Sustainability transitions, such as electrifying the process industry, require a bundle of related innovations to make meaningful progress. Drawing on literature on innovation through tinkering, that is, adaptive, typically small-scale experimentation with various forms of innovation, and applying a micropolitical perspective, this qualitative study explores how actors within an ecosystem tinker to bundle innovations to provide the necessary directionality for such transitions. Based on a case study of electrifying the process industry in a petrochemical cluster in Northern Europe, the paper presents an emergent process model of three complementary modes of tinkering: tinkering to codevelop a common vision for the transition, tinkering to create new spaces for bundling transition-oriented innovations and tinkering to arrive at transition-oriented innovations. The combined use of these modes helps overcome collective inaction, enabling actors to essentially tinker their way towards sustainability. The findings show that tinkering, enacted through micropolitical manoeuvring, provides the flexibility, adaptability and experimentation needed for actors to advance their sustainability agendas while still moving in a unified direction.

This paper is built on the notion that the common threefold categorization of countries according to developing, emerging, and developed countries does not fully capture the heterogeneity of the markets observable in the world. To create a more meaningful conceptualization of markets with different development stages, we propose a finetuned framework with the addition of “premerging” and “postmerging” markets as intermediary stages between developing and emerging as well as emerging and developed markets, respectively. We base our claims on economic national data from the International Monetary Fund between 1990-2022 as well as index rankings from the Human Development Index, Sustainability Performance Index and the Sustainable Development Report. Cluster analyses show that there is too much heterogeneity across markets to only work with the established three development stages classification. What is more, over time, the lines between emerging, postmerging and developed markets is blurring. This bears direct implications to all studies on emerging markets. While the term "emerging markets" is widely used in management and economics literature alike, it does have its limitations and can oversimplify the complex dynamics of economic development. We proffer economic prosperity as a dynamic process involving both upward and downward movements between different development stages.

This study examines how disadvantaged foreign subsidiaries that lack the requisite resources and mandate respond to therealization that a greener technology, a form of digital innovation, is about to disrupt their business. Specifically, we foc us on asubsidiary that lacks the requisite resources and mandate for change and yet detects an important technological shift. We drawon the subsidiary issue-selling literature to explore how this subsidiary attempts to mobilize headquarters’ attention andengagement in its interests and concerns. We identify three evolutionary issue-framing mechanisms: matters of fact, concern,and urgency. These mechanisms, influenced by the subsidiary, its local strategic network, and its headquarters, shape the issue-selling process over time. Our study challenges established assumptions about subsidiary roles in MNEs and highlights theircritical role in identifying and addressing technological disruptions, thereby pushing the boundaries of current IB research. Ithighlights the critical role of foreign subsidiaries in identifying and addressing digital and technological disruptions. It shows howeven disadvantaged subsidiaries can mobilize headquarters’ attention and engagement in their interests and concerns throughissue-selling. It suggests that MNEs need to create a more supportive environment for foreign subsidiaries to engage in issue-selling, especially when it comes to technological disruptions.

This study explores how bottom-up managers navigate the complex internal politics of organisations in order to ensure their innovative ideas are approved and implemented. It focuses on bottom-up initiatives and the behaviours of these managers seeking approval and recognition for these ideas. A qualitative case study of a European automotive manufacturer is used to capture an ongoing industrial transformation into the digital domain which calls for new ways of innovating products, methods and services. Even when confronted with hurdles in procuring resources for high-dissonance initiatives, bottom-up managers deploy micropolitical strategies to ensure their success. The findings not only offer a novel explanation for the success of bottom-up initiatives but also enrich our understanding of innovation dynamics within multinational companies. This research holds valuable insights for organizations aiming to foster a culture that champions innovation, underscoring the indispensable role of micropolitics in innovation management.