Vincenzo Formisano

Management control of contractual networks: the business network scorecard

This paper presents an analysis of the management control systems, introducing a useful instrument to summarise performance achieved from the organisational network model, with a view to establishing the competitive advantage and the creation of value on the long-term. The research approach is based on the qualitative methodology. The research is developed according to the study of national and international literature. The contribution proposes theoretical proof to support the new management control instrument for contractual networks: the business network scorecard. The approach adopted for the development of the network management control instrument (business network scorecard) refers to the principles of the balanced scorecard and value creation. So, the reporting system of network performance aims at highlighting the joint results of an economic-financial nature as well as those of an intangible nature. Through a logic of interception of large aggregates, the results achieved by the network are proposed through the matrix of network objectives, the multidimensional network model, including perspective indicators, four indicators of synergy and the comparison report of joint and individual performance of companies.

A service-dominant logic for banking services

In the current competitive scenario, services now pervade all business activities, involving every production system and every organization. The emerging importance of services and their decisive role, compared to goods, in every business transaction in the global economy encourages scholars, professionals and business experts to engage in research models, paradigms and theories to better describe the new processes of value creation. This paper aims to analyze the applicability of the theoretical Service-Dominant Logic model to the field of local banking services, therefore, to interpret the concepts within a sector, that is, banking, in which the service component is increasingly becoming more strategic. The article briefly reviews the main features of the evolution of the process of banking services to represent their current evolutionary foundations in the light of the new paradigm of the S-D Logic. The paper combines theory and practice, with the help of a case study, appropriately selected for analysis. To conclude, the analysis shows that the theoretical approach of the Service-Dominant Logic improves the performance of the bank analyzed in economic terms (increased economic value created) as well as in terms of services offerred to customers with improved interactions, relationships and loyalty.

The strategic priorities in the materiality matrix of the banking enterprise

Nowadays, in this highly dynamic and complex context, companies have to act in a socially responsible and sustainable way to survive, creating shared value. The purpose of this paper is to analyse, through descriptive statistics, the elements that Italian banks identify as strategic to increasing their relational and reputational capital and to being in consonance with stakeholder’s expectations.,This paper investigates the width (number of intermediaries that included the materiality matrix in their non-financial reports) and the depth (number of indicators in the matrix) of the phenomenon to detect the bank’s attention on critical topics for their stakeholders.,The focus is on materiality matrices in order to detect a correspondence among the significant indicators selected by the banks and those value generators for stakeholders. In the perspective used in this work, property is also a stakeholder; indeed, wanting to use the terminology of the viable systems approach, property represents a relevant supra-system as it is critical and influential for the decision makers.,The main limits are the low number of non-financial reports published by Italian banks, and the little information on the type of stakeholder involved in the building of the materiality matrix.,The originality of this work is multifaceted. Primarily, there are no similar studies in the banking sector. The present work intends to go beyond the studies already in the literature on mapping and stakeholder prioritisation as well as on the identification and selection of material themes. Moreover, having found, during the analysis of the banks’ reports, the heterogeneity of indicators identified as material, for both banks and stakeholders, the same have been traced back to the related stages identified by Carroll in the pyramid of social responsibility.

An Empirical Case

Within the European Union, the issue concerning the difficulties faced by small undertakings is important in terms of access to credit.1 This criticism is especially important for small businesses in Cyprus, Slovenia, and Greece. This situation, while limiting their growth prospects, did not weaken these countries’ confidence in the future, which remained at mostly optimistic levels so that, between 2009 and 2014, the percentage of SMEs with growth expectations increased from 47 per cent to 61 per cent.

The Bank-Company Relationship

The understanding of a phenomenon by an observing subject assumes the activation of a cognitive process that, thanks to the identification, consolidation and use of conceptual schemes, leads to complication and so to creation of a model, out of what previously would have appeared as a blur and a number of indeterminate events.

The Context: The Financial System

The functioning of the financial system, given the nature of the activity, takes place in a context of rules and controls. The raison d’etre of the financial system is linked to the performance of certain functions that are critical, due to the way a modern economy of monetary exchange runs. These functions satisfy the specific needs of the economic system, thus allowing the development of production and distribution processes.

Intangibles in the Assessment of Creditworthiness

The entry into force of the Basel II capital adequacy of banks, was accompanied by the adoption of more sophisticated systems for assessing the creditworthiness of companies. The Committee on Banking Supervision, in response to the globalization of the financial market, deemed that there was a need to ensure the stability of the banking system and to change business banking,1 based on mutual trust, comprehensive and real, to be updated continuously and bound to the actual ability to generate an income, from the perspective of future growth and not just the short-term goals of the beneficiary.

The Evolution of Prudential Regulation

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision was established in 1974, under the auspices of the Bank for International Settlements, by the Governors of the Central Banks of the most industrialized countries (G-10), following a default in a German credit institution which had determined negative effects in many countries. This body does not have legislative autonomy in finance and it is not a supranational supervisory authority.

The Banking Business: The Governing Body and the Operational Structure

Systemic thought and its formalization in a general systems theory had a significant influence in all disciplines, and therefore also does so in the one that has the banking business as the object of investigation. It has been decided to associate with the company the qualification of system in relation to the following conditions: a) The presence of multiple components, both of tangible or intangible nature. b) The interdependence and communication among these components (the principle of interdependence and communication). c) The start-up of the relations in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the system (the principle of communion towards a purpose).

Il framework e i profili emergenti del contratto di rete in Italia. Prime evidenze empiriche dalla provincia di Frosinone

Obiettivo del paper . L’obiettivo del presente contributo e quello di verificare la valenza strategica del contratto di rete a livello territoriale, al fine di individuare un nuovo modello di business per le imprese contemporanee. Metodologia . Il metodo di ricerca e deduttivo-induttivo, con un multi-method approach per la raccolta dei dati avvenuta attraverso interviste semi-strutturate, open source, articoli scientifici, libri e banche dati di settore. Risultati . La ricerca rappresenta la prima di fase di uno studio da estendere a livello territoriale, regionale e nazionale. Limiti della ricerca . I limiti della ricerca si fondano prevalentemente sulle contenute dimensioni dei dati analizzati nella fase attuale dello studio. Implicazioni pratiche . Il presente articolo si propone di integrare la letteratura esistente, rivolgendosi congiuntamente alla comunita accademica e agli attori del mondo del lavoro. Originalita del lavoro . Il lavoro di ricerca ha l’obiettivo di rappresentare i caratteri salienti del contratto di rete, sintetizzando il suo framework e la sua valenza applicativa, al fine di riconoscere un modello di business innovativo nell’accrescimento della competizione delle imprese sul mercato.