The asymmetric moderating role of market orientation on the ambidexterity-firm performance relationship for prospectors and defenders

Drawing on the resource-based view of the firm and, in particular, the capabilities perspective of firm performance, the authors examine the relationship between ambidexterity and firm performance for two strategy typologies: prospectors and defenders. Ambidexterity, defined as the combination of two discrete capabilities (exploration and exploitation), should have a less negative effect on firm performance among prospectors that add exploitation to exploration than among defenders who add exploration to exploitation. Hence, this research predicts an asymmetric effect of ambidexterity on firm performance for prospectors and defenders. The authors further posit that a boundary-spanning culture, such as market orientation, can function as a metaculture by integrating the subunit cultures generated by exploration and exploitation. As a result, market orientation should mitigate the negative effect of ambidexterity on firm performance, albeit differently for prospectors and defenders, and thus point to an asymmetric moderating role of market orientation. The findings provide mixed results, which the authors discuss along with some theoretical and managerial implications.     

Industrial distributors: Can they survive in the new economy?

As e-commerce evolves and gains power in the business-to-business (B2B) marketplace, what lies ahead for the industrial distributor? The fundamental issue from the distributor's point of view is how to compete more effectively and profitably, given the changing business environment of the new economy. This paper reviews the literature on the distributor's role and relationships and introduces a conceptual model of distributor viability. The model identifies sources of value that distributors offer to manufacturers and customers, including customer relationship management (CRM), production and operations management (POM), and knowledge management (KM). The paper explores the managerial implications of distributor relationships and sources of value. This provides the foundation for better understanding of the viability of industrial distributors in the new economy.     

Effects of ownership change on organizational settings and strategies in a Taiwanese hotel chain

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of ownership change on a local-chain hotel in Taiwan: how the new chief executive officer (CEO) planned a blue ocean strategy and how he led all employees to achieve pre-established goals. This study applied qualitative research methodology whereby the data were collected by participant observations in the study field and subsequent in-depth interviews with an application of the QSR NVivo software program. This study implies that, in the assimilation stage of the change, (1) the CEO should use democracy instead of dictatorship; (2) sub-cultures, factions and conflict could be prevented by organizational socialization and equal opportunity treatment; and (3) blue ocean strategies enable a shift of organizational image and identity. This qualitative study supplements the existing literature by showing that organizational politics might be affected by organizational change and how the concept of blue ocean strategy might be implemented in the course of organizational change.     

Tourism theory and the earth

Given that tourism is an “earthly business”, why is it that the Earth rarely explicitly appears in tourism studies and tourism theory? In an attempt to grapple with this paradox, this paper seeks to contribute to a conceptual re-cognition of the Earth in tourism theory by probing some theoretical obstacles and possibilities. The paper demonstrates how the Earth has been conceptually erased in tourism theory by a privileging of the mapping of tourism and tourists onto the reference plane of the social. As an alternative the paper seeks to provide a geo-philosophically informed conceptualisation of the Earth as a primary plane of reference of which tourism is a particular form of de/re-territorialisation.     

Relational spatiality and resort restructuring

This study examines the extent to which relational spatiality is captured within coastal resort restructuring visions drawing on a detailed examination of Newquay, UK. It outlines the relevance of relational spatiality for spatial planning generally and coastal resort restructuring specifically. Then, utilising Healey’s (2004) conceptualisations of space and place, and employing content analysis of selected tourism strategising documents, it explores the treatment of space and place in Newquay’s visions for restructuring. It reveals the co-existence of Essentialist and Relational approaches to spatial planning, with greater emphasis placed on the former, whilst the latter is used primarily as a tool through which to extend the resort’s reach. Some implications for coastal resort restructuring in Newquay and elsewhere are highlighted.     

Residents’ support for tourism: An Identity Perspective

Studies on residents’ support for tourism have primarily been conducted in the developed world. This study analyzes community support in the island economy of Mauritius by testing a model based on the social exchange theory and the identity theory. The model proposes that the resource-based occupational identity, environmental identity, and gender identity of the residents influence attitudes to tourism impacts and support (behavior). Results indicate that one’s identity has a direct bearing on support, but may not always influence attitudes. Findings confirm the relevance of the social exchange theory and the identity theory in explaining community support for tourism in island economies. The study’s practical implications and limitations are discussed.     

International tourism demand and the business cycle

The focus of this study is on presenting causes and hypotheses for the existence of asymmetric income and price effects on tourism demand across business cycles. The theoretical assumptions were tested by analyzing tourism import demand in different source markets, drawing on econometric models that provide for the magnitudes of price and income effects either to vary depending on the phase of the business cycle or to remain stable across the business cycles. The major outcome of this study is that the general assumption in most of the tourism demand studies—i.e. that the income effects are symmetric—should not be expected to be automatically true for every source market.     

Oppression, emancipation, and volunteer tourism: Research Propositions

This paper develops research propositions for volunteer tourism using a combination of critical theory and social movement theory as a foundation. As is often the case with emerging areas of research, a theoretical foundation has been difficult to establish in volunteer tourism. The inherent contradictions of volunteer tourism, particularly concerning the interplay of oppression/emancipation, dependency/resistance and dominant hegemony/agency beg to be deconstructed with a critical theory lens. Social movement theory then in turn offers a tool through which researchers can look to break the hermeneutic circle by examining good practices in volunteer tourism, particularly concerning potential improvements for all stakeholders in self-efficacy, resource networks, and consciousness-raising experiences. The paper culminates with a proposition model based on these theoretical perspectives.     

Technological capability, social capital and the launch strategy for innovative products

The Launch strategy for innovative products is a crucial strategic typology adopted by many high tech firms, and which has been identified in prior research focusing on new product introduction to the market. However, the nexus between launch strategies and firm resources has gained little research attention. This article therefore aims to investigate the influence of technological capability and social capital, two key resources for innovation in high tech firms, on the adoption of a launch strategy for innovative products. Furthermore, prior research has revealed that market characteristics play a moderating role on the relationship between firm resources and company strategies; thus, this study also examines the moderating effect of market characteristics. This study takes Taiwan's integrated circuit design firms as the analytical sample. Based on a sample of ninety companies, two interesting findings have been found. First, both technological capability and social capital are associated positively with the launch strategy for innovative products. Second, while the market growth rates increase, the positive relationship between technological capability and the launch strategy for innovative products becomes weaker.     

An exploratory study into brand alignment in B2B relationships

B2B relationships are characterized by strategic partnerships between firms and the suppliers of goods and services integral to their offerings. Failure to choose the right partner could jeopardize the survival of both partners. While a number of studies suggest that partnering firms need to be aligned operationally, few studies look at whether there should be alignment between the brands of firms and their suppliers. Therefore, we build on existing studies on sexual selection to develop a theory of whether similarity in brand attributes affects the success of B2B relationships. We propose that firms wishing to portray particular brand images to their customers choose suppliers whose images mirror their own. To develop our proposition, we investigate the brand personality alignment between well-known firms and their suppliers in four industries. The findings of our analysis have significant implications for scholars and managers interested in the nature and success of B2B partnerships.