Kyösti Pennanen

The value space: how firms facilitate value creation

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the firm’s role in the value creation process. In particular, after categorizing the activities that firms carry out to facilitate the creation of value, the “value space,” an actionable framework within which different dimensions of value creation are integrated, is developed and discussed. , – The framework is built up on process theory, an in-depth review of the literature and a multiple case study carried out on 65 European firms in the furniture industry. , – The value space is both a practical and theoretically based framework which contributes to the development of a more holistic and “actionable” view on the role of firm in the value creation process; also it provides managers with a tool to support the analysis, management and innovation of the value creation process. , – The systematic categorization of firms’ activities and their subsequent integration into a value creation framework are a missing piece in terms of understanding the value creation process carried out by firms. Also, by facilitating the analysis and innovation of the value creation process, the framework can be used to support both exploitative and explorative business process management.

Financing major repairs in apartment buildings through infill development: Exploring views and benefit requirements of the owner-occupiers

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study views of owner-occupiers concerning infill development as a mechanism for financing major repairs in apartment buildings and financial benefits they require from the infill development for accepting it near their homes (on the plot of their housing company). Design/methodology/approach The data used draws upon a survey of 894 respondents concerning residents’ views on infill development in Finland. The required financial benefits from the infill development were questioned in both relative proportions of the expenses related to major repairs and concrete monetary sums. Findings First, the findings indicate that the financial benefits owner-occupiers require in order to accept infill development are significant, covering about two-thirds of the costs of major repairs during following ten years or over 75 percent of an (imagined) upcoming pipeline repair. Second, approximately one-fifth of the respondents regard that no economic benefit is enough to make them support infill development. Third, people’s decision-making concerning infill development is complex, involving also many other factors than monetary. Practical implications This paper provides insight into the feasibility of infill development as a means to finance major repairs from the perspective of owner-occupiers. The paper has strong policy implications as it highlights the significance of the public authorities and their policies in enabling the infill development. Originality/value This is the first academic study to focus on owner-occupiers views and financial requirements for the infill development as a means to finance major repairs in apartment buildings.

Residents’ trust predicting attitudes towards infill development

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse what constitutes trust for residents in the infill development context, who are the targets of trust, and does residents’ trust predict their attitudes towards infill development. Design/methodology/approach Two studies were carried out. A qualitative study in three housing developments was followed by a quantitative study with 906 respondents in the Helsinki area, Finland. Findings Four stakeholders relevant to the residents’ trust were identified: the board of housing development, the housing manager, city planners, and construction companies. Three dimensions were found to constitute residents’ trust in these stakeholders (competence, benevolence and integrity). Furthermore, analyses revealed that trust in city planners and construction companies significantly predicted residents’ attitudes towards infill development. Research limitations/implications The findings of this study have implications on the management of the infill development process. More attention should be paid to how residents’ perceptions of trust towards the other stakeholders are formed in order to facilitate successful infill projects. The quantitative study was carried out in different residential areas. Based on this study, the authors were not able to analyse whether and how the characteristics of the residential areas might influence the results, which represents a limitation of this study. Originality/value This paper provides in-depth insights into the role of trust in explaining residents’ attitudes towards infill development. Previous research devoted to the topic is scarce, neglects residents’ perspectives and lacks empirical evidence. The discussions are mainly contemplation based on case examples. No previous studies have explicitly studied the significance of trust with large samples.

Analyzing the Antecedents and Consequences of Consumer Ethnocentrism Amongst Russian Food Consumers

Consumer ethnocentrism has interested consumer research scholars for several decades. The concept has been applied in several different cultures and research contexts such as automobile industry, food and service markets. This paper aims at studying the antecedents and consequences of consumer ethnocentrism amongst Russian food consumers; three hypotheses are formulated and tested among consumers in St. Petersburg. The results of the study reveal that consumers’ characteristics do not affect Russian consumers’ ethnocentrism even though past research suggests otherwise. In terms of consequences of consumer ethnocentrism, the results show that the level of ethnocentrism affects 1) how Russian consumers evaluate the quality of foreign food products, 2) how well they know foreign food products and 3) how they prefer domestic food products that differ in terms of level of processing. The managerial and theoretical implications of the findings are discussed.