The Multiplant Business Enterprise and Geographical Space: Some Issues in the Study of External Control and Regional Development

摘要

The multiplant business enterprise and geographical space: some issues in the study of external control and regional development. Reg. Studies 10, 401-412. This paper examines some conceptual and methodological issues implicit in investigating the relationship between geographical space and the control structures of multiplant business enterprises. Four mechanisms of control shifts are examined, with particular emphasis on merger and acquisition. It is shown that definitions of external control are heavily dependent upon the spatial units used. It is argued that from a regional viewpoint the extent of control of a firm is less important than its exercise and that this is strongly influenced by the intra-organisational interdependences which characterise particular business strategies. Thus the spatial impact of a plant is a function not only of its control status but also of its evolving position in the dynamic structure of the enterprise as a whole and its product cycle characteristics.