Effect of R&D intensity on the innovative performance of manufacturing companies. Evidence from Ecuador, Peru and Chile

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 509-523
Author(s):  
Orly Carvache-Franco ◽  
Glenda Gutiérrez-Candela ◽  
Paola Guim-Bustos ◽  
Mauricio Carvache-Franco ◽  
Wilmer Carvache-Franco

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between research and development (R&D) intensity and innovative performance and R&D intensity as a moderating variable in the relationship between sources of information and innovative performance. Design/methodology/approach This is a quantitative, nonexperimental, cross-sectional study of the data collected from national surveys of innovation activities from Ecuador, Peru and Chile where the investigation was carried out. A bivariate probit regression was applied. Findings The results of the investigation pinpoint that R&D intensity is positively related to the innovation of products and processes in Ecuador and Peru. However, no relationship was found in Chile. As a moderating variable of the information sources (customers, suppliers and competitors), and the innovation of products and processes, it shows different results in the three countries examined. Research limitations/implications This study contributes to the literature with evidence in countries with low rates of investment in R&D in the countries examined, this relationship does not always exist; this relationship is considered to be dependent on the complexity of the knowledge and internal capabilities of the company required to achieve innovation, and this complexity could vary according to the type of manufacturing and technology level of the companies. Thus, in manufacturing companies of less complexity to achieve the necessary knowledge for innovation, low rates of investment in R&D are sufficient for the relationship to exist. Practical implications By increasing their R&D intensity, companies acquire technology and develop internal skills and capabilities that boost their innovative potential. Nevertheless, it is not enough to increase R&D intensity to take advantage of external sources of information, it is also necessary to boost the absorptive capacity to assimilate and take advantage of external knowledge. Originality/value This study contributes to the scarce evidence that exists, on the literature in developing countries, on the effect of R&D intensity on innovative performance and provides evidence of R&D intensity as a moderating variable of the relationship between sources of information and innovative performance.

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ummu Kolsome Farouk

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the relationship between management’s commitment and effective occupational safety and health committees (OSHCs), which are a form of representative employee involvement in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach Using data from a survey of 231 manufacturing companies in Malaysia, the study empirically examines both passive and active management commitment and its relationships with the perceived effectiveness of OSHCs. Findings Respondents to the survey, who were members of OSHCs, felt that both passive and active management commitments had significant, positive relationships with OSHCs’ perceived effectiveness, with active management commitment having a stronger relationship with the dependent variable – the effectiveness of OSHCs. All three variables were perceived to be at the medium level, with active management commitment recording the lowest mean value. Research limitations/implications The research is limited by the fact that it is cross-sectional. However, this allows its findings to be placed in the context of past research, underpinned by Malaysia’s manufacturing sector and legislative framework. Practical implications This paper provides suggestions for how the perceived effectiveness of OSHCs can be improved in the Malaysian context. Originality/value This study conceptualises management’s commitment in terms of passive and active commitment, given the context of the current legislative framework, and it addresses the relationships between both types of management commitment and the effectiveness of OSHCs, in the heretofore-unexamined Malaysian manufacturing context.


2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 503-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Changiz Valmohammadi ◽  
Mohsen Kalantari

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is threefold, first to investigate if ISO 9001 certified companies in an Iranian province (Kermanshah) perform better than non-certified ISO 9001. Second, what is the main motivation of the manufacturing companies of Kermanshah province on obtaining ISO 9001 certification, i.e., internal or external motivations. And finally, if ISO 9001 certified companies with high scores of internal motivations, show better levels of performance in comparison with certified companies obtaining low scores of internal motivations. Design/methodology/approach – A survey questionnaire was distributed to the 350 companies with ISO 9000 certification, and a total of 287 usable responses were returned. Using a structural equation model, this study empirically examines the relationship between ISO 9000 implementation and firm performance, and the moderating role of firm motivation on organizational performance. Findings – The results demonstrate that ISO 9001 certified companies show better organizational performance than non-certified ISO 9001 companies and internal motivations play more important role on obtaining ISO 9001 certificate than external motivations. Also ISO 9001 certified companies with high scores of internal motivations show better levels of performance than those ISO 9001 certified companies with low scores of internal motivations. Research limitations/implications – The sample is restricted to only a single region and manufacturing, so it would be strongly recommended that data be gathered from various parts of Iran including both manufacturing and service industries. As in this study the data gathered were cross-sectional, it is recommended in order to gain deeper understanding of the cause-and-effect relationship among the variables data to be gathered longitudinally. Originality/value – This study represents a first attempt to construct a conceptual framework that integrates the motivations behind implementing ISO 9000 certification, and ISO 9000 performance in the context of Iran and gives a particular focus on the Iran manufacturing companies.


2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 174-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel Ángel Oscós-Sánchez

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to discover and describe salient repeating and less common features of the recent medical literature about youth violence as it relates to mental health. How the relationship between youth violence and mental health is commonly conceptualized, investigated, and reported is summarized. Negative cases, unique approaches, and concepts are discussed. Design/methodology/approach An Ovid Medline literature search was conducted with the search parameters of “adolescent and violence” and “psychiatry or psychology or mental health.” In total, 66 articles met inclusion criteria and were analyzed using grounded theory procedures and techniques. Findings In all, 49 articles were reports of original research, 14 were literature reviews, and three were editorials. The articles included discussions of youth violence and mental health among young people in 49 countries. Most original research used cross-sectional designs that tested and supported the core hypothesis that greater exposure to violence is associated with more mental health issues. The relationship is robust even though characterizations of “exposure to violence” and “mental health” were highly variable. Meta-analytic and intervention studies were rare. Originality/value The core feature of the last decade of medical research has been the repeated testing and confirmation that a relationship between exposure to violence and mental health exists. Future youth violence research should move beyond continuing to test this hypothesis with cross-sectional study designs.


2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Faizuniah Pangil ◽  
Joon Moi Chan

Purpose – The limited proximal communication between virtual team members can create a lack of trust among members which can significantly reduce the effectiveness of these teams. Hence, this study was conducted to examine the relationship between trust and virtual team effectiveness by looking into the mediating effect of knowledge sharing. Design/methodology/approach – This is a cross-sectional study conducted in a multinational company in Malaysia. Questionnaires were distributed to individuals working in a virtual environment. The questionnaire required the respondents to answer questions regarding three different types of trust (i.e. personality-based trust, institutional-based trust and cognitive-based trust), their knowledge sharing behavior, and their evaluation of the effectiveness of the virtual teams that they are involved with. Findings – Results of hierarchical regression analysis indicated that knowledge sharing and all the three types of trust are significantly related to virtual team effectiveness. However, only personality-based trust and institutional-based trust are significantly related to knowledge sharing, but knowledge sharing only partially mediates the relationship between these two types of trust and team effectiveness. Research limitations/implications – The population of this study are virtual teams working for an organization, hence the generalizability of the findings to other settings is unknown. Originality/value – Trust has been founded to be a significant predictor of virtual team effectiveness. However, this paper shows the effect of different types of trust and the role of knowledge sharing in mediating the relationship between trust and virtual team effectiveness.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Razieh Froutan ◽  
Reza Mazlom ◽  
Javad Malekzadeh ◽  
Amir Mirhaghi

Purpose Resilience can be of assistance to paramedics in order to maintain their own mental balance in stressful work environments. Since it is not well defined which personality traits are correlated with resilience in these personnel, the purpose of this paper is to explain the relationship between personality traits and levels of resilience. Design/methodology/approach This cross-sectional study was conducted on paramedics in Eastern Iran through field research. The study participants were selected by convenience sampling method. The data collection instruments included NEO-Five Factor Inventory-Short Form and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale. The data obtained were also analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (correlation and regression analysis) through the SPSS 16.0 software. Findings A total of 252 paramedics with a mean age of 28.9±5.1 years participated in this study. The personality traits of neuroticism (r=−0.24), openness to experience (r=−0.22), and agreeableness (r=−0.18) were significantly correlated with resilience. In contrast, extraversion (r=0.26) and conscientiousness (r=0.32) were in a significant relationship with resilience. In this respect, the given personality traits could account for 31.5 percent of changes in resilience. Research limitations/implications It was concluded that the paramedics with lower scores of neuroticism had higher levels of resilience and they could similarly show better compliance with their work conditions in stressful situations and consequently maintain their mental health. Practical implications It is recommended to conduct psychological examinations of personality traits in recruitment and selection stages of medical emergency personnel and to implement psychological interventions for those medical emergency staff with the personality trait of neuroticism. Social implications Resilient paramedics may also perceive less stress and it may be negatively associated with burnout. Originality/value The study examined the relationship between personality traits and resiliency in order to clarifying recruitment criteria in emergency medical services.


2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 771-784 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Kienzler

Purpose While marketing and management research suggests that managers’ individual characteristics influence pricing decisions, the influence of personality traits in this context remains unclear. This study aims to explore the relationship between the five basic personality traits of the five-factor model (extraversion, conscientiousness, openness to experience, agreeableness and neuroticism) and three basic pricing practices (value-, competition- and cost-informed). Design/methodology/approach On the basis of a non-experimental decision-making scenario, the analysis examines the pricing decisions of 57 managers in relation to a new business service. Findings The results suggest that managers’ conscientiousness and openness to experience are positively related to preference for value-informed pricing. Similarly, managers’ agreeableness is positively related to preference for competition-informed pricing and managers’ openness to experience and agreeableness are positively related to preference for cost-informed pricing. Research limitations/implications The cross-sectional study design does not support causal inference, and the modest sample size may limit the external validity of the findings. Practical implications By increasing awareness of the influence of personality on pricing preferences, the findings are of relevance to managers who are directly involved in pricing decisions. Additionally, the findings are informative for managers who must assign responsibility for pricing authority within firms. Originality/value This empirical exploration of the relationship between certain personality traits and specific pricing practices contributes to the literature on psychological aspects of pricing theory by showing how managerial personality influences pricing preferences under uncertainty.


2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 693-707 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shaun Pichler ◽  
Arup Varma ◽  
Andrew Yu ◽  
Gerard Beenen ◽  
Shahin Davoudpour

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop and test hypotheses about the independent relationships between high-performance work systems (HPWS) and high-performance work cultures (HPWC) and employee turnover. Given the growth of women in the workforce, the authors also develop competing predictions about how organizational gender demography (i.e. a higher percentage of women) may either strengthen or weaken the relationship of HPWSs to turnover. Design/methodology/approach – A survey of 171 human resource (HR) executives across organizations of various sizes and industries in the Chicago metropolitan area in the USA was conducted. Findings – The authors found that HPWS and HPWC are associated with lower turnover, though the relationship between HPWC and turnover was stronger. Results also indicate that HPWS are more strongly related to lower turnover among organizations that employ relatively more women. Research limitations/implications – The results indicates that HPWS may not be universalistic in terms of their effectiveness specifically as related to turnover. This was a cross-sectional study; it would be useful for future research to use a longitudinal research design. Practical implications – The findings suggest that organizations should consider how their cultures, use of high-performance work practices, and gender demography are related to important HR metrics such as turnover. Social implications – This paper represents an important contribution to understanding the importance and implications of changes in the workforce demographic characteristics. Originality/value – This is the first study to integrate an organizational demography perspective with HPWS.


2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann-Kristina Løkke

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between workplace social capital and health and job related outcomes in a large Danish municipality. Design/methodology/approach – Data used in this cross-sectional study are based on an electronic employee survey conducted in 2012 in a large municipality. Of the total population of 5,672 individuals, the number of participants amounted to 4,162, leading to a response rate of 73.4 percent. Binary logistic regression analysis is used as a statistical method, and odds ratios and their corresponding 95 percent confidence intervals have been estimated. Findings – The level of social capital is fairly high in the municipality (3.75 on a five-point scale). Social capital is related to health (OR=0.420) and psychological distress (OR=0.282) but has an even stronger relationship to job satisfaction and commitment (OR is 9.889 and 7.800, respectively). The study contributes with the conclusion that different sub-dimensions of social capital are related to health and job related outcomes. Therefore, managers need to be specific about what exactly they want to achieve with the implementation of social capital in municipalities. Originality/value – Research of the relationship between social capital and health and job related outcomes based on a case study approach of a municipality are limited. This paper makes an original contribution in providing evidence of the importance of social capital for Danish municipal sector employees’ health, job satisfaction, and commitment in a work context.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdallah Amhalhal ◽  
John Anchor ◽  
Marina Papalexi ◽  
Shabbir Dastgir

PurposeThis study is an empirical investigation of the relationship between the use of 41 multiple performance measures (MPMs), including financial performance measures (FPM), non-financial performance measures (NFPMs) and organisational performance (OP) in Libya.Design/methodology/approachThe results are based on cross-sectional questionnaire survey data from 132 Libyan companies (response rate 61%), which were obtained just before the so-called Arab Spring.FindingsMPMs are used by both manufacturing and non-manufacturing companies. Libyan business organisations are more likely to use FPMs than NFPMs. However, these companies still rely more heavily on FPMs. The relationships between the use of NFPMs and OP and the use of MPMs and OP are positive and highly significant. The relationship between the use of FPMs and OP is positive but not significant.Research limitations/implicationsThe high power distance associated with the conservative, Libyan, Arab context will reinforce the tendency to use FPMs more than NFPMs. This may provide a performance advantage to those organisations which do adopt NFPMs.Practical implicationsAlthough there may be institutional barriers to the use of NFPMs in Libya, and other emerging markets, these are not insuperable and there is a payoff to their use.Originality/valueNo previous studies of emerging markets, such as the Middle East or North Africa, have looked at the relationship between OP and the adoption of such a large array of MPMs.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Nesse ◽  
Geir Aamodt ◽  
Marianne Thorsen Gonzalez ◽  
Michael Rowe ◽  
Ruth Kjærsti Raanaas

Purpose Engagement in meaningful occupations and being included as full citizens of the community, is essential in everyday life, and may be of considerable relevance for recovery and quality of life. However, persons with co-occurring substance use and mental health problems experience extensive obstacles to engagement in occupations and citizenship. The relationship between objective measures of occupational status and subjective experiences of occupational meaningfulness, citizenship and recovery, is scarcely researched in the context of co-occurring problems. As such, the purpose of this study is to examine associations between occupational status, occupational meaningfulness, citizenship and recovery and quality of life and to examine the roles of occupational meaningfulness and citizenship as possible mediators between occupational status and recovery and quality of life. Design/methodology/approach The study used a cross-sectional design with a sample of 104 residents at supported housing sites across six Norwegian cities. Findings Linear regression analyzes indicated that occupational status was significantly associated with the citizenship domains caring for others and community participation and with the quality of life measure positive affect. Occupational meaningfulness and citizenship were significantly associated with different domains of recovery and quality of life. Furthermore, mediation analyzes showed that the relationship between occupational status and recovery and quality of life was mediated by caring for others and community participation. Originality/value The results suggest that emphasizing opportunities for occupational meaningfulness and citizenship in practice may have positive implications for recovery among persons with co-occurring problems.


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