Integrating the developed-market resources after acquisitions is a crucial tool for Chinese multinational enterprises (CMNEs) to accelerate industrial high-quality development. However, existing ...theories have scarce thorough explanations of the dynamic mechanism of CMNEs’ post-merger integrating resources. Our research aims at disclosing CMNEs’ post-merger integration (PMI) long-term dynamics under resource relatedness changes. We applied a multiple-case study with four typical CMNEs’ German-market PMI cases and proposed a theoretical framework based on a coding analysis of 38 interviews. Our findings highlight that: CMNEs change initial gentle integrations (partnering/preservation) to balance dependence when pre-merger resources complementary decreases with similarity increasing, or to extreme dependence when pre-merger resources similarity continually increases to extremely high. Pre-merger resource relatedness basics and later changes and CMNEs’ dynamic capability (threat and development potentials’ perception capabilities and utilization capability) are crucial factors in promoting CMNEs’ PMI changes. Our originality lies in that we consider the interactions resource relatedness changes and CMNEs’ PMI dynamics, strongly replenishing the deficiency of current PMI dynamic studies that lack considerations of resource relatedness changing; also, we simultaneously consider the two facets of dependence asymmetry and joint dependence such that broadened the application of resource dependence theory (RDT) in PMI studies. Our study offers managerial insights into CMNEs’ development leapfrog through acquisitions in developed markets that CMNEs should focus on the vital role of inter-firm resource relatedness changing. Initial gentle integration can be deepened when original resource backgrounds become more similar but should be cautious of the effect of power imbalance and selfish actions.
Plain Language Summary
CMNEs’ Dynamic PMIs RDT perspective
Purpose—Our study aims to disclose the post-merger integration (PMI) long-term dynamics of Chinese multinational enterprises (CMNEs) under resource relatedness changes from a lens of resource dependence theory (RDT). Methods—We applied a multiple-case study with four typical CMNEs PMI cases and proposed a theoretical framework by a coding analysis of 38 interviews. Conclusions—CMNEs change initial gentle integrations (partnering/preservation) to balance dependence when pre-merger resources complementary decreases with similarity increasing, or to extreme dependence when pre-merger resources similarity continually increases to extremely high. Pre-merger resource relatedness basics and later changes and CMNEs dynamic capability (threat and development potentials perception capabilities and utilization capability) are crucial factors in promoting CMNEs PMI changes. Implications—Our theoretical implication lies in that we strongly replenish the deficiency of current PMI dynamic studies that lack considerations of resource relatedness changing by considering the interactions resource relatedness changes and CMNEs PMI dynamics, and broaden the application of RDT in PMI studies by simultaneously considering the two RDT facets of dependence asymmetry and joint dependence. Our study offers managerial implications for CMNEs to focus on the vital role of inter-firm resource relatedness changing. Gentle integration is not the only choice but can be deepened when original resource backgrounds become more similar. Meanwhile, CMNEs should be cautious of the effect of power imbalance and selfish actions. Limitations—Our case study is relatively small-sized so a large-sample quantitative investigation is needed to verify and test the generalizability of our theoretical framework empirically.
With the growing prevalence of AI-based systems and the development of specific regulations and standardizations in response, accountability for consequences resulting from the development or use of ...these technologies becomes increasingly important. However, concrete strategies and approaches of solving related challenges seem to not have been suitably developed for or communicated with AI practitioners.
Studying how risk governance methods can be (re)used to administer AI accountability, we aim at contributing to closing this gap. We chose an exploratory workshop-based methodology to investigate current challenges for accountability and risk management approaches raised by AI practitioners from academia and industry.
Our interactive study design revealed various insights on which aspects do or do not work for handling risks of AI in practice. From the gathered perspectives, we derived 5 required characteristics for AI risk management methodologies (balance, extendability, representation, transparency and long-term orientation) and determined demands for clarification and action (e.g., for the definition of risk and accountabilities or standardization of risk governance and management) in the effort to move AI accountability from a conceptual stage to industry practice.
This open access book introduces the reader to the foundations of AI and ethics. It discusses issues of trust, responsibility, liability, privacy and risk. It focuses on the interaction between ...people and the AI systems and Robotics they use. Designed to be accessible for a broad audience, reading this book does not require prerequisite technical, legal or philosophical expertise. Throughout, the authors use examples to illustrate the issues at hand and conclude the book with a discussion on the application areas of AI and Robotics, in particular autonomous vehicles, automatic weapon systems and biased algorithms. A list of questions and further readings is also included for students willing to explore the topic further.
Dilemma situations involving the choice of which human life to save in the case of unavoidable accidents are expected to arise only rarely in the context of autonomous vehicles (AVs). Nonetheless, ...the scientific community has devoted significant attention to finding appropriate and (socially) acceptable automated decisions in the event that AVs or drivers of AVs were indeed to face such situations. Awad and colleagues, in their now famous paper “The Moral Machine Experiment”, used a “multilingual online ‘serious game’ for collecting large-scale data on how citizens would want AVs to solve moral dilemmas in the context of unavoidable accidents.” Awad and colleagues undoubtedly collected an impressive and philosophically useful data set of armchair intuitions. However, we argue that applying their findings to the development of “global, socially acceptable principles for machine learning” would violate basic tenets of human rights law and fundamental principles of human dignity. To make its arguments, our paper cites principles of tort law, relevant case law, provisions from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and rules from the German Ethics Code for Autonomous and Connected Driving.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has evolved as a disruptive technology, impacting a wide range of human rights-related issues ranging from discrimination to supply chain due diligence. Given the ...increasing human rights obligations of companies and the intensifying discourse on AI and human rights, we shed light on the responsibilities of corporate actors in terms of human rights standards in the context of developing and using AI. What implications do human rights obligations have for companies developing and using AI? In our article, we discuss firstly whether AI inherently conflicts with human rights and human autonomy. Next, we discuss how AI might be linked to the beneficence criterion of AI ethics and how AI might be applied in human rights-related areas. Finally, we elaborate on individual aspects of what it means to conform to human rights, addressing AI-specific problem areas.
The growing awareness of the influence of "what we eat" on lifestyle and health has led to an increase in the use of embedded food analysis and recognition systems. These solutions aim to effectively ...monitor daily food consumption, and therefore provide dietary recommendations to enable and support lifestyle changes. Mobile applications, due to their high accessibility, are ideal for real-life food recognition, volume estimation and calorific estimation. In this study, we conducted a systematic review based on articles that proposed mobile computer vision-based solutions for food recognition, volume estimation and calorific estimation. In addition, we assessed the extent to which these applications provide explanations to aid the users to understand the related classification and/or predictions. Our results show that 90.9% of applications do not distinguish between food and non-food. Similarly, only one study that proposed a mobile computer vision-based application for dietary intake attempted to provide explanations of features that contribute towards classification. Mobile computer vision-based applications are attracting a lot of interest in healthcare. They have the potential to assist in the management of chronic illnesses such as diabetes, ensuring that patients eat healthily and reducing complications associated with unhealthy food. However, to improve trust, mobile computer vision-based applications in healthcare should provide explanations of how they derive their classifications or volume and calorific estimations.
This open access book tackles the pressing problem of integrating concerns related to Artificial Intelligence (AI) ethics into higher education curriculums aimed at future AI developers in Africa and ...beyond. For doing so, it analyzes the present and future states of AI ethics education in local computer science and engineering programs. The authors share relevant best practices and use cases for teaching, develop answers to ongoing organizational challenges, and reflect on the practical implications of different theoretical approaches to AI ethics. The book is of great interest to faculty members, researchers, and students in the fields of artificial intelligence, computer science, mathematics, computer engineering, and related areas, as well as higher education administration.
The current endeavor of moving AI ethics from theory to practice can frequently be observed in academia and industry and indicates a major achievement in the theoretical understanding of responsible ...AI. Its practical application, however, currently poses challenges, as mechanisms for translating the proposed principles into easily feasible actions are often considered unclear and not ready for practice. In particular, a lack of uniform, standardized approaches that are aligned with regulatory provisions is often highlighted by practitioners as a major drawback to the practical realization of AI governance. To address these challenges, we propose a stronger shift in focus from solely the trustworthiness of AI products to the perceived trustworthiness of the development process by introducing a concept for a trustworthy development process for AI systems. We derive this process from a semi-systematic literature analysis of common AI governance documents to identify the most prominent measures for operationalizing responsible AI and compare them to implications for AI providers from EU-centered regulatory frameworks. Assessing the resulting process along derived characteristics of trustworthy processes shows that, while clarity is often mentioned as a major drawback, and many AI providers tend to wait for finalized regulations before reacting, the summarized landscape of proposed AI governance mechanisms can already cover many of the binding and non-binding demands circulating similar activities to address fundamental risks. Furthermore, while many factors of procedural trustworthiness are already fulfilled, limitations are seen particularly due to the vagueness of currently proposed measures, calling for a detailing of measures based on use cases and the system’s context.
Business Ethics Lütge, Christoph; Uhl, Matthias
2021, 2021-03-18
eBook
Open access
Business ethics continues to gain importance in the curricula of business studies courses. This book provides a comprehensive overview of both the essential concepts of business ethics related to the ...economy as a whole, and the more narrowly understood corporate ethics related to the individual company. In contrast to other works on the same topic, special emphasis is placed on a coherent theoretical foundation that puts tools of economic analysis, including behavioral economics, at the center. In particular, the importance of both empirical research and dilemma structures for business ethics receives special attention. The largest chapter of the book is devoted to corporate ethics and provides students and academics with guidance in the theoretical classification of the variety of concepts that often coexist in the debate. Abstract concepts are illustrated with the help of practice boxes.
The following contribution sheds light on the norms at stake when it comes to
international cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI). International cooperation
on AI involves two conceptual ...pillars: international regulation and global
diffusion of AI-powered technologies. While the international regulatory discourse
is concerned with establishing frameworks for minimizing and mitigating negative
consequences of AI development and deployment, the global diffusion of AI
technologies presents global policy makers with an ethical dilemma. AI represents
an important tool to realize social development, but also an instrument that can
amplify pre-existing norm violations. Based on an analysis of the moral dilemmas
posed by international cooperation on AI, the authors advocate focusing on the
avoidance of complicity in human rights violations while maintaining technology
transfer of AI solutions critical for human development.
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