European Integration and Market Structure in the Soft Drinks Industry

The focus of this paper is the impact of European integration in the soft drinks industry. It is shown that the geographic level at which competition takes place has moved from the national to the European stage. We apply the new theory of industrial structure where the essential notion is that in endogenous sunk cost industries such as soft drinks, the traditional inverse structure-size relation may break down, due to the escalation of overhead fixed expenditures. The evidence is consistent with the theory. Moreover, it is shown how the persistence of a first mover advantage may affect market concentration. Finally, and in response to exogenous structural change, significant restructuring and increased multinationality has been observed among the leading manufacturers.     

Legal and Procedural Strategies for Employees Utilizing Arbitration for Statutory Disputes

This article § reviews the current United States law regarding arbitration of statutory disputes in the nonunion employment setting. The article is a literature review and offers no new research findings but rather focuses on the important legal and procedural strategies employees may use throughout the arbitration process. The article specifically advises the reader on selection of an attorney, selection of an arbitrator, selection of a third party administrator, the discovery process, and the requisite hearing procedure. Possible challenges to the arbitration process are also discussed. In addition, the article focuses on the advantages and disadvantages of arbitration from an employee's point of view.     

Top Management Teams, Strategy and Financial Performance: A Meta-Analytic Examination

abstract    A considerable amount of research has investigated the linkage between top management team (TMT) characteristics and firm financial performance. Much of this research relies on demographic data. While these data are reliable and accessible, findings across studies are not consistent. Meta-analysis of several TMT indicators and firm financial performance provides modest support for direct relationships but indicates moderating influences. Further meta-analysis and a confirmatory factor analysis enrich these findings by examining potential moderating and intervening factors.     

US Exports of Knowledge-intensive Services and Importing-country Characteristics

This paper studies the determinants of US exports of knowledge‐intensive services. Using US export data to as many as 29 countries between 1989 and 2002, I find the following. First, gross product and per capita income have heterogeneous effects on affiliated and non‐affiliated exports of knowledge‐intensive services. Secondly, property rights protection matters. Thirdly, infrastructure quality and political institutions only matter in the transfer of knowledge assets. Finally, financial depth is only correlated with the export of services to non‐affiliates.     

Organisational risk perception and transformations in India’s nuclear establishment

The discourse on nuclear power and risk has shifted over the last few decades from security concerns emanating from nuclear weapons to threats to public safety in the event of industrial nuclear accidents. While the main focus of existing scholarship has been on public risk perceptions, comparatively little is known about organisational risk perceptions and the factors that influence organisations’ willingness to accept the incalculable risks of nuclear power. This paper provides insights into how the nuclear establishment in India thinks about risk. Drawing on interviews with the senior management of nuclear organisations, the analysis shows that organisational risk perception is not merely a human construct or the outcome of simple technical cost-benefit rationalities. It is the result of interactions between material and ideational conditions of risk. These conditions are expressed through three core organisational narratives: (1) the growth imperative, (2) technological nationalism and (3) faith in systems and technology. While there is generally a strong consensus on these narratives within and among the nuclear organisations in India, the data also show that organisations are not homogenous entities. Instances of self-critique and reflexivity exist which could open new spaces for change towards a more inclusive organisational discourse on nuclear risk in India.