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on Economics of Strategic Management |
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Issue of 2013‒11‒09
eleven papers chosen by Joao Jose de Matos Ferreira University of the Beira Interior |
| By: | Negin Salimi; Rudi Bekkers; Koen Frenken |
| Abstract: | Joint PhD projects are a promising form of research collaboration, connecting universities to firms and public research organizations. Entering into such collaborations, however, requires decisions in terms of governance. This paper investigates how a university and its partners govern such projects, including decision-making, daily management and disclosure policies. Earlier studies show that shared governance modes have had a higher success rate than centralized governance modes. Nevertheless, more than two thirds of the 191 joint PhD projects we investigated opted for centralized rather than shared governance. Our findings show that: (i) geographical and cognitive distance render the adoption of a shared governance mode less likely; (ii) the partner controlling critical resources tends to centralize governance, and (iii) partnering firms are more likely to put restrictions on publication output than public research organizations. We therefore recommend that universities and their partners take these aspects into account when selecting such projects. |
| Keywords: | university-industry collaboration, collaborative PhD project, shared governance, centralized governance, proximity, resource imbalances, publication disclosure. |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dgr:tuecis:wpaper:1309&r=cse |
| By: | Christine Greenhalgh (Oxford Intellectual Property Research Institute, University of Oxford; and Intellectual Property Research Institute of Australia, The University of Melbourne) |
| Abstract: | This paper begins by surveying recent economic studies of the relationships between technology transfer, intellectual property, innovation and diffusion in emerging countries. It applies this literature to the Indian case. India is a potentially useful case study for several reasons. India has recently been experiencing rapid growth and has several high technology sectors staffed by an absolutely large and highly educated middle class. At the same time an even larger share of its very big population is still working in low productivity agriculture and many of these people are living in extreme poverty. To reduce poverty and improve agricultural productivity India will need to create jobs in labour intensive production and distribution sectors to employ its vast army of unskilled workers. The second part of the paper outlines how industry structure and innovative performance have been progressing in India following the economic reforms of the early 90s and the changes to intellectual property law occasioned by the TRIPS agreement and membership of the World Trade Organisation. In the third section the focus turns to recent science, technology and innovation policy in India. A study of the country’s potential for innovation by the World Bank in 2007 argued that India must proceed on two fronts. In addition to considering how India’s growth prospects can be enhanced by world leading innovations, this volume placed great emphasis on inclusive innovation. This may involve mainly the diffusion and absorption of existing knowledge, but is designed to improve the lot of the poor. The World Bank report proposed a number of new policy directions aimed at speeding up innovation and technology diffusion in India. We attempt to record what changes have been made to innovation policy, foreign direct investment policy and diffusion policy in India in recent years and assess whether these are likely to be effective. |
| Keywords: | Science and technology policy, developing economies, IP rights, innovation |
| JEL: | O12 O34 O38 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iae:iaewps:wp2013n37&r=cse |
| By: | Mella-Barral , Pierre; Habib, Michel A.; Hege, Ulrich |
| Abstract: | We analyze the implications of the decision to spawn or to retain a new product for the nature and evolution of the firm. In our model, a new product is spawned if the fit between the product and its parent firm organization is not adequate. We focus on the impact of the firm's history of spawning decisions on firm characteristics such as size, focus, profitability, and innovativeness, and analyze its role in shaping firm dynamics. In accordance with the empirical literature, our model predicts that older firms innovate less, spawn less, are more diversified and less profitable, and that firms with more valuable general or specialized resources innovate and spawn more. Echoing seemingly contradictory empirical findings, our model predicts that small, focused firms (large, diversified firms) innovate and spawn more, and are more profitable when sample heterogeneity is driven by the importance of organizational fit (the value of general resources) |
| Keywords: | spawning; spinoffs; spinouts; general and specialized resources; firm organization; organizational fit; firm size; focus; profitability; innovativeness; spawning dynamics |
| JEL: | L25 M13 O31 O33 |
| Date: | 2013–03–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ebg:heccah:0984&r=cse |
| By: | Paige Ouimet; Rebecca Zarutskie |
| Abstract: | Young firms disproportionately employ young workers, controlling for firm size, industry, geography and time. The same positive correlation between young firms and young employees holds when we look just at new hires. On average, young employees in young firms earn higher wages than young employees in older firms. Further, young employees disproportionately join young firms with greater innovation potential and that exhibit higher growth, conditional on survival. These facts are consistent with the argument that the skills, risk tolerance, and career dynamics of young workers are contributing factors to their disproportionate share of employment in young firms. Finally, we show that an increase in the regional supply of young workers is positively related to the rate of new firm creation, especially in high tech industries, suggesting a causal link between the supply of young workers and new firm creation. |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedgfe:2013-75&r=cse |
| By: | Ceci , Federica; Masini , Andrea |
| Abstract: | Integrated bundles of products and services are gaining importance in various sectors and are reshaping the competitive landscape of many industries. They also pose new challenges to established firms, who need to reconfigure their capabilities. Drawing upon the resource-based view and contingency theory, we test a model of fit between environmental requirements and integrated solutions capabilities in the IT sector. We used the model to interpret the current industry structure and analyze its dynamics. The analysis suggests the existence of four different configurations and indicates that differences in fit between environmental variables and strategic choices partially account for performance differences among integrated solution providers. |
| Keywords: | Capabilities; Integrated Solutions; Cluster Analysis |
| JEL: | G00 |
| Date: | 2013–04–13 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ebg:heccah:0972&r=cse |
| By: | Karl Aiginger; Susanne Bärenthaler-Sieber; Johanna Vogel |
| Abstract: | This paper aims to redefine the term competitiveness to enhance its usefulness for the evaluation of country performance and for policy conclusions. We attempt to establish a definition that is adequate if economic policy strives for a new growth path that is more dynamic, socially inclusive and ecologically sustainable. We tentatively apply the proposed definition to evaluate the "competitiveness" of EU member states as well as to compare Europe's competitiveness with that of the US, Switzerland, Japan and China, where possible. In the first part of the paper, we examine the evolution of the concept from a focus on "inputs" at the firm level (price or cost competitiveness) to economic structure and capabilities at the country level and finally to "outcome" competitiveness, where outcomes are defined in a broad sense and in the context of the WWWforEurope project. We propose to define competitiveness as the "ability of a country (region, location) to deliver the beyond-GDP goals for its citizens". In the second part of the paper, the performance of the EU-27 countries is assessed along the dimensions described above. We begin with price competitiveness and then proceed to economic structure and countries’ capabilities regarding innovation, education, the social system, institutions and environmental ambition. We conclude with outcome competitiveness in terms of economic, social and ecological outcomes. Overall, we compile a database of 68 indicators that describe these different aspects of competitiveness. In the third part of the paper, we investigate empirically the relationship between "outcome" and "input" competitiveness for the EU-27 using panel data analysis for the period from 2000 to 2010. We construct a composite indicator for outcome competitiveness consisting of income, social and ecological pillars, following the beyond-GDP literature. This measure is then econometrically related to composite indicators of the three groups of input indicators: price competitiveness, economic structure, and capabilities. The results of panel regressions suggest that both economic structure and capabilities on aggregate are positively related to our measure of outcome competitiveness, while a negative relationship is found for the wage component of price competitiveness. Among the different dimensions of capabilities, ecological ambition and institutions are positively associated with outcome competitiveness. Overall, we conclude that a narrow focus on the price component of competitiveness neglects other aspects of the concept that are likely to be particularly important for high-income economies like the EU-27. |
| Keywords: | Competitiveness, economic growth path, industrial policy, social capital as growth driver, sustainable growth |
| JEL: | O25 L16 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:feu:wfewop:y:2013:m:10:d:0:i:44&r=cse |
| By: | Hoorn, André van (Groningen University) |
| Abstract: | We open the black box of what goes on in firms in terms of management of their operations. Work autonomy is a key aspect of firm organization and we test the hypothesis that societal trust affects the level of autonomy that firms grant to their employees. Analysis of up to 189,213 individuals from 30 countries shows that trust is indeed highly conducive to work autonomy. This result is robust to controlling for a wide range of other features of countries? institutional environment, including measures of labor regulations and institutional quality. Our findings highlight the importance of informal institutions such as societal trust in shaping economic activity. |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dgr:rugsom:13015-gem&r=cse |
| By: | Kurt A. Desender; Mircea Epure |
| Abstract: | By integrating the agency and stakeholder perspectives, this study aims to provide a systematic understanding of the firm- and institutional-level corporate governance factors that affect corporate social performance (CSP). We analyze a large global panel dataset and reveal that CSP is positively associated with board independence, but negatively with ownership concentration. These results underscore the idea that the benefits of CSP do not flow to shareholders to the same extent as the costs and that the allocation of resources to CSP is lower when shareholders are powerful. Furthermore, these findings indicate that independent directors should be understood as agents in their own right, not only focused on defending shareholder interests. We also find that CSP is negatively related to investor protection and shareholder-oriented environments, while it is positively related to egalitarian environments. Finally, we jointly analyze firm-level drivers and institutional contexts. |
| Keywords: | corporate social performance, corporate governance, agency theory, stakeholder theory |
| JEL: | A13 G3 M0 M1 M14 M4 M41 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bge:wpaper:730&r=cse |
| By: | Frank Jr. , Douglas H.; Obloj , Tomasz |
| Abstract: | This paper explores conflicting implications of firm-specific human capital (FSHC) for firm performance. Existing theory predicts a productivity effect that can be enhanced with strong incentives. We propose an offsetting agency effect: FSHC may facilitate more sophisticated “gaming” of incentives, to the detriment of firm performance. Using a unique dataset from a multiunit retail bank, we document both effects and estimate their net impact. Managers with superior FSHC are more productive in selling loans but are also more likely to manipulate loan terms to increase incentive payouts. We find that resulting profits are two percentage points lower for high-FSHC managers. Finally, profit losses increase more rapidly for high-FSHC managers, indicating adverse learning. Our results suggest that FSHC can create agency costs that outweigh its productive benefits. |
| Keywords: | FSHC; firm-specific human capital; firm performance; incentives; multiunit retail bank |
| JEL: | G00 |
| Date: | 2013–05–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ebg:heccah:0999&r=cse |
| By: | Anginer, D.; Demirgüc-Kunt, A.; Huizinga, H.P.; Ma, K. (Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research) |
| Abstract: | JEF Classification: G21, M21. |
| Keywords: | Bank capital;Dividend payouts;Corporate governance;Executive compensation |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dgr:kubcen:2013054&r=cse |
| By: | Miguel García-Posada (Banco de España-Eurosystem); Juan S. Mora-Sanguinetti (Banco de España-Eurosystem) |
| Abstract: | Small businesses, the majority of Spanish fi rms, rarely fi le for formal bankruptcy, and this has been the case even during the current economic crisis. This suggests that bankruptcy law has a limited role to play in the distress of small fi rms. We propose an explanation based on two premises: (i) bankruptcy procedures are more costly and drawn out than the main alternative procedure, the mortgage foreclosure; (ii) personal bankruptcy law is unattractive to the individual debtor. Empirical analyses on a large micro data sample of Spanish, French and UK fi rms corroborate our hypothesis. It is important to note that these results are based on data that do not yet capture the impact of recent reforms of the Spanish insolvency framework. |
| Keywords: | bankruptcy, mortgage, insolvency |
| JEL: | G33 G21 K0 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bde:wpaper:1315&r=cse |