Logical Reasoning in Management: From “Philosopher Kings” to Logical Managers?

To what extent does a manager’s logical reasoning ability impact their managerial responsibility? This study delves into the significance of logical reasoning ability in the realm of management. To accomplish this objective, I developed a logical reasoning assessment whose internal consistency was confirmed. Subsequently, I conducted an online survey with a sample of 83 managers (Mage = 39.6; SDage = 11.77). The econometric model (R2 adj = 0.431) revealed a cubic relationship, indicating an influence that logical reasoning ability might have on management responsibility. Notably, managers who pursued formal science education exhibited the highest proficiency in logical reasoning. Conversely, neither age nor GPA exhibited any significant correlation with logical reasoning ability among managers. A comparative analysis of managers’ logical reasoning performance against previous studies involving students yielded noteworthy findings, indicating that university students outperformed their managerial counterparts. Whilst acknowledging the study’s limitations, these findings shed light on the relevance of logical reasoning ability in the management domain, offering valuable insights and a starting point for both researchers and practitioners.Keywords: Logical reasoning; Managerial decision making; Formal logic; Management research.To what extent does a manager’s logical reasoning ability impact their managerial responsibility? This study delves into the significance of logical reasoning ability in the realm of management. To accomplish this objective, I developed a logical reasoning assessment whose internal consistency was confirmed. Subsequently, I conducted an online survey with a sample of 83 managers (Mage = 39.6; SDage = 11.77). The econometric model (R2 adj = 0.431) revealed a cubic relationship, indicating an influence that logical reasoning ability might have on management responsibility. Notably, managers who pursued formal science education exhibited the highest proficiency in logical reasoning. Conversely, neither age nor GPA exhibited any significant correlation with logical reasoning ability among managers. A comparative analysis of managers’ logical reasoning performance against previous studies involving students yielded noteworthy findings, indicating that university students outperformed their managerial counterparts. Whilst acknowledging the study’s limitations, these findings shed light on the relevance of logical reasoning ability in the management domain, offering valuable insights and a starting point for both researchers and practitioners.Keywords: Logical reasoning; Managerial decision making; Formal logic; Management research

From investor to entrepreneur – An explorative study of the entrepreneurial behaviour of investor-entrepreneurs

Research on entrepreneurial types argues that differences in decisions and actions of novice and habitual entrepreneurs can be attributed to prior experience and social ties. However, other forms of resource acquisition than business ownership experience are neglected in previous studies. This study investigates this research gap by exploring the entrepreneurial behavior of novice investor-entrepreneurs, first-time founders who have previously worked in venture capital or private equity. Drawing on a cross-sectional approach with 13 semi-structured interviews, this paper investigates whether investorentrepreneurs have already acquired the necessary resources relevant for new venture foundations in their role as investors. This study reveals that investor-entrepreneurs differ from other first-time entrepreneurs in several aspects. It shows that the differences can mainly be attributed to skills and knowledge already acquired through the job as an investor. In fact, venture capital experience seems to be more helpful for a venture\u27s early foundation than private equity experience. The study discusses the implications of these findings for the literature on entrepreneurial types and their differentiation, thereby challenging existing differentiation and classification approaches.Keywords: Investor-entrepreneur; Entrepreneurial types; Novice; Habitual.Research on entrepreneurial types argues that differences in decisions and actions of novice and habitual entrepreneurs can be attributed to prior experience and social ties. However, other forms of resource acquisition than business ownership experience are neglected in previous studies. This study investigates this research gap by exploring the entrepreneurial behavior of novice investor-entrepreneurs, first-time founders who have previously worked in venture capital or private equity. Drawing on a cross-sectional approach with 13 semi-structured interviews, this paper investigates whether investorentrepreneurs have already acquired the necessary resources relevant for new venture foundations in their role as investors. This study reveals that investor-entrepreneurs differ from other first-time entrepreneurs in several aspects. It shows that the differences can mainly be attributed to skills and knowledge already acquired through the job as an investor. In fact, venture capital experience seems to be more helpful for a venture\u27s early foundation than private equity experience. The study discusses the implications of these findings for the literature on entrepreneurial types and their differentiation, thereby challenging existing differentiation and classification approaches. Keywords: Investor-entrepreneur; Entrepreneurial types; Novice; Habitual

The more, the better? Diversification Trends in Executive and Supervisory Boards in Germany and their Potential Effects

In 2015, Germany passed the Gender Quota Law, and while some countries compelled listed companies to reserve at least 30% of their executive seats for women, imposing fines on the firms that failed to comply, Germany favoured soft-law quotas with almost no penalties. Additionally, this policy focused solely on supervisory board quotas and measures to counteract women\u27s under-representation, neglecting other demographic and cognitive groups. Given the increasingly diverse population in Germany, it is necessary to study the role of other diversity dimensions in the board composition from the financial and social perspectives and whether there are any development trends in the German boards. In my Bachelor thesis, I study whether there are any diversity improvements in the composition of German-listed companies\u27 executive and supervisory boards, presenting recent academic findings on the drivers and the effects of diverse boardrooms. Moreover, I conduct a descriptive analysis of the German board diversity trends, implementing a novel diversity index of Bernile et al. (2018) covering various diversity facets. Keywords: Controlling; Leadership; Board diversity; ESG; Corporate governance.In 2015, Germany passed the Gender Quota Law, and while some countries compelled listed companies to reserve at least 30% of their executive seats for women, imposing fines on the firms that failed to comply, Germany favoured soft-law quotas with almost no penalties. Additionally, this policy focused solely on supervisory board quotas and measures to counteract women\u27s under-representation, neglecting other demographic and cognitive groups. Given the increasingly diverse population in Germany, it is necessary to study the role of other diversity dimensions in the board composition from the financial and social perspectives and whether there are any development trends in the German boards. In my Bachelor thesis, I study whether there are any diversity improvements in the composition of German-listed companies\u27 executive and supervisory boards, presenting recent academic findings on the drivers and the effects of diverse boardrooms. Moreover, I conduct a descriptive analysis of the German board diversity trends, implementing a novel diversity index of Bernile et al. (2018) covering various diversity facets. Keywords: Controlling; Leadership; Board diversity; ESG; Corporate governance

Virtual Reality Transforming the Digital Learning Environment: An Analysis of Students’ Acceptance

Virtual reality (VR) is gaining prominence in post-secondary education. In fields such as medicine or engineering education, VR is widespread and enhances educational opportunities. The technologies’ popularity is, however, swapping over to more theoretical fields of study. Institutions, therefore, need to understand what factors influence the decision of post-secondary students to accept immersive VR applications in non-practical lectures. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) provides a theoretical framework for technology acceptance research. While most previous studies have taken a quantitative approach, this study adopts a qualitative method to deliver profound insights into the students’ perspectives on VR acceptance. Based on a thematic analysis of focus group interviews, the study extends UTAUT2 by adding two core constructs and additionally identifying upstream factors influencing all core constructs of UTAUT2. The results indicate that the original UTAUT2 is too superficial to capture the underlying influences on students’ VR acceptance. Thereby, my study contributes to current VR acceptance research by providing a context-specific UTAUT2 model that may guide decision-makers in successfully implementing VR in post-secondary education.Keywords: Virtual reality; Technology acceptance; UTAUT2; Post-secondary education.Virtual reality (VR) is gaining prominence in post-secondary education. In fields such as medicine or engineering education, VR is widespread and enhances educational opportunities. The technologies’ popularity is, however, swapping over to more theoretical fields of study. Institutions, therefore, need to understand what factors influence the decision of post-secondary students to accept immersive VR applications in non-practical lectures. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) provides a theoretical framework for technology acceptance research. While most previous studies have taken a quantitative approach, this study adopts a qualitative method to deliver profound insights into the students’ perspectives on VR acceptance. Based on a thematic analysis of focus group interviews, the study extends UTAUT2 by adding two core constructs and additionally identifying upstream factors influencing all core constructs of UTAUT2. The results indicate that the original UTAUT2 is too superficial to capture the underlying influences on students’ VR acceptance. Thereby, my study contributes to current VR acceptance research by providing a context-specific UTAUT2 model that may guide decision-makers in successfully implementing VR in post-secondary education.Keywords: Virtual reality; Technology acceptance; UTAUT2; Post-secondary education

Chances and challenges for the members of the Fairtrade-supply chain: a case study of Chile and Switzerland

Conventional international trade has become discredited because of emerging conflicts on fairness on producers’ economic, social & ecological situation. Aiming to provide alternatives, the Fairtrade-certification was amongst the first that incorporated solidarity within the worldwide economy. Within a few decades the certification managed to exceed its pure labelling activities and implemented a whole supply chain, representative for debates about due diligence in international supply chains. While such a partnership is vital for more fairness in supply chains, it poses challenges to its agents. This paper, based on a case study of Swiss and Chilean companies, aims to explore the complexity for members in such a Fairtrade-supply chain. To this effect, it sheds light on the social and economic chances and challenges both for producers and merchandisers participating in the Fairtrade-system. The study gives evidence that this supply chain is a cooperation on eye-level which can provide an alternative to conventional free trade. Further, it shows that motivation and cultural background play a decisive role in the chances and challenges of Fairtrade-members. Ultimately, it proves that Fairtrade can be a partner for rising legal requirements in the course of due diligence laws.Keywords: CSR; Case study; Fairtrade; Supply chain; Due diligence.Conventional international trade has become discredited because of emerging conflicts on fairness on producers’ economic, social & ecological situation. Aiming to provide alternatives, the Fairtrade-certification was amongst the first that incorporated solidarity within the worldwide economy. Within a few decades the certification managed to exceed its pure labelling activities and implemented a whole supply chain, representative for debates about due diligence in international supply chains. While such a partnership is vital for more fairness in supply chains, it poses challenges to its agents. This paper, based on a case study of Swiss and Chilean companies, aims to explore the complexity for members in such a Fairtrade-supply chain. To this effect, it sheds light on the social and economic chances and challenges both for producers and merchandisers participating in the Fairtrade-system. The study gives evidence that this supply chain is a cooperation on eye-level which can provide an alternative to conventional free trade. Further, it shows that motivation and cultural background play a decisive role in the chances and challenges of Fairtrade-members. Ultimately, it proves that Fairtrade can be a partner for rising legal requirements in the course of due diligence laws.Keywords: CSR; Case study; Fairtrade; Supply chain; Due diligence

Strategic Foresight Capability and its Impact on Firm Performance: A systematic, AI-based Literature Review

Strategic foresight is a growing field that attracts scholars aiming to reduce the uncertainty of volatile business environments. However, the field must address crucial challenges to advance theory and practice. To achieve this, the thesis presents a systematic, AI-based literature review that structures the foresight field, displays the status quo, and offers research trajectories. A sample of 243 journal-published articles is analyzed to create an organizing framework as well as provide narrative syntheses on foresight capability and its impact on firm performance. This analysis points out that foresight research often lacks theoretical foundations, mixes epistemological dimensions, and does not work toward a shared objective. Still, six research themes and their connections were identified for an organizing framework. Further, the review points out capabilities for successful foresight: Distinct processual and contextual capabilities developed in accordance with a firm’s environment can ensure success. Lastly, the paper emphasizes that “successful foresight” manifests in practice through a positive impact on strategic, organizational, and performance outcomes. Those findings support the efforts of establishing foresight in management studies and improving academic progress. Keywords: Strategic foresight; Firm performance; Foresight capabilities; Literature review; Organizing framework.Strategic foresight is a growing field that attracts scholars aiming to reduce the uncertainty of volatile business environments. However, the field must address crucial challenges to advance theory and practice. To achieve this, the thesis presents a systematic, AI-based literature review that structures the foresight field, displays the status quo, and offers research trajectories. A sample of 243 journal-published articles is analyzed to create an organizing framework as well as provide narrative syntheses on foresight capability and its impact on firm performance. This analysis points out that foresight research often lacks theoretical foundations, mixes epistemological dimensions, and does not work toward a shared objective. Still, six research themes and their connections were identified for an organizing framework. Further, the review points out capabilities for successful foresight: Distinct processual and contextual capabilities developed in accordance with a firm’s environment can ensure success. Lastly, the paper emphasizes that “successful foresight” manifests in practice through a positive impact on strategic, organizational, and performance outcomes. Those findings support the efforts of establishing foresight in management studies and improving academic progress. Keywords: Strategic foresight; Firm performance; Foresight capabilities; Literature review; Organizing framework

Power to the CEO? Sources of CEO Power and Its Influences on Strategic Choices and Firm Performance

Power relations in the upper echelon have been a focal point in strategic management literature. However, the dynamic environment requires rapid decision making, raising the question of whether to centralize power in the CEO. In that respect, this thesis aims to identify the sources of CEO power and its impact on strategic choices and firm performance. A total of 22 empirical and conceptual papers are categorized into a review framework based on Finkelstein’s (1992: 507-510) power dimensions to compare earlier studies and disclose differences in operationalization and research approaches. Additionally, this paper introduces a new dimension of CEO power by incorporating principles of leadership psychology into the corporategovernance-power literature. Considering the power composition, this thesis analyzes three strategic decisions and the resulting firm performance by explaining findings from an agency- and stewardship perspective. The results demonstrate that CEO power is multifaceted, and variations in operationalization impair comparability of literature. Furthermore, powerful CEOs exhibiting stewardship behavior should be granted autonomy to drive firm performance while those acting as agents require close monitoring and balance from an equally influential board.Keywords: CEO power; Power dimensions; Review framework; Corporate governance; Strategic choice.Power relations in the upper echelon have been a focal point in strategic management literature. However, the dynamic environment requires rapid decision making, raising the question of whether to centralize power in the CEO. In that respect, this thesis aims to identify the sources of CEO power and its impact on strategic choices and firm performance. A total of 22 empirical and conceptual papers are categorized into a review framework based on Finkelstein’s (1992: 507-510) power dimensions to compare earlier studies and disclose differences in operationalization and research approaches. Additionally, this paper introduces a new dimension of CEO power by incorporating principles of leadership psychology into the corporategovernance-power literature. Considering the power composition, this thesis analyzes three strategic decisions and the resulting firm performance by explaining findings from an agency- and stewardship perspective. The results demonstrate that CEO power is multifaceted, and variations in operationalization impair comparability of literature. Furthermore, powerful CEOs exhibiting stewardship behavior should be granted autonomy to drive firm performance while those acting as agents require close monitoring and balance from an equally influential board.Keywords: CEO power; Power dimensions; Review framework; Corporate governance; Strategic choice

Visual Appeal of Product Novelty: The Role of the Brand in Design Adaptation

Das Produktdesign spielt eine wichtige Rolle in der Kaufentscheidung von Gütern wie Autos oder Smartphones. Um bei der Vorstellung eines Nachfolgers einer Pro-duktserie Neuheit zu symbolisieren, wird in der Praxis oft die Proportion von Desig-nelementen verändert. Trotz der Popularität von Proportionsveränderungen wurde die Wirkungsweise dieser Designanpassungsmethode auf das ästhetische Gefallen der Konsumenten bislang noch nicht untersucht. Auf Basis der Kategorisierungstheo-rie und der Processing Fluency Theorie wird in dieser Arbeit ein konzeptuelles Framework entwickelt, welches die Wirkung der Proportionsveränderung auf die visuelle Verarbeitung theoretisch erklärt. Dabei wird erläutert, wie die Veränderung der Proportion als Determinante der Processing Fluency agieren könnte, um das ästhetische Gefallen zu beeinflussen. Zur Überprüfung des konzeptuellen Frame-works wird in einem zweifaktoriellen Onlineexperiment anhand von Smartphones einer starken sowie schwachen Marke die postulierte Wirkungsweise der Proporti-onsveränderung getestet. Dabei wird festgestellt, dass die Proportionsveränderung eines Produktdesigns einer starken Marke die Processing Fluency reduziert. Die Proportionsveränderung wirkt sich jedoch nicht auf das ästhetische Gefallen aus. Keywords: Verarbeitungsflüssigkeit; Produktdesign; Markenbildung; Ästhetik; Kategorisierungstheorie.Product design plays an important role in the purchasing decision of goods such as cars or smartphones. In practice, to symbolize novelty in the presentation of asuccessor in a product series, the proportion of design elements is often changed. Despite the popularity of proportion changes, the effect of this design adjustment method on consumers\u27 aesthetic pleasure has not yet been studied This work constructs a theoretical framework that explains how changes in proportion affect visual processing, drawing on both categorization theory and processing fluency theory. It posits that changes in proportion can act as a determinant of processing fluency, thereby influencing aesthetic pleasure. To verify the conceptual framework, a two-factor online experiment is conducted using smartphones from a strong and weak brand to test the postulated effect of proportion changes. It is found that the proportion change of a product design of a strong brand reduces processing fluency. However, the proportion change does not affect aesthetic pleasure. Keywords: Processing fluency; Aesthetics; Product design; Branding; Categorization theory

The Effect of Entrepreneurs’ Gender and Gendered Startup Fields on Organizational Attraction for Potential Applicants

Entrepreneurship is growing, and thereby applicants are more often presented with the opportunity to work in a start-up. Simultaneously, a lack of gender diversity in start-up leadership has been reported, and gender stereotyping has manifested itself in the entrepreneurial world. These developments motivate further studies on how potential applicants are attracted to start-ups. In this study, I examine the effect that the entrepreneur’s gender and gendered start-up field has on potential applicants’ organizational attraction to the company. The present study investigates four fabricated start-ups: 1. Male founder of a technology start-up, 2. Male founder of a sustainable start up, 3. Female founder of a technology start-up, and 4. Female founder of a sustainable start up, where participants are randomly selected to reveal through an online experiment their intent to pursue the start-up. Data from 246 prospective graduates, graduates, and young professionals indicates that the start-up field is more valuable when considering one’s organizational attraction to a company than the entrepreneur’s gender. Unforeseeably, both the female and male participants preferred a sustainable context start-up, but with varying founder gender preferences. Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Gender stereotypes; Applicant recruitment; Organizational attraction.Entrepreneurship is growing, and thereby applicants are more often presented with the opportunity to work in a start-up. Simultaneously, a lack of gender diversity in start-up leadership has been reported, and gender stereotyping has manifested itself in the entrepreneurial world. These developments motivate further studies on how potential applicants are attracted to start-ups. In this study, I examine the effect that the entrepreneur’s gender and gendered start-up field has on potential applicants’ organizational attraction to the company. The present study investigates four fabricated start-ups: 1. Male founder of a technology start-up, 2. Male founder of a sustainable start up, 3. Female founder of a technology start-up, and 4. Female founder of a sustainable start up, where participants are randomly selected to reveal through an online experiment their intent to pursue the start-up. Data from 246 prospective graduates, graduates, and young professionals indicates that the start-up field is more valuable when considering one’s organizational attraction to a company than the entrepreneur’s gender. Unforeseeably, both the female and male participants preferred a sustainable context start-up, but with varying founder gender preferences. Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Gender stereotypes; Applicant recruitment; Organizational attraction

Do birds of a feather always flock together? A multidimensional examination of homophily in crowdfunding

Homophily—the tendency of individuals to associate with similar others—is one of the most persistent findings in research on interpersonal interaction. Literature has recently also studied the impact of homophily in crowdfunding markets (Greenberg & Mollick, 2017). While these results offer valuable insights into the dimension sex, homophily is a multidimensional con-struct in theory (McPherson, Smith-Lovin, & Cook, 2001). Therefore, I employ homophily theorizing by analyzing to what extent homophily influences backers\u27 choices in crowdfunding regarding five different sociodemographic dimensions. To test my hypotheses, I drew upon a unique dataset of roughly 3.5 million backings made on the crowdfunding platform Indie-gogo. My results suggest that individuals make homophilic choices with respect to age, sex, occupation, and location. While my findings thus confirm that, in large, homophily plays an essential role in individual choices, I extend the literature by showing that it is not always as clear-cut. The more complex the dimension, the more difficult it is to judge. Specifically, I show that in the dimension race, where a plethora of possible combinations leads to a certain degree of complexity, there is no simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer to whether homophily influences the decision. Instead, significant differences can be observed depending on the specific race under consideration. Keywords: Crowdfunding; Indiegogo; Homophily.Homophily—the tendency of individuals to associate with similar others—is one of the most persistent findings in research on interpersonal interaction. Literature has recently also studied the impact of homophily in crowdfunding markets (Greenberg & Mollick, 2017). While these results offer valuable insights into the dimension sex, homophily is a multidimensional con-struct in theory (McPherson, Smith-Lovin, & Cook, 2001). Therefore, I employ homophily theorizing by analyzing to what extent homophily influences backers\u27 choices in crowdfunding regarding five different sociodemographic dimensions. To test my hypotheses, I drew upon a unique dataset of roughly 3.5 million backings made on the crowdfunding platform Indie-gogo. My results suggest that individuals make homophilic choices with respect to age, sex, occupation, and location. While my findings thus confirm that, in large, homophily plays an essential role in individual choices, I extend the literature by showing that it is not always as clear-cut. The more complex the dimension, the more difficult it is to judge. Specifically, I show that in the dimension race, where a plethora of possible combinations leads to a certain degree of complexity, there is no simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer to whether homophily influences the decision. Instead, significant differences can be observed depending on the specific race under consideration. Keywords: Crowdfunding; Indiegogo; Homophily