Territorial public management of foreign direct investment projects. A contribution to territorial intelligence. ; Management public territorial des projets d'investissements directs étrangers. Une contribution à l'intelligence territoriale

Open Access

Abstract

Prospecting, attracting, locating and anchoring foreign direct investment (FDI) projects in a country is now a major challenge for economic and political leaders. Public management actors (technicians, elected officials, citizens) then question themselves on the type of management and territorial economic intelligence to be implemented in order to facilitate the anchoring of these projects. The literature on this subject is rich in research on attractiveness factors and the determinants of location but has been very little addressed from the perspective of management sciences. In order to understand the reasons for the success or failure of the implementation of such projects, it is then relevant to question the process of territorial public management in order to understand what underlies the implementation and anchoring of an FDI project during its life cycle. Based on qualitative case studies, we study the links between the process of implementing an FDI project and its inclusion in the territorial ecosystem for i) a Chinese project in France in the telecommunications sector and ii) a South Korean project in Brazil in the semi-conductor sector. On the basis of an initial historical study produced using primary and secondary public sources as well as confirmatory interviews with involved stakeholders, we propose secondary analyses from the perspective of translation sociology associated with the "strategy as practice" framework. By challenging a traditionally linear view of the project life cycle and identifying key managerial events and practices, we better understand the process and how territories demonstrate, or not, strategic agility. Relations between universities, companies and government are also analysed in terms of supporting territorial attractiveness. Considering the attractiveness of FDI projects from a collaborative perspective thus provides new empirical evidence and explanations of the phenomenon. We can then propose the following managerial implications: i) the use of a triple helix strategy ...