J. Rodrigues Dias and Paulo Infante
The purpose of this paper is to investigate a new sampling methodology previously proposed for systems with a known lifetime distribution: the Predetermined Sampling Intervals…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate a new sampling methodology previously proposed for systems with a known lifetime distribution: the Predetermined Sampling Intervals (PSI) method.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology is defined on basis of system hazard cumulative rate, and is compared with other approaches, particularly those whose parameters may change in real time, taking into account current sample information.
Findings
For different lifetime distributions, the results obtained for adjusted average time to signal (AATS) using a control chart for the sample mean are presented and analysed. They demonstrate the high degree of statistical performance of this sampling procedure, particularly when used in systems with an increasing failure rate distribution.
Practical implications
This PSI method is important from a quality and reliability management point of view.
Originality/value
This methodology involves a process by which sampling instants are obtained at the beginning of the process to be controlled. Also this new approach allows for statistical comparison with other sampling schemes, which is a novel feature.
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Alexander Paulsson and Claus Hedegaard Sørensen
The point of departure of this book is that smart mobility will only be developed in a desired direction and fulfil societal objectives if it is steered in that direction. The…
Abstract
The point of departure of this book is that smart mobility will only be developed in a desired direction and fulfil societal objectives if it is steered in that direction. The market, left to itself, will most certainly not deliver on these objectives. This message has been conveyed extensively in recent literature, but this book aims to take this discussion one step further by focussing on what governance of smart mobility looks like today and in the future. In this introductory chapter, the authors provide a framework of different understandings of policy instruments, how they are selected, developed and used. After the array of policy instruments within the transport sector has been extensively discussed, the authors turn to discussing a broader understanding of policy instruments found within political science and political sociology. In doing so, this book contributes to the critical scholarship on policy instruments, while exploring the why, the how and the what of policy instruments in relation to smart mobility. The chapter closes with a brief introduction to the structure of the book as well as a description of the content of each chapter.
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The main purpose of this paper is to present an optimal economic solution for a different adaptive sampling method that is highly intuitive in its nature: the normal sampling…
Abstract
Purpose
The main purpose of this paper is to present an optimal economic solution for a different adaptive sampling method that is highly intuitive in its nature: the normal sampling intervals (NSI) method.
Design/methodology/approach
Considering costs associated with sampling, false alarms and imperfect operation per unit of time, the paper presents a new optimal simple solution that minimizes the expected total cost per cycle. This NSI method involves the density function of the standard normal variable, assuming that the distribution of averages is normal or approximately normal (on the basis of the central limit theorem). It depends on a single scale parameter while other methods depend on various parameters.
Findings
When this expected total cost associated with the new NSI method is compared with the fixed (FSI) and variable sampling intervals (VSI) methods, in identical situations, it may be seen that, in general, it is lower (and may be much lower) and, also, that it is lower for a wider range of changes in terms of quality. This feature is particularly important because, in practice, the degree of change that occurs is not known, so this greater robustness in terms of performance is relevant.
Practical implications
In the practice, the minimization of total expected costs is an important point of view in the life of companies, concerning quality and statistical process control (SPC). The paper holds that this NSI method has a great degree of potential, in particular considering that in industrial processes there is growing recourse to automated systems for the collection and analysis of samples, and thus there are no special additional costs associated with labour, management or administration.
Originality/value
The great advantages of this NSI method are its highly intuitive nature and the fact that it enables generally much better results to be achieved as compared with the use of FSI and VSI methods. An optimal economic solution for this NSI method is presented in this paper.
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Valeria Gattai and Piergiovanna Natale
In this chapter, we document the growing importance of FDI from BRIC countries in relation to FDI from both developed and developing countries and investigate the types of firms…
Abstract
Purpose
In this chapter, we document the growing importance of FDI from BRIC countries in relation to FDI from both developed and developing countries and investigate the types of firms that are responsible for BRIC FDI.
Methodology/approach
We follow a two-step empirical approach. First, we provide macro evidence on FDI from BRIC countries. We use UNCTAD data to highlight the patterns of FDI flows and stocks. Second, we provide firm-level evidence on FDI. Using ORBIS data, we elaborate a rich taxonomy of FDI that accounts for the decision to invest abroad and for the location, ownership, and number of foreign subsidiaries. Thus, we characterize BRIC multinationals’ involvement in FDI and examine the relationship between FDI and performance at the firm level.
Findings
We unveil new facts about BRIC multinationals. BRIC multinationals are in the minority in their home countries, but they outperform domestic enterprises. Within the group of BRIC investors, those firms that invest in developing countries, that operate in joint ventures, or that have more than five foreign subsidiaries are in the minority, but they outperform those firms that select other FDI strategies.
Research limitations/implications
Our estimates document a positive and robust correlation between FDI and performance; however, the cross-sectional nature of our data does not permit a proper causality analysis.
Originality/value
Our work contributes to the International Economics literature on internationalization and firm performance as well as to the International Business literature on FDI from emerging economies. With respect to the former, we innovate by studying the relation between FDI strategies and firm performance. In relation to the latter, we innovate by introducing firm-level data and a cross-country approach that lets us illustrate the roles and features of FDI from BRIC countries.
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Yipeng Liu and Ping Deng
This chapter focuses on the Chinese cross-border merger and acquisition (M&A) amid the rising trend of multinational companies from emerging economies. Based on a systematic…
Abstract
This chapter focuses on the Chinese cross-border merger and acquisition (M&A) amid the rising trend of multinational companies from emerging economies. Based on a systematic review of published papers in top international business/strategy/organization journals on Chinese overseas M&A, we offer a tentative multilevel framework to consolidate the past achievement, consider contemporary debates, so as to direct future research efforts. We suggest that Chinese overseas M&A research should emphasize on a process perspective ranging from pre-acquisition to post-acquisition. In addition, qualitative research and methodological pluralism should be embraced to achieve this goal due to the nature of this emerging field of Chinese cross-border M&A. By allocating the extant literature into the multilevel framework, we articulate the demand and identify several potential topics for scholarly inquiry in the future in order to gain a nuanced understanding of this important phenomenon of Chinese cross-border M&A for both China and the rest of the world.
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Jörg Hruby, Rodrigo Jorge de Melo, Eyden Samunderu and Jonathan Hartel
Global Mindset (GM) is a multifaceted construct that has received broad interest among practitioners and academics. It is a fragmented construct at this point in time, due to…
Abstract
Global Mindset (GM) is a multifaceted construct that has received broad interest among practitioners and academics. It is a fragmented construct at this point in time, due to definitional overlap with other constructs such as global leadership and cultural intelligence. This overlap has created complexity for research that attempts to understand GM in isolation. Lack of clear boundaries in defining and conceptualizing this construct challenges researchers who are attempting to capture fully what constitutes GM. Our work seeks to better understand and explain what underlines the individual GM construct and how does this impact the development of global competencies in individual managers.
We systematically review and analyze the individual GM literature thematically to provide an overview of the extant research from a broad array of scholarly sources dating from 1994 to 2017. Our work offers a thematic analysis that provides a visual guide to GM by tracking the corpus of individual-level GM studies. We categorize the research according to its theoretical groundings and basic concepts and proceed review how GM has been operationalized at the individual level and measured. Next, we integrate major dimensions in the GM research and propose a framework to enhance understanding of the phenomenon. Finally, we discuss the implications of our review for the development of GM for practitioners, coaches and trainers.
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Suzana B. Rodrigues and Marleen Dieleman
The purpose of this chapter is to explore the role of the home country government in the internationalization of multinationals from emerging markets. This is an important topic…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this chapter is to explore the role of the home country government in the internationalization of multinationals from emerging markets. This is an important topic because governments play a greater role in BRIC countries. We build upon the literature on non-market strategy, extending this to emerging market multinationals.
Methodology/approach
We ground our arguments based on a multimethod case study of Vale, a Brazilian mining multinational.
Findings
Our study suggests that the role of home country governments is crucial for internationalization of firms from emerging markets, but also that it changes over time, is complex, and context-specific. We suggest that non-market strategy development is a process of co-evolution that is intricately linked to both external and internal factors.
Practical Implications
These findings are of relevance to emerging markets where governments are less constrained and perhaps more inclined to intervene in the private sector due to a legacy of state-led growth.
Originality/value
We tease out unique links between market shifts, government tactics, and firm strategies. Our study shows the need to shift our attention to home country non-market pressures as an explanatory factor for internationalization trajectories.
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Michael J. Mueller, Guus Hendriks and Arjen H.L. Slangen
In this chapter, we aim to shed more light on the role of formal institutional distance in firms’ foreign entry mode choices by accounting for the direction of that distance…
Abstract
In this chapter, we aim to shed more light on the role of formal institutional distance in firms’ foreign entry mode choices by accounting for the direction of that distance. Specifically, we distinguish between foreign entries where the host country is institutionally less developed than the investing firm’s home country (negative institutional distance) and those where the host country’s institutions are comparatively more developed (positive institutional distance), and explore whether these different types of entries are implemented through different equity-based modes. We take an information economics perspective to develop hypotheses on the effects of positive and negative formal institutional distance on firms’ choices between greenfields and acquisitions, and between full and partial ownership of greenfield and acquired subsidiaries. We test our hypotheses on a sample of 1,070 foreign entries made by 796 emerging market multinationals originating from 14 countries. Controlling for the host country’s formal institutional quality and other factors, we find that negative institutional distance increases the likelihood that a foreign entry takes the form of a greenfield investment rather than an acquisition and that positive institutional distance decreases that likelihood. We also find that negative institutional distance increases the chances that firms choose greenfield joint ventures over wholly owned greenfields and full over partial acquisitions. Finally, we find that positive institutional distance does not affect firms’ ownership stake choices, neither for greenfields nor for acquisitions. Overall, these findings argue for a nuanced, contingency view of the role of formal institutional distance in foreign entry mode choices. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to use information economics to construct a holistic picture of firms’ equity-based entry mode choices, taking into account both establishment and ownership modes.
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Weijing He, Patrick Ring and Agyenim Boateng
Over the past decade internationalisation by banks from emerging market economies has accelerated. The purpose of this study is to examine the role of government and home country…
Abstract
Purpose
Over the past decade internationalisation by banks from emerging market economies has accelerated. The purpose of this study is to examine the role of government and home country institutions in the international expansion process of Chinese commercial banks (CCBs).
Methodology/approach
By employing qualitative research method, data was collected via interviews from 30 senior managers based on a sample of 10 CCBs involved in international expansion over the 2001–2013 period.
Findings
The study finds that the Chinese government and home institutions play an important role in motivating CCBs’ internationalisation. Evidence from this research illustrates the effect institutional factors have in emerging economy firms’ internationalisation.
Practical implications
The managerial implication of these findings is that CCBs could take great advantage of government policy by developing proper internationalisation strategies and capabilities that would enhance CCBs’ competitiveness in global market. On the institutional front, removal of the institutional constraints imposed on Chinese banking industry is required. Using market-oriented management and regulatory rules rather than imposing administrative restrictions could therefore accelerate CCBs’ adaption and integration in the international market and enhance their competitive power.