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Department of International Economics and Management (IEM)

Department of International Economics and Management (IEM)

The Department's research field – international corporate business activities and their interplay with the communities and business environments in which they operate – has never been more topical than today in light of the current emphasis on globalisation. This highly interdisciplinary and dynamic research field comprises everything from studies of national differences with regard to regulation mechanisms and culture to strategic positioning in international markets and management of international business units.

Highlights of 2004

Internationalisation
  • In cooperation with the University of Southern Denmark, CBS/the Department hosted the 20th international IMP conference with the participation of leading researchers in the fields of international marketing / business economics (September)
  • Contribution to the development and introduction of two new international study programmes (the MSc. programme in Multinational Strategy, Economics and Governance and the Asia Study Programme – China specialisation)
  • The Department achieved a very high rate of publication again this year, including several important publications in top journals such as the China Quarterly, Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Management Studies and California Management Review.
Partnership with the business community
  • In 2004, the Department initiated an ambitious, long-term partnership with the Confederation of Danish Industries to establish joint research projects concerning international outsourcing with particular emphasis on management aspects
  • In 2004, the Asia Business Forum consolidated its activities and membership and continued the development of its seminar and networking concept by way of intensified collaboration with leading sponsors
  • The Shipping & Logistics MBA programme, for which the Department has the academic responsibility, set up an Advisory Board of ten prominent business leaders and academics from the maritime sectors in Denmark, the UK, Norway and Germany.
The learning university
  • The establishment of the Center for Knowledge Governance and the Department's contribution in connection with the planning and implementation of a research conference in December on the subject of HRM Practices and Knowledge Processes
  • Institutionalising and intensifying IEM's internal seminars and workshops to ensure better integration of the Department's research and development of a common frame of reference
  • In 2004, the Department worked closely with a considerable number (eight) of international visiting professors (from the USA, Holland, Australia, India, China, Sweden, and the UK) to enhance its already international orientation as regards learning processes and new academic approaches.
  • Strengthening the Department's research capacity and qualifications by establishing two new professorships with the emphasis on dynamic development areas: (1) IT and internationalisation, and (2) Transformation processes in Eastern and Central Europe.

Academic profile

The Department of International Economics and Management covers all aspects of cross-border business activities, including international activities concerning goods, capital, human resources and knowledge. This includes not only management issues in connection with the organisation, management and strategic orientation of the international company, but also economic, political and cultural differences, which influence and are influenced by such enterprises. By nature, the Department's research is interdisciplinary and multimethodical. The Department's research includes four core areas providing the framework for various groups of Department researchers:
(1) "Emerging Markets", primarily organised at the Asia Research Center (ARC) and the Center for East European Studies (CEES), which are affiliated to the Department
(2) " Organisation and management of the International Company". The recently established Center for Knowledge Governance plays an important role in relation to this field of research
(3) "International Strategy" concerns the positioning of enterprises on foreign markets and their choice of market operation and involvement in strategic alliances
(4) "International Corporate Governance" focuses on various aspects of management such as structures of ownership and executive boards and international variations in such structures.

Research strategy

The unifying principle of the Department across individual areas of interest and various theoretical approaches is the study of the international company. Today, the Department produces significant and interesting research and it is its goal to reach a wider audience and to acquire more significance by disseminating research results more widely. This will be accomplished through a dialogue with the Danish business community and the international research community. In the latter context, the central position of several Department researchers as editors of important journals is a great asset to the Department.

Research results

An important Department production goal is the number of publications, especially in English language journals, as these journals are the primary international discussion forums of leading researchers all over the world. The Department objective is for as many members of its staff as possible to contribute to the fulfilment of this ambition.
It appears from Figure 1 that the Department succeeded in increasing the number of foreign language publications over the last five years. At the same time the quality has also been significantly improved, especially over the last couple of years, as several articles in 2004 were published in top journals such as: China Quarterly, Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Management Studies, California Management Review and Journal of Business Research.
Figure 1: Department research funds 2000-2004

Research funds

In 2004, each member of the Department staff had an average of more than two foreign-language articles published in international journals. This is a highly satisfactory level of publication with the best research environments in Europe. In the coming year the Department will increasingly aim for publication in the best journals.
The Department will continue its efforts to ensure that young researchers in particular get to publish their results in international journals (e.g. by collaborating with senior researchers). We are therefore very pleased to see that after a couple of years of studies all IEM PhD students are getting their research results published.

Research relations to practice

The Department's strong focus on the problems of the international company forms the basis of a substantial affiliation to the Danish business community. Over the years, many working relationships have developed in the areas of education (the HD programme in Marketing/Foreign Trade, the BSc. programme in International Business and the Internship programme) and research (Asia Business Forum, DI international outsourcing, Knowledge Management Forum and the Corporate Governance network).
Figure 2: IEM publications 2000 - 2004

Publications 2000-2004

Figure 2 shows a moderate decline in the total Department research funds due to the termination of a number of major EU and Research Council projects. The Department will be dedicated to new initiatives in this field in the coming period. The other areas, including external partnership funding etc., have developed satisfactorily and in line with the positive trend of recent years. The Department is hopeful of the initiatives launched to establish partnership relations with Danish enterprises in the form of academic dialogue and as a means to attract more external funds to the Department. The partnership activities are given high priority in terms of Department development and visibility to the Danish public.

Last updated by Tine Büchler Poulsen 27/11/2008