Isabelle Kocher – can she lead a historic turnaround at ENGIE?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
K.B.S. Kumar

Study level/applicability MS / MBA / Executive Education Subject area Leadership Case overview In 2019, French multinational electric utility company, ENGIE SA (ENGIE) was on the verge of zero carbon transition. Under the leadership of Isabelle Kocher (Kocher) who became the CEO in 2016, ENGIE embarked on an arduous journey toward re-profiling ENGIE toward renewable, low-carbon energies, such as solar, green gases and digital. Kocher inherited a loss-making company and took in on a path of transformation toward a company with business lines for future. This meant ENGIE would slowly move out of energy generation through non-renewable sources, toward renewables along with storage and digital technologies. This case chronicles Kocher’s turnaround plans and investments, and explains how she went about making ENGIE a forerunner in energy revolution. While the turnaround was on track, ENGIE was unable to give returns as expected. With mounting pressure Kocher announced a strategic plan in 2019, which reemphasized ENGIE’s focus on renewables and technology. But several major shareholders including the Government of France were not impressed with the plan. It is time Kocher proves that transformation of ENGIE into a clean power company also means returns for the shareholders. Expected learning outcomes The outcomes are as follows: First, to illustrate how leaders bring in change and innovation in large well-established companies. It shows the role of leaders in leading the innovation process and in molding the companies according to the opportunities and threats presented by the macro environment. Second, to analyze the role of a leader in bringing changes in the organization. Third, to understand the strategies used by energy companies as they position their businesses in the context of a changing energy landscape. Supplementary materials Teaching Note Social implications Renewable Energy – Growing cocnern about the impact of climate change on the world at large, has brought to the fore the importance of renewable energy. Subject code CCS 4: Environmental management

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 589-612 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahab Udin ◽  
Muhammad Arshad Khan ◽  
Attiya Yasmin Javid

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of corporate governance proxies by ownership structure on the likelihood of firms’ financial distress for a sample of 146 Pakistani public-limited companies listed at the Karachi Stock Exchange over the period of 2003-2012. Design/methodology/approach The dynamic generalized method of moments (GMM) estimator and panel logistic regression (PLR) are used to determine the impact of corporate governance on the financial distress. The ownership structure is used as a determinant of corporate governance, while the Altman Z-score is utilized as an indicator of financial distress, as it measures financial distress inversely. The smaller the values of the Z-score, the higher will be the risk of financial distress. Findings The authors find insignificant impact of ownership structure on firms’ likelihood of financial distress based on the dynamic GMM method. However, the PLR results indicate that foreign shareholdings have a significant negative association with firms’ likelihood of financial distress, in the case of Pakistan. An evidence of a negative and insignificant relationship between institutional ownership and financial distress was observed, which indicates the passive role of institutional investors in Pakistan. The results also reveal a positive and significant relationship between insider’s ownership and likelihood of financial distress. This finding is consistent with the entrenchment hypothesis which predicts that insiders are more aligned with their self-interest than outside shareholders’ interest when their shareholding increases in the business. Furthermore, the results also reveal insignificant association between government shareholdings and the probability of financial distress. The reason could be the social welfare objective of the government entities rather than profit maximization. Practical implications The findings of this study provide more insight to corporate managers and investors about the association between the quality of corporate governance and the degree of financial distress, with respect to Pakistani firms. Furthermore, this study contributes to the existing literature by adding new evidence from developing countries like Pakistan which are helpful for regulatory bodies and policymakers in the formulation of long-term corporate governance strategies to manage the financial distress. It is well established that strengthening the quality of corporate governance practices enhances the efficiency of capital markets and reduces the probability of financial distress. Originality/value The study extends the body of existing literature on corporate governance and the likelihood of financial distress with reference to Pakistan. The results suggest that policymakers may pay special attention to the quality of corporate governance, specifically ownership structure, while predicting corporate financial distress.


2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 295-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moses Jumbe ◽  
Cecile N. Gerwel Proches

Purpose Organisational culture is increasingly being recognised as a critical determinant of the success or failure of organisational change efforts. A power utility company in Africa was undergoing planned change driven by its ambitious vision of becoming one of the top five performing utilities in the world. The purpose of this paper is to explore how the organisation’s culture was impacting on the change initiatives of one of the organisation’s operating units. The study also sought to investigate the robustness of the change model employed to inform the change process. Design/methodology/approach The study employed qualitative research methods for data collection, sampling and analysis. Ten semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with managers, supervisory and non-supervisory staff in the operating unit. Data analysis was by means of thematic analysis. Findings Organisational culture was found to be impacting the operating unit’s change efforts. According to the participants, cultural analysis to determine organisational readiness for change was not adequately undertaken. The cultural factors of, among others, communication, feedback, involvement, and consultations negatively impacted the change efforts. The participants’ perceptions were that leadership failed to connect employees to the vision. Originality/value The paper provides insight into the importance of leadership’s understanding and consideration of organisational culture in change initiatives. Cultural analyses before embarking on change assists leaders in identifying and then strengthening or changing cultural tenets implicated by the change initiatives.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahnaz Mansoor

Purpose Among the digital age players, one of the fastest-growing digital channels is social media. In the past few years, developing nations’ government entities and political parties started using social media platforms to broadcast important information regarding decisions made at the state level. Pakistan is among those countries. Therefore, this study aims to empirically investigate the impact of the government agency’s provision of quality information on social media in establishing trust among citizens of Pakistan in a government agency with an underlying mechanism of citizens’ perception about agency’s transparency and responsiveness along with moderating role of perceived government response on COVID-19. Design/methodology/approach Data was collected from 542 social media followers of the Associated Press of Pakistan (a government news agency) and was analysed using measurement and structural models by using SmartPLS 3.3.0. Findings Results revealed that the interactive effect of government response on COVID-19 and government agency’s provision of quality information on social media strengthens the association of government presence on social media with citizens’ perception of the agency’s transparency and responsiveness and their trust in the agency. Practical implications Furthermore, the current study will contribute to the body of knowledge regarding the government agency’s use of information and communication technology and the government’s resultant response on COVID-19. Originality/value An extensive study of the literature revealed a gap available regarding the mediatory role of the citizens’ perception about agency’s transparency and responsiveness in between the association of government agency’s provision of quality information on social media and citizens’ trust in the government agency. Also, to the best of the author’s knowledge, no study to date has investigated the moderating role of government response on COVID-19 in between the relationship of government agency’s provision of quality on social media and citizens’ trust in the government agency and their perception about agency’s transparency and responsiveness. Thus, the current study aimed to address these existing gaps in the literature.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabiha Khatoon ◽  
Ayesha Iffat

Purpose The study aims to analyse the challenges faced by the Indian Handloom Sector with a special focus on the state of Uttar Pradesh before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study further explores the benefits of AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan for the betterment of the livelihood of the COVID-19–hit handloom weavers and allied workers. Design/methodology/approach A total of 400 handloom weavers and allied workers from ten cities of Uttar Pradesh were contacted through telephone. Descriptive statistics were applied to measure the awareness about the government welfare schemes and the benefits of these schemes. Furthermore, satisfaction and opinion of the handloom weavers and allied workers regarding the benefits and sufficiency of the funds received under these schemes have also been measured. Findings Based on the results, the least awareness has been noted about government welfare schemes. However, a small number of weavers and allied workers were found beneficiaries of the schemes. Additionally, the majority of the respondents were found dissatisfied with the benefits. The COVID-19 pandemic is an addendum to the plight of handloom weavers and allied workers. The measures of AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan could be used to aid weavers and allied workers to restore their lost revenue. Research limitations/implications This study has limitations. Firstly, the research is limited to the handloom industry of Uttar Pradesh. Future researchers could consider the handloom sector of other states like Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, known for hand-woven clothes. Secondly, this study aims to analyse the role of AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan in improving the living conditions of handloom weavers and allied workers and not to measure the impact of the Abhiyan on handloom weavers or the handloom sector. Researchers could measure the impact in future studies. Thirdly, the authors have not applied any behavioural theory or marketing models such as the Theory of Reasoned Action or the Blackwell model, which may be applied to study the attitude of handloom weavers towards welfare schemes. This may prove to be a potential direction for future research. Additionally, master weavers and handloom cooperatives societies were excluded while collecting the data. Future researchers could consider them to examine the role of the government’s welfare schemes for uplifting the socio-economic condition of the handloom weavers, allied workers, master weavers and the business of cooperative societies. Finally, due to lockdown and travel ban, the authors were forced to limit their survey to telephone only because of which they could not get the qualitative information in full. Researchers for future studies could visit the handloom concentrated areas personally or take the help of an enumerator for data collection. Practical implications The research holds significance for the young and competent designers, handloom weavers and allied workers. Designers could work with and hire handloom weavers of Uttar Pradesh. If designers and weavers work together, it will help them restore their business and generate revenue that they have lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, policymakers can collaborate with designers, which will help enhance the socio-economic condition of handloom weavers and allied workers, which has deteriorated due to the COVID-19 crisis. Originality/value The research holds significance from the point of view of exploring the challenges faced by handloom weavers and allied workers of the state of UP before and during the COVID-19 period while examining the role of AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan in setting off these challenges.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amari Mouna ◽  
Anis Jarboui

PurposeTo help inform the debate over whether socio-demographic characteristics are related to the use of digital technologies, the authors investigated the effects of age, gender, education, income and being in the workforce on changes in using financial digital services using panel data collected in the MENA countries during 2017.Design/methodology/approachThis study aims to identify the impact of government policy on the determinants of financial inclusion and digital payment services in the MENA region. The authors use microdata from the 2017 Global Findex database on MENA countries to perform probit estimations. The paper focuses on the role of technology adoption by government authorities in extending financial inclusion and digital payment around different people.FindingsThe authors find that poorer people (and, by association, less educated people) and the young (but less so the elderly) are disproportionately excluded from the financial system. Results confirm that better collaboration between the government and the financial sector can help to develop digital financial inclusion through the technology adoption channels. The study confirms the significant impact of the government cashless policy in advancing financial inclusion in the MENA countries, with potentially wider applicability to other developed economies.Practical implicationsPolicies to advance mobile money innovations could stimulate financial inclusion by promoting digital transaction services. The role of government authorities is imperative to harness the beneficial and sustainable gains from digitizing remittances and transfers to promote a cashless economy.Originality/valueFinancial inclusion promotes equality through a broadening of the system and government cashless policy can be a major catalyst for greater financial inclusion. It helps in the overall economic development of the underprivileged population and contributes to poverty reduction.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 493-508 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamidah Nayati Utami ◽  
Endang Siti Astuti ◽  
Hanifa Maulani Ramadhan ◽  
Rahmat Trialih ◽  
Yudha Alief Aprilian

Purpose This paper aims to know the interest of leading small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of Y generation in Surabaya City using mobile commerce, identify the effort that has been done by the leading SMEs actors of Y generation in Surabaya City to expand its business network by using mobile commerce, and analyze the success rate of the use of mobile commerce to expand the business network of leading SMEs of Y generation in Surabaya City. Design/methodology/approach This research is designed using qualitative method. The research is directed more toward a research with phenomenological approach because the research also gives the description related to the phenomena in the field to the actor of SMEs and Disperdagin of Surabaya City. The researcher picks Surabaya City as the location by considering the following: the number of SMEs in the Surabaya city is greater than any other cities in East Java considering that Surabaya is the capital of East Java. The number of SMEs is 37,906 units; it means that Surabaya is a city with high economic activity and this place is also the largest trading city after Jakarta. Based on the number of SMEs mentioned above, in this research, only leading SMEs are taken amounted to 161 leading SMEs in the Surabaya City. Information or technological exchange and development are faster compared to other cities because most of the community living in this city uses information technology in running their business. Findings SME actors in Surabaya city have high interest in using m-commerce. In expanding the network, the SME actors use online media. The SME actors in Surabaya have successfully expanded the business network through online marketing by using m-commerce to overseas including Germany, France, South Korea and the UK. Effective model is needed for the policy in Surabaya city is Disperdagin has its own website to overshadow all SMEs in Surabaya City, and identify the role of Disperdagin to SME or vice versa, and clustering SMEs in Surabaya such as cluster of handicraft and Food and Beverage (MAMIN). Factors that are the advantages of using m-commerce are wider business network; increasing sales; adding resellers and buyers; smooth business transaction; development of product innovation, process and marketing; the facilities provided by the government; and easy to use m-commerce application. Originality/value This is one of few papers that study the interest of SMEs actor in using mobile commerce in effort to expand business network. The use of m-commerce will grow the business capability of SMEs, thus increasing the role of SMEs as the counterweight to the structure of the national economy. Therefore, the government policy related to the use of e-commerce and m-commerce is very important to be socialized to business actors, especially the SMEs.


2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (8) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Surajit Ghosh Dastidar ◽  
Srividya Raghavan

Subject area Marketing, strategy, and integrated marketing communication. Study level/applicability The case is suitable for analysis in an MBA level marketing communication course where the theories of hierarchy of effects (HoE) models, push vs pull strategies as well as positioning strategies can be introduced. The case is suitable for analysis in an MBA level marketing course for the module on marketing communications/advertising and promotions. Case overview Sanjay, the regional head of PepsiCo India (eastern region), had been tasked with the preparation of a support plan for a new communication campaign of Mountain Dew, a yellow-coloured drink in PepsiCo's soft-drink portfolio. He had attended a meeting at the headquarters where he had been briefed on the new national campaign roll-out for Mountain Dew – for the first time with celebrity association. While Mountain Dew had been growing its market share in other regions of the Indian market, the Eastern region had been unresponsive to the mass media image building campaigns. During the meeting, the various aspects of Mountain Dew's performance were discussed and Sanjay was asked to prepare a support plan for the national campaign that will help to increase revenues and market share of the brand in the Eastern region. Expected learning outcomes To understand the complexities of differential impact of integrated nation-wide communications on various segments of the market due to cultural variations, to understand the role of push strategy vs pull strategy in marketing communications, to understand the role of consistency in image between the trade and consumers perception, to understand the impact of celebrity endorsements, an introduction to the HoE communication models and their applications, to understand limitations of the HoE and Think-Feel-Do models in objective setting and understanding the uses of alternative models, to build a communication plan based on pull vs push strategy. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes.


2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (7) ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Warren Maroun ◽  
Robert Garnett

Subject area Financial reporting. Study level/applicability Postgraduate (honours and masters in financial reporting). Case overview Transnet is the utility company responsible for, inter alia, the operation, construction and management of South Africa's fuel pipeline infrastructure. The company is wholly owned by the South African Government and prepares its financial statements in compliance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). One of Transnet's capital projects involves the construction of an upgraded multi-fuel pipeline. The expected costs of construction ballooned from ZAR12.6 billion (approximately USD120 million) to ZAR24 billion (approximately USD240 million) over a five-year period. This has raised questions about the prudential management of the company's capital projects and the basis on which the government subsidises Transnet's capital costs. The significant increase in project costs also begs the question: how should the cost of the self-constructed pipeline be accounted for in Transnet's annual financial statements? Expected learning outcomes Describe and explain the qualitative characteristics of useful information in terms of the Conceptual Framework (2010) and summarise the framework's key principles. Evaluate these principles, drawing connections between them and the relevant academic theory (as per the prescribed readings), with specific reference to the accounting for self-constructed plant and equipment. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 1: Accounting and Finance


2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gopalakrishnan Narayanamurthy ◽  
Pradeep Kumar Hota ◽  
Surya Prakash Pati ◽  
Manoranjan Dhal

Subject area Human Resource Management (HRM), Industrial Relations, Labor Law (Indian business context), Organizational Behavior, Trade Union and Employer-Employee Relationship. Study level/applicability Academic students (MBA and BBA), management trainees, HR managers and top management of organizations interested in understanding the importance HRM practices. Case overview This case describes an Industrial Relations situation in an automobile company in India. It begins with the mention of Maruti Suzuki India Limited's (MSIL) brush with an unprecedented labor violence that rocked its Manesar facility on July 18, 2012, eventually leading to the lock out of the same on July 21, 2012. Further, it describes the background of the company, employer-employee relationship, a series of strikes experienced by the company, incidents that led to the violence, incidents that happened on the day of violence and finally actions taken after the violence by the company, the government and the union. With such details, the case raises questions on the prolonged people management issues afflicting MSIL. It endeavors to educate the discussants on the specifics of an industrial relations system and the role of each actor toward maintaining industrial peace. Expected learning outcomes Understanding the role of actors of industrial relations toward effective HRM in the organization. Analyzing the compliance of the actors under the existing labor laws as applicable to the organization. Comprehending the attitude of employees, employers and industry toward each other and also toward the job. To understand the nuances of people management function and its contribution toward the violence that eventually resulted in lockout. To comprehend various organizational behavior concepts that shall help synergize the employees' objectives and employer's goal. To analyze the complete incident with relevant organizational and industrial relations (IR) theories. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang Zhao ◽  
Xiaohui Chen

PurposeDigital economic innovation is associated with risks. The lack of a platform's profitability weakens the operation's ability to sustain innovators and increases the possibility of the business' termination. Relevant data demonstrate a significant upward trend in the exit of Chinese innovators of the digital economy. The study aims to clarify the role of an effective government and effective market in the prevention and control of the withdrawal of innovators.Design/methodology/approachBased on balanced panel data of 31 provinces and cities from 2010 to 2018, this study uses the individual fixed effect model to study the impact of the marketization level, the market's scale and government interventions on the withdrawal of innovators. Simultaneously, based on the spatial econometric model, this study examines the spatial spillover effect of the withdrawal of innovators.FindingsResults indicate that government interventions have an inhibiting effect on the withdrawal of innovators. Moreover, there was a positive “U”-shaped nonlinear relationship between the marketization level and the withdrawal of innovators, and an inverse “U”-shaped nonlinear relationship between the market size and the withdrawal of innovators.Originality/valueThe paper first studies the relationship between the exit of innovators and government intervention, marketization level and field scale; takes the lead in the research on the role of the government and effective market in the prevention and control of the exit of innovators from the perspective of the exit of innovators and puts forward policy suggestions to promote the sustainable and healthy development of fintech innovation in China from the market scale and other aspects.


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