International value-chain configuration

The discussion of value-chain configuration (VCC) touches the essence of the phenomenon of multinational companies. A company only becomes multinational because the location of its operations in different countries gives it competitive advantages. At the same time, in order to settle in a foreign country the company has to rely on distinctive competitive advantages relative to both local and international competitors. The international value-chain configuration (IVCC) provides a depiction of the strategy of a multinational company, its achievements, the forces to which it is subject and perhaps also signals its future intentions.

The aim of this chapter is to show how the Brazilian multinationals are configuring their international value chains and how they are managing them to compete in international markets. For that, the primary information is the spatial dispersion of activities: what activities are they doing and where. A second level of information relates to why: what are the reasons that justify the adoption of the configurations observed. The third level relates to how: what strengths are mobilised to move into the international locations? Finally, it is important to assess how the Brazilian multinational companies are managing their international value chains to gain competitiveness.