Middle Managers in the Internationalization Process

Research on middle management has emphasized its
role in the strategy process and the positive
impacts of involvement. But little is known about
their role in medium-sized family firms and their
participation in the internationalization process.
In my thesis I focus on this gap and my analysis
based on 17 interviews shows that middle managers
involvement in strategy formulation depends on their
accountability for the firm s revenue. Furthermore,
involvement seems to be linked to a better attitude
towards the internationalization approach and to the
recognition of a strategy guiding the firm s
activities.

Autorentext

Claudia Thurner graduated from the Free University of Bolzano, Italy, where she worked on her Diploma Thesis about Middle Managers. Further versions of this thesis were published together with Johanna Mair at IESE Business School and Interscience Wiley (August, 2008). Claudia is currently working and living in New York.

Klappentext
Research on middle management has emphasized its role in the strategy process and the positive impacts of involvement. But little is known about their role in medium-sized family firms and their participation in the internationalization process. In my thesis I focus on this gap and my analysis based on 17 interviews shows that middle managers' involvement in strategy formulation depends on their accountability for the firm's revenue. Furthermore, involvement seems to be linked to a better attitude towards the internationalization approach and to the recognition of a strategy guiding the firm's activities.