Giorgia Maria D'Allura, Andrea Calabrò and Marco Santangelo
The aim of this paper is to theorize on and empirically extend the understanding of the adoption of codes of ethics within the context of family firms. The authors contend that in…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to theorize on and empirically extend the understanding of the adoption of codes of ethics within the context of family firms. The authors contend that in family firms the adoption of code of ethics is a process emerging from social interaction.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a multiple case study design the authors analyze family firms that have not yet adopted a code of ethics and untangle the process that could potentially lead to that choice.
Findings
The authors’ main finding suggests that the institutional context impacts on the adoption of codes of ethics. Furthermore, in first generation the adoption of codes of ethics is hindered by the presence of the founder and the existence of strong family ties. In subsequent generations as founder centrality is reduced the owning-family considers more the possibility to adopt such codes to preserve the family's reputation in the local community.
Research limitations/implications
First multiple views also from external stakeholders could be added; second, an international perspective using cross-country cases could add more nuances on how cultural and institutional aspects shape the adoption of codes of ethics differently across national contexts.
Practical implications
The authors’ findings inform family business owners on the importance of adopting code of ethics to support the formalization of the family value system.
Originality/value
The authors advance the debate on codes of ethics in family firms by disentangling the process through which those codes may be adopted to institutionalize and formalize the family values, history and tradition.
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Antonio Vetrò, Antonio Santangelo, Elena Beretta and Juan Carlos De Martin
This paper aims to analyze the limitations of the mainstream definition of artificial intelligence (AI) as a rational agent, which currently drives the development of most AI…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyze the limitations of the mainstream definition of artificial intelligence (AI) as a rational agent, which currently drives the development of most AI systems. The authors advocate the need of a wider range of driving ethical principles for designing more socially responsible AI agents.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors follow an experience-based line of reasoning by argument to identify the limitations of the mainstream definition of AI, which is based on the concept of rational agents that select, among their designed actions, those which produce the maximum expected utility in the environment in which they operate. The problem of biases in the data used by AI is taken as example, and a small proof of concept with real datasets is provided.
Findings
The authors observe that biases measurements on the datasets are sufficient to demonstrate potential risks of discriminations when using those data in AI rational agents. Starting from this example, the authors discuss other open issues connected to AI rational agents and provide a few general ethical principles derived from the White Paper AI at the service of the citizen, recently published by Agid, the agency of the Italian Government which designs and monitors the evolution of the IT systems of the Public Administration.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the scientific debate on the governance and the ethics of AI with a critical analysis of the mainstream definition of AI.
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Francesco Caputo, Fabio Fiano, Massimiliano Farina Briamonte and Marco Sorrentino
Operating in a variety of countries, multinational companies (MNCs) experience a high variety and variability of physiological and contextual dynamics, requiring a more careful…
Abstract
Purpose
Operating in a variety of countries, multinational companies (MNCs) experience a high variety and variability of physiological and contextual dynamics, requiring a more careful knowledge management approach. In this scenario, this paper aims to investigate the entrepreneurial facets and managerial aspects (entrepreneurial orientation/managerial intentionality) of MNCs’ internationalization from a knowledge-based perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
A theory-building approach is applied, involving a comparative case study of two MNCs conceived through the separation of a unique family business. Aiming to enrich the research about companies’ internationalization, some crucial elements are individuated to build a theoretical frame explaining the evolutionary paths of so-called born global.
Findings
This paper shows that companies’ internationalization development is based on a multiplicity of variables and underlines the need to incorporate different points of view when attempting to explain the dynamics of internationalization processes.
Research limitations/implications
The empirical significance of the two cases does not legitimize theorization. However, this research presents interesting results that could be strengthened by a series of comparative case studies dealing with other MNCs or deeper quantitative investigation.
Originality/value
This research approach could be considered as stimulating by the scientific and managerial community, as the internationalization process is articulated by mixing managerial, entrepreneurial and cognitive aspects.
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Enrique Claver-Cortés, Patrocinio Zaragoza-Sáez, Mercedes Úbeda-García, Bartolome Marco-Lajara and Francisco García-Lillo
Based on the knowledge-based theories of the MNC, this research aims to develop and test a holistic model to analyse the relationship between the strategic knowledge management…
Abstract
Purpose
Based on the knowledge-based theories of the MNC, this research aims to develop and test a holistic model to analyse the relationship between the strategic knowledge management (SKM) processes undertaken by subsidiaries and MNC performance. Additionally, it focuses on determining the impact that the relational context can have on knowledge creation and transfer inside the internal network of an MNC.
Design/methodology/approach
The research hypotheses are tested by partial least squares (PLS) with data from a sample of Spanish subsidiaries of foreign multinational firms belonging to high-technology and knowledge-intensive sectors.
Findings
The results confirm that: the implementation of a SKM by a subsidiary positively impacts on knowledge creation; the knowledge created by a subsidiary positively influences knowledge transfer, increasing the knowledge existing in the MNC; the knowledge transfer across all MNC units has a positive impact on MNC performance; the subsidiary’s relational context arises as a mediating variable between the knowledge created by a subsidiary and its transfer to the rest of the MNC.
Originality/value
The research proposes a holistic model that contemplates the joint interaction of the variables knowledge creation, knowledge transfer and performance. In addition, the proposed model contemplates the variable SMK of the subsidiary as the beginning of the knowledge creation-knowledge transfer-performance process. Finally, the mediating role of the relational context in the relationship between knowledge creation and transfer is analysed.
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Francisco García-Lillo, Enrique Claver, Bartolomé Marco-Lajara, Pedro Seva-Larrosa and Lorena Ruiz-Fernández
In recent years, author and document citation and co-citation analyses have often been applied to map the “intellectual structure” of different scientific fields, including…
Abstract
Purpose
In recent years, author and document citation and co-citation analyses have often been applied to map the “intellectual structure” of different scientific fields, including management and international business. However, the technique of bibliographic coupling between scientific documents, which seeks to identify active research fronts in a scientific field or discipline, has been less commonly used. This study utilized this technique to identify and visualize the research fronts in the context of papers on emerging markets multinational enterprises (EM-MNEs) recently published in a wide variety of journals. The aim is not only to complement and expand the results obtained in prior studies that have used other types of systematization, such as qualitative content analysis methodology but also to propose avenues for future research.
Design/methodology/approach
The primary databases utilized to carry out the present research work – both comprised in the Web of Science™ (WoS) Core Collection – were: the Social Sciences Citation Index® (SCI) developed by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) and the Emerging Sources Citation Index. A total of 496 “peer-reviewed journal articles” published between 2014 and December 30, 2019 were retrieved. With regards to the methodology, bibliometric methods were utilized, as well as social network analysis (SNA).
Findings
Particularly, the analytical techniques employed – adopting a “quantitative” method of a deductive character – allowed the identification of the most active research “fronts” in international research related to the topic under analysis: the phenomenon of EM-MNEs.
Research limitations/implications
The present study has several limitations resulting from the utilization of bibliometric methods applied in the analyses performed.
Originality/value
The authors believe that this research is of value for future researchers since it allows the identification of research “fronts,” which shape the vanguard of knowledge and reveal current trends and future directions in the area under examination.
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Vittoria Giada Scalera, Debmalya Mukherjee, Alessandra Perri and Ram Mudambi
The purpose of this article is to provide insights into the innovation trajectory, and knowledge pipelines of mature industry multinational enterprises (MNEs). The ability to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to provide insights into the innovation trajectory, and knowledge pipelines of mature industry multinational enterprises (MNEs). The ability to innovate constantly amidst a turbulent and competitive environment is often the key force behind MNE survival and dominance.
Design/methodology/approach
This study conducts an in-depth longitudinal study of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, a global manufacturing company in the tire and rubber industry. The findings are based on USPTO patent and trademark data from 1975-2005.
Findings
The analysis reveals three crucial trends: the major role of continuous investment in innovation in the firm’s survival and turnaround; the evolution of the firm’s innovation network from a headquarters-centric model toward more geographical dispersal; and the changing mix of innovation from traditional “hard” science-based research toward a greater emphasis on “softer” competencies in design and trademarks. This third trend, in particular, opens up important new avenues for research on MNE innovation practices.
Originality/value
This study integrates historical analysis of a single firm in the context of its changing industry environment. The historical analysis is enriched by a detailed longitudinal quantitative analysis using a variegated dataset of patents and trademarks to investigate innovation.
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A topical examination of the risks undertaken by United States financial institutions who undertake to carry accounts for foreign officials; with some helpful direction on…
Abstract
A topical examination of the risks undertaken by United States financial institutions who undertake to carry accounts for foreign officials; with some helpful direction on detecting red flags when carrying these accounts.
Matteo Podrecca, Guido Orzes, Marco Sartor and Guido Nassimbeni
This paper aims to offer a long-term systematic picture of the evolution of manufacturing offshoring (in terms of intensity, geography and drivers) highlighting the changes in the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to offer a long-term systematic picture of the evolution of manufacturing offshoring (in terms of intensity, geography and drivers) highlighting the changes in the surrounding context and the resulting transitions points (“points in time”) that have shaped its development path.
Design/methodology/approach
Three statistical tools were adopted on a dataset of 644 cases. First, the authors resorted to multiple structural change tests to identify the transition points. Second, the authors explored offshoring geography by conducting a network analysis. Finally, the authors adopted gravity models to shed light on offshoring drivers.
Findings
Results highlight three offshoring phases: expansion (2002–2006), reconsideration (2007–2009) and rationalization (2010 onwards). During the first phase, characterized by economic growth, firms were mainly interested in economic savings; offshoring to low-cost countries was the prevailing location strategy. Subsequently, during the economic crisis, the number of cases declined and the main drivers became market-based factors together with the research for cost savings. Finally, in the third phase, when the economy was still stagnating and new manufacturing technologies appeared, the number of offshoring cases has further decreased, and technological- and market-based factors have become the main location drivers.
Originality/value
The study is the first to adopt a systematic, empirical and quantitative approach to analyze the evolution of the manufacturing offshoring considering both the phenomenon itself and the triggering changes in the surrounding context. In doing this, the authors also tested the importance of considering the point in time in offshoring strategies.