Organizational Models of Multinational Enterprises in the Digital Era

Abstract

This study examines organizational models of multinational enterprises (MNEs) in relation to accessing and integrating human capital in the digital era. By approaching MNEs from a network perspective and considering case studies focusing on eleven U.S. MNEs, we reveal two alternative organizational models: (1) a digitally enabled international network of distributed units and (2) an international network of distributed work. Our findings show how both models are underpinned by strategic rationales of creating and capturing economies of skills, which translate into distinctive structural aspects as well as dimensions of coordination and control, while also depending on firm contingencies. By developing and extending new organizational frameworks for MNEs, which reflect the possibilities as well as the challenges of digitalization, the insights from our study contribute not only to the literature on MNE organization and management but also to the knowledge-based of MNEs as well as the literature on international human resource management focused on future of work and global virtual teams.

Biography

Esther Tippmann is Established Professor of Strategy and serves as Vice-Dean Research, and Co-Director of the Centre for Entrepreneurial Growth and Scaling (CEGS). Esther's research concerns the international strategies of organizations, esp. globally scaling and digital businesses. Her work also concerns the enhancement of the strategic contribution of subsidiaries to multinationals. She has worked closely with several scaling firms and multinational corporations in Ireland, France, U.K., and the U.S. on case studies and research projects. She has been published in the Strategic Management Journal, Journal of International Business Studies, Organization Studies, Journal of World Business, Journal of Management Studies, Global Strategy Journal, Harvard Business Review, and Sloan Management Review, among others. Her research received several honours, including awards and nominations from the Academy of Management, Academy of International Business, and Strategic Management Society. Esther currently serves as Area Editor for the Journal of International Business Studies and on the editorial board of Long Range Planning. Esther is also passionate about teaching and strives to enable students and executives to critically evaluate how decisions influence long-term organizational success in a global context and impact society. She has taught in the areas of Strategic Management, Global Strategy, International Business, and Qualitative Research across all levels, including executives, in Austria, Ireland, Germany, and France. Before joining the University of Galway, Esther was a faculty member at University College Dublin and Research Fellow at Grenoble Ecole de Management, France. She held a Marie-Curie Fellowship, funded by the European Commission and Irish Research Council, and was a Visiting Professor at WU Vienna.