Coordination in a not-for-profit organisation during the COVID-19 pandemic: organisational sensemaking during planning meetings

PurposeThe authors examine how a not-for-profit organisation (NPO) coordinates NPO's actions during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic to remain focussed on strategic and operational goals.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted a live case study of an NPO as the crises caused by the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded. Drawing on a sensemaking perspective that incorporates sensegiving, the authors develop a framework of five types of organisational sensemaking. The authors analyse weekly planning meetings during which managers discussed past performance, forecast performance and the forecast duration of current cash reserves.FindingsThe authors show how three of the five types of organisational sensemaking helped to coordinate actions. The authors highlight how accounting information triggers organisational sensemaking processes;but depending on the type of organisational sensemaking, accounting information has little further role. The authors also show that the stability of decisions depends on the types of organisational sensemaking.Practical implicationsThe authors show how coordination as a management control practice is enabled by organisational sensemaking within an NPO during a crisis. Organisational sensemaking enabled the agreement of actions, which enabled coordination. Accounting practices provided trigger mechanisms to facilitate organisational sensemaking.Originality/valueSince this study is the first to examine sensemaking processes and accounting practices in coordination in an NPO in a pandemic, the authors contribute to the limited research on NPOs during crises and on the management control practice of coordination. The authors extend the accounting literature on sensemaking by showing that, whilst accounting triggers organisational sensemaking, accounting is only implicated in one type of organisational sensemaking and by revealing the different outcomes of the different types of organisational sensemaking.

Corporate characteristics, audit quality and managerial entrenchment during the COVID-19 crisis: evidence from an emerging country

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between some corporate characteristics, audit quality and managerial entrenchment in Tunisian companies.Design/methodology/approachThe multivariate regression model is used for hypothesis testing using a sample of 224 listed observations on Tunisian Stock Exchange during 2014–2020. An exploratory factor analysis of four variables (chief executive officer (CEO) duality, CEO tenure, CEO seniority and CEO age) is used for calculating a unique index assessing the managerial entrenchment.FindingsThe results show a negative and significant relationship between audit quality and managerial entrenchment. The authors also find that firm characteristics affect management entrenchment. Precisely, corporate financial performance and firm leverage show positive connections with managerial entrenchment (ME). Additional analysis confirms the negative impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on managerial entrenchment level.Practical implicationsThe study's findings have practical implications that may be useful to different stakeholders, policymakers and regulatory bodies interested in reducing management entrenchment. This study offers signals to shareholders about specific governance attributes, namely audit quality, that control the extent of manager's entrenchment.Originality/valueThe originality of this paper consists in focusing on developing countries, namely the Tunisian context;while the managerial entrenchment phenomena has been widely examined in developed markets. Moreover, contrary to the overwhelming majority of previous studies that has used individual indexes for evaluating the entrenchment, the authors calculate a mixed index of managerial entrenchment using the principal component analysis based on four governance mechanisms (CEO duality, CEO age, CEO seniority and CEO tenure).

The impact of leadership competences, organizational learning and organizational innovation on business performance

Purpose>This study aims to investigate the effects of leadership competences (cognitive, interpersonal, and results-oriented competences) on organizational learning, organizational innovation, and business performance.Design/methodology/approach>Data were collected from owners, chief executive officers, top and middle management teams, and other managers of tourism and hospitality firms in Vietnam. A total of 638 valid responses was collected and processed using PLS-SEM technique.Findings>The findings revealed that only results-oriented competence exerted significant influences on business performance. Organizational learning was affected by all three leadership competences, while only cognitive and interpersonal competences positively affected organizational innovation. The relationships among organizational learning, organizational innovation, and business performance were also confirmed. Moreover, the findings emphasized the mediating roles of organizational learning and organizational innovation in the relationship between leadership competences and business performance. Organizational learning and organizational innovation also acted as a mediator in the relationship between cognitive competence and business performance.Practical implications>This study provided some suggestions for tourism and hospitality leaders in exhibiting appropriate leadership competences, strengthening organizational learning, and fostering organization innovation to enhance business performance.Originality/value>Although the topics of leadership competences, organizational learning, organization innovation, and business performance have received a great concern among worldwide academia, there is scarce research examining the relationships among these four phenomena together. This paper is among the first study that offers a comprehensive model of the relationships among these domains.

Trade barriers ‘block global COVID-19 vaccine goals’

Speed read Manufacturers say bottlenecks are thwarting equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines Nearly 10 billion doses are needed by March 2022 to stem pandemic - World Bank WHO proposes ‘technology transfer hubs’ to scale up manufacturing in global South Efforts to scale up manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines and ensure fair access globally are being stymied by major bottlenecks which must be resolved urgently to tackle the pandemic, say vaccine industry players. Michelle McMurry-Heath, president and CEO, Biotechnology Innovation Organization Thomas Cueni, head of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations, said there were “realistic chances” of reaching the 10 billion doses target, but only if supply chain bottlenecks are resolved. Presently, the vaccine industry is plagued by a critical shortage of input materials in the supply chain, says Rajinder Suri, chief executive officer of the Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers Network (DCVMN).

Intangibles, Firm Performance, and CEO Characteristics: Spotlight on the EU Electricity and Gas Industry

The transition from the industrial economy to the knowledge-based economy has changed the status quo, and consequently, intangibles have gained traction in the scientific discourse of recent decades. The paper aims to scrutinise, econometrically, the nexus between intangibles and firm performance and the moderating role of CEO duality and CEO gender. Capital-intensive industries are largely overlooked by previous studies, which prompted us to explore the electricity and gas industry. The analysis is based on a longitudinal dataset of EU-listed companies and employs a quantitative approach to study the causal relationships between intangibles, firm performance, and CEO characteristics. Results demonstrate that intangible assets are a stepping stone to better financial and market performance, which endorses the resource-based view. Today’s social and cultural milieu sees gender diversity in a positive light. Consonant with the upper echelons theory, the study finds that CEO gender positively impacts the intangibles–firm performance relationship. The hypothesised prejudicial effect of CEO duality, postulated by the agency theory, is only partially supported. Managers and policymakers are advised to pay particular attention to intangibles and science-driven projects to augment corporate performance. Creating a diversity-friendly culture is also of paramount importance.

360-Degree Video Bandwidth Reduction: Technique and Approaches Comprehensive Review

Recently, the usage of 360-degree videos has prevailed in various sectors such as education, real estate, medical, entertainment and more. The development of the Virtual World “Metaverse” demanded a Virtual Reality (VR) environment with high immersion and a smooth user experience. However, various challenges are faced to provide real-time streaming due to the nature of high-resolution 360-degree videos such as high bandwidth requirement, high computing power and low delay tolerance. To overcome these challenges, streaming methods such as Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (DASH), Tiling, Viewport-Adaptive and Machine Learning (ML) are discussed. Moreover, the superiorities of the development of 5G and 6G networks, Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) and Caching and the Information-Centric Network (ICN) approaches to optimize the 360-degree video streaming are elaborated. All of these methods strike to improve the Quality of Experience (QoE) and Quality of Service (QoS) of VR services. Next, the challenges faced in QoE modeling and the existing objective and subjective QoE assessment methods of 360-degree video are presented. Lastly, potential future research that utilizes and further improves the existing methods substantially is discussed. With the efforts of various research studies and industries and the gradual development of the network in recent years, a deep fake virtual world, “Metaverse” with high immersion and conducive for daily life working, learning and socializing are around the corner.

The CEO Is Leaving. Now What?

An increasing number of CEOs are deciding to leave their posts on their own terms in the wake of COVID-19, for factors ranging from burnout to a need to take stock of their lives. Others are simply coming to the end of their agreed-upon term in office. Here, Gillespie and Simpson discuss how to navigate the last 100 days of a CEO's tenure.

Human capital futures: an educational perspective

Purpose>Education institutions can be slow to react to the changes that are happening in human capital development content and delivery. This article highlights some of the shifts that robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and access to information are having on jobs in tourism and the future of work. It explores the ways in which the tourism education sector can respond.Design/methodology/approach>This paper draws upon content shared at several conferences and webinars addressing the future of work and the education delivery methods from experts and commentators on the subject. This was augmented by research conducted by global tourism associations, the World Economic Forum and other global associations and supported with secondary data from recent media and online content providers.Findings>By highlighting emerging trends in the sector and skills to thrive in the fourth industrial revolution, we can identify what education should focus on during this period of transition and uncertainty. We need to capitalize on the digital delivery skills we have developed due to COVID-19 and build new content and accessible learning approaches.Originality/value>There are many uncertainties about the future of work and the way that a rapidly digitized education delivery approach has and will affect tourism education in the future. This article is aimed to generate further thought and dialogue by identifying changes and raising points about what we are effective at in public post-secondary education and what we need to capitalize on and adapt to in the future. The core question posed is that if the tourism and hospitality workforce and work environment has changed, has, or can, tourism and hospitality training and education change as well?

Chief Executive Officers and the Value of US Airlines: The Moderating Effect of Carrier Type

The purpose of this research is to explore the moderating effect of carrier type on the effects of upper echelon attributes. The study subject is the position of chief executive officer (CEO). The dependent variable is market-to-book value;the independent variables are CEO age, tenure, and educational background. The moderator is LCC. For the data collection, this study used COMPUSTAT and EXECUCOMP using the standard industry classification code 4512;the data are collected from Annual 10K and Linkedin. There are 15 airlines examined, and the study period is from 1999–2019;in total, 210 observations were used for the data analysis. Multiple regression analysis was the main instrument used to test the research hypotheses. The results indicate that both older CEOs in LCCs performed better in the market.

ESG, operational efficiency and operational performance: evidence from Real Estate Investment Trusts

Purpose>The purpose of the paper is to examine the relationship between the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and their operational efficiency and performance.Design/methodology/approach>The authors use S&P Global (formerly SNL Real Estate) for the study analyses and examine all publicly traded REITs based in the United States over the 2019–2020 sample period. The authors regress the measures of REIT operational efficiency and operational performance on REIT ESG scores while controlling for REIT characteristics and use an ordinary least squares (OLS) estimation model with heteroscedasticity-robust standard errors. The authors also run additional regressions to examine the implications of operational efficiency on the relationship between ESG and operational performance.Findings>The authors find that REITs that perform well on the ESG scale have higher operational efficiency. In addition, the authors find that REITs with better ESG scores are associated with better operational performance. Finally, the authors find that the positive association between ESG scores and operational performance is stronger in REITs with higher operational efficiency.Practical implications>First, the adoption of ESG adds value to the REIT in terms of increased operational performance and efficiency. Second, the value addition of ESG to an REIT is driven by the better operational efficiency of some REITs over the others. Therefore, the authors’ findings suggest that REITs that currently score poorly on ESG performance would first need to focus on all the possible avenues to improve economies of scale and hence operational efficiency. This approach would help ensure that when those REITs adopt ESG initiatives, they get the most bang for their buck.Originality/value>To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that relates operational efficiency and operational performance of REITs to their ESG scores.

Managerial Trustworthiness and Buybacks

CEO trustworthiness is positively related to long-term excess returns after buyback announcements. When the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is trustworthy, statements that the stock is undervalued are more credible. CEO trustworthiness is initially measured by the extent to which people in the county where the company headquarters is located trust each other. Further, the positive impact of trustworthiness on excess returns is higher when the CEO has been a long-term resident of a high-trust county, and correspondingly, trustworthy CEOs are less likely to be accused of financial misreporting. Our conclusions are confirmed when we use alternative measures of trustworthiness such as employee trust and CEO integrity.

An Interview with Janet Godwin

Godwin has a M.A. in English from the University of Iowa and a B.A. in English from the University of Oklahoma, has completed graduate work in instructional design and technology, and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Godwin served on the board of education of the Iowa City Community School District from 2017-2021 and currently serves on the board of MidWestONE Bank. In my six-year role as chief operating officer, I brought insights to the organization that helped streamline our processes and zero in on our commitment to the many organizations and millions of people served by ACT every year. [...]more states and districts than ever have students testing for free during the school day, ensuring equitable access to testing for more than one million students, many of whom will be the first in their families to go to college and earn a degree.

Unanticipated Pandemic Outcomes: The Assault on Public Health

Groups such as Freedom Angels, Sovereign Nation, the Boogaloo Boys, and Colorado Counties for Freedom have coordinated strong pushback on public health measures in communities and have specifically targeted local health officials by generating messaging that includes personal attacks on integrity, conducting in-person demonstrations at the homes of public health officials, taking out radio advertisements against public health, and using other tactics to pressure public health officials regarding unpopular health orders and mitigation efforts. According to the resulting report, Legal Protections for Public Health Officials, 35 states and the District of Columbia have "criminal statutes punishing individuals who impede public health officials' duties with such behavior." Local health departments have been testing patients, managing case investigations and contact tracing for their communities, managing extraordinary amounts of data, providing wrap-around services forthose isolating or quarantining, hosting communitybased mass testing and vaccination sites, communicating with the public and the media, and regularly convening local partners including business, education, early child care, emergency medical services, police, fire, hospital systems, and providers. The campaign focuses on stopping the harassment of public health professionals by (1) reporting threats and violence against public health and working to hold accountable those who make take these actions;(2) asking Congress to require state and local monitoring and reporting of threats and harassment against public health workers for performing their official duties, including threats related to race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender;and (3) using existing statutes, and supporting new laws, to protect public health professionals.6 Let us all stand behind health officials and the staffs that serve their departments.

MOTIVATE OTHERS ATTAINING A CEO MINDSET: THE KEY TO WORKING REMOTELY

[...]do you have a group of mentors with differing skills and positions to serve as a "board of mentors"? In selecting your board of mentors, consider individuals from college, medical school, and residency training who have had the most impact on your career and personal development, whether they be clinicians, administrators, or researchers.4 Strong leaders, gifted teachers, and subject matter experts are typical candidates, as are personal acquaintances such as colleagues, clergy, and psychotherapists. [...]many of SEAK's faculty work remotely. Sylvie Stacy, MD, MPH, author of 50 Nonclinical Careers for Physicians and founder of the popular blog Look for Zebras (https://lookforzebras.com), observes that physicians often consult with clients who are businesses;the doctors provide services involved in clinical expertise (e.g., chart review and expert witness), high-level healthcare strategy, practice technology implementation, and writing and speaking.7 Other consulting services are geared toward individuals, for example, career coaching, tutoring, and personal fitness training.

Too Much on the Plate? How Executive Job Demands Harm Firm Innovation and Reduce Share of Exploratory Innovations

Building on psychological research on job demands and executive job demands theory, we explain why executive job demands negatively influence a firm's overall innovation and shift the balance of innovative activities toward a larger share of exploitative innovations at the expense of exploratory innovations, leading to a smaller share of innovations that are exploratory. In addition, we explain how variety in executives' gender, age, and tenure and an innovative climate weaken the negative effects of job demands on both overall innovation and the share of exploratory innovations. Our theory suggests that a controlling climate and employees' education weaken the negative effect of job demands on overall innovation but exacerbate the negative effect of job demands on the share of exploratory innovations. Using surveys collected on-site from 243 Chinese firms, we find support for five of our 10 hypotheses and marginal support for three additional hypotheses but no support for the two moderating effects of innovative climate. This study shifts innovation scholars' attention away from executive cognition and characteristics to their job environment attributes. It also develops executive job demands theory by examining its boundaries and applicability to the domain of innovation management.

CEO leadership learning during our global pandemic: voices from the C-suite

Purpose>This study answers the question, “What are the learning experiences and drivers that provide CEOs with the knowledge, skills, and abilities that will allow them to lead their enterprises through crises?”Design/methodology/approach>Thirty chief executive officer (CEO) interviews were conducted with two trained interviewers that lasted an average of 76 min. These interviews covered CEO experiences in challenges faced, adaptation, learning and lessons gleaned during the COVID-19 pandemic.Findings>The interview responses were content analyzed to provide ten main drivers of CEO learning during the pandemic.Originality/value>The size and scope of the pandemic provides for lessons on leadership learning never experienced before. This study provides in-depth insights from CEO experiences during the pandemic.

The effect of generalist CEOs on social novelty in the restaurant industry

Purpose>Through the lens of the upper echelons theory, this study aims to investigate how generalist chief executive officers (CEOs) affect social novelty. This paper also explores the moderating effect of CEO power on the relationship between generalist CEOs and social novelty.Design/methodology/approach>This study uses generalized estimating equation models and robust standard errors by firm to correct for autoregressive disturbances within clusters in the data.Findings>Restaurant firms with generalist CEOs are likely to feature gender diversity and member change in the top management structure. This positive effect of a generalist CEO on top management team’s (TMT) structure is enhanced by the CEO’s power over board members.Practical implications>This study presents important evidence that CEOs’ characteristics largely influence the gender heterogeneity and dynamic of the TMT, which in turn promote and shape innovative initiatives and actions.Originality/value>To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is one of the first to investigate the effect of CEOs’ human capital on the way in which the TMT is composed and characterized in the restaurant sector.

The Impact of Gender Diversity, CEO Experience and Financial Leverage on Financial Performance of Companies in the Transport and Hospitality Industry in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia for Period 2015-2020

. The Covid-19 pandemic has made financial performance in a company undergo several changes. Activities of some companies have decreased, increased, or even tended to be unstable when compared to before and after the pandemic. The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of gender diversity, CEO business experience, and financial leverage on the financial performance of companies in the transport and hospitality industry in Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia for the period 2015-2020. The sample in this study is transport and hospitality companies in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand for the 2015-2020 period that are registered with the Compustat database. A sample of 25 companies during the 6-year study period (2015-2020) makes 150 samples. The authors use secondary data, namely data from the Compustat database and websites of companies. Data analysis includes the following steps: normality test, multicollinearity test, multiple linear regression analysis, t-test. Data analysis was performed in the STATA v.16.0 application - statistical software for data science. The results of the multiple linear regression equation show that the direction of the influence of gender diversity, debt to equity ratio, and interest coverage ratio on the financial performance of companies in the transport and hospitality industry is positive and significant. Meanwhile, the CEO's Business Expertness and debt ratio variables harm the financial performance of companies. Therefore, investors should pay attention to external and internal factors that affect the financial results of the company before investing in its activities.

Does risk matter for executive compensation?

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine whether chief executive officer (CEOs) are paid for the systematic and/or unsystematic risks and whether there is any optimum risk premium level in the executive pay.Design/methodology/approachFirm and year fixed effect panel data regression was used to estimate the relationship between total CEO compensation and systematic (market) and unsystematic (firm) risks.FindingsThere is no nexus between CEO pay and unsystematic (diversifiable) risk;however, the association between CEO compensation and systematic (undiversifiable) risk is positively significant in line with agency theory. Moreover, it is revealed that this positive relationship has an optimum point (curvilinear).Research limitations/implicationsThis paper contributes to the controversial argument in the literature by investigating the situation in the Swiss market. Switzerland is an exemplary country because of its direct democracy (consensus) structure for executive pay. This study is limited by the fact that only total CEO compensation is analyzed.Practical implicationsAs a practical implication, it is shown that after the optimal point, the higher compensation does not motivate the CEOs to take higher risks and does not provide the organizations with any additional benefit.Originality/valueThe finding of this study supports agency theory’s risk premium assumption and provides additional evidence to the contradictory results in the literature with a new country setting that has paramount importance in executive compensation phenomena. It is a comparative finding with prior literature also outlines the future research area in the risk and compensation literature.

Gem-A Notices

Gem-A Conference, Graduation and Presentation of Awards In the first week of November 2021, Gem-A hosted two significant events for its Members and Students, signalling a return to some in-person events and the continuation of Gem-A’s annual conference tradition. The conference was followed by the Gem-A Graduation Ceremony and Presentation of Awards on the evening of Monday 8 November, hosted at Church House in London, where participants enjoyed balcony views across Westminster Abbey. Gem-A has long reserved the first weekend in November to host its most anticipated annual events, including the Gem-A Conference, field trips to the Natural History Museum and Tower of London, and its annual Graduation Ceremony and Presentation of Awards. ‘COVID-19 restrictions did force us to make changes in our annual in-person events, but we are reintroducing the Gem-A Conference and Graduation Ceremony in ways that are safe, effective and for the benefit of our Members and Students,’ explained Alan Hart FGA DGA, chief executive officer of Gem-A.