Title
Boundary-crossing and the localization of capabilities in a Japanese multinational firm
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
Asia Pacific Business Review
Publication Date
7-3-2015
Volume
21
Issue
3
First Page
364
Last Page
382
Keywords
capabilities, China, foreign subsidiaries, Japanese MNCs, knowledge boundaries, localization
Abstract
We conducted a case study to explore the challenges encountered by a foreign subsidiary of a Japanese multinational firm when localizing its organizational capabilities in China. Drawing on the concepts of boundaries and boundary-crossing, we identify pragmatic and cultural knowledge boundaries, which denied opportunities for the host-country employees to contribute their local expertise to augment the firm's core capabilities within the domains of research and development and operational protocols. However, within those domains that were regarded as complementary to or peripheral to the firm's core capabilities, host-country employees were granted more scope to cross the associated pragmatic boundaries.
DOI
10.1080/13602381.2015.1020193
Print ISSN
13602381
E-ISSN
1743792X
Publisher Statement
Copyright © 2015 Taylor & Francis
Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Hong, J. F. L., & Snell, R. S. (2015). Boundary-crossing and the localization of capabilities in a Japanese multinational firm. Asia Pacific Business Review, 21(3), 364-382. doi: 10.1080/13602381.2015.1020193
