Territorial factors of attractiveness of foreign investment by multinational firms: the perception and role of general managers

The purpose of the article is the analysis of territorial factors that contribute to attracting foreign investment of Multinational Firms (MNFs). Investment operations accounted belong to both the creation or takeover of a subsidiary in a foreign territory as its extension. We consider that the choice of location for foreign investment is less the result of a rational optimization process by the MNF than an approach in which the territorial context of the investment and its perception by the internal actors of the MNF, including the subsidiary general manager, play a key role. We rely on the study of the investment operations of foreign MNFs in Brittany (France). We mobilize first a survey of 75 subsidiary general managers and carry 14 semi-structured interviews. The research results show a foreign investment policy guided by the specific resources on the territory where the logic of location is doubled by a logical anchor. They also account for strong influences of MNF internal actors, including the subsidiary general manager, with prior knowledge of the local context.