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Recent Research (2008)

Below is a full article list from this issue of strategy+business.

Do Store Brands Affect Customer Loyalty?
From a strict loyalty perspective (ignoring the benefits of higher margins), many stores have already overdone private labels. But for value-oriented chains, the loyalty effects are less pronounced; their goal should simply be to convince customers that their private-label goods are of high quality.
 
Is “One Share–One Vote” the Best System?
One share–one vote systems, by weakening insiders, make it more likely that value-increasing takeovers will occur. Often, insiders are the only shareholders who will resist such takeovers, and other investors are out of luck if they don’t have voting power.
 
Taming the Urge for Instant Gratification
When people make commitments about the future, they are more likely to appeal to their more rational selves. According to the authors, commitment schemes modify people’s behavior more effectively than simple incentive adjustments such as “sin” taxes on cigarettes.
 
What If Shareholders Took a Back Seat?
The stakeholder system is better for almost everyone — employees, suppliers, and shareholders — but worse for consumers, who get stuck paying higher prices.
 
The Effects of Bank Deregulation
Contrary to some expectations, liberalizing restrictions on interstate bank branching has diminished income inequities for many workers.
 
The Value of Public–Private Collaboration in Emerging Markets
Building relationships with public and private institutions can help emerging businesses upgrade their operations and gain access to knowledge, technology, and contacts — all of which can lead to substantial improvements in quality.
 
A Precise Price Can Increase Sales
People tend to misjudge precise prices as being less than round prices of similar value. This discovery could have significant implications for buyers, sellers, and pricing strategists in any number of industries.
 
How Unintentional Bias Can Affect Decision Making
Organizations should be aware of the biases that creep into decision making, and incorporate due diligence practices to avoid common ethical missteps.
 
How Today’s Best Companies Are Disrupting Existing Markets
Cross-boundary disruption requires leaders who can spot opportunities outside their industry, build strategies beyond their core competence, and act entrepreneurially regardless of the size of their company.
 
The Effects of Regional Industrial Clustering
The region in which a company chooses to do business can have a serious impact on the way that company is perceived and on its likelihood of success.
 
How to Enter Emerging Markets
A market’s openness can affect a company’s viability.
 
How to Improve Forecasting with Limited Data
The historical performance of comparable products combined with an understanding of known variables can help managers develop more accurate revenue forecasts in nascent markets where data is scarce.
 
Studying the Performance of Fluid Teams
Leaders should carefully consider how they create working groups by giving managers roles in which they have experience, and forming teams with members who have worked together in the past.
 
Future Leaders of Technology
Legislators must understand the importance of foreign nationals as contributors to domestic technology innovation, and consider the effects that immigration policies, such as quotas on H1-B temporary visas, may have on the pace of innovation.
 
The Effect of Outside Directors on Performance
The more informed the outside directors, the better they are able to help improve company governance and performance.
 
The Art of Positioning Product Enhancements
Product enhancements must provide a clear value proposition to consumers. Otherwise, companies risk hurting their product’s perceived value.
 
Exploring the Value of an Advertisement
Advertising can do much to increase brand awareness, but even persuasive ads do not change consumer opinions about the quality of the products being advertised.
 
Ensuring Peak Performance at the Negotiating Table
Empathy is a valuable social skill, but taking perspective enables negotiators to establish deal terms that best address the needs of both parties.
 
The Pay-for-Performance Myth
Over time, performance-based incentives can have a negative effect on firm performance.
 
Strategies for Dividing Teams
Managers should pay special attention to the way they divide a team into subgroups.
 
The Next Phase of Subprime Fallout
Because the market widely corroborated the inflated values of subprime instruments, plaintiffs face an uphill battle.
 
Managing Risk in International Joint Ventures
Executives must be aware of the ownership and governance structure of companies they are considering partnering with in foreign markets.
 
Marketing with a Crystal Ball
Consumers may be more inclined to try a product if it’s positioned as something they could benefit from in the future.
 
Conflict May Enhance Team Performance
Creative differences among team members can lead to more inspired thinking during the idea-generation process.
 
Evening the Playing Field for Investors
Regulation Fair Disclosure has curbed selective disclosure of private information in the United States.
 
The Ethical Pitfalls of Unconventional Marketing
Many unconventional marketing practices are not yet governed by clear rules regarding ethics, but they should be.
 
CEOs’ Strategic Balancing Act
High-performing CEOs do not shy away from tension between long-term and short-term goals.
 
Methods for Improving Marketing ROI
By using specific tools to optimize marketing budgets, executives can help grow sales and boost the bottom line.
 
Emerging Leaders
Firms everywhere can learn much from companies in developing economies that are leveraging the Internet to increase competitiveness and develop strategic partnerships globally.
 
Are Health-Care Investments Worth It?
Health-related investment funds are not the best hedge against the rising cost of consumer health care.
 
CFO Turnover in the Era of Accountability
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act has forced CFOs to be more answerable for their firms’ accounting, and to pay a steep professional price for reporting trouble.
 
Seeing Green by Building Green
For commercial real estate owners, investing in green building techniques can add considerably to revenue and to profitability.
 
Failed Mergers in the Airline Industry
The fundamentals of running an airline don’t necessarily improve with increased market share.
 
Negotiating for Optimal Work–Life Balance
Before entering into job negotiations, women should determine how much they expect to earn and what type of work situation would be most advantageous for all parties.
 
How TV Ads Affect Audiences
Consumer preferences can guide TV network executives in their selection of ads and development of pricing strategies for ad space.
 
Consultants Are No Help in Preventing High CEO Salaries
Compensation consultants, often hired by companies with deficient corporate governance, rarely prevent the boards of such companies from overpaying executives.
 
Measuring Each Click of the Mouse
Clickstream data is a useful and dynamic source for marketers and will grow in importance as the Internet and Internet-usage tracking systems become more sophisticated.
 
Does Globalization Lead to Innovation?
In emerging economies, globalization can be counterproductive for innovation.
 
Taking the Long View on Mergers
The operational benefits of acquisitions often aren’t apparent for 10 years or more, and the best indicator of success is approaching them as one piece of a larger corporate strategy.
 
The Benefit of Self-Regulation Policies
Self-policing measures can aid performance in firms that have good compliance records, but aren’t likely to improve the standing of companies with a history of regulatory issues.
 
Do CEOs Make Good Board Members?
Although it’s commonly assumed that high-profile CEOs will provide valuable oversight to firms by sitting on their boards, companies shouldn’t expect them to improve firm performance.
 
The Importance of Adopting New Technologies
To compete in today’s global economy, countries must learn how to quickly leverage new technologies.
 
Tapping Into Consumer Regret
When presented with the possibility of future regret, consumers may be willing to break the bank — or their budget — to splurge on big-ticket items.
 
How to Optimize Corporate Venture Capital Investments
Corporate venture capital efforts are most successful in firms with strong internal research and development programs.
 
How to Compete with Free Software
Commercial-software developers can compete with free alternatives if they act with speed and flexibility.
 
Self-Esteem and Career Success
Believing in oneself is more than just a motivational slogan; it can strongly influence long-term career advancement and overall health.
 
How Payment Options Affect Consumer Spending
Using credit cards and gift cards encourages consumers to spend more than they would if using cash.
 
The Role of Identity in Organizational Evolution
Knowing when to embrace change and how to manage its effects on a company’s identity can mean the difference between stagnation and success.
 
Deconstructing the Subprime Mortgage Crisis
How structured finance contributed to the meltdown.
 
Why Business School Rankings Shouldn’t Matter
Business school rankings are big business, but they provide little information about the quality of education.
 
Foreign Investment Boosts Emerging Economies
Emerging economies that open their markets to foreign capital investment can expect growth in manufacturing productivity and workers’ wages.
 
Mothers in the Professional Workplace
Women are more likely to stay in the workforce after having a child if flexible policies are considered the norm, not the exception.