Publication date: Available online 25 July 2017
Source:Journal of World Business

Author(s): Niccolò Pisani, Arno Kourula, Ans Kolk, Renske Meijer

While studies on international corporate social responsibility (CSR) have expanded significantly, their true global nature can be questioned. We systematically review 494 articles in 31 journals over a 31-year period. We assess the embeddedness of CSR in international management/business (IB); analyze the coverage of developing, emerging, and developed countries; map the literature thematically; summarize key findings; discuss main empirical features; and identify unanswered questions, implications, and best practices. We find that international CSR research is far from being global and still emerging in ‘mainstream’ IB. This comprehensive review also helps to set an agenda for future international CSR scholarship.

Publication date: Available online 15 July 2017
Source:Technological Forecasting and Social Change

Author(s): Rameshwar Dubey, Angappa Gunasekaran, Stephen J. Childe, Thanos Papadopoulos, Zongwei Luo, Samuel Fosso Wamba, David Roubaud

Although literature indicates that big data and predictive analytics (BDPA) convey a distinct organisational capability, little is known about their performance effects in particular contextual conditions (inter alia, national context and culture, and firm size). Grounding our investigation in the dynamic capability views and organisational culture and based on a sample of 205 Indian manufacturing organisations, we empirically investigate the effects of BDPA on social performance (SP) and environmental performance (EP) using variance based structural equation modelling (i.e. PLS). We find that BDPA has significant impact on SP/EP. However, we did not find evidence for moderating role of flexible orientation and control orientation in the links between BDPA and SP/EP. Our findings offer a more nuanced understanding of the performance implications of BDPA, thereby addressing the crucial questions of how and when BDPA can enhance social/environmental sustainability in supply chains.

Publication date: Available online 6 July 2017
Source:Technological Forecasting and Social Change

Author(s): Andreas Munzel, Lars Meyer-Waarden, Jean-Philippe Galan

Although social sustainability involves processes that promote well-being, it is often neglected in the sustainability debate. Social networking sites (SNSs) such as Facebook are now pervasive venues for constant interpersonal communication and interaction, as well as general social connectedness. The debate between cyberoptimists and cyberpessimists about the implications of SNS use for well-being persists. The present study adopts a social sustainability perspective and seeks to further elucidate two competing hypotheses; thus, subjective well-being is included as a driver and an outcome of SNS use and social network characteristics. We conducted a survey of 678 Facebook users across various age categories and then applied a two-step approach to analyze the data. The results reveal that although the structural parameters seem to widely support the social enhancement hypothesis, a more differentiated analysis shows that highly extraverted individuals spend more time on Facebook when they are unhappy. Furthermore, the more time that such extraverts spend on Facebook, the more they believe that it improves their overall well-being. This finding is further supported by our identification of a four-class structure in which a clear distinction of users emerges based on age, gender, and extraversion.

Publication date: Available online 6 July 2017
Source:Long Range Planning

Author(s): Federico Cosenz, Guido Noto

Business Modelling has evolved as a key activity to reflect new business venture strategy by framing the way a firm will operate and how it will function in achieving its goals (e.g., profitability, growth, innovation, social impact). However, scholars and practitioners have criticized the adoption of a too static perspective in the design and use of conventional Business Model representations. Such a static perspective prevents nascent entrepreneurs experimenting with their Business Models and, as a result, identifying the most effective strategies, especially in terms of business sustainability and profitability. In this paper, we argue that combining conventional Business Model schemas with System Dynamics modelling results in a strategy design tool that may overcome several limitations related to a static view of Business Model representation. Mapping the different key elements underlying value creation processes into a system of causal interdependencies – through the use of simulation – allows strategy analysts and entrepreneurs to experiment and learn how the business reacts to strategic and organizational changes in terms of performance, innovation and value creation. As such, Dynamic Business Models provide useful insights to strategy formulation and business venturing by capturing how critical Business Model elements interact to produce enduring competitive advantages over time.