Suchergebnisse

Purpose
This paper aims to propose an integrative framework that enables the mapping of firm activities along two dimensions of responsible business behavior: a width and a depth dimension. Width includes associative, peripheral, operational and embedded responsibility. In terms of depth, we identify delinquent, neutral, nascent, enhanced and advanced levels of responsibility.


Design/methodology/approach
The responsibility matrix is developed by drawing on the literature and the ambition to provide a more nuanced map of a firm's activities and its contributions toward the sustainable development goals (SDGs).


Findings
The matrix enables the classification of firm activities into different functional categories based on how they relate to a firm's business model. Further, the meaningfulness of each activity can be identified by determining its depth.


Research limitations/implications
Mapping all the relevant activities of a multinational firm onto the responsibility matrix enables managers and policymakers to identify areas where transformation is most needed. Further, multinational firms can use the matrix to map the activities of their value chain partners and design more effective standards and interventions.


Practical implications
The business responsibility matrix represents a diagnostic tool that enables the detailed mapping of firm capabilities and the identification of areas where further capacity building is necessary and where pockets of excellence exist.


Social implications
The responsibility matrix offers a benchmarking tool for progress that can be used in conjunction with existing guidelines and initiatives such as the United Nations (UN) Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the UN Global Compact and the Global Reporting Initiative.


Originality/value
The responsibility matrix acknowledges that firms can engage with the SDGs through different types of activity (width dimension). Simultaneously, it recognizes that activities in the same category can have varying levels of effectiveness (depth dimension).

AbstractThe existing literature on global value chains (GVCs) suggests that functional upgrading is a key determinant of whether suppliers are able to capture higher profits in GVCs. However, it is unclear whether the same argument holds for disadvantaged suppliers who face high barriers to achieving functional upgrading. Through a review of existing empirical studies, the present paper aims to explore how disadvantaged suppliers in developing countries increase their profits in the face of barriers to functional upgrading. The findings from the literature analysis suggest that the ability of disadvantaged suppliers to benefit from GVC participation depends on the extent of their managerial agency and their ability to leverage multiple upgrading/downgrading trajectories (whether product, process, or functional) and transform them into profitable outcomes. Copyright © 2017 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

AbstractNews on merger and acquisition (M&A) activities frequently dominate the popular business press. While the announcement of an M&A usually elicits enthusiasm in the business community, it also results in increased levels of uncertainty, stress, and anxiety for employees. Based on a qualitative analysis of four international M&A cases, this paper integrates emotions and communication during mergers and acquisitions in a conceptual framework. We argue that management communication and information flows during all stages of an M&A process represent affective events, which in a cognitive appraisal process trigger positive and negative emotions. These in turn may influence employee attitudes, behaviour, and performance, and ultimately also M&A success. Copyright © 2016 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This paper contributes to theory building efforts around the concept of knowledge connectivity and its relevance in buyer-supplier relationships in global value chains. We use the Pakistani IT industry as our study context. Pakistan suffered a significant adverse perception bias following terror attacks in 2008-09. We based our illustration on the experiences of 12 Pakistani offshore service providers (OSPs) who succeeded in offsetting the negative implications of the country's adverse political environment. The case firms link into two distinct value chain configurations. In each configuration, we observe a distinct course of strategic action, which we term step-up and break-out, respectively. While these observations emerged from the Pakistani context, the implications of the resulting dynamic framework for theory and practice go beyond this particular adverse country setting.

This paper contributes to theory building efforts around the concept of knowledge connectivity and its relevance in buyer-supplier relationships in global value chains. We use the Pakistani IT industry as our study context. Pakistan suffered a significant adverse perception bias following terror attacks in 2008-09. We based our illustration on the experiences of 12 Pakistani offshore service providers (OSPs) who succeeded in offsetting the negative implications of the country's adverse political environment. The case firms link into two distinct value chain configurations. In each configuration, we observe a distinct course of strategic action, which we term step-up and break-out, respectively. While these observations emerged from the Pakistani context, the implications of the resulting dynamic framework for theory and practice go beyond this particular adverse country setting.