Paper sessions

8AM - 9.30AM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Columbus B)

Paper: The Role of Technology Readiness in Consumers’ Acceptance of Autonomous Delivery Service (13913)

Division: TIM - Technology and Innovation Management

Session: 577 - Understanding Markets: User and Institutional Enablers

Authors

• Ya Liang, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
• Lixian Qian, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
• Yang Lu, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
• Tolga Bektas, University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

Recent innovations in autonomous driving have spotlighted its potential in last-mile delivery, but there is insufficient research to understand consumers’ acceptance of autonomous delivery service (ADS) powered by autonomous driving technology. We fill this research gap by examining the role of technology readiness (TR) in influencing consumer acceptance of ADS in an extended Behavioral Reasoning Theory framework. We find that two TR traits, namely innovativeness and discomfort, can affect both individuals’ reasons for and against accepting ADS. However, optimism and insecurity, as two other TR traits, only influence the positive and negative reasoning for accepting ADS respectively. The influences of TR traits on consumers’ acceptance intention are mediated by the reasoning process, where the “reasons for” demonstrates stronger effect than “reasons against”. Our study also investigates the antecedents of TR traits, with the findings that younger individuals have both stronger TR motivators and weaker TR inhibitors while better educated consumers only demonstrate stronger TR motivators. This study offers valuable insights into the innovation acceptance in last-mile delivery service, with theoretical and managerial implications.

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Skyway 260)

Paper: Developing Conceptual Foundations for Contextualized Entrepreneurship Education (15156)

Division: MED - Management Education and Development

Session: 648 - Entrepreneurship in Management Education

Author

• Sam Horner, University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

Pedagogical research concerned with EE has grown dramatically in recent years, yet the field of EE is currently at a crossroads. The conceptual foundations of EE remain underdeveloped, precipitating a condition in which the contours of EE, in terms of its aims, pedagogies, and outcomes are contingent on the assumptions about the nature of entrepreneurship that are held by educators. This is problematic for two reasons, first, the conceptual ambiguity functions to undermine the legitimacy of EE as a field of educational practice and a domain of academic research, second it has led to a skewed emphasis on some approaches (e.g silicon-valley style venture creation programmes) over others. This is particularly concerning because recent developments in the field of entrepreneurship have problematized the acontextual nature of this dominant model of entrepreneurship. To address the conceptual ambiguity that characterizes EE, and the associated problems of the silicon-valley model of EE, this paper develops a novel epistemological basis for entrepreneurship education. We draw on Gregory Bateson’s theory of deutero-learning, which places context at the heart of learning, to develop an explanation of why dominant models of EE have thus far failed to address the pressing issues of our time, including income inequality and ecological breakdown. We also build on the underlying epistemological premises of deutero-learning to develop a model of ‘ecological entrepreneurship education’ that aims at stimulating deep learning in students through the means of provocation and self-awareness. In so doing, we contribute to the EE literature by advancing a novel conceptualization of learning and education. We also contribute to the broader entrepreneurship literature by developing a theory of context that foregrounds the mutual-causal coordination that characterizes entrepreneurs’ interactions with their environments.

10.45AM - 12.15AM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Sheraton Ballroom II)

Paper: How Salary Comparisons Among Spouses and Social Norms Affect the Salary Negotiations of R&D Workers (20003)

Division: STR - Strategic Management

Session: 609: Strategic Innovations: Navigating Corporate Purpose and Market Dynamics

Authors

• Andreas Distel – Rotterdam School of Management
• Agnes Guenther – University of Utah, David Eccles School of Business
• Wolfgang Sofka – University of Liverpool Management School and Copenhagen Business School

Abstract

R&D workers are of strategic importance for firms because they accumulate tacit knowledge about their employers’ technologies. They have substantial bargaining power about their salaries because this knowledge would be attractive for competitors but hard to replace by their existing employers. While these conditions are well understood, we know comparatively little about when R&D workers are motivated to negotiate aggressively for higher salaries. We draw on theoretical mechanisms from social comparisons within marriages in social psychology and reason that R&D workers who earn less than their spouses will negotiate higher salary increases. Further, we propose that social norms make this effect stronger for male R&D workers who are traditionally considered as the breadwinners in households as well as for R&D workers who have a relatively higher-ranked job than their spouses which makes them sensitive to seeing their status threatened. We test and support these hypotheses for 70,312 married R&D workers in 3,710 unique firms in Denmark between 2008 and 2016.

11.30AM - 1PM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Lakeview)

Paper: The Role of CEO Creativity in CEO Successor Selection After Corporate Misconduct (20138)

Division: STR - Strategic Management

Session: 771 - CEO Characteristics and Experience

Authors

• HE Li – Xi'an Jiaotong Liverpool University
• Philip J. Steinberg – University of Groningen, Faculty of Economics and Business
• Jordi Surroca – University of Liverpool Management School
• Hille C. Bruns – Groningen University (RuG)

Although research has discussed various characteristics associated with CEO successors in firms with corporate misconduct, few studies have explored the CEOs’ less visible cognitive abilities. This study investigates the role of CEO creativity, as a prominent cognitive ability, in CEO successor selection following corporate misconduct. Based on prior research on the "dark side" of creativity, we propose that companies with disclosures of misconduct tend to select less creative CEOs as successors because less creative CEOs are more likely to be well-received by stakeholders after corporate misconduct. Additionally, the role of creativity in selecting a CEO successor is influenced by industry conditions. Results from analyses of S&P 1500 firms generally support our hypotheses.

3PM - 4.30PM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Skyway 272)

Paper: Exploring Organizational Processes that Enable Contrapower Harassment in Academia (21361)

Division: MED - Management Education and Development

Session: 938 - Management Educator and Practice

Authors

• Samah Shaffakat – University of Liverpool Management School
• Pisitta Vongswasdi – WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management
• James Stewart – Liverpool John Moores University
• Lilian Otaye-Ebede – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

This paper investigates the phenomenon of 'contrapower harassment' in UK higher education sector where students exert undue influence and hostility towards their educators. The research examines how neoliberal ideologies and the commodification of education have led to a shift in the power dynamics, enabling such harassment. Through in-depth qualitative interviews with faculty members from various UK universities, the study uncovers the various forms and impacts of this harassment, and importantly identifies the key institutional processes embedded in the UK higher education system that facilitate it. The findings also illustrate how academics and university staff accommodate this new power relations and hostile work environment. This study contributes to the discourse on the challenges faced by academics in a neoliberal educational environment and provides rich empirical insight into a growing, yet rarely-discussed aspect of academic life. These insights are important at a time when university claim academic well-being while undermining it in practice.

3.15PM - 4.45PM CT (UTC-5), Fairmont Chicago - Millennium Park (Crystal Room)

Paper: Less Severe but More Intense: Achievability as Search Motivation in the Vicinity of Aspirations (16292)

Division: OMT - Organization and Management Theory

Session: 965 - Search and Learning

Authors

• Karen Van Gia Tu – University of Groningen
• Pasi Kuusela – University of Groningen, Faculty of Economics and Business
• Pedro Faria – University of Groningen
• Jordi Surroca – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

While research in the behavioral theory of the firm has often shown that organizations intensify their search as their performance falls further below aspirations, some studies unexpectedly found that organizations are highly responsive also when their performance falls only slightly below aspirations. We reconcile these puzzling findings by studying organizations’ motivation to address their performance shortfall in the vicinity of aspirations. Our core argument is that organizations perceive closing a small performance-aspiration gap as easily achievable. Following the self-efficacy perspective, this perceived achievability motivates organizations to intensify their search to close such gap. Overall, we predict that organizations’ propensity to change decreases when performance falls from slightly to moderately below aspirations, before increasing as performance falls further below aspirations. Further, we suggest the effect of performance slightly below aspirations on change to be stronger when organizations possess a high level of success experience. Using U.S. patent data from 1980 to 2015, we find support for our hypotheses. Our study contributes to the behavioral theory of the firm by showing a more complex functional form of the relationship between performance shortfall and search, thus deviating from the typical linear and inverted-U shaped patterns.

5.45PM - 7.15PM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Colorado)

Paper: There Is a Dark Side to Everything: CEO Creativity and Corporate Social Irresponsibility (19489)

Division: STR - Strategic Management

Session: 1063 - Corporate Social Irresponsibility

Authors

• HE Li – Xi'an Jiaotong Liverpool University
• Philip J. Steinberg – University of Groningen, Faculty of Economics and Business
• Jordi Surroca – University of Liverpool Management School
• Hille C. Bruns – Groningen University (RuG)

Abstract

Individual creativity is generally regarded as an important competency for CEOs that positively affects organizational outcomes. However, based on recent insights from the field of psychology, we theorize that CEO creativity may also hold undesirable implications for the firm as it can increase firms’ likelihood to engage in corporate socially irresponsible (CSIR) activities. Moreover, we identify conditions for when our theory applies. We propose that proximity to bankruptcy, strategic flexibility, and track record of corporate social responsibility serve as moderators that enhance our focal relationship. In a longitudinal study of 883 firms for years 2009 to 2020, we find support for the hypothesized relationship between CEO creativity and CSIR and the moderating effects of proximity to bankruptcy and strategic flexibility.

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Atlanta)

Paper: Impact of Nonfamily CEOs’ Origin on Foreign Market Entry of Family Firms (17413)

Division: IM - International Management

Session: 1245 - What Drives Internationalization of Family Firms?

Authors

• Fei Tang – Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
• Tao Bai – University of Queensland
• Nikolaos Papageorgiadis – University of Liverpool Management School
• Yang Yu – RMIT University

Abstract

The agency-based theoretical premise that nonfamily CEOs are risk-averse has been extensively researched, but the relationship between nonfamily CEOs and family firms’ internationalization has yielded mixed results. We address this issue by examining the origin of nonfamily CEOs, that is, if they are internally promoted or externally recruited. We find that internally promoted nonfamily CEOs have stronger psychological ownership with family firms, resulting in a lower agency problem of risk-aversion. We also find that the strength of psychological ownership is influenced by governance mechanisms, such as managerial ownership incentives and family board monitoring.

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Columbus A)

Paper: Can Chatbots be Emotional? Understanding the Impact of Chatbots’ Emojis on Consumer Response (16150)

Division: CTO - Communication, Digital Technology, and Organization

Session: 1226 - Chatbots: What Are They Good For?

Authors

• Tiantian Wang – Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester
• K. Nadia Papamichail – Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester
• Sahar Karimi – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

Chatbots have become an important tool for communicating with customers. This study examines how emojis can affect such communications by expressing emotion. Grounded on Emotional Contagion Theory, this paper examines the effect of emoji usage by chatbots on customer relationship perception and its sequential impact on purchase intention. Through three experiments, we show that the use of emojis can increase the perception of customer-chatbot rapport, and this relationship is serially mediated by the perceived chatbot emotion and consumer pleasure. The impact of emojis usage on customer-chatbot rapport is moderated by the presence of semantic grounding. We also demonstrate that customer-chatbot rapport positively influences purchase intention. We contribute to the literature by demonstrating how emojis affect rapport building, the underlying mechanism and boundary conditions. This research provides important implications for marketing managers and chatbot developers in terms of the design and implementation of chatbots.

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile (Salon F)

Paper: It’s (Not) My Game: Green Realignment’s Divergent Impact on Stakeholders in CSiR Firms (19811)

Division: SIM - Social Issues in Management

Session: 1308 - Dear Corporate Social Irresponsibility (CSI), Meet Shareholder Activism

Authors

• Jia Shen – University of Texas at Dallas - Jindal School of Management
• Yuxi Cheng – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

This study examines the complex interplay between corporate social irresponsibility (CSiR) and stakeholder reactions, focusing on the divergent impacts of sustainability transformations. Specifically, we investigate how efforts to mitigate CSiR's adverse effects on shareholder activism through corporate sustainable strategies—green talent and technology realignment initiatives—can yield contrasting responses among shareholders and employees. Applying a muti-stakeholder attribution framework, our primary argument posits that while CSiR is a direct catalyst for shareholder activism, it does not significantly affect employee complaints because they may be attributed to external causes rather than the organization. However, when firms initiate internal green talent and technology realignment initiatives, including green job searching and green innovation activities, this internalization of response strategies might lead employees to reattribute firm misconduct internally. This shift in attribution is expected to heighten employee sensitivity and complaints regarding CSiR. The study seeks to contribute to the fields of corporate social responsibility and organizational behavior by highlighting the critical role of attribution processes in shaping employee responses to internal sustainability efforts. The findings highlight the need for a balanced and holistic approach in addressing the varying expectations and perceptions of diverse stakeholder groups within the corporate sustainability framework. 

11.30AM - 1PM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Randolph 3)

Paper: Making IB Research Impactful: An Analysis of UK Research Excellence Framework Impact Case Studies (14876)

Division: IM - International Management

Session: 1358 - Managing Alliances Between Businesses, and Between Scholars (22080)

Authors

• Nikolaos Papageorgiadis – University of Liverpool Management School
• Frank McDonald – Professor of International Business, University of Leeds Business School
• Malika Ben Kahla – PhD candidate at University of Liverpool Management School
• Yingqi Wei – University of Leeds

Abstract

The International Business (IB) discipline has the potential to make societal impact and help tackle grand challenges by providing and applying pertinent knowledge. This has sparked ongoing debates concerning the future research agenda in IB and the calls for closer coupling between IB research and practice. This paper aims to improve our understanding of the extent to which IB research has made a high-quality impact on IB practice. We present a comprehensive evaluation of Impact Case Studies (ICS) with an IB focus submitted to the UK Research Excellence Framework (REF) in 2014 (REF2014) and 2021 (REF2021), offering a unique avenue to evaluate the key characteristics and evolution of how submitting UK universities have presented their ‘best’ cases of high-quality impact connected to IB research. This evaluation enables the development of novel insights into key characteristics of high-quality impact from IB research that have policy implications for universities leaders aiming to understand and boost impact related work in their institutions, policymakers related to University-industry collaboration and future ICS authors.

11.30AM - 1PM CT (UTC-5), Swissotel Chicago (Alpine I)

Paper: How Social Context Influences CPA Tactics: Insights from the Business History of the British Empire (16127)

Division: MH - Management History

Session: 1368 - Political Ideologies and Management Amidst Historical Turmoil

Authors

• Andrew D A Smith – Birmingham Business School, University of Birmingham, UK
• Ruomei Yang – University of Liverpool Management School
• Mehdi Boussebaa – University of Glasgow
• Maki Umemura – Cardiff University
• Aparajith Ramnath – Ahmedabad University

Abstract

While Corporate Political Activity (CPA) is an increasingly important area of managment research, there is growing awareness of the limitations of the theoretical tools used to understand CPA and firms decisions about which CPA tactics to use. This history-to-theory paper discusses the range of CPA tactics used by British MNEs during the British Empire, documenting that the tactics selected varied along the directness and formality dimensions. We document that as Britain’s domestic political system democratized, those British MNEs who participated the imperial project adopted increasingly indirect CPA tactics. We also find that changing moral economy of the political marketplace changes which CPA tactics are used by MNEs. Our findings also suggest that MNEs may have more political power than is generally assumed in the management literature on CPA, particularly in non-democratic countries. Our paper contributes to the wider project of developing a Political Marketplace 2.0 theoretical lens by illustrating the relevance of the historian Thompson's concept of moral economy. We discuss the implications of our research for teleological or Whig views of history and for thinking about how future institutional change could change the CPA tactics used by MNEs headquartered in emerging markets.

11.30AM - 1PM CT (UTC-5), Fairmont Chicago - Millennium Park (Gold Room)

Paper: When Institutional Maintenance Fails: Situational Logics in the UK Fire Service (12002)

Division: OMT - Organization and Management Theory

Session: 1398 - Institutional Memory and Maintenance: Being a Goldfish?!

Authors

• Colette Russell – Monash Business School
• Mike Zundel – University of Liverpool Management School
• Christian Garmann Johnsen – Copenhagen Business School

Abstract

Although much is known about the types of actions that can create, sustain, and undermine institutions, less is known about the contextual conditions under which different acts of institutional maintenance succeed or fail. We theorize these conditions as ‘situational logics’. Situational logics alter in relation to shifting levels of interdependence of institutional actors and changes in the favorability of prevailing contexts for actors’ vested interests. As outcomes, situational logics are influenced by multi-level events, including previous actions of institutional actors, and as antecedents they provide contexts for subsequent action. Using the case of the UK Fire Service, we identify four situational logics—protection, compromise, elimination, and opportunism—as well as corresponding acts of institutional maintenance—defensive, concessionary, competitive, and expedient. We find that acts of institutional maintenance are more effective when they correspond with prevailing situational logics. This allows us to show how acts of institutional maintenance that can be effective at one point in time can be ineffective or even detrimental at another. Our research contributes to understanding the multi-level influences on institutional maintenance and change, emphasizing the timing and context of institutional action within a processual framework.

1.15PM - 2.45PM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Atlanta)

Paper: Firm Termination of Irresponsible Suppliers: The Role of Severity of Irresponsibility (14854)

Division: IM - International Management

Session: 1475 - Managing Global Value Chains Responsibly

Authors

• Yuxi Cheng – University of Liverpool Management School
• Anupama Phene – George Washington University

Abstract

Our paper explores whether and under which conditions a firm terminates its relationship with an irresponsible supplier in its global supply chain. Integrating the systems perspective in the context of sustainability with the literature on organizational aspirations, we posit that firms use nuanced decision-making to assess the cost-benefit ramifications of maintaining relationships with irresponsible suppliers while considering the expectations of their stakeholders. We hypothesize a non-monotonic relationship between supplier irresponsibility and firm termination of the relationship, with firm tolerance for intermediate severity of irresponsibility. We further propose that firm financial and sustainability underperformance relative to industry peers act as moderators, prompting firms to distance themselves from irresponsible suppliers, at both intermediate and high severity.

1.15PM - 2.45PM CT (UTC-5), Fairmont Chicago - Millennium Park (Imperial Ballroom)

Paper: Doing Jurisdictional Work: Organizations and the Nurturing of Professionalization (10650)

Division: HCM - Health Care Management

Session: 1470 - Physician Responsibilities & Outcomes (22893)

Authors

• Yaru Chen – University of Liverpool Management School
• Ian Kirkpatrick – University of York Management School
• Trish Reay – University of Alberta

Abstract

There has been significant attention to professionalization projects, although the focus has so far been almost exclusively on how professionals themselves engage in actions designed to claim or extend their jurisdiction. We build on recent work exploring a potentially symbiotic relationship between organizations and professionals, to explain how organizational actors can encourage and facilitate processes of professionalization. Drawing on data from China, we studied the experiences of Community Health Centers (CHCs) as they participated in the development of the General Practitioner profession. We develop a conceptual model explicating three sub-processes that organizations can enact to support the efforts of new professionals as they attempt to realize the extent of their jurisdiction within workplace settings. By highlighting the jurisdictional work of organizational actors, we contribute to the literature by developing a more nuanced understanding of the symbiotic relationship between organizations and professionals. We also contribute to the literature by showing how organizations can provide opportunities for professionals to establish relational authority and claim jurisdiction as they engage in the co-production of professionalization projects.

3PM - 4.30PM CT (UTC-5), Fairmont Chicago - Millennium Park (Cuvee Room)

Paper: Exploring Middle Manager Identity Work During Strategic Change (17121)

Division: SAP - Strategizing Activities and Practices

Session: 1638 - Strategists’ Identities and Subjectivities

Authors 

• Lisa Day – University of Liverpool Management School
• Julia Balogun – University of Liverpool Management School
• Carola Wolf – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

Research has shown middle managers to be important players in strategic change implementation. As strategic change agents they provide a pivotal link between top-down strategy and operational delivery. However, we know much less about why some individual middle managers adapt well to this strategic change agent role whilst others do not, or why sometimes managers that appear likely to adapt well, surprisingly, do not. Through a two-year, real-time study of an internal merger, this paper explores how middle managers’ identity work influences the adaptation of their role as strategic change agents. We develop a process model of the interplay between individual identity work and identity regulation during strategic change, and extend understanding of middle manager strategizing behaviour through a processual analysis of individual level identity dynamics.

3PM - 4.30PM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Erie)

Paper: The Global Sourcing of Green Products (10562)

Division: STR - Strategic Management

Session: 1198 - Environmental Strategies and Sustainability

Authors 

• Heather Berry – McDonough School of Business Georgetown University
• Jasmina Chauvin – McDonough School of Business Georgetown University
• Yuxi Cheng – University of Liverpool Management School
• Narae Lee – Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)

Abstract

While international trade in green products is seen as a key factor in facilitating a global transition toward low-carbon economies, our knowledge of firm sourcing strategies for such products is limited. In this paper, we examine how global sourcing strategies for green products are affected by the stringency of country environmental standards and green technological development within a country. Because of the importance of observable and credible sustainable manufacturing practices throughout firm global value chains and unique knowledge requirements for green products, we expect country institutional contexts to have different effects on the global sourcing decisions for green versus non-green products. Our findings using data on U.S. imports for more than 5,000 distinct products over the 2002–2019 period show that green products are more likely to be sourced from countries with higher environmental standards and advanced technology, while non-green product sourcing patterns align with prior research, which emphasizes the appeal of lower environmental standards and cost-efficiency considerations. Overall, this paper identifies an important boundary condition for the pollution haven effect in global sourcing and unlike prior work that argues that higher environmental standards hurt exporters, suggests that such standards benefit green product exporters.

4.45PM - 6:15PM CT (UTC-5), Swissotel Chicago (Matterhorn)

Paper: The Interplay of Line Managers’ HR Self-Efficacy, Brokerage and HRM Implementation (14426)

Division: HR - Human Resources

Session: 1677 - Social Capital and Leadership: Building Human Capital in Organizations

Authors

• Huadong Yang – University of Liverpool Management School
• Julia Brennecke – University of Liverpool Management School and University of Potsdam
• Salma Raheem – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

Line managers’ HRM implementation is a key challenge in achieving HRM competitive advantages. Drawing on the Ability-Motivation-Opportunity (AMO) framework and the social and human capital perspective, we investigate the joint effect of line managers’ HR self-efficacy and their role as information brokers in HR advice-seeking networks on HRM implementation, and further explore the consequences of HRM implementation for team performance and identity. We conducted a survey study in six manufacturing firms in Indonesia and collected data from 88 line managers, 325 team members, and 69 directors. Our findings reveal an inverted U-shape relationship between HR self-efficacy and HRM implementation, with both low and excessive self-efficacy levels correlating with inadequate HRM implementation, whereas a medium level relates to better HRM implementation. The findings also confirm the moderating effect of brokerage on this relationship: the inverted U-shape curve flattens for line managers who are information brokers. Finally, the findings show that HRM implementation is positively associated with team performance and identity. These findings offer new insights into the interplay between human and social capital in HRM implementation. They also enhance our understanding of the configuration of ability, motivation, and opportunity within the AMO model in this context of HRM implementation.

4.45PM - 6.15PM CT (UTC-5), Fairmont Chicago - Millennium Park (Ambassador Room)

Paper: Exploring the Paradoxical Nature of Digital Public Services: Experiences of UK Local Council Leaders (10371)

Division: PNP - Public and Nonprofit

Session: 1721 - Inclusion & Exclusion: Inclusivity in Public, Nonprofit, and Digital Spaces

Authors

• Blessing Otuore – PhD candidate at University of Liverpool Management School
• Lilian Otaye-Ebede – University of Liverpool Management School
• Samah Shaffakat – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

The digitalisation/inclusion paradox captures the coexisting benefits and challenges that digital technologies bring to the public sector in cost savings, efficiency, and decreased processing times but also potentially limiting citizens' access to public services. Public service leaders are confronted with the need to balance the needs and expectations of multiple stakeholders in managing digitalisation and inclusion while remaining conscious of the benefits and challenges. We conducted and analysed 31 semi-structured interviews of local council leaders in the UK public sector, using thematic analysis to explore how they process guidelines for digitalisation, their considerations before adopting digitalisation and inclusion initiatives, and any challenges experienced in the process. We found three key tensions that leaders experienced in managing digitalisation and inclusion between leaders and councillors, leaders and employees, and leaders and citizens. We also identified challenges and strategies that council leaders use to manage organisational change, cost, and an overload of communication from governing bodies that influence the progress of digitalisation and inclusion initiatives. Our findings contribute to the literature on digital leadership by delineating the strategies leaders use to navigate the tensions and challenges they face through the stages of digitalisation. 

8AM - 9.30AM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Picasso)

Paper: Understanding Psychosocial Functions as an Innovative Practice for Diversity and Inclusion (14716)

Division: DEI - Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Session: 1785 - Innovative DEI Practices

Authors

• Loliya Kagher – U. of Aberdeen
• Lilian Otaye-Ebede – Uniiversity of Liverpool Management School
• James Stewart – Liverpool John Moores University

Abstract

This study highlights the relevance of recognising and understanding psychosocial functioning in organisational diversity discourse to advance inclusion and belonging in the workplace. In this study, we focus on gender and ethnic organisational diversity. We draw from interviews with 30 women of African origin living and working in the UK. We identify their psychosocial functioning by examining their involvement in mentoring functions. Likewise, we use a womanism theoretical perspective to understand why women of African Origin value psychosocial functioning. Our contribution shows that psychosocial functioning identified through intentional mentoring and adapted within the work environment is a necessity for addressing present and future work challenges concerning diversity, inclusion and belonging.

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Swissotel Chicago (Zurich E)

Paper: An Attributional Perspective on HRM Implementation and University Faculty Members’ Well-Being (14435)

Division: HR - Human Resources

Session: 1923 - Leveraging Advanced Methodologies to Transform HR Practices

Authors

• Natthapong Pakieranum – PhD candidate at University of Liverpool Management School
• Huadong Yang – University of Liverpool Management School
• Mariella Miraglia – University of Liverpool Management School

Abstract

Although it is acknowledged that the intended HRM differs from the implemented HRM, past studies on employee attributions of HRM have mainly focused on the intended HRM by organizations. Little is known about how employees attribute the implemented HRM by line managers. Drawing on Kelley’s (1973) covariation model of attribution theory and Schwartz’s (2012) framework of personal values, this study investigates how information patterns of HRM implementation influence employees’ attributions and how employees’ personal values modify the relationships between perceived information patterns and employees’ attributions of HRM implementation. In addition, it also explores the effects of employees’ attributions of HRM implementation on their well-being. Using vignettes as experimental stimuli, we conducted a one-factor (with three levels) between-subject design with personal values as covariates among 200 academic staff in a Thai university. The results largely support the moderated mediation models, showing that personal values moderated the relationships between information patterns perceived by employees and their attributions of HRM implementation, which in turn influenced employees’ well-being. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are further discussed.

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Michigan 1B)

Paper: The Exposure of Emerging Market MNCs to Patent Litigation Abroad (21072)

Division: IM - International Management

Session: 1930 - Managing Change in the Host Country

Authors

• Wolfgang Sofka – University of Liverpool Management School and Copenhagen Business School
• Nikolaos Papageorgiadis – University of Liverpool Management School
• Sreevas Sahasranamam – University of Glasgow
• Mukundhan K.V. – Indian Institute of Management, Tiruchirappalli

Abstract

Threats from patent litigations are a major roadblock for the internationalization strategies of MNCs from emerging markets (EMNCs). While extant theory focuses on weak patent systems in emerging economies as an obstacle for multinational corporations from developed economies, we conceptualize them as experiential learning contexts, shaping patent enforcement routines of local firms. We reason that superstitious learning from patent enforcement experiences as defendants in weak, domestic patent systems are counterproductive for EMNCs. Overconfidence in underdeveloped patent enforcement competences expose them to costly patent litigation abroad. We find empirical support analyzing 2273 Indian firms between 2007 and 2017. Vicarious learning from operating in many countries with strong patent systems and experience with patent filings abroad create boundary conditions. 

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Michigan B)

Paper: The Temporal Dynamics of External Knowledge Sourcing: The Influence on Innovation Performance (21335)

Division: TIM - Technology and Innovation Management

Session: 2007 - Open Innovation and Innovation Success

Authors

• Panagiotis Ganotakis – University of Liverpool Management School
• Sofia Angelidou – Agricultural University of Athens
• Matthew Matthew Yeung – Lee Shau Kee School of Business and Administration
• Palitha Konara – University of Sussex Business School
• Charalampos Saridakis – Athens University of Economics and Business

Abstract

Prior research on open innovation has taken a static view by focusing on stable patterns of external knowledge sourcing. Such a static view ignores the fact that a firm’s portfolio of external knowledge sources evolves over time. Our study attempts to address this gap by clarifying how temporal variations in a firm’s knowledge sourcing activities (i.e., changes in external search breadth and external search depth) affect its innovative performance (i.e., radical innovative performance). We conceptualize temporal variations as encompassing simple change events (i.e., single transformative events captured through increases and/or decreases in breadth and depth) and multiple change events (i.e., repeated changes captured through increases and/or decreases in breadth and depth); and then developing theoretical arguments that draw on the organization learning theory. We find that asymmetries emerge when comparing both simple and multiple change events in breadth and depth. Our findings contribute to the research on open innovation by providing insights into the temporal dynamics and evolution of knowledge sourcing activities.

9.45AM - 11.15AM CT (UTC-5), Swissotel Chicago (Monte Rosa)

Paper: Legacy as Atmospheric Space (20777) 

Division: MH - Management History

Session: 1937 - Tracing Organizational Histories: Narratives, Memory, and Legacy

Authors

• Yihan Liu – University of Liverpool Management School
• Ziyun Fan – University of York

Abstract

How can we understand legacy as space? We address this question through a non-representational approach to space by conceptualizing legacy as and through atmospheric space. We argue that the atmospheric spatialization of legacy is a tensional yet regulative mechanism that both structures and disrupts an inherited reality being re-lived in the present, generating multiple and contesting realities. We show how such tensional organizing of legacy is formed by and forms competing interactions between a staged past and a living present. Drawing on a historical case study with two rounds of archival data collection and 47 semi-structured interviews on a historically prestigious Victorian building, we bring forward three interconnected forms of such competing interaction, including atmospheric alignment with hope, misalignment as a catalyst for change, and (re)alignment with entrapment. The contribution is twofold. First, we extend the limited understanding of space in the study of legacy, which is largely one-dimensional considering space as a physical and static container. We show how the interactions between atmospheric space and legacy partake in the contesting actualization of legacy. Second, this study partakes in the broader conversations on the ‘atmospheric turn’ in management and organization studies, foregrounding the tensional in-betweenness of atmospheric space, in turn unveiling the danger of contagiousness of legacy.

11.30AM - 1PM CT (UTC-5), Fairmont Chicago - Millennium Park (Regal Room)

Paper: How Stories Make Strategy: Top Management and Middle Managers’ Storytelling Performances (12010)

Division: SAP - Strategizing Activities and Practices

Session: 2106 - Narrative Practices

Authors

• Etieno S. Enang – University of Liverpool Management School
• Ying Zhang – Strathclyde Business School, University of Strathclyde
• Harry Sminia – Strathclyde Business School, University of Strathclyde

Abstract

Whose stories generate strategy within organizations? This question is answered by examining archival and interview data from CementCo over a period of 5 years. The data revealed that strategic change is performed through the interplay between alignment and accordance of top management persuasive and middle managers’ self-persuasive storytelling. The study unravels temporal structuring practices used to conjure up strategic change as plausible, necessary, inescapable, and desirable. This advances our understanding of how storytelling may perform strategic change. Our findings help managers to understand how strategic change takes place, not only through top-down storytelling practices by top management, but also attempts at self- persuasion by middle managers who are instrumental to implementing strategic change. These self-persuasion practices performed by middle managers are not linear, straightforward processes, but occur through struggles, tensions, and attempts to justify change. This paper addresses the assumed power asymmetry that top management can realize change by simply providing stories that are persuasive.

11.30AM - 1PM CT (UTC-5), Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile (Indiana)

Paper: The Link Between Climate Change Risk Perception, Strategy, and Performance: A Risk-Based Approach (19146)

Division: ONE - Organizations and the Natural Environment

Session: 2092 - Navigating Risks and Opportunities in Sustainable Investment and Management

Authors

• Martin Nerlinger – HSG University of St. Gallen
• Sarah Stephen – University of Liverpool Management School
• Sebastian Utz – University Augsburg
• Judith Louise Walls – HSG University of St. Gallen

Abstract

While many companies engage in both climate mitigation and adaptation strategies, a clear understanding of how risk perceptions shape these strategies and their ultimate effectiveness is lacking. Our research proposes a novel risk-based model of corporate climate change strategy, arguing that companies' perceptions of climate risk determine the type of strategy they pursue, ultimately affecting environmental and financial performance. We theorize three risk-based climate strategies (risk-avoiding, risk-reducing, and risk-transferring) and hypothesize that they mediate the relationship between risk and performance. We use a rich dataset of large panel data and causal mediation analysis to test our hypotheses. We find that more stringent climate strategies mediate the climate change risk-environmental performance relationship more strongly than less stringent strategies. Further, stringent strategies improve short-term financial performance and external carbon exposure evaluations influence long-term financial performance. Our new conceptualization is based on risk and task environment, and integrated with climate mitigation and adaptation.

11.30AM - 1PM CT (UTC-5), Sheraton Grand Chicago (Sheraton Ballroom IV) 

Paper: A Structuration Perspective on Board Interlocks and Corporate Strategic Action (14809)

Division: STR - Strategic Management

Session: 2119 - Interorganizational Networks

Authors

• Steffen Triebel – University of Exeter Business School
• Julia Brennecke – University of Liverpool Management School and University of Potsdam
• Christiana Weber – Leibniz University Hannover

Abstract

Studies on board interlocks are divided into two streams, one examining their dynamics; the other, their consequences. Our paper proposes that both phenomena – board interlock dynamics and board interlock consequences – are interdependent. Adopting a structuration theoretical perspective, we theorize and empirically demonstrate how firm’s corporate strategic actions (specifically, acquisitions and divestitures) influence their board interlock networks and how these networks, in turn, influence the firm’s corporate strategic actions, revealing their recursive nature. Integrating these heretofore disjunct research streams, we complement the corporate governance literature by providing evidence that corporate strategic actions and board interlock networks coevolve. We contribute to theory on strategic networks by applying a structuration theory lens. Lastly, we illustrate methodological advances by using stochastic actor-oriented models to analyze coevolution processes.

1.15PM - 2.45PM CT (UTC-5), Hyatt Regency Chicago (Michigan 2)

Paper: Psychological Resource as a Necessary Condition for Students’ Mental Health and Study Adjustment (18470)

Division: MED - Management Education and Development

Session: 2171 - Wellbeing in Management Education

Authors

• Ming Li – University of Liverpool Management School
• Michal Wilczewski – University of Economics and Human Sciences in Warsaw
• Paola Giuri – Bologna University
• Zhixi Zhuang – Ryerson University

Abstract

Drawing on the conservation of resource (COR) theory, this study examines individual psychological resource as a necessary condition for students’ mental health and study adjustment during the Covid-19 pandemic. We further examine how international and domestic students differ in their resources, mental health and study adjustment. Employing partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), the study tests the hypothesized effects of psychological resources utilizing online survey data from 2,136 domestic and international students across five countries. The necessary condition analysis demonstrates psychological resources as necessary but not sufficient conditions for mental health and study adjustment. Additionally, one-way analysis of variance reveals that international students surpass domestic students in psychological resources, mental health, and adjustment. This research makes a novel contribution to the COR theory by proposing the “necessary resource principle,” which underscores that certain resources constitute necessary conditions in the event of significant losses of other resources. It provides evidence that individual psychological resources are not only desirable but also indispensable for students’ mental health and study outcomes during stressful periods. Furthermore, it contributes to adjustment theory by emphasizing the pivotal role of mental health in students’ adjustment. The implications for management and higher education are discussed.