Sorin M.S. Krammer, Nuruzzaman Nuruzzaman and Debmalya Mukherjee
Knowledge on how firms adapt to exogenous shocks remains scant. This study examines whether internationally connected firms (i.e. firms that rely on exporting, global value chains…
Abstract
Purpose
Knowledge on how firms adapt to exogenous shocks remains scant. This study examines whether internationally connected firms (i.e. firms that rely on exporting, global value chains and foreign ownership) are less likely to adjust their production in response to a major exogenous shock. Moreover, this study investigates if governmental policy interventions affect more internationally connected firms than domestically focused counterparts.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses data on more than 13,000 firms from 41 countries worldwide from the World Bank’s Enterprise Surveys, taking advantage of the recent COVID-19 pandemic as a quasi-experimental setting for research.
Findings
The results show that export-intensive and foreign-owned firms are less likely to adjust their production in response to the pandemic. Moreover, national governmental policies (in the form of confinement stringency and economic stimuli) seem to affect equally all firms in terms of their ability to adapt to the pandemic. Finally, the economic magnitude of these national policies dwarfs those of firms’ international strategies, confirming the paramount role played by governments worldwide in response to major exogenous shocks.
Originality/value
This study examines empirically whether internationally connected firms are more or less affected by a major global crisis (in this case the COVID-19 pandemic) and whether national policies in response to the crisis favor domestic firms.
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D. Mukherjee, S. Muralidharan, G.T. Parthiban, D. Jayaperumal, S.P. Manoharan and K. Balakrishnan
Sensitization of stainless steels has been posing serious problems to the industries. Techniques for rapid detection of sensitized surfaces are being probed throughout the world…
Abstract
Sensitization of stainless steels has been posing serious problems to the industries. Techniques for rapid detection of sensitized surfaces are being probed throughout the world. Characterization over a wide behavioural range is essential for the above. Characterizes sensitized surfaces of AISI 304 stainless steel using impedance and tafel‐extrapolation techniques. Welded 304 stainless steel interfaces were subjected to dissolution tests, in different media, for assessing the effect of prolonged post‐stress relieving on the mitigation of surface dissolution. The corrosion rate values were correlated with the period of sensitization and Huey test results. The sensitized stainless steels were also subjected to electrochemical tests in different solutions. From the impedance behaviour of the sensitized surfaces in 3 per cent NaCl electrolyte, it was observed that the rate of fall in the polarization resistance may be used to monitor the extent of sensitization in 304 stainless steel, with better accuracy, than that in utilizing the polarization resistance itself.
Ajay Kumar, T. Anandraj, S.M. Krishnan, J. Mathiyarasu, V. Ganesh, T.S. Prasanna Kumar, S.A. Venkatesh, D. Mukherjee and S. Mukherjee
304 SS substrates have been covered with polymeric class low melting barriers, like polyurethane, acrylate and epoxy with and without incorporation of eco‐friendly (non‐toxic…
Abstract
304 SS substrates have been covered with polymeric class low melting barriers, like polyurethane, acrylate and epoxy with and without incorporation of eco‐friendly (non‐toxic) ceramic particular of antifouling origin. The results of corrosion resistance tests are encouraging. Other physical parameters like hardness, adhesion, scratch resistance are also studied, for these synergistically organized low melting point barrier layers.
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Mine rope‐wire profile is prone to stress concentration zones by virtue of its manufacturing style and reveals a metastable surface. Metastability, being a non‐equilibrium state…
Abstract
Mine rope‐wire profile is prone to stress concentration zones by virtue of its manufacturing style and reveals a metastable surface. Metastability, being a non‐equilibrium state, tends to revert back to stability. Such a process of reversion may generate a number of non‐equilibrium states on the surface, which in contact with the mining‐environment foster the growth of a stable and adherent passive‐film.
Carbon steels are abundantly employed in our day‐to‐day engineering services, the automotive industry, and in various domestic usages. Service life of carbon steel assumes…
Abstract
Carbon steels are abundantly employed in our day‐to‐day engineering services, the automotive industry, and in various domestic usages. Service life of carbon steel assumes importance, as faults bring either costly industrial downtime or embarrassing domestic inconvenience. It appears that these materials are dependent completely on the solubility of carbon in their solid‐solutions. Instabilities and destabilization mainly occur due to separation of various forms of carbides, which embrittles the matrix in the time domain. The presence of residual stress which is trapped inside the matrix, having originated from the previous deformation stresses of the wrought products, accelerates such precipitation. Thermal treatment, such as the subcritical stress relieving process, may also accelerate such an embrittlement process, although this exercise is meant for the relief of the matrix residual stresses only. Concludes that there is simultaneous precipitation of brittle phases and also deactivation of the matrix, owing to stress relieving. A surface becomes electrochemically more active when the precipitation component more than compensates the deactivation component and vice versa. Improvement of the matrix ductility also works against such deterioration processes. Suggests that imposition of the environmental constraints, such as aggressive and corrosive media, can only accelerate deterioration, by activating the brittle precipitation cycle.
Discusses the distress of mine rope‐wires, under the diverse states of stresses and strains of physical, chemical and mechanical origin. Mine rope‐wires undergo complicated cycles…
Abstract
Discusses the distress of mine rope‐wires, under the diverse states of stresses and strains of physical, chemical and mechanical origin. Mine rope‐wires undergo complicated cycles of stresses and strains inside the depth of coal and metal mines. This assumes special significance during summer inside the deeper mines. Summarizes recent studies in this field and compares their results.
Alex Bryson and Harald Dale-Olsen
We present theoretical and empirical evidence challenging early studies that found unions were detrimental to workplace innovation. Under our theoretical model, unions prefer…
Abstract
We present theoretical and empirical evidence challenging early studies that found unions were detrimental to workplace innovation. Under our theoretical model, unions prefer product innovation to labor-saving technological process innovation, thus making union wage bargaining regimes more conducive to product innovation than competitive pay setting. We test the theory with population-representative workplace data for Britain and Norway. We find strong support for the notion that local bargaining leads to product innovation, either alone or together with technological innovation.
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The strategic management literature emphasizes the concept of business intelligence (BI) as an essential competitive tool. Yet the sustainability of the firms’ competitive…
Abstract
The strategic management literature emphasizes the concept of business intelligence (BI) as an essential competitive tool. Yet the sustainability of the firms’ competitive advantage provided by BI capability is not well researched. To fill this gap, this study attempts to develop a model for successful BI deployment and empirically examines the association between BI deployment and sustainable competitive advantage. Taking the telecommunications industry in Malaysia as a case example, the research particularly focuses on the influencing perceptions held by telecommunications decision makers and executives on factors that impact successful BI deployment. The research further investigates the relationship between successful BI deployment and sustainable competitive advantage of the telecommunications organizations. Another important aim of this study is to determine the effect of moderating factors such as organization culture, business strategy, and use of BI tools on BI deployment and the sustainability of firm’s competitive advantage.
This research uses combination of resource-based theory and diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory to examine BI success and its relationship with firm’s sustainability. The research adopts the positivist paradigm and a two-phase sequential mixed method consisting of qualitative and quantitative approaches are employed. A tentative research model is developed first based on extensive literature review. The chapter presents a qualitative field study to fine tune the initial research model. Findings from the qualitative method are also used to develop measures and instruments for the next phase of quantitative method. The study includes a survey study with sample of business analysts and decision makers in telecommunications firms and is analyzed by partial least square-based structural equation modeling.
The findings reveal that some internal resources of the organizations such as BI governance and the perceptions of BI’s characteristics influence the successful deployment of BI. Organizations that practice good BI governance with strong moral and financial support from upper management have an opportunity to realize the dream of having successful BI initiatives in place. The scope of BI governance includes providing sufficient support and commitment in BI funding and implementation, laying out proper BI infrastructure and staffing and establishing a corporate-wide policy and procedures regarding BI. The perceptions about the characteristics of BI such as its relative advantage, complexity, compatibility, and observability are also significant in ensuring BI success. The most important results of this study indicated that with BI successfully deployed, executives would use the knowledge provided for their necessary actions in sustaining the organizations’ competitive advantage in terms of economics, social, and environmental issues.
This study contributes significantly to the existing literature that will assist future BI researchers especially in achieving sustainable competitive advantage. In particular, the model will help practitioners to consider the resources that they are likely to consider when deploying BI. Finally, the applications of this study can be extended through further adaptation in other industries and various geographic contexts.
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D. Mukherjee, K. Balamurugan, V. Balamurugan, K. Balasubramanian, E. Kannan and M. Muruganantham
Introduction Welding and brazing fall into the broad category of engineering joints, where the former is a stronger joint than the latter. Nevertheless, both these joints are…
Abstract
Introduction Welding and brazing fall into the broad category of engineering joints, where the former is a stronger joint than the latter. Nevertheless, both these joints are heterogeneous and are susceptible to environmental effects, in the form of enhanced corrosion, due to their retained residual stresses and matrix heterogeneity. Partial melting, micro structural transformation, diffusional alloy layer formation, etc. are some of the phenomena met within these joints. It is argued that relief of stresses, by heating these joints to appropriate temperatures, which are below the transformation temperature range, may deactivate the stress raiser sites, so that susceptibility to micro galvanic action is considerably reduced. Such treatment may also cause thermally‐activated reorganization of the micro structure, resulting in matrix uniformity. Such structural uniformity and stress matching may pay further for reducing the corrosion loss by reduction of micro‐galvanic action.
Satish Kumar, Nitesh Pandey and Debmalya Mukherjee
Cross Cultural and Strategic Management (CCSM) began publication in 1994 and completed its 27th year in 2020. The purpose of this study is to provide a bibliometric analysis of…
Abstract
Purpose
Cross Cultural and Strategic Management (CCSM) began publication in 1994 and completed its 27th year in 2020. The purpose of this study is to provide a bibliometric analysis of CCSM during the period between 1994 and 2020.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a variety of bibliometric tools including performance analysis, authorship analysis, bibliographic coupling, keyword co-occurrence and regression analysis to present the retrospect of CCSM.
Findings
CCSM's publication and citations continue to enjoy consistent growth throughout the years. While most contributions originate in the United States, the diversity of both research and the researchers themselves continues to grow. Over the period, the emphasis has been on quantitative research design. Archival data have been the most preferred data source, and content analysis the most used data analysis method, although its use has somewhat declined over the years. Major recurring themes in the journal include cultural barriers, concept of culture, national culture, culture and organizational practices, and expatriate employees. Important drivers of citations are also identified.
Research limitations/implications
The study’s contributions are twofold. First, the authors’ comprehensive bibliometric analysis of published research in CCSM helps uncover its underlying intellectual structure and the evolution of its research themes over time. Awareness of these patterns and major themes should help future CCSM scholars to better situate their studies within the extant body of knowledge. Second, the authors’ analysis should also aid in shaping future editorial strategies for CCSM as it continues to compete with other similar journals in the fields of international business, international management and strategy.
Originality/value
CCSM earned its reputation for quality, and as a result is currently one of the leading journals in its field. Therefore, by closely examining its underlying knowledge structure, the authors provide a more complete understanding of the intellectual progress made to date in CCSM, while also shedding light on its future.