A note on how NK landscapes work

Abstract The NK landscape methodology has been used by much research in strategy and organizations, and the concept of “landscape” has become a popular business idea. Despite such popularity, exactly what NK landscapes are and how they work is typically obscure to all but a small specialist audience. This technical note clarifies the NK landscape methodology by explaining how an NK landscape is computed. This note also discusses ways in which NK landscapes are represented and used in research. The aim of this note is enabling more researchers to engage more deeply with the work that relies on the landscape concept.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146753/1/41469_2018_Article_39.pd

How Much to Copy? Determinants of Effective Imitation Breadth

It is a common and frequently implicit assumption in the literature on knowledge transfer and organizational learning that imitating practices from high-performing firms has a positive impact on the imitating firm. Although a large body of research has identified obstacles to successful imitation, not much is known about what breadth of imitation is most effective. In this paper, we use a simulation model to explore how context and firm similarity, interdependence among practices, context and firm similarity, and time horizon interact in nontrivial ways to determine the payoffs that arise from different breadths of imitation. The results of the model allow us to qualify and refine predictions of the extant literature on imitation. In particular, the results shed light on the conditions under which increases in imitation breadth, and hence investments that facilitate the faithful copying of more practices, are valuable. In addition, the results of the model highlight that imitation can serve two different functions—mimicking high performers, and generating search by dislodging a firm from its current set of practices—each requiring different organizational routines for its successful implementation

3 years of liraglutide versus placebo for type 2 diabetes risk reduction and weight management in individuals with prediabetes: a randomised, double-blind trial

Background: Liraglutide 3·0 mg was shown to reduce bodyweight and improve glucose metabolism after the 56-week period of this trial, one of four trials in the SCALE programme. In the 3-year assessment of the SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes trial we aimed to evaluate the proportion of individuals with prediabetes who were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Methods: In this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, adults with prediabetes and a body-mass index of at least 30 kg/m2, or at least 27 kg/m2 with comorbidities, were randomised 2:1, using a telephone or web-based system, to once-daily subcutaneous liraglutide 3·0 mg or matched placebo, as an adjunct to a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. Time to diabetes onset by 160 weeks was the primary outcome, evaluated in all randomised treated individuals with at least one post-baseline assessment. The trial was conducted at 191 clinical research sites in 27 countries and is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01272219. Findings: The study ran between June 1, 2011, and March 2, 2015. We randomly assigned 2254 patients to receive liraglutide (n=1505) or placebo (n=749). 1128 (50%) participants completed the study up to week 160, after withdrawal of 714 (47%) participants in the liraglutide group and 412 (55%) participants in the placebo group. By week 160, 26 (2%) of 1472 individuals in the liraglutide group versus 46 (6%) of 738 in the placebo group were diagnosed with diabetes while on treatment. The mean time from randomisation to diagnosis was 99 (SD 47) weeks for the 26 individuals in the liraglutide group versus 87 (47) weeks for the 46 individuals in the placebo group. Taking the different diagnosis frequencies between the treatment groups into account, the time to onset of diabetes over 160 weeks among all randomised individuals was 2·7 times longer with liraglutide than with placebo (95% CI 1·9 to 3·9, p<0·0001), corresponding with a hazard ratio of 0·21 (95% CI 0·13–0·34). Liraglutide induced greater weight loss than placebo at week 160 (–6·1 [SD 7·3] vs −1·9% [6·3]; estimated treatment difference −4·3%, 95% CI −4·9 to −3·7, p<0·0001). Serious adverse events were reported by 227 (15%) of 1501 randomised treated individuals in the liraglutide group versus 96 (13%) of 747 individuals in the placebo group. Interpretation: In this trial, we provide results for 3 years of treatment, with the limitation that withdrawn individuals were not followed up after discontinuation. Liraglutide 3·0 mg might provide health benefits in terms of reduced risk of diabetes in individuals with obesity and prediabetes. Funding: Novo Nordisk, Denmark

Organizational structure as a determinant of performance

This thesis tackles the question of how organizational structure affects organizational performance from both a theoretical and empirical perspective. From the theoretical standpoint, I develop a closed-form mathematical model that builds on prior work by Sah and Stiglitz (1986) on organizational forms. I extend their original formulation and explore a broad range of decision-making organizational structures that lie between the extreme structures of hierarchy and polyarchy (essentially a flat organizational structure) that Sah and Stiglitz considered. The model adds realism to the work of Sah and Stiglitz by extending it from two to N individuals, allowing for more complex reporting relationships, and predicting not only Type I and II errors (omission and commission errors, respectively), but innovativeness, speed, and expected profits. The model has far reaching implications, as all organizations have to decide which organizational structure they will adopt. One important result is that not all organizations are efficient; some organizational structures should always be preferred over others, leading to the existence of an efficient frontier in organization design. The implications of the model are discussed in light of the organization design and the innovation literature. The empirical part of the thesis tests some of the predictions of the model using over 150,000 stock-picking decisions made by 609 mutual funds during two and a half years. Mutual funds offer an ideal and rare setting to test the theory because, as funds are heavily scrutinized, very detailed records exist on the projects they face (possible investments), the decisions they make or do not make (buying or not buying each of these possible investments), and the outcomes of these decisions. The independent variable of the study, the organizational structure of each mutual fund, is coded from textual descriptions of the fund management made by Morningstar. The main dependent variables of the study are measured as the probability of missing good assets (omission error) and of buying bad assets (commission error). The empirical tests show strong and robust support for the model, suggesting that organizational structure has relevant and predictable effects on a wide range of organizations

Organizational structure as a determinant of performance

This thesis tackles the question of how organizational structure affects organizational performance from both a theoretical and empirical perspective. From the theoretical standpoint, I develop a closed-form mathematical model that builds on prior work by Sah and Stiglitz (1986) on organizational forms. I extend their original formulation and explore a broad range of decision-making organizational structures that lie between the extreme structures of hierarchy and polyarchy (essentially a flat organizational structure) that Sah and Stiglitz considered. The model adds realism to the work of Sah and Stiglitz by extending it from two to N individuals, allowing for more complex reporting relationships, and predicting not only Type I and II errors (omission and commission errors, respectively), but innovativeness, speed, and expected profits. The model has far reaching implications, as all organizations have to decide which organizational structure they will adopt. One important result is that not all organizations are efficient; some organizational structures should always be preferred over others, leading to the existence of an efficient frontier in organization design. The implications of the model are discussed in light of the organization design and the innovation literature. The empirical part of the thesis tests some of the predictions of the model using over 150,000 stock-picking decisions made by 609 mutual funds during two and a half years. Mutual funds offer an ideal and rare setting to test the theory because, as funds are heavily scrutinized, very detailed records exist on the projects they face (possible investments), the decisions they make or do not make (buying or not buying each of these possible investments), and the outcomes of these decisions. The independent variable of the study, the organizational structure of each mutual fund, is coded from textual descriptions of the fund management made by Morningstar. The main dependent variables of the study are measured as the probability of missing good assets (omission error) and of buying bad assets (commission error). The empirical tests show strong and robust support for the model, suggesting that organizational structure has relevant and predictable effects on a wide range of organizations

External representations in strategic decision making ::understanding strategy’s reliance on visuals

Visual representations pervade strategic decision making. However, the strategy literature has been mostly silent about why visual representations are so pervasive and about how they affect strategic decision making. We address the “why” question by building on ideas from cognitive science to identify four cognitive functions on which strategic decision making relies and that are improved by the use of visuals. We address the “how” question by developing a conceptual model and propositions describing how decision quality is contingent on characteristics of the task environment, the visuals, and the managers. Our work extends the understanding of boundedly rational search by explaining how visual representations affect the search process. Among other theoretical implications, we show that a problem space’s size and “satisfiability” depend on: (i) the ability of managers to select an appropriate visual representation and (ii) the extent to which that visual representation is both usable and malleable. We close by detailing some implications for users, designers, and teachers of visuals in the field of strategy and by suggesting directions for future research