Recently, facing the fierce competition around the world, the headquarters of many MNCs are under pressure to make a decision quickly and effectively for their global marketing strategy. Under such a situation, how effectively the headquarters can obtain knowledge regarding the market situation of subsidiaries around the world is important. In this research, the concept of reverse knowledge transfer is applied to the space of the headquarters' acquisition of knowledge from subsidiaries, from the perspective of decision-making for global marketing strategies. In the extant literature, however, studies on reverse knowledge transfer analyzing the mechanisms dynamically in a multi-faceted way from the perspective of transferring marketing-related knowledge are rare. In order to capture the reverse knowledge transfer mechanisms in a MNC precisely and dynamically, three case studies of the headquarters of an American MNC and its Japanese subsidiary were conducted. Through analysis of the case studies, two new factors were found; one is 'bypass effect', and the other is 'heeding capacity'. By bringing in those new factors, a new dynamic model for reverse knowledge transfer is proposed.

Abstract   This study addresses the research gap on knowledge transfer on a team level, by examining the potential and realized Absorptive Capacity (ACAP) on the receiver's side and potential and realized Disseminative Capacity (DCAP) on the sender's side. The research question and purpose relate to how ACAP and DCAP can aid innovation development teams in reaching their goals and what role social integration mechanisms play in this process. We develop a theoretical framework in which we synthesize existing literature and through which we analyzed the empirical data.   We follow a qualitative method and employ a single case strategy that fits our empirical data and allows to gain an understanding of social dynamics underlying knowledge transfer. The data was collected through interviews in the R&D department of Atlas Copco, a large Swedish multinational corporation that operates in the mining and tunneling industry. From our analysis we conclude that social integration mechanisms can be used in order to lower the gap between potential and realized capacities. This can in turn lead to a higher innovative output of teams.