Work organization and occupational development in CIM: the case of Swedish NC machine shops

This article reports the results of a large survey of Swedish manufacturing companies employing numerically-controlled technology, on work organization and the changing nature of operator skills. The results are assessed in the light of likely changes in organizational structures and skill composition in future forms of computer-integrated manufacturing.     

Should countries block foreign takeovers of R&D champions and promote greenfield entry?

Abstract In R&D intensive industries, governments promote greenfield foreign investments, while being sceptical towards foreign acquisitions of domestic high‐quality firms. We develop a theoretical model that shows that foreign acquisitions are conducive to high‐quality targets because of strategic effects on the sales price. However, foreign firms ‘cherry pick’ high‐quality targets to expand R&D rather than to downsize. Otherwise, rivals expand R&D, making the acquisition unprofitable. Thus, our model predicts that acquired affiliates invest more in R&D than greenfield affiliates. Using affiliate data, we find evidence that acquired affiliates have a higher level of sequential R&D intensity than greenfield affiliates.     

Environmental policy and lobbying in small open economies

This paper analyzes consequences of lobby group activity for policy outcomes in economies with transboundary pollution and international environmental policies. International environmental policies are here characterized as pollution taxes determined in a negotiation between two countries. The optimal pollution taxes are characterized and comparative statics are carried out to increase the understanding of mechanisms underlying pollution taxes in the specified setup. It is found, among other things, that the presence of local lobbying may decrease, as well as increase pollution taxes - depending on, e.g. an assumption of symmetry.     

Self-perceptions, government policies and tax compliance in Germany

The policy of choice to fight tax non-compliance is an increase in deterrence, i.e. fines and audits, which seems to be well-grounded theoretically as the economics of crime justifies such an increase of the expected costs of illegal activities. In this paper, the impact of subjectively perceived deterrence on undeclared work is analyzed for the German case. Germany is particularly interesting because it considerably increased deterrence to fight tax non-compliance recently. The data set used for this analysis contains several waves of survey data conducted between 2004 and 2008. According to our evidence, (subjectively perceived) deterrence has an impact on undeclared work, but the influence of social norms is similarly important.     

Word-of-mouth marketing influence on offline and online communications: Evidence from case study research

This case study reports results from three research studies conducted over 12 weeks as part of a product seeding campaign. Partnering with a word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) agency for this research, studies 1 and 2 report agency-conducted surveys of campaign participants' online and offline word-of-mouth (WOM) behaviors. Study 3 deployed an innovative web-based methodology to map and visualize WOM communication patterns, to reveal how campaign-related conversations spread within and across offline friendship networks and the role played by tie strength in that process. We find that agency reports of WOMM campaign results overstate reach and understate frequency. Our results have implications for the measurement of reach and frequency of WOMM campaigns.     

From Research on Mergers to Merger Policy

Since at least the early 1990s, researchers have criticized the antitrust authorities’ method for assessing the possible anticompetitive effects of mergers. Despite this, only recently, a method with a more sound economic foundation was included in the merger guidelines. We discuss how a sound economic foundation was developed and finally applied to merger control.     

Optimal vs satisfactory transparency: The impact of global macroeconomic fluctuations on corporate competitiveness

Being able to separate temporary global macroeconomic influences – caused by fluctuations in exchange rates, interest rates and inflation – from intrinsic performance – related to a superior product, production process or management – is crucial to assessing the development of a firm’s competiveness. Against that background, this paper analyzes institutions’ role in making firms supply outside shareholders with relevant information corresponding to satisfactory transparency from the shareholder perspective. Based on a sample of the 100 largest public European firms, it is found that no firm provided information to a level deemed satisfactory by the outside shareholder. One explanation may be that optimal transparency for the firm does not equal satisfactory transparency for the outside shareholder. However, the implementation of IFRS/IAS 1 in the EU as of 2005 and a company’s international cross-listing activities exhibit associations with a better supply of information and a narrowing of the gap. Shareholders in the Anglo-Saxon corporate governance system are provided with more relevant information than those in other corporate governance systems. The paper adds to the literature on the role of institutions in international corporate governance, with a particular focus on information asymmetries in an international business context.