Bella Butler and Sharon Purchase
This paper aims to investigate business network activity patterns and how they change when actors experience tensions.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate business network activity patterns and how they change when actors experience tensions.
Design/methodology/approach
Four tensions, developed from previous literature, are considered in relation to how they influence activity patterns. A longitudinal case study focusing on the modernization of an international airport illustrates how tensions experienced by actors influence changes in activity patterns.
Findings
Results highlight that when tensions in relation to network position are experienced activity patterns are more likely to break and form new patterns. When multiple tensions are experienced within the same period, an old activity pattern is more likely to be broken and the new activity pattern develop.
Research limitations/implications
Contributions in relation to interdependencies between activities heighten the impact of changes leading to the breaking of existing patterns, particularly the importance of coordination activities. These findings are context specific because activity patterns vary according to the industry.
Practical implications
Practical implications indicate that understanding network interdependences within the change process is important, particularly for co-ordination activities. The study informs practitioners about possible outcomes while tensions are experienced. This study found that when actors are experiencing multiple tensions, breaking of activity patterns is more likely to occur while experience less tensions extending existing activity patterns becoming more likely.
Originality/value
Contributions are made in relation to gaps in investigating the business network activity layer and their changes in relation to tensions.
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Wein-Hong Chen, Min-Ping Kang and Bella Butler
Penrose’s argument regarding the managerial constraint on continual expansion over two consecutive periods is termed the “Penrose effect,” a relatively less investigated premise…
Abstract
Purpose
Penrose’s argument regarding the managerial constraint on continual expansion over two consecutive periods is termed the “Penrose effect,” a relatively less investigated premise in Penrose’s growth theory. The purpose of this paper is to empirically re-examine the Penrose effect from the perspective of upper echelons theory and investigated how top management team (TMT) composition influences the continual growth of a firm.
Design/methodology/approach
This study empirically tested the hypotheses based on a sample of listed manufacturing firms operating in Taiwan, a newly industrialized economy in the Asia–Pacific region. Moderated hierarchical regression analyses were applied to test hypotheses.
Findings
The empirical results suggest that low TMT diversity (in terms of educational, functional and team tenure diversity) is likely to engender a situation in which the Penrose effect might occur. Additionally, the results indicate that the proportion of functional executives plays a significant role in influencing the growth trend over two consecutive periods and may soften the impact of the Penrose effect.
Practical implications
This paper suggests that appropriate structuring of TMTs and appropriate management of their members’ backgrounds and team tenure diversity can help firms overcome the Penrose effect and grow continually. Furthermore, the proportion of functional executives in a TMT is influential.
Originality/value
This paper uniquely contributes to the theoretical and empirical development of Penrose’s growth theory, upper echelons theory and resource-based view concerning managerial resources.
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David Pick, Kandy Dayaram and Bella Butler
This paper aims to present the case of the Pilbara as an illustration of how neo‐liberalism and globalisation affect a natural resource region.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present the case of the Pilbara as an illustration of how neo‐liberalism and globalisation affect a natural resource region.
Design/methodology/approach
A primary data set was collected by interviewing 21 people who had an interest in the development of the Pilbara. Secondary data was collected from relevant government policy documents and media reports relating to the region. Qualitative analysis techniques were used to analyse the data.
Findings
It is found that neo‐liberal policy has had a profound and largely negative effect on Pilbara communities. Rather than reaping the benefits of the wealth being generated in the region, participants in this research experience social breakdown and unmet social needs, and the local democratic institutions are weak and ineffective. Research limitations/implications – This paper reports on a single case and is limited in terms of its generalisability. However, it does illustrate the value of the “Resource Curse Thesis” and the concept of “risk” in illuminating the issues associated with neo‐liberalism.
Practical implications
This research has practical implications in that it provides an example of the problems associated with neo‐liberal perspectives when they are used as a framework for developing and implementing regional policy.
Originality/value
The resource curse thesis tends to be used in analysing developing nations and risk has so far been applied in limited areas of researching the effects of neo‐liberal policy trajectories. This paper employs these concepts to provide a critical examination of regional development policy in a way that can be used in other national contexts.
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David Pick, Kandy Dayaram and Bella Butler
The purpose of this paper is to present the Pilbara as an illustrative case study of some of the tension that arises out of a largely unmediated engagement of regional communities…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present the Pilbara as an illustrative case study of some of the tension that arises out of a largely unmediated engagement of regional communities with neo‐liberal globalisation and to demonstrate the usefulness of Harvey's general matrix of spatialities as an analytical framework for examining such phenomena.
Design/methodology/approach
In deploying Harvey's matrix, attention is focused on one key intersection where tensions between differing perspectives and representations of regional development in the Pilbara are best conceptualised. These tensions are examined using qualitative data collected from 21 semi‐structured in‐depth interviews and policy documents from state and federal governments.
Findings
The analysis indicates that there are various and sometimes conflicting values and perceptions about the effects of occupying one of the “spaces of global capitalism”. This is most evident in that while the extensive natural resources located in the region generate considerable wealth, the Pilbara communities are not necessarily reaping the full benefits of this wealth.
Research limitations/implications
This research is limited in that it is a single case study. However, it does illustrate the limiting effects on regional development of narrowly focussed economic approaches fostered by neo‐liberal policy perspectives that has applicability in other contexts.
Originality/value
In applying Harvey's matrix, the “space” occupied by the Pilbara is analysed in way that opens the various influences, contradictions and pressures to critical examination, providing opportunities for the development of alternative futures.
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Elena P. Antonacopoulou, Wolfgang H. Guttel and Yvon Pesqueux
Daniel William Mackenzie Wright, David Jarratt and Emma Halford
The visitor economy of Forks now clearly relies upon a niche form of tourism – as fans of The Twilight Saga are drawn to the setting and filming location of the films. The purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
The visitor economy of Forks now clearly relies upon a niche form of tourism – as fans of The Twilight Saga are drawn to the setting and filming location of the films. The purpose of this study is to consider the process of diversification and subsequently present recommendations that could inform a future diversification strategy for Forks, in preparation for a post-film tourism scenario.
Design/methodology/approach
The research methods employed in this study have two interlinked but distinct elements. Firstly, the Twilight Effect in Forks (WA, USA) is considered as an illustrative case study to shed light on the issues facing a destination that has seen a tourism boom as a direct result of popular culture – The Twilight Saga Franchise. Secondly, a scenario thinking and planning approach is applied when considering the “long-view” future of tourism in Forks.
Findings
This article presents a post-film tourism future scenario for Forks; it suggests tourism diversification and a shift towards cultural heritage and wellness. Forks is well placed to afford such tourism experiences, as it offers unique cultural and natural characteristics; furthermore, these could be utilised to create and maintain a distinctive destination image. In doing so a more socially and environmentally sustainable industry can be established, one which supports the local community, including the Quileute tribe.
Originality/value
The article offers original discussions within the film-tourism literature with novel approaches to understanding the management and pre-planning opportunities for destinations that have become popular film tourism locations, with the application of a “Tourism Diversification Model”. The model is adapted from Ansoff Matrix and can be applied as a framework in future studies exploring destination diversification. The investigation of Forks as a post-film tourism case study alone is unique, and the discussions and findings presented are original.
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Bella L. Galperin, Meena Chavan and Salahudin Muhidin
In the last decade, Indigenous enterprises and entrepreneurs have played an increasingly important role in Australia. This has not always been the case. Historically, Indigenous…
Abstract
In the last decade, Indigenous enterprises and entrepreneurs have played an increasingly important role in Australia. This has not always been the case. Historically, Indigenous Australians have been excluded from the broader economy. However, more recently, the number of Indigenous businesses has significantly increased despite the limited access to capital and lower level of education. This chapter provides a historical perspective of Indigenous entrepreneurs in Australia and argues that entrepreneurial leadership development can play a critical role in developing Indigenous entrepreneurship. The historical context of Indigenous Australians is first discussed, and the current status of Indigenous entrepreneurs in Australia is then examined. In particular, we focus on entrepreneurship among the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Finally, the importance of entrepreneurial leadership development in the future landscape of Indigenous entrepreneurship in Australia is highlighted.
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Tova Band-Winterstein, Hila Avieli and Yael Smeloy
In face of global deinstitutionalization policy, some aging parents find themselves confronting violence and crime in the family due to abusive behavior from their adult child…
Abstract
Purpose
In face of global deinstitutionalization policy, some aging parents find themselves confronting violence and crime in the family due to abusive behavior from their adult child with mental disorder. The aim of this paper is to explore and understand the meaning given by aging parents to this deviant behavior and the different ways in which they cope with a lifetime in the shadow of violence.
Design/Methodology/Approach
Data collection was performed through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 16 parents, followed by content analysis.
Findings
Three themes that expressed the meaning attributed to life with ACMD in the shadow of violence: (1) constructing parental identity in a shared reality of violence, (2) social and family networks as a resource in coping with ACMD, and (3) keeping a daily life routine as an anchor in a vulnerable, abusive relationship
Practical Implications
Intervention with such families should focus on the life review process as a therapeutic tool. Interventions should also provide a “safety belt,” including health services, public social networks, and knowledge regarding their right for self-protection.
Originality/Value
Old age becomes an arena for redefined relationships combining increased vulnerability, needs of both sides, and its impact on the well-being of the ageing parents. This calls for better insights and deeper understanding in regard to intervention with such families.
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This chapter draws on recent literature in I/O psychology, management and sociology to posit a relationship between organizational structure and temporal structure and develops…
Abstract
This chapter draws on recent literature in I/O psychology, management and sociology to posit a relationship between organizational structure and temporal structure and develops the construct of layered-task time. Layered-task time is similar to polychronic time (P-time) in the inclusion of simultaneous, multiple tasks but includes additional dimensions of fragmentation, contamination and constraint. The chapter links the development of this new time and its resultant time-sense to variation in the degree to which organizations are hierarchical and centralized and develops propositions about these relationships. The chapter contributes to the growing literature on workplace temporalities in the contemporary economy.