الگوهای استراتژیک تغییرپذیری عملکرد و بین المللی سازی : اثرات پراکندگی، ادغام، و برون سپاری بین مرزی MNC مستقر در ایالات متحده

This paper examines how the performance variability of an MNC is affected by the strategic patterns it has used to expand abroad. The paper uses data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis annual surveys of U.S. companies with affiliates abroad to empirically support the hypotheses that: (a) cross-border geographic dispersion contributes to a decrease in performance variability; (b) cross-border integration contributes to an increase in performance variability; and (c) outsourcing contributes to a decrease in performance variability. Furthermore, the combined effects from the interaction of these strategic patterns are found to increase performance variability.

The international management and international business literature has engaged in an extensive debate on whether there exists a causal effect (and if so, the nature of this causal effect) between degree of internationalization and performance. The literature also includes significant work establishing linkages between performance variability and degree of internationalization as a one-dimensional construct. What has been less investigated empirically is the impact of internationalization as a multidimensional construct on performance swings, e.g., the effect of corporations' strategic patterns of internationalization on the variability of performance. This paper has the objective of contributing to this debate by examining how the performance variability of multinational companies (MNCs) is affected by three strategic patterns of internationalization which result from managerial choices. A firm's past exposure to risk may be estimated by observing the variability of its performance over time. A majority of the empirical studies examining risk have used measures based either on the variability of accounting returns, mostly ROA or ROS, or the covariance of market returns, mostly systematic risk (please see Ruefli et al., 1999 for a review). Firms with higher exposure to risk will likely suffer higher performance variability over time. Conversely, firms with stable performance outcomes are more predictable and less likely to face financial distress problems. Performance variability provides a necessary input for the development and execution of company strategies because managers make business decisions and investors make asset allocation decisions with constant attention to the relationship between risk and return. These decisions are a function of both exogenous drivers (dependent on conditions external to the firm) and endogenous drivers (dependent on conditions internal to the firm). It is necessary for managers and investors alike to understand how strategic patterns of internationalization may affect a firm's risk profile. This knowledge can help managers reduce the firm's exposure to risks resulting from internationalization decisions. The three overarching research questions investigated herein are: (a) whether a strategic pattern of internationalization with a higher degree of cross-border dispersion contributes to lower performance variability over time; (b) whether a strategic pattern of internationalization with a higher degree of cross-border integration contributes to higher performance variability over time; and (c) whether a strategic pattern of internationalization with a higher degree of outsourcing contributes to lower performance variability over time. Broadly stated, it is expected that firms engaging in significant horizontal cross-border dispersion experience lower performance variability, or, in other words, a negative effect on variability of performance is expected from geographic dispersion. It is also expected that firms with greater integration of cross-border activities have higher performance variability, or, in other words, a positive effect on variability of performance is expected from inter-country integration. Furthermore, it is expected that firms with higher levels of outsourcing have lower variability of performance as will be explained in the hypothesis development section.

This paper examines relationships between MNC performance variability and strategic patterns of internationalization. Findings provide support for the six hypotheses of the paper. Performance variability is found to decrease with the dispersion of geographic activities of an MNC, to increase with the degree of global integration of activities by an MNC, and to decrease with increased outsourcing. A significant interaction effect signaling increased performance variability is also found among these variables when taken two-by-two. These findings complement recent studies exploring linkages between internationalization and firm performance. Although most of these studies are one-dimensional, the emerging empirical evidence supporting an S-shape curve suggests the existence of early and late managerial challenges associated with a firm's internationalization efforts. The early challenges indicate a “threshold” point prior to which greater internationalization efforts are associated with negative performance outcomes. The later challenges imply excessive international exposure as firms reach a point beyond which internationalization tends to be negatively associated with performance outcomes. According to this emerging consensus it is only within the intermediate stages of internationalization that increasing a firm's internationalization efforts is likely to lead to performance improvements. Our findings suggest additional consequences and managerial challenges associated with increasing levels of internationalization. Strategic patterns of internationalization represent choices made by managers attempting to make the most of opportunities available to the firm when operating in the global environment. Strategic patterns of increased geographic dispersion associated with the firm's efforts to adapt its strategy to unique local conditions have a tendency to reduce a firm's risk profile and performance variability. Likewise, the use of outsourcing as an attempt to take advantage of selected arbitrage opportunities has a tendency to lower a firm's risk profile and reduce performance variability. This has direct implications for managers as they need to exploit opportunities to develop networks with risk-mitigating characteristics either due to portfolio effects or due to selective redundancy. However, managers need to be aware that increased cross-border integration, mostly associated with a firm's efforts to take advantage of aggregation opportunities, results in higher performance variability, raising the firm's risk profile. As such, managers need to balance the added efficiencies of cross-border integration with the risks associated with excessive node specialization and serial dependency. It is also important for managers to recognize the challenges associated with attempting to develop an international strategy based on the combination of multiple dimensions. The interactive effect of simultaneously putting in place any two of the three strategic patterns of internationalization increases a firm's variability of performance and deteriorates its risk profile. This finding provides a cautionary note suggesting that managers should give special attention to reconciling tradeoffs and addressing complexities when stressing more than one of the strategic patterns of internationalization at the same time.