Marta M. Vidal-Suárez, Cristina López-Duarte and Pilar L. González-Torre
The purpose is to explore the existence of different export manager profiles in terms of managerial attributes and personal traits according to gender. The study aims to answer…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose is to explore the existence of different export manager profiles in terms of managerial attributes and personal traits according to gender. The study aims to answer two research questions: (1) Do export manager profiles differ depending on gender? If so, (2) which are the traits or managerial attributes that differ by gender and which is the relationship among them?
Design/methodology/approach
The article relies on a quantitative empirical analysis of a sample of export managers of Spanish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Findings
Our results point to the existence of gendered export manager profiles that differ in terms of objective managerial attributes, personal traits, managerial styles and subjective perceptions relative to discriminatory practices and detrimental stereotypes. Two gender-specific substitution effects exist: one between managers’ experiential skills and their formal education and the other between managers' entrepreneurial orientation and the use of relational networks.
Research limitations/implications
Our data are limited in terms of geographical scope and firms size; therefore, our results are no generalizable without new studies on this issue.
Practical implications
Our findings can help firms to understand the relevance of export teams that encompass different gender managers and benefit from the combination of diverse managerial attributes, personal traits and relational processes in their international growth.
Originality/value
Gender is an scarcely studied issue in international business and management literature despite its relevance in the international institutional context. This article addresses the gender aspect of export management.
Objetivo
Explorar la existencia de perfiles de gestor de exportaciones diferenciados en función del género. El estudio pretende responder a dos preguntas de investigación: (1) ¿difiere el perfil de los gestores de exportación en función del género? En caso afirmativo, (2) ¿en qué atributos directivos/rasgos se observa la diferencia y cuál es la relación entre ellos?
Diseño/metodología
Análisis empírico cuantitativo sobre una muestra de gestores de exportación de pequeñas y medianas empresas (PYMEs) españolas.
Resultados
Nuestros resultados apuntan a la existencia de perfiles de gestor de exportación diferenciados por género en términos de atributos objetivos, rasgos personales, estilos de gestión y percepciones relativas a prácticas discriminatorias y estereotipos perjudiciales. Existen dos efectos sustitución en función del género: (1) experiencia profesional versus educación formal y (2) orientación empresarial versus uso de redes relacionales.
Originalidad
El género es una cuestión escasamente estudiada en la literatura sobre gestión internacional a pesar de su relevancia en el contexto institucional internacional. Este artículo aborda el aspecto del género en la gestión de exportaciones.
Limitaciones
Nuestros datos son limitados en términos de ámbito geográfico y tamaño de las empresas; por tanto, no son generalizables sin la realización de nuevos estudios.
Implicaciones prácticas
Nuestras conclusiones pueden ayudar a comprender la relevancia de los equipos de exportación que integran a directivos de diferente género y se benefician de la combinación de diversos atributos directivos, rasgos personales y procesos relacionales en su crecimiento internacional.
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Cristina López-Duarte, Marta M. Vidal-Suárez and Belén González-Díaz
The purpose of this paper is to study the influence of cultural positions on the choice of entry mode in foreign direct investment (FDI) – joint ventures vs wholly owned…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study the influence of cultural positions on the choice of entry mode in foreign direct investment (FDI) – joint ventures vs wholly owned subsidiaries. The paper focusses on the impact of cultural positions along four cultural dimensions, as well as on the interactions between these positions and FDI’s contextual variables (i.e. linguistic differences).
Design/methodology/approach
A fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis is performed on a data set of Spanish investments located in the European Union.
Findings
Existence of interaction effects among cultural positions along different dimensions, as well as between cultural positions and FDI’s contextual variables.
Research limitations/implications
Main limitations relate to the data set, as only FDIS carried out by big corporations and coming from a single country are considered.
Practical implications
Managers making decisions on the choice of entry mode must take into account the position relative to each individual cultural dimension, as well as its interaction with other cultural dimensions and FDI’s contextual variables, rather than just considering cultural distances (CDs) between countries.
Originality/value
First, focus on cultural positions (rather than CDs). It allows taking into account both the cultural characteristics of each party and their relative values along individual cultural dimensions. Second, development of a qualitative analysis that considers the contextual features of the investment.
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Esteban García‐Canal, Cristina López Duarte, Josep Rialp Criado and Ana Valdés Llaneza
This paper aims at identifying practices that help managers to cope with two opposing forces related to global alliance management: the desirable gradual development of the…
Abstract
This paper aims at identifying practices that help managers to cope with two opposing forces related to global alliance management: the desirable gradual development of the alliance – due to time compression diseconomies in trust formation – and the need to accelerate this development in order to react quickly to the challenges of a global market. On the basis of a single case study, we show that several practices can be used to guarantee that acceleration does not put in danger either trust formation or other sources of relational rents.
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Maricela C. Arellano, Cristina Sancha, Torbjørn Netland and Cristina Gimenez Thomsen
In pursuit of increased competitiveness, global manufacturers often seek tighter integration among the plants in their production networks. However, this is a challenging task…
Abstract
Purpose
In pursuit of increased competitiveness, global manufacturers often seek tighter integration among the plants in their production networks. However, this is a challenging task because plants are dispersed across multiple institutional environments. Although the literature provides abundant evidence of how formal institutional environments affect the integration among plants, little is known about the role of the informal institutional environment – such as culture. In this study, the authors investigate the relationship between different dimensions of culture and manufacturing network integration.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors combine survey data from the most recent International Manufacturing Strategy Survey with secondary data that capture cultural dimensions. They then analyze the responses from 581 assembly plants in 21 countries obtained from the survey using a multilevel regression model.
Findings
The study results show that plants located in masculine and long-term-oriented national cultures are associated with lower levels of integration with other plants. The results for the other four Hofstede dimensions of national culture were not statistically significant. At the level of organizational culture, the authors found that a collaborative plant environment positively relates to higher levels of network integration. They did not find statistically significant evidence for the relationship between cultural or geographical distance and network integration.
Practical implications
This research provides managers with practical insights into the types and combinations of cultural environments that affect the integration of plants in a global network. This knowledge is useful for informing effective integration strategies and tactics.
Originality
The authors provide new, empirical evidence of the relation between the informal institutional environments of a plant and its integration in a manufacturing network. Drawing on an institution-based view, they contribute to the literature on manufacturing networks by discussing and testing empirically the role of national and organizational culture in network integration.
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This chapter analyses, from the perspective of inclusion, the possibilities of participation for families in basic education schools in Mexico. Based on the analysis of articles…
Abstract
This chapter analyses, from the perspective of inclusion, the possibilities of participation for families in basic education schools in Mexico. Based on the analysis of articles published between 2012 and 2022, complemented by an analysis of normative instruments, the main patterns related to policies, practices and cultures were explored. The outcomes highlight a lack of recognition and appreciation of the diversity of families, restricted spaces and forms for their participation and cultural patterns that hinder their inclusion. The bases to favour inclusion are recognised and four key axes are proposed for its strengthening.
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Fernanda Cristina Barbosa Pereira Queiroz, Christian Luiz da Silva, Nilton Cesar Lima, Solange Marlene Thomaz and Jamerson Viegas Queiroz
During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and social distancing, the Virtual Mobility Program (Promover) implemented in 2021 in Brazil aimed to allow students…
Abstract
Purpose
During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and social distancing, the Virtual Mobility Program (Promover) implemented in 2021 in Brazil aimed to allow students enrolled in Brazilian federal universities to take curricular components at other institutions of the system remotely. The main objective of this research was to identify the most important factors, in students' perception, that affected their satisfaction with virtual mobility (VM) and the factors that drive the intention to continue mobility.
Design/methodology/approach
Data collection was performed through 433 questionnaires answered online. R software was used for descriptive analysis and SmartPLS to examine the relationship between independent and dependent variables through Structural Equation Modeling.
Findings
A positive relationship was verified between the constructs, and the hypothesized relations were confirmed at statistically significant level, revealing the students' satisfaction with VM and their intention to continue exploring this online learning option through Promover. The results showed that the motivations for VM are linked to the pursuit of knowledge and more opportunities for training and work. Plus, the use of VM proved to be a motivator for student engagement and e-learning effectiveness.
Originality/value
The findings can be useful as they highlight the opportunity to expand VM programs for students, even after the return to on-campus academic activities.
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Ana Cristina Ferrão, Raquel P.F. Guiné, Paula Correia, Manuela Ferreira, Ana Paula Cardoso, João Duarte and João Lima
A healthy diet has been recognized as one of the most important factors associated with maintaining human health and helping in preventing the development of some chronic…
Abstract
Purpose
A healthy diet has been recognized as one of the most important factors associated with maintaining human health and helping in preventing the development of some chronic diseases. Therefore, this paper aims to study the perceptions of a sample of university people regarding a healthy diet.
Design/methodology/approach
It was undertaken a descriptive cross-sectional study on a non-probabilistic sample of 382 participants. The data were collected among a sample of Portuguese university people and measured whether people’s perceptions were compliant with a healthy diet.
Findings
The results revealed that the participants’ perceptions were, in general, compliant with a healthy diet (scores between 0.5 and 1.5, on a scale from −2 to +2). However, significant differences were found between age groups (p = 0.004), with a higher average score for young adults, and also between groups with different levels of education (p = 0.025), with a higher score for university degree. The variable chronic diseases also showed significant differences (p = 0.017), so that people who did not have any chronic diseases obtained a higher score.
Originality/value
This study is considered important because it provides evidences about the relation between nutrition knowledge and the perceptions towards a healthy diet. The study allowed concluding that the participants were aware about some nutritional aspects of their diets and, therefore, their perceptions were compliant with a healthy diet. This finding is very relevant because it could be a support for health policy initiatives directed at promoting healthy eating behaviours.
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Isabel Cristina Panziera Marques, João Leitão, João Ferreira and André Cavalcanti
Adopting the research concept of socioemotional wealth (SEW) as applied to family firm leaders, this study aims to analyse the literature on succession and corporate governance…
Abstract
Purpose
Adopting the research concept of socioemotional wealth (SEW) as applied to family firm leaders, this study aims to analyse the literature on succession and corporate governance processes in family firms in keeping with this still developing concept and thereby not only contributing to advancing knowledge on this field but also proposing a conceptual model of analysis and a future research agenda.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors carried out a review and systematisation of the literature according to its different thematic groups through recourse to VOSviewer software and content analysis to establish a systematised and integrated structure of the reference literature based on a sample of 218 studies published and indexed on the Web of Science and SCOPUS databases between 2010 and 2021.
Findings
The results portray five leading clusters, specifically, (1) SEW and family firm performance; (2) SEW and the focus on leadership as a precursor to succession; (3) family firms, SEW and corporate social governance; (4) family firm innovation and performance; and (5) family ownership and management. The authors then put forward a conceptual model of analysis both to better integrate these topics and as a proposition for application in future research projects.
Originality/value
The study provides a new and solid systematisation of the literature and supports the argument that family firms concentrating on developing the leader's SEW increase the probability of structuring a successful succession process as well as the likelihood of achieving higher quality corporate governance.
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The cycle of external indebtedness of dependent countries has become a huge constraint on any strategy for radical social change.Argentina has recently entered a new process of…
Abstract
The cycle of external indebtedness of dependent countries has become a huge constraint on any strategy for radical social change.
Argentina has recently entered a new process of debt overhang and renegotiation with the International Monetary Fund and private global creditors. The dominant debate around the country's foreign debt revolves around the conditions that can guarantee the sustainability of repayment. The underlying objective is to remain in the debt system that produces and reproduces dependency.
This chapter will seek to analyze the question of debt sustainability from another point of view: Is it possible to guarantee the (financial) sustainability of the debt at the same time as guaranteeing the sustainability of life? Our argument is that by remaining in the global debt system, Argentina creates conditions that violate the requirements for the sustainability of human and nonhuman life. Drawing on a discussion from Marxist dependency theory and the traditions of Marxist feminism and environmentalism, we will discuss how the debt sustainability argument presupposes the impossibility of reproducing life. In particular, we will show how the conditions required to guarantee debt sustainability in Argentina entail the deepening of the superexploitation of the “productive” and “reproductive” labor force, and the exacerbation of extractivism, putting social reproduction in crisis.
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Rocio Ruiz-Benitez, Cristina López and Juan C. Real
In the present work, lean and resilient practices applied to supply chains are studied in order to evaluate their impact on the three dimensions of sustainability. Additionally…
Abstract
Purpose
In the present work, lean and resilient practices applied to supply chains are studied in order to evaluate their impact on the three dimensions of sustainability. Additionally, the mutual impact of lean and resilient supply chain practices is investigated. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The aerospace sector and its supply chain are chosen, since lean and resilient practices have been proven relevant in the sector. A methodology based on Interpretive Structural Modeling approach is applied in order to identify the existing relationships between lean and resilient supply chain practices and their impact on the three different dimensions of sustainability.
Findings
The results reveal synergetic effects between lean and resilient practices. The former practices act as drivers of the latter practices. Hence, lean practices lead to direct and indirect effects in achieving supply chain sustainability.
Research limitations/implications
The relationship between lean and resilient practices has been studied for the aerospace sector. Different sectors may lead to different results as the practices considered important in each sector may differ as well as the way in which each practice is implemented.
Originality/value
This study highlights the relationship existing between lean and resilient supply chain practices and their impact on sustainability. Additionally, several managerial implications are drawn out to help managers make better decisions.