International synergy management: A strategic approach for raising efficiencies in the cross-border interaction process
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Patrick Daum
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International synergy management: A strategic approach for raising efficiencies in the cross-border interaction process
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Anchor Academic Publishing
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9783954895021
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1
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CHF 31.20
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Management
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English
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98
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kein Kopierschutz/DRM
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PC/MAC/eReader/Tablet
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PDF
Global economic integration has changed business conditions significantly. Corporations operating internationally and establishing foreign subsidiaries are facing the obligation as well as the challenge to profit from cross-border interaction. However, potential synergetic benefits provided by the international environment are accompanied by even more demanding challenges. This study elaborates to which extend German small and medium-sized manufacturing businesses could benefit from the implementation of a strategic cross-border synergy management. The study is based on a single case study deriving the research hypotheses and a survey investigating cross-border interaction throughout a sample of small and medium-sized manufacturing businesses. Based on the research findings, this paper proposes a holistic framework, designed for strategists of small and medium-sized manufacturing business. It outlines the establishment of the cross-border synergy management concept as part of the corporate strategy and the efficient and effective management of international interaction. 'Synergies are not realized by themselves - they have to be identified and actively developed within a professionally coordinate process. Management of synergy seeking organizations is asked for intensive efforts beyond daily operations' (Weber and Roventa, 2006).
In 2007, Patrick Daum completed his Business Administration degree at the SRH Hochschule in Heidelberg. Subsequently, he started his professional career working for the globally operating sport marketing agency IFM Sports. After working for the internat
Text Sample: Chapter 1.1, Research Background: Every four years the global sports community follows 32 teams fighting for the World Championship in the most popular global sport, football. The best eleven players from each country are brought together to compete for the world's most prestigious trophy. The following phenomenon occurs regularly, catching the attention of both attendees as well as media outlets: Although on an individual basis position players from one team may not physically or mentally match up with or be able to compete well against their counterpart, the inferior team may be able to outperform the favourite as such happened in the 2010 World Cup. The French team, consisting of highly skilled athletes, lost the group matches against the less competitive teams from Mexico and South Africa. Media afterwards critically asked: ,When will the French players realize that there is more to football then having the foot with the ball?' (Johns, 2010) ,Football is hard when you can't play together' - with his reaction the French player Yoann Gourcuff has underlined the discrepancies within his team regarding the approach how to perform successfully (Soufi, 2010). In contrast, the winning teams from Mexico and South Africa took advantage of their ability to interact in a synergetic way, leading to the fact that the overall team performance was greater than the sum of the individual player performances. Interaction within businesses can be compared to the characteristics in team sports. Skilled individuals are requested to interact within a system and perform together in order to accomplish a common objective. However, efforts of individuals and entire units might lack alignment and coordination or in the worst case scenario there is not interference at all. In team sports the coach plays a central role in managing interaction between the individual players, providing the overall team direction and creating a team spirit which should prevent or reduce any form of personal exploitation, mistrust and jealousy and get everyone in the system going in the same direction. Kaplan and Norton (2006) dedicated this role within a corporation to the corporate management: ,Synergies will not occur unless the corporate level plays an active role to identify and coordinate opportunities for integrating the behaviour of its decentralized business units'. According to Goold and Campbell (1998) executives can obtain additional value with excising capabilities and resources if they understand how to manage synergies. Corporations expect from synergetic interaction, for example economics of scale, a better level of capacity utilization, learning effects, the elimination of double and multiple activities and advantages through higher order quantities or knowledge sharing (Johnson et al., 2008). In this context Freeman (in Moran and Harris, 1982) outlines the challenges for organizations operating across borders: ,Multinational organizations have a special role not only in building cross-cultural bridges. But in innovating synergies through their practical knowledge of putting together human and natural resources with the knowhow of managing both in the most effective ways'. 1.2, German small and medium-sized businesses as research object: International business opportunities are relevant for numerous companies throughout the German economic landscape. 72% of all small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are heavily involved in international business activities (KPMG, 2007). From an economical perspective this business segment is characterized as the backbone of the German economy as it counts for 99.7% of all German businesses, 39.7% of the total turnover generated by German corporations and 60.8% of all jobholders officially registered (IFM, 2009). Export is still the dominating internationalization mode applied within this businesses sector; however, the local presence in foreign markets becomes even more important (KPMG, 2007). Small and medium-sized businesses establishing and running foreign subsidiaries are consequently facing the opportunity as well as the challenge to benefit from synergetic headquarter-subsidiary interrelationships. Exploiting this potential effectively can add additional value to the corporate network and provide or enlarge a competitive adv
International synergy management
1
Table of Contents
5
Index of Figures
7
Index of Tables
9
Abbreviations
10
1 Introduction
11
1.1 Research Background
11
1.2 German small and medium-sized businesses as research object
12
1.3 Research Problem and Objectives
13
1.4 Research Scope
14
1.5 Research Pertinence
15
1.6 Research Structure
17
1.7 Definitions
17
2 Literature Review
19
2.1 Overview
19
2.2 The concept of synergetic interaction in the business context
19
2.2.1 Definition
19
2.2.2 Types of synergetic interaction
21
2.2.3 Positive effects of synergetic interaction
22
2.2.4 Negative effects of synergetic interaction
24
2.2.5 Synergetic interaction and the competitive advantage
25
2.2.6 Barriers blocking synergetic interaction
26
2.3 Synergy Management
27
2.3.1 Synergy Management as Corporate Strategy
27
2.3.2 The Synergy Management Process
28
2.4 Practical implementation of synergetic interaction
35
3 Methodology
43
3.1 Primary Research
43
3.1.1 Research Approach and Procedure
44
3.2 Research Design
45
3.2.1 Research Strategies
45
3.2.2 Research Choice
49
3.2.3 Research Time Horizont
49
3.2.4 Research Techniques (Data Analysis)
49
3.3 Evaluating primary research design
51
3.4 Secondary Research
52
4 Hypotheses Derivation
53
4.1 Case Study
53
4.2 Research Hypotheses
59
5 Research Analysis and Discussion
60
6 Recommendations and Conclusion
68
6.1 Recommendations
68
6.1.1 Synergy Management – Strategic Perspective
69
6.1.2 Synergy Management – Operational Perspective
78
6.2 Conclusion
79
6.3 Study limitations and supplementary research
80
References
83
APPENDIX
90
