Strategic Options Research Articles

Helping or Hindering? How Clients’ Experiences Relate to Their Robo Advisory Use

Firms are increasingly evaluating whether or not to introduce new business models based on digital technologies, also in knowledge-intensive, risky contexts long immune to them. In the financial industry, the algorithm-based service robo advisory in banking, which supports and executes clients’ investment decisions, is one strategic option of interest. Based on our access to a large and recent data set of an important provider, we have a unique opportunity to analyze the foundations of the diffusion of this recent technology. Building on yet also departing from extant literature, we offer a client perspective on this topic. Our results suggest that in contexts where uncertainty and risk are particularly pronounced, clients’ experiences – resulting in technology-aligned or -misaligned knowledge and routines – link closely to their robo advisory use. Clients’ experiences can both, help and hinder new technology adoption.

Does internationalization moderate the effect of SMEs size, age, and other financial determinants on investment opportunities set? Evidence from Indonesia

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly considering international expansion as one of the sustainable growth strategic options. This study aims to reveal how the effect of internationalization as a moderator of SMEs size, age, and other financial determinants toward investment opportunity set of SMEs that listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) from 2006 to 2020. Market to book asset ratio used as a proxy of investment opportunity set of SMEs. This study is one of the most important in the context of Indonesian SMEs as there were limited previous studies that have explored the internationalization factor. A total of 102 SMEs companies with 156 data observations were studied. A moderation regression analysis was used to test whether the determinants of the investment opportunity set were statistically significant. Surprisingly, the study found that the degree of internationalization has a moderating effect that weakens the relationship between SMEs age and size on investment opportunities set (market value ratio).

Key issues influencing the future internationalization of higher education: the case of Thailand

Purpose The rapidly changed global context for internationalization (IZN) over the next decade prompted a decision to use a futurist perspective for identifying issues to be considered in the organization’s next strategic plan. This paper aims to report on this project to identify current and strategic issues influencing the future strategy of the higher education (HE) IZN for Thailand on behalf of the Bureau of International Cooperation Strategy and the Office of the Higher Education Commission. Design/methodology/approach The research approach was a customized version of the University of Houston’s Framework Foresight method. It involved framing the domain with a description and domain map, scanning for signals of change within the domain and emerging issues analysis to produce a set of current and emerging issues. A planning step synthesizes a set of recommended actions. Findings The key findings reported in this paper are the identification of 14 current and emerging issues influencing the future of the IZN of HE in Thailand. The issues were organized along with the three horizons framework: H1: how are we [currently] doing? H2: what should we do next and H3, where do we want to go? The primary recommendation of this research reported on in this study is to consider the 14 issues for inclusion into the next strategic plan. Seven specific strategic options mapped over three phases were identified as well. The research reported here was carried out for Thailand, but the process could easily be adapted by other countries and other topics. Research limitations/implications The modified version of the University of Houston Framework Foresight approach has been applied successfully to many topics. The topic explored here is focused on one nation, Thailand. The authors feel the lessons are, however, broadly applicable. Practical implications The ability to use a futurist perspective to identify current and emerging issues is highlighted. The organizing of the issues using the three horizons framework proved to be particularly useful in helping the client to develop a sense of timing regarding the future, that is, when and to what degree to pay attention to the many issues that typically confront any organization. Originality/value The use of the three horizons framework in the analysis of the emerging issues provide benefits in two ways in situating the likely timing of signals of change in horizon scanning and “scan hits” both scanning for the identification of issues and organizing the resulting current and emerging issues along the three horizons with H1 current issues: how are we [currently] doing?; H2 emerging issues: what should we do next and H3 emerging issues, where do we want to go? The paper also includes a section exploring the impact of Covid-19 on the likely timing of the issues identified just before the pandemic hit, finding that timing of some issues would speed up, some would stay the same and some would slow down.

Crop performance and soil-plant nutrient dynamics in rice-lentil system altered with rice cultivation practices in alkaline soil

Aerobic or partially-aerobic rice cultivation techniques like direct-seeding of rice (DSR) and system of rice intensification (SRI) are gaining recognition, particularly for water-saving. However, their productivity is often constrained by several deficiencies in the soil-plant system (crop nutrition in particular). The study aimed to assess crop eco-physiology and soil-plant nutrient dynamics in rice-lentil system in an alkaline Fluvisol as influenced by different rice cultivation techniques (RCT) viz., DSR, SRI and conventional transplanted flooded-rice (PTR). The lower (9–11 %) yield of DSR crop compared to PTR crop was attributed to reduced root growth, effective tiller, and panicle and seed weights. Likewise, the SRI crop yield was lower (4–7 %) than the PTR crop. The reduced availability of soil KMnO4-N (7%) and Olsen-P (9%) in the rice seasons caused lower N (12–14 %), P (10 %), K (5–7 %) accumulations in DSR crop as compared to PTR crop (p < 0.05). Meanwhile, the SRI cultivation practice caused a decrease in Olsen-P (6%) during the rice seasons and lower crop macro-nutrient acquisition compared to the PTR crop. Sensor-based indices indicated a suboptimal N nutrition and higher leaf flavonoids accumulation in the DSR crop. The DSR crop exhibited higher post-anthesis nutrients (N, P) remobilization, physiological and internal nutrient utilization efficiencies over the SRI and PTR crops. The higher nodulation (21–31 %), root growth (8–10 %), and yield of lentil (10–16 %) in the DSR treatment compared to the SRI and PTR treatments suggested adverse impacts of wet-tillage (puddling) on the subsequent crop. The system productivity and economic gain were comparable in all the RCT treatments; however, the DSR and SRI cultivation practices increased the water productivity by 64 % and 44 % over the PTR. Thus, in alkaline soil, particular attention is warranted to improve N and P nutrition in non-flooded rice crops (DSR in particular) to sustain their yield potential. Also, real-time N management using sensor-based indices and trait-based cultivar selection (root growth and source-sink translocation) could be strategic options for improving DSR productivity.

Japan’s responses to China’s rise: Soft balancing in Southeast Asia

ABSTRACT Japan’s threat perceptions toward China have hardened over the post-Cold War period. This led Tokyo to rely more on overt balancing strategies compared with engagement and hedging strategies. While hard balancing measures are widely discussed in the literature, little or no attention is paid to soft balancing. Though concerned about China’s strategic rise, Japan’s strategic options are limited by the entrenched normative constraints within the security policymaking structure. These conditions make soft balancing a critical and viable strategy for Japan. The prominence of soft balancing is illustrated by analyzing Japan’s response to China’s widening influence in Southeast Asia, primarily focusing on two areas – East Asian multilateralism and the South China Sea territorial disputes. Empirically, this paper offers a more nuanced analysis of Japan’s response to China’s strategic rise; and theoretically, explains the way Japan’s case strengthens the conceptual utility of soft balancing through the incorporation of a normative perspective.

Ambiguity, Managerial Ability, and Growth Options

AbstractThis paper studies the role of ambiguity and managerial ability in firm growth options from the perspective of behavioural theory. We argue that managerial ability increases both the identification and exploitation of growth options opportunities, but ambiguity reduces strategic growth options value as a result of information incompleteness and non‐Bayesian behaviour. Using a dataset of all US‐listed firms, we test the joint effects of ambiguity and managerial ability on growth options value after controlling for standard determinants and endogeneity. The results indicate that ambiguity has a negative effect on growth options value, while ability has a positive effect. We also find that the negative association between ambiguity and growth options is less pronounced with higher managerial ability. These findings underscore the importance of firm heterogeneity in the identification, exercise, and management of strategic and innovative real options opportunities. The paper's contribution provides relevant management insights into the behavioural antecedents of real options at the firm level as well as highlights that managerial and behavioural characteristics are important determinants of growth options value.

Electric utility mergers in the presence of distributed renewable energy

Firm consolidation through mergers and acquisitions could be a strategic option for the electricity industry which has recently witnessed several transformations such as renewable integration and regulatory changes. This study uses a Cournot oligopoly model to examine the profitability of electric utility mergers in the presence of distributed renewable energy sources. We introduce two sector specific parameters that influence merger profitability: the rate at which renewable energy raises the marginal grid integration cost and the extent to which renewable energy reduces pollution intensity. Our model predicts that an increase in the first parameter reduces the profitability of profitable mergers while an increase in the latter increases the profitability of profitable mergers. We find that due to the strategic substitutability between renewable and non-renewable energy, an increase in energy produced from distributed sources reduces the profitability of profitable mergers and reduces losses from unprofitable mergers. Furthermore, we show that the variability in electricity produced from renewable sources induces utilities to produce more exacerbating the extent that extra renewable energy affects merger profitability. Results from the theoretical model are illustrated by simulating a hypothetical merger among investor-owned utilities in the PJM market.

Entrepreneurship opportunities in horticulture sector

Horticulture sector has the potential to enhance the farm income, provide livelihood security and earn foreign exchange. However, focused policy interventions are needed to realise the potential of this sector. India is the second largest producer of fruits and vegetables globally. During 2019-20, the production of fruits is 102.03 million MT and that of vegetables is 189 million MT and that of flowers is 2.94million MT. The salient features of commercial horticulture are perishability, intense technology, high profitability accompanied with high investment and high risks including vulnerability to post-harvest losses. Overall, it demands very good entrepreneurship and leadership.The review reveals the trends of the horticultural sector in India and identifies the growth prospects. According to the Economic Survey 2020-202, the share of agriculture in gross domestic product (GDP) has reached almost 20 per cent for the first time in the last 17 years, making it the sole bright spot in GDP performance during 2020-21. The resilience of the farming community in the face of adversities made agriculture the only sector to have clocked a positive growth of 3.4 per cent at constant prices in 2020-21, when other sectors slid. The share of agriculture in GDP increased to 19.9 per cent in 2020-21 from 17.8 per cent in 2019-20.The Horticulture has become a key driver for economic development in many of the states in the country and it contributes 30.4 per cent to GDP of agriculture, which calls for technology-led development. The research priorities are for genetic resource enhancement and its utilization, enhancing the efficiency of production and reducing the losses in environment friendly manner. Horticultural sector accounts for about 37% of the total exports of agricultural commodities, and the exports have recorded sustained rising trend.The major concerns of the sector are improving the productivity through research and development, enhancing the share of value-added products, geographical diversification of exports and enhancing the infrastructure including cold storage and rural roads.The horticulture sector has been considered as the sun rising sector of Indian agriculture because of its contribution to livelihood and nutritional security. Here are some strategic options to overcome the hurdles in the entrepreneurship climate setting process to enhance farmers’ income.

Financial manager professionalism and use of interfund transfers: Evidence from Georgia counties

AbstractPublic managers strategically use resources to smooth out cash receipts and disbursements. As a cash flow management tool, managers can use interfund transfers, which are flows of assets without equivalent return flows and without repayment. This study asserts that managerial professionalism, in the form of a full‐time finance director, drives the likelihood of interfund transfers. Using 2010–2017 data from Georgia counties, hurdle model results indicate that full‐time finance directors are more likely to use interfund transfers and increase their level. This finding demonstrates the role of financial management expertise in increasing the strategic options available to manage cash flows.Applications for Practice Local governments with a full‐time finance director use more interfund transfers as one working capital management strategy to manage cash flows. Results from this study provide a justification for local governments to hire a full‐time finance director to improve the array of financial management strategies accessed. Local governments that increase tax base diversity have reduced engagement for General fund interfund transfers in, while higher levels of reported cash generate larger amounts of transfer activity.

COVID-19 PANDEMIC CHALLENGES TO MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN NIGERIA: STRATEGIC OPTIONS FOR SURVIVAL

COVID-19 Pandemic posed a great threat and challenges to the business world, especially the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). Many of these enterprises suffered a great downturn in business activities and reduction in profit volume. Many of them were forced to close down while others survived on the margin. The government and other stakeholders in the MSMEs have provided solutions to their problems but most of them have not really yielded the desired result. This paper investigates the challenges that MSMEs in Lagos State encountered as well as the strategic options for their survival during the Covid-19 Pandemic era. A survey research design was adopted and primary data were collected with the help of questionnaire. The population of study was 3,224,324 registered MSMEs in Lagos State, while the sample size of 400 was determined with Yamane (1967) formulae. A simple random sampling technique has been employed to administer 400 copies of questionnaire out of which 297 were properly filled and returned. The findings from the regression analysis and the descriptive statistics revealed that there is no significant effect of MSMEs Covid-19 challenges (such as: decline in productivity, business closure, supply chain breakdown, low customer demand, reduction in profit volume, self-isolation, reduced opportunities to meet new clients) on business survival. Also, it was revealed that most of the respondents adopted cutting expenses as a strategic option for the survival of their businesses. However, the study concluded that Covid-19 Pandemic is a major threat to MSMEs survival and growth. It was recommended that MSMEs should embark on cutting expenses in order to survive Covid-19 and further, they should embrace crisis management response, finance and liquidity, operation and supply chain, determine and activate the business continuity plan, monitor the implementation to enhance their survival and readjust their response approach towards environmental changes.

Risk Implications for the Role of Budgets in Implementing Post-Acquisition Systems Integration Strategies

This paper studies the role of budgets in implementing the systems integration strategies in an Australian post-acquisition case of two organisations and reducing its associated often-regarded high risks. It attempts a fresh narrative approach to examine the evolution of accounting and its effects on the challenges of post-acquisition integration processes by using the performative approach such as the sociotechnical networks of Actor Network Theory in a broader analytical framework as a possible solution to reducing the risks inherent in systems integration. The methodology of the case study is based on Callon’s model of Four-Moment translation where integration strategy and budgets are regarded as social practice and defined relationally as bundles of activities and take form in and through practice and interaction between diverse actors and actants. A qualitative approach is adopted in the examination of the systems integration networks in an Australian post-acquisition case. Data was collected and analysed using semi-structured interviews. It was found, through the examination of the routine practices of systems integration strategy making and how people enact and draw on a certain financial report on a daily basis to perform systems integration network strategies, that material forms of accounting act as a powerful structuring and inscription tool in integration activities, thus shaping integration strategic options and post-acquisition economic conditions of the organisation. The result shows how the risk could be reduced in the post-acquisition system integration. The research contributes to the risk, change, and accounting literatures by providing insights into the mundane and ordinary practices of different aspects of integration strategy making, and the way employees enact and draw on accounting numbers on a day-to-day basis to perform systems integration network strategies. This case study facilities this research to be further developed and broadened in terms of other cases, industries, and countries.

Understanding housing preferences of slum dwellers in India: A community-based operations research approach

A significant number of India's urban population living in slums face large-scale challenges to access adequate housing and essential services. However, the solutions implemented by government agencies have been inadequate as they fail to understand the diversity of challenges and preferences of slum residents. While the traditional prescriptive approaches to study slum communities do not capture the uncertainties that riddle slums, we explore this domain of inquiry alternatively through theories of Community Operational Research (COR) and Community Based Operations Research (CBOR) that develop an understanding of housing problems from slum resident perspectives. In this paper, we study slum communities’ housing priorities by learning how they structure their concerns and identify specific solutions that could enable access to improved housing facilities. This is one of the first studies to apply Strategic Options Development & Analysis (SODA) and Value Focused Thinking (VFT) to engage with slum residents and generate in-depth insights into the lives of slum communities. Our findings from a slum in the Indian state of Odisha highlight the diverse challenges and needs of the community with regard to housing and basic infrastructure facilities from the slum-dwellers’ perspective, a voice often missing in slum policymaking. We believe that our findings could inform policymakers about most valued preferences of slum residents among many possible slum upgrading interventions. The study contributes to the extension of Operations Research tools and methodologies for meaningful engagement of vulnerable communities to develop interventions for improving social welfare.

A model for key success factors for outsourcing in project-based companies: integrating soft and dynamic approaches

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to achieve the dynamic model of outsourcing success factors in project-based companies.Design/methodology/approachThis study is descriptive-survey in terms of method and practical in terms of purpose. To achieve the dynamic model of outsourcing success, 1,000 outsourcing articles published in high-status journals from 2017 to 2019 were first text-mining. Then, using the clustering technique, the factors affecting the success of outsourcing were obtained. To achieve the key variables, the variables obtained by interpretive structural modeling (ISM) were then leveled. Then, the strategic options development and analysis (SODA) technique has been used to achieve a consensus and coordination on factors relationships. Finally, the dynamic model of outsourcing success in GHODRAT CONTROL PARS Company has been modeled and implemented.FindingsIn total, five clusters and nine factors were extracted (strategy, management, performance, market, R&D, supplier, product, organizational data and outsourcing findings). In central and domain analysis, two factors, “Strategy” and “R and D,” were recognized as factors that have the most interaction and centrality. The result of the dynamic model indicate that the organization will significantly reduce the construction time of the power plant by improving the “R and D” factor.Originality/valueIn this study, various techniques have been combined. Therefore, one of the aspects of innovation in the present study is the combination of methods that have not been used earlier. The second aspect of this study’s innovation is using SODA technique to design the dynamic model of outsourcing success factors. Given that the scope of this study is the component affecting the success of outsourcing, so extensive research has been conducted in the field of articles worked in the field of outsourcing to get a comprehensive view of the components affecting the success of outsourcing, which has not been reviewed in other articles. In this study, in addition to identifying the effective factors, their identified and also how these variables affect the successful performance of outsourcing in the form of a dynamic model, and then analyzed.

PALESTINE: POPULAR NON-VIOLENT RESISTANCE. DEBATING TERMINOLOGY AND CONSTRUCTING PARADIGMS

The main goal of this research paper is to examine the core role of popular nonviolent resistance in transforming the Israeli Palestinian conflict through all available peaceful means. We have deeply gone through different definitions of nonviolence as an international concept and we explored the various historical stages and prominent stations of this type of nonviolence. To elaborate more on this goal, we can say that the strategic aim is to bridge the gap between theories and approaches of conflict transformations and the current study of peaceful resistance. Nonviolence is one strategic options for the Palestinians if we realize that the political alternatives and narrow and limited. Methodology adopted in this research is primarily qualitative with analytical and empirical connotations and implications, we relied on both primary and secondary data to reach the final results and conclusions. As far the final findings are concerned, this paper concluded that there is a gap between nonviolence peaceful resistance in the field in one hand and the decision makers on the other hand. There is a gap those who practiced or who embraced nonviolence as strategic resistance and those who put political goals and practiced political leadership. There is a lack of a proper understanding of peaceful nonviolent resistance and its role in liberating and emancipating Palestine from the occupation. Keywords: nonviolence, occupation, popular resistance, Gandhian model.

Beyond the decision to ally: Constraints on adapting to emergent control risks

Partners’ efforts to manage risk extend far beyond decisions made when an alliance is formed and continue throughout its lifecycle. As an alliance matures, it is expected that partners will adapt controls to address unanticipated, emergent risks; however, empirical evidence indicates that such changes are relatively rare. This study aims to advance our understanding of the constraints on control adaptation by examining the role of governance inseparability, a condition in which partners’ prior control choices limit the range and types of subsequent strategic control options. Using a longitudinal analysis of two mature alliances, we examine episodes where partners struggled to switch from or differentiate alliance controls compromised by emergent risks. We trace these constraints to a range of sources, including contractual commitments, alliance-specific regulation, and control consistency. Furthermore, we observe how partners introduced ‘compensatory controls’, that is, additional controls to remedy secondary control problems created by the existing control infrastructure.

THE USE OF DIGITAL INNOVATIONS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ARCTIC

The paper describes the application of Industry 4.0 technologies, gives an overview of previous research on digital innovations, and defines goals and objectives of the research. The core concept of «Industry 4.0 technology» and features of the ways to exploit it in the Arctic institutions have been examined. There has been carried out an analysis of international practices to apply Industry 4.0 technologies in all spheres of life. The flexible automated production of goods or services based on new generation robotics and factories in the Arctic zone has been considered as being the highest stage of complex automated production. An example of automated use of products and services are «smart houses», or «smart things». Methods of collection of advanced production technologies have been discussed. A strategy has been developed to select the most advanced production technologies for spheres of life and the best possible strategic option has been defined. Financial and time resources were chosen as optimization criteria.

Customers Coping Strategies with Banks Automated Teller Machines (ATM) Service Failures

This paper sought to identify incidence of Automatic Teller Machines (ATM) service failures and evaluated customers coping strategies. Primary data were collected with structured questionnaire from 200 respondents. Convenience sampling technique was adopted for sample collection. The collected data were analyzed with mean and standard deviation. The result shows that ATM inability to issue receipt was considered the highest indicator of service failure while 20% of the respondents choose not to take any action, 46% took only private action and 24% of the respondents applied a combination of these strategic options in dealing with ATM service failures. This paper therefore recommends that customers need adequate information about their rights and should appropriately demand for it, banks management should be alive to their responsibilities of delivery quality services while banks regulatory agencies should not hesitate to impose penalties on any erring bank that continually deliver substandard services to her customers. Keywords: Automatic Teller Machines (ATM), Customers Coping Strategies, Ekpoma, Service Failure DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/13-13-05 Publication date: July 31 st 2021

Rural Development in Nigeria: Challenges and Prospects for Transforming the Rural Majority

This paper assesses rural development in Nigeria. It specifically examines the extent to which the government has positively impacted on the living conditions of the majority of Nigeria’s population who lives in and earns their living in the rural areas. Data for this paper were gathered together from secondary literature sources. Evidently from the findings, past governmental policies on rural development have always been elitist, state centrist, and state-directed policies without the desired impact in effectively transforming the lives of the rural dwellers to an appreciable level. The study, therefore, suggests that the government should as a matter of policy generates alternative strategic options which aim at addressing the problem of rural development through the participation of the people.

Entrepreneurial Bricolage and New Product Development Performance in New Ventures: The Contingent Effects of Founding Team Involvement

Abstract New product development (NPD) performance is a key determinant of a new venture’s success. However, compared with established firms, new ventures often suffer from resource constraints when developing new products. Entrepreneurial bricolage is reported in the literature as an alternative strategic option that enables managers to overcome resource constraints when developing new products. However, because new ventures are often founded by an entrepreneurial team, the effectiveness and efficiency of using bricolage to improve NPD performance might be contingent on how the founding team plays its roles in this process. Using data from 323 new ventures in China, we find support for the critical role of entrepreneurial bricolage in improving NPD success under resource constraints. More importantly, our results reveal that the bricolage strategy is more likely to benefit a venture when the founding team is composed of members with diverse functional backgrounds and is not heavily involved in strategic decision-making.

PENGARUH UKURAN PERUSAHAAN, PROFITABILITAS DAN SOLVABILITAS TERHADAP AUDIT DELAY (Studi Pada Perusahaan-Perusahaan LQ 45 Sektor Pertambangan Yang Terdaftar di Bursa Efek Indonesia Periode 2012-2018)

The LQ 45 companies in the mining sector is one of the pillars of economic activity in Indonesia and is used as an investment, so the company's audit report must be completed on time because these financial statements are needed when making decisions by investors regarding their investment activities. However, there are still some companies that are late in reporting their audit reports. The aim is to examine the effect of firm size, profitability, and solvency on audit delay. Use total asset indicators for firm size, ROA for profitability, and DAR for solvability.Mining sector is one of the pillars of Indonesian economic activity and become a strategic option for investors. As a result the company's audit report must be announced on schedule. LQ 45 as part of mining sector that has an important role for investing. This study aims to know whether firm size, profitability, and solvability affect audit delays. It used total asset indicators for firm size, ROA for pIn this study were secondary data which was obtained from the financial statements of LQ 45 listed on BEI during 2012-2018 period. The sampling technique used purposive sampling. Data analysis in this research used is multiple regression analysis with SPSS 24.The results showed firm size and profitability did not affect in audit delay, solvability affected in audit delay. Firm size, profitability and solvability simultaneosuly affected audit delay as much as 48.9% and the remaining 51.1% was affected by other variables excluded in this study.Keywords: audit delay, firm size, profitability, solvability