|
on Economics of Strategic Management |
|
Issue of 2008‒06‒13
eight papers chosen by Joao Jose de Matos Ferreira University of the Beira Interior |
| By: | Alex Coad |
| Abstract: | This paper is an empirical test of the hypothesis that the appropriateness of different business strategies is conditional on the firms distance to the industry frontier. We use data on four 2-digit high-tech manufacturing industries in the US over the period 1972-1999, and apply semi-parametric quantile regressions to investigate the contribution of firm behavior to market value at various points of the conditional distribution of Tobin's q. Among our results, we observe that innovative activity, measured in terms of R&D expenditure or patents, has a strong positive association with market value at the upper quantiles (corresponding to the leader firms) whereas the innovative efforts of laggard firms are valued significantly less. Laggard firms, we suggest, should instead achieve productivity growth through efficient exploitation of existing technologies and imitation of industry leaders. Employment growth in leader firms is encouraged whereas growth of backward firms is not as well received on the stock market. |
| Keywords: | Distance to frontier, Strategy, Market value, Innovation, Firm Growth |
| JEL: | L25 L21 D21 O31 |
| Date: | 2008–06–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ssa:lemwps:2008/13&r=cse |
| By: | Heinz Hollenstein (WIFO) |
| Abstract: | The aim of the paper is, firstly, to identify a number of strategies Swiss firms pursue by performing foreign R&D, expecting that firms, in many instances, are driven by a combination of several motives ("mixed strategies"). Secondly, we ask whether foreign and domestic R&D are substitutes or complements. Thirdly, we draw some policy conclusions based on results for direct and indirect home-country effects of foreign R&D. By applying cluster analysis, we identified four specific patterns of motives of foreign R&D. In a second step, we investigated whether these clusters effectively may be interpreted as specific types of R&D strategies. To this end, the clusters were characterised in terms of a large number of variables, which, according to the OLI paradigm of FDI, determine foreign R&D. We found that the patterns of the four clusters systematically differ with respect to these theory-related variables. Some clusters represent, in terms of motives, broad-based mixed strategies, whereas others are strongly focused. It turns out that foreign R&D strategies that primarily aim at exploiting capabilities of the domestic headquarters dominate, whereas cost-reducing strategies are of very minor importance. In case of the other two strategies knowledge sourcing is a constituent element, in the first one, knowledge sourcing is at the core, in the second case it is an important element in the frame of a broad-based strategy. The relative importance of the four strategies implies that, on balance, foreign and domestic R&D are complements. Notwithstanding this positive result, it is sensible to take policy actions supporting the economy to capitalise even more on outward FDI in R&D. Policy basically should aim at securing the attractiveness of Switzerland as a location for R&D-intensive headquarters of firms performing foreign R&D, and at enhancing knowledge spill-overs from headquarter companies to other domestic firms. The five categories of measures we recommend are part of a framework-oriented policy design rather than of a more interventionist concept. |
| Keywords: | Internationalisation of R&D Motives of foreign R&D Foreign R&D strategies Knowledge spillovers Home-country effects of outward FDI in R&D |
| Date: | 2008–03–31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wfo:wpaper:y:2008:i:315&r=cse |
| By: | Sumon Kumar Bhaumik; Ekta Selarka |
| Abstract: | performance. On the one hand, concentration of ownership that, in turn, concentrates management control in the hands of a strategic investor, eliminates agency problems associated with dispersed ownership. On the other hand, it may lead to entrenchment of upper management which may be inconsistent with the objective of profit (or value) maximisation. This paper examines the impact of M&A on profitability of firms in India, where the corporate landscape is dominated by family-owned and group-affiliated businesses, such that alignment of management and ownership coexists with management entrenchment, and draws conclusions about the impact of concentrated ownership and entrenchment of ownermanagers on firm performance. Our results indicate that, during the 1995-2002 period, M&A in India led to deterioration in firm performance. We also find that neither the investors in the equity market nor the debt holders can be relied upon to discipline errant (and entrenched) management. In other words, on balance, negative effects of entrenchment of ownermanagers trumps the positive effects of reduction in owner-vs.-manager agency problems. Our findings are consistent with bulk of the existing literature on family-owned and group affiliated firms in India. |
| Keywords: | mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, manager entrenchment, firm performance, India |
| JEL: | G34 |
| Date: | 2008–02–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wdi:papers:2008-907&r=cse |
| By: | Md. Aminul Islam and Farid Ahammad Sobhani (University Sains Malaysia; University Sains Malaysia) |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this study was to identify and understand the factors influencing outsourcing decision in the manufacturing industry in Bangladesh. Existing literature revealed that many manufacturing industry were faced with challenges in the competitive environment to be competitive in the market and produce products at the minimum cost as possible yet meeting customer specification without affecting the quality and delivery schedule. Thus, outsourcing could be an alternative to solve most of the problems faced by many manufacturing industry in Bangladesh. This stirred these researchers to identify and understand the possible factors influencing the manufacturing industry in outsourcing decision whether these factors could really influence the management to opt for outsourcing and help in solving the problems. The theoretical framework was developed to hypothesize four components namely reduce operating cost, improve company focus, access to world class capability and unavailability of internal resources in relation to influence outsourcing decision in the manufacturing industry. The proposed study utilized the exploratory approach, whereby the survey method was used. The data was collected through questionnaires in various manufacturing industry in Bangladesh. The findings were analyzed using a statistical software package (SPSS), and the main tools that were used were Cronbach’s Alpha, descriptive and linear regression analysis. The findings revealed that the factors or components identified for the study had significant effect on outsourcing decision except reduce operating cost. This study provided evidence that these factors would influence outsourcing decision in the manufacturing industry in Bangladesh. The recommendations are also offered more in-depth guidelines for maximizing the benefits of outsourcing. |
| Date: | 2008–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aiu:abewps:69&r=cse |
| By: | Nikolaos Georgantzís (LEE-LINEEX, Universitat Jaume I); Constantine Manasakis (Department of Economics, University of Crete, Greece); Evangelos Mitrokostas (Department of Economics, University of Crete); Emmanuel Petrakis (Department of Economics, University of Crete, Greece) |
| Abstract: | Often, deviations of firm behavior from profit maximization are the result of managerial incentive contracts. We study the endogenous emergence of incentive contracts used by firm owners to delegate the strategic decisions of the firm. These contracts are linear combinations either of own firm's profits and revenues, or own and rival firms' profits. A two- and three-stage game are studied depending on whether owners commit or not to a certain contract type before setting the managerial incentives and the level of output to produce in the market. We report experimental results which confirm some of the predictions of the model, especially those concerning owners' preference for relative performance incentives over profit-revenue contracts. Neglected behavioral aspects are proposed as possible explanation of some divergence between the theory and the experimental evidence, more specifically the relation between contract terms and managers' output choices |
| Keywords: | Experimental economics; Oligopoly theory; Managerial delegation; Endogenous contracts. |
| JEL: | D43 L21 |
| Date: | 2008–06–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crt:wpaper:0809&r=cse |
| By: | Philippe Askenazy; Christophe Cahny; Delphine Irac |
| Abstract: | This paper proposes a model in the spirit of Aghion and al. (2005) that relates the magnitude of the impact of competition on R&D to the cost of innovation. The effect of competition on R&D is an inverted U-shape. However, the shape is flatter and competition policy is therefore less relevant for innovation when innovations are relatively costly. Intuitively, if innovations are costly for a firm, competitive shocks have to be significant to alter its innovation decisions. Empirical investigations using a unique panel dataset from the Banque de France show that an inverted U-shaped relationship can be clearly evidenced for the largest firms, but the curve becomes flatter when the relative cost of R&D increases. For large costs, the relationship even vanishes. |
| Date: | 2008 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pse:psecon:2008-32&r=cse |
| By: | Marinucci, Marco |
| Abstract: | This paper faces two questions concerning Joint Ventures (JV) agreements. First, we study how the partners contribution affect the creation and the profit sharing of a JV when partners' effort is not observable. Then, we see whether such agreements are easier to enforce when the decision on JV profit sharing among partners is either delegated to the independent JV management (Management Sharing) or jointly taken by partners (Coordinated Sharing). We find that the firm whose effort has a higher impact on the JV's profits should have a larger profit shares. Moreover, a Management sharing ensures, at least in some cases, a wider range of self-enforceable JV agreements. |
| Keywords: | joint ventures; strategic alliances; ownership structure; asymmetries. |
| JEL: | L14 L13 D43 L22 |
| Date: | 2008–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:8985&r=cse |
| By: | Karl Aiginger (WIFO) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the impact of the toughness of competition on the macroeconomic performance of countries. The relation between competition and innovation has been investigated intensely in industrial economics. It started with Schumpeter's hypotheses that monopoly profits were necessary for innovation, leading then to U-curve relationships where innovation was the highest for medium-range of competition, but lower for very tough competition as well as for a very lax competitive regime. Empirical studies on the growth differences between countries increasingly stress – apart from the usual suspects like investment, R&D, human capital – the role of institutions. They include indicators on regulation, government size, corruption and rule of law, but usually not the degree of competition. Conventional growth theory did not model the impact of competition, but assumed perfect competition. In New Growth Theory, economic growth depends on purposeful and maximising innovation activities, where market structure plays an important role. But this did not result in the inclusion of competition variables into empirical growth equations. We have attempted to bridge this gap a bit by relating 13 indicators on the toughness of competition to macroeconomic performance. We then added these competition indicators to an equation relating macro performance to the standard explanatory variables for economic growth (like investment and R&D). The results indicate that competition plus innovation is a good recipe at the macro level, too, probably with similar tensions and non-linearity as at the company level. |
| Keywords: | Competition Macroeconomic Performance Innovation |
| Date: | 2008–05–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wfo:wpaper:y:2008:i:318&r=cse |