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Resource Scarcity, Environmental Uncertainty, and Adaptive Organizational Behavior
... Gibson and Birkinshaw (2004) contend that to achieve a balance between exploitation and exploration, a firm must develop an ambidextrous culture that facilitates creativity and upholds discipline in the organisation. Although, culture holds the key to achieving organizational ambidexterity, but such a relationship is often influenced by environmental factors (e.g., Gordon, 1991;Jansen, Simsek, & Cao, 2012;Porter, 1980;Schilke, 2014) and the amount of internal resources at organisation's disposal (Damanpour, 1991;Koberg, 1987). Although most literary studies on ambidexterity have focused on its benefits (Benner & Tushman, 2003;He & Wong, 2004), scant research has been conducted on its cultural perspective (Gibson & Birkinshaw, 2004;Lee, Seo, Jeung, & Kim, 2017;Wang & Rafiq, 2014). ...
... According to Randolph and Dess (1984), munificence affects the survival and growth of organizations and also the ability of new firms to enter such environment. The scarcity of critical resources intensifies competition between the firms (Yasai-Ardekani, 1989) having a negative impact on their profitability (Singh, House, & Tucker, 1986;Yuchtman & Seashore, 1967) while causing changes in intraorganizational characteristics and the behaviour of firm's members (Koberg, 1987). Staw and Swajkowski (1975) found that firms commit illegal acts under nonmunificent environments, whereas on the other hand, firms are forced to make changes to their strategies and structures under less munificent environments (Yasai-Ardekani, 1989). ...
... Staw and Swajkowski (1975) found that firms commit illegal acts under nonmunificent environments, whereas on the other hand, firms are forced to make changes to their strategies and structures under less munificent environments (Yasai-Ardekani, 1989). This environmental scarcity of critical resources causes strategic, personnel, and administrative changes in the organizations (Koberg, 1987), putting pressure on the organisation to adapt and respond to such changes. ...
Contextual ambidexterity, defined as the simultaneous pursuit of alignment and adaptability at business unit, is linked to several organizational outcomes including improved performance and innovation outcomes. Extant research posits ambidextrous organizational culture as an important enabler to contextual ambidexterity but suffers from a lack of a well‐meaning scale for the same. In addition, there is very little understanding as to how tasking and facilitating environment can be on firms' endeavour for contextual ambidexterity and the outcomes thereof. Therefore, the current piece of research has twin objectives using two separate studies. First, to develop a scale for ambidextrous organizational culture construct and second, to analyse the role played by the external forces (munificence and dynamism) and internal slack resources on the relationships between ambidextrous organizational culture and contextual ambidexterity and between contextual ambidexterity and new product innovation outcomes through an empirical investigation in India. Using structural equation modelling on data from 414 respondents, we found environmental munificence to strengthen the relationships between ambidextrous organizational culture and contextual ambidexterity and between contextual ambidexterity and new product innovation outcomes. On the other hand, environmental dynamism had a dampening impact on these relationships. Our findings also suggest that for low slack organizations, dynamic and unmunificent environments magnified the negative impact on an organisation's ambidexterity efforts and new product innovation outcomes.
... However some researchers have suggested that a range of responses is feasible, some of which are within the organization's current structural framework (eg. Koberg 1987). Empirical studies that sought to test the environment-structure-performance linkage are divided at best, with some -3 -finding support (Hrebiniak & Snow 1980;Tung 1979) and some not finding any (Koberg 1987;Koberg & Ungson 1987;Leifer and Huber 1977;Pennings 1975). ...
... Koberg 1987). Empirical studies that sought to test the environment-structure-performance linkage are divided at best, with some -3 -finding support (Hrebiniak & Snow 1980;Tung 1979) and some not finding any (Koberg 1987;Koberg & Ungson 1987;Leifer and Huber 1977;Pennings 1975). ...
... Nevertheless, empirical studies that sought to test the environment-structure (and performance) linkage are sharply divided on their findings. Early studies such as Pennings (1975) and Leifer & Huber (1977), and later ones like Koberg (1987) and Koberg & Ungson (1987) did not find any support for the proposed linkages. Pennings (1975) found that structure-context fit was not explaining variance in effectiveness. ...
Changes in environmental uncertainty and organizational responses have engaged researchers in multiple disciplines and paradigms. We seek to extend the conceptual understanding of change in uncertainty, by proposing a time-based classification. Classification of changes in environmental uncertainty into transient and permanent is proposed on the basis of duration, breadth and reversibility of the impact of change on organization. Different levels of management – middle and top, lend themselves naturally to sensing transient and permanent changes in uncertainty. The responses of these management levels to the two types of change are distinct and represent a progressive hierarchy of organizational change. The proposed conceptual tension can potentially resolve some of the inconsistencies in empirical literature on contingency theory. Normative extensions have potential implications for effectiveness of organizational responses and strategic management.
... There are also some research revealing the positive impact of environmental munificence on the number of strategies a firm can adopt (Tushman and Anderson 1986). When environmental munificence decreases, i.e., competition intensifies, the firm's profitability, as well as strategic behaviors will change (Koberg 1987). ...
... On the e-commerce platform, sellers can change their strategic behavior based on how they comprehend the nature of competition intensity (Koberg 1987). When the competition intensifies, sellers are urged to lower prices to attract price-sensitive customers, improve service to win customers who value the service, and provide differentiated product/service through innovation. ...
This study examines the relationship between competition intensity, cooperation network, and performance in the context of electronic commerce. In particular, based on the framework of value net, we study both horizontal and vertical cooperation networks, and test the proposed model empirically. The empirical findings suggest that the more intense the competition, the more willing the sellers are to adopt the strategy of networking. Moreover, both the horizontal and vertical cooperation help to improve performance. The study has interesting theoretical and practical implications.
... These analytical tools are historically rooted in positivistic traditions. A central planning goal of Strategy as Design is to calculate risk and reduce environmental uncertainty (Courtney, Kirkland, & Viguerie, 1997;Duncan, 1972;Koberg, 1987). ...
This article outlines the evolution of Design in Strategy and Strategy in Design and discusses the differences and similarities. By doing so, the examination of the evolutions revealed three different perspectives on integrating Strategy and Design in both fields. The article provides a nuanced understanding of Strategic Design by purposefully establishing the vocabulary of each perspective. The first perspective is a planning practice containing strategic tools and design methods to create conceptual models and plans. The second perspective is a learning practice through collective reflection from intent and action. The last perspective is the enablement of a comprehensive design practice in which tangible design and strategy emerge from the messiness of creative and collaborative design practice. These three Strategic Design practices require different organization and design capabilities and produce distinctive outcomes. The integration of Design and Strategy is becoming increasingly imperative as there is the need to address the more complex, interrelated socio-technological and economic-environmental challenges.
... Tomando en cuenta la dependencia de la organización al entorno del que forma parte (Hrebiniak y Joyce 1985). Así como también a la relación de la empresa con los elementos de dicho entorno que favorecen la adaptabilidad (Koberg, 1987). En la década de 1990, inicia una concientización por el cuidado del medio ambiente y por lo tanto sugiere cambios en las organizaciones, en los cuales la supervivencia depende de la capacidad de adaptación de la organización, así como también la renovación de las estrategias necesarias para alcanzar una óptima adaptación (Burgelman, 1991). ...
El presente trabajo es una revisión sistemática cualitativa de literatura sobre Planeación Estratégica, que tiene como objetivo integrar un panorama general actualizado sobre las investigaciones realizadas al respecto. Esta revisión incluye artículos desde 1978 hasta 2017; la selección de éstos se llevo a cabo a partir de la búsqueda en bases de datos de revistas científicas e indexadas en inglés, bajo las palabras clave strategic planning. Tras la selección y criba según criterios que permitían identificar los artículos relacionados con la PE y que contaban además con las características, apartados e indicadores establecidos para el examen, se analizaron 60 artículos. De estos se obtuvo información sobre las variables que se han estudiado en relación con la PE, los objetivos de los estudios, las poblaciones y muestras, así como las técnicas y herramientas que se han utilizado para recolectar información.
... Tomando en cuenta la dependencia de la organización al entorno del que forma parte (Hrebiniak y Joyce 1985). Así como también a la relación de la empresa con los elementos de dicho entorno que favorecen la adaptabilidad (Koberg, 1987). En la década de 1990, inicia una concientización por el cuidado del medio ambiente y por lo tanto sugiere cambios en las organizaciones, en los cuales la supervivencia depende de la capacidad de adaptación de la organización, así como también la renovación de las estrategias necesarias para alcanzar una óptima adaptación (Burgelman, 1991). ...
El papel de la adaptabilidad como impulsora de la competitividad y sostenibilidad económica: una revisión de literatura con enfoque descriptivo The role of adaptability as a driver for competitiveness and economic sustainability: a descriptive focus literature review RESUMEN En el presente documento se describe la evolución de las variables de adaptabilidad, competitividad y sostenibilidad económica, de la década de 1950 hasta la actualidad; de la misma forma se resalta la importancia de cada una de estas variables, así como la relación entre las mismas. Para tal cometido se realizó una búsqueda de documentos en idioma inglés y español, seleccionando un total de 56 publicaciones de carácter científico. Con base a los hallazgos en la litera-tura se encontró que la adaptabilidad se ha clasificado como una ventaja competitiva, siendo esencial para el desarrollo y éxito de la empresa, fomentando su sostenibilidad económica; por lo que se puede concluir que en toda empresa debe existir una sana correlación entre estas tres variables para la obtención de su permanencia y crecimiento en el mercado.
ABSTRACT This document describes the evolution of the adaptability, competitiveness, and economic sustainability variables, from 1950 to present; in the same way, the importance of each of the variables is highlighted, as well as the relationship between them. For that purpose, a search for documents in English and Spanish was conducted, selecting a total of 56 scientific publications. Based on the findings in literature, it was found that adaptability has been classified as a competitive advantage, being essential for the company's development and success, promoting its economic sustainability; thus, it can be concluded that in every company there must be a healthy correlation between those three variables to ensure their permanence and growth in the market.
... For example, Staw, Sandelands and Dutton (1981) model a number of internal organizational responses to threat, one of which reflects the organization's attempts to increase operating efficiencies. Consistent with other research (Koberg 1987;Miller and Friesen 1980;Tushman and Romanelli 1985) the present paper suggests that firms do not execute these reactions randomly but rather in a predictable, hierarchical fashion. For example, in the case of a manufacturing firm, the hierarchy of responses to threat might appear as follows: ...
To perform effectively, an organization must match its capabilities to its constantlychanging environment. However, little research focuses on the dynamic processes by whichorganizations make these adaptive decisions. This research develops and tests a hierarchicalmodel of organizational response to environmental threat. It suggests that organizationsinvoke preexisting sets of response programs to deal with familiar threats, andthat these programs emerge in a predictable, hierarchical order.
... To stay competitive and to avoid obsolescence, firms introduce new products to meet up to market demands (Jansen et al. 2006). SMEs are extremely sensitive to the influence of environmental dynamism and this manifest itself in different ways (Koberg, 1987). One of the most interesting aspects in SMEs is the effect of environmental dynamism on the activities related with OA. ...
The analysis of organisational ambidexterity in the small and medium-sized enterprise context should consider their unique characteristics, including size, internal structure, the low level of use of management practices and great capacity to introduce innovative products. Aiming to understand how the characteristics of SMEs influence, or do not influence, organisational ambidexterity, this article presents an explanatory theoretical model of that relationship. This article contributes to innovative systematization of this type of firm from a multi-level perspective. This unique approach also advances theory by contributing to clarifying the debate on organisational ambidexterity and identifies important opportunities and directions for future research.
... Environmental dynamism and complexity are not significant. These results support previous findings that environmental munificence can support the relationship between organizational strategy and company performance (Koberg, 1987;McArthur and Nystrom, 1991). This result is not in line with the stud of Wang et al. (2019), it reveals that environmental munificence can negatively moderate the relationship between inventory survival and venture survival. ...
Article History Keywords Capital structure Munificence Dynamism Complexity Performance. JEL Classification: G21; G32. The purpose of this study is to investigate the moderating effects of the organizational environment on the relationship between capital structure and rural banks' performance. The samples have been collected from 241 rural banks of Central Java for the present study to analyze the moderating effects, and data are collected through its Financial Services Authority (FSA) website. Moderating Regression Analysis (MRA) is used to evaluate the impact of moderation. The capital structure as measured by the ratio of total debt to total assets and total equity both have a significant negative effect on ROA and ROE. The effects of savings and loans have a negative impact on ROA and ROE. While, debt in other forms has no significant effect. Thus, the increase in savings and loans can reduce the performance of rural banks. The effect of organizational environment moderation on the relationship between capital structure and the performance of rural banks shows different results: (1) environment munificence has a positive moderation effect on the relationship between capital structure (total debt, savings and loan) and ROE; (2) environmental dynamism has a positive moderation effect on the relationship between capital structure (total debt, savings and loan) and ROA; (3) environmental complexity has a positive moderation effect, especially on the relationship between other debt and ROE. Contribution/ Originality: This paper contributes to the existing capital structure literature, particularly on microfinance. Furthermore, this study provides a unique contribution to the management of microfinance in controlling the debt that is adjusted to the environmental conditions of the organization.
... This paper tries to attempt to find a support for this practice under the theory of differentiation. During such hostile business environments, the decision makers may seek guidance from the marketing strategies that will allow them to cope with the situational pressure and guide them to perceive and get the less risky choice simultaneously allowing them to focus on the conservation of their scarce resources (Koberg, 1987). ...
The present market problem caused mainly by the spread of Corona Virus and it's subsequent spreading into a situation of the pandemic has stroked in the most unexpected manner, equally to the individual firms and perpetually posed to have a challenging situation. This situation has all the characteristics of a global crisis. Historically almost all such crisis was limited in both their scale and magnitude affecting to a certain geographical area and there is rarely any evidence of their impact on the global scale. The present crises left no scope for compensating the market shrink incurred at one location by way of bringing the place utility at another location. The exodus of unprecedented overstepping of e-modus will open new opportunities but probably at the cost of scrapping the established demand-supply models. This paper examines marketing operations during the periods of lockdown. As advocated in the philosophical paradigm this covid episode has provided a chance to see it as an opportunity as some firms have aggressively undertaken marketing projects and invested aggressively, for establishing advantage over their weaker competing organizations just to ensure their market share. Some firms have taken a different approach, accepting it as a compelling situation and chooses to face it as a situation with the rules of mere economic downturn. Those firms have cut back on their marketing spending and willing to wait for the elimination of the phase to pass. This paper reviews some of the marketing strategies that may be utilized if a company must successfully navigate the situational challenge of the downturn. This paper attempts to relook into the established approaches and it tries to assess the suitability of the theoretical framework of marketing after the incidence of coronavirus in the sky of marketing. The immediate responsive and visible effect might result in the contraction of overall economic activities. Some states in India have introduced the extended working shift of 12 hours. It has resulted in less availability of time for the workers to visit the market and spend the money. Since the individual might be engaged in the earning activities. Such steps resulted in cutting the spending in the market and ultimately hampered the demand side of the equation. Finally, the paper concludes that this abnormality of situation possesses a much bigger challenge to the marketing function, and it cannot be addressed through the normal strategies bearing on balancing the supply and demand-driven crises. The firms need to understand consumer decision making under this typical situation. This paper suggests some strategic areas in anticipation of getting some new proofs to become agile and adaptable since, consumer needs are bound to be ever-changing, as a response to the unpredictable situation and give suitable recommendations.
... Also, powerful, entrenched CEOs can resist adapting, while homogenous top teams may be especially blind to the needs for change (Carpenter, 2002). Finally, stable, munificent environments allow resources to remain valuable for longer, producing increasingly ossified strategies (Koberg, 1987). ...
In proposing two evolutionary trajectories, we demonstrate some paradoxical aspects of strategic resources that contrast with current theorizing. First, we discuss how an abundance of resources can subject an organization to vulnerabilities, taking a firm from competitive strength to potential weakness. Second, we describe an opposite trajectory in which a lack of resources can lead to reactions engendering significant strengths. In both cases, the effects of resource abundance and poverty on executive perceptions and conduct, organizational arrangements, and strategic behavior can play important roles in trajectories of value creation and erosion.
... To stay competitive and to avoid obsolescence, firms introduce new products to meet up to market demands (Jansen et al. 2006). SMEs are extremely sensitive to the influence of environmental dynamism and this manifest itself in different ways (Koberg, 1987). One of the most interesting aspects in SMEs is the effect of environmental dynamism on the activities related with OA. ...
This research aimed to study the influence of environmental dynamism and technological capacity on organisational ambidexterity (OA) and the moderating role of environmental dynamism in small and medium-sized enterprises (SME). To this end, a structural equation model was applied to a sample of 224 SMEs in the sector of information technology, telecommunications and IT consultancy. The results obtained show that technological capacity has a significant, positive effect on OA as well as a statistically significant influence only in exploration but not in exploitation. And the moderating effect of environmental dynamism also has a positive effect in the relationship between technological capacity and OA, and stronger effect in the relationship between technological capacity and exploration. These results are consistent with the existing literature and shows that environmental dynamism and technological capacity influence OA in SMEs, but in a different way. Various implications for theory and practice are also presented.
... This hypothesis and the framework are grounded, on the one hand, on numerous studies on the organisational dependence on the environment (Boyd, 1990) and the link between the manager's perceived uncertainty and his behaviour (Bourgeois, 1980;Koberg, 1987;Wernerfelt and Karnani, 1987), and, on the other hand, on the theories from international entrepreneurship and international business (Nkongolo-Bakenda and Chrysostome, 2013). ...
... Thus, such a crisis can be seen as an exogenous shock for establishments and the entire economy (Knudsen/Lien 2015). In addition, a recession is temporary, 9 and establishments know that it will be over sooner or later (Koberg 1987). The economic crisis in 2008 and 2009 in addition was unpredictable. ...
This paper analyses the effect of the economic crisis in the years 2008 and 2009 on individual training activities of different employee groups within establishments. We use a unique German linked employer–employee panel data set with detailed information on individual training history (WeLL-ADIAB). The so-called Great Recession can be seen as an exogenous, unexpected, and time-limited shock. Although our results cannot be interpreted in a strictly causal manner, our Diff-in-Diff analyses suggest a direct negative effect of the crisis on individual training activities in 2009 and 2010. The negative effect therefore sets in with a time lag and lasts until after the recession. Furthermore, the recession has a stronger effect for employees in unskilled jobs than for employees in skilled jobs.
... Environmental uncertainty has been identified as a critical variable affecting organizational behavior (Koberg, 1987) and a key dimension deciding the costs of transactions (Williamson, 1981). Therefore, coping with this uncertainty becomes a primary task for firms. ...
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to empirically investigate the extent to which two types of commercial partnerships (business partner and non-business partner) affect the collaborative innovation of firms in emerging economies. Specifically, the roles of two commercial partnerships are investigated. Additionally, the study explores the moderating effect of external technological uncertainty and internal dynamic capabilities on the relationship between two commercial partnerships and on collaborative innovation.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a sample of 370 high-tech firms in China, the authors applied the partial least squares structural equation modeling approach to model these relationships.
Findings
The findings reveal opportunities and challenges for companies according to two intensities of commercial partnership for collaborative innovation. The partnership contribution to innovation and competiveness is different within the two routes and ranges. The findings indicate that (1) intense commercial relationships with business partners have a stronger positive significant impact on collaborative innovation than those with non-business partners and (2) non-business partners have a weaker positive impact on collaborative innovation at high external technological uncertainty. It was also found that (3) the positive impact of business partners on collaborative innovation is weakened when a firm has high dynamic capabilities, whereas the positive impact of non-business partners is strengthened.
Research limitations/implications
Insight into the roles of two commercial partnerships in achieving collaborative innovation facilitates the advancement of the theoretical understanding of the circumstances under which cooperative innovation can be more effective under different partnerships.
Originality/value
A key strategic question is whether comprehensiveness enables firms to make better strategic decisions in various environments. In the process of innovation, companies must choose different types and quantities of partners, and they must regulate their partners’ innovative behavior by establishing a corresponding network structure and relationship rules. The current study focuses on analysis of how different intensities of commercial partnerships affect collaborative innovation. This research provides a theoretical framework that creates a new classification of commercial relations with regard to collaborative innovation, and it highlights the difference between the two types of partnerships. This study finds that there are many problems in the selection of innovative partners in China’s high-tech companies. Therefore, companies should strengthen their understanding of cooperative innovation, and they should build and manage highly efficient innovation networks. This study helps companies, high-tech industry associations, academia and government to take enhanced, informed actions.
... Competition fuels managerial search for new alternatives and ways to remain competitive (Nohria & Gulati, 1996;Schumpeter, 1926). Extant research suggests that when few resources are available, organizations engage in strategic, process, and structural adjustments (Koberg, 2017). In this environment of low munificence, pursuit of creativity and "pioneering" are often utilized for survival (Sirmon et al., 2007). ...
Creative leadership plays a key role in realizing the competitive advantage of creativity for organizations, yet little is known about the contextual factors that give rise to creative leadership. We propose a model that includes enabling contextual variables that facilitate individuals with the motivation to lead for creativity to engage in creative leadership. In addition, building on substitutes for leadership theory, contextual redundancies that reduce the necessity for creative leadership as a means for realizing creative outcomes are proposed. This model provides new insights about the role of contextual enablers and redundancies at the organizational and external environmental levels of analysis for creative leadership. Theoretical and practical implications of this model are also discussed.
... Thus, the beginning of such a crisis can be seen as an exogenous shock for establishments and the entire economy (Knudsen and Lien, 2015). In addition, a recession is temporary 6 , and establishments know that it will be over sooner or later (Koberg, 1987). The economic crisis in 2008 and 2009 in addition was unpredictable. ...
... It is getting more critical to apprehend educational organizations and relocate them to respond constantly emerging and vanishing social and technological trends as social life has become more uncertain and unstable. School administrators need to have skills to scan changes in their environment because of the uncertainty about the future of the number of students to be enrolled, methods and processes employed, teacher skills required and the results obtained in an ever-changing environment (Koberg, 1987). ...
This conceptual study examines the analogies between schools and complex adaptive systems and identifies strategies used to manage schools as complex adaptive systems. Complex adaptive systems approach, introduced by the complexity theory, requires school administrators to develop new skills and strategies to realize their agendas in an ever-changing and complexifying environment without any expectations of stability and predictability. The results indicated that in this period administrators need to have basicskills such as (a) diagnosing patterns emerging from complexity, (b) manipulating the environment by anticipating potential patterns organizations may evolve into, (c) choosing organizational structures compatible with an ever-changing and complexifying environment and (d) promoting innovation to create and manage organizational changes. Although these skills enable administrators to reduce complexity into a manageable form to some extent, stakeholders’ having a common perspective regarding their schools and environments, and executing their activities in accordance with a shared vision are required to turn these skills into complexity management strategies.
... Instead of investing in reconfiguring its knowledge base, a firm is likely to be hesitant in its reaction to a failure or performance decline, and thus refrain from or defer knowledge reconfiguration altogether until the uncertainty is resolved (Eggers, 2012). Managerial prudence dictates that managers avoid costly investments (Koberg, 1987) despite the competitive challenges that the firm may face because of such delayed investments. Uncertainty about available resources not only makes it challenging for the firm to identify the desired resource reconfiguration, but also limits its ability to successfully execute such reconfiguration given that it is unclear whether needed complementary resources will become available (Lavie, 2006). ...
Resource reconfiguration enables firms to adapt in dynamic environments by supplementing, removing, recombining, or redeploying resources. Whereas prior research has underscored the merits of resource reconfi-guration and the modes for implementing it, little is known about the antecedents of this practice. According to prior research, under given industry conditions, resource reconfiguration is prompted by a firm's corporate strategy and by characteristics of its knowledge assets. We complement this research by identifying learning from performance feedback as a fundamental driver of resource reconfiguration. We claim that performance decline relative to aspiration motivates the firm's investment in knowledge reconfiguration, and that this investment is reinforced by the munificence of complementary resources in its industry, although uncertainty about the availability of such resources limits that investment. Testing our conjectures with a sample of 248 electronics firms during the period 1993-2001, we reveal a clear distinction between exploitative reconfiguration, which combines existing knowledge elements, and exploratory reconfiguration, which incorporates new knowledge elements. We demonstrate that performance decline relative to aspiration motivates a shift from exploitative reconfiguration to exploratory recon-figuration. Moreover, munificence of complementary resources mitigates the tradeoff between exploratory and exploitative reconfigurations, whereas uncertainty weakens the motivation to engage in both types of reconfiguration, despite the performance gap. Nevertheless, codeployment, which extends the deployment of knowledge assets to additional domains, is more susceptible to uncertainty than redeployment, which withdraws those assets from their original domain and reallocates them to new domains. Our study contributes to emerging research on resource reconfiguration, extends the literature on learning from performance feedback, and advances research on balancing exploration and exploitation. © 2016 by Emerald Group Publishing Limited All rights of reproduction in any form reserved.
... The true danger of ignoring the development of inimitable and non-transferable internal resources might cause difficulty for firms to create their competitive advantage or outperform from their rivals. Managers appear to shape the content of strategies through a variety of actions such as changing resource allocations and various functional strategies (Koberg, 1987). Conclusively, the alcohol industry is highly dynamic and managers have to respond to maintain and improve their market positions. ...
This paper examines the moderating effect of firm characteristics on the relationship between strategic change and performance of firms in the alcohol industry in Kenya. The alcohol industry makes a substantial contribution to the country's GDP. For instance, the East Africa Breweries Limited (EABL), Kenya was feted by KRA as the second top tax payer to the government for the 2011/2012 financial year. However, clear picture of the moderating influence of firm characteristics on the relationship between strategic change occasioned Alcoholic Drinks Control Act (ADCA), 2010 and performance has not emerged from previous studies. Specifically, the study investigated the effect of managerial capabilities, product dimensions and brand portfolio on performance of alcohol industry in Kenya. Previous studies dwelt on effect of limited aspects of strategic change such as marketing leaving out critical aspects like scope of strategies, resource deployment patterns and competitive advantages and the moderating effect of firm characteristics. The study was underpinned by the Resource-Based Theory (RBT). The study adopted a mixed method survey research design using qualitative and quantitative methods. The population was 25 local firms registered by Kenya Revenue Authority by 2012 and approved by National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse, (NACADA) by 2015. A saturated sample consisted of 100 respondents to get primary data. Multiple regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses that firm characteristics moderate the relationship between strategic change and performance. The R2 after incorporating interaction effect was .682 (p=.004) and ΔR2=.033(p=004) implying firm characteristics significantly moderate the relationship.
In today’s corporate landscape, the separation of the board chair and CEO roles is increasingly prevalent among public firms. Understanding this leadership dynamic, particularly the board chair-CEO working relationship, is critical. This study delves into the influence of divergent behaviors among institutional investors on the board chair-CEO interaction and explores how environmental munificence moderates these effects. We ascertain that high levels of dedicated institutional investor ownership tend to prompt board chairs to exhibit both control and collaboration orientations with CEOs. Conversely, in instances of elevated transient institutional investor ownership, board chairs are less inclined toward collaboration with CEOs. Of notable interest is our investigation into how environmental munificence shapes these relationships. We discover that the abundance or scarcity of resources in the environment can significantly recalibrate the impact of institutional investor ownership structures on board chair orientations toward CEOs. This study not only contributes to the broader realm of corporate governance research but also offers practical insights for practitioners navigating the intricate dynamics between institutional investors, board chairs, and CEOs. Our findings underline the nuanced interplay between investor behaviors, leadership orientations, and environmental contexts, enriching the understanding of effective corporate governance strategies.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to determine the dimensions of cultural differences, which are theoretically most relevant to contract functions in international marketing. Moreover, the contradiction between contract governance and opportunism is reconciled by exploring the boundary conditions of specific cultural differences.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors obtained 235 bilateral data provided by Chinese exporters and overseas distributors. The authors matched a secondary data set with the questionnaire data, which were analyzed by confirmatory factor analysis and a hierarchical moderation model.
Findings
The results demonstrate that while contract specificity is less successful in this area, contingency adaptability is useful in reducing opportunism. Moreover, as the national cultural differences regarding uncertainty avoidance, power distance or individualism-collectivism become more pronounced. One contractual dimension will be more effective at curbing opportunism, while the other will be less effective.
Research limitations/implications
Despite sample limitations, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to theoretically identify the effect of cultural difference dimensions in contract governance, unlike past studies taking cultural differences as an aggregated variable. Furthermore, by exploring the boundary conditions of cultural differences, this paper effectively reconciles the conflicting findings on the relationship between contract governance and opportunism in various cultural context.
Practical implications
Exporters’ managers can design contingency adaptability to complement the limitations of contract specificity and consider cultural differences’ contingency effects.
Originality/value
First, the authors identify cultural differences dimensions related to contract governance, refining and emphasizing the research context. Second, comparing the efficacy of contract specificity and contingency adaptability in specific cultural context can show which contract is better at preventing opportunism.
Motivated by inconsistent findings in prior research on nonmarket strategy (NMS), we draw on insights from the resource-based view (RBV) and institutional literature to examine the relationship between corporate political activity (CPA) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) on firm competitiveness (FC). Data from two African and two Asian countries (N = 499) largely support the hypotheses and extend our understanding of the contingencies that affect the relationship between CPA as well as CSR and firm competitiveness. We specifically highlight the moderating role of economic adversity, marketing capability, and foreign ownership. Additionally, we show that CPA and CSR have strong combined effects that allow small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to leverage their resource complementarity to navigate the challenges in emerging markets, which in turn enhances their competitiveness.
Research Summary
How CEO cognitive complexity influences firm outcomes raises an intriguing theoretical tension. While more cognitively complex CEOs can potentially bolster firm performance through their more elaborate and multifaceted information processing, those tendencies can also hurt performance because they require more time and energy, delaying decision making. We posit and show a nuanced effect of CEO cognitive complexity on firm performance, contingent on industry conditions. CEO cognitive complexity benefits performance under more complex, stable, and munificent industry conditions, but hurts performance under simpler, more dynamic, and more constrained conditions. Post‐hoc analyses further show that these effects are similar when considering firm‐level factors reflecting munificent and dynamic internal conditions. Our study highlights the boundary conditions under which CEO cognitive complexity may be beneficial or detrimental for firms.
Managerial Summary
CEOs have different cognitive styles that can impact how they approach decision making. Whereas some exhibit greater cognitive complexity, that is, by engaging in broader and deeper information search and considering more differentiated and nuanced perspectives and alternatives, others engage in simpler and less comprehensive information processing when making decisions. While it seems intuitive to assume that CEOs' cognitive complexity should be beneficial for firms, collecting and processing a large amount of complex information can also complicate and delay decision‐making. Our results show that S&P 1500 CEOs who are more cognitively complex improve firm performance when their firms operate in more complex, stable, and resource‐rich environments but hurt firm performance when their firms operate in simpler, more dynamic, and resource‐constrained environments.
Purpose
In response, the purpose of this paper is to provide theoretical frameworks about the organizational uncertainty behind what and when to adopt blockchain technology and their implications on transaction costs. The immature nature and the absence of standards in blockchain technology lead to uncertainty in government organizations concerning the adoption (“what to adopt”) and the identification of the right time (“when to start”).
Design/methodology/approach
Using transaction cost theory and path dependency theory, this paper proposes two frameworks: to assess transaction cost risks and opportunities costs; and to depict four different types of transaction costs outcomes regarding blockchain adoption.
Findings
This paper identifies various theoretical concepts that influence blockchain adoption and combine the two critical constructs of “bounded rationality” and the “lock-in effect” to categorize the multiple transaction costs outcomes for blockchain adoption.
Research limitations/implications
Although existing research in blockchain highlights mainly the potential benefits of blockchain applications, only a little attention has been given to frameworks that categorize potential transaction costs outcomes under uncertainty, in particular from organizational theorists.
Originality/value
Both frameworks advance the understanding of the decision-making behind blockchain adoption and synthesize the current literature to offer conceptual clarity regarding the varied implications and outcomes linked to the uncertainty regarding transactions costs stemming from blockchain technology.
It is well known that manufacturing operations can affect the environment, but hardly any research explores whether the natural environment shapes manufacturing operations. Specifically, we investigate whether water scarcity, which results from environmental conditions, influences manufacturing firms to lower their toxic releases to the environment. We created a data set that spans 2000–2016 and includes details on the toxic emissions of 3,092 manufacturing facilities in Texas. Additionally, our data set includes measures of the water scarcity experienced by these facilities. Our econometric analysis shows that manufacturing facilities reduce their toxic releases into the environment when they have experienced drought conditions in the previous year. We examine facilities that release toxics to water as well as facilities with no toxic releases to water. We find that the reduction in total releases (to all media) is driven mainly by those facilities that release toxic chemicals to water. Further investigation at a more granular level indicates that water scarcity compels manufacturing facilities to lower their toxic releases into media other than water (i.e., land or air). The impact of water scarcity on toxic releases to water is more nuanced. A full-sample analysis fails to link water scarcity to lower toxic releases to water, but a further breakdown shows that manufacturing facilities in counties with a higher incidence of drought do lower their toxic releases to water. We also find that facilities that release toxics to water undertake more technical and input modifications to their manufacturing processes when they face water scarcity.
This paper was accepted by David Simchi-Levi, operations management.
Half a century after emerging as a leading theory in the then nascent field of organization theory, structural contingency theory seems to have disappeared from the scholarly stage. Have theoretical and methodological deficiencies predestined the theory to oblivion? Was it the lack of empirical support or practical application? Was the theory doomed by its failure to adapt to new conditions or was it rendered obsolete by the emergence of new theories with superior explanatory power? Or was the decline the result of the dispersion of its research community and the rise of strategy at the expense of organization theory? These questions and more are addressed in this paper as part of a “theoretical autopsy” seeking explanations for the theory’s decline or demise. Repercussions for current and emerging organization and management theories are delineated.
Research on firm search stresses the need for firms to adapt and align concurrently with their environment to optimize the ability to sense and seize opportunities for sustained performance. We postulate resource scarcity as an important contingency factor for the search-performance relationship, and assess its joint influence with high and low dynamism. Using a data-set spanning 23 years, we examine the performance implications of combinations of internal and external exploratory and exploitative search in resource-scarce environments, under conditions of high and low dynamism. We find that resource scarcity is an important condition for performance stemming from exploratory and exploitative search: even under conditions that involve low dynamism, but joined with resource scarcity, firms may benefit from pursuing exploratory and exploitative knowledge simultaneously.
این پژوهش بر مساله خویشاوندگرایی و به طور خاص بر رویه استخدام و مدیریت اعضای خانواده در شرکتهای خصوصی تمرکز دارد. تحقیق انجام شده نشان میدهد که خویشاوندگرایی در کنار مشکلات فراوان، مزایایی را نیز برای شرکتهای خصوصی به همراه دارد. در این مطالع هبرای توسعه یک چارچوب نظری برای توضیح نحوه تاثیر خویشاوندگرایی بر عملکرد شرکتی از دیدگاه ثروت اجتماعی-عاطفی استفاده شد. برای روشن شدن این موضوع که چرا بعضی از شرکتهای خصوصی بیش از دیگر شرکت¬ها به سراغ خویشاوندگرایی می روند، و همچنین، شناسایی شرایطی که اتخاذ این رویکرد برای شرکتهای خصوصی، مفید یا مضر است، از مفهوم ظریفی از ثروت اجتماعی- عاطفی استفاده شد. در نهایت، تاثیر رویههای منابع انسانیبر ارتباط متقابل بین خویشاوندگرایی، احتمالات یا اقتضاعات محیطی و عملکرد شرکتی بررسی می شود.
What do employees think when their organization’s change programme has led to a growth or reduction in the number of employees in their work unit or workgroup? While we take for granted that employees generally do not respond well to organizational initiatives that reduce the number of personnel, we are less certain about their response to organizational efforts that raise the number of personnel. Using the Australian Public Service Employee Census, containing over 24,600 responses, this research finds that employees’ exposure to a major organizational change that raises or reduces the number of personnel in their workgroup is related to two employee outcomes: (1) implementation of innovation-related change in their workgroup; and (2) optimism about the long-term benefits of the change on their workgroup’s performance. Innovation-related change also moderates the relationship between personnel-related change and optimism about the long-term benefits of change.
Points for practitioners
Employees who experience a reduction in the number of personnel in their workgroup may pursue innovation. When employees experience personnel growth in their workgroup, those who implement innovation report higher levels of optimism about organizational change than those who do not implement innovation. Finally, how well leaders manage the change process during personnel-related change can shape the employee implementation of innovation and optimism about organizational change.
Many public organizations are increasingly confronted with substantive and unpredictable reductions of financial resources. Despite growing research attention to this issue, empirical investigation of the organizational consequences of decline and turbulence has been limited. This article aims to understand the combined effects of decline and turbulence on personnel, one of the largest expenditure categories in organizations. Analyses use data from 2- and 4-year public institutions of higher education in the United States from 1988 to 2012. Findings in this context suggest that while decline alone has little to no effect on staffing, turbulence is associated with larger effects that are moderated by decline. Two-year institutions more closely resemble operational, efficiency-oriented responses to turbulence, and 4-year institutions reflect a more strategic reaction.
There are a large number of studies that have examined the diversification–performance and business group affiliation–performance relationships. However, very few have looked into the impact of macroeconomic environment on these relationships. In this paper, we examine under varied macroeconomic conditions, the impact of diversification, and business group affiliation on performance for firms. We argue that although diversification is influenced by macroeconomic parameters; the effect of business group affiliation is unchanged. Diversification results in superior performance during munificent macroeconomic environment while it has a negative impact on performance during scarce macroeconomic environment. In contrast, business group affiliation has positive impact on performance, irrespective of macroeconomic environment.
Academic entrepreneurship (AE) models have enhanced the ability of scholars to delineate elements and relationships that are consistent with entrepreneurial activities. However, previous research has not focused on the dynamic feedback loops within AE. Prior models have seldom included feedback obtained from interrupted or implemented activities integrated with individual, organizational, and strategic variables. This paper proposes a model of AE from the perspective of system dynamics that seeks to explore key features of this complex process within the boundaries of a spinoff company. To achieve this goal, we developed a framework that includes four main phases: recognition, commitment, credibility, and sustainability. The model examines and analyzes the key role of innovative academic entrepreneurship during each stage. Feedback loops provide the link between strategic assessment and entrepreneurial renewal according to which AE integrates entrepreneurial and strategic efforts. Combining various perspectives from the previous literature, the proposed model can be activated from any point during the process. By introducing a system dynamics context for the model, this research expands upon the thinking of prior AE research. In practical application, our proposed framework provides insights into the feedback loops and other complexities of the AE process that academic entrepreneurs can apply to support the transfer of innovations in science and technology from academia to commercial settings.
Is there a relationship between managerial discretion in munificent environments and the propensity to disclose an integrated reporting? Is this relationship contingent on the board of directors and investor protection?. For an international sample for 2006-2014, this paper supports for the assertion that managers are more able to extract superior perquisites when the level of accumulated cash holding is higher; that is, in munificent contexts. Because of the greater managerial discretion in these contexts, managers show a lower incentive to disclose voluntary information through an integrated report, which decreases the firm´s transparency. Nonetheless, the board of directors and the level of investor protection, as control mechanisms, play an active role in constraining managerial discretion and improving the firm´s transparency. The lower dissemination of integrated reporting in munificent contexts—where managerial discretion is greater—is moderated when the board is stronger and in countries with higher levels of investor protection.
The organizational environment is a focal element of multifaceted managerial decisions. Consequently, research has shown a long lasting and still growing interest in investigating the organizational environment and understanding its impact on a firm. Because it is widely assumed that the business environment will become more dynamic, changes in the organizational environment have drawn the particular attention of many scholars. While the extant research has established valuable knowledge, its fragmentation due to differing definitions and contradictory findings calls for a broad review to establish a foundation for future research. By analyzing 279 studies that have investigated different aspects of the organizational environment between 1958 and mid-2017, we contribute to various research streams that involve this environmental factor. We use a comprehensive research framework to categorize and review the previous work. In particular, we distinguish between studies that define or measure the organizational environment, as well as studies that investigate antecedents, outcomes, and moderating effects of the organizational environments. Among those categories, we discuss our findings, before subsequently synthesizing existing works and deriving an agenda for future research.
Perceived environmental uncertainty (PEU) is a foundational concept in organization studies. The PEU typologies used in organizational research were developed using private sector managers. But, do public sector managers perceive the same uncertainty sources? We asked public sector managers in Hong Kong to identify and group uncertainty sources facing their organizations. Multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis yielded classes of uncertainty sources that differ from those developed using private sector managers.
Business does not operate in vacuum. It operates in the ambit of environment. Organisation environment has been described as the aggregate of tangible and intangible factors that impact on the decision-making behaviours of individuals in the organisations (Duncan, 1972; Fahey & Narayanan, 1986; Frishammar, 2006; Rosenzweig & Singh, 1991)."These [organisations] systems change and reorganize their component parts to adapt themselves to the problems posed by their surroundings. This is the main reason the systems are difficult to understand and control. They constitute a 'moving target'. [Holland, 1992:18, emphasis added]
This paper focuses on the issue of nepotism or the practice of hiring and managing family members in family firms. Extant research suggests that while nepotism is related to numerous problems, it also offers some unique advantages to family owned firms. We use a socioemotional wealth (SEW) perspective to develop a theoretical framework that explains how nepotism influences firm performance. In doing so, we rely upon a nuanced conceptualization of SEW to clarify why some family firms are more likely to engage in nepotism than others, as well as explain the contingencies under which nepotism may prove beneficial or detrimental for family firms. Finally, we explore how human resource practices might impact the interplay between nepotism, environmental contingencies, and firm performance.
This study examines how nonprofits' external environments and organizational characteristics explain their likelihood of having written policies for good governance. Findings from the 2010 data of the National Center for Charitable Statistics show that state requirements for registration and annual reporting are not related to a nonprofit's likelihood of adopting such written policies. The results instead indicate that organizations that engage in lobbying activities and operate in metropolitan areas are more likely to have good governance standards. Most of all, the analysis shows that organizational resources, both financial and human, explain differences in the adoption of these policies. These findings suggest that the nonprofit community should collectively invest in building the infrastructure that helps smaller organizations develop good governance policies and, hence, stay competitive.
In diesem Beitrag werden ausgewählte, zentrale Ergebnisse eines umfangreichen empirischen Forschungsvorhabens vorgestellt, das am Lehrstuhl für Controlling und Telekommunikation, Stiftungslehrstuhl der Deutschen Telekom AG, an der WHU in den Jahren 1999 bis 2001 umgesetzt wurde.
Research in the information systems (IS) field has often been characterized as fragmented. This paper builds on a belief that for the field to move forward and have an impact on practitioners and other academic fields, the existing work must be examined and systematized. It is particularly important to systematize research on the factors that underlie success of organizational IS. The goal here is to conceptualize the IS success antecedents (ISSA) area of research through surveying, synthesizing, and explicating the work in the domain. Using a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods, a taxonomy of 12 general categories is created, and existing research within each category is examined. Important lacunae in the direction of work have been determined. It is found that little work has been conducted on the macro-level independent variables, the most difficult variables to assess, although these variables may be the most important to understanding the ultimate value of IS to organizations. Similarly, ISSA research on success variables of consequence to organizations was found severely lacking. Variable analysis research on organizational-level success variables was found to be literally nonexistent in the IS field, whereas research in the organizational studies field was found to provide useful directions for IS researchers. The specifics of the 12 taxonomy areas are analyzed and directions for research in each of them provided. Thus, researchers and practitioners are directed toward available research and receive suggestions for future work to bring ISSA research toward an organized and cohesive future.
Driven by concerns about negative reactions among employees, most firms have traditionally avoided reducing compensation in response to competitive pressures or labor market opportunities. Thus, recent moves by a number of firms to reduce compensation raises questions about why, increasingly, firms differ in their willingness to lower compensation in response to pressures and/or opportunities. Using organizational level delta obtained from over 400 human resource managers, this study examines determinants of efforts to reduce compensation-both in real and nominal terms. The results suggest that efforts to lower compensation are related to competitive pressures faced by the firm and to human resource policies and practices. These human resource policies and practices are thought to affect sensitivity to environmental change and the degree to which reductions generate incidental costs for the firm. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.
Exporting is a popular entry strategy into foreign markets, but many firms that could export do not. One barrier to effective exporting may be uncertainty about the foreign environment. This article examines the perceptions of export executives regarding the foreign environment and decision-making uncertainty and their effects on satisfaction and economic performance in the export channel. A mail survey was received from 118 firms involved with exporting agricultural commodities. The results suggest that firms perceive environmental uncertainty and decision-making uncertainty to be greater in export channels than in domestic channels and that these types of uncertainty affect satisfaction and performance. Specifically, environmental dynamism and decision-making uncertainty negatively influenced satisfaction and performance in the export channel, while environmental complexity positively influenced performance. Managerial implications are discussed.
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