European management: An emerging competitive advantage of European nations

This article extends the debate begun in the June 1992 issue of EMJ when the authors first criticized Michael Porter's explanatory framework in his Competitive Advantage of Nations (1990), over the role of national culture on the competitive advantage of nations. In this paper, Frans van den Bosch and Arno van Prooijen stress that Europe is a locus of competitive advantage if one is prepared to pay attention to the possibility of ‘European Management’ as a potential asset of European firms. In this connection, the transnationalization of European firms is of importance.     

Using management development for competitive advantage

Management development is a major strategic tool and should be integrated with business strategy to enhance organizational ability to compete in a complex and changing environment. The increasing internationalization of business and changing international organization structures make the development of the international manager a central task for management development. Putting management development at the heart of business strategy also enables the organization to build its collective international competence and to create the international learning organization essential for future global competition.     

Risk management: a competitive advantage in the purchasing function

This paper aims to explore the purchasing function on behalf of the provider, when the purchasing takes the form of a request for proposals (RfP) from the client. A methodology for handling the bidding process is presented, illustrated by a case study from the IT sector. The proposed methodology places risk as a factor for the selection of the best and final offer of the provider in addition to the traditional decision factors: delivery time, product cost and performance. The method is supported by a structured corporate memory and a decision support system based on the analytical hierarchy process.     

Innovating for competitive advantage: managerial risk-taking ability counterbalances management controls

Journal of Management and Governance - The study applies dynamic capability theory to investigate the combined impact of the two mediators management controls and managerial risk taking in the...     

Competition network as a source of competitive advantage: The dynamic capability perspective and evidence from China

The search for competitive advantage is the defining inquiry of strategic management research. In this study, we draw on the dynamic capability lens to develop a counterintuitive view that positions competitors of a firm as an important source of competitive advantage. We argue that a firm's competitors form a competition network from which it can collect information about innovative ideas, product market, and related industries. Such information helps it calibrate market opportunities, update the resource base, and, eventually, strengthen its competitive advantage. This positive effect of competition network on competitive advantage will reasonably be contingent upon the proactive information search by the firm. The empirical results based on the survey data of 631 Chinese firms strongly support our theoretical model. This study identifies another distinctive source of competitive advantage than industry context or organizational resources as well as advancing our understanding of competition network.     

Building competitive strength in international markets

For a number of years, many large American and European firms have expanded their operations to multiple, international locations and increased the number and types of products/services that are offered in these locales. For some, less than satisfactory performance has been achieved from these efforts. Problems associated with managing the diversity that results from expanding and enhancing product lines and services (brought about through implementation of a diversification strategy) and establishing international locations (called internationalization) may contribute to these performance difficulties. Use of particular structural forms to manage diversity has not succeeded. This paper proposes the development of competitive advantages that can be applied across diverse business units as a means to manage diversity more successfully in large, multinational corporations. These competitive advantages may be achieved in terms of product markets served, technologies used, the dominant logic of key managerial personnel and establishment of corporate level distinctive competencies that can be applied across all of the organization's business.     

Agroindustrialization in emerging markets: overview and strategic context

This article offers an overview for a special issue on agroindustrialization. It reviews eleven articles analyzing the agroindustrialization process in Latin America and Asia. It sets out a conceptual framework from the organizational economics and strategic management literature to enhance the understanding of the process of agroindustrialization from a competitive strategy point of view.     

The impact of supply chain management practices on competitive advantage and organizational performance

Effective supply chain management (SCM) has become a potentially valuable way of securing competitive advantage and improving organizational performance since competition is no longer between organizations, but among supply chains. This research conceptualizes and develops five dimensions of SCM practice (strategic supplier partnership, customer relationship, level of information sharing, quality of information sharing, and postponement) and tests the relationships between SCM practices, competitive advantage, and organizational performance. Data for the study were collected from 196 organizations and the relationships proposed in the framework were tested using structural equation modeling. The results indicate that higher levels of SCM practice can lead to enhanced competitive advantage and improved organizational performance. Also, competitive advantage can have a direct, positive impact on organizational performance.     

Factors influencing expatriate performance appraisal system success: an organizational perspective

This study examines the factors that influence the success of expatriate performance appraisal systems in U.S. multinationals, as perceived by the organizations. Results involving 94 firms suggest that clarifying performance expectations prior to the performance rating, the fairness of the performance appraisal system, and the incorporation of career development positively influence perceptions of expatriate performance appraisal system success. The frequency of evaluating expatriates performance approached significance and consideration of the local environment in the performance appraisal process was not a significant contributor to the perceived success of the system. Research and practical implications, as well as suggestions for future research, are discussed.     

Informal leadership support: an often overlooked competitive advantage

As environmental pressures mount, the advantage of using the same strategies and tactics employed by competitors continues to shrink. An alternative is adapting and applying answers successfully employed in other industries to health care organizations. Working with informal influence leaders to share your change management efforts represents one such example. Informal influence leaders offer an often-overlooked source of competitive advantage--they have already earned credibility and respect from others, who regularly look to them for guidance. When sharing their views, they significantly influence the acceptance or rejection of new initiatives. Influence leaders reach into every conversation, every meeting, and every decision made in an organization. The important question is whether they will exert their leadership in support or in opposition to changes you propose. By identifying influence leaders and inviting them to join a group to discuss change initiatives, physician executives can create a positive force for change.     

The competitive advantage: strategic thinking for physician leaders

Physician executives should manage their career strategies like a well-run company. Learn how to start thinking aout your career strategy.     

Transnational diaspora entrepreneurship in emerging markets: Bridging institutional divides

Transnational diasporan entrepreneurs are migrants and their descendants who establish entrepreneurial activities that span the national business environments of their countries of origin and countries of residence. We explore how business incubators contribute to the economic development of emerging markets by organizing their programs to bridge the institutional divides that transnational diaspora entrepreneurs face when establishing their multi-territorial ventures in these markets. Drawing on qualitative fieldwork conducted in the Netherlands during 2007, we present the case study of IntEnt, an incubator providing services exclusively to transnational diasporan entrepreneurs. We apply Bergek and Norrman's (2008) assessment framework to this case, examining IntEnt's goals, model (selection, business support, and mediation activities), and outcomes. Employing Eisenhardt's case-based theory development approach (1989), we then leverage case findings to generate theory about the institutional challenges faced by transnational diaspora entrepreneurs and the role that incubators can play in helping these entrepreneurs overcome these challenges.     

日本在华跨国公司竞争地位与竞争优势研究

将国际生产折衷理论应用于跨国公司竞争优势的分析,从专属优势、区位因素、内部化优势的角度,分析日本在华跨国公司取得有利竞争地位的决定因素.基于对230家日本在华投资母公司的应答问卷分析,得出:日本在华跨国公司竞争优势主要来自于专属优势以及部分区位因素,而内部化优势与竞争优势的关系并不显著.     

Compliance and ethics programs: competitive advantage through the law

This paper aims to address whether deploying compliance and ethics programs will assist US organizations in implementing the internal mechanisms necessary to achieve a competitive advantage from the law. My focus will be on the US legal system, as the corporate compliance and ethics programs examined are based on mitigation provisions contained in the US Federal Sentencing Guidelines. In particular, I propose that organizations can attain a sustainable competitive advantage from the law by considering the following questions: Do compliance and ethics programs assist organizations in achieving a better understanding of the law? Are compliance and ethics programs a cost-effective approach for coping with an organization’s legal issues? Can compliance and ethics programs aid organizations by preventing these legal issues from occurring in the future? Will compliance and ethics programs support organizations in reframing legal issues as business opportunities?     

A managerial interfaces perspective for competitive action research

Current theory acknowledges the central role of top managers in shaping the firm's overall pattern of competitive activity. But it gives short shrift to the multifaceted processes by which diverse participants affect the strategic work of analyzing, formulating, and implementing competitive actions. We propose managerial interfaces as a complementary perspective – one where interfaces among top managers, relevant stakeholders, and other strategic contributors both enable and constrain that strategic work. We advance propositions regarding how different properties of managerial interfaces give rise to specific competitive action patterns. We conclude with a range of implications for theory and directions for future research.     

The impact of emerging markets on staffing the global organization:: A knowledge-based view

As organizations become more global in their strategic orientation, the need for developing global managers becomes imperative. One of the distinguishing features of global organizations is to effectively manage global operations in a consistent manner but at the same time allow flexibility at the country level to effectively compete. Acquisition and sharing of tacit social knowledge necessary to work globally but with a contextual understanding of local markets require a unique set of management skills. The process of inpatriating host and third country nationals into the home country organization appears to hold significant potential in developing a pool of future global managers. This article presents a theoretical perspective to analyze the contextual factors influencing the staffing choice when to utilize expatriate and inpatriate managers in global organizations.     

The management accountant's role in quality management: A Queensland perspective

The successful implementation of quality management (QM) requires a change in both an organization's culture and structure. Consequently, as management accountants are organizational members their roles and systems will need to change to provide support for this QM implementation. This study found that although the majority of management accountants are involved in the implementation of quality concepts into the accounting area of the firm, there has been little modification of cost determination methods and limited development and use of quality related performance measures. Nevertheless, the overall results of this research imply that the role of the management accountant has altered due to the implementation of QM practices, but not to the degree indicated in the literature.