Life course pathways to business start-up

We explore how socially embedded life courses of individuals within Britain affect the resources they have available and their capacity to apply those resources to start-up. We propose that there will be common pathways to entrepreneurship from privileged resource ownership and test our propositions by modelling a specific life course framework, based on class and gender. We operationalize our model employing 18 waves of the British Household Panel Survey and event history random effect logistic regression modelling. Our hypotheses receive broad support. Business start-up in Britain is primarily made from privileged class backgrounds that enable resource acquisition and are a means of reproducing or defending prosperity. The poor avoid entrepreneurship except when low household income threatens further downward mobility and entrepreneurship is a more attractive option. We find that gendered childcare responsibilities disrupt class-based pathways to entrepreneurship. We interpret the implications of this study for understanding entrepreneurship and society and suggest research directions.     

Measurement Errors and Information Content of Segment Reporting

This paper assesses the measurement errors inherent in segment reporting. Measurement errors are gauged by comparing the correlation of segment results with their industry to the corresponding correlation for single line-of-business firms operating in the same industry. The findings show that the measurement errors in segment information, particularly earnings, are larger than those in the financial information reported by single line-of-business firms. The cross-sectional variation in the measurement errors can be traced to cost/revenue allocations, management intervention in segment reporting, and the operational structure of multi-segment firms. Market tests indicate that the information content of segment information is inversely related to the estimated measurement errors. This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Emotions in business-to-business service relationships

Emotion in business-to-business service relationships regarding cargo services is explored. The service relationship is characterised by mutual trust and cooperation. Contact is mainly via telephone or e-mail with some face-to-face interactions and participants providing a complex, multi-skilled seamless service. Experience rather than training plays a vital role with long-term service relationships built up and maintained. Emotional sensitivity is acquired partly by experience and a repeat customer base but mainly through a genuine desire to help and get to know others. In contrast to the view of emotional labour bringing managerial control or adverse affects to service staff, the emotion engendered by this work is authentic expression bringing personal satisfaction.     

Book Reviews

While globalization has led to a well-documented increase in expatriation among managers and corporate executives, increased internationalization and expatriation have not been confined to business organizations alone. Educational institutions are becoming increasingly international with academics also experiencing growing levels of expatriation. However, despite their increasing international mobility, expatriate academics remain a group about which very little is known. Drawing on exploratory research carried out in Singapore and New Zealand, this essay presents several propositions about the experiences of expatriate academics as a hitherto under-researched group. In addition the essay moves towards adding another dimension to the existing expatriate management literature by considering the extent to which it can be used as a framework for understanding expatriate academics. In doing so the essay proposes some of the differences between expatriate academics and expatriate managers. The areas of focus are cross-culture training, expatriate adjustment and the expatriate family.     

Employee shareholders in two privatised utilities

This article draws on a survey of over 400 employees in two privatised companies. It examines the relationship between the depth of share ownership and social class and prior political orientations, and suggests that employee attitudes are best understood as a function of these standard sociological factors.