Business Commons^™

An Overview Of Risk Management Practices In Hospitality Organizations In Germany, Farzaneh Soleimani Zoghi, Hannes Antonschmidt

Journal of Hospitality Financial Management

This paper aims to identify the key risks which are considered necessary by hospitality organizations in Germany. It also seeks to evaluate the actual process of risk management practiced by hoteliers and to assess managers’ opinions on the importance of a risk management approach in hospitality organizations. Primary data has been collected by semi-structured qualitative interviews with top managers and professionals in hospitality organizations in Germany. The findings show that the implementation of risk management practices in hospitality organizations in Germany is low and that significant differences exist between the theoretical risk management models and their practical execution in hotel …

Les Deux Jeannots: An Investigation Of Firm Behavior In Corrupt Environments, Howard Jean-Denis

Doctoral Dissertations

Historically, members of the African Diaspora have endured the brunt of slavery, colonization, economic challenges, and corruption which was imposed on them by their colonial rulers. As a proud descendant of these original, indigenous African groups of people, I embarked on this dissertation to explore the role of the managerial perceptions and indigenous philosophies held by this focal group on their ultimate organizational strategy. Strategic management research has established that organizations with valuable resources and relevant competencies, as well as those which are dynamically capable, will perform better than firms that do not have these capabilities (Barney, 1991; Teece, 1997, …

Re-Thinking ‘Sustainability’: Management And Organization Theorizing For A More-Than-Human-World, Seray Ergene

Doctoral Dissertations

A widespread conversation has emerged around the concept of sustainability in management theory and practice today. The origins of this notion have forwarded a vision of economic development for improving social conditions in different parts of the world, as well as promoting environmental protection to reduce the harmful effects of economic activity on Earth (Brundtland Report, 1987). Emerging from these origins, solving sustainability problems today has come to signify attending to three seemingly distinct pillars: social equity, environmental protection, and economic development. In this dissertation I join these conversations by following recent theoretical discussions suggesting the pillars are actually interrelated …

Reimagining Rhodes’ Cape To Cairo Dream Or Columbus’ New Worlds Voyages? The Performance Implications Of Emerging Market Multinationals Executives' International Expansion Decisions, Leah Ndanga

Doctoral Dissertations

The extant literature has viewed internationalization through the lens of the expansion of developed markets multinational enterprises (DMMs) and newly industrialized markets’ multinational enterprises (NIMMs), largely overlooking emerging markets’ multinational enterprises (EMMs). The central argument of this study is that the internationalization of EMMs follows a different trajectory from that of DMMs. It addresses the question of how EMMs internationalize in terms of the countries to which they expand, the decision-making processes involved, and the impact of home country factors on the chosen internationalization processes. Methodological triangulation was used to collect data from interviews with senior executives of five large …

Sustainability In The Apparel Industry: A Study Of Self-Regulatory Institutions And Logic Hybridization Processes, Yoojung Ahn

Doctoral Dissertations

Scholars have sought to understand the relationship between organizations and institutions, and research to date has generated findings that speak to both the top down effects of institutions on organizations as enabling and constraining, and the bottom up influence of organizations shaping institutions. This dissertation explores the context of sustainability in the apparel industry and inquires how organizations participate in self-regulation to influence institutional change, using a mixed methods approach to understand this question. In particular, I observe the process of building a specific self-regulatory institution – the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC). First, I study the impact of a reputation …

Middle Management Strategic Roles: Strategic Role Conflict And Its Antecedents, Hector R. Flores

Doctoral Dissertations

The middle-management perspective has produced a great understanding of the connection of middle managers involvement in strategy and organizational outcomes (Floyd & Wooldridge, 1992, 1996; Floyd & Wooldridge, 2000; Wooldridge & Floyd, 1990). Strategic role conflict has been identified in the literature as a hindrance, even an impediment, to effective middle-management involvement in strategy (Floyd & Lane, 2000). Despite a growing body of theoretical work by scholars on the strategy process, there has been limited empirical research of the antecedents of strategic role conflict. Drawing from the literatures of role conflict, middle management perspective, and social exchange theory, this dissertation …

Conflicting Voices And Strategic Choices: Capital Structure Heterogeneity And Strategic Actions, Chetan Chawla

Doctoral Dissertations

The mix of debt and equity in a firm’s capital structure has been associated with varied strategic actions, such as diversification and innovation. Different forms of debt and equity have been associated with particular types of strategic actions. Although there are clear differences between debt and equity, I argue there are also similarities across the two forms of capital. I develop a theoretical framework to categorize both debt and equity along the dimensions of time horizon and risk tolerance, so as to categorize the providers of capital as Transient Equity, Dedicated Equity, Transactional Debt, and Relational Debt. I then empirically …

The Microfoundations Of Middle Manager Strategic Influence: Three Essays, David G. Cohen

Doctoral Dissertations

My dissertation is a set of three independent papers exploring both conceptually and empirically the processes by which middle managers influence organizational strategy. Specifically, I examine the hows and whys of middle management strategic influence. By what mechanisms do middle managers change the course of organizational strategy and why do some middle managers, but not others, change the organization’s strategic direction? I do so from a perspective of methodological reductionism (that is, I look to the actions of the individual for explanations of organizational level phenomena, such as strategic change). In particular, all three papers explore how an individual middle …

Corporate Sustainability And The Role Of The Consumer: Three Essays, Jeffrey Gauthier

Doctoral Dissertations

The challenge of sustainability has become an increasingly important concern for organizations. Sustainability raises new questions of legitimacy for organizations, compelling them to address stakeholder expectations of economic, environmental, and social performance. Although consumer stakeholders act as the ultimate arbiter of legitimacy for many firms, we know little about how consumers may influence corporate sustainability. This dissertation consists of three essays that examine the role of consumers in influencing corporate sustainability. The first essay examines how companies may attempt to manage sustainability ratings assigned by ratings agencies in an attempt to retain consumer stakeholder support. I argue that an understanding …

Tacit Knowledge Transfer And Firm Growth: An Experience-Based Approach, Rory Eckardt

Doctoral Dissertations

Scholars frequently suggest that since tacit knowledge is valuable, heterogeneous among firms, and difficult to imitate, it has the potential to provide firms with a sustained competitive advantage. However, the nature of such knowledge can make it difficult for firms to expand and fully exploit its potential. Specifically, the individual orientation of tacit knowledge requires that such knowledge be transferred and replicated internally to achieve scale. This process is difficult and time intensive due to the articulation challenges associated with tacit knowledge. Thus, while tacit knowledge offers the potential for sustained advantage, the ability to realize such an advantage is …

The Role Of Capabilities In Innovation Adoption Decisions, Kevin Snyder

Open Access Dissertations

Successful innovations have been assumed by prior literature to ultimately be adopted by all competitors within an industry based on social explanations or economic rationale specific to the efficiency of the innovation. However, capabilities possessed by a firm can enhance or inhibit the adoption based upon their similarity to those used in the innovation. In categorizing a firm's capabilities as complementary, substitutive, or neutralizing to the innovation, this study provides an economic explanation for the role of internal capabilities in adoption decisions.

Using a sample of professional football teams adopting the West Coast Offense, I find that capabilities influence the …

Town Of Ludlow Master Plan. Part Ii: Envisioning 2030, Rachael Cain, Euripedes De Oliveria, Paul W. Gagnon, Peter Gillo, Meredith Hill, Mark Kresge, Alyssa Larose, Walter Ramsey, Joshua Rickman, Sonya C. Smith, Ryan Wallace, Rebecca Williams

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

The Master Plan Committee for the town of Ludlow contracted with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) to prepare a new Master Plan. PVPC engaged the Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning (LARP) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst to assist with a portion of the Master Plan work. This work included: executing analysis and assessment of existing community conditions, conducting a weekend visioning workshop, and developing land use scenarios for the purpose of providing concrete visualization of possible futures for the Town of Ludlow in 2030.

University Of Massachusetts Housing Study The Economic Impact Component, Center For Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

The Economic Impact Component of the University of Massachusetts Housing study aims to answer two research questions:

1. What are the direct and indirect economic impacts of the housing industry in Massachusetts?

2. What is the significance of housing as a factor in business location decisions?

The first, and primary, question was addressed through a quantitative assessment using the "Local Impact of Homebuilding Model" calibrated by the National Association of Home Builders, The second research question was addressed through a qualitative assessment of area development and site selection literature and policy analyses dealing with business location criteria.