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Recent studies suggest an ecosystem view is most appropriate for understanding the impact of institutional voids on entrepreneurial activities. Expanding the focus to the entrepreneurial ecosystem is crucial for tackling complex low- and middle-income countries' (LMICs) environmental challenges, as the transition to circular e-waste management, which are heavily impacted by the institutional environment. Moreover, most entrepreneurs in LMICs engage in circular practices out of economic necessity, rather than environmental reasons. However, scholars have overlooked the effects of institutional voids on entrepreneurial ecosystems' potential to grow and realize environmental benefits. This study investigates how formal institutional voids impact the evolution of circular ecosystems in necessity-driven contexts in LMICs. We study the evolution of a circular e-waste ecosystem in Kenya and uncover two key phases: emergence and growth. We show that formal institutional voids' impact differs across phases; regulatory and contract enforcement voids create opportunities for informal and private actors to establish e-waste collection, repair, remanufacture, and recycle businesses, thereby facilitating the emergence of the circular ecosystem. However, labor market, capital market, product market, regulatory, and contract enforcement voids hamper its growth. Specifically, the lack of skills, equipment, guidelines, and financial incentives hinders advanced repairs and remanufactures and limits recycling opportunities, while the lack of formal e-waste infrastructure increases illegal dumping and negatively impacts human health and the environment. We develop propositions and a phase model to explain the impact of formal institutional voids on the evolution of circular e-waste ecosystems and the realization of environmental benefits in necessity-driven contexts.

The possibility that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) mix and match prediction and non-prediction while making decisions during internationalization remains a highly unaddressed scenario. The rare studies considering it do not go beyond domestic effects when contextualizing the decisions that guide SMEs' foreign expansion. This study links SMEs' decision-making strategies to performance and suggests that such a relationship is moderated by the host market's institutional development and the associated institutional voids. The analysis combines primary survey data from 851 SMEs in Brazil, China, Italy, Poland, and Sweden with secondary data retrieved from the World Bank. Besides supporting both independent and synergistic performance effects of predictive and non-predictive strategies, the results indicate that foreign market institutions affect these effects differently and suggest firm size effects worth consideration. Contributions include the expansion of the debate on the relationship between prediction and non-prediction beyond the either-or reasoning that prevails in existing research and the contextualization of SMEs' decision-making strategies in terms of the institutional dynamics that SMEs encounter abroad.

Recent studies suggest an ecosystem view is most appropriate for understanding the impact of institutional voids on entrepreneurial activities. Expanding the focus to the entrepreneurial ecosystem is crucial for tackling complex low- and middle-income countries' (LMICs) environmental challenges, as the transition to circular e-waste management, which are heavily impacted by the institutional environment. Moreover, most entrepreneurs in LMICs engage in circular practices out of economic necessity, rather than environmental reasons. However, scholars have overlooked the effects of institutional voids on entrepreneurial ecosystems' potential to grow and realize environmental benefits. This study investigates how formal institutional voids impact the evolution of circular ecosystems in necessity-driven contexts in LMICs. We study the evolution of a circular e-waste ecosystem in Kenya and uncover two key phases: emergence and growth. We show that formal institutional voids' impact differs across phases; regulatory and contract enforcement voids create opportunities for informal and private actors to establish e-waste collection, repair, remanufacture, and recycle businesses, thereby facilitating the emergence of the circular ecosystem. However, labor market, capital market, product market, regulatory, and contract enforcement voids hamper its growth. Specifically, the lack of skills, equipment, guidelines, and financial incentives hinders advanced repairs and remanufactures and limits recycling opportunities, while the lack of formal e-waste infrastructure increases illegal dumping and negatively impacts human health and the environment. We develop propositions and a phase model to explain the impact of formal institutional voids on the evolution of circular e-waste ecosystems and the realization of environmental benefits in necessity-driven contexts.

Purpose: Context matters in social entrepreneurship, and it matters a lot. Social entrepreneurs are deeply entrenched in the context where they operate: they respond to its challenges, are shaped by it, and attempt to shape it in turn. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how social entrepreneurship in Africa is still understood within the scope of Western theories, without much consideration for local variations of the commonly shared archetype of social entrepreneurship or for how African norms, values and beliefs may shape our common understanding of this phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach: The authors survey the often-neglected literature on social entrepreneurship in Africa and bring it together in this paper to discuss – also from the vantage point of their own experience and research in diverse African countries – how important assumptions in the social entrepreneurship literature are confirmed, enriched or challenged by key dimensions of African contexts. Findings: Four important themes in the literature on social entrepreneurship in Africa emerged – institutions, embedding values, entrepreneurial behaviour and bricolage and scaling impact – each with its own considerations of how African contexts may challenge predominant assumptions in the extant social entrepreneurship literature, as well as implications for future research. Originality/value: The authors uncover ways in which the peculiarities of the African context may challenge the underlying – and mostly implicit – assumptions that have shaped the definition and analysis of social entrepreneurship. They end by offering their understanding of social entrepreneurship and its concomitant dimensions in Africa as a stepping stone for advancing the field in the continent and beyond.

While few studies have examined the role of institutional pressures on sustainable business practices, there is a dearth of empirical research regarding the influence of internal organisational characteristics on sustainability implementation in developing countries. This paper examines internal organisational features and how they influence multinational companies (MNCs) operating in a resource-rich developing country to embrace and embed sustainability into corporate policies and practices. The findings show that the history of past sustainable practices, the level of internationalisation and managerial cognition internally drive MNCs to implement sustainability in their host countries. We discuss that managerial cognition drives MNCs to embrace sustainability in non-enabling institutional environments based on private morality and perceived ethical obligation. Accordingly, we have proposed a holistic theoretical framework for sustainability implementation based on external drivers, institutional voids and complexity and the moderating role of internal organisational features.

A fundamental endeavor for a gig platform organization is the governance of its user network, on which value creation and capture critically depend. Despite the global emergence of gig platform organizations, there is little understanding of the local context in which governance decisions are made. To address this, we explore the role of institutional voids in on-demand platform governance in developing countries. By studying ride-hailing platform organizations in sub-Saharan Africa, we conceptualize enabling and coercive governance modes and uncover distinct patterns within to address institutional voids. We discuss the theoretical implications for platform governance research in developing countries.

Although corporate social innovation studies in developing countries acknowledge the importance of firm resources and capabilities for attaining social goals, they overlook the way in which these interact with broader institutions to generate successful outcomes. We address this gap by exploring the relationship between firm resources-capabilities and institutions that is conducive to meeting both business and social interests in developing countries. By employing a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis of corporate social innovation projects performed by joint ventures of Dutch SMEs and their local partners in developing countries, we show that firm resources and/or capabilities complement strong institutions in these countries. Corporate social innovation can also be facilitated by firm capabilities in running highly legitimate projects that substitute institutional voids in these economies, attesting to multiple paths that corporations can take to achieve social innovation.

During the COVID-19 crisis, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing markets, marred by significant institutional voids, grappled with a perennial lack of resources. This article seeks to understand how these SMEs activated their dynamic capabilities to manage business relationships during different phases of the crisis. Relying on the social exchange theory and drawing on semi-structured interviews with 42 business-to-business (B2B) SME owners in Nigeria, we examine the relational governance mechanisms of dynamic capabilities for SMEs during the COVID-19 crisis. Our findings reveal 12 relational governance mechanisms of dynamic capabilities of B2B SMEs. Furthermore, we disaggregate these 12 mechanisms into 34 relational governance micro-foundational components and demonstrate their relevance for B2B SMEs during different stages of the COVID-19 crisis in Nigeria., Godkänd;2022;Nivå 0;2022-06-02 (joosat)

Emerging market enterprises (EMMs) are on the rise and are quickly becoming significant contributors to the global economy. The fast-paced growth of EMMs generates an interest in understanding the impact of home country advantages that EMMs have and how they use them. Emerging markets, in different ways and forms, experience institutional voids within their markets. This can be in the form of, among others, an inefficient regulatory system, a lack of skilled labor force or poor infrastructure. The different advantages and disadvantages the EMMs have can be explored by applying the OLI framework. Which details different advantages in the form of ownership-specific, location-specific and internalization advantages. Therefore, the aim of this thesis is to gain a deeper understanding how different EMMs use their OLI advantages in order to more effectively plug institutional voids. This has been answered through a semi-structured interview and collected transcripts from EMM leaders. The findings of this study indicates that EMMs most important advantage is the knowledge and inventive thinking possessed by the managers.

The present study aims at further understanding the relationships between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Stakeholder Dialogue (SD) by exploring whether and how corporate motives for CSR affect the engagement into SD under institutional voids. The study also builds on the vast existing literature discussing the role of institutional mechanisms, analyzing how local ethics influence the vision of stakeholders, and on the resource-based view, highlighting how the availability of resources shapes CSR and SD. The paper discusses the results of a study we ran in Mozambique and which involved 235 domestic and foreign firms operating in the country. Mozambique is an interesting setting to analyze CSR as it is characterized by institutional voids, it has a vibrant economic environment, and it is influenced by Ubuntu ethics. Our findings confirm that under institutional voids corporate motives for CSR influence firms’ commitment to SD, especially with regards to profitability, whereas firm driven by legitimacy reasons resulted in being less involved in activities towards stakeholders. Contrary to previous studies, the study highlights that ethics do not affect SD. Differently, the study support literature on the role of resources in influencing the behaviour of companies towards CSR and SD.

Although innovation studies in developing countries acknowledge the importance of resources for firm innovation, their emphasis tends to be on bottlenecks created by resource constraints and institutional weaknesses. We address this shortcoming by exploring the relationship among firm resources and formal and informal institutions leading to innovation in these settings. By adopting a crisp-set qualitative comparative analysis of firms in sub-Saharan Africa, we confirm the thesis that informal institutions substitute underdeveloped formal institutions and in combination with firm-level resources afford firm innovation. More importantly, we find that informal institutions also complement more developed formal institutions in the presence or absence of high levels of firm resources or accommodate them in the presence of high levels of firm resources to support firm innovation. Our findings point to multiple paths that firms can take to be innovative that best fit their existing institutional context.

The literature on Base of the Pyramid (BoP) strategies emphasizes that creating social value requires collaborative, multi-stakeholder business approaches. However, there is limited understanding of how businesses can successfully coordinate such value creation processes in the developing economies that face significant institutional voids. This study adopts a business model perspective for analyzing social value creation processes that span organizational boundaries. We introduce a novel, theoretically grounded business model framework that helps conceptualize social value by locating the various loci of value creation, and the stakeholders that partake in creating and capturing this value. We subsequently analyze the mechanisms of social value creation in M-Pesa, a renowned boundaryspanning mobile money system that has advanced financial inclusion among tens of millions of us

[EN] This thesis investigates the type of domestic network strength and type of decisionmaking logic as causal conditions for achieving accelerated internationalisation in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) located in context of institutional voids. Furthermore, this dissertation explore the micro-mechanisms that connect the impact institutional voids, effectual networking and networks strength on the accelerated internationalisation of SMEs from Latin America. The existing literature shows discrepancies among researchers about the individual effect of networks strength, decision-making logic and institutional voids on accelerated internationalisation. Moreover, scholars argue that accelerated internationalization is a complex phenomenon that should be studied by identifying the complex relations among variables. However, it seems that no studies have explore this complex interaction and the connection among these factors. Consequently, researchers advise to increase the investigation about the effects of these variables on the accelerated internationalisation of SMEs. They have also suggest to incorporate effectuation and institutional voids to clarify these discrepancies. On this matter, researches warn that research on effectuation and internationalization is an emerging scientific field that lacks conceptual clarity. Recent studies also advice to move beyond foreign networks to explore the role of domestic networks on accelerated internationalization. Finally, there have been calls to advance research on Latin America that usually has been neglected in the existing literature. Therefore, this thesis aims to provide an approach based on three different methodologies: First, a bibliometric analysis to contribute to classify the literature of effectuation and internationalization, and identify its structure and key trends. Second, a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to investigates which causal conditions contribute to accelerated internationaliza, [ES] A partir del tipo de las relaciones de la red de contactos locales y la lógica en la toma de decisiones, esta tesis investiga las condiciones causales necesarias para que las pequeñas y medianas empresas (Pymes) que están situadas en contextos caracterizados por vacíos institucionales, logren tener una internacionalización acelerada. Adicionalmente, esta disertación explora los micro-mecanismos que conectan los vacíos institucionales, las redes efectúales y el tipo de relaciones (fuertes o débiles) con la internacionalización acelerada que presentan las Pymes de Latinoamérica. La literatura existente muestra discrepancias sobre el efecto individual que tienen las relaciones de la red de contactos locales, la lógica en la toma de decisiones y los vacíos institucionales sobre la internacionalización acelerada. Así mismo, los investigadores argumentan que este es un fenómeno complejo y por lo tanto, debería analizarse identificando las relaciones complejas que puedan existir entre las variables. Sin embargo, al parecer, ningún estudio ha explorado esta compleja interacción y la conexión que existe entre estos factores. En consecuencia, diversos estudios aconsejan ahondar en la investigación sobre los efectos que pueden tener estas variables sobre la internacionalización acelerada de las Pymes. Adicionalmente, han sugerido incorporar la efectuación y los vacíos institucionales como variables que pueden contribuir a aclarar estas discrepancias. Sobre este asunto, los investigadores advierten que la efectuación y la internacionalización, es un campo científico emergente que carece de claridad conceptual. Estudios recientes también aconsejan que la investigación vaya más allá de las redes internacionales para explorar el papel de las redes locales sobre la internacionalización acelerada. Finalmente, ha habido diversos llamados para avanzar en la investigación sobre América Latina, que es una región que generalmente se ha descuidado en la investigación existente. Conse, [CA] A partir de la mena de les relacions de la xarxa de contactes locals i la lògica en la presa de decisions, aquesta tesi investiga les condicions causals necessàries perquè les petites i mitjanes empreses (Pimes) que estan situades en contextos caracteritzats per buits institucionals, aconseguisquen tindre una internacionalització accelerada. Addicionalment, aquesta dissertació explora els micro-mecanismes que connecten els buits institucionals, les xarxes efectua'ls i el tipus de relacions (fortes o febles) amb la internacionalització accelerada que presenten les Pimes de Llatinoamèrica. La literatura existent mostra discrepàncies sobre l'efecte individual que tenen les relacions de la xarxa de contactes locals, la lògica en la presa de decisions i els buits institucionals sobre la internacionalització accelerada. Així mateix, els investigadors argumenten que aquest és un fenomen complex i per tant, hauria d'analitzar-se identificant les relacions complexes que puguen existir entre les variables. No obstant això, pel que sembla, cap estudi ha explorat aquesta complexa interacció i la connexió que existeix entre aquests factors. En conseqüència, diversos estudis aconsellen aprofundir en la investigació sobre els efectes que poden tindre aquestes variables sobre la internacionalització accelerada de les Pimes. Addicionalment, han suggerit incorporar l'efectuació i els buits institucionals com a variables que poden contribuir a aclarir aquestes discrepàncies. Sobre aquest assumpte, els investigadors adverteixen que l'efectuació i la internacionalització, és un camp científic emergent que manca de claredat conceptual. Estudis recents també aconsellen que la investigació vaja més enllà de les xarxes internacionals per a explorar el paper de les xarxes locals sobre la internacionalització accelerada. Finalment, hi ha hagut diverses demandes per a avançar en la investigació sobre Amèrica Llatina, que és una regió que generalment s'ha desatès en la investigació existen

We examine the demise of a multi-stakeholder network that was launched to promote an inclusive dairy market in Ethiopia to better understand why nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) may develop interventions in contexts of poverty that fail to endure after they exit. We identify organizational reflexivity – the capacity to recognize and understand the recursive interplay between an intervention and the local environment – as a key explanatory mechanism for this intervention outcome. Limited reflexivity not only prevented the NGO we studied from properly aligning the intervention with the context (design failures), but also prevented the organization from adjusting its intervention when negative feedback emerged (orchestration failures), which eventually evolved into the demise of the network (maintenance failure). While our study confirms the theoretical premise that NGOs need to contextualize their interventions, we expand current knowledge by highlighting the role of organizational reflexivity in this process. Moreover, by showing how reflexivity deficits can trigger a cascade of failure, especially when intervening in voids where incumbent firms have interests in maintaining the void, our study calls attention to the politicized nature of institutional voids.

The current chapter addresses the operations of an emerging market (EM) origin firm in a Base of the Pyramid (BOP) market. We focus on the under-researched empirical context of Somalia using a single case study of a Turkish construction firm operating there to analyse these aspects. Our study reveals that risk of volatility does not deter foreign firms from entering and operating in such markets, especially when the home country image is positive, and there are historical and religious linkages between home and host countries. We further discovered that the case firm dealt with institutional voids by earning legitimacy from powerful local networks and using a positive country-of-origin image to run the business successfully in an uncertain context. Finally, the case firm created social value for BOP consumers not only by developing affordable quality houses, but also indirectly by dealing fairly with local partners and engaging in skills development for both own employees as well as of partner firms.

Purpose Literature on modes of entry has focussed on firm-level strategies. The predominant theories used are Institutional Theory and the resource based view. Using an alternate approach, network theory, the paper demonstrates an additional mode of entry: multiple firms entering together as an extension of an existing loose network, known as a bridging network. The extension of an external network across borders is an appropriate mode of entry in emerging markets with no pre-existing networks or existing networks within a market that are weak, immature or missing. Design/methodology/approach A conceptual review, which develops four propositions, demonstrating that market entry with bridging networks may be the preferred mode of entry in the presence of institutional voids. Alternative modes may not be viable due to costs and risks associated with overcoming such voids Findings Existing theory and case examples supports the contention that market conditions facilitate firms to enter as networks rather than as singular entities. These conditions are found in markets with institutional voids and explain the dominant form of business groups in many countries and the operation of loose strategic alliances in emerging markets. Network entry facilitates market access speed may allow for local ties to remain undeveloped or be a first step in building in-country networks. Originality/value This paper heeds to the call for a network ecosystem approach to market entry, arguing that firms may enter as a collective in subsistence and emerging markets which would explain the preponderance of business groups and loose alliances found., Validerad;2019;Nivå 2;2019-06-27 (johcin)

Emerging economies often experience rapid and discontinuous shifts in their institutional environments. Amongst the BRIC economies, Russia in particular underwent the most radical and unprecedented institutional changes. In the academic realm, there has been much interest about how organisations adapt to institutional changes when a command and control economy is suddenly replaced by a liberalised laissez-faire market system, and again to state-guided market system. Despite recent contributions in the literature that aim to uncover this phenomenon, the need for a better understanding on how institutional changes affect strategic choices and innovativeness of firms in a co-evolutionary context has become increasingly apparent.Through the lens of institutional political economy, this thesis contributes to the broader literature on this topic. It provides a detailed three part account of the Russian transition and a taxonomy of strategic choices by Russian firms in a co-evolutionary backdrop. It uncovers the impact of serial institutional change on strategic choices of Russian entrepreneurial enterprises insofar as how they make decisions to innovate and upgrade during low versus higher levels of institutionalisation. It depicts three major sense-making strategies used by selected Russian firms during the shock therapy years and later during the two phases of transition in the state-led industrialization era. Whereas political connections bestow legitimacy on entrepreneurs’ operations during low levels of institutionalisation, higher levels of institutionalisation lead to attenuation of political connections between business and policymakers. With further institutional strengthening, political connections are eventually replaced by more formalised interactions between strategic firms and the state—often managed by industry associations.Finally, the study proposes and tests hypotheses that predict how a shift from a weak to a strong institutional context is likely to af

For nearly two decades, scholars in international business and management have explored the implications of institutional voids for firm strategy and structure. Although institutional voids offer both opportunities and challenges, they have largely been associated with firms' efforts to avoid or mitigate institutional deficiencies and reduce the transaction costs associated with operating in settings subject to those institutional shortcomings. The goal of this special issue is to advance scholarship on this topic by (a) exploring institutional voids that are new to the literature, (b) providing a deeper assessment of the different ways in which firms respond to these voids, and (c) utilizing diverse disciplines and theoretical approaches to do so. In this introduction, we first review and synthesize extant research on institutional voids, tracking the evolution of institutional void scholarship since the inception of the concept (Khanna & Palepu, Journal of Economic Literature, 45(2):331-372, 1997) and providing our perspective on its contributions and limitations. We then summarize the contributions of the articles included in this special issue. In addition to identifying an array of institutional voids - economic and social - the articles highlight four different strategies for responding to them: internalization, substitution, borrowing and signaling. Drawing on these, we develop new insights on the implications of institutional voids for firm behavior. We conclude with suggestions for future research.

This paper explores the agency of multinational corporations that perform social innovation under conditions of institutional complexity and resource constraints. Insights are drawn from a case study of Vodafone Group Plc and Safaricom Kenya Ltd that engaged in mobile money innovation in Kenya. The paper identifies three types of institutional voids that entrepreneurs can exploit to implement a social innovation: market, policy and social voids. Legitimating the social innovation involves appealing to the instrumental needs of target users, early and sustained engagement with policy-makers and redefining meanings of both incumbent and new technologies. The paper argues that spanning institutional voids – which provide entrepreneurial opportunities – also provide contingent legitimation narratives that can be targeted at different audiences. By mobilising insights from institutional theory, this paper provides a fresh perspective of social innovation in a base of the pyramid context.

“Vattenfrågan har alltid varit viktig på Gotland” (Bastani et al. 2015, p. 25) - “Water questions have always been important on Gotland”. Contrary to the common perception that water shortage does not pose a problem to northern European countries, the case on Gotland provides the example that it is a real issue. Due to several factors, the Swedish island faces severe water shortages during the summer and is in urgent need to address this in the light of an expected growing number of people coming to Gotland. Since water is a topic affecting a wide range of stakeholders, the water issue is already in the focus of attention and occasionally passionately discussed on the island. The aim of this paper was to identify with the help of qualitative research how relevant stakeholder groups perceive and address the water shortage on Gotland. The identified stakeholder groups were from the administrative/political sectors, industrial/business sectors, the research sector as well as engaged citizens. During the research it became clear that the water shortage can be characterized as a wicked problem, which in its nature is impossible to solve but only manageable due to its complexity. Yet, the majority of stakeholders did not recognize the wicked problem as such which explains the multiplicity of existent strategies for how to deal with it. The different approaches lead to outcomes that seem to only address parts of the problem but fail to manage it in its entirety. The study suggests that institutional voids, meaning a lack of clear responsibilities regarding who should manage the problem and how seem to both arise from and contribute to the complexity of the problem. As result of this research, it seems crucial to firstly gain a comprehensive understanding of the situation and then work with multi stakeholder communication and cooperation against prevailing institutional voids in order to address the water shortage effectively.

How do institutional voids influence emerging market multinationals (EMNEs) foreign direct investment (FDI) in developing countries? In this article we respond to this question by examining Brazilian FDI in Angola as our analytical setting. We focus on the host country’s institutions and its institutional voids as essential factors that attract the FDI of EMNES to developing countries. The research indicates that Brazilian companies fill in much of these voids within the market intermediaries, often creating a point of competitive advantage, and also creating advantages in relation to FDI from other economies that invest in Angola. The scarce literature on FDI in Africa has been largely dedicated to the analysis of Chinese investment in the region. We aim to complement recent research on the influence of the host country’s institutions on the behavior of FDI in developing countries, explaining how some EMNEs are able to use the institutional voids of developing countries as market opportunities. Our findings should provide also implications for EMNEs managers from other emerging markets by providing a better understanding of how Brazilian multinationals expand their business in less developed countries, handle institutional voids and manage relationships with local and foreign institutions in the host country.

This research examines the mechanisms through which entrepreneurial orientation (EO) affects firm performance in an emerging market context. We argue that EO drives firms to develop the dynamic capabilities of absorptive capacity (ACAP) and boundary-spanning (BS), and that these capabilities enhance firm performance. Moreover, the effectiveness of these knowledge- and network-based dynamic capabilities in mediating the EO-performance relationship is contingent on the institutional conditions firms are exposed to. We test our hypotheses using multi-sourced data on Chinese high-tech firms in business-to-business (B2B) markets. Our results show that ACAP and BS mediate the positive effect of EO on firm performance, and that as the development of market-supporting institutions improves, the mediating effect of ACAP becomes stronger while that of BS weakens.

Background: More foreign companies expand into emerging markets and such markets differ from developed ones. Emerging markets present opportunities and challenges for foreign companies. Challenges include many environmental factors, cultural differences, economic uncertainties and weak institutions. Emerging markets are often characterized by underdeveloped formal institutions which result in the so called institutional voids. Informal institutions act as formal institutions and fill in these institutional voids. Foreign companies need to pay much attention to emerging economies institutions when selecting entry mode since the institutions affect their strategy and profitability. Aim: The purpose of my thesis is to investigate and analyze how aforeign company is affected by a host country’s institutional context when entering an emerging market. The thesis focuses on the emerging market of Russia and a case company. Conclusions: Institutions affect the steps taken in accordance with the Uppsalamodel. It is important to learn more about the institutions of a host country in choosing an entry mode. The weakness in property rights, risk of corruption, political and economic factors combined with networking were the dominant factors in choosing an entrymode. Väderstad suffers from institutional shocks in the Russian market and they affect the willingness to invest further., Bakgrund: Mer företag expanderar till tillväxtmarknader och sådana marknader är annorlunda än utvecklade marknader. Tillväxtmarknader presenterar både möjligheter och utmaningar för företagen. Utmaningarna inkluderar omgivningsfaktorer, kulturella skillnader, ekonomisk osäkerhet och svaga institutioner. Tillväxtmarknader karakteriseras ofta av underutvecklade formella institutioner som kan resultera i institutionella tomrum. Informella institutioner verkar som formella för att fylla tomrummet. Utländska företag måste ge uppmärksamhet till institutionerna i tillväxtmarknader när de väljer etableringsform eftersom institutionerna påverkar både strategi och lönsamhet. Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka och analysera hur ett utländskt företag påverkas av ett värdlands institutionella sammanhang när det etablerar sig på en tillväxtmarknad. Uppsatsen fokuserar på tillväxtmarknaden Ryssland och ett fallföretag. Slutsats: Institutioner påverkade stegen i enlighet med Uppsalamodellen. Det är viktigt att lära sig mer om institutionerna för värdlandet när företaget väljer etableringsstrategi. Svag äganderätt, risk för korruption, politiska och ekonomiska faktorer kombinerat med närverksbyggande var dominanta faktorer i valet av etableringsform. Väderstad påverkas av institutionella chocker i Ryssland och det påverkar viljan att investera mer

During the past decade, emerging markets have had extraordinarily high growth rates compared to developed countries. Many agree that a distinctive characteristic of emerging markets is their rhythm of growth. Over the past thirty years, emerging markets have been encouraged to shape their institu tions to foster the development of business, both domestic and international, under the assumption that the efficient functioning of markets is core to economic growth. Although emerging markets have achieved fast growth rates in the past, and are expected to do so in years to come, there is evidence that they still lag behind developed countries in several key areas, such as human development, institu - tional competence, transparency levels and other social features. I argue that insti - tu tio nal weakness is one of the main reasons for this disappointing performance. The view that markets provide superior mechanisms to incentivise econo mic activity has dominated academic perspectives on economic growth. A major challenge for a perspective whose goals are centred primarily on economic growth is that it tends to ignore the potential benefits of institutions in shaping other features of society which are core to a more comprehensive view of growth, i.e. one that takes into account its sustainability. In this lecture, I define institu - tional voids as gaps between rules and their purpose and the effecti veness of their implementation. Though institutional voids can be positive to business in many respects, by creating opportunities for new business and entrepreneurship, it is also important to consider that voids emerge when economic growth advances faster than social and institutional structures. Hence, voids can also generate unwanted consequences for society, such as the over-exploitation of human and natural resources. In this lecture, I will consider two types of voids: structural and contingent. Structural voids relate to the distance between rules as they are in th

The past two decades have witnessed an exponential growth of research on corporate governance around the world and on the role of the ownership concentration more specifically. In line with a longer tradition of ownership studies in U.S. context, most corporate governance researchers have commonly taken a classical agency theoretical view of ownership concentration. The research presented in this dissertation show that classical view of ownership seems overly crude. I provide a more fine-grained understanding about the role of ownership in different contexts; one that takes into account the subtly different formal and informal institutional that can be found around the world on the one hand, and that distinguish between the identity of concentrated owners on the other. I show, first, that a crucial factor with respect to the ownership concentration – firm strategy and performance relationships involve owner identity: i.e. who owns a firm matters significantly for that firm’s objectives, strategies, and performance. Second, I contribute to emerging institution-based view of corporate governance by expanding its empirical domain and testing empirically the interaction between formal and informal institutions.

The classical approach to strategy defines strategy as a process of planned calculation and analysis to design long-term advantages. The Structure-Conduct-Performance (SCP) model argues that firms perform and develop strategies based on market structures. These approaches have been seen as the “norm” but are today criticised as outdated since they do not fully suit new emerging markets. The aim of the study is to investigate whether these approaches need modifications for emerging markets and if unique factors need to be emphasized when developing sale strategies for the Chinese market. The empirical findings are based on two Scandinavian firms with long experience in China. A qualitative exploratory research design is conducted trough the study. As a conclusion a guideline of vital factors for the Chinese market is provided: market knowledge, political and social system, relationships and branding. The knowledge of these factors can help other companies to master the complex environment of the Chinese market.

Research on business groups ?legally independent firms tied together in a variety of formal and informal ways ?is accelerating, but four questions still lack a definitive answer: Does business group membership enhance or diminish firm performance? Are members comparatively better off in contexts characterized by institutional voids? Do members make different strategic choices than standalone firms, and do these choices mediate the affiliation ?performance relationship? Is group performance influenced by group level scale and scope differences? We address these questions with meta-analytical techniques, employed on a database of 125 published and unpublished studies covering 27 different countries.