Call for papers: "Developing Markets as a Source of Competitive Advantage"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Business and Emerging Markets.

The share of global FDI flows to, from and between developing economies has reached a critical level in recent years. According to UNCTAD, developing economies received in 2012 more FDI than all the Triad countries combined for the first time in history. These trends mirror the rising purchasing power of local middle-class consumers as well as the increasing tendency of emerging market multinationals to internationalise their operations. Notwithstanding this shift, developing countries are depicted in international literature almost exclusively as a difficult business context to enter and operate in.

This special issue will take a positive view on the unique institutional conditions that prevail in developing countries and emerging markets. Indeed, recent studies have shown that many firms view developing countries more as a source of competitive advantage than high-potential markets associated with significant risks. For instance, the success of an increasing number of emerging market multinationals in both developing and developed markets has been credited to the institutional dexterity they have gained while growing up in developing countries. Another example is that of developed market multinationals that are found to take advantage of institutional voids in emerging markets to shape local institutions to their own advantage.

This issue will feature a coherent set of well-crafted research articles that are rooted in strong theory, reliable qualitative and quantitative data, and rigorous analysis.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Do multinationals from developing countries behave differently from their counterparts in more advanced economies?
• What are the distinctive capabilities and comparative advantages of emerging market multinationals?
• How do the institutional conditions in developing countries affect the competitive behaviour of locally grown firms?
• What are the strategies used by developed market multinationals to shape market institutions in developing countries to serve their interests?
• What are the strategies used by emerging market multinationals to compete in their home markets with peers from advanced or emerging economies?
• What are the catchup strategies used by developed market multinationals to compete with incumbent firms in emerging markets?
• What are the catchup strategies used by emerging market multinationals to become competitive internationally?
• How do local and foreign firms leverage institutional voids in developing countries and emerging markets to their advantage?
• Do developed market multinationals gain particular skills (e.g. institutional dexterity) as a result of operating in developing countries and emerging markets? If yes, what are they and how do they acquire them?

Important Dates

Submission of manuscripts: 15 May, 2016
Comments to authors: 15 July, 1016
Revised papers due: 15 December, 2016

(Papers submitted earlier than the submission date will be put through the review process on rolling basis, and authors may expect to hear sooner.)