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Cited by 885Global trade, sustainability, and social impactOutsourcing and Supply Chain ManagementGlobal trade and economics

Value chains, networks and clusters: reframing the global automotive industry

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Sturgeon, T., Van Biesebroeck, J., Gereffi, G.·2008·Journal of Economic Geography
DOI 10.1093/jeg/lbn007
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Abstract

In this article, we apply global value chain (GVC) analysis to recent trends in the global automotive industry, with special attention paid to the case of North America. We use the three main elements of the GVC framework—firm-level chain governance, power and institutions—to highlight some of the defining characteristics of this important industry. First, national political institutions create pressure for local content, which drives production close to end markets, where it tends to be organized nationally or regionally. Second, in terms of GVC governance, rising product complexity combined with low codifiability and a paucity of industry-level standards has driven buyer–supplier linkages toward the relational form, a governance mode that is more compatible with Japanese than American supplier relations. The outsourcing boom of the 1990s exacerbated this situation. As work shifted to the supply base, lead firms and suppliers were forced to develop relational linkages to support the exchange of complex uncodified information and tacit knowledge. Finally, the small number of hugely powerful lead firms that drive the automotive industry helps to explain why it has been so difficult to develop and set the industry-level standards that could underpin a more loosely articulated spatial architecture. This case study underlines the need for an open, scalable approach to the study of global industries.

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Crossref · 10.1093/jeg/lbn007

Cites

49 of 49 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • Control decisions are impacted by host countries' regulatory environments, particularly when national political institutions create pressure for local content on MNEs trying to gain access to large downstream markets in emerging economies.

    “To some extent, control decisions are impacted by host countries' regulatory environments, particularly when national political institutions create pressure for local content on MNEs that are trying to gain access to large downstream markets in Global value chains emerging economies (Lund-Thomsen & Coe, 2015;Morris & Staritz, 2014;Sturgeon, Van Biesebroeck, & Gereffi, 2008).”

    From Global value chains: A review of the multi-disciplinary literature (2020) · cites this paper as Sturgeon, Van Biesebroeck, & Gereffi, 2008

  • Desire to access large and fast-growing consumer markets drives production activities close to end markets.

    “Desire to access large and fast-growing consumer markets drives production activities close to end markets, for example, when host country governments in emerging markets pressure MNEs for local operations (Sturgeon et al., 2008).”

    From Global value chains: A review of the multi-disciplinary literature (2020) · cites this paper as Sturgeon et al., 2008

  • Upgrading of local suppliers was more likely if the GVC network structure moved towards a relational form of power dynamics.

    “Sturgeon et al. (2008) followed up with this line of research by examining major American and Japanese automotive lead firms and over 150 suppliers in North America.They found that upgrading of local suppliers was more likely if the GVC network structure moved towards a relational form of power dynamics.”

    From Global value chains: A review of the multi-disciplinary literature (2020) · cites this paper as Sturgeon et al., 2008

  • Sturgeon et al. (2008) find that relational governance is necessitated by rising product complexity, low process codifiability and a paucity of industry-level standards.

    “In a case study of major American and Japanese automotive lead firms and their suppliers, Sturgeon et al. (2008) find that relational governance is necessitated by rising product complexity, low process codifiability and a paucity of industry-level standards.”

    From Global value chains: A review of the multi-disciplinary literature (2020) · cites this paper as Sturgeon et al. (2008)

  • Sturgeon et al. (2008) discuss the impact of home country cultural characteristics on American and Japanese lead firms' abilities to successfully engage in relational governance.

    “Sturgeon et al. (2008) discuss the impact of home country cultural characteristics on American and Japanese lead firms' abilities to successfully engage in relational governance.”

    From Global value chains: A review of the multi-disciplinary literature (2020) · cites this paper as Sturgeon et al. (2008)

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Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

1 of the 50 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 8

  1. Dicken, P. (2007) Global Shift: Reshaping the Global Economic Map in the 21st Century, 5th edn. London: Sage Publications.
  2. Humphrey, J. and Schmitz, H. (2002) How does insertion sn global value chains affect upgrading in industrial clusters. Regional Studies, 36(9): 1017-1027.
  3. Korth, K. (2006) Key issues for suppliers: navigating a challenging landscape. Presentation to the Bankruptcy and Receivables Management Workshop, Original Equipment Suppliers Association Regional Meeting, Grand Rapids, Michigan, May 16. Updated 12 February 2008.
  4. McAlinden, S. P. (2006) There's No Place Like Home; the Geography of Automotive Employment. Presentation at the Chicago Federal Reserve Conference on ''The New Geography of Auto Production.'' April 19, Detroit, MI.
  5. Saxenian, A. (2006) The New Argonauts: Regional Advantage in the Global Economy. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
  6. Sturgeon, T. (forthcoming) From commodity chains to value chains: interdisciplinary theory building in an age of globalization. In Jennifer Bair (ed.) Frontiers of Commodity Chain Research. Palo Alto, CA, Stanford University Press. Also available as MIT Industrial Performance Center Working Paper 08-001 and Sloan Industry Studies Working Paper 2007-41.
  7. Sturgeon, T. and Florida, R. (2004) Globalization, deverticalization, and employment in the motor vehicle industry. In M. Kenny and R. Florida (eds) Locating Global Advantage; Industry Dynamics in a Globalizing Economy. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press.
  8. Sturgeon, T. and Lester, R. K. (2004) The new global supply-base: new challenges for local suppliers in East Asia. In S. Yusuf, A. Altaf and K. Nabeshima (eds) Global Production Networking and Technological Change in East Asia. Washington, DC: The World Bank and Oxford University Press, 35-87.

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Authors
Sturgeon, T., Van Biesebroeck, J., & Gereffi, G.
Affiliations
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)
  • Duke University (US)
ORCID
Gereffi, G.
Venue
Journal of Economic Geography
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Published
2008-02-29
Volume
8
Issue
3
Pages
297-321
ISSN
  • 1468-2702 (ISSN-L)
  • 1468-2710
DOI
10.1093/jeg/lbn007
OpenAlex
W2152630760
Cited by
885
References
50
Citations by year
2026: 34 · 2025: 49 · 2024: 33 · 2023: 49 · 2022: 48 · 2021: 65 · 2020: 55 · 2019: 61 · 2018: 46 · 2017: 61 · 2016: 46 · 2015: 62 · 2014: 54 · 2013: 59 · 2012: 48
FWCI
116.35
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
other-oa
Locations
  • Journal of Economic Geography (publishedVersion)
  • Lirias (KU Leuven) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • SSRN Electronic Journal (submittedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • DukeSpace (Duke University) (submittedVersion)
  • DukeSpace (Duke University) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Global trade, sustainability, and social impact
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Management Information Systems › Outsourcing and Supply Chain Management
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › General Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Global trade and economics
Keywords
global value chains, automotive industry, North America, local content, relational governance, tacit knowledge, outsourcing, lead firms, spatial architecture, industrial clusters, product complexity

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