Individual network effect on knowledge transfer and social upgrading: a micrcofoundations approach

Internal seminar for researchers

Abstract: Multinational enterprises (MNEs) are increasingly deepening their involvement in Africa by way of foreign direct investment (FDI). However, given the institutional and societal challenges in the region, we remain little informed about how the MNEs impact on socio-economic development becomes an important line of enquiry. Given the novel, challenging setting of Africa and MNEs’ deepening involvement in the region, we use data collected through a unique survey of 231 managers and employees of 8 multinational enterprises (MNEs) operating in Ghana and applying the microfoundations approach, to investigate the impact of social network position on individuals’ (i.e., managers and employees) knowledge learning within the Ghanaian subsidiaries, and the subsequent effect on individuals’ social upgrading. We find individual network centrality to positively affect skill improvement, which significantly contributes to the upgrading of individuals’ quality of life and employability, but not social status. We contribute to IB research by developing a conceptual framework that integrates the theory on social network centrality with the concept of skill improvement and three measures of social upgrading to examine the sustainability implications of MNE FDI in Africa.