Management motives for takeovers in the petroleum industry

This paper tests the proposition that takeovers involving major petroleum companies are due to poor management performance by the target companies. Among the performance variables used to distinguish firms subject to takeover were the following: the ratio of market value to book value, rate of return, dividend payout ratio, reserve replacement ratio, and finding costs. The results do not indicate that there is a clear cut distinction between the firms that were taken over and those that were not. As a result, the managerial incompetence hypothesis receives no support from this analysis.     

The pattern of managerial behaviour in Thai culture

This paper examines the various factors which have shaped contemporary Thai managerial behaviour, exploring the influence of basic cultural values, beliefs and religion, and education. Though the paper is primarily conceptual in orientation, empirical data is presented on the leadership styles of Thai managers. The paper demonstrates how what is essentially an ethnographic approach can be useful in understanding the impact of culture on managerial style.The authors are from the Faculty of Management Sciences, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand.     

Sources of value in takeovers: Synergy or restructuring–implications for target and bidder firms

Advocates of the market for corporate control argue that takeover bids should be accepted because unsuccessful targets tend to lose market value. Other researchers argue that takeover bids should be rejected because the combined firms often perform poorly. However, missing in this debate is the influence of the source of takeover gains on the decision to reject or accept takeover bids. This study posits that value from takeovers can be created by synergy or restructuring. The study suggests that only if the synergy component is dominant should the target firm agree to be taken over. The study then tests the dominance of the source of value in takeovers by examining takeovers that were unsuccessful. The study concludes that, first, restructuring, not synergy, motivated the sample studied and target firms can create the same value independently. Second the need for restructuring was industry-wide. However, even if restructuring is the motive behind a takeover, the target firm has to carry out the restructuring, failing which it does not create any value. The study also suggests reasons for the ambiguous findings in the strategic management merger literature.     

On the role of acquisition premium in acquisition research

Several studies argue that paying high acquisition premia is value destroying for acquirer shareholders. There are studies that have even used the size of premium as a measure of low‐quality decision making. This paper departs from the earlier research and shows that acquisition premia may be justified when target firms' resources are difficult for the market to value. An analysis of a sample of 458 acquisitions demonstrates that although higher premia are paid for R&D‐related assets, the premia do not cause negative abnormal returns. Abnormal returns are more strongly affected by the overall target price levels independent of premia. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Distribution network dynamics and the consequences for intermediaries

Distribution networks are in constant flux due to the dynamics of their contexts. In these processes, the functioning and significance of intermediaries and middlemen become modified. This paper examines what consequences the dynamics of distribution may imply for intermediaries and the role these firms play in this evolution. The paper is based on a literature review of the long-term evolution of distribution networks and intermediaries. The first contribution of the study is a historical narrative of this evolution, where three main phases are identified in the period from the 1600s. In these phases, the power and the functions of intermediaries have varied substantially. Despite the fact that their demise has been anticipated on several occasions, intermediaries have survived because they have been able to adapt to changing conditions. The second contribution of the study is the industrial network analysis of the impact of this evolution on three central dimensions of distribution: division of labor among actors, efficiency of activities, and control of resources. Finally, the study provides contributions to practice through recommendations concerning potential value generating opportunities for intermediaries. These suggestions are derived from the combined findings of the historical review and the network analysis.     

Pipeline management for the acquisition of industrial projects

The management and controlling of the industrial project acquisition process, with its staged, funnel-like structure, has been neglected in empirical research so far—even though an effective acquisition process is crucial for economic success. In addition to profitability, the main goal of industrial companies is to implement a pipeline process that ensures that the pipeline is always filled with acquisition projects and results in a constant stream of orders over time. The projects considered are characterized by complexity, uniqueness, and discontinuity. Based on a large-scale survey among German industrial companies, we describe the industrial project acquisition process, where the projects mentioned above are sold on a non-continuous basis to industrial customers. We assess how the industrial project acquisition process is really structured, whether a sales funnel management is applicable and utilized by sales management to monitor and control this process, and whether a sophisticated sales funnel management contributes to enhanced economic success.     

Principal‐principal conflicts under weak institutions: A study of corporate takeovers in China

The principal‐principal perspective is tested and extended in the context of corporate takeovers of Chinese publicly listed firms from 1998 to 2007. The resistance of a target firm's controlling shareholder toward potential takeovers reflects the conflict between the principal and minority shareholders. It was found that this resistance weakens when target firms are located in regions with more institutional development, where the minority shareholders' interests are better protected. The resistance also decreases for target firms with CEOs who are politically connected, as these CEOs may be more interested in their own political careers than in representing the interests of the controlling shareholders.Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Changing Strategies and Tactics for New Product Development

There has been a considerable amount of effort and writing devoted to improving the new product development process during the last two decades. Although there have been some surprises in this literature and in reports from the field on how to manage this complex business process, we now have a good view of the state-of-the-art practices that work and do not work to accelerate commercial success of new ventures. We know much less about how firms change their strategies for new product development.
In this article, we report on a study to investigate how companies change the way they originate and develop new products in manufacturing. We made no prior assumptions about what best practices might be for changing the direction of the new product development process, but we reasonably were sure there would be trends in how companies were attempting to create this strategic change. Even though one size does not fit all, there were significant trends in our findings.
We studied eight manufacturing firms using in-depth, open-ended interviews and were surprised to find that most of these companies are beginning to develop products that are new to the firm, industry, and the world (nearly half, or 10 of 21 new product projects), where they had not been eager for radical change in the past. These newer products likely are to be driven by a combination of market and technology forces, with general requirements being directed by internal forces: middle and top management. Results also indicate significantly that being able to marshal resources and capabilities is easier if change is less demanding and less radical, but when middle managers are driving the conversion of general requirements into specifications, resource issues have yet to be resolved. Implications of these findings are discussed for companies aspiring to change the entire process of new product development in their firms based on these significant results.     

Organizational and technological antecedents for knowledge acquisition and learning

This paper examines the factors affecting the decision to acquire external technology and the relative importance of different technology acquisition strategies pursued by British and Japanese firms. The paper draws on a study of 38 firms, consisting of 23 UK-based and 15 Japanese firms. This is not a comparative study of British and Japanese technology acquisition strategies. Rather, we aim to identify common factors affecting the decision to acquire external technology and the means by which firms attempt to do this. We identify two clusters of variable which appear to affect the decision to acquire technology. Firstly, an organization's inheritance, which includes corporate strategy, competencies, culture and what we refer to as management's 'comfort' with the technology. Secondly, the characteristics of the technology to be acquired, specifically, its competitive impact, complexity, codifiability and what we refer to as 'credibility' potential. Together, these factors will determine the degree and nature of technology acquisition strategy. We find that contrary to the present academic preoccupation with alliances and joint ventures, the firms examined ranked universities, research consortia and licensing as the most important sources of external technology.     

Employment and Changing Technology in the Postwar Railroad Industry

Secularly declining employment has characterized the postwar railroad industry. This study identifies some causes of this decline by testing an industry employment function. The introduction of new techniques of production, especially the conversion from steam to diesel locomotives, along with rising wages and deregulation, are found to be the primary factors behind the fall in industry employment.     

Employment and Changing Technology in the Postwar Railroad Industry

Secularly declining employment has characterized the postwar railroad industry. This study identifies some causes of this decline by testing an industry employment function. The introduction of new techniques of production, especially the conversion from steam to diesel locomotives, along with rising wages and deregulation, are found to be the primary factors behind the fall in industry employment.     

Embedded ties and the acquisition of competitive capabilities

We build on previous research that explores the external acquisition of competitive capabilities through the embedded ties that firms form in networks and alliances. While information sharing and trust have been theorized to be key features of the interorganizational ties that facilitate the acquisition of competitive capabilities, we argue that these mechanisms provide an incomplete explanation because they do not fully address the partially tacit nature of the knowledge that underlies competitive capabilities. Joint problem‐solving arrangements play a prominent role in capability acquisition by promoting the transfer of complex and difficult‐to‐codify knowledge. Drawing on a set of case studies and a survey of 234 job shop manufacturers we find support for the role of joint problem solving with suppliers in facilitating the acquisition of competitive capabilities. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Antecedents and consequences of CRM technology acceptance in the sales force

Two conceptual approaches [Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly, 13 (3), 319-340; DeLone, W. H., & McLean, E. R. (1992). Information systems success: The quest for the dependent variable. Information Systems Research, 3 (1), 60-95] are unified into a conceptual model that offers a comprehensive explanation of CRM acceptance antecedents and consequences in a sales force setting. Based upon responses from 240 salespersons that utilize a CRM system, the model is tested and explanations are offered for the system's acceptance. Specifically, the most prevailing influence on CRM acceptance comes from CRM perceived usefulness, followed by the setting of accurate expectations regarding system usage, the salesperson innovativeness towards new technological tools, the CRM perceived ease-of-use, and the supervisor encouragement and support. Surprisingly, the model does not adequately explicate salesperson performance. Sales managers are presented with a discussion and implications of the findings.     

Choosing the right target: Relative preferences for resource similarity and complementarity in acquisition choice

Research summary : Corporate acquisition is a popular strategic option for firms seeking new resources. However, little research exists on the question of why one firm is chosen over another. We develop a model relating characteristics of similarity and complementarity between acquirers' and target firms' key resources, including their products and R&D pipelines, to the likelihood of the acquirers choosing a particular firm. We construct measures of similarity and complementarity between and across products and R&D pipelines, and test their effects using a novel application of the choice model. Findings reveal that acquirers view similarity and complementarity differently, based on the resource they are comparing. When making comparisons to their own R&D pipelines, acquirers prefer similarity over complementarity whereas when making comparisons to their product portfolios, they prefer complementarity over similarity. Managerial summary : Corporate acquisition is a popular way for firms to grow and obtain innovative resources. However, we know little about why acquirers choose one firm over another. We capture the influence of similarity and complementarity between acquirers' and target firms' products (current innovative value) and R&D pipelines (future innovative value) on whether a particular target firm is acquired. Insights from the pharmaceutical industry reveal that acquirers value similarity and complementarity in target firms differently, based on whether the comparison being made is with respect to their products or their R&D pipelines. Regarding their R&D pipelines, acquirers prefer that the target firm has similar, rather than complementary, resources. However, the opposite is true concerning their own products: acquirers prefer that the target firm has complementary, versus similar, resources. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Design principles for the development of measurement systems for research and development processes

Based on a comprehensive literature review and the activities of numerous case study companies, it is argued in this paper that performance measurement in R&D is a fundamental aspect to quality in R&D and to overall business performance. However, it is apparent from the case companies that many companies still struggle with the issue of R&D performance measurement. Excuses for not measuring are easily found, but there are also empirical examples and literature available with suggestions how it can be done. In this article this literature is reviewed and placed within the context of general performance control and contingency theory. Furthermore, the main measurement system design parameters are discussed and some basic system requirements are described as well as several design principles that can be useful for those who accept the challenge of establishing a meaningful measurement system.     

界面上光波振动方向的变化规律

本文从菲涅耳公式出发，分析了光波传播过程中遇到界面后，反射光、折射光的光振动方向的变化情况，最后指出了光振动方向的变化与其相位变化以及半波损失的联系。     

Sources of knowledge acquisition for Chinese software engineers

This research adopts a triangulation strategy based on ethnographic case study and questionnaire survey shedding light on how Chinese software engineers acquire codified and tacit knowledge in their daily development work. Software engineers make effective use of complementary resources within a broad spectrum of choices for seeking advice, learning how to solve technical problems, and transferring knowledge to the local community of practice from far beyond the organizational boundary. The analysis focuses on patterns of advice seeking relations within and across project team boundaries, also highlighting the Internet software technology forums as an important channel for technical information sharing across organizational boundaries. The implications for R&D managers are also discussed with special reference to software development and other knowledge intensive computer related work in China.