Business: Theory and Practice

Network ties, entrepreneurial creativity and competitive advantage: the moderating role of knowledge integration capability

Ni Made Rai Juniariani — 2024-06-27

This study aims to examine the moderating effect of knowledge integration capability on the relationship between business ties, political ties, and entrepreneurial creativity on competitive advantage. We present the first model that links the ability to integrate knowledge, network ties, and entrepreneurial creativity with the background of MSMEs in Indonesia. This study’s data collection method is a questionnaire survey given to Indonesian MSME entrepreneurs. Meanwhile, 358 questionnaires have been qualified for further processing as part of the random sampling approach used in this study’s sample collection. Additionally, the survey data were acquired through the use of SmartPLS, and the study’s findings indicate that business ties, political ties, and entrepreneurial creativity all favorably impact competitive advantage. Knowledge integration capability reinforces the influence of business ties and entrepreneurial creativity on competitive advantage. But knowledge integration capability is unable to counteract the impact of political ties on competitive advantage. The results complement the literature related to the use of knowledge resources in achieving competitive advantage. Considering the important role of knowledge integration capability in the escalation of competitive advantage in corporations, MSME entrepreneurs are strongly advised to consider the available resource of knowledge. To preserve the competitive advantage, knowledge should be continuously expanded.

Organisational commitment and organisational cynicism as feedback signals: from zero to substantive CSR

Jolita Vveinhardt — 2024-06-27

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) declared by organisations can be understood as a specific signal sent to stakeholders. However, social responsibility can vary from its complete absence to symbolic or substantive CSR. There is still a lack of knowledge on how employee feedback, manifesting itself by organisational commitment or organisational cynicism, varies depending on the nature of CSR and employee seniority. Therefore, this exploratory study examines how organisational cynicism and organisational commitment manifest themselves in organisations in different situations with regard to CSR. The study was conducted in Lithuania, surveying 981 employees from public and private sector enterprises. Organisations are divided into three groups showing the corresponding level of social responsibility: substantive, symbolic and not CSR. Organisational commitment was tested using two different instruments: Organisational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ) by Mowday et al. (1979) and an instrument created by Allen and Meyer (1990). Organisational commitment (as in the cases of affective, continuance and normative commitment) was the strongest in the substantive CSR group; and the weakest, in the not CSR group. Employee cynicism showed the opposite result. The same consistency was observed separately in the public and private sectors, with stronger commitment and weaker cynicism found in the public sector. Organisational commitment and cynicism demonstrated by employees emerge as reactions to corporate social responsibility and as a kind of feedback signal sent to persons responsible for organisational management. The results are discussed considering the signalling theory, and their implications for practice are highlighted.

Materiality and stakeholder engagement in sustainability reporting: does it matter?

Erwin Saraswati — 2024-07-31

Materiality analysis and stakeholder engagement are crucial processes in sustainability reports which aim to identify material issues and prioritize them based on stakeholder interests. Subjectivity in the process of determining materiality and stakeholder engagement can affect the quality of sustainability reports because management can determine the information to be published and eliminate negative information related to sustainability. This research aims to investigate the influence of board of directors’ activity, presence of independence commissioners, company financial performance, and size on materiality disclosure and stakeholder engagement in mining companies in Indonesia. Content analysis and multiple regression analysis were carried out on 70 sustainability reports. The research results show that the involvement of the board of directors and the quantity of board members have a positive and significant effect, while the presence of independence commissioners and company size do not have a significant effect on materiality and stakeholder disclosure. It is noteworthy that disclosing materiality in sustainability reports is a crucial aspect of business practices, irrespective of the company’s financial status or size. This research contributes to the disclosure of materiality and stakeholder involvement in the reporting of companies operating in Indonesia from the perspective of stakeholder theory and legitimacy theory.

Trends and evolution of agile branding: a bibliometric analysis

Michaela Pöhlmann — 2024-07-31

As today’s environment constantly changes, scientific and practical literature suggests that brands must be managed more agilely. Agile branding, characterized by stakeholder involvement, adaptability, and flexibility, emerges as an innovative approach for companies to navigate dynamic markets to ensure that they remain sustainably relevant and competitive. Yet, no bibliometric analysis has been conducted on agility related to branding to date. This paper aims to illustrate and analyze the trends and evolution of agile branding by applying bibliometric methods to the scientific article literature produced between 1996 and 2023. The results of a systematic literature review are presented, and the findings of the bibliometric analysis of 70 publications listed in the Web of Science Core Collection database are evaluated. Furthermore, visualization and interpretation of bibliometric networks related to citations and publications, publication titles, keywords, authorship, and affiliations with the software VOSviewer is included. This bibliometric analysis shows that the number of scientific studies on agility related to branding has increased mainly since 2008, reaching its peak in 2022, indicating a growing research interest. The study reveals that much more research needs to be conducted on how brands can be managed more agilely and dynamically to compete in a fast-moving world.

Fostering performance management by identifying key performance indicators for human capital in integrated reporting

Kristine Uzule — 2024-08-26

Human capital is widely recognized as a pivotal factor in driving economic development and ensuring the sustained success of organizations. In efforts to enhance transparency in reporting and elucidate the mechanisms through which organizational value is generated, businesses might turn to the integrated reporting framework, encompassing six key capital dimensions, including human capital. However, a notable gap exists in the standardization of essential performance indicators within this framework. Therefore, the primary aim of this research was to identify the fundamental concepts underlying key performance indicators specific to human capital within integrated reports. These identified indicators not only enhance the usability of integrated reporting frameworks but also resonate with the perspectives of economic theory on human resource management, delving into various facets of employee performance and well-being. Moreover, the study delved into how transformational and benevolent leadership styles can harmonize with both the integrated reporting framework and the suggested key performance indicators of human capital, offering insights into effective organizational management and sustainable value creation.

Exploring the relationship between perceived organizational support and affective commitment among Saudi employees: the mediating effect of organizational trust

Abdallah M. Elamin — 2024-08-27

Despite the acknowledged importance of perceived organizational support (POS), organizational trust (OT), and affective commitment (AC) for favorable organizational outcomes, relatively little is known about the processes that underlie these various associations, especially in Islamic, Arabian Middle Eastern contexts. This study aims to address this gap by exploring the relationships between POS and AC, and testing the mediating effect of OT in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). This study conducted a survey of 347 Saudi employees from a wide range of organizations, occupations, and industries and performed a hierarchical regression analysis. The results provided evidence of the validity of the three relevant constructs (POS, OT, AC) and the generalizability these constructs have outside of North American samples. It also indicated that POS is a significant predictor of OT, and both POS and OT were significant determinants of AC. The study also revealed that OT partially mediates the relationship between POS and AC. The findings contribute to a better understanding of the POS-OT-AC link in the Islamic Arabian context of the KSA. This study is among the first to test the mediating effect of OT on the POS-AC relationship, aiding the understanding of the indirect relationship between POS and AC.

Does conditional cash transfer deliver? The Indonesian evidence on PKH

Adrianus Kabubu Hudang — 2024-09-03

Social protection programs aim to secure individuals’ incomes from socioeconomic shocks and provide access to social services for developing human capital and alleviating poverty. In Indonesia, the Family Hope Program (PKH – Program Keluarga Harapan) is a social protection program that focuses on human capital development that requires children’s school enrollment and mothers and toddlers’ health as the conditions of cash transfers. This study seeks to analyze the effects of the PKH program on consumption expenditure, children’s educational attainment, and prenatal visits in Indonesia. We use the 2007 and 2014 IFLS (Indonesian Family Life Survey) survey data analyzed by the difference-in-difference (DID) method. The results demonstrate that PKH has a significantly positive effect on food consumption expenditure. However, PKH has insignificantly negative effects on children’s educational attainment and prenatal visits. The results suggest that the government monitors and ensures that the targeted recipients receive the program’s benefits. As such, the government can enhance the recipients’ awareness of the program’s benefits and ensure the equal availability of supporting infrastructure that enables households to utilize education and health facilities optimally.