Search results

The paper examines ways that Knowledge Management (KM) can demonstrate practical value for organizations. It begins by reviewing the claims made about KM, i.e. the benefits KM can provide to organizations. These claims are compared with traditional firm performance metrics to derive a criterion to measure the value of KM. Seven practical outcomes of KM are then presented as methods to persuade managers to invest in KM. These practical outcomes are then evaluated against the value criterion. The paper is based on empirical evidence from a five year longitudinal study.

This paper is based on a longitudinal change project for a large Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Project grant in the period 2008-2013. The Project was a transformational change program which aimed to help make the partner organisation a learning organisation. The partner organisation was a large Australian Government Department, which faced the threat of knowledge loss caused by its ageing workforce. The sample was 118 respondents, mainly engineering and technical workers. A total of 150 respondents were invited to participate in the study which involved an annual survey and attendance at regular training workshops and related activities, with a participation rate of 79 per cent.

This paper provides a checklist from which to evaluate KM in terms of financial and non-financial measures and seven practical outcomes from which to identify the organisational problem which may be addressed by KM. Lead and lag indicators – what needs to be done and what will result – are also provided. Managers may use this framework to identify the value proposition in any KM investment.

The research is based on a single case study in a public sector organization. While the longitudinal nature of the study and the rich data collected offsets this issue, it also presents good opportunities for researchers and practitioners to test the ideas presented in this paper in other industry contexts. The seven practical outcomes also vary in the maturity of the empirical evidence supporting KM ' s impact. Strategic alignment, value management, and psychological contract, in particular, are still under-developed and could be areas for specific further research testing the ideas presented here.

This paper argues that investment decisions regarding KM may benefit from focusing on significant and on-going organisational problems, which will connect KM with firm performance and demonstrate financial and non-financial impact. The seven practical outcomes were evaluated against measurement criteria and against KM ' s claims. Overall, common themes were time and cost, as well as capability growth and performance improvements. Financial impact was mainly found in cost savings. Non-financial impact was found across the seven practical outcomes. It provides management with a checklist to make investment decisions regarding KM.

The decision whether to invest in KM begins with methods used to evaluate any organisational project. Managers must determine first whether necessary funds are available; and then whether the project is worthwhile. The standard method for evaluating a project ' s worth is return on investment (ROI). However, calculating ROI for KM investment is problematic. Unless KM can be proven to directly improve performance in financial terms, managers may struggle to see its ROI. The paper begins by reviewing the claims made about KM, i.e. the benefits KM can provide to organizations. These claims are compared with traditional firm performance metrics to derive a criterion to measure the value of KM.

This paper aims to study personnel perceptions about value processing in three case organizations in the Finnish context, especially management's role in organizational change where values are considered.

The research follows the methodology of the case study approach to tackle the research theme. The data include interviews from multiple (managerial) hierarchical levels, from top management to local levels (in top management and at the local level) in the case companies. The interviews are analyzed by content analysis.

The paper provides information about personnel perceptions in organizational value processes, especially the management's and organizational culture's role, in this kind of change process, as well as the individual's own role and responsibilities as an employee.

The research reported is not exhaustive and was done in the Finnish context, which may reduce its applicability to other, especially non‐European, countries.

The paper represents a very useful source of information and practical advice for companies encountering changes where organizational values are processed.

This paper fulfils the growing need for information about value management and value processing in organizations, and offers practical help to individuals working among these themes in their organizations.

This research probes into the execution of small and medium‐sized enterprises’ value creativities by a difference analysis with different classifications, different capital, different turnover, different employees, and different established years. This study develop a questionnaire about value creativity with five dimensions and thirty‐five items according to “Valuation” by McKinsey and Company, Inc. and Copeland et al., such as: “Aspiration and target,” “Portfolio management,” “Organization design,” “Process management,” and “Business and individual performance management.” The results are as follows: (1) Most small and medium‐ sized enterprises (SMEs) have executed value creativities; (2) There is a difference in the execution of value creativities between the livelihood industry and the chemical industry; the execution of value creativities by livelihood industry is better than the chemical industry; (3) For value creativities of the execution of different capital and turnover for SMEs, bigger entities are better than smaller ones; (4) For the value creativities of the execution of different numbers of staff in SMEs, those with more staff are better than those with fewer staff; (5) For the value creativities of the execution of different established years for SMEs, those established longer are better than those established shorter.

This paper considers supply chain management organizations with the aid of 'chaotic systems theory' developed originally in physics and mathematics. Since innovations in supply chain management are vital for organizational survival 'complex systems theory' may assist in fine-tuning managerial philosophies that provide stability in supply chain management because it is on the boundary of chaos that the greatest innovational creativity occurs. Neither 'management by rigid objectives' (MBO) nor 'management by instruction' (MBI) will be suitable for the information society of the twenty-first century because chaotic social systems will no longer be effectively managed. However, the capacity for self-organization will be derived essentially from how supply chain management members accept a shared set of values or principles for action-'management by values' (MBV). Complex systems theory deals with systems that show complex structures in time or space, often hiding simple deterministic rules. This theory holds that once these rules are found, it is possible to make effective predictions and even to control the apparent complexity. The state of chaos that self-organizes is attributable to the appearance of the 'strange attractor' and provides the ideal basis for creativity and innovation in the twenty-first century. In the self-organized state of chaos, social members are not confined to narrow roles and gradually develop their capacity for differentiation and relationships, growing progressively towards their maximum potential contribution to the efficiency of the organization. In this meaning, values act as organizers of 'attractors' of disorder, which, in the theory of chaos, are systems represented by usually regular geometric configurations that predict the long-term behavior of complex systems. In supply chain management organizations (as in all kinds of social systems) the initial principles end up as the final principles in the long term. An attractor is a model representation of the behavioral results of the system. The attractor is not a force of attraction or a goal-oriented presence in the system; it simply depicts where the system is heading based on its rules of motion. In supply chain management organizations that cultivate or shares values of autonomy, responsibility, independence, innovation, creativity, and proactivity, the risk of short-term chaos is mitigated by external complexities that organizations are currently confronting. The strategy is to alter the supply chain management's surroundings so that they can benefit from management by values (MBV).

The goal of this paper is to develop a model which may be used to demonstrate costs and benefits of risk management investments in the context of value-based management.

This paper answers the question of how to quantify changes in company value caused by risk management measures on a theoretical basis. First, a review of empirical studies allowing assertions about the cost and utility of risk management investments is presented. The results of these studies point to a nonlinear shape of the curve and form a basis for the development of a seemingly plausible cost/utility correlation.

In this paper, a model will be developed which can be used to demonstrate costs and benefits of risk management investments in the context of value-based management. It is assumed that at first, risk management expenditures without measurable monetary utility will have to be made. Furthermore, it is assumed to increase more than proportionally, then less than proportionally, until further investments in risk management activities yield only minimal increases in utility and cannot improve company value any further.

By inserting the yet-to-be-determined actual cost/benefit relationship for a company or industry sector into the EVA equation, it is possible to display the effects of risk management measures on the company value. This procedure is principally combinable with the analysis of other value-based control parameters, that is, the Discounted Cash Flow concept or the Cash Value Added methodology.

Risk management is increasingly gaining scientific and public interest, especially since the global financial crisis. Scientists and practical users espouse the benefits of risk management systems in this context. However, the extent to which investments in risk management systems can improve the value of a company remains still unclear.

We could determine that at first risk management expenditures will not result in a monetarily measurable benefit. The remaining slope of the curve is derived as increasing more than proportionally at first, then less than proportionally, until further investments into risk management activities yield almost no additional increase in benefits. In this paper, three different functions are offered to describe the shape of the curve identified. They differ in regard to their free parameters and hence in their flexibility of application. The higher flexibility of functions #2 and #3 is balanced by the disadvantage of increasing formal complexity, possibly leading to an increased effort for implementation and application.

To harness the relationships developed in this paper for practical use, further research should target the identification and empirical verification of dependencies between the parameters and principal company index values.

Sharing services increasingly extends beyond intraorganizational concentration of service delivery. Organizations have started to promote cooperation across their boundaries to deal with strategic tensions in their value ecosystem, moving beyond traditional outsourcing. This chapter addresses two research questions geared to the challenge of interorganizational shared services (ISS): why would organizations want to get and remain involved in ISS? And: what are the implications of ISS for (inter)organizational value creation?

The conceptual chapter reviews literature pertaining to ISS from public, commercial, and nongovernmental sectors. ISS is understood as a multistakeholder organizational innovation. In order to analyze ISS and conduct empirical research, we developed a taxonomy and research framework.

The chapter shows how ISS can be positioned in value chains, distinguishing vertical, horizontal, and hybrid ISS. It outlines ISS implications for developing business models, structures, and relationships. Success factors and barriers are presented that epitomize the dynamic interplay of organizational autonomy and interorganizational dependence.

The research framework offers conceptual ideas for theoretical and empirical work. Researchers involved in ISS studies may adopt strategic, strategic innovation, and organizational innovation perspectives.

ISS phases are distinguished to focus innovation management — initiation, enactment, and evaluation. Furthermore, insights are provided into processes and interventions aimed at making ISS a success for participating organizations.

Cross-sectoral perspective on ISS; taxonomy of ISS; research framework built on organization and strategic management literature.

The aim of this paper is to investigate the nature of public value in the context of Swedish public museum management and how it is created.

The museum context is introduced, and assumptions and principles underpinning new public management (NPM) and public value management, along with examples of applicability and implementation in museums, are presented. Three key issues of convergence and divergence within the theoretical framework – strategic orientation, accountability and performance – are identified and introduced as a gateway to the empirical findings and the ensuing discussion.

NPM-oriented values have become part of the strategic orientation of the museum sector. The results of this study show that there exist at least three conceptions of museum management that are based on two different strategic orientations, that is, accessibility and conservation, which also point to different conceptions of value.

Museum management can be seen as the management of tensions between conservation and accessibility and between customer orientation and stakeholder orientation towards the creation of museum value.

The findings will assist museum management determine not only what value is but also for whom it is valuable, taking into account both present and future generations.

The objective of this study is to investigate how country risk, different political actions from the government and bureaucratic behavior influence the activities in industry supply chains (SCs) in emerging markets. The main objective of this study is to investigate the influence of these external stakeholders’ elements to the demand-side and supply-side drivers and barriers for improving competitiveness of Ready-Made Garment (RMG) industry in the way of analyzing supply chain. Considering the phenomenon of recent change in the RMG business environment and the competitiveness issues this study uses the principles of stakeholder and resource dependence theory and aims to find out some factors which influence to make an efficient supply chain for improving competitiveness. The RMG industry of Bangladesh is the case application of this study. Following a positivist paradigm, this study adopts a two phase sequential mixed-method research design consisting of qualitative and quantitative approaches. A tentative research model is developed first based on extensive literature review. Qualitative field study is then carried out to fine tune the initial research model. Findings from the qualitative method are also used to develop measures and instruments for the next phase of quantitative method. A survey is carried out with sample of top and middle level executives of different garment companies of Dhaka city in Bangladesh and the collected quantitative data are analyzed by partial least square-based structural equation modeling. The findings support eight hypotheses. From the analysis the external stakeholders’ elements like bureaucratic behavior and country risk have significant influence to the barriers. From the internal stakeholders’ point of view the manufacturers’ and buyers’ drivers have significant influence on the competitiveness. Therefore, stakeholders need to take proper action to reduce the barriers and increase the drivers, as the drivers have positive influence to improve competitiveness.

This study has both theoretical and practical contributions. This study represents an important contribution to the theory by integrating two theoretical perceptions to identify factors of the RMG industry’s SC that affect the competitiveness of the RMG industry. This research study contributes to the understanding of both external and internal stakeholders of national and international perspectives in the RMG (textile and clothing) business. It combines the insights of stakeholder and resource dependence theories along with the concept of the SC in improving effectiveness. In a practical sense, this study certainly contributes to the Bangladeshi RMG industry. In accordance with the desire of the RMG manufacturers, the research has shown that some influential constructs of the RMG industry’s SC affect the competitiveness of the RMG industry. The outcome of the study is useful for various stakeholders of the Bangladeshi RMG industry sector ranging from the government to various private organizations. The applications of this study are extendable through further adaptation in other industries and various geographic contexts.

Few studies have analysed how to actively manage strategic networks (SNs) to achieve individual and collective goals and create value. This paper aims to examine the influence of network management on the value created by SNs and the mediation role of resources and relationship quality.

The authors distributed a survey to 126 companies linked to SNs in the Brazilian information and communication technology sector. This study tested the hypothesized relationships using partial least squares structural equation modelling.

This study found that network management directly influences value creation. Furthermore, the exchange and combination of resources mediate the relationship between the two constructs. Surprisingly, the quality of the relationships does not mediate the relationship between management and the value created. However, it positively impacts the exchange and combination of complementary resources.

This study provides a new interpretation of the determinants of value creation in SNs. The results contribute to the theory by demonstrating that the relationship between network management and value creation is strengthened when the exchange and combination of resources between network participants occur. In turn, these are positively influenced by the quality of relationships established in the network, thus providing a new interpretation of the determinants of value creation in SNs.

Value‐based management focuses the efforts of individuals and managers on the creation of value. Starts with an analysis of the literature on general management and materials management and then extends that analysis to the concept of the value system. Identifies particular management variables which are key to efforts in creating value, e.g. organization structure and hierarchy, centralization, information systems, external relationships, job responsibilities and formalization, performance measurement system, and education and training. Groups these into two broad areas: organization design; and human resource management practices. Collectively these variables form the framework for value‐based management. Describes the nature of these variables in both a traditional, function‐based organization and the more contemporary value‐based organization. Applies the value‐based framework to procurement, identifying those actions needed by managers in the transition of the efforts of procurement individuals towards the creation of value.