Culture and Innovation in Peru from a Management Perspective

Political stability, macro-economic caution, and the aggressive pursuit of free trade have enabled Peru to emerge as one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America. This economic expansion has created heightened interest in the evolution of corporate culture and its influence on firm performance. This paper examines organizational performance in relation to the influence of cultural values on innovation by means of a survey of upper level managers. Analysis of the survey results indicates that there was a positive relation between innovation and power distance and uncertainty. Survey findings show no relationship between innovation and individualism nor innovation and masculinity. Practical implications indicate that the cultural values of declining power distance and lower aversion to uncertainty may influence the effective implementation of an innovation strategy in firms operating in Peru

Innovation, learning and performance in a resource-rich emerging economy

Background: This article compares the performance of firms in resource-rich sectors of the Peruvian economy with that of businesses operating in service sectors.   Objectives: In so doing, the research seeks to examine whether innovation is managed differently by firms operating in different sectors of a developing-country economy and whether the performance of firms in an emerging economy may be influenced by innovation and learning practices at the sectoral level.   Method: Data were acquired through a survey of overwhelmingly middle managers working in Peru.   Results: According to the survey findings, the performance of firms in the resource-rich sectors appeared to be uninfluenced by innovation or involvement in organisational learning. In contrast, firms in the service sectors not only exhibited an innovation orientation and involvement in learning but also reported higher sales growth.   Conclusion: The study concludes that firms operating in the resource-rich sectors of Peru’s economy do not appear to benefit from engaging in innovation or learning at this point in time, whereas such activities are advantageous for service sector businesses. Therefore, the relationship between innovation, learning and performance may be influenced not just by the type of economy but also by the sector in which the firms are operating

The correlation of ULF waves and auroral intensity before, during and after substorm expansion phase onset

We present case studies of the evolution of magnetic wave amplitudes and auroral intensity through the late growth phase and the expansion phase of the substorm cycle. We present strong evidence that substorm-related auroral enhancements are clearly and demonstrably linked to ULF wave amplitudes observed at the same location. In most cases, we find that the highest correlations are observed when the magnetometer time series is advanced in time, indicating that the ULF wave amplitudes start to grow before measured auroral intensities, though interestingly this is not always the case. Further we discuss the four possible reasons that may be able to explain both the timing and the high correlations between these two phenomena, including: a simple coincidence, an artifact of instrumental effects, the response of the ionosphere to magnetic waves and auroral particle precipitation, and finally that ULF waves and auroral particle precipitation are physically linked. We discount coincidence and instrumental effects since in the studies presented here they are unlikely or in general will contribute negligible effects, and we find that the ionospheric response to waves and precipitation can explain some, but not all of the results contained within this paper. Specifically, ionospheric response to substorm waves and auroral precipitation cannot explain that the result that previous studies have shown, that onset of ULF wave activity and the onset of auroral particle precipitation occur at the same time and in the same location. This leaves the possibility that ULF waves and auroral particles are physically linked

The Technological Entrepreneur’s Playbook

As exemplified by Apple and Google, maximizing the wealth of organizations involves what Joseph Schumpeter described as “creative destruction.” This occurs when scientific or technological breakthroughs lead to the launch of a radically new product or service at a time when there often is little or no evidence of the existence of an identified market opportunity. The world is currently involved in the third Industrial Revolution and academic research and real-world case studies have validated the fact that the management of technology-driven entrepreneurship is a somewhat different process to that of market-driven entrepreneurship. The existence of these differences generates the perspective that benefit exists in identifying managerial guidelines that can be of assistance in ensuring the success of technological entrepreneurship projects in both start-ups and existing businesses. Hence the aim of this text is to draw upon academic theory and real-world case materials as the basis for defining 86 key managerial guidelines for optimizing the outcome from involvement in technological entrepreneurship. Keywords business start-ups, disruption, entrepreneurship, managerial guidelines, market-driven entrepreneurship, radical innovation, technological entrepreneurship, technology-based innovation, wealth generatio