Competitive Advantage of Sino-British Joint Ventures in China: A Study from Positioning, Resources, Partnership and Locational Perspectives

As a large number of MNEs have entered China and many domestic companies become increasingly competitive, Sino-foreign joint ventures are facing intensified competition in many industries in China. The review of the literature shows that few studies on Sino-foreign joint ventures focus on competitive issues, and most studies tend to examine the issues associated with partnerships. This thesis examines competitive advantage of Sino-British joint ventures in China and explains why some joint ventures have (or have not) achieved competitive advantage. The research developed a multi-perspective framework for analysing competitive advantage of the joint venture. The framework embraces strategic positioning, the resource-based view, partnerships, and location specific factors. The empirical study investigated five cases: AstraZeneca China, ERM China, Shanghai Marconi, GSK Chongqing, and YARACO. The case studies have revealed some salient characteristics of the joint ventures from the differing perspectives. The positioning perspective examines the alignment of activities with the positioning and fit among activities. Partnerships and locational factors are incorporated into the analysis. The analysis from the resource-based is focused on the potential of some critical resources for competitive advantage. The resources embedded in the partnership structure and the local context are likely to be sources of sustainable competitive advantage. The synthesized analysis investigates the relationship between activities and resources of the firm and leads to some theoretical propositions about creating sustainable competitive advantage. The research aims to make contributions to knowledge in the following respects. First, the research draws attention to competitive advantage of the joint venture as a relatively new area for the study. Second, by developing multi-perspective framework, the research can help broaden theoretical perspectives for studying the joint venture and may effect discoveries of new issues. Moreover, the research seeks to contribute to the debate about competitive advantage and strategy through synthesizing positioning and the resource-based view

A coordination complexity model to support requirements engineering for cross-organizational ERP

Cross-organizational information systems projects, such as ERP, imply an expensive requirements engineering (RE) cycle. Little is known yet about how to carry it out with more predictable alignment results and chances for success. We propose an approach that allows incremental, systematic improvement of crossorganizational RE. It builds on organizational network research, coordination theory, ERP misalignments, and existing RE improvement standards

Managing social risk through stakeholder partnership building : empirical descriptive process analysis of stakeholder partnerships from British Petroleum in Colombia and Hoechst in Germany for the management of social risk

This thesis sets out to provide a systematic study of stakeholder partnership building of BP in Colombia and Hoechst in Germany in the context of social risk management. Each company built an NGO and a community partnership that became an integral part of firms' strategy. In examining and evaluating the two companies and the four stakeholder partnerships, the leading research question of how firms build stakeholder partnerships is answered. The present study seeks to identify the characteristics of stakeholder partnership building, as well as to isolate the similarities and differences of this process. Additionally, it is an attempt to define the features of the firms' social risk navigation as context of this research project. The thesis is divided into four parts. The first part introduces the research phenomenon, reviews conceptual foundations, and elaborates methodological issues. The case studies of BP and Hoechst are subdivided into internal processes of social integration and reintegration with regard to the two companies, and external processes of partnership building with regard to the four stakeholder partnerships that are chronologically presented in part two. Part three conceptualises stakeholder partnership building in terms of navigating social risk and partnership alchemy. Finally, part four comprises the research synopsis and reflection. Business and society, stakeholder theory, and strategic relationships are the theoretical areas that contributed to the framework for analysing partnership building. Two longitudinal in-depth case studies provide qualitative data for the processual analysis. The empirical data are categorised, aggregated and compared, in order to extract research findings. The contribution of this research is the extension of behavioural stakeholder theory. It develops is a stakeholder partnership building theory that comprises three parts. First, the 4-Ps of stakeholder partnership building are identified. Second, variables are isolated that describe these elements of partnership alchemy. Finally, four patterns of stakeholder partnership building are identified. As a result, the research presents four propositions for partnership building. Based on the analysis of firms' navigation of social risk, a fifth proposition distinguishes between firm-specific and partnership-specific partnership building. The empirical data provides a contribution to knowledge in its own right by providing detailed insight into the practice of social risk management through stakeholder partnership building

OIL POLICY IN NIGERIA: A CRITICAL ASSESSMENT(1958-1992)

OIL AS AN ENERGY PROPELLER, IS THE LARGEST INTERNATIONALLY TRADED COMMODITY THAT SHOWS HIGHLY VISIBLE INTERPLAY OF POLITICS AND ECONOMICS IN THE DETERMINATION OF ITS INVESTMENT, PRODUCTION, TRADE AND PRICING POLICIES. THIS UNIQUENESS, NO DOUBT DEMANDS A WELL ARTICULATED OIL POLICY FOR AN OIL PRODUCING NATION. THUS, THE THRUST OF THE PAPER WAS TO EVALUATE THE STATE OF THE NIGERIA'S OIL POLICY IN THE 1970S/80S. THIS PAPER THEREFORE ARGUES THAT IN THE OIL POLICY FORMULATION PROCESS, WE HAVE TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE VARIOUS STAKEHOLDERS WHOSE DECISIONS AND PARTICIPATION HAVE A GREAT IMPACT ON OIL INDUSTRY, AND WHO WANT TO SEE CLEAR TARGETS AND MINIMISE RISKS.NIGERIA, ECONOMY, OIL, POLICY, ENVIRONMENT, NNPC, POLLUTANTS, OPEC, WORLDBANK,ENERGY, PETROLEUM, GOVERNMENT

Lobbying and devolution : policy and political communication in Scotland, 1997-2003

This thesis examines the growth of commercial lobbying in Scotland with the devolution of political power to Edinburgh in 1999. The study analyses the nascent public affairs community in Edinburgh in the lead up to, and during, the first session of the Scottish Parliament. This period covers the public debate at Holyrood over the registration and regulation of outside interests, and examines both the public and private political communication of those actors involved. The evidence base for this thesis is drawn from archival and documentary research, extended observational fieldwork in Edinburgh, and in depth interviews with informants from lobbying consultancies, corporations, voluntary sector organisations, elected representatives and public servants. A key focus of this study is the role of commercial and corporate lobbyists in Scottish public affairs and the Scottish public sphere. The analysis concludes that the Scottish Parliament's founding principles of openness, equality and accountability could be served through the regulation of lobbying

Managing Political and Investment Risk in the International Oil and Gas Industry

The effectiveness with which political and investment risk are managed in the oil and gas industry are important for several reasons. First, oil and gas are essential for sustaining current economic activity and promoting economic growth. Second, the balance between supply and demand determines the price of oil and gas. Therefore the price and availability of oil and natural gas are also matters of national security. Third, the search for a secure supply of oil and gas affects the political, military and economic relations between countries. This study addresses four questions. What institutions and strategies are available for managing political and investment risk in the international oil and gas industry? How and when did they develop? In what circumstances is each used? How effective have they been? The institutions available for managing risk include oil and gas exploration contracts, domestic courts, national constitutions, bilateral investment treaties, multilateral investment treaties, governmental and non-governmental regulatory agencies and international energy forums. The organizations that manage uncertainty and risk include international oil companies, oil service companies, national oil companies, and public and private providers of financial capital and insurance. Their strategies include corporate finance, joint ventures, project finance, alliances and energy diplomacy. This study supports the view that existing institutions change and new institutions are created when organizations perceive that a change in the status quo will enhance the profitability of existing projects and make new projects economically feasible. However, institutional development takes place in steps; and frequently involves several organizations, some trying to change the existing institutional environment and others trying to preserve it. Finally, the institutions supporting the international oil and gas industry can be arranged in a hierarchy based on their relative importance. Contracts, informal relationships and financial transparency are the most important institutional mechanisms used by international oil and natural gas companies to manage risk. The second line of defense includes domestic law, bilateral treaties, and international courts and tribunals. A third line of defense includes multilateral treaties and international forum

The Impact of CSR Efforts on Firm Performance in the Energy Sector

The purpose of this research was to investigate the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and the financial performance for publicly-traded firms operating in the energy sector. The energy sector has a unique role to play in global CSR efforts because of the size of the firms within that industry, their impact on the environment, and the operational risks that come with energy production. Previous research has been conducted on the relationship between CSR engagement and financial performance in various contexts, but this research has shown mixed outcomes – in some cases there is a positive relationship between CSR and performance while in other studies the research is non-existent or marginal (Lech, 2013; Jha & Cox, 2015). Thus, the research question for this study addresses a significant gap in the understanding of this topic by exploring the relationship between CSR and firm performance in a contextualized setting of the energy sector. A regression model was used to test the hypothesis that a correlation exists between CSR and performance. The independent variable in this study is the ESG disclosure score for each firm as published by Bloomberg (2016), which represents how much CSR activities each firm discloses. The dependent variable was a series of three financial metrics – return on assets, return on equity, and EBITDA. The relationship between the independent and dependent variables was tested for statistical significance at the 10%, 5%, and 1% levels on 0-4 year intervals, with a corresponding effect size reported for each relationship

Interdependent engagement : corporate social responsibility in Bougainville and Papua

This thesis is the result of a journey through nine countries, documenting the lessons of over eighty diverse stakeholders, ranging from multinational resource company executives to local landowners, about how businesses can amend their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices to facilitate peaceful development. Drawing on the cases of Bougainville and Papua, it analyses the effectiveness of dominant mainstream models of CSR pursued by major resource companies to respond to threats to peace that arise from the issues of most concern to locals. A problem that this thesis reveals is that despite a commitment to CSR, Bougainville Copper Limited (BCL), PT Freeport Indonesia (Freeport) and BP (British Petroleum) failed to resolve local grievances related to their business practices in Bougainville and Papua. A framework of 'Interdependent Engagement' is designed in response to these failures. Interdependent Engagement addresses limitations of CSR to resolve the conflict flashpoints associated with the extraction of natural resources. Contrary to common expectations, the voluntary social and environmental initiatives pursued by the extractive industry do not automatically lead to improved conditions for local communities. In some cases, particularly where armed conflict arises, these initiatives may even produce more harm than good. Despite this potential danger, corporations continue to be encouraged to expand the scope of their existing CSR practices to encompass a role in peace building. Guided by a multi-site research design, the thesis connects the motivations, intentions and constraints of corporations operating in zones of conflict with local perspectives and expectations in the CSR context. The data confirm that dominant forms of CSR as used by the case study companies are limited in their capacity to assist resource extraction companies to avoid social conflict. This is due to the fact that CSR has historically tended to focus primarily on the distribution of material benefits, rather than on engagement with the deeper sources of injustice that resource companies often become entangled with. Drawing on the case studies of Bougainville and Papua, eight sites of interdependence between BCL, Freeport and BP and the grievances at the heart of the two conflicts are identified: 1. historical injustice; 2. the denial of customary land rights; 3. regional inequality & contests over resource wealth; 4. cultural, political and economic marginalisation; 5. human rights violations; 6. community disruption; 7. environmental damage, and 8. aspirations to define the future. The thesis finds that there are four important limitations of dominant models of CSR discourse that have constrained its ability to engage with these interdependencies. These are: the emphasis on pledges over institutional change, responsiveness to host states to the exclusion of local communities, failure to incorporate alternative visions of justice into the design of voluntary social and environmental initiatives, and the implementation of one-size-fits-all solutions to complex social and environmental problems. A significant outcome of this thesis is a new method for the design of CSR in areas affected by conflict - Interdependent Engagement. Based on the principles of mutuality, reflexivity, engagement and flexibility, Interdependent Engagement is presented as a model of CSR transformed. -- provided by Candidate