Course Syllabus For IMS 7300

Course Information
PhD seminar in International Management, Fall 2008
Class Time: Tuesday 12:45-3:30
Room: 4th Floor Conference Room

Professor Contact Information

Instructor: Professor Jane E. Salk
Office: SOM 4.408
Office Hours: Tuesdays 2-3:30 PM or by appointment
Phone: 972-883-6265
Email: Jane.Salk@utdallas.edu

About Professor Salk

Professor Salk is a 2006 winner of the Decade Award, given by the Academy of
International Business for the publication having the most impact on its area within the
field of International Business. She joined the faculty of UTD in Fall of 2002 after
serving as a faculty member at Carnegie Mellon University, The Essec Business School
in Paris, and The Fuqua School of Business, Duke University. Her Ph.D is from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology and she has been the recipient of Fulbright and
Kenan Fellowships.
In addition to an international research reputation, Dr. Salk consults in the areas of
international team and organizational development. Her areas of expertise include joint
venture and acquisition strategy, implementation and integration, executive training in
strategy for global companies and cross-cultural team-building. She has worked in
family businesses, MCI Corporation and has over seven years of full-time experience on
the practice side. She speaks French and German and has worked in France, Germany
and Switzerland as well as in the USA.
Her research topics include international alliances in acquisitions, cross-national
management team integration and organizational learning and knowledge management.
She has been a guest lecturer at leading institutions including INSEAD, St. Gallen,
University of Vienna, Tilburg, and Tel Aviv Universities. She has over 25 publications
that have appeared in leading journals such as Academy of Management Journal, Human
Relations, Comparative Political Studies and Journal of International Business Studies as
well as books from Oxford University Press and Wiley.

Course Pre-requisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restrictions

(Admission to PhD program or permission of Professor)
Course Description
This seminar has three basic goals. The first is to prepare Ph.D. students by giving them a
broad overview of the international management field, key theories, trends and topics.
The second goal is to introduce you to, and provide a “safe outlet to practice critical
analytical and skills that are largely tacit and best learned via practice. Third, I want each

Course Syllabus Page 1

student to work in this course on a project of sufficient quality to submit to a major
conference and/or journal.
While international business focuses on macro issues such as the drivers of
Foreign Direct Investment, Political and Economic Risk and Globalization, International
Management focuses upon the organization, behavior and management of MNCs as well
as on the domain of cross-cultural research. The course begins by sampling an array of
readings and perspectives to try to collectively describe the domain of International
Management and the international environment. Cross-national and cross-cultural
research will be considered throughout the course and topics of special interests,
including alliances, managing knowledge and networks and the role of culture and
national influences are included. We also look at methodological and epistemological
choices and issues in research, both as a topic in and of itself, and in critically examining
readings throughout the course.
I draw most extensively on a mostly recent, and admittedly eclectic, set of recent
articles and book chapters for this course. Recent works permit an historical overview of
the field through the prism of how these works draw on older sources to formulate and
test significant ideas. You should note and read on your own foundation works of the
International Management field, as well as those related to your disciplinary foundation.
Foundation works can be found in the bibliographies of various readings and I can also
make suggestions to each of you based on your interests.
You should come away from this seminar with an overview of what research
trends can be found in the international management field, what research questions that
interest you have received attention, how they are being studied and a sense of where the
critical gaps are that you might one day wish to address. During and beyond the seminar,
you clearly should familiarize yourself with The Journal of International Business Studies
(JIBS), but also International Management articles in the following journals:

Academy of Management Journal

Administrative Science Quarterly
Human Relations
Organization Science
Strategic Management Journal

Moreover, if you have not yet developed the habit, I strongly recommend regular
reading of international news in The Economist, The New York Times, World Bank
Reports and other publications. News stories and analysis about firms, industries,
government policy, etc. that are closely related to what the academic readings cover on a
more theoretical level can be found almost daily and are an important stimulus for
scholarly activities and teaching.

Readings:

Khanna,T (2007) Billions of Entrepreneurs: How China and India are reshaping
their futures and yours. . Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

Other assigned readings:

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You should be able to directly download copies of most readings from the UTD
library online services. For book chapters or other readings that are not available
on-line, David Wang has kindly volunteered to serve as the “reserve central” for
master copies.

Course Requirements and Grading:

In small seminars, how we function together ultimately insures the quality

of the experience. Your active involvement is vital and this is reflected in the
evaluation scheme as follows:

Attendance and active participation: 20%

(includes turning in assigned reports, leading discussions)

Reviewing: once a “real journal submission” and also

for other class members 15%

Pilot literature review for originally proposed project 15%

Your project paper 50%

My expectations for each component of evaluation are explained below.

1) Attendance, participation and reports

I expect you to come to class thoroughly prepared by doing at a minimum

all of the required readings. Most weeks, each of you will be assigned to a
specific task, either focusing upon creating an analytical summary of a specific
reading and its contribution to the broader literature or a “lead” role in describing
critiquing and integrating major theories and research streams in a literature as
represented by a set of readings (see following section). A two to three page
(typed, double-spaced) critical summary of that assigned paper will be required
from each student, due at the beginning of class each week. A summary is not a
repetition of the paper, rather it is meant to provide an answer to two questions:

1) HOW does this article state a claim as a SIGNIFICANT contribution to a field

(and what is that field as they present it).

2) WHY has that claim led to its publication/citation? This includes how they fit
their methods, data and findings to the positioning established in answering the
first question.

To answer these questions, it is important to understand the following (though

your goal is to analyze these not simply list them):

Course Syllabus Page 3

 (a) a summary of the research question or problem the paper addresses,

(b) What theories does it draw on, and from which disciplines?

(c) The level of analysis and the research design and methods, if any.

(d) The paper’s strengths and limitations.

(e) The contribution it makes to the field, and its links to the other pieces
read.
Every summary should conclude with a paragraph that identifies at least one
interesting and researchable question derived from this paper that to your
knowledge is yet to be adequately addressed by the field. If the paper is more
than a couple of years old, include an appendix with its citation history (use Web
of Science and/or SSCI).

Please bring enough copies of you summaries to the class each week to
distribute to all the participants plus the professor.

2) Leading a Discussion:

All of you will have an opportunity to lead a class discussion. This requires
preparation beyond reading all of the assigned papers. Your goal is to ask
questions that enable the class to consider the articles as a group by asking
thought-provoking and integrative questions. You might also be asked to grade
the Summaries submitted by your colleagues that week. At our first meeting we
shall also want to identify some scholars whom we might invite to participate in
some class sessions.

2) Developing a bibliography and familiarizing colleagues with key

literature, “schools” and trends

During our first meeting, students will select a topic area within which they
intend to situate their class project. It is difficult to envision how to make a
contribution to a field if you do not understand what has been researched in the
past and apparent trends for current issues. Hence, though I ask you to begin
this assignment early in the course, it is closely connected to your project (see
below) and its quality will likely affect how well your project develops. I expect
each of you to have a different area. You should begin by perusing back issues
of main journals and looking at citation patterns. However, to pick up on current
rends you will want to look at what is in press (if possible) plus the programs for
the AOM and AIB meetings. A draft of this will be due with your first preliminary
abstract outlining your project (mid-semester).

3) Reviewing for other class members

Course Syllabus Page 4

 Once you begin submitting papers to conferences and journals, you will
quickly appreciate the extent to which the quality of reviews can help advance
your work. The art of reviewing will be important in your academic career and
being a good reviewer enhances your intellectual development and is a valued
collegial contribution.
The summaries give you some related experience, but in the case of
published articles, you are looking typically at the results of many drafts with
reviewer input already taken into account. For the projects, the challenge is to
help the author take rough ideas and topics and to help them refine these into a
worthwhile and interesting contribution to the field. You will receive proposals to
review the first week of October (proposals Due on September 30, 2008)

4) Paper project

There are several alternatives for this course: An empirical paper or a

conceptual paper or a research proposal (drawing on an international
management issue covered in or related to the course). You can also scout out
databases and project collaborations with professors and/ or advance graduate
students as long as the topic fits in with the course. Since, we unfortunately lack
a course on qualitative methods and use of surveys, I am going to provide some
basic methods information in this course and this is a great opportunity to try out
your skills with participant observation, interviewing and questionnaire
techniques. Alternatively, some of you might already have a thesis idea that you
might want to use this class to further develop, in which case the alternative
would be to work up a proposal of an empirical project (that might be either
qualitative or quantitative). In either scenario, the paper must demonstrate a
broad knowledge of the literature, an ability to integrate the literature, and
propose a novel research idea or conceptual contribution.
As stated above, a written outline/ proposal is due October 1, 2008). The
proposal should introduce the topic, briefly position it vis-à-vis the literature,
discuss the methods, proposed measures (as applicable) for conducting the
research and outline its intended contribution. Final papers (typically 18 double-
spaced pages, including bibliographies and figures) will be due ABSOLUTELY no
later than December 9, 2008. You must submit BOTH a hard copy PLUS a
WORD file via email to me by 4PM CST. I will absolutely not grade
submissions after that time unless there advanced arrangements made
with me for extenuating circumstances.

My expectation is that conceptual papers might end up ready, or at least

close to ready, for a conference submission. If there is an empirical component,
the research question, intended contribution to the field and the research design
should be well advanced in cases where you did not have the data to work on
during this seminar (though I do invite you to use the seminar for projects already
underway if you have them!)

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Scholastic Honesty:
I adhere to all applicable UTD policies. Plagiarism and other forms of cheating
will not be tolerated. At my discretion, I will run papers through TURNITIN.COM
Assignments & Academic Calendar
(Topics, Reading Assignments, Due Dates, Exam Dates)
Date Session number Topic Assignments
Due in class
8/26/2008 1 Initial Meeting – Introduction, planning No write-up
for course plus discussion of today’s due today
reading
Read prior to meeting:
Khanna: Chapters 1,2 and 3

9/2/2008 2 The agendas and identity of IB and IM:

overlap and complementarities

Prof. Eric Tsang

Required Readings:

1) Buckley, PJ ad P,N, Ghauri (2004)

Globalisation, economic geography and the
strategy of multinational enterprises.
Journal of International Business
Studies, Vol 35(2): 81-98 [Note: Prof.
Peng wrote a rebuttal to this article]

2 Toyne, B. and Douglas Nigh (1997).

“The Conceptual Domain of International
Business Inquiry," Pages 27-110, in B.
Toyne and D. Nigh (Eds.). International
Business: An Emerging Vision,
Columbia, USC Press. (Book Chapter)

4) Pankaj Ghemawat (2008)

Reconceptualizing international strategy
and organization
Strategic Organization Vol 6: 195-206

5) Meyer, K. (2007) Contextualising

organizational learning: Lyles and Salk in
the context of their research',: Journal of
International Business Studies, 38(1): pp.
27-37(11)

Course Syllabus Page 6

9/09/2008 3 Basics: Epistemological and
Methodological issues that confront the
IM scholar?

1) DeRond, M. and Thietart, RA (2008)

Strategic Management Journal

2) ) Wikipedia entries for “Positivism”,

“Normal Science,” and “Karl Popper.”
Ethnography

3) Danny Miller (2007)”Paradigm prison,

or in praise of atheoretic research”
Strategic Organization , Volume 5: 177-
184

4) Stephen J. Mezias and Michael O.

Regnier (2007) “Walking the walk as well
as talking the talk: replication and the
normal science paradigm in strategic
management research . Strategic
Organization, Volume 5, pp:

5) Sullivan, D. (1998) 'Cognitive

Tendencies in International Business
Research: Implications of a "Narrow
Vision"'.' Journal of International
Business Studies, 29(4): 837-855

6) Kohn, Melvin (1987). “Cross-national

Research as an Analytic Strategy [copy on
reserve]

7) Optional: Mayhew, B. (1980).

“Structuralism versus individualism, Part
1” Social Forces, 59 (December). (If you
already have read this, just skim for main
ideas)

9/16/2008 4) More Basics: Crafting contribution:

rhetoric and originality

NOTE: Note: Think about your project

ideas in connection
with readings by this session if you are

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 not already doing so!

For this class I would like each of you to

search though
the top journals and find an exemplar of
“excellent”
International Management research in
your selected domain.
You might want to look at citation
counts, various awards
given by the AOM or AIB over the years.
Or it can be based on
your taste. No overlaps – as soon as you
identify it,
notify the rest of the participants.
Be prepared to explain and discuss what
makes this research excellent

1) Davis, Murray S. (1971). "That's

interesting! Towards a Phenomenology of
Sociology and a Sociology of
Phenomenology," Philosophy of Social
Science, 1:309-344. [reserve]

2) Locke, K. and K. Golden-Biddle (1997).

“Constructing opportunities for
contribution: Structuring inter-textual
coherence and problematizing in
organizational studies.” Academy of
Management Journal.

3)Information from journals on editorial

policy concerning “high quality” research
Calls for papers:

9/23/2008 5 Theorizing the MNC :

Required Readings:

1) Westney, D. E. (1999). Organizational

evolution of the MNE:
An organizational social perspective.
Management International Review.
Special Issue. 39 (1): 55-75

Course Syllabus Page 8

 2)Hedlund, G. (1986). “The Hypermodern
MNC - A Heterarchy?” Human Resource
Management, Spring (V. 25) 9-35.

3)Tsoukas, H. (1996). The firm as a

distributed knowledge system: A
constructionist approach. Strategic
Management Journal. 17 (Winter Special
Issue):

4) Montiero, L.F, Arvidsson, N. and

Birkenshaw, J. (2008). Knowledge flows
within multinational corporations:
Explaining subsidiary isolation and its
performance implications. Organization
Science, Vol. 19(1): 91-107

5)Buckley, P. and Casson, M. (1998).

Models of the MNE. Journal of
International Business Studies. 29: 21-44

09/30/2008 6 The MNC as Context for learning and YOUR

for knowledge management LITERATUR
E REVIEW
1)Kogut, B. and U. Zander (1993). AND FIRST
Knowledge of the firm and the evolutionary DRAFT OF
theory of the multinational corporation. YOUR
Journal of International Business PROJECT
Studies. 24: 625-645. DUE

2)Dyer, J. and K. Nobeoka (2000). Creating

and managing a high-performance
knowledge-sharing network: The Toyota
case. Strategic Management Journal. 21:
345-367

3)Luo, Xiawei (2007)

Continuous Learning: The Influence of
National Institutional Logics on Training
Attitudes.. Organization Science,
Mar/Apr2007, Vol. 18 Issue 2, p280-296,

4)Gupta, A. and V. Govindarajan (2000).

Course Syllabus Page 9

 Knowledge flows within multinational
corporations. Strategic Management
Journal. 21: 473-496

5) Tsoukas, H. (1996). The firm as a

distributed knowledge system: A
constructionist approach. Strategic
Management Journal. 17 (Winter Special
Issue): 11-25

10/07/2008 7 Managing and Communicating Across YOUR

Cultures REVIEWS
DUE TODAY
1) Stahl, G., K. and Voigt, A. (2008)
Do Cultural Differences Matter in
Mergers and Acquisitions? A
Tentative Model and Examination.
Organization Science, Vol. 19 (1):
pp. 160-176.
2)Brannen, MY, Gomez, C. Peterson, MF,
Romani, L, Sagiv, L and P. Wu (2004).
People in Global Organizations: Culture,
Personality and Social Dynamics. Chapter
2 in Lane, Maznevski, Mednhall and
McNett (ed). The Blackwell Handbook of
Global Management. Oxford, UK:
Blackwell Publishing, pp 26-54. (Master)

3) Triandis, H (a reserve reading TBA)

4) Salk, J. E. and O. Shenkar (2001).

“Social identities and cooperation in an
international joint venture: An exploratory
case study.” Organization Science, 12 (2),
161-178.

4)Salk, J.E. and M. Y. Brannen (2000)

“National culture, networks and individual
influence in a multi-national management
team.” Academy of Management
Journal, 43 (12), 191-202

10/14/2008 8 Alliances: a tour of the field

1) Barkema, H., O. Shenkar, F. Vermeulen
and J. Bell (1997). Working abroad,

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 working with others: How firms learn to
operate international joint ventures.
Academy of Management Journal. 40
(2): 426-442

2)Gulati, R. and H. Singh (1998). The

architecture of cooperation: Managing
coordination costs and appropriation
concerns in strategic alliances.
Administrative Science Quarterly. 43 (4):
781-814

3)Lane, P.J., J. E. Salk and M. Lyles,

(2001). “Absorptive capacity, learning and
performance in international joint
ventures.” Strategic Management
Journal, 22 (12), 1139-1162.

4)Salk, J. E. and B. Simonin (2003).

Beyond Alliances: Towards a Meta-Theory
of Collaborative Learning. In M. Easterby-
Smith and M. Lyles (Eds.) Handbook of
Organizational Learning. Basil-
Blackwell Press. [reserve reading]

5)Yan, A. and M. Zeng (1999).

International joint venture instability: A
critique of previous research, a
reconceptualization, and directions for
future research. Journal of International
Business Studies. 30: 397-414

10/21/2008 9 NO CLASS—WORK ON
PROPOSAL/PROJECT
10/28/2008 10 TBA*
11/04/2008 11 TBA*
11/11/2008 12 TBA*
11/18/2008 13 Presentations with Q&A discussion

11/25/2008 14 Presentations with Questions and Answers

12/2/2008 15 No class today individual meetings on

projects
12/09/2008 16 PROJECTS DUE TODAY

Course Syllabus Page 11

12/16/2008 17 EXAM WK NOTHING?

:
For sessions currently marked TBA we have several topics to choose among. My
suggestions (not exhaustive, as we can entertain your input):
1) International Strategic Management
2) Ethnography and Field Research in IM
3) The OB/IM interface
4) Other options include CSR, Entrepreneurship….

Course Syllabus Page 12

Student Information Sheet
IM Seminar Fall 2006

General Information

Name: ____________________________
Phone # ____________________________

Email: ____________________________

Hometown/State or Country: ____________________________

Interests:

Prior Research and Publications:

Current research:?

Course Syllabus Page 13