1. © Peter Dicken 2015

2. Transnational Corporations: The Primary ‘Movers and Shapers’ of the Global Economy
Global Shift
Chapter 5

3. Review Concepts to Review Key Words FDI
Global production networks (GPNs)
Transportation and communication technologies
Product life cycle
Convergence and divergence
Key Words
Transnational corporations, uneven distribution of resources, geographical embeddedness, the internal geographies of TNCs, corporate restructuring

4. Nature of the TNC Definition The myth of the ‘global’ corporation
‘A transnational corporation is a firm that has the power to coordinate and control operations in more than one country, even if it does not own them’
Two basic characteristics
They are networks within networks
Control and coordination is more complex than a domestic firm
The myth of the ‘global’ corporation
Geographical embeddedness
Connections to globalization

5. Development of TNCs Product life cycle explanation
Strategy of beginning with a strong domestic position and then expanding geographically
links in with product life cycle
 new products thus reflect the domestic market, then move to other markets as the domestic market becomes saturated
Other evolutionary paths
Firms from small markets often set up overseas production facilities without using intermediaries
Acquisition of another domestic firm which already has foreign operations; virtually all TNCs include merger and acquisition as part of their development

6. Geography of TNCs Forms of development Convergence/divergence debate
Bartlett and Ghoshal’s typology
‘global product’, ‘worldwide geographical’ or ‘global grid’ or ‘global matrix’ structures
Firms combining traits to form integrated production networks
Convergence/divergence debate
Impact of locality

7. TNCs as Networks Outsourcing Types of production networks
Collaboration and competition
Corporate reorganization/restructuring
Re-shoring