AIB Journals Podcast

Today, we dive into the World Investment Report 2025 to uncover how artificial intelligence and national security concerns are fundamentally reallocating international capital. Join us as we discuss the urgent challenges of the expanding digital divide and the critical need for sustainable investment in an increasingly fragmented world. Citation: Giroud, A., Puck, J. & Puhr, H. (2026). World Investment Report 2025: international investment in the digital economy. Journal of International Business Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00234-6

This podcast dives into the high-stakes geopolitical tug-of-war over Latin America’s critical minerals, where the U.S. and China are deploying rival strategies such as the Belt and Road Initiative to the Minerals Security Partnership to secure the resources powering the global energy transition. This podcast uncovers how nations like Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina are leveraging this competition, swinging between resource nationalism and open-market policies to demand value-added industrialization rather than just raw extraction. This podcast offers a crucial playbook for multinational enterprises, revealing how to navigate complex regulations like the Inflation Reduction Act while forging local partnerships that survive the crossfire of superpower rivalry. Citation: Li, J., Shapiro, D. & Vecino, C. (2025). Geopolitics, Host Country Policy, and Critical Mineral Investment in Latin America. AIB Insights. https://doi.org/10.46697/001c.146203 Jing Li, Daniel M. Shapiro, Carlos Vecino

Gender wage discrimination is a grand challenge that constrains economic growth worldwide and denies women fair opportunities. Yet, we know surprisingly little about how women’s own experiences of wage discrimination steer their career decisions. The article discussed in this podcast episode adopts the perspective of job-seeking women and argues that prior exposure to wage discrimination reshapes their employer preferences. Citation: Sofka, W., Grimpe, C. & Kaiser, U. (2025). Gender wage discrimination and the attractiveness of foreign MNC subsidiaries as employers for women. Journal of International Business Studies. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-025-00811-0

Discover how firms are transforming from passive victims of geopolitical disruptions into active agents capable of shaping the very political environments that constrain them. This podcast unpacks a new model that traces how shocks from trade wars to military conflicts filter through specific institutional mechanisms like sanctions and media narratives that inform firms’ strategy and performance. Join us in this podcast to learn why some firms aren't just surviving these disruptions, but are engaging with them head-on. Citation: Andrews, D.S., Puhr, H. & Knill, A. (2026). Transmission of geopolitical shocks to firm behavior: a synthesis and integrative model. Journal of International Business Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00232-8

Join us as we explore how multinational enterprises can wield their immense power to end exploitative practices and finally make "decent work" a reality rather than just a pipe dream. This podcast breaks down a new actionable framework designed to protect marginalized communities, including migrant workers and the LGBTIQ+ community, by enforcing strict supply chain accountability and leveraging transparency technology. This podcast can be your blueprint for moving beyond corporate rhetoric to implement concrete strategies like living wages and inclusive hiring that truly transform global operations. Citation: Röell, C., Ocampo, A., & Özbilgin, M. F. (2025). From Pipe Dream to Meaningful Action: How MNEs Can Deliver Decent Work. AIB Insights. https:/​/​doi.org/​10.46697/​001c.145892.

While the world fixates on the economic damage caused by trade wars, a new study reveals how "outsider" multinational firms are quietly turning geopolitical chaos into a massive growth opportunity. This podcast explores how companies, like Volkswagen and Airbus, which are from neutral nations, are leveraging their outsider status to aggressively scale up operations inside conflict zones like China, capitalizing on cheaper assets and reduced competition from American rivals. Join this podcast to discover why possessing a vast global network, strong local partnerships, and favorable bilateral agreements are the ultimate keys to transforming trade barriers into competitive windfalls. Citation: Ma, H., & Clougherty, J.A. (2025). Third-country MNEs, trade wars, and competitive opportunities: a real-options perspective. Journal of International Business Studies https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-025-00821-y

Check out this podcast to explore a groundbreaking new framework that finally moves beyond the simplistic "good vs. bad" debate on corporate sustainability, revealing how global supply chains impact our planet in four distinct, context-dependent ways. By listening, you will uncover why the same environmental initiative can be a game-changer in a healthy ecosystem but barely scratch the surface in a degraded one, and what this means for the future of business strategy. This podcast is your guide to understanding how tailored policy tools such as financial incentives and strict regulations can transform supply chains from drivers of ecological damage into powerful engines for restoration and resilience. Citation: Bass, A.E., Bu, M. & Sartor, M.A. (2025). Reconceptualizing global value chain impact on the natural environment: a framework for integrating context, upgrading, and downgrading with policy implications. Journal of International Business Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00227-5

This podcast highlights how big global companies can team up with small startups to make real progress on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Using Bayer’s partnership with Ghana’s digital health venture Bisa, it shows a three-step process which involves matching complementary skills, linking with non-profits, and expanding into underserved regions, that can create both business and social impact. It’s an inspiring story of how “win-win-win” partnerships can turn innovation into meaningful change for communities that need it most. Citation: Prashantham, S. (2025). MNE–SME Engagement for the SDGs. AIB Insights. https://doi.org/10.46697/001c.144863.

This podcast dives into a fascinating “crowdsourced science” experiment where 57 analysts across the world tackled the same research questions with the same data but still came to considerably different conclusions, often with opposing effects for the same sets of variables. It shows how much research outcomes can depend on the analyst’s choices, yet also how combining many perspectives can reveal meaningful patterns beneath the noise. It’s an energetic look at how science can be more open, transparent, and collaborative, proving that even messy data stories can yield real insight when many minds work together. Citation: Delios, A., Hu, T., Yu, S. et al. (2025). The insights from the crowd: Drawing inferences from many approaches to key empirical questions in international business. Journal of International Business Studies. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-025-00808-9

This podcast dives into how today’s startups are rewriting the playbook for going global. It unpacks four big shifts such as digitization, ecosystems, fractured geopolitics, and sustainability, which are reshaping how young firms expand and how governments should support them. It’s an energizing take on how connectivity, not just opportunity, is driving the new era of international entrepreneurship. Citation: Zahra, S.A., Hashai, N. (2025). Contemporary transitions in the international activities of startups and their policy implications. Journal of International Business Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00226-6

This podcast discussing a recent article that shows how Africa’s small farmers and women entrepreneurs are finding creative ways to grow businesses by working with their communities and using simple, sustainable tools. It shares inspiring stories from Uganda and Tanzania where locals fixed old treadle sewing machines, boosted crop yields, and built new ways to reach markets. Real change comes from listening to village leaders, respecting traditions, and teaming up across governments, NGOs, and businesses to build fair and lasting opportunities. Citation: Paul, K. (2025). Lessons to Learn from Informal and Home-Based Business in Africa. AIB Insights. https://doi.org/10.46697/001c.144333.

Green products are both cleaning up the planet and reshaping global trade. New research shows that unlike traditional goods, green products are more likely to be sourced from countries with stricter environmental standards, flipping the old “pollution haven” story on its head. The race is on: firms chasing green credibility are seeking out “green havens,” where tougher rules actually boost exports and reputations rather than drive them away. Citation: Berry, H., Chauvin, J., Cheng, Y.L., & Lee, N. (2025). The global sourcing of green products. Journal of International Business Studies. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-025-00801-2

This podcast discusses a JIBP article that explores how firms in developing regions can turn foreign technology into real wins for the planet. It shows that the biggest gains happen when companies have the skills, drive, and freedom to use new tools to cut waste and emissions. The podcast calls for smarter policies that not only share technology but also build local know-how, reward green innovation, and clear away red tape so that businesses can actually make change happen. Citation: Hendriks, G. (2025). When does foreign technology help firms from periphery countries improve their environmental impact? An ability–motivation–opportunity framework. Journal of International Business Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00225-7

This podcast episode discusses a new article that argues that Africa’s thousands of languages create a barrier to trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and proposes Kiswahili as a single trade language to boost communication, economic integration, and poverty reduction. It presents a 25-year roadmap using institutional theory’s three pillars: rules and enforcement (regulative), shared norms (normative), and common ways of thinking (cognitive) to guide governments, businesses, and educators in making Kiswahili a continent-wide trade language. The podcast concludes that adopting Kiswahili could lower trade costs and strengthen African unity but will require sustained investment in education, policy harmonization, and cultural acceptance. Citation: Chrysostome, E. V., Adegbile, A., Boafo, C., & Ogunsanya, F. (2025). From Thousands of African Languages to a Pan-African Language for the African Continental Free Trade Area: A Framework Promoting Kiswahili as Common Language for Intra-African Trade. AIB Insights. https:/​/​doi.org/​10.46697/​001c.136476.

Climate change is a critical issue, largely driven by human activities like burning fossil fuels and deforestation. Multinational enterprises (MNEs) contribute significantly to global emissions but also have the resources to combat climate change. This podcast episode discusses an article that explores whether and how worsening ecological conditions motivate MNEs to innovate climate solutions. Citation: Genin, A., Bu, J. (2025). Global ecological dependence and multinationals’ climate innovation: the role of climate risk exposure and institutional conditions. Journal of International Business Studies https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-025-00793-z

Middle-income countries are rushing to stake their claim in the booming green economy, but the real prize lies in moving beyond simply “joining” global value chains to actually upgrading within them. Solar, wind, and bioenergy projects are opening doors, yet lasting gains come only when governments blend demand incentives, supply support, and technology policies in the right mix. The message is clear: seizing green windows of opportunity isn’t automatic. Instead, it takes bold, well-crafted industrial strategies to turn participation into real power. Citation: Lema, R., Rabellotti, R. & Ambrogi, J. (2025). Seizing windows of opportunity in green global value chains: the role of industrial policies in middle-income countries. Journal of International Business Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00219-5

Behind the glossy façade of philanthropy, corporations are funneling millions into charities tied to politicians, turning donations into covert power plays. From South Korea’s explosive Choi-gate scandal to U.S. defense contractors funding pet causes of lawmakers, the cases show a global pattern of “charitable bribes” reshaping corruption’s playbook. This investigation reveals how firms dodge scrutiny, distort competition, and why transparency is now the frontline battle in corporate influence. Citation: Jeong, Y., & Siegel, J. 2025. Charitable Bribes? The Concealed Form of Corporate Influence and a Road to Greater Transparency Worldwide. AIB Insights, 25(4). https:/​/​doi.org/​10.46697/​001c.143042.

Why do some films find success globally while others fizzle out? This podcast dives into the hidden power of social influence such as how critics, stars, and even press freedom can make or break a movie’s international success, discussing a recent article that studies how cultural industries expand internationally. Citation: Huang, X., Fan, D. & Soo, C. (2025). A social influence view of the internationalization of cultural products. Journal of International Business Studies. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-025-00797-9

Hydrogen is being hailed as the fuel of the future, but the real story is how latecomer countries are racing to grab a slice of the action. From Namibia to India, governments are rolling out bold strategies to turn sun, wind, and gas into global exports, green industries, and even new tech niches. The contest isn’t just about clean energy. It is about rewriting industrial policy and reshaping who gets to win in the next energy revolution. Citation: Altenburg, T.,& Strohmaier, R. (2025). Low-emission hydrogen: global value chain opportunities for latecomers and industrial policy challenges. Journal of International Business Policy. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00217-7

Global crises, climate shocks, and AI advances are challenging the old rules of management education, leaving leaders scrambling to keep up. A new teaching approach called the “fire-mindset” offers a path forward by focusing on curiosity, intellectual rigor, and co-creation of knowledge in the face of disruption. It’s a call to rewire how we teach international business so future leaders can better navigate through an unpredictable world. Citation: Hasse, V.C. (2025). International Business Education in the Age of Disruption. AIB Insights, https://doi.org/10.46697/001c.143158