ABSTRACT
The climate of the time continues to shape the contextual nature of business research. International business research is probably more influenced by various forces of the economic and political climates than its domestic (or generic) counterpart. The emergence of new market economies in Eastern Europe, China, India, and Brazil, the consolidation of the European Union, as well as a decade of economic stagnation and recent resurgence in Japan’s economy has given global competition greater significance. The emergence of regional trading blocs in the form of the EU (European Union), the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), and MERCOSUR (Mercado Común del Sur) and an increasing number of bilateral trade agreements (e.g. EU–Mexico, Japan–Mexico, Japan–Singapore) have necessitated reorganization of firms’ production and marketing strategies. Advances in technology enhance communication and permit access to ever-increasing amounts of information. Globalizing trends in culture, technology, and financial markets drive global demand and global supply chains. Given these facts, it is no surprise that multinational enterprises (MNEs hereafter) have evolved into increasingly complex business environments. They attempt to maximize economic gains and efficiencies by increasing their scope of operations, penetrating ever more obscure markets, and accumulating knowledge from ever wider networks of subsidiaries, alliances, and acquisitions in this increasingly fast-paced, turbulent, and competitive environment.
