Variation in Corporate Governance and Firm Valuation – an International Study

In this paper, we investigate the types of firms that are likely to deviate from common practice in corporate governance of their home countries and examine how the deviation is correlated with firm value. Our results show that firms with higher institutional holdings, lower insider holdings, and higher sales growth are more likely to deviate from common practice in civil law countries, whereas, in common law countries, especially in the USA, firms with lower institutional holdings, higher insider holdings, and lower sales growth are likely to deviate from common practice. We document a strong positive correlation between governance deviation and firm value in civil law countries. This relationship is robust to different testing and sample selection methods. The results, however, are mixed for US firms and not significant in other common law countries. Using the deviation from common practice as a proxy of firm‐level impact on corporate governance, our results provide evidence that firm‐level effect matters in governance quality and the effect varies across countries.     

The impact of values‐job fit and age on work‐related learning

Research shows that both individual and job‐related factors influence a worker's work‐related learning. This study combines these factors, examining the impact of fit between one's work values and job characteristics on learning. Although research indicates that fit benefits multiple work‐related outcomes, little is known about the impact of fit on learning. Moreover, life span theories indicate that values evolve throughout the lifespan. Therefore, we examined how age influences work values and thereby work‐related learning. Our self‐report questionnaire was completed by 221 workers of various ages and occupations. Our findings indicate that work values, job characteristics and their fit influence the quantity and quality of work‐related learning. Generally, a higher fit benefits learning, but misfit can also stimulate learning. Workers of different ages report an equal amount of learning, but perform different learning activities. However, this relationship is unrelated to work values. Recommendations for research and practice are discussed.     

OPTION PRICING AND HEDGING WITH EXECUTION COSTS AND MARKET IMPACT

This paper considers the pricing and hedging of a call option when liquidity matters, that is, either for a large nominal or for an illiquid underlying asset. In practice, as opposed to the classical assumptions of a price‐taking agent in a frictionless market, traders cannot be perfectly hedged because of execution costs and market impact. They indeed face a trade‐off between hedging errors and costs that can be solved by using stochastic optimal control. Our modeling framework, which is inspired by the recent literature on optimal execution, makes it possible to account for both execution costs and the lasting market impact of trades. Prices are obtained through the indifference pricing approach. Numerical examples are provided, along with comparisons to standard methods.     

The discourse,practice, and expansion of Chinese scientific socialism: Geopolitical implications for Latin America and the United States

Chinese scientific socialism (CSS) is analyzed as a state of purpose rather than one of ambiguity. Distinct historical contexts and associated semantic shifts are integrated to contemporarily situate CSS, particularly regarding foreign policy and practice in Latin America. Findings indicate Western media and specialists generally analyze Chinese economic dynamics along a continuum of capitalism, failing to capture relevant forms of geopolitical socialist‐communist expression and their local‐to‐global impacts. CSS rhetoric and practice reflect principles of unity and reciprocity, are long term, and enjoy trust in Latin America. Thus, the Chinese development model derives and generates benefits comparatively greater than the traditional capitalist model and impacts US hegemony. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Does gender diversity on corporate boards increase risk‐taking?

We study the impact of board gender diversity on firm risk‐taking in a developing market. Our study is drawn from a sample of 30 Tunisian‐listed firms between 1997 and 2010. First, we found that women have a risk perception that leads to risk avoidance behaviour: the presence of women directors, even when there is one woman director, is positively associated with cash ratio. Second, we showed no significant relationship between board gender diversity and the propensity to take strategic or financial risk‐taking. Third, the presence of state officer/bureaucrats and/or politically connected women have a positive effect on cash holding and investment opportunities. Finally, we found that foreign investors do not invest in firms with gender‐diverse boards. We conclude with a discussion of contributions to scholarship and practice, and present avenues for future research. Copyright © 2015 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Conundrum of Fundraising in Nonprofit Organizations: A Story from Ireland

Nonprofit organizations need to engage in fundraising as resource‐dependent organizations. There is, however, a conundrum that arises in the practice of fundraising. Nonprofit organizations rely on their trustworthiness to attract resources. At the same time, however, they need to manage and negotiate the tensions that can arise from being perceived as overly concerned with the taint of money and financial matters and, therefore, moving too far from their voluntary or nonprofit roots. In this article, we argue that such a conundrum has had a negative impact on the effectiveness of the fundraising effort in Ireland because it is primarily seen to be a volunteer activity. In addition, organizations are not investing in their marketing effort and are not developing practice, which, in turn, is leading to a lack of development in the profession of fundraising.     

Voluntary or mandatory enrollment in training and the motivation to transfer training

The purpose of this study is to examine the motivation to transfer training in a multidimensional way. It investigates autonomous and controlled motivation and explores the difference in motivation to transfer according to whether the employee is enrolled in training on a voluntary or mandatory basis. This is a cross‐sectional hypotheses‐testing study. Data were collected at a large insurance company involving employees who had participated in training programs in the previous 6 months. Findings show that when considering autonomous motivation to transfer, results support the argument that being voluntarily enrolled in the training program shows a higher impact on motivation to transfer than being mandatorily enrolled. When considering controlled motivation to transfer, results do not support such an argument, probably because of the nature of controlled motivation to transfer that in practice reduces the difference in results between the two types of enrollment.     

The Relationship between Owner Characteristics,Company Size,and the Work–Family Culture and Policies of Women‐Owned Businesses

Women become business owners for a variety of reasons; however, the impact of motivations for ownership on the culture and policies of the business is unclear. Extending the small business, entrepreneurship, and work–family (WF) conflict literatures, we examined whether woman owners shape the culture and policies of the organization to be consistent with their personal motivations, challenges, and family status. Results show that being a full‐time manager, marital status, and motivation for becoming a business owner were related to the WF culture of the business. Business size and parental status predicted family‐friendly policies. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

When corporate social responsibility (CSR) increases performance: exploring the role of intrinsic and extrinsic CSR attribution

This study investigates whether employees attribute different motives to their organization's corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts and if these motives influence employee performance. Specifically, we investigate whether employees could distinguish between intrinsic and extrinsic CSR motives by surveying 229 employee–supervisor dyads from various industries (companies that have reputable CSR programs in Portugal), and the impact of these perceptions on in‐role and extra‐role performance of subordinates. We found that employee task performance increases when employees attribute both intrinsic and extrinsic motives for CSR. Moreover, when employees perceive that their organization invests in a CSR practice that is both intrinsic and extrinsic, they also tend to exert extra effort in their work. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed alongside future research directions.     

Blending practice worlds: Impact assessment as a transdisciplinary practice

Organisations with explicit social missions such as social enterprises, impact investors, nonprofits, and foundations are under increasing pressure to illustrate their impact on the social problems they claim to be addressing. These trends have resulted in an increasing sophistication of attempts to measure and report social impact across sectors. Despite the emerging literature on impact assessment, there is little research on how the growing emphasis on, and drive for, impact assessment is experienced in everyday organisational activities. This paper draws on practice theory to understand the purposes of impact assessment and how it influences, and is enacted in, everyday organisational activities. A multiple case design studies the purpose of impact assessment through qualitative interviews with over 90 practitioners within the Australian and United Kingdom impact investment ecosystems. The findings suggest that impact assessment should be understood as a transdisciplinary practice evolving from, and blending together with, multiple practice worlds such as strategy, accounting, marketing, and organisational learning. The main contributions of the paper are the development of the concept of impact assessment as a transdisciplinary practice and an empirical understanding of how impact assessment links to, and blends with, diverse practice worlds.     

Global talent management: Shaping the careers of internationally educated talents in developing markets

In the context of globalization, country‐level actions to manage global talent (e.g., development of immigrant‐friendly policies, policies to attract back skilled diaspora, or investment in the international education of youth) have been underresearched. The aim of this article is to analyze the impact of a country‐level global talent management practice on the careers and career success of its talents in the Republic of Kazakhstan, a developing country in Central Asia. Using qualitative methods, this study introduces new dimensions of career success evaluation for internationally educated talents in developing markets: use of knowledge acquired abroad and international aspect of the job. Based on these dimensions, it develops a model of career types. The career types predict the varying degrees of talents' career success and their involvement in sharing and capitalizing on knowledge, ideas, and international experience, which may have an impact on society. The study contributes to the field of global talent management and career success by providing empirical evidence on an underresearched topic in the underresearched context of developing markets.     

Click Here to Print a Maker Movement Supply Chain: How Invention and Entrepreneurship Will Disrupt Supply Chain Design

Emerging technologies such as 3D printing promise to transform supply chain design and management. As these new technologies enable inventors to become entrepreneurs, new product introduction cycle times are being reduced and the variety of new products that are introduced through short channels of distribution is increasing. We show that these disruptive forces are growing and may have significant implications for practice, research, and teaching in supply chain management. We identify and elaborate important research questions, calling for theory‐driven research to explain and predict how these phenomena will impact supply chain management.     

Envisioning a community‐centric approach to impact assessments in subsistence marketplaces

What does a community‐centric approach to impact assessment look like? That is the central question addressed in this article. Our community‐centric perspective provides an alternative to discipline‐centric approaches to impact assessment that emphasize specific methodological gold‐standards (e.g., randomized controlled trials [RCTs] in development economics). Disciplinary approaches to impact assessment owe their principal allegiance to the discipline's knowledge‐creation norms. Consequently, the concerns, interests, and voices of community members are not fully captured in the impact assessment process. In this article, we flip the conventional perspective to offer a community‐centric view of impact assessment that places the concerns, interests and voices of community members front and center. We present the case for why we need a community‐centric approach to impact assessment and clarify its axiological content, theoretical perspective, and methodological stance. Specifically, we advocate for a relational axiology, a system‐theoretic perspective, and a phenomenological methodology.     

The career path to instructional design project management: an expert perspective from the US professional services sector

There are well‐documented competency standards for instructional/training designers and for project managers. However, there is little research about what skills and abilities employers expect from those seeking to become instructional/training design project managers, particularly within specific industry sectors. Focusing on the US professional services sector, the sector in which firms have a global impact and in which human capital is the largest asset, this article addresses the ‘must have’ skills/competencies, characteristics and organizational conditions associated with career advancement from instructional designer to instructional design project manager by means of an expert study that is grounded in an in‐depth literature review. In addition to enhancing knowledge of instructional designers’ competency development for career advancement in the professional services sector, this study also offers some concrete recommendations and implications for research and practice.     

Individual pay for performance in Spain: Cognitive sociology and the subsidiary insider perspective

This article examines how individual pay for performance is interpreted, predominantly by nonmanagerial employees, within the European context, at three subsidiaries of one U.S. multinational corporation in Spain. The study reveals how two levels of the cognitive socialization process color the lens through which employees view pay for performance and reveals how subsidiary founding, politics of resistance, and host‐country effects impact the implementation of the practice. Contrary to past studies in the literature, the study discovered a large number of nonmanagerial employees with a positive interpretation of pay for performance due to the influence of pre‐existing organizational cultural experiences. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Sociology fools the technician? Product durability and social constraints to eco‐efficiency for refrigerators and freezers

Under conditions of ecological modernization, improved eco‐efficiency (or, in this case, more specifically energy efficiency) of household appliances has been regarded as an important contribution to more sustainable lifestyles. A point of discussion between radical environmentalists and advocates of ecological modernization might indeed be questions of product improvement and whether the move towards eco‐efficient products provides a sufficient answer to the environmental challenge. Will we be able to transform Western lifestyles in a direction of low environmental impact by mainly technological measures? An analysis of Norwegian survey data indicates that the new, energy‐efficient cold appliances often do not really replace older products but rather add to the present appliance population. This means that the expected decline in domestic energy use for cooling and freezing is, at best, delayed. Products tend to be used for as long as they work. Thus, the replacement model of economists and engineers fails when confronted with societal practice. Technological improvement might fool the environmentalist, but sociology might fool the technician as well.     

Individual influences on knowledge acquisition in a call center training context in Germany

From both a practical and a theoretical point of view, it is important to identify factors that foster knowledge acquisition in organizational training programs. Recent models of training effectiveness have proposed relationships between trainees’ characteristics and subsequent learning. The present study tested the impact of trainees’ pretraining expectations, post‐training reaction to training, expectation fulfillment and commitment on declarative knowledge acquisition, while controlling for education and motivation to learn. Participants were call center agents (N = 84), working in 10 call centers in Germany. Results showed that, in addition to education and motivation to learn, only expectation fulfillment significantly predicted learning. Implications for practice and future research were discussed.     

Identifying trainers' knowledge of training transfer research findings – closing the gap between research and practice

Training professionals were surveyed concerning their knowledge of transfer of training research. Survey items were developed from an integrative literature review based on empirical findings of factors that directly or indirectly (through learning) influence training transfer. Survey results suggest that training professionals are in agreement with empirical transfer findings in the areas of training design and the work environment, but differ in their agreement of how individual differences impact transfer success and of relevant transfer evaluation findings. Training professionals were more familiar with academic transfer research when they occupied higher job positions within their organization, held a training certification and had a college degree. The results of our study and the implications for addressing the research‐to‐practice gap among training professionals are also discussed.     

Measuring the Consequences of Using Diverse Supplier Evaluation Teams: A Performance Frontier Perspective

This article focuses on the postperformance evaluation of a supplier set by a buyer evaluation team. It explores the use of data envelopment analysis and the assurance region technique to measure the impact that conforming or disparate evaluation teams can have on the perception of supplier performance. As a result, this work makes the case for moving the notion of performance scorecards usage to the next level. For researchers the work demonstrates the case for dual accountability and the construction of performance frontiers motivated by an actual setting using many of the important dimensions discussed in the empirical literature. For managers, the work demonstrates one way of action‐based decision making in performance management that recommends courses of action in the buyer–supplier interface. Several other practice‐based interpretations for managers are also discussed.