Local ties and global linkages: Restructuring Taiwan-based production networks in the apparel and computer industries

"How do Taiwanese firms organize their production networks to be competitive in the world market and cope with the changing conditions of the global economy?" This is the key question addressed in this study. A comparative case study of Taiwan-based production networks in the apparel and computer industries--Taiwan's two leading export sectors--is employed to answer this question.;Local production networks as well as the more recently developed Taiwan-based overseas production networks are both important for Taiwan's economic performance. I integrate comparative institutional approaches (business networks, business systems, and social systems of production) and global commodity chains to serve as theoretical frameworks to understand Taiwan's production networks.;Different aspects of social institutions as well as the role of the state have been examined at both the industry level and the firm level. The similarities in local subcontracting practices shared by firms in both the apparel and computer industries are due to the societal-specific institutional contexts in which they are embedded. In addition to "personal trust," this study conceptualizes another type of trust--"competence trust"--as a key mechanism by which firms in a production network maintain competitiveness.;Inter-sectoral differences in overseas Taiwan-based production networks are explained mainly by the different governance structures of global commodity chains. While distinctive forms of Taiwanese production networks are clearly linked to particular social institutions, the way firms organize their production networks is determined to an important extent by their position in global industries. Inter-firm variations within a sector ultimately result from differences in a firm's strategies and export roles. Finally, this study highlights that the different patterns of international production networks have different implications for local production networks and workers.