New business history?

This editorial introduces eight articles for the special issue on ‘New business history?’. Following a workshop on this topic, several submissions with discussions on business history methodology and studies with non-standard historical approaches were received and reviewed. In the editorial we provide an overview of recent debates in the discipline and provide a short introduction to the articles accepted for publication in this special issue.     

Beer,brewing, and business history

Abstract

This editorial introduces the eight articles in the special issue on ‘Beer, brewing and business history’. Following the BEERONOMICS conference held at the University of York, 2013, and the subsequent approval of the editorial board of Business History, we received many submissions discussing beer, brewing, and their importance to business history (broadly defined). In this editorial we provide a brief overview of the historical development of beer and brewing; explain the appeal to business historians of the principal themes which have emerged in the historiography of this industry, and provide a short introduction to the articles accepted for publication in this special issue.     

Entrepreneurial ecosystems

International business fundamentally is about creating an ecosystem environment conducive to entrepreneurship. This means fostering actions and behavior that provide a systemic interaction with multiple entities. In this editorial for the special journal issue, the historical background and origins of the entrepreneurial ecosystem concept is discussed with the view to connected different strands of literature. This provides an optimal way to understand the way entrepreneurship develops through an ecosystem logic. The theoretical perspectives for understanding entrepreneurial ecosystems are discussed that lead to a discussion on each of the articles included in the special journal issue. Themes emerging from these articles are then stated that include a focus on value co‐creation, stakeholder collaboration and entrepreneurial networks. This enables a holistic way to understand the linkages international business has with entrepreneurial ecosystems.     

Work, leisure, and tourism in the Pacific Rim

This issue of JBR is the consequence of a call for a special issue on Work, Leisure, and Tourism in the Pacific Rim. Who the special issue editors are presumably prompted submissions related to tourism or hospitality. The articles in the issue relate to the business aspect of tourism, and they show the diversity in tourism research. The study of entertainment in Macao's future presents stakeholder views. The wine tourism paper is not on demand or tourism behavior but addresses supply side issues. The articles on employees' work-family conflict moderating life and job satisfaction and telepresence affecting the demand for tourism have business ramifications. The paper on empowerment pursues applying Western views in applying a concept in the East. The study of tourists' perceptions on safety broaches some important analysis issues. The paper on using diagrams to improve survey research has broad ramifications for survey research, particularly regarding getting and using complex data. The final article addresses effectiveness and offers ideas that apply to application of DEA in business research.     

Managing cross-border knowledge transfer for innovation: An introduction to the special issue

This introduction to the special issue maps the extant research on managing crossborder knowledge for innovation and classifies it into four clusters: knowledge spillovers and location, international alliances and R&D networks, knowledge transfer and absorptive capacity, and learning organization and capabilities. The eleven articles that compose the special issue are introduced, and a future agenda for international business research is proposed.     

Resource interaction in inter-organizational networks: Introduction to the special issue

This article introduces the special issue of Journal of Business Research on the topic of resource interaction in inter-organizational networks. Both networks and resources receive considerable attention in the field of business studies. As companies specialize further and rely on cooperative agreements with external parties, the importance of networks is gaining increasing recognition. Resources are typically a key factor for identifying a company's competencies, or its sources of growth, profitability, and sustained competitive advantage. This special issue takes a novel approach by directing attention toward the processes of interaction in which companies combine and recombine resources at the network level. This approach provides new insights into the development, production, exchange, and use of resources. The introductory article also reviews the 13 articles in this special issue and concludes by discussing their contributions to the fields of marketing, innovation, entrepreneurship, and logistics.     

Deans’ Forum on the Globalization of Business Education and Development: Reflections and Directions for the Future

In this special issue of the Journal of Teaching in International Business, a number of deans reflect on the growth and development in global business education and development. The objective of the special issue is to provide insight into where the field originated and where it needs to move to continue advancement. Seven articles, written by current and former business school deans and their colleagues, are presented from a strategic perspective that cover the curricular, research, and business community outreach issues as they relate to international business academic and professional development programs. Through the presentation and discussion of these related issues, a dialogue will be started to set the agenda for continued advancement and sustainability of international business education across the globe.     

Trademarks in branding: Legal issues and commercial practices

Abstract

The call for a special symposium on ‘The Brand and Its History’ has led to two journal issues that focus on trademarks and brands, respectively. This issue is devoted to trademarks, the more concrete, well-documented, and measurable aspect of brands. This editorial introduces trademark studies; summarises previous contributions from economic, legal, business, and historical literature; provides a short overview of the topics and findings of the seven articles included in this issue; and reflects on further research.     

Market entry into Africa: Acquisitions and international joint ventures. Studies of foreign firms' market entry strategies,challenges, and performance in Africa

While the interest in investing in Africa is rising, the know‐how of business on the continent is very limited. There have been only recently few special issues focusing on sub‐Saharan Africa in the top international business journals: “Sub‐Saharan Africa at a key inflection point” (Thunderbird International Business Review 2009); “Contemporary developments in the management of human resources in Africa” (Journal of World Business 2011); “Contemporary challenges and opportunities of doing business in Africa” (Journal of Technological Forecasting and Social Change 2016); “Critical perspectives on international business in Africa (Critical Perspectives on International Business 2016); “Strategic Management in Africa (Global Strategy Journal, 2017); and “The internationalization of African firms (Thunderbird International Business Review 2016). The aim of this special issue is to advance understanding of international business in Africa and specifically focus on how foreign firms enter African markets via acquisitions and international joint ventures and extend knowledge of these market entry strategies and performance in Africa for research and for foreign firms intending to, or currently doing business in Africa. This guest editorial provides a summary of the five articles and one book review in this special issue categorized into three broad thematic issues: International joint ventures and acquisitions as market entry strategies in Africa; cross‐border investments of African firms; and theoretical underpinnings.     

Introduction to the special section on subsistence marketplaces

We provide an introduction to the special issue on subsistence marketplaces. We briefly describe the stream of subsistence marketplaces, and the conference series associated with the call for papers. We provide a brief overview of the diverse set of papers in the special section.     

Trends in European Research on Entrepreneurship at the Turn of the Century

This article serves as an introduction to the special issue on Entrepreneurship Research in Europe, a selection of papers from the XIVth RENT conference held in Prague, the Czech Republic, November 23–24, 2000. It provides an overview of the articles and also discusses some of the themes that bind them together: Networking and the diffusion of innovations and family business. In addition, the paper includes a short section highlighting advances in the Italian entrepreneurship climate as evidenced by data provided by several of the papers in this issue carried out by Italian researchers on Italian SMEs.     

Emerging‐Market Firms Venturing into Advanced Economies: The Role of Context

Sociocultural, economic, political, and institutional differences between countries increase uncertainty and complexity in today's highly competitive international business environment. Moreover, the “West‐Leads‐East” to “West‐Meets‐East” shift in the global economy requires firms in both advanced economies and emerging markets to seek sustainable solutions by collaborating across geographic boundaries. Such novel collaborative partnerships may help build a stable, resilient, and sustainable world economy by leveraging the resources and capabilities of firms from both advanced and emerging economies. This article has three general objectives. First, we seek to show that context has been a long‐standing issue in management, organization, and international business research and provide an overview of the puzzles that informed and motivated this special issue. Second, we highlight the key insights and contributions of the articles included in this special issue by reviewing their theoretical underpinnings, methodological approaches, and empirical findings. Finally, we outline a future research agenda on emerging‐market firms venturing into advanced economies that can help advance international business and management studies. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Religion,humanism, marketing,and the consumption of socially responsible products,services, and ideas: Introduction to a special topic section

This introduction to the special issue provides an overview and brief summary of the eight articles that follow and take up the issue's theme. Despite the fact that religion and religious world views exert considerable influence on consumer attitudes and behavior, mainstream business journals have presented little research that explores the relationship between religion and marketing. Articles featured in this special issue examine three themes of interest: (1) the influence of strongly held religious or non-religious world views on the marketing of socially responsible behaviors; (2) how religious world views influence the conduct of marketing; and (3) what marketing scholars can learn from the marketing practices of various religious organizations. The authors extend a note of appreciation to the reviewers of the many papers submitted to the issue and to the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Business Research, Arch Woodside.     

Strategic orientation in handicraft subsistence businesses in Oaxaca,Mexico

Abstract

This article, based in the body of strategic orientation literature, identifies and explores the practices of innovativeness, proactiveness and competitive aggressiveness that make up the strategic orientation implemented by subsistence entrepreneurs to improve business performance. A factor analysis was carried out using the data of 101 entrepreneurs, small artisanal business owners who operate in the subsistence markets in Oaxaca, Mexico. The results show that subsistence entrepreneurs notably engage in innovative and proactive practices, and, to a lesser extent, competitive aggressiveness. The research concludes that a combination of innovativeness with proactiveness is the most viable option for improving performance, whereas competitive aggressiveness impedes its development. Even so, however, it is still implemented by subsistence businesses in order to conserve their market share.     

The global recession issue: Introduction—Part I

This special issue concentrates on the global economic downturn that reached its lowest point in late 2008. Signals of an impending crisis started in 2007 with a wave of insolvent subprime mortgages in the United States, but the seeds were planted years earlier. In its scope, length, and countries affected, this downturn is the worst in over 70 years. It is changing and will continue to change local and global business and economic environments. This issue aims to learn from past mistakes and better understand the new environment. Each part contains five articles and an introduction. Part I has a global perspective; Part II focuses on specific national economies. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Retailer selection compulsion in the subsistence markets

Although enduring relationships between buyers and sellers encourage subsistence market consumers to shop at a particular retailer, these relationships have a negative side. This study focuses on the issue of ‘retailer selection compulsion’ existing in the subsistence market, which refers to the negative side of these relationships. The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors driving the retailer selection compulsion in the subsistence market. This study adopted a qualitative phenomenological approach. Sixty interviews were conducted with subsistence consumers in two areas: Kolkata and Kharagpur, in the Indian state of West Bengal. The findings have demonstrated that subsistence consumers are compelled to stick to their neighbourhood retailers due to convenience, social capital, and obligations, as well as social identities resulting from a sense of social compulsion, and the value-added services provided by retailers that help overcome the consumers' financial and cognitive constraints. This study contributes to the literature on customer behaviour and retailing. These findings deepen the current understanding of the social capital theory, social identity theory, and bounded rationality theory in the context of subsistence marketplaces. Practically, the findings of this study will contribute to the practice of marketers who target subsistence markets. The findings will also help further entrepreneurial activities in subsistence areas, improve the retailing operations of subsistence retailers, and address exploitative practices of subsistence retailers on poor customers.     

Introduction: Special issue on advances in brand management

This special issue of the Journal of Business Research contains 13 articles presented at the Spring 2007 Thought Leaders International Conference on Brand Management. Following a blind reviewing process 69 papers were presented at the conference then authors were invited to revise their papers for inclusion consideration for this special issue. A further round of blind reviewing resulted in the selection of those 13 articles. This introduction presents a review of the research into brand management.     

Introduction: Thought leadership in brand management

This special issue contains eight articles developed from presentations at the fourth annual Thought Leaders' International Conference on Brand Management, held in Birmingham, UK in April 2008. Following a blind reviewing process, 65 papers were accepted and presented at the conference and all authors had the opportunity to revise their papers for possible inclusion in this special issue. A further round of double blind reviewing resulted in the selection of these eight articles. This introduction presents an overview of this thought-leading research into brand management.     

Positive Organizational Ethics: Cultivating and Sustaining Moral Performance

We present this special issue on positive organizational ethics (POE) to highlight those pursuing positive subjective experiences, positive attributes of individuals and groups, and positive practices that contribute to ethical and virtuous behavior in organizations. Although prior research has offered some insight in this area, there is still much to be learned about how to cultivate and sustain ethical strength in different types of organizations and how goodness can emerge from and in spite of human failings. After describing the positive movement, we position POE as a discrete area of inquiry within the broader positive behavioral sciences, at the intersection of positive behavioral studies and business ethics. After defining our terms and purpose for creating the POE domain, we introduce the articles in this special issue. The introduction concludes with suggested topics for future research.     

What the subsistence marketplaces stream is really about: Beginning with micro-level understanding and being bottom-up

This commentary reiterates the essence of the subsistence marketplaces stream in light of the focal paper. The subsistence marketplaces stream provides a granular, micro-level understanding of the intersection of poverty and marketplaces. The term ‘subsistence marketplaces’ was deliberately coined to keep the focus on preexisting marketplaces to learn from in order to design solutions for all contexts. Such marketplaces should be studied in their own right, and not as a means to a preconceived end, whether it be for outside companies or government policy and so forth. We study subsistence marketplaces inside-out rather than outside-in – beginning at the micro level and being bottom-up in deriving implications for many sectors of society. We traverse a journey which is in the opposite direction to beginning with ideological lenses, wherein we have developed an ecosystem of research, forums, curricular innovations and community outreach.