Richard Afriyie Owusu and Terje I. Vaaland
The paper aims to identify and analyze the actors and their interrelationships in realizing local content objectives in African oil- and gas-producing nations.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to identify and analyze the actors and their interrelationships in realizing local content objectives in African oil- and gas-producing nations.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper includes content analysis of relevant research papers and reports within the oil and gas industry, local content and industrial networks published between 2000 and 2014.
Findings
The study developed a framework that integrates the literature on local content with the industrial network theory. The framework classifies the various critical actors for achieving local content, proposing that achieving local content requires the development of business network links and a resource alignment among local companies and institutions and foreign companies and institutions, in addition to multinational oil companies.
Research limitations/implications
The framework of this study contributes to an emerging theory on local content by integrating the industrial network theory, which provides specific frameworks for analyzing embedded business environments, along with the previous economic and legal-based studies of local content achievement.
Practical implications
The way the relevant actors organize their resources and business networks provides potential for local content in an emerging oil and gas industry in Africa.
Originality/value
The paper is one of the few to integrate studies of local content with the industrial network theory. The literature review provides a summary window of the research on the subject over a 14-year period.
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Cookie M. Govender and Terje I. Vaaland
This paper aims to identify challenges in business school and business collaboration when implementing work-integrated learning (WIL) as a vehicle to enhance student work-life…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify challenges in business school and business collaboration when implementing work-integrated learning (WIL) as a vehicle to enhance student work-life realities and possible employability opportunities.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper adopts a five-step literature synthesis method. In-depth review and analysis of the existing literature of WIL challenges during the period 2009 to 2018 was conducted.
Findings
The literature review revealed five major gaps identified in WIL projects, resulting from a lack of institutional support, mentoring and assessment, student readiness, curriculum relevance and host motivation. These challenges were related to differences or gaps in the business school and business domains. Seven propositions are suggested as a starting point to manage the five gaps when initiating WIL as a successful learning project.
Practical implications
Our syntheses of challenges hampering WIL projects is highly relevant for deepening business school awareness and when planning to launch WIL projects. The paper presents a realistic view on school-business interaction involving WIL students.
Originality/value
The paper contributes by enabling WIL practitioners to gain a systematic overview of WIL challenges and pitfalls. Negative factors impacting on business school and business domains are highlighted in the model and paper propositions. Awareness, mindfulness and avoiding the pitfalls and gaps facing WIL students, schools and participating businesses ensure effective, efficient and successful WIL experiences and projects.
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Terje I. Vaaland and Esther Ishengoma
The purpose of this paper is to assess the perceptions of both universities and the resource-extractive companies on the influence of university-industry linkages (UILs) on…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the perceptions of both universities and the resource-extractive companies on the influence of university-industry linkages (UILs) on innovation in a developing country.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 404 respondents were interviewed. Descriptive analysis and multinomial logistic regression models were applied to analyse the data.
Findings
The findings revealed significant differences between the three informant groups across the three main groups of linkage activities. The industry informants consider all three groups of UILs important for enhancing innovation, in terms of bringing student closer to the industry. The faculty members consider consultancy and research arrangements more important than collaboration, in training and educational activities. The student perceptions on all UIL activities were relatively weak on UIL activities as a vehicle to improve innovation.
Research limitations/implications
Based on the findings, it seems that the universities should take advantage of a positive attitude among industrial actors and intensify efforts to develop UILs.
Practical implications
The research can be used for sharpen international oil companies effort towards universities in petroleum rich developing countries.
Social implications
Implications for policymakers and universities in developing countries, and for the local industrial base. In a broad sense the UIL stimulated innovation has implications on poverty reduction in natural resource-rich host countries.
Originality/value
Research on UILs in developing countries is rare, particularly in a context in which international companies are faced with host country expectations and legal requirements to invest in knowledge sector and local industry.
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Terje I. Vaaland and Morten Heide
The purpose of this paper is to improve the understanding of the manner in which companies deal with key stakeholders in relation to corporate social responsibility (CSR)…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to improve the understanding of the manner in which companies deal with key stakeholders in relation to corporate social responsibility (CSR), focusing in particular on how companies can handle critical incidents related to CSR and utilize these experiences in enforcing their regular social responsibility.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a case study methodology.
Findings
CSR should be managed by a combination of handling unexpected episodes that threaten existing social responsibility (incident recovery) and the long‐term reduction of gaps between stakeholder expectations and the company performance (CSR enforcement). Furthermore, CSR implies building and maintaining relationships with society through interplay between actors, resources and activities.
Practical implications
The study contributes to managerial decision making by identifying seven types of implications and activities necessary to actively manage key aspects of social responsibility.
Originality/value
The paper integrates long‐term social responsibility enforcement with short‐term social responsibility recovery by means of a recent corporate case from the oil industry.
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Jaana Tähtinen and Terje I. Vaaland
This paper aims to discuss business relationships drawing to an end, and the reasons why company managers should attempt to restore the relationship instead of terminating it.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss business relationships drawing to an end, and the reasons why company managers should attempt to restore the relationship instead of terminating it.
Design/methodology/approach
The study applies a qualitative method and in‐depth interviews with companies in the North Sea oil industry.
Findings
The paper offers two contributions. First, it suggests an empirically grounded categorization of attenuating factors, i.e. the reasons to restore a relationship. Second, the categorization is extended to attenuating analysis, through which the value of the troubled relationship can be clarified. Thereafter, if the relationship is considered worth restoring, the managers may actively engage in restoring actions.
Research limitations/implications
Because this study is limited to one business setting, future research applying the attenuating analysis to other industries by using action research is suggested.
Practical implications
The study improves the awareness of inter‐organizational risk, enhances the manager's ability to assess the risk of losing a core relationship, and implements a method to reduce this risk. Troubled but valuable business relationships can be saved by applying the suggested attenuating analysis.
Originality/value
To one's knowledge, this is the first study that both systematically identifies the reasons for not leaving a business partner, and provides a practical framework for restoring a relationship based on the attenuating factors.
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Esther Ishengoma and Terje I. Vaaland
– The purpose of this paper is to identify important university-industry linkage (UIL) activities that can stimulate the likelihood of employability among students.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify important university-industry linkage (UIL) activities that can stimulate the likelihood of employability among students.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 404 respondents located in Tanzania, comprising students, faculty members and employees from 20 companies operating within the oil and gas industry and mining constitute the empirical basis for the study. Descriptive analysis, the Mann-Whitney U-test and a Kruskal-Wallis test were applied to help analyse the data.
Findings
The results reveal that UIL activities were strongly perceived to raise the employability of students, in particular student internships in companies followed by joint projects and the involvement of companies in modernizing university curricula. Adoption and diffusion internship strategies are suggested for foreign companies and for local firm, respectively, as vehicles for increasing employability.
Research limitations/implications
Perceived effects on the likelihood of employability are measured, and not actual effects.
Practical implications
The findings have implications for foreign companies exploring resources in the host country, local firms trying to improve competitiveness, universities trying to improve its role in society, students preparing for work-life and policy makers defining premises for resource-extractive foreign companies.
Originality/value
Very few empirical studies of UILs have previously been carried out in a developing country context, and in particular in dealing with student employability. The fact that many developing nations have attractive rich natural resources implies that international companies have a motive to invest in the UILs, and possess valuable competencies that can improve the overall quality of the universities and the attractiveness of graduating students.
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Terje I. Vaaland and Sharon Purchase
The purpose of the paper is to explore the introduction of agents, such as consultants and lawyers, when the continuation of a business relationship is threatened by conflict.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to explore the introduction of agents, such as consultants and lawyers, when the continuation of a business relationship is threatened by conflict.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on findings in a distorted business relationship in the oil industry, describes an “agent effect” on managerial decisions.
Findings
The “agent effect” reduces uncertainty in the decision process by adding information, but also increases the uncertainty. This implies that their advice in fact may increase managerial uncertainty to a level of which the relationship may end up in a business divorce. The study is explorative and based on a single case study design where written communication between the battling parties, public media and court writs are investigated. Primary and secondary data sources are combined.
Research limitations/implications
Although the paper's strength lies in it being an in‐depth analysis of a single case, this approach is also a limitation when claiming new knowledge.
Practical implications
Future research should test the existence of “agent effect”, based on a quantitative, cross‐sectional survey design to secure a more general validity. The paper suggests a general carefulness when bringing in external agents into an inter‐organizational dispute, unless the agents are representing both parties as mediators.
Originality/value
The challenge of managing conflict and divorce in a business‐to‐business context has been well studied before, but the role of external agents has not, until now, been explored. This study fills this gap.
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Terje I. Vaaland, Morten Heide and Kjell Grønhaug
This review article aims to develop an integrating overview of the present status of the theory of corporate social responsibility (CSR) applied in the marketing context and asks…
Abstract
Purpose
This review article aims to develop an integrating overview of the present status of the theory of corporate social responsibility (CSR) applied in the marketing context and asks whether, to what extent and how the discipline of marketing has addressed CSR.
Design/methodology/approach
After clarifying core concepts and proposing a new definition of CSR, 54 articles in leading marketing journals between 1995 and 2005 are analyzed in terms of publication characteristics, research design, variables, sampling, level of analysis, issues raised, and key findings.
Findings
Recommendations include a broadened perspective in empirical research to address CSR in its entirety, expand the focus beyond consumers, include a broader range of samples and conduct more inductive, exploratory empirical studies. These steps will contribute to a multidimensional view of the future customer.
Research limitations/implications
The number and specific choice of journals was subject to a compromise between comprehensiveness and the availability of space for a review.
Practical implications
The way the scholarly marketing literature treats CSR impacts what our students and other constituencies learn.
Originality/value
Given the veritable explosion in CSR research in the recent years, there is a genuine need for the field to take stock of what has been learned so far and what that implies in terms of where researchers should be headed.
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Terje I. Vaaland and Morten Heide
The purpose of this paper is to focus on small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and the extent to which they are prepared to meet SCM challenges through the use of modern…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to focus on small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and the extent to which they are prepared to meet SCM challenges through the use of modern planning and control methods.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on a cross‐sectional survey of 200 Norwegian companies with informants mainly related to the SCM function and from top management.
Findings
The findings clearly indicate that SMEs give less attention to planning and control methods than LEs. SMEs are less satisfied with the methods applied; less concerned with methods supporting SCM on product quality, rationalisation of operations and capital cost rationalisation; less focused on system integration with other actors in the supply chain; and less focused on EDI and e‐based solutions.
Research limitations/implications
The study focuses primarily on managerial components and excluded logistics structures and business processes that are more or less inter‐related.
Practical implications
Horizontal cooperation or vertical integration can reduce the information technology gap by sharing planning and control systems. The suppliers of support systems should consider delivering complete “turn‐key” solutions for revitalising the supply chain functions, specifically targeted towards SMEs.
Originality/value
The strength of this study is that it has been able to identify systematic differences between LEs and SMEs across sectors with respect to how SCM challenges are met.
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The purpose of this editorial is to provide guidance to EJM authors about the structure and presentation of manuscripts that are likely to be insightful and that will probably…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this editorial is to provide guidance to EJM authors about the structure and presentation of manuscripts that are likely to be insightful and that will probably provide contributions to knowledge.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach is editorial advice based on the Editors' experience of receiving circa 500 manuscripts during their first year as Joint Editors of EJM, but which is also consistent with guidance in other leading journals.
Findings
Guidance is provided for authors when preparing and revising their manuscripts, which is also a basis for further discussion and exchange concerning the effectiveness of communicating research outcomes.
Research limitations/implications
The guidance is based on the views of the EJM Joint Editors, although it is consistent with other leading journals.
Practical implications
Hopefully, authors will find the guidance helpful, although the editors emphasise that it is guidance and not a strict prescription that must be obeyed.
Originality/value
Hopefully, the editorial provides more “food for thought” for authors.