Strategic Commitment Research Articles

La investigación biomédica hospitalaria a través de la satisfacción de los profesionales de un Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria

ObjectiveA Health Research Institute is a powerful strategic commitment to promote biomedical research in hospitals. To assess user satisfaction is an essential quality requirement. The aim of this study is to evaluate the professional satisfaction in a Health Research Institute, a hospital biomedical research centre par excellence. MethodsObservational study was conducted using a satisfaction questionnaire on Health Research Institute researchers. The explored dimensions were derived from the services offered by the Institute to researchers, and are structured around 4 axes of a five-year Strategic Plan. A descriptive and analytical study was performed depending on adjustment variables. Internal consistency was also calculated. ResultsThe questionnaire was completed by 108 researchers (15% response). The most valued strategic aspect was the structuring Areas and Research Groups and political communication and dissemination. The overall rating was 7.25 out of 10. Suggestions for improvement refer to the need for help in recruitment, and research infrastructures. High internal consistency was found in the questionnaire (Cronbach alpha of 0.9). ConclusionsSo far research policies in health and biomedical environment have not been sufficiently evaluated by professionals in our field. Systematic evaluations of satisfaction and expectations of key stakeholders is an essential tool for analysis, participation in continuous improvement and advancing excellence in health research.

Searching for a Bargain: Power of Strategic Commitment

This paper shows that in a multilateral bargaining setting where the sellers compete á la Bertrand, a range of prices that includes the monopoly price and 0 are compatible with equilibrium, even in the limit where the reputational concerns and frictions vanish. In particular, the incentive of committing to a specific demand, the opportunity of building reputation about inflexibility, and the anxiety of preserving their reputation can tilt players' bargaining power in such a way that being deemed as a tough bargainer is bad for the competing players, and thus, price undercutting is not optimal for the sellers. (JEL C78, D43, D83)

Hampering the change: Consequences of the CEO's strategic commitment under managerial discretion

CEOs play a central role for the strategic outcomes of their firms. Although research has provided many insights about the factors determining CEOs' openness toward strategic changes, the consequen...

The Race for Drones

In just the last ten years, a growing number of states have sought to join the race to develop and sell ever-more sophisticated drones on the global market. While today the market remains stratified between makers and takers of drones, the gradual emergence of a drones arms race will have some important and potentially dangerous consequences for the international system. The emergence of a race for drones will reshape long-simmering conflicts and rivalries around the world in three ways. First, the proliferation of drones will reset the rules and norms governing surveillance and reconnaissance. Second, drones will become increasingly useful to governments in testing the strategic commitments and the nerves of their rivals. Third, the worldwide proliferation of drones will multiply the risks of conflict spirals stemming from accidents or hijacked drones. Given these risks, Washington’ should take a leading role in slowing the global race for drones and in developing strict legal and normative mechanisms to govern drone usage and sales in the future.

DEMILITARIZATION OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA IDEA, UTOPIA OR SOMETHING ELSE

The history of human society can be, unfortunately, best perceived through thehistory of warfare. At any given moment in the world there was a war waged, and many of them have been fought after they were banned, post World War II. The mere prohibition of the wars of aggression by the UN did not stop them from breaking out. Wars are closely related to the realization and protection of the interests of belligerents. It is not always necessary to initiate war to realize these interests. The main forces in war are military forces and the appearance of militarism is not unusual. It is closely linked with a specifi c time and space. Strengthening the power of military circles is accompanied by strengthening the resistance to this, by all means, negative phenomenon, most often in the form of antimilitarism. The war in BiH can be viewed, in many respects, in broader, theoretical aspects. Its main characteristics could not have been the instigating factor for the idea of demilitarization in BiH. The seriousness of circles and circumstances it is debated in points to its political signifi cance. This requires a broad and quality consideration during the process of formation of critical attitudes. After war comes peace, which is far more complex than war and which requires a lot of effort. In war “the main” idea is to defeat the enemy, whereas in peace the following springs up:• end the war,• build up peaceful and prosperous social community and• prevent new confl icts from breaking out, a new war.The BiH citizens still suffer the consequences of the past war, and for some it stillhas not fi nished, it has only changed in form. Instead of development, many processes are directed in the wrong way. Confl icts are still present, and the current state of peace cannot guarantee its stability. The reforms which were implemented and are still being implemented have the centralization of BiH as their priority, and not the improvement of the current situation. This kind of situation does not contribute to building peace and prosperity. There is still hope that the outcome will be positive. The National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska (NARS) has adopted the Declaration on demilitarization (Declaration on strategic commitments of the RS in the defense system). Political entities of the RS, in the fi eld of defense, are advocating demilitarization policy. Those in disagreement with this policy are silent or they do not have a signifi cant role on the political scene. Demilitarization policy is not correctly shaped and it can be disputed because of:• basis for attitudes,• real goals,• superfi ciality,• collision of points of view.Thus its effects are diminished.

Local Systems’ Strategies Copying with Globalization: Collective Local Entrepreneurship

The paper aims at investigating the possible trajectories of regional clusters (industrial districts or local systems) in order to depict feasible strategies to cope with globalization. Same relevant stylized facts on the new structure of global market are presented in order to illustrate the new competitive framework small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) must face. The concept of “complete productive process” is introduced to characterize the special setting necessary for the survival of the regional systems of SME. A local cluster needs to coproduce values, capabilities and institutions: its very identity. Since local systems are essentially “cognitive systems”, they need to go global not as a single firm but as a system. To accomplish this difficult task, they must resort to a collective and cooperative behaviour. To fill this gap, we suggest the concept of “collective local entrepreneurship” as a reference point, a device to anchor the strategic pragmatism necessary to regional clusters to cope with globalization. The renewal of the local “ecosystems” within the international networks (at all different levels) appears to be a general objective. A strong public-private partnership emerges as a strategic commitment. In this perspective emerge the potential dynamics of the conclusive four evolutionary trajectories, which the regional clusters are called upon to deal with.

MNE Subsidiaries’ Strategic Commitment to CSR in Emerging Economies: The Role of Administrative Distance, Subsidiary Size, and Experience in the Host Country

Multinational enterprises (MNEs) venturing into emerging economies operate in relatively unfamiliar environments that, compared with their home countries, often display a high degree of administrative distance (i.e., differences in social rules, regulations, and governmental control and enforcement mechanisms). At the same time, many MNEs face the question of how intensely to commit to corporate social responsibility (CSR) in emerging economies, given the often relatively lower social standards in those countries. This research addresses the question of how administrative distance, MNE subsidiary size, and experience in the host country relate to the extent to which MNEs strategically commit to CSR in their emerging economy subsidiaries. We argue that the greater the administrative distance between MNEs’ home and host countries, the lesser the MNE subsidiaries strategically commit to CSR. At the same time, we predict that the larger the size of MNE subsidiaries (as a proxy for local subsidiaries’ available resources), and the longer their experience in the host country, the more the MNE subsidiaries strategically commit to CSR. To test our hypotheses, we use data from a large-scale, cross-industry survey of 213 subsidiaries of Western MNEs in Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America. We complement the survey data with country-level data from the World Bank Governance Indicators.

Advancement Report on Adaptation and Damage Functions in the WITCH Model and Test Runs

This paper contributes to the normative literature on mitigation and adaptation by framing the question of the optimal policy balance in the context of climate catastrophic risk. The analysis uses the WITCH integrated assessment model presenting updates both in its climate change damage and adaptation components. Compared to previous model versions, the first includes a brand new damage specification accounting for the role of autonomous adaptation, ecosystems losses and, most importantly, models an endogenous link between the probability of experiencing a climate-change related catastrophic event and the temperature increase caused by GHG emissions. The second distinguishes between different adaptation types: anticipatory, reactive and investment in adaptive capacity building. Results indicate that the presence of catastrophic risk induces substantial mitigation effort even in a non-cooperative setting, that, according to the standard deterministic literature, usually presents very low mitigation efforts. Furthermore, the policy balance is realigned from adaptation toward more mitigation, and the responsiveness of mitigation to changes in adaptation decreases. Compared to a world without climate catastrophes, risk reduces the substitutability between adaptation and mitigation because only mitigation can reduce the catastrophic probability. In this setting, our analysis also shows that adaptation funds and strategic unilateral commitments to adaptation are not the most efficient ways of buying emission reduction in less developed countries, though they could create some welfare gains and induce abatement in the recipient countries.

How do Companies Invest in Corporate Social Responsibility? An Ordonomic Contribution for Empirical CSR Research

This paper takes both a conceptual and an empirical approach to answer the question as to how Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can be connected to the company’s role as an agent of social value creation when it operates within an imperfect institutional framework of market competition. To develop a functional design for an empirical study, we draw on the concept of ordonomics, which provides a heuristics for responsible business activities in society. Drawing on ordonomics, we devise three questions: Referring to action responsibility we ask in which CSR activities companies do invest in their day-to-day business. Referring to governance responsibility we ask as to how companies realize win-win solutions through strategic commitments. In addition, with regard to discourse responsibility we ask in which stakeholder dialogues companies engage in order to discuss and find functional rules for organizing win-win solutions. In our empirical study, we reveal insights into the micro-level analysis of the CSP-CFP link and generate several new questions to be the subject of future research.

Tough negotiations: Bilateral bargaining with durable commitments

We offer a tractable model of tough negotiations and delayed agreement. The setting is an infinite horizon bilateral bargaining game in which negotiators can make strategic commitments to durable offers. Commitments decay stochastically, but uncommitted negotiators can make new commitments. The game's unique Markov Perfect equilibrium outcome takes the form of a war of attrition: Negotiators initially commit to incompatible offers, but agreement occurs once a negotiator's commitment decays. If commitments decay more quickly, the terms of the agreement become more equal. In expectation, more patient, committed, and less risk averse negotiators obtain a larger fraction of the surplus.

Supply licensing when the manufacturer strategically commits to invest in R&D

AbstractThis article proposes a strategic reason for a proprietary component supplier to license her technology to a competitor or a manufacturer: her anticipation of the manufacturer's strategic commitment to invest in research and development (R&D). We address this phenomenon with a game theoretic model. Our results show that the manufacturer's full commitment to invest in R&D enables the supplier to license, sell a larger quantity through the supply chain, and charge lower prices. These results are robust to the type of demand uncertainty faced by the manufacturer within the class of increasing generalized failure rate distributions. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 61: 341–350, 2014

Brazil’s Commitment to Train the Next Generation of Water Leaders: the Potential Role of UNESCO-Hidroex

Brazil has made a strategic decision and formal commitment to the International Community to invest in developing a post-graduate water education center to help train the next generation of water leaders in Latin America and Portuguese-speaking Africa in response to the demand of the UNESCO Member States. The International Centre for Education, Capacity Building and Applied Water Research – Hidroex will, overtime, greatly augment the work of the UNESCO Institute for Water Education (UNESCO-IHE) in Delft, the Netherlands as a member-institution of the proposed UNESCO Global Campus for Water Education. This center of excellence will also develop a new institutional model in two regards: first by implementing the concept of a “water condominium” which will attract scientists from around the world sharing a common research interest providing logistical support including laboratories, analytical capacity, video conference facilities and offices – all with the aim of addressing complex, priority water research issues, and resulting in new networks of collaborating scientists, and secondly by integrating the goals of eighth phase of the UNESCO International Hydrological Program into the education and research programs of Hidroex to develop the environmental conscience of all citizens – from young children to the highest level of technical knowledge – within an appropriate cultural context. This paper documents the institutional roadmap, logic and progress in realizing that ambitious goal.

Foreign Direct Investment Subsidy

We address the problem of optimal form and timing of FDI subsidy, and the impact of competition on these. We find that the optimal subsidy must include an element of discouragement against delaying the timing of the investment for the firm to prevent the firm from extracting rent from the host country. The optimal timing depends on factors related to the industry where the investment is made, and factors related to the welfare effects of the investment as well as the market for subsidy. These results generate empirical predictions as the subsidy we are the most likely to see is the subsidy that speeds up the investment the most. The factors influencing subsidy are the welfare effects relative to the amortised investment cost and the strategic commitment value of investment and subsidy.

Materials science in Luxembourg

With its strategic location and firm commitment to investing in research, Luxembourg has ambitious plans to become a significant player in the international research arena.

Gender-Based Content of Educational Materials for the Study of Serbian Language in Lower-Stage Grades of Elementary Education

This paper presents the results of analysis of educational materials for the study of Serbian language in lower-stage grades of elementary education (intended for students from 7 through 11 years old) from gender perspective. The first part of the paper presents the process of institutionalization of gender-based education in the Republic of Serbia after the year 2000, when gender issues became highlighted as an integral part of the overall reform of education within the implementation of education for democracy and civil society. Declarative commitment to developing gender sensitivity has led to changes in the curriculum for elementary education and, presumably, changes in the selection of educational materials for different school subjects. The authors intended to determine whether educational materials for Serbian language honor the principle of gender equality in the selection of literary texts. The presence and nature of gender-based content in reading books from different publishers, for second and third grade, was determined by using the method of content analysis. The aim was to establish empirical evidence that would show the degree of gender sensitivity of analyzed educational materials and their compliance with the strategic commitment to gender mainstreaming in education. The authors are aware of the range of this micro-level research, and the impossibility to reach general conclusions, however, in their opinion, the obtained data may shed a light on at least one part of the mosaic of the complex relationship of education, educational material and gender equality in contemporary Serbian society. The following conclusions were drawn: (a) the analyzed educational material serves the function of developing gender sensitivity; (b) the principle of gender equality is respected in selection of the material; (c) the distinguished gender characteristics go beyond the so-called traditional gender pattern.

Supply Licensing When the Manufacturer Strategically Commits to Invest in R&D

This paper proposes a strategic reason for a proprietary component supplier to license her technology to a competitor or a manufacturer: her anticipation of the manufacturer's strategic commitment to invest in research and development (R&D). We address this phenomenon with a game theoretic model. Our results show that the manufacturer's full commitment to invest in R&D enables the supplier to license, sell a larger quantity through the supply chain, and charge lower prices than the manufacturer's full commitment not to invest in R&D. These results are robust to the type of demand uncertainty faced by the manufacturer within the class of increasing generalized failure rate (IGFR) distributions.

Do ward and department managers know their responsibilities in relation to the management of sharps, and is this reflected in the way that they practise sharps management?

Needlestick injuries (NSIs) involving hollowbore needles are the most commonly reported occupational exposure within the healthcare sector in the United Kingdom (HPA, 2012). It is estimated that at least 100,000 NSIs occur each year but due to under-reporting the figure may be much higher (RCN, 2008). Many strategies aimed at preventing NSIs have been implemented in the healthcare environment, including administrative controls, safer work practices and engineering controls, but despite these measures NSIs remain a serious health and safety threat (EU, 2010). New legislation has now been introduced as part of EU Directive 2010/32/EU, which requires UK and all EU member states to bring into force regulations, laws and administrative provisions to further protect healthcare workers from sustaining NSIs (EU Directive, 2010). The aim of this study was to determine the degree of responsibility that NHS ward/department managers felt they have in relation to the prevention and management of NSIs and if this was reflected in the way that they carry out relevant practices in their clinical environment. The study also aimed to identify factors which might impact on the ward/department managers' ability to manage sharps effectively. The study found that although ward/department managers did acknowledge a high degree of responsibility overall for the prevention and management of NSIs, there were some concerns highlighted in relation to certain practices. These included not ensuring that all staff had received up to date training on the safe use and disposal of sharps and not disseminating information on NSI incidences and outcomes to staff in their clinical areas. The findings of this study have the potential to inform and enhance future training and education schedules that relate to NSI prevention and management and to improve the corporate strategic commitment to reducing NSIs across healthcare organisations.

Biased managers as strategic commitment: The relative profit approach

This paper analyzes a duopolistic model wherein each firm׳s owner can hire a biased manager for strategic reasons. We focus on the situation wherein each firm׳s owner evaluates the performance of her/his manager on the basis of her/his relative profit, which is equal to the weighted sum of her/his absolute profit and the absolute profit of her/his opponent firm. We show that in both price-setting and quantity-setting competitions, the owners of the two private firms employ aggressive managers rather than absolute profit maximizing managers regardless of the degree of importance of each firm׳s relative performance. Furthermore, in both the price competition and the quantity competition, as the degree of importance of each firm׳s relative performance increases, we show that the firms׳ owners tend to hire more aggressive managers when the degree of importance of each firm׳s relative performance is sufficiently low, whereas in both the price competition and the quantity competition, the firms׳ owners tend to hire less aggressive managers otherwise. Thus, in both the price competition and the quantity competition, the type of each firm׳s manager is not monotone with respect to the degree of each firm׳s relative performance. Thus, in both the price competition and the quantity competition, we find that the change in the optimal type of manager hired by each firm is non-monotone against the change of competitiveness in the market with the increase in the degree of importance of each firm׳s relative performance.

Aligning the co-creation project portfolio with company strategy

Purpose – An important task for all strategy leaders contemplating the use of co-creation is to determine how well the numerous co-creation project-design choices available to them align with their strategic priorities. Design/methodology/approach – In order to implement co-creation, firms need to assess how their projects or initiatives support their strategic commitments and priorities. To this end, the authors offer managers a practical, easy-to-use assessment framework. Findings – Executives should consider their approach to co-creation in terms of crafting and managing a portfolio of initiatives to be categorized and managed differently according to their strategic significance – high, medium or low. Practical implications – A six-question assessment framework was inductively derived from an extensive literature review (113 articles) focusing on practices associated with co-creation and stakeholder involvement. Though they do not represent an exhaustive list of categories for assessment, they do, however, identify strategically important choices involved in designing co-creation ventures. Originality/value – The six-question assessment framework is applied to the case of the Xerox-P&G co-innovation partnership, which illustrates how such significant co-creation initiatives might be profiled, and their main design choices analyzed.

Biased Managers as Strategic Commitment in a Mixed Duopoly

This paper analyzes a model in which both the owner of a social welfare-maximizing public firm and the owner of an absolute profit-maximizing private firm can hire biased managers for strategic reasons in a mixed duopoly in the contexts of both a price competition and a quantity competition. In this paper, in a mixed duopoly, we show that in the contexts of both a price competition and a quantity competition, the owners of both firms employ more aggressive managers. In particular, in the result obtained in the price competition, the attitude of the manager employed by the owner of the private firm reverses to that obtained in the case of classical strategic delegation works.