Lunch Seminar on Japanese Economy and Society.

The participation to the Lunch Seminar is free but registration is strictly required.

Résumé

Recent literature suggests that multinational companies (MNCs) pursue regional rather than global strategies. Regionalisation of MNCs has key implications for regional structures and rganization. This article investigates the regional management centres that French MNCs set up in Asia, considering the following research question: what kind of regional management structures French MNCs set up in Asia to fit their regional strategies? This study develops five hypotheses from prior literature and then tests them through interviews with 77 expatriated managers of subsidiaries of 47 French MNCs located in 10 Asian countries. One-third of the sample clusters the Asia-Pacific region into homogeneous sub-regions, where they locate regional management centres with important functions and roles. This regional organization depends on the size of the MNC and its sales in Asia; the localisation of manufacturing activities does not influence regional rganizations. Smaller MNCs, even if most of their sales occur in Asia, still centralise regional decisions and control procedures at headquarters.

Speaker

Jacques JAUSSAUD (University of Pau)

Jacques JAUSSAUD is Professor of Management, University of Pau, France, and Director of the CREG Research team in Management of this university. His research interests are in the areas of business strategy, organisation, control and human resources management, with a particular focus on Japan, China, and other Asian countries. He has published widely in these areas, including in the following academic journals: Journal of International Management, Asian Business and Management, Asian Pacific Business Review, Transition Studies Review, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, and so on. He has also co-edited several books, including The Changing Economic Environment in Asia, Firms' strategies In the Region, Palgrave, 2001, Economic Dynamism and Business Strategy of Firms in Asia - Some Recent Developments, China Publishing Economic House, Beijing, 2006, and Evolving Corporate Structures and Cultures in Asia, ISTE Publishing, London, 2008.

Discussant

Hélène LE BAIL (UMIFRE 19, MFJ)

Hélène LE BAIL is a research fellow at the French research center on Japan, MFJ, Tokyo, where she conducts research on new Chinese migrants and expatriates. She holds a doctorate in political science from  the Paris Institute of Political Studies and a master degree in Chinese studies. She is the author of:

– Migrants  chinois hautement qualifiés. Le cas du Japon, Paris, Indes savantes, 2012;

– "Integration of Chinese Students into Japan's Society and Labour Market", in Vogt and Roberts (ed.), Migration and Integration, Stiftung,  2011.

What is the Lunch Seminar at MFJ?

This typical event has been organized at the Maison franco-japonaise (Nichi-Futsu Kaikan) since 2004. It  offers a presentation followed by a discussion dedicated to a specific issue of the time and it aims at bringing a  better understanding of Japanese economy and society. This is a brown bag lunch seminar (please bring  your bento or sandwiches). Coffee available.

Place

French Research Institute on Japan at Maison franco-japonaise

3-9-25, Ebisu, Shibuya-ku,150-0013 Tokyo