Politics and Power within Multinational Corporations: Mainstream Studies,Emerging Critical Approaches and Suggestions for Future Research

Given the increased public interest in the use and misuse of power in multinationals in the aftermath of the financial crisis, it is notable that power relations in multinational corporations (MNCs) have not gained enhanced attention in the academic community. What is missing so far in the study of MNCs is a systematic examination of how power and politics within MNCs have been addressed in mainstream international business (IB) and sociological research studying the MNC. This paper starts by critically reviewing these two mainstream approaches in the study of MNCs as organizations and seeking to understand the shortcomings of former research. Next, it reviews new emergent critical perspectives, which the authors call socio‐political studies of MNCs, where power and politics are addressed not just more prominently, but also differently, from a more bottom‐up and actor‐centred perspective. After reviewing this emergent stream of research, the authors propose that future studies should take a more micro‐political perspective and focus in more detail on the micro‐foundations of power relations. In the concluding section, the authors show how future studies of MNCs can learn from both critical interactionist and discursive theories when analysing organizational politics and power relations. A framework is proposed for the study of micro‐level political game‐playing in MNCs, based on a three‐dimensional framework for organizational power (episodic, rules of the game and domination), and some key research questions for future studies are suggested.     

Analyzing the Efficient Execution of In‐Store Logistics Processes in Grocery Retailing—The Case of Dairy Products

In this article, we examine in‐store logistics processes for handling dairy products, from the incoming dock to the shelves of supermarkets and hypermarkets. The efficient execution of the in‐store logistics related to such fast‐moving, sensitive, and essential items is challenging and crucial for grocery retailers' sales, profits, and image. In our empirical study, we survey in‐store logistics processes in 202 grocery supermarkets and hypermarkets belonging to a major retail chain in central Europe. Using a data envelopment analysis (DEA) and simulation, we facilitate process benchmarking. In particular, we identify ways of improving in‐store logistics processes by showing the performance impacts of different managerial strategies and tactics. The DEA results indicate different efficiency levels for different store formats; the hybrid store format of the small hypermarket exhibits a comparatively worse performance in the analyzed execution of in‐store logistics processes. The process simulation analysis reveals that the strategic and tactical design of in‐store logistics processes (such as store locations/layouts, capacity management, reorder time, order period, and safety stock factors) lead to substantial service performance improvements (such as higher on‐shelf availability combined with reduced inventory obsolescence costs). The results also show marginal improvements in the performance figures when delivery delays and damage to products are reduced.     

Entrepreneurship theories of the non-profit sector

This article summarises the main results of entrepreneurship theories of the non-profit sector and discusses the impact they may have on theory development and on the real world non-profit sector. It is pointed out that the entrepreneurship approach advances our knowledge of the non-profit sector, especially by stressing the supply-side aspect and by focusing on the preferences individuals must have in order to engage in non-profit activities. There is empirical evidence consistent with entrepreneurship theories. Yet most observations do not exclusively support entrepreneurship theories but also provide evidence consistent with other economic theories of the non-profit sector. This illustrates that the various economic theories of the non-profit sector are more complements than substitutes. Furthermore, entrepreneurship theories indirectly help to improve the image non-profit organisations have in the real world; therefore they play a prominent role in teaching programmes which have been established to train non-profit managers. The author gratefully acknowledges the comments of the participants of theVoluntas Symposium at Yale University, especially the comments made by Estelle James, James Ferris and Dennis Young.     

Public Distrust and Hazard Management Success at the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant

Based on experience gained while serving a public oversight commission appointed by the governor of Colorado, hazard management at the Department of Energy's Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant is reviewed. Specific reference is made to the plant's history of controversy, its defense-in-depth strategy of hazard control, occupational health issues, public exposure to plutonium, and the assessment of low-probability, high-consequence risks. This leads to the conclusion that Rocky Flats is, by any objective standard, a hazard management success. It follows that public distrust of Rocky Flats arises as much from fear and loathing of nuclear weapons themselves as from the manufacturing process by which they are made.     

A Meta Analytic Approach to Testing for Panel Cointegration

We propose new tests for panel cointegration by extending the panel unit root tests of Choi (2001 Choi , I. ( 2001 ). Unit root tests for panel data . Journal of International Money and Finance 20 ( 2 ): 249 – 272 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and Maddala and Wu (1999 Maddala , G. , Wu , S. ( 1999 ). A comparative study of unit root tests with panel data and a new simple test . Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics 61 ( S1 ): 631 – 652 .[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) to the panel cointegration case. The tests are flexible, intuitively appealing, and relatively easy to compute. We investigate the finite sample behavior in a simulation study. Several variants of the tests compare favorably in terms of both size and power with other widely used panel cointegration tests.     

Rush and Be Wrong or Wait and Be Late? A Model of Information in Collaborative Processes

Business processes have become more simultaneous and collaborative in the recent past. In simultaneous processes, multiple parties must adapt to one another in real time as decisions evolve. For example, New Product Development (NPD) requires collaboration in the context of Concurrent Engineering, and Supply Chain Management (SCM) in the context of collaborative planning. In both cases, parties must modify decisions based on preliminary information, information that is not fully precise or stable, about what the other parties are doing. This article develops a generalized model of real‐time decision making based on preliminary information, which applies both to NPD and SCM. The model offers insights into when to commit to a course of action, and we derive seven principles that help in dealing with preliminary information.