Impact of effective governance structure on succession process in the family business: exploring the mediating role of management succession planning

PurposeThe aim of this research is to analyze empirical evidence of the effect of governance structure (GS) on perceived success of the succession process. It is also reported that in India, family firms have a more informal organization structure and governance and have an informal and unplanned approach to bringing the successors into family business. Previous studies have reported that GS is an important factor for a successful succession process. This study examines the role of management succession planning as an intervening variable to achieve perceived success of the succession process.Design/methodology/approachData have been collected using a questionnaire schedule with 113 respondents who are successors from family business firms in Kerala, India. The study uses snowball sampling technique. Partial least square-structural equation modeling has been used to do data analysis.FindingsThe results of the study showed that GS has a significant positive effect on the success of the succession process. GS has a significant positive effect on management succession planning. Management succession planning partially mediates the relationship between GS and perceived success of the succession process.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of the study indicate the effect of GS on the relationship between, perceived success of the succession process and management succession planning. The mediating role of management succession planning in the above relationship is also confirmed. Therefore, before starting the succession process a good GS should be put in place for ensuring the success of the succession process. Family firms must implement the succession plan well to make the succession process successful.Originality/valueThe main contribution of the study is to empirically investigate the effect of GS and management succession planning to enhance the success of the succession process.

Developmental challenges to internationalizing the higher education sector: a critical inquiry of business schools in Kerala

PurposeKerala is one of India's most advanced states in human development and other social indices. This study aims to look at the management education scenario in Kerala from a macro-perspective and examines the existing trends, major issues and presents challenges facing the sector.Design/methodology/approachThe study is driven by previously unexplored secondary data published by India's apex technical education regulator–All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). Qualitative and quantitative assessments are assimilated from the organization, dissection and categorization of unit-level data.FindingsBusiness schools (B-schools) in the state are facing acute distress in enrolments. There are intra-regional variations in institution count and occupancy rates. The vast majority of the institutions have no accreditation at all. The entire sector is facing a protracted decline.Research limitations/implicationsThe study has relied primarily on descriptive statistics considering a single discipline within the higher education sector in Kerala. Future studies should look at other disciplines (engineering, medicine) simultaneously. Use of statistical methods like panel data regression would be beneficial to find hidden trends in cross-sectional and longitudinal time-series data.Practical implicationsManagement education in Kerala is facing an existential crisis. This has implications for the state's economic development. The paper creates strong imperatives for government policymaking to forestall the complete decline of the sector.Social implicationsA highly literate state with advanced human development indices need not be a suitable location for building a knowledge-based economy. Government policy has strong implications for the development and sustenance of higher education. The relationship between government and business schools are symbiotic.Originality/valueThe paper maps the progression of B-schools from local to global. A typology of privately funded B-schools is proposed. The conceptual framework advanced in this study can contribute to further literature development. The suggested policy initiatives are applicable not only to Kerala but also to other tightly regulated markets.

Measuring dimensions of perceived business success among Malaysian and Bangladeshi SME owners

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the perceptions of Malaysian and Bangladeshi retail small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) business owners on the key elements of business growth.Design/methodology/approachThe construct measurements have all been taken from previous researches. The data were gathered from retail SMEs in Malaysia and Bangladesh in order to evaluate entrepreneurs' perception towards the essential elements of a business performance. Structural equation modeling (SEM) with PLS-technique, specifically Smart-PLS Version 3.2.4, was used to accomplish the study's objectives and analyze the measurements, as well as the structural model.FindingsAccording to the findings, Malaysian and Bangladeshi SMEs have different perspectives toward the dimensions of their business performance. For example, Malaysian retail SME owners consider business growth and financial results to be the most important aspects of their success. Retailers consider financial performance to be less critical than non-financial performance when it comes to their business's success. Owners of Bangladeshi retail SMEs, on the other hand, see efficiency relative to competition, and that non-financial performance is the key component to achieving business success. In the sense of Bangladeshi SMEs, market development and financial results are seen as less significant in attaining success.Research limitations/implicationsSince this research was only conducted in Malaysia and Bangladesh, it did not cover a large number of countries. The sample size was limited; therefore, the findings of this study cannot be applied to the entire population of Malaysian and Bangladeshi retail SMEs due to the non-probability sampling technique.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study show that entrepreneurs or business owners in the retail sector in Malaysian and Bangladeshi SMEs view the attributes of their business performance differently.Originality/valueThis study adds to the rising context of entrepreneurship by examining SME owners' perception of main business performance dimensions in the scope of Asian retail SMEs.

The role of digital skill in mitigating digital divide: evidences from Asia-Pacific region

PurposeThis paper aims to make a modest attempt to classify the Asia-Pacific countries in terms of the access to information and communication technology (ICT) to unearth the prevalence of digital divide (if any) in the Asia-Pacific region. In addition to that, this paper also examines the role played by the digital skill in bridging the digital divide in the context of Asia–Pacific countries.Design/methodology/approachSecondary data on 43 Asia-Pacific countries for the period from 2012 to 2017 was collected from International Telecommunication Union (ITU) database and World Development Indicators, World Bank. K-means clustering technique was applied to explore the natural grouping of the Asia-Pacific countries based on ICT access. The role of digital/ICT skill in narrowing the access-based digital divide was investigated using panel data regression technique.FindingsClustering of countries suggested a significant difference amongst the Asia-Pacific countries in terms of ICT access, signifying the prevalence of access based digital divide. Digital skill played pivotal role in promoting ICT access and thereby reducing the digital divide during the period of the study. Per capita income level, level of education, openness of the economy and urbanisation were observed to be the determining factors in reducing the digital divide during the period of study in the Asia-Pacific region.Originality/valueThe study makes an unique attempt to explore the role of digital/ICT skill in tapering the access-based digital divide in the context of Asia-Pacific region.

Service mantra of the Grameen banks of India in the post-merger era

Purpose This paper aims to find out the performance of the Grameen Banks of West Bengal after their merger. Design/methodology/approach The objective of the paper is to measure the performance of Paschim Banga Gramin Bank (PBGB) and Bangiya Gramin Vikash Bank (BGVB) after their amalgamation, to compare the performance of PBGB and BGVB, using the key performance indicators and to analyze the future scope of these two banks. The factors that are considered for this study are number of branches (if these banks could reach maximum of the rural mass), number of staffs (if these banks generated employment after the merger), investments, deposits, composition of total funds (owned funds and borrowed funds), lending services, productivity per branch and per staff, etc. The study uses statistical tools to analyze the data. Findings It has been observed that there exists a significant difference in the “Branch Network” of PBGB and BGVB. A significant difference has been observed in the “Number of Staffs” of PBGB and BGVB. It has been found that there is a significant difference in the “three type of funds” of PBGB and BGVB. It has been found that there is a significant difference in the “Investments” of PBGB and BGVB. A significant difference has been observed in the “Deposits” of PBGB and BGVB. It has been found that there is a significant difference in the “Outstanding Loan” amount of PBGB and BGVB. It has been observed that there is a significant difference in the “Loan Issued” amount of PBGB and BGVB. It has been found that there is no significant difference in the Productivity “Per Branch” and “Per Employee” of PBGB and BGVB. Research limitations/implications The study is based on the published/secondary data and is restricted to two Regional Rural Banks of West Bengal, the PBGB and the BGVB, for nine years, 2012–2020. Social implications The paper will help the future researchers, to know the performance of the Grameen Banks for the study period; this will help them to carry on with the study in the future. Originality/value The work is original and never sent to anywhere else for publication.

The impact of web marketing on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and firms' performance

PurposeThe current study seeks to examine the impact of web marketing (through the company's website) on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and firms' performance across companies listed in the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX), Oman.Design/methodology/approachThis research analyses qualitative and exploratory data taken from companies' website, annual reports (the financial year 2019), Google search and CSR report from 69 out of total 117 listed companies in the MSX to analyze the impact of web marketing on CSR and firms' performance proxied by return of assets (ROA), return of equity (ROE) and Tobin's Q (TQ).FindingsWeb marketing on CSR positively affects firms' performance. Especially, the positive effect of web marketing on firms' performance is stronger for listed companies. Web marketing enhances financial performance proxied by ROA, ROE and TQ.Practical implicationsThe research findings provide new insights that are able to enlighten governing bodies in Oman to make standardized compulsory CSR spending (say, 0.5% on profit after tax) by listed companies in MSX.Originality/valueThis research presents evidence that web marketing on CSR can increase firms' performance and brand image among stakeholders. This is the first study to examine the impact of web marketing on CSR and firms' performance using empirical data in Oman.

Tourism implications and challenges in Musina municipality: a case of the Big tree nature reserve and adjacent tourism ventures; Limpopo

PurposeThis study evaluates tourism implications and challenges around the Big Tree Nature Reserve with its adjacent tourism ventures and entities in Musina Municipality, Limpopo Province, in South Africa.Design/methodology/approachData got compiled by interviews and questionnaires in addition to focus group discussions and physical observation.FindingsThe study revealed many challenges associated with tourism undertakings around the Big Tree Nature Reserve and its nearby tourism entities. The benefits of tourism were not efficiently tapped into by the local communities within and around the study area. The factors contributing to the poor state of tourism running got delineated by the findings of the study. Hence, there was a potential obligation for a turnaround effective tourism strategy to improve tourism enterprises to benefits local communities within the area.Originality/valueMusina Municipality is one of the remote regions in the North of Limpopo Province, in South Africa. It also has impoverished rural communities akin to many rural areas within the continent. Despite the mentioned, it considerably covers a mostly tourism-orientated area within the Vhembe District.

Short-term foreign trips correlates of the four factors model of cultural intelligence

PurposeIn today's global business environment, international assignments have become integral part of employee's job profile. Adaptation to a different cultural environment plays a role in affecting employee's performance. In such a situation, cultural intelligence plays an important role. In order to sustain in a diverse work setting, a global organization entails managers who are sensitive to different cultural requirements. Factors affecting cultural intelligence have been a major area of study. However, studies relating short-term foreign trips and their role on four aspect of cultural intelligence are lacking. Therefore, present study was undertaken to know role of foreign visits in affecting cultural intelligence among professionals of diverse background.Design/methodology/approachThe present study is a primary study conducted for a sample of 120 respondents divided into two groups. One group comprised professionals having experience of foreign visits while other group comprised professionals who had not visited a foreign country. We use Levene’s Test for equality of variances was applied to assess the difference of variation of cultural intelligence between two different groups of respondents.FindingsThe results revealed that short-term trips play a significant role in affecting metacognitive, cognitive and motivational components of cultural intelligence. However, behavior cultural intelligence is not affected by short-term trips significantly.Research limitations/implicationsOutcome of present research forms basis for future studies that can be conducted linking long-term trips and culture intelligence. This study is practically useful for improving cultural intelligence of professionals to enhance their success and effectiveness in international assignments.Originality/valueThe study adds novelty to the field of cultural intelligence as prior studies were lacking in relating role of short-term trips on four different components of cultural intelligence.

When psychological ownership nurtures satisfaction: a tripartite attitude theory and psychological ownership theory perspective

PurposeDrawing from tripartite theory of attitude, this study examined whether interaction effect of psychological ownership (cognitive component) changes the nature of the relationship between job satisfaction (affect component) and job performance (behavioral component) toward a higher or weaker relationship. Furthermore, the study draws from psychological ownership theory to find support whether job satisfaction is nurtured by the feeling of psychological ownership.Design/methodology/approachLongitudinal data from 211 academic and non-academic employees was randomly collected and partial least square-structural equation model (PLS-SEM) was used for data analysis through SmartPLS version 3.3.2.FindingsThe study found a positive interaction effect of psychological ownership on the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance. Furthermore, the study found that feeling of psychological ownership nurtures employees' satisfaction with their job.Practical implicationsThe findings of the study explicate to human resource managers and practitioners the mechanism through which job satisfaction affects job performance and how feelings of psychological ownership nurtures employees' satisfaction with their job.Originality/valueThe study provides new insight into the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance by drawing on the tripartite theory of attitude perspective, and concluded that job performance as overall employee attitude toward the organization is predicted by the interaction and interplay of job satisfaction, psychological ownership and job performance as components of attitude. To the authors’ best knowledge, none of the previous literatures on job satisfaction–job performance relationship draws its conclusions from the perspective of tripartite theory of attitude. Furthermore, the study found empirical evidences that psychological ownership nurtures employees' job satisfaction.

Ownership concentration, foreign ownership and tunneling in Indonesia

Purpose This study aims to examine the effect of ownership concentration and foreign ownership on tunneling activities in Indonesia. Design/methodology/approach The population in this study were manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange from 2014 to 2018. The total observations used in this study were 557 observations. This study used three measurements to assess tunneling activities in a company, namely, related party receivables (TUL1), related party payables (TUL2) and related party receivables-payables (TUL3). Findings The results of this study indicated that ownership concentration and foreign ownership had a negative effect on tunneling activity of TUL1. Meanwhile, the effect of ownership concentration and foreign ownership on TUL2 and TUL3 showed a positive effect. This indicated that manufacturing companies in Indonesia preferred to carry out tunneling activities through related party payables compared with related party receivables. Foreign ownership was also effective in controlling the company’s tunneling activities when the company conducted tunneling transactions of related party receivables. Small companies and companies with positive return on assets were more susceptible to tunneling activities carried out by the companies. Practical implications The results of this study can be used as a consideration for investors in making decisions by looking at tunneling activities carried out by companies in Indonesia. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous study in the tunneling literature has compared the results of the effect of the concentration of foreign ownership and ownership on tunneling using three measurements at once. This is useful to see the company’s behavior of tunneling activities from a different perspective.