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3567 items in total found

Journal Articles | 2018

Economic geography and emerging market clusters: A co-evolutionary study of local and non-local networks in Bangalore

Florian A.Täubea, Amit Karna, and Petra Sonderegger

International Business Review

The presence of network ties within location plays a significant role in organization and evolution of clusters. This has proven to be particularly true for clusters specializing in knowledge intensive industries, where the organization of resources – people and technology – has been a primary driver for firm and regional performance. With the help of a longitudinal case study of the Bangalore IT cluster in India, we investigate the effect of local and non-local network ties on its evolution. We argue that networks – both local and non-local – play an important role in the development of cluster. We propose a non-linear relationship between cluster evolution phases and the type of network ties most prominent. Our study also outlines the role that embedding, expansion, and extension of ties plays in transitioning cluster from one phase to the other. The consideration of non-local ties is rather nascent in the cluster literature and promises to enhance the understanding of how clusters develop at both levels – policy as well as firm.

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Journal Articles | 2018

Socio-cultural sustainability of private healthcare providers in an Indian slum setting: A bottom-of-the-pyramid perspective

Federica Angeli, Shila Teresa Ishwardat, Anand Kumar Jaiswal, and Antonio Capaldo

Sustainability

Delivery of affordable healthcare services to communities is a necessary precondition to poverty alleviation. Co-creation approaches to the development of business models in the healthcare industry proved particularly suitable for improving the health-seeking behavior of BOP patients. However, scant research was conducted to understand BOP consumers’ decision-making process leading to specific healthcare choices in slum settings, and the relative balance of socio-cultural and socio-economic factors underpinning patients’ preferences. This article adopts a mixed-method approach to investigate the determinants of BOP patients’ choice between private and public hospitals. Quantitative analysis of a database, composed of 436 patients from five hospitals in Ahmedabad, India, indicates that BOP patients visit a public hospital significantly more than top-of-the-pyramid (TOP) patients. However, no significant difference emerges between BOP and TOP patients for inpatient or outpatient treatments. Qualitative findings based on 21 interviews with BOP consumers from selected slum areas led to the development of a grounded theory model, which highlights the role of aspirational demand of BOP patients toward private healthcare providers. Overall, healthcare provider choice emerges as the outcome of a collective socio-cultural decision-making process, which often assigns preference for private healthcare services because of the higher perceived quality of private providers, while downplaying affordability concerns. Implications for healthcare providers, social entrepreneurs, and policy-makers are discussed.

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Journal Articles | 2018

'Doing Dignity Work': Indian security guards interface with precariousness

Ernesto Noronha, Saikat Chakraborty, and Premilla D'Cruz

Journal of Business Ethics

Increasing global competition has intensified the use of informal sector workforce worldwide. This phenomenon is true with regard to India, where 92% of the workers hold precarious jobs. Our study examines the dynamics of workplace dignity in the context of Indian security guards deployed as contract labour by private suppliers, recognising that security guards’ jobs were marked by easy access, low status, disrespect and precariousness. The experiences of guards serving bank ATMs were compared with those working in large reputed organisations. The former reported loss of dignity though their inherent self-worth remained partially intact, whereas the latter reclaimed dignity despite the precarious working conditions and the absence of unions. Guards from large reputed organisations evolved strategies by which they took advantage of the client’s vulnerabilities, developed ‘thick’ relationships at work and immersed themselves in 'doing dignity work' to ensure that they are not disposable. ‘Doing dignity work’ was a visible device which involved actions that met or went beyond the norms laid down by the client and was used by security guards to limit the extent of their precariousness. Since the opportunity to reclaim dignity was facilitated by large reputed clients’ adherence to legal regulations, we see implications of the study for the moral economy.

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Journal Articles | 2018

Navigating embeddedness: Experiences of Indian IT suppliers and employees in the Netherlands

Muneeb Ul Lateef Banday, Ernesto Noronha, and Premilla D'Cruz

Journal of Business Ethics

In this article, we shift the usual analytical attention of the GPN framework from lead firms to suppliers in the network and from production to IT services. Our focus is on how Indian IT suppliers embed in the Netherlands along the threefold characterization of societal, territorial and network embeddedness. We argue that Indian IT suppliers attempt to display societal embeddedness when they move to The Netherlands. Our findings reveal that the endeavour by Indian IT suppliers to territorially dis-embed from the Dutch context is reinforced by their peripheral position in the network and their ability to offshore work in a bid to contain costs, in addition to the influence of client domination. Therefore, territorial embeddedness is considered to be secondary to societal embeddedness which is intertwined with client interest while neglecting the interest of other network members. Nonetheless, the inter-firm relationship is complex, given the tension between societal, territorial and network embeddedness. While preferring Indian IT suppliers because of their low pricing, Dutch clients also insist on compliance with the institutional context of the Netherlands especially when it comes to Dutch employees. This results in hybridization which means that Indian IT suppliers find ways to adhere to the institutional framework for Dutch nationals while simultaneously insulating Indian employees from the same. Consequently, a highly unfair segmented internal labour market develops, with Dutch nationals being treated more favourably as compared to Indian nationals. Nonetheless, to address these violations, Indian employees prefer individual strategies of resilience and rework rather than a collectivization response.

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Journal Articles | 2018

Impact of security expenditures in military alliances on violence From non-state actors: Evidence from India

Dhruv Gupta and Karthik Sriram

World Development

In this paper, we investigate the impact of security expenditures from military alliances involving third-party intervention on violent incidents from non-state actors. Our main learning is a rather surprising fact that at a lower level of security expenditure in the violence affected area, an increase in security expenditures leads to an increase in violent incidents (rather than a decrease); and only at higher level of security expenditure in the area, an increase in security expenditure leads to a decline in violent incidents. For the analysis, we use a novel dataset on naxalite violence obtained directly from the police head-quarters of the three most affected states in India. The data consists of 64 districts spanning over years 2001 till 2013 and includes information on the annual number of violent incidents and the size of the security forces allocated specifically to curb the naxalite violence. We use negative binomial regression model with the number of violent incidents as the dependent variable and lagged size of security forces as the independent variable, while controlling for other relevant variables. Further, to address issues of potential reverse causality, we use a propensity score matching technique to infer the causal nature of such an association.

We also argue that when the union government intervenes as a third party to support the state governments to fight the naxalites, the latter may be under-funding by free riding. However, despite such underfunding, if the overall contribution is positive and continued, eventually the concentration of security forces in an area will overwhelm the naxalites and reduce the incidents.

Lastly, we highlight that though the mainstream literature on civil wars has used per capita income as a proxy for security expenditures, it becomes inappropriate when a more direct measure of security expenditures is used.

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Journal Articles | 2018

Internet channel cannibalization and its influence on salesperson performance outcomes in an emerging economy context

Dheeraj Sharma, S.K. Pandey, Rajesh Chandwani, Peeyush Pandey, and Rojers Joseph

Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services

Businesses increasingly use internet channels to increase their market penetration. However, empirical studies have shown that salespeople perceive Internet channels to be cannibalistic, effecting other sales—an effect that past researchers have termed as salesperson perceived cannibalization (SPC). None of these studies has examined this phenomenon in an emerging economies context, which has distinct dimensions. In this paper, we explore the influence of SPC on insurance sales agents in an emerging economy context through the lens of Structuration theory. We examine the SPC's impact on job performance and client professionalism. We further examine the moderating role of relational capital and perception of fairness on the influence of SPC on job performance and client professionalism.

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Journal Articles | 2018

Determinants of conflict in channel relationships: A meta-analytic review

Dheeraj Sharma and Biswajita Parida

Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing

Purpose 

The advent of the internet, digitization and e-commerce has changed the definition of business territory, re-invented direct selling, eradicated middle men and brought the customers and sellers closer. These changes in the business scenario must have had an impact on the intensity and nature of channel conflict which needs to be inspected to structure better channel relationship strategies in the changing context. This paper aims to attempt a systematic investigation into the determinants of channel conflict in today’s context and proposes a composite model by reconciling the research so far in the domain of channel relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

An exhaustive search was carried for extant research finding in the channels resulting in the identification of 284 research papers beyond the meta-analysis by Geyskens et al. (1999). The next step was to manually scan through each of these papers to identify the studies which involved quantitative analysis including measures of association such as correlations related to conflict and the determinants of conflict. This led to the finalization of 36 research papers for the meta-analysis.

Findings 

This study proffers a model that illustrates ranking of major determinants of channel conflict. The results of the study suggest that determinants can be categorized into three major domains: organizational, interpersonal (communication, cooperation, relationship activities and opportunistic behaviour) and environmental factors (environmental volatility, competitive intensity and product or market volatility).

Research limitations/implications 

The analysis is based on static data in the sense that the correlations do not reflect supplier-channel member interactions in specific conflict situations. It may be argued that conflicts ultimately occur among firms/businesses run by individuals and individual traits may also impact the formation and resolution of conflict. Further, the quality of the measures capturing the constructs was not investigated in many studies. Final limitation pertains to the measurement of conflict. Conflict may not have been measured in a uniform manner in each of the studies analysed. As this study has evaluated extant research through a meta-analysis, it was not possible to identify the correlations between the determinant variables and the three factors (or constructs).

Practical implications

This study reconciles different research streams in this domain with the visualization of the composite model. It presents a quantitative analysis of the correlations of the determinants of conflict with channel conflict holistically. It creates a base through the composite model to carry forward the academic discussion in this domain holistically. It aims to be a ready reference for understanding the antecedents of conflict along with their significant correlations to enable prioritization of their channel strategies.

Social implications 

This meta-analysis and the suggested model that may be of use to practitioners in terms of prioritizing their activities to reduce channel conflicts through pre-emption. It is hoped that this study enhances the extant understanding of the determinants of channel conflict considerably based on the presented composite model. The results may assist to resolve channel conflicts, create channel synergies, identify optimal channel mix, reduce channel costs, increase channel efficiency and build partnerships in the changing business scenario.

Originality/value 

A holistic view of the determinants of conflict would be of enormous use to practitioners and academics alike. Hence, a detailed study is required to enlist and categorize the determinants causing conflict in channels so that an attempt can be made to resolve channel conflict for better performance of the firms. This meta-analysis study is an attempt to fill this major gap in research in this domain to quantitatively analyse the major determinants of channel conflict on the basis of analysis of research work over the past 15 years

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Journal Articles | 2018

Racial/ethnic parity in disciplinary consequences using student threat assessment

Dewey Cornell, Jennifer Maeng, Francis Huang, Kathan Shukla, and Timothy Konold

School Psychology Review

School psychologists are frequently called upon to assess students who have made verbal or behavioral threats of violence against others, a practice commonly known as threat assessment. One critical issue is whether the outcomes of a threat assessment generate the kind of racial disparities widely observed in school disciplinary practices. In 2013, Virginia became the first state to mandate threat assessment teams in all public schools. This study examined the disciplinary consequences for 1,836 students who received a threat assessment in 779 Virginia elementary, middle, and high schools during the 2014–2015 school year. Multilevel logistic regression models found no disparities among Black, Hispanic, and White students in out-of-school suspensions, school transfers, or legal actions. The most consistent predictors of disciplinary consequences were the student's possession of a weapon and the team classification of the threat as serious. We discuss possible explanations for the absence of racial/ethnic disparities in threat assessment outcomes and cautiously suggest that the threat assessment process may reflect a generalizable pathway for achieving parity in school discipline.

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Journal Articles | 2018

Workplace bullying across the globe: A cross-cultural comparison

Denise Salin, Renee Cowan, Oluwakemi Adewumi, Eleni Apospori, Jaime Bochantin, and Premilla D'Cruz

Personnel Review

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze cross-national and cross-cultural similarities and differences in perceptions and conceptualizations of workplace bullying among human resource professionals (HRPs). Particular emphasis was given to what kind of behaviors are considered as bullying in different countries and what criteria interviewees use to decide whether a particular behavior is bullying or not.

Design/methodology/approach

HRPs in 13 different countries/regions (n=199), spanning all continents and all GLOBE cultural clusters (House et al., 2004), were interviewed and a qualitative content analysis was carried out.

Findings

Whereas interviewees across the different countries largely saw personal harassment and physical intimidation as bullying, work-related negative acts and social exclusion were construed very differently in the different countries. Repetition, negative effects on the target, intention to harm, and lack of a business case were decision criteria typically used by interviewees across the globe – other criteria varied by country.

Practical implications

The results help HRPs working in multinational organizations understand different perceptions of negative acts.

Originality/value

The findings point to the importance of cultural factors, such as power distance and performance orientation, and other contextual factors, such as economy and legislation for understanding varying conceptualizations of bullying.

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Journal Articles | 2018

Prevention of and interventions in workplace bullying: A global study of human resource professionals' reflections on preferred action

Denise Salin, Renee Cowan, Oluwakemi Adewumi, Eleni Apospori, Jaime Bochantin, and Premilla D'Cruz

The International Journal of Human Resource Management

The aim of this study was to analyze Human Resource Professionals’ reflections on the prevention of and intervention in workplace bullying across different countries. More specifically, the study sought to identify what actions were, in the experience of human resource professionals, best to prevent and intervene in bullying and uncover organizations’ motives for engaging in such work. The study was conducted through semi-structured interviews (n = 214) in 14 different countries/regions, representing all continents and all GLOBE cultural clusters. Qualitative content analysis was performed to analyze the material. The findings indicate that bullying was largely conceptualized as a productivity and cost issue, and that was largely driving efforts to counter bullying. Training and policies were highlighted as preferred means to prevent bullying across countries. In contrast, there were large national differences in terms of preferences for either disciplinary or reconciliatory approaches to intervene in bullying. This study advances our understanding of what human resource professionals consider preferred ways of managing workplace bullying, and adds to our understanding of cross-national differences and similarities in views of this phenomenon. As such, the results are of relevance to both practitioners and scholars.

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