Shane Mathews, Keith J. Perks, Constanza Bianchi, Hsiu-Li Chen and Charmaine Glavas
The purpose of this study is to investigate how Internet capabilities influence international business relationships using the resource-based view and capabilities perspective…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate how Internet capabilities influence international business relationships using the resource-based view and capabilities perspective. Many studies highlight the importance of the Internet in helping smaller firms internationalize. However, few studies actually test how this is happening. The central purpose of this research was to examine and test the impact of Internet capabilities on international information availability, international strategic orientation and international business relationships in a sample of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Australia, Chile and Taiwan.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a structural equation modeling process so as to test the Internet capabilities on international business networks. The empirical research is based on an analysis of a sample of internationalizing SMEs in three export-intensive markets in Australia (215), Chile (204) and Taiwan (130) to test a conceptual model.
Findings
The results demonstrate that Internet capabilities have a distinct effect on the development of international business relationships for SMEs in the three countries. That is, Internet capabilities have a positive impact on a firm's international business relationships, but this varies across Australian and Taiwanese and Chilean SMEs.
Originality/value
These studies give empirical validation on the way in which smaller firms are using Internet capabilities for leveraging networks in internationalization and how this varies across countries. The results demonstrate that Internet capabilities have a distinct and positive impact on the development of international business relationships for SMEs in the three countries. However, there are specific differences between countries in how the Internet is being leveraged for the development of international business networks. Something currently not highlighted in the body of knowledge.
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Keith J. Perks, Stephen P. Hogan and Paurav Shukla
Whilst earlier studies of market entry success factors have mostly focused on large emerging markets such as China or India, limited attention has been given to smaller emerging…
Abstract
Purpose
Whilst earlier studies of market entry success factors have mostly focused on large emerging markets such as China or India, limited attention has been given to smaller emerging markets. The purpose of this paper is to identify the effects of firm-level (i.e. entry mode and firm size), country-level (i.e. market potential, country risk and openness) and cultural distance on successful market entry strategies of multinational enterprises (MNEs) in a smaller emerging country (Thailand).
Design/methodology/approach
Using archival data from 1996-2008 and a survey of 139 firms, the results reveal significant influence of both market potential and cultural distance on successful market entry.
Findings
Overall, the findings demonstrate a cautionary approach when generalizing the results of studies focusing on large emerging markets to smaller emerging markets. Smaller emerging markets such as Thailand offer very different market-space than large emerging markets and therefore the overall determinants of success may differ substantially.
Practical implications
Market potential appears to be the most significant variable in entering the Thai market. The findings also suggest a negative and significant relationship between cultural distance and market success in Thailand. This reveals that foreign firms that enter small emerging markets which are culturally close to their home countries can enjoy a greater possibility of success.
Originality/value
This study is a first step towards sensitizing corporations and policy makers in understanding the differences in market entry success factors between larger and smaller emerging markets and strategizing accordingly.
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Britt Denise Lauritsen and Keith J. Perks
Corporations communicate CSR policies through a variety of methods, and the goal of the study is to explore young adult consumers’ communication preferences and the implications…
Abstract
Purpose
Corporations communicate CSR policies through a variety of methods, and the goal of the study is to explore young adult consumers’ communication preferences and the implications for managers to effectively communicate CSR to boost their corporate brand image and reputation. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
Set within the context of the UK supermarket industry, the study adopts a qualitative research approach and a purposeful sampling method, collecting data from 30 young adult consumers in the south-east of the UK. The data collection method used was online bulletin board focus groups, face-to-face focus groups, face-to-face interviews and an online questionnaire. Research propositions are developed, evaluated and synthesized into a conceptual framework.
Findings
The findings show that interactive CSR communication functions as an effective method of improving consumers’ emotional brand value, knowledge and memory of supermarket CSR. The findings have the potential to induce a more positive perception by young adults of supermarket CSR corporate brand image and reputation.
Research limitations/implications
The implications for theory development are in the under-researched area of interactive CSR communication.
Practical implications
The research provides practical strategic recommendations regarding effective communications to help guide managers in their planning and execution of their CSR endeavours.
Originality/value
The research provides new empirical insights into theory and knowledge of interactive CSR communication and how supermarkets can communicate CSR in a manner, which is appealing and engaging for young adult consumers, therefore more likely to strengthen their perception of a supermarket corporate brand image and reputation.
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Francisca Farache and Keith J. Perks
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how companies use corporate social responsibility (CSR) advertisements to legitimise their ethical positions and how CSR advertisements…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how companies use corporate social responsibility (CSR) advertisements to legitimise their ethical positions and how CSR advertisements vary across countries.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper evaluates CSR advertisements from Chevron and Banco Real published in the news/business magazines (The) Economist and Time in the UK as well as in Veja and Exame in Brazil, leaders in their categories. The advertisements were analysed using a set of semiotic concepts.
Findings
Companies use different strategies for publicising CSR. There are campaigns that appeal to consumer rationality as well as campaigns that appeal to the emotions. There is also evidence that companies use their advertisements to respond to public pressure and thus create or maintain their legitimacy in the eyes of society.
Originality/value
CSR communication is an emerging field, with research focusing on corporate social disclosure mainly through web sites and corporate reports. However, little is known regarding CSR advertisements. The paper provides insights on this issue and focuses on comparative research, which is also a neglected area in the CSR field.
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In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of…
Abstract
In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.
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Executive education is no longer a perk—it's a strategic tool. Corporations are using education to adapt to a changing business scene and to implement new strategic directions.
We live in a world of constant change. Sustaining careers for those who practise the profession of managing facilities is therefore increasingly becoming a challenge. In…
Abstract
We live in a world of constant change. Sustaining careers for those who practise the profession of managing facilities is therefore increasingly becoming a challenge. In addressing the issues, we all think that we are rethinking what we do, but with so many other day‐to‐day pressures, do we really give it our best shot? This paper provides a practical tool kit in the form of series of common‐sense steps which will enable practitioners at any stage of their careers, to focus on what they have achieved. It addresses the review of skills and competencies that they have accumulated and where such skill sets can be put to use elsewhere. It also looks at the direction being taken during their career and what training may be necessary to enhance future career choices. The paper also considers the support gained from professional bodies and other networking organisations and the contribution that individuals make in return. It concludes with an examination of the consequences of inaction and the steps necessary to move forward. While the paper presents the co‐authors’ views of what the future may hold and is based on professional experience in this field, the predictions are only those of the authors.
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Michael Schwalbe, Tricia McTague and Kylie Parrotta
We examine collective responses to identity threats in organizations, conceptualizing these responses as identity contests in which members of opposing groups share an identity…
Abstract
Purpose
We examine collective responses to identity threats in organizations, conceptualizing these responses as identity contests in which members of opposing groups share an identity and strive to protect the social psychological rewards derived from that identity.
Methodology/approach
We present an argument for the importance of identity as a basis for motivation, suggesting that the desires to obtain and protect identity rewards underlie much behavior in organizations. We also present two case studies from which we derive further theoretical implications about identity contests as drivers of organizational change.
Findings
Our case studies show how organizational subgroups perceived identity threats arising from actual or proposed changes in policies and practices, mobilized to resist these threats, and negotiated further changes in organizational structure, policies, and practices.
Practical implications
Applying this analysis, social psychologists who study identity threats can see how responses to such threats are not solely individual and cognitive but sometimes collective and behavioral, leading to changes in organizations and in the surrounding culture.
Social implications
Our analysis of how identity contests arise and unfold can enrich understandings of how self-definition and mental well-being are shaped by organizational life.
Originality/value
By focusing on collective responses to identity threats, we offer a new way of seeing how intra-organizational identity struggles are implicated in social change.
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Xuanwei Cao, Yipeng Liu and Chunhui Cao
The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of institutional entrepreneurship in opportunity formation and opportunity exploitation in developing emerging strategic new…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of institutional entrepreneurship in opportunity formation and opportunity exploitation in developing emerging strategic new industries.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper reviews the focal literature focussing on institutional entrepreneurs’ role in opportunity formation with special attention to opportunities for institutional entrepreneurs in emerging economy. A multi-method approach consisting of historical case studies and event sequencing is applied to track the historical development of the solar energy industry in two case contexts and to investigate the role of institutional entrepreneurs in this process.
Findings
Investigation of two cases illustrates that different types of institutional entrepreneur, as represented by individual entrepreneurs and local government, in the context of massive institutional change – such as the Grand Western Development Program and the Thousand Talents Program in China – have varied effects on triggering and inducing institutional change and innovation to explore and exploit opportunities in emerging new industries.
Practical implications
The significance of local context for the nature and scope of institutional entrepreneurship in emerging economy is worthy of further research. The top-down process of institutional innovation dominated by local government might cause myopic outcome and distortion of market opportunities. Indigenous individual entrepreneurs with well-accumulated political capital and strong perceived responsibility could be the main actors to introduce incremental institutional change by combining bottom-up and top-down processes and promoting sustained new industry development through creating and seizing institutional opportunities and market opportunities.
Originality/value
This paper illustrates the close relationship between institutional environment and opportunity formation in emerging economies, contributes to the understanding of contextualizing institutional entrepreneurs in different regional contexts and discloses the problems involved in local government acting as an institutional entrepreneur.