The Role of Language on Affiliates' Competence-creation: Evidence from the MNE Linkage across 45 Countries

The world is witnessing profound change. The economic and geopolitical dominance of the West is being increasingly challenged by the rapid emergence of several developing countries, most conspicuously Brazil, Russia, India and China. The West is also struggling with a financial crisis and the near impotence of traditional policy tools to rekindle growth. How should firms respond? How must International Business scholars change their thinking to both reflect and explain these epochal changes? What advice can they give hard-pressed governments? This volume contains papers which grapple with this challenging agenda. They consider three key themes: How can better understanding of institutions and culture help give analytical grip? How do and should firms adjust their strategies to cope with processes which operate at a range of spatial scales from the very local to the global? How best do firms place themselves both in physical location and within often complex global networks?