Destination Social Business: Exploring an Organization's Journey with Social Media,Collaborative Community and Expressive Individuality

This paper delineates the main characteristics of the evolution of the organization as a social business in response to the socially networked marketplace. We advance the notion that the modern day firm is increasingly organized as a community according to the principle of collaboration. The main message is that the prominence of organizational structure is not redundant but needs to be complemented by collaborative community in response to market demands. In order to fulfill this complementary role, the concept of organization is profoundly changing. Based on recent theorizing, we review the role of collaborative community as a key characteristic of social business, provide an overview of its principles, show how social media can effectively facilitate and support collaborative community, and introduce the concept of expressive individuality. We provide illustrative examples that feature Dell. We conclude by identifying an agenda for further academic inquiry, and by specifying a large number of issues that researchers may address.     

Marketing Alliances Between Non-Profits and Businesses: Changing the Public's Attitudes and Intentions Towards the Cause

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine to what extent corporate and non-profit alliances can impact the public's attitudes and intentions to support a cause. Through the use of experimental design four types of alliances were examined: (1) low affinity cause aligned with company with strong reputation, (2) low affinity cause aligned with company with weak reputation, (3) high affinity cause aligned with company with strong reputation, and (4) high affinity cause aligned with company with weak reputation. Results of paired sample t-tests indicated significant changes for only one type of alliance, that which is between a low affinity cause and a corporate sponsor with a strong reputation. The low affinity cause experienced increased: (a) customer trust in the non-profit, (b) intentions to support the cause, (c) evaluations of cause importance, (d) personal feelings of responsibility to help the cause, and (e) evaluations of consequences for society through providing support. For the remaining three types of alliances changes were not significant.     

建立企业与农户利益共享机制之探讨——以安徽省巢湖市瑞祥畜牧养殖有限公司为例

“公司＋农户”是农业产业化经营的一种重要组织形式。在“公司＋农户”的经营方式中建立利益共享机制，实现农户发家致富、公司发展壮大，是巢湖市瑞祥畜牧养殖有限公司近年来比较成功的实践。鉴于公司管理水平有限、发展资金不足以及对风险防范缺乏足够的措施等问题，企业亟需提高管理水平，提升农产品品牌价值；尽快建立风险与利益保障机制；同时政府应加大对企业的扶持力度。     

完善我国保险公司所得税税制研究

目前我国在保险公司所得税税制研究中,往往将注意力集中于所得税税负的统一、公正,降低小型保险公司税负等国家政策性税收扶持管理上。虽然在近些年来,我国税收制度在不断的深入发展,然而仍然与国际先进税收管理制度存在一定的差距。本文笔者就加强我国所得税税制研究做粗浅的探讨,并提出几个应该加强研究的所得税相关方面。     

Environmental and Economic Dimensions of Sustainability and Price Effects on Consumer Responses

The lack of attention to sustainability, as a concept with multiple dimensions, has presented a developmental gap in green marketing literature, sustainability, and marketing literature for decades. Based on the established premise of customer–corporate (C–C) identification, in which consumers respond favorably to companies with corporate social responsibility initiatives that they identify with, we propose that consumers would respond similarly to companies with sustainability initiatives. We postulate that consumers care about protecting and preserving favorable economic environments (an economic dimension of sustainability) as much as they care about natural environments. Thus, we investigate how two sustainability dimensions (i.e., environmental and economic) and price can influence consumer responses. Using an experimental method, we demonstrate that consumers favor sustainability in both dimensions by giving positive evaluations of the company and purchase intent. In addition, consumers respond more negatively to poor company sustainability than to high company sustainability. In comparison, consumers respond more negatively to the company’s poor commitment to caring for the environment than to the company’s poor commitment to economic sustainability. We also find that consumers do not respond favorably to low prices when they have information about the firm’s poor environmental sustainability. Finally, we find support for an interaction effect between consumer support for sustainability and corporate sustainability; that is, consumers evaluate a company more favorably if the company shares the consumers’ social causes. Overall, we conclude, from our empirical study, support for the idea that consumers do respond to multiple dimensions of sustainability.     

Marketing und Sales Performance Measurement — Das Beispiel Dell

Zusammenfassung  Die F?higkeit eines Unternehmens Leistungsnachweise von Marketing- und Verkaufsma?nahmen zu erbringen, wird bei Dell als Grundvoraussetzung für den wirtschaftlichen Erfolg angesehen. Die RAD („Retention Akquisition Development“)-Matrix ist ein Vorzeigebeispiel für ein Kennzahlencockpit, welches als Kontrollinstrument dient, mit dem Ziel, Zusammenh?nge zwischen Marktaktivit?ten und Marktleistung transparent zu machen. Zus?tzlich erm?glicht das Cockpit eine proaktive Steuerung zukünftiger Marketingma?nahmen über den gesamten Marketing-Mix hinweg. Dipl.-Betriebsw. Achim Freyer Sales Director bei Dell im Bereich Corporate Accounts für ?sterreich und die Schweiz Mag. Heike Kurzmann Wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin am Institut für Marketing und Handel an der Universit?t St. Gallen     

Accountability and the public benefit corporation

Can benefit corporations be held accountable for delivering requisite public goods? An oft-cited criticism is that they cannot, but little empirical research exists to support that claim. Based on an in-depth case study of the oldest corporation to amend its governing documents as a public benefit corporation (PBC) under Delaware law, this article suggests that a company can be held accountable for delivering requisite public goods when external mechanisms are accompanied by an organization’s internal commitment to self-awareness, learning, and measurement. In the case in question, the company established a three-pillar structure focused on professional engagement, community support, and charitable giving built on a 6-year-old sustainability initiative, accompanied by an adaptive learning culture, and driven by top-down and bottom-up efforts. Current challenges include measuring impact and branding the PBC to grow the company’s business.     

Choosing the right message for the right cause in social cause advertising: type of social cause message,perceived company–cause fit and the persuasiveness of communication

This study introduces two different types of communication strategies in social cause advertising: a partake-in-our-cause message attempts to engage audiences to take part in a social cause, whereas a promotional social cause message simply conveys information on what a company does for the social cause. The results of two experiments showed that the type of social cause message and the company–cause fit interacted to influence the perceptual and behavioral intention variables related to the company sponsoring the social cause. The partake-in-our-cause message led to more favourable perceptions and stronger behavioral intentions about the company when the company–cause fit was low, rather than high, and such a relationship was partly mediated by the perceived corporate self-serving motive and shared support for the social cause. In contrast, the promotional social cause message appeared to be more persuasive when the company–cause fit was high, rather than low, due in part to the enhanced processing fluency. These findings suggest different psychological mechanisms for each type of social cause message. Implications of the findings and future research directions are discussed.     

Corporate Socially Responsible Initiatives and Their Effects on Consumption of Green Products

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) research has focused often on the business returns of corporate social initiatives but less on their possible social returns. We study an actual company–consumer partnership CSR initiative promoting ecologically correct and conscious consumption of bottled mineral water. We conduct a survey on adult consumers to test the hypotheses that consumer skepticism toward the company–consumer partnership CSR initiative and the moral emotion of elevation mediate the relationship between company CSR motives perceived by consumers and consumer behavioral responses following this CSR initiative. Favorable consumer behavioral responses, in turn, relate positively to consumer support of other green products. The results provide scholars and managers with means of improving their understanding and handling of company–consumer partnership CSR initiatives.     

Solving Intra-Company Conflicts Using the RAMONA-Interactive Negotiation Support System

A key issue within manufacturing organizations is how to induce the different departments and/or interest groups to work most effectively for the common good of the company. In almost every company daily conflicts exist between different interests and/or interest groups. For example in a typical manufacturing company, production management and marketing management perspectives can contain different goals with respect to the terms of sales with resultant inefficiencies. This paper describes 1) in detail the RAMONA-program a user-friendly interactive Negotiation Support System, and 2) how RAMONA can support the different interest groups involved in intra-company negotiations for the overall benefit of the firm.     

Network Rail – forward or backward? Not-for-profit in British transport

This article examines the brief and unsuccessful career of the privately-owned infrastructure company, Railtrack, and its part in the privatised railway system in the UK between 1996 and 2001. It discusses the decision of the British government to discontinue public support for Railtrack and to set up a new not-for-profit company, Network Rail, to replace it. The ongoing public debate over these events and the prospects for the new company are analysed. Two earlier, and broadly successful, examples of not-for-profit companies in British transport history, are briefly considered for comparative purposes – the Port of London Authority and the London Passenger Transport Board.     

Capital Structure Across Industries

The purpose of this article is to examine the capital structure across different industries for companies quoted on a stock exchange and headquartered in the United States. The paper demonstrates significant difference in the capital structure depending on the industry where the company operates. The debt ratio sensitivities to the explanatory variables differ significantly between the five industries studied. Almost every significant coefficient obtained in our regressions is in accordance with capital structure theory and other studies. Debt ratio is negatively related to profitability, growth, and age, while asset structure and company size are positively related. However, the debt ratio of the 50 largest companies in the sample is negatively related to company size, which gives support to a currency hedging hypothesis.     

论模块化组织的权力科层结构——基于企业间的非对称性视角

文章基于企业间的非对称性视角,认为模块化组织的结构是一种权力科层结构,并进行了深入探讨。首先,对模块化组织中的核心企业领导行为进行了分析,指出模块化组织具有核心企业领导下的科层协调特性;其次,对模块化组织的权力科层结构模式及其组织职权与边界进行了讨论;最后,通过对戴尔电脑公司的案例分析,论证了本文所提出的理论观点,也进一步拓展了模块化组织的实践应用范畴。     

Putting human resource management at the line manager level

Line managers are in an excellent position to benefit the company by the practice of good human resource management techniques, as long as they have the support and guidance of top management.     

论股东代表诉讼之判决既判力主观范围的扩张

股东代表诉讼判决既判力主观范围的扩张，包括向公司与其他股东二者的扩张。长期以来原告股东与公司的关系存在诉讼代理与诉讼担当之争，综合立法现状、制度渊源与改革成本等因素的考量，原告股东与公司的关系应定性为法定诉讼担当，从而为判决既判力向公司扩张提供正当理论支撑。但受制于股东代表诉讼前置程序形骸化，对原告股东起诉的正当性审查无从实现，公司与其他股东对于诉讼的获悉存在信息壁垒，由此应当通过诉讼告知程序为公司或其他股东作为有独立请求权第三人进入诉讼开辟通路。同时借由不起诉理由书与统一案件受理费等程序构建，作为其他股东进入诉讼的激励机制，进而为既判力的扩张提供有理性基础。     

基于现金流盈利的上市公司质量评价研究

公司的盈利状况一直以来都是理论界和实务界关注的焦点,公司盈利质量的高低不仅直接影响到投资者、债权人和其他相关者的利益,也影响到政府监管部门的有效监管和资本市场的健康发展。总体而言,我国上市公司的盈利质量不高,大部分盈利公司的收益缺乏现金流支撑。     

A customer's definition of quality

What's the best way to get "close to the customer"? One company has developed a customer feedback system to drive product design, sales, service, and support functions in order to ensure better customer responsiveness.     

The Role of Identity Salience in the Effects of Corporate Social Responsibility on Consumer Behavior

Based on the assumption that consumers will reward firms for their support of social programs, many organizations have adopted corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices. Drawing on social identity theory, a model of influence of CSR on loyalty is developed and tested using a sample of real consumers. Results demonstrate that CSR initiatives are linked to stronger loyalty both because the consumer develops a more positive company evaluation, and because one identifies more strongly with the company. Moreover, identity salience is shown to play a crucial role in the influence of CSR initiatives on consumer loyalty when this influence occurs through consumer-company identification. A strong identifier is not necessarily in a constant state of salience, but activating identity salience of a particular consumer social identity (a company) will affect consumer reactions to product stimuli, increasing consumer loyalty.     

法律、制度与上市公司最佳股权结构

国内外绝大部分研究者支持股权集中度与投资者法律保护之间的替代假说,认为适度的股权集中有利于公司治理和公司绩效。公司治理效率与否,与其初始治理结构关系重大,但法律及制度对公司股权结构有重大影响。根据我国目前的国情,多个大股东并存的股权集中模式是全流通时代我国上市公司股权结构的最佳选择。可以通过两种途径对我国上市公司的股权结构进行引导:一是通过制定法律,鼓励法人间的相互持股,并提高司法体制的效率;二是寻求功能替代性的制度安排,比如鼓励上市公司股票发行方式的变革、鼓励资产重组、引导外资收购等。     

Letting Go to Grow—Empirical Findings on a Hearsay

Research to date has largely neglected the role of management style in new entrepreneurial ventures. We address this gap by investigating the impact of management style on company performance and how the impact is different contingent on the life cycle stage of new entrepreneurial ventures. By employing the concept of microinvolvement, our study demonstrates that management style significantly impacts company performance and that the merits of a highly involved management style are less in later‐stage new entrepreneurial ventures. This finding provides support for the saying “letting go to grow” and raises important implications for management.