The departure from the strategy of the parent company from a developed economy by the business unit of a subsidiary in an emerging market in the professional services industry due to a change in the competitive environment caused by a downturn in the global economy

Abstract

“Sustainable development cannot happen without innovation. The challenge before every organization is to develop innovation strategies that not only respond to changes in the environment and societal pressures but also consider the needs and expectations of various stakeholders. The increasing turbulence in the external business environment has focused attention on the resources and organizational capabilities as the principal source of competitive advantage,” (Dasgupta & Gupta 2009, p.204). The intention of this research project is to determine how a business unit of a subsidiary in the professional services industry in an emerging market economy changed strategy from being an implementer (Gupta&Govindarajan, 1991, p.774), of head office strategy to “developing innovation strategies” (Dasgupta&Gupta 2009, p.204); to adapt to a change in the external environment that was caused by a crisis in the global economy.This study will also investigate the impact of having to change strategy, on the capability and development of the business unit of the subsidiary.A project on holding company subsidiary relationships cannot be complete without investigating how a change in strategy of a business unit of the subsidiary affected the relationship between the holding company and the subsidiary.The study looks specifically at a period that was marked by economic turmoil that is the time of the global financial crisis during the years 2008, 2009 and the years after.