1. Introduction
Companies and governments tend to view companies' and countries' competitiveness as being based on head-to-head
competition with rivals, measured by indicators such as export sales, foreign direct investment, overseas affiliates, and the like.
Imports tend to be downplayed, because for (mercantilist) governments, exports are viewed as job-creating, while imports are
seen as job-destroying (cf. the “hollowing out of the US economy” in Congressional Research Service, 2011). And for companies,
exports are seen as reflecting the firm's competitive advantages, while imports are typically seen as just a necessary part of the
supply chain. In the 21st century, with company competitiveness driven more and more by low-cost production and high-quality,
differentiated outputs, managers have recognized the increasing need to optimize the use of available resources from at home and
abroad. Imports figure heavily in production processes from autos and electronics to software and customer service provision. In
fact, in the US in 2000, 48 million people (35% of the civilian workforce) worked in firms that export and/or import; and more
than 50% of firms that export also import.1 This paper analyzes the role of imports in a sample of US firms, attempting to
demonstrate the fit of imports into overall company strategy and internationalization