Inequality in the 21st Century

The London School of Economics & Political Science

London, UK

July 02 - 04, 2015

GVC studies have become a cornerstone for policy makers in understanding the dynamics of internationalization and their impacts on countries and economic systems. On the one hand, GVC scholars have explored how lead firms are able to shape inter-firm relationships at the global scale through different mechanisms of governance. On the other hand, GVC studies disentangle upgrading processes to explain how firms can modify their position in the GVC and capture more value created. The focus on large firms (buyers) as drivers of the chain has been recently put under scrutiny by additional studies, where scholars identified the rise of large suppliers as having an important role in impacting on the structure of GVCs.

Management studies have underlined multiple transformations in the economic scenario highlighting important factors that can describe and explain the paradigm shift from mass production to mass customization and the emerging third industrial revolution. A first important issue refers to the role of manufacturing activities as value driver: a new centrality of manufacturing processes impacts on the GVC framework – between lead firms and suppliers, between developed and developing countries. A second related topic is the role of SMEs as leading participants in internationalization processes as many studies of international business pointed out. A third relevant issue is related to the role of network technologies in transforming business models and redesigning relationships among players within the value chains, with the rise of completely new (online) players.  

Despite the connections between GVC and management theoretical contributions such as the Porter’s view of value chains or international business related studies, GVC approach has developed quite independently from a direct dialogue with management studies. Management studies are instead putting the understanding and explanation of new economic trends mentioned above at the heart of recent analyses. Hence, they can contribute to enhance the comprehension of those transformations with specific theoretical schemes and methodological sets of analysis, with positive interconnection with the GVC framework.

We welcome papers focused on:

• Studies on firms’ strategies and their implications on GVC structure and governance;
• The role of SMEs in GVCs by considering multiple perspectives: SMEs and craftsmanship, SMEs and their competitive strategies, SMEs and clusters; 
• The impacts of ICT and new manufacturing technologies on value creation and GVC structure;
• The link between manufacturing activities, innovation, and value creation in GVCs, by considering both developed and developing countries;
• Innovation and knowledge management processes in firms and GVCs.

The panel session is devoted to explore from multiple angles those and related issues through both theoretical and empirical works developed in the realm of management studies.