Entrepreneurial contexts and knowledge coordination within the multinational corporation

Christopher Williams and Soo Hee Lee

Journal of World Business, 2011, vol. 46, issue 2, 253-264

Abstract: We present a new perspective on entrepreneurship within multinational corporations (MNCs) based on entrepreneurial contexts and knowledge coordination. First, we develop a framework of four contexts for analyzing different mechanisms by which MNCs pursue opportunities across borders. Second, we develop propositions for predicting how entrepreneurial knowledge is coordinated (transferred and internalized) between these contexts. The coordination problem lies at the heart of the phenomenon of entrepreneurship within modern MNCs although its inter-contextual nature has been neglected in the literature. In our view, MNC entrepreneurship comprises (1) a superset of entrepreneurial activity from four distinct contexts; and (2) the inter-contextual coordination of knowledge of opportunity, knowledge of solution, and learning from outcomes of initiatives. Drawing primarily on the knowledge-based view of the MNC, we argue that knowledge coordination between multiple entrepreneurial contexts constitutes a socially complex capability and potential source of competitive advantage for the MNC. This holistic view of MNC entrepreneurship raises fresh questions for researchers and strategic leaders of MNCs.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Multinational; corporations; Knowledge (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (19)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090951610000842
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:worbus:v:46:y:2011:i:2:p:253-264

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/620401/bibliographic
http://www.elsevier. ... 620401/bibliographic

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of World Business is currently edited by David Collings and Jonathan Doh

More articles in Journal of World Business from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().