Julie Uldam and Hans Krause Hansen
Corporations are increasingly expected to act responsibly. The purpose of this paper is to examine two types of corporate responses to these expectations: overt and covert…
Abstract
Purpose
Corporations are increasingly expected to act responsibly. The purpose of this paper is to examine two types of corporate responses to these expectations: overt and covert responses. Specifically, it examines oil companies’ involvement in multi-stakeholder initiatives and sponsorships (overt responses) and their monitoring of critics, including non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and activist organisations (covert responses).
Design/methodology/approach
Theoretically, the paper draws on theories of visibility and post-political regulation. Empirically, it focuses on case studies of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), Shell and BP, drawing on qualitative methods.
Findings
The paper demonstrates that overt responses create an impression of consensus between antagonistic interests and that covert responses support this impression by containing deep-seated conflicts.
Research limitations/implications
Corporate responses have implications for the role of the corporation as a (post-)political actor. By containing antagonism and creating an impression of consensus, the interplay between overt and covert responses open up further possibilities for the proliferation of soft governance and self-regulation through participation in voluntary transparency and corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. Data on covert practices of corporations are difficult to access. This impedes possibilities for fully assessing their extent. The findings of this paper support trends emerging from recent research on covert corporate intelligence practices, but more research is needed to provide a systematic overview.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the understudied area of covert corporate activity in research on the political role of multinational corporations.
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Abror Abror, Dina Patrisia, Yunita Engriani, Maznah Wan Omar, Yunia Wardi, Nazirul Mubin Bin Mohd Noor, Sarah Sabir Sabir Ahmad and Mukhamad Najib
This study aims to examine the relationship between perceived risk and tourists’ trust. It also investigates the role of perceived value as a mediating variable on the link…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the relationship between perceived risk and tourists’ trust. It also investigates the role of perceived value as a mediating variable on the link between perceived risk and trust. Moreover, the moderating role of religiosity on the link between perceived value and trust has also been highlighted.
Design/methodology/approach
The research population is all tourists who have visited West Sumatra Indonesia in the past two years. This research used a survey method using questionnaires and used purposive sampling as the sampling method. It collected 400 responses and after some preliminary tests, 352 usable responses have been analyzed. The authors used a covariance-based structural equation model using AMOS 24 as the data analysis tool.
Findings
This quantitative research found that perceived risk dimensions (health, environmental and financial risk) have significant impacts on perceived value. Perceived risk dimensions also have significant effects on trust except for health risk. It also found that perceived value has a significant impact on trust and finally, religiosity which has a significant moderating impact on the relationship between perceived value and trust.
Research limitations/implications
This study is only one country study; hence, it has limited finding generalization. It needs to be expanded to other countries such as Southeast Asia countries. It only used three antecedents of trust, therefore, for future research; it might be extended to other antecedents such as cultural value, tourist efficacy and also some consequences of trust such as revisit intention and customer involvement. Finally, this is a cross-sectional study; hence, for future research, it might be expanded to a longitudinal study where the results are more generalized.
Practical implications
Trust will lead to tourist loyalty. Therefore, to establish trust, the managers need to provide the best services with pay attention to the tourist perceived risk. Moreover, it found that perceived risks will lead to tourists’ perceived value. Accordingly, to increase the tourist perceived value, the tourist destination managers have to minimize risk or uncertainty in the tourist destination such as environmental and health risk in the tourist destination. Finally, religiosity will strengthen the tourist trust, hence; the managers can attract and serve high religiosity tourists with Halal standard products and services.
Originality/value
This study has examined the relationship between perceived risk dimensions and perceived value which is not investigated in the previous studies. It also examined the mediating roles of perceived value on the link between perceived risk dimensions and trust. These mediating roles have not been addressed yet previously. Finally, it has also revealed a significant moderating effect of religiosity on the link between perceived value and trust which is neglected previously.
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Ernesto R. Wagner and Eric N. Hansen
Aims to explain the effect of firm size on company innovation inside one industry context: the wood products industry.
Abstract
Purpose
Aims to explain the effect of firm size on company innovation inside one industry context: the wood products industry.
Design/methodology/approach
The strategic issues under study (innovation, corporate strategy) are typically managed by the firm's top executives. Also important is the fact that the response rates of questionnaires targeting this group are generally very low. Consistently, the data for the project were obtained from 43 in‐person interviews with top executives of wood products companies of different sizes in two countries, i.e. the USA and Chile.
Findings
Finds that firm size does impact the innovation type pursued by companies, at least in the wood products industry. Indeed, large companies of this study clearly outrun smaller companies in process innovation. However, our analysis also shows that small companies level the field with larger companies when considering all three innovation types (process, product, business systems).
Practical implications
The capital enjoyed by large companies allows them to excel in process innovation. This article suggests that managers of small companies should compete in a different arena from large companies and emphasize product and business systems innovation, as they can do very well in these areas even with limited resources.
Originality/value
There is very little research about innovation in the wood products industry. This article contributes to the knowledge in this area, also providing new insights about the validity of Schumpeter's assertions regarding the role of company size in innovation.
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The purpose of this paper is to introduce narrative construction, a method by which participants produce a narrative to make sense of their organizational context, as well as…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to introduce narrative construction, a method by which participants produce a narrative to make sense of their organizational context, as well as strategically guide action and decision making. While narrative theory has long‐held that people construct narratives to make sense of, and guide, their experience, narrative construction here entails a deliberate and strategic approach to narrative theory.
Design/methodology/approach
This is part of an ethnonarrative approach that includes both a constructionist and interpretive narrative and ethnographic methodology.
Findings
Narrative construction has research implications for an ethnomethodology of social construction and empirical observation of narrative enactment. There are practical implications for enabling change and building highly‐coordinated organizations.
Originality/value
Narrative construction offers a new qualitative methodology and extends ethnonarrative research. The research setting, a death penalty defense team, is also unique. It also moves narrative theory beyond an interpretive device to a constructionist strategy.
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Petru Lucian Curseu and Helen Pluut
This paper aims to test the influence of external information search (EIS) on knowledge elaboration and group cognitive complexity (GCC) under the moderating effect of absorptive…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to test the influence of external information search (EIS) on knowledge elaboration and group cognitive complexity (GCC) under the moderating effect of absorptive capacity (AC is indicated by prior knowledge base and gender diversity).
Design/methodology/approach
The results of three studies (one field study and two experimental studies) are reported. The first study tests the interaction between EIS and the two dimensions of AC on group knowledge elaboration in a sample of 65 organizational groups. In the second study, EIS was directly manipulated and the interaction with AC in a sample of 65 groups was tested. In the last experimental study, the AC of the boundary spanner (highest level of expertise versus lowest level of expertise) was manipulated and the effects of EIS in a sample of 37 groups were tested.
Findings
The first study reveals a significant interaction between EIS and prior knowledge base on knowledge elaboration and points toward a compensatory interplay of EIS and AC on GCC. The results of the second study indicate that EIS increases the time spent on task, as well as the efficiency of knowledge integration (GCC per unit of time). Furthermore, EIS has the strongest positive effect on GCC in groups in which at least one of the AC dimensions is average or high. The results of the last study show that the AC of the boundary spanner compensates for the lack of absorptive capacity of the group and also show that the cognitive distance between the boundary spanner and the rest of the group has a negative influence on the efficiency of knowledge integration in groups.
Research limitations/implications
The limitations of Study 1, common to non-experimental research (related to causality), are dealt with in the second and third studies that establish causality between EIS and GCC.
Practical implications
The paper has important implications for the management of information search effort in organizational groups, in particular the groups are advised to: engage in EIS to increase their cognitive repertoire and cognitive complexity, delegate, when possible, their most competent members to engage in boundary spanning activities as they will maximize the cognitive benefits of EIS and finally minimize the cognitive dissimilarity between the boundary spanner and the rest of the group to facilitate the effective integration of novel insights into the group cognition.
Originality/value
This study is among the first empirical attempts to uncover the causal effect of EIS on knowledge elaboration and GCC in groups and to uncover the role of the boundary spanner in the EIS efforts.
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So-young Kim, Jihyun Yoon and Injoo Choi
To gain strategic insights for promoting sustainable food services, especially in a business and industry (B&I) setting, the purpose of this paper is to investigate decisional…
Abstract
Purpose
To gain strategic insights for promoting sustainable food services, especially in a business and industry (B&I) setting, the purpose of this paper is to investigate decisional factors affecting consumers’ patronage intention based on the extended theory of planned behavior (TPB) including two additional constructs of perceived quality and personal moral norm.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was employed. Out of 978 responses, 548 (70 percent) responses which reported to have visited B&I food services more than five times a month on an average were analyzed by using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The study results revealed that consumers’ patronage intention toward sustainable B&I food services was well explained by the alternative extended TPB adding a new path from subjective norm to perceived behavioral control. The impact of personal moral norm on consumers’ patronage intention was the highest followed by subjective norm, attitude, and perceived behavioral control.
Originality/value
This study is one of the few attempts to clarify the underlying motives for patronizing sustainable food services. The study results may give insights into the mechanisms of consumers’ patronage intention formation toward sustainable B&I food services and provide useful implications for strategic measures to promote sustainable B&I food services in Korea as well as other countries sharing similar concerns and interests.
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Results of experiments by research experts in the food value of canned foods will shortly be published by the Ministry of Agriculture. According to the Ministry the point has now…
Abstract
Results of experiments by research experts in the food value of canned foods will shortly be published by the Ministry of Agriculture. According to the Ministry the point has now been reached when canned foods may be said to sell on their own merits, and not as a mere substitute for fresh foods. The most obvious attribute of canned foods was that they made available a permanent supply of foodstuffs which were otherwise limited to a season, as well as making available to consumers fruits which could not otherwise be obtained in their natural state. In view of the wide range of varieties of canned foods and vegetables now available any generalised statement as to their value was impracticable, but it might be broadly stated that their energy‐producing value, as expressed in calories, was never inferior to that of the same kinds for consumption fresh, or in some other prepared form. Recent research had shown that vitamins were not necessarily destroyed by canning, and indeed some canned foods—for instance, canned tomatoes—might be very nearly as rich in vitamins as the raw product. An outstanding example of the importance of the canned food industry was the market which had been created for British fresh picked peas. Here the farmers had profited by an expanding but controlled increase of acreage under crop, with prices remaining very stable for the last few years. It was probable that the same general tendency would be observable with plums, and with most other canning crops, as the industry developed. In this country an increased consumption of home‐canned goods, if secured at the expense of imported canned goods, or some other imported agricultural commodity, would mean that a new market had been created for British growers, while a similar benefit would be obtained if export markets were developed. This would not be true if home‐canned goods replaced other home‐grown crops, but in this case it might mean a change‐over from an unprofitable to a profitable crop.
Hans Hansen, Angela Randolph, Shawna Chen, Robert E. Robinson, Alejandra Marin and Jae Hwan Lee
– The purpose of this paper is to examine an entrepreneur’s attempt to gain legitimacy and change institutions in a multiple institutions setting.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine an entrepreneur’s attempt to gain legitimacy and change institutions in a multiple institutions setting.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a qualitative case study to track an entrepreneur’s efforts to create a new financial instrument and get it accepted and traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
Findings
The authors introduce the concept of institutional judo, analogous to the martial art where a fighter uses his opponent’s forces against him. While institutional theory has focussed on how institutional pressures force actors to conform, the term judo refers to an actor using institutional pressures to their advantage in changing those very institutions.
Research limitations/implications
This qualitative research involves a single case study, but is most suited to revealing extensions of theory and subtle processes.
Practical implications
The approach allowed the authors to provide a nuanced look at the actual change efforts by an entrepreneur to gain legitimacy.
Social implications
This study provides a nuanced look at actual attempts to change institutions.
Originality/value
Institutional judo offers a new change mechanism within institutional theory.