Board diversity in the United Kingdom and Norway: an exploratory analysis

This paper examines the evolving pattern of gender diversity of the boards of directors of leading Norwegian and British companies on a longitudinal basis. The period covered by the study covers the run up to proposed affirmative action legislation in Norway and, as such, affords an insight into corporate actions in this emerging institutional context. The findings demonstrate that, while board diversity has grown substantially in both countries in recent years, it has done so considerably more rapidly in Norway than in the United Kingdom. The analysis highlights the sectoral variation between the countries in the pattern and growth of board diversity and suggests that the vast majority of the overall growth in board diversity is the result of changing firm behaviour rather than sectoral shift in the United Kingdom or Norwegian economies. It is also shown that as diversity has increased there has been no fall in how experienced female directors are; neither is there evidence of a rise in the number of boards that female directors sit on. This suggests that the rapid growth in board diversity has been achieved without any fall in the quality of female directors.     

Accountable Management Reforms: Why the Norwegian Hospital Reform Experiment Got Lost in Implementation

There is an international tendency to replace governmental funding based on fixed grants by different reforms implying accountable management methods. In this article we focus on the implementation problems of New Public Management reforms in the Norwegian hospital sector. These reforms are built on a belief that more accountable methods will improve efficiency and better resource allocation. The term New Public Management includes different cost-improvement programmes like Prospective Payment Systems, which were introduced as a new basis of funding in four Norwegian hospitals during a three year experimental period. The studies presented here support the findings from similar reforms in other countries, stating that there are very few, if any, documented efficiency gains by these reforms. The explanation may be that the reforms have disregarded the importance of internal organisational processes, like high quality management, communication and participation as parts of the implementation phases.     

Is doing more doing better? The relationship between responsible supply chain management and corporate reputation

Responsible supply chain management (RSCM) can help protect a firm's corporate reputation by shielding it from negative media attention and consumer boycotts. RSCM can also enhance a firm's corporate reputation, which allows firms to secure business contracts and penetrate new market segments successfully. This study empirically examines: (i) the extent to which responsible supply chain management practices is driven by a desire to protect corporate reputation; and (ii) whether responsible supply chain management can enhance corporate reputation and thereby generate competitive advantage to the firm. We draw on primary and secondary datasets across seven firms, spanning the publishing, technology, beverage, tobacco, finance and home improvement sectors. We find compelling evidence to suggest that firms often engage in RSCM due to a desire to protect corporate reputation. Similarly, we find empirical evidence to suggest that responsible supply chain practices can enhance reputation and thereby create competitive benefits, although this link is not as profound as the relationship between RSCM and reputation protection and there are significant variations across industries. These findings have significant implications for marketing theory and, in particular, industrial marketers, who are increasingly expected to implement responsible supply chain practices.     

Diverse management practices— a study of clinical managers

This article examines whether changes in the governance of public hospitals in Norway have affected the perceived practices of operational managers. A study involving a survey of and interviews with clinical managers in Norwegian hospitals has shown that managers considering themselves highly involved in management control practices. The managers' perception of their control activities was related to such institutional pressures as budget deficits, as well as to contextual variables such as department size. This article shows that clinical managers also use accounting information for purposes other than simply being accountable for meeting budgets.     

Managerialism and Profession‐Based Logic: The Use of Accounting Information in Changing Hospitals

The hospital sector has undergone significant management reforms over the last decades. These reforms include more use of accounting information. This paper focuses on the kinds of logic that guide clinical managers’ perception of their management control practices when including accounting information in decisions. A survey study was undertaken among clinical managers, and it was completed by interviews to go deeper into the management control processes in three large hospitals in the middle and northern parts of Norway. We found that there is a triangle of logic which may change and form different patterns, according to different contexts and variations in professional background.     

La Chevrotière,Coopérative agro‐alimentaire*

L'histoire de La Chevrotière est celle du développement d'une coopérative agricole en milieu rural québécois. Fondée en 1925, la coopérative La Chevrotière a connu une croissance contrôlée en étant à l'affût d'occasions d'affaires correspondant à son orientation de développement, pour et par le milieu agricole régional. Ses principaux secteurs d'activité étaient ceux de la machinerie agricole et de l'approvisionnement de la ferme. Par la suite, La Chevrotière a étendu ses activités aux secteurs de la production porcine, du fromage et de la transformation du lait (beurre et crème glacée). La coopérative emploie aujourd'hui 738 personnes. Le cas se déroule le 9 janvier 2006, lors d'une réunion du conseil d'administration ayant pour objet l'analyse des résultats financiers de l'exercice terminé le 31 décembre 2005, la révision du plan stratégique triennal et l'approbation du budget de fonctionnement pour le prochain exercice. C'est la première fois en dix ans que la coopérative n'a pas atteint ses objectifs financiers. De plus, les membres du conseil d'administration doivent choisir, parmi trois projets d'investissement majeurs, lequel s'arrime le mieux à leur plan stratégique triennal. Nota: Une version anglaise de ce cas ainsi que les notes d'enseignement en français et en anglais sont également disponibles. Les notes d'enseignement relatives aux cas didactiques ne sont pas publiées dans la revue mais sont mises à la disposition des abonnés qui sont membres à part entière de l'ACPC, dans une zone du site Web de l'ACPC protégée par un mot de passe. Rendez‐vous à l'adresse https://www.caaa.ca/fr/publications-et-recherche/perspectives-comptables-pc/notes-p%C3%A9dagogiques/ pour pouvoir consulter ces notes. The “La Chevrotière” case tells the story of the development of a food co‐operative ("Co‐op") located in rural Quebec. Founded in 1925, the La Chevrotière Co‐operative has enjoyed regular growth by pursuing business opportunities aligned with the Co‐op's path of development ‐ for and by means of regional agriculture. Initially, its two main sectors of activities were farm machinery and agricultural supplies. With time, La Chevrotière has extended its activities to include pork production, cheese making, and milk processing (butter and ice cream). Today, the Co‐op has a staff of 738. The case unfolds on January 9, 2006, during a board of directors meeting whose purpose is to analyze the financial results of the period ended December 31, 2005; to review the three‐year strategic plan; and to approve the operating budget for the next period. This is the first time in 10 years that the Co‐op has not attained its financial objectives. Moreover, the members of the board of directors must take a hard look at three major investment projects and choose the one which fits in best with their three‐year strategic plan.     

The Shifting Incidence of Involuntary Job Losses from 1968 to 1992

Risks of involuntary job losses among male workers are examined with data spanning 1968 to 1992 from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. We find that the incidence of involuntary job losses among prime-age men with strong links to the labor market rose substantially over the period under investigation and about as much for college-educated and older workers as for less educated and less experienced workers. The only labor market group not sharing the burden of higher job-loss risks were government workers. Overall, involuntary job losses were distributed more evenly across skill groups during periods of macroeconomic expansion than during periods of contraction.