Constructing post-socialism: organisational identity and the experience of international joint ventures

Ed Clark, Anna Soulsby

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Following the collapse of European state socialism, economists quickly identified a central role for foreign direct investment and Western multinational corporations in moving the region towards a market economy. Knowledge transfers and capital infusions would allow former state-owned enterprises to take on market-economic characteristics and therefore engage more fully in the global economy. This article examines the post-socialist management experience of international joint ventures (IJVs) through a study of the critical events in the life of a German-Czech IJV. The story is told from the local managers' perspective, and, drawing on the vocabulary of organisational identity, sensemaking and sensegiving, we show how the IJV process is constrained and enacted by the post-socialist context.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)257-280
Number of pages24
JournalEurope-Asia Studies
Volume64
Issue number2
Early online date2 Feb 2012
Publication statusPublished - 2012

Keywords

  • international joint ventures
  • multinational corporations
  • organisational identity
  • post-socialism
  • Czech Republic
  • sensemaking

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