disclosure level of director and executive remuneration. It highlights that MNC-subsidiaries with higher regulatory (institutional) distance disclose better level of remuneration to gain external legitimacy and reduce their liability of foreignness.

The impact of talent management and employee engagement on organisational performance

The paper studies the impact of talent management on organisational performance in multinational corporations through applying management development and strategic HR inputs, and to evaluate the mediating role of employee engagement in the strategic HR inputs and organisational performance relationship. An online survey was distributed among managers of the first ten global multinational corporations listed by Fortune magazine 2013 and 498 responses were collected. The respondents were selected through LinkedIn using stratified sampling. PLS-SEM was used to test the hypothesised relationships of the model. The result shows a positive relationship between (1) MD Index and organisational performance, (2) strategic HR and organisational performance, and (3) employee engagement and organisational performance. Utilising PLS path modelling to evaluate structural model including higher-order component (MD Index) is highly original. The paper emphasises the importance of engagement as a mediator of the relationship between strategic HR and organisational performance in the talent management context.

Alpha Tech: a Brazilian software firm goes international

Purpose – This strategy-learning case traces the growth of AlphaTech, a publicly traded company in Brazil that is a management software company. The purpose of this paper is to debate whether or not the firm should give more emphasis to internationalization, given its high market share in Brazil, where further gains may be very expensive and difficult. The case is intended to serve as a vehicle to discuss the internationalization process of a software firm from an emerging economy. Design/methodology/approach – The case was built using several sources of information, including interviews with two executives in charge of the firm's internationalization process, articles in business newspapers and magazines, a book written by the firm co-founders, reports, and information gathered in the internet. Findings – The main issues posed by this case study are: first, the difficulties faced by an emerging market firm to get a sustainable position in international markets; second, the challenges of competing with powerful global multinational corporations (such as SAP and Oracle) in the international marketplace; and third, the need to adapt the firm's international strategy to new threats and opportunities. Originality/value – The Brazilian context differs from other BRICS, since Brazilian software firms do not have access to low-cost labor and therefore cannot adopt a low price strategy to compete effectively in international markets, but rather need to build unique capabilities to overcome liabilities of foreignness.

International Strategy and Knowledge Creation: The Advantage of Foreignness and Liability of Concentration

International business scholars increasingly emphasize regional strategies based on an optimal location of downstream sales. There has been less scholarly attention, however, to the relationship between international strategy and upstream knowledge creation including R&D. Building on contemporary strategic management theory and the knowledge‐based view we remedy this. The viability of home‐regional or bi‐regional strategies is based on common assumptions that imply negative consequences of distance and foreignness for downstream sales and marketing and benefits from agglomeration for upstream knowledge creation activities including R&D. In contrast, we propose that upstream knowledge creation, radical innovation in particular, rather gains from distance and foreignness and from being dispersed, suggesting the effectiveness of a global strategy. Based on the resource‐based view and recent research on the economics of strategic opportunities and competitive advantage, we provide theoretical explanations for this. We demonstrate how a global multinational corporation is uniquely equipped with knowledge extensity including heterogeneous social‐identity frames in multiple sub‐units. Thanks to arbitrage advantages between the sub‐units’ separate and often locally embedded knowledge, a global multinational corporation can address complex interdependences and interactions between knowledge sets required for knowledge creation. This suggests that maximum exploration capabilities are made possible by a global rather than a home‐regional or bi‐regional strategy.

Introducing Workers’ Embedded Agency: Insights from the Brazilian Subsidiaries of a Multinational Corporation

The relevance of subsidiary embeddedness in a macro-institutional environment can in no way overshadow the importance of the micro-political agency of social actors. While some researchers focus on local management’s “embedded agency,” we focus on a less-developed aspect: workers’ “embedded agency.” In order to do so, we propose an analytical model that is based on the Varieties of Capitalism model and its subsequent developments, but that also includes the workers as an active agent. This model allows us to observe the institutional resources that workers can actively mobilize. We specifically focus on the characteristics of industrial relations and education institutional sub-systems. We apply the developed analytical model to the case of the Brazilian subsidiaries of a highly global multinational corporation (MNC). Brazil represents a context where institutional constraints (i.e. corporatist industrial relations and a dualist education system) make workers’ actions the least favorable. Moreover, the highly integrated organizational environment of the MNC further reinforces this aspect. In turn, this makes it more compelling to discover how workers can nevertheless strategically activate some resources to improve their conditions. We conduct a case study and collect empirical data through semi-structured interviews and documentary analysis. More specifically, we discuss three examples of workers’ “embedded agency” (i.e. election of a bilateral committee for the prevention of accidents; plant closure; and internship and training). These bring analytical attention to workers’ collective and individual actions as well as intra- and extra-subsidiary mobilization of institutional resources.

Emergency Exit?

This article analyses a recent complaint pronounced upon by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) relating to collective bargaining rights under Irish law. The article analyses the manner in which the ILO dealt with the complaint and the response of the Irish State. However, the article argues that there are lessons to be drawn from this case of wider significance. In particular, the article considers the role of collective bargaining in the ‘Anglo’ model of industrial relations; the influence of the judiciary in interpreting and protecting collective labour rights; the influence of global multinational corporations on labour law and practice; and the effect of the EU institutions on labour rights in the context of the current crisis.

Knowledge virtualization and local connectedness among young globalized high-tech companies

Smart high-tech companies are characterized by knowledge intensity and open innovation, and even when these companies emerge in spatial clusters or in dense urban places, they may utilize knowledge networks on a global scale. There is, however, not much insight into the factors that shape global knowledge networks, the role of virtualization therein, and the impact of global knowledge sourcing on local connectedness. An attempt is made in this paper to fill these gaps in our understanding, using a selected sample of young high-tech companies in the Netherlands and rough set analysis to identify homogeneous categories in the highly differentiated young high-tech companies segment. The outcomes suggest coexistent use of both mainly local and mainly global knowledge networks in city-regions, and losing local connectedness by some of the globalized companies, particularly those involved in co-creation of products with global customers and those acting as learning partners of global multinational corporations. Factors counteracting the weakening of local connectedness are specific local knowledge relationships with a university or company of origin, and a strategy of developing local/regional customer markets.

The laws of attraction: What attracts innovative start-up firms to partnerships with global MNCs?

This paper explores the factors that drive small, globally oriented start-up firms in choosing one global multinational corporation (MNC) partner over another. Drawing upon value-added theory, it argues that start-up firms choose their global MNC partners in response to the added-value offered by MNC constellations. Based on a synthesis of the literature and a multiple case study of 14 software firms, the paper proposes that small, globally oriented start-ups base this choice on expectations of capturing value directly in the form of direct financial returns and indirectly by accessing the MNC’s market reach, reputation, and technology leadership domains.

Remembering Hasib Sabbagh (1920––2010)

Hasib Sabbagh, who died on 12 January 2010 after a long illness, was arguably the preeminent Palestinian entrepreneur in the business and contracting fields in the post-1948 period. Born to an old and distinguished Greek Catholic family of Safad in Eastern Galilee, Sabbagh established the Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) in 1945 in Haifa with several partners after graduating in engineering from the American University of Beirut. Under his dynamic leadership and with the cooperation of his life-long partner, Said Khoury, the CCC (which Sabbagh reconstituted in Lebanon after the fall of Palestine) evolved from a modest local enterprise into the giant global multinational corporation that it is today. Using the CCC as his base, he began as of the early 1970s to devote his great energy to the service of Palestine, not only through his philanthropic ventures promoting social and educational causes, but also through his behind-the-scenes political mediation and reconciliation efforts. The following reminiscences trace the unusual partnership and friendship between the author, whose orientation was largely academic, and Sabbagh, whose approach reflected his big-business milieu. The two met in 1972 around the time when Sabbagh was embarking on his public service phase. They became fast friends and remained so until Sabbagh's death, joined by their common dedication to Palestine. The memoir includes Sabbagh's own account of his departure from Palestine in 1948 and sheds light on some relatively little known activities of the Palestinian business and academic elite in the post-1967 period.

Customizing Clusters

Western multinational corporations (MNCs) increasingly locate advanced functions, including product development and engineering, in emerging economies to gain access to lower-cost science and engineering (S&E) talent and specialized service providers. Over time, new S&E clusters have developed in emerging economies that are strongly oriented toward global MNC demands. This study investigates the role of foreign MNCs in the formation of these S&E clusters. It is proposed that pioneer MNCs promote the initial development of S&E clusters by customizing local institutions and business practices in accordance with their sourcing needs and based on their experience in other local business contexts, including their home country. As a result, these clusters may develop specialized resources and service capabilities that particularly attract follower MNCs of the same national origin that have similar sourcing needs. This study may inform both cluster formation research and policy making in emerging economies.

The Conditions for Convergence: Multinationals, Product Markets, Production Systems and Employment Relations

This paper investigates the impact of multinational corporations on employment This paper through comparative case studies of three plants owned by the global multinational corporation, Asea Brown Boveri (ABB). A growing trend towards convergence in employment relations practices is revealed. It is argued that this is not the result of some inevitable social law, but rather a contingency that is intimately linked to corporate management strategy, on tbe one hand, and developments in the product markets, production processes and national institutional structures of the three plants, on the other: By exploring these links, the paper seeks to advance understanding of the conditions under which global companies like ABB might deliver one of the oft- assumed features of globalisation.