Table 1. Comparison of four research projects in international business.

 

Dimension Sugar Project SME Project Expatriate Project Elevator Project

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Focus area business networks dynamics of expatriate less-hierarchical organizations

internationalization performance mgt and inter-unit communication

 

Industry sugar high-tech and telecommunications elevator

high-design

Type of focal organization commodity SMEs MNC MNC

exporter

 

 

Number of elite 17 19 14 44

interviewees

 

Share in relation to total 49% 90% 17% 36%

number of interviewees

 

Average age of elites 60 yrs 50 yrs 45 yrs 50 yrs

 

Gender of elites 1 female all males all males 2 females

 

Distribution of elites Australian, British, all Finnish Australian, Finnish, Austrian, Australian, British,

by nationality Mauritian Swedish Finnish, German, Italian,

Mexican, Spanish

Type of elites business and business and business business

government government

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Table 2. Criteria for identifying elite interviewees across four projects in international business.

Criterion Sugar Project SME Project Expatriate Project Elevator Project

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  1. Organizational hierarchy
  1. Corporate values and

history

manufacturing

(3) Personal assets

and external and external and external

(4) International exposure high high high high

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Abbreviations

CHQ = corporate headquarters

RHQ = regional headquarters

DS = domestic subsidiary

FS = foreign subsidiary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Table 3. Summary of effective procedures used in elite interviews across the four research projects.

Stage Sugar Project SME Project Expatriate Project Elevator Project

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  1. Access to elites professionalism, professionalism, professionalism, professionalism,
  2. external and cascading, ‘insider’ strategy ‘insider’ strategy,

    internal cascading external cascading, cascading,

    and snowballing, snowballing, snowballing, snowballing,

    non-commercial pay-off in very non-commercial English and

    aims of the study concrete terms aims of the study, ‘company speak’

    English and ‘company in communication

    speak’ in communication

  3. Power of elites professionalism, professionalism, professionalism, professionalism,
  4. encouraging ‘insider’ ‘insider’ strategy, ‘insider strategy,

    intellectual strategy, encouraging capitalizing on gaps

    dialogue, capitalizing intellectual dialogue,

    capitalizing on on gaps capitalizing on gaps

    gaps

  5. Openness of elites capitalizing on capitalizing on capitalizing on capitalizing on gaps, gaps gaps gaps, avoiding the use avoiding the use
  6. of translators of translators

  7. Feedback to elites final draft internal seminar, executive summaries, final draft,

final draft final draft choosing the

appropriate language

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________