Prof. Jean-Francois Hennart visits the Centre for International Business

The IB Department had the pleasure to host a seminar by Prof. Jean-Francois Hennart at the Centre for International Business at the University of Leeds (CIBUL).

Jean-François Hennart (PhD Economics, University of Maryland) is Emeritus Professor of International Management at Tilburg University and one of the leading IB scholars worldwide. His research focuses on the comparative study of international economic institutions such as multinational firms and their contractual alternatives.

 In his presentation titled “Emerging market competition, nationalism, and the decline of the liberal order: why are we surprised?”, Prof. Hennart argued that the reason why several Western scholars have been surprised by the speed at which emerging market firms have caught up, is due to four faulty assumptions made by them over the years, as follows: (1) that technology is more strategic than access to complementary factors; (2) that shareholder-value maximization is, or soon will be, the goal of managers worldwide; (3) that economic integration will lead to political convergence; (4) and that the fear of economic losses will prevent the adoption of lose-lose economic strategies. Professor Hennart claimed that going forwards, it is essential to revisit these assumptions and take into consideration political economic and geopolitical factors. 

We are grateful for the great attendance from faculty and PhD students and the lively discussions.