Innovating for Good in Opportunistic Contexts: The Case for Firms’ Environmental Divergence

Journal of Business Ethics - Opportunistic behaviors are considered ethically and strategically troublesome since they disrupt otherwise mutually beneficial relationships. Previous literature has...     

Will Women Lead the Way? Differences in Demand for Corporate Social Responsibility Information for Investment Decisions

Recent years have featured a leap in academic and public interest in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities and related corporate reporting. Two main themes in this literature are the exploration of management incentives to engage in and disclose this information, and of the use and value of this information to market participants. We extend the second theme by examining the interest that specific investor classes have in the use of CSR information. We rely on feminist intersectionality, which suggests that gender intersects with other identities to yield different values, experiences, and opportunities that can lead to gender-based preferences for CSR information. Based upon a survey of 750 US-based retail investors, we find that female retail investors have a greater interest in the use of CSR information, relative to male retail investors. Women express greater anticipated future demand for this information than do men. Further, the magnitude of the increase from current use to anticipated future demand is greater for women than men. Age is a significant modifying factor in that the discrepancy between women of any age and older men is greater than that between women and younger men. Finally, women also exhibit greater demand for streamlining of the information flow, consistent with pressures induced by time poverty. It appears that current disclosure practices provide a less than optimal match with the needs of the information consumers that are primarily interested in using this information. This mismatch may result in a systematic disenfranchisement of female investing classes which suggests an ethical need to level the playing field.     

Is Confucianism Good for Business Ethics in China?

This article examines whether and to what extent Confucianism as a resilient Chinese cultural tradition can be used as a sound basis of business practice and management model for Chinese corporations in the twenty-first century. Using the core elements of Confucianism, the article constructs a notion of a Confucian Firm with its concepts of the moral person (Junzi), core human morality (ren, yi, li) and relationships (guanxi), as well as benign social structure (harmony), articulated in corporate and organizational terms. The basic character of the Confucian Firm is described, and its philosophical and cultural foundation is critically assessed with respect to its moral legitimacy and relevant to today’s China. China’s recent Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) development is a high profile response to global business ethics concerns. Efforts have been made to emulate and develop good business practice fashioned in CSR norms and visions. The so-called “human-based” and “virtue-based” business practices rooted in local cultural heritage have been touted as a Chinese response to this problem. This investigation is particularly relevant in the context of the increasingly prominence of the Chinese corporations (China Inc.) in the wake of the rise of China as a global power. How relevant is Confucianism to the building of a modern Chinese corporation that is willing and able to practice reasonable norms of business ethics? The findings of this discussion, which include the organizational implications of the Confucian familial collectivism, have implications for other Chinese communities (Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore) where Confucian tradition is endorsed and practiced.     

Should Strategic Market Management Replace Strategic Management as the Planning Model for Restaurant Decision-Making?

ABSTRACT

In his book, The Rise and Fall of Strategic Planning, Henry Mintzberg proposed that planning and implementation must not be two separate functions, but a continuous managerial decision-making process. One that is based first, on an astute analysis of volatile environmental market conditions, and second, on management's ability to effectively transform its offering to satisfy this moving target. This article questions the use of the concept and term strategic management in restaurants to describe what may be best termed strategic market management. Additionally, a framework within which modern restaurant planning takes place is presented.     

For the Good or the Bad? Interactive Effects of Transformational Leadership with Moral and Authoritarian Leadership Behaviors

Although the ethical aspects of transformational leadership have attracted considerable attention, very little is known about followers’ reactions to the moral and immoral conduct of transformational leaders. Against this background, this study examined whether and how transformational leadership interacts with moral and authoritarian leadership behaviors in predicting followers’ in-role and extra-role efforts. Building on attribution theory, we hypothesized that the positive and negative effects of these leadership behaviors would be particularly pronounced for highly transformational leaders given that this leadership style elicits strong attention and sense-making efforts among followers. We tested our model in a sample of 228 individuals comprising 114 leader–follower dyads from a wide range of organizations and industries. In line with our hypotheses, results revealed that for highly transformational leaders, moral leadership behaviors related positively to employees’ in-role and extra-role efforts whereas authoritarian leadership behaviors related negatively to employees’ in-role and extra-role efforts. In contrast, moral and authoritarian leadership behaviors did not significantly affect followers’ reactions to leaders low in transformational leadership. Taken together, these findings suggest that transformational leadership, contrary to its largely positive perception in the literature, can be a rather mixed blessing. Implications for theory, future research, and managerial practice are discussed.     

“Strategic Failure” in the Financial Sector: A Policy View

Analysis of the recent financial crisis has tended to focus upon “market” and corresponding “regulatory” failures. While this provides important insights, it may neglect deeper issues at the root of recent problems. In this paper, we take a broader perspective, drawing upon the stategic choice approach to the theory of the firm (Cowling and Sugden, 1998 Cowling, Keith and Sugden, Roger. 1998. The essence of the modern corporation: markets, strategic decision-making and the theory of the firm. The Manchester School, 66: 59–86. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar], 1999 Cowling, Keith and Sugden, Roger. 1999. The wealth of localities, regions and nations: developing multinational economies. New Political Economy, 4: 361–378. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]). We present a governance-based analysis which emphasises the process of engaging interested “publics” in corporate decision-making processes. We illustrate our arguments with respect to three UK cases – Northern Rock, Bradford and Bingley, and HBOS banks – which each required major interventions by the UK Government and whose recent history reveals significant changes in ownership, governance and corporate strategy. We argue that the current period of reform for these former building societies represents an ideal opportunity to address serious concerns over governance within the financial sector, and we propose a revised mutual solution as one appropriate way forward.     

Singapore——A Strategic Start for the Chinese Enterprises to Enter the ASEAN Market

“Becoming more confident and mature,more and more domestic enterprises begin to make overseas investments and are devoting themselves to bringing their brands and products to the international markets and even tually bringing them to the whole world,” said Luo Jialiang,Ambassador from the Republic of Singapore to China,when commenting on the Chinese enterprises' efforts to invest abroad in an interview with China's Foreign Trade.     

Is ‘Good’ governance good for business? A cross-national analysis of firms in African countries

Good governance can reduce uncertainty, transaction, search and production costs, and ultimately affect firm performance. In this paper, we explore the link between good governance and the profitability of individual firms in African countries. We employ the governance indices developed at the World Bank and assemble a sample of companies from 21 countries over four years. Contrary to prior research that found a negative association between institutional development and profitability, our evidence shows that an improvement of good governance in countries currently with low levels of governance ratings has greater positive effects on the firm profitability than a similar improvement in countries with relatively higher ratings of good governance. Good governance reduces the variability of the company's profitability, leading to high-return and low-risk investments. Finally, we find that the role of good governance depends upon the country's income level. When the income level is lower, an improvement in public governance is more likely to impact firm performance than when the income level is relatively higher. Good governance is more important for the stability of the profitability of firms in countries with higher levels of good governance ratings than lower ratings.     

‘Do versus Buy’ Decisions in the Demand for Knowledge Intensive Business Services

The search for the maximum use of scale and agglomeration economies and the need to operate firms in the most flexible way have provided a strong impulse for companies to increase their use of external intermediate services. Because of their strategic role, the use of business services that are intensive both in labour qualification and in technological requirements is key for these policies. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the patterns followed by companies in the two relevant decisions on this issue: firstly, whether to use knowledge intensive business services or not and, secondly, whether (and to what extent) to buy these services from another firm or to provide them inside the organisation. In both cases, we intend to identify the factors that affect the ‘do versus buy’ decision with respect to total KIBS as well as particular categories. A specific feature in our study is that it focuses on the behaviour of firms working in a region without a well-developed supply of KIBS. Applying discrete response models to the data obtained in a survey elaborated by the authors, the most relevant variables for the use of KIBS are satisfaction with previous outsourcing experiences and location of the firm in a large urban centre, but they do not affect their external provision. The size of the firm, its export orientation and its technological complexity have opposite effects on use and outsourcing.     

Seasonality: A Problem for Workers in the Tourism Labour Market?

Seasonal workers in areas of tourism such as holiday accommodation are, largely on the basis of the pay and conditions that apply, generally viewed as some of the ‘poorest cousins' of the labour market. In this article, the acceptability of such a view is both disputed and reassessed. It is argued that such jobs are often held by those who voluntarily participate in the seasonal labour market but, aside from this, that involuntary participants may also benefit, perhaps, for example, in gaining respite from the dole. Moreover, and regardless of the motives behind participation, seasonal jobs are often laced with substantial non-pecuniary attractions that set them aside from other, far less satisfactory, forms of intermittent employment.     

What Role for the EPAs in the Caribbean?

The aim of this paper is to consider the possible implications of an EPA between the EU and the Caribbean. The focus is on the Caribbean economies, and on the question of what form of EPA might be pro‐development and pro‐poor for the region. The discussion outlines the specificities of the Caribbean region, and some of the economies therein as well as detailing the key analytical issues which need to be considered. The empirical analysis focuses on examining patterns of trade by product and geographical source at a highly detailed level of disaggregation. The analysis suggests that future EPA arrangements are more likely to lead to significant trade diversion as opposed to trade creation or trade reorientation. MFN liberalisation would serve to minimise trade diversion, but in turn is likely to lead to greater adjustment costs. If the EPAs are to be pro‐development and pro‐poor than maintaining/increasing levels of market access to the EU, and ensuring appropriate levels of assistance and aid will be critical.     

SMEs’ Financing and Banks’ Profitability: A “Good Date” for Banks in Ghana?

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the core of most economies and are a major source of economic growth. In recent times, banks have been actively involved in the financing of SMEs through the provision of loans to this sector. This paper investigates the impact of SMEs financing on banks’ profitability in Ghana. The study employed the fixed effect model as the main regression tool. The study result reveals that SMEs significantly contribute to banks’ profitability in Ghana. Interestingly, transaction cost in administering SME loans was insignificant in all the models. Higher inflation reduces the real value of the loan and erodes the interest returns on the total credit to the SMEs. Conversely, growth of GDP enhances the growth of the bank profit.