Maxime Petit Jean and Sébastien Brunet
This paper aims at analysing the relationship between anticipation and public administration based on a case study focusing on a specific public agency in charge of knowledge…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims at analysing the relationship between anticipation and public administration based on a case study focusing on a specific public agency in charge of knowledge production for policymaking.
Design/methodology/approach
It is based on a case study methodology: anticipatory practices of a public organisation are critically assessed based on data that originates from public documents and from participant observation within the concerned agency.
Findings
Several dimensions impact the interrelation between anticipation and public administration. First, the organisational set-up is decisive in fostering the development of specific type of anticipatory activities. Second, it confirms a common finding that policymakers are oftentimes more interested in ready-to-use results than in processes of future thinking. And third, it shows that distinctive anticipatory practices can rely on very different networks and, therefore, have different degree of maturity.
Research limitations/implications
The use of a case study, unfortunately, may lead to a lack of generalisability. The authors therefore encourage researchers to test their propositions further.
Originality/value
Nevertheless, the originality of the paper is its central focus on anticipation within public administration – a topic that has not received much attention or study by academics or researchers. Anticipatory practices have been studied at a more general level, but not necessarily in particular public sector environments, which also have their own particular constraints.
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Jean‐Louis Peaucelle and Cameron Guthrie
The aim is to identify Henri Fayol's motivations as an accomplished business manager to publish his management theory at the age of 75.
Abstract
Purpose
The aim is to identify Henri Fayol's motivations as an accomplished business manager to publish his management theory at the age of 75.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors retrace Henri Fayol's private life using primary sources from various French public archives including civil registry records, military and diplomatic archives, schooling records, publications from learned associations and inheritance declarations. They then use a psychological theory, namely equity theory, to interpret this new information about Fayol's private life and construct an explanation of his efforts to theorise his management experience.
Findings
Henri Fayol's schooling and his father's military career respectively influenced his perception of mathematics teaching in management training and the functioning of the army. His motivation to found a science of management was not financial but instead most probably a response to the obstacles his father encountered during his career.
Research limitations/implications
It is rarely known what motivates a manager to collaborate with specialists in management science. This research into Henri Fayol's motivations can be replicated for other managers.
Practical implications
The paper dentifies one major practical implication for managers who wish to contribute to management theory as Fayol did. Before they begin such an undertaking, it is important for them to reflect upon their motivations. Their motivations as managers, based on financial and business success are insufficient. Deeper motivations are needed, that are anchored in their own personal history to drive the considerable intellectual investment that is necessary for them to be successful contributors.
Social implications
The results encourage managers to contribute to building and improving management science. They can theorize their experiences in dealing with the management of contemporary issues such as sustainable development and social responsibility. They must do so as Fayol did: using scientific method and strongly motivated by personal beliefs.
Originality/value
The research question is original: “What motivated Fayol to build his management doctrine?”. Scholars rarely ask why individuals decide to build and organize knowledge. This question is relevant for managers today as they too can bring original contributions to management thought. The paper reports previously unpublished details about Fayol's life to answer the research question, and in doing so completes and corrects the works of Sasaki Tsuneo and Henri Verney.
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In a highly competitive market, the price of wine is a variable controlled by suppliers to suggest a level of quality. An index of relative firm position in the market based on…
Abstract
Purpose
In a highly competitive market, the price of wine is a variable controlled by suppliers to suggest a level of quality. An index of relative firm position in the market based on relative prices is calculated for a sample of wine producers. The purpose of the paper is to analyze some of the factors related to the characteristics of a firm and quality that may explain the price strategy of wine producers in a new and small wine region, i.e. Québec province in Canada.
Design/methodology/approach
Data on types of wines and prices are collected from a sample of 40 small wine producers in Québec, Canada for the selected years 2008, 2010 and 2015.
Findings
The authors demonstrate that a high price strategy is significantly related to the reputation of the vineyard rather than the age of the domain, the size or the number of wines produced.
Research limitations/implications
The analysis has been carried out based on a data set of only 40 firms for which the price-position index could be calculated. Unfortunately, only limited information is available on producers and production volumes.
Practical implications
This analysis is of particular relevance for small or new wine-producing regions, which lack an established reputation. Because wine quality and taste differ by geographic origin and variety, new wine-producing regions may have opportunities to define a wine’s image (or a winery image) and the producer must inform the market on quality of the wine by reflecting it on the final selling price.
Originality/value
Prior works on the analysis of the price-quality relationship give rise to various and sometimes contradictory results. This analysis is of particular relevance to explain the price strategy of small wine producers in a strongly competitive market where the price remains an obvious commercial argument to signal the quality of a wine.
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Nathalie Montargot, Andreas Kallmuenzer and Sascha Kraus
This study aims to explore how haute cuisine excellence is and can be self-represented on the websites of three-star restaurants and juxtaposed onto the websites of external…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore how haute cuisine excellence is and can be self-represented on the websites of three-star restaurants and juxtaposed onto the websites of external authoritative food guides.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 26 French Michelin three-star restaurant websites and their reviews in the prominent Michelin and Gault and Millau dining guides were examined. This data was then processed using lexicometric software.
Findings
Five semantic universes emerged, showing that restaurants and dining guides do not emphasize the same elements of culinary excellence. While restaurant websites emphasize the charismatic leadership role of the chef through family history, professional recognition and vicarious learning, the two iconic guides are far from rating the criteria they claim to: For the Michelin Guide, criteria other than cuisine appear central. Conversely, Gault and Millau, far from its nouvelle cuisine principles advocating democratization at lower cost, insists on fine products.
Practical implications
It remains essential for restaurants to use a repertoire of cultural components and symbols, capitalize on the charismatic and architectural roles of their chef and showcase fine products that are representative of classical cuisine. Storytelling and dynamic narrative add-ons, regularly updated on large-audience social media, appear central to increasing restaurants’ perceived value, communicating innovation and attesting to their singularity and uniqueness.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirical study to overlap the lexical perspectives of three-star restaurants and iconic guides’ websites.