A future for the corporate planner?

Although not initiated by the event, it seems appropriate that this article is written on the tenth anniversary of the founding of The Society for Long Range Planning. It is entirely coincidental that Ansoff's book ‘Corporate Strategy’, which has evolved into the standard work on corporate planning, also appeared about a decade ago. This fortuitous coincidence has been further emphasized by the recent publication of another book from the same authority which introduces an entirely new factor into the future prospects for corporate planners. An attempt is made here to assess its implications.     

Sustainability in the Construction Business — A Case Study

Skanska is among the world's five largest construction companies, with construction-related activities and project development operations in some 60 countries. A strategic approach to environment was adopted in 1995. In 1998 a decision was made to introduce certified environmental management systems. The drivers behind these steps were pressures from the market, future legislation and public opinion.By the end of 2000, all business units of Skanska had environmental management systems certified according to ISO 14001. Newly acquired companies are required to have certified systems within two years after acquisition. While environmental management systems provide the necessary framework, more technical tools are also needed. Some examples of such tools are presented in this article.ISO 14001 is an important element in focusing the attention of the organization on environmental issues, but for leadership in environment, a number of guiding principles are also presented and discussed.Finally, corporate social responsibility (CSR) can be seen as a framework for all types of issues where a company is regarded as having certain obligations toward society at large, because of direct or indirect effects from its business operations. It is only logical that Skanska, following its work with ISO 14001 and the move toward leadership in environment, now has decided to develop a CSR platform.     

Inter-organizational relationships involving SMEs: A bibliographic investigation into the state of the art

The theme of inter-organizational relationships involving SMEs (SME IORs) has generated a relevant body of knowledge that has not been systematized yet. This article carries out a systematic literature review on SME IORs using bibliometric techniques, aiming to provide an overview of the main subfields of research and to identify promising paths for future research that can contribute to develop a more comprehensive body of knowledge around SME IORs.Four factors of thematically connected research emerge, which represents the main subfields of inquiry within the field of SME IORs. Insights regarding the content of these topics, the different theoretical foundations of the literature on SME IORs, and potential paths for future research are discussed.     

A systematic review of executive coaching outcomes: Is it the journey or the destination that matters the most?

In this article, we focus on a specific type of personal and professional development practice -executive coaching- and present the most extensive systematic review of executive coaching outcome studies published in peer-reviewed scholarly journals to date. We focus only on coaching provided by external coaches to organizational members. Our purpose is twofold: First, to present and evaluate how executive coaching outcome studies are designed and researched (particularly regarding methodological rigor and context-sensitivity). Secondly, to provide a comprehensive review of what we know about executive coaching outcomes, what are the contextual drivers that affect coaching interventions and what the current gaps in our understanding of coaching practice. On that basis, we discuss and provide a research agenda that might significantly shift the field. We argue that methodological rigor is as important as context-sensitivity in the design of executive coaching outcome studies. We conclude with a discussion of implications for practice.     

Is the scheduling task context-dependent? A survey investigating the presence of constraints in different manufacturing contexts

Abstract

Most studies regarding real scheduling constraints only consider the constraints related to the specific manufacturing environment studied, limiting the possibility of drawing general conclusions. A survey of 50 companies was conducted in order to discover which constraints were present and what their relationship was with the scheduling context. This paper investigates which practical scheduling constraints are present in the manufacturing industry and whether the scheduling task is context-dependent. Results of this study show that some practical production constraints are context-dependent.     

A meso measure? Examination of the levels of analysis of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ)

Critical review of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire, Form 5X (MLQ5X), reveals serious problems related to specification of the theoretical level of analysis at which it measures its underlying constructs. Data from two separate samples indicate that items of the commonly used MLQ5X are ambiguous with respect to level of analysis. It appears unclear in many instances whether the items reflect individual, group, or organizational referents. Based upon our analyses and the literature, we present specific propositions concerning the level(s) at which each MLQ5X dimension appears most appropriately conceptualized and measured, along with suggestions for future research and revision of the MLQ5X.     

Jurassic Union Man? A Profile of the British Trade Union Member

This paper examines the determinants of trade union membership in Great Britain utilising micro-data taken from the British Social Attitudes Survey over the period 1985–91. Our results suggest that, contrary to previous micro-studies, personal characteristics and the perceptions of workers' attitudes as regards their working environment impact significantly upon the decision to join a trade union. Moreover, it would appear that the union membership decision is becoming increasingly endogenised, especially in the case of the white-collar worker.     

Values and Their Change During the Business Education – A Gender Perspective

Modern management and organization theory have been criticized for being based on masculine values and concepts. The theory and associated values influence not only managerial behavior in practice, but also business education's value system. In this study, we analyze the change in values during business education from a gender perspective. By values we mean feminine and masculine values. Our empirical study is based on the literature of cultural values and gender socialization theories. We surveyed 324 students. The result of our study lends support to earlier research: men are more masculine and women more feminine in their values. The change towards masculinity during business education is not supported statistically in this study. However, there may be a weak tendency towards masculinity, especially among female students. In addition, we propose that it is possible that business students have a tendency to try to fulfil masculine needs in their occupational choice. Further research is needed to investigate the empirical findings of our study. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Part-Time Work in the Nordic Countries: A Trap for Women?

Abstract. The aim of the study is to examine the consequences of part-time employment at the individual level, especially for women. Are part-time jobs precarious as compared to full-time jobs, and are they traps, or perhaps rather bridges, in the labour market? The results indicate that the situation of part-timers varies in the Nordic countries. On one hand, the gap between part-time and full-time work has narrowed in Sweden and Norway, which may reflect a normalization of part-time work in these countries. On the other, part-timers' situation in the Finnish labour market still seems more precarious than that of full-timers. However, in most cases part-time work is a bridge rather than a trap in the Nordic labour market.     

A hybrid beam search looking-ahead algorithm for the circular packing problem

In this paper, we study the circular packing problem. Its objective is to pack a set of n circular pieces into a rectangular plate R of fixed dimensions L×W. Each piece’s type i, i=1,…,m, is characterized by its radius r _i and its demand b _i . The objective is to determine the packing pattern corresponding to the minimum unused area of R for the circular pieces placed. This problem is solved by using a hybrid algorithm that adopts beam search and a looking-ahead strategy. A node at a level ℓ of the beam-search tree contains a partial solution corresponding to the circles already placed inside R. Each node is then evaluated using a looking-ahead strategy, based on the minimum local-distance heuristic, by computing the corresponding complete solution. The nodes leading to the best solutions at level ℓ are then chosen for branching. A multi-start strategy is also considered in order to diversify the search space. The computational results show, on a set of benchmark instances, the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.     

A 6.55 factor primal-dual approximation algorithm for the connected facility location problem

In the connected facility location (ConFL) problem, we are given a graph G=(V,E) with nonnegative edge cost c _e on the edges, a set of facilities ??V, a set of demands (i.e., clients) $\mathcal{D}\subseteq VIn the connected facility location (ConFL) problem, we are given a graph G=(V,E) with nonnegative edge cost c _e on the edges, a set of facilities ℱ⊆V, a set of demands (i.e., clients) D í V\mathcal{D}\subseteq V , and a parameter M≥1. Each facility i has a nonnegative opening cost f _i and each client j has d _j units of demand. Our objective is to open some facilities, say F⊆ℱ, assign each demand j to some open facility i(j)∈F and connect all open facilities using a Steiner tree T such that the total cost, which is ?_{i ? F}f_i+?_{j ? D}d_jc_i(j)j+M?_{e ? T}c_e\sum_{i\in F}f_{i}+\sum_{j\in \mathcal{D}}d_{j}c_{i(j)j}+M\sum_{e\in T}c_{e} , is minimized. We present a primal-dual 6.55-approximation algorithm for the ConFL problem which improves the previous primal-dual 8.55-approximation algorithm given by Swamy and Kumar (Algorithmica 40:245–269, 2004).     

External resource provision and the international performance of SMEs – A contextual analysis

This paper investigates whether different categories of links (core and discretionary) to external resource providers are associated with the international performance of SMEs, as well as the perceived importance of external links for providing specific forms of assistance toward internationalization. A study of 180 internationally active SMEs examines whether these features vary according to the SMEs' contexts, specifically their industry and level of home economy development. The relevance of these two contexts is theoretically informed by resource dependence, environmental munificence and institutional perspectives. SME decision-makers' attribution of importance to discretionary external links predicts stronger international performance, but this is not the case with core market transactional links. Different external parties emerge as important sources of specific forms of assistance toward internationalization. Many of these results are associated with the SME's industry and home economy context. The paper concludes with a new contextually-informed model of SME egocentric networking and implications for practice.     

Measuring the logistics performance of internal hospital supply chains – A literature study

The patient care processes in hospitals are supported by a range of operational activities including inventory management and distribution of supplies to point-of-care locations. Hospitals carry large amounts and a great variety of items, and the issues of storing and distributing these items throughout the hospital supply chain are of great importance to providing high-quality patient service. Healthcare logistics encompasses the process of handling physical goods (e.g. pharmaceuticals, surgical medical products, medical equipment, sterile items, linen, food, etc.) and the associated information flows, from the reception of the goods within a hospital to their delivery at patient care locations. The medical supply costs constitute the second largest expenditure in hospitals, after personnel costs. A high-performing supply chain may realize improved outcomes (e.g. safe and quality patient service) and greater efficiency. Logistics managers need to identify opportunities to improve the logistics processes in order to lower costs and to improve patient care quality. However, in order to improve the logistics processes, you must understand how the healthcare supply chain is currently performing. Measuring the performance of the supply chain is fundamental to identify and address deficiencies in the logistics activities, and it serves as a good input for managerial decision-making. The purpose of this article is to present existing research on performance measurement at the internal hospital supply chain (e.g. inventory management, distribution activities), and more specifically in the operating theatre since it is among the most critical resources for a hospital. At the operating theatre, the requested items should be available at the right time at the right place, in the right condition, at the lowest cost possible. Furthermore, we will also discuss literature on multi-criteria decision-making techniques. It enables researchers to build a performance measurement framework and to prioritize between multiple performance indicators since a diverse group of stakeholders with conflicting interests is involved in the internal operating room supply chain.     

Evaluating the dynamic performances of business groups from the carry-over perspective: A case study of Taiwan׳s semiconductor industry

This study evaluates the dynamic operating performances of Taiwan׳s semiconductor industry from 2006 to 2012 by using the dynamic DEA, a technique based on the perspective of inter-period carry-over in accounting. The industry׳s various characteristics are investigated to determine their relationships to the semiconductor industry׳s efficiency. The following empirical results are found: companies within a business group are more efficient on average than ones under a non-business group; while integrated circuit (IC) design companies are more efficient than others, companies with high level scopes generally operate better than those with low level scopes. The potential applications and strengths of using DEA to assess the semiconductor industry are also highlighted.     

A Swiss‐Army Knife? A Critical Assessment of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in Ghana

Within the current global atmosphere where a universally accepted police force is nonexistent, there are several voluntary norms and codes of conduct that exist to guide how corporations behave worldwide. These have come as a result of many years of poor performance in the areas of social, financial, and environmental responsibility. Such norms are expected to prescribe and proscribe certain types of corporate behavior but when one examines the reality on the ground, the story is not that straightforward. This article assesses the effectiveness of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in the Ghanaian context with a focus on the mining sector. Based on primary qualitative data the argument is that even though the EITI is performing some function, it has ways to go before it can become an across‐the‐board viable tool for transparency and proper accountability. Five prevailing weaknesses are discussed to underscore this case.     

A Hybrid Genetic—GRASP Algorithm Using Lagrangean Relaxation for the Traveling Salesman Problem

Hybridization techniques are very effective for the solution of combinatorial optimization problems. This paper presents a genetic algorithm based on Expanding Neighborhood Search technique (Marinakis, Migdalas, and Pardalos, Computational Optimization and Applications, 2004) for the solution of the traveling salesman problem: The initial population of the algorithm is created not entirely at random but rather using a modified version of the Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure. Farther more a stopping criterion based on Lagrangean Relaxation is proposed. The combination of these different techniques produces high quality solutions. The proposed algorithm was tested on numerous benchmark problems from TSPLIB with very satisfactory results. Comparisons with the algorithms of the DIMACS Implementation Challenge are also presented.     

What explains variation in voluntary disclosure? A study of the annual reports of corporations listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange

The demand for information and transparency from listed corporations has recently increased. In spite of an increased demand for mandatory disclosures from regulators, corporations choose to voluntarily disclose additional information in order to satisfy demands from the capital market. However, the extent and content of information in those voluntary disclosures vary across corporations. The aim of this study is to explain the variation in the content of information in voluntary disclosures by listed corporations. The analyses are based on data collected from 431 annual reports from corporations listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange during the years 2002 and 2005. The findings support explanations from agency theory and positive accounting theory that size and the debt ratio are positively correlated with the content of information in voluntary disclosures. Corporations with a high share of management ownership disclosed less information than corporations with a low share of management ownership. The study also shows that variations in voluntary disclosures can be explained by factors derived from institutional theory and ‘international capital market pressures’. The results indicate that foreign ownership and international listing to some extent have a positive effect on the content of information in voluntary disclosures. Industry was another factor that had a significant influence on voluntary disclosures. One important finding is that regulation to some extent can stimulate voluntary disclosures; our results did not indicate an ‘unintended chilling effect’ due to too much regulation. In general, the corporations disclosed more voluntary information after the introduction of IFRS.