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1 – 10 of over 3000The field of broad-based employee ownership within corporations is a specific application of the foundational topic of property ownership. It is situated at the intersection of a…
Abstract
Purpose
The field of broad-based employee ownership within corporations is a specific application of the foundational topic of property ownership. It is situated at the intersection of a broad range of scholarly disciplines including economics, law, finance and management. Each discipline contributes vocabulary and distinctions describing this field. That broad spectrum of disciplinary inquiry is a strength but it also lends a “ships passing in the night” quality to discussions of employee ownership. This paper attempts to unravel the narrative diversity surrounding this topic. Four meanings of ownership are introduced. Those meanings are in turn embedded within two abstract models of the corporation; the corporation as property and the corporation as social institution.
Design/methodology/approach
There is no experimental design The paper presents a conceptual overview and introduces a taxonomy of four meanings and two models of ownership.
Findings
Four meanings of ownership are introduced. The meanings are ownership as compensation, investment, retirement and membership. Those meanings are in turn embedded within two abstract models of the corporation; the corporation as property and the corporation as social institution.
Research limitations/implications
No hypotheses are advanced. This is not a research paper. A conceptual overview that makes use of taxonomy of meanings and models is introduced to help clarify confusions abundant in the field of employee ownership. Readers may differ with the categories of meanings and models introduced in this conceptual overview.
Practical implications
The ambition of the paper is to describe the various meanings and models of employee ownership presently in use in both academic and applied settings. It is not necessary or desirable to assert the primacy of a single meaning or model in order to achieve progress. The analysis provided here surfaces a range of assumptions about ownership that have heretofore been implicit in both scholarship and in practice. Making those assumptions explicit should prove useful to both scholars and practitioners of employee ownership.
Social implications
The concept of employee ownership enjoys a relatively broad appeal with the public. Among the academic disciplines that have trained their lights upon it, a more mixed reception prevails. Much of the academic and policy controversy derives from confusion about the nature and structure of employee ownership. This paper attempts to address that confusion by presenting a taxonomy of meanings and models that may prove useful for future research.
Originality/value
This study is one of the first efforts to comprehinsively map the various meanings and models of broad-based employee ownership.
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Daniel Stefan Hain and Roman Jurowetzki
The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the changing pattern and characteristics of international financial flows in the emerging entrepreneurial ecosystems of Sub-Saharan…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the changing pattern and characteristics of international financial flows in the emerging entrepreneurial ecosystems of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), provide a novel taxonomy to classify and analyze them, and discuss how such investments contribute to competence building and sustainable development.
Design/methodology/approach
In an exploratory study, the authors analyze the characteristics of international venture capital investors and the start-ups receiving funding in Kenya and map their interaction. The authors proceed by developing a novel taxonomy, classifying investors according to their main rationales (for-profit-for-impact), and start-ups according to the locus of needs and markets addressed by the start-up (local-global) and the locus of the start-ups capacity and knowledge (local-global).
Findings
The authors observe a new type of mainly western investors who support innovative ideas in SSA by identifying and investing in domestically developed technical innovations with the potential to address global market needs. The authors find such innovations to be mainly developed at the intersect of global and local knowledge.
Originality/value
The authors shed light on the – up to now – under-researched emerging phenomenon of international high-tech investments in SSA, and develop a novel taxonomy of technology investments in low-income countries, guiding further research on the conditions, impact, practical, and policy implications of this new form of finance flows.
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Guy Major and Jonathan Preminger
Both the academic literature and practitioners have long noted the need for an equity investment mechanism for worker-controlled firms that alleviates investor anxieties without…
Abstract
Purpose
Both the academic literature and practitioners have long noted the need for an equity investment mechanism for worker-controlled firms that alleviates investor anxieties without undermining internal workplace democracy. The purpose of this paper is to outline one such possible mechanism.
Design/methodology/approach
The proposal locks together the interests of workers and external investors, via non-voting shares with dividends set by a pre-agreed value-added sharing formula. Each worker is paid a base wage, with the average across the firm being a pre-defined multiple of the national minimum wage. Any additional surplus is split into a number of equal “slices”, with each share receiving one slice as its dividend, and the average worker receiving a pre-agreed number of slices as a bonus.
Findings
Workers have an incentive to maximise their own incomes, and in so doing, will also automatically maximise the dividends received by investors, obviating the need for the shares to have normal voting rights. Working on this principle of aligned interests, the authors also discuss reinvestment, worker ownership of non-voting shares and possibilities for a secondary share market. The authors show how this proposal will be a significant step in aligning the interests of investors with owner-workers in a democratic, negotiated way that shares both risk and returns, thus making worker-controlled firms more attractive to equity investment.
Originality/value
In light of the recognised problem of underinvestment in worker-controlled firms and the risk of their degeneration, this paper will interest both academics and practitioners in employee ownership, co-operatives and various forms of workplace democracy.
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Phuc Canh Nguyen, Christophe Schinckus, Binh Quang Nguyen and Duyen Le Thuy Tran
This study investigates the effect of global and domestic uncertainty on the dynamics of portfolio investment in 21 economies (mostly advanced and larger emerging economies) from…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the effect of global and domestic uncertainty on the dynamics of portfolio investment in 21 economies (mostly advanced and larger emerging economies) from 2001–2016.
Design/methodology/approach
Specifically, the evolution of the net portfolio equity investment inflows (FPI net inflows) and the evolution of net portfolio investment (FPI net) are investigated in a context in which the degree and the volatility of domestic economic policy uncertainty (EPU) and world uncertainty index (WUI) varied. The authors provide an empirical analysis through the sequential (two-stage) estimation of linear panel data models for unbalanced panel data.
Findings
An increase in the degree and volatility of domestic EPU has a significant negative influence on FPI net inflows, while an increase in WUI has a significant positive one. Notably, a simultaneous increase in the domestic EPU and WUI enhances the net inflows of FPI, whereas a simultaneous increase in the volatility of these indicators reduces the net inflows of FPI. An increase in the degree and volatility of both domestic EPU and WUI have a significant positive effect on the net portfolio investment, implying that a significant net portfolio investment is going out of the country.
Research limitations/implications
The results of this study encourage international investors to consider uncertainty indicators (and, more specifically, their variations) in their portfolio strategy to optimize their position on the international markets. The findings of this study invite policy-makers from large countries to reduce the perceived domestic uncertainty since this parameter can influence international investors' sensitivity and willingness to diversify their position out of the country.
Originality/value
The authors' approach focuses on the variations of uncertainty (existing literature mainly works with the indicators). While the results confirm the role played by large markets in international portfolio investment management, it nuances the changes in the portfolio management behaviors toward other markets when facing a changing uncertainty.
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Wu Chen and Yanping Li
The purpose of this paper is to systematically review the evolution, characteristics, motivations, entry patterns, organizational structure and effectiveness of the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to systematically review the evolution, characteristics, motivations, entry patterns, organizational structure and effectiveness of the internationalization of Chinese research institutions in the past 40 years of reform and opening-up.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper describes the evolution and practice of Chinese research institutions “going out” by constructing a theoretical framework diagram and uses official statistics and existing research to explain the authors’ points.
Findings
The research results show that the internationalization of research institutions has undergone four phases: sprout period, starting period, adjustment period and accelerating period. It shows a rapid growth of investment scale, diversification of investment entities, rich and varied forms, and transition to major countries along the “One Belt and One Road.” Expanding the international market, tracking and acquiring technological frontiers, nurturing domestic R&D talents, and evading the risks of political, economic, cultural and scientific differences between home and host countries are the main motivations for Chinese research institutions to “go global.” Multinational corporations have entered the host country with modes such as M&A, greenfield investment and joint R&D alliances in their own strengths and also presented a variety of organizational structures such as integrated R&D networks.
Originality/value
This paper systematically summarizes the internationalized experience model of research institutions with Chinese characteristics since the reform and opening-up. From the perspective of internationalization model transformation, policy integration and cooperation among emerging economies, it presents the opportunities and challenges faced by the research institutions in the process of internationalization and provides a theoretical basis for improving the internationalization ability of research institutions.
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This paper aims to address two fundamental questions: (1) How has Bahrain's industrial policy evolved during the 21st century? and (2) what factors contribute to this evolution?
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to address two fundamental questions: (1) How has Bahrain's industrial policy evolved during the 21st century? and (2) what factors contribute to this evolution?
Design/methodology/approach
Utilizing secondary data, this paper identifies key decision-makers responsible for economic policy in Bahrain and delineates the evolution of Bahrain's industrial policy throughout the 21st century. Subsequently, it employs a series of interviews with elite civil servants engaged in the formulation and implementation of Bahrain's economic policies to understand the reasons behind the observed changes.
Findings
Since assuming the role of Crown Prince in 1999, Sh. Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa has been the key economic decision-maker in Bahrain. During the 21st century, Bahrain has shifted away from decisions closely aligned with the Washington Consensus towards those more in line with classical industrial policy. Interviews reveal that the private sector's underperformance in job creation, coupled with fiscal pressures, has driven this departure from the Washington Consensus. Moreover, the early successes of the interventionist Saudi Vision 2030 and Bahrain's own success in technocratically managing the COVID-19 pandemic have accelerated this transition.
Practical implications
Insights into the determinants of Bahrain's industrial policy can guide policymakers in refining future strategies. Recognizing the positive role of intellectual developments in academic economics literature becomes crucial for informed decision-making.
Originality/value
This paper fills a gap in the existing literature by providing answers to its research questions, particularly considering the significant changes witnessed in Bahrain's industrial policy post-pandemic.
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Filipe Segurado Severino and Francisco Silva
This study focuses on analysing Japanese pop culture events to determine whether they may be useful marketing tools for a location with a distinctive culture from where they are…
Abstract
Purpose
This study focuses on analysing Japanese pop culture events to determine whether they may be useful marketing tools for a location with a distinctive culture from where they are organized. It also examines how the popular culture events differ from other events and what impacts they have on these destinations.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-method approach is used to analyse data from a questionnaire provided to 364 participants from these events and seven semi-structured interviews with event organizers or their representatives from events on this topic in Portugal, France, Spain, Denmark and North America.
Findings
According to the research, these events are regarded as unique and unusual from the perspective of the customer due to the variety of activities they offer, the use of imagination they inspire and the engaged fan participation. These occasions have been found to strengthen and propagate Japanese popular culture outside of its place of origin and arouse interest in it.
Originality/value
Several studies have examined the appeal of Japanese pop culture, but few have investigated the impact of events to enhance the destination's image where they are held, as well as their potential outside of Japan. With already over a hundred official events of this theme held annually, with a sizable number of participants, a study of this paradigm exposes its potential for promoting a culture that is growing in popularity outside of its place of origin and understanding the effects it has on these various regions.
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