Multi-business firms are frequently struggling with the fundamental question of how parent staff should organize and influence their businesses to create competitive advantage. On the one hand, it is now widely accepted that the activities of parents, such as synergy management and the organization of shared services, can create value and hence are important drivers of firm performance. On the other hand, it is suggested that parents frequently lack the knowledge and understanding of their sub-units’ activities and businesses for example due to information overload and limited attention spans. In the multinational network organization spanning different countries, cultures, and institutional contexts, such problems for the parent are aggravated. How do large multinationals handle this issue? And what are the effects of new ways of organizing parenting activities on the efficiency and effectiveness of the MNC?

Few studies have, so far, investigated the behavior, role and value adding of contemporary headquarters in a systematic way. The increasingly dynamic business environment amplify the uncertainty for headquarters in, for instance, organizational design problems, goal incongruence and information asymmetry. Recognizing the contemporary descriptions of the multinational corporation and its environment it becomes evident that headquarters and its managerial task have increased in complexity.

We have received a number of outstanding contributions to our workshop that are tackling the above research questions. Furthermore, we are happy to announce that Prof. Udo Zander as well as Prof. William Egelhoff will hold keynote speeches. Therefore, we are looking forward to fruitful and exciting discussions.

Please note that there is no attendance fee. However, participants are required to confirm their participation by registering for the workshop no later than May 18th, 2011. Please send an email to Maria Kahlen ( mk.smg@cbs.dk) with your registration and please state if you have any special dietary requirements.

Participants are responsible for their own travel and accommodation costs. We recommend the following hotels which are located close to CBS: CABINN – Hotel Scandinavia & Radisson – Falconer Hotel (NB! Radisson might be fully booked already.)

Please check www.visitcopenhagen.com for other hotels at Frederiksberg and in Copenhagen.

For any questions regarding the workshop, please contact Ulf Andersson ( ua.smg@cbs.dk) or Phillip C. Nell ( pcn.smg@cbs.dk).For practical issues, please contact Maria Kahlen ( mk.smg@cbs.dk).
 

You can find the detailed workshop program at the link below: