Pavlos Dimitratos - Resources, Efficiency and Globalization (The Academy of International Business)

Resources, Efficiency and Globalization

Published in Association with the UK Chapter of the Academy
of International Business
Titles already published in the series:

International Business and Europe in Transition
Edited by Fred Burton, Mo Yamin and Stephen Young

Internationalisation Strategies
Edited by George Chryssochoidis, Carla Miller and Jeremy Clegg

The Strategy and Organization of International Business
Edited by Peter Buckley, Fred Burton and Hafiz Mirza

Internationalization: Process, Context and Markets
Edited by Graham Hooley, Ray Loveridge and David Wilson

International Business Organization
Edited by Fred Burton, Malcolm Chapman and Adam Cross

International Business: Emerging Issues and Emerging Markets
Edited by Carla C. J. M Millar, Robert M. Grant and Chong Ju Choi

International Business: European Dimensions
Edited by Michael D. Hughes and James H. Taggart

Multinationals in a New Era: International Strategy and Management
Edited by James H. Taggart, Maureen Berry and Michael McDermott

International Business
Edited by Frank McDonald, Heinz Tusselman and Colin Wheeler

Internationalization: Firm Strategies and Management
Edited by Colin Wheeler, Frank McDonald and Irene Greaves

The Process of Internationalization
Edited by Frank MacDonald, Michael Mayer and Trevor Buck

International Business in an Enlarging Europe
Edited by Trevor Morrow, Sharon Loane, Jim Bell and Colin Wheeler

Managerial Issues in International Business
Edited by Felicia M. Fai and Eleanor J. Morgan

Corporate Governance and International Business
Edited by Roger Strange and Gregory Jackson

Contemporary Challenges to International Business
Edited by Kevin Ibeh and Sheena Davies

Resources, Efficiency and Globalization
Edited By Pavlos Dimitratos and Marian V. Jones

Edited By
Pavlos Dimitratos
Assistant Professor, Athens University of Economics and Business

and

Marian V. Jones
Professor of Internationalisation and Entrepreneurship, University of Glasgow

Selection and editorial content Pavlos Dimitratos and Marian V. Jones 2010 Individual chapters contributors 2010 Foreword Frank McDonald

All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission.

No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.

Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

The authors have asserted their rights to be identified as the authors of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

First published 2010 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN

Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS.

Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of St Martins Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world.

Palgrave and Macmillan are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.

ISBN: 9780230236530 hardback

This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10

Printed and bound in Great Britain by
CPI Antony Rowe, Chippenham and Eastbourne

In fond memory of Jim Bell (19542009)

We would like to dedicate this book to the memory of Professor Jim Bell who was a close friend and colleague of ours and of many in the Academy of International Business (AIB) community. A respected academic, prolific writer and teller of tales from many adventures, Jim will be most remembered for his unique ability to bring people together across borders of all kinds. He was witty, charming and mischievous and made research accessible and fun for those who worked with him or were mentored by him. His research on the internationalisation of the small firm has been central to the development of International Entrepreneurship as a scholarly domain and is widely cited for its insightful approach and eloquent dissemination. He had a wide network of friends and colleagues, was connected internationally and we are lucky to have known him, have worked with him and shared some time with him. His sense of community was and continues to be his contribution to academic life.

Many thanks to the Centre for Internationalisation and Enterprise Research (CIER), and the Department of Management of the University of Glasgow for hosting the 36th Annual Conference of the Academy of International Business, United Kingdom and Ireland (UKI) Chapter. Particular thanks to Professors Marian V. Jones and Stephen Young for organizing the conference; the reviewers of the papers of the conference; the associated staff and doctoral students at the University of Glasgow, especially Jane Brittin, Pavlos Dimitratos, Lucrezia Casulli, Margaret Fletcher, Maria Karafyllia, Junzhe Ji, Yee Kwan Tang, Anna Morgan-Thomas, Emmanuella Plakoyiannaki, Shameen Prashantham, Susan Shaw, Emily Stewart, George Vlachos, and Karl Warner for coordinating conference activities and the website, and compiling the proceedings; and Panagiota Sapouna and Emmanouil Sofikitis, doctoral students in the Department of Management Science and Technology of the Athens University of Economics and Business, for helping out in the review process of the chapters in this book.

The CIER (Centre for Internationalisation and Enterprise Research) at the University of Glasgow hosted the 36th Annual Conference of the UK and Ireland Chapter of the Academy of International Business on the 24 April 2009. This book contains a selection of papers presented at the conference on five major contemporary research areas focusing on the theme of the conference Resources, Efficiency, and Globalization. The book is the 17th volume in the Palgrave AIB UK and Ireland International Business series.

The plenary session of the conference feature three distinguished figures from parliament, business, and academia, and focussed on contemporary issues that have important implications for research in International Business. The Rt Hon John McFall MP, Chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee, presented a very informative talk on the implications of the global financial crisis for the global economy and national and local economies. Mr Robin Gordon, Strategy Manager, IBM Greenock Campus, Greenock, Scotland, highlighted a case of the reconstruction of a multinational corporation in response to the growing internationalization of trade, investment, and knowledge flows. The plenary concluded with a stimulating talk by Professor Rod McNaughton, Eyton Chair in Entrepreneurship, Centre for Business, Entrepreneurship & Technology, University of Waterloo, Canada, on the importance of small and new ventures in economic renewal.