Do Firms Spend More on Suppliers That Have Environmental Expertise? An Empirical Study of U.S. Manufacturers’ Procurement Spend

Stakeholders expect focal firms to improve their environmental performance. While firms may be able to accumulate the environmental expertise needed to achieve this goal internally, doing so may require significant time and resource commitments. Alternatively, buyer firms can leverage their suppliers’ existing environmental expertise and gain access to such expertise when they purchase products and services from these suppliers. The purpose of this study was to develop and test theory regarding under what conditions suppliers’ environmental expertise influences a buying firms’ procurement spend with these suppliers. We ground our study in transaction cost economics and agency theories and empirically test our hypotheses using a unique buyer–supplier dyadic data set. We find that buyer firms are willing to increase their overall business spend with suppliers that have strong environmental expertise, particularly when the buyer firms are more profitable and have higher levels of absorptive capacity. However, we find the opposite effect when the buyer firm’s executive compensation is linked to the firm’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. Likewise, we also find that the buyer firm’s environmental concern ratings negatively moderate the relationship between the supplier’s environmental expertise and the buyer’s procurement spend with the supplier.     

Co-production and its effects on service innovation

This study explores the influence of business-to-business (i.e., upstream) co-production on service innovation in the information technology (IT) industry, and examines the antecedents of co-production, based on a survey of sales managers, the seller side of the co-producers, from 157 IT businesses in Taiwan. The findings indicate that co-production positively influences service innovation to a degree that depends on the collaborative partner's compatibility and history of business relations, affective commitment, and expertise. Moreover, the business' innovation orientation enhances (moderates) the relationship between co-production and service innovation. These results have several managerial implications. Businesses should choose co-production partners that are compatible and can contribute toward advancing the relationship. Furthermore, investments in building their innovation orientation will strengthen their efforts in service innovation through co-production.     

终极控制权、审计师行业专长与盈余稳健性

文章探讨了上市公司终极控制权和审计师行业专长对会计盈余信息稳健性的影响。研究结果表明,终极控制权与现金流权的分离程度越大,公司的盈余信息越不稳健;相对于非行业专长审计师审计的公司,专长审计师审计的公司对损失的确认更及时;更重要的是发现具有行业专长的审计师能够显著抑制由于终极控制权分离所造成的会计盈余信息不稳健的行为。国内外学者研究表明,稳健的会计盈余信息能够导致正面的经济后果,文章的研究结论暗示雇佣一个行业专长的会计师事务所对存在终极控制权分离的公司是有利的。     

计算机专业教学改革的目的及对策——以提升创新创业能力为核心

计算机专业招生遇冷的主要原因是计算机专业教学与社会经济需求脱节。计算机教育应顺应社会需求,根据建设人才强国、IT行业发展、学生自身发展等的需要,培养创新创业型计算机人才。围绕提升学生的创新创业能力,从更新教育观念、改革教学内容、提高实践教学环节质量、改进教学方法等方面进行教学改革,以期培养具有创新创业能力的IT行业紧缺专门人才。     

The adoption of high performance work practices in small businesses: the influence of markets,business characteristics and HR expertise

This paper explores the extent to which the adoption of high performance work practices (HPWPs) in UK small businesses with less than 50 employees is associated with the nature of the market in which the business operates, its business characteristics and its access to HR expertise. Drawing on data from the 2004 Workplace Employment Relations Survey, the analysis suggests that, where market-related factors are concerned, the uptake of HPWPs is higher in small businesses that require a highly skilled workforce but is unrelated to either the degree of market competition or the presence of large dominant customers. In terms of access to HR expertise, the analysis finds greater use of HPWPs in small businesses that have contact with external sources of HR advice via membership of business advisory networks or Investors in People (IiP) recognition. However, uptake is unrelated to the presence of personnel/HR specialists. Overall, the findings suggest that rather than depicting employment practices in small businesses as the inevitable consequence of market circumstances, encouraging greater small business involvement with business advisory networks and IiP may have the potential to increase the adoption of HPWPs in the sector.     

Audit committee financial expertise and properties of analyst earnings forecasts

An important role of financial accounting information is to aid financial statement users in forming expectations about the firm's future earnings. Prior research finds that accounting financial expertise of the audit committee is associated with higher financial reporting quality. We extend this literature by examining the association between audit committee financial expertise and analysts' ability to anticipate future earnings. We find a significant association between accounting financial expertise on the audit committee and analyst earnings forecasts that are more accurate and less dispersed. In contrast, we do not find a significant association between non-accounting financial expertise (i.e., supervisory expertise) and forecast accuracy or forecast dispersion. These findings contribute to our understanding of the benefits of accounting expertise in audit committees by demonstrating an association between accounting financial expertise and improvements in analyst earnings forecasts.     

Light me up: power and expertise in risk communication and policy-making in the e-cigarette health debates

Abstract

This paper presents a detailed account of policy-making in a contemporary risk communication arena, where strong power dynamics are at play that have hitherto lacked theoretical analysis and empirical validation. Specifically, it expands on the understanding of how public health policy decisions are made when there is a weak evidential base and where multiple interpretations, power dynamics and values are brought to bear on issues of risk and uncertainty. The aim of the paper is to understand the role that power and expertise play in shaping public health risk communication within policy-related debates. By drawing on insight from a range of literatures, the paper argues that there several interacting factors that shape how a particular narrative gains prominence within a wider set of perspectives and how the arguments and findings associated with that perspective become amplified within the context of policy choices. These findings are conceptualised into a new model – a policy evaluation risk communication (PERC) framework – and are then tested using the Electronic cigarette debate as a case study.     

External COO/presidents as expert directors: A new look at the service role of boards

Much of the scholarship on boards of directors has examined either the control (i.e., monitoring) role or the resource dependence role that boards fill. Relatively little has examined the service role, wherein directors provide advice and guidance to management. This study builds on recent work exploring director expertise by asking how operational expertise on boards impacts firm performance. We find that having external COO/presidents on a board of directors positively impacts firm performance when the firm's operational efficiency is declining, but negatively impacts performance when the firm's operational efficiency is improving. We also find that other types of external executives serving as directors exhibit the opposite relationship, suggesting that the value of director expertise is context‐dependent. We discuss the implications of these findings for director selection. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Attention-Grabbing Power of Branded vs. Unbranded Packaging

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of branding on consumer attention and the role that gender and product expertise play in shaping consumer preference. An eye-tracking experiment revealed that branded containers and plants attracted consumers’ initial attention and held their attention longer than unbranded containers and plants. Female consumers tend to use brand as a central cue in information processing, while males use brand as a peripheral cue. The presence of branding also influences perceived product attractiveness. This study reinforces the information-seeking theory by providing empirical support for the selectivity model.     

The diversity of expertise on corporate boards in Australia

Expertise diversity is expected to enhance the monitoring and advising functions of boards of directors. Yet, little is known about the expertise that actually exists on corporate boards. In this study, we examine the diversity of professional expertise on corporate boards in Australia and implications for shareholder value. We categorise directors by 11 types of professional expertise and find the most common types of expertise are business executives, accountants, bankers, scientists, lawyers and engineers. We find that expertise diversity is primarily related to board size, industry and location. Our analysis also suggests that shareholders benefit when boards diversify their expertise within a subset of specialist business expertise (lawyers, accountants, consultants, bankers and outside CEOs). Further diversity beyond this subset of expertise is associated with lower firm value and performance.