International business capability influences on corporate, industrial and national competitiveness

The thesis of this dissertation is that international corporate business capability has significant moderating influence on competitiveness among firms. International business capability is assessed using the following factors: foreign sales/revenue, foreign assets, and foreign income margins. Competitiveness is determined by factors which reflect a firm's profitability, asset utilization and growth. This study utilizes data bases that contain financial information compiled from over 7000 firms from 48 countries from the period 1980 through 1989.;The dissertation reviews the relevant literature concerning strategic management, international business, and international relations. The historical development of this literature is traced emphasizing business competitiveness in the international economic environment. Strategic management approaches competitiveness as problems in managerial competence in seeking competitive advantage over a firm's rivals. International business focuses upon the rationale for a firm to venture outside the boundaries of its domestic market into a wider international environment. International relations involves among other things, the ability of a nation-state to maintain sovereignty over its domestic affairs while seeking to influence circumstances beyond its boundaries.;The main hypotheses of the study states that a firm's ability to conduct successfully business across national borders is positively correlated with that firm's competitiveness. In addition, the study theorizes that over time international business capability is increasingly important in determining a firm's ability to compete. Secondary hypotheses focus upon the level of international business capability in different industrial and regional groups in an effort to explain variations of business competitiveness at the industry and national levels.;In statistically testing the hypotheses, canonical and set correlation analyses are utilized. Canonical correlation permits the establishment of the existence of correlation between international business capability variables with those of asset utilization, profitability and growth. Set correlation is used to validate the direction of the correlation and its relative strength.;The results of the statistical analyses confirms the main and secondary hypotheses of the study. There is a positive increasing correlation between international business capability and corporate, industrial and national competitiveness from 1980 through 1989. The findings of the study suggest far reaching implications for corporate planners and national policy makers as economies become increasingly multinational and interdependent.