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Looking into the Innovation Process: How International Is Innovation in Multinational Companies?

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Transnational Corporations and Transnational Governance

Abstract

Multinational companies (MNCs) have an international reach by definition. They combine components which are manufactured in far-away countries, they produce in manifold subsidiaries set up and dispersed around the globe, and they serve the world market. Research, development and innovation follow suit and take place in dispersed settings where cost of space and time is negligible. The fact that foreign direct investment (FDI) amounted to US$ 1.24 trillion in 2010 shows how internationalised our modern economy is, especially if we take into account that this FDI turnover had been even higher before the economic downturn (UNCTAD, 2011). It seems logical to conclude that space is getting more and more irrelevant, or, to phrase it differently, ‘the world is fat’ and geography is dead (Ohmae, 1990; Friedman, 2006).

I would like to thank Björn Asheim, Cristina Chaminade and Jerker Moodysson for their helpful and constructive advice based on an earlier version of this paper. My thanks also go to Sarianna Lundan, Tilo Halaszovich and Sigrid Kannengießer whose comments helped me to finalize the paper.

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  1. Jannika Mattes
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  1. University of Bremen, Germany

    Sarianna Lundan

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© 2015 Jannika Mattes

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Mattes, J. (2015). Looking into the Innovation Process: How International Is Innovation in Multinational Companies?. In: Lundan, S. (eds) Transnational Corporations and Transnational Governance. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137467690_6

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