Development of the Research Model

Based on the literature frame defined in the previous chapters, in the fourth chapter, the research question, a case differentiation of multinational corporation strategic management processes, and the hypotheses are developed. The research question development is using the approach of problematization as proposed by Alvesson and Sandberg (Academy of Management Review 36(2):247–271, 2011) leading to a main research question and three underlying research questions. For further investigation, it is of interest to differentiate multinational corporations based on their strategic management setup to identify those multinational corporations whose strategic management processes are particularly vulnerable to the influence of culture. Academic literature frequently assumes the existence of different multinational corporation archetypes, which differentiate across certain dimensions. Based on the previous chapters, it is particularly valuable to focus on two dimensions. First, the cultural composition of the involved actors as a social component, and, second, multinational corporations’ division of work/responsibilities in the strategic management process as an institutional component. This process is leading to four different cases. To answer the research question, a set of hypotheses was developed that will be introduced in the following. The hypotheses have been established based on the previous literature assessment by using selected Hofstede cultural dimensions. The hypotheses are assessed for one of the four defined cases—the setting of a polycultural strategic management involvement setting. The literature analysis conducted in the previous sections has shown that the elements of time and uncertainty are particularly likely driving the cultural sensitivity of long-term planning. Thus, the responding items from the Hofstede dimension “Long-Term Orientation” and “Uncertainty Avoidance Index” are selected for further analysis of the scenario planning process.