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Björn Ambos
Title
Prof. Ph.D.
Last Name
Ambos
First name
Björn
Email
bjoern.ambos@unisg.ch
Phone
+41 71 224 7610
Now showing
1 - 10 of 15
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PublicationThe MNC as an externally embedded organization: An investigation of embeddedness overlap in local subsidiary networksMNCs have been conceptualized as differentiated networks that, in turn, are embedded in external networks. Previous research has predominantly focused on the embeddedness of established subsidiaries into their local environment, omitting to shed light on the phenomenon of headquarters linkages to the local context which creates embeddedness overlap. We develop a model of why MNCs develop overlapping linkages to local subsidiary networks even if the subsidiaries have grown out of the initial start-up phase. Using detailed information on 168 European subsidiaries, we find that MNCs build and maintain more overlapping network ties when subsidiaries are high performers, hold important resources, operate in turbulent environments, and are closely connected to multinational actors as opposed to purely domestic firms.Type: journal articleJournal: Journal of World BusinessVolume: 46Issue: 4
Scopus© Citations 68 -
PublicationEvolution of Organisational Structure and Capabilities in Internationalising Banks: The CEE Operations of UniCredit's Vienna OfficeCross-border integration is the central management issue for banks that expand internationally, and this is especially true in Central and Eastern Europe, where the pace of internationalisation through mergers and acquisitions has been rapid. A critical challenge in cross-border integration is aligning a multinational company's formal organizational structure with the distribution of capabilities across its subsidiary units, and this issue is explored by tracking the co-evolution of organizational structure and capabilities during the internationalisation of a large banking network into this region. Our focus is the Vienna head office of Bank Austria Creditanstalt, which was acquired first by HypoVereinsbank (Germany) and then UniCredit (Italy). Despite its formal role being downgraded during these changes, the unit continued to develop its distinctive capabilities. The key insight our article offers is that managing cross-border integration is not simply about recognizing the value of the distinctive capabilities of individual units and designing formal structures that successfully align with them. It is also about understanding the need for dynamic interaction between formal corporate structure and individual units' desires to retain power and influence, which have significant implications for the development of their organizational capabilities.Type: journal articleJournal: Long Range PlanningVolume: 42Issue: 5-6
Scopus© Citations 17 -
PublicationInnovation in Multinational Firms: Does Cultural Fit Enhance Performance?Using a dataset of 139 R&D laboratories located in 21 countries, this study empirically tests whether a fit among R&D laboratory mission and national culture impacts R&D performance. Specifically, the authors assume that some cultures possess a natural advantage when it comes to capability augmenting tasks, while other cultures are better suited to host capability exploiting tasks. Where the mission of the laboratory is capability exploiting, their results support a positive effect of culture-mission alignment. However, no relationship between mission-culture alignment and performance can be found in case of capability augmenting laboratories.Type: journal articleJournal: Management International ReviewVolume: 48Issue: 2
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PublicationInnovation and control in the multinational firm : A comparison of political and contingency approachesThis study focuses on control mechanisms used by multinational corporations (MNCs) to manage their extra-national R&D units. Drawing on both the literature on organizational power and contingency theory, this study develops and empirically tests a set of hypotheses aimed at explaining how headquarters control their overseas R&D units. Data collected from 134 R&D units of German MNCs serve to test the hypotheses. Results highlight the importance of the units' R&D mandate and its interdependence in explaining control mechanisms. Moreover, they indicate a relatively weak predictive power of political approaches compared to contingency approaches.Type: journal articleJournal: Strategic Management JournalVolume: 28Issue: 5DOI: 10.1002/smj.584
Scopus© Citations 155 -
PublicationType: journal articleJournal: International Business ReviewVolume: 15Issue: 3
Scopus© Citations 342 -
PublicationType: journal articleJournal: European Business ForumIssue: 21
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PublicationThe Use of International R&D Teams - An Empirical Investigation of Selected Contingency FactorsToday, many organizations are adopting streamlined, adaptive hierarchies that increasingly employ teams in daily operations. This paper focuses on the use of teams in international R&D networks. Specifically, it investigates the incidence of R&D teams and analyses the influence of four contingency factors on team utilization. The four contingency factors are cultural distance, geographic distance, the research mandate and the market mandate of the local R&D unit. Based on a survey conducted in 2000, we present empirical evidence on 49 leading German MNCs, accounting for 66% of the nations' privately funded R&D in 1999. Our results clearly demonstrate that firms increasingly use international teams as a means of coordinating such projects. The type of work conducted by an international R&D unit has a strong bearing on the utilization of teams. The latter is linked to a mandate of an R&D unit as "capability exploiting" rather than "capability augmenting." Also, R&D units with a "global mandate" are more likely to use international teams as a coordination mechanism. On the other hand, we do not find support for geographical or cultural distance as determining factors for the use of international R&D teams.Type: journal articleJournal: Journal of World Business ; JWBVolume: 39Issue: 1
Scopus© Citations 46 -
PublicationMulti-Utility: Strategic Option in deregulated markets? An Empirical Assessment Using Conjoint MeasuresFor former monopolies, the liberalization of European utility markets leads to a drastically changed competitive environment. Multi?utility, i.e. the bundling of various utility services, is often seen as a strategic response to these changes. However, consumer preferences and attitudes towards such Multi?Utility?Bundles are widely unknown. Using conjoint analysis, this paper evaluates potential benefits of such a strategy from a consumers' perspective and draws strategic implications for utility providers. Our results show that under current market conditions, multi?utility favors established providers as it creates entry barriers which will be hard to circumvent by new competitors.Type: journal articleJournal: Journal of Strategic MarketingVolume: 12Issue: 1
Scopus© Citations 6 -
PublicationAre you ready to learn from your offshore affiliates?Presents a study that examined critical contingencies that influence the ability of headquarters of multinational companies to benefit from their offshore knowledge base. Changes in the traditional role of headquarters as primary source of knowledge and competencies; Approaches to accessing overseas knowledge; Factors that should be considered by managers who have to shape the global knowledge management processes of their firms.Type: journal articleJournal: European Business ForumIssue: 16
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PublicationType: journal articleJournal: SymphonyaVolume: 2Issue: 2