Varieties of Capitalism and Strategic Management: Managing Performance in Multinationals after the Global Financial Crisis

This paper examines the varieties of capitalism thesis for its implications for strategy and strategic management. It considers the grounds for an integrated approach to strategic management, which will make firms less susceptible to sudden economic change in global markets. The paper is structured into four parts. In the first, the nature of the varieties of capitalism thesis is examined (Hall P. A. and Soskice D. (2001). ‘An introduction to varieties of capitalism’. In P. A. Hall and D. (eds), Varieties of Capitalism: The Institutional Foundations of Comparative Advantage, pp. 1‐68. Oxford: Oxford University Press). In the second part, two distinct strands of theory and research in strategic management (the outside-in and inside-out views of strategy) are considered, and how these might condition thinking about strategy, management and organizational learning. The third part explores convergence in strategic management, and explicates a model from research at Nissan, which brings core competencies and dynamic capabilities to the strategic management of the large multinational firm. The fourth part concludes with a critical assessment of the varieties of capitalism and the likelihood of a convergent strategic management after the global financial crisis.