Two-sided Markets,Competitive Bottlenecks and Exclusive Contracts

We provide a framework for analyzing two-sided markets that allows for different degrees of product differentiation on each side of the market. When platforms are viewed as homogenous by sellers but heterogeneous by buyers, we show that “competitive bottlenecks” arise endogenously. In equilibrium, platforms do not compete directly for sellers, instead choosing to compete indirectly by subsidizing buyers to join. Sellers are left with none of the gains from trade. Despite this, it is sellers who choose to purchase from multiple platforms (multihome). Finally, the role of exclusive contracts to prevent multihoming is explored. We are very grateful to Jose Miguel Abito for research assistance, and to the editor and a referee for helpful comments.     

Research and Technology Commercialization

This paper introduces the special themed section on organizational interactions involving universities and firms that result in the commercialization of research and technology. Our objective is to shed light on some of the most vexing, yet under‐researched predicaments research institutions encounter, despite their best efforts to advance commercialization. First, we synthesize and extend recent studies, including the papers in the special themed section. Next, we develop a taxonomy of modes of commercialization. Specifically, we consider internal approaches, quasi‐internal approaches (e.g. incubators), university research parks, regional clusters, academic spin‐offs and start‐ups, licensing, contract research and consultancy, corporate venture capital, and open science and innovation. We also identify areas for further research at the individual (e.g. heterogeneity of entrepreneurial teams and experience; incentives), organizational and intra‐university (e.g. corporate governance; nature of growth strategies; relationships with trading partners; boundary spanning activities) and technology levels (e.g. institutional context; reconfiguration of technology; valuation of technology).     

Organizationally sensible versus legal‐centric approaches to employment decisions

Many managers and human resource professionals view the law increasingly as an overly restrictive influence on their ability to manage employees effectively. This article is intended to alert HR professionals to the risk that they are unnecessarily contributing to the impact that legal considerations have on the management of employees as a result of “legal‐centric decision making.” We introduce the construct of legal‐ centric decision making, present a model of the primary factors contributing to legal‐centric decision making, provide support for the model from diverse literatures (e.g., behavioral decision making, management, and law), and identify several keys to avoiding legal‐ centric decision making. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Emerging Multinationals from Mid‐Range Economies: The Influence of Institutions and Factor Markets

This paper revisits and extends our earlier work (in 2005) in the pages of this journal. We argue that there is a need for more fine‐grained understanding of the country context along two dimensions: (1) institutional development and (2) infrastructure and factor market development. Specifically, we propose an enriched typology of emerging economies with a focus on mid‐range emerging economies, which are positioned between traditional emerging economies and newly developed economies. Then we examine new multinationals from these mid‐range emerging economies that have internationalized both regionally and globally. We outline directions for further research based on this typology in terms of (1) government influence, (2) resource orchestration, (3) market entry, and (4) corporate governance regarding the internationalization strategy of these emerging multinationals from mid‐range economies.     

Screening and valuing venture capital investments: evidence from Hungary,Poland and Slovakia

This paper examines the screening and valuation approaches used by venture capital firms in emerging markets using evidence from surveys of venture capital firms in Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. The results show notable differences in the state of development and operation of the venture capital markets both between the three countries and in comparison with the developed UK venture capital market, especially in relation to the degree of equity ownership sought by venture capitalists, the information used in deal screening and valuation methods.     

Implicit human resource management theory: a potential threat to the internal validity of human resource practice measures

Since the publication of Huselid's (1995) paper examining the relationship between HR practices and firm performance, there has been an explosion of published papers examining the empirical relationship between HR practices and various measures of firm performance. This study examines the possibility that informants typically providing data about organizational HR practices may be biased by an implicit theory of human resource management. Our findings suggest the responses from subjects typically providing data about HR practices may be biased in their reporting by the performance of the organization. The generalizability of these results is considered and implications for future studies of the HR-firm performance relationship reviewed.     

In Search of the Impactful and the Interesting: Swings of the Pendulum?

In this article we reflect on our time as editors of JMS during the period 2003–09. First we describe the context as we saw it on assuming editorship of the Journal and the actions that we took to improve the quality of scholarship published in the journal in order to set JMS on the trajectory to become a world‐leading Journal. We articulate our view of what quality means in this context and observe that we eschewed the USA–Europe divide. Rather, to be publishable, all papers had to meet the highest standards relative to their epistemological assumptions. Finally, we address two important challenges facing the Journal, and indeed management research in general, and consider what they mean for the future of JMS, notably in relation to open access publishing and to provide greater practical relevance. We conclude that the latter represents a swing of the pendulum towards the kinds of papers published in the early years of JMS but that recent developments in JMS provide new conceptual frameworks and empirical methods that contribute to enhanced insights for practice.     

Credit-rationing and entrepreneurial experience: Evidence from a resource deficit context

This study explores the following novel research question: Do attributes relating to the resources and signals of lead entrepreneurs, particularly prior business ownership experience quality signals, reduce the probability that entrepreneurs will be chronic credit-rationed entrepreneurs in a developing economy context with resource deficiencies? Guided by insights from signalling, resource-based view of the firm and human capital theory, profiles of credit-rationed entrepreneurs (i.e. debt finance obtained but below the amount requested) are highlighted. The length of the debt finance gap was considered with regard to temporary (over one year), major (over two years) and chronic (over three years) finance gaps. We find support for our hypotheses relating to entrepreneurs whose firms are more innovative being more likely to be chronically credit-rationed, whilst firms with partners, entrepreneurs with longer prior business ownership experience and habitual entrepreneurs are less likely to be credit-rationed. The interaction with serial or portfolio entrepreneur reduces the chronic credit-rationing problem faced by innovative firms. A case for developing linkages between inexperienced novice entrepreneurs and habitual entrepreneurs, particularly successful portfolio entrepreneurs, is made. Notably, we suggest that building upon the experienced entrepreneurs who do exist may be particularly beneficial in resource deficit contexts such as Ghana     

Does the option market produce superior forecasts of noise‐corrected volatility measures?

This paper assesses the robustness of the relative performance of spot‐ and options‐based volatility forecasts to the treatment of microstructure noise. Robustness of the results to the method of constructing option‐implied forecasts is also investigated. Using a test for superior predictive ability, model‐free implied volatility, which exploits information in the volatility ‘smile’, and at‐the‐money implied volatility, which does not, are both tested as benchmark forecasts of a range of alternative volatility proxies. The results provide compelling evidence against the model‐free forecast for three Dow Jones Industrial Average stocks, over a 2001–2006 evaluation period. In contrast, the at‐the‐money implied volatility forecast is given strong support for the three equities over this period. Neither benchmark is supported for the S&P500 index. Importantly, the main qualitative results are invariant to the method of noise correction used in measuring future volatility. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.