Dual paths to performance: the impact of global pressures on MNC subsidiary conduct and performance

Over the last decade, the international business literature has placed ever-greater emphasis on the role that learning and innovation play in determining multinational and multinational subsidiary performance. The present research seeks to understand the organizational paths leading to such desirable outcomes as greater learning, increased innovation and improved performance. Using a model tested with data collected through a survey of managers in subsidiaries of multinational firms, we find dual, independent paths to improved performance - one through networking and inter-unit learning and the other through subsidiary autonomy and innovation. A particular feature of these findings is that they can be shown to be robust after controlling for a wide range of environmental pressures and firm and industry factors. However, in the absence of environmental controls the dual path finding is rejected. These conflicting findings support the imperative to test models that include a diverse range of environmental pressures so that the true effects of organizational factors on learning, innovation and performance can be identified.

Does industry matter? Examining the role of industry structure and organizational learning in innovation and brand performance

A manager's perception of industry structure (dynamism) has the potential to impact various organizational strategies and behaviors. This may be particularly so with regard to perceptions driving organizational learning orientations and innovation based marketing strategy. The position taken here suggests that firms operating within a competitive industry tend to pursue innovative ways of performing value-creating activities, which requires the development of learning capabilities. The results of a study of SMEs suggest that market focused learning, relative to other learning capabilities plays a key role in the relationships between industry structure, innovation and brand performance. The findings also show that market focused learning and internally focused learning influence innovation and that innovation influences a brand's performance. (c) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Seeing music performance: Visual influences on perception and experience

Drawing from ethnographic, empirical, and historical/cultural perspectives, we examine the extent to which visual aspects of music contribute to the communication that takes place between performers and their listeners. First, we introduce a framework for understanding how media and genres shape aural and visual experiences of music. Second, we present case studies of two performances, and describe the relation between visual and aural aspects of performance. Third, we report empirical evidence that visual aspects of performance reliably influence perceptions of musical structure (pitch related features) and affective interpretations of music. Finally, we trace new and old media trajectories of aural and visual dimensions of music, and highlight how our conceptions, perceptions and appreciation of music are intertwined with technological innovation and media deployment strategies.

Predator-induced phenotypic plasticity in tadpoles: extension or innovation?

Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of a trait to change as a function of the environment, is central to many ideas in evolutionary biology. A special case of phenotypic plasticity observed in many organisms is mediated by their natural predators. Here, we used a predator-prey system of dragonfly larvae and tadpoles to determine if predator-mediated phenotypic plasticity provides a novel way of surviving in the presence of predators (an innovation) or if it represents a simple extension of the way noninduced tadpoles survive predation. Tadpoles of Limnodynastes peronii were raised in the presence and absence of predation, which then entered a survival experiment. Induced morphological traits, primarily tail height and tail muscle height, were found to be under selection, indicating that predator-mediated phenotypic plasticity may be adaptive. Although predator-induced animals survived better, the multivariate linear selection gradients were similar between the two tadpole groups, suggesting that predator-mediated phenotypic plasticity is an extension of existing survival strategies. In addition, nonlinear selection gradients indicated a cost of predator-induced plasticity that may limit the ability of phenotypic plasticity to enhance survival in the presence of predators.

Organisational innovation: A Proposal for measurement

In spite of the prominence assigned to innovation in the strategic marketing literature particularly in the area of competitive strategy there have been several inadequacies in the conceptualization and measurement of the innovation construct. Responding to the need for a comprehensive measure, this paper attempts to develop and validate a measure for organisational innovation. Addressing the need to capture both the degree and type of innovation, as well as the synergistic influence of innovation types on performance outcomes, this paper proposes operationalising organisational innovation as a multidimensional construct. The proposed measure has a complex higher order structure that captures the variance in its dimensions that are different forms manifested by the construct. The measure also captures the synergistic impact of different innovation types on competitive advantage. The implications for theory, limitations and directions for future research are presented.

Towards an understanding of creativity and innovation within professional services and marketing

Greatly increased competition in the professional services and marketing sectors has reinforced the need for firms to develop an organisational culture that facilitates adaptation to changing conditions and competitive threats. More generally, competitive changes within business environments require new and creative ways of organising and managing firms. In order for marketing practitioners to be ahead of competitors in identifying and meeting customer needs, creative thought is essential. An organisational culture that supports creativity and facilitates the adoption of innovative practices, products and services, improves a firm’s ability to remain competitive within an uncertain environment. This paper presents a conceptual model of an organisational culture supporting creativity and innovation. The model posits relationships between creativity and innovation and organisational performance. The main contribution of the paper is to build a foundation for future research directed primarily towards exploring the relationships in the theoretical model of interest. Implications for marketing practitioners are also considered.