Moving beyond the transfer dyad: Exploring network influences on transfer effectiveness

Henrik Dellestrand, Ulf Holm and Olof Lindahl

International Business Review, 2023, vol. 32, issue 2

Abstract: There is a wealth of research analyzing sender-receiver transfers within multinational corporations focusing on the characteristics of (a) the sender, (b) the receiver, (c) the knowledge subject to transfer, and (d) the immediate transfer context. However, less is known about how networks external to the sender-receiver transfer dyad influence the outcomes of a transfer project. In this paper, we focus on the receiving subunits' internal and external networks and how embedded actors in these networks influence transfer effectiveness. More specifically, by means of an inductive multiple-case study, we explore how internal and external networks of subunits influence the effectiveness of capability transfers from headquarters to subunits. We study 18 transfers of the same capability from headquarters to subunits’ innovation projects. We theorize about how the capacity and configuration of receiving subunits’ networks can have a unique and detrimental influence on transfer effectiveness. The results of our study suggest that the receiver in a transfer project is not so much a specific unit as a network.

Keywords: Multinational corporations; Transfer; Effectiveness; Headquarter-subunit relationships; Networks; Capability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1016/j.ibusrev.2021.101950

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