Search results

Drawing on social network and information diffusion theories, the authors study the impact of the structural characteristics of a seller’s local social network on her promotion effectiveness in social commerce.

The authors define a local social network as one formed by a focal seller, her directly connected users and all links among these users. Using data from a large social commerce website in China, the authors build econometric models to investigate how the density, grouping and centralization of local social networks affect the number of likes received by products posted by sellers.

Local social networks with low density, grouping and centralization are associated with more likes on sellers’ posted products. The negative effects of grouping and centralization are reduced when density is high.

The paper deepens the understanding of the determinants of social commerce success from a network structure perspective. In particular, it draws attention to the role of sellers’ local social networks, forming a foundation for future research on social commerce.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is try to answer the following question: to which extent the observed location pattern is driven by network effects or by traditional location factors, like the structure and behaviour of the local labour market, housing market, public goods, and local tax rates? Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses an econometric model derived from random utility maximization. This model is estimated on a panel of Helvetic labor market areas, using a two stages estimation method. The first stage allows the network effect to be estimated. In the second stage, it estimates the impact of standard location factors. Findings – The paper finds evidence of a very strong network effect. This network effect is a very important location factor and implies that a location may attract current immigrants mainly because it attracted previous immigrants, even if the traditional location factors are not a source of attractiveness. Research limitations/implications – The present study corroborates earlier work on the Italian case. There is still some work to be done for taking account of the highly localized nature of network externalities. Originality/value – The impact of network on migrants' behavior is a hotly debated issue. However, there is almost no analysis of this impact on migrants' location. Conversely, if the high level of concentration of immigrants is a well known stylized fact, there is almost no study of the factors explaining this concentration. The research starts filling these two gaps.

This chapter summarizes the interdependence of network effects, compatibility standards and intellectual property rights (IPR) in the global economy. This interdependence is analyzed at the product market level and at the research and development level. The questions to be examined are: how IPR influence the provision of goods exhibiting network effects; the impact of network effects on the creation, dissemination and protection of intellectual property and of goods with strong intellectual property content; and strategic issues faced by firms and governments in goods that exhibit network effects. We answer these questions by studying how network effects influence the value of IPR and how in turn IPR may influence the size of networks. We highlight the central importance of IPR protection of interface standards for market outcomes, and how different types of IPR generate market power through interface standards. We review similarities of network effects in product markets and research networks as well as impediments to their expansion. We finally discuss alternative outcomes of standardization policies, institutional choices and strategic coordination efforts by firms. We emphasize how the answers to these questions are distinct in an international context.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of original equipment manufacturing suppliers’ local network embeddedness on buyers’ relative attention and joint innovation through service innovation competence.

A structural equation model was analyzed using AMOS 21 with data derived from 165 buyers in the Taiwanese electronics industry.

From the buyer perspective, suppliers with embedded network relationships in emerging markets are perceived to be service oriented and to have relative attention and joint innovation that are attractive to buyers. In addition, the findings of empirical testing conducted in this study suggest that perceived exploitative and explorative service innovation competence partially mediate the relationship between perceived network embeddedness and relative attention, while explorative service innovation competence partially mediates the influence of perceived network embeddedness on buyers’ joint innovation.

This study innovatively employed a buyer perspective to examine the servitization of manufacturing suppliers and the effects of this on the buyer–supplier relationship, providing new insights into the role of service innovation competence as well as important theoretical and managerial implications.

While international business research has provided insights into the cross-border strategies and operations of firms in the manufacturing sector, understanding about service sector internationalization is less developed. This is especially important in light of the recent, rapid rise of digital businesses that now dominate the global economy. Understanding firms that operate using digital platforms requires a clear understanding of network effects, especially in terms of internationalization. Both the nature and the level (local, national, regional, or global) of the relevant network effects play roles in multinational enterprises’ incentives for internationalizing, their foreign entry choices (particularly with respect to sequencing), and the political interactions between businesses and the environments in which they operate.

Adopting exchange theory and social orientation of loyalty, this research investigates the antecedents of customer loyalty consisting of (1) loyalty layers (i.e. personal loyalty, relationship with consumption communities and local network effects) and (2) loyalty expectations (i.e. service quality, reciprocity and firm innovativeness) and how these relationships are moderated by customer knowledge.

The data were collected from 4,208 customers in the mobile services industry using mall intercept technique.

The findings reveal that loyalty layers, including personal loyalty and relationship with consumption communities, can influence customers' expectations of service providers. The degree to which the firm is able to handle and meet customers' expectations over time would result in the strength of customer loyalty. Customer expectations also mediate the relationships between different loyalty layers and customer loyalty. In addition, customer knowledge significantly moderates the effects of loyalty layers and expectations on both attitudinal loyalty and behavioural loyalty.

The study extends the current body of knowledge by incorporating a sociological perspective to examine the relationships between loyalty layers and customer expectations and customer loyalty. This research enables service operators to establish strategies to sustain customer loyalty across different customer segments with various levels of knowledge.

When considering whether to adopt a network technology, how does uncertainty about whom a potential adopter might interact with affect their adoption choice? On the one hand, uncertainty about potential network partners might enhance adoption incentives, as increased uncertainty induces the potential for economies of scope across the potential network. On the other hand, uncertainty may reduce the expected value of any particular connection, and reduce adoption incentives. Since this is a theoretical puzzle, this chapter presents empirical evidence to help illuminate it. It presents evidence the destabilizing of a social network may increase the scope of network externalities, using data on sales of a video-calling system made to an investment bank’s employees and subsequent usage by these customers. The terrorist attacks of 2001 led potential customers in New York to start communicating with a new and less predictable set of people when their work teams were reorganized as a result of the physical displacement that resulted from the attacks. This did not happen in other comparable cities. These destabilized communication patterns were associated with potential adopters in New York being more likely to take into account a wider spectrum of the user base when deciding whether to adopt relative to those in other cities. Empirical analysis suggests that the aggregate effect of network externalities on adoption was doubled by this instability, and that for those with diffuse networks, this more than compensated for the negative baseline effects of the instability.

This study aims to assess the effect of entrepreneurial orientation on supply chain performance both directly and indirectly through entrepreneurial competence, as well as the moderating role of local community networking in these relationships, within the context of institutional voids in Ghana.

The study utilized a cross-sectional survey data from 225 small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in order to test the hypotheses. The data analysis was conducted using partial least squares structural equation modelling techniques.

The results revealed that entrepreneurial orientation is a significant positive predictor of both entrepreneurial competence and supply chain performance. Similarly, entrepreneurial competence was shown to positively predict supply chain performance, both directly and as a mediator between entrepreneurial orientation and supply chain performance. Local community networking, however, positively moderated the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and entrepreneurial competence but not the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and supply chain performance.

This study contributes to literature by looking at the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation, entrepreneurial competence, local community networking and supply chain performance within the context of an emerging economy with institutional voids. The study shows the importance of an entrepreneurial mindset in developing the necessary skills, competences and abilities needed to survive in the turbulent business environment.

Foreign construction subsidiaries play an important role in the global construction market. How to establish and maintain long-term sustainable performance has attracted increased attention, but only a few studies have considered this issue. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between autonomy and the sustainable performance of subsidiaries and to provide support for their management control modes.

From an institutional logics perspective, empirical research using a questionnaire survey was conducted following the methodological framework of this study. Relevant data were collected from 106 experienced managers of foreign construction subsidiaries, and the hypotheses were tested through a regression model.

The results show that foreign construction subsidiaries have a high degree of operational autonomy, which tends to strengthen their embeddedness in the host country and improve their sustainable performance. However, the role of strategic autonomy is not found to be significant. The moderation results show that the positive impact between operational autonomy and external network embeddedness is strengthened by institutional distance. Institutional distance has no significant moderating impact on the relationship between strategic autonomy and external network embeddedness, respectively.

Geographical limitations may exist as the survey is focused on the Chinese construction foreign subsidiaries. However, based on an institutional logics perspective, this study discusses the management control mode of foreign subsidiaries, which enriches the antecedents of sustainable performance and can provide an in-depth explanation of the effects of the organizational strategies of multinational construction enterprises.

This study provides beneficial information for the sustainable performance of foreign construction subsidiaries. It will provide detailed guidance to managers located in different institutional environments on optimally promoting the sustainable development of subsidiaries.

This study identifies autonomy as an important antecedent, making it one of the first studies investigating autonomy on the sustainable performance of foreign construction subsidiaries. The findings of this study can contribute to the construction subsidiaries' sustainable performance literature and provide novel, comprehensive knowledge for academia and practice.