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How do we capture “Global Specialization” when measuring firms’ degree of globalization?

Author

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  • Christian Geisler Asmussen

    (Copenhagen Business School)

  • Torben Pedersen

    (Copenhagen Business School)

  • Bent Petersen

    (Copenhagen Business School)

Abstract

Abstract and Key Results The IB literature informs us of several ways to measure firms’ degree of globalization. In this paper we make the argument that in fact none of the existing indices really measure firms’ degree of “global specialization”, that is, to what extent their allocation of resources is multidomestic or global. In order to remedy this we introduce a complementary index measuring how firms are configuring their value chains — whether they are replicating value chain activities from country to country or locating them in globally specialized units in order to exploit an international division of labor. We then test this “global specialization” index empirically on a sample of Danish MNCs. We find that the index is able to identify a distinct group of firms with significantly higher degrees of global value chain configuration. The firms in this group do not necessarily score high on conventional internationalization measures.

Suggested Citation

  • Christian Geisler Asmussen & Torben Pedersen & Bent Petersen, 2007. "How do we capture “Global Specialization” when measuring firms’ degree of globalization?," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 47(6), pages 791-813, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:manint:v:47:y:2007:i:6:d:10.1007_s11575-007-0053-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s11575-007-0053-x
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    2. Marzanna K. Witek-Hajduk, 2013. "Wczesne umiędzynarodowienie a wyniki ekonomiczne przedsiębiorstwa," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 11-12, pages 73-92.
    3. Md. Salamun Rashidin & Sara Javed & Lingming Chen & Wang Jian, 2020. "Assessing the Competitiveness of Chinese Multinational Enterprises Development: Evidence From Electronics Sector," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(1), pages 21582440198, January.
    4. Liena Kano & Eric W. K. Tsang & Henry Wai-chung Yeung, 2020. "Global value chains: A review of the multi-disciplinary literature," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(4), pages 577-622, June.
    5. Carlos González, 2019. "Revealing a Social Dimension of Internationalization: Transnational Board Interlocks as a Social-Based Proxy for the Degree of Internationalization of the Firm," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 59(2), pages 253-276, April.
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    7. Christian Geisler Asmussen & Andrea Fosfuri & Marcus Møller Larsen & Grazia D. Santangelo, 2023. "Corporate social responsibility in the global value chain: A bargaining perspective," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 54(7), pages 1175-1192, September.
    8. Mariluz Fernández-Alles & Dara Hernández-Roque & Mercedes Villanueva-Flores & Mirta Díaz-Fernández, 2022. "The impact of human, social, and psychological capital on academic spin-off internationalization," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 20(3), pages 433-473, September.
    9. Ram Mudambi & Jonas Puck, 2016. "A Global Value Chain Analysis of the ‘Regional Strategy’ Perspective," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(6), pages 1076-1093, September.
    10. Seok Jin Ko, 2019. "The Differing Foreign Entry Mode Choices for Sales and Production Subsidiaries of Multinational Corporations in the Manufacturing Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(15), pages 1-18, July.
    11. Raul Serrano & Natalia Dejo‐Oricain & Juan Ferrer & Vicente Pinilla & Silvia Abella‐Garcés & Maria Teresa Maza, 2023. "Domestic clustered networks and internationalization of agrifood SMEs," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 39(1), pages 167-195, January.
    12. Jan-Erik Vahlne & Jan Johanson, 2017. "From internationalization to evolution: The Uppsala model at 40 years," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 48(9), pages 1087-1102, December.

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