Howard Viney

Extending linear approaches to mapping corporate environmental behaviour

Drawing upon the findings of an ongoing empirical study of UK corporate environmental attitude and policies, the paper seeks to extend the debate as to how company strategic environmental policy making can be plotted and described. It is argued that the positioning of companies is determined by the interaction of a set of key external and internal influences and constraints, the relationship between which often produces strategic policy positions which appear not to conform to the behavioural archetypes established by linear sequential models. This suggests that such models may not allow the full impact of the reality of business necessity to be recognized. This is seen to be increasingly true for companies operating globally, who are faced with differing environmental requirements and regulations, and who have as yet not developed global environmental performance standards. Although acknowledging existing linear work, the case is put for the recognition of further archetypes, that can distinguish behavioural characteristics and which are identified as being beyond the confines of the linear approach. The hypotheses established are exploratory in nature and are the subject of ongoing confirmatory research.

The influence of environmental issues in strategic analysis and choice

Many corporations across the world are experiencing growing pressure to incorporate environmental issues into their strategic decision‐making process. This pressure characterizes the increased global significance of the environment. Examines the extent to which the issue is recognized by UK corporations, and how the environment affects corporate business planning. Additionally, reflects on the key motivational factors leading to the adoption of environmental policies, and comments on the nature of those influences. The key findings show that UK companies recognize the environment is an issue, but that the degree of importance attached is based on a variety of factors, resulting from unique corporate perceptions of opportunity and threat. Companies are generally concerned with meeting legal compliance levels and obtaining cost saving, without undertaking high levels of investment. Some companies are, however, seeking to become “environmental managers”, having identified the existence of opportunities for a...

Consumer attitudes to utility products: a consumer behaviour perspective

Introducing consumer choice was one of the key motivations underpinning the various public utility privatisations of the 1980s and 1990s, along with enhancing the quality of service provided to consumers. This was especially the case in electricity supply, where a timetable for the introduction of competition was included in the original legislation. However, evidence from the industry regulator suggests that consumers are proving reluctant to exercise choice, despite the intensity of the supply companies’ preparation and marketing campaigns. Indeed, a recent poll by MORI suggests that the number of consumers who have changed suppliers is approximately half that predicted by the industry. This paper, drawing on consumer behaviour theory, seeks to explain the reasons behind the apparent reluctance of consumers to change electricity provider, utilising market research data from both the UK and Germany.

Addressing the divergence between environmental strategy formulation and implementation

Despite growing evidence that large UK organisations are increasingly incorporating the environment into corporate strategy, there continues to be considerable scepticism as to whether this is leading to any meaningful action to reduce industry’s environmental impact. One possible explanation is the existence of a “gap” between policy formulation and implementation, and the authors suggest that this may be due to a failure on the part of business to ensure congruence between organisational context, values and capability. Utilising data drawn from a recent survey of corporate environmental policies and practices, the authors explore the interaction of external and internal factors with regard to policy development, and search for evidence of congruence. They conclude that very often policy formulation takes little consideration of the organisation’s capability to implement environmental strategies, and suggest that until this question is taken seriously, a gulf will always exist between what companies aim to do, and what they actually achieve.

Explaining the unintended consequences of public sector reform

Purpose – The process of public sector reform in the United Kingdom continues to provoke debate. Even among advocates of the reform process there is a concern that improvements in public service provision have not been as marked as originally intended, and that the process has produced a variety of unintended consequences. The purpose of this paper is to explore possible explanations for these unintended consequences, and discuss possible practical solutions for policy makers and service commissioners.Design/methodology/approach – In this conceptual paper focus is in particular upon attempting to explain managerial behaviour from insights offered by two well‐established managerial theories – stakeholder theory and resource dependency theory. Insights from these theories are used to explain the possible causes of the unintended consequences of the reform process. The discussion is illustrated and set in context by reference to a continuum of service delivery modes from monopoly provision through to full co...

Changing corporate attitudes towards environmental policy

Purpose – To report findings from an updated survey of environmental policy and practice among UK organizations. To draw conclusions about the relationship between environmental concerns and organizational strategy making.Design/methodology/approach – The paper reports findings from a 1999 survey of 911 UK organizations, updated by interviews conducted with participant organizations in 2004. The paper represents an extension of a ten‐year longitudinal study of environmental policy and practice in UK organizations.Findings – The gap between policy formulation and implementation in the environmental area has continued to narrow, but environmental concerns appear not to have moved towards the centre of the strategy making process in many firms. Organizations are still primarily influenced by short‐term rather than long‐term imperatives, and although recognition of opportunity offered by the environment is increasing, organizations are still liable to adopt a reactive position, increasingly so as the size of ...

Public sector performance improvement through private sector management practices: a satisfactory solution?

This paper examines the assumption that the injection of market discipline and private sector management practices will result in the transformation of public services. The present UK government looks for an opportunity to achieve synergy between the public and private sectors to improve the public service at lower public cost. However, the different cultural values and expectations of each sector and the competing demands of various stakeholder groups involved, present real hurdles for the achievement of performance improvement. This paper examines the Labour Governments attempts to modernise public services to establish the current context of the debate. This paper then presents the key differences between the public and private sector organisations and examines why private sector management practices may not in fact result in the transformation of public services. This paper suggests that, rather than imposing private sector management practices on the public sector, new approaches should be crafted to guide the development of solutions, which are fit for their specific purpose. A few potential alternative options that should be considered are presented.

Shareholder wealth creation following M&A: evidence from European utility sectors

Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) of European utility sectors subsequent to privatization and deregulation triggered widespread concern due to the crucial role played by utility sectors in a countrys economic and social development. From the study of a sample of 156 cases of M&A within utility sectors in Europe between 1990 and 2006, this study provides evidence on the performance of utility sectors following M&A. On one hand the findings suggest that lower levels of losses are accrued to the shareholders in the acquiring companies. On the other hand the fact that acquirer shareholders in the short run and the shareholders in the combined post-acquisition companies suffered losses in the long run triggers a negative signal for the investors in utilities.

Seeking congruence in implementing corporate environmental strategy

A major challenge facing all organisations is to implement corporate strategy successfully. This is true especially of strategies which reflect the increasingly diverse demands placed upon modern organisations, such as those towards the environment, or more generally concerned with corporate responsibility. A general problem faced by more ethically based strategies is that while they increasingly appear vital to the effective operation of an organisation, they are not always regarded as a first order concern by managers charged with their implementation, and faced with competing priorities. This paper attempts to highlight potential causes for failed implementation of environmental strategy by reference to the findings of a recent survey of environmental policy and practice among major UK organisations. The findings suggest that very often business decision makers do not take into consideration the true extent of the difficulties associated with implementing environmental policies, and in particular do not make the necessary objective appraisal of the resources necessary. Additionally, the authors hypothesise that decision makers do not provide the ongoing support necessary for ethically oriented policies to overcome competing priorities within an organisation, leaving operational managers with little choice but to pursue day-to-day objectives like efficiency and effectiveness, at the expense of the longer term gains that a fully integrated environmental strategy may provide.

Strategic Alliances: Alliances and Mergers in Electricity Supply

The takeovers that have occurred within the Regional Electricity Companies (RECs) since the privatization of the UK electricity industry are reviewed. The article describes the nature and scale of the changes that have occurred, and the policy considerations that have influenced the behaviour of the companies. A variety of emergent behaviour patterns among the companies are identified, which reflect apparent differences in the RECs’ policy objectives; the mergers are then grouped on the basis of this behaviour. There is strong evidence of a learning process among the companies.