Catherine A. Ramus and Alfred A. Marcus
We bring together disparate negotiation theory research in order to identify a composite set of potential barriers to reaching agreement in environmental negotiations. This…
Abstract
We bring together disparate negotiation theory research in order to identify a composite set of potential barriers to reaching agreement in environmental negotiations. This framework builds on behavioral decision theory, showing barriers that arise from personal values and institutional values and norms, as well as from situational elements that influence individual behaviors and organizational strategies. We contribute to the literature on organizational behavior by making explicit the relationship between the strength of the situation and organizational behavior related to negotiations. The elements of situational strength have not been addressed adequately in prior negotiation literature. We incorporate this concept into a comprehensive set of barriers to offer explanations for the intractability of many environmental disputes.
This paper is an analysis of knowledge creation following implementation of the world's leading quality assurance standard, ISO 9000. We combine the perspectives of Nonaka on…
Abstract
This paper is an analysis of knowledge creation following implementation of the world's leading quality assurance standard, ISO 9000. We combine the perspectives of Nonaka on knowledge creation (Nonaka, 1994; Nonaka & Takeuchi 1995; and Krogh, Nonaka, & Nishiguchi, 2000) with those of authors who have dealt with the dynamics of rules and routines (March, Schulz, & Zhou, 2000; Nelson & Winter, 1982; Cohen & Bacdayan, 1994). On the basis of our analysis of ISO 9000 implementation we develop observations about rules and learning and about rule integration, absorption, and renewal. Our paper fits into the growing literature on the role of learning and knowledge transfer in quality improvement and the evolution of dynamic capabilities in the firm using routines and learning mechanisms such as knowledge codification.
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This is a comparative case study of how three high school history teachers in the U.S.A. use art in their practice. The following research question was investigated: How do…
Abstract
This is a comparative case study of how three high school history teachers in the U.S.A. use art in their practice. The following research question was investigated: How do secondary history teachers incorporate the arts—paintings, music, poems, novels, and films—in their teaching of history and why? Data were collected from three sources: interviews, observations, and classroom materials. Grounded theory was utilized to analyze the data. Findings suggest these teachers use the arts as historical evidence roughly for three purposes: First, to teach the spirit of an age; second, to teach the history of ordinary people invisible in official historical records; and third, to teach, both with and without art, the process of writing history. Two of the three teachers, however, failed to teach historical thinking skills through art.
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Sinziana Dorobantu, Ruth V. Aguilera, Jiao Luo and Frances J. Milliken
Ari Ginsberg and Alfred Marcus
Venture capital’s role in clean energy (CE) technologies can be transformative in creating a sustainable society. Yet there are limitations on how far venture capitalists (VCs…
Abstract
Venture capital’s role in clean energy (CE) technologies can be transformative in creating a sustainable society. Yet there are limitations on how far venture capitalists (VCs) can go in supporting these technologies. These limits exist because of the performance expectations of the main stakeholder group who hold VCs accountable. The financial backers of VCs expect an exceptional return on their investment, given the high level of risk they take on when they invest in unproven startups. This chapter explores the constraints that the financial obligations VCs have to their main backers put on their role in bringing about a more sustainable global society. It investigates VC firms’ responses to CE exits (initial public offerings (IPOs) and acquisitions) and shows how prior CE exits affect CE investment growth when we compare VCs exit records to that of their peers. This chapter demonstrates that VCs only increase CE investments when the cumulative number of exits substantially exceed that of their peers, while they decrease these investments when the cumulative number of their exits only moderately outpace that of their peers. The chapter suggests that the reason VCs respond in this way is the financial pressure VCs experience because of their dependence on their financial backers.
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The purpose of this paper is to provide a historical account of the May 1985 spread spectrum FCC decision.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide a historical account of the May 1985 spread spectrum FCC decision.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents a case study giving a first‐person account of decision making at the FCC in 1985.
Findings
The May 1985 decision did not start as an attempt to bring specific products to market, but as part of a program to remove anachronistic technical regulations and allow a free market in innovative technology, subject only to responsible interference limits.
Research limitations/implications
Research limitations encompass typical limitations of a narrow case study of a historical event.
Practical implications
The paper guides future decision making in telecommunications policy.
Originality/value
The paper reflects the path of deregulation in the 1980s resulting in widespread product innovation in the twenty‐first century.
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Stephen K. Nkundabanyanga and Alfred Okwee
The purpose of this study is to establish the relationship between CSR, managerial discretion, competences, learning and efficiency and perceived corporate financial performance…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to establish the relationship between CSR, managerial discretion, competences, learning and efficiency and perceived corporate financial performance in order to establish the legitimacy and value of CSR, taking managers' perspectives in Uganda.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used quantitative, correlation and regression analyses and collected primary data through a structured questionnaire on a sample of 100 firms.
Findings
The results indicate that managerial discretion and competences, learning and efficiency are significant predictors of perceived corporate financial performance, but CSR is not. However, the results show serendipitously that managerial discretion's predictive potential of perceived corporate performance is moderated by CSR.
Result limitations/implications
The study focuses on corporate social responsibility, a concept not very well appreciated and only understood as philanthropic and not really viewed as a means for improved financial performance in Uganda.
Practical implications
Our study implies that while upholding the ideals of CSR, companies in Uganda need to enhance managerial discretion in their contracting process and develop competences, learning and efficiency in order to impact positively on performance.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the dearth of CSR literature on the African experience by examining the perceptions of managers on CSR's predictive potential of corporate financial performance in Uganda.