Vera Ivanaj, Université de Lorraine

Silvester Ivanaj, ICN Business School

Niti Bhasin, Université de Delhi

John McIntyre, Institut de Technologie de Géorgie

Timeline

• April 28, 2025: Submission deadline

S. Tamer Cavusgil, Georgia State University

Marleen Dieleman, IMD Business School

Md. Tareq Hossain, Thammasat University

Ruey-Jer Bryan Jean, National Taiwan University

Destan Kandemir, Georgia State University

Suntichai Kotcharin, Thammasat University

Hussain Rammal, Adelaide University

Southeast Asia has emerged as one of the most consequential yet under-theorized regions in contemporary international business. The ten ASEAN economies collectively form the world's fifth-largest economic bloc, attracted record FDI inflows of approximately US$ 230 billion in 2023 and 2024, and are projected to add roughly 140 million new consumers by 2030. The region has become a critical site for phenomena that strain or extend prevailing IB theory: it is simultaneously a primary beneficiary of China-plus-one supply chain reconfiguration, a launchpad for a new generation of regional multinationals, and a laboratory for institutional heterogeneity, where ten countries with widely divergent political systems, regulatory regimes, religious traditions, and stages of development cooperate without monetary union or labor mobility.

Despite this empirical importance, Southeast Asia remains underrepresented in top international management journals, where research on emerging Asia continues to be dominated by Chinese and Indian contexts and where the theoretical voice of scholars based in the region itself is frequently filtered through Western co-authorship and Western analytical frames. This Focused Issue invites contributions that take Southeast Asian phenomena as theoretically generative rather than merely empirically illustrative, and actively encourages submissions led by scholars based in the region. The issue aims to advance international management theory beyond the BRICS-centric vocabulary that has shaped emerging-market IB research, and to surface concepts, mechanisms, and boundary conditions that the region's distinctive configuration of family capitalism, ethnic-Chinese business networks, state-linked enterprises, hyper-digital consumer markets, and ASEAN-level institutional layering uniquely reveals.

Potential topics

• The Rise and Internationalization of Southeast Asian Multinationals - Theory-building work on springboard, asset-augmentation, and catch-up strategies of ASEAN-origin MNEs; internationalization trajectories compared to Chinese and Indian counterparts; asset-augmentation versus ownership-advantage-based theories of FDI; platform architecture in cross-border expansion of digital-native champions; internationalization of state-linked enterprises under dual commercial and political principals
• Supply-Chain Reconfiguration, Maritime Connectivity, and Regional Supply-Chain Governance - Integration of Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Philippines into reorganized global value chains; upgrading dynamics and co-location strategies with Chinese MNEs; port competitiveness and hinterland connectivity; maritime logistics resilience; multimodal transport-corridor integration; dual-sourcing and supply-chain resilience strategies; digital logistics platforms; ASEAN's role in global production-network reconfiguration
• Cross-Border Trade, Geopolitics, and the Middle-Power Firm - How Southeast Asian firms hedge between US, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and European spheres of influence; non-market strategy under strategic ambiguity; role of Singapore as neutral coordination hub; strategic ambiguity and hedging among ASEAN-based firms; locational advantages of neutral coordination hubs; non-market strategy navigating US-China technology restrictions; implications of middle-power diplomacy for firm internationalization
• Indigenous Theorizing and Methodological Innovation from the Region - Submissions drawing on Southeast Asian intellectual traditions, languages, or fieldwork methods; indigenous concepts such as gotong royong, kreng jai, and bayanihan as theoretical resources; multi-language qualitative research designs and epistemology of translation; postcolonial perspectives on knowledge production; methodological pluralism including ethnographic, historical-archival, and participatory approaches

Timeline

• March 30, 2027: Submission deadline

Jiatao Li, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Di (David) Fan, RMIT University

Wei Liu, Qingdao University

Siah Hwee Ang, Victoria University of Wellington

In today's highly digitalized and knowledge-driven global economy, technology has come to signify far more than traditional notions of productivity and efficiency. Its strategic importance has risen to the level of a critical determinant of national competitiveness, institutional security, and social stability. Against this backdrop, the emergence of techno-nationalism represents a salient new trend.

Investigating how techno-nationalism reshapes corporate innovation and strategy can not only fill the theoretical gap in existing IB research between macro-level politics and micro-level firm practices, but also provide new insights into the resilience-building and innovation pathways of Asia-Pacific firms in this new normal.

Potential topics

• Techno-nationalism and national competitiveness
• Strategic importance of technology in institutional security and social stability
• Impact of techno-nationalism on corporate innovation and strategy
• Macro-level politics and micro-level firm practices in the context of technology
• Resilience-building pathways of Asia-Pacific firms
• Innovation strategies in response to techno-nationalism

Timeline

• August 31, 2026: Submission deadline

Timeline

• December 31, 2029: Submission deadline

Timeline

• September 15, 2026: Full paper submission deadline

Lorraine Eden, Texas A&M University

This special issue invites scholars to examine how political ideology influences international business activities in a world characterized by increasing political polarization. As countries become more ideologically divided and nationalism rises globally, understanding the role of political ideology in shaping international business decisions, strategies, and outcomes becomes increasingly important.

We welcome theoretical and empirical contributions that advance our knowledge of the complex relationships between political ideology and international business. Submissions may address the ideological orientations of firms, governments, or individuals (such as CEOs and managers) and their implications for international business.

Papers should offer novel insights into how political ideology affects international business activities at multiple levels of analysis—from individual managers and firms to industries and countries. We encourage interdisciplinary perspectives that bridge international business with political science, economics, and other relevant fields.

Potential topics

• How political ideology shapes international business strategies and operations
• The impact of ideological polarization on foreign direct investment (FDI) decisions
• Political ideology as a determinant of cross-border mergers and acquisitions
• Ideological differences and international business partnerships
• The role of home country political ideology in MNE behavior abroad
• Host country political ideology and its effects on international business entry and expansion
• Ideological distance between home and host countries and international business outcomes
• Political ideology and global supply chain management
• Ideological polarization and international business ethics and CSR
• The influence of political ideology on international trade and tariff policies
• Political ideology and technology transfer in international business
• Ideological factors in international joint ventures and alliances

Timeline

• May 29, 2026: Submission deadline

Jonathan Doh, Villanova University

Srividya Jandhyala, ESSEC Business School

Yadong Luo, University of Miami

Grazia D. Santangelo, Copenhagen Business School

Political turbulence is on the rise, as evidenced most dramatically in violent conflicts (e.g., wars, terrorism attacks), volatile political transitions (e.g., dramatic regime change, cuts to government employees, new geopolitical alliances, coups), and geopolitical tensions (e.g., trade wars, democratic backsliding, sanctions). This escalated political turbulence exacerbates geopolitical risks for organizations and their stakeholders.

Whether anticipatory (e.g., fear of cyberattacks) or actual (e.g., ongoing trade wars, competition over territories), rising geopolitical risks affect organizations in many ways. The rise of techno-nationalism, driven by national security and ideological concerns, challenges the resilience of global technology supply chains. With the rapid development of AI comes misinformation and disinformation that further aggravate political tensions and ideologies. Tariffs, sanctions, and protectionist trade restrictions bring escalating compliance risks. Rising populist sentiment drives immigration restrictions and is creating a shortage of high-skill talent for MNEs.

Political turbulence has long been a strategic consideration in some sectors such as energy and defense, but it is now affecting organizations in nearly all sectors, both at home and abroad. At home, organizations encounter scrutiny from civil society for their operations in countries with questionable international standing. Abroad, they may face interventions by host country governments that vary with their country of origin or type of ownership. All of this presents considerable challenges for managers and their organizations.

This special issue aims to provide actionable, evidence-based insights that clearly and credibly guide managers and their organizations in navigating the political turbulence that increasingly characterizes the international, national, and subnational landscape. We seek to fill in the 'glaring white space' of how organizations can best operate under political turbulence, providing robust insights on which practitioners and policy makers can rely.

AMP papers are managerially driven, not theory driven. Successful submissions clearly define the managerial issue from the outset and make a compelling case for its importance. They do not simply tack managerial implications onto a standard academic study. Rather, AMP papers evidence actionable insights that can credibly guide managerial behavior and influence policy decisions.

We welcome both conceptual and empirical papers that are grounded in rigorous analysis and directly evidence specific and significant managerial and policy actions. We welcome accounts of embodied, lived experiences of specific political turbulence and the use of reflexive methodologies. Quantitative analyses of large databases, qualitative comparative analyses, and extensive data analysis using linguistic programs and algorithms are also welcome. Papers should prove what can or does work in ways that managers and policymakers can use.

Potential topics

• Understanding Different Types and Forms of Political Turbulence
• Rethinking Corporate Political Strategies
• Reorganizing and Realigning Geographically Diversified Operations
• Managing Stakeholder Nationalism
• The Role of New Technologies
• Managing Corporate Innovation
• Navigating the Race for Talent

Timeline

• September 1, 2026: Submission window opens
• September 30, 2026: Final deadline for submissions at 23:59 ET

Associate editors

• Tazeeb Rajwani, University of Surrey

Escalating geopolitical tensions have become a defining feature of the contemporary international business environment. Recent scholarship has examined how firms cope with geopolitical uncertainty, focusing on organizational resilience, employee motivation in hostile contexts, and strategic deployment of human resources under conditions of conflict and instability. However, this work has largely overlooked one of the most profound consequences of geopolitical crises: large-scale, crisis-induced migration and the resulting global reconfiguration of human capital.

The wars and confrontations of the past five years, including conflicts involving Russia and Ukraine, Israel and Palestine, and Iran and the United States, have triggered unprecedented movements of people across borders. Geopolitical migration fundamentally differs from economic migration. It is often sudden, unplanned, and driven by acute security, political, or environmental threats rather than long-term opportunity seeking. As populations flee conflict zones, countries of origin experience significant human capital losses, while host countries confront challenges and opportunities associated with absorbing inflows of displaced and often highly skilled individuals. Geopolitical crises accelerate the global redistribution and consolidation of human capital, with long-lasting implications for firms, labor markets, and national development trajectories.

International business and related literatures have increasingly addressed migration from macro, meso, and micro perspectives, examining economic consequences, patterns of brain drain and brain gain, return migration, human capital accumulation, and immigrant adjustment across diverse groups. Important contributions have also explored state policies, diaspora dynamics, human rights, and shifting global migration routes. However, this body of work has predominantly focused on migration that unfolds under relatively stable institutional conditions. Much less is known about migration triggered by geopolitical crises characterized by uncertainty, institutional disruption, and limited capacity for strategic planning by governments, firms, and individuals.

Firms are directly affected by abrupt changes in the availability, composition, and mobility of human capital, both in crisis-affected home countries and in recipient economies. Yet, firm-level theorizing and empirical evidence on how organizations respond to, shape, and are transformed by geopolitical crisis-induced migration remain underdeveloped. International business scholarship has paid surprisingly limited attention to how migration driven by war and geopolitical disruption reshapes firm strategies, human resource practices, and competitive outcomes.

This Special Issue seeks to address this gap by placing firms at the center of analysis and examining migration as a contextual, crisis-specific phenomenon. We invite contributions that explore how firms cope with human capital outflows, leverage inflows of displaced talent, adapt human resource management and organizational practices, and interact with states and societies under conditions of geopolitical instability. By integrating insights on geopolitics, migration, and firm behavior, this Special Issue aims to advance a more nuanced and timely understanding of how business operates in an era of persistent conflict and forced mobility.

Potential topics

• Geopolitics as setting for migration - Do different geopolitical crises create unique migration contexts and consequences for organizations? How does the emergence of geopolitical migrants shape global migration flows, migration state policies, and firms' acquisition strategies? Do different geopolitical crises create different firm-level challenges and diverse organizational responses? How does geopolitical migration reshape the institutional environment for local and multinational companies? How do local businesses receiving geopolitical migrants tackle enormous migration flows resulting from wars and sudden instabilities? What capabilities are critical for companies to overcome migration challenges and create advantages with geopolitical migrants as a talent pool?
• Geopolitical migrants and diaspora groups - How may local organizations benefit from diverse geopolitical migrant groups? How do geopolitical migrants differ from other migrant groups in employment motives and cultural adjustment capabilities? What are the effects of diaspora expansion in host countries due to geopolitical migration? How have diasporas remained connected to home contexts and what effects emerge for home countries from geopolitical talent outflows? Can brain drain be turned into brain gain if migrants remain engaged in home country processes? To what extent and under what institutional conditions may geopolitical migrants reshape global and local labor markets?
• Migration restrictions and implications for local and international business players - Are migration restriction policies beneficial to local firms? Do nationalistic frictions that restrict migration protect economic interests or create barriers to human capital accumulation? How does institutional context influence organizational cultures and policies affecting migrant integration? How does perception of geopolitical conflict fairness influence state migration policies and migrant labor market inclusion? To what extent do migration restriction policies stimulate recirculation of geopolitical migrants? How does populism influence migration policies and state initiatives? How are different political regimes and varieties of capitalism connected to migration restrictions?
• Location choices and directions of migration flows - Does geographical proximity moderate geopolitical migration? How do historical relations between countries determine geopolitical migration flows and affect adjustment? How do multinational companies decide internationalization strategies considering migration flows? How do geopolitical migrants choose destinations? Which country-specific characteristics are perceived as attractive pull factors for geopolitical migrants?

Timeline

• January 6, 2027: Opening date for manuscripts submissions
• August 31, 2027: Closing date for manuscripts submission

Digital technologies are increasingly shaping the conduct of individuals, businesses, and societies. Particularly disruptive digital technologies include artificial intelligence, the internet of things, additive manufacturing, robotics, business analytics, cloud-based computing, and blockchain. Although digital technologies may appear geographically unanchored, they are physically situated in specific locations and connected through infrastructure such as underwater cables. The spatial embeddedness of these infrastructures has become intertwined with geopolitical competition and strategic rivalry, with control over critical assets such as undersea cables, semiconductor production hubs, cloud service locations, and digital standards increasingly contested between leading powers, notably the US and China.

These geographically rooted infrastructures shape MNE strategy and create location-specific opportunities and risks. Digital tools can enhance visibility into global value chains and enable new forms of cross-border coordination. However, complete automation and contracting skilled labor in developing countries may have unintended implications. The accelerated digitalization of the workplace has reduced barriers for firms to develop fully functioning digital workplaces, allowing many office-based jobs to be offshored to less costly locations. Greater interconnection also heightens exposure to cyber intrusions, surveillance, and politically motivated disruptions to data flows, placing digital security and control firmly on the geopolitical agenda.

The transformative effects of digital technologies in different regions and countries are multifaceted, entailing both opportunities and challenges. These effects can influence the locations of businesses, institutional configurations, industrial leadership, cross-border competitive dynamics, and the global structure of value chains and the digitalized economy. As digital infrastructures and capabilities are deeply embedded in national security strategies and geoeconomic competition, international business increasingly unfolds within a fragmented and politically contested digital landscape.

Emerging economies such as China and India have taken extraordinary technological leads, presenting a starkly different picture from the conventional view that technological leadership resided predominantly in North America and Europe. Governments and policy makers in emerging economies have been catalysts of rapid digital technology development. Many governments have created large markets for local firms through procurement and rolled out programs to increase adoption of new technology. China has emerged as a global leader through government collaboration with technology firms on AI commercialization. India has implemented a make in India policy with strong technological components. Malaysia has formed digital free trade zones. These national initiatives represent responses to geopolitical pressures and strategic positioning in techno-nationalist competition.

Various emerging economies have introduced policies for stimulating startups, R&D, and global competitiveness in digital technologies. Malaysia's mydigital blueprint envisions a digitally driven, high-income nation with investments in data centers, cloud, and innovation ecosystems. Indonesia, Vietnam, and Bangladesh have developed national programs to expand digital access, strengthen innovation ecosystems, and support firm-level digital capability building. Such initiatives shape how these countries align with or hedge between competing global digital ecosystems and standards, influencing their room for maneuver in international negotiations.

Although major digital initiatives have resulted in shifts in technological dominance, many emerging economies continue to find themselves at the peripheries of the global digital transformation process. This may have long-lasting strategic and competitive consequences. While digitization can potentially increase multidirectional investment and information flows, it can also promote de-globalization. The establishment of decentralized regional manufacturing centers or patterns of dominance by digital leaders such as China and the US may cement the global digital divide irreversibly.

Questions about changing spatial patterns of production, investments, and division of labor due to digitization are currently much discussed in the context of global value chains. However, it remains unclear whether digital technology in emerging economies will generate and thrive through network externalities or lead to greater concentration or dispersed operations. It is also unclear how digitalization will affect current investment patterns and whether emerging economies will benefit or become further marginalized as a result of technological and business transformations and accompanying geopolitical contestation.

At the regional level, digital business activities play an increasingly central role in shaping competitive positioning, innovation pathways, and regional integration. Digitization offers opportunities for SMEs through increased ICT-enabled connectivity and creates employment through gig-work. There is co-development and co-evolution between institutional, technological, and economic environments, which can provide advantages to countries not locked into existing technological paradigms. However, strategic and governance-related challenges have emerged, including changing geographies of production due to digitalization, which has accelerated reshoring and automation-driven job losses in labor-intensive manufacturing sectors.

The widening digital divide between regions affects how countries and firms participate in global value chains. The rise of platform-mediated gig work raises concerns about precarious labor conditions, algorithmic control, and transfer of power from traditional employers to digital intermediaries. The absence of appropriate regulations to safeguard digital transactions and growing political control efforts can lead to distinct realms of digital governance with implications for economic activities. For MNEs, regulatory divergence complicates cross-border data governance, increases compliance and coordination costs, and constrains ability to integrate operations across subsidiaries and value chain partners.

These developments contribute to the emergence of fragmented digital spheres of influence in which different groups of states and firms compete to set standards, control data, and shape digital market evolution. This fundamentally alters the strategic landscape of international business. Given the transformational nature of digital technology on the world economy, it is imperative to consider these technologies as a business and policy challenge to established IB theories developed in an analog era of a different global business environment.

Potential topics

• Digital platforms and MNE innovation strategy
• Digital technology and MNE subsidiaries
• Digital infrastructure and firm internationalization
• Digital ecosystems and MNEs
• Digital sovereignty and MNE strategy
• Role of proximity in MNE innovation in emerging markets
• Impact of digital transformation on MNE subsidiary roles and structures
• Digital capabilities and internationalization pathways
• Navigation of competing digital standards and regulatory regimes
• Geopolitical tensions and MNE location decisions
• Data governance and regulatory compliance in fragmented digital landscapes
• Platform-mediated business models and global value chains
• Technological leadership in emerging economies
• Regional digital initiatives and their implications for MNEs

Timeline

• January 7, 2026: Opening date for manuscripts submissions
• November 30, 2026: Closing date for manuscripts submission