Strategic marketing and e-business

The dramatic growth in e-business is manifest in phenomena such as the surge in internet retailing, the boom in social media based marketing communications, and the centrality of e-commerce to many organizations’ core strategies. Despite this the precise implications of e-business for marketing strategy remain little-understood. In order to guide theory development and practice in the marketing strategy domain, it is of fundamental importance to take stock of the impact that e-business has had upon strategic marketing. Therefore, this chapter develops a conceptual framework in order to explicate the implications of e-business for strategic marketing theory and practice. We find that the impact of e-business on strategic marketing is far-reaching; influencing not only isolated departments, but the organization as a whole. Finally, we conclude that whilst organizations should be alert to the dynamic opportunities and threats posed by e-business, the guiding principle of value creation should not be forgotten.

A strategic case for e-adoption in healthcare supply chains

A growing body of literature suggests that greater benefits of e-business will be obtained when e-business is integrated throughout a supply chain. However, organizations are still cautious in adopting e-business technologies. This paper examines whether a strategic case for e-commerce can be recognised and the factors that influence e-adoption, using e-business development models, a contingency approach and a stakeholder approach. The paper explores the link of e-commerce with strategy and the potential strategic benefits, risks and problems. This paper analysed e-adoption in four diverse healthcare supply chains in the context of the English National Health Service (NHS). The fieldwork showed there is of limited use of e- in supply chains; there are key problems associated with perceived benefits and costs by different actors both within organisations and within the chain. The paper proposes a framework to link the case for e-commerce with the achievement of strategic objectives across three inter-related domains—health, supply and business.

Strategic planning

Strategic planning is one of the most widely used management tools and continues to be a subject of frequent study. Typically, the practice follows a normative model that includes a logical sequence of activities designed to connect aspirations set by top management with input provided by managers at middle and lower levels. Much of the research literature focuses on relationships between strategic planning and organizational performance. More recent work examines strategic planning as a mechanism for integrating activities within complex organizations and analyses the micro-processes and social practices embedded in the process.

Handbook of research on strategic performance management and measurement using data envelopment analysis

Organizations can use the valuable tool of data envelopment analysis (DEA) to make informed decisions on developing successful strategies, setting specific goals, and identifying underperforming activities to improve the output or outcome of performance measurement. The Handbook of Research on Strategic Performance Management and Measurement Using Data Envelopment Analysis highlights the advantages of using DEA as a tool to improve business performance and identify sources of inefficiency in public and private organizations. These recently developed theories and applications of DEA will be useful for policymakers, managers, and practitioners in the areas of sustainable development of our society including environment, agriculture, finance, and higher education sectors. All rights reserved.

Do institutions matter in business strategy? – The changing focus of strategic management to institutions: a literature review

The post-crisis managerial literature emphasizes the roles of institutional factors in any disruption of the ecosystem of market capitalism and puts it in the middle of its analytical framework. It has become clear that nowadays, scientific discussions about the measure of increase of direct state involvement in certain economic areas has become more relevant. The socio-economic model based on market coordination was no doubt shaken by the crisis in 2008 across the world and inspired various representatives of the scientific and political community to revise their theses on coordination mechanisms that support the way out of an economic downturn. This paper intends to give a brief summary of the two leading strategic management approaches (Porter’s five forces and the resource-based view of the firm) on institutions. The author’s aim is to demonstrate that incorporation of the institution-based view into the mainstream theories can enrich the analytical framework of strategic management by providing deeper understanding of the contextual factors that underpin interactions between institutions and organizations.

Organizational ambidexterity as a new research paradigm in strategic management

Long-term survival and growth depends on the firm’s ability to exploit its current competencies while exploring fundamentally new ones. Finding the balance between exploration and exploitation is called ambidexterity in the literature. This paper is a comprehensive review of organizational ambidexterity theory. Creating and maintaining the capacity to simultaneously pursue these contradictory activities is an extremely difficult managerial challenge. Although, several aspects are well-researched, especially structural and leadership solutions in large, multinational enterprises, but little is known about: (1) how ambidexterity forms in earlier growth stages? (2) What are the key drivers and elements of organizational context that makes organizations able to become ambidextrous? (3) What is the role of different managerial levels in this formation process? Reviewing the literature, in this article the author would like to introduce the paradox of exploration and exploitation, the tensions and different aspects of ambidexterity, the fields current stage and some important research gaps.

An investigation of the strategies used by organizations participating in the welfare-to-work network program and correlation of the strategies with the retention data to determine best practices for job retention among former welfare recipients

This ex post facto study (N = 209) examined the relationships between employer job strategies and job retention among organizations participating in Florida welfare-to-work network programs and associated the strategies with job retention data to determine best practices. ^ An internet-based self-report survey battery was administered to a heterogeneous sampling of organizations participating in the Florida welfare-to-work network program. Hypotheses were tested through correlational and hierarchical regression analytic procedures. The partial correlation results linked each of the job retention strategies to job retention. Wages, benefits, training and supervision, communication, job growth, work/life balance, fairness and respect were all significantly related to job retention. Hierarchical regression results indicated that the training and supervision variable was the best predictor of job retention in the regression equation. ^ The size of the organization was also a significant predictor of job retention. Large organizations reported higher job retention rates than small organizations. There was no statistical difference between the types of organizations (profit-making and non-profit) and job retention. The standardized betas ranged from to .26 to .41 in the regression equation. Twenty percent of the variance in job retention was explained by the combination of demographic and job retention strategy predictors, supporting the theoretical, empirical, and practical relevance of understanding the association between employer job strategies and job retention outcomes. Implications for adult education and human resource development theory, research, and practice are highlighted as possible strategic leverage points for creating conditions that facilitate the development of job strategies as a means for improving former welfare workers’ job retention.^

Strategic Human Resources Management Performance Metrics for Unit-Level Managers: An Exploratory Study of U.S Casual Restaurants

Many restaurant organizations have committed a substantial amount of effort to studying the relationship between a firm’s performance and its effort to develop an effective human resources management reward-and-retention system. These studies have produced various metrics for determining the efficacy of restaurant management and human resources management systems. This paper explores the best metrics to use when calculating the overall unit performance of casual restaurant managers. These metrics were identified through an exploratory qualitative case study method that included interviews with executives and a Delphi study. Experts proposed several diverse metrics for measuring management value and performance. These factors seem to represent all stakeholders’interest.

Using knowledge management to give context to analytics and big data and reduce strategic risk

At the moment, the phrases “big data” and “analytics” are often being used as if they were magic incantations that will solve all an organization’s problems at a stroke. The reality is that data on its own, even with the application of analytics, will not solve any problems. The resources that analytics and big data can consume represent a significant strategic risk if applied ineffectively. Any analysis of data needs to be guided, and to lead to action. So while analytics may lead to knowledge and intelligence (in the military sense of that term), it also needs the input of knowledge and intelligence (in the human sense of that term). And somebody then has to do something new or different as a result of the new insights, or it won’t have been done to any purpose. Using an analytics example concerning accounts payable in the public sector in Canada, this paper reviews thinking from the domains of analytics, risk management and knowledge management, to show some of the pitfalls, and to present a holistic picture of how knowledge management might help tackle the challenges of big data and analytics.

CEO Humility: Development of an Unobtrusive Measure and Strategic Implications

Over the past 30 years, the Upper Echelons perspective of strategic management has sought to explain a given organization’s strategies and effectiveness as a reflection of the differences in personality, background, and other characteristics of the senior executives that guides each organization. An important stream of research within this field has linked a firm’s strategy to the grandiose way that executives are often thought to view themselves – namely through examining the narcissism, core self-evaluations (CSE), and hubris of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs). In this dissertation, I focus on understanding the strategic impact of CEO humility – a trait that has often been erroneously thought of to represent a poor view of oneself. Consistent with ancient writings and recent research, humility is defined herein as a multi-faceted trait that is the common core of four dimensions: self-awareness, developmental orientation/teachability, appreciation of others' strengths and contributions, and low self-focus. In the first essay, I explore the conceptual relevance and various potential implications of executive humility. Drawing on existing empirical research about the humility construct and general behavioral implications of humility, I argue that executive humility is a critical avenue toward a more rich and nuanced understanding of the delicate interplay and implications of executive self-concept. In essay two, I develop and validate an unobtrusive measure of CEO humility. Ten indicators of humility are suggested and then validated using a self-reported survey administered to a sample of 30 U.S. and Canadian CEOs. Two behaviors were found to be significantly positively related to self-reported humility: CEOs who volunteered some of their time for non-profit organizations and CEO’s who reported that part of their own firm’s success was due to the help of the board of directors. In essay three, I examine the relationship between the level of CEO humility and four firm-level outcomes. Employing a sample of 163 CEOs appointed to S&P 500 firms between 2005-2008, I show that firms led by humble CEOs (measured by the unobtrusive indicators) tend to outperform others in regards to corporate social performance, while at the same time showing that their financial performance is generally no better or worse.

Sandcastles of hope? Civil society organizations and the working conditions of migrant farmworkers in North America

This research explores whether civil society organizations (CSOs) can contribute to more effectively regulating the working conditions of temporary migrant farmworkers in North America. This dissertation unfolds in five parts. The first part of the dissertation sets out the background context. The context includes the political economy of agriculture and temporary migrant labour more broadly. It also includes the political economy of the legal regulations that govern immigration and work relations. The second part of the research builds an analytical model for studying the operation of CSOs active in working with the migrant farmworker population. The purpose of the analytical framework is to make sense of real-world examples by providing categories for analysis and a means to get at the channels of influence that CSOs utilize to achieve their aims. To this end, the model incorporates the insights from three significant bodies of literature—regulatory studies, labour studies, and economic sociology. The third part of the dissertation suggests some key strategic issues that CSOs should consider when intervening to assist migrant farmworkers, and also proposes a series of hypotheses about how CSOs can participate in the regulatory process. The fourth part probes and extends these hypotheses by empirically investigating the operation of three CSOs that are currently active in assisting migrant farm workers in North America: the Agricultural Workers Alliance (Canada), Global Workers’ Justice Alliance (USA), and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (USA). The fifth and final part draws together lessons from the empirical work and concluded that CSOs can fill gaps left by the waning power of actors, such as trade unions and labour inspectorates, as well as act in ways that these traditional actors can not.

Strategic divide management in pharmaceutical alliances: A partner’s strategic evolution as a reason for strategic divide

Strategic alliances are widely used in the pharmaceutical industry and, ideally, they are long-lasting structures that bring many benefits and value to the alliance partners. However, organizations continuously encounter pressures to enhance performance, while the environment in which they operate evolves. Therefore, an alliance partner might be forced to change its strategy, which can lead to the partners’ misaligned priorities and strategic divide. The academic literature acknowledges the impact a partner’s strategic change can have on the value of the alliance, but the phenomenon is not studied further, which is why the purpose of this study is to understand the role that a partner’s strategic evolution plays in strategic alliances within the pharmaceutical industry. The main purpose is further divided into three sub-objectives: 1) Describe reasons behind the strategic direction change of a partner firm, 2) Understand the consequences of partners’ misaligned priorities, and 3) Describe proactive and reactive ways to manage strategic divide between alliance partners. Since the phenomenon is not studied much, the empirical part of the study was conducted as a qualitative analysis using expert interviews to better understand, how the partner’s strategic evolution affects the alliance. The empirical data was organized into themes, according to the researcher’s interpretations on the interviews. The research findings demonstrated, how the partners change their strategies if the external or organizational environments change. The strategic changes, again, cause strategic divides between the alliance partners that are likely to have an impact on the alliance value. The findings revealed that the interviewees consider anticipation of the partner’s strategic change to be really difficult, but, at the same time, it was noted that a proactive strategic divide management could help to prevent and detect some divides. Additionally, the results showed that, after the detection, a reactive approach in a controlled manner was seen to be the most beneficial for the alliance’s future performance. This study proved that a partner’s strategic evolution affects the partners’ priority alignment and alliance value, which is why the strategic divide management is important in organizations that are involved with strategic alliances. In order to understand the role of a partner’s strategic evolution and provide managers with a tool to manage alliances and strategic divides, the study combined the alliance lifecycle as well as the proactive and reactive approaches to strategic divide, and presented a framework for strategic divide management.

Achieving a strategic sales focus: contemporary issues and future challenges.

The main aim of this book is to consider how the sales function informs business strategy. Although there are a number of books available that address how to manage the sales team tactically, this text addresses how sales can help organizations to become more customer oriented. Many organizations are facing escalating costs and a growth in customer power, which makes it necessary to allocate resources more strategically. The sales function can provide critical customer and market knowledge to help inform both innovation and marketing. Sales are responsible for building customer knowledge, networking both internally and externally to help create additional customer value, as well as the more traditional role of managing customer relationships and selling. The text considers how sales organizations are responding to increasing competition, more demanding customers and a more complex selling environment. We identify many of the challenges facing organisations today and offers discussions of some of the possible solutions. This book considers the changing nature of sales and how activities can be aligned within the organization, as well as marketing sensing, creating customer focus and the role of sales leadership. The text will include illustrations (short case studies) provided by a range of successful organizations operating in a number of industries. Sales and senior management play an important role in ensuring that the sales teams' activities are aligned to business strategy and in creating an environment to allow salespeople to be more successful in developing new business opportunities and building long-term profitable business relationships. One of the objectives of this book is to consider how conventional thinking has changed in the last five years and integrate it with examples from sales practice to provide a more complete picture of the role of sales within the modern organization.

Strategic knowledge management: In search of a knowledge-based organizational model

This paper discusses the results and propositions of organizational knowledge management research conducted in the period 2001-2007. This longitudinal study had the unique goal of investigating and analyzing “Knowledge Management” (KM) processes effectively implemented in world class organizations. The main objective was to investigate and analyze the conceptions, motivations, practices, metrics and results of KM processes implemented in different industries. The first set of studies involved 20 world cases related in the literature and served as a basis for a theoretical framework entitled “KM Integrative Conceptual Mapping Proposition”. This theoretical proposal was then tested in a qualitative study in three large organizations in Brazil. The results of the qualitative study validated the mapping proposition and left questions for new research concerning the implementation of a knowledge-based organizational model strategy.

Life quality and the wellness of local population and the sustainability of social organizations. Study case of a Foundation

This research aims to present an analysis on the absence of innovative social responses related with continuing care, taking into account the need to answer to all kind of social needs. Our main goal is not only a theoretical approach about the social challenges and social policies, but also present a study on the potentialities of the Fundação Elísio Ferreira Afonso, our case study, can apply for funding of an UCC (Continuing Care Unit) in order to meet the needs of the local population on one hand, and on the other, in order to contribute to the self-sustainability of the Foundation. This paper is divided into three parts: theoretical framework and characterization of our social organization, according to an exploratory research, structuring a strategic plan of the organization, through field research, and as final result, to present a proposal for funding and implementation of an innovative UCC, according to the underlying legislation to Portugal 2020. The sample is focused on the population of Sátão municipality. To conclude, it is important to make this local approach, because of the increasing demand for this kind of caring services.