REGIONAL HEADQUARTERS - THE SPEARHEAD FOR ASIA-PACIFIC MARKETS

Firms seeking to develop or enhance their presence in the Asia Pacific region will, at some point, have to address the question of whether o r not to set up a regional headquarters (RHO). the relevance of the re gional headquarters issue for companies operating in the Asia Pacific region is heightened by the rapid economic emergence of those countrie s and the debate over a new regional grouping for the area. This artic le seeks to contribute to the debate by describing the various roles R HQs can play and assessing their usefulness in achieving corporate amb itions. It is based on empirical data obtained through informal interv iews with Western companies, and through a survey conducted by the INS EAD Euro-Asia Centre in the region in 1992.