Organizational Environments and the Multinational Enterprise

TLDR

MNEs operate across multiple nations, positioning them as catalysts for rethinking organization‑environment relations while subsidiaries confront dual pressures of local isomorphism and internal consistency. The study argues that MNE subsidiaries face these dual pressures and develops hypotheses on the factors shaping their structures and processes. The authors examine the pressures on MNEs to formulate hypotheses on how these factors influence their structures and processes. The study refines the concept of organizational environments as complex and fluid and outlines implications for future organization theory research.

Abstract

Multinational enterprises (MNEs) serve as catalysts for reconceptualizing organization-environment relations because they operate simultaneously in multiple nations. We argue that subsidiaries of MNEs face dual pressures: They are pulled to achieve isomorphism with the local institutional environment, and they also face an imperative for consistency within the organization. We develop hypotheses regarding the factors that influence the structures and processes of MNEs. Based on an examination of the pressures imposed on MNEs. We offer a refined concept of organizational environments as complex and fluid, and we suggest implications for future research in organization theory.