Kari Kantasalmi and Juha Tuunainen
Close interaction between universities, industries, and governments has given rise to hybrid organizations incorporating economic development alongside scientific research and…
Abstract
Close interaction between universities, industries, and governments has given rise to hybrid organizations incorporating economic development alongside scientific research and higher education. We will approach this phenomenon and the related organization-theoretical problems by looking at two cases of discipline making to discuss the potential of the concept of organizational field introduced by the neoinstitutionalist school of organization theory. As this concept presumes the Bourdieusian theory of social fields, we will consider possibilities of reflective contesting of the states of doxa in discipline making in regard to organizational aspects of disciplinary boundaries in the university-centered system of higher education, its demarcation to business and schooling, as well as to the related ideology of professionalism and science policy. We will also comment on the Bourdieusian conceptuality inscribed in the neoinstitutionalist metaphor of organizational field from the perspective of systems theory inspired by Luhmann. This is because we believe that further development of the semantic focus in the problem of disciplinary boundaries would benefit from Luhmannian tools designed to grasp organizations as social systems that facilitate interrelations of differentiated function systems relevant for discipline making in current technoscience.
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In all industrialised societies, the relative size of the public sector has expanded over several decades. The UK and the FRG have differing industrial relations arrangements but…
Abstract
In all industrialised societies, the relative size of the public sector has expanded over several decades. The UK and the FRG have differing industrial relations arrangements but both have experienced an expansion of the public sector.
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Francesco Calza, Marco Ferretti, Eva Panetti and Adele Parmentola
The paper aims to explore the nature of initiatives and strategies of inter-organizational cooperation to cross the valley of death in the biopharma industry.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to explore the nature of initiatives and strategies of inter-organizational cooperation to cross the valley of death in the biopharma industry.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted an exploratory case study analysis in the Biopharma Innovation Ecosystem in Greater Boston Area (USA), which is one of the oldest, and most successful IE in the US, specialized in the Biopharma domain, by conducting a round of expert interviews with key informants in the area, chosen as representatives of the different types of actors engaged in the drug development processes at different stages.
Findings
Main findings suggest that cooperation can contribute to surviving the valley of death by reducing the barriers within the drug development pipeline through the promotion of strategic relationships among actors of different nature, including the establishment of government-led thematic associations or consortia, agreements between university and business support structures, proximity to venture capitalist and the promotion of a general culture of academic entrepreneurship within universities.
Originality/value
The authors believe that this paper contributes to the literature by shedding light on the nature of the specific cooperative initiative the barriers in drug development and help to survive the valley of the death.
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Davide Chiaroni, Vittorio Chiesa and Federico Frattini
The purpose of this paper is to focus on the adoption of the open innovation paradigm in the bio‐pharmaceutical industry and investigate through which organisational modes (e.g…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to focus on the adoption of the open innovation paradigm in the bio‐pharmaceutical industry and investigate through which organisational modes (e.g. collaborations, in‐ and out‐licensing) open innovation has been implemented and how these modes are interwoven with the different phases of the drug discovery and development process. Open innovation is currently one of the most debated issues in management literature. Few contributions, however, have paid attention so far to systematically and longitudinally addressing the adoption of open innovation in a specific industry.
Design/methodology/approach
A two‐step research strategy has been adopted. First, a panel study of top industry representatives was organised to operationalise the concept of organisational modes of open innovation in the bio‐pharmaceutical industry. Second, the open innovation modes used by the first 20 pharmaceutical biotech firms worldwide have been documented over the period 2000‐2005 in the various phases of the drug discovery and development process.
Findings
A framework of analysis, establishing the relations between open innovation modes and the phases of the drug discovery and development process, has been developed and assessed in the industry, allowing the determinants of adoption of different modes and their managerial implications to be discussed and to relate them to the peculiarities of the biotech industry.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the ongoing debate on open innovation by representing one of the first attempts to systematically and longitudinally assess the extent and particularly the determinants of the adoption of open innovation in a specific industry.
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Gender identity assessments (GIAs) have been criticized by practitioners and trans and gender non-conforming (TGNC) individuals alike. With the practice of exploring individuals’…
Abstract
Purpose
Gender identity assessments (GIAs) have been criticized by practitioners and trans and gender non-conforming (TGNC) individuals alike. With the practice of exploring individuals’ gender identity for treatment pathway purposes being potentially invasive and inappropriate, the current study aims to explore explicit standards.
Design/methodology/approach
The current study used the Delphi methodology to survey practitioners familiar with GIA. Over three rounds, 14 international participants rated their agreement about six areas relating to the assessment: purpose; content; approach; forensic application; psychometric instruments; and wider issues. Statements that reached an 80% cut-off among participants were viewed as a sufficient level of agreement, while the remaining items were fed back for repeated ratings. Furthermore, participants had the opportunity to suggest additional items that the group could rate.
Findings
Overall, a consensus across 23 items was achieved. The findings indicate a practice emphasizing collaboration between clinician and client to facilitate an informed decision. Furthermore, participants advocated for a non-pathologizing version of the GIA. This is a departure from diagnoses like gender dysphoria toward an approach which encapsulates also positive aspects of the trans experience, for example, resilience and future plans.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations include sampling biases due to participants’ high specialization and challenges in recruiting TGNC individuals. Furthermore, findings appear restricted to adult services.
Originality/value
To the best of the author’s knowledge, this pilot is a first step to making current practice transparent and comparable, with the hopes to improve trans care. Furthermore, it is contextualized with the previously suggested application of the power threat meaning framework to GIA.
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Leslie S. Adriaanse and Chris Rensleigh
The research aim for this study was to compare three citation resources with one another to identify the citation resource with the most representative South African scholarly…
Abstract
Purpose
The research aim for this study was to compare three citation resources with one another to identify the citation resource with the most representative South African scholarly environmental sciences citation coverage. This paper focuses on the results of the content verification process which measured amongst others the citation counts, multiple copies and inconsistencies encountered across the three citation resources ISI Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar.
Design/methodology/approach
The research, the first phase of a longitudinal study, used a comparative research design method with a purposive, non-probability sample. Data from the South African scholarly environmental sciences journals for the year range 2004-2008 (first phase) were extracted from the three citation resources and compared.
Findings
It became evident during the verification process that the citation resources retrieved varied results. The total citation counts indicated that ISI Web of Science (WOS) retrieved the most citation results, followed by Google Scholar (GS) and then Scopus. WOS performed the best with total coverage of the journal sample population and also retrieved the most unique items. The investigation into multiple copies indicated that WOS and Scopus retrieved no duplicates, while GS retrieved multiple copies. Scopus delivered the least inconsistencies regarding content verification and content quality compared to the other two citation resources. Additionally, GS also retrieved the most inconsistencies, with WOS retrieving more inconsistencies than Scopus. Examples of these inconsistencies include author spelling and sequence, volume and issue number.
Originality/value
The findings of the study contribute to the understanding of the completeness of citation results retrieved from different citation resources. In addition it will raise awareness amongst academics to check citations of their work.
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An article in the last issue of this journal examined the literature on seniority promotion systems, arguing that most personnel management writers had ignored promotion as a…
Abstract
An article in the last issue of this journal examined the literature on seniority promotion systems, arguing that most personnel management writers had ignored promotion as a topic area, tending to assume implicitly that most appointments are made from the external labour market. And yet many employers preferred internal promotion to external recruitment. It was also possible to identify a number of pressures on management to adopt both an internal labour market and a seniority‐based promotion system. These pressures were thought to be particularly pertinent in the case of white‐collar employees.
Ofer Dekel-Dachs, Marta Najda-Janoszka, Peter Stokes, Amon Simba and Shlomo Tarba
This study, a systematic review, focuses on the internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) originating in developing countries. It critically analyses…
Abstract
Purpose
This study, a systematic review, focuses on the internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) originating in developing countries. It critically analyses, evaluates and synthesises studies featuring formal and informal institutions, embedded in social and business networks, as a marketing solution for institutional voids. The review shows that current international marketing studies downplay the role of informal institutions in the internationalisation of SMEs. Thus, the authors set a new research agenda for advancing the institutional theory to account for the impact of informal institutions and networks on firm internationalisation.
Design/methodology/approach
This review followed five structured stages, including framing the research questions, identifying relevant studies, assessing their quality, summarising the evidence and interpreting the findings. Based on the systematic approach, 434 papers (374 from Web of Science, 60 from Scopus) were generated. Following that, the authors applied the qualitative inclusion/exclusion criteria, which yielded 63 papers. Their analysis involved three authors, with the fourth author focusing on ensuring quality in the analysis.
Findings
The study findings invite a different line of theorising market structures and processes focusing on the role of networks as an alternative to formal institutional systems. The outcome of our review suggests that there is scope for developing the institutional theory that account for the role of informal institutions and networks.
Originality/value
Based on the analysis, we call for new theorisation, in the international marketing literature, which accounts for informal networking amongst internationalising SMEs in the light of institutional voids. Thus, the authors promote novel participatory, bottom to top understanding of relationship between institutions and enterprises.
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Unemployment in Germany remains a major policy issue. The unemployment problem began with ratchet effects following the two crude oil‐price shocks in the 1970s. In each case, a…
Abstract
Unemployment in Germany remains a major policy issue. The unemployment problem began with ratchet effects following the two crude oil‐price shocks in the 1970s. In each case, a persistent increase in (long‐term) unemployment became particularly noticeable, with the slow rate of job creation in the service sector being a fundamental cause. With the objective of isolating a likely successful policy prescription for Germany, this paper presents an international comparison of different approaches to reducing unemployment and increasing job creation. The author suggests “strategic employment policy” as a possible solution to overcoming the existing blockage of economically reasonable labour market reforms and develops a specific proposal to transform the existing German Alliance for Jobs as a voluntary vehicle for consensus into an incentive‐generating “social pact with bite”.
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Characteristic successes of Germany’s social market economy include both stability and productivity growth, yet mass unemployment indicates the need for reform. The conventional…
Abstract
Characteristic successes of Germany’s social market economy include both stability and productivity growth, yet mass unemployment indicates the need for reform. The conventional reform agenda emphasises Germany’s restrictive labour market. However, many targets for reform are elements of an institutional system in the labour market that promotes Germany’s culture of consensus. A model is outlined that synthesises insights from X‐efficiency and business strategy theory to highlight the positive effects of consensus on business performance. The model together with accompanying empirical data suggests that Germany’s consensus culture not only gives rise to negative outcomes associated with labour market inflexibility – in particular, sluggish employment growth – but also helps firms to generate innovation, productivity growth and sustainable competitive advantage. This implies the need for a renewed “social contract”, in which consensus not only generates productivity growth but also sustains a corporatist bias towards employment. Finally, a corporatist reform process consistent with Germany’s cultural and institutional environment is likely to be more effective than top‐down liberalisation in accelerating job creation while maintaining cultural sources of global competitiveness.