Mapping the impact of home‐ and host‐country institutions on human resource management in emerging market multinational companies: A conceptual framework

While there is a growing literature concerned with multinational companies from emerging markets (EMNCs), it does not contain a robust conception of how institutions shape human resource (HR) practices in such firms. We contribute to filling this gap through developing a framework of how institutions create a range of constraints and opportunities for EMNCs. Specifically, our framework contains three key elements of how MNCs from emerging markets interact with institutions: EMNCs develop approaches that to some extent reflect the perceived strengths and weaknesses of the institutions in the home country (institutional conditioning); the strategies of actors in EMNCs can overcome the weaknesses of the home country by drawing on institutions in other countries (institutional arbitrage); and the actions of EMNCs can reinforce, or create pressures for change in, the institutional context in the countries in which they operate (institutional change/consolidation). By mapping this set of strategies of EMNCs, we contribute to a fuller understanding of the relationship between institutions and HR practices, and we outline how the rise of EMNCs reshapes the global landscape by adding new kinds of firm behavior to capitalist diversity.     

The internationalization of Chinese companies: Firm characteristics, industry effects and corporate governance

A prominent issue in the internationalization of Chinese firms is that many are state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and that corporate governance in China is highly idiosyncratic. This paper identifies firm characteristics, industry effects and corporate governance mechanisms that foster internationalization. We find that Chinese cross-border mergers create shareholder value, but not more than domestic expansions. Corporate governance mechanisms matter, jointly and individually. While state-ownership predicts fewer cross-border mergers, a favourable board structure and corporate transparency explains higher M&A returns. As in more mature markets, firm- and industry-specific determinants also affect M&As in China.     

The impact of imperfect monitoring on the efficiency wage hypothesis

Zusammenfassung Es wird ein Arbeitsmarkt untersucht, in dem Arbeiter unterschiedliche Fähigkeiten aufweisen, die sie selbst, nicht aber potentielle Arbeitgeber kennen. Fähigere Arbeiter haben einen höheren Reservationslohn als weniger fähige. Wenn Unternehmer die wahren Fähigkeiten jedes einzelnen Beschäftigten auch im Laufe seiner Tätigkeit nicht feststellen können, so kann ein Gleichgewicht mit unfreiwilliger Arbeitslosigkeit existieren. Es wird gezeigt, daß bei kostspieliger und fehlerhafter Ex-post-Bewertung der Fähigkeiten die Möglichkeit unfreiwilliger Arbeitslosigkeit von der Wahl des Gleichgewichtskonzepts abhängt: Ein Nash-Gleichgewicht mit unfreiwilliger Arbeitslosigkeit existiert nicht, wohl aber ein Riley-Gleichgewicht.

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This research was started and most of it completed while I was visiting the Sonderforschungsbereich 303 at the University of Bonn. Financial support of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft is gratefully acknowledged. I wish to thank M. Hellwig for stimulating discussions as well as H. Duda, M. Nermuth, K. Podzceck, and a referee for helpful comments on an earlier draft, without, of course, implying that they bear any responsibility for the shortcomings of this paper.     

Consistent planning under quasi-geometric discounting

We study properties of stationary Markov-perfect equilibria in a general model of intertemporal choice under quasi-geometric discounting. The dynamics generated by stationary Markov-perfect equilibria can be very complicated, even if the model satisfies strict convexity and smoothness properties and the decision maker is arbitrarily patient. If there exist multiple stationary Markov-perfect equilibria, then it is in general possible to construct infinitely many non-degenerate stationary sunspot equilibria as well.     

Accounting education for professionals in Germany — current state and new challenges

In comparison to other countries, the requirements on the education of professional auditors in Germany have been considered to be the toughest in the world. However, German professionals risk losing this position since there are countries which seem to adapt more quickly and appropriately to changes in the accounting environment.The first part of the paper provides a review of the current state of the education for qualified auditors in Germany with special reference to the according EU-Directives and IFAC-Rules. It is shown that there are various issues which have to be accounted for in order to meet the challenges of the future.The remainder of the paper focuses on challenges due to changes in the accounting and auditing environment, on challenges due to an enlargement of the scope of statutory audit and — finally — on challenges due to the need for diversification from auditing to assurance services.     

Tracking,tracing, and business process interests in food commodities: A multi-level decision complexity

The ability for tracking and tracing activities has become a common feature in supply chains not the least because of quality assurance and product liability considerations. Furthermore, food safety concerns have put tracking and tracing at the centre point of discussions on the development of a competitive and sustainable food production. However, in commodities and especially in food commodities, the establishment of tracking and tracing capabilities meets many barriers that have prevented their broad based use beyond what is legally required. Characteristics in the food sector as well as the nature of food commodity products may result in unfavourable cost–benefit considerations at enterprise levels. The view is different at sector and policy levels which creates a complex decision situation. The paper develops a suitable tracking and tracing process and decision model which also supports the understanding of the deadlock the sector is in. The decision situation for enterprises and the sector is summarized in a cost–benefit decision table that provides a framework for future developments.     

The desire for land: Strategic lending with adverse selection

This paper deals with a setting in which borrowers and lenders place different values on an asset that can be used as collateral. Under adverse selection, lenders may rationally choose credit contracts with the object of attracting a relatively risky group of clients, so raising their chances of gaining possession of the asset through default. Contracts of differing attractiveness to borrowers can also coexist in equilibrium. When an ‘inside’ and an ‘outside’ lender compete, the latter placing a lower value on the collateral, and their loanable funds are sufficiently limited, a separating equilibrium may exist in which the insider offers a contract which attracts risky borrowers, whereas the outsider's contract is aimed at a safer group. If loanable funds are ample, the only equilibrium will involve pooling contracts, but the insider may still offer more attractive contracts in an entry game.     

New Biotechnology Firms in Germany: Heidelberg and the BioRegion Rhine-Neckar Triangle

In Germany, in the second half of the nineties, a dynamic development of commercial biotechnology took place, undertaken by a considerable number of new firms. The following article deals with the foundation of biotechnological firms in the BioRegion Rhine-Neckar Triangle (with the center in Heidelberg). For a long time, the development of biotechnology in Germany and in the Rhine-Neckar Triangle was hindered by institutional barriers. The main reasons were the narrowing of company strategies of big chemical and pharmaceutical firms, the low impulses to found biotechnology companies out of academic research, the institutional surroundings not aligned to the needs of biotechnology (e.g. no venture capital market) and finally government restraints concerning the specific and particularly regional concentrated support of biotechnology. These particularities are also reflected by the structure of the population of young companies in the Rhine-Neckar Triangle. The main emphasis of biotechnology firms is placed on technological services (research on demand) and platform technologies, different sub-areas of therapeutics research (pharmaceutical basic materials, finding active substances), on the production for the diagnostics industry and on bioinformatics. These companies do not co-operate much, national and international relations predominate. Only a few scientists of regional research institutions want to found a biotechnology firm, although the region seems to attract a certain number of company founders from other regions.