The globalising Chinese business enterprise: the role of strategic fit

Abstract

To achieve full performance potential in becoming a global business competitor, enterprises in transitioning economies, particularly Chinese business enterprises, must identify and rectify deficiencies in their resources and capabilities. Too often, prescriptive advice on globalisation requirements is given that is too narrowly focused on accommodating the full range and interactive effects of multiple action responses needed. We offer an approach that is useful for considering the range of options for Chinese firms through the lens of multiple response levels, ambient factors, the individual level, the intraorganisational level and the interorganisational level. We argue that the approach allows the identification of deficient resources and capabilities which, upon being remedied, must pass another hurdle of analysis, that of inspecting their potential for misalignment or poor strategic fit. While the approach is especially well-suited to China, the concept may also be suitable for other transitioning environments.