Building Acquisition Management Capability to Improve Firm Performance in Acquisitions

In the past two decades, the number of cross-border mergers and acquisitions in ASEAN has progressively expanded as the region has become a desired economic market for trade and investment. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the factors contributing to the success of acquisitions by corporations. It investigates the role of acquisition management capability with strategic integration and acquisition. The non-probability sampling strategy was used to collect information from 51 firms. With a five-point Likert scale, a systematic questionnaire was designed to test the latent variables by employing confirmatory factor analysis. The quantitative method of Structural Equation Modeling was used in the analysis. The results show that the structural model had a Goodness of Fit Index value that indicates all three latent variables and independent variables were valid. The findings indicate that acquisition management capability have a central role in advancing the overall integration of the acquiring firm in the ASEAN context.

Becoming the Force for Innovation

In this chapter, the authors, former school and district leaders, submit that COVID-19 is a force that has caused collective sight and accelerated momentum relative to shifts we have always known we needed to make in education but haven't yet made at scale. Those shifts, manifested in instructional practice, equitable systems, and the strategic integration of technology, represent an urgency COVID-19 has revealed as an absolute. The authors argue that too often we have hidden behind readiness as a barrier to translating urgency to the lived experience of learners. COVID-19 has shown us our readiness matters little in a global pandemic. Ready or not, educators will respond in the face of unprecedented circumstances. How then, might educators become the force COVID-19 has been to ensure continued momentum?

Supporting teacher learning during the professional development experience: The case of national board certification

Amidst increasing globalized pressures to raise student achievement, nations are heavily investing in various forms of teacher professional development. In the United States, teachers are increasingly electing to pursue National Board Certification, yet few studies have analyzed the experience within the greater complex system of teaching and learning. Viewed from this approach, findings from this study suggest that numerous dynamic forces—relationships, partnerships, structures, and policies—interact in various patterns that can potentially support effective teacher professional development. Implications suggest a need for broader conceptualization, greater cohesion, and more strategic integration of teacher learning in education policy.

Role of brand equity and competitive strategies in the relation between horizontal alliances and its benefits

Purpose Drawing on the resource-based view, this study aims to investigate the conditions under which small- and medium-sized retailers can improve competitive benefits through the lens of brand equity and strategies for competitive advantage in retail buying groups. Design/methodology/approach This study collected 241 samples from small- and medium-sized supermarket retailers who joined retail buying groups in Japan. Findings This study offers two key findings. First, the results indicate that a buying group’s brand equity partially mediates the relationship between member retailers’ strategic integration and their buying group benefits. Second, member retailers with a stronger differentiation orientation strengthen the positive impact of strategic integration on the buying group’s brand equity and buying group benefits. The moderating effects of low-cost orientation were not found to be significant. Practical implications To highlight the sustainable growth of small- and medium-sized retailers in retail buying groups, which are often ignored in the extant literature, this study offers practical guidance on the importance of a buying group’s brand equity. In addition, based on the findings, this paper postulates that member retailers pursuing differentiation orientation, rather than low-cost orientation, are more beneficial to retail buying groups in terms of relational outcomes and performance consequences. Originality/value By conceptualizing brand equity in retail buying groups, this study suggests a novel approach for retail management that investigates how a buying group’s brand equity is linked to strategic integration, strategies for competitive advantage and buying group benefits from the viewpoint of member retailers.

Business Value of ICT for Small Tourism Enterprises: The Case of Sri Lanka

<p>Researchers and practitioners believe that Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) create business value in organisations. However in practice, organisations often struggle to demonstrate the benefits of ICTs. This difficulty in demonstrating the value of ICTs to organisations is not related to the technology itself, but rather the ways in which technology is used, and how it creates business value. There is an extensive body of literature which focuses on these issues. However, it is predominantly centred on large organisations in the context of developed countries. There is a lack of research on how ICTs create business value in small enterprises particularly in relation to developing countries. Hence, the business value of ICTs remains an important research topic for information systems researchers. The tourism industry is highly information intensive and the use of ICTs in tourism has become so widespread it is almost obligatory. While the benefits that larger tourism organisations gain from ICTs have been well researched, little is known about how ICTs can be utilised to maximise the business value of Small Tourism Enterprises (STEs). Understanding the value of ICTs for STEs is important as they have gained widespread recognition as a major source of employment, income generation and poverty alleviation in developing countries. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore how ICTs can contribute to the business value of STEs. Using a combination of Barney’s Resource Based View of the firm (RBV) and an integrated model developed by combining the Business value of IT framework by Melville et al. and the tourism production system by Poon and Alford, this study examines how ICTs contribute to the business value of STEs. A post-positivist qualitative multi-case study was carried out using 35 STEs which represent the major tourist regions of Sri Lanka. Semi-structured interviews were the main method of data collection supported by document and website analysis. Data analysis was guided by template coding. The initial template developed using the dimensions identified from the literature was further analysed by integrating the themes which emerged from the research data. Data was analysed across cases, using a cross tabular design to compare categories and analyse within-group similarities and inter-group differences. The use of technological and human ICT resources alongside complementary resources in key business processes was examined in order to identify how ICTs were being utilised to gain business value for STEs in Sri Lanka. The combination of internal and external factors derived from the focal firm and the external environment proved to have a significant role in determining STEs’ ability to gain business value from ICTs. Further analysis of cases across four major tourism clusters revealed that business motives, strategies, and location were the main reasons for the varying levels of business value gained by small businesses in the country. The findings of this study indicated that ICTs do contribute to the business value of STEs in Sri Lanka by improving organisational performance in terms of both financial and non-financial gains. In accordance with the claims of RBV, the findings further confirmed that in order to gain business value, ICT resources need to be combined with complementary resources. The findings also identified the significance of strategic integration of online travel agents’ resources in order for STEs to gain the optimum business value from their own ICT resources. A key outcome of this study is the development of an integrated model of the business value of ICTs for STEs. In addition, this study contributes to the theoretical understanding of IT business value research in the context of small tourism businesses, particularly in developing countries. It also has implications for business owners and governments in terms of effective utilisation of firm resources, prioritization and allocation of resources to key projects and processes.</p>

Business Value of ICT for Small Tourism Enterprises: The Case of Sri Lanka

<p>Researchers and practitioners believe that Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) create business value in organisations. However in practice, organisations often struggle to demonstrate the benefits of ICTs. This difficulty in demonstrating the value of ICTs to organisations is not related to the technology itself, but rather the ways in which technology is used, and how it creates business value. There is an extensive body of literature which focuses on these issues. However, it is predominantly centred on large organisations in the context of developed countries. There is a lack of research on how ICTs create business value in small enterprises particularly in relation to developing countries. Hence, the business value of ICTs remains an important research topic for information systems researchers. The tourism industry is highly information intensive and the use of ICTs in tourism has become so widespread it is almost obligatory. While the benefits that larger tourism organisations gain from ICTs have been well researched, little is known about how ICTs can be utilised to maximise the business value of Small Tourism Enterprises (STEs). Understanding the value of ICTs for STEs is important as they have gained widespread recognition as a major source of employment, income generation and poverty alleviation in developing countries. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore how ICTs can contribute to the business value of STEs. Using a combination of Barney’s Resource Based View of the firm (RBV) and an integrated model developed by combining the Business value of IT framework by Melville et al. and the tourism production system by Poon and Alford, this study examines how ICTs contribute to the business value of STEs. A post-positivist qualitative multi-case study was carried out using 35 STEs which represent the major tourist regions of Sri Lanka. Semi-structured interviews were the main method of data collection supported by document and website analysis. Data analysis was guided by template coding. The initial template developed using the dimensions identified from the literature was further analysed by integrating the themes which emerged from the research data. Data was analysed across cases, using a cross tabular design to compare categories and analyse within-group similarities and inter-group differences. The use of technological and human ICT resources alongside complementary resources in key business processes was examined in order to identify how ICTs were being utilised to gain business value for STEs in Sri Lanka. The combination of internal and external factors derived from the focal firm and the external environment proved to have a significant role in determining STEs’ ability to gain business value from ICTs. Further analysis of cases across four major tourism clusters revealed that business motives, strategies, and location were the main reasons for the varying levels of business value gained by small businesses in the country. The findings of this study indicated that ICTs do contribute to the business value of STEs in Sri Lanka by improving organisational performance in terms of both financial and non-financial gains. In accordance with the claims of RBV, the findings further confirmed that in order to gain business value, ICT resources need to be combined with complementary resources. The findings also identified the significance of strategic integration of online travel agents’ resources in order for STEs to gain the optimum business value from their own ICT resources. A key outcome of this study is the development of an integrated model of the business value of ICTs for STEs. In addition, this study contributes to the theoretical understanding of IT business value research in the context of small tourism businesses, particularly in developing countries. It also has implications for business owners and governments in terms of effective utilisation of firm resources, prioritization and allocation of resources to key projects and processes.</p>

Forgotten Integration: An investigation into the integration of Post-Olympic Parks

<p>The Summer Olympics occur every four years, capturing the hearts of the world for a nite period of time. During this time, the eyes of the world are set on the host city of whom provide a facility and an infrastructure to accommodate not only the athletes, but the millions of spectators that attend the events and the memorable moments that ensue. While the Summer Olympics and it’s park are focused heavily upon during the games, integration of the site into the host city has become largely forgotten post-Olympics. Ultimately, these once vast locations have now become deserted and dystopia environments within the host city. This thesis addresses the problem of integrating Olympic parks back into the context of the host city by enabling new and diverse spaces. The work of Charles Waldheim, Rem Koolhaas, Alex Wall, Tricia Cusack and Dennis Saunders are employed over five main ideas: wetland urbanism, urban grid, edge extension, fragmented distribution and landscape occupation. Strategic integration of post-Olympic Sites into the existing host city can arguably be done so by creating a multi-programmatic system that adapts and transforms to respond to the dynamic needs of both the Olympic Site and the local urban context of the surrounding city. This thesis considers the task of integrating the Sydney Olympic Park back into Sydney’s context, transforming its current form into a state of integration with the host city that is successful. The thesis produces a design, based on five key design principles which have been created through conclusions of research: wetlands, extension, grid, distribution and occupation.</p>