Current corporate structures based on internationalisation and decentralisation are opposed to the nature of the most important resource: knowledge. The acquisition and exchange of (tacit) knowledge relies on interpersonal interactions and is thus time- and place-dependent. Given that the combination of heterogeneous knowledge stocks furthers innovation, organisations develop strategies to ensure the transfer of knowledge. To enable intra-organisational knowledge flows spatial mobility at the workplace affects a wide range of employees. The study examines in which ways spatially mobile employees, i.e. expatriates, contribute to those knowledge flows. The study of ego networks reveals not only social dynamics of knowledge transfer, but the geographical framework allows to discuss knowledge flows from a spatial perspective. On the one hand, the empirical results confirm their knowledge transfer function. On the other hand, the relational geographical perspective reveals that expatriates do not represent a homogeneous group, but their roles in the knowledge transfer process, the geographical reach of their networks and their knowledge resources depend on job-, knowledge-, individual- and space-related factors.

This is the twenty-second in the most prestigious series of annual volumes in the field of industrial and organizational psychology. The series provides authoritative and integrative reviews of the key literature of industrial psychology and organizational behaviour. The chapters are written by established experts and topics are carefully chosen to reflect the major concerns in both the research literature and in current practice. As in previous works in the series, this twenty-second volume provides scholarly, up to the minute reviews and updates of theory and research, covering developments across a wide range of established areas and emerging issues, including: socialization in organizational contexts, assessing the costs and benefits of human resources, strategies for reducing work-family conflict, coping research and measurement in the context of work related stress, and conducting applied research in a changing world of work. Each chapter offers a comprehensive and critical survey of the chosen topic, and each is supported by a valuable bibliography. For advanced students, academics and researchers, as well as professional psychologists and managers, this remains the most authoritative and current guide to new developments and established knowledge in the field of industrial and organizational psychology.

The International Conference on E-business Technology & Strategy (CETS) provides a peer-reviewed forum for researchers from across the globe to share contemporary research on developments in the fields of e-business, information technology and business strategy. It seeks to promote effective and vibrant networking among researchers and practitioners from around the world who are concerned about the effective management of information technology in organizations. This network of researchers views fostering the development of emerging scholars in the information technology and e-business fields as its primary task. Consequently the conference is designed to provide a venue for researchers to get substantive and beneficial feedback on their work. There were 134 contributions submitted to CETS 2010. After in-depth discussions, 29 high-quality contributions were selected for publication in this volume. The authors are from Canada, USA, China, Japan, India and Malaysia. We thank all the authors who submitted papers, the Program Committee members, and the external reviewers. We also thank all the local people who were instrumental in making this edition of CETS another very successful event. In particular, we are very grateful to Ying Xie, who was responsible for the local arrangements. Special gratitude goes to the publishing editor, Leonie Kunz, who managed the complexity of information and communication aspects. Furthermore, we thank the many students who volunteered on the organization team, as well as the IT services of Carleton University.

This sixth volume in the Academy of International Buiness Series presents leading-edge research on contemporary themes in international business. Part one explores several of the major issues that currently face multinational enterprises: government policy, the Asia crisis, knowledge and technology management, corporate-subsidiary relations, strategies for small firms and the impact of the technological revolution. Part Two of the volume examines the impact of foreign direct investment, FDI. Written by a range of international contributors, a key focus of these papers is the particular issues relating to foreign investment in the emerging markets of Central and Eastern Europe and South-East Asia.

This comprehensive and engaging Research Handbook provides a full examination of the modes and mechanisms of international knowledge transfer. Furthermore, it also provides in-depth insights into international knowledge transfer related challenges faced by multinational enterprises (MNEs).

"This multi-volume reference examines critical issues and emerging trends in global business, with topics ranging from managing new information technology in global business operations to ethics and communication strategies"--Provided by publisher.

In A Translation Theory of Knowledge Transfer, Kjell Arne Røvik develops a new theory on the challenges of transferring and sharing knowledge across organizational borders. Based on extensive research, he proposes a new, reframing idea of knowledge transfer as acts of translation, resembling the translation of texts. This new concept both extends and challenges established theories of knowledge transfer. Containing a comprehensive review of the last 40 years of research on knowledge transfer across organizational borders, this book also offers a step-by-step account of how a new theory within organizational research has been developed. Røvik states that the capacity of an organization to transfer and exploit knowledge from other organizations is a key to its competitiveness, progress, and even survival, and convincingly argues how this new translation theory can be used to guide practitioners involved in knowledge transfer processes.

This book establishes constructivist, interpretivist, and linguistic approaches based on conventions about the nature of qualitative and text data, the author’s influence on text interpretation, and the validity checks used to justify text interpretations. Vast quantities of text and qualitative data in organizations often go unexplored. Text analytics outlined in this book allow readers to understand the process of converting unstructured text data into meaningful data for analysis in order to measure employee opinions, feedback, and reviews through sentiment analysis to support fact-based decision making. The methods involve using NVivo and RapidMiner software to perform lexical analysis, categorization, clustering, pattern recognition, tagging, annotation, memo creation, information extraction, association analysis, and visualization. The methodological approach in the book uses innovation theory as a sensitizing concept to lay the foundation for the analysis of research data, suggesting approaches for empirical exploration of organizational learning, knowledge management, and innovation practices amongst geographically dispersed individuals and team members. Based on data obtained from a private educational organization that has offices dispersed across Asia through focus group discussions and interviews on these topics, the author highlights the need for integrating organizational learning, knowledge management, and innovation to improve organizational performance, exploring perspectives on collective relationships and networks, organizational characteristics and structures, and tacit and overt values which influence such innovation initiatives. In the process, the author puts forward a new theory which is built on three themes: relationship and networks, knowledge sharing mechanisms, and the role of social cognitive schema that facilitate emergent learning, knowledge management, and innovation.

The fields of Economic Geography and International Business share an interest in the same phenomena, whilst each provides both a differing perspective and different research methods in attempting to understand those phenomena. The Routledge Companion to the Geography of International Business explores the nature and scope of inter-disciplinary work between Economic Geography and International Business in explaining the central issues in the international economy. Contributions written by leading specialists in each field (including some chapters written by inter-disciplinary teams) focus on the nature of multinational firms and their strategies, where they choose to locate their activities, how they create and manage international networks and the key relationships between multinationals and the places where they place their operations. Topics covered include the internationalisation of service industries, the influence of location on the competitiveness of firms and the economic dynamism of regions and where economic activity takes place and how knowledge, goods and services flow between locations. The book examines the areas for fruitful inter-disciplinary work between International Business and Economic Geography and sets out a road map for future joint research, and is an essential resource for students and practitioners of International Business and Economic Development.

The European Conference on Research Methodology for Business and Management Studies was established 19 years ago. This event has been held in countries across Europe, including Ireland, England, France, Malta, Portugal, Spain to mention only a few of the countries who have hosted it. The conference is generally attended by participants from more than 25 countries. The Electronic Journal of Business Research Methods (indexed by Scopus) publishes a special edition of the best papers presented at this conference. The conference once again played host to the Innovation in Teaching of Research Methodology Excellence Awards