Top management team’s formal network and international expansion of Chinese firms: The moderating role of state ownership and political ties

This article explores the role of the formal network centrality of top management teams (TMT) for foreign expansion, looking at the case of Chinese firms. The former is defined by the degree to which top managers are connected with TMTs of other firms in formal ways, through service as independent board members. We explore boundary conditions, comparing state ownership with political ties. The analysis of a panel data of 489 firms expanding to 72 developed and developing host markets in the period 2000–2012 confirms that network centrality facilitates internationalization. We found that TMT network centrality had a stronger effect on internationalization in developed than emerging markets. Conversely, state ownership had a positive moderating effect in the latter and political ties a negative effect in developed ones. The literature on comparative institutional analysis suggests that formal ties are more important in developed economies, and informal ties in emerging ones. However, formal political ties and/or links to the Chinese state may be more of value in internationalizing into other emerging markets, where the balance of diplomatic power may be more skewed in China’s favor.     

Disentangling the effects of domestic corporate political activity and political connections on firms’ internationalisation: Evidence from US retail MNEs

Scholars are increasingly investigating the implications of firms’ domestic corporate political activity (CPA) and political connections on their internationalisation prospects. In this paper, using insights from the resource dependence theory, we argue that domestic CPA and political connections developed within the home country have contrasting effects on firms’ international expansion, such that, while domestic CPAs (mainly, lobbying and campaign contributions) facilitate internationalisation, political connections deter internationalisation. We also argue that this relationship is moderated by firms’ international experience and product diversification. We test our hypotheses using a panel dataset comprising 38 retail Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) originating in the United States (US) whose activities we traced over the 16-year period 2003?2018. Our findings support our hypotheses.     

Exploring the link between internationalization of top management and accounting quality: The CFO’s international experience matters

This study examines whether and how top management internationalization is associated with accounting quality. We combine upper echelons perspectives, agency theory, human capital theory and accounting research, and demonstrate that top management internationalization mitigates the level of managerial discretion in financial reporting. By decomposing the top management team, our analysis reveals that higher levels of accounting quality are associated with the internationalization of the CFO, not the internationalization of the CEO. In particular, we find that CFO’s international education and international work experience are important factors in higher accounting quality.     

Brands that ‘sell their soul’: offshoring,brand liquidification and the excluded consumer

ABSTRACT

Fuelled by open markets and globalisation, offshoring has become a common business practice for firms in industrialised countries. However, consumer research investigating offshoring in a larger macroeconomic and political context is scant. Using a naturalistic, contextualised approach, the current research investigates how a predominantly working/middle-class consumer segment perceives production offshoring for durable goods. The findings show how consumers can develop a sentiment of being excluded or left behind, even when they do not belong to traditionally disadvantaged segments in society defined by income, gender, education, appearance or sexual preference. Perceived brand liquidification, discussed through the marketplace mythologies of corporate greed and the opportunistic consumer, perceived brand de-contagion and patriotism/nationalism, leads to sentiments of exclusion and a longing for re-solidification. Exploring these relationships helps to understand current consumer sentiment towards offshoring in the larger context of neoliberalism and labour arbitrage.     

‘I'm like you,and I like what you like’ sustainable food purchase influenced by vloggers: A moderated serial-mediation model

Internationally, researchers have shown an increased interest in customer decision-making regarding sustainable food choices that could be changed through tailored interventions. This study examines how vloggers influence customer purchase intention toward sustainable food. Based on the similarity-attraction theory, we undertook a serial mediation model in which health-related Homophily between vloggers and viewers was related to higher purchase intention of sustainable food via audience participation and parasocial interaction (P.S.I.). In addition, we tested whether these potential relationships were more substantial for young people from higher product-vlogger congruence and lower advertising recognition in the celebrity endorsement context. A statistical analysis of 382 youth questionnaire data from the steaming media platform was tested through the partial least squares structural equation model. The results show that (1) health-related homophily was related to greater audience participation and P.S.I., which, in turn, were related to higher purchase intention of sustainable food; (2) the positive indirect effects of health-related Homophily on purchase intention through audience participation and P.S.I. decrease as the advertising recognition increase, while increase as the product-vlogger congruence increase. These findings highlight the effectiveness of digital celebrity endorsement in young people's choices for sustainable food.     

‘The price is different depending on whether you want a receipt or not’: examining the purchasing of goods and services from the informal economy in South-East Europe

ABSTRACT

Research on the informal economy has largely focussed on supply-side issues, addressing questions like what motivates individuals to work in the informal economy and how can governments tackle this phenomenon. To date, much less attention has been given to demand-side aspects, examining issues around who purchases goods and services from the informal economy, why, and to what extent there are variations according to demographic, socio-economic and geographic dimensions. This paper addresses this imbalance by examining the purchasing of goods and services from the informal economy in South-East Europe. Firstly, this paper identifies the prevalence of such informal purchasing in South-East Europe as well as who undertakes such purchasing. Next, it examines the relative significance of cost factors, social factors and failures in the formal economy, in motivating such purchasing. Finally, it explores variability in the significance of these motivators based on individual-level factors, within and across three South-East European countries.     

‘I owe my life to the kind individual who called the helpline’: exploring the interplay of self-views and social distance in narrative advertising on domestic violence prevention in India and the United States

Abstract

The persuasiveness and popularity of narratives in commercial advertising has gained much attention but its application in inculcating responsible behaviour is severely limited. Domestic violence against women is a global issue and there is a dire need for effective bystander intervention campaigns. This two-part study delved into how narratives could be employed to elicit favourable ad attitudes and encourage bystanders to report instances of domestic abuse in their neighbourhood. Study 1 focused on testing the effectiveness of narratives in two culturally diverse countries – India and the United States. In general, findings showed that narratives (vs. non-narratives) were more persuasive in both countries. As the next step, using culture (interdependence vs. independence) and social distance (parents vs. neighbours), Study 2 found narratives with a socially proximal entity (parents) to be more persuasive in India while no differences between countries were observed for the socially distant entity (neighbours). Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.