The multinational firm and geopolitics: Europe, Russian energy, and power

Abstract

Multinational firms unavoidably exert influence over politics through power that is generated by both structure and process. While both political economy and management scholars address international firms, neither field has an adequate understanding of the reciprocal relationship between multinational firms and geopolitical systems. The links between multinational firms form a distinct type of international system for the private sector – one that is simultaneously enmeshed in geopolitics and international markets even as it is also autonomous from them. The scholarly literature on the power of business in politics has demonstrated how influence derives from instrumental agency as well as structural influence, but it has taken an unnecessarily restrictive view of politics and an overly materialist theory of power. Politics are about much more than government policies. In this paper I propose an analytical framework for understanding the multinational firm as a set of relationships. I then apply one key element of that approach – the relationships among firms as a direct source of geopolitical outcomes – to the natural gas trade of Eurasia in three eras that span nearly 40 years. I conclude that the influence of business on a broader understanding of politics – and not just policies – should be central to the study of international and comparative political economy.

Taking back control: comprador bankers and managerial developmentalism in Poland

“…MNCs can also participate in developmental alliances and policies in host countries, but would normally do so because of top-down pressure from host states (Evans, 1979), not because of their co-opting or coercing those states. Although MNCs are usually not the puppets of their home states (Abdelal, 2015), they are strongly tied to them because of the location of their headquarters in them, the interpersonal ties that shareholders or top management have in them and the pressures that governments can exert on their 'national champions' (Gilpin, 1975;Pauly & Reich, 1997). MNCs consequently have 'every motivation to keep the innovative side of their businesses as close to home as possible' (Evans, 1979, p. 37).…”

“And of course our major contribution remains to run a decent business.” Making sense of Shell's sense-making in Nigeria during the 1990s

“… 35 Rational accounts discussing MNEs in substantial terms would include, among others, Eden and Dobson (2005); Jensen (2006); Gillies (2010); Kinderman (2012); Börzel and Thauer (2013); Griffin and Prakash (2014); and Berliner and Prakash (2015) while non-rational MNE research, either self-labelled or depicted as such, would include Cutler (2008); Woll (2008, 2010); Brown et al (2010); Flohr et al (2010); Hofferberth et al (2011); Dashwood (2012); Brühl and Hofferberth (2013); Farrell and Newman (2015); and Abdelal (2015). …”

Revisión contextual para la interpretación del análisis de riesgo geopolítico

“…Todo lo anterior, garantiza entonces que las relaciones comerciales entre empresas sean sólidas y estables en el tiempo. Así se puede decir entonces, que las condiciones exógenas del entorno sociopolítico y las interacciones de las grandes empresas, pueden condicionar las relaciones entre los Estados (Abdelal, 2015).…”