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Article
Publication date: 7 August 2018

Chia-Yi Liu, Cheng-Yu Lee and Hsin-Ju Stephie Tsai

Although a number of studies have researched food firms’ unethical practices, the mechanisms used to prevent these practices remain underexplored from the perspective of corporate…

Abstract

Purpose

Although a number of studies have researched food firms’ unethical practices, the mechanisms used to prevent these practices remain underexplored from the perspective of corporate governance. As independent directors (IDs) have been viewed as a mechanism to deter corporate misconducts, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the influences of the ratio of IDs on the board, IDs’ industrial experience and their participation in corporate governance training courses on food firms’ unethical production practices.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is based on a sample of 239 firm-year observations in Taiwanese food industries. The Poisson model with fixed effects was used to test the research hypotheses.

Findings

The results show that board independence and IDs with food industry expertise were not effective in deterring food firms from unethical production practices. The expected monitoring function of IDs would only realize when they complete a sufficient number of corporate governance training courses. These courses can make IDs aware of their responsibilities and roles in governing firms.

Originality/value

This study is the first to identify the effects of corporate governance practices on food firms’ unethical production practices. The value of this study may provide food firms practical solutions that enable corporate executives to behave ethically.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 120 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 April 2017

Cheng-Yu Lee, Yen-Chih Huang and Chia-Chi Chang

Although scholars have paid considerable attention to the relationship between technological diversification and firm performance, research on this relationship has produced mixed…

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Abstract

Purpose

Although scholars have paid considerable attention to the relationship between technological diversification and firm performance, research on this relationship has produced mixed findings. To reconcile these inconsistent findings, this study, thus, aims to revisit the performance effect of technological diversification by considering two organizational characteristics as crucial moderators, namely, firm size and financial slack.

Design/methodology/approach

To test the research hypotheses, the research sample covers manufacturing firms in the 2008 Standard & Poor (S&P) 500 index. Data regarding the characteristics and patent information of the sample firms were obtained from Compustat and the US Patent and Trademark Office. The hypotheses were tested by using hierarchical regression models.

Findings

In a sample of 168 S&P 500 manufacturing firms, this study finds that technological diversification has a positive effect on firm performance. The relationship between technological diversification and firm performance is also found to be positively moderated by firm size, financial slack and their configuration.

Originality/value

The findings of this study further suggest that firms should be aware that the effect of technological diversification on performance can be enhanced or hindered in specific contexts.

Details

Management Research Review, vol. 40 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8269

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 August 2018

Huei-Wen Pao, Cheng-Yu Lee, Pi-Hui Chung and Hsueh-Liang Wu

The industry-wide adoption of a novel practice is often considered to be an institutional change. Although research on institutionalization has been accumulating, how and why…

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Abstract

Purpose

The industry-wide adoption of a novel practice is often considered to be an institutional change. Although research on institutionalization has been accumulating, how and why embedded actors in the field become motivated to embrace change that remains sidelined. Viewing the introduction of a new human resource management practice, the recruitment of non-compulsory certified manpower, which is still in its infancy in the service sector of Taiwan, as a new institution, the purpose of this paper is to identify the distinct motives behind firms’ hiring decisions, and examine the extent to which such hiring decisions are contingent on institutional conditions and firm attributes.

Design/methodology/approach

The data used to test the hypotheses were drawn from a survey on service firms in Taiwan in the second half of 2011. Hypotheses were examined through moderated hierarchical regression analyses in a sample of 254 Taiwanese service firms across major sectors.

Findings

Integrating the resource dependency and social contagion views, the study contends that resource scarcity drives, or legitimacy enables, service firms to deviate from traditional hiring patterns and instead adopt new preferences toward certified manpower. The study not only shows that social factors should be incorporated into the diffusion of a new HR recruitment practice in the service sector, which is traditionally based upon economic considerations, but also sheds light on the context-dependent nature of the process of institutional innovation.

Originality/value

This study is an attempt not only to test a dual-theoretical model on the extent to which a service firm’s new hiring pattern is influenced by two distinct types of motivation, but also to evidence how an institutional innovation, in terms of the regime of service manpower certification, takes root and spreads in the field. The managerially discretional account of the resource dependence theory needs to be reconciled with social contagion theory, which highlights the influence of collective actions and so provides a better understanding of the diffusion of new HR recruitment practices in the service industry.

Details

Journal of Advances in Management Research, vol. 15 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0972-7981

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 October 2020

Quang-Anh Le and Cheng-Yu Lee

This study aims to analyze the link between earnings pressure and R&D cut as well as the moderating effects of family control and debt.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to analyze the link between earnings pressure and R&D cut as well as the moderating effects of family control and debt.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 6,130 firm-year observations of Taiwanese-listed firms were used to test the hypotheses by using a panel data regression with fixed effects estimation.

Findings

The study reveals that earnings pressure is positively related to R&D cut, and this relationship can be softened when having the presence of family control and debt.

Research limitations/implications

This study is conducted based on some conditions: data collection comes from a single source, earnings pressure mainly comes from analysts, R&D intensity is significant among industries, debt is a given condition to managers. Future studies, thus, are suggested to use other approaches to have further information and extend the knowledge without these conditions.

Practical implications

Under the pressure of meeting analyst forecast, managers have more opportunities to flourish their priority on improving temporary profits rather than implementing R&D investments with costly budget but unpredictable outcomes. In addition to responding to the positive effect of earnings pressure on trimming long-term corporate investments, this study also found some corporate governance mechanisms to soften the managerial short-termism behavior.

Originality/value

The findings partially contribute to broadening the existing knowledge base on the impact of earnings pressure on corporate activities and how some mechanisms serve as moderators.

Details

Management Research Review, vol. 44 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8269

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 March 2019

Chia-Yi Liu and Cheng-Yu Lee

The spatial and psychological distance within agri-food chains provides both profit and risk for supply chain members. Grounded on the transaction cost economics (TCE) and…

Abstract

Purpose

The spatial and psychological distance within agri-food chains provides both profit and risk for supply chain members. Grounded on the transaction cost economics (TCE) and institutional theory (IT), the purpose of this paper is to test whether the adoption of multiple supply chains (MSCs), which adopt both traditional and shortened supply chains, can be used to manage uncertainty and mitigate the risk associated with a supply chain.

Design/methodology/approach

In order to test the hypothesis, matched questionnaire surveys were developed to collect the data from farm managers and consumers. Completed questionnaires were received from 112 respondents. The hierarchical regression analysis was performed to test hypotheses.

Findings

The result shows the positive effects of environmental and behavioral uncertainties on MSC adoption and represents the diminished moderating effects of institutions (industrial and consumption tendency) on the relationship between uncertainties and MSA adoption.

Research limitations/implications

This study only explored producers and their recommended consumers; future studies can undertake questionnaire designs (one producer-to-many consumers) and empirical analyses with analytic hierarchy process theory to reexamine the hypotheses proposed in this study.

Practical implications

MSC adoption is a way to manage uncertainties resulting from spatial and psychological distance in the supply chain. Producers and consumers show their risk preferences by SC adoption after considering pre-constructed societal norms. Therefore, the consumers’ and producers’ choice of a supply chain reflects a process of communicating risk. The adoption of a mixed governance mode (MSC adoption) and accessing information about common practices are two ways to decrease such uncertainties.

Social implications

There are multiple goals (traceability, fairness, efficiency, well-being) in the food supply chain that may be satisfied by MSC adoption. Therefore, policymakers should understand the different values of various supply chains and facilitate the development of various supply chain modes.

Originality/value

This study integrated the undersocialized and oversocialized perspectives (TCE and IT) to understand how uncertainties of supply chains may be diminished. Based on these perspectives, it found that the adoption of the mixed governance mode and accessing of institutional information are two ways to decrease such uncertainties.

Details

International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, vol. 49 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0960-0035

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 March 2023

Phuong-Dung Thi Nguyen and Cheng-Yu Lee

Corporate governance scholars have long been interested in understanding the impact of former chief executive officers (CEOs) who do not fully leave office but rather remain as…

Abstract

Purpose

Corporate governance scholars have long been interested in understanding the impact of former chief executive officers (CEOs) who do not fully leave office but rather remain as board members. Departing from the inconclusive findings of retaining Janus-faced predecessor CEOs on boards, this study revisits the concept of retaining predecessor CEOs on boards (RPCB) and its influence on successors and firm performance under certain conditions.

Design/methodology/approach

The study analyzes a sample of 461 Taiwanese firms from 2015 to 2019, adopting the ordinary least squares regression method to examine the correlation between RPCB and firm performance. It specifically analyzes the moderating effects of the complexity of firms' internal and external environments in this context.

Findings

The empirical results show that there is no direct relationship between RPCB and post-succession performance, indicating that this association is shaped by contextual factors. Indeed, the influence of predecessors is more pronounced in situations of high internal and external complexities such that the value of RPCB is situation specific.

Originality/value

This study is the first to generate the resource-based view theory to recognize that the relationship between predecessors on boards and financial consequences is moderated by contextual factors. The authors are the first to extend extant research by considering internal and external complexity in the context of succession and RPCB. In such situations, successors' need for regular mentoring is heightened and the benefits of prior CEO knowledge and resources are more substantial.

Article
Publication date: 3 August 2015

Huei-Wen Pao, Hsueh-Liang Wu, Shih-Ping Ho and Cheng-Yu Lee

To heed the calls for more inquiries into the tacit behavior in the partnering process and the latent rules underpinning the success of partnerships, the purpose of this paper is…

Abstract

Purpose

To heed the calls for more inquiries into the tacit behavior in the partnering process and the latent rules underpinning the success of partnerships, the purpose of this paper is to develop a process model that explains when and how partner fit triggers the generation of trust through the sense making of fairness and similarity, and then yields performance by overcoming uncertainties jeopardizing the collaboration.

Design/methodology/approach

To develop a comprehensive but parsimonious model for international partnership, the study involves observing and interpreting the accounts of project managers, which suggest the use of an exploratory approach based on case studies. The research setting is six cross-country partnerships operating in East Asian countries during 2005-2009 with each joint project involving Taiwanese construction companies and at least one local partner.

Findings

The evidence shows that inter-partner trust conduces to project performance by reducing the threat of behavioral and environmental uncertainty. The findings confirm the general thesis that the performance implication of inter-partner trust is not uniform but contingent on both the types of trust and the uncertainty in the partnering process.

Originality/value

Although not the first in the literature of collaborative dynamics, the paper contributes to identifying the latent constructs in the partnering process and highlighting the context-dependent nature of a successful partnership.

Details

Journal of Advances in Management Research, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0972-7981

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 June 2012

Cheng‐Yu Lee and Yen‐Chih Huang

This study aims to examine the relationships among knowledge stock, ambidextrous learning, and firm performance while considering the moderating effect of firm size.

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the relationships among knowledge stock, ambidextrous learning, and firm performance while considering the moderating effect of firm size.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses R&D scoreboard database to produce a sample of 312 firms which operate in technologically intensive industries. To test the research hypotheses, regression analysis is employed.

Findings

The major findings are: the positive performance implications of ambidextrous learning; knowledge stock as an antecedent of ambidextrous learning; the mediating role of ambidextrous learning; and firm size as a contingency factor that strengthens the influence of ambidextrous learning on firm performance.

Research limitations/implications

Owing to the scope of the research, only patent data were used to measure knowledge stock and ambidextrous learning. However, the measurement of these variables may have been influenced by the availability of patent information.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that realizing superior performance is dependent on a firm's accumulated knowledge stock and its ability to balance exploratory and exploitative learning. Large firms extract more value from ambidextrous learning than small firms.

Originality/value

This study is the first to identify the mediating role of ambidextrous learning in the relationship between knowledge stock and firm performance and to confirm that firm size moderates the relationship between ambidextrous learning and firm performance. The value of this study lies in developing a model of ambidextrous learning that includes both mediating and moderating variables.

Article
Publication date: 14 August 2017

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

Design/methodology/approach

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

Findings

In a sample of 168 S&P 500 manufacturing firms, this study finds that technological diversification has a positive effect on firm performance. The relationship between technological diversification and firm performance is also found to be positively moderated by firm size, financial slack, and their configuration.

Practical implications

The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world’s leading organizations.

Originality/value

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Details

Strategic Direction, vol. 33 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0258-0543

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 April 2021

Yu-Cheng Lin, Chyi Lin Lee and Graeme Newell

Recognising that different property sectors have distinct risk-return characteristics, this paper assesses whether changes in the level and volatility of short- and long-term…

Abstract

Purpose

Recognising that different property sectors have distinct risk-return characteristics, this paper assesses whether changes in the level and volatility of short- and long-term interest rates differentially affected excess returns of sector-specific Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) in the Pacific Rim region between July 2006 and December 2018. The strategic property risk management implications for sector-specific REITs are also identified.

Design/methodology/approach

Daily excess returns between July 2006 and December 2018 are used to analyse the sensitivity in the level and volatility of interest rates for REITs among office, retail, industrial, residential and specialty REITs across the USA, Japan, Australia and Singapore. The generalised autoregressive conditionally heteroskedastic in the mean (GARCH-M) methodology is employed to assess the linkage between interest rates and excess returns of sector-specific REITs.

Findings

Compared with diversified REITs, sector-specific REITs were less sensitive to short- and long-term interest rate changes across the USA, Japan, Australia and Singapore between July 2006 and December 2018. Of sector-specific REITs, retail and residential REITs were susceptible to interest rate movements over the full study period. On the other hand, office and specialty REITs were generally less sensitive to changes in the level and volatility of short- and long-term interest rate series across all markets in the Pacific Rim region. However, the interest rate sensitivity of industrial REITs was somewhat mixed. This sector was sensitive to interest rate movements, but no comparable evidence was found since the onset of GFC.

Practical implications

The insignificant exposure to interest rate risk of sector-specific REITs may imply that they have a stronger interest rate risk aversion and greater hedging benefits than their diversified counterparts, particularly for office and specialty REITs. The results support the existence of REIT specialisation value in the Pacific Rim region from the interest rate risk management perspective. This is particularly valuable to international property investors constructing and managing portfolios with REITs in the region. Property investors are advised to be aware of the disparities in the magnitude and direction of sensitivity to the interest rate level and volatility of REITs across different property sectors and various markets in the Pacific Rim region. This study is expected to enhance property investors' understanding of interest rate risk management for different property types of REITs in local, regional and international investment portfolios.

Originality/value

The study is the first to assess the interest rate sensitivity of REITs across different property sectors and various markets in the Pacific Rim region. More importantly, this is the first paper to offer empirical evidence on the existence of specialisation value in the Pacific Rim REIT markets from the aspect of interest rate sensitivity. This research may enhance property investors' understanding of the varying interest rate sensitivity of different property types of REITs across the USA, Japan, Australia and Singapore.

Details

Journal of Property Investment & Finance, vol. 40 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-578X

Keywords

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