Intrasectoral Differences Research Articles

Urban restructuring and the location dynamics of P-KIBS in postsocialist Belgrade

ABSTRACT Professional knowledge-intensive business services (P-KIBS) have emerged as one of the core elements of economic recovery and urban restructuring of many large cities during the postsocialist transition in Europe. However, studies about intrametropolitan patterns of P-KIBS in postsocialist cities are largely neglected. Against this backdrop, the aim of this study is to provide a better understanding of P-KIBS intraurban spatial patterns within a postsocialist urban environment by analyzing the location dynamics of P-KIBS in Belgrade. The research methodology includes using a micro-geographic dataset for the period 2011–2019 and distance-based methods, which are becoming increasingly popular in urban geography. The study demonstrates that in Belgrade, P-KIBS are spatially highly concentrated and centralized, with a strong center-periphery gradient as well as pronounced intraurban functional specialization and intrasectoral differences. In the observed period, the spatial reorganization of P-KIBS was characterized by spatially limited decentralization, reflected in the progressive dissolution of the traditional monocentric model and the creation of a centralized duocentric model through the emergence of a secondary CBD in New Belgrade. In particular, the research highlights the influence of the complex process of postsocialist urban restructuring in the shaping of the urban geography of P-KIBS.

Productivity and efficiency in Czech agriculture: Does farm size matter?

This paper deals with the sources of total factor productivity (TFP), namely technical efficiency, scale efficiency, and technological change, considering the size of agricultural producers and using balanced panel data in the period 2014–2018 drawn from the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) database for three sectors of Czech agriculture – cereals, milk, and beef. The investigation is based on the stochastic frontier (SF) modelling of an input distance function (IDF) with four error components (heterogeneity, statistical noise, persistent and transient inefficiency). The sector-specific models are estimated by a four-step estimating procedure with a system generalised method of moments (GMM) estimator to address the endogeneity problem. The results reveal inter- and intra-sectoral differences in productivity drivers. In particular, the smallest producers lag considerably behind the largest ones due to the scale effect (SEC). While large farms should focus on technological change, improvements in scale and technical efficiency have been identified as the main sources of coping with productivity losses for small farmers.

Adaptations to first-tier suppliers’ relational anti-slavery capabilities

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how first-tier suppliers in multi-tier supply chains adapt their vertical and horizontal relationships to reduce the risk of slavery-like practices.Design/methodology/approachUsing Archer’s morphogenetic theory as an analytical lens, this paper presents case analyses adduced from primary and secondary data related to the development of relational anti-slavery supply capabilities in Brazilian–UK beef and timber supply chains.FindingsFour distinct types of adaptation were found among first-tier suppliers: horizontal systemisation, vertical systemisation, horizontal transformation and vertical differentiation.Research limitations/implicationsThis study draws attention to the socially situated nature of corporate action, moving beyond the rationalistic discourse that underpins existing research studies of multi-tier, socially sustainable, supply chain management. Cross-sector comparison highlights sub-country and intra-sectoral differences in both institutional setting and the approaches and outcomes of individual corporate actors’ initiatives. Sustainable supply chain management theorists would do well to seek out those institutional entrepreneurs who actively reshape the institutional conditions within which they find themselves situated.Practical implicationsPractitioners may benefit from adopting a structured approach to the analysis of the necessary or contingent complementarities between their, primarily economic, objectives and the social sustainability goals of other, potential, organizational partners.Social implicationsA range of interventions that may serve to reduce the risk of slavery-like practices in global commodity chains are presented.Originality/valueThis paper presents a novel analysis of qualitative empirical data and extends understanding of the agential role played by first-tier suppliers in global, multi-tier, commodity, supply chains.

Inequality of Income in Agricultural Holdings in Poland in the Context of Sustainable Agricultural Development

The study investigates the redistributive effects of agricultural policy and the importance of income inequalities among agricultural holdings for sustainable agricultural development based on the intra-sectoral differences of the disposable income of farmer households and the income from family agricultural holdings in Poland in the years 2004–2018. The problem of excessive and growing income inequalities in agriculture has been recognized as an important barrier to the sustainable development of agriculture in Poland. The aim of the study is to establish a relationship between the process of income polarization in agriculture and the process of concentration of production factors in this sector, and the level of budget support. The Gini coefficient, concentration index, and multivariate regression analysis were used as research methods. It was shown that the process of the concentration of land and capital has led to an increase in income disparities in this sector. Budgetary expenditure directed to the sector in the form of subsidies supporting farmer incomes was not able to reverse the process of income polarization, but mitigated the growing inequalities (reducing the scale of income spreads).

Intra-Sectoral Differences in Climate Change Strategies: Evidence from the Global Automotive Industry.

Companies are increasingly challenged for action on climate change. Most studies on business responses to climate change focus on cross‐sector comparisons and neglect intra‐sectoral dynamics. This paper investigates the influence of supply chain position and regional affiliation on climate change strategies within a particular industry. We present a generic framework integrating both market and non‐market responses to climate change. We argue that climate change strategies comprise several corporate activities that have different foci of interaction and four main objectives: governance, innovation, compensation and legitimation. Using a global sample of 116 automotive companies, we conduct a cluster analysis and identify four types of strategy. We find that the sophistication of automobile manufacturers' strategies significantly differs from that of suppliers. Regional affiliation and firm size prove to be determinants of the strategy type pursued. We cannot find evidence for a relationship between financial performance and a company's strategic approach to climate change. © 2017 The Authors. Business Strategy and the Environment published by ERP Environment and John Wiley & Sons Ltd

Heterogeneity in Production Structures and Efficiency: An Analysis of the Czech Food Processing Industry

AbstractThe present study analyses firm heterogeneity and sector‐specific technology. The theoretical model stands on the assumption of maximizing the return on capital and overcomes problems involved in simple profit maximization. The results show that a random parameter model with sector dummies and heteroscedasticity is the most appropriate model specification for distinguishing firm‐level and sector‐level efficiency and heterogeneity. The heterogeneity among firms as well as among sectors was found to be an important characteristic in Czech food processing. This holds for production technology as well as for technical efficiency. Moreover, the decomposition of total variance shows that intrasectoral differences in technologies are much more pronounced than the intersectoral differences. The differences in intrasector heterogeneity also suggest that the food processing industry will be subject to accelerated structural change in the coming years. Moreover, we found that on average the companies highly exploit their production possibilities. However, some companies cannot keep pace with competitors. Because leapfrogging does not appear to be present in selected industries (except for Milling), structural change is expected to occur in such a way that the most successful companies will strengthen their position.

Teachers, school choice and competition: Lock-in effects within and between sectors

Neoliberal forces since the latter part of the 20th century have ushered in greater devolution in state schooling systems, producing uneven effects on the working conditions of teachers, commonly the largest segment of the public sector workforce. Within this context, this paper examines secondary teachers’ working conditions as they relate to the restructuring of the professional landscape that school choice reforms bring. Drawing illustrations from a qualitative study of teachers’ working experiences in the lowest socio-economic status schools, through the ‘middle band’, to the most prestigious and affluent in a metropolitan city in Australia, this paper finds that teachers develop skill-sets that are context specific, creating possible ‘lock-in effects’ within but also between sectors. Moreover, various work arrangement issues seem to reinforce the lock-in effects by making changes between sectors risky and unattractive. We postulate that inter- and intra-sectoral differences, which are exacerbated through school choice processes, have the potential to reinforce and deepen the lock-in effects on teachers, with possible consequences for their future career mobility.

Technologick� heterogenita, technick� efektivnost a pr�m� platby v cesk�m zemedelstv�

This paper deals with an analysis of technological heterogeneity and technical efficiency in individual sectors of Czech agriculture after the EU enlargement in 2004. A parametric approach was used – Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) to address the research questions. Specifically, it is employed the Random Parameter Model specification, in which sector dummies are used to capture the intersectoral as well as intrasectoral differences in technology. The results show there is significant heterogeneity among the studied sectors (i.e., combined, plant, animal and other production). The analysis showed that Capital and Material are being substituted more and more for Labour in all sectors, especially in animal production. This result is to be expected, as the technology in this sector is labour-saving. However, it was found out that land elasticity is quite low in plant production and combined production; since Land is a production factor that significantly determines the level of final output, this result is quite strange. One possible explanation may be the policy of distributing subsidies among farmers, when the land is kept but used in a more extensive way. The intrasectoral differences in technology are statistically significant for all inputs. Average technical efficiency is highest in other production and lowest in animal production, while it is approximately at the same level in plant production and combined production. It was discovered that diversification (combined production) of activities lowers the level of technical efficiency compared to specialisation (plant production), but on the other hand it does allow for alleviation of the negative impacts of specialization (animal production) by optimizing the production program. Finally, the analysis did confirm a statistically significant positive relationship between SAPS subsidies and technical efficiency. Organic farming has a negative impact on technical efficiency and the influence of labour force quality is positive. The statistical significance of TOP UP subsidies as well as the localization of the company to LFA have not been proved.

Technology and Efficiency Comparison of Czech and Slovak Processing Companies

The paper analyses the differences in the technology and technical efficiency of Czech and Slovak processing companies in the period 2003–2012. A random parameters model with sector and country dummies is employed to capture sectoral and national differences in technology. The paper addresses two research questions. The first question relates to technology. In particular, we investigate whether inter- and intra-sectoral differences, as well as differences between Czech and Slovak processing companies, are pronounced. The second question considers the development of technical efficiency. The paper analyses the differences between the technical efficiency of Czech and Slovak processing companies and the sources of its development.

Evaluation of technical efficiency among entrant and incumbent firms in the Spanish retailing sector: The effects of deregulation from a regional perspective

This study analyzes the efficiency of entrant and incumbent firms in the 1995–2003 period, after a significant shift in the institutional environment of the retail sector occurred with the deregulation of opening hours carried out imposed by decree law 6/2000. It also analyzes the evolution of efficiency in relation to the entrance cohorts and to their geographical localization. The results obtained show that the effects of opening hours by decree law 2000 have perhaps been negative on the level of efficiency of the new firms. The increasing of the inefficiency of the firms is observed through the cohorts with more intensity starting from the year 2000, although in general the tendency of the efficiency is negative at global level. There have not been statistically significant differences between the incoming firms and the incumbent ones for both specialized and non-specialized sectors. Finally, notable intersectoral and intrasectoral differences of efficiency exist among Autonomous Communities (i.e. regions).

The sources and aims of innovation in services: Variety between and within sectors

Services dominate economic activity, but remain under-researched by analysts of innovation and technological change. The early 'one size fits all' theories of innovation in services have in recent years given way to an appreciation that services are diverse, not least in their innovation activities. This paper draws on recent empirical evidence from large-scale surveys undertaken in 13 western European countries, to investigate the extent and the sources of innovation in five services sectors. The analysis includes the extent to which services innovate, and amongst innovators the extent to which they engage in R&D and collaborative arrangements for innovation. The analysis supports the recent literature which emphasises significant differences between sectors in their pattern of innovation behaviour, but also highlights significant intra-sectoral differences in innovation behaviour. This intra-sectoral variation deserves much fuller investigation in the future.

Institutional structure, finance, and race in higher education: Public-private sectoral differences

This paper has examined and extended the range of economic implications implied by existing differences in the underlying institutional structure of higher education. Along the lines of Lindsay (1976), Sisk (1981), and Weisbrod (1977) it was hypothesized that public-private intersectoral and intrasectoral differences in the dependence on various sources of finance give rise to systematic differences in the input-output mix of institutions and lead to corresponding differences in blacks' relative access to and success in higher education. Empirical evidence was offered in support of the contention that blacks relative to whites are more likely to gain access to higher education through the public sector, but once entered, they (relative to whites) face a greater likelihood of success in the private compared to the public sector.

Analysis of the intrasectoral income differences in West German agriculture

The book-keeping records of 1093 farms over a period of 12 years are analysed with respect to the development of the intrasectoral differences in the net profit per family labour unit. The factor analysis approach has been used to relate shares of the intrasectoral profit variance to complex factors which reflect differences in economic behaviour and differences as to the production conditions.