Business diplomacy: A bibliometric analysis and pathways for future research
Keywords:
Business Diplomacy, Economic Diplomacy, Corporate Diplomacy, Bibliometric Analysis, Scientific Mapping, Research AgendaAbstract
Business diplomacy acts as a strategic instrument for corporations navigating the intricacies of the global business landscape. This involves establishing, maintaining, and navigating relationships with external organizations and internal stakeholders to achieve business goals and positively influence the business environment. This article presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the field of business diplomacy, aiming to unravel its structure, dynamics, and trends. Three research questions guide the exploration: RQ1. What is the structure of research on business diplomacy? RQ2. What are the dynamics and significant activities within business diplomacy? RQ3. What are the prospective research directions? The bibliometric analysis covered 74 publications extracted from the Scopus database. Employing a two-stage analysis with Microsoft Excel and VOSviewer, the study identifies key contributing countries, authors, sources, and critical themes within the field. Furthermore, a thorough examination of 10 publications, chosen through bibliographic coupling analysis, enhanced the results, identifying key research trends and insights, and contributing to an enriched understanding of the research area. The study concludes by proposing future research paths to guide practitioners and researchers contributing to the evolving landscape of business diplomacy.References
(2020), The ideal blend of public relations and business diplomacy: Increasing the effectiveness of stakeholder management, “Strategic Direction”, Vol. 36, No. 12, https://doi.org/10.1108/SD-10-2020-0176.
Alammar F.M., Pauleen D.J. (2016), Business diplomacy management: a conceptual overview and an integrative framework, “International Journal of Diplomacy and Economy”, No. 3(1).
Barston R.P. (2019), Modern diplomacy, Routledge, London.
Baylis J. (2008), Bezpieczeństwo międzynarodowe i globalne w epoce pozimnowojennej, (in:) Baylis J., Smith S. (red.), Globalizacja polityki światowej. Wprowadzenie do stosunków międzynarodowych, Wydawnictwo UJ, Kraków.
Berridge G.R. (2022), Diplomacy: theory and practice, Springer Nature.
Cobo M.J., López-Herrera A.G., Herrera-Viedma,E., Herrera F. (2011), Science mapping software tools: review, analysis, and cooperative study among tools, “Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology”, No. 62(7).
Doh J.P., Dahan N.M., Casario M. (2022), MNEs and the practice of international business diplomacy, “International Business Review”, No. 31(1).
Falcão P., Ramalho N., Nobre,M. (2021), Stakeholder management: the new role of business diplomacy, “Journal of Business Strategy”, No. 42(6).
Häberlein M. (2016), Kaufleute, Höflinge und Humanisten. Die Augsburger Welser-Gesellschaft und die Eliten des Habsburgerreiches in der ersten Hälfte des 16 Jahrhunderts, “Zeitschrift für Historische Forschung”, No. 43(4).
Hart D., Siniver A. (2020), The meaning of diplomacy, “International Negotiation”, No. 26(2).
Kesteleyn J., Riordan S., Ruël H. (2014), Introduction: business diplomacy, “The Hague Journal of Diplomacy”, No. 9(4).
Knobel J., Ruël H. (2017), How do MNCs conduct business diplomacy? Exploratory study on business diplomacy instruments, “International Journal of Diplomacy and Economy”, No. 3(3).
Leguey-Feilleux J.R. (2009), The dynamics of diplomacy, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, Boulder.
London M. (1999), Principled leadership and business diplomacy: Values-based strategies for management development, Greenwood Publishing Group.
Monteiro R., Meneses R. (2015), The relevance of business diplomacy in internationalisation processes: an empirical study, “International Journal of Business and Globalisation”, No. 15(1).
Nobanee H., Al Hamadi F.Y., Abdulaziz F.A., Abukarsh L.S., Alqahtani A.F., AlSubaey S.K., Almansoori H.A. (2021), A bibliometric analysis of sustainability and risk management, “Sustainability” ,No. 13(6).
Orduña-Malea E., Costas R. (2021), Link-based approach to study scientific software usage: the case of VOSviewer, “Scientometrics”, No. 126, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-021-04082-y.
Quintero-Quintero W., Blanco-Ariza A.B., Garzón-Castrillón M.A. (2021), Intellectual Capital: A Review and Bibliometric Analysis, „Publications”, No. 9(46).
Ruben D.H. (1986), Alcoholism/drug abuse counselors in industry: Do they need interpersonal skills, “Employee Assistance Quarterly”, No. 1(3).
Ruël H. (2020), Multinational corporations as diplomatic actors: An exploration of the concept of business diplomacy, “Diplomatica”, No. 2(1).
Ruël H., Wolters T. (2016), Business diplomacy, (in:) Constantinou C.M., Kerr P., Sharp P., The Sage handbook of diplomacy, SAGE, Londres.
Saner R., Yiu L. (2014), Business diplomacy competence: a requirement for implementing the OECD’s guidelines for multinational enterprises, “The Hague Journal of Diplomacy”, No. 9(4).
Saner R., Yiu L., Søndergaard M. (2000), Business diplomacy management: A core competency for global companies, “The Academy of Management Executive”, Vol. 14, No. 1.
Sharp P. (2019), Diplomacy in the 21st century: A brief introduction, Routledge, London.
Søndergaard M. (2014), ‘Corporate business diplomacy’: Reflections on the interdisciplinary nature of the field, “The Hague Journal of Diplomacy”, No. 9(4).
Udomsap A.D., Hallinger P. (2020), A bibliometric review of research on sustainable construction, “Journal of Cleaner Production”, No. 254(5).
Wolters T. (2012), Business diplomacy in multinational corporations: An exploratory qualitative study (Master’s thesis, University of Twente).
Yiu L., Saner R. (2017), Business diplomacy in implementing the global 2030 development agenda: core competencies needed at the corporate and managerial level, “In International Business Diplomacy”, Vol. 18.
