Foreign direct investment and country risk: Further empirical evidence

Global political and economic changes over the last decade have resulted into massive capital inflows to developing countries, most of these flows are foreign direct investments. In light of threats of political instability in the forms of civil wars, illegal capital flight, financial market instability, and political corruption, etc., further assessment of country risk is warranted. We examine the relationship between FDI and political and economic risks for 26 countries for the years 1992, 1993, and 1994 by using regression analysis and cross section data. The results indicate a significant relationship between FDI and these risks. This study provides more reliable estimates by using a current and eclectic measurement of risks represented by Euromoney indexes of political and economic risks. In the previous studies the perception of risk was narrowly defined and also political instability events were mistakenly interpreted as political risks.     

Cost-efficient co-creation of knowledge intensive business services

The most significant difference between industrialization-driven product marketing and digitalization-driven service marketing can be seen in the definition of value creation, and the exchange (integration) of resources. Industrialization created efficiency in scale, whereas digitalization requires customer-oriented business models and value co-creational service processes. This research follows the value co-creational and system integrational views of service-dominant logic. We have explored how relative profitability can be increased through efficient service productization. Our approach is twofold, we have explored the commercialization of co-created services (the servitization of product-service systems) and the enhancement of service production by service processes. We have created service management framework for modular service delivery where company resources be linked to cost-efficient co-creation services.     

Supplier's Internal Communication Network During the Project Sales Process

The nature of internal communication networks in project sales has remained largely unexplored. This article sheds light on a supplier's internal communication network during a project sales process by using social network analysis and in‐depth qualitative data. We analyzed the project sales process and related internal communication network of a material handling equipment provider. The results illustrate the non‐centralized and complex nature of internal communication networks and highlight four barriers to and four drivers of efficient communication during project sales. Above all, using communication training seems to be the most efficient way to improve internal communication.     

Contracting in dynamic games

We study the bargaining problem in the dynamic framework. The classical way of solving a dynamic bargaining problem is to transform the extensive form game into the normal form and then apply the theory of bargaining well developed for normal form games. This means that the parties sign a binding contract in the beginning of the game which defines their actions for the full duration of the game. In this article, we consider the setting where the players monitor the contract as the game evolves. The main purpose of the article is to study conditions under which the players do not have a rationale to renegotiate a new contract at any intermediate time period; i.e., the contract is time consistent. Time consistency restricts the set of bargaining solutions in dynamic games. We will show that time consistency of the contract is guaranteed if the bargaining solution satisfies the controversial independence-of-irrelevant-alternatives property.     

The determinants of secondary market prices for developing country loans: the impact of country risk

With better-defined variables based on Euromoney country risk data as explanatory variables, the determinants of the prices of the debts of less-developed countries (LDCs) in the secondary market are estimated. With the use of cross-sectional data on 27 countries for the years 1992, 1993, and 1994, the regression results indicate that sovereign credit ratings constitute the most important variable influencing prices; other significant variables include the level of external indebtedness and the amount of debt in default. Separate results have been obtained for each of the two categories of countries grouped according to the level of economic development. These results are more meaningful than those of previous studies because the model includes, in addition to debt-servicing capacity, other variables that best explain the prices of LDCs' debt within the context of a risky debt instrument.     

Performance through measuring leader's profiles: An empirical study

It is rather typical in organizations that the oldest or the most experienced professionals are taken into the leaders’ positions. However, the expertise in profession does not always refer to good skills in leadership. This phenomenon is recognized both in earlier studies and in this study. Leadership skills can be taught successfully to leaders in duty. The empirical results report from polarized success of organizations according to the leadership behavior. Hence, leadership behavior should be a natural part of performance measurement in order to manage and improve in the area.     

Developing cost management in customer–supplier relationships: three case studies

This study describes cost management development projects in three customer–supplier relationships and analyzes these projects from the perspective of relationships. Differences in suppliers’ objectives, actions taken, and results gained in the projects were found in the explorative study, although the customer's objective was the same in all cases. The use of cost information depended on the balance of power between firms, on the trust between personnel, and on the volume of the firms’ mutual business.     

Hear what I appreciate: activation of consumption motives for healthier food choices across different value segments

Abstract

This study represents ‘nudging’ interventions aiming to promote healthier food choices by altering the environment where choices are made, without price incentives. The study focuses on the activation of a consumer’s different consumption motives immediately prior to making food choices, thereby drawing a direct goal-priming approach that is postulated to stimulate congruent behaviours. The twofold purpose of this experimental research is to (1) evaluate the usefulness of direct goal priming when aiming at healthier food choices and (2) to identify the boundary conditions that either favour or inhibit the emergence of motivational priming effects. This purpose contributes to the literature on consumer health behaviour in two ways. First, it reveals new motivational origins for health-goal priming effects. Second, it gleans unprecedented empirical evidence for the moderating capacity of consumers’ values. Direct priming of a health goal proved to be effective in steering consumers towards healthier food options. Surprisingly, however, responsibility and status primes also led to an increase in choices of healthy food products. Moreover, a moderation analysis showed that the consumer’s values (achievement, conservation, and universalism) play an important role in how goal priming works. Thus, the success of priming greatly depends on the underlying values of the consumers.