A new sustainability model: engaging the entire firm

2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 4-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wayne McPhee

Purpose – The sustainable activity model re-envisions Porter's value chain to reflect the emerging impact of sustainability on firm strategy. The model helps to convert high level sustainability vision statements into a new set of actions that can create value from emerging issues like climate change, resource constraints, and a smaller, more connected world. Design/methodology/approach – The emergence and growth of sustainability, provides an opportunity to rethink traditional business models to better reflect current and emerging market conditions. Porter's value chain was adapted to reflect that: the value of a firm is based on more than just the profit margin and includes reputation, brand value and license to operate; sustainability can generate value by improving both internal and external engagement and collaboration; and the impact that the firm has on the outside world need to be included in firm strategy and decision making. Findings – The sustainable activity model is useful for focusing strategy on the material impacts of the firm rather than focusing on the issues that are most prevalent in the media or where managers have a particular interest. The model allows the firm to clearly set out new actions and new behaviors that change how the firm interacts with the world and how value is created. Originality/value – The sustainable activity model adapts the traditional value chain model to better fit the business issues that have emerged over the last 25 years and to prepare for a future that will continue to change at an ever increasing rate. Applying the model to strategy and business decisions will encourage new ways of thinking about value and generate new activities for creating value and enhancing the resilience of the firm against future changes as the sustainability trend continues to evolve.

2021 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 580-603
Author(s):  
Oktofa Yudha Sudrajad

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine to what extent is the impact of Basel II adoption on bank business models in the emerging market of selected ASEAN member states. Design/methodology/approach To evaluate the impact of the Basel II regulation on banking business models, a difference-in-differences estimation approach is used. This study defines bank business models using diversification index of a modified Herfindahl–Hirschman Index. Findings The findings suggest that the Basel II framework only affects banks’ income diversification, while there is no evidence that it leads to funding and asset diversification. Under the Basel II accord, banks have adjusted their business models by diversifying their sources of income to avoid the obligation for keeping more capital; in contrast, a less developed financial market structure and a dependency on customer deposits are creating difficulties for banks in diversifying their funding and asset structure. Research limitations/implications The banking sample are taken only from ASEAN countries. Practical implications The findings provide important implication on the regulatory perspective, which is the implementation of Basel II framework induces higher intensity for the use of non-interest income activities. Including in these activities are trading and derivatives. Accordingly, the financial authorities should take with care the use of trading and derivatives products in the banking industry which is already embedded in current Basel framework, the Basel III Accord. Originality/value The paper provides direct evidence on the impact of Basel II on bank business models in the emerging markets of ASEAN banking sectors.


Author(s):  
Arpita Agnihotri

Purpose – The purpose of this study was to analyze the impact of top management teams on firms' value chain action intensity and value chain activity heterogeneity. Design/methodology/approach – The study was conducted from an emerging market perspective. The sample was based on the secondary data collected from three fast-growing industries in India: automobile, pharmaceutical and fast-moving consumer goods over the three-year period from 2009 to 2012. The Panel Poisson and Tobit regression have been used to conduct this study. Findings – Drawing upon the upper echelon theory, the author found that a top management team's educational level, functional heterogeneity and total organizational tenure influence value chain action intensity and value chain activity heterogeneity. Originality/value – The author introduces the concept of value chain action intensity and value chain action heterogeneity and investigates the role of the upper echelon in influencing intensity and heterogeneity.


Significance Agritech is addressing some of the long-standing problems of applying traditional agriculture business models to smallholder farmers in low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs). In high-income countries, large multinational industrial agriculture companies are driving agritech innovation. In LMICs, startups are the innovators. Impacts The support services sector will develop to address mobilisation, education and training gaps in implementing technologies and services. Agritech firms will target non-farmer actors in the value chain, such as seed wholesalers, to supply farmers with quality inputs. Governments will play a key role in promoting technology adoption so that agritech innovators can reach farmers quickly and efficiently.


Author(s):  
Shubham Kumar ◽  
Deepak Kumar ◽  
Keya Sengupta ◽  
Tapas Kumar Giri

Purpose This study aims to examine the altering paradigms for two specific characteristics of the international diamond industry: community-based business model and competitive advantage and their impact and interaction effect. Design/methodology/approach This study uses global value chain (GVC) analysis to understand the industry characteristics, social impacts and disruption in the international diamond industry. Further, normalized revealed comparative advantage is used to measure the competitiveness of different countries over time. Finally, stochastic frontier analysis is used to test the impact of the community-based business model and competitiveness on exports and estimate the technical efficiency. Findings The international diamond industry is witnessing changes in the business model, competitiveness, processes, policies and consumer behavior. While competitive advantage and community have a positive impact on exports, the relationship between competitive advantage and exports gets negatively moderated by the community. Further, insights from the GVC analysis indicate that though the industry is facing several disruptions and challenges, it has shown the unique quality of community reconfiguration and relocation. Originality/value This paper provides insights into the diamond industry facing multiple disruptions at various stages of GVC and contributes to the literature on international trade, community-based business models and GVC.


2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (7) ◽  
pp. 1498-1518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel González-Sánchez ◽  
Isabel Suárez-González ◽  
Javier Gonzalez-Benito

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effect that a horizontal fit between two functions (human resources (HR) and manufacturing) has on firm performance, distinguishing between fit in objectives and fit in achievements. Design/methodology/approach This study uses 144 double surveys, addressed to two different respondents per company. Structural equation modelling was used to investigate the mediating role of fit in achievements in the relationship between fit in objectives and performance. Findings The study provides evidence of the particular way in which the two components of horizontal fit that the authors distinguish (fit in objectives and fit in achievements) the impact on performance: fit in objectives has an indirect effect on performance, which is fully mediated by the fit in achievements. The results also show that environmental dynamism has a significant impact on both the advantages and drawbacks of fit. Practical implications By highlighting the importance of both levels of horizontal fit and distinguishing between them, this paper calls upon HR and manufacturing managers to show a greater understanding of the key dimensions common to both areas. Originality/value This study analyses horizontal fit by developing a framework of priorities in HR management (HRM) similar to that traditionally used in production management. In particular, it adapts the framework of production competence to the area of HRM to study the fit between the two functional strategies. This study also supports the value chain model proposed by Porter (1985).


2015 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 632-659 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullah A Alabdulkarim ◽  
Peter Ball ◽  
Ashutosh Tiwari

Purpose – Asset management has recently gained significance due to emerging business models such as Product Service Systems where the sale of asset use, rather than the sale of the asset itself, is applied. This leaves the responsibility of the maintenance tasks to fall on the shoulders of the manufacturer/supplier to provide high asset availability. The use of asset monitoring assists in providing high availability but the level of monitoring and maintenance needs to be assessed for cost effectiveness. There is a lack of available tools and understanding of their value in assessing monitoring levels. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – This research aims to develop a dynamic modelling approach using Discrete Event Simulation (DES) to assess such maintenance systems in order to provide a better understanding of the behaviour of complex maintenance operations. Interviews were conducted and literature was analysed to gather modelling requirements. Generic models were created, followed by simulation models, to examine how maintenance operation systems behave regarding different levels of asset monitoring. Findings – This research indicates that DES discerns varying levels of complexity of maintenance operations but that more sophisticated asset monitoring levels will not necessarily result in a higher asset performance. The paper shows that it is possible to assess the impact of monitoring levels as well as make other changes to system operation that may be more or less effective. Practical implications – The proposed tool supports the maintenance operations decision makers to select the appropriate asset monitoring level that suits their operational needs. Originality/value – A novel DES approach was developed to assess asset monitoring levels for maintenance operations. In applying this quantitative approach, it was demonstrated that higher asset monitoring levels do not necessarily result in higher asset availability. The work provides a means of evaluating the constraints in the system that an asset is part of rather than focusing on the asset in isolation.


2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magda Kandil ◽  
Muhammad Shahbaz ◽  
Mantu Kumar Mahalik ◽  
Duc Khuong Nguyen

Purpose Using annual data from 1970 to 2013 for China and India, this paper aims to examine the impact of globalization and financial development on economic growth by endogenizing capital and inflation and drawing comparisons between the two fastest growing emerging market economies. Design/methodology/approach In the long run, co-integration test results indicate that financial development increases economic growth in China and India. Findings The results also reveal that globalization accelerates economic growth in India but, surprisingly, impairs economic growth in China, as it increases competition for exports. The results furthermore disclose that acceleration in capitalization and inflation, as a proxy for aggregate demand, are positively linked to economic growth in China and India. Originality/value Causality test results indicate that both financial development and economic growth are interdependent. In contrast, causality runs from higher economic growth to increased globalization in India, while the results do not support long-term causality between globalization and economic growth in China.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Phuc Hong Huynh

PurposeDigital innovation and circular business model innovation are two critical enablers of a circular economy. A wide variety of digital technologies such as blockchain, 3D printing, cyber-physical systems, or big data also diverges the applications of digital technologies in circular business models. Given heterogeneous attributes of circular business models and digital technologies, the selections of digital technologies and circular business models might be highly distinctive within and between sectorial contexts. This paper examines digital circular business models in the context of the fashion industry and its multiple actors. This industry as the world’s second polluting industry requires an urgent circular economy (CE) transition with less resource consumption, lower waste emissions and a more stable economy.Design/methodology/approachAn inductive, exploratory multiple-case study method is employed to investigate the ten cases of different sized fashion companies (i.e. large, small medium-sized firm (SME) and startup firms). The comparison across cases is conducted to understand fashion firms' distinct behaviours in adopting various digital circular economy strategies.FindingsThe paper presents three archetypes of digital-based circular business models in the fashion industry: the blockchain-based supply chain model, the service-based model and the pull demand-driven model. Besides incremental innovations, the radical business model and digital innovations as presented in the pull demand-driven model may be crucial to the fashion circular economy transition. The pull demand–driven model may shift the economy from scales to scopes, change the whole process of how the fashion items are forecasted, produced, and used, and reform consumer behaviours. The paths of adopting digital fashion circular business models are also different among large, SMEs and startup fashion firms.Practical implicationsThe study provides business managers with empirical insights on how circular business models (CBMs) should be chosen according to intrinsic business capacities, technological competences and CE strategies. The emerging trends of new fashion markets (e.g. rental, subscription) and consumers' sustainable awareness should be not be neglected. Moreover, besides adopting recycling and reuse strategies, large fashion incumbents consider collaborating with other technology suppliers and startup companies to incubate more radical innovations.Social implicationsAppropriate policies and regulations should be enacted to enable the digital CE transition. Market patterns and consumer acceptances are considered highly challenging to these digital fashion models. A balanced policy on both the demand and supply sides are suggested. The one-side policy may fail CBMs that entail an upside-down collaboration of both producers and consumers. Moreover, it is perhaps time to rethink how to reduce unnecessary new demand rather than repeatedly producing and recycling.Originality/valueThe pace of CE research is lagging far behind the accelerating environmental contamination by the fashion industry. The study aims to narrow the gap between theory and practice to harmonise fashion firms' orchestration and accelerate the transition of the fashion industry towards the CE. This study examines diverse types of digital technologies in different circular business models in a homogeneous context of the fashion industry with heterogeneous firm types.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Barney G. Pacheco ◽  
Syed Akhter

Purpose Current research on small to medium enterprise (SME) internationalization has generated valuable insight but continues to overlook the activities of business-to-business (B2B) SMEs located in small emerging economies. This study aims to fill this gap by testing the applicability of the ownership, location and internalization (OLI) framework to understand the internationalization strategies of small B2B firms in Trinidad and Tobago, a small emerging Caribbean economy. Design/methodology/approach The study used a qualitative research design, which involved in-depth interviews with senior executives of three firms in the B2B sector who were knowledgeable about their firm’s internationalization process. Thematic analysis was then used to understand the motivations and strategies underpinning the internationalization approach adopted by each firm. Findings Contrary to the stereotype of SMEs in emerging markets as fragile enterprises, there is evidence that firms exploited the development of innovative products and processes to facilitate foreign market entry and expansion. Additionally, firms overcame resource limitations by relying on governmental ties and leveraging networking opportunities. The findings also call attention to the impact of organizational learning and the role of knowledge as a dynamic capability. Originality/value Both the context of the study and the application of the OLI framework contributes to the extant literature by yielding substantive insights into the internationalization strategies of B2B firms in a small emerging economy. The findings further highlight how the OLI framework can be supplemented by other theoretical perspectives to better understand internationalization by emerging market SMEs.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-248
Author(s):  
Manogna R.L. ◽  
Aswini Kumar Mishra

Purpose The study aims to analyze the impact of Research & Development (R&D) intensity on the firm’s performance, measured by growth of sales in the emerging market like India. Innovation strategy and its outcomes for firms may be different in developing countries as compared to developed countries. Thus, a study that focuses on the emerging economy like India, with a majority of the population dependent on agriculture, is of prime importance to the firm performance in the food and agricultural manufacturing industry. For this study, the broader focus will be on one widely recognised factor which may influence the growth rate of firms, i.e. investment in innovations which is in terms of R&D expenditure. Design/methodology/approach The paper investigates the relationship between the R&D efforts and growth of firms in the Indian food and agricultural manufacturing industry during 2001–2019. To empirically test the relationship between firm’s growth (FG) and R&D investments, system generalised method of moments technique has been used, hence enabling to avoid problems related to endogeneity and simultaneity. Findings The findings reveal that investments in innovations have a positive effect on the growth of firms in the Indian food and agricultural manufacturing industry. Investment in R&D also enables the firms to reap benefits from externalities present in the industry. Further analysis reveals that younger firms grow faster when they invest in R&D. More specifically, this paper finds evidence in the case of the food and agricultural industry that import of raw materials negatively affects the FG and export intensity positively affects the growth in the case of R&D firms. Research limitations/implications This study suggests that the government should encourage the industries to invest optimally in R&D projects by providing favourable fiscal treatments and R&D subsidies which are observed to have positive effects in various developed countries. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, the current paper is the first to analyse the impact of innovation in food and agricultural industry on firm’s performance in an emerging economy context with the latest data. This paper agrees that a government initiative to increase private R&D expenditure would have favourable effects on FG as growing investments in R&D lead to further growth of the firms.


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