| Technology Spillovers from Foreign Direct Investment in the Indian Pharmaceutical Industry |
| | Feinberg, Susan Elizabeth | U. of Maryland | feinberg@glue.umd.edu | (301)-405-2251 |
| | Majumdar, Sumit K. | Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine | s.majumdar@ic.ac.uk | (171)594-9172 |
| | The extent to which host countries benefit from inward direct investment (fdi) by foreign multinational corporations (mnc’s) has been at the forefront of the debate over globalization. These concerns are magnified in developing countries, where local economies have much to gain – in particular from foreign technology transfer – but local competitive conditions and inadequate intellectual property protection may discourage mncs from undertaking local r&d.
This paper examines whether r&d undertaken by mncs operating in India increased the productive output of domestic firms in the Indian pharmaceuticals industry from 1976-1994. It makes several contributions to existing work. First, we use detailed firm-level panel data on mncs and domestic firms in India to establish a causal link between domestic and foreign r&d and firm output. Second, we test for multi-directional r&d spillovers, i.e., spillovers from mncs-to Indian firms (and vice versa); spillovers from mncs-to-mncs, and spillovers from Indian firms to each other. Previous work has only tested for spillovers from mncs to host country firms. Finally, we test explicitly for technology spillovers. Previous research on fdi spillovers has not been able to unbundle the specific types of benefits thought to result from fdi (e.g., technology transfer, more efficient use of resources, etc..).
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| | Keywords: multinationals; spillovers |
| Managing Technology Transfer Across Borders: Normative and Cognitive Considerations |
| | Munir, Kamal Ahmed | McGill U. | munir@management.mcgill.ca | (514)-398-4044 |
| | It is argued in this paper that a consideration of the normative and cognitive aspects of an environment is critical to successful transfer of technology. Four critical activities in the technology transfer process are identified and discussed in a societal context. Several testable propositions are presented, and implications for managers and researchers are discussed.
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| | Keywords: technology transfer; institutional theory; environment |
| Technology transfer capacity: a missing link in the theory of the multinational corporation |
| | Martin, Xavier | New York U. | xmartin@stern.nyu.edu | (212)-998-0414 |
| | Salomon, Robert | New York U. | rsalomon@stern.nyu.edu | (212)-998-0437 |
| | This paper discusses how a firm's ability to transfer technology affects both a firm's propensity to expand internationally, and its choice of mode of entry when expanding. Prior research emphasizes that firms with strong technology creation skills are most likely to expand internationally. We argue that, given a firm's ability to create new technology, its comparative ability to transfer technology to foreign locations will determine whether and how a firm expands internationally. We introduce and illustrate the concept of a transferor's out-transfer capacity, and the complementary concept of a transferee's in-transfer capacity. We then develop predictions building on conventional internalization theory and on the knowledge-based theory of the multinational corporation. We argue that out-transfer capacity, together with the tacitness of the technology on hand, will affect whether a firm expands by transferring its technology across national boundaries. We then develop predictions that distinguish among four modes of entry with technology transfer: licensing, joint venture, acquisition, or greenfield subsidiary. This study incorporates endogenous and exogenous dimensions of technology transfer into the study of why and how firms expand internationally. We discuss implications for research in international management. |
| | Keywords: technology transfer abilities; knowledge-based MNC theory ; mode of entry |
| The transfer of knowledge in the multinational corporation: Considering context |
| | Dinur, Adva | Temple U. | kmstudy@aol.com | (215)- 477-8101 |
| | Inkpen, Andrew C. | Thunderbird | inkpena@t-bird.edu | 602-978-7079 |
| | Hamilton, Robert | Temple U. | rdhamilton@aol.com | (215)-204-6870 |
| | The sharing and transfer of knowledge across the organization has long been recognized as a critical driver of firm performance. This paper examines factors that influence intrafirm, cross border knowledge transfers. More specifically, we ask: what role does context similarity between the knowledge source and recipient play in explaining transfer difficulty?
We develop and test a model to explain how context defines organizational knowledge and enables knowledge transfers. The model suggests that various organizational units face different contexts. Every knowledge pocket is embedded within a specific set of contextual elements, which are critical to the firm's ability to hold and utilize the knowledge. We divide the elements into five major dimensions: strategic, decision-making, environmental, cultural, and technological. When engaging in a knowledge transfer, firms attempt to take a knowledge pocket and replant it in a new, different context in the knowledge recipient. The model suggests that difficulties in transfer stem from an absence of some or all of the critical contextual variables at the recipient. We propose that the more similar contextual variables present at the recipient relative to those at the source, the more successful the transfer will be. The model is tested using data from four case studies involving international knowledge transfer. The case studies support the important of context and provide new insights into the important role played by the nature and extent of the knowledge transfer mechanisms employed by the MNCs. |
| | Keywords: knowledge transfer; multinational corporations; case studies |