Business Commons^™

Uber, Jeffrey S. Harrison, Bryant Holden, Kelli Mckenna, Scott Mcquiddy, Alex Wiles

Robins Case Network

Uber focuses primarily on the ride-hailing industry, which puts the company in direct competition with regular taxis. The company is like a lot of tech-driven, fast growing entrepreneurial firms in that it still struggles for profitability. Also, the popularity of this new form of transportation has put the company and its close competitors, such as Lyft, in the spotlight of government lawmakers and regulators. If they classify Uber drivers as employees rather than independent contractors, it could dramatically alter the Uber business model. This case is written in the aftermath of the ouster of one of the company’s co-founders as …

Publix Supermarkets, Inc., Jeffrey S. Harrison, Morgan Owdom, Duncan Pitchford, Alex Stratton, Brian Warren

Robins Case Network

All traditional brick-and-mortar retailers are struggling with how best to deal with threats from online retailers. However, the supermarket industry is also dealing with pressure from new foreign entrants like Aldi and Lidl. Perhaps nowhere is this more evident than in the southeastern United States, where Publix operates. Publix is an employee-owned supermarket chain with excellent service, high margins and strong growth in sales and profits. The company has also had some success with Internet offerings. However, is the company’s business model going to sustain it in this increasingly competitive industry, or are changes needed? This case focuses on the …

[Chapter 1 From] Stakeholder Theory: Concepts And Strategies, R. Edward Freeman, Jeffrey S. Harrison, Stelios Zyglidopoulos

Bookshelf

The stakeholder perspective is an alternative way of understanding how companies and people create value and trade with each other. Freeman, Harrison and Zyglidopoulos discuss the foundation concepts and implementation of stakeholder management as well as the advantages this approach provides to firms and their managers. They present a number of tools that managers can use to implement stakeholder thinking, better understand stakeholders and create value with and for them. The Element concludes by discussing how managers can create stakeholder oriented control systems and by examining some of the important stakeholder-related issues that are worthy of future scholarly and managerial …

A Practitioner Critique Of A Conceptual Paper On Measuring Value And Performance, Andrew C. Wicks, Jeffrey S. Harrison

Management Faculty Publications

Much of the business literature suggests that firm performance should be measured in financial terms, based on the notion that the primary obligation of a corporation is to provide high shareholder returns. An alternative literature is emerging in which scholars identify the many weaknesses associated with shareholder primacy, and offer alternative performance measures that are focused on a broader set of stakeholders. One such publication was provided to high-­‐level executives in large companies. The executives were then given the opportunity to critique the paper and to discuss the extent to which their firms are engaging in the types of performance …

Ryanair Holdings, Nicole Blake Tran, Jamie Perkinson, Caron Sinnenberg, Lionel Tarcia, Jeffrey S. Harrison

Robins Case Network

The crass Irish CEO of Ryanair presides over a modern miracle. Ryanair, with its ridiculously low prices and poor reputation for service, has become one of Europe’s largest and most successful airlines. Employees pay for their own training, flights are cancelled if they won’t be full enough to be profitable, and the concept of “no frills” is heartily embraced. However, some new competitors have come on the scene, and Ryanair may be forced to improve its service and reputation to keep up.

The Changing Role Of Ancillary Health Care Service Providers: An Evaluation Of Health Diagnostic Laboratory, Inc., Steven M. Thompson, Stephen Varvel, Szilard Voros, Dawn Thiselton, Shahrzad Grami, Ralph M. Turner, John Barron

Management Faculty Publications

In an effort to reduce cost and improve quality, health care payers have enacted a number of incentives to motivate providers to focus their efforts on achieving better clinical outcomes and reducing the prevalence and progression of disease. In response to these incentives, providers are entering into new arrangements such as accountable care organizations and patient-centered medical homes to redesign delivery processes and achieve quality and cost objectives. This article reports the results of a study designed to evaluate the impact on cost and quality of care resulting from services provided by Health Diagnostic Laboratory, Inc., a clinical laboratory with …

Anticipating, Preventing, And Surviving Secondary Boycotts, Judith Schrempf-Stirling, Douglas A. Bosse, Jeffrey S. Harrison

Management Faculty Publications

Even the best stakeholder-managed firms can suffer when they become the targets of a secondary boycott, as recent headlines attest. A secondary boycott is a group’s refusal to engage a target firm with which the group has no direct dispute in an attempt to sway public opinion, draw attention to an issue, or influence the actions of a disputant. This article provides a new perspective and tools for both scholars and managers concerned with this phenomenon. Building on a stakeholder theory foundation, we examine possible actions managers can take to avoid being surprised by a secondary boycott, propose conditions that …

What Do Accelerators Do? Insights From Incubators And Angels, Susan L. Cohen

Management Faculty Publications

What do accelerators do? Broadly speaking, they help ventures define and build their initial products, identify promising customer segments, and secure resources, including capital and employees. More specifically, accelerator programs are programs of limited-duration—lasting about three months—that help cohorts of startups with the new venture process. They usually provide a small amount of seed capital, plus working space. They also offer a plethora of networking opportunities, with both peer ventures and mentors, who might be successful entrepreneurs, program graduates, venture capitalists, angel investors, or even corporate executives. Finally, most programs end with a grand event, a “demo day” where ventures …

The Delimitation Of Corporate Social Responsibility: Upstream, Downstream, And Historic Csr, Judith Schrempf-Stirling

Management Faculty Publications

The dissertation abstract and the reflection commentary present the work of Judith Schrempf. The dissertation examines the latest trends in corporate social responsibility (CSR) and advances a social connection approach to CSR to understand and explain those recent trends. The dissertation abstract provides an overview of the research questions and conclusions of the three-article dissertation. The reflection commentary discusses the author’s views of research process as a junior scholar (see Appendix).

Managing For Stakeholders, Stakeholder Utility Functions, And Competitive Advantage, Jeffrey S. Harrison, Douglas A. Bosse, Robert A. Phillips

Management Faculty Publications

This paper integrates some of the central concepts of stakeholder theory with the literatures on organizational justice and trust to explain firm competitiveness. It provides a detailed explanation of factors that facilitate acquisition of knowledge about stakeholder utility functions. In addition, it offers a knowledge-based analysis of how firms that manage for stakeholders can enjoy sustainable competitive benefits. These explanations provide a strong rationale for including stakeholder theory in the discussion of firm competitiveness and performance.

Will It Be A Tough Year?, Daniel D. Selby, W. Darrell Walden

Accounting Faculty Publications

While there may be some glimmers of hope about a turnaround to the U.S. economy, such as decreasing unemployment, Virginia CPAs aren't betting on a huge recovery in the next year.

The second annual VSCPA Economic Outlook Survey reveals Virginia CPAs are more pessimistic about the United States and Virginia economies than they were last year, but they are actually more optimistic about Virginia's economy compared to the United States as a whole. Likewise, VSCPA members continue to feel good about the economic outlook in Virginia relative to neighboring states.

Worthy Work And Bowie's Kantian Theory Of Meaningful Work, Joanne B. Ciulla

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Over the years, Norman E. Bowie has applied Kant’s ethics to several aspects of business ethics, but the one that I find the most compelling is his Kantian theory of meaningful work. He writes about it in his book Business Ethics: A Kantian Perspective (1999) and in an article ‘A Kantian theory of meaningful work’ (1998a). Bowie’s writing in this area demonstrates how Kant, perhaps more than any other philosopher, offers the most stringent and lucid account of what a moral employer/employee relationship should look like. Kantian ethics also provide Bowie with a foundation for explaining his idea of meaningful …

The Strategic Assembly Of Global Firms: A Micro-Structural Analysis Of Local Learning And Global Adaptation, Mitchell P. Koza, Stephen Tallman, Aylin Ataay

Management Faculty Publications

Strategic Assembly - the comprehensive and coordinated use of internal development, mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, and alliances - is a novel approach to the construction and management of global firms. This paper describes the role and characteristics of strategic assembly in the construction and management of the Global Multi-Business Firm, an emerging form of global organization. We present a study of Group Renault and its relationship with two key players in the lucrative and emerging market for autos in Turkey, emphasizing the coevolutionary processes through which local players enter and dominate a local market and the global parent, utilizing local …

[Introduction To] Stakeholder Theory: Impact And Prospects, Robert A. Phillips

Bookshelf

Honoring the twenty-fifth anniversary of R. Edward Freeman’s Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach, one of the most influential books in the history of business strategy and ethics, this work assembles a collection of contributions from some of the most renowned and widely-cited scholars working in the area of stakeholder scholarship today.

Global Diffusion Of The Internet Xvi: The Role Of Economic Development And Firm Internationalization In Internet Business Practices, Jonathan W. Whitaker, Nigel Melville, Robert Plice, Jason Dedrick

Management Faculty Publications

Firms from emerging economies are rapidly becoming formidable competitors to established industry leaders from developed economies. Aside from anecdotal reports, there is little scholarly evidence concerning the operational details of how emerging economy firms are becoming competitive with developed economy firms. This article addresses the gap by building on the International Business, Strategy and Information Systems literature, and through an empirical analysis of original survey data for 468 firms across ten countries. We develop three primary empirical findings. First, despite the differences between emerging economy firms and developed economy firms, we find that emerging economy/high internationalization firms use marketing- and …

The Shifting Geography Of Competitive Advantage: Clusters, Networks And Firms, Mark Jenkins, Stephen Tallman

Management Faculty Publications

We consider the dynamics of knowledge-based sources of advantage as they move between geographical locations and multinational and other firm level networks using the specialist context of Formula 1 motor over a fifty nine year period. We suggest that shifts in competitive advantage are underpinned by the movement of both architectural and component knowledge at both the firm and cluster level, and in particular we suggest that isolated firms can both benefit from and add to cluster level knowledge. We conclude by suggesting ways in which MNEs can adapt their approach to both location and knowledge development in order to …

Or Practice—Efficient Short-Term Allocation And Reallocation Of Patients To Floors Of A Hospital During Demand Surges, Steven M. Thompson, Manuel Nunez, Robert Garfinkel, Matthew D. Dean

Management Faculty Publications

Many hospitals face the problem of insufficient capacity to meet demand for inpatient beds, especially during demand surges. This results in quality degradation of patient care due to large delays from admission time to the hospital until arrival at a floor. In addition, there is loss of revenue because of the inability to provide service to potential patients. A solution to the problem is to proactively transfer patients between floors in anticipation of a demand surge. Optimal reallocation poses an extraordinarily complex problem that can be modeled as a finite-horizon Markov decision process. Based on the optimization model, a decision-support …

[Introduction To] Global Strategy: Global Dimensions Of Strategy, Stephen Tallman

Bookshelf

This comprehensive volume from Wiley's Global Dimensions of Business series explores the topic of international strategic management at an MBA or Executive Education level. Authored by an accomplished teacher who possesses a strong understanding of the market, this text offers clear frameworks coupled with lively, international case studies.

Corporate Citizenship And Community Stakeholders, Robert A. Phillips, R. Edward Freeman

Management Faculty Publications

Stipulating that work on corporate citizenship is intended to add to the conversation around the role of business in society, it is reasonable to assume that scholars adopting (and adapting) the language of corporate citizenship find something there that allows for better description, analysis and synthesis of this role. Though what 'better' may mean here remains an open question, a sensible place to begin considering the question is to compare and contrast corporate citizenship with more established ways of conceiving business's role in society such as, in the case of this chapter, stakeholder theory.

Corruption, Foreign Direct Investment And The Cost Of Doing Business In Vietnam, Tom Arnold, Bonnie Buchanan

Finance Faculty Publications

Corruption is a key impediment to: foreign direct investment, an accurate measurement of political risk, and a barrier to effective corporate governance. By examining the political structure of Vietnam and the impediments created by corruption, this paper defines some of the difficulties with investing in Vietnam. However, with regard to the sugar industry, some solutions have emerged with companies taking direct control of contracting, offering credit, and the building of infrastructure.

[Introduction To] Cooperative Strategy: Managing Alliances, Networks, And Joint Ventures, Stephen Tallman

Bookshelf

Strategic alliances are increasingly common, as many organizations look towards various partnering arrangements. This second edition of Cooperative Strategy extends the first edition's clear and comprehensive survey of strategic alliances. Presenting different disciplinary perspectives (economics, strategy, organization theory) and numerous examples from the corporate world. The text has been thoroughly revised and updated, taking account of new theoretical models, and its coverage of case studies has been extended. It will be ideal for business students and managers alike wishing to understand the challenges of managing alliances.

Stakeholders, Michael Johnson-Cramer, Robert A. Phillips

Management Faculty Publications

The stakeholder concept derives from a simple premise: organizations and technologies exist in constellations of relationships. Organizations operate in a network of market and nonmarket relationships with other organizations, groups, and individuals. Likewise technologies emerge and exist in a network of suppliers, end users, and others who bear the impact of the technology. Generally with reference to both organizations and technologies, these related parties are termed stakeholders, meaning that they hold a stake in the outcomes of the organization or technology.

Understanding The Impact Of Financial Decisions On Financial Statements: A Pedagogical Note, Tom Arnold, Leroy Brooks, Terry D. Nixon

Finance Faculty Publications

Viable financial planning requires financial managers' understanding of the consequences of impending decisions on their company's financial performance and position. Understanding the impact of prior decisions on their financial statements also enables future decisions aimed at improving their shareholders' wealth. This note intends to contribute to developing this capacity in finance students. We provide a presentation format directly connecting financial decisions to financial statement impacts. Bridging material covered in accounting courses and a finance student's needs as a possible future manager or analyst, this classroom pedagogy supplements and reinforces the objectives of the financial planning component of a finance course.

Beware Of The Ides Of March: The Demise Of Hih Insurance, Bonnie Buchanan, Tom Arnold, Lance Nail

Finance Faculty Publications

Despite differences in corporate governance systems in the United States and Australia, the corporate governance failures that led to each country’s largest bankruptcy are strikingly similar. WorldCom in the United States and HIH Insurance in Australia were both created by a rapid series of major acquisitions, failed after their last major acquisitions, and attempted to hide their declining performance with aggressive and/or fraudulent accounting practices. In this paper we present a clinical examination of the corporate governance failures that led to the demise of HIH Insurance and show that corporate governance failures are not endemic to the existing corporate governance …

Sys Trust Liability, Daniel D. Selby

Accounting Faculty Publications

The Certified Public Accountant has always been subject to scrutiny by the legal system to ensure that the interest of the public is best served. In fact, over the last thirty years, the number of malpractice suits against accountants has increased. The increase in accountant malpractice litigation is a result of the public's perception that the CPA guarantees the accuracy of financial statements, and that the CPA has sizeable financial resources, along with malpractice insurance. Prior to the Elliott Report in 1997, CPA liability was limited to fraud, breach of contract, and negligence in the traditional areas of audit, accounting, …