Search results

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of information technology competency (ITC) on internal and external learning competency and the relations among ITC, internal and external learning competency and the commercial success of innovation (CSI)

The paper uses survey data from 186 companies. Through structural equation modeling the paper assesses the links between ITC, internal and external learning competency and the CSI.

First, this study finds that ITC plays a critical role in internal and external learning competencies. Second, internal and external learning competencies are directly related to the CSI. Third, internal and external learning competencies mediate the relation between ITC and the CSI.

The research is cross-sectional, so cause-effect relation cannot be definitively inferred from the results.

This study contributes to organizational learning research, identifying a key antecedent of internal and external learning competencies – ITC – and analyzing the link between internal and external learning competencies and the CSI. Moreover, this study is relevant to IT literature because it shows that ITC, on its own, is insufficient to generate and maintain a competitive advantage. Firms need complementary strategic capabilities such as learning competencies to strengthen the effect of ITC on firm performance.

This paper aims to contribute to international business research by providing an integrative framework of the factors determining the learning process of outsourcing companies in developing countries.

A systematic review of the literature was performed with an analysis of 84 articles published in peer-reviewed academic journals, published between 2000 and 2020.

The results show that the different factors should be seen as complementary and not mutually exclusive. It is the interaction between macro and micro factors that jointly shape the learning of developing country subcontractors. Moreover, the results of the analysis show that many existing studies have not been based on specific theoretical frameworks.

This study develops a roadmap of the current state of research on the determinants of learning among developing country subcontractors and offers suggestions to guide future research. The authors conclude with a call for methodological advancement and theory development on the topic.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study proposes the first comprehensive review of the literature on the factors determining the learning of subcontractors in developing countries. The authors have tried to provide an integrative analytical framework to discuss what has been known and what needs to be known in this regard.

The purpose of this article is to describe how investing in entrepreneurial ventures can help large firms pursue corporate entrepreneurship initiates. Ventures can be attractive partners due to their ability to provide a disproportionate share of radical innovations.

Based on existing literature and information collected via 45 surveys and 72 interviews, the paper shows that strategic fit is an important variable that determines the type of benefits ventures can provide to investing firms.

Three benefits large firms can reap from investing in ventures are: managing the risks and uncertainties of innovation; learning from the venture; and increasing bargaining power over ventures that supply innovative products.

Existing research does not go far enough to explain the range of benefits corporate venture capital can provide. The majority of investments were found in ventures that sell innovative products to the investing firm and have technological competences different from the investing firm.

Organizing for innovation is often a challenge for large firms. Because ventures may be more effective when started outside the firm than inside, investing in select entrepreneurial ventures can help firms effectively explore for radical innovation while continuing to exploit their existing resources internally.

For corporate strategists concerned about improving their firm's innovativeness, corporate venture capital can be part of a corporate entrepreneurship toolbox that can help augment a large firm's growth and competitive position. It can be particularly helpful in managing the risks and uncertainties inherent with radical innovation.

Considering the advent of Industry 4.0, organizations need to undergo digital transformation to survive disruptions owing to rapid technological changes. Accordingly, organizations should develop their adaptive capability to respond to these technological advancements and move ahead with their digital transformation journey.

Based on the author’s insights as a practitioner on digital transformation and based on existing theoretical frameworks, the author presents a conceptual framework on the determinants of adaptive capability required for digital transformation.

Organizations should develop their adaptive capability through improved learning capabilities and effective knowledge management system. They should also focus on exploring innovations and ideas and discard unwanted business processes to meet Industry 4.0 disruptions and achieve digital transformation.

This study has been done based on the author's academic research on adaptive capability and personal insights after engaging in several digital transformation engagements.

The purpose of this exploratory study is to investigate the significance of self-efficacy and knowledge acquisition among micro businesses operating in challenging economic environments. The study uses social cognitive theory (SCT) and the knowledge-based theory of the firm (KBTF), and it proposes a refinement of these theoretical frameworks in the context of the study.

A case method was chosen, and face-to-face interviews with 14 owners of firms in island and rural regions of Greece and Spain were conducted.

Content analysis identified the importance of self-efficacy, primarily illustrated by entrepreneurs’ determination and self-motivation, propensity to take risks and ability to anticipate consequences of their actions. Acquisition and accumulation of explicit knowledge, particularly through generational or mentoring processes, and subsequent wealth of tacit knowledge, also emerged as very significant in preparing and guiding entrepreneurs. Various links between the adopted theories and findings emerged, particularly regarding forethought, vicarious learning (SCT) and specialisation in knowledge acquisition (KBTF).

The proposed theoretical refinement based on the SCT and KBTF paradigms allows for a more rigorous, in-depth reflection on the links between cognitive elements present in the participating micro entrepreneurs and knowledge-based attributes on their ability to increase organisational resilience. The study also contributes toward the micro business literature and addresses a knowledge gap, particularly, in that contemporary research has not explored entrepreneurial motivations among small firm entrepreneurs. Finally, the practical implications emerging from the findings provide a platform for various stakeholders (associations, government agencies) to appreciate and support entrepreneurs’ needs, notably, of acquiring, increasing and sharing knowledge.

This paper aims to shed light on the relationship between partnerships and innovation efforts of the firms. The goal is to understand whether Turkish firms collaborate for innovation or not and, if they do, what is the impact of partnerships on the innovation performance of firms?

In this research, a survey methodology is employed. The questionnaire is implemented through structured interviews conducted with 135 Turkish companies from the textile, chemical, food and machinery industries.

The findings show that Turkish firms have high‐collaboration ties with other companies in particular but the existing partnerships have a weak impact on innovation performance.

As only one country is studied and data come from one year, the findings of this study are limited in terms of generalizing the results for a wide variety of developing countries.

Non‐materialized performance is to a degree due to low quality of relationships, but more importantly Turkish firms need to find ways to improve their partnerships and in‐house capabilities, particularly their absorptive capacities, if they want to improve their innovativeness through partnerships.

This paper is one of the early examples empirically investigating the relationship between technology collaborations and innovation performance of firms in a developing country context.

This monograph reports on the strategic and operational roles of learning and development (L&D) professionals in Irish, UK European and US organisations including multinational corporations, small to medium enterprises, the public sector and not for profit organisations. This paper aims to investigate the contextual factors influencing L&D roles in organisations, the strategic and operational roles that L&D professionals play in organisations, the competencies and career trajectories of L&D professionals, the perceptions of multiple internal stakeholders of the effectiveness of L&D roles and the relationships between context, L&D roles, competencies/expertise and perceived organisational effectiveness.

The study findings are based on the use of multiple methods. The authors gathered data from executives, senior managers, line managers, employee and L&D professionals using multiple methods: a survey (n = 440), Delphi study (n = 125) and semi-structured interviews (n = 30).

The analysis revealed that L&D professionals increasingly respond to a multiplicity of external and internal contextual influences and internal stakeholders perceived the effectiveness of L&D professionals differently with significant gaps in perceptions of what L&D contributes to organisational effectiveness. L&D professionals perform both strategic and operational roles in organisations and they progress through four career levels. Each L&D role and career level requires a distinct and unique set of foundational competencies and L&D expertise. The authors found that different contextual predictors were important in explaining the perceived effectiveness of L&D roles and the importance attached to different foundational competencies and areas of L&D expertise.

This is one of the few studies to have investigated the L&D professional role in organisations from the perspective of multiple stakeholders using multiple research methods.

The purpose of this study is to empirically explore how managers differ from non-managers with regard to learning skills as competencies and learning style in a public-sector work setting. The paper also examined how learning style affects competency development.

This study applied Kolb’s experiential learning theory concomitant with its instruments to analyze 12 skills and 4 learning styles. A total of 457 government officers from the Indonesian Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Internal Affairs participated in this study, including 112 managers and 345 non-managers.

The study had four major findings. Although the two groups were similar in technology skills, managers had stronger skills than non-managers in leadership, relationship, helping, sense making, information gathering, information analysis, theory building, quantitative analysis, goal setting, action and initiative. Relationship skills were important for both managers and non-managers. Managers were more abstract and less concrete learners than non-managers. The learning style with more thinking over feeling affected learning skills development much more than the learning style with more acting over reflecting.

Using experiential learning theory, this study has clarified what competencies of managers are more developed than those of non-managers and how the two groups learn differently.

This chapter describes three active learning activities developed for use in the introductory financial accounting class: an interview with a financial statement user, an internal control paper, and a financial statement project where students analyze two competing businesses. We gathered student surveys and direct assessment data to see if these activities add value to the introductory accounting course.

The learning activities were originally developed using Fink’s (2003) Taxonomy of Significant Learning, aligning the activities with Fink’s learning dimensions, which also support the higher order learning skills in Bloom’s revised taxonomy. Students completed surveys by comparing how well traditional class activities (i.e., homework and tests) and the new activities support the core competencies of the American Institute for Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). We also asked students open-ended questions on how they felt about these new activities. Researchers then compared pre- and postadoption assessment data to investigate the impact of the new learning activities on class completion rates and grades.

Based on faculty comments and student survey results, the three active learning assignments appear to be more effective in developing many of the AICPA’s core competencies and real world skill sets valued by professionals, providing more value than traditional teaching methods. In addition, the passing rates in the course at the Youngstown State University increased by 12% after adopting the learning innovations.

The purpose of this study was to explore what agile learning strategies businesses need to develop agile core competencies to respond to the uncertainty of the rapidly changing business environment and sustain their competitive advantage. Technology advances and unexpected crises have created an ever-changing environment in which traditional static corporate training methods have failed to continuously provide employees with the ability to listen to and interpret the rapid changes and respond accordingly.

This qualitative exploratory multi-case study was useful to explore what agile learning strategies businesses need to develop agile core competencies to sustain their competitive advantage. Snowball sampling enabled the discovery of 15 participants who represented 10 different industries. Participants represented both management and non-management roles. Data were collected from multiple sources such as interviews, observations, researcher notes and document reviews. A thematic analysis model was used to analyze the collected data.

The findings substantiated that organizations are operating in a fast-changing environment where agile learning strategies are vital to surviving. The data also showed that agile learning strategies must include individual learning paths to continuously develop employees’ agile skills to build their organizations’ agile core competencies.

This study underlined the importance of adopting agile learning strategies to help employees listen and accurately interpret their organizations’ external environments to enable quick responses to changes. Without agile learning strategies, organizational agile core competencies and competitive advantage will progressively decline.