Strategic Levers of Corporate Social Responsibility: A Supply-Demand Mapping Analysis

Research on the correlation between corporate social responsibility and corporate financial performance has been inconclusive and often contradictory. Thus, the question of whether consumers really care about CSR becomes crucial (Öberseder, Schlegelmilch and Gruber, 2011). Theory suggests that financial gains would materialise should the attributes of CSR supplied match consumer demand. But CSR demand is likely to be latent and thus hard to define. In a quest to match CSR demand and supply, this study synthesizes consumeroriented CSR research in one framework that focuses on how consumer demand for CSR can be defined based on consumer behavior analysis and how CSR supply as strategic levers of responsibility could match the demand. The study further explores current adoption of these levers by analysing the present supply of responsibility as reported by large companies. A comparison of CSR themes in corporate reports with the model highlights the requirement for further research to define and measure optimal use of the proposed levers. This study proposes an approach to bridge the gap in academic theory between the promise of responsibility as a scarce and valuable resource and the reality of an unclear link between corporate social and financial performances

Companies, Meet Ethical Consumers: Strategic CSR Management to Impact Consumer Choice

Fulfilling consumer expectations of corporate social responsibility (CSR) can bring strategic advantage to firms. However, research on the topic is fragmented across disparate disciplines, and a comprehensive framework to connect CSR supply and demand is missing. As a result, firms often supply CSR that does not attract demand, as signified by pessimism about ethical consumerism in recent years and the inconclusive link between corporate financial and social performance. In this study, we propose a framework of strategic CSR management to define how a company’s supply of CSR could meet consumer demand for ethical products by aligning managerial and consumer perspectives. We then investigate empirically whether such a strategic approach, that integrates potential demand in CSR management, would influence consumer choice of products with CSR components. Our hybrid choice modeling allows the inclusion of psychological biases caused by social desirability and cynicism to increase result validity. The findings support the explanatory power of the framework and reveal that consumers prefer some CSR elements while others adversely affect choices. This study advances the understanding of strategic CSR management, its impact on consumer choice and helps managers include the right mix of CSR characteristics in their products to satisfy ethical consumers

Newly graduated nurses' empowerment regarding professional competence and other work-related factors

cited By 1Peer reviewe

Gimme a Better Price!: a negotiation role play on B2B pricing in hotel revenue management

We present a classroom role play to immerse students in the difficulties ofapplying value-based pricing principles to the practice of B2B price negotiations at differ-ent levels of the hotel value chain. The students assume roles as hotel chain and individualhotel management and as key business clients to the individual hotels. Through strategicand tactical preparations that rely on incremental additions of information on the goals,students prepare themselves to negotiate aspects linked with B2B pricing in a hotel reve-nue management context and collect points based on their success. After the negotiations,they systematically reflect on their performance vis-`a-vis their set intentions. The role playis targeted to be an assignment in master’s level hotel revenue management teaching, but itcould be modified to target bachelor’sstudentsorotherfields in which value-based pricingis still at its infancy. Based on our experience with running the game in a classroom as wellas twice remotely because of COVID-19, it is compatible with both forms of learning andcould potentially be extended to an asynchronous online learning environment.Coherent privaatrech

Treatment of keloid scars with intralesional triamcinolone and 5-fluorouracil injections - a randomized controlled trial

Keloids have high recurrence rates. Current first-line therapy is triamcinolone (TAC) injection, but it has been suggested that approximately 50% of keloids are steroid resistant. We compared the efficacy of intralesional 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and triamcinalone injections in a double-blind randomized controlled trial. Forty-three patients with 50 keloid scars were treated with either intralesional TAC or 5-FU-injections over 6 months. There was no statistically significant difference in the remission rate at 6 months between the 5-FU and TAC groups (46% vs 60%, respectively). Local adverse effects were higher in the TAC group compared to the 5-FU group. Occurrence of skin atrophy in TAC group was 44% and in the 5-FU group 8% (p <0.05). Also the occurrence of telangiectasia in the TAC group was 50% and in the 5-FU 21% (p <0.05). Vascularity of the keloids, assessed by spectral imaging and immunohistochemical staining for blood vessels, after treatment decreased in the TAC group, but not in the 5-FU group (p <0.05). Fibroblast proliferation evaluated by Ki-67 staining significantly decreased in the TAC group (p <0.05) but increased in the 5-FU group (p <0.05). TAC and 5-FU injections did not differ in their clinical effectivity in this randomized study, but 5-FU injections lead to increased proliferation rate and did not affect vascular density in histological assessment. Due to the greater number of adverse effects observed after TAC treatment, 5-FU injections may be preferable for cosmetically sensitive skin areas. (C) 2018 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Transverse myocutaneous gracilis flap reconstruction is feasible after pelvic exenteration : 12-year surgical and oncological results

Introduction: Pelvic exenteration (PE) is the only curative treatment for certain locally advanced intrapelvic malignancies. PE has high morbidity, and optimal reconstruction of the pelvic floor remains undetermined. Materials and methods: A retrospective chart review was performed at a tertiary university center to assess the surgical and oncological outcomes of 39 PE procedures over a 12-year period. The majority of patients (n = 25) underwent transverse musculocutaneous gracilis (TMG) flap reconstruction for pelvic floor reconstruction. Results: The 1- and 5-year overall survival (OS) was 72% (95%CI 58%-86%) and 48% (95%CI 31%-65%), respectively. In multivariate analysis, lymph node metastasis (HR 3.070, p = 0.024) and positive surgical margins (HR 3.928, p = 0.009) were risk factors for OS. In this population, 71.8% of the patients had at least one complication. The complication rate was 65.4% and 84.6% for patients with versus without flap reconstruction, respectively (p = 0.191). The length of stay was longer for patients with a major complication 16,0 +/- 5,9 days vs. 29,4 +/- 14,8 days, p = 0.001, but complications did not affect OS. Conclusion: For selected patients, PE is a curative option for locally advanced, residual, or recurrent intrapelvic tumors. Pelvic floor and vulvovaginal defects can reliably be reconstructed using TMG flaps. TMG flaps are favored in our institution over abdominal-based flaps because the donor site morbidity is reasonable and TMG does not interfere with enterostomy. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd, BASO similar to The Association for Cancer Surgery, and the European Society of Surgical Oncology. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Newly graduated nurses' empowerment regarding professional competence and other work-related factors.

BACKGROUND Although both nurse empowerment and competence are fundamental concepts of describing newly graduated nurses' professional development and job satisfaction, only few studies exist on the relationship between these concepts. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine how newly graduated nurses assess their empowerment and to clarify professional competence compared to other work-related factors. METHODS A descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational design was applied. The sample comprised newly graduated nurses (n = 318) in Finland. Empowerment was measured using the 19-item Qualities of an Empowered Nurse scale and the Nurse Competence Scale measured nurses' self-assessed generic competence. In addition to demographic data, the background data included employment sector (public/private), job satisfaction, intent to change/leave job, work schedule (shifts/business hours) and assessments of the quality of care in the workplace. The data were analysed statistically by using Spearman's correlation coefficient as well as the One-Way and Multivariate Analysis of Variance. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to estimate the internal consistency. RESULTS Newly graduated nurses perceived their level of empowerment and competence fairly high. The association between nurse empowerment and professional competence was statistically significant. Other variables correlating positively to empowerment included employment sector, age, job satisfaction, intent to change job, work schedule, and satisfaction with the quality of care in the work unit. The study indicates competence had the strongest effect on newly graduated nurses' empowerment. CONCLUSIONS New graduates need support and career opportunities. In the future, nurses' further education and nurse managers' resources for supporting and empowering nurses should respond to the newly graduated nurses' requisites for attractive and meaningful work

Probing QCD dynamics in two-photon interactions at high energies

In this paper the two-photon interactions at high energies are investigated considering different approaches for the QCD dynamics. In particular, we calculate the $\gamma^* \gamma^*$ total cross section in different theoretical approches and present a comparison among the predictions of the BFKL dynamics at leading and next-to-leading order with those from saturation physics. We analyze the possibility that the future linear colliders could discriminate between these different approaches.Comment: 14 pages, 2 figures. Version to be published in Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physic