Scandinavian Journal of Management最新文献

While ontology has been recognized as a contributing factor to theoretical disagreements in entrepreneurship, there has been a notable lack of effort to draw out and explicitly discuss the relationships between entrepreneurship and metaphysics. Drawing from Aristotle, we articulate metaphysics as a first philosophy – an ongoing theoretical engagement with the ultimate structure of reality – that supports and guides diverse ways of pursuing knowledge in entrepreneurship. We punctuate uniqueness and universality as two metaphysical pillars in entrepreneurial theory and conclude our perspective paper by discussing how better appreciation and understanding of ontological questions might improve entrepreneurship theory and practice.

Despite the increasing interest in business model innovation (BMI) as a way to improve the performance of firms, and the predominance of family firms (FFs) in modern economy, these two topics have so far not been combined. Drawing on socioemotional wealth (SEW) theory and the corporate social responsibility (CSR) concept, and on insights from research into BMI, we conduct a qualitative analysis using data from fifteen European FFs, examining the strategic and BM focus, the nature of the BM renewal, and the process and outcomes of BMI on their business models (BMs). Our results identify several BM configurations, with a focus on (1) growth by internationalization in combination with attention to increased quality in value creation, and (2) profit orientation based on increased efficiency, enabled by digitalization, mainly in the value delivery components of a BM. The latter reflects distinctive, innovative capabilities found in FFs, that contribute to the preservation of family objectives, as suggested by SEW theory and business orientation on CSR. Furthermore, there is a link between family involvement and limited, but specific, knowledge-related resources, and the way the dynamic BMI process is governed and executed.

Robot utilization is expected to result in significant changes in the way organizations and teams operate. The increasing prevalence of robots in the workplace offers an opportunity to research robot utilization and employee response behaviors to this phenomenon. A timely research question is, “What reactionary behaviors would organizational leaders and employees exhibit as they begin to regard robots as coworkers and teammates?”. The purpose of this commentary is to offer theoretical perspectives on leader response behaviors when leading human-robot teams as well as to understand employee reactions to working alongside a robot teammate. Drawing on paradox and Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) theories and through postulation statements, we show the (contradictory) duality of leader and employee behaviors under conditions of high/low job demands in a human-robot team environment. In doing so, this discussion bears implications for research on team leadership, job crafting, the presence of behavioral robotics, and for the practice of organizational leadership.

Processes of experiential learning are instruments of intelligence. Yet, these processes have limitations. We explore how disinformation – invalid information or experience that actors present as valid to deliberately deceive or persuade targets and achieve a goal – challenges the standard model of experiential learning in the Carnegie School tradition. We examine how disinformation not only elevates the importance of interpretation in experiential learning but also generates three problems that can undermine effective learning: ignorance, conflict, and ambiguity. We outline how organizations and communities might approach these challenges and problems. We also propose ideas and future research that might help actors imagine how to interpret and learn effectively from disinformation.