Working effectively in strategic alliances through managerial fit between partners: some evidence from Sino–British joint ventures and the implications for R&D professionals

To succeed in R&D strategic alliances requires not only strategic fit and cultural fit at the organisational level, but also managerial fit at the micro, inter–personal interaction level. This paper provides the results from a cross–cultural study of managerial fit between British and Chinese managers in joint ventures (JVs) initiated in 1993–1998 with a focus on two important issues: the perceived competence and managerial roles of the partners. Managerial fit between partners is critical for the success of R&D strategic alliances including JVs. Misfit in partners' managerial behaviour often results from the fact that JVs are characterised by the lack of specificity of various managerial tasks shared by the partners at the operational stage. In addition, a manager's managerial competence as perceived by the counterpart is a contributory factor to trust and supportive reaction from the counterpart, both of which are important for cohesive interaction between partners. This study has revealed that (1) there are similarities and significant differences in some of the characteristics of managerial competence perceived by the counterpart between the British and Chinese managers; and (2) there is often a mismatch of perceptions between the British and Chinese managers with regard to who plays a particular managerial role in a JV. Managerial implications are discussed and issues for further research are highlighted.     

The implicit use of business concepts in the UK Research Assessment Exercise

Research assessment exercises covering universities in the United Kingdom were established to produce quality ratings as a basis for allocating much of the research funding from central government. They represent some of the largest research management exercises ever undertaken. Amongst other aspects of university performance, the publications of all 'research active' UK academics are evaluated. This paper describes the way in which quality was assessed and funds were allocated as a result of the 1992, 1996 and 2001 exercises. It looks at how the exercises might continue to evolve and the value of a further exercise.
The strategies adopted by universities to maximise their ratings and their income are also considered. Universities have improved their research performance and their reporting methods in response to changes in the criteria and weightings used in the exercise. In parallel the HEFC (Higher Education Funding Council) has changed the ways in which funds have been distributed once the level of research performance has been determined.
The exercises have received much criticism as well as an acceptance that they have changed the culture of academic research. This paper considers the parallel evolution of trends in the management of R&D in business with trends in the management of university research via these exercises. There are underlying assumptions that seem to influence the transfer of policy design principles and management lessons between the two sectors.     

Consumption taxes in the internet world

The evolution of e-commerce raises serious issues concerning the current and future viability of consumption taxes. The dimensions of e-commerce (product, process, and agent) are shown to significantly impact the characteristics of taxes. The key issue addressed is whether the sales and use tax or the VAT is better positioned to evolve and handle the consequences of e-commerce. The conclusion deduced is that the United States with the sales and use tax is further ahead in addressing the problems but that the European Union with the VAT is likely to solve the problems first due to uniformity and cooperation.     

Menu positions influence soft drink selection at touchscreen kiosks

The current study investigates whether companies can influence which soft drink consumers select on touchscreen kiosks. Soft drink options presented on touchscreen kiosks are multi‐dimensional stimuli represented by icons and locations. Over time the pairing of icon and location forms an expectation that certain icons will be in certain locations. As a result of these location expectations, changing the order of soft drinks may help consumers consider more healthful items. In the current study, the Coca‐Cola icon was moved from the first to last location and the Coke Zero icon from the third to first. The intervention decreased the number of times Coca‐Cola was sold and increased the number of times Coke Zero was sold. The discussion explores the rationale for the intervention and the importance of fitting interventions into existing choice environments to modify real‐world behavior.     

The Sound of Trust: Voice as a Measurement of Trust During Interactions with Embodied Conversational Agents

Trust is a critical component in effective collaboration, decision-making and negotiation. The goal of effective team leaders should be to send signals and messages that increase trust. We attempt to determine if signals can vary perceptions of trustworthiness and if nonverbal behaviors, such as the voice, contain indicators of trust. In order to investigate the relationship between trust and vocal dynamics, this article presents a study that explores how the voice, measured unobtrusively, reflects a person’s current level of perceived trust. We used an Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA) to maximize consistency and control in questioning, timing, and interviewer nonverbal behavior, thus eliminating potential confounds that may be introduced due to interaction adaptation. Participants ( $\text{ N}=88$ ) completed a face-to-face interview with the ECA and reported their perceptions of the ECA’s trustworthiness. The results of the study revealed that vocal pitch was inversely related to perceived trust, but temporally variant; vocal pitch early in the interview reflected trust. The ECA was perceived as more trustworthy when smiling. While the results of this research suggest a relationship between vocal pitch and perceived levels of trust, more work needs to be done to clarify the causal relationship. Similarly, additional study needs to be done in order to integrate additional behavioral measurements that account for variation across diverse situations, people, and cultures.     

The needs of R&D professionals in their first and second managerial appointments: are they being met?

This study sets out to examine the practices of research professionals who are undertaking a research management role for the first or second time. Most of these managers are in their late twenties to middle thirties and are usually employed as team leaders.
R&D personnel early in their managerial career are served badly by the innovation literature. Much of this literature focuses on describing the behaviour of the participants rather than providing information with the potential to contribute to their managerial practice. A major objective of this study is to provide some messages for academics and others of how they may contribute better to the managerial function of first and second time R&D managers in the 21st century.     

Evaluating the Appropriateness of Market Segmentation Solutions Using Artificial Neural Networks and the Membership Clustering Criterion

The appropriateness of a given segmentation solution is a key consideration in all marketing segmentation studies. By appropriate, it is meant that not only has the optimal segmentation solution been identified, but also that the proper number of segments to market to has been correctly specified. This research focuses on the second, and more fundamental, issue of determining the appropriate number of segments in a marketplace. If the appropriate number of segments is over-specified, marketers may over-segment the market and treat audience segments separately that could effectively be treated inclusively. Conversely, if the appropriate number of segments is under-specified, marketers may under-segment the market and fail to identify distinct, viable segments that should be marketed to separately.The issue of market under- and over-segmentation may be addressed with the membership clustering criterion (MCC), an analytical technique based on fuzzy sets derived from artificial neural networks (mathematical models of animal nervous systems). Using artificial and real world data sets, we empirically test the MCC, compare it to existing methods for determining the number of segments in a market, and demonstrate its advantages in evaluating the appropriateness of marketing to different numbers of market segments.     

Plugs versus placements: A comparison of alternatives for within‐program brand exposure

A study is presented that compares two forms of within‐program brand appearances: product placements and celebrity plugs. Evidence suggests that plugs may often have a retention advantage over placements. This advantage is hypothesized to arise from differences in the way plugs and placements are often presented. Specifically, differences in presentation contexts may create differences in how memory for plugs and placements is organized. This, in turn, may allow plugs to receive more frequent rehearsal during subsequent viewing of a show in which a brand has appeared. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.