Seizing windows of opportunity by using technology-building and market-seeking strategies in tandem: Huawei’s sustained catch-up in the global market

Lei Guo (), Marina Yue Zhang (), Mark Dodgson (), David Gann () and Hong Cai ()
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Lei Guo: Xi’an Jiaotong University
Marina Yue Zhang: Swinburne University of Technology
Mark Dodgson: University of Queensland
David Gann: Imperial College
Hong Cai: Xi’an Jiaotong University

Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 2019, vol. 36, issue 3, No 11, 849-879

Abstract: Abstract This paper analyzes the strategies by which Huawei, one of China’s few privately-owned multinational firms, responded to various windows of opportunity as technology, policy and demand changed during the evolution of the telecommunication industry between the late 1980s and 2014. Based on a historical longitudinal analysis, our in-depth case study unfolds the dynamic process by which Huawei utilized dual technology-building and market-seeking strategies to capitalize on those windows of opportunity and to achieve sustained catch-up, not only in technological capability but also in the global market. By linking strategy at the firm level to external conditions at the sector level, this paper contributes to theory on how latecomers develop firm-specific advantages and enriches our understanding of how they develop dynamic competitive advantage to achieve sustained catch-up.

Keywords: Dual strategy; Technology building; Market seeking; EMNEs; Catch-up; Windows of opportunity; China; Telecommunication (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (14)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10490-018-9580-1

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