Sustainable value creation has moved to the center of attention of many companies, leading to a shift in external corporate reporting. Sustainability information is provided within sustainability ...reports and CSR reports as well as integrated reports. Research has considered the motivations and different formats of integrated reports and how these reports provide a better information basis for investors. However, integrated reporting information may also affect internal decision making by providing decision makers with a more comprehensive picture of the impact of the firm's strategy. Here, we present the results of a scenario‐based experiment testing how financial, unlinked financial and nonfinancial, and integrated information affect the outcomes of investment decisions. We find that an integrated information basis leads to decisions with higher sustainable value creation. We thus show that information prepared for external reporting can also be used for internal purposes to help companies establish sustainable decision behavior.
► An analysis of the status quo of modal split and intermodal integration of 41 major airports. ► Major regional differences between American, Asian, and European Airports. ► Airports aim at ...increasing the share of high-occupancy access modes. ► Cluster analysis reveals different motives for intermodal integration. ► Provides best practice example for air-rail integration.
Soaring air traffic, increasing urban expansion and airports operating at full capacity are reasons that have caused a discussion about improvements in airport landside access systems. One approach to better match customer demands and address airport congestion is to facilitate the intermodal integration of airports. Building on a survey on intermodal passenger air transportation, we elaborate on the current and future situation at major airports. Our findings indicate a high modal concentration and dependence on individual access modes. However, while airport managers intend to reduce the share of these modes, they plan to increase that of high-occupancy airport access modes. We analyze the underlying motives that cause airports to extend their connections to surface infrastructure. In a case study, we assess an intermodal best practice solution for the integration of air and rail.
•Individual performance in continuum between permanent and temporary organizations.•Job satisfaction, organizational commitment and person-job fit as antecedents.•Degree of organizational ...temporariness as moderator.•Study of 341 employees in temporary organizations.•Results are reversed to the known effects in permanent organizations.
Permanent organizations and temporary organizations, such as projects, represent two poles of a continuum of organizational temporariness. The literature has shown that organizational temporariness can influence organizational outcomes and employee behavior. Using a sample of 341 members of temporary organizations, we investigate job satisfaction and organizational commitment in a permanent organization and person-job fit in a temporary organization as antecedents of employee performance. We further examine how the degree of organizational temporariness moderates these relationships. The findings show that job satisfaction and organizational commitment negatively influence employee performance in a work environment shaped by the coexistence of a permanent organization and a temporary organization, in opposition to their known effects in permanent organizations.
The prevalence of temporary forms of cooperation and project-based work is increasing. Likewise, the knowledge-intensity of work contents is growing. However, the unique and temporary nature of ...projects and programs does not support knowledge transfer from, between and within projects.
This research aims at spotting success factors of knowledge management in temporary organizations. Based on a cross-industry sample with 414 organizations, we apply the partial least square (PLS) method to test the influence of cultural, organizational, structural, and process-related factors on knowledge management effectiveness.
Besides IT-support and formal elements of the organization, it is cultural factors that strongly influence knowledge management success. In temporary organizations they compensate for the lack of organizational routines and organizational memory. Our results contribute to a more differentiated understanding of knowledge management in project environments.
Projects and other temporary forms of organizing are different from standard organizational processes. As most leadership theories are based on the assumption of stable organizational environments, ...the increase in temporary forms of organizing poses specific challenges to leadership theories. We evaluate existing leadership theories in terms of their applicability on temporary environments and identify theories, which are adaptable to temporary settings and therefore may be the basis for empirical investigations in this field. On this basis we derive a research agenda by proposing individual leadership theories and combinations of different leadership approaches to be further assessed in research.
Large and complex project networks are characterized by the collaboration of heterogeneous organizations and individuals. In addition to project management techniques and complementary skills, ...relational competence, i.e. the ability to actively create and develop collaborative relationships is an essential asset for managing project networks. Networks represent structured role systems which may be a substitute for stable organizational structures and routines. This study investigates relational competence in the network of a large construction project of a French hospital. Based on network data and qualitative interviews, we compare the formal roles and positions of actors in the network to their actual roles and positions and analyze how relational competence promotes the coordination of project work. We find several actors whose network position and relational competence correspond to the formal organization and several actors with a mismatch between the formal organization and the actual role and position. In the latter cases, other network members step in and contribute to an effective coordination. The concept of relational competence in combination with network analysis contributes to a better understanding of the functioning of project networks. In particular, it reveals dysfunctions in the project network and allows for identifying the reasons for failure.
► Analysis of relational competence in the network of a complex construction project. ► Comparison of formally described roles and positions to actual roles and positions. ► Different types of relational competence contribute to effective project work. ► Network members change their roles to compensate for failures in the network. ► We reveal dysfunctions in the project network and identify reasons for failure.
Many believe that project complexity reduces project management performance. However, so far research has failed to establish this causal relationship conclusively. We extend research on project ...complexity by introducing the concept of team-level absorptive capacity and by studying its role as mediator between project complexity and project management success. Applying structural equation modelling to a sample of 285 respondents, we find an unequivocal, direct and positive statistical association between project complexity and delays and overspending. Further, we show that team-level absorptive capacity is critical for successful project management, but also that absorptive capacity can only partially offset the harmful impact of project complexity. Beyond adding to project management theory, the paper contributes to the wider management literature. We establish complexity as an antecedent of absorptive capacity and demonstrate how each dimension of absorptive capacity has unique determinants and outcomes.
•Project complexity increases the risk of unscheduled delays.•Project complexity makes cost overruns more likely.•Team-level absorptive capacity mitigates delays and overspending.•Project-team capacities cannot fully offset the effect of project complexity.
Emerging smart mobility concepts suggest solutions for more effective and environmentally friendly transportation. Given their importance in enabling smart mobility, road infrastructure networks have ...received limited attention. Questions concerning the development of various isolated smart mobility solutions dominate the discourse, including only a few detached and unaligned implications towards road infrastructure provision. As a result, the development, operation, and functionality of road infrastructure networks are remarkably unchanged, and the deployment of smart mobility solutions remains tentative. The objective of this study was to investigate how road infrastructure must adapt to facilitate a smart mobility transition, not for a single solution but as a socio-technical system transition. As no compiled knowledge for this objective exists, a systematic literature review was performed to consolidate and inductively analyse the literature on smart mobility solutions. Based on the results, implications for road infrastructure provision were identified, and as a path forward, a conceptual model for the digital transformation of road infrastructure is presented. By using smart mobility as the antecedent for changes in road infrastructure provision, this paper contributes to an increased understanding of user-driven, industrial transformations and advances the current product/project view on digitalisation in infrastructure provision with broader value implications. The main contributions of this study are concrete pathways for road infrastructure provision that support smart mobility.
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine companies’ reasons for voluntarily obtaining third-party integrated reporting (IR) assurance and the role of external auditors in the assurance ...process. Design/methodology/approach By conducting 25 in-depth semi-structured interviews, a wide range of significant actors in the assurance process of integrated reports are addressed. In addition, archive materials are considered. The authors apply institutional theory, agency theory, and the diffusion of innovations theory to analyze IR assurance. Findings Companies follow coercive pressures by their stakeholders when obtaining external assurance. They intend to appreciate their non-financial indicators and increase their credibility and reliability. Auditors play an important role as change agents for the implementation of IR assurance by, e.g., supporting the correct interpretation of the International Integrated Reporting Council standards and by promoting IR. Research limitations/implications First, 25 in-depth interviews can only give a first insight about the stated questions. Second, this paper only considers auditors and company representatives from Germany. Third, investors were not questioned about their attitude toward IR assurance. Practical implications The results may serve as a basis for the implementation of IR assurance. Originality/value This study combines the relatively unexplored research field of IR with three established theories. Hereby, it exposes companies’ motivation for obtaining external assurance and auditors’ role on the assurance process.
Recent developments indicate a fast-growing relevance of the agile project methodology in innovation. Besides the benefits, agile projects also pose several challenges. Organizations need to come up ...with an answer to cope with the inherent risks of agile projects. The adaption of management control mechanisms is key to foster the benefits of agile. However, the ongoing debate on the benefits of control systems for innovation and the harm of control systems for achieving agility creates a nexus. Further research on how to adapt existing mechanisms is required to obtain a better understanding and provide guidance for organizations. Building on Simon's levers-of-control (LOC), this study specifies the consequences of different control levers applied by top managers on the outcome of innovation projects considering the respective project agility and the agility of the projects' environment. We follow the calls of existing research on the nexus of control and agility and adumbrate which control levers can positively influence the outcome of agile and non-agile innovation projects. Using survey data of 316 project managers and product owners across different industries, this study reveals that the impact of control on innovation project performance depends on the design of control systems and the emphasis on different control levers used by top managers. Furthermore, the findings reveal a moderation effect of agility in this context. The combination of the LOC and agile project management for innovation projects contributes to the literature on innovation management, project management, and management control.
•Study on control levers applied by top managers in innovation projects.•Considers project agility and the agility of the projects' environment.•Control levers influence the outcome of agile and non-agile innovation projects.•Impact of control on project performance depends on the design of control systems.•The level of agility of the project has a moderating effect.
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