A network perspective on inter-organizational transfer of R&D capabilities: A study of international joint ventures in Chinese automotive industry

This study addresses the transfer of R&D capabilities between organizations embedded in drastically different organizational contexts. We use a network perspective to study the transfer of R&D capabilities by multinational enterprises to their international joint ventures. We first identify different networks involved in the R&D capability transfer process, taking the perspectives of the source and recipient organizations, as well as the “bridge network” interface between them. We then assess the impact of different attributes of these networks on the effectiveness of R&D capability transfer, based on the notion that R&D capabilities consist of substantial elements of collective knowledge. The attributes include a source organization’s teaching capability, a recipient organization’s learning capability, and the interface between them. We provide exploratory empirical evidence from a qualitative study of international joint ventures in the Chinese automotive industry. The contribution of this paper lies in its extension of prior studies of knowledge transfer through combining the network and knowledge-based lenses, with a particular focus on R&D capability transfer from developed to less developed countries.