Abstract

This study attempts to identify the variations in the transaction-specific investments made in logistics outsourcing relationships and explore how such variations are related to outsourcing cooperation. Based on the assumption that the vendor and the client always make some level of investment in outsourcing relationships, we develop a cluster model that illustrates four situations that indicate varying levels of vendor-specific investment and client-specific investment. We use data from client firms in logistics outsourcing relationships from China to test the theorised configurations through cluster analysis. The results validate our proposed matrix of specific investments and confirm that systematic configurations of the investment taxonomy and corresponding cooperation behaviours of information sharing, joint action, opportunism and conflict exist in each situation.

Keyword

Transaction-specific investment ;  information sharing ;  joint action ;  opportunism ;  conflict ;  logistics outsourcing relationships ;  Research paper

Abstract

In the literature on monetary economics, there is the ‘inflationary bias’ result which predicts that the rate of inflation will be biased towards a higher level under discretionary monetary policy than under a rule‐based policy regime. It is established that a credible nominal target can eliminate this ‘inflationary bias’. In this paper, we examine the case of nominal GDP targeting, which is a rule‐based monetary regime. Depending on the degree of conservativeness by the central bank, we show in a stylized model the choice of different combination of inflation and real GDP targets can still result in an ‘inflationary bias’, and there also exists the possibility of a ‘dis‐inflationary bias’.

Keyword

monetary policy ;  nominal GDP targeting ;  central bank ;  conservatism ;  inflationary bias ;  E52 ;  E58

Abstract

This paper studies how monetary easing provides incentives for banks to take risk and issue mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and, because MBS have the "lemon" property, why MBS buyers are willing to purchase high-risk securities at high prices. Banks need equity to attract deposits. Monetary easing reduces this need, and banks leverage up and reduce their monitoring efforts. The internal need for liquidity and risk sharing motivates banks to issue MBS. Security buyers understand the moral hazard problem that banks face but are willing to purchase bank securities at high prices because monetary easing would also reduce their cost of funds.

Keyword

monetary policy ;  mortgage-backed securities ;  risk taking

Abstract

Purpose Chinese investments abroad are being scrutinized more stringently because host governments fear that Chinese companies would steal domestically grown technology and know-how or be duped into a debt trap. The purpose of this paper is to provide a narrative of Chinese investments in a region that is neither developed nor underdeveloped – Central and Eastern Europe. The authors aim to provide an alternative view of Chinese investments abroad. Design/methodology/approach The authors base their narrative on face-to-face semi-structured interviews with eight Chinese firms that carried out mergers and acquisition activities in the region. Findings The respondents claim that they saved companies and jobs in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. Access to the China market and elsewhere has increased as a result of these investments. Transfer of technology has gone both ways depending on which partner had superior technology. Research limitations/implications It is important that Chinese investors emphasize the positive spillover effects from their investments, such as jobs saved, potential technology transfer and increased exports, when applying for FDI approval from host governments. Host governments, on the other hand, should evaluate each Chinese investment on its individual merits. Originality/value There is little that has been researched on the contributions of FDI from developing countries to host economies. This paper is an early attempt in this direction.

Keyword

Abstract

Expressing (vs. withholding) forgiveness is often promoted as a beneficial response for victims. In the present research, we argue that withholding (vs. expressing) forgiveness can also be beneficial to victims by stimulating subsequent transgressor compliance - a response that is valuable in restoring the victim's needs for control. Based on deterrence theory, we argue that a victim's withheld (vs. expressed) forgiveness promotes transgressor compliance when the victim has low power, relative to the transgressor. This is because withheld (vs. expressed) forgiveness from a low-power victim elicits transgressor fear. On the other hand, because people are fearful of high-power actors, high-power victims can expect high levels of compliance from a transgressor, regardless of whether they express forgiveness or not. A critical incidents survey (Study 1) and an autobiographic recall study (Study 2) among employees, as well as a laboratory experiment among business students (Study 3), support these predictions. These studies are among the first to reveal that withholding forgiveness can be beneficial for low-power victims in a hierarchical context - ironically, a context in which offering forgiveness is often expected.

Keyword

compliance ;  deterrence theory ;  fear ;  forgiveness ;  Power

Abstract

While a large body of research has investigated cultural differences in behavior, this typical study assesses a single behavioral outcome, in a single context, compared across two countries. The current study compared a broad array of behaviors across 21 countries (N = 5,522). Participants described their behavior at 7:00 p.m. the previous evening using the 68 items of the Riverside Behavioral Q-sort (RBQ). Correlations between average patterns of behavior in each country ranged from r = .69 to r = .97 and, in general, described a positive and relaxed activity. The most similar patterns were United States/Canada and least similar were Japan/United Arab Emirates (UAE). Similarities in behavior within countries were largest in Spain and smallest in the UAE. Further analyses correlated average RBQ item placements in each country with, among others, country-level value dimensions, personality traits, self-esteem levels, economic output, and population. Extroversion, openness, neuroticism, conscientiousness, self-esteem, happiness, and tolerant attitudes yielded more significant correlations than expected by chance.

Keyword

behavior ;  cross-cultural ;  personality ;  Riverside Behavioral Q-sort

Abstract

In complex and competitive business environment, there have been many examples of supply chain members fighting for power. Therefore, researchers have begun focusing on the impact of control power allocation on the supply chain. This paper examines the allocation of power in different service supply chain relationships, analyzing the impact of service level on optimal control power allocation and comparing the differences between the optimal power distribution in service supply chains and that of manufacturing supply chains. We adopt a mathematical model building method to discuss this issue, verifying the theoretical perspectives through empirical studies of China's largest state-owned logistics company, the China Railway Company, and the private ownership enterprise, Tianjin SND Logistics Company. We also develop a conceptual model of the influence of control power on the performance of service supply chains, based on the modeling and case analysis. The conceptual model shows several results: the control power allocation determines the dominant structure of the supply chain; the service provider's wholesale pricing strategy and the service integrator's sales price strategy present different outcomes under various dominant structures of the supply chain, which will greatly affect the performance of the corresponding supply chain; and the relationship between the supply chain dominant structure and the price can be adjusted by the service level.

Keyword

Case study ;  Conceptual model ;  Control power ;  Model analysis ;  Service level ;  Service supply chain

Abstract

Keyword

Health Care ;  Health Policy

Abstract

Purpose The paper examines accounting changes in the Ashanti Gold Corporation (AGC) in Ghana over 120 years from pre-colonialism to recent times and whether the framework of management accounting transformations in Hopper et al. (2009) is applicable. Design/methodology/approach Mixed data sources are used, namely interviews, some observations of practices, historical documentation, company reports, and research papers and theses. The results are categorized according to the periods and contextual factors in the Hopper et al. framework to test whether it matches the data collected. Findings Despotic controls with minimal management accounting but stewardship accounting to the head office in London prevailed under colonialism. Upon independence state capitalist policies descended into politicized state capitalism. Under nationalization the performance of mines deteriorated and accounting became decoupled from operations. In the early 1980s fiscal crises forced Ghana’s government to turn to the World Bank and IMF for loans. This period marked a gradual transformation of AGC into a foreign multinational, organized along divisional lines and today exercises despotic control through supply chain management that renders labour precarious, and is neglectful of corporate social accounting issues. Research limitations/implications The work challenges neo-classical economic prescriptions and analyses of accounting in developed countries by indicating its neglect of the interests of other stakeholders, especially labour and civil society. Accounting is important for development but the article infers other forms may better serve the public interest. Originality/value The paper tests the Hopper et al. framework with respect to a large private multinational in the commodity sector over an extended period, which differs from the case studies drawn on originally.

Keyword

accounting change ;  Ashanti Gold ;  development policies ;  Ghana

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the human resources (HR) literature by using exploratory network analysis (ENA), a data-driven technique. This technique was employed to discover how the perceived effectiveness of HR practices interrelate with employee perceptions on organizational cultural factors to enhance organizational commitment. Design/methodology/approach The authors used data from 1,459 employees of a large South Korean conglomerate and studied how individual HR practices could be enhanced by specific organizational cultural factors. The data were analyzed using ENA, which is an inductive approach. Findings The authors found that organizational commitment is associated with the positive perceptions of employees on the effectiveness of HR practices, such as performance appraisal, training and development, and compensation. Results show that when both HR practices and organizational cultural factors are considered, they appear to influence organizational commitment independently. Research limitations/implications Data were collected from a large conglomerate. The authors were limited by the use of the scales developed by a consulting firm. Therefore, readers should be cautious about the generalizability of the findings. Originality/value The application of a data-driven technique (ENA) highlights the potentially fertile methodological grounds for HR research. Literature on strategic HR management may benefit from inductive approaches, wherein data serve as primary foundation for the design and development of new theories.

Keyword

Exploratory network analysis ;  HR systems ;  Organizational commitment ;  Organizational culture