Staff profile

I completed an M.Phil. in the Economics of Developing Countries at Cambridge University before undertaking an ESRC funded PhD at the Judge Business School (looking at the emergence of Chinese business groups). In 2002 I was appointed as an Assistant Director of Development Studies at Cambridge's world leading Centre for Development Studies. In 2004 I moved to Trinity College, Dublin where I designed and delivered a new suite of modules in Development Studies (2004-7). In 2005 I was awarded a €300,000 Development Education Grant by Irish Aid (affiliated to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ireland) which was used to promote awareness of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals. To this end, I built a successful team to run the high profile MDG lectures series and accompanying on-line learning and teaching resources. In 2007 I moved to Nottingham University’s newly created School of Contemporary Chinese Studies to pursue my research interests on Chinese business. As Director of the Masters Programmes I designed and managed a number of successful new programmes and modules on Chinese business (also offered at Nottingham’s business school). In 2011 my growing research focus on Chinese MNEs brought me to Durham University Business School. In Durham I assumed responsibility for undergraduate and postgraduate modules on East Asian business (Asia and Pacific Rim, BUSI 3041 and East Asian Business & Management, BUSI 5A815). I currently supervise a number of PhD students that regularly meet as part of the activtities for the Centre for Global Studies.

Throughout my career I have been involved in designing and delivering new modules and programmes and have won a number of education related grants. In addition, I have publshed several research papers in pedagogic journals on education. My modules are well received by students and popular. I have been awarded the Durham University Business School Dean’s teaching award for teaching excellence as well as the DUBs teaching innovation award. I take an active interest in pedagogical methods and use active, problem based learning methodologies and reflective teaching practices. I am frequently called upon to act as an external examiner (i.e. UCD, Universities of Cambridge, Oxford, Manchester, Leeds, Aston etc.).

I lived and worked in China for several years (i.e. Foreign Expert, Tianjin Ligong Xueyuan (1995-6) Beijing Waiyu Xueyuan, (1998-9)) and speak and read some Chinese. I have undertaken extensive funded fieldwork across China (i.e. ESRC, British Academy, Lloyds Tercentenary grants). I make frequent visits to China for work (such as conferences, research trips, leading study tours etc.) and pleasure. Prior to moving into academia I worked in a successful family business. I like sailing (trans-atlantic yachtsman), football and kitesurfing.

Research Interests

I have a broad range of research interests stemming from my early academic appointments teaching Development Studies and Chinese Studies. I lived, worked and studied in China for several years, where I undertook extensive funded fieldwork (i.e. via the ESRC, British Academy, Lloyds Tercentenary Foundation). As well as producing two research monologues, an edited book and numerous book chapters, my research is published across a broad range of disciplines in internationally recognised academic journals. This includes the fields of business and management (i.e. Journal of World Business, International Business Review, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Management International Review, Journal of International Business Policy etc.) economics (i.e. Cambridge Journal of Economics), economic geography (Journal of Economic Geography, Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society), innovation (Technovation, Technological Forecasting and Inustrial Change, Industry and Innovation etc.) and Chinese Studies (China Quarterly, Journal of Contemporary China).  My research is highly topical (i.e. tax havens, Chinese MNEs etc.) and I regularly contribute media stories and commentary on Chinese business (i.e. International Finance Review, China Daily). My research on the transiting of Chinese outward FDI via tax havens was awarded the annual best paper award of the Chinese Economics Association (based on citation metrics over previous five years).

I am currently an associate editor of Asian Business & Management (Palgrave) and was formerly an associate editor of Multinational Business Review. I sit on the editorial boards of  a number of journals (Management and Organization Review, Journal of International Business Policy, East Asia: An International Quarterly etc.). My current research projects have focused on explaining the emergence of Chinese MNEs in light of current economic and business theory, with a focus on technology acquisition and strategic asset seeking behaviours, as well as the routing of FDI via tax havens and offshore financial centres (an issue of growing methodological interest and importance in International Business Studies).

Mini Biography

Dr Dylan Sutherland has a broad range of research interests related to contemporary East Asian business, with a specific focus on Chinese business. His current research looks at explaining the emergence of Chinese MNEs in light of current international business theory.

• Tax haven use
• Understanding emerging market MNEs in the light of current International Business theory
• Measurement of MNE Activity (see co-organised AIB 2014 panel with Prof. J. F. Hennart)
• Business groups, including their positive and negative attributes and understanding these in light of current business and management theory

Authored book

• Sutherland, D., & Hsu, J. (2012). HIV/AIDS in China: The Economic and Social Determinants. Routledge
• Sutherland, D. (2003). China's large enterprises and the challenge of late industrialisation. RoutledgeCurzon

Chapter in book

• Sutherland, D., & Lutao, N. (2015). The Emergence and Evolution of Chinese Business Groups: Are Pyramidal Groups Forming?. In B. Naughton, & K. Tsai (Eds.), State capitalism, institutional adaptation, and the Chinese miracle (102-153). Cambridge University Press
• Sutherland, D., Ning, L., & Wang, J. (2012). An Exploration of Pyramidal Business Groups in China. In L. Wang (Ed.), Rising China in the Changing World Economy (138-162). Routledge
• Ning, L., & Sutherland, D. (2010). On the Internationalization of China's Big Business Groups after Three Decades of Reform. In Y. Wang, & P. Ramburuth (Eds.), Thirty years of China’s economic reform : institutions, management organizations and foreign Investment. Nova Science Publishers
• Ning, L., & Sutherland, D. (2010). China’s Business Groups after Three Decades of Economic Reform : Diversified Conglomerates or Focused Industrial Groups?. In L. Xiaohui, & W. Zhang (Eds.), China's three decades of economic reforms (267-284). Routledge
• Sutherland, D., & Whelan, G. (2010). Corporate Social Responsibility in China’s Largest TNCs. In Y. Shujie, B. Wu, S. Morgan, & D. Sutherland (Eds.), Sustainable Reform and Development in Post-Olympic China (144-171). Routledge
• Sutherland, D., & Ning, L. (2010). China's business groups after three decades of economic reform: Diversified conglomerates or focused industrial groups. In X. Liu, & W. Zhang (Eds.), China's three decades of economic reforms (267-285). Routledge, Abingdon, Oxford
• Sutherland, D. (2009). Income Inequality and China’s HIV Epidemic: Is there a relationship?. In S. Harman, & F. Lisk (Eds.), Governance of HIV/AIDS: Making Participation and Accountability Count. Routledge
• Sutherland, D. (2006). Applying the Scientific Concept of Development to HIV/AIDS in China. In Q. Chen (Ed.), Kexue fazhan yu zhongguo xinxing gongyehua lilun. Xiamen University Publishing House
• Sutherland, D. (2001). Policies to build national champions: China’s "National Team" of enterprise groups. In P. Nolan (Ed.), China and the global business revolution (67-139). Palgrave Macmillan

Conference Paper

• Sutherland, D., El-Gohari, A., Buckley, P., & Voss, H. (2010, November). The Role of Caribbean Tax Havens and Offshore Financial Centres in Chinese Outward Foreign Direct Investment. Paper presented at 2nd Conference on Emerging Market Multinationals, Outward Investment from Emerging Economies., Copenhagen Business School

Edited book

• Yao, S., Morgan, S., Sutherland, D., & Wu, B. (Eds.). (2010). Sustainable Reform and Development in Post-Olympic China. Routledge

Journal Article

• Sutherland, D., Anderson, J., Wu, L., & Severe, S. (2024). Exploring the Impact of Establishment Mode on Intangible Strategic Asset Creation in Chinese MNEs: Springboard Cross-border Strategic Asset Seeking M&As Versus Greenfield R&D Related FDI Projects. Asian Business and Management, 23, Article 519–543. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41291-024-00265-6
• Hurst, J., & Sutherland, D. (2024). A comparative Analysis of Institutional Arbitrage Strategies in Emerging and Developed Market MNEs: exploring tax haven subsidiary incorporation. International Journal of Business and Emerging Markets, 16(3), https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBEM.2024.10057886
• Anderson, J., Sutherland, D., & Hurst, J. (2024). Measuring Chinese MNE Activity: The Challenge of Corporate Inversions and Capital in Transit Related FDI  . Research in International Business and Finance, 70(Part A), Article 102355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ribaf.2024.102355
• Anderson, J., Sutherland, D., & Severe, S. (2024). Does Chinese Investment into Europe Facilitate Strategic Asset Growth in the Chinese Parent Company? The Role of Entry Mode. Economies, 12(3), Article 56. https://doi.org/10.3390/economies12030056
• Wu, L., Sutherland, D., & Anderson, J. R. (2023). Are emerging market MNEs more attracted towards better patent enforcement regimes when undertaking greenfield R&D-focused FDI?. Transnational corporations, 30(2), 1-36. https://doi.org/10.18356/2076099x-30-2-1
• Wu, L., Sutherland, D., Peng, X., & Anderson, J. (2023). Are Chinese MNEs more Attracted to Knowledge Intensive City Clusters than Developed Market MNEs when Undertaking Greenfield R&D Related FDI?. Competitiveness Review: An International Business Journal incorporating Journal of Global Competitiveness, 33(3), 534-556. https://doi.org/10.1108/cr-02-2022-0026
• Shi, X., Williams, C., Sutherland, D., & Rong, K. (2022). Patent- and Trademark-Seeking Outward Foreign Direct Investment by Chinese Firms: The Role of Business Group Affiliation. Industrial and Corporate Change, 31(3), 838-862. https://doi.org/10.1093/icc/dtab073
• Sutherland, D., Hurst, J., Peng, X., & Wu, L. (2022). Exploring the Use of Offshore Intermediary Jurisdictions by Chinese MNEs for the Purposes of ‘Onward-Journey’ Transit FDI: Implications for Measuring and Understanding Chinese MNE Activity. Asia Pacific Business Review, 28(2), 214-234. https://doi.org/10.1080/13602381.2022.2013605
• Hennart, J.-F., & Sutherland, D. (2022). International Business Research: The Real Challenges are Data and Theory. Journal of International Business Studies, 53(2022), 2068-2087. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-022-00566-y
• Anderson, J., Sutherland, D., Fan, Z., & Yangyang, Z. (2021). Analyzing the reliability of Chinese outward FDI studies: a replication approach. Critical Perspectives on International Business, 17(4), 546-571. https://doi.org/10.1108/cpoib-11-2019-0088
• Shi, X., Sutherland, D., Williams, C., & Rong, K. (2021). Chinese MNE Acquisition of Unrelated Foreign Businesses: The Role of Diversified Business Group Affiliation, Private Ownership and Strategic Asset Seeking. Journal of Business Research, 129, 145-156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.02.036
• Sutherland, D., Anderson, J., Bailey, N., & Alon, I. (2020). Policy, Institutional Fragility, and Chinese Outward Foreign Direct Investment: An Empirical Examination of the Belt and Road Initiative. Journal of International Business Policy, 3(3), 249-272. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-020-00056-8
• Sutherland, D., Anderson, J., & Hu, Z. (2020). A Comparative Analysis of Location and Non-Location-Bounded Strategic Asset Seeking in Emerging and Developed Market MNEs: An Application of New Internalization Theory. International Business Review, 29(2), Article 101635. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibusrev.2019.101635
• Sutherland, D., Warwick, P., & Anderson, J. (2019). What factors influence student satisfaction with module quality? A comparative analysis in a UK business school context. International Journal of Management Education, 17(3), Article 100312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2019.100312
• Sutherland, D., Hennart, J.-F., & Anderson, J. R. (2019). How does the routing of FDI to and via tax havens confound our understanding of Chinese MNE identity? A critical review of the empirical literature on Chinese MNEs. Asian Business and Management, 18(5), 337-359. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41291-019-00058-2
• Froese, F., Sutherland, D., Lee, J., Liu, Y., & Pan, Y. (2019). Challenges for foreign companies in China: Implications for research and practice. Asian Business and Management, 18(4), 249-262. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41291-019-00084-0
• Sutherland, D., Anderson, J., & Hertenstein, P. (2018). Is the Strategic Asset Seeking Investment Proclivity of Chinese MNEs Different to that of Developed Market MNEs? A Comparative Analysis of Location Choice and Orientation. Management International Review, 58(6), 911-933. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11575-017-0339-6
• Sutherland, D., Warwick, P., Anderson, J., & Learmonth, M. (2018). How do Quality of Teaching, Assessment and Feedback Drive Undergraduate Course Satisfaction in U.K. Business Schools? A Comparative Analysis with Non-Business School Courses using the U.K. National Student Survey. Journal of Management Education, 42(5), 618-649. https://doi.org/10.1177/1052562918787849
• Wang, D., Sutherland, D., Ning, L., Wang, Y., & Pan, X. (2018). Exploring the influence of political connections and managerial overconfidence on R&D intensity in China's large-scale private sector firms. Technovation, 69, 40-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2017.10.007
• Ning, L., Sutherland, D., & Fu, X. (2017). Local context and innovation in China. Asian Business and Management, 16(3), 117-129. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41291-017-0020-8
• Hertenstein, P., Sutherland, D., & Anderson, J. (2017). Internationalization within networks: Exploring the relationship between inward and outward FDI in China’s auto components industry. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 34(1), 69-96. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-015-9422-3
• Li, J., Sutherland, D., & Ning, L. (2016). Inward FDI spillovers and innovation capabilities in Chinese business: exploring the moderating role of local industrial externalities. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, 29(8), 932-945. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2016.1259472
• Li, J., Strange, R., Ning, L., & Sutherland, D. (2016). Outward Foreign Direct Investment and Domestic Innovation Performance: Evidence from China. International Business Review, 25(5), 1010-1019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibusrev.2016.01.008
• Wang, Y., Sutherland, D., Ning, L., & Pan, X. (2015). The evolving nature of China's regional innovation systems: Insights from an exploration–exploitation approach. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 100, 140-152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2015.07.010
• Anderson, J., & Sutherland, D. (2015). Developed Economy Investment Promotion Agencies and Emerging Market Foreign Direct Investment: The Case of Chinese FDI in Canada. Journal of World Business, 50(4), 815-825. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwb.2015.04.005
• Anderson, J., Sutherland, D., & Severe, S. (2015). An event study of home and host country patent generation in Chinese MNEs undertaking strategic asset acquisitions in developed markets. International Business Review, 24(5), 758-771. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibusrev.2015.01.007
• Anderson, J., & Sutherland, D. (2015). Entry mode and emerging market MNES : an analysis of Chinese Greenfield and acquisition FDI in the United States. Research in International Business and Finance, 25, 88-103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ribaf.2015.03.008
• Sutherland, D., & Anderson, J. (2015). The pitfalls of using foreign direct investment data to measure Chinese multinational enterprise activity. China Quarterly, 221, 21-48. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0305741014001490
• Huang, S., Chen, J., Wang, Y., Ning, L., Sutherland, D., Zhou, Z., & Zhou, Y. (2015). External heterogeneity and its impact on open innovation performance. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, 27(2), 182-197. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2014.957664
• Buckley, P., Sutherland, D., Voss, H., & El-Gohari, A. (2015). The economic geography of offshore incorporation in tax havens and offshore financial centres: the case of Chinese MNEs. Journal of Economic Geography, 15(1), 103-128. https://doi.org/10.1093/jeg/lbt040
• Wang, Y., Sutherland, D., & Ning, L. (2014). A Dynamic Comparative Analysis of International Innovation Networks in Emerging Market MNCs. Industry and Innovation, 21(6), 457-475. https://doi.org/10.1080/13662716.2014.983749
• Li, J., Sutherland, D., Ning, L., & Wang, Y. (2014). Firm ownership, industrial structure, and regional innovation performance in China's provinces. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, 26(9), 1001-1022. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2014.943714
• Ning, L., & Sutherland, D. (2012). Internationalization of China's private-sector MNEs: An analysis of the motivations for foreign affiliate formation. Thunderbird International Business Review, 54(2), 169-182. https://doi.org/10.1002/tie.21449
• Sutherland, D., Ning, L., & Beatson, S. (2011). Productivity performance in Chinese business groups: the positive and negative impacts of business group affiliation. Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies, 9(2), 163-180. https://doi.org/10.1080/14765284.2011.568685
• Sutherland, D., & Yao, S. (2011). Income Inequality in China Over 30 Years of Reforms. Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, 4(1), 91-105. https://doi.org/10.1093/cjres/rsq036
• Sutherland, D., & Ning, L. (2011). Exploring ‘Onward-Journey’ ODI Strategies in China’s Private Sector Businesses. Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies, 9(1), 43-65. https://doi.org/10.1080/14765284.2011.542885
• Sutherland, D. (2011). Reform, Openness and Public Health: On the Economic and Social Determinants of HIV/AIDS in China. Journal of Contemporary China, 20(68), 117-133. https://doi.org/10.1080/10670564.2011.520851
• Yao., S., Sutherland, D., & Chen, J. (2010). China's Outward FDI and Resource-Seeking Strategy: A Case Study on Chinalco and Rio Tinto. Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics, 17(3), 313-325
• Guest, P., & Sutherland, D. (2010). The impact of business group affiliation on performance: evidence from China's ‘national champions’. Cambridge Journal of Economics, 34(4), 617-631. https://doi.org/10.1093/cje/bep017
• Sutherland, D., & Yao, S. (2009). Chinalco and Rio Tinto: a Long March for China's National Champions. China Quarterly, 199, 829-836. https://doi.org/10.1017/s030574100999049x
• Sutherland, D. (2009). Do China's 'National Team' Business Groups Undertake Strategic-Asset-Seeking OFDI?. Chinese Management Studies, 3(1), 11-24. https://doi.org/10.1108/17506140910946115
• Sutherland, D. (2005). China’s science parks: production bases or a tool for institutional reform?. Asia Pacific Business Review, 11(1), 83-104. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360238052000298399
• Sutherland, D. (2005). OEM-supplier relations in the global auto and components industry: is there a business revolution?. International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management, 5(2), 234-251. https://doi.org/10.1504/ijatm.2005.007185
• Nolan, P., Sutherland, D., & Zhang, J. (2002). The challenge of the global businesss revolution. Contributions to Political Economy, 21(1), 91-110. https://doi.org/10.1093/cpe/21.1.91

Other (Print)

• Sutherland, D., & Anderson, J. (online). Trends in Chinese Offshore Incorporation
• Sutherland, D., Voss, H., & Buckley, P. (2014). Chinese incorporation for institutional arbitrage and access to finance