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1 – 10 of 78Guilong Zhu, Fu Sai and Zitao Qin
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of two dimensions of technological relatedness, namely technological similarity and complementarity, on collaborative…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of two dimensions of technological relatedness, namely technological similarity and complementarity, on collaborative performance, plus the mediating role of collaboration network stickiness and the moderating role of partner expertise and geographical distance in interfirm collaboration contexts.
Design/methodology/approach
This study takes Chinese Scientific and Technological Achievements (STA) of inter-firm collaboration in five high-tech fields in 2010–2020 as the sample and uses OLS regression to test the hypothesis.
Findings
Technological similarity and complementarity positively affect collaborative performance. Partner expertise negatively moderates the relationship between similarity, complementarity and collaborative performance. Geographical distance positively moderates the relationship between similarity and collaborative performance while negatively moderates that between complementarity and collaborative performance. Collaboration network stickiness partly mediates the relationship between similarity and collaborative performance.
Originality/value
This study expands literature on inter-firm collaboration, especially research on the antecedents of collaborative performance. Moreover, this study not only compensates for lack of empirical analysis in partner selection research, but also utilizes second-hand data to enhance the objectivity of analysis. Additionally, we enrich the research on the moderating role of partner expertise and geographical distance as well as the mediating role of collaboration network stickiness.
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Hung-Tai Tsou, Colin C.J. Cheng and Hsuan-Yu Hsu
While co-innovation with third parties (e.g. customer or supplier) has been widely documented, the literature seems to pay scant attention on co-innovation with business partners…
Abstract
Purpose
While co-innovation with third parties (e.g. customer or supplier) has been widely documented, the literature seems to pay scant attention on co-innovation with business partners. Building on the resource dependence theory (RDT) and the input-process-output model, the purpose of this paper is to examine how four criteria of business partner selection affect service delivery co-innovation, which, in turn, influences firms’ competitive advantage.
Design/methodology/approach
A mail survey was sent to 600 IT service firms in Taiwan, the target respondents being senior marketing managers in charge of collaborative new service development. A total of 120 usable questionnaires were collected, for a response rate of 20 percent.
Findings
The findings support the argument that all four criteria of business partner selection have positive relationships with service delivery co-innovation. Meanwhile, adopting these criteria, firms’ service delivery co-innovation is able to create superior competitive advantage.
Research limitations/implications
The findings enrich the existing literature by proposing and empirically confirming that the use of appropriate criteria to select business partners enhances the effectiveness of firms’ service delivery co-innovation and competitive advantage.
Practical implications
Managers must be aware of the criteria to select their business partners, in terms of developing service delivery co-innovation.
Originality/value
This study adds to the service innovation literature by providing support for the RDT that partner reliability, partner complementarity, partner expertise, and partner compatibility are important business partner selection criteria to create service delivery co-innovation and achieve firms’ competitive advantage.
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Ki Kyung Song and Eunyoung Whang
Using Porter’s (1980) generic strategy to define strategic positioning of law firms, this paper aims to explain why some law firms have more/less pay inequality than others do and…
Abstract
Purpose
Using Porter’s (1980) generic strategy to define strategic positioning of law firms, this paper aims to explain why some law firms have more/less pay inequality than others do and examine the impact of pay inequality on law firms’ partners and the job satisfaction of their associates.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses data from The American Lawyer. The strategic positioning, compensation and job satisfaction scores of 614 firm-year observations of US law firms are hand-collected over the period from 2007 to 2016.
Findings
Non-equity partners at law firms with differentiation strategy (Porter, 1980) are more likely to build rainmaking ability than those at law firms relying on billable hours. As a result, law firms with differentiation strategy have a narrower pay gap between their equity and non-equity partners than those firms relying on billable hours. After controlling for the effects of strategy on pay inequality using two-stage and three-stage least squares models, this paper finds that a wider pay gap deprives associates of job satisfaction.
Originality/value
Considering strategic positioning, this paper validates why some law firms have more/less pay inequality and proves how pay inequality affects job satisfaction.
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Shuling Chiang, Gary Kleinman and Picheng Lee
This study aims to explore the relationship between audit partner and firm industry specialization and board of director independence on the decision by Taiwanese firms to use…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore the relationship between audit partner and firm industry specialization and board of director independence on the decision by Taiwanese firms to use International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) flexibility concerning reporting interest income and expense and dividends received in different sections of the statement of cash flows. This flexibility existed in Taiwan for the first time in 2013, the year that Taiwan switched from its own generally accepted accounting principle to IFRS.
Design/methodology/approach
Using 2013 data for a sample of 1,227 firms, 354 of whom changed their reporting classification, this study examined the interaction effect of board independence and partner-level and firm-level auditor industry specialization on the cash flow reporting decision using logistic regression.
Findings
The results show there is a substitute relationship between board independence and partner-level industry specialization on the change in cash flow reporting classification, but a complementary relationship between board independence and firm-level auditor specialization. Further, both partner-level and firm-level auditor industry specializations have a complementary (but negative) relationship with board independence as to whether the firm is likely to report interest expense paid in the operating or financing activities sections.
Practical implications
An important implication is that knowing the levels of audit firm and partner specialization and how independent the board is, is useful for researchers and regulators in investigating auditor-client relationships and understanding the influences of variables investigated here on the outcome(s) of accounting policy and regulatory changes.
Originality/value
This study improved the field’s understanding of the impacts of audit partner and firm specialization, board independence and relevant interactions on cash flow reporting choices.
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Seonghee Han, KiKyung Song and Eunyoung Whang
Job satisfaction along with a work–life balance of attorneys in law firms has become an important issue to the legal industry. This paper examines the relationship between…
Abstract
Purpose
Job satisfaction along with a work–life balance of attorneys in law firms has become an important issue to the legal industry. This paper examines the relationship between strategic positioning of law firms and the job satisfaction of their associates.
Design/methodology/approach
Using 1,108 firm year observations of US law firms from 2007 to 2016, this paper examines how a firm's strategic positioning affects the job satisfaction of its associates. The strategic positioning is measured with two financial ratios derived from modified DuPont analysis: revenue per lawyer (RPL) and leverage (LEV). To compare the level of associates' job satisfaction depending on law firms' RPL and LEV, this paper uses t-tests. In addition, this paper adopts OLS regression and simultaneous equations to examine the relation between law firms' strategic positioning and their associates' job satisfaction.
Findings
This paper shows that associates in the law firms with a high LEV strategy have lower job satisfaction because these firms provide a more demanding work environment than in the firms with a high RPL strategy.
Originality/value
This paper first documents empirical evidence that a firm's strategic positioning significantly influences job satisfaction of its employees, using data on the legal industry which is human-capital-intensive and is considered one of the sectors that provide the most notorious work environments.
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Nguyen Thi Mai Anh, Lei Hui, Vu Dinh Khoa and Sultan Mehmood
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between relational capital and supply chain collaboration (SCC) and how this relationship relates to innovation. The…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between relational capital and supply chain collaboration (SCC) and how this relationship relates to innovation. The authors propose a theoretical framework to illustrate the effect of relational capital on three dimensions of collaboration and radical and incremental innovation.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper has a quantitative approach. The authors conducted the survey to collect the data from 225 suppliers in the Hunan province of China. The proposed model is tested with exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.
Findings
The findings show that relational capital can facilitate information sharing and benefit/risk sharing when firms work together to achieve innovation. Furthermore, the results indicate that relational capital leads to radical innovation through facilitating information sharing among firms and helps in generating incremental innovation by encouraging firms to share risks and benefits with their partners.
Practical implications
The findings of this study give some suggestions for managers of the firms in terms of building their collaborative strategies. Managers should exploit relational capital to build successful and long-term collaboration. Also, through relational capital, managers can share information to create radical innovation or pool risks and share benefits with their customers to achieve incremental innovation.
Originality/value
This study provides a nuanced understanding of the relationship between relational capital, different dimensions of SCC and innovation in the context of a developing economy. Moreover, the findings provide a clearer understanding of the collaborative mechanism of relational capital and collaboration to achieve radical and incremental innovation.
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Todd Young, Mike Carano and Frank Polakovic
As high density interconnect (HDI) technologies become accepted in the printed circuit board (PCB) industry, build‐up multilayer (BUM) technologies utilizing laser ablated…
Abstract
As high density interconnect (HDI) technologies become accepted in the printed circuit board (PCB) industry, build‐up multilayer (BUM) technologies utilizing laser ablated microvias have grown in popularity. This paper will look at the thermal reliability of the plated blind microvias and through vias using standard thermal shock procedures and interconnect stress testing (IST) methodology. Laser ablated microvias manufactured utilizing unreinforced materials and standard FR‐4 materials will be evaluated, along with colloidal graphite direct metallization and two electroless copper processes. The thermal reliability of these different materials and processes will be determined. This paper is intended to increase BUM usage by increasing the fabricator’s understanding of the processes needed to build metallized microvias and address questions on interconnect reliability by thermal testing.
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This article discuses the challenge of organizations achieving a collaborative advantage.
Abstract
Purpose
This article discuses the challenge of organizations achieving a collaborative advantage.
Design/methodology/approach
Gives a brief synopsis of collaborative advantage.
Findings
Leadership must involve being both gentle and tough at the same time – being prepared to nurture relationships on the one hand and taking a directive clear line on the other.
Originality/value
Gives guidance in terms of how to understand the complexity of collaboration.
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The purpose of this study is to describe how the British Library Document Supply Service (BLDSS) is responding to changes in the provision of research content, redefining its…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to describe how the British Library Document Supply Service (BLDSS) is responding to changes in the provision of research content, redefining its services to suit varying audiences’ requirements and building on a flexible technology platform.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is descriptive in nature.
Findings
The British Library is responding well to the current competitive environment for Inter Library Loan (ILL) and document supply.
Originality/value
This study includes an up-to-date assessment of the BLDSS and the changes, driven by the changing landscape, that are taking place.
Details