International Specialization: A Bridge between Polar Views of Operating Flexibility and Location-Specific Commitment

Ingo Kleindienst, Christian Geisler Asmussen, Thomas Hutzschenreuter, Torben Pedersen

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    Abstract

    Whether and how international diversification and cross-border arbitrage affects firm performance remains one of the major unresolved research questions in the strategy and international business literatures. We propose
    that knowing how much a firm has internationally diversified tells us very little about performance implications, if we do not know, and do not ask, how the firm has diversified. Therefore, building on the two broad arguments of operating flexibility and location-specific commitment, we develop a theoretical framework that focuses on the extent to which a firm's international arbitrage strategy is characterized by specialization versus replication and argue that these different strategies may have differential impact on profitability and risk reduction. Developing a sophisticated measure of international specialization and using a unique panel data set
    of 92 German MNEs to test our hypotheses, we provide a novel perspective on the relationship between international arbitrage and firm performance.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationProceedings of the 54rd Annual Meeting of the Academy of International Business
    EditorsSusan Feinberg, Tunga Kiyak
    Place of PublicationEast Lansing, MI
    PublisherAcademy of International Business
    Publication date2012
    Pages43-44
    Publication statusPublished - 2012
    EventAIB 2012 Annual Meeting: Rethinking the Roles of Business, Government and NGOs in the Global Economy - George Washington University and University of Maryland, Washington, United States
    Duration: 30 Jun 20123 Jul 2012
    Conference number: 54
    http://aib.msu.edu/events/2012/

    Conference

    ConferenceAIB 2012 Annual Meeting
    Number54
    LocationGeorge Washington University and University of Maryland
    Country/TerritoryUnited States
    CityWashington
    Period30/06/201203/07/2012
    Internet address
    SeriesAcademy of International Business. Annual Meeting. Proceedings
    Volume54
    ISSN2078-4430

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