Adele Caldarelli

CEO performance evaluation systems: empirical findings from the Italian health service

This paper examines the way that the performance of chief executive officers of Italian healthcare organizations is evaluated. The aim is to analyse the extent of the use of New Public Management techniques in the highly regionalized and political Italian healthcare sector. A positive association was found between formal CEO performance evaluation systems and the quality of regional governance. There was no significant relationship between formal CEO performance evaluation and the duration of CEO tenure.

Impact of Accounting Traditions, Ownership and Governance Structures on Financial Reporting by Italian Firms

Institutional differences across countries present special challenges to achieve uniformity or at least harmony in financial reporting across countries. We evaluate in this paper how accounting traditions, ownership and governance structures of Italian companies affect implementation of the European Union mandated International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by Italian companies. This evaluation will enable investors, especially international investors, to have a better understanding of financial reporting by Italian companies and it will also highlight the problems and issues facing Italian companies to implement IFRS.

Expected benefits and perceived risks of cloud computing: an investigation within an Italian setting

ABSTRACT Over the past several years, cloud computing has increasingly been regarded as able to improve efficiency within organisations. The aim of this study is to address under-investigated issues related to the implementation of cloud computing, with a particular focus on expected benefits and the perception of risks. Towards this aim, on the basis of an adapted version of the technology acceptance model, we carried out a semi-structured survey among first-time cloud computing users to identify expected benefits and perceived risks. The survey of this study included a sample of 130 individuals in 65 enterprises located within Italy. We chose an Italian setting because it is characterised by an increasing number of programmes that emphasise the importance of cloud computing and support its wide dissemination. The findings of this study identify possible areas for improvement within the implementation phases of cloud computing.

I rischi derivanti dall’implementazione del cloud computing: un’indagine empirica nelle PMI Italiane

This paper examines the issues relating to the implementation of cloud computing in Italian SMEs. The aim is to measure the perception of the risks usually associated to the introduction of cloud computing in Italian SMEs identified as first-time adopters. The analysis relies upon a questionnaire disseminated through 400 individuals belonging to the Accounting and/or Information and Communication Technology divisions of 200 Italian SMEs, during the implementation phase of cloud computing. The survey was conceived as to obtain information about the perceived risks in terms of likelihood and impact before cloud computing adoption and after six months of implementation. The data gathered were therefore helpful to put into light the perceived risks of cloud computing implementation. The results show that there is a strong risks perception before this tool implementation indipendentely from the personal experience of the respondent. Hence, this research contributes to the ongoing debate on cloud computing potential in firms, deepening the issues relating to its introduction.

Accountants Are from Mars, ICT Practitioners Are from Venus. Predicting Technology Acceptance Between Two Groups

Several authors tried to explain the key determinants in technology acceptance using the technology acceptance model (TAM). TAM posits that ease of use and usefulness predict technology usage. Despite it strong usage there are several studies that show a lack in the model due to the absence of personal factors that should be considered. This paper aims to show the existence of significant difference in technology usage between different groups of people. Two hundred and fifty individuals responded to a survey about technology usage in their firms. Our results show that there is a statistically significant difference in ease of use and in perceived usefulness. The investigation applies TAM to help researchers, developers and managers understand antecedents to users’ intention to use.

Hi-tech start-ups: legitimacy challenges and funding dynamics

ABSTRACT Studies on the legitimacy challenges faced by hi-tech start-ups are still scarce, leaving room for research, and policymaking debate. Legitimacy issues may become difficult to face for hi-tech firms in comparison with other start-ups, because they work in an extreme environment where the technological challenges are at the edge of the scientific possibility. The paper proposes a conceptual model to grasp the relevance of three legitimacy drivers of the hi-tech start-ups for investment decisions. We investigated the ability of 30 hi-tech start-up firms to obtain financial resources from the US investors, employing a set-theoretic approach and carried out fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Our findings clarify that the funding decisions of US investors are driven by the location of headquarter and R&D of hi-tech start-ups and by the educational experience of the founders. Our study has significant theoretical, practical, and policymaking implications.

Exploring the impact of intellectual capital on company reputation and performance

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the impact of intellectual capital (IC) on the reputation and performance of Italian companies. Design/methodology/approach The paper exploits a unique data set of 452 non-listed companies that obtained a reputational assessment from the Italian Competition Authority (ICA). To test the hypotheses, this study implemented several regression analyses. Findings Results support the argument that human capital efficiency is a key driver of corporate reputation. Findings also reveal that companies, which obtained reputational rating under ICA scrutiny, show a positive relationship between IC elements and various measures of financial performance. Research limitations/implications The study focuses on a single country; it is not free from the imprecisions of Pulic’s VAIC model. Practical implications This paper recommends companies that are interested to achieve a robust reputation should consider the human capital as a strategic intangible asset. Second, the results suggest that companies with an ICA reputational rating are able to leverage their intangibles to potentiate performance and competitiveness. Originality/value This is the first empirical investigation on the contribution of IC in generating value for corporate reputation. Additionally, the study contributes to the literature on the link between IC and performance by examining a sample of firms not yet explored in prior research.

Cloud Computing Adoption in Italian SMEs: A Focus on Decision-making and Post-implementation Processes

Cloud computing is an emerging model in which machines in large data centres can be used to deliver services in a scalable manner. It allows firms to receive the same internal ICT structure with lower costs and a higher degree of flexibility. With this technology come many disadvantages that can have a major impact on the information and services supported by this technology. This chapter pursues two related aims. First, it investigates the decision-making process of implementing cloud computing by highlighting the drivers and ICT requirements of SMEs. Then, it examines the effects following the migration of the ICT system from an in-house data centre to a cloud-based service. We found specific drivers and ICT requirements, suggesting the implementation of cloud computing in SMEs to oversee specific issues. Moreover, our findings show that the advantages arising post-implementation confirm the expectations created by the management during the decision-making process; meanwhile, at least in the short term, no disadvantages arose.

La disclosure nei Piani della Performance delle università italiane. Intenti simbolici verso approcci sostanziali di legittimazione

This research focuses on the Performance Plans drawn up by Italian universities, to understand whether the information conveyed in this documents are able to achieve increasing transparency and greater accountability - fulfilling the willingness expressed by recent regulatory attempts - or if, conversely, they constitute a mere symbolic compliance effort. The study embraces the legitimacy framework and relies upon a meaning oriented content analysis of 66 Performance Plans. The main findings show little strategic value underlying Performance Plans, as well as the persistence of certain information gaps on key areas of strategic importance, offering a noteworthy contribution not restricted to the academic debate, but valuable for policy makers and practitioners.

Controlling innovation and innovating control: insights from a knowledge intensive network

The purpose of this paper is to deepen the countervailing relationship between control and innovation in knowledge-intensive complex organizations. It adopts a middle range theory perspective (Broadbent and Laughlin, 2013) to explore how control systems and innovation dynamics interact and shape each other in the contexts of high complexity and intensive knowledge creation.,The paper employs single case study of a research-intensive biotech network located in Southern Italy, focusing on the change in the management accounting practices fostered by evolving environmental conditions and regulations that the network has faced in recent years.,The paper finds out how successful organizational changes are facilitated by the implementation of innovative control devices, favoring informal collaborative relationships, which in turn contribute to further innovate and to share knowledge and capabilities within the organization.,The findings are relevant to all organizations involved in complex processes of co-production of knowledge and innovation. They allow for unpacking the “black box” of the interplay between innovation and control, which is becoming increasingly central to these organizations and to policy makers.,The value of the study lies in its ability to depict how contrasting and molding forces in control systems and innovation dynamics contribute to re-shape a complex organizational setting. The study offers a newer perspective of analysis to interpret the role of control systems in innovative networks, thus contributing to the growing academic debate on the antecedents and facilitators of knowledge sharing and knowledge integration.