Emerging Indian pharma multinationals: latecomer catch-up strategies in a globalised high-tech industry

Leading Indian Pharmaceutical Companies (IPCs) are frequently taken as prime examples of the new 'emerging multinationals' from developing countries. Business researchers have studied their catch-up and internationalisation strategies from a resource-based perspective, often in reference to the specific institutional changes in the Indian economy. While these studies identify significant advances in IPCs' capabilities and internationalisation, the global competitive position they have achieved and the reach of this position remain elusive. By taking a 'global industry perspective' the paper argues that IPCs are still no serious competitive challenge to Big Pharma and have to largely rely on more subordinate collaborative strategies. More generally, the findings from this explorative case study suggest that certain global structural characteristics of various industries may be important variables in the explanation of the trajectories and dynamics of emerging multinationals' international catch-up processes.