Industrial policy environments and the flourishing of African multinational enterprises

Abstract

Research on African organizations has focused on the influence of environmental factors in organizational effectiveness. However, increasing concerns about challenges in Africa and how they negatively affect organizational outcomes have necessitated leveraging the “positive turn” of organizational scholarship to advance a perspective of how industrial policies can permit Africa-originated multinational enterprises (A-MNEs) to flourish. We propose a multilevel model in which the industrial policy environment comprised of agency and policy development positively impacts A-MNE flourishing, a composite index of human, environmental, and economic flourishing. This relationship is mediated by industrial policies – labor, trade, infrastructure, and resources – and moderated by policy fit, relevance, and timeliness. Overall, we shift the old paradigm of organizational outcomes represented by organizational effectiveness to a new paradigm represented by organizational flourishing. This new paradigm seems more appropriate for Africa, which is bedeviled by unusual challenges that limit effectiveness. We discuss empirical testing of the model and implications for managers.