The balanced scorecard logic in the management control and reporting of small business company networks: a case study

The purpose of this paper is to assess and integrate the application of the balance scorecard (BSC) logic into business networks identifying functions and use that such performance measuring tool may undertake for SME’s collaborative development. Thus, the paper analyses a successful case study regarding an Italian network of small companies, evaluating how the multidimensional perspective of BSC can support strategic and operational network management as well as communication of financial and extra financial performance to stakeholders. The study consists of a qualitative method, proposing the application of BSC model for business networks from international literature. Several meetings and interviews as well as triangulation with primary and secondary documents have been conducted. The case study allows to recognize how BSC network logic can play a fundamental role on defining network mission, supporting management control as well as measuring and reporting the intangible assets formation along the network development lifecycle. This is the first time application of a BSC integrated framework for business networks composed of SMEs. The case study demonstrates operational value of BSC for SME’s collaborative development and success

Knowledge-based strategic planning: harnessing (in)tangible assets of city-regions

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to investigate the ways of best managing city-regions’ valuable tangible and intangible assets while pursuing a knowledge-based urban development that is sustainable and competitive. Design/methodology/approach – The paper provides a theoretical framework to conceptualise a new strategic planning mechanism, knowledge-based strategic planning, which has been emerged as a planning mechanism for the knowledge-based urban development of post-industrial city-regions. Originality/value – The paper develops a planning framework entitled 6K1C for knowledge-based strategic planning to be used in the analysis of city-regions’ tangible and intangible assets. Practical implications – The paper discusses the importance of asset mapping of cityregions, and explores the ways of successfully managing city-regions’ tangible/intangible assets to achieve an urban development that is sustainable and knowledge-based. Keywords – Knowledge-based urban development, Knowledge-based strategic planning, Tangible assets, Intangible assets, City-regions. Paper type – Academic Research Pape

An integrated core competence evaluation framework for portfolio management in the oil industry

Drawing upon resource-based theory, this paper presents a core competence evaluation framework for managing the competence portfolio of an oil company. It introduces a network typology to illustrate how to form different types of strategic alliance relations with partnering firms to manage and grow the competence portfolio. A framework is tested using a case study approach involving face-to-face structured interviews. We identified purchasing, refining and sales and marketing as strong candidates to be the core competencies. However, despite the company's core business of refining oil, the core competencies were identified to be their research and development and performance management (PM) capabilities. We further provide a procedure to determine different kinds of physical, intellectual and cultural resources making a dominant impact on company's competence portfolio. In addition, we provide a comprehensive set of guidelines on how to develop core competence further by forging a partnership alliance choosing an appropriate network topology

The balanced scorecard logic in the management control and reporting of small business company networks: A case study

The purpose of this paper is to assess and integrate the application of the balance scorecard (BSC) logic into business networks identifying functions and use that such performance measuring tool may undertake for SME\u2019s collaborative development. Thus, the paper analyses a successful case study regarding an Italian network of small companies, evaluating how the multidimensional perspective of BSC can support strategic an d operational network management as well as communication of financial and extra financial performance to stakeholders. The study consists of a qualitative method, proposing the application of BSC model for business networks from international literature. Several meetings and interviews as well as triangulation with primary and secondary documents have been conducted. The case study allows to recognize how BSC network logic can play a fundamental role on defining network mission, supporting management control as well as measuring and reporting the intangible assets formation along the network development lifecycle. This is the first time application of a BSC integrated framework for business networks composed of SMEs. The case study demonstrates operational value of BSC for SME\u2019s collaborative development and succes

Building capacity in climate change policy analysis and negotiation: methods and technologies

Capacity building is often cited as the reason “we cannot just pour money into developing countries” and why so many development projects fail because their design does not address local conditions. It is therefore a key technical and political concept in international development. Some of the poorest countries in the world are also some of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Their vulnerability is in part due to a lack of capacity to plan and anticipate the effects of climate change on crops, water resources, urban electricity demand etc. What capacities do these countries lack to deal with climate change? How will they cope? What steps can they take to reduce their vulnerability? This innovative and high-profile research project was part of a larger project (called C3D) and conducted with non-governmental organisations in Senegal, South Africa and Sri Lanka. The research involved several participatory workshops and a questionnaire to all three research centres

Exploiting tacit knowledge through knowledge management technologies

The purpose of this paper is to examine the contributions and suitability of the available knowledge management (KM) technologies, including the Web 2.0 for exploiting tacit knowledge. It proposes an integrated framework for extracting tacit knowledge in organisations, which includes Web 2.0 technologies, KM tools, organisational learning (OL) and Community of Practice (CoP). It reviews a comprehensive literature covering overview of KM theories, KM technologies and OL and identifies the current state of knowledge relating to tacit knowledge exploitation. The outcomes of the paper indicate that Internet and Web 2.0 technologies have stunning prospects for creating learning communities where tacit knowledge can be extracted from people. The author recommends that organisations should design procedures and embed them in their Web 2.0 collaborative platforms persuading employees to record their ideas and share them with other members. It is also recommended that no idea should be taken for granted in a learning community where tacit knowledge exploitation is pursued. It is envisaged that future research should adopt empirical approach involving Complex Adaptive Model for Tacit Knowledge Exploitation (CAMTaKE) and the Theory of Deferred Action in examining the effectiveness of KM technologies including Web 2.0 tools for tacit knowledge exploitation

UNCOVERING THE PROCESSES OF IT VALUE COCREATION IN DIGITAL PLATFORM ECOSYSTEMS

Pervasive digitization and complex business challenges encourage companies to collaborate, build innovative digital solutions, and cocreate IT value in multi-firm environments. Despite much research extensively focused on the outcome of value cocreation, emphasizing the concept of cocreating with customers, what remains under-investigated is the ‘process’ of IT value cocreation in digital platform ecosystems with customers, partners, and competitors. This research investigates what are the key processes of IT value cocreation in digital platform ecosystems. We draw on dynamic capabilities theory to examine value cocreation in two digital platforms to tease out key processes of IT-based value cocreation in multi-firm, complex environments. We advance a theoretical framework that helps us understand how firms manage the IT cocreation journey by sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring competencies to address rapidly changing environments. This research provides an emerging model and theoretical insights into extant literature about the nine processes involved in IT value cocreation in digital platform ecosystems, also opening up new avenues for future research

An integrated core competence evaluation framework for portfolio management in the oil industry

The proponents of resource-based theory argue that efficient management of core competence portfolio provides sustainable competitive advantages. However, literature demonstrates little evidence regarding (i) how to identify core competence, specifically for a company operating in the oil sector, (ii) how to identify tangible and intangible resources related to the core competence of the company, and (iii) how to manage a company’s competence portfolio more efficiently by forging network alliances with collaborating firms. Drawing upon resource-based theory this paper presents a core competence evaluation framework for managing the competence portfolio of an oil company. The paper introduces a network typology to illustrate how to form different types of strategic alliance relations with partnering firms to manage and grow the competence portfolio. The framework is tested using a case study approach involving face-to-face structured interviews with twenty-five divisional managers of a large oil company in the Middle East. We identified purchasing, refining and sales and marketing as strong candidates to be the core competencies of the company. However, despite the company’s core business of refining oil, the core competencies were identified to be their research and development and performance management (PM) capabilities. We further provide a procedure to determine different kinds of physical, intellectual and cultural resources making a dominant impact on company’s competence portfolio. In addition, we provide a comprehensive set of guidelines on how to develop core competence further by forging a partnership alliance choosing an appropriate network topology. The paper makes many contributions to the field of strategic management and core competence evaluation in the oil sector. The guidelines provided can assist practitioners with devising appropriate network relationships with partnering companies in order to outsource, divest, protect and/or develop their core competence portfolio