The spectrum of inter-organizational relationships and social capital mobilization of MNEs

Abstract

Purpose: Multinational enterprises (MNEs) establish a wide range of alliances to access the critical resources that they may need at any one time. Although inter-organizational relationships (IORs) constitute the channels through which social capital flows, MNEs should consider which mechanisms or characteristics of the relations facilitate their actual mobilization. Design/methodology/approach: A definition of alliance types yielded the parameters for an ordinary least squares regression of a sample from top global-reach MNEs from the airline industry. Findings: The results showed that certain kind of alliances favored the actual mobilization of social capital. Practical implications: Managers of MNEs must select the type of IOR taking into account the objective they pursue and the type of activity they will include. Originality/value: Analyzing the factors that influence the degree of mobilization of social capital and how MNEs actually use the resources of the partners require the establishment of a theoretical framework and the development of empirical evidence.