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Recognizing the severity of COVID-19 on the US economy, the authors investigate the behavior of US-listed firms towards leverage speed of adjustment (SOA) during the pandemic. While prior evidence (based on an international study) shows that firm leverage increased during the pandemic leading to a higher SOA toward leverage ratios, leverage for US firms during the same period reduced drastically. Yet there is a dearth of empirical studies on the behavior of US-listed firms' SOA during the pandemic. The authors fill this void.

The study includes US-listed non-financial and non-utility firms for the period 2015Q1-2021Q4, covering a total sample of 45,213 firm-quarter observations. The authors’ empirical strategy is based on the generalized method of moments (GMM) and firm-fixed effect methodology, controlling for firm- and quarter-fixed effects.

Three main findings are established: (1) while the SOA toward book target increased during the pandemic, SOA toward market target increased significantly only for less valued and cash-constrained firms; (2) firms in states most impacted by the pandemic adjusted faster towards target ratio; and (3) while the emergence of the pandemic and the overall firm-level risk increased (decreased) the deviation from book (market) target, firm-level risk partially mediated the effect of the pandemic on how far firms deviated from target ratio.

This study enhances our understanding of leverage adjustment during the crisis and shows that risk avoidance motive and the market value of firms are key determinants of convergence rate during the crisis and further demonstrates that market leverage is more sensitive to market dynamics. As such, caution must be taken when dealing with and interpreting market leverage SOA.

Although prior evidence based on international study provides insights into how firms behave toward their leverage ratios because of the pandemic, little is known about how US firms react to the pandemic in terms of the target ratios, particularly (1) since the USA is one of the severely affected countries and (2) firms in the USA reduced their leverage ratios as against what prior evidence shows. The authors provide evidence to explain how and why US firms reacted toward their SOA during the pandemic.

Cross-border mergers and acquisitions (CBM&As) are a significant component of foreign direct investment (FDI), which in turn is at the heart of the international business strategy of multinational enterprises (MNEs). Given that CBM&As involve both a scale and an immediacy to raising financing that greenfield investments often lack, financially constrained firms are inhibited from undertaking CBM&As. The authors go further and show that these financing constraints impact the markets where MNEs target firms for CBM&A transactions. In the presence of such financing constraints, the determination of which markets are targeted by MNEs is directly related to the supply of capital in the target market and the institutional distance between the home and host markets. Evidence in support of the hypotheses is documented using firm-level data on CBM&As from Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries as well as Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) into every country globally for which data exist. The main implication of the research is that not only are financial constraints at the firm level important, but also that these constraints have a significant impact on the location of an acquisition target.

The study aims to evaluate and compare the mergers and acquisitions (M&As) performance utilising a sample of deals originating from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS). In addition to nation-wise performance analysis, a further sub-sample analysis is conducted based on the target location (domestic and cross-border), development status (developed and emerging) and the acquired ownership stakes (majority and minority).

The final sample of the study includes 7,105 deals announced between 2000 and 2019. M&A performance is proxied by the abnormal returns earned over the select event windows. Multiple parametric and non-parametric tests are employed for testing the robustness.

The results indicate significant performance differences across BRICS markets, with the highest and lowest abnormal returns reported for Chinese and Russian acquirers, respectively. The disaggregated analysis also affirms the performance differences for the select sub-samples.

The study highlights the need for acknowledging and expounding the differences in M&As across emerging markets. Further, the results of the study provide a possible explanation of the disagreement over the M&A performance results reported in the previous literature.

Acknowledging and understanding the potential performance differences based on location, ownership strategies and development status can aid executives in sharpening decision-making and also help general investors.

The study contributes by examining a comprehensive sample of deals across five major emerging economies, as against the majority of previous studies which have their results based on either single nation samples or have utilised only a sub-sample of domestic or foreign acquisitions.

This paper aims to examine how Chinese multinational enterprises’ (CMNEs) autonomy-style post-merger integration (PMI) modes of managing developed-market targets evolve into actual-form integration through the lens of ambidexterity.

This study adopts multi-case comparisons with content analysis. A data set was collected from 37 conversations by in-depth interviewing 29 respondents regarding four cases of Chinese acquisitions in the German market.

This study develops a three-stage framework that theorised CMNEs’ autonomy PMIs’ evolution to actual-form integration over time and the effect on acquisition value based on structural, temporal and contextual ambidexterity manifestations. The findings divide the evolutionary trajectory into two sub-trajectories, from great autonomy to autonomy-integration balanced or full integration, to illuminate the effect of different degrees of actual-form integration on value creation or value destruction.

The existing literature on CMNEs’ PMI discovered that CMNEs frequently grant ample autonomy when managing targets acquired from developed markets. However, long-term acquisition benefit is dependent on combining autonomy and actual-form integration; insights into how this can be accomplished are limited. The research is unique in that it reveals the evolutions of CMNEs’ PMIs on developed-market targets, from autonomy to actual-form integration through the lens of ambidexterity.

The aim of the proposed classification approach of potential market alternatives (CAPMA) is to provide exporting countries with a framework for identifying potential market opportunities for their products or services.

In today's global market conditions, with competition increasing daily, companies, businesses and states must seek new markets at the national and international level. Target market selection is a strategic process that directly affects the success of an organization and can lead to important results in the short and long term. The process requires systematic research and digitization of data to analyse target markets.

The study tested the proposed approach by analysing Turkey's potential markets for hazelnut exports and identifying new target markets. A significant part of Turkey's hazelnut exporting is confined to the European geography of Turkey, the leading country in hazelnut production and export. Twenty potential markets were evaluated on the basis of 11 criteria, and feasible alternatives were categorized into four classes. The study revealed that the USA, India, the United Kingdom and Japan were in the category of markets with the greatest potential for increasing exports (Dimension 1).

This study has developed a novel approach that allows the comparison of the current market situation with potential market outcomes and creates an accurate classification of target markets.

The primary aim of this study is to resolve a longstanding debate concerning the impact of takeover premiums on post-acquisition performance. Specifically, we aim to examine how acquirers' marketing capabilities and payment methods moderate the relationship between takeover premiums and post-acquisition performance.

This study employs linear regression to examine the relationship between acquirers' marketing capabilities, payment methods, takeover premiums and post-acquisition performance in the Chinese manufacturing industry. Data for the analysis were collected from both mergers and acquisition (M&A) announcements and the China Stock Market & Accounting Research Database (CSMAR), covering 1,169 acquisitions from 2012 to 2021.

The results indicate that acquirers' marketing capabilities moderate the impact of takeover premiums on post-acquisition performance. When acquirers possess strong marketing capabilities, takeover premiums increase post-acquisition performance. Conversely, when acquirers lack strong marketing capabilities, takeover premiums are not significantly related to post-acquisition performance. Additionally, it is noteworthy that takeover premiums show a positive correlation with post-acquisition performance, irrespective of the payment methods employed by acquirers for target firms.

Given that takeover premiums are essential for acquiring resources from target firms, it is crucial to maximize the value of these acquired resources. Our findings suggest that acquirers with weaker marketing capabilities before the deal should consider a more conservative approach to pricing target firms.

This study aims to examine the strategy of TV9 Nusantara, one of the local televisions in Indonesia, marketing its religious programs when soap operas are the most popular television programs in Indonesia.

This study used a descriptive qualitative method by collecting data using in-depth interviews, observation and documentation.

TV9 Nusantara used a counter-programming strategy to seize viewers from the competing television stations; the prime time is also set differently from other televisions as well as implements a head-sterling strategy to make the audiences loyal to watching TV9 Nusantara programs and not switch the channels.

In Indonesia, three types of television stations are broadcast nationally, publicly or government-owned, central and regional and local television. This study only focused on local television stations whose main program is religious, especially Islam.

The results of this study can underline the importance of establishing segmentation, targets, differentiation and market positioning as well as efforts to create products, prices, places and promotions for journalistic products, especially TV broadcast products and production processes that follow Sharia principles.

This study can inform the public regarding TV Broadcasting products and production processes following Sharia principles.

This study examined the implementation of marketing strategies and the marketing mix on local television, especially television that broadcasts programs that are not the favorites of most viewers.

Appropriate target market selection and classification are complex, time-consuming, and strategically important management decisions. The current study proposes and implements a new systematic approach that evaluates and ranks alternative markets’ potential to increase the export volume of Turkey’s fig exports.

The classification approach of potential market alternatives (CAPMA) method, which was developed to evaluate, compare, and classify alternative markets according to their potential, was used in this study. CAPMA, an objective decision-making technique, is based on calculating the classification coefficient and classifying the alternatives into four dimensions, taking this coefficient into consideration. In the current study, 25 alternative markets were analysed on the basis of four evaluation criteria and classified into four dimensions according to their potential to increase export volume.

According to the application results, alternative markets with the greatest potential to increase export volume were identified as the United States of America (USA), Netherlands, China, and Spain. The USA has the greatest potential for expansion of export volume. By implementing correct and effective marketing strategies, fig export volume has the potential to reach very high levels.

The study’s results on alternative markets for fig exports were categorized, countries with greater potential to increase export volume were identified, and findings that could contribute to the development of the sector were obtained. The approach proposed in the current research can be used to determine the target market of many other products, especially agricultural products, whose production is concentrated within a specific geography.

Emerging market firms (EMFs) are increasingly expanding their global presence through cross-border mergers and acquisitions (CBMAs). While such deals are distinct from those by advanced market firms, there is a need for a comprehensive understanding of how emerging home markets form this distinctiveness. This study aims to remedy this gap.

The authors conduct a systematic literature review of 84 empirical papers. Through a broad search string and seven exclusion criteria, the authors carefully select studies on country-level home factors of CBMAs by EMFs.

After summarizing paper volumes, journals and context factors of home/host countries and industries, the authors highlight different strands of institutional theory as the prevailing perspective and pre-M&A issues as the foremost theme. CBMAs by EMFs are influenced by distinct home-exclusive factors, and the mechanisms linking home-country factors to CBMAs by EMFs show significant inconsistencies across studies.

This review focuses on home country influence and thus goes beyond general characteristics of CBMAs by EMFs. The authors highlight more diverse types of home country factors and CBMA outcomes and, more importantly, take a closer look at involved mechanisms. Doing so, the authors identify gaps and disparities that have limited the understanding of home country influence in CBMAs by EMFs. To correct this, the authors offer a comprehensive roadmap for future research, contributing to EMF studies in particular and CBMA and international business research in general.

This case study covers marketing concepts, including marketing mix, segmentation, targeting and brand positioning and communication. After completion of the case study, the students will be able to understand the importance of segmentation and targeting; recognize the differences between business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customers (B2C) segments; gain knowledge about the points of parity and points of difference while positioning; and examine the elements of a marketing mix.

The case centered around Mr. Ashvinder Singh, founder and director of Uni Style Image (USI), who initiated the polo T-shirt business in 1990 in Okhla, Delhi. The brand expanded across the country, but from 2010, USI faced fluctuating demand due to the rise of online marketing and intense competition from global fashion brands. Revenues dropped massively, leading to a significant downsizing from over 300 employees to just 11 by the end of fiscal year 2016–2017. In 2018, Singh explored the B2B model; however, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 impacted many small- and mid-sized apparel businesses, including USI. In the fiscal year 2021–2022, the B2B segment accounted for 90% of total revenue, but the business size could not cover significant operating expenses. Despite only 10% of revenue coming from the B2C segment, Singh wanted to leverage the online space. In September 2022, Singh closed his factory in Noida, National Capital Region, Delhi. Amid the uncertainty, Singh explored various opportunities in the Indian market. In 2023, he even engaged a consultancy for expertise in marketing initiatives. He had to choose the target segment/s, develop a positioning strategy and create an effective marketing mix with very limited resources.

This case is designed for undergraduate and postgraduate students, offering a valuable teaching tool for essential marketing concepts, such as the marketing mix, segmentation, positioning and brand communication. It can be used in both core marketing courses and elective courses like brand management, consumer behavior and integrated marketing communication. The decision dilemma presented in the case enriches the understanding of these concepts, making it a valuable resource for marketing education.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 8: Marketing.