Do leading or lagging firms learn more from exporting?

An interesting theoretical debate arises when considering firm heterogeneity in learning from exporting. One perspective intimates that technologically lagging firms stand to benefit more from exporting because exposure to technological knowledge in foreign markets allows these firms to close the gap with their more technologically endowed counterparts. A contrasting perspective posits that technologically superior firms benefit more from exporting since these firms are better equipped to translate knowledge acquired in foreign markets into innovation. Using a sample of 1,744 Spanish manufacturing firms from 1990–1997, this study empirically investigates how exporting differentially influences the patent output of technologically leading versus technologically lagging firms. We find that exporting is associated with the ex post increase in innovative productivity for both technologically leading and lagging firms. However, subsequent to exporting, technologically leading firms apply for more patents than technologically lagging firms. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Chicken,or the egg,or both? The interrelationship between a firm's inventor specialization and scope of technologies

Firms with different scope of technologies experience different firm growth. Understanding such heterogeneity requires knowing not only what drives technologies' scope but also why these drivers remain different across firms. I propose inventor specialization as a driver of technologies' scope: firms with more specialized inventors create narrower scope technologies. I also propose that these narrower scope technologies themselves in turn induce these firms' inventors to remain more specialized. I empirically demonstrate this two‐way interrelationship in the U.S. communication equipment industry using policy shocks as natural experiments and a new measure of scope. This interrelationship has important implications for why resources and organization appear isomorphic within a firm but heterogeneous across firms. t © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Can China textile and apparel industry decouple itself from the global financial turmoil?

Driven by the rising specter of both recession and inflation, the financial woes of the Wall Street have recently become deepened. The current US financial turmoil has its root in the sub-prime     

Making innovation happen in organizations: individual creativity mechanisms,organizational creativity mechanisms or both?

Marketing managers increasingly face a product innovation dilemma. Managers will have to sell more with fewer new products in an environment where new products are providing lower revenue yields. Therefore, understanding what drives successful innovation is of paramount importance. This paper examines the organizational innovation hypothesis that innovation is a function of individual efforts and organizational systems to facilitate creativity. Our model formulates creativity as a property of thought process that can be acquired and improved through instruction and practice. In this context, individual creativity mechanisms refer to activities undertaken by individual employees within an organization to enhance their capability for developing something, which is meaningful and novel within their work environment. Organizational creativity mechanisms refer to the extent to which the organization has instituted formal approaches and tools, and provided resources to encourage meaningfully novel behaviors within the organization. Using data collected from 634 organizations, we find support for this hypothesis. The results suggest that the presence of both individual and organizational creativity mechanisms led to the highest level of innovation performance. The results also suggest that high levels of organizational creativity mechanisms (even in the presence of low levels of individual creativity) led to significantly superior innovation performance than low levels of organizational and individual creativity mechanisms. The paper also presents managerial and academic implications. This study suggests that it is not enough for organizations to hire creative people and expect the innovation performance of the firm to be superior. Similarly, it is not enough for firms to emphasize management practices to enhance creativity and ignore individual mechanisms. Although it is true that doing either will improve innovation performance, doing both should lead to higher innovation levels. Our understanding of what and how creativity influences innovation performance can be greatly enhanced by additional research that integrates the intrinsic and extrinsic drivers of creativity. Research that examines the role of team creativity efforts in enhancing innovation performance is also vital to an overall improved understanding of creativity, learning, and innovation within organizations.     

Does A Firm's Entry or Exit Affect Competitors’ Value? Evidence from the REIT Industry

We analyze 483 entry and 439 exit events of publicly traded real estate investment trusts (REITs) and find that changes in the number of REITs in the market affect rival REITs’ stock performance. We also partition the sample by the modes of entries and exits as well as by REIT asset type in order to disentangle alternative explanations. Overall, our evidence indicates that the supply effect still matters for stock prices even after considering signaling and price pressure explanations.     

Does competition increase quality? Evidence from the US airline industry

This paper studies the impact of competition on quality provision in the US airline industry exploiting a novel source of exogenous variation in competition. While mergers among market incumbents may stifle competition, a merger may increase the probability of entry if the merging airlines were not operating prior to merger in the market but each of them had presence at different route endpoints. We find non-merging incumbent airlines increase their flight frequency upon entry threat and accommodate entry of the newly merged airline by lowering flight frequency upon entry. While non-merging incumbents reduced arrival delays only upon entry of the newly merged airline, we find that incumbents decrease their cancelation rates and departure delays both upon merger announcement and entry of the newly merged airline. Our evidence suggests an increase in competition may increase consumer surplus, because non-merging incumbents increase quality and convenience, while keeping their prices unchanged.     

Does bribery in the home country promote or dampen firm exports?

This study examines the impact of bribery within the home country on firm exports by developing two contrasting hypotheses. On the one hand, preferential treatment resulting from government officials in exchange for bribes may promote exports by enhancing efficiency and enabling bribing firms to better compete in foreign markets. On the other hand, preferential treatment resulting from bribes may decrease exports by providing firms with more established positions within the domestic market diminishing the incentive to explore foreign markets. Adopting the three‐stage least squares method, we test these competing arguments using a sample of firms operating within transition economies. We find that bribery within the home country decreases rather than increases firm exports. The implications of our findings are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does innovation stimulate employment? A firm-level analysis using comparable micro-data from four European countries

We study the impact of process and product innovations introduced by firms on employment growth with random samples of manufacturing and services from France, Germany, Spain and the UK for 1998–2000, totaling about 20,000 companies. We develop and estimate a model relating firms' and industry's employment to innovation, that leads us to the conclusions that follow. Trend increases in productivity reinforced by process innovation are an important source of reduction of employment requirements for a given output, but the growth of demand for the old products tends to overcompensate these displacement effects. The switch of production towards new products does not reduce employment requirements, and the growth of the demand for the new products is the strongest force behind employment creation. Reallocation due to business stealing is estimated at a maximum of one third of the net employment created by product innovators. The growth of employment originated from the market expansion induced by the new products can be as important as another third.     

Oust the Louse: Does Political Pressure Discipline Regulators?

Remaining in office is a potential motivator for regulatory decisions by public utility commissioners. We examine regulatory exit, where a regulator leaves a U.S. state commission during a term or is not re‐appointed/re‐elected. We find that higher electricity prices lead to ousting, ousting is less common where it is more costly for the principal to whom the regulator reports, and ousting is more likely where regulators are more accountable or are more likely to share the principal's preferences. Regulatory exit does not appear to be due mainly to the revolving door. Ousting also appears to lower future electricity prices.     

Dynamics of contention in the gig economy: Rage against the platform,customer or state?

Protest in the gig economy has taken many forms and targets (platforms, customers and state officials). However, researchers are yet to adequately account for this diversity. We use a European survey of Upwork and PeoplePerHour platform workers to investigate worker orientation towards different forms of protest. Results reveal that worker anger, dependence and digital communication shape contention in the remote gig economy. Support for collective organisation is associated with anger at platforms as well as their dependence on the platform and communication with other workers. Individual action against clients is associated with anger and communication but not dependence. Support for state regulation is associated only with anger but not dependence or communication. We conclude that the relational approach entailed by Mobilisation Theory can aid explanation in the gig economy by shedding light on the dynamic process by which solidarity and dependence alter the perceived cost/benefits of particular remedies to injustice.     

PERSPECTIVE: first,fast, and on time: the path to success. or is it?

To be competitive, and become the industry leader, the firm needs to be fast, first, and on time, or so the story goes. Fast development cycle times, first to market, and schedule predictability are the three basic principles of new product development performance, but what does the evidence actually show? A review of current research, schedule performance data, and cycle time data shows that following these principles does not necessarily lead to success. Recent studies indicate that being first to market is not necessarily any better than being second, third, or even fifth. Several leading companies in the fast cycle time movement are rethinking their first-to-market strategy, and some are deliberately lengthening their cycle times. Finally, the correlation between schedule accuracy and business results is practically nonexistent in the product lines reviewed for this article. The evidence found while researching this article has led the authors to recast these three traditional principles into three new market-focused guiding principles: effective market introduction timing, first to mindshare, and managed responsiveness. To provide direction in applying these three principles, three types of market windows are defined: imposed, controllable, and emergent. How one approaches each of the three guiding principles is driven by which type of market window the organization is operating within, and other business characteristics, such as market position and the ability to differentiate.     

Consumer preferences for farm-raised meat,lab-grown meat,and plant-based meat alternatives: Does information or brand matter?

Despite rising interest in and sales of innovative non-animal-based protein sources, there remains a lack of information about consumer demand for these new foods and their ultimate market potential. This study reports the results of a nationwide survey of more than 1800 U.S. consumers who completed a choice experiment in which they selected among conventional beef and three alternative burger patties, (lab-grown, plant-based with pea protein, and plant-based with animal-like protein) at different prices. Respondents were randomly allocated to treatments that varied in the presence/absence of brands and information about the competing alternatives. Results from random parameter logit models indicate that, holding prices constant and conditional on choosing a food product, 72% chose farm-raised beef and 28% chose one of the alternatives: 16% plant-based (pea protein) meat alternative, 7% plant-based (animal-like protein) meat alternative, and 5% lab-grown meat. Adding brand names (Certified Angus Beef, Beyond Meat, Impossible Foods, and Memphis Meats) increased the share for choosing farm-raised beef to 80%. Environment and technology information had minor effects on conditional market shares but reduced the share of people not buying any options, indicating information pulled more people into the market. Even if plant- and lab-grown alternatives experienced significant (e.g., 50%) price reductions, farm-raised beef maintains the majority market share. Vegetarians, males, younger, and more highly educated individuals tend to have relatively stronger preferences for the plant- and lab-grown alternatives relative to farm-raised beef. More people opposed than supported taxing conventional beef for environmental and animal welfare objectives and more opposed than supported having plant- and lab-grown alternatives use the label ‘beef’     

Sketching: Friend or Foe to the Novice Designer?

Previous research by one of the authors showed that novice designers do not use sketching as a way to generate, develop and communicate design proposals, but move immediately to three-dimensional modelling. Neither do they generate multiple solutions. The follow-up study described here addressed the questions: Does teaching two-dimensional modelling enable Grade 7 pupils to better express their ideas and organize their thoughts? What role does discussion play in pupils' attempts to generate a design proposal? Does the use of contextualising items make a difference to pupils' success with designing? Eight Grade 7 pupils were drawn from each of two classes. One class had received instruction in sketching; the other served as a control group. Each group of eight pupils was divided into single-sex dyads. The eight dyads were videotaped while producing a solution to a common design brief. Analysis of the data has provided insights into the effects of instruction on the proposals produced by pupils. Additionally, their ability to generate, develop and communicate design ideas is enhanced by both the dynamic relationship between pupils' talk and 3D modelling and the way the task is contextualised. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Sketching: Friend or Foe to the Novice Designer?

Previous research by one of the authors showed that novice designers do not use sketching as a way to generate, develop and communicate design proposals, but move immediately to three-dimensional modelling. Neither do they generate multiple solutions.     

Does the growth of mobile markets cause the demise of fixed networks? – Evidence from the European Union

The increasing usage of mobile communication and the declining demand for fixed line telephony in Europe make the analysis of substitutional effects between fixed and mobile networks a key aspect for future telecommunication regulation. Using a unique dataset which contains information on all 27 European Union members from 2003 to 2009, we analyze substitutability between fixed and mobile telecommunication services in Europe by applying dynamic panel data techniques. We find strong empirical evidence for substitution from fixed to cellular networks throughout Europe. In addition, the paper reveals resulting policy implications.     

Does the digital economy generate a gender dividend for female employment? Evidence from China

Using data from the China General Social Survey, the China Family Panel Studies, and a unique dataset of enterprises' online recruitment, this research examines the effect of the digital economy on female employment. The empirical results suggest that the digital economy significantly promotes female employment. Consistent with our theoretical analysis, the estimates indicate that this relationship holds because the digital economy promotes the formation of egalitarian gender perspectives, promotes the use of digital technology, and increases labor demand emphasizing the necessity for female-preference occupations. The dividend of the digital economy is tilted toward vulnerable groups in the labor market, including the low-skilled, older, and rural workforce, and only exerts an employment promotion effect on women without parenting burden. Further examination reveals evidence that digitalization has not led to a holistic improvement in the quality of female employment. Digitalization lengthens the working hours of severely underemployed female workers, and improves women's occupational status and job satisfaction; however, it has a minimal impact on protecting employees' rights and interests or reducing overtime workers' work intensity. Nonself-employed, full-time, and part-time workers all benefit from the development of the digital economy, while self-employed workers do not. In addition, a weakening effect of digitalization on the gender employment gap is not evident, which relates to the digital economy generating a female dividend in terms of promoting gender equality and increasing labor demand but resulting in a digital gender divide in the use of digital technology.     

Does the market for ideas influence the rate and direction of innovative activity? Evidence from the medical device industry

Prior work argues that the “market for ideas” supports an open system of innovation, allowing for efficient development of technology across firms. Although this literature has described important features of this market, how it influences the rate and direction of innovation remains an open question. We exploit an exogenous shock to a subset of U.S. medical device firms to study this question. We first document the breakdown in the market for ideas after a federal investigation made it more difficult for the leading orthopedic firms to work with physician‐inventors. We then present evidence of a dramatic decline in the rate of innovation for these firms. Further, a marked shift in direction occurs toward lower‐quality inventions and away from product categories where physician knowledge is critical. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Food insecurity,poverty and the Malawian Starter Pack: Fresh start or false start?

Chronic food insecurity and chronic poverty are closely related in Malawi. Since independence in 1964 national food security has been a key policy objective. However, until the 1990s less emphasis was placed on the household dimensions of food security and its links with chronic poverty. In the last decade a number of initiatives have been used in Malawi to tackle the issue of household food insecurity. One of the most controversial has been the Starter Pack programme launched in 1998. Initially consisting of a free handout of packs of improved maize seed, legumes and fertiliser to every small holder farm household in Malawi the scheme, under donor pressure, was subsequently scaled down to become a form of targeted social safety net programme. This paper analyses the strengths and weakness of both the original programme and its scaled down version and assesses the reason for the considerable opposition to the programme from Malawi’s donor community. Although Starter Pack is no longer operative in Malawi the Malawian experience is used to derive lessons for other countries where household food insecurity is an important dimension of chronic poverty.     

Financial Participation: Does the Risk Transfer Story Hold in France?

Several articles report a positive effect of financial participation (profit sharing (PS) and employee share ownership) on firms' economic performance. This increase can be obtained in two main ways: by increasing the effort (extrinsic, intrinsic or commitment) of workers, directly or indirectly through worker selection; or by transferring more risk to the workers. The question is, of course, not neutral. Indeed, if the risk transfer story is true then it means that the increase of economic performance is obtained at the expense of workers, who take on the burden of more risks. The question is especially important in France where financial participation is associated with tax exemption for firms and where it is forbidden by law to substitute base wage and PS. The purpose of our article is to use an employer–employee dataset to answer the question of whether financial participation schemes are mainly designed as a risk transfer (from firms to workers) device.