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on Economics of Strategic Management |
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Issue of 2018‒09‒17
twelve papers chosen by João José de Matos Ferreira Universidade da Beira Interior |
| By: | Martínez Ros, Ester; Kesidou, Effie; García-Quevedo, Jose |
| Abstract: | Building on insights from institutional theory, the resource-based view of the firm, and internationalisation, we seek to explain the variation in the adoption of organisational eco-innovations such as environmental management systems (EMS) across sectors in Spain in the period 2009&-2014. Previous studies on eco-innovation report that regulatory push/pull, technology-push, market-pull, and firm factors are drivers of this process. However, this literature pays relatively little attention to non-technological forms of eco-innovation, such as EMS. As a result, just how EMS adoption can be encouraged across sectors remains unclear in the innovation literature. Here, we seek to address this problem by combining data from the following sources: the Spanish Technological Innovation Panel, the International Standardisation Organisation (ISO) survey, the Industry Survey, the Environmental Protection Survey, and the Air Emissions Account. The results of the econometric analysis of panel data reveal that, first, coercive institutional pressures are driving the adoption of EMS reflecting differences across sectors in energy and pollution intensity. Second, the adoption of ISO 9000 &- a highly institutionalised system of quality management &- increases the adoption of EMS in each industry because of complementarities between the two systems. Third, sectors with a high percentage of internationalised firms operate a higher number of EMS. |
| Keywords: | EMS; Panel data; Internationalisation; Institutional theory; Eco-innovation |
| JEL: | Q58 Q50 O30 |
| Date: | 2018–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cte:idrepe:27380&r=cse |
| By: | Sylvia Villarreal (UNIVERSIDAD INDUSTRIAL DE SANTANDER); Edna Bravo (Universidad Industrial de Santander) |
| Abstract: | One of the main challenges that governments face is managing scarce resources to attend society's needs. To achieve this, among other actions, they have developed initiatives that allow the coordination of technologies, people, processes and structures; however, these actions have had a short-term vision and low impact rates.To determine the current situation of knowledge management in the Colombian public sector, a literature review was carried out to identify barriers of initiatives from the international context, detect Colombian initiatives and characterize the scientific documentation of the country related with knowledge management.As a result, in Colombia and other emerging economies, knowledge management actions are rarely documented and developed from the scientific and research literature, evidencing the absence of guidelines and guidance tools to create and manage knowledge management initiatives. This delay is attributed to the fact that, in the private sector, it is not considered a strategic issue, and, the academic focus on conceptual approach, research the importance of formulating strategies and the needs of finding an adequate model.It is emphasized that the implemented approach is related to the use of information technologies, leaving aside the importance of human interaction to create, transfer and appropriate knowledge. The identified Colombian initiatives are from the MinTIC and non-financial public companies, which have focused on the implementation of knowledge management tools and practices and the creation of specialized equipment.In conclusion, from the international perspective, where innovation is sought to be implemented as a response mechanism to the demands of current citizens, in Colombia there are significant delays in the development and documentation of knowledge management initiatives. Also, although there is a growing interest in the implementation of KM models in the public sector, but they can't achieve be materialized because there are no guidelines or processes for the creation of models that facilitate the transfer of knowledge. |
| Keywords: | Colombia, knowledge management, literature review, public sector. |
| JEL: | O31 O32 |
| Date: | 2018–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:6408981&r=cse |
| By: | Hoerl, Mandy; Hess, Sebastian |
| Abstract: | The European Union’s dairy industry has become increasingly export oriented and consequently the income of EU dairy farmers depends partly on their dairy processing firms’ ability to successfully market dairy products in extra-EU markets. The export competitiveness of the EU dairy industry was examined on the basis of various indicators in order to identify structural determinants of export market success for a panel of EU country exports. Dynamic GMM panel results highlight the importance of innovation and investment for export competitiveness in world markets. The number of dairy products with protected geographical indication per country had no statistically significant effect. |
| Keywords: | Industrial Organization |
| Date: | 2017–08–29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:eaae17:260893&r=cse |
| By: | Diana Forero Toloza (Universidad Industrial de Santander); Edna Rocío Bravo Ibarra (Universidad Industrial de Santander) |
| Abstract: | Social problems arise when communities are identified that do not have access to the labor market, public services, access to housing, drinking water, electrical solutions or other needs specific to their environment. During the last decades, the need to do things differently has increased, either by reversing climate change, creating more inclusive societies or reducing poverty. Therefore, both the public and private sectors consider Social Innovation as a tool that allows generating innovative solutions to problems such as poverty reduction and the improvement of the living conditions of the population. In response to these challenges, Social Innovation has become a relevant topic of research for the research community, academics, politicians, networks, funds and government institutions that have focused their policies specifically on the support and promotion of these innovations aimed at the generation and implementation of new ideas to solve challenges in communities within social systems. For the case of Higher Education, it is particularly interesting, given that these institutions not only have the purpose of transmitting knowledge, but also create economic and social value through the transfer of their teaching and research results to the community. During the last decades, given the international declarations on Higher Education of UNESCO (1998 - 2009), the awareness of the universities has increased with respect to their responsibility to put at the service of the whole community their knowledge and resources. Likewise, they must assume the challenge of articulating knowledge with society to generate the conditions that the world of the 21st century really demands. Exposed the above, social innovation has ceased to be an alternative to become a priority in the agenda of foundations, organizations and companies and of course Universities as engines of economic and social development. |
| Keywords: | Social Innovation, Higher Education and Knowledge transfer |
| JEL: | I23 |
| Date: | 2018–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:6408997&r=cse |
| By: | Hockmann, Heinrich; Garzon Delvaux, Pedro Andres; Voigt, Peter; Ciaian, Pavel; Gomez y Paloma, Sergio |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the impact of corporate research and development (R&D) on firm performance in the foodprocessing industry. We apply Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) with two step bootstrapping using a corporate data for 307 food-processing firms from the EU, US, Canada and Japan for the period 1991–2009. The estimates suggest that R&D has a positive effect on the firms’ performance, with marginal gains decreasing in the R&D level as well as the performance differences are detected across regions and food sectors. R&D investments in food processing can deliver productivity gains, beyond the high-tech sectors generally favoured by innovation policy. |
| Keywords: | Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies |
| Date: | 2017–08–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:eaae17:261274&r=cse |
| By: | Bahar, Dany (Brookings Institution) |
| Abstract: | Using a unique dataset on worldwide multinational corporations with precise location of headquarters and affiliates, I present evidence of a trade-off between distance to the headquarters and the knowledge intensity of the foreign subsidiary's economic activity, emerging from dynamics related to the proximity-concentration hypothesis. This trade-off is strongly diminished the higher the overlap in working hours between the headquarters and its foreign subsidiary. In order to rule out biases arising from confounding factors, I implement a regression discontinuity framework to show that the economic activity of a foreign subsidiary located just across the time zone line that increases the overlap in working hours with its headquarters is, on average, about one percent higher in the knowledge intensity scale. I find no evidence of the knowledge intensity and distance trade-off weakening when a non-stop flight exists between the headquarters and the foreign subsidiary. The findings suggest that lower barriers to real-time communication within the multinational corporation play an important role in the location strategies of multinational corporations. |
| Keywords: | multinational firms, multinational corporations, knowledge, location, proximity concentration hypothesis, FDI |
| JEL: | F23 L22 L25 |
| Date: | 2018–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11697&r=cse |
| By: | Toshihiro Okada (School of Economics, Kwansei Gakuin University) |
| Abstract: | Many developed economies experienced large and correlated fluctuations in the medium run during the postwar period. A good number of industrialized countries experienced high productivity growth during the 1960s and low growth between the early 1970s and the early 1980s. This paper develops a model of medium-run fluctuations incorporating research and development (R&D)-based endogenous growth and international R&D spillovers from a technologically leading country to a technologically lagging country. An important feature of the model is that a key role of the lagging country's R&D is innovation by leaning (IBL) from abroad. After calibration using U.S. and Japanese data, the model shows that changes in U.S.R&D expenditure alone can substantially explain Japan's medium-run fluctuations.The paper argues that the diffusion of U.S. innovations (generated by U.S. R&D) to Japan plays an important role in determining Japan's medium-run fluctuations |
| Keywords: | International R&D spillovers, technology diffusion, endogenous growth, medium-run fluctuations. |
| JEL: | E32 O19 O33 O41 |
| Date: | 2018–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kgu:wpaper:183&r=cse |
| By: | Ploychompoo Kittikunchotiwut (Mahasarakham Business School) |
| Abstract: | The objective of the study is to investigate relationships amongst social capital, potential absorptive capacity, realized absorptive capacity, and firm innovation. The data were collected by using a questionnaire from 89 leather product exporting firms from leather products businesses in Thailand. The hypothesized relationships among variables are examined by using ordinary least square (OLS) regression analysis. The results indicate that social capital have are significant positive impact on potential absorptive capacity and realized absorptive capacity. Potential absorptive capacity and realized absorptive capacity have are significant positive impact on firm innovation. This study might be useful to scholars and those who share an interest in the subject. Moreover, theoretical and managerial contributions, conclusion, and suggestions for future research are also interesting to be discussed. |
| Keywords: | Social Capital, Potential Absorptive Capacity, Realized Absorptive Capacity, Firm Innovation |
| JEL: | L20 M19 |
| Date: | 2018–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:7808721&r=cse |
| By: | Tamirat, Aderajew; Trujillo-Barrera, Andres; Pennings, Joost M.E. |
| Abstract: | The corporate finance literature has focused on explaining the determinants of firms target capital structure and speed of adjustment using the well-established theories such as pecking order, signaling and trade-off theories. However, less attention has been paid to understanding the financing behavior of farm businesses using these theories. Unlike corporate firms with professional management, farm businesses are different in a way that family members participate in management, the owner is often the manager, the decision-making unit is small, and farms heavily depend on government subsidies to stabilize income. These distinctive setting in farm business may result in different patterns of capital structure decision-making. Hence, we evaluate the application of corporate finance theories in the context of understanding the relationship between target capital structure and profit in the farm business. We use a dynamic partial adjustment model to examine the determinants of capital structure and speed of adjustment, and detect capital structure theories with which the leverage ratio of farm business would comply. Our sample comprises a panel of 1500 Dutch farms over the years 2001 to 2015. We find strong evidence that farms prefer internal funds to external funds. Profit is negatively related to leverage, supporting the pecking order theory, which has often been rejected for large firms. Consistent with the signaling theory, we find that size is positively related to leverage. Farm asset structure, growth, investment, and earnings volatility significantly determine the target capital structure. An interesting finding is that farm leverage is highly persistent and that lagged leverage is the best predictor of subsequent leverage ratios. Also, farms appear to have target leverage ratio and are reported to adjust their leverage towards the optimal level. The speed of adjustment to the target capital ranges from 8.6% to 63%, and varies by farm size and farm. This evidence further confirms the existence of dynamics in the farm capital structure decision. This article provides insights to understanding the dynamic nature of farm capital structure and the applicability of capital structure theories in the farm business. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural Finance, Risk and Uncertainty |
| Date: | 2017–08–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:eaae17:261287&r=cse |
| By: | Aquilino Felizardo (Consultant in Management, Phd Student, University of Évora and CEFAGE-UE); Elisabete G.S. Félix (Assistant Professor, University of Évora and CEFAGE-UE); João P.C. F. Thomaz (Associate Professor, ISLA-Leiria, CEG-IST (Lisbon, Portugal) and GP2/CIn/UFPE (Recife-PE, Brazil)) |
| Abstract: | The competitiveness of organizations depends, among other things, of their performance levels. For such, it is vitally important that they have a measurement and evaluation system that, from a set of indicators, provides them reliable information to reflect their goals and evaluate their performances. The aims of this study are: (i) to identify the most discussed approaches in the literature to evaluate the organizational performance, and (ii) to carry out a diagnosis of how small and medium enterprises with economic activity in Portugal measure and operationalize the evaluation of their performance. To meet the objectives of the study, we proceeded to the analysis of published studies in scientific journals and conducted twelve interviews in SMEs. The results indicate that, in addition to the majority of the studied organizations not having a formal process of their strategy, they also do not measure their results in an integrated system that would allow them to make an evaluation according to their strategic goals. |
| Keywords: | Organizational Performance; Measurement and Evaluation Systems of the Organizational Performance. |
| JEL: | L25 M10 |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cfe:wpcefa:2017_05&r=cse |
| By: | Ilya Prakhov (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Victor Rudakov (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | This paper evaluates the design of current contractual incentive mechanisms in Russian universities depending on the type of higher education institution after recent significant contractual reforms in the national academic sector. We employ the theoretical framework of incentive contracts in order to identify and assess performance measures of university faculty determining the total income received from teaching, research and administrative duties. We estimate returns from academic productivity in Russia to be reflected in the academic salary by an evaluation of empirical models of the determinants of faculty pay depending on their productivity, current academic and administrative position, gender and seniority. We show that for the entire sample, faculty salary is positively associated with publication activity. Teaching is significant only for the entire sample, but not significant for subsamples. Administrative duties (expressed in the position held) are positively related to faculty pay: the largest effect is for rectors and vice-rectors, but for deans and heads of departments or laboratories the effect is also strong. Heads of universities and structural units receive a significant bonus for their administrative position. For research-oriented universities the largest effect in publication activity is for the number of papers in high ranking journals. In universities with no research status we discovered a significant gender gap: the male faculty earn more than their female colleagues. There is a positive linear relationship between salary and seniority for the entire sample and in universities with no special status, which corresponds to human capital theory. Salaries in universities requiring higher entrance exam scores are higher than in less selective higher education institutions. The salary in Moscow universities is higher than in the regional higher education institutions. |
| Keywords: | academic contracts, faculty pay, merit pay, incentive contract, international rankings, competitiveness of higher education. |
| JEL: | I21 I23 J31 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:47edu2018&r=cse |
| By: | KODAMA Naomi; Huiyu LI |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the relationship between the performance of a firm and the characteristics of its manager for private and public firms in Japan. We use a panel data of firms from 2006-2016 that covers over two-thirds of aggregate employment and is representative of the firm size distribution. We find that firm performance measures—size, growth, and sales per employee—are higher in firms with managers who are male, more educated, and whose self-reported hometown differs from the location of the firm he or she manages (migrant managers). We also find an inverted-U relationship between firm performance level and manager's age, and that growth rate declines with the manager's age. Firm performance first increases with age until middle age, after which it declines with age. However, managers with characteristics that are associated with good performance do not necessarily perform better in recessions: male and migrant managers cut back more on sales and employment during the 2008-2009 recession. These results hold even after controlling for firm characteristics such as industry, age, location, and family ownership. Our results are consistent with human capital and risk preference affecting the productivity of managers. They suggest that demographic shifts—aging, rising female labor participation and education attainment, change in migration patterns—may affect economic growth through the distribution of managerial productivity. |
| Date: | 2018–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:dpaper:18060&r=cse |