Propelling diverse leaders to the top: A developmental network approach

Scholars and practitioners are making a strong business case for greater representation of women and other underrepresented groups on senior management teams and boards. A model is developed that highlights how to create optimal developmental networks—groups of developers who help advance people's careers and personal growth—that can assist in propelling diverse leaders into the upper echelons of their organizations and board positions. Several literature streams are integrated in order to identify developmental networks that will help diverse leaders overcome barriers to breaking the glass ceiling in greater numbers. Numerous strategies intended to shape diverse leaders' network structure and content are discussed, as are contextual challenges that may inhibit optimal networks' development. Lastly, theoretical and practical implications for individuals and organizations are highlighted.     

Causation and effectuation processes: A validation study

We develop and validate measures of causation and effectuation approaches to new venture creation and test our measures with two samples of entrepreneurs in young firms. Our measure of causation is a well-defined and coherent uni-dimensional construct. We propose that effectuation is a formative, multidimensional construct with three associated sub-dimensions (experimentation, affordable loss, and flexibility) and one dimension shared with the causation construct (pre-commitments). As specified by Sarasvathy (2001), we also show that causation is negatively associated with uncertainty, while experimentation, a sub-dimension of effectuation, is positively correlated with uncertainty. The major contribution is the resulting validated scales that measure causation and effectuation.     

How do most low ETR firms avoid paying taxes?

Review of Accounting Studies - Evidence suggests a large proportion of profitable U.S. firms have low effective tax rates (i.e., an ETR between 0 and 10%). Despite widespread interest in how firms...     

Feasibility Frontier—A Method for Aligning Competitive Strategy with the Choice of IT Architectures

This article introduces an approach that addresses the challenge of aligning choices about IT architecture with the strategic goals of a corporation. This takes the form of a framework that captures how managers make IT architecture choices and how those choices impact an organization's competitive position. Based on microeconomic theory, the framework provides a set of conceptualizations for understanding alignment, plus some recommendations on how organizations should approach IT architecture adoption in a way that assures optimal alignment with strategic goals. The most important facilitating factor for the framework is the commitment to complete, accurate, and unbiased cost and quality assessment of business processes and their supporting IT infrastructure.     

Adoption of Biometric Authentication Systems: Implications for Research and Practice in the Deployment of End-User Security Systems

Recent security lapses have demonstrated the importance of augmenting authentication protocols in sensitive areas of the economy, such as financial services and banking. In addition, new legislative requirements for secondary authentication mechanisms have highlighted the use of biometric technology as a reliable, but not required, means of authentication. The focus of this study examines the factors that influence the adoption of biometric authentication in organizations. The research model measures the relative contribution that variables in three categories (External Pressure, Readiness, and Perceived Benefits) have in the intent to adopt biometric authentication in financial services institutions. Managers of these institutions were surveyed, and the resulting model indicates that, as expected, the intent to adopt is driven by competitive factors, an organization's financial resources, and the perceived benefits associated with the technology. An important unanticipated finding from this research is that managerial support was not shown to be significantly related to adoption intent, which may be attributed to the context of biometric systems adoption. This research advances our understanding of the adoption literature by demonstrating how structural factors can influence the decisions made by organizational actors and by applying theories of adoption to a new technology—biometrics.     

Economic and non-economic factors of Korean manufacturer-retailer relations

The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of antecedent channel power sources on satisfaction, conflict, trust, dependence and long-term channel relationships between Korean retailers and manufacturers. The sample included 210 cosmetic retailers in 15 Korean cities. The results indicate that Korean manufacturers' exercised coercive power decreases retailers' economic and non-economic satisfaction, while exercised non-coercive power increases economic and non-economic satisfaction. Second, exercised coercive power increases both economic and non-economic conflict, and exercised non-coercive power decreases non-economic conflict. Third, retailers' economic and non-economic satisfaction is negatively related to economic and non-economic conflict. Fourth, trust is a mediating factor between satisfaction (economic and non-economic) and a long-term relationship. Finally, results indicate that neither conflict nor satisfaction is unidimensional; each has an economic and non-economic dimension. This finding is an important contribution to the channel relations literature.     

Comments

Standardisation of international advertising campaigns and relaxed advertising regulations have led to Australian consumers being exposed to higher levels of foreign-produced advertising. The study described here assessed the impact on Australian consumers of foreign spokespersons in TV advertisements using a ‘voice-over’ technique. This technique was assessed with respect to the following characteristics: expertise, trustworthiness, professionalism, likeability, dynamism, similarity to the audience, and their overall attitude towards the advertisement Subjects evaluated either American, British or Australian spokespersons. American and British spokespersons were rated less favourably by Australian audiences than Australian spokespersons across a range of characteristics, but they did not report a less favourable overall attitude towards advertisements that used an American or British spokesperson compared to those with an Australian spokesperson. Hence, the results tend to support the trend towards standardised advertising campaigns. However, since award-winning advertisements were used, other factors that may influence overall attitude, such as message content and creative execution, may have reduced the impact of the negative source evaluations in this case. Further research is required. Yet, in the light of more favourable evaluations of Australian spokespersons, overseas firms promoting products in Australia with Voice-over' advertisements may consider using an Australian spokesperson.     

Reconceptualizing entrepreneurial exit: Divergent exit routes and their drivers

We develop a conceptual model of entrepreneurial exit which includes exit through liquidation and firm sale for both firms in financial distress and firms performing well. This represents four distinct exit routes. In developing the model, we complement the prevailing theoretical framework of exit as a utility-maximizing problem among entrepreneurs with prospect theory and its recent applications in liquidation of investment decisions. We empirically test the model using two Swedish databases which follow 1,735 new ventures and their founders over eight years. We find that entrepreneurs exit from both firms in financial distress and firms performing well. In addition, commonly examined human capital factors (entrepreneurial experience, age, education) and failure-avoidance strategies (outside job, reinvestment) differ substantially across the four exit routes, explaining some of the discrepancies in earlier studies.