Showing papers by "HEC Montréal published in 2013"

Process studies of change in organization and management : unveiling temporality, activity, and flow

Abstract: Process studies focus attention on how and why things emerge, develop, grow, or terminate over time. We identify various ontological assumptions underlying process research, explore its methods and challenges, and draw out some of its substantive contributions revealed in this Special Research Forum on Process Studies of Change in Organization and Management. Process studies take time seriously, illuminate the role of tensions and contradictions in driving patterns of change, and show how interactions across levels contribute to change. They may also reveal the dynamic activity underlying the maintenance and reproduction of stability.

Boardroom Diversity and its Effect on Social Performance: Conceptualization and Empirical Evidence

Abstract: In this paper, we seek to answer two questions: (1) what does boardroom diversity stand for in the strategic management literature? And, (2) is there a significant relationship between boardroom diversity and corporate social performance. We first clarify the boardroom diversity concept, distinguishing between a structural diversity of boards and a demographic diversity in boards, and then we investigate its possible linkage to social performance in a sample of S&P500 firms. We find a significant relationship between diversity in boards and social performance. This relationship is moderated by diversity of boards. Our results also reveal the effects of the specific variables that make up the diversity of boards and diversity in boards constructs. In particular, gender, and age have a significant effect on corporate social performance. Some important measurement issues are raised and discussed.

The time-dependent pollution-routing problem

Abstract: The Time-Dependent Pollution-Routing Problem (TDPRP) consists of routing a fleet of vehicles in order to serve a set of customers and determining the speeds on each leg of the routes. The cost function includes emissions and driver costs, taking into account traffic congestion which, at peak periods, significantly restricts vehicle speeds and increases emissions. We describe an integer linear programming formulation of the TDPRP and provide illustrative examples to motivate the problem and give insights about the tradeoffs it involves. We also provide an analytical characterization of the optimal solutions for a single-arc version of the problem, identifying conditions under which it is optimal to wait idly at certain locations in order to avoid congestion and to reduce the cost of emissions. Building on these analytical results we describe a novel departure time and speed optimization algorithm for the cases when the route is fixed. Finally, using benchmark instances, we present results on the computational performance of the proposed formulation and on the speed optimization procedure.

Re-Theorizing Change: Institutional Experimentation and the Struggle for Domination in the Field of Public Accounting

Abstract: Using change theory integrated with Bourdieusian sociology, we re-theorize a major institutional shift in the field of public accounting The case we examine involves the consolidation of commercial values in the auditing profession In reinterpreting this shift, we highlight an institutional process structured around a conflict between commercial innovators and guardians of the professional tradition Our analysis indicates a peculiar kind of institutional work, wherein economic capital is reinforced at the field level while the logic of commercialism is strengthened in accounting firms' structures and practitioners' mindset From our studying of the field of accountancy, we develop the concept of institutional experimentation in order to offer a view of institutional work as a fragile and unpredictable process Specifically, the latter is subject to trials and tests by actors involved in a series of more or less connected experiments in trying to extend their professional jurisdiction through institutional innovation, while seeking to consolidate the traditional foundations of their jurisdictional legitimacy through institutional reproduction Our paper also challenges the notion of organizational archetypes While a focus on the firms' formal organizational parameters may suggest archetypical stability, the picture is more complex when one takes into account processes of institutional experimentation and the duality of institutional change and stability

Approaching the Conceptual Leap in Qualitative Research

Abstract: This paper reviews the literature on an important but mysterious phenomenon in qualitative research methodology: the conceptual leap that generates abstract theoretical ideas from empirical data. Drawing on epistemological, prescriptive and reflexive writings, conceptual leaps are described as constituted by both ‘seeing’ and ‘articulating’, as grounded in abductive reasoning, and as part of an ongoing dialectical process. Methods for approaching conceptual leaps and the conditions for their realization are discussed in the context of four dialectic tensions: between deliberation and serendipity, between engagement and detachment, between knowing and not knowing, and between self-expression and social connection. The literature review suggests that conceptual leaping is best portrayed as a form of bricolage, drawing resources from the different poles of the four dialectics. Moreover, written and verbal communication play important roles in enabling synthesis. The paper concludes by calling for greater openness and legitimacy for reflexive accounts, as well as further research into the process of discovery in qualitative research.

Distance Spectra of Graphs: A Survey

Abstract: In 1971, Graham and Pollack established a relationship between the number of negative eigenvalues of the distance matrix and the addressing problem in data communication systems. They also proved that the determinant of the distance matrix of a tree is a function of the number of vertices only. Since then several mathematicians were interested in studying the spectral properties of the distance matrix of a connected graph. Computing the distance characteristic polynomial and its coefficients was the first research subject of interest. Thereafter, the eigenvalues attracted much more attention. In the present paper, we report on the results related to the distance matrix of a graph and its spectral properties.

The Logic of Institutional Logics: Insights From French Pragmatist Sociology

Abstract: Research on institutional logics has exploded in the last decade. Much of this work has taken its inspiration from Friedland and Alford’s call to “bring society back in” to organizational analysis. Interestingly, when Friedland and Alford published their seminal piece, another body of work with similar focus emerged in France under the banner of French Pragmatist Sociology. In this article, we discuss how French Pragmatist Sociology complements institutional logics by helping it address its main limitations or blind spots. These include (a) microfoundations and recursiveness (how institutions are formed, maintained, or changed at a micro level), (b) legitimacy struggles (how struggles are resolved on a day-to-day basis), (c) morality (as an important element underscoring institutional logics), and (d) materiality (as physical and tangible instantiations of logics). We conclude by suggesting that a rapprochement between both approaches provides an elegant means of bridging the lingering divide between “old...

Socioemotional Wealth Across the Family Firm Life Cycle: : A Commentary on 'Family Business Survival and the Role of Boards'

Abstract: The differences among family firms can be as telling as their overall distinctiveness from other forms of enterprise. In order to advance and condition the arguments of Wilson, Wright, and Scholes, we employ a typology of family firm evolutionary development to illustrate how changes in patterns of family involvement in the business can influence several socioemotional wealth priorities and how these in turn can shape the board composition required to enhance firm survival. We conclude by arguing how public listing and environmental competitive circumstances can condition these relationships.

A branch-and-cut algorithm for the multi-product multi-vehicle inventory-routing problem

Abstract: The combined operation of distribution and inventory control achieved through a vendor-managed inventory strategy creates a synergetic interaction that benefits supplier and customers. Inventory-Routing Problems (IRPs) arise when inventory and routing decisions must be taken simultaneously, which yields a difficult combinatorial optimisation problem. While most IRP research deals with a single product, there are often several products involved in distribution activities. In this paper, we propose a branch-and-cut algorithm for the solution of IRPs with multiple products and multiple vehicles. We formally define and model the problem, and we solve it exactly. We also consider the inclusion of consistency features that are meaningful in a multi-product environment and help improve the quality of the service offered.

What Makes Better Boards? A Closer Look at Diversity and Ownership

Abstract: This study investigates the joint effect of corporate ownership and board of directors' diversity configurations on the success of strategic merger and acquisition (M&A) decisions. Board diversity is defined as the extent to which its demographic diversity as measured by the culture, nationality, gender and experience of its directors complements its statutory diversity. A theoretical framework linking ownership, board diversity and M&A strategic decision making is proposed and tested. Based on a sample of 289 M&A decisions undertaken by Canadian firms over the period 2000–2007, demographic diversity is found to have a clear and non-linear effect on M&A performance while statutory diversity is of limited influence. Ownership is found to influence the effect of diversity, making the relation finer and more precise. This has practical implications. First, statutory diversity is not sufficient for well-performing boards. Also, ownership is an important factor. The most advocated board diversity aimed at insuring the board's independence is not valid across all ownership configurations. From a public policy perspective, results provide support for the principles-based approach in governance. Governance regimes should encourage the search for a balance between board diversity and the need for cohesion that best serves the firm's purpose and obligations.

An investigation of information systems use patterns: technological events as triggers, the effect of time, and consequences for performance

Abstract: Information systems use represents one of the core concepts defining the discipline. In this article, we develop a rich conceptualization of IS use patterns as individuals' emotions, cognition, and behaviors while employing an information technology to accomplish a work-related task. By combining two novel perspectives--the affect--object paradigm and automaticity--with coping theory, we theorize how different patterns appear and disappear as a result of different IT events--expected and discrepant--as well as over time, and how these patterns influence short-term performance. In order to test our hypotheses, we conducted two studies, one qualitative and the other quantitative, that combined different methods (e.g., open-ended questions, physiological data, videos, protocol analysis) to study the influence of expected and discrepant events. The synergistic properties of the two studies demonstrate the existence of two IS use patterns, automatic and adjusting. Most interactions are automatic, and adjusting patterns, triggered by discrepant IT events, fade over time and transition into automatic ones. Further, automatic patterns result in enhanced short-term performance, while adjusting ones do not. Our conceptualization of IS use patterns is useful because it addresses important questions (such as why negative IT perceptions persist) and clarifies that it is how (rather than how much) people use IT that is pertinent for performance.

Politicizing the expertise of the accounting industry in the realm of corporate social responsibility

Abstract: The accounting industry plays an important role in the production and implementation of accountability mechanisms surrounding corporate social responsibility practices. Operating as both politicians and implementers of knowledge ( Gendron, Cooper, & Townley, 2007 ), the expert activities of accountants are never purely technical. This paper focuses on the mediating role of accounting firms and professional bodies in aligning the socially responsible practices of organizations with the rational morality of the market. I show that the construction of the market as a moral marker of socially responsible action is the result of a major effort of rationalization aimed at justifying the emergence of a social and moral conscience in business, not in the name of subjective feelings or human values, but in the name of an economic and depoliticized logic of profitability. Drawing on the political analysis of Latour (2004) [ Politics of Nature: How to Bring the Sciences into Democracy ] and his metaphor of the ‘modern constitution’, I view the economicization of corporate social responsibility as symptomatic of the power imbalance between the world of humans and the world of objects governing the political structure of contemporary society and weakening democratic activity.

Risk Management: History, Definition, and Critique

Abstract: The study of risk management began after World War II. Risk management has long been associated with the use of market insurance to protect individuals and companies from various losses associated with accidents. Other forms of risk management, alternatives to market insurance, surfaced during the 1950s when market insurance was perceived as very costly and incomplete for protection against pure risk. The use of derivatives as risk management instruments arose during the 1970s, and expanded rapidly during the 1980s, as companies intensified their financial risk management. International risk regulation began in the 1980s, and financial firms developed internal risk management models and capital calculation formulas to hedge against unanticipated risks and reduce regulatory capital. Concomitantly, governance of risk management became essential, integrated risk management was introduced, and the chief risk officer positions were created. Nonetheless, these regulations, governance rules, and risk management methods failed to prevent the financial crisis that began in 2007.

Positioning person brands in established organizational fields

Abstract: This paper inductively develops an extension to brand positioning theory to understand how individuals seeking work in established organizational fields can effectively position themselves. It does so by analyzing qualitative data on the practices of people in one job category (fashion models) in an established organizational field (fashion), examining them through the lens of concepts adapted from work by Pierre Bourdieu. Four brand positioning practices are identified as relevant for models vying for work in the fashion field: crafting a portfolio, cultivating and demonstrating upward affiliations, complying with occupation-specific behavioral expectations, and conveying field-conforming tastes. Drawing on Bourdieu, we argue more generally that person brand positioning within established organizational fields happens through processes that help to portray a person as having field-specific social and cultural capital that allows them to “stand out,” while acquiring the habitus that allows them to comply with field- and occupation-specific expectations in order to “fit in.” Standing out and fitting in have parallels with—but are not identical to—the processes of establishing and reinforcing points of differentiation and points of parity for product brands. Our study implies that scholars interested in person branding should further develop theories that illuminate variations in brand positioning practices between products and persons. It also suggests that people building person brands should be sensitized to the valued forms of capital and normative expectations in their field that enable them to stand out while fitting in.

Collusion with Asymmetric Retailers: Evidence from a Gasoline Price-Fixing Case

Abstract: We point out a fundamental difficulty of successfully colluding in retail markets with heterogeneous firms, and characterize the mechanism recent gasoline cartels in Canada used to sustain collusion. Heterogeneity in cost and network size necessitates arrangements whereby participants split the market unequally to favor stronger players. We characterize empirically the strategy and transfer mechanism using court documents containing summaries and extracts of conversations between participants. The mechanism implements transfers based on adjustment delays during price changes. We estimate that these delays can translate into substantial transfers and provide examples in which they can substantially reduce deviation frequency. (JEL K21, L12, L71, L81) C ollusion is prevalent in many retail markets, with a large number of cases prosecuted each year by antitrust authorities. 1 In most of these markets, collusion should be difficult since they feature a large number of asymmetric firms and price-sensitive consumers. In this paper, we describe in detail the difficulties of successfully colluding in price-posting retail markets with heterogeneous firms, and characterize the strategies that recently discovered gasoline cartels used to resolve these difficulties and sustain a collusive agreement. Even in markets like gasoline, where firms sell a homogeneous product, impor tant asymmetries can exist. Networks of stations offering complementary goods and services compete with independently owned stores primarily selling gasoline. Stores also differ in storage capacities and vertical arrangements, which lead to heterogenous costs due to volume discounts and long-term contracts. When organizing a cartel, the presence of stronger players leads to enforcement and agreement problems: low-cost and/or single-station firms have greater incentive to deviate to

Combining multicriteria analysis and tabu search for dial-a-ride problems

Abstract: In the Dial-a-Ride Problem (DARP) the aim is to design vehicle routes for a set of users who must be transported between given origin and destination pairs, subject to a variety of side constraints. The standard DARP objective is cost minimization. In addition to cost, the objectives considered in this paper include three terms related to quality of service. This gives rise to a multicriteria problem. The problem is solved by means of a flexible and simple metaheuristic which efficiently integrates the reference point method for multicriteria optimization within a tabu search mechanism. Extensive tests were performed on randomly generated data and on real-life data provided by a major transporter in the Montreal area. Results indicate that the algorithm can yield a rich set of non-dominated solutions. It can also be employed to determine good trade-offs between cost and quality of service.

Building Trust in Multi-stakeholder Partnerships: Critical Emotional Incidents and Practices of Engagement

Abstract: This paper explores trust-building in multi-stakeholder partnerships. Through an analysis of the development of one multi-stakeholder partnership between a multinational corporation, two levels of government, and local indigenous peoples, we found that trust-building is a dynamic process in which emotionality plays a key role. Critical emotional incidents can unexpectedly punctuate the partnership process, serving as turning points in the development of trust. We also found that the practices used by the partners to navigate these incidents transformed negative emotions into positive ones. We theorize on the role that critical emotional incidents and emotional engagement practices play in multi-stakeholder partnerships.

The International Zero-Leverage Phenomenon

Abstract: Zero-leverage is an international phenomenon which has increased over time. The increasing prevalence of zero-leverage firms is related to IPO waves and the accompanying changes in industry composition. In addition, we attribute the higher propensity to maintain a zero-leverage policy throughout all size and age groups to increasing asset volatility and decreasing corporate tax rates during our sample period. Countries with a common law system, high creditor protection, and a dividend imputation or dividend relief tax system exhibit the highest percentage of zero-leverage firms. Analyzing supply-side capital market frictions, we find that only a small number of profitable firms with high payout ratios deliberately maintain zero-leverage. In contrast, most zero-leverage firms are con-strained by their debt capacity; they are smaller, riskier, and less profitable, and they are the most active equity issuers. With respect to the demand-side of financing choices, we show that firms which pursue a zero-leverage policy only for a short period of time seek financial flexibility. After abandoning zero-leverage, these mostly un-constrained firms switch to higher leverage ratios, make higher investments, and reduce their cash holdings by a larger amount compared to constrained zero-leverage firms, which remain debt-free for longer periods of time.