Corporate Philanthropy,Research Networks,and Collaborative Innovation

Using a unique data set of corporate philanthropic activities, we find that direct giving activities are positively associated both with higher levels of innovation and innovation that is more influential, collaborative, and original. Our results suggest that much of what is ostensibly promoted as philanthropy actually reflects research‐related networking activities. The effect of direct giving on innovation is more pronounced in more opaque firms and more innovative and competitive industries. These findings provide evidence of the distinct motives by which firms choose between direct giving and foundation giving. Our study suggests that firms can use direct philanthropy to expand firm‐boundaries by developing innovation with research partners.     

Industrial policy,social capital,human capital,and firm-level competitive advantage

Despite the popularity of governmental action devised to foster firm performance, the link between industrial policy and firm-specific human capital and social capital has received scant attention in the strategic management literature. In this paper, we build a dynamic optimization model which bridges concepts from industrial policy, social capital, human capital, and firm-level competitive advantage. We derive theoretical and policy implications from our competitiveness model, concluding that it increases in the opportunity cost of social capital reduce the production of human capital, so the optimal opportunity cost of social capital under feasible industrial policy should be set equal to zero. A government’s optimal industrial policy to help accumulate and churn human capital should reduce the opportunity cost of social capital to zero and reduce the probability of human capital leaving the community to zero. Thus, the model not only expands the potential determinants of competitive advantage in the context of governmental intervention, but also broadens the human capital theory and social capital theory in the creation of firm-specific human capital.

     

Interactions,innovation, and services

Although research has acknowledged the importance of supplier–buyer relationships for goods innovation, empirical evidence on the extent and nature of the effects of original equipment manufacturing (OEM) supplier–buyer relationships on service innovation remains scarce. Based on a survey of 152 suppliers in Taiwan, this study concludes that the interaction orientation of OEM suppliers is a key factor influencing the development of two competencies: joint innovation competence and cross-functional information dissemination competence. These two competencies contribute to OEM suppliers’ exploitative service innovation and explorative service innovation, respectively. In other words, applying a resource-based view, this study provides clarity regarding the linkages shown below (an organization’s strategic orientation influences its development of organizational capabilities and results in organizational performance) for the purpose of exploring the relationship between interaction orientation and service innovation.     

Residents’ opinions on gaming activities and the legalization of soccer betting

Many Asian countries have an active gaming industry yet limited published information about the industry's development, operation, impact, or resident opinions is available. The purposes of this study were to examine residents’ opinions on various forms of gaming and to identify factors influencing their support for legalized soccer betting. Telephone interviews were undertaken with 449 Hong Kong residents. Respondents’ opinions were divided on most gaming issues, including the recently announced authorization of soccer betting. Soccer betting's association with potential economic benefits was the strongest indicator of respondents’ support for its legalization. Soccer betting proponents were generally more supportive of all other forms of gaming activities.     

Divergence in Variety Seeking: An Exploratory Study Among International Travelers in Asia

ABSTRACT

Variety seeking is a tendency in consumer behavior in which the consumer alternates between different makes of the same item in the quest for diversity. Variety seeking and exploratory behaviors help explain tourists’ consumption behavior and choice-making methods. Some studies have focused on the choice of food, restaurants, theme parks, travel activities, or destinations, but only a few have taken place within an international context. In this study, the influence of variety seeking and exploratory buying on travelers’ consumption behavior within an international context is analyzed. In essence, Asian travelers are compared with Western travelers. Several factors, which help explain divergence in variety seeking, are included in the analysis. The results demonstrate that variety seeking and an exploratory tendency have a significant relationship with travelers’ consumption behavior (for both Asian and Western travelers). In general, customers who have a high tendency for variety seeking are less loyal; however, there is no discernible difference between Asian and Western tourists in this regard.     

Constructing an index for brand equity: a hospital example

If two hospitals are providing identical services in all respects, except for the brand name, why are customers willing to pay more for one hospital than the other? That is, the brand name is not just a name, but a name that contains value (brand equity). Brand equity is the value that the brand name endows to the product, such that consumers are willing to pay a premium price for products with the particular brand name. Accordingly, a company needs to manage its brand carefully so that its brand equity does not depreciate. Although measuring brand equity is important, managers have no brand equity index that is psychometrically robust and parsimonious enough for practice. Indeed, index construction is quite different from conventional scale development. Moreover, researchers might still be unaware of the potential appropriateness of formative indicators for operationalizing particular constructs. Towards this end, drawing on the brand equity literature and following the index construction procedure, this study creates a brand equity index for a hospital. The results reveal a parsimonious five-indicator brand equity index that can adequately capture the full domain of brand equity. This study also illustrates the differences between index construction and scale development.     

Staging of venture capital investment: a real options analysis

This paper uses contingent claims analysis to investigate the staging decision of venture capitalist (VC) in a principal-agent framework. Venture capital investment opportunities are modeled as real options with multiple volatilities, and the entrepreneur’s incentive is assumed to maximize the probability of getting funded in the next financing round. Two celebrated formulae in the option pricing literature are generalized to evaluate these real options. We find that staging not only gives the VC a waiting option but also mitigates the agency problem of the entrepreneur undertaking too conservative activities. Moreover, we find that the VC tends to stage her investment when the expected growth rate of the venture’s market value is lower. However, the risk-free interest rate is not an important factor in the staging decision. Our model also provides a good explanation for existing empirical evidence on the staging of venture capital investment.     

Market segmentation of fresh meat shoppers in Taiwan

Fresh meat product retailing at traditional markets in Taiwan causes concerns over meat safety issues.The agricultural administration has established programmes to raise consumer awareness of potential risks of fresh meat that have remained at room temperature for several hours. Although supermarkets sell chilled and frozen meat products, the majority of grocery shoppers in Taiwan still prefer purchasing fresh meat products at traditional markets where meat is displayed on counters or hung on hooks. This study utilizes survey data to segment meat shoppers in Taiwan. Results indicate the shoppers who purchase meat products at supermarkets tend to continue shopping at that location. Potential shoppers of supermarkets, who may switch from traditional markets to supermarkets for meat products, are identified and the major concerns of this group are the meat safety issues. Factors that influence the possibilities of selecting supermarkets for meat products are examined.