Boussebaa, M, & Faulconbridge J.R (2019) Flashcards
Professional service firms as agents of economic globalization
What is Power Ecology Framework in Global Professional Service Firms(GPSFs)?
A multidimensional approach analyzing complex power relations and strategic organizational methods for influencing economic globalization institutions.
is about how power works in a system—who has it, how they use it, and how it changes over time. Caus epower isnt static, but shift as people adapt, face challenges and form alliances.
What are the primary key power strategies of GPSFs?
**Institutional Design: **
Reshaping institutions through strategic alliances, specialized expertise, and targeted lobbying.
**Implementation Choreography: **
Infiltrating client organizations, constructing shared worldviews, and systematically dismissing alternative perspectives
What are the core resistance dynamics in the GPSF Power Ecology Framework?
- Increasing visibility of GPSF agency
- Growing local concerns about institutional arrangements
- Potential outcomes include institutional failures or adaptive responses
- Counterstrategies include local organizational pushback and critical analysis of proposed arrangements
How do GPSFs seek to control institutional narratives?
- Through strategic infiltration techniques:
- Penetrating client organizations
- Constructing shared worldviews
- Systematically dismissing alternative perspectives
- Leveraging expertise to shape economic structures**
What are the theoretical implications of the Power Ecology Framework?
- Power is dynamic and continuously negotiated
- Institutions are flexible and adaptable
- Organizational agency is complex, involving multilayered interactions between GPSFs and institutional environments
Instituitional Design Strategies
- Forming Strategic alliances
- Defining and Leverging Expertise
- Lobbing with intent
Implementation Strategies
- Infiltrating Client Organizations
- Producing Shared Worldviews
- Dismissing Alternatives
Why are Global Professional Service Firms (GPSFs) considered active agents of economic globalization rather than just service providers?
GPSFs do not just react to globalization—they actively shape it by:
Creating and enforcing global standards (e.g., accounting, legal, and consulting norms).
Influencing regulations and policies through alliances with IGOs (e.g., WTO, IMF).
Spreading Western business models via their networks and expertise.
What are two main ways countries or firms resist GPSF-driven globalization?
✅ Legal & Policy Barriers: Some nations (e.g., India) refuse to allow full GPSF entry.
✅ Regulatory Scrutiny: Scandals (e.g., Enron, Panama Papers) expose GPSFs’ role in tax evasion & financial crises.
📌 Despite resistance, GPSFs often adapt through stronger lobbying and strategic alliances.
four faces of power that GPSFs use to exert influence?
✅ Episodic Power:
Coercion – Threats of jurisdictional arbitrage, forcing professionals to adopt Anglo-American models.
Manipulation – Controlling industry committees, alumni networks, and lobbying efforts.
✅ Systemic Power:
3. Domination – Making Anglo-American business models appear universal and optimal.
4. Subjectification – Training professionals to internalize and reproduce GPSF-driven norms.
How did the “Big Four” accounting firms influence global financial regulations?
A) They helped create the World Trade Organization.
B) They advocated for higher taxation on multinational companies.
C) They established International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS
C.
According to Authors , what is the key reason for initial expansion of Global Professional Services firms into overseas?
a. to directly compete with locla firms
b. to serve their exsisting home-country clients as they internationalised
c. to establish entirely new markets unrelated to their exsisting clients
b
How do professional service firms (GPSFs) act as agents of economic globalization?
a. By restricting their services to national economies
b. By shaping institutions and governance structures to their advantage
c. By providing tax advisory services globally
b
What is one way in which GPSFs exert power in economic globalization?
a.By monopolizing IT infrastructure
b.By restricting access to their services
c.By lobbying for legal reforms that benefit their industry
c.
What organizational transformation do GPSFs undergo in response to globalization?
Select one alternative:
a.They become more hierarchical
b.They decentralize completely
c.They develop integrated transnational structures
c
