IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/worbus/v48y2013i1p58-67.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

International ambidexterity and firm performance in small emerging economies

Author

Listed:
  • Hsu, Chia-Wen
  • Lien, Yung-Chih
  • Chen, Homin

Abstract

Conventional IB theories stress the importance and implications of a firm's exploitative strategy. However, the unprecedented competitive nature of contemporary business necessitates firm “ambidexterity” — the simultaneous execution of exploitation and exploration activities. Using balanced panel data of 207 Taiwanese firms spanning six years, this research examines the effects of international ambidexterity on firm performance. Findings reveal that ambidexterity promotes a firm's performance. For firms from small emerging economies, international ambidexterity is highly vulnerable to environmental complexity and sensitive to previous international experience and the firm's capability to conduct international business. These factors significantly moderate firm performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Hsu, Chia-Wen & Lien, Yung-Chih & Chen, Homin, 2013. "International ambidexterity and firm performance in small emerging economies," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 58-67.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:worbus:v:48:y:2013:i:1:p:58-67
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jwb.2012.06.007
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090951612000442
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jwb.2012.06.007?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mary Han, 2007. "Achieving Superior Internationalization Through Strategic Ambidexterity," Journal of Enterprising Culture (JEC), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 15(01), pages 43-77.
    2. Bruce Kogut & Udo Zander, 1992. "Knowledge of the Firm, Combinative Capabilities, and the Replication of Technology," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 3(3), pages 383-397, August.
    3. Lenn Gomes & Kannan Ramaswamy, 1999. "An Empirical Examination of the Form of the Relationship Between Multinationality and Performance," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 30(1), pages 173-187, March.
    4. Pankaj Ghemawat & Joan E. I Ricart Costa, 1993. "The organizational tension between static and dynamic efficiency," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(S2), pages 59-73, December.
    5. Burgelman, Robert A., 2002. "Strategy as Vector and the Inertia of Co-evolutionary Lock-in," Research Papers 1745, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
    6. Caves, Richard E, 1971. "International Corporations: The Industrial Economics of Foreign Investment," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 38(149), pages 1-27, February.
    7. Prange, Christiane & Verdier, Sylvie, 2011. "Dynamic capabilities, internationalization processes and performance," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 126-133, January.
    8. Will Mitchell & Kulwant Singh, 1993. "Death of the Lethargic: Effects of Expansion into New Technical Subfields on Performance in a Firm's Base Business," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 4(2), pages 152-180, May.
    9. Yasuhiro Yamakawa & Mike W. Peng & David L. Deeds, 2008. "What Drives New Ventures to Internationalize from Emerging to Developed Economies?," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 32(1), pages 59-82, January.
    10. Liliana Pérez-Nordtvedt & G. Tyge Payne & Jeremy C. Short & Ben L. Kedia, 2008. "An Entrainment-Based Model of Temporal Organizational Fit, Misfit, and Performance," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(5), pages 785-801, October.
    11. Igor Filatotchev & Roger Strange & Jenifer Piesse & Yung-Chih Lien, 2007. "FDI by firms from newly industrialised economies in emerging markets: corporate governance, entry mode and location," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 38(4), pages 556-572, July.
    12. Kose John & Lubomir Litov & Bernard Yeung, 2008. "Corporate Governance and Risk‐Taking," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 63(4), pages 1679-1728, August.
    13. Michael A Witt & Arie Y Lewin, 2007. "Outward foreign direct investment as escape response to home country institutional constraints," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 38(4), pages 579-594, July.
    14. Michael Lubatkin & Zeki Simsek & Yan Ling & John F. Veiga, 2006. "Ambidexterity and Performance in Small-to Medium-Sized Firms : The Pivotal Role of Top Management Team Behavioral Integration," Post-Print hal-02311781, HAL.
    15. J. Michael Geringer & Stephen Tallman & David M. Olsen, 2000. "Product and international diversification among Japanese multinational firms," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(1), pages 51-80, January.
    16. Lien, Yung-Chih & Piesse, Jenifer & Strange, Roger & Filatotchev, Igor, 2005. "The role of corporate governance in FDI decisions: Evidence from Taiwan," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 14(6), pages 739-763, December.
    17. Shige Makino & Chung-Ming Lau & Rhy-Song Yeh, 2002. "Asset-Exploitation Versus Asset-Seeking: Implications for Location Choice of Foreign Direct Investment from Newly Industrialized Economies," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 33(3), pages 403-421, September.
    18. Kathleen M. Eisenhardt & Jeffrey A. Martin, 2000. "Dynamic capabilities: what are they?," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(10‐11), pages 1105-1121, October.
    19. Alvaro Cuervo-Cazurra & Mehmet Genc, 2008. "Transforming disadvantages into advantages: developing-country MNEs in the least developed countries," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 39(6), pages 957-979, September.
    20. Jose Manuel Campa & Simi Kedia, 2002. "Explaining the Diversification Discount," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(4), pages 1731-1762, August.
    21. Child, John & Rodrigues, Suzana B., 2005. "The Internationalization of Chinese Firms: A Case for Theoretical Extension?1," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 1(3), pages 381-410, November.
    22. Farok J. Contractor, 2007. "Is international business good for companies? The evolutionary or multi-stage theory of internationalization vs. the transaction cost perspective," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 453-475, June.
    23. Weijian Shan & Jaeyong Song, 1997. "Foreign Direct Investment and the Sourcing of Technological Advantage: Evidence from the Biotechnology Industry," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 28(2), pages 267-284, June.
    24. Ghemawat, Pankaj & Ricart, Joan E., 1993. "Organizational tension between static and dynamic efficiency, The," IESE Research Papers D/255, IESE Business School.
    25. Qing Cao & Eric Gedajlovic & Hongping Zhang, 2009. "Unpacking Organizational Ambidexterity: Dimensions, Contingencies, and Synergistic Effects," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 781-796, August.
    26. Harry G Barkema & Rian Drogendijk, 2007. "Internationalising in small, incremental or larger steps?," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 38(7), pages 1132-1148, December.
    27. Homin Chen & Tain-Jy Chen, 1998. "Network Linkages and Location Choice in Foreign Direct Investment," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 29(3), pages 445-467, September.
    28. James G. March, 1991. "Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 2(1), pages 71-87, February.
    29. Zi-Lin He & Poh-Kam Wong, 2004. "Exploration vs. Exploitation: An Empirical Test of the Ambidexterity Hypothesis," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 15(4), pages 481-494, August.
    30. Chia-Wen Hsu & Homin Chen, 2009. "Foreign Direct Investment and Capability Development," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 49(5), pages 585-605, October.
    31. Yadong Luo & Rosalie L Tung, 2007. "International expansion of emerging market enterprises: A springboard perspective," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 38(4), pages 481-498, July.
    32. Mike Peng & Andrew Delios, 2006. "What determines the scope of the firm over time and around the world? An Asia Pacific perspective," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 385-405, December.
    33. David J. Teece, 2007. "Explicating dynamic capabilities: the nature and microfoundations of (sustainable) enterprise performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(13), pages 1319-1350, December.
    34. Daniel A. Levinthal & James G. March, 1993. "The myopia of learning," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(S2), pages 95-112, December.
    35. Auh, Seigyoung & Menguc, Bulent, 2005. "Balancing exploration and exploitation: The moderating role of competitive intensity," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 58(12), pages 1652-1661, December.
    36. Christine Oliver, 1997. "Sustainable competitive advantage: combining institutional and resource‐based views," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(9), pages 697-713, October.
    37. Khavul, Susanna & Pérez-Nordtvedt, Liliana & Wood, Eric, 2010. "Organizational entrainment and international new ventures from emerging markets," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 104-119, January.
    38. Dieter Ernst, 2010. "Upgrading through innovation in a small network economy: insights from Taiwan's IT industry," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 295-324.
    39. Yadong Luo, 2002. "Capability Exploitation and Building in a Foreign Market: Implications for Multinational Enterprises," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(1), pages 48-63, February.
    40. John Child & Suzana B. Rodrigues, 2005. "The Internationalization of Chinese Firms: A Case for Theoretical Extension?," Management and Organization Review, International Association of Chinese Management Research, vol. 1(3), pages 381-410, November.
    41. Shaker A Zahra, 2005. "A theory of international new ventures: a decade of research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 36(1), pages 20-28, January.
    42. Rui, Huaichuan & Yip, George S., 2008. "Foreign acquisitions by Chinese firms: A strategic intent perspective," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 43(2), pages 213-226, March.
    43. Lang, Larry H P & Stulz, Rene M, 1994. "Tobin's q, Corporate Diversification, and Firm Performance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 102(6), pages 1248-1280, December.
    44. Lori Rosenkopf & Atul Nerkar, 2001. "Beyond local search: boundary‐spanning, exploration, and impact in the optical disk industry," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(4), pages 287-306, April.
    45. Boris Groysberg & Linda-Eling Lee, 2009. "Hiring Stars and Their Colleagues: Exploration and Exploitation in Professional Service Firms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 740-758, August.
    46. Daniel R. Denison & Robert Hooijberg & Robert E. Quinn, 1995. "Paradox and Performance: Toward a Theory of Behavioral Complexity in Managerial Leadership," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 6(5), pages 524-540, October.
    47. Roy Radner, 1975. "A Behavioral Model of Cost Reduction," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 6(1), pages 196-215, Spring.
    48. Duane Ireland, R. & Webb, Justin W., 2007. "Strategic entrepreneurship: Creating competitive advantage through streams of innovation," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 49-59.
    49. Zeki Simsek, 2009. "Organizational Ambidexterity: Towards a Multilevel Understanding," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(4), pages 597-624, June.
    50. Gongming Qian & Lee Li & Ji Li & Zhengming Qian, 2008. "Regional diversification and firm performance," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 39(2), pages 197-214, March.
    51. Frank T. Rothaermel & Maria Tereza Alexandre, 2009. "Ambidexterity in Technology Sourcing: The Moderating Role of Absorptive Capacity," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 759-780, August.
    52. Ravenscraft, David J, 1983. "Structure-Profit Relationships at the Line of Business and Industry Level," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 65(1), pages 22-31, February.
    53. Nicolaj Siggelkow & Daniel A. Levinthal, 2003. "Temporarily Divide to Conquer: Centralized, Decentralized, and Reintegrated Organizational Approaches to Exploration and Adaptation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 14(6), pages 650-669, December.
    54. Ming‐Jer Chen & Hao‐Chieh Lin & John G. Michel, 2010. "Navigating in a hypercompetitive environment: the roles of action aggressiveness and TMT integration," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(13), pages 1410-1430, 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. Sebastian Raisch & Julian Birkinshaw & Gilbert Probst & Michael L. Tushman, 2009. "Organizational Ambidexterity: Balancing Exploitation and Exploration for Sustained Performance," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 685-695, August.
    2. Lin, H.E., 2010. "Effects of strategy, context and antecedents and capabilities on the outcomes of ambidexterity : A multiple country case study of the US, China and Taiwan," Other publications TiSEM c0eab7d6-d6c7-4b55-9822-1, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    3. Montserrat Boronat-Navarro & Alexandra García-Joerger, 2019. "Ambidexterity, Alliances and Environmental Management System Adoption in Spanish Hotels," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(20), pages 1-16, October.
    4. Choi, Yoona & Cui, Lin & Li, Yi & Tian, Xizhou, 2020. "Focused and ambidextrous catch-up strategies of emerging economy multinationals," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(6).
    5. Lori Rosenkopf & Patia McGrath, 2011. "Advancing the Conceptualization and Operationalization of Novelty in Organizational Research," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(5), pages 1297-1311, October.
    6. Wu Zhan & Roger (Rongxin) Chen, 2013. "Dynamic capability and IJV performance: The effect of exploitation and exploration capabilities," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 601-632, June.
    7. Mavroudi, Eva & Kesidou, Effie & Pandza, Krsto, 2020. "Shifting back and forth: How does the temporal cycling between exploratory and exploitative R&D influence firm performance?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 386-396.
    8. Choo Yeon Kim & Myung Sub Lim & Jae Wook Yoo, 2019. "Ambidexterity in External Knowledge Search Strategies and Innovation Performance: Mediating Role of Balanced Innovation and Moderating Role of Absorptive Capacity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-23, September.
    9. Jorge Ferreira & Sofia Cardim & Arnaldo Coelho, 2021. "Dynamic Capabilities and Mediating Effects of Innovation on the Competitive Advantage and Firm’s Performance: the Moderating Role of Organizational Learning Capability," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 12(2), pages 620-644, June.
    10. Prange, Christiane & Verdier, Sylvie, 2011. "Dynamic capabilities, internationalization processes and performance," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 126-133, January.
    11. Edacherian, Saneesh & Panicker, Vidya Sukumara, 2022. "Do interlocks by different types of directors affect the nature of internationalization strategy of emerging market multinationals?," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(4).
    12. Shufeng Simon Xiao & Yong Kyu Lew & Byung Il Park, 2020. "International Network Searching, Learning, and Explorative Capability: Small and Medium-sized Enterprises from China," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 60(4), pages 597-621, August.
    13. Olga Kassotaki, 2022. "Review of Organizational Ambidexterity Research," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(1), pages 21582440221, March.
    14. Sabyasachi Sinha, 2015. "The Exploration–Exploitation Dilemma: A Review in the Context of Managing Growth of New Ventures," Vikalpa: The Journal for Decision Makers, , vol. 40(3), pages 313-323, September.
    15. Justin J. P. Jansen & Michiel P. Tempelaar & Frans A. J. van den Bosch & Henk W. Volberda, 2009. "Structural Differentiation and Ambidexterity: The Mediating Role of Integration Mechanisms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 797-811, August.
    16. Oana Buliga & Christian W. Scheiner & Kai-Ingo Voigt, 2016. "Business model innovation and organizational resilience: towards an integrated conceptual framework," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 86(6), pages 647-670, August.
    17. Zi-Lin He & Poh-Kam Wong, 2004. "Exploration vs. Exploitation: An Empirical Test of the Ambidexterity Hypothesis," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 15(4), pages 481-494, August.
    18. Sung‐Choon Kang & Scott A. Snell, 2009. "Intellectual Capital Architectures and Ambidextrous Learning: A Framework for Human Resource Management," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(1), pages 65-92, January.
    19. Bustinza, Oscar F. & Vendrell-Herrero, Ferran & Gomes, Emanuel, 2020. "Unpacking the effect of strategic ambidexterity on performance: A cross-country comparison of MMNEs developing product-service innovation," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(6).
    20. Marina Estrada-Cruz & Noelia Rodriguez-Hernández & Antonio J. Verdú-Jover & Jose Maria Gómez-Gras, 2022. "The effect of competitive intensity on the relationship between strategic entrepreneurship and organizational results," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 18(1), pages 1-24, March.

    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:eee:worbus:v:48:y:2013:i:1:p:58-67. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/620401/description#description .

    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.