Vittoria Giada Scalera, Alessandra Perri and Ram Mudambi
To investigate the impact of knowledge-intensive FDI in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry, this study analyzes the activity of foreign MNEs operating in this context by…
Abstract
To investigate the impact of knowledge-intensive FDI in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry, this study analyzes the activity of foreign MNEs operating in this context by exploring their innovative background, the organizational arrangements they use for local knowledge creation and the performance of their local innovative processes. Based on the analysis of the universe of USPTO pharmaceutical patents applied for between 1975 and 2010 and granted to foreign assignees utilizing the work of Chinese inventors, our results show that, while the presence of foreign MNEs in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry entails a strong potential for positive externalities that could enhance the performance of the local innovation system, such externalities do not completely materialize yet, likely because of local actors’ limited absorptive capacity.
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Marine Hadengue, Nathalie de Marcellis-Warin and Thierry Warin
Interest in reverse innovation (RI) is increasing. According to the authors’ review, more than 350 reliable sources (scientific publications, academic books and working papers…
Abstract
Purpose
Interest in reverse innovation (RI) is increasing. According to the authors’ review, more than 350 reliable sources (scientific publications, academic books and working papers) examine or at least discuss the concept. As RI gains popularity among academic authors, some discrepancies have started to appear. This wealth of publications could impact prior advancements related to understanding of the phenomenon. The purpose of this paper is to decrease fragmentation and focus on identifying and understanding RI.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic review of RI was conducted. The review conformed to a rigorous set of core principles: it was systematic (organized according to a method designed to address the review questions), transparent (explicitly stated), reproducible and updatable, and synthesized (summarized the evidence relating to the review question).
Findings
This systematic review provides an improved theoretical and practical framework for the concept of RI. In terms of theory, the authors have demonstrated that the idea behind the concept is not entirely new. A consensus on the definition of RI is not reached in the literature, and descriptions in organizational theory contexts are sometimes misleading. The authors analyzed all the various definitions provided in the literature. From a practical point of view, the authors have explained the academic interest in RI in relation to organizational strategy, in particular the context in which strategies are adopted. The concept of RI has significant managerial implications, and the authors have proposed a conceptual framework to help managers understand and grasp the implications of RI. Finally, the authors have provided suggestions for future research on RI.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first exhaustive literature review on RI.
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Debora Atala Pires, Thelma Valéria Rocha, Felipe Mendes Borini and Dennys Eduardo Rossetto
The objective is to determine if there are groups of subsidiaries that are different in regard to the implementation of strategies, structures, and processes and the transfer of…
Abstract
Purpose
The objective is to determine if there are groups of subsidiaries that are different in regard to the implementation of strategies, structures, and processes and the transfer of marketing knowledge in emerging markets.
Methodology/approach
A survey with 101 largest foreign subsidiaries located in Brazil was conducted. The data collection process was conducted online and by telephone.
Findings
Three subsidiary groups based on the configuration of their international marketing activities were characterized: Cluster 1, called “Subsidiary with Knowledge Marketing Activities”; Cluster 2, called “Subsidiaries with Global Marketing Activities”; and Cluster 3, called “Subsidiaries with Local Marketing Activities.” Compared to the two other groups, Cluster 1 is the group with the minor number of companies, but it has a better strategic performance than other clusters.
Research limitations/implications
This study was developed in only one emerging country, Brazil, and with 101 subsidiaries from MNCs. This could be extended to other countries, such as China, Russia, India, and Turkey and with more subsidiaries. Related to the construct measurements, one limitation is the qualitative measure of performance.
Practical implications
Subsidiaries that work with global marketing should pool their efforts to create and transfer marketing knowledge to improve their performance. Subsidiaries with local marketing activities may even perform more satisfactorily in the short term, but they should concern to contribute to the overall competitive edge of the corporation.
Originality/value
The discussion about marketing in emerging markets and the way in which the transfer of marketing knowledge can be reflected in the performance.
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Anna Dubiel, Sourindra Banerjee, Holger Ernst and Mohan Subramaniam
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how firms can better manage new product development (NPD) for international markets (IMs). This is not a trivial task as, for most…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how firms can better manage new product development (NPD) for international markets (IMs). This is not a trivial task as, for most firms, NPD still tends to be rooted in domestic operations.
Design/methodology/approach
This study proposes IM information (IMI) use across three stages of the NPD process (concept development, product development and commercialization) as a key driver of international NPD performance. This study also examines two antecedents of such usage: international firm experience; and international innovation culture. A conceptual framework is tested using structural equation modeling, based on data from 137 strategic business units of German firms.
Findings
The use of IMI during commercialization has a U-shaped (positive quadratic) relationship with international NPD performance, whereas curvilinear relationships in the concept and product-development stages cannot be confirmed. Having an internationally oriented innovation culture increases the level of IMI usage in all NPD process stages, while a firm’s international experience only does so in the commercialization stage. Thus, international experience does not necessarily impact access to and understanding of IMI in the early NPD stages.
Research limitations/implications
This study furthers understanding of NPD phenomena in an international context. However, future studies might consider exploring the mixed patterns of IMI use and NPD performance by looking at new forms and tools of market information management. Moreover, they may uncover more drivers of IMI use and test their frameworks in different contexts.
Practical implications
Managers should emphasize IMI use throughout the whole NPD process, even in the traditionally more R&D-focused product-development stage. Managers should strive to establish a corporate culture that views IMs as opportunities rather than liabilities.
Originality/value
This is the first study both to examine the relative impact of IMI use across all distinct NPD stages simultaneously on international NPD performance and to use quadratic effects to explain the relationship.
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Abstract
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This paper addresses the geographical dimension of cross-border knowledge integration, expressed as the co-invention of patent filings and investigates the siting of patenting…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper addresses the geographical dimension of cross-border knowledge integration, expressed as the co-invention of patent filings and investigates the siting of patenting activities by major US corporations in China. Most importantly, the study looks into the patterns of international co-invention or the links of these locations to headquarters and other company subsidiaries.
Design/methodology/approach
The study explores the cases of six US multinationals that file international patent applications in China. The applications were analyzed based on the composition of invention teams and the locations of inventors.
Findings
The co-invented patent filings by US multinational enterprises (MNEs) in China demonstrate a high degree of US–Chinese subsidiary collaboration. Links with other subsidiaries are marginal, and at the same time, high levels of sole patenting by inventors in China point to competence-creating research and development (R&D) activities taking place.
Practical implications
The lack of subsidiary-subsidiary collaboration, especially subsidiaries in other emerging markets, indicates a less diversified strategy of leveraging internal networks of knowledge. This also implies that Chinese subsidiaries still lack attractiveness as partners in subsidiary-subsidiary co-invention. Only two companies in our sample, Procter & Gamble and Intel, demonstrate a highly diversified, integrated and transnational pattern of innovation management.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the contextual understanding of the rich landscape of R&D activities of major US MNEs in China. By exploring these cases, the paper identifies a number of trends. First, the R&D activities in this sample are highly concentrated in technological clusters located in Beijing and Shanghai. Technological clustering is an important advantage of the innovation landscape in emerging markets. Second, the paper underscores the importance of differentiating between different types of co-invention. The patent applications in this sample tend to unite inventors mostly from the US and China, and so multi-country applications involving subsidiaries in other countries are rare. Thus, the level of integration outside the center-host bandwidth is low. However, Chinese subsidiaries demonstrate high levels of autonomy by filing single-country applications, which implies that they are building their own research identity.
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Luis Vives, Kazuhiro Asakawa and Silviya Svejenova
This paper takes stock of past research in international management, zeroing in on the location, organization, and capabilities for innovation in a multinational enterprise. It…
Abstract
This paper takes stock of past research in international management, zeroing in on the location, organization, and capabilities for innovation in a multinational enterprise. It then reviews current realities and identifies emergent trends of multinational enterprise innovation to outline avenues for future research. It puts forward the need for further exploration of issues, such as emerging markets as an innovation context and emerging multinationals' knowledge creation approaches, as well as the particularities of structuring for open innovation and capabilities for global knowledge sharing.
The purposes of this chapter are to propose definitions of innovation, product innovation, business model innovation, marketing innovation, innovation strategy, and strategic…
Abstract
Purpose
The purposes of this chapter are to propose definitions of innovation, product innovation, business model innovation, marketing innovation, innovation strategy, and strategic innovation, elaborate on their literature and conceptual underpinnings, and provide an overview of the conceptual domains of innovation, innovation strategy, and strategic innovation.
Methodology/Approach
First, certain definitions of innovation, drawn from literature, are presented. Next, certain definitions that incorporate logically incremental refinements in them are presented. Building on these, definitions of innovation, product innovation, business model innovation, and marketing innovation are proposed.
Findings
Innovation is the creation of value by using relevant knowledge and resources for conversion of an idea into a new product, process, or practice, or improvements in an existing product, process, or practice. Innovation strategy is an organization’s relative emphasis on different types of innovations and the associated pattern of resource allocation, in alignment with its strategy at the corporate and business unit levels. Strategic innovation is the creation of value by using relevant knowledge and resources for conversion of an idea into a new product, process, or practice with the potential to have a major transformational effect on the evolution of markets and industries.
Practical implications
Over the past several decades, there has been a sustained and high level of interest in issues relating to innovation among academics in a number of disciplines, business and social entrepreneurs, business practitioners, and policy makers. Books, journal articles, and business magazine articles provide a number of definitions of innovation and specific types of innovation. Multiple definitions of a construct can be problematic in certain respects and beneficial in other respects. A potential upside of multiple definitions of innovation is the prospect of each being a source of ideas for one or more innovations that benefit society, and an impetus for research focusing on specific questions.
Originality/value
Implementation of an idea, value creation, and use of relevant knowledge and resources are used as constituent elements in the proposed definitions of innovation, product innovation, business model innovation, marketing innovation, and strategic innovation.
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Annika Steiber, Sverker Alänge, Swapan Ghosh and Dulce Goncalves
The digitization process has increased the pressure on large firms to transform. However, current frameworks on digital transformation are not well explaining what factors…
Abstract
Purpose
The digitization process has increased the pressure on large firms to transform. However, current frameworks on digital transformation are not well explaining what factors contribute to, or hinder, a firm's digital transformation. Innovation diffusion theories could complement existing frameworks, and for this reason, the purpose of this paper is to expand the existing body of knowledge on what contributes to, or hinders, an industrial firm's digital transformation by applying a validated framework based on innovation diffusion theories on two pioneer cases: General Electric and Siemens EHR/Health Services.
Design/methodology/approach
The framework used in this paper is based on several years' empirical studies and iterative literature reviews on innovation diffusion theories. Further, each use case is based on literature reviews and unique empirical data, collected by the authors of this paper as a result of taking active part of respective company's multi-years transformation.
Findings
Common drivers of, and clear inhibitors to the two firms' transformation, were identified. The innovation diffusion framework was found to work very well in identifying those factors.
Research limitations/implications
The implications are that researchers better can analyze/explain a digital transformation of a firm, and business managers can better plan or improve their firms' transformation processes.
Originality/value
The theoretical contributions of this paper are two: first, complement existing frameworks with a validated framework for innovation diffusion; second, provide an extension of our body of knowledge on factors that contributes to, or hinders, industrial firm's digital transformation.