The Changing Face of Multinationals in Southeast Asia

by Andrews, Tim G.; Chompusri, Nartnalin; Baldwin, Bryan J.

• ISBN13: 9780203361580
• ISBN10: 020336158X
• Copyright: 2004-03-10
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Summary

Shaken by a recent confluence of external forces, multinational corporations have entered a new era of global turmoil and uncertainty; gripped by the regionwide economic meltdown of the late 1990s, Southeast Asia stands at the cusp of this new, unprecedented era of global change. This book, written from an insider's perspective, reveals how and why the world's foremost companies have sought to revive and develop their fortunes in this emerging and strategically critical region. Founded on practitioner insights, the authors outline recent corporate-oriented programs of change post-crash. Over time what has emerged are "compromise" business methods, in the light of which the book proposes a "cross-vergent" framework for strategic thinking, composed from the best of both Western and Eastern managerial cultures. Drawing on the authors' combined experience of corporate methods in the region, the book represents a ground-breaking, completely up-to-date analysis of the cultural foundations of international management strategy. In an era of increasing speed, risk and uncertainty, The Changing Face of Multinationals in Southeast Asia draws a blueprint for sustainable competitive advantage, based upon inherent synergies that can be gained from an integrated East -- West corporate approach. This much needed volume will be relevant, topical reading for students on MBAs and international business courses, as well as for current or aspiring managers in the Southeast Asia region. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Tim G. Andrews is Senior Lecturer in International Marketing, Bristol Business School, University of the West of England Nartnalin Chompusri is Marketing Officer at the Bristol Business School, University of the West of England Bryan J. Baldwin OBE is Chairman of Trafalgar International, Global Investments Ltd, Evergreen Comware and Director of PCI International

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. x
Introduction	p. 1
Aims and rationale	p. 3
Focus "roots"	p. 4
Perspective	p. 6
Scope	p. 8
Method	p. 10
Style and content	p. 11
Structure	p. 12
The Southeast Asia regional bloc: salient features	p. 15
ASEAN business context	p. 17
Overview	p. 17
Crisis	p. 18
Cultural foundations	p. 19
Opening up	p. 24
Rise of the multinational	p. 28
History and current operations	p. 28
Moving in	p. 32
Organizational change	p. 53
Organizational downsizing	p. 55
Cost control: initial measures	p. 56
The onset of layoffs: rationale for change	p. 60
First-wave implementation	p. 65
Longer-term measures	p. 72
Corporate consolidation	p. 79
Status quo: the precrisis years	p. 81
Postcrisis consolidation	p. 82
Implementation: culture's consequences	p. 89
Implementation "cross-vergence"	p. 99
Human resources management	p. 103
Recruitment	p. 106
Where the twain meet: expatriates v. local recruits	p. 109
Managerial rotation	p. 115
The rise of the "younger" executive	p. 118
Reward structure	p. 120
Appraisals	p. 125
Training	p. 130
Language	p. 140
Electronic technology	p. 143
Local challenges	p. 147
Culture factors	p. 151
Security	p. 155
Response of the multinationals	p. 157
Concluding thoughts	p. 160
Information tracking	p. 161
ISO certification in Southeast Asia	p. 163
Rationale for accreditation	p. 164
General critiques	p. 168
Implementation within ASEAN	p. 170
Culture-based resistance	p. 179
Tentative resolutions	p. 183
Marketing	p. 187
The marketing function	p. 191
The traditional marketing function	p. 191
The rise of Western marketing methodology	p. 193
Indigenous resistance	p. 198
"Cross-verging" market practice: hybrid working methods	p. 209
Localization: general pointers	p. 212
Strategic planning	p. 215
Product, brand and pricing strategy	p. 226
Traditional practice	p. 229
Multinational brand repositioning strategies	p. 232
The underflow: forces for adaptation	p. 239
"Cross-verging" brand perspectives	p. 249
Advertising and promotion	p. 256
The traditional dilemma	p. 257
Corporate advertising and promotion retrenchment	p. 262
Indigenous resistance	p. 267
Intra-ASEAN promotion strategy	p. 269
Advertising and promotion strategy "cross-vergence"	p. 277
Distribution	p. 280
Traditional ASEAN distribution	p. 282
Distribution chain subversion: global corporate fightbacks	p. 288
"Cross-verging" distribution practice	p. 296
Conclusions	p. 307
The dialectic of "cross-vergence": closing summary	p. 309
Globalization: toward an integrated redefinition	p. 314
Facing the future	p. 316
References	p. 320
Index	p. 326
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.