Business model risk and uncertainty factors: Toward building and maintaining profitable and sustainable business models

Business models and business model innovation—and particularly their opportunities—have been a popular topic recently, but we find the extant literature on the subject lacking. The risk and uncertainty aspect typical of business models has not been sufficiently addressed. We draw upon the existing literature and triangulate results with an extensive expert group interview to identify 28 risk and uncertainty factor groups, creating a checklist that can be used as the first step in an integrative business model risk management process for existing and new iterations. With an established process for managing and identifying risk in business models, managers can make more conscious and well-informed decisions.     

Exploring the role of internationalization knowledge in fostering strategic renewal: A dynamic capabilities perspective

Internationalization knowledge (IK) is important to successfully enter and develop competitive strategies abroad. Yet, how IK is advanced and improved across the multinational enterprise (MNE), and how this contributes to the MNE’s strategic renewal is less understood. This analysis is based on an in-depth case study of Microsoft International to explore how IK is advanced, improved, and integrated across the enterprise. Our findings suggest that IK plays a critical role in fostering strategic renewal of an MNE. More specifically, sensing, seizing, and transforming capabilities jointly provide the necessary basis that enable IK to facilitate strategic renewal. We contribute to the literature by (1) explicating three categories of IK and their hierarchical relationship; (2) reveal how three distinct capabilities required by MNEs capture and integrate the three categories of IK across the enterprise; and, (3) offering that strategic renewal is triggered by routines based on the development and integration of IK.     

A strategic risk approach to knowledge management

In today's business environment, strong forces of competition and globalization have created an urgency to focus how an organization controls and nurtures its intellectual capital. The concept of knowledge and its management has gained currency and momentum as technology has enabled thoughts and ideas to be more easily generated and distributed. With increased application of technologies such as the Internet, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), and advanced software capabilities, it has been suggested the time has come for discussion of a new paradigm for knowledge management. Toward that end, this article examines the knowledge literature and reviews the experience of a leading private healthcare group, with the objective of gaining a better understanding of the issues that confront effective knowledge management in contemporary organizations. Finally, a tentative knowledge process model is developed herein, one which is intended to guide future discussion in the ongoing knowledge debate.     

Managing future uncertainty: Reevaluating the role of scenario planning

The business environment for many firms is changing rapidly and is becoming increasingly uncertain due to the disruption caused by new digital technologies, deregulation, new business models, and the threat of new competitive entrants. This dynamic competitive environment increases the level of uncertainty for senior executives and strategic planning teams who bear responsibility for the strategic development of the firm, particularly in terms of the future direction, scope, and the strategy required to deliver on corporate objectives. This in turn, places increased scrutiny on the strategic planning tools that are used to undertake a rational and comprehensive analysis of the competitive dynamics that inform strategy formulation. This article presents empirical findings and reflections on a scenario-planning project that sought to develop a long-term corporate level strategy. While scenario planning is an established constituent of the strategist’s toolbox, the increasing level of dynamism and uncertainty in many markets has meant that it has seen a resurgence. This article presents empirical findings on how the scenario-planning tool was selected and applied before reflecting on the individual and organizational outcomes of using scenario planning to develop an organizational strategy in uncertain market conditions.     

Exploring the role of knowledge management practices on exports: A dynamic capabilities view

Drawing on dynamic capabilities view, this work provides empirical evidence on the role of knowledge management practices on export intensity in SMEs in a mature and global, non-high-tech industry. A quantitative study with structural equation modeling was carried out on a sample of 157 Spanish and Italian manufacturing companies in the ceramic tile industry. Our results suggest the existence of a mediating effect of dynamic capabilities on exports, hence the implementation of knowledge management practices is a necessary but not sufficient condition to improve exporting, requiring the existence of dynamic capabilities to reconfigure these capabilities. Findings highlight the relevance of knowledge practices to foster exports, providing new insights for managers dealing with dynamic capabilities in SMEs.     

Dynamic learning and strategic alliances: A commentary essay

Strategic alliances and the learning benefits they foster in partner firms inspire a rich literature in the organizational sciences. Part of this literature asks whether or not alliances drive dynamic learning opportunities and thus help partner firms create or enhance dynamic competitive capabilities. Chen, Lee, and Lay (2010) show that alliances do foster the development of dynamic competitive capabilities and do this through dynamic learning mechanisms. This commentary essay critiques the merits of the authors' potential contributions to extant theory and managerial practice and offers new questions for further research.     

Environmental uncertainty and environmental management perception: A multiple case study

This paper seeks to answer two questions about environmental uncertainty. (1) How does environmental uncertainty differ across sectors? (2) How can environmental uncertainty impact on managers’ perceptions of the natural environment as a competitive opportunity? The analysis of the nature, sources and extent of environmental uncertainty serves to identify its different components, which fall into two main categories. These categories associate with the information-related environmental uncertainty approach and with the natural resource dependence theory. A multiple case study helps highlight the similarities and differences in the perceptions of environmental uncertainty of the managers of eight Spanish firms belonging to primary, secondary and tertiary sectors. The findings show that environmental uncertainty is inherent in managerial decisions in two ways: in the changes that managers identify in the business environment; and in the changes that the managers themselves produce as a result of the initiatives they undertake in response to the business environment. The paper finishes with some recommendations for managers.     

Fraud risk management: A small business perspective

Small businesses face big challenges when it comes to managing fraud risks. Financial strain, rapid growth, and a lack of resources and expertise create ample opportunity for motivated fraudsters to take advantage of small businesses. In this article, we draw upon insights from our years as fraud investigators to offer seven practical recommendations to help small business leaders prevent and detect fraud in this unique environment. These strategies can help even the smallest company make a big difference when it comes to fraud risk management.     

Foreign acquisitions by Chinese firms: A strategic intent perspective

This article presents a strategic intent perspective (SIP) to analyze the foreign acquisitions made by Chinese firms. It suggests that Chinese firms strategically use cross-border acquisitions to achieve goals, such as acquiring strategic capabilities to offset their competitive disadvantages and leveraging their unique ownership advantages, while making use of institutional incentives and minimizing institutional constraints. The SIP is supported by the evidence from three firms that we studied, where dozens of interviews were conducted, including the one with the founder of Lenovo. This study contributes to extant international business theories by incorporating the SIP to examine internationalization strategies of firms from developing countries.     

FDI entry mode choice of Chinese firms: A strategic behavior perspective

This study investigates the determinants of foreign direct investment (FDI) entry mode choice between a wholly owned subsidiary and a joint venture by Chinese firms that invest overseas. We argue that the FDI entry mode choice of a Chinese firm is primarily influenced by the variables related to the firm's strategic fit in host industry and its strategic intent of conducting FDI. Using survey data of a sample of 138 Chinese firms, the results suggest that a Chinese firm prefers wholly owned subsidiary entry mode when it adopts a global strategy, faces severe host industry competition, and emphasizes assets seeking purposes in its FDI. A joint venture is preferred when the firm is investing in a high growth host market.     

Insights on the go: Leveraging business podcasts to enhance organizational performance

Managers need to stay connected to current trends and gather new insights to maximize organizational performance, but many struggle to find the time to read enough to remain informed. Business podcasts—digital episodic series covering a variety of business topics in an easy-to-consume audio format—are a relatively new tool that can help solve this dilemma. Business podcasts that offer unique perspectives on salient topics can teach managers valuable techniques for dealing with common business issues and keep them up-to-date on the latest business news. In this article, we introduce 10 popular business podcasts and discuss the insights for improving organizational performance offered in exemplary episodes of each series. Episode content ranges from detailed profile interviews of top executives and their day-to-day activities to the impact of national and global events on specific industries or businesses.     

The 2009 Nobel Prize in Economics to Oliver E. Williamson: Recognition of the Influence of Transaction Cost Economics on Business Research

This article provides an introduction to the Journal of Retailing Special Issue dedicated to Oliver Williamson and transaction cost economics. The paper briefly outlines transaction cost economics contributions to marketing and related social sciences.     

企业国际化研究新视角 ——战略控制力

本文针对现有企业国际化理论缺乏战略因素综合考虑的研究现状,从战略控制力的视角对企业国际化问题进行研究,剖析了企业国际化战略控制力的内涵与特征,并提出了国际化战略控制力五要素,指出国际化战略控制力是维持企业国际化持续发展和优胜地位的根源,同时对中国大企业国际化战略控制力的构建问题进行了有益探讨。     

基于风险成本管理的供应商选择

供应链的复杂性、动态性和交叉性的背后隐藏着巨大的风险,对供应商的选择评价是供应链风险控制的基础和重点。文章在对风险成本管理进行分析的基础上,基于成熟的商业标准,运用灰色综合评判法研究如何在风险管理成本最小基础上选择供应商。     

MNE performance during a crisis: An evolutionary perspective on the role of dynamic managerial capabilities and industry context

As the likelihood of worldwide crises increases due to globalization and the resulting economic contagion, understanding why some multinational enterprises (MNEs) prevail in such environments becomes ever more critical. Drawing from the concept of dynamic managerial capabilities, we posit that MNE in-crisis performance is associated with the pre-crisis development of asset management capabilities, or the capacity of managers to orchestrate assets so as to extract more value from the firm’s resource pool. Specifically, we argue that because dynamic managerial capabilities evolve as a response to a firm’s task environment, MNEs that operate in dynamic industries develop stronger asset management capabilities. However, we also posit that whether these capabilities contribute to in-crisis performance is contingent upon the munificence of the industry environment in which the capability evolves. Asset management capabilities that evolve in munificent environments would encompass a wider spectrum of routine-altering activities, and thus increase the ability of the MNE to react to more revolutionary events, such as global economic crises. Conversely, asset management capabilities that evolve in resource-scarce environments will result in more strategic lock-in due to firms' constrained ability to experiment with novel resource configurations, resulting in poorer in-crisis performance. We test our hypotheses using a sample of 854 MNEs in the context of the global financial crisis of 2008, and find support for our hypotheses. We discuss implications for the dynamic capabilities view and MNE resilience.     

浅析如何改进我国商业银行信用风险管理方法

本文以商业银行信用风险管理为切入点,对我国信用风险管理的现状和问题进行探讨。文章介绍了我国商业银行目前使用的两种信用风险管理方法——客户信用评级法和贷款风险分类法,分析其存在的问题,并对完善我国商业银行信用风险管理提出了对策建议。     

Transformation and Rebirth of Chinese Brands: A Case From the Hotel Industry

ABSTRACT

Chinese domestic brands have developed rapidly in recent years, and yet few of them have entered global competition as product or service brands brands with exceptions such as Huawei. In addition, the evolution of Chinese brands has hardly been understood or introduced properly by international business educators. In this article, we identify the development patterns of Chinese domestic brands by using a local hotel brand as an example. Particularly, we examine and discuss how a Chinese brand can be established with specific positioning, brand image, and product offering, as well as how the brand can grow by vertical and horizontal extensions based on balancing market opportunities and the brand’s own capabilities. Moreover, we expect this research to facilitate the understanding of Chinese brands among international business education.     

Holding up the mirror: The impact of strategic procurement practices on account management

Procurement has grown up. It is now a strategic business function that increasingly recognizes the importance of strategic supplier relationships, a reflection of key account management. It is time to assess the impact of this shift on the profession and practice of account management. This paper examines customer adoption of strategic procurement and then discusses the implications this has for account managers at the suppliers serving these customers. New techniques are emerging in these special relationships, including the use of psychological contracts and co-measurement and monitoring. Perceived fairness will also have a major impact on the customer's view of their suppliers. Account managers must recognize these changes or fall victim to supplier delusion: the belief that they are performing better than they really are.     

Generational challenges to talent management: A framework for talent retention based on the psychological-contract perspective

In this conceptual paper, we adopt a social-exchange theory perspective to explain the impact of talent management (TM) on the psychological contract and its outcomes. This relationship is supposedly moderated by generational effects and associated differences in work-related values and preferences. Thus, often-neglected individual-level variables are included in the analysis. A framework and testable propositions are provided. As a result, we propose that in contexts where a war for talent prevails, the strong interest of Generations X and Y in training, development, and career advancement makes highly engaged and extensive TM activities even more crucial for retaining talented individuals than is the case for the so-called Baby Boomer generation.