Multinational Companies In China Research Articles

Research on the Information Disclosure System in Mergers and Acquisitions of Listed Multinational Companies in China

Under the wave of economic globalization, more and more Chinese enterprises have gone abroad and listed in overseas securities markets to demand overseas capital. This paper comprehensively uses the method of empirical analysis and comparative analysis to explore the problems and institutional defects in the disclosure of listing information outside China. It elaborates in detail the differences between the information disclosure systems among China and the main security-listed places. On this basis, it puts forward the improvement countermeasures of the listing information disclosure system outside China. In this paper, ESG information disclosure of listed companies has attracted more and more attention from academia and the practical community. The domestic and foreign literatures on the concept of ESG is the subject of analysis, and the supporting theory, disclosure motivation and disclosure effect of ESG information disclosure research of listed companies are systematically sorted out.

The Impact of Culture Clashes on Employee Satisfaction in Multinational Companies in China

With the globalisation of the economy, more and more companies are operating abroad and developing into multinational companies. Due to the differences in political systems, cultural backgrounds and language environments in different countries and regions, cross-cultural conflicts in companies are inevitable and are becoming more pronounced over time. This paper examines whether cross-cultural conflict has an impact on employee satisfaction through a review of previous literature. The paper first examines the four dimensions of culture, uncertainty avoidance, religion and language, and then examines employee satisfaction in terms of religion, language, management style and cross-cultural competencies, and finally combines the two to identify the links. It was found that language, religion and culture conflict are the main reasons for the decline in employee satisfaction, while for managers, their own intercultural competencies also have an impact on their satisfaction. The research in this paper helps to make companies pay more attention to cross-cultural conflicts within the company as a way to maintain employee satisfaction.

Research on the social responsibility performance and its contributing factors to multinational corporations in China

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the social responsibility performance’s current situation, influencing factors and mechanisms of multinational companies (MNCs) in China. The paper is based on the MNC’s social responsibility performance factors to find some relevant reasons for unsatisfied performance and on the multiple perspectives such as institutional distance and stakeholders, to provide feasible solutions for MNCs to assume civic responsibility and the high-quality development of the host country.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses general literature review and empirical analysis to analyze the way and degree of various factors which are affecting the social responsibility of MNC in China, and supplements the deficiencies of previous studies.FindingsThe paper reveals the influencing factors and mechanisms of MNCs’ social responsibility in China through the regression results. In addition, based on Research Report on Corporate Social Responsibility of China (Huang et al., 2013/2019), the paper also summarizes the performance and dynamic changes of MNCs social responsibility in the Chinese market in the past decade.Originality/valueThe paper enriches research on the social responsibility of MNCs in the background of non-western countries, dynamically describes the performance of MNCs’ responsibilities in a 10-year span and solves the problem of inconsistent research conclusions caused by too long time span. The paper also creates the “local enterprise responsibility level” to quantify the development of the host country’s responsibility, and identifies the “responsibility demonstration effect” of state-owned enterprises and private enterprises.

The impact of the US–China trade war on domestic and multinational companies in China

AbstractThis short paper investigates whether the US–China trade war has a different impact on domestic and multinational companies in China. Using the Orbis database with the coverage of ownership structure, we can identify Chinese multinational companies that own foreign subsidiaries with at least 51% stake. Then, using a panel dataset of Chinese companies from 2011 to 2019, we compare revenues of multinational and domestic companies before and after the trade war. We have found that multinational companies have about 8% higher in revenue after the trade war than domestic ones. These findings are consistent with the recent literature on the real hedging channel that operation flexibility reduces the impacts of tariff shocks.

Orange bras, petit capitalism and e-entrepreneurs. On the backroads of globalisation between China and Taiwan

ABSTRACT Through a multi-sited physical and virtual ethnography of Chinese migrant women's entrepreneurship in Taiwan, this paper illuminates the role of digital migrant entrepreneurship in the making of globalisation. In the digital age of gendered migrant entrepreneurship, it challenges the long-lasting dichotomy between ‘bottom-up' and ‘top-down' globalisation and contributes to the theoretical debate about migrant transnational entrepreneurship, elucidating how capitalism and globalisation can take multiple forms. Drawing on Chinese women's migratory biographies and the commercial geographies of the objects they trade between China and Taiwan, it shows how our global economic system is simultaneously forged by supply-chain capitalism and migrants’ digitalised petit capitalistic practices. Chinese migrant workers firstly manufacture goods whilst working for multinational companies in China, then, after marriage-migration, they commercialise the products in Taiwan via WeChat. Findings illustrate the link between ICTs, migrant entrepreneurship, gendered social networks, and border transgressions in shaping a mutable globalisation.

Incongruous employer brand signals and organizational attractiveness: Evidence from multinational companies in China

AbstractIn an era of information explosion, employers' information is often disclosed to employees and potential applicants from multiple channels and angles, which are usually combinations of positive and negative signals. How do such uncoordinated brand signals affect the attractiveness of an organization? Building on micro‐corporate social responsibility (CSR) literature and three studies, we found that when potential employees perceived imbalanced brand signals of CSR and corporate ability, the positive impact of CSR on organizational attractiveness was strengthened when the company was weaker in its corporate ability. When they perceived conflicting brand signals of corporate social irresponsibility (CSiR) and corporate ability, the negative impact of CSiR on organizational attractiveness was strengthened when the company was stronger in its corporate ability. Supplementary analyses also demonstrated a significant three‐way interaction among CSR, CSiR, and corporate ability. When such conflicting brand signals were presented, CSR weakened CSiR's negative impact when corporate ability was stronger. However, when corporate ability was weaker, CSR strengthened the negative impact of CSiR on organizational attractiveness. Our study offers guidance for companies with mixed employer brand signals and suggests enhancing applicant attraction via synergy among a company's public relations, human resources, and marketing functions.

Spiritual leadership as a pathway toward innovative work behavior via knowledge sharing self-efficacy: moderating role of innovation climate

PurposeAlthough previous studies have studied the impact of spiritual leadership (SL) on employees’ innovation, the research on mechanisms and the boundary conditions for stimulating this relationship is scant. This paper aims to follow the idea of social capital theory (SCT), which contends that social relationships are resources that lead toward the development of intellectual capital, important for innovative work behavior (IWB) of employees; the mediating role of knowledge sharing self-efficacy (KSSE) and moderating role of innovation climate (IC) are considered.Design/methodology/approachThe authors collected the data from the foreign and local employees working in multinational companies in China. The quantitative analysis was performed using Smart-PLS 3.0.FindingsThe results indicated that employee high-ranking of SL is positively related to KSSE. Moreover, SL is significant to enhance IWB, whereas KSSE explained this relationship. The authors also suggest that an employee’s KSSE is significant to form important behavior at work (IWB). However, IC did not play its moderating role in the SL – IWB link.Originality/valueThis study explores the influence of the leadership style (SL) on employees’ KSSE and the effect of KSSE on IWB, which have not been studied previously. The current study confirms the relationship between SL and IWB in the multicultural workplace and reveals the deeper influence of an individual’s belief (KSSE) mechanism between them. SCT was applied to explain the proposed relationships.

Why the 2020 U.S.-China Trade Agreement Needs Anti-Corruption Provisions for the Protection of Intellectual Property

The United States has created the ultimate enforcement weapon for its intellectual property (IP) rights in Phase I of the 2020 U.S.-China Economic and Trade Agreement (USCTA). Under the USCTA, the United States has a unilateral right to declare China in breach of the treaty and to impose trade sanctions. The USCTA forbids China from retaliating. China’s only recourse is to withdraw from the USCTA. If China withdraws, however, the United States could reinstate the punitive tariffs that were suspended by the USCTA. As a result, China will be subject to tariffs no matter what it decides, either under the USCTA or due to withdrawal from the USCTA. China has been trapped into a no-win situation. As a matter of legal procedure, the USCTA is innovative and path-breaking; it is also clever and ruthless. As a matter of substantive law, however, the USCTA fails to address problems that have long plagued multinational companies (MNCs) in China. These are problems of pervasive corruption by government and business entities that create barriers to effective on the ground enforcement of IP rights, which is essential to day-to-day operations of MNCs. These problems are especially serious in three areas: demands for payments by PRC authorities in the enforcement of trade secrets, the use of ex parte contacts to influence the results of civil IP litigation, and the use of business bribes in e-commerce platforms that have contributed to an explosion in online sales of counterfeit products. Fortunately, the United States still has an opportunity to address these issues during the current negotiations on the second phase of the USCTA. This article will offer concrete suggestions on how to draft new provisions to address these major substantive problems that have long plagued MNCs in China.

Perceived overqualification and its positive impact on organization employee's behavior

Preceding researchers have tended to focus on the negative aspect of the perceived overqualification and its inadequacy in the organization. We offer an alternative perspective and postulate that perceived overqualification could influence employees’ behavior through an interactive mechanism. We propose that relational skill abilities, in the form of job autonomy of overqualified employees, determine their tendency to experience interpersonal influences, and, thus engage in helping behavior with devastating work deviance behavior. Data were collected from 20 multinational companies in China through a survey of 500 participants. Structural equation modeling was used for the analysis of data. The results indicate that perceived overqualification has a strong indirect impact via interpersonal influence on the helping behavior and workplace deviance behavior, and increase the helping behavior and decrease the workplace deviance behavior at the working environment. Further, outcomes concluded that job autonomy and prosocial motivation have a significant moderating role and increase the employers helping behavior and deteriorations their Workplace deviance behavior.

HRM Strategic Orientation and Respective Localized Learning by French MNCs in China

The research on how French multinational companies (MNCs) realize the localized learning of human resource management (HRM) is yet underexplored in current literature. This study analyzes the HRM strategic orientation of French companies in emerging markets, in particular China, and their respective localized learning. Drawing from previous studies and in-depth interviews with managers in 16 firms, this paper argues that even though French MNCs in China tend to show an ethnocentric orientation in HRM practices, a polycentric orientation in localized learning is strongly presented. This study contributes to the internationalization of HRM practices as well as the localized learning path regarding the French companies in emerging markets.

Managing Transfer Pricing Risks by Multinational Companies in China

In the past year, the Chinese tax authorities have issued three new circulars to outline their position and approach in dealing with transfer pricing issues. This article seeks to identify the specific areas that are likely to draw heightened attention from the Chinese tax authorities from now on and provides recommendations on how to prepare for the new audit environment.

‘It is not fair that you do not know we have problems’: Perceptual distance and the consequences of male leaders' conflict avoidance behaviours

This study investigates perceptual distance in terms of managers' conflict avoidance behaviour and its consequences for subordinates. We argue that perceptual distance, or the disagreement between a manager's perception and that of his or her subordinates of his or her conflict avoidance, is a genuine phenomenon. We examine the extent to which the perceptual distance regarding managers' avoidance behaviour influences a team's justice climate as well as the role of gender. The data collected from three multinational companies in China show that the perceptual distance of a male manager's avoidance behaviour exists and that it is associated with a negative justice climate within the team. These findings provide evidence of gender's effect on leadership and highlight the benefits of female leadership.

What Causes the Divestment of Multinational Companies in China? A Subsidiary Perspective

<p><em>This paper examines the causes of MNCs’ divestments in China. The MNCs’ profitability, market shares and productivities are negatively related to the possibility of divestment, while the MNCs’ debts are positively related to the possibility that foreign investments are divested. These results suggest that divestments are affected by MNCs’ performances, and their performances are endogenous shocks for divestment.</em></p><p><em><br /></em></p>

A Study of Anglo Expatriate Managers’ Learning, Knowledge Acquisition, and Adjustment in Multinational Companies in China

This study investigates Anglo expatriate managers learning, knowledge acquisition, and adjustment to the host culture when working within Anglo multi-national companies operating in China. A structural equation model based on data from 121 expatriate managers reveal that Anglo managers adjust more effectively when their learning styles are congruent with the demands of the host culture. Their levels of accumulated managerial tacit knowledge and adaptive flexibility were also associated with their learning styles which in turn led to more effective adjustment to the host culture. Implications for theory, global manager development, and expatriate management are provided.

Evaluating EAP Counseling in the Chinese Workplace: A Study with a Brief Instrument

This study examines if and to what degree an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) intervention improves Chinese employees’ workplace functioning. The sample included 670 employees from 26 local and multinational companies in China who received EAP counseling. The Chinese translation of the Workplace Outcome Suite-Short Version, a five-item outcome assessment instrument, was used as a pre/post measure. Four of the five items showed significant improvements from the pre- to posttest. The effect sizes on the items varied, indicating that EAP produced different levels of impact on dimensions of workplace functioning. Future research should examine the influences of different EAP models, client organizations, and dimensions of workplace functioning.

Strategic planning in subsidiaries of multinationals in China: an empirical analysis of intra-organisational knowledge transfer

This paper examines the transfer of a particular kind of knowledge: strategic planning competencies in subsidiaries of multinational companies (MNCs) in China. We develop an integrative research model on the facilitators of intra-organisational knowledge transfer between the MNC parent and their subsidiaries. To test our hypotheses, we draw on data from a survey among managers of German MNCs in China, using PLS structural equation modelling. Our findings suggest that the willingness to acquire strategic planning knowledge, measured as the proven value of knowledge, is the most important enabler of strategic planning competencies at local subsidiaries, followed by the management support of the MNC parent as indicator of the MNCs capacity to transfer strategic planning knowledge, as well as the relationship between the MNC parent and the subsidiary. Finally, our findings support the importance of decentralised strategic planning for the Chinese subsidiaries' performance.

Innovating in China: Lessons for Global Companies

The strategy of multinational companies in China has evolved in three phases: from (1) making China the factory of the world, through (2) addressing the second‐largest market in the world, to (3) making China the new battleground for innovation. Not only are global companies, such as IBM and General Electric, building up technology and development centers in China, but local companies, such as BYD, Lenovo, and Haier, are also flexing their innovative capabilities. To succeed, global innovators must adapt their innovation strategy and move up the innovation value chain in China. To cope with the specific challenges there, leaders of global companies must learn to shape their markets, partner locally, manage talents, leverage on a global scale, and foster support from headquarters. ©2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Inclusion and inclusion management in the Chinese context: an exploratory study

This study explored the concept of inclusion at both the individual and the organizational levels in the Chinese context. Using interview data from managers and employees of 12 companies located in China with various ownership structures, we conducted content analysis and found similarities between Chinese and Western conceptions of inclusion, as well as some unique characteristics of China. In addition, we identified seven inclusion management practices and three challenges for implementing inclusion management. Finally, the conceptions of inclusion were different across organizational positions and firm ownerships. Overall, this study sheds light on the understanding and management of inclusion for both Chinese companies and multinational companies in China and lays the foundation for future research.

Moderating Effect of Institutional Responsiveness on the Relationship Between Green Leadership and Green Competitiveness

With a growing focus among firms globally on saving energy and increasing environmental awareness, it is critical to explore the implementation of corporate greening in subsidiaries of multinational companies. Multinational companies need to respond simultaneously to institutional requirements and pressures for corporate greening. In this study we utilized the natural-resource-based view to investigate how green leadership can enhance green competitiveness. Based on a quantitative analysis of 212 subsidiaries of multinational companies in China, we found that green leadership positively influences green competitiveness. Further, this relationship was found to be stronger in firms with higher (more active) levels of institutional responsiveness. We highlight practical implications and make suggestions for theoretical development.

Union Recognition by Multinational Companies in China: A Dual Institutional Pressure Perspective

Over the last decade, Chinese authorities have pressed foreign multinational companies to recognize official trade unions. Employing cross-classified multilevel modeling on a large data set (10,108 foreign-owned firms cross-embedded in 32 home countries and 755 Chinese cities), this study examines the antecedents of the varied positions of foreign-owned firms toward union recognition around the midpoint of the first decade of the 2000s—a time when the government-led union recognition campaign in China was gaining strength. Drawing on a dual institutional pressure perspective, the authors theorize that the likelihood that a foreign-owned firm will recognize a union depends on both the industrial relations system in the home country and the location of its operations in the host country. Specifically, a foreign-owned firm is more likely to recognize unions if it originated from a nation where the legitimacy of collective representation is high and if it is located in a Chinese city where union recognition is prevalent among Chinese-owned firms.