[go: up one dir, main page]
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/aal/glowps/2015-13.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Knowledge Here, Knowledge There: Multilatinas and their European Subsidiaries

Author

Listed:
  • Ionara Costa
  • Howard Rush
  • Andrew Grantham
Abstract
This study focuses on ‘multilatinas’, a group of emerging multinationals headquartered in Latin American countries, and analyses the flows of knowledge between multilatinas’ European subsidiaries and their headquarters. The research tracts both the occurrence of conventional flows of knowledge from headquarters to their European subsidiaries, as well those flows going in the reverse direction. The paper’s main findings can be summarised as follows. First, multilatinas presence in Europe is the result of the combination of market and strategic-asset seeking drivers; with Europe being both an important market for multilatinas, as well as a key location for their R&D activities. Second, multilatinas’ European subsidiaries exchange knowledge with their headquarters in Latin America, implying the concurrency of both conventional and reverse knowledge flows. Third, multilatinas are not only tapping into European knowledge base (strategic-asset seeking), they are also bringing knowledge into their European operations, suggesting the occurrence of spillovers into the host environments. Forth, intra-firm trade is a key mechanism for knowledge transfers, particularly from Europe to Latin America.

Suggested Citation

  • Ionara Costa & Howard Rush & Andrew Grantham, 2015. "Knowledge Here, Knowledge There: Multilatinas and their European Subsidiaries," Globelics Working Paper Series 2015-13, Globelics - Global Network for Economics of Learning, Innovation, and Competence Building Systems, Aalborg University, Department of Business and Management.
    • Handle: RePEc:aal:glowps:2015-13
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://papers.globelics.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/GWP2015.13.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Geert Duysters & Myriam Cloodt & Wilfred Schoenmakers & Jojo Jacob, 2015. "Internationalisation Efforts of Chinese and Indian Companies: An Empirical Perspective," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 106(2), pages 169-186, April.
    2. Walter Kuemmerle, 1999. "The Drivers of Foreign Direct Investment into Research and Development: An Empirical Investigation," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 30(1), pages 1-24, March.
    3. L. Felipe Monteiro & Niklas Arvidsson & Julian Birkinshaw, 2008. "Knowledge Flows Within Multinational Corporations: Explaining Subsidiary Isolation and Its Performance Implications," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(1), pages 90-107, February.
    4. Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro, 2008. "The multinationalization of developing country MNEs: The case of multilatinas," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 138-154, June.
    5. Sumantra Ghoshal & Nitin Nohria, 1989. "Internal differentiation within multinational corporations," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(4), pages 323-337, July.
    6. Gupta, Anil K. & Govindarajan, V., 1994. "Organizing for knowledge flows within MNCs," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 443-457, December.
    7. Peter J. Buckley & Mark Casson, 1991. "The Future of the Multinational Enterprise," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, edition 0, number 978-1-349-21204-0, March.
    8. Carvalho, Flavia & Duysters, Geert & Costa, Ionara, 2010. "Drivers of Brazilian foreign investments – technology seeking and technology exploiting as determinants of emerging FDI," MERIT Working Papers 2010-017, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    9. Mathews, John A., 2002. "Dragon Multinational: A New Model for Global Growth," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780195121469.
    10. Ambos, Tina C. & Ambos, Björn & Schlegelmilch, Bodo B., 2006. "Learning from foreign subsidiaries: An empirical investigation of headquarters' benefits from reverse knowledge transfers," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 294-312, June.
    11. Lourdes Casanova & Andrea Golstein & André Almeida & Matthew Fraser & Ramón Molina & Henning Hoeber & Carlos Arruda, 2009. "Multilatinas to Global Latinas: The New Latin American Multinationals," IDB Publications (Books), Inter-American Development Bank, number 62498, February.
    12. Moon, Hwy-Chang & Roehl, Thomas W., 2001. "Unconventional foreign direct investment and the imbalance theory," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 10(2), pages 197-215, April.
    13. Jaya Prakash Pradhan, 2010. "Strategic Asset-Seeking Activities of Emerging Multinationals: Perspectives of Foreign Acquisitions by Indian Pharmaceutical MNEs," Organizations and Markets in Emerging Economies, Faculty of Economics, Vilnius University, vol. 1(2).
    14. John H Dunning, 2003. "Some antecedents of internalization theory," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 34(2), pages 108-115, March.
    15. Vertesy, D., 2014. "Successive leadership changes in the regional jet industry," MERIT Working Papers 2014-046, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    16. Lucia Piscitello & Larissa Pabbiosi, 2006. "How Does Knowledge Transfer from Foreign Subsidiaries Affect Parent Companies' Innovative Capacity," DRUID Working Papers 06-22, DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Industrial Economics and Strategy/Aalborg University, Department of Business Studies.
    17. Rugman, Alan M. & Brewer, Thomas L. (ed.), 2001. "The Oxford Handbook of International Business," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199241828.
    18. Jan Johanson & Jan-Erik Vahlne, 1977. "The Internationalization Process of the Firm—A Model of Knowledge Development and Increasing Foreign Market Commitments," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 8(1), pages 23-32, March.
    19. Paulo Roberto Feldmann, 2014. "Management in Latin America," Springer Books, Springer, edition 127, number 978-3-319-04750-8, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Patrick Regnér & Udo Zander, 2011. "Knowledge and Strategy Creation in Multinational Companies," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 51(6), pages 821-850, December.
    2. Gammeltoft, Peter & Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro, 2021. "Enriching internationalization process theory: insights from the study of emerging market multinationals," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(3).
    3. McGuinness, Martina & Demirbag, Mehmet & Bandara, Sasanka, 2013. "Towards a multi-perspective model of reverse knowledge transfer in multinational enterprises: A case study of Coats plc," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 179-195.
    4. Blomkvist, Katarina & Kappen, Philip & Zander, Ivo, 2017. "Gone are the creatures of yesteryear? On the diffusion of technological capabilities in the ‘modern’ MNC," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 52(1), pages 1-16.
    5. Peter J. Buckley & Adam R. Cross & Hui Tan & Liu Xin & Hinrich Voss, 2008. "Historic and Emergent Trends in Chinese Outward Direct Investment," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 715-748, December.
    6. Thomas Hutzschenreuter & Tanja Matt, 2017. "MNE internationalization patterns, the roles of knowledge stocks, and the portfolio of MNE subsidiaries," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 48(9), pages 1131-1150, December.
    7. Zhang, Feng & Jiang, Guohua & Cantwell, John A., 2019. "Geographically Dispersed Technological Capability Building and MNC Innovative Performance: The Role of Intra-firm Flows of Newly Absorbed Knowledge," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(3), pages 1-1.
    8. Driffield, Nigel & Love, James H. & Yang, Yong, 2016. "Reverse international knowledge transfer in the MNE: (Where) does affiliate performance boost parent performance?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 491-506.
    9. Ambos, Tina C. & Ambos, Björn & Schlegelmilch, Bodo B., 2006. "Learning from foreign subsidiaries: An empirical investigation of headquarters' benefits from reverse knowledge transfers," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 294-312, June.
    10. Spyros Arvanitis & Heinz Hollenstein, 2010. "How Do Different Motives for R&D Investment in Foreign Locations Affect Domestic Firm Performance?," KOF Working papers 10-258, KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich.
    11. L. Felipe Monteiro & Niklas Arvidsson & Julian Birkinshaw, 2008. "Knowledge Flows Within Multinational Corporations: Explaining Subsidiary Isolation and Its Performance Implications," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(1), pages 90-107, February.
    12. Maldea, Radu-Andrei, 2023. "Winning when Going Global – On the Role of Heritage and Strategic Moves for Internationalization Endeavors of Start-ups," Junior Management Science (JUMS), Junior Management Science e. V., vol. 8(2), pages 532-568.
    13. Wang, Yue & Suh, Chung-Sok, 2009. "Towards a re-conceptualization of firm internationalization: Heterogeneous process, subsidiary roles and knowledge flow," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 447-459, December.
    14. Barnard, Helena, 2010. "Overcoming the liability of foreignness without strong firm capabilities -- the value of market-based resources," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 16(2), pages 165-176, June.
    15. Spyros Arvanitis & Heinz Hollenstein, 2010. "How Do Different Motives for R&D Investment in Foreign Locations Affect Domestic Firm Performance? An Analysis Based on Swiss Panel Micro Data," WIFO Working Papers 375, WIFO.
    16. Francesca Checchinato & Lala Hu & Alessandra Perri & Tiziano Vescovi, 2013. "Internationalization of a Chinese "born glocal" brand: the case of Goodbaby," Working Papers 25, Venice School of Management - Department of Management, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.
    17. Andersson, Ulf & Dasí, Àngels & Mudambi, Ram & Pedersen, Torben, 2016. "Technology, innovation and knowledge: The importance of ideas and international connectivity," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 51(1), pages 153-162.
    18. Zander, Ivo, 1998. "The evolution of technological capabilities in the multinational corporation--dispersion, duplication and potential advantages from multinationality," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 17-35, May.
    19. Conti, Claudio Ramos & Parente, Ronaldo & de Vasconcelos, Flávio C., 2016. "When distance does not matter: Implications for Latin American multinationals," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(6), pages 1980-1992.
    20. Christoph Doerrenbaecher & Mike Geppert, 2009. "Micro-political Games in the Multinational Corporation: The Case of Mandate Change," management revue - Socio-Economic Studies, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, vol. 20(4), pages 373-391.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    emerging multinationals; multilatinas; multinational subsidiaries; knowledge flows; knowledge management;
    All these keywords.

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:aal:glowps:2015-13. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Gert Villumsen (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/globeea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.