Learning and Lobbying: Emerging Market Firms and Corporate Political Activity in Europe

Abstract

How do firms acquire the capabilities necessary to operate in the non-market environment? Though the field of non-market strategy has grown in prominence in the strategic management literature in recent years, most of the studies concern the political capabilities of developed country multinationals. This paper is an effort to explore the basis of the acquisition of corporate political capabilities by emerging market firms. It does so by adapting the concept to liability of foreignness and applying it to a non-market context. The non-market environment of the European Union is used here as the context.