Varieties of Asian capitalism: Toward an institutional theory of Asian enterprise

In this paper we respond to calls for an institution-based perspective on strategy. With its emphasis upon mimetic, coercive, and normative isomorphism, institutional theory has earned a deterministic reputation and seems an unlikely foundation on which to construct a theory of strategy. However, a second movement in institutional theory is emerging that gives greater emphasis to creativity and agency. We develop this approach by highlighting co-evolutionary processes that are shaping the varieties of capitalism (VoC) in Asia. To do so, we examine the extent to which the VoC model can be fruitfully applied in the Asian context. In the spirit of the second movement of institutional theory, we describe three processes in which firm strategy collectively and intentionally feeds back to shape institutions: (1) Asia Pac J Manag DOI 10.1007/s10490-009-9139-2 We thank all the participants and discussants in the Asia Pacific Journal of Management Special Issue Conference on Varieties of Asian Capitalism in December 2007 in Brisbane, Australia. We thank the members of the Conference Organizing Committee for their great contribution to the success of the conference. We also greatly appreciate the editorial support from the Editor-in-Chief, Mike Peng. The financial support from the Faculty of Business, the School of Business, the School of Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations at Queensland University of Technology and the Faculty of Business and Law at Southern Cross University is gratefully acknowledged. Special thanks go to Neal Ryan, Kerry Brown, and Per Davidsson for their visionary support and active participation in the conference. Last, but not least, we thank all the reviewers for their tireless effort to make this Special Issue possible. Their names are listed at the end of the article. M. Carney (*) John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, 1455 de Maisonneuve Blvd. West, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1M8, Canada e-mail: [email protected] E. Gedajlovic Simon Fraser University, SFU Business, 2400, Central City Surrey, British Columbia, Canada V3T 2W1 e-mail: [email protected] X. Yang School of Management, Queensland University of Technology, 2 George Street, Brisbane, Queensland 4001, Australia e-mail: [email protected] filling institutional voids, (2) retarding institutional innovation, and (3) deploying institutional escape. We outline the key contributions contained in the articles of this Special Issue and discuss a research agenda generated by the VoC perspective.