Interpreting the Impact of Context on Global Competitiveness through the National Business System Approach

Abstract

The social context gains context plays an important role in determining firm dynamics and competition, as well as affecting structures and strategies. This study aims to compare the economic outputs of countries with different business systems through the basic institutions that shape their business systems within the framework of Whitkey’s national business system approach. Based on the World Economic Forum’s 2017-2018 Global Cpompetitivity Report, six countries (Hong Kong, Italy, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Germany, and Japan) are selected to exemplify each business system. Whitley identified these countries based on their definitions, which form the theoretical framework of the study. The intensity of government regulation of markets, financializations through capital markets, flexibility in wage setting, and willingness to delegate authority are analyzed, taking into account the political economy context of the countries. The research reveals that historical context and political economic structures, which impact different business systems in different countries, have led to differentiation in terms of competitiveness levels. Furthermore, what makes this report more important is the possibility that even the most competitive countries in the rankings may fall behind other countries in terms of sub-indicators.

Keywords

• National Business Systems
• Global Competition
• Varieties of Capitalism
• Compartive İnstitutional Analysis

Küresel Rekabetçilik Üzerinde Bağlamın Etkisini Ulusal İş Sistemleri Yaklaşımıyla Okumak

Öz

Firmaların ve rekabetin dinamiğini belirlemede, yapıları ve stratejileri etkilemede içerisinde bulunulan toplumsal bağlam önem kazanmaktadır. Bu çalışmada da Whitley’in ulusal iş sistemi yaklaşımı çerçevesinde birbirinden farklı iş sistemine sahip olan ülkelerin, iş sistemlerini biçimlendiren temel kurumlar üzerinden, ekonomik çıktılarını karşılaştırılması amaçlanmıştır. Dünya Ekonomi Forumu’nun 2017-2018 Küresel Rekabetçilik Raporu’nun esas alındığı çalışmada, her bir iş sistemine örnek teşkil edecek 6 ülke (Hong-Kong, İtalya, Birleşik Krallık, Güney Kore, Almanya ve Japonya) seçilmiştir. Bu ülkelerin seçilmesinin sebebi çalışmanın kuramsal çerçevesini oluşturan Whitley’in belirlediği ülke tanımlamaları olmalarıdır. Devletin piyasaları düzenleme yoğunluğu, sermaye piyasaları yoluyla finansallaşma, ücretlerin belirlenme esnekliği ve yetki devri isteği göstergelerine bakılarak, ülkelerin ekonomi-politik bağlamları da göz önünde bulundurularak, incelenmiştir. Araştırma sonucunda tarihsel bağlamın ve ekonomi-politik yapıların etkisiyle ülkelerin farklı iş sistemlerine sahip olması ülkelerin rekabetçilik düzeyleri açısından da farklılaşmalarına yol açmıştır. Ayrıca, bu raporu daha da önemli kılan nokta, ülke sıralamasında en rekabetçi olarak gösterilen ülkelerin bile alt göstergeler açısından diğer ülkelerin gerisine düşebilme ihtimalidir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Ulusal İş Sistemi
• Küresel Rekabet
• Kapitalizmin Çeşitliliği
• Karşılaştırmalı Kurumsal Analiz

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