• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.88-109
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• 2019

Purpose - This paper examines the effects of host country's non-economic factors on foreign affiliate's financial and operational performance. Design/Methodology - Using Korean-owned foreign affiliate-level data, we employ various measures that represent host country's non-economic factors and examine their effects on foreign affiliate's performance. We further investigate the effects of local top managers and local middle managers on the impact of country's non-economic factors on foreign affiliate's performance. Findings - We find that local top managers are effective in increasing foreign affiliate's financial performance by dealing with institutional and cultural factors, particularly in high-income countries, while local middle managers are effective in increasing affiliate's operational performance by responding to the changes in doing business factors, particularly in low-income countries. Originality/value - Considering that most of previous FDI studies focus on examining host country's economic factors on firm's FDI decision, our findings suggest that country's non-economic factors are strongly associated with actual business performance of foreign affiliates.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.133-151
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• 2021

Purpose - This study examines the effects of expatriate transfer on foreign affiliate's labor productivity. Design/methodology - Using Korean-owned foreign affiliate-level data, we estimate the effect of expatriate transfer on foreign affiliate's labor productivity using the system generalized method of moments model. We also consider foreign affiliate- and host country-specific contingencies and test how they are associated with expatriates in enhancing foreign affiliate's labor productivity. Findings - We consider foreign production intensity and cultural distance between the home (i.e., South Korea) and host countries as key contingencies that influence the effect of expatriates on foreign affiliate's labor productivity. We find that expatriates are effective in enhancing the labor productivity of less production-intensive foreign affiliates. This effect is strengthened as expatriates are deployed to countries that share cultural similarities with the home country. Originality/value - Considering that previous studies provide mixed results on the effect of expatriates, our findings suggest that foreign affiliate-specific operational orientation and cultural distance should be considered jointly to understand the true effect of expatriate staffing on foreign affiliate performance.

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.115-137
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• 2012

This study examines the performance impacts of entry mode choice based on the perceptions of managers of a large sample of South Korean foreign MNEs in Mongolia. The purpose of this study is to build on existing research by examining the extent to which the South Korean companies investment in Mongolia. It is necessary to establish and execute optimal entry strategy according to environmental features in order to survive as a competitive international enterprise in the extensive Mongolia markets. This study finally seek a plan to enhance the performance of the cross-cultural companies. The results of this study are as stated as follows. the relationships between the environmental factors and entry strategies are, statistically, significantly positive. The relationships between the entry strategies and performance in Korean companies are, statistically, significantly positive. the relationships between companies' environmental factors and performance, the environmental features of cross-cultural companies are positive. We find that Korean affiliate performance is a multidimensional and complex phenomenon, which may be properly explained by multiple factors, including the industrial, environmental, and cultural factor, that go beyond initial entry mode choices in Mongolia market. These results make theoretically optimal entry mode decisions and whether or not this entry mode choice is related to enhanced performance of Korean companies to Mongolia market.