Showing papers by "HEC Paris published in 1995"

Determinants of Success in International Strategic Alliances: Evidence from the Global Aerospace Industry

Abstract: This paper presents the results of a study linking the performance of international joint ventures and alliances set up in the global aerospace industry to their strategic and organizational features. In a first stage, an empirically based taxonomy of the observed alliances is generated. Then, the economic performance of various types of alliances is evaluated on the basis of industry expert opinions, and the difference in performance of different alliance types is tested.

The Underlying Structure of Brand Awareness Scores

Abstract: There are three classical measures of brand awareness: aided, spontaneous, and top-of-mind. The relationships between these measures, across a set of brands in the same product category, are close, but highly nonlinear. We show that these relationships can be linearized, in all product classes, by performing a logistic transformation on each measure. This amounts to describing the process by which consumers answer awareness questions by a Rasch model, originally proposed to describe the success of students in answering exam questions. The brand's salience is equivalent to the students' competence, and the difficulty of the awareness question is equivalent to the test difficulty. We briefly summarize the research process that led to this empirical generalization. Managerial implications are described, mainly linked to the diagnosis of “locked” versus “open” product categories.

Consumer research on sales promotions: A state‐of‐the‐art literature review∗

Abstract: Many research traditions have dealt with consumer psychology and behaviour vis‐a‐vis sales promotions The consumer‐oriented approach seeks to identify the heavy users of promotions and to track their purchasing strategies involving the choice of a promoted brand The aim of the theory‐oriented research traditions is to test the explanatory power of various cognitive, attitudinal, behavioural and economic frameworks, be it to explain why and how consumers react to sales promotions or to understand when companies should promote This article exposes the specificity of each research tradition, its principal results and the most promising areas for future research

Why Psychoanalytical Knowledge Helps Us Understand Organizations; A Discussion with Elliott Jaques:

Abstract: La psychanalyse n'est pas seulement une theorie comprehensive de la psychopathologie individuelle ni une technique therapeutique. Elle consiste majoritairement en une technique d'investigation des processus psychiques inconscients. Elle peut donc etre appliquee a des objets plus larges que la relation patient-analyste. Nombre d'applications ont ete developpees dans le champ social. L'A. souligne qu'un certain reductionnisme peut-etre utile a l'investigation mais qu'il est risque d'eluder certaines variables significatives (sociales, economiques, culturelles) et de s'en tenir a des interpretations psychologiques du comportement organisationnel. Il partage le criticisme d'Elliot Jaques sur l'attention insuffisante accordee aux structures organisationnelles, sur la confusion faite entre autoritarisme (autocratie) et comportements autoritaires et sur la mise en evidence surfaite des systemes d'auto-management. Si la connaissance psychanalytique amene a de telles issues, elle est alors dysfonctionnelle pour la comprehension des organisations. Neanmoins l'A. a quelques difficultes, en tant que psychanalyste, a percevoir l'organisation selon E. Jaques ie comme «un systeme interconnecte de roles». La recherche de E. Jaque sur la capabilite humaine est d'un grand interet pour comprendre la part de l'humain dans le fonctionnement organisationnel et pour aider a construire des organisations qui tiennent compte des competences cognitives et du sentiment de justice. Mais il reproche a E. Jaque de denier l'interet potentiel de la psychanalyse appliquee aux organisations, apres avoir ete l'un des pionniers de ce genre d'approches. Pour l'A. la psychanalyse demeure la meilleure theorie d'investigation des processus inconscients. Reponse de E. Jaque qui reproche a G. Amado de confondre organisations manageriales (l'entreprise) et organisations en general. Sa demonstration tient donc particulierement compte de l'organisation manage

Stochastic equity volatility related to the leverage effect II: valuation of European equity options and warrants

Abstract: We propose a general framework to assess the value of the financial claims issued by the firm, European equity options and warrantsin terms of the stock price. In our framework, the firm's asset is assumed to follow a standard stationary lognormal process with constant volatility. However, it is not the case for equity volatility. The stochastic nature of equity volatility is endogenous, and comes from the impact of a change in the value of the firm's assets on the financial leverage. In a previous paper we studied the stochastic process for equity volatility, and proposed analytic approximations for different capital structures. In this companion paper we derive analytic approximations for the value of European equity options and warrants for a firm financed by equity, debt and warrants. We first present the basic model, which is an extension of the Black-Scholes model, to value corporate securities either as a function of the stock price, or as a function of the firm's total assets. Since stock prices a...

Patterns of strategic alliances between rival firms

Abstract: This article describes the results of a research project which examined 171 alliances set up by competing firms in an international context. It presents an empirically-based taxonomy of such alliances constructed on the basis of a set of variables chosen for their demonstrated or assumed influence on the evolution and outcomes of strategic partnerships. Three contrasted types of allliances are identified: quasi-concentration alliances, market penetration alliances and shared supply alliances. They differ according to two fundamental dimensions: their symmetrical or dissymmetrical nature and the way in which they alter competition. Legal structure, often emphasized in previous research on the subject, does not emerge as a strongly discriminating factor. Hypotheses on the likely evolution and outcomes of each type of alliance are derived from the taxonomy.

The Functions of Luxury: A Situational Approach to Excursionism

Abstract: A large number of persons ("Excursionists") access the luxury product domain only in certain situations. In this paper, we argue that such behavior can be analyzed in terms of the functions played by the products. Each luxury product can fulfill a certain set of functions. Each situation calls for certain functions to be fulfilled. Therefore each luxury product is more appropriate in certain situations than in others. Four situations are designed on the basis of two dichotomies (social vs individual, planned vs impulse). Respondents indicate their behavior in these situations for three products (scarfs, perfumes, diamond rings). A correspondence analysis assesses the strength of the adequacy of each product to each situation.

À la recherche d'une culture européenne en comptabilité et contrôle de gestion…

Abstract: Cet article cherche a montrer, a travers deux principales illustrations, l’interet des demarches comparatives, axees sur la comprehension des differences culturelles, dans le domaine de la comptabilite et du controle de gestion. De telles demarches sont particulierement fructueuses dans le contexte europeen, ou elles permettent de mettre en exergue la diversite qui est une composante intrinseque d’un eventuel « modele de management europeen ». Un premier exemple d’analyse des differences decrit l’emergence differenciee d’ecoles de pensee organisationnelles et de courants de recherche en gestion en Europe et aux Etats-Unis. Quelques pratiques de comptabilite et de controle de gestion comparees, lors d’une recherche menee en Grande-Bretagne et en France, fournissent un second exemple de l’interet des demarches comparatives.

Hedging with a volatility term structure

Abstract: Because of transaction costs and other execution problems, hedging portfolios are readjusted only periodically, usually once a day. The question is whether the hedge ratio should reflect the instantaneous variance, the average variance over the life of the option as in the Black-Scholes model, or a combination of the two volatility measures. In this article, the authors show that for path-independent options the option value depends only on the average volatility, while the hedge ratio depends also on the path of future volatility. The sensitivity of the hedge ratio to short-term volatility depends on the degree of moneyness of the option. This is shown to be a more serious problem for short-term than for long-term options.

Alternative Distributed Models for the Comparative Study of Stock Market Phenomena

Abstract: In this paper we present a methodology of studying the complex phenomena emerging in stock markets. This methodology is based on the use of distributed multi-agent models with minimal knowledge representation and reasoning capabilities that have proven to be a powerful modeling tool for complex biological systems. Unlike neural and ''neoconnectionist'' models, our models allow a comparative and incremental evaluation of their validity and relevance to the observed phenomena. The possibility of their application to the modeling and study of stock market phenomena is demonstrated on a simple example of a central agency that regulates the behavior of the investors: we show how a ''blind'' or myopic behavioral model reproduces results found in the literature and how the mutation of the model according to the parameters' values or the adaptation structures gives rise to a series of complex phenomena comparable to those observed in reality.

L'évolution de la gestion des ressources humaines dans les entreprises de service public : Analyse de l'introduction du modèle de la compétence dans les unités opérationnelles de France Telecom

Abstract: Apres avoir connu, au cours des annees 1980, le meme processus de "modernisation" que l'ensemble du secteur public, les entreprises de service public francaises mettent aujourd'hui en oeuvre d'importants programmes de changements de leur gestion des ressources humaines. Regroupes sous l'appellation "modele de la competence", ces changements modifient en profondeur les systemes de classification et de carrieres. France Telecom, en particulier, negocie en 1990 une reforme d'envergure : l'ancienne Direction Generale des Telecommunications, devenue entreprise publique, rompt avec le systeme des grades et organise la diffusion d'entretiens individuels d'appreciation pour ses 150 000 agents. L'annonce de changements aussi ambitieux interpelle le praticien de la gestion des ressources humaines comme le chercheur : comment passer du projet a la realisation de telles reformes? Comment l'introduction d'un nouveau modele de gestion se fait-elle au. sein des unites operationnelles ? Quelles repercussions a-t-elle sur le fonctionnement quotidien de ces unites ? Quelles marges de manoeuvre peut avoir un responsable d'etablissement operationnel, fortement dependant d'une hierarchie fonctionnelle, et charge de mettre en place de nouveaux outils de gestion ? De telles questions suscitent des prises de position contradictoires. II existe ainsi un certain discours managerial simpliste et triomphant, pour lequel l'introduction de ce modele de la competence est logique et ne devrait pas provoquer de resistance particuliere ; a l'oppose, on entend egalement une denonciation systematique et sans discernement de cette evolution. A egale distance de ces deux positions, la these defendue ici est que l'evolution de la gestion des ressources humaines dans les entreprises de service public suscite des difficultes reelles, non reductibles a une resistance affective ou passagere ; neanmoins, ces difficultes ne rendent pas le gestionnaire impuissant, car certains modes d'introduction se revelent plus efficaces que d'autres pour entrainer la negociation et l'adoption du changement. La mise au point d'un modele d'analyse articulant differents paradigmes de l'analyse des organisations permet de mettre en lumiere les dimensions sociologiques d'un processus d'apprentissage complexe. Une double enquete par questionnaire donne l'occasion de mesurer les representations sociales et leur evolution, tandis que trois etudes de cas illustrent les difficultes et les reussites rencontrees dans l'introduction de ce modele de la competence

Efficient and Robust 2D Shape Vectorization

Abstract: Publisher Summary This chapter discusses efficient and robust 2D shape vectorization. In computer graphics applications, it is often convenient to be able to convert a shape from its bitmap representation to a vectorized form. Indeed, a vectorized form has many advantages over a bitmap—it can be transformed without loss of resolution, and it is sometimes better suited for the needs of computer vision. This chapter presents an algorithm to perform the vectorization of arbitrary 2D shapes. The algorithm was developed for a computer vision application—the purpose was to study how to train a neural network to recognize arbitrarily scaled handwritten digits and required the network to be presented with a more meaningful representation of the data than just a raw bitmap. The chapter summarizes the problem, explains how it is usually solved, and shows the limits of this technique. It presents a simple yet very useful extension of the algorithm, based on pattern matching that solves the limitations. It uses postprocessing rules somewhat similar to the production rules found in formal systems. The chapter also presents some remarks about vectorization that can be useful.

Implicit collusion on wide spreads

Abstract: Recent empirical findings suggest that spreads quoted in dealership markets might be uncompetitive. This paper analyzes theoretically if price competition between risk-averse market-makers leaves room for implicit collusive behavior. We compare the spread and risk-sharing efficiency arising in several market structures differing in terms of i) the priority rule followed in case of ties, and ii) the type of schedules market-makers may use, namely: general schedules, linear schedules, or limit orders. In general, competitive pricing does not arise in equilibrium, and there is a conflict between risk-sharing efficiency and the tightness of the spread. This conflict can be mitigated by an appropriate market structure design. The limit order market is the only market structure in which the competitive equilibrium is the unique equilibrium.

Book Reviews : Phillip K. Tompkins: Organizational Communication Imperatives. Lessons of the Space Program: 1993, Los Angeles: Roxbury. 238 pages

Abstract: In summary, this book emphasizes the importance of safety problems in managing high risk technologies. One of its strong points is definitely the excellent account of how U.S. military organizations manage or mismanage hazardous technologies. The author has collected a host of instructive empirical materials and identified a lot of organizational as well as political factors which undennine system safety. Furthermore, this book shows that theory is an important key to understanding empirical phenomena. In fact, the results of Sagan’s examinations are not surprising, they confirm what was to be feared. The major weakness of this book lies in the suggestions offered by Sagan about what should be done. They are not convincing and remain, on the whole, contradictory. Generally, they focus on organizational learning, disregarding the underlying conflict between safety and human error. Much more promising seems to be the conclusion with which the author finishes his book: ’the recognition of the inherent limits of safety’, he notes, ’is the first and the most important step toward a safer future’.