Who is the corporate entrepreneur? Insights from opportunity discovery and Creation Theory

Recent research has begun to address and even compare nascent entrepreneurship and nascent corporate entrepreneurship. An opportunity based view holds great potential to integrate both streams of research, but also presents challenges in how we define corporate entrepreneurship. We extend (corporate) entrepreneurship literature to the opportunity identification phase by providing a framework to classify different types of corporate entrepreneurship. Through analysis of a large dataset on nascent (corporate) entrepreneurship (PSEDII) we show that these corporate entrepreneurs differ largely from each other in terms of human capital. Prior studies have indicated that independent and corporate entrepreneurs pursue different types of opportunities and utilize different strategies. Our findings from the opportunity identification phase challenge those differences and seem to indicate a difference between the opportunities corporate entrepreneurs identify versus the opportunities they exploit.

The concealed difficulties of aligning CRE decisions to corporate goals

Realisation of the importance of real estate asset strategic decision making has inspired a burgeoning corporate real estate management (CREM) literature. Much of this criticises the poor alignment between strategic business direction and the ‘enabling’ physical environment. This is based on the understanding that corporate real estate assets represent the physical resource base that supports business, and can either complement or impede that business. In the hope of resolving this problem, CRE authors advocate a deeper integration of strategic and corporate real estate decisions. However this recommendation appears to be based on a relatively simplistic theoretical approach to organization where decision-making tends to be viewed as a rationally managed event rather than a complex process. Defining decision making as an isolated event has led to an uncritical acceptance of two basic assumptions: ubiquitous, conflict-free rationality and profit maximisation. These assumptions have encouraged prescriptive solutions that clearly lack the sophistication necessary to come to grips with the complexity of the built and organizational environment. Alternatively, approaching CREM decision making from a more sophisticated perspective, such as that of the “Carnegie School”, leads to conceptualise it as a ‘process’, creating room for bounded rationality, multiple goals, intra-organizational conflict, environmental matching, uncertainty avoidance and problem searching. It is reasonable to expect that such an approach will result in a better understanding of the organizational context, which will facilitate the creation of organizational objectives, assist with the formation of strategies, and ultimately will aid decision.

Integrated Acquisition Engineering Model for acquiring heavy engineering assets

In asset intensive industries such as mining, oil & gas, utilities etc. most of the capital expenditure happens on acquiring engineering assets. Process of acquiring assets is called as “Procurement” or “Acquisition”. An asset procurement decision should be taken in consideration with the installation, commissioning, operational, maintenance and disposal needs of an asset or spare. However, such cross-functional collaboration and communication does not appear to happen between engineering, maintenance, warehousing and procurement functions in many asset intensive industries. Acquisition planning and execution are two distinct parts of asset acquisition process. Acquisition planning or procurement planning is responsible for determining exactly what is required to be purchased. It is important that an asset acquisition decision is the result of cross-functional decision making process. An acquisition decision leads to a formal purchase order. Most costly asset decisions occur even before they are acquired. Therefore, acquisition decision should be an outcome of an integrated planning & decision making process. Asset intensive organizations both, Government and non Government in Australia spent AUD 102.5 Billion on asset acquisition in year 2008-09. There is widespread evidence of many assets and spare not being used or utilized and in the end are written off. This clearly shows that many organizations end up buying assets or spares which were not required or non-conforming to the needs of user functions. It is due the fact that strategic and software driven procurement process do not consider all the requirements from various functions within the organization which contribute to the operation and maintenance of the asset over its life cycle. There is a lot of research done on how to implement an effective procurement process. There are numerous software solutions available for executing a procurement process. However, not much research is done on how to arrive at a cross functional procurement planning process. It is also important to link procurement planning process to procurement execution process. This research will discuss ““Acquisition Engineering Model” (AEM) framework, which aims at assisting acquisition decision making based on various criteria to satisfy cross-functional organizational requirements. Acquisition Engineering Model (AEM) will consider inputs from corporate asset management strategy, production management, maintenance management, warehousing, finance and HSE. Therefore, it is essential that the multi-criteria driven acquisition planning process is carried out and its output is fed to the asset acquisition (procurement execution) process. An effective procurement decision making framework to perform acquisition planning which considers various functional criteria will be discussed in this paper.

Re-conceiving the good life : the key to sustainable globalisation

Resource-intensive, high-carbon, Western lifestyles are frequently criticised as unsustainable and deeply unsatisfying. However, these lifestyles are still attractive to the majority of Westerners and to a high proportion of the developing world’s middle classes. This paper argues that the imminent threat of catastrophic climate change constitutes an immediate political, economic and ethical challenge for citizens of the developed world that cannot be tackled by appeals to asceticism or restraint. There can be no solution to climate change until sustainable conceptions of the good life are developed that those in the west want to live and which others might want to live. While the ultimate solution to climate change is the development of low carbon lifestyles, it is important that government initiatives, governance arrangements and economic incentives support rather than undermine that search. Like the global financial crisis, the climate change crisis also demonstrates what happens when weaknesses in national, corporate and professional governance are exacerbated by weaknesses in global governance. In tackling the latter, it is critical the mistakes now evidenced in the former are avoided – including a rethinking of carbon market and carbon tax alternatives. It is also critical that individuals must take responsibility for their actions as consumers, voters and investors.

Diffusion of corporate governance practices : the Dutch response to pressures for shareholder value

As part of a larger literature focused on identifying and relating the antecedents and consequences of diffusing organizational practices/ideas, recent research has debated the international adoption of a shareholder-value-orientation (SVO). The debate has financial economists characterizing the adoption of an SVO as performance-enhancing and thus inevitable, with behavioral scientists disputing both claims, invoking institutional differences. This study seeks to provide some resolution to the debate (and advance current understanding on the diffusion of practices/ideas) by developing a socio-political perspective that links the antecedents and consequences of an SVO. In particular, we introduce the notion of misaligned elites and misfitted practices in our analysis of how and why differences in the technical and cultural preferences of major owners will influence a firm’s adoption and (un)successful implementation of an SVO among the largest 100 corporations in the Netherlands from 1992-2006. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of our perspective and our findings for future research on corporate governance and the diffusion of organizational practices/ideas.

Omissions, causation and responsibility

In this paper I discuss a recent exchange of articles between Hugh McLachlan and John Coggon on the relationship between omissions, causation and moral responsibility. My aim is to contribute to their debate by isolating a presupposition I believe they both share, and by questioning that presupposition. The presupposition is that, at any given moment, there are countless things that I am omitting to do. This leads them both to give a distorted account of the relationship between causation and moral or (as the case may be) legal responsibility, and, in the case of Coggon, to claim that the law’s conception of causation is a fiction based on policy. Once it is seen that this presupposition is faulty, we can attain a more accurate view of the logical relationship between causation and moral responsibility in the case of omissions. This is important because it will enable us, in turn, to understand why the law continues to regard omissions as different, both logically and morally, from acts, and why the law seeks to track that logical and moral difference in the legal distinction it draws between withholding life-sustaining measures and euthanasia.

Reconceiving the good life : the key to sustainable globalisation

Resource-intensive, high-carbon, Western lifestyles are frequently criticised as unsustainable and deeply unsatisfying. However, these lifestyles are still attractive to the majority of Westerners and to a high proportion of the developing world’s middle classes. This paper argues that the imminent threat of catastrophic climate change constitutes an immediate political, economic and ethical challenge for citizens of the developed world that cannot be tackled by appeals to asceticism or restraint. There can be no solution to climate change until sustainable conceptions of the good life are developed that those in the west want to live and which others might want to live. While the ultimate solution to climate change is the development of low carbon lifestyles, it is important that government initiatives, governance arrangements and economic incentives support rather than undermine that search. Like the global financial crisis, the climate change crisis also demonstrates what happens when weaknesses in national, corporate and professional governance are exacerbated by weaknesses in global governance. In tackling the latter, it is critical the mistakes now evidenced in the former are avoided – including a rethinking of carbon market and carbon tax alternatives. It is also critical that individuals must take responsibility for their actions as consumers, voters and investors.

A discussion of Fashion Victims: Various responses to the report by War on Want, Critical Perspectives on International Business, Vol. 3 Iss: 2, pp.170 - 185

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a selection of responses to the report Fashion Victims, published by War on Want in December 2006. It offers a range of viewpoints presented by members of the Editorial Advisory Board of CPOIB. These are presented in chronological order of submission. There is some cross-reference by contributors to the work of others, but no attempt is made to present a unified argument. Design/methodology/approach – Presents the full contributions of involved participants, without mediation or editorial change. Findings – A number of different perspectives are presented on the central issue that is summarised by the opening heading in War on Want’s report – “How cheap is too cheap?” It is seen that the answer to this question is very much dependent upon the standpoint of the respondent. Originality/value – In presenting this form of commentary, members of the CPOIB Editorial Board seek to stimulate debate about an issue of concern to contemporary society, without resort to the time delay and mediating processes of peer-review normally attached to academic writing. It is hoped that this discussion will provoke further contributions and a widening of the debate. Keywords Corporate social responsibility, Multinational companies, Conditions of employment, Trade unions

The determinants of corporate sustainability performance

This paper investigates the factors that drive high levels of corporate sustainability performance (CSP), as proxied by membership of the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. Using a stakeholder framework, we examine the incentives for US firms to invest in sustainability principles and develop a number of hypotheses that relate CSP to firm-specific characteristics. Our results indicate that leading CSP firms are significantly larger, have higher levels of growth and a higher return on equity than conventional firms. Contrary to our predictions, leading CSP firms do not have greater free cash flows or lower leverage than other firms.

Reframing the development of corporate learning

Due to increasing recognition by industry that partnerships with universities can lead to more effective knowledge and skills acquisition and deployment, corporate learning programmes are currently experiencing a resurgence of interest. Rethinking of corporations’ approaches to what has traditionally been classed as ‘training’ has resulted in a new focus on learning and the adoption of philosophies that underlie the academic paradigm. This paper reports on two studies of collaboration between major international engineering corporations and an Australian university, the aim of which was to up-skill the workforce in response to changing markets. The paper highlights the differences between the models of learning adopted in such collaboration and those in more conventional, university-based environments. The learning programmes combine the ADDIE (analysis, design, develop, implement and evaluate) development and workplace learning models. Adaptations that have added value for industry partners and recommendations as to how these can be evolved to cope with change are discussed. The learning is contextualised by industry- based subject matter experts working in close collaboration with university experts and learning designers to develop programmes that are reflective of current and future needs in the organisation. Results derived from user feedback indicate that the learning programmes are effectively aligned with the needs of the industry partners whilst simultaneously upholding academic ideals. In other words, it is possible to combine academic and more traditional approaches to develop corporate learning programmes that satisfy requirements in the workplace. Emerging from the study, a new conceptual framework for the development of corporate learning is presented.

Exploring the role of the governing body (board) in information technology governance : a study of Australian universities

In this thesis, I advance the understanding of information technology (IT) governance research and corporate governance research by considering the question “How do boards govern IT?” The importance of IT to business has increased over the last decade, but there has been little academic research which has focused on boards and their role in the governance of IT (Van Grembergen, De Haes and Guldentops, 2004). Most of the research on information technology governance (ITG) has focused on advancing the understanding and measurement of the components of the ITG model (Buckby, Best & Stewart, 2008; Wilkin & Chenhall, 2010), a model recommended by the IT Governance Institute (2003) as ‘best practice’ for boards to use in governing IT. IT governance is considered to be the responsibility of the board and is said to form an important subset of an organisation’s corporate governance processes (Borth & Bradley, 2008). Boards need to govern IT as a result of the large capital investment in IT resources and high dependency on IT by organisations. Van Grembergen, De Haes and Guldentops (2004) and De Haes & Van Grembergen (2009) indicate that corporate governance matters are not able to be effectively discharged unless IT is being governed properly, and call for further specific research on the role of the board in ITG. Researchers also indicate that the link between corporate governance and IT governance has been neglected (Borth & Bradley, 2008; Musson & Jordan, 2005; Bhattacharjya & Chang, 2008). This thesis will address this gap in the ITG literature by providing the bridge between the ITG and corporate governance literatures. My thesis uses a critical realist epistemology and a mixed method approach to gather insights into my research question. In the first phase of my research I develop a survey instrument to assess whether boards consider the components of the ITG model in governing IT. The results of this first study indicated that directors do not conceptualise their role in governing IT using the elements of the ITG model. Thus, I moved to focus on whether prominent corporate governance theories might elucidate how boards govern IT. In the second phase of the research, I used a qualitative inductive case based study to assess whether agency, stewardship and resource dependence theories explain how boards govern IT in Australian universities. As the first in-depth study of university IT governance processes, my research contributes to the ITG research field by revealing that Australian university board governance of IT is characterized by a combination of agency theory and stewardship theory behaviours and processes. The study also identified strong links between a university’s IT structure and evidence of agency and stewardship theories. This link provides insight into the structures element of the emerging enterprise governance of IT framework (Van Grembergen, De Haes & Guldentops, 2004; De Haes & Van Grembergen, 2009; Van Grembergen & De Haes, 2009b; Ko & Fink, 2010). My research makes an important contribution to governance research by identifying a key link between corporate and ITG literatures and providing insight into board IT governance processes. The research conducted in my thesis should encourage future researchers to continue to explore the links between corporate and IT governance research.

An analysis of the nature and effectiveness of corporate governance in smaller listed Australian companies

The objective of this thesis is to investigate the corporate governance attributes of smaller listed Australian firms. This study is motivated by evidence that these firms are associated with more regulatory concerns, the introduction of ASX Corporate Governance Recommendations in 2004, and a paucity of research to guide regulators and stakeholders of smaller firms. While there is an extensive body of literature examining the effectiveness of corporate governance, the literature principally focuses on larger companies, resulting in a deficiency in the understanding of the nature and effectiveness of corporate governance in smaller firms. Based on a review of agency theory literature, a theoretical model is developed that posits that agency costs are mitigated by internal governance mechanisms and transparency. The model includes external governance factors but in many smaller firms these factors are potentially absent, increasing the reliance on the internal governance mechanisms of the firm. Based on the model, the observed greater regulatory intervention in smaller companies may be due to sub-optimal internal governance practices. Accordingly, this study addresses four broad research questions (RQs). First, what is the extent and nature of the ASX Recommendations that have been adopted by smaller firms (RQ1)? Second, what firm characteristics explain differences in the recommendations adopted by smaller listed firms (RQ2), and third, what firm characteristics explain changes in the governance of smaller firms over time (RQ3)? Fourth, how effective are the corporate governance attributes of smaller firms (RQ4)? Six hypotheses are developed to address the RQs. The first two hypotheses explore the extent and nature of corporate governance, while the remaining hypotheses evaluate its effectiveness. A time-series, cross-sectional approach is used to evaluate the effectiveness of governance. Three models, based on individual governance attributes, an index of six items derived from the literature, and an index based on the full list of ASX Recommendations, are developed and tested using a sample of 298 smaller firms with annual observations over a five-year period (2002-2006) before and after the introduction of the ASX Recommendations in 2004. With respect to (RQ1) the results reveal that the overall adoption of the recommendations increased from 66 per cent in 2004 to 74 per cent in 2006. Interestingly, the adoption rate for recommendations regarding the structure of the board and formation of committees is significantly lower than the rates for other categories of recommendations. With respect to (RQ2) the results reveal that variations in rates of adoption are explained by key firm differences including, firm size, profitability, board size, audit quality, and ownership dispersion, while the results for (RQ3) were inconclusive. With respect to (RQ4), the results provide support for the association between better governance and superior accounting-based performance. In particular, the results highlight the importance of the independence of both the board and audit committee chairs, and of greater accounting-based expertise on the audit committee. In contrast, while there is little evidence that a majority independent board is associated with superior outcomes, there is evidence linking board independence with adverse audit opinion outcomes. These results suggest that board and chair independence are substitutes; in the presence of an independent chair a majority independent board may be an unnecessary and costly investment for smaller firms. The findings make several important contributions. First, the findings contribute to the literature by providing evidence on the extent, nature and effectiveness of governance in smaller firms. The findings also contribute to the policy debate regarding future development of Australia’s corporate governance code. The findings regarding board and chair independence, and audit committee characteristics, suggest that policy-makers could consider providing additional guidance for smaller companies. In general, the findings offer support for the “if not, why not?” approach of the ASX, rather than a prescriptive rules-based approach.

The impact of the Malaysian code on corporate governance: compliance, institutional investors and stock performance

In 2001, the Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance (MCCG) became an integral part of the Bursa Malaysia Listing Rules, which requires all listed firms to disclose the extent of compliance with the MCCG. Our panel analysis of 440 firms from 1999 to 2002 finds that corporate governance reform in Malaysia has been successful, with a significant improvement in governance practices. The relationship between ownership by the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and corporate governance has strengthened during the period subsequent to the reform, in line with the lead role taken by the EPF in establishing the Minority Shareholders Watchdog Group. The implementation of MCCG has had a substantial effect on shareholders' wealth, increasing stock prices by an average of about 4.8%. Although there is no evidence that politically connected firms perform better, political connections do have a significantly negative effect on corporate governance, which is mitigated by institutional ownership.

Libya and the international community’s 'responsibility to protect'

The Libyan regime’s attacks on its own civilian population are a test case for the international community’s commitment to the notion of a “responsibility to protect” (R2P). The UN Security Council’s statement on 22 February 2011 explicitly invoked this concept by calling on “the Government of Libya to meet its responsibility to protect its population”. Yet, with Muammar Gaddafi encouraging further violence against protesters and threatening to fight “until the last drop of blood” it seems unlikely that the Security Council’s warning will be heeded. Greater pressure from the international community will be needed to bring an end to the atrocities in Libya. The international response to the Libyan crisis represents an opportunity to translate the theory of R2P into practice.