Change of Subsidiary Mandates in Emerging Markets: The Case of Danish MNCs in India

In recent years, the activities of Danish MNCs in India have expanded dramatically. Previously dormant subsidiaries have been transformed into integral components in the global strategies of Danish MNCs, either as crucial cash cows catering to the rapidly growing Indian markets, or as platforms for sourcing of increasingly advanced value chain activities. This paper aims to provide an understanding of the relationship between changes in the Indian business environment and mandate trajectories of Danish subsidiaries in India. A review of the literature on subsidiary mandates reveals that it largely fails to conceptualize how the specificities of emerging market business environments affect subsidiary mandate evolution. The paper develops a theoretical model for business environment change influence on subsidiary mandates, and demonstrates how the model can capture much of recent years dramatic mandate change of Danish subsidiaries in India.