China Speaks Out: How and Why Chinese Employees Use Their Voice toward German Managers

Existing management literature on voice has primarily focused on examining who uses their voice and when it is used, ignoring why employees speak out and how they do so. We examine the conditions under which Chinese employees use their voice toward their German managers at German companies in Mainland China. The findings from our empirical study emphasize the importance of Chinese employees' personal identification with their German managers as a precondition for voice behaviors. Our results suggest that Chinese employees utilize indirect voice behavior in addition to direct voice behavior when interacting with their German managers. This indirect guanxi‐voice behavior has neither been recognized nor investigated in the literature. The theoretical and managerial implications of the results are discussed. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

‘Green’ Human Resource Benefits: Do they Matter as Determinants of Environmental Management System Implementation?

This article analyses whether benefits arising for human resource management from environmental management activities drive environmental management system implementation. Focusing on employee satisfaction and recruitment/retention, it tests this for German manufacturing firms in 2001 and 2006 and incorporates a rare longitudinal element into the analysis. It confirms positive associations of the benefit levels for both variables with environmental management system implementation on a large scale. Also it provides evidence that increasing levels of environmental management system implementation result from higher economic benefits in the human resource domain. In doing so the article supplies needed quantitative evidence on important aspects of how sustainability relates to human resource management.     

German Direct Investment in the UK, 1871–1918

This article examines German direct investment in the United Kingdom between 1871 and 1918. It is based on a new databank encompassing 179 empirical cases of FDI in sales subsidiaries, production units and service sector companies during a period when Anglo-German trade was intensive. FDI was growing as well, due both to the increasing competitiveness of German companies and to rising British non-tariff barriers to trade. German FDI in Britain is put into perspective by comparing it with German FDI elsewhere and with other FDI in the UK. Against this background the article ascertains from a German home country perspective what shape and extent investments took. Investments originating from 14 different branches of the economy are analysed according to type of investment, capital invested, branch, products, legal form chosen, date of entry, and location in the UK. The determinants behind investments are examined, and German FDI in this period is shown to be multi-causal.     

Expatriate management: Comparison of MNCs across four parent countries

This article reports the results of a study of expatriate management and headquarters‐subsidiary relations in 29 American, British, German, and Japanese multinationals and a sample of 46 of their foreign subsidiaries based on face‐to‐face and telephone interviews with key international HR, subsidiary HR, and subsidiary managing directors. We found that earlier studies, heavily weighted with U.S. multinationals, cannot necessarily be applied to expatriate management experiences of other national industrial countries. Also, expatriate management is more similar for American and British MNCs, while both German and Japanese multinationals in our sample had fairly distinct systems of using expatriates in their foreign subsidiaries. Thus, we can discuss at least three fairly distinct models of expatriate management and corporate‐foreign‐subsidiary control. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The European way to lean management

Lean management is an integrated set of attitudes and decision and action methods with which a firm can achieve sustainable competitive advantages and increase its value in a turbulent environment. In 1992 lean management became a major priority for top management in German and Austrian firms. The article is written from the standpoint of strategic management and presents preliminary lessons to be learned from the experience in progress in leading European firms. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Has the International Fragmentation of German Exports Passed Its Peak?

In the second half of the nineties the import content of German exports (intermediate inputs for the production of exports and imports destined for immediate re-export) increased considerably. The following article examines whether this trend has continued up to the present.     

Off-label Drugs vs. the Merits of Centralised Regulatory Control

Escalating health care expenditures are rekindling regulatory interest in the pharmaceutical industry on both sides of the Atlantic. The focus is increasingly on off-label drug use, i.e. the use of a drug for indications different from those for which it has officially been approved – witness the recent rejection by a German court of law of a pertinent legal case brought by Novartis. The very same case in the USA has already created new market realities and potentially far-reaching regulatory challenges. This article looks at developments there in order to assess potential policy scenarios for Europe.     

Advertising and Economic Development

In this article it is argued that West Germany has developed into the largest advertising market with the highest productivity per employee in Western Europe. We observe a continuous increase of net advertising turnover during the 1970s. Some extraordinary characteristics of the German advertising market (such as the structure of the TV advertising market and the printed media industry), which set it into sharp contrast to other European advertising markets, are discussed. Furthermore, we analyse the relationship between advertising and the business cycle movement (procyclical v. anticyclical advertising strategies) and we find that the majority of German business firms still pursue a procyclical advertising strategy although evidence seems to prove that an anticyclical advertising policy adopted during recessions will result in higher market shares and strengthened market positions of advertised brands.     

Politics, Corporate Governance, and the Dynamics of German Managerial Innovation: Schering AG between the Wars

Conflicting interpretations of the evolution of German businessbetween the two world wars and of Germany's corporate governanceduring the Third Reich are examined in this article. AlfredChandler's view that major corporate changes emanated from managerialinitiatives is contrasted with Harold James's interpretationthat public and government pressures forced innovations on business.In support of James's analysis, I argue that state and politicalpressures, not management, initiated significant changes inGerman corporate governance and in the organization of Germanindustry during the interwar period, especially in the 1930s.Using Schering AG, one of Germany's largest companies beforeWorld War II, the article traces the influences of NationalSocialist pressure and changes in corporate law on companies'organizational adaptation to government social priorities duringthe Third Reich.     

The Role of Simulations in International Management Education

Abstract

Following a brief discussion of the “invention” of simulation games 5,000 years ago, this article discusses developments in the field of management simulations during the past forty years, with particular emphasis on international management simulations.

The author believes that the recent history of management games can be sub-divided into three periods. During the first period (dubbed the “Pioneering Period”) from 1955 to 1969, North American schools were the most active users of simulations. During the second period, (termed the “Development Period”), from 1970 to 1984 management simulations became much more international in both their authorship and use. Mainframe computers began to be used in North America simulations during this period. During the most recent period, from 1985 to the present, (and titled “The Hi-Tech Period”), a significant number of international management simulations have appeared, and microcomputers are now widely used in management games.

Following a discussion of various predictions regarding of management simulations in general, the author makes a number of additional observations with respect to their future use in international education and training.     

Credit Risk Assessment and Relationship Lending: An Empirical Analysis of German Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises*

We estimate a logit scoring model for the prediction of the probability of default by German small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) using a unique data set on SME loans in Germany. Our scoring model helps SMEs to gain knowledge about their default risk, which can be used to approximate their risk adequate cost of debt. This knowledge is likely to lead to a detection of hold‐up problems that German SMEs might be confronted with in their bank relationships. Furthermore, it allows them to monitor their bank’s pricing behavior and it reduces information asymmetries between lenders and borrowers. Finally, it can influence their future financing decisions toward capital market‐based financing.     

Das Rätsel der Niedrigzinsphase

The article disputes that low interest rates, a characteristic of the German Economy since the Great Recession, indicate a low marginal productivity of capital. It advocates the use of WACC (weighted average cost of capital) as a proxy of the marginal productivity of capital. Using proprietary data from Bloomberg, the article demonstrates that WACC did not fall to zero in Germany during recent years. On average, the marginal productivity of capital was around ten per cent, and it never fell below six per cent.     

Reference budgets for counselling on how to manage private household finance – requirements and patterns based on international experience

The approach described in the present article intends to create a conceptual design for German reference budgets, which can be used for counselling purposes. The introductory presentation of the term ‘reference budget’ and its significance in general is followed by the explanation of budget management in private households in the microeconomic sense. This determines the requirements on budget counselling and the teaching of financial literacy. Moreover, being the ideal type, these represent the examination criteria applied for the assessment of available reference budgets. By a comparison of existing international approaches, it is then investigated whether and in which form reference budgets are used for counselling in various countries. The information thus obtained will conclusively be used to reflect the previous development process of German reference budgets. Their state of progress can be compared with the ideal type on the one hand and with internationally adopted concepts on the other hand. In conclusion, some requirements that follow from the ideal‐type view can already be fulfilled with the German concept of reference budgets. Others can serve as the distant goal towards which the long‐term process will be geared.     

Perspectives in the Interplay Between Business and Information Systems Engineering and Computer Science

The relationship between business and information systems engineering (BISE) and its main reference disciplines business administration and informatics has changed several times during the last decades. Despite some frictions during the 1980 s and 1990 s, the interplay between informatics and BISE is becoming much more constructive and has proven extremely fruitful. Important examples of this co-evolution include data management and conceptual modeling, internet-based information and transaction systems, and the emergence of computational business sciences. The increasing integration of virtual and real world in the “Internet of Things” offers new scientific and organizational challenges for the cooperation between the BISE and informatics, which can only be formulated and solved jointly. This article is also available in German in print and via http://www.wirtschaftsinformatik.de: Jarke M (2008) Perspektiven der Wirtschaftsinformatik aus Sicht der Informatik. WIRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK. doi: . Accepted after one revision by Prof. Dr. Buhl.     

Has Germany Been Europeanised or Has Europe Become (too) Germanic?

It has often been argued that European monetary unification must basically be seen as a device to Europeanise re-unified Germany. For the Germans it seemed to be the best possible way to prevent a German “Sonderweg” and end any German ambition for hegemony. For the rest of Europe, and particularly France, it seemed to be the best way to curb German monetary dominance and to secure a French imprint on EU policy-making. In this article, however, it is argued that the German impact on the economic governance regime of EMU and its fencing off the French proposal of a “gouvernement economique” is so substantial that the term “Germanic Europe” seems in fact to be appropriate. More importantly, the economic governance system of “Germanic Europe” has locked the European Union into a politics of disinflation which makes it difficult for the EU to prosper and reap the potential fruits of European integration.

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* This paper was written while the author was a guest researcher at the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), Brussels, from March to April 2005. He is most grateful to Andrew Watt for his help and the ETUI for its support.     

Effects of German development aid on the internal economy

The importance of economic cooperation with the Third World for the internal economy is attracting increasing attention in the discussion of development aid topics in the Federal Republic of Germany¹. In this context it is of interest how the German development aid bears on the internal economy of the Federal Republic through feedbacks (in the form of contracts for German firms) from its bilateral and multilateral development aid payments. The following article presents the results of a relevant inquiry for the year 1976².     

Book Reviews

In-migrants played an important role within port-city merchant communities, but the contribution of German-born merchants to Liverpool's development in the nineteenth century has been largely ignored. This article has four interrelated objectives. First, it establishes the size and composition of the German merchant community in terms of the place of birth, occupational classification, length of residence, and relative wealth of German-born merchants. Secondly, it measures the degree of acculturation and integration based on a range of indicators including choice of bride, child- and house-naming practices, the employment of fellow nationals, and the acquisition of British citizenship. Thirdly, it analyses their role within Liverpool society, focusing on their involvement in the city's associational networks, their participation in voluntary and charitable associations, and their entertainment profile. Finally it assesses how the growth of German nationalism after 1871 and the institutional role of the German Protestant Church reinforced ethnic identity, influenced decisions relating to citizenship and settlement, and affected business networking.     

Bedarfsgerechte Steuerung der Gesundheitsversorgung — Chancen und Hindernisse

On 2 July 2018, the German Council of Health Experts handed over its current report entitled, “Demand-oriented health care management” to the Federal Ministry of Health. The pronounced separation of outpatient and inpatient care, and distinction between private and public health insurance, is typical of the German system. Experts’ recommendations include improved coordination of outpatient and inpatient services, monistic hospital financing and family doctor-centred patient care. The main criticism of the report is that it lacks a regulatory concept with competitive management structures.     

What Makes German Banks Different

The past few years have seen a revival in the academic debate over the economic functions of German banks. This paper takes the position that large non-financial firms have become highly autonomous of the banks, and the corporate governance role of banks, while still important, is much less significant than widely presumed. German banks, however, do fulfill certain economic functions to a greater degree and in a different manner than banks in other countries. These bank functions of long-term commercial financing, comprehensive management consulting, and supporting diversified quality production strategies are made possible by the institutional character of the banking system itself and the institutional context in which it operates. A complex web of government laws, regulations, and government financial aid combine with bank group competition to create an extensive and successful financial support system for German SMEs. This system faces various adjustment challenges — from international financial market integration to EU regulatory harmonization — but it has thus far managed to adapt while sustaining its core functions.     

Approaching Korean Business and Management Ideals through the Lens of Yongo: A Scholar–Practitioner Perspective

By adopting the insider perspective based on participant observations, this article explores a new dimension of management ideals in South Korea. In particular, it proposes an important cultural context extension to the conventional collectivism paradigm that is often used to explain Korean management. By introducing the term yongo, which denotes exclusive and informal social networks based on (pseudo-) family, university alumni, and regional connections, challenges for management practices can be reported, including, for example, the difficulties that foreign managers face in accessing these networks to establish high-trust ties and influence business decisions.