With responsibility for his company's largely centralized R&D activities,Frank worries that the center may not understand local market needs,while the subsidiaries may not be committed to innovations developed at the center.To respond to these concerns,Frank's priority should be to:
A) adopt a single point of contact between headquarters and the subsidiaries to focus the flow of information.
B) ensure that several key people in the foreign subsidiaries are linked to individuals at the headquarters who can represent and defend their views.
C) carefully select the people he interacts with in the subsidiaries in order to reduce conflicting perspectives regarding innovation management.
D) listen to the different national perspectives and priorities, but minimize differences in views from multiple subsidiaries' input.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Two key problems face a company with highly centralized R&D activities firstly,those at the center may not understand local market needs and,secondly,those in the subsidiaries required to implement the central innovation may not be committed to it.Building multiple linkages between headquarters and overseas subsidiaries gives headquarters managers a better understanding of country-level needs and opportunities,as well as giving subsidiary managers greater access to and involvement in centralized decisions and tasks.

With Responsibility for His Company's Largely Centralized R&D Activities,Frank Worries