International business scholars have long recognized the potential influence of cultural differences on foreign divestment; however, the empirical results are mixed. Our study helps resolve this contradiction and contribute to the existing literature in three ways. First, we advocate the use of cultural friction metric, instead of the more traditional cultural distance approach. This overcomes a key limitation in the modelling the impact of cultural differences. The friction construct metric includes an index of firm-specific factors, referred to as the degree of ‘cultural interaction’. This index moderates the impact of cultural distance, reflecting firm—level differences. We also build on calls for more Positive Organizational Scholarship by challenging the negative bias in the international business literature and propose a curvilinear effect of cultural differences on divestment probability. Lastly, we investigate a potential boundary condition—the moderating effect of entry mode on the main hypothesis. Our empirical sample include 2120 Finnish foreign subsidiaries operating in 40 countries during 1970–2010. Our analyses confirm that the cultural differences, when measured by the friction metric, appear to be a significant and superior predictor of subsidiary divestment probability, and that the relationship appears to be U-shaped. Our robustness analyses also highlight the importance of which cultural framework is applied and controlling for selection bias.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors influencing the development of social media marketing strategy in an international context. We specifically look at the potential drivers and barriers throughout the social media marketing strategy development process and how cultural differences shape social media marketing strategy decision-making among firms in international markets.Design/methodology/approachThe study is conducted with an inductive research approach involving in-depth interviews with 32 firms from Finland, China and Brazil. Using inductive data analysis, we identify both internal and external factors that drive and hinder the development of firms’ social media marketing strategies. Moreover, we explore the essential elements in social media marketing strategy development based on the key practices observed among these firms, which enables us to conduct a comparative analysis of how cultural values influence the development of social media marketing strategies.FindingsOur findings underscore the importance of both internal (i.e. resources and capabilities) and external (i.e. market-level and country-level) factors that influence the development of social media marketing strategy. Our analysis also unveiled four key practices throughout the social media marketing strategy development process: social selling, content marketing, risk management and relationship management. Additionally, we identified three distinct mindsets regarding firms’ social media selling objectives across companies in the three countries.Originality/valueThe comparative approach provides novel insight into firms' international social media marketing strategy. Our proposed conceptual model shows the development process of social media marketing strategy in the international context. The research propositions highlight the role of cultural values and open up new avenues for future research.

In this study, we argue the coexistence of arbitrage and costs associated with economic distance engender a non-linear relationship between foreign subsidiary survival and economic distance. Specifically, we suggest that low to medium economically distant countries offer scope of economic arbitrage, whereas the cost of operating in medium to high economically distant countries is substantially high. We construct an index of economic distance using arguments from the eclectic paradigm of international production and organisational learning theory and base our measurement on the Mahalanobis method of distance calculation. Empirical analysis is conducted by applying the Cox's proportional hazard model to a sample of 1771 Finnish foreign direct investments. Results suggest that subsidiary survival has an inverted U-shaped relationship with economic distance. Firms with host country experience and wholly owned subsidiaries are able to mitigate the costs of operating in economically distant countries, while joint ventures are better suited for economically similar countries.

The widespread use of social media as a marketing tool during the last decade has been responsible for attracting a significant volume of academic research, which, however, can be described as highly fragmented to yield clear directions and insights. We systematically synthesize and critically evaluate extant knowledge of social media marketing extracted from 418 articles published during the period 2009–2021. In doing so, we use an organizing framework focusing on five key areas of social media marketing research, namely, social media as a promotion and selling outlet, social media as a communication and branding channel, social media as a monitoring and intelligence source, social media as a customer relationship management and value cocreation platform, and social media as a general marketing and strategic tool. Within each of these areas, we provide important theoretical, methodological, and thematic insights, as well as future research directions. We also offer useful managerial implications derived from the articles reviewed.

This review explores recent literature on International Strategic Alliances (ISAs). Management of alliances requires a better understanding of different dimensions and components of ISAs and of their role. This review provides a state-of-the-art understanding of the concept using content analysis of 85 ISA articles. There is limited research on the concept of ISA and the components that affect the alliances' formation, post-formation and outcome. We found notable inconsistencies in the ISA literature on the concept. This highlights the need for further structuration of the concept and the need to provide characterisation that is more coherent. This review presents implications for the definition and future research avenues for the concept, especially regarding the theory, context and the scope of ISA research. Finally, this study provides a state-of-the-art discussion that proposes critical viewpoints for future development of the concept of ISAs, their influential components and their application in research and international management.

Although research on non-market strategies and the sharing economy (SE) have grown exponentially, there remains limited insight on how actors in the sharing economy ecosystem engage in non-market activities to achieve their goals. In this paper, we develop and present digital trust building as a crucial building block of a successful sharing economy ecosystem. We develop a conceptual framework to highlight the non-market strategies that sharing economy platform providers (SEPPs) cultivate and leverage in order to build trust for enhanced performance among stakeholders.

An increasing number of firms from both developed and emerging markets have been reorganizing their international operations. In many cases, this reorganization includes some form of exit: exit from export markets or divestment from foreign subsidiaries. Such exits are on occasions followed by the relocation of foreign units or even by re-entry into the same markets. These are the topics of this book, to which this chapter is a short introduction. The chapter gives some background to the topics above, presents the book's goals and a brief overview of each of its 15 chapters. The 15 chapters presented in this book are organised into four parts: Part 1 includes three chapters focusing on export exits, Part 2 includes five chapters focusing on foreign divestment, Part 3 includes five chapters focusing on relocation, and Part 4 includes two chapters focusing on foreign market re-entries.

The emergence of Industry 4.0 offers firms internationalization opportunities employing digital platforms and emerging technologies. Relying upon the Uppsala model as applied in light of a firm case study, we contribute to the validity of the Uppsala model 2017. We respond to the counterpoint by Coviello, Kano, and Liesch (2017) to the Uppsala 2017 model, answering the question, What is the impact of Industry 4.0 on the validity of the 2017 version of the Uppsala model? This study builds on a qualitative research methodology through a single case study of Delivery Hero, a global service provider firm. We adopt an extensive longitudinal approach to understand a startup firm's digital business concept and business evolution, including its internationalization paths. We conclude that the mechanisms of the Uppsala model are valid, but their characteristics have changed by digital and globalized value-adding processes. The dynamic capabilities possessed by the founding entrepreneur turn out to constitute a critical micro foundation for the firm's international business success. Our findings explain these change mechanisms, illustrating the stepwise progression process led by entrepreneurial decision-making. Industry 4.0 technologies have changed the very manner by which firms arrange their value-adding activities with their business stakeholders in course of the firm's internationalization. By relying on reasonable business targets, algorithms, and data management systems, real-time market monitoring enables international startup firms to learn and adopt local identities faster, thereby efficiently alleviating liabilities of foreignness.

A rise in foreign direct investment (FDI) has resulted in an increased occurrence of foreign divestment. Foreign divestment plays a critical role in the restructuring activities of firms and is known to either create or destroy firm value. While previous studies have examined the valuation effects of foreign divestment, findings have been inconsistent. In this chapter, we conduct a meta-analytical review of the stock market reactions to foreign divestment announcements. Furthermore, we test if the relationship varies according to the motive of divestment. Our findings indicate that foreign divestment creates a significantly positive stock market reaction. The relationship is strongest for refocusing divestments, followed by divestments motivated to raise finances or repay debts, and the weakest for efficiency seeking divestments. Future research suggestions are postulated based on our findings.

Past research on foreign divestment has recognized the impact of economic and political differences1. However, the prior findings remain equivocal. We adopt the Positive Organizational Scholarship perspective to provide more contextualized insights into the effects of economic and political differences on foreign divestment. Specifically, we consider the juxtaposition of national differences and levels of firm interaction with the different contexts. Thus, we develop the concept of friction to assess levels of economic and political differences. We further argue that economic friction will have a curvilinear (U-shaped) effect on foreign divestment, whereas political friction will produce a monotonic (positive) effect. Moreover, we introduce ownership level as a moderator into the main hypotheses. Drawing on data from 2400 foreign subsidiaries of 310 Finnish multinational enterprises, from 1970-2010, we provide support for our main hypotheses, although the moderating effect of ownership levels is not supported. We further compare the effects of differences measured by friction with those measured by distance. Accordingly, our research highlights the importance of detecting specific conditions for the investigation of the impact of economic and political differences in the foreign divestment literature.

This last chapter provides an overview of current work on international exit, divestment, and the associated phenomena of relocation and re-entry. First, we discuss three to five key results from each of the book's chapters. In the second part, we propose a framework for the analysis of foreign exits, relocation, and re-entry. We provide critical new insights to the current understanding of exit, divestment, relocation, and re-entry. Next, we offer specific suggestions for future research by pointing out directions in which our knowledge still needs to be developed. The chapter ends with a conclusion section and the hope that this book may inspire more researchers to continue to explore these important issues and extend our knowledge in this area.

Numerous studies have examined the impact of international diversification on firm performance. However, the literature is characterised by inconsistent findings, suggesting the need for a quantitative review and synthesis of the hypothesised relationships. Using a sample of 263 effect sizes from 187 primary studies between 1974 and 2021, we conduct a meta-analysis to test the relationship between international diversification and firm performance, and the moderating effect of product diversification. The results of our meta-analysis indicate that the relationship between international diversification and firm performance is non-linear inverted U-shaped. Furthermore, we find that performance is higher in firms with low/related product diversity and lower in firms with high/unrelated product diversity, suggesting that the dual-diversification strategy is detrimental to firm performance. Although there is no significant difference in the performance of firms from advanced and emerging economies, the results highlight the importance of intangible assets for diversified firms.

Building on Emotion Regulation Theory, we examine the role of an exporter's emotional intelligence (EI) in enhancing the quality and boosting the long-term orientation of the working relationship with its import buyers. Using data gathered from 262 Greek exporters, we confirm that the proper use of EI helps to improve trust, commitment, cooperation, and satisfaction in the relationship with their importers, which subsequently contribute to its long-term orientation. This favorable effect of EI on relationship quality dimensions is amplified when exporters deal with importers located in countries with cultures characterized by low power distance, low individualism, low masculinity, high uncertainty avoidance, and high (national) long-term orientation.

International business (IB) travel has long been considered an important aspect of international business management strategies of multinational enterprises (MNEs). Extant literature further recognizes that expatriate managers are an essential cornerstone of MNEs' global strategies. They play a crucial role in the management of subsidiaries as well as in knowledge transfer of organizational routines and practices. Covid-19 has caused a collapse of the airline industry due to travel restrictions, which have been referred to remain in place in one way or another for the foreseeable future. The issue of international travel has become a daunting problem in relation to Covid-19 pandemic. Many MNEs have been overwhelmed by the unprecedented and severe problems they face in regard to the mobility of their workforce. The fundamental changes in the way the global economy is being run, and firms operate offer profound future research opportunities on labor mobility and IB travel.

The objective of the study is to explore how acquisition integration capabilities are developed in acquiring firms. Through empirical case studies of acquisitions of five Finnish MNEs in global markets, the study finds four determinants of acquisition integration capability: acquisition integration knowledge management, cultural competence, acquisition integration strategy, and acquisition performance review. The study extends dynamic capability theory to acquisition integration literature and provides a comprehensive and integrated perspective on the determinants of acquisition integration capability. Finally, five propositions are developed for future empirical research and we call for future studies to explore how acquisition integration capabilities become dynamic using longitudinal research design.

Poor performance has been a major concern in research on international joint ventures (IJVs).This study integrates the IJV management mechanisms from transaction cost theory (TCT) and social exchange theory (SET) in order to gain insights into management mechanisms that improve IJV performance.The framework consists of three structural (i.e., symmetric dependence, symmetric equity share and resource complementarity) and three social (i.e., trust, communication and cultural adaptation) IJV management mechanisms, which are considered as potential determinants of IJV performance.Based on the analysis of data collected from 89 IJVs established by Nordic firms in Asia, Europe and the USA, results indicate that TCT-based symmetric dependence and resource complementarity on the one hand and SET-based trust, communication and cultural adaptation on another significantly improve IJV performance.However, impact of symmetric equity share on IJV performance remains negative and non-significant, explaining that IJV partners may consider it rather a safeguard to their own stake and interests in IJVs.In addition, SET-based IJV management mechanisms are found to be more effective than the TCT-based IJV mechanisms in improving IJV performance.

In this study, we analyze how firms carry out corporate renewal successfully and the linkage between corporate renewal and performance. Our theoretical foundation is based on the dynamic capability theory. The evidence for our study is based on longitudinal study of three emerging market located firms from 2011 to 2016. The results show that firms need to continuously renew their organization in order to be competitive and to grow. In addition, organizational renewal is a process which can involve different aspects of the firms such as business areas, structures, strategies, and networks. Furthermore, when exercising organization renewal, firms were able to increase both short and long terms performance. Firms tried to sustain current success by continuously building new products, services, and processes for the future. The study contributes to current literature by offering a model for future research and providing implications for managers to succeed in corporate renewal.

This book examines internationalization from the perspective of European and African firms. It covers an array of pressing issues, including responsible business practice between SMEs from developed and emerging countries and the impact of psychic distance.