Otto Andersen

Resource-based theory and international growth strategies: an exploratory study

The resource-based approach incorporates traditional strategy insights concerning a firms distinctive competencies. Furthermore, the resource-based approach also provides value-added theoretical propositions that are testable within the diversification strategy literature. This paper examines to what extent the resource-based theory can be used to predict other growth strategies than diversification. Based on an exploratory study from an export growth strategy context, the resource-based theory seems to be able to identify firms with growth ambitions, and to some degree to predict the intended growth strategy of the firm. The results and measurement problems are discussed.

The Impact of Vertical Coordination on Ex Post Transaction Costs in Domestic and International Buyer-Seller Relationships

Even though the transaction costs framework has evolved considerably in the past decade, there is still only modest empirical knowledge about the governance performance implications of the theory. This article focuses on the governance performance of vertical coordination in relationships between manufacturing firms. On the basis of transaction cost analysis and related works in international marketing, the authors examine the impact of asset specificity and vertical coordination on ex post transaction costs in domestic and international buyer–seller relationships. In accordance with current literature in international marketing, performance measurement problems are expected to be more evident in international business trade than in domestic business-to-business relationships. The empirical findings show that under conditions with substantial asset specificity, vertical coordination reduces ex post transaction significantly more in international buyer–seller relationships than in domestic channel dyads.

Inter-firm co-ordination: international versus domestic buyer–seller relationships

The use of transaction cost analysis (TCA) to study the choice of governance mode in foreign countries has been a source of considerable research. Empirical tests of the TCA predictions within a single governance mode are, however, limited. Building on transaction costs arguments, and related work in international marketing literature, we examine the association between asset specificity and inter-firm co-ordination in domestic and international buyer-seller relationships. The extant literature is extended by also comparing the impact of environmental uncertainty on inter-firm co-ordination across domestic and international relationships. Empirical findings from a survey of 164 industrial buyers demonstrate that there is a positive association between asset specificity and inter-firm co-ordination, and further that this association is stronger in international relationships than in domestic business-to-business trade. Furthermore, the results indicate that environmental uncertainty is stronger related to inter-firm co-ordination in international buyer-seller relationships compared to domestic buyer-seller relationships.

Industrial ecology and some implications for rural SMEs

In a project at Western Norway Research Institute, the concept of industrial ecology (IE) is used as a framework for environmental performance of small- and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Norway. The main goal of the project ‘Green SMEs’ is to identify existing and future environmental challenges for rural SMEs. The focus is on external demands coming from the surroundings of the individual businesses. Examples of issues being dealt with are industrial wastes becoming sources of raw materials for other industries, design and material choice for disassembly and reuse, development of industrial ecosystems, and industrial metabolism. This paper presents actual examples of industrial ecosystems and also some cases illustrating the problems small remotely located firms meet when the principles of IE are to be applied. These problems include the inability to participate in efficient industrial ecosystems (webs) with exchange of wastes to raw materials. Larger companies, often being more centrally located, have greater chances at identifying and attracting other businesses which they can co‒operate with in finding usage for their wastes. The ‘cluster’‒properties of efficient industrial ecosystems can therefore be a limiting factor in the development of such systems in rural areas. Small companies also have less opportunities to be proactive in establishing industrial ecosystems also merely due to the smaller scale of their operations.

Prediction of export intentions -- managing with structural characteristics?

This study focuses on the identification of potential exporters among non-exporting small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It is argued that directly observable variables could be used as a screening device in predicting which firms are likely to have export intentions. An exploratory study suggests that four variables -- domestic market coverage, number of product and customer groups, an orientation towards service or manufacturing, and the educational level of the CEO -- have considerable value in predicting export intentions. Implications for future research are discussed.

Biochemical and physiological effects from exhaust emissions. A review of the relevant literature

Exhaust emissions are to date ranked among the most frequent causes of premature deaths worldwide. The combustion of fuels such as diesel, gasoline, and bio-blends provokes a series of pathophysiological responses in exposed subjects, which are associated with biochemical and immunological triggering. It is critical to understand these mechanisms, which are directly related to the levels of aerosol, liquid and gaseous components in fuel exhaust (e.g. nanoparticles, particulate matter, volatile compounds), so to cast attention on their toxicity and gradually minimize their use. This review reports findings in the recent literature concerning the biochemical and cellular pathways triggered during intoxication by exhaust emissions, and links these findings to pathophysiological responses such as inflammation and vasoconstriction. This study provides critical in vitro and in vivo data for the reduction of emissions in urban centers, with an emphasis on the prevention of exposure of groups such as children, the elderly, and other affected groups, and shows how the exposure to exhaust emissions induces mechanisms of pathogenesis related to cardiopulmonary pathologies and long-term diseases such as asthma, allergies, and cancer. This review summarizes the cellular and physiological responses of humans to exhaust emissions in a comprehensive fashion, and is important for legislative developments in fuel politics.

B2B Relationships in Modern Times: Implications of Relation-Specific Information Systems on Governance Forms

Information technology (IT) enables businesses to integrate information systems across entities without altering the firms’ legal boundaries. New forms of inter-firm dependence and governance mechanisms may arise, due to the explicit investments made in technology and systems for collaboration purposes. There is an important distinction between general and customized investments in inter-organizational information systems (IOS), because the specificity level in IT exhibits certain characteristics that accentuate both the risk and value of inter-firm trade. Several research calls were made to validate governance theories on IOS. Based on a literature review, this paper provides a synthesis and integration of transaction cost economics (TCE) and IOS literature regarding governance forms. The paper discusses why the specificity level of IOS plays a central role in modern collaboration between firms, and how vertical electronic coordination (VEC) represents a mechanism for electronic governance forms and presents an agenda for future research.

Electronic commerce and governance forms: a transaction cost approach

A large amount of the electronic commerce (EC) literature is focused on the benefits of digitalising transactions, as well as technological and organisational issues related to implementing inter-firm information systems. Even though firms choose different electronic solutions for different purposes, there are still modest research contributions focusing on what kind of governance structures that emerge from business to business (B2B) electronic commerce and why these different governance forms emerge. This paper develops a framework for analysing how certain transaction characteristics such as order frequency, relation specific assets and uncertainty affect the alignment of electronic governance form (EGF). The authors discuss the concept of EGF and categorise electronic governance structures into four different types. The basis for the discussion is transactions cost economics (TCE) combined with theoretical contributions from electronic commerce.

Molecular simulation of carbon nanotubes as sorptive materials: sorption effects towards retene, perylene and cholesterol to 100 degrees Celsius and above

Abstract New water purification technologies are being developed as the world’s water sources are increasingly being polluted and experience a dramatic consumption with the increasing world population. In this context, the emerging era of nanotechnology has introduced a series of innovations and materials with promising potential as sorptive materials for water decontamination. The application of nanomaterials for the purification of ground/surface water introduces nevertheless a series of important challenges, such as health and safety, cost, process-efficiency and chemical sorption properties. In this study, we consider the latter class and present a study of the sorptive properties of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as potential water decontaminating materials. Molecular dynamics simulations are used and three molecular candidates of the water contaminants, cholesterol, perylene and retene were selected for interaction study with CNTs at different diameters. The results show that CNTs form densely packed clusters with retene, perylene and cholesterol, binding each strongly to their tubular surfaces, as well as in their hollow tubular spaces. Cholesterol and perylene bind more strongly than retene, accounting for the calculated binding energies in vacuo, however the planar geometries of polycyclics may in general favour binding to CNTs over semi-polar molecules and can require further studies. Our studies show furthermore that the CNTs retain the adsorbed molecules also at 100 degrees Celsius, and require therefore additional steps of separation for eventual recycling and reusing the nanomaterials for additional decontamination. This study is important in providing data for initiating studies and developments of water purification approaches based on using CNTs.

THE NORWEGIAN INTERNAL CONTROL SYSTEM: A TOOL IN CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT?

The Norwegian internal control regulations entered into force in 1992. The regulations imply that all employers (in the private and public sectors) are required to establish and maintain a system for demonstrating compliance with environmental, health and safety laws. With reference to pollution control, the focus until now has been on the larger industrial enterprises, which are controlled by the national pollution control agency. The implementation of the internal control system has been slow in SMEs, as indicated in a recent report showing a low level of knowledge of the regulations within smaller businesses. The basic elements of the internal control system are described and some of the possible reasons for the low compliance rate in the corporations discussed. The value of the internal control system in introducing environmental management systems is also debated. The role of the internal control system in a project carried out at the Western Norway Research Institute aiming to establish environmental management practices in SMEs is discussed briefly.