
Dr Shasha Zhao
About
Biography
Background:
Dr Zhao is Associate Professor (Senior Lecturer) of International Business and Innovation in the Department of Strategy and International Business, Surrey University Business School. She is an Associate of Centre for International Business and Development at Sussex University, The Africa-Asia Centre for Sustainability at University of Aberdeen, and Centre for Social Innovation Management at Surrey University. She is also a Sustainability Fellow at Institute for Sustainability at University of Surrey. She was a Visiting Research Fellow at Sussex University Business School in 2020. She previously held positions at University of London, Plymouth University and Middlesex University. Her research focuses on global innovation strategy and knowledge management of multinationals in and from emerging economies, and impact on sustainable development.
Editorial Experience:
Dr Zhao is Deputy Editor of Asian Business and Management and Senior Editor of European Journal of International Management and an active editorial board member of Management International Review, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Journal of International Business Policy, and AIB Insights, and regular reviewer of Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of World Business, Journal of Management, British Journal of Management, Journal of Management Studies, International Business Review, Cross Cultural and Strategic Management, and Management and Organization Review.
Publication Record:
She has published in various elite journals, including Journal of World Business (ABS4), International Business Review (ABS3), Asia Pacific Journal of Management (ABS3), Human Resource Management Journal (ABS4), International Marketing Review (ABS3), Thunderbird International Business Review (ABS2) and Critical Perspectives on International Business (ABS2). She has also published Op-Ed in United Nations' IAP as well as chapter in AIB UKI Palgrave Book Series.
Recognition:
Dr Zhao's lead-authored paper on multinational R&D in emerging Asia won the Best Paper Award at Euro-Asia Management Studies Association (EAMSA) Annual Meeting. Her research on knowledge management of emerging economy multinationals was featured in European International Business Academy Newsletter EIBAZINE. Her work on MNEs and Covid-19 has been selected for inclusion in the WHO Covid-19 Research Database.
She is on the Academy of international Business Advisory Council (along with Robert Grosse, Maria Tereza Fleury, Geoffrey Jones, Sri Zaheer, Peter Liesch, Stewart Miller, William Newburry, and Jeremy Clegg) and was nominated for the role of Vice-President Program of the Academy of International Business.
She was invited as a Keynote speaker at AIB Oceania Conference, 2021, as well as as an invited speaker at The Green Institute (part of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network) Symposium during the World Environment Day, 2022.
She is a twice awardee of The Surrey Values Awards for demonstrating values in inclusion, inspiration, innovation, and integrity and was nominated for the 'Most Empowering Teacher' Award, Middlesex University London.
Contribution to Sustainable Development:
Dr Zhao is Co-Founder and Co-Chair of Academy of International Business Sustainability Shared Interest Group (S-SIG). She is also one of four long-standing organizing committee member of CYGNA – a global women academics support network with over 300 members.
Dr Zhao was part of the Inaugural Panel entitled: Investment in Sustainable Recovery, co-organized by Academy of International Business (AIB) and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to discuss research and policy implication for a more sustainable post-covid recovery. She was also part of a panel at the 7th World Investment Forum 2021 on Investment in Sustainable Development. She will also present her research on sustainability and international business in Ghana at the World Investment Forum in Abu Dhabi, 2023.
Dr Zhao is currently editing a Special Issue in International Business Review (ABS3) on the topic of: MNE Innovation for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, a Special Issue in Asian Business & Management on the topic of MNEs, SDGs, and Asia, and a Special Issue in AIB Insights (official AIB journal) on the topic of: Managing Sustainable Development in International Business. She also edited a Special Issue entitled: Do MNEs contribute to, or reduce inequality?, which has been published in Critical Perspectives on International Business (ABS2).
University Roles
Department Research Lead (2020-2023): Initiated and organized research tea series for the department, organized Surrey-Sussex joint research seminar series with Sussex University.
University Research Ethics Committee (2020-2023): Evaluate research ethics applications submitted by colleagues from across the university
Sustainability Fellow: Institute for Sustainability, University of Surrey
Personal Interest:
In her spare time, Dr Zhao is a semi-professional badminton player, playing county league matches under Badminton England. She also enjoys playing golf and piano.
She is a Gold level donator to Women in Academy of International Business Shared Interest Group every year and regularly volunteers in her local schools and communities.
She made a total donation of 16,000 face masks to University of Surrey and Birmingham University during the Pandemic in 2020.
My qualifications
Previous roles
Inaugural Track Co-Chair: Sustainability and International Business, Academy of International Business Annual Meeting, Miami, USA, 2021
Conference Track Co-Chair: How Digital Innovation Leads to Inclusivity and Sustainable Development Resilience, International Conference on Sustainable Development, Columbia University, New York, 09/2021
Track Co-Chair: Emerging Markets, European International Business Academy, Oslo, Norway, 2022
ResearchResearch interests
Research Interests:
Dr Zhao's current research centres on innovation and knowledge management of multinationals in and from emerging economies. She is also passionate about conducting research into the wider sustainability implications of MNE R&D and innovation activities. Most recently, she has been exploring digital technologies and industry 4.0 in international business and sustainable development.
Journals:
Dr Zhao has published in a wide range of journals including Journal of World Business, International Business Review, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Human Resource Management Journal, International Marketing Review, Critical Perspectives on International Business, and Thunderbird International Business Review. She is currently working on several papers for Journal of World Business, Journal of International Business Studies, and International Business Review. Her lead-authored paper on innovation in emerging Asia won the Best Paper Award at Euro-Asia Management Studies Association (EAMSA) Annual Meeting, 2019.
Guest Editing:
Currently editing a Special Issue in International Business Review (ABS3) on the topic of: MNE Innovation for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Currently editing a Special Issue in AIB Insights (Official AIB Journal) on the topic of: Managing Sustainable Development in International Business
Edited a Special Issue entitled: Do MNEs contribute to, or reduce inequality?, which has been published in Critical Perspectives on International Business (ABS2).
Editorial Experience:
Associate Editor - Asian Business and Management
Senior Editor - European Journal of International Management
Editorial Review Board - Management International Review; Cross Cultural and Strategic Management; International Journal of Emerging Markets
Reviewer responsibility - Journal of International Business Studies; British Journal of Management, International Business Review; Journal of International Management; Asia Pacific Journal of Management; Management and Organization Review, etc
Reviewer responsibility - Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Insight Grant, B&M Track)
Successful Research Grants:
Co-investigator of ERASMUS+
Co-investigator of UGPN Grant
Research interests
Research Interests:
Dr Zhao's current research centres on innovation and knowledge management of multinationals in and from emerging economies. She is also passionate about conducting research into the wider sustainability implications of MNE R&D and innovation activities. Most recently, she has been exploring digital technologies and industry 4.0 in international business and sustainable development.
Journals:
Dr Zhao has published in a wide range of journals including Journal of World Business, International Business Review, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Human Resource Management Journal, International Marketing Review, Critical Perspectives on International Business, and Thunderbird International Business Review. She is currently working on several papers for Journal of World Business, Journal of International Business Studies, and International Business Review. Her lead-authored paper on innovation in emerging Asia won the Best Paper Award at Euro-Asia Management Studies Association (EAMSA) Annual Meeting, 2019.
Guest Editing:
Currently editing a Special Issue in International Business Review (ABS3) on the topic of: MNE Innovation for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Currently editing a Special Issue in AIB Insights (Official AIB Journal) on the topic of: Managing Sustainable Development in International Business
Edited a Special Issue entitled: Do MNEs contribute to, or reduce inequality?, which has been published in Critical Perspectives on International Business (ABS2).
Editorial Experience:
Associate Editor - Asian Business and Management
Senior Editor - European Journal of International Management
Editorial Review Board - Management International Review; Cross Cultural and Strategic Management; International Journal of Emerging Markets
Reviewer responsibility - Journal of International Business Studies; British Journal of Management, International Business Review; Journal of International Management; Asia Pacific Journal of Management; Management and Organization Review, etc
Reviewer responsibility - Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Insight Grant, B&M Track)
Successful Research Grants:
Co-investigator of ERASMUS+
Co-investigator of UGPN Grant
Supervision
Postgraduate research supervision
Dr Zhao has successfully supervised and examined PhD students in the past.
Dr Zhao welcomes prospective PhD students who have research interests in the following areas to get in touch:
Area 1: Multinationals' innovation, knowledge management, and R&D strategies;
Area 2: Internationalization/OFDI of emerging-economy multinationals;
Area 3: Sustainability implications of multinationals' innovation/R&D activities in host economies
Area 4: Digital technologies and industry 4.0 in international business and impact on sustainable development
Area 5: Broad area concerning multinationals originated from advanced and emerging economies
Postgraduate research supervision
Dr Zhao currently supervises two PhD students at University of Surrey:
Toyosi Phillips
Yuanyuan Fan
She also currently supervises one PhD student at Gordon Institute of Business Science, University of Pretoria, South Africa:
Sanelisiwe Mkhwanazi
Teaching
Dr Zhao's teaching focus is in the areas of international business, multinationals' innovation strategy and sustainability implications of multinationals' operations in host economies. She has extensive teaching experience (over 10 years) at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
Dr Zhao's pedagogical ethos is underpinned by the idea of empowering individual students to develop into independent learners who possess critical business and management thinking and analytical skills. In 2014, she was nominated by students for the 'The Most Empowering Teacher Award'.
Dr Zhao is the module convenor of MAN2096 International Business, which is taught in Semester 1 of each year. Her module scored 87% overall with the teacher score of 93% in the latest evaluation. She is also on the board of the University Ethics Committee, as well as being part of The Surrey Institute (China)'s Summer School programme.
Additionally, she acts as an external examiner to Kings College London, Cranfield Univeresity, University of Leeds, Sussex University, and Greenwich University, UK.
Publications
The concept of ‘healthy city’ has had a long establishment in public health management literature. It was initially used to describe the living conditions of cities in developed economies (Duhl, 1986). In late 1980s, The World Health Organization (WHO)'s European Office initiated a major new project known as ‘Healthy Cities’ – the time the term started to draw both researcher and policy-maker attentions and became widely-used. It was used to support public health promotion at the city level. The city being often the lowest administrative level is thus believed to have the power to marshal the resources as well as the political mandate and authority to develop and implement integrative approaches to health (Ashton, J., Grey, P. & Barnard, K., 1986). It was only since the 1990s that scholars and public bodies started to consider it in the context of developing countries. For example, between 1995 and 1999 the WHO Geneva undertook healthy city projects in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, Dares Salaam, Tanzania, Fayoum, Egypt, Managua, Nicaragua, and Quetta, Pakistan. These projects marked the shifting political mentality of increasing attention to peripheral regions of the world in terms of improving their living conditions (Harpham, T., Burton, S. & Blue, I., 2001; Ramaswami, A., Russell, A. G., Culligan, P. J., Sharma, K. R., & Kumar, E., 2016).
Innovation performance of multinational corporations (MNCs) derives from access to and utilization of a combination of explorative and exploitative knowledge across heterogeneous settings. These settings increasingly encompass flagship industries in emerging economies. There is limited research, however, that scrutinizes the processes of knowledge sourcing within such dynamic host environments, taking into account MNCs’ differing location capabilities. We draw on the concept of ambidexterity – the combination of exploration and exploitation – and the microfoundations approach to study eleven MNCs in the Bulgarian software development industry by focusing on their local R&D projects. We extend the explanatory capacity of ambidexterity at the micro level and clarify the relationship between exploration and exploitation by identifying four types of ambidexterity: global knowledge differentiator, global-local knowledge integrator, emerging local-global integrator, and local knowledge integrator. Our typology is underpinned by three specific dimensions of R&D capabilities: technical know-how, scope of expertise, and market potential.
For emerging market firms (EMFs) internationalisation is as an important channel through which knowledge is gained and innovation capabilities acquired. However, rising global un-certainty and geopolitical tension make this increasingly challenging. We employed an in-depth case study approach to examine how a Chinese high-tech firm pursued innovation dur-ing the Tech Cold War. We found that the firm focused on pursuing indigenous innovation. Three organisational cultural attributes (patriotism, elitism and endurance of hardship) proved to be particularly important enabling mechanisms. We extend theorisation on EMF innovation management – particularly catching up through internationalisation – by identifying the ever more advanced capabilities that provide the basis for increased pursuit of indigenous innova-tion by EMFs. We further contribute to research on techno-nationalism by examining how techno-nationalist policies affect EMF innovation and how firms cope with such restrictions. More generally, our findings advance the emerging field of studies on geopolitics in EMF in-novation by highlighting the ever more critical role of international politics and state policies.
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to engage in a comprehensive review of the research on information technology (IT)-mediated international market-entry alliances. Design/methodology/approach This paper provides a theory-informed conceptual framework of IT-enabled cross-border interfirm relationships and performance outcomes. It integrates perspectives of resource-based view (RBV) and transaction cost economics (TCE) to argue that the establishment of interfirm IT capabilities enhances the marketing performance of the foreign partner in the host location by improving interfirm relationship governance. Furthermore, IT-related risks and contextual restrictions are identified as important moderators. Findings Conceptualisations of IT capabilities, IT-enhanced interfirm governance, and IT-led marketing performance improvement are suggested. Drawing on RBV and TCE, IT resources, related human resources, and IT integration between partner firms in combination enhances the ability of firms to manage the relationship more effectively through shared control, interfirm coordination, cross-firm formalisation, and hybrid centralisation. These benefits then bring about better upstream and downstream marketing performance in the host location. Additionally, IT capabilities help to mitigate possible contextual limitations and risks. Research limitations/implications The paper offers a number of theory- and literature-informed research propositions which can be empirically tested in future studies. Practical implications Top managers of firms currently in or planning to enter international alliances for market entry should carefully consider effective development of interfirm IT capabilities in terms of readiness of hardware and software, human resources, and organisational resources. Originality/value The paper provides an integrated framework and propositions which contribute to limited understanding and appreciation of IT value in international market-entry alliances.
The life‐blood of most organizations is knowledge. Too often, the very mechanisms set up to facilitate knowledge flow militate against it. This is because they are instituted in a top‐down way, they are cumbersome to manage and the bridges of trust fail to get built. In their thirst for innovation, the tendency is for firms to set up elaborate transmission channels and governance systems. As a result, staff are drowned in a deluge of mundane intranet messages and bewildered by matrix structures, while off‐the‐wall ideas and mould‐breaking insights are routinely missed. Added to this is the challenge of operating across professional, cultural, regional and linguistic boundaries, where ways of sharing knowledge differ markedly, even within the same project team. Drawing upon extensive research with scientists in the ATLAS collaboration (a high‐energy particle physics experiment comprising 3,500 scientists from 38 countries), we explore five paradoxes associated with knowledge exchange in global networks. Each paradox leads to a proposition which takes the theory and practice of knowledge management in a fresh direction. We conclude by outlining a number of HRM priorities for international knowledge‐intensive organizations.
In line with the recent shift of R&D internationalization towards developing Asia, this Perspective paper reviews, contextualises, and evaluates the evolving patterns of creation, transfer, and assimilation of knowledge in multinational enterprises (MNEs). A typology is proposed consisting of four stylized nodes: West (industrialized mature economies), East One (emerging industrializing economies of developing Asia), East Two (Asian economies at an earlier stage of industrialization), and East Three (Asian economies with limited visible signs of industrialization). Within these nodes, this paper applies an institution-based view to discuss their diverse national innovation environment (with particular attention paid to governments, indigenous firms, and institutional conditions), and the network perspective to propose an intra-regional knowledge hierarchy, reflecting dynamic knowledge links.
Intensified competition means that multinational enterprises (MNEs) are increasingly concerned with locating innovation activities in the most appropriate locations. This had led to emerging economies in the South becoming an important destination of R&D-related foreign direct investment (FDI), departing from their traditional role as low-cost production sites. Thus far, however, our understanding of this transformation process is limited. The purpose of this article is therefore to explore the process by which foreign MNEs’ low-value-adding operations in the South are transformed into high-value-adding R&D operations. Drawing on the current literature, we construct a framework of evolution consisting of four major waves of R&D internationalization and corresponding R&D objectives. To better understand how these waves have evolved over time, we focus on the South and trace the process of change using a single historical case study: AstraZeneca in China between 1993 and 2017. We find evidence of idiosyncratic location-bound conditions offering both opportunities and resources. The gradual development of these favourable conditions, along with AstraZeneca’s deepening local knowledge, triggered a transformation process in their operations in China. Our study thus offers important historical insights, which present a platform for future research providing more nuanced theoretical explanations of the four waves of R&D internationalization.
This chapter offers novel insights into on how global corporations can innovate to tackle the global waste crisis and gain sustainable competitive positions. Using the two of the most prominent types of global waste crises - food and plastic wastes - we discuss the dilemma of food and plastic waste, why innovations in global firms are needed to address them, and argue that a different perspective among those firms is needed, one which conceptualizes the development, dissemination, and use of innovations in waste management, and one which recognizes that innovations thus created contribute to advancing the creation of economic, environmental, and social value. We conclude using an overarching conceptual framework that depicts the complexity of the new perspective.
Past evidence suggests that constructive misalignment is particularly problematic in International Business (IB) education, though this paradigm has received limited research attention. Building on the literature of three independent teaching methods (threshold concept, problem-based learning, and technology-based learning), this study contributes to the IB education literature by integrating the three existing methods in a co-complementary and co-supporting manner, and carefully implementing them across three subsequent stages spanning across the length of the IB course. Empirical evidence on student satisfaction and assessment performance shows its usefulness in reducing the negative effects of constructive misalignment among the sampled students. The approach provides practitioners with refreshed insights into how the three independent methods can be integrated to create greater value for learners.
Although counterfeiting has been discussed in the literature, research focusing on the newly-emerged upper-middle class from emerging economies remains scarce. The aim of this exploratory study is to uncover the new upper-middle class consumers' attitudes towards counterfeiting in China. Qualitative research method was adopted to provide richer and deep information on the research questions. Through semi-structured in-depth interviews with members of the Chinese upper-middle class in Beijing, this study reveals that upper-middle class consumers present a distinctive view in counterfeiting in that they believe counterfeiting not only causes grave welfare related consequences and loss of trust in the legal system, but also seriously interferes with the order of the market.
This chapter explores the dyadic relationship between headquarters and in terms of their perceptions of decision-making loci and associated organisational structure . By comparing the responses of parents of Greek Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) and their subsidiaries, we find evidence in favour of a perception gap in terms of decision-making between headquarters and subsidiaries. We argue that future research needs to carefully consider and account for the perception gap and point out the importance of the role of MNE managers in removing such barriers in order to achieve effective decision-making .
Emerging economies have become new destinations for knowledge sourcing, forcing Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) to reconfigure their global innovation strategies and structure. While foreign subsidiaries located in emerging economies were conventionally viewed as having market or efficiency seeking roles, they have started to evolve towards knowledge-seeking roles. We argue that the conventional wisdom shall be reassessed considering this recent shift. We empirically investigate 129 manufacturing MNE subsidiaries of Fortune 500 companies in China, in terms of their roles and sources of technology. Our results indicate that market and knowledge seeking subsidiaries located in China tend to have a positive impact on the generation of new knowledge, either through locally established MNE R&D laboratories or through collaborations with local firms and scientific institutions. 2
The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted an unprecedented reaction in several multinational enterprises (MNEs). These MNEs have adopted social innovation approaches to meet the needs of vulnerable societal groups by swiftly innovating their business models; drastically changing their product offerings and customer bases; and producing COVID-19 necessities. These approaches have alleviated some key pandemic-induced social challenges related to health and sanitation. In this perspective article, we use secondary sources of information to present and exemplify the various types of MNE pandemic-induced social innovation approaches. We open the discussion on whether these approaches are transitory in nature or whether they can and should be sustained in the long-term, given the right incentives to these MNEs. We conclude by redefining MNEs’ social innovation and by suggesting avenues for scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and educators to support this momentum in MNEs which we argue, if sustainable, can be fruitful for addressing other pressing grand challenges such as climate change, food security, poverty, and inequality.
This perspective article highlights some major implications of the recent pandemic (Covid-19) on global value chains (GVCs) and how the pandemic can accelerate the adoption of digital and industry 4.0 technologies in GVCs, with attention paid to multinational enterprises (MNEs) and small-medium enterprises (SMEs). Particularly, it discusses the potential value of digital technologies in enhancing GVC resilience for better mitigation of disruptions caused by future global shocks. It also proposes useful avenues for future policy considerations to support and direct deployment of digital technologies across key stakeholders in GVCs.
Knowledge is critical to the survival of emerging economy multinationals (EMNEs), who are confronted by a lack of internal competitive capabilities and external challenges associated with diverse institutional environments. They thus must manage and orchestrate their knowledge globally for ultimate catch up. This article systematically reviews literature concerning EMNE knowledge management using content analysis of 93 articles in 17 leading journals across 7 major disciplines from 2000 to 2020. Applying the antecedent-process-outcome (APO) framework, we identify three major themes: knowledge-seeking strategy, knowledge transfer and innovation. We discuss knowledge frontier issues, directions for future scholarship, and avenues for greater interdisciplinary cross-fertilization.
Additional publications
Currently Editing a Special Issue on the topic of: MNE Innovation for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, in International Business Review (ABS3)
Currently Editing a Special Issue on the topic of: Managing Sustainable Development in International Business, in AIB Insights (Official AIB Journal)
Edited a Special Issue entitled: Do MNEs contribute to, or reduce inequality?, in Critical Perspectives on International Business. This Issue is featured on Emerald’s Responsible Leadership webpage and offers free access: https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/our-goals/responsible-management…
Current research projects:
Innovation and knowledge management of MNEs from emerging economies
Internationalization of state-owned enterprises
MNE innovation and knowledge management in emerging economies
MNEs and upgrading innovation capability of emerging-economy’s peripheral regions
EMNEs' learning and catch up
EMNE knowledge-seeking strategy abroad
International political economy in IB
Selected recent publications:
2021, Digital technologies and industry 4.0 for global value chain resilience: Lessons learned and ways forward, Thunderbird International Business Review, online first
2021, Ambidexterity in MNC knowledge sourcing in emerging economies: A microfoundational perspective, International Business Review, online first
2021, Do MNEs contribute to, or reduce global inequality? Critical Perspectives on International Business
2020, MNE R&D internationalization in developing Asia, Asia Pacific Journal of Management
2019, The internationalization of innovation towards the South: A historical case study of a global pharmaceutical corporation in China (1993-2017), Asia Pacific Journal of Management
2019, Healthy cities and sustainable innovation, Encyclopedia of UN Sustainable Development Goals, Springer: Cham
2018, Unfolding intra-organizational perception gap in decision making between headquarters and subsidiaries, in (Eds) Castellani, et. al, Contemporary Issues in International Business: Institutions, Strategy and Performance, The Academy of International Business (UKI Chapter) Book Series, Palgrave MacMillan
2018, Does subsidiary role determine subsidiary technology? Empirical evidence from China, Journal of Economia Politica
2017, Managing five paradoxes of knowledge exchange in networked organisations: new priorities for HRM? Human Resource Management Journal
2017, Information technology and marketing performance within international market-entry collaborations: a review and an integrated conceptual framework, International Marketing Review
2017, The problem of constructive dis-alignment in international management education: An integrative approach to enhancing teaching and learning, Journal of Teaching in International Business