Global Value Chains, Business Networks, Strategy, and International Business: Convergences

Abstract

Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to clarify the distinction between Global Value Chains and selected strands of the business literature: business networks, strategy, and international business. These four research areas have starting questions that are often different and the audiences they address also differ. There have been attempts to establish links across these theories, but these are exceptions rather than the rule. Design/methodology/approach-The basic principles and concepts of the four areas are identified. The results are used to develop a summary matrix of the approaches. The methodological path is inductive and inferential, as the task involves searching for similarities, complementarities, and overlaps across the four social science disciplines. Findings-The literature of the studied fields overlaps on the issues they are trying to understand, even if they do not use identical terminology. The four areas advocate the same principle in understanding the organizational field: complexity. Firms are triggered to enter into exchange with other companies. Originality/value-The theoretical contribution of this article is based on the idea that although the four research fields-GVC, Business Networks, Strategy, and International Business-advance independently from each other, common origins can be observed, allowing for a set of common propositions.

Different roots, intertwined branches: linking International Business and Economic Geography through the Uppsala Model and Global Production Network

“…Based on Humphrey et al. (2019), we applied an inductive and an inferential approach to find similarities and differences between the Uppsala model and GPN to link IB and Economic Geography.…”

“…While studies concerning the common ground between IB and Economic Geography are not new (Hervás Oliver, 2015; Humphrey et al. , 2019; Jones, 2018; Kano, 2018; Ström and Wahlqvist, 2010), most of these studies focus on the eclectic (OLI) paradigm (Dunning, 2001) and on the global value chain (GVC) (Gereffi et al.…”

“…, 2019; Jones, 2018; Kano, 2018; Ström and Wahlqvist, 2010), most of these studies focus on the eclectic (OLI) paradigm (Dunning, 2001) and on the global value chain (GVC) (Gereffi et al. , 1994, 2005; Humphrey et al. , 2019; Lee and Gereffi, 2015).…”

“…Based on the work of Humphrey et al. (2019), we applied an inductive and inferential approach that revealed (1) different premises between IB and Economic Geography; (2) the geographical nature of IB; (3) that the network is a core variable to understand internationalization and the geographical location of business disintegration around the globe; (4) that the Uppsala model and GPN are inclined to relatively horizontal coordination and governance; (5) that asymmetries and heterogeneity are essential to provide access to privileged resources; (6) that opportunities and knowledge are shared among network members and are not a public good; (7) that for the Uppsala model and GPN, value is captured through firm specific advantages such as size and economies of scale; (8) that the ability to deal with nonfirm actors, such as institutional actors, is also shared; and (9) that embeddedness plays a pivotal role for the Uppsala model and GPN as it involves not only the connection of territories and companies but also the social fabric that demands great network capability.…”

Gestão de Stakeholders: Estado da Arte e Perspectivas

“…A premissa comum nestes estudos, leva em consideração uma conexão positiva entre a gestão orientada para os stakeholders, o compartilhamento de valor aos stakeholders e a performance da empresa (Freeman et al, 2010;Orlitzky, Schmidit & Rynes, 2003;Harrison, Bosse & Phillips, 2010;Sarturi, Seravalli & Boaventura, 2015;Tantalo & Priem, 2016). Assim, examinar estas relações de criação, cocriação ou distribuição de valor pode revelar em que extensão os stakeholders tem um papel nesse processo com as empresas (Freeman, 2010;Garcia-Castro & Aguilera, 2015; 23 Harrison et al, 2010;Tantalo & Priem, 2016;Boaventura et al, 2020 (Bridoux & Stoelhorst, 2016); e a necessidade de revisão dos modelos em global value chain quanto à influência dos stakeholders em nível internacional e à governança multi-stakeholder (Humphrey, Todeva, Armando & Giglio, 2019). E ainda, a atuação dos diferentes grupos de stakeholders em situações de misconduct e coalizões e sua influência nas práticas e ações de responsividade das organizações (Barnett, 2014;Hersel et al, 2019), principalmente no contexto de crise.…”