To make JIBS matter for a better world

Abstract

Journal of International Business Studies (JIBS), the world's premier journal in international business. As the popular saying goes: ''it takes a village to raise a child''. JIBS could not have arrived at this enviable state without the active involvement of many: the hard work of the preceding editorial teams, the dedication of resources by the Academy of International Business' (AIB) leadership and the publisher, and, most importantly, the painstaking efforts and commitment by scholars from around the world to conduct, write, and submit high-quality original research to the journal to address ''insightful, innovative and impactful research on international business'' (from Editorial Statement, https://www.palgrave.com/gp/ palgrave/editorial-policy/13353636). Over the years, these publications have helped inform readers in the IB community on the latest theoretical advances to sustain their interest in high-quality, evidence-based IB research. I am grateful to the aforementioned groups for their contributions, and look forward to the opportunity to make JIBS even more impactful across a wider community of leading scholars from sister disciplines who are engaged in research that has an international focus and with global firm/managerial implications.While my editorial team has started to process new submissions to JIBS as of mid-June, 2022, our official term begins on January 1, 2023. In this opening editorial, I will provide a brief overview of my vision for JIBS and strategic directions to be undertaken by our team to recognize the diversity of scholars and scholarship in the IB field, in the light of the challenges and opportunities posed by a rapidly-changing competitive landscape, and in accordance with the AIB's Statement of Mission, Vision and Values (MVV), which is based on the principles of internationalization, excellence, intellectual freedom, integrity, inclusiveness, and impact (https://www.aib.world/wp-content/uploads/ 2019/01/Mission-Vision-Values-Final-20180623.pdf).In particular, three of the core values contained in the MVV Statement parallel the guiding principles in my life, both professional and personal. These are integrity, inclusiveness, and impact. Integrity entails embracing the highest ethical standards -to me, an exclusive focus on the Journal Impact Factor (JIF) alone is hollow in the absence of integrity. Inclusiveness entails practicing diversity in its broadest sense, particularly as it pertains to gender and geographic representation of scholars, functional backgrounds and disciplines,

Decolonizing international business

“…In closing, it is also important to highlight that there is more to “decolonizing the university” than an intellectual dimension – the institutional infrastructure supporting the knowledge we produce also requires attention. One recurrent theme in IB (and indeed management studies more broadly) is that overcoming West-centrism will require greater “geographical diversity” in journal editorial teams and review boards (Tung, 2022). This is indeed important, but perhaps even more important is the need to ensure that “diversity of thought” is maximized.…”

“…The cross-cultural contribution in IB has also been significantly enriched by comparative institutionalist research (Boussebaa and Morgan, 2008; Edwards and Ferner, 2004; Geppert et al , 2003; Jackson and Deeg, 2008; Morgan et al , 2001), although it has been argued that such research remains somewhat on the fringes of IB (Rana and Morgan, 2019). Today, it is also well understood in IB that greater attention needs to be paid to non-Western contexts (Tung, 2022).…”

An elite perspective on interviewing entrepreneurs – methodological considerations for the entrepreneurship field

“…To visualise in concrete terms, it is widely recognised that achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) is in the interest of broader society (e.g. Tung, 2023). In this SDGs context, by way of tangible example, concepts such as humane entrepreneurship are already being examined (De ˛bicka et al, 2022).…”

Methodological challenges and insights for future international business research

“…We believe that an important reason for this so-called research-practice gap is that, frankly, our research often does not address important and relevant issues for society. It is very encouraging that JIBS now includes a Societal Impact Advisory Committee (SIAC), whose mission is to support authors, editors, reviewers, and users of IB knowledge in strengthening the discussion of the societal impact of research (Tung, 2023). Specifically, SIAC's role is to strengthen articles' (a) practical implications for business or society (i.e., policy or practice) and/or (b) have impact on stakeholders beyond shareholders.…”