Session 8
Article 1
As Simonin (1999) espouses, the competitive nature of transferring knowledge, coupled with organizational learning processes, creates a considerable challenge for both practitioners as well as academics. The article argues that focusing on skills such as ‘marketing know-how’ would enable a more in-depth focus on processes of knowledge transfer in international strategic alliances. Indeed, business knows how skills are essential when determining the profitability and success of any venture. However, the author decries how market skills and attention have yet to receive enough care that would make knowledge of the same mainstream. As pointed out on page 464, “…Marketing skills and know-how have yet to receive proper conceptual and empirical attention as a competency source of competitive advantage that can be transferred across alliance partners. Indeed, the strategic significance of marketing know-how to a firm’s international competitiveness warrants closer scrutiny.”
Closer scrutiny at the theoretical aspect presented by the researcher reveals a gap in research about international strategic alliances and how firms can become more organized and develop new competencies. The author has cited and reviewed the works of other researchers with statistical evidence on international strategic alliances.
In conclusion, the author has called for an examination of the impact that ambiguity plays in organizational learning and knowledge transfer. Indeed, as we continue to enter the global market where marketing is rapidly developing, international strategic alliances are becoming more critical than ever, and it is even more vital for firms to use this for their advantage.
Article 2
According to McIntyre & Huszagh (1995), the internationalization of firms has positively progressed significantly over the past two decades. In any traditional market economy, the expansion of markets has always been perceived through the example of a domestic producer of goods that has subsequently expanded to include foreign market operations. This would be done by initial attempts to export, and consequently, the inclusion of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) rather than exporting activities.
However, as the authors explain, international expansion has grown significantly beyond the domain of producers of goods, to equally incorporate retailers, as well as other companies and service providers. Indeed, if the international expansion were limited to producers only, then franchising would not be an essential part of the phenomenon. Moreover, in line with global expansion, many franchisors have also begun to evaluate opportunities in other markets besides local markets. As the article further points out, the experience is an essential consideration in franchising and one, which ultimately leads to cost reduction in the franchising business model. As the author points out, this could mean increased time and opportunity to learn, as well as an improvement of existing know-how strategies.
The article has further delved into theoretical studies on franchising, which have focused mostly on two key issues: general government policies on franchising, as well as the uncertainties about monetary systems and guidelines. However, the authors have pointed out that most of these studies have focused on regulatory policies, as well as the countries’ legal protection systems that have affected the franchisor’s performance.
Article 3
In summary, this article argues that benefits from the evolution of B2B markets happen primarily in two key ways: the improvement of physical transactions about procurement, as well as in the valuation and management of skills involved in planning and sourcing activities.
According to Kleindorfer & Wu (2003), the research paper surveys underlying theories and practices about support in business-to-business options. Indeed, as the authors’ highlight, some of the biggest problems in e-business include better coordination of supply and demand functions, as well as price rediscovery and reduction.
For instance, in capital intensive industries, costs such as excess capacity, as well as the opportunity costs of underutilized capabilities, have been key driving factors in improving the growth of exchanges, as well as better coordination of the supply and demand functions. A key feature of B2B business models, especially for capital-intensive industries, is the need for assurance that most of the plant’s outputs could be contracted in advance.
The authors further highlight that integrating short and long term planning requires the use of a conceptual framework that has the following features: one that can assess and establish the long-term relationships among different agents in a supply chain network, one that can perform price discovery and price exchanges in terms of designs of auctions, as well as one that can integrate contracting with the market structure to make the right operational decisions. This was performed based on the literature review on different literature in both economics and finance. In lieu of this, the article posits that more research is needed, especially in assessing continuous development about the integration of finance and development features.
References
Simonin, B. (1999). Transfer of Marketing Know-How in International Strategic Alliances: An Empirical Investigation of the Role and Antecedents of Knowledge Ambiguity. Journal of International Business Studies, 30(3), 463-490. Doi: 10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490079
McIntyre, F., & Huszagh, S. (1995). Internationalization of Franchise Systems. Journal of International Marketing, 3(4), 39-56. Doi: 10.1177/1069031×9500300408
Kleindorfer, P., & Wu, D. (2003). Integrating Long- and Short-Term Contracting via Business-to-Business Exchanges for Capital-Intensive Industries. Management Science, 49(11), 1597-1615. Doi: 10.1287/mnsc.49.11.1597.20583