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This chapter complements the one that appeared as “History of the AIB Fellows: 1975–2008” in Volume 14 of this series (International Business Scholarship: AIB Fellows on the First 50 Years and Beyond, Jean J. Boddewyn, Editor). It traces what happened under the deanship of Alan Rugman (2011–2014) who took many initiatives reported here while his death in July 2014 generated trenchant, funny, and loving comments from more than half of the AIB Fellows. The lives and contributions of many other major international business scholars who passed away from 2008 to 2014 are also evoked here: Endel Kolde, Lee Nehrt, Howard Perlmutter, Stefan Robock, John Ryans, Vern Terpstra, and Daniel Van Den Bulcke.

Identifies critical elements of the contents for design of an effective management education programme for international joint venture managers.

Reviews the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

In the business world, imitation gets a bad rap. We see imitating firms as “me too” players, forced to play catchup because they have nothing original to offer. In Copycats, Oded Shenkar challenges this viewpoint. He reveals how imitation is as critical to prosperity as innovation and how savvy imitators generate huge profits. They save not only on R&D costs but also on marketing and advertising investments made by first movers, and avoid costly errors by observing and learning from others' trials.

Provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.

Provides strategic insights and practical thinking that can have a broader social impact.

Copycats presents suggestions for making imitation a core element in your competitive strategy and pairing it powerfully with innovation.

More awareness of the variations in robot types and technology is necessary. The impact on human operators appears to vary significantly between the different types of robot, and there is a large variation in the Motivating Potential Scores of operators, with those of articulated intelligent robot operators being the highest.

The international business literature has long acknowledged that firms face disadvantages when engaging in business abroad. This disadvantage is expressed in such constructs as the costs of doing business abroad, the liability of foreignness and the country-of-origin effect; however, none of these constructs fully captures the potential liability associated with the home base of the multinational enterprise. We develop a new construct, liability of home, aimed at filling this gap, providing insights into the theory and practice of international business.

Amidst the diverse forms of international direct investment, the international joint venture (IJV) appears to have become the fastest growing, most popular type of operation. An IJV may be defined as “a separate legal organizational entity representing the partial holdings of two or more parent firms, in which the headquarters of at least one parent firm is located outside the country of operation of the joint venture. This entity is subject to the joint control of its parent firms, each of which is economically and legally independent of the other”.

Most years, several AIB members are elected as AIB Fellows on account of their excellent international business scholarship, and/or past service as AIB President or Executive Secretary. The Fellows are in charge of electing Eminent Scholars as well as the International Executive and International Educator (formerly, Dean) of the Year, who often provide the focus for Plenary Sessions at AIB Conferences. Their history since 1975 covers over half of the span of the AIB and reflects many issues that dominated that period in terms of research themes, progresses and problems, the internationalization of business education and the role of international business in society and around the globe. Like other organizations, the Fellows Group had their ups and downs, successes and failures – and some fun too!

A case study in which perceptions regarding the introduction of computer terminals to the branches of an Israeli bank is presented. Employees appear to believe that computers improve service to customers and facilitate data gathering and communication, but are somewhat less optimistic regarding their impact on job content variables. Employee perceptions in branches where computer terminals have already been installed do not differ significantly from those of employees in branches where the terminals have not been installed yet, except regarding the computer contribution to the provision of new types of banking services. A Smallest Space Analysis generated six spatial regions of employee perceptions concerning computer impact: efficiency, authority, employee redundancy, job problems, communications problems, and computer problems. Gender and hierarchical differences are also discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the features of Chinese multinational enterprises (MNEs), and identify the obstacles that Chinese firms must overcome if they are to become viable global competitors, as well as some of the strategies that can take them there.

Based on statistical data, the paper examines entry mode, regional and geographical distribution of Chinese outward foreign direct investment. It also discusses the obstacles, weaknesses and strengths of Chinese firms, and suggests where and how such firms can improve their capabilities.

If they are to become global competitors, Chinese firms need to develop an “MNE with Chinese characteristics” which builds on strengths such as a deep understanding of personal networks to solidify coordination and takes advantage of a tradition of appreciation of human relationships.

The paper presents a great deal of insight into Chinese MNEs.