Internationalization Of Top Management Teams Research Articles

Does TMT internationalization promote corporate digital transformation? A study based on the cognitive process mechanism

PurposeCorporate digital transformation (DT) and top management team (TMT) internationalization seem to be concomitant phenomena in recent years, the former is a major change and a thorough transformation requiring continuously new technologies and ideas. Excitingly, the latter shows a relatively broad vision, a large risk appetite and interest in new things. Does TMT internationalization promote DT? This question is essential for DT. Given that, this article will aim to discuss and examine whether and how TMT internationalization affects corporate DT.Design/methodology/approachThis article takes China's A-share listed manufacturing companies from 2011 to 2019 as a sample. The quantitative text analysis method is used to measure attention related to digitalization. This paper discusses: (1) The decision-making logic and cognitive process mechanism of “TMT internationalization–attention related to digitalization–corporate DT”. (2) The moderating effect of shared corporate mission of the TMT on the cognitive process of decision-making, that is, the social process of transforming individual cognition into team cognition, and the social process of transforming team cognition into corporate decision-making.FindingsTMT internationalization promotes DT. As an external manifestation of team cognition, attention plays a positive role as an intermediary mechanism. Specifically, executives with overseas experience have higher urgency assessment and manageable assessment, thus affecting their attention to digitalization positively, thereby promoting DT. This article does not demonstrate the moderating effect of shared corporate mission on the cognitive process, but it promotes DT directly, and only plays a role in the precognitive stage.Originality/valueThis article is the first one to study the relationship between TMT internationalization and corporate DT, which has practical guiding significance for DT and the “going out” strategies of the TMT. Also, the combination of upper echelons theory and cognitive theory opens up the black box of the strategic process. Lastly, this research explores the formation process of team cognition, which is always neglected by previous studies of the TMT demographic characteristics.

Top Management Team Internationalization and Innovation: The Role of International R&D Collaboration

While Top Management Team (TMT) internationalization is an increasingly observed phenomenon, we know little about the mechanisms through which TMT internationalization fosters firm performance. In this paper we argue that an international TMT, as indicated by the international work experience (IWE) or the international origin of its members, can enhance innovation performance by steering the firm towards (successful) international R&D collaborations. Analyzing a unique employer-employee dataset of match with innovation surveys (2012-2018), we find that international TMTs show a higher propensity to engage in international R&D collaborations, which in turn positively contributes towards firm innovation performance. We do not find a direct effect of TMT internationalization on innovation performance. Our findings highlight the importance of examining the complex mechanisms through which TMT configurations and the hiring of foreign material talent can have firm performance consequences.

A temporal perspective on the relationship between top management team internationalization and firms' innovativeness

This study examines whether top management team (TMT) internationalization is positively related to firm innovativeness. Besides focusing on the accumulation of top managers' international knowledge and capabilities, we explore the influence of moderators reflecting temporal concerns at three levels: CEO age, TMT tenure, and firm age. Combining upper echelons theory with innovation literature and using a sample of large stock‐listed German firms, we demonstrate that TMT internationalization can increase firm innovativeness. This relationship is context‐dependent on the age of the CEO. Overall, this paper sheds light on the antecedents of firm innovativeness and the consequences of increasingly international TMTs.

Top management team nationality diversity, corporate entrepreneurship, and innovation in multinational firms

Research SummaryWe integrate insights from upper echelon theory and the literature on innovation and multinational corporations (MNCs) to develop a framework explaining when and why nationality diversity in top management teams (TMTs) affects corporate entrepreneurship—as evidenced by diversity in global knowledge sourcing—and through this innovation performance in MNCs. In a panel of 165 manufacturing MNCs based in 20 countries, we confirm that the positive effects of TMT nationality diversity on corporate entrepreneurship and innovation are only unleashed in TMTs with low social stratification and in MNCs located in home countries that are low in national power distance. Our study contributes to opening up the black box of the upper echelon's strategic role in spurring entrepreneurship and innovation in MNCs embedded in different cultures.Managerial SummaryThe internationalization of TMTs in MNCs has been increasing in response to the globalization of markets and sources of knowledge. In this study, we examine under what circumstances MNCs that have TMTs comprised of executives with diverse nationalities exhibit stronger innovation performance. Analysis of leading corporations from 20 countries over a period of 10 years reveals that MNCs with diverse TMTs engage more in corporate entrepreneurship and subsequently see increased innovation performance—but only when these TMTs are operating in environments characterized by equal distribution of power and low hierarchy. The findings underscore the important role of corporate headquarters and TMT composition in the strategic management of modern MNCs.

Top Management Team Internationalization and Firm-level Internationalization: The Moderating Effects of Home-region Institutional Diversity and Firm Global Focus

Abstract The factors that determine firms' levels of internationalization remain a focal area of international business research. Within this research stream, studies building on the upper echelons theory have investigated the influence of the demographic characteristics of the top management team (TMT) on firms' international expansion. However, the literature to date has overlooked the TMT's overall degree of internationalization as a key driver of firm-level internationalization. In our paper, we argue that by having self-selected into careers abroad, foreign TMT members by definition have a higher cognitive tolerance of foreignness than domestic TMT members do. We theorize that foreign TMT members' higher cognitive tolerance for foreignness enhances the overall TMT's level of international attention and international trust, thereby facilitating strategic decisions that favor firm-level internationalization. Additionally, we propose two key contingencies that attenuate this relationship: the institutional diversity of the firm's home region and the firm's global focus. Analysis of Fortune Global 500 firms supports the hypothesized relationship between TMT internationalization and firm-level internationalization, as well as the two moderation effects.

Internationalization of top management teams: A comprehensive analysis of Polish stock-listed firms

For most Polish firms, doing business across borders is very common. In order to identify whether the firms’ internationalization is reflected by the internationalization of their upper echelons, we conduct a descriptive study on top managers of firms listed at the Polish stock exchange. We apply a holistic approach to measuring board internationalization by taking into account multiple dimensions (e.g., nationality, international education, international work experience, foreign language skills). Our results show that the average level of top management internationalization in Polish firms is relatively low and barely corresponds with the firms’ international business activities.

Elite connectivity and concerted action in French organization

Purpose– The purpose of this study is to explore some of the distinctive features of organizing and organization in France which set it apart from organization in other nations, and which are fundamental to itsmodus operandi. In particular, this article is concerned with elite connectivity and concerted action by elite “connectors”.Design/methodology/approach– The research underpinning this article stems from a cross-national comparative project on business elites and corporate governance in France and the UK. This has three dimensions, being quantitative, qualitative and case study-based. Concerted action by the ruling elite is explored through two illustrative vignettes: the ousting from office of Jean-Marie Messier and State-sponsored expansion as pursued by EDF. Both examples shed light on the French business elite’s response to globalization and the development of international business.Findings– The paper finds elite cohesion to be achieved quite differently in the two countries. In addition, it finds that the ties that bind French connectors tend to be strong and institutionally based.Practical implications– The case of EDF suggests that the most ambitious of State-sponsored strategies can also be the most successful. It implies that elite ideologies in France have deviated relatively little from sentiments expressed by Rousseau and de Gaulle concerning the primacy of the national interest and the conviction that firms can serve as an (expansionist) instrument of the nation. The Messier case illuminates the pattern of close relationships among the French business elite. It demonstrates how a strategy of expansion may come unstuck when it is not grounded in the customary modes of business regulation.Originality/value– This research confirms a slight preference on the part of the French business elite for more homogenous ties. Against this, the paper demonstrates that a significant proportion of the French elite act as boundary spanners, brokering relationships with others from more distant parts of the wider network. The integration of the French elite in the Eurozone has potentially favored bridge-building relationships and weakened national embeddedness. This may contribute to the decline of indigenous interlocks, while promoting the further internationalization of top management teams. The implications of this for organizational strategy, firm survival and economic performance form an agenda for future research.

Does internationalization make a difference? Stock market reaction to announcements of international top executive appointments

In recent years, there has been an increasing scholarly and practical interest in the internationalization of top management teams. It is argued that international firms need international top managers to meet the challenges arising from operating across borders. However, the few existing studies that focus on the link between top managers’ internationalization and firm performance yield inconclusive results. Thus, it is an open question if and to what extent international firms can benefit from international top managers. Drawing on upper-echelons theory, resource-dependence theory, and signaling theory, this paper examines how the stock market reacts to the appointment of an international top manager. Our empirical study of German firms employs an event study to analyze the direct impact of internationalization on a firm's stock price. Piecewise regression analysis reveals that a top manager's internationalization needs to exceed a certain threshold before investors incorporate this individual characteristic into their investment decisions. Furthermore, our analysis shows an inverted U-shaped relationship between internationalization and abnormal returns, suggesting that internationalization may have both positive and negative effects on a firm's stock price. We present several explanations for our empirical findings and discuss future research directions.

Globally Diverse USA Top Management Teams: A Growing Trend

This theoretical paper makes a contribution to a not so commonly researched extension of upper-echelon theory, as it is internationalization of Top Management Teams. Literature review has suggested that social, and economic pressures are forcing US corporations to begin to embrace globally diverse executives. I have identified four factors in the literature that are expected to encourage a more globally diverse USA top management teams: The degree of the firm international diversification, the firm reputation, an incumbent globally diverse CEO and an incumbent globally diverse Board of Directors. Corporations who embrace diversity, in general, learn how to manage it and make the right choices will reap the benefits, while minimizing the costs.

Top Management Team Internationalization and Firm Performance

This paper develops a multi-dimensional construct of top management team (TMT) internationalization reflecting TMT ability to deal with challenges of managing firm foreign operations in the process of ongoing globalization. Drawing upon upper echelons and firm internationalization theories, the relationships between TMT internationalization, foreign market entry and performance are empirically investigated in a sample of 165 Swiss listed companies. The results confirm the validity of the multi-dimensional construct and suggest that TMT internationalization leads to subsequent foreign market entries, which in turn are positively related to firm performance.

Internationalization of Top Management Teams in Europe

One issue in the international business literature that has been virtually ignored is the internationalization of top management teams. This study examines the extent of national diversity in the composition of top management teams in two highly internationalized European countries, Sweden and The Netherlands. Results indicate that the national diversity of top management teams in these countries has not progressed to the same level as the internationalization of the companies at large.