Corporate productivity and the stages of ICT development

A number of studies have considered the impact of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) on corporate productivity, including the relationship of ICT to corporate structure and business processes. Comparatively less attention, however, has been directed toward the relationship between corporate productivity and the various stages of ICT application development; to date, the only work in this direction has been the proposal of some conceptual frameworks for the development stages of ICT, and no empirical studies have been conducted. In this paper, using individual data from the 2006 Information and Communication Technology Survey conducted by Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, we use estimated production functions to quantify how productivity changes with the stages of ICT development. When we classify ICT applications into four stages of sophistication—nonperforming ICT assets, section-wide system applications, company-wide system applications, and inter-corporate system applications—we find that the impact of ICT on productivity increases with each successive stage of sophistication. For instance, when we use a production function that assesses the impact of the ICT development stage on Total Factor Productivity (TFP), we find that companies that have developed company-wide system applications exhibit added-value productivity some 1.07-fold higher than companies that have only progressed as far as the development of section-wide system applications. We also find that companies that have developed inter-corporate system applications exhibit added-value productivity some 1.11-fold higher than companies with only company-wide system applications.     

Corporate governance, information technology and the electronic company in the United Kingdom

There continues to be considerable debate on how good corporate governance principles and practices may be developed and inculcated. While much of this debate focuses on the role of shareholders and non-executive directors and the possible participation of stakeholders there has been little discussion of the potential role of information technology as a mechanism to develop good corporate governance standards. This article reviews the potential role of information technology as a corporate governance tool and recommends that the manner in which information technology is used by companies should be gauged not only in simple efficiency terms but by reference to the impact it may have on users' corporate governance standards.     

Corporate Cybercrime Trends

Edward Wilding, Data Genetics InternationalDGI’s Annual Report on Computer Risk and Response revealed that reactive investigations have risen with intellectual property theft emerging to be a prominent issue. In spite of this, companies are not taking up pre-emptive fraud risk reviews at the same level as last year. This article reviews the main trends in corporate computer-related crime collated from cases investigated by DGI over the past year.     

日本公司治理改革的动向

本文对日本企业的公司治理结构问题进行了研究。自1990年以来,许多研究者和一些商业人士对Anglo-Saxon模型的有效性进行了分析。该模型与日本传统模型之问存在着非常大的差异。作者通过对包括Kansai生产力中心的研究在内的1990～2000年间治理结构的几个经验性研究进行了分析。与当今主流观点不同的是,这些经验性研究表明了Anglo-Saxon模型并不适用于日本的公司。     

The Frequency and Cost of Corporate Crises1

This paper sheds light on the pattern and consequences of crises experienced by corporate Australia during the last decade. Crises are defined here as a single incident or issue with consequences that threaten the organisation's viability; thus, this study observes 55 corporate crises in Australia between 1990 and 2001. Half were operational crises; the prevalence of extortion and product recall made wholesale and retail trade the most crisis‐prone industry. In Australia, over a quarter of companies affected by crisis did not survive. Direct costs typically exceed $10 million, with a quarter costing over $100 million. Because many crises are due to systemic deficiencies in industries or companies, their causes are often apparent (at least in hindsight).     

沉淀成本、市场结构与企业战略博弈分析

新古典一般均衡理论体系在完全的产品和要素市场完全竞争条件下,是一个没有沉淀成本的经济模型,然而在市场不完全的条件下,由于沉淀成本的存在,不仅导致要素市场失灵,而且还造成企业阊成本不对称和竞争优势,进而造成企业间战略博弈,为企业家寻求超额利润奠定了客观基础。因此,我们运用沉淀成本概念,借助于不完全产品市场结构来研究企业闻的战略博弈,将完全竞争条件下企业无沉淀成本的价格接受者被动理性转变为寡头市场结构条件下的主动战略理性,为企业闻战略博弈提供了一种研究方法,同时也为企业战略管理提供了指导原则,即在于加强沉淀成本管理和风险管理。     

Towards a Guideline for Design of a Corporate Entrepreneurship Function for Business Development in Medium‐Sized Technology‐Based Companies

The speed with which global high‐technology markets evolve makes companies recognize that an effective innovation process is the best way to guarantee competitiveness. However, when (medium‐sized) companies then wish to set up a corporate entrepreneurship function to enhance business development processes, they can find little material available in literature to assist in such processes. In this article we have described a guideline and some backgrounds for creating a corporate entrepreneurship function to realize business development in a high‐tech context.     

Acceptance of Corporate Blogs for Collaboration and Knowledge Sharing

ABSTRACT

This study investigates employees’ acceptance of corporate Web 2.0 applications for collaboration and knowledge sharing. Results show that altruism, managerial support, and perceived usefulness are good predictors of the intention to use corporate blogs as tools for collaboration and knowledge sharing. The study further explores differences between employees from companies with low and high adoption rates, and uses prediction-oriented segmentation to unveil two different paths to adoption of Web 2.0 collaborative tools in companies.     

Using Boosting for Financial Analysis and Performance Prediction: Application to S&;P 500 Companies,Latin American ADRs and Banks

This paper demonstrates how the boosting approach can support the financial analysis functions in two ways: (1) As a predictive tool to forecast corporate performance, and rank accounting and corporate variables according to their impact on performance, and (2) As an interpretative tool to generate alternating decision trees that capture the non-linear relationship among accounting and corporate governance variables that determine performance. We compare our results using Adaboost with logistic regression, bagging, and random forests. We conduct 10-fold cross-validation experiments on one sample each of S&P 500 companies, American Depository Receipts (ADRs) of Latin American companies and Latin American banks. Adaboost results indicate that large companies perform better than small companies, especially when these companies have a limited long-term assets to sales ratio. Performance improves for large LAADR companies when the country of residence is characterized by a weak rule of law. In the case of S&P 500 companies, performance increases when the compensation for top officers is mostly variable.     

Business Intelligence Effectiveness and Corporate Performance Management: An Empirical Analysis

ABSTRACT

Business intelligence (BI) technologies have received much attention from both academics and practitioners, and the emerging field of business analytics (BA) is beginning to generate academic research. However, the impact of BI and the relative importance of BA on corporate performance management (CPM) have not yet been investigated. To address this gap, we modeled a CPM framework based on the Integrative model of IT business value and on information processing theory. Data were collected from a global survey of senior managers in 337 companies. Findings suggest that the more effective the BI implementation, the more effective the CPM-related planning and analytic practices. BI effectiveness is strongly related to BA, planning and to measurement. In contrast, BA effectiveness is strongly related to planning but less so to measurement. The study suggests that although both BI and BA contribute to corporate management practices, the information needs are different based on the level of uncertainty versus ambiguity characteristic of the management practice.     

Corporate E-Cruiting: The Construction of Work in Fortune 500 Recruiting Web Sites

Corporate recruitment efforts have evolved from traditional newspaper want ads to highly sophisticated, rhetorically powerful recruiting Web sites or "career sites." This e-cruiting phenomenon offers a unique opportunity not only to examine organizations' persuasive attempts to recruit potential applicants online, but also to uncover contemporary corporate representations of the meaning(s) of work. Using a random sample of recruitment Web sites of Fortune 500 companies, we employ content analysis and rhetorical criticism to catalogue content types, identify persuasive structure, and analyze rhetorical themes in representations of work. The investigation reveals that career sites are not merely places to post job openings, but reflect corporations' attempt to sell a glorified image of work, one which positions workers as powerful actors and employers as kind benefactors. In view of current reports on working conditions, we argue these glorified representations reflect a rhetoric of idealization and discuss potential consequences of such a strategy.     

Innovation Mechanisms and Knowledge Communities for Corporate Central R&D

An important method of enhancing or developing new corporate differentiating emerging technological competences is to establish corporate central R&D. This practice is centred on the competency‐based view of the firm and has been implemented by companies in numerous developed countries. Corporate R&D centres are now becoming important to newly industrialized smaller nations such as Taiwan. Yet few studies have investigated the R&D management practices of effective corporate central R&D centres in emerging countries. Here the case study method is used to review nine R&D centres from each of three countries: the USA, Japan, and Taiwan. Seven findings are provided regarding effective management of R&D centres.     

Information Assurance and Corporate Strategy: A Delphi Study of Choices,Challenges, and Developments for the Future

In this article, we identified processes associated with strengthening the alignment between information assurance, information systems and corporate strategies so that organizations could more effectively address legal and regulatory challenges. Our results are based on data gathered from 43 preliminary interviews and a subsequent Delphi exercise. The Delphi panel rated these processes in terms of desirability and feasibility. After three rounds a consensus of opinion was achieved. The results of the Delphi together with some practical implications are presented.     

Using corporate governance to enhance 'long-term situation awareness' and assist in the avoidance of organisation-induced disasters

This paper considers the issue of how corporate governance can and should deal with the long-term understanding of systems health-what we may call 'long-term situation awareness' (i.e. which evolves and is coherent over time) for organisational systems (and their component sub systems) in the engineering domain. Many characteristics affect long-term situation awareness-the rate of change to processes, pressures for greater efficiency from existing resources, changes in personnel, cultural changes and changes to the operational environment of the organisational systems. Many disasters (e.g. Chernobyl, Flixborough, Piper Alpha) have a causal path that indicates a loss of group situation awareness, over a long period of time. The problem of the gradual, slow drift over many years towards unsafe conduct of company operations is discussed and examples of possible consequences provided. A 'parable' from the world of manufacturing is used to exemplify the problem. The paper goes on to discuss some ways by which this problem could be addressed and longer-term system situational awareness increased; essentially by good corporate governance, knowledge management and ownership of processes. Links are made to the literature on these topics, and a route map to help organisations to gain the benefits is offered.     

CONTROLLING THE THREAT TO PERSONAL PRIVACY Corporate Policies Must Be Created

Information technology makes it easier than ever to collect, store, and disseminate personal information, then use it to carry out business and political decisions. Federal legislation limits corporate and government manipulation of personal data, and private companies are finding that they must do the same or risk lawsuits from irate customers, clients, and rejected prospects. This article explores the concept of privacy, describes the major computer threats to personal privacy and the changing legal environment, and recommends how organizations can establish internal privacy codes for their own protection.     

Corporate Governance in the Context of Crises: Towards a Stakeholder Theory of Crisis Management

In this paper, we take a step towards developing a stakeholder theory of crisis management. We argue that, in the context of crises, adopting the principles of a stakeholder model of corporate governance will lead companies to engage more frequently in proactive and/or accommodating crisis management behaviour even if these crisis management behaviours are not perceived to maximize shareholder value. We also propose a mechanism that may explain why the stakeholder model may be associated with more successful crisis management outcomes. We conclude by challenging the efficacy of the shareholder view in crisis and crisis‐like situations, and call for further theoretical and empirical research.     

Flexible Labour Strategy in the Dutch Automotive Industry

Labour flexibility is a major way for companies to become more flexible. Why companies use flexible labour relations varies widely per industry. We assess the development of labour flexibility within the Dutch automotive industry. Four cases, together representing the production chain, are presented. We show how and why these companies arrived at the high level of sophistication in labour relations they currently have and what combinations of internal and external, numerical and functional forms have emerged. The process has been one of trial and error, characterised by emerging rather than deliberate strategy. It has a clear pattern over time. In three out of our four companies, an innovative labour use strategy emerged, finely tuned to market demands, new institutional realities and specific company needs.     

Strategy archetypes for digital transformation: Defining meta objectives using business process management

Digital transformation dominates the practical and scientific discourse. Still, many companies do not have a clear plan on how to approach it. Particularly, small- and medium-sized enterprises struggle to initiate their digital journey as they lack resources and expertise. In response, we examine how five companies use business process management (BPM) to implement digital transformation. We perform a qualitative interview study, and analyze the capabilities of BPM based on six requirements of digital transformation. Thereby, we carve out 17 recommendations, which must be adapted according to companies’ meta objectives. We derive three strategy archetypes to serve as implementation blueprints.     

Strategy Alignment of Mobile Solutions in Customer-Oriented Processes

In this paper we analyze how companies define their strategy, especially how they interact with and appear to the customer. Based on a framework of five goals in customer oriented strategy, we classify seven cases. Analyzing the strategic premises and the processes chosen to be supported by mobile solutions, we show interdependencies between the strategic premises and the selected processes, resulting in typical properties which qualify processes for mobilization.     

Avatar-based innovation: Consequences of the virtual co-creation experience

Virtual worlds, such as the prominent Second Life (SL), offer unprecedented opportunities for companies to tap the innovative potential of consumers and consumer communities. Despite the potential, the studied corporate open innovation initiatives fail to attract sustained engagement among co-creating participants. The underdeveloped state of these islands in terms of innovation tasks and the lack of knowledge about how to attract innovative avatars raise key concerns about the nature of the experience avatars have on corporate sites. In a quantitative study we examine the importance of the experience in encouraging active participation in the innovation tasks. When participants experience an inspiring, intrinsically motivating, involving and fun co-creation experience, they participate more intensely. Prior research on virtual new product development is extended to the virtual world context and insights of the virtual co-creation experience serve as guidelines for the conception of avatar-based innovation initiatives.