Tetsuya USUI

This study examines the long-term global business model development process of multinational corporations (MNCs) that created markets from the beginning and continue to pursue rapid growth in the global marketplace. By examining the global business model development of Fast Retailing, which operates a global business under the brand name Uniqlo, we found that value propositions and activity systems interact with each other and develop in an integrated manner to evolve into a global business model that creates greater value by generating virtuous cycles. Our data suggest that (1) identifying a global standardized value proposition and (2) dynamic integration in an activity system are two key success factors in the evolution of an MNC’s global business model.

組織学会

日経広告研究所

慶應義塾大学経済学部

文眞堂

Dobunkan

日経広告研究所

異文化経営学会

Purpose - This study adopts a three-component view of trust bases (cognition, affection and institution) and examines how these trust components function and interact during a business expansion in an unfamiliar foreign context. Design/methodology/approach - A longitudinal case study of a Japanese cosmetics company was conducted trying to collaborating with its Chinese partners to develop business in China. The data sources consist of semi-structured interviews and archival data, including industry reports, newspaper articles and internal documents. Findings - Findings show that a trustee's actions to activate the three trust bases created stable business relationship with trustors. Additionally, the business expansion was driven over time through the order of manifestation of these trust bases. Institution-based trust develops first, followed by a combination of institution- and cognition-based trust, before the final combination of institution-, cognition- and affection-based trust. Research limitations/implications - Based on an in-depth single case study, this study provides a process-based explanation of the configuration pattern of three trust components over time. A generalized process-based explanation and the interaction effects of each trust component require further qualitative empirical studies in varied contexts. Practical implications - The study provides managers with insights into how to activate trust based on the importance of configuring the three trust bases covered in this paper. Originality/value - This paper adds to the scant literature attempting to explain the dynamic processes by which the trust structure forms compared to the more common variable-based statistical analyses.

In today's volatile global marketplace, firms should pursue flexible asset distribution and high-quality, low-cost manufacturing operations simultaneously. Previous studies have examined the relationships between supplier management related variables and market performance with cross-sectional data; however, little guidance is available for newly internationalizing ventures aiming to build a global supply chain network from scratch. To shed light on this dynamic process, we examine Uniqlo's successful supply chain development in China, using longitudinal contextual data. Our findings show that Uniqlo went through discrete dynamic stages in its supply chain development efforts. First, Uniqlo, initially a small firm, developed relational governance with its suppliers by exercising dynamic economic power concentration over time. Second, it began to provide technical support to help its suppliers build competence with the aim of increasing their cooperation. Third, Uniqlo enforced compulsory nonexclusivity arrangements with suppliers to achieve supplier flexibility by not just having Uniqlo as primary customer. This provides relational flexibility through both relational governance and partner flexibility for the principal firm in the global supply chain development.

日経広告研究所

日経広告研究所

多国籍企業学会

国際ビジネス研究学会

Academy of Multinational Entreprise

財団法人中小企業総合研究機構

The purpose of this paper is to examine the issue of resource strategies in the development of emerging markets. Shintaku and Amano, a major study on this issue, proposed that discontinuities in market conditions between developed and emerging markets interfere with the continuous exploitation of home-based resources in emerging markets. Based on the empirical evidence (for e.g., in the case of Shiseido and YKK) and existing literatures on strategic management and IB, we examined the relationship between the continuous and discontinuous use of home-based resources of MNEs in the development of emerging markets. In this article, we propose that there is a "width" to weigh placing on home-based resources in the development of emerging markets, which gives rise to three resource strategy issues. First, when a large weight is ascribed to home-based resources in emerging market development, there will be no serious strategic issues in resource utilization (for e.g., the case of Shiseido in China). Second, when a large weight is ascribed to new resources (i.e., weight of home-based resources is small), then the discontinuity of home-based resource transfer will cause an incompatibility dilemma between the home-based resources and newly developed resources (for e.g., the case of YKK in China). Third, in addition to this original discontinuity concept, if the cost of integration with new resources and the transfer of home-based resources are extremely high, then it may cause serious management problems. By analyzing a continuum framework of the continuity and discontinuity of home-based resource transfers, we believe that it is possible to provide a theoretical basis for the issue of resource strategy in the development of emerging markets.

In strategic management literature, researchers suggest that resources on interfirm boundaries, which have accumulated by long-term joint investments through relational exchange with partners, should be considered as one of the critical sources of a firm's competitiveness. These strong relationships with specific partners have been recognized as the major explanatory variable used to examine the strength and business success of Japanese manufacturers in the last two decades. This paper aims to examine how relation-specific resources (RSR) in the home country affect the decision of transferring and sustaining relational exchange between their foreign subsidiaries and specific partners at the headquarters. Researchers have studied the mechanism of how firms develop the RSR through the formation of relational exchange with partners. However, they have not paid much attention to examining how RSR in the domestic market affects the decision of forming a relational exchange between their foreign subsidiaries and specific partners at the headquarters. This study makes three contributions to literature on this subject. First, it recognizes theoretical supports, strategic meanings, and potential implications for RSR. Second, the study's research design provides insights into the effects of RSR on international resource transfer. Third, by using the sample of Japanese manufacturers, this study aims to generalize the empirical assumption that resources in the upstream activities of Japanese firms, (not only those of the automobile industry, but also of the other manufacturing industries) are so competitive that they tend to be transferred the RSR to the overseas operations in their standardized forms. This study developed and tested one basic proposition that RSR in the home country lead to relational exchange in foreign subsidiaries. The results support all desired hypotheses. It is important to note that among all independent and control variables that were developed, RSR was the most influential construct in the relational exchange.