Unravelling the design process of business models from linear to circular: An empirical investigation

In the last years, circular economy has represented one of the most-debated topics in management research. Although the understanding of this industrial paradigm has significantly improved over the last decade, a number of important research questions still remain unanswered. Among them, the design process of business model through which established firms evolve from being linear to circular deserves further investigation. Existing research still falls short to investigate how companies design the dimensions of value creation, value transfer, and value capture of their business models to launch circular products into the market. By leveraging a multiple case study analysis of four companies in the paper and beverage industries that have launched six circular products, the paper examines the process that these companies have followed to face the transition toward a circular business model. The paper contributes to the research field in the intersection between new product development and circular business models, by showing that the process toward a circular business model occurs along three major phases, that is, idea generation, product development, and commercialization. In each phase, companies implement peculiar managerial practices for launching circular products into the market, which typically address all the dimensions of the business model and follows a recurrent path over time.     

Reducing Brazilian greenhouse gas emissions: scenario simulations of targets and policies

This paper aims to evaluate the economic impacts of greenhouse gas emission reduction on the Brazilian economy. To this end, we developed an integrated input–output linear programming model for 2009 using the Supply and Use Tables and emissions data of the Brazilian Ministry of Science and Technology and Innovation. We simulated emissions targets for various potential scenarios in which the adopted policy design took account of sectoral composition in terms of emissions and available production technology. The results were directly affected by the high level of livestock emissions, counterbalancing this sector’s economic importance for Brazil. In the short term, sectoral emissions targets associated with taxation policy or emission permits could be developed in order to create private incentives to mitigate emissions. In this sense, the results also show that different sectoral targets may be able to balance environmental benefits with the possible economic losses incurred by such policies.     

Volatility transmission patterns and terrorist attacks

The objective of this study is to analyse volatility transmission between the US and Eurozone stock markets considering the financial market responses to the September 11, March 11 and July 7 terrorist attacks. In order to do this, we use a multivariate GARCH model and take into account the asymmetric volatility phenomenon, the non-synchronous trading problem and the turmoil periods themselves. Moreover, a graphical analysis of the Asymmetric Volatility Impulse-Response Functions (AVIRF) is introduced, which takes into consideration the financial market responses to the terrorist attacks. Results suggest that there is bidirectional and asymmetric volatility transmission and show the different impacts that terrorist attacks had on both markets.     

Employment effects of service offshoring: Evidence from matched firms

This paper studies the effects of service offshoring on the level and skill composition of domestic employment, using a rich data set of Italian firms and propensity score matching techniques. The results show that service offshoring has no effect on the level of employment but changes its composition in favor of high skilled workers.     

The influence of ownership structure and board strategic involvement on international sales: The moderating effect of family involvement

This paper contributes to the family business and the international business literature by analysing whether and to what extent different compositions of the ownership structure and degrees of board strategic involvement impact on the level of international sales of family and non-family businesses. Our main hypotheses are tested on a sample of 342 Norwegian firms via regression analysis. The results from this study show the existence, in both in family and non-family businesses, of a positive and significant relationship between foreign investors’ ownership and the level of international sales. Furthermore, the relationship between CEO ownership impacts negatively on international sales in both family and non-family businesses. While board strategic involvement contributes positively to international sales in non-family businesses it becomes not significant when we only look at family businesses. Implications for theory and practice and future research directions are discussed.     

Who teaches them to consume: a study of Brazilian youngsters

This article is aligned with Burgess and Steenkamp's suggestion of the need for a marketing renaissance through research into emerging markets in order to advance marketing science and practice. The objective was to study the consumer socialization of pre‐adolescents and adolescents living in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The study also seeks to understand the consumer socialization process and primary influences. Being an exploratory study, it was developed through interviews with 10 participants, aged 11–13. Findings highlighted aspects not yet reported by the international literature, such as the postponement of mobility and autonomy for consumer behaviour because of parents' concerns with violence in a major urban centre. Another issue that is discussed is the probability that grandparents and domestic workers act as potential agents for children's consumer socialization.     

Migrants and market potential in Spain over the twentieth century: a test of the new economic geography

In this paper, we offer a structural contrast of a new economic geography model in Spain over three different periods: the 1920s, the 1960s, and the early years of the 21st century. In line with Crozet (J Econ Geogr 4:439–458, 2004), we analyse the possible existence of a forward effect, i.e. the existence of a relationship between the workers’ localisation decisions and the market potential of the regions. Our results show that this model provides a good explanation of migrant behaviour in Spain throughout the 20th century. Moreover, the changes in the parameters estimated are consistent with a change in the migratory model and reflect the tendency towards a spatial redispersion of economic activity in recent decades.     

Assessing the effectiveness of guided preparation for new venture creation and performance: Theory and practice

Governments in virtually all developed countries subsidise “guided preparation” for entrepreneurial activity. Despite being so widespread, the evidence that this assistance enhances venture performance remains in dispute, primarily because of a lack of consensus over statistical approaches. This paper provides a new — to entrepreneurship scholars-approach, applying it to a programme guiding nascent and new entrepreneurs in Denmark. It concludes that the programme contributes to the survival and size of new ventures, but its impact on growth is less clear. It also finds that impact is sensitive to changing the eligibility criteria of the programme — such as requiring a modest payment from participants or selecting participants according to observable entrepreneurial characteristics.