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Purpose: Project marketing is the specific activity of companies selling projects-to-order. Interpersonal practice is known to be important in this type of marketing. While this interpersonal practice has been little studied, some previous research suggests that changes in the institutional macro environment have affected it. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to study today's interpersonal practice in project business and how the institutional environment conditions it. Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with marketing managers at project-based firms in different business sectors in France and Sweden. Data collection and analysis was informed by grounded theory. Findings: The paper identifies three types of interpersonal practice in project marketing, referred to as the transactional, the work-based and the socializing. Changes in these are explained in relation to the three institutional logics identified in the data: the market institutional logic of business ethics, the corporate institutional logic of rationalization and the family institutional logic of gender equality. Research limitations/implications: Future studies can continue and broaden this work as it regards how the institutional conditioning of interpersonal practice varies with context. Practical implications: By clearly categorizing the three types of interpersonal practice and their relative role today, companies can orient the activities of salespeople, business developers and other project marketers. Social implications: The paper highlights how business ethics and gender equality have changed interpersonal practices in project marketing. Originality/value: The paper contributes to the current debate on project marketing by identifying three types of interpersonal practice and by illustrating how institutional logics condition and change these. The paper shows that extra-business activities are needed less than previous research has argued with regard to maintaining customer relationships in-between projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which cultural differences and slogan meaning type affect the role of comprehension in attitude toward the ad (Aad) and attitude toward the brand (Abrand) formation. Design/methodology/approach: In an online experiment, a total of 256 adult participants from the USA (ranged in age from 19 to 26 years old) and 184 participants from France (ranged in age from 18 to 28) were randomly assigned to one of the two conditions (slogan: single meaning vs polysemous) in a between-subjects experimental design. After getting exposed to the ad, participants responded to questions related to their Aad, Abrand, comprehension, uncertainty avoidance and demographics. Findings: Results from this research demonstrate the moderating effect of uncertainty avoidance and slogan type (single meaning vs polysemous) on the relationship between comprehension and Aad. The authors show that for polysemous (and not single meaning) slogans, comprehension results in more favorable Aad for low uncertainty avoidance individuals than for high uncertainty avoidance individuals. In addition, the authors demonstrate the mediating effect of Aad in the relationship between comprehension and Abrand. Research limitations/implications: The authors used nationality as a proxy for culture. Future research should include other cultural dimensions in the development of conceptual models and analysis of data. Another limitation is that the authors used a college student sample for this research. A more representative sample should be used in future research to examine cultural differences in interpreting adverting messages. One other limitation concerns the measurement tool the authors used to measure objective versus subjective comprehension in this research. While the theoretical foundations of the two modes of comprehension are clear and robust, improved measurement tools can enhance the validity and reliability of future research. Finally, the authors suggest that future research examine the effect of such variables as figure-ground contrast, figure attractiveness, stimulus repetition, prototypicality, symmetry and semantic or visual priming that may impact the processing of brand slogans. Practical implications: This study argues that the processing of brand slogans in advertising is impacted by culture. Individuals from different cultures perceive and comprehend brand slogans differently. This study contributes to the research stream that examines the influence of cultural dimensions on the effectiveness of advertising by focusing more precisely on the impact of uncertainty avoidance (one of Hofstede's cultural dimensions). In the case of single meaning slogans, advertisers might diminish the use of objective comprehension advertising strategies to influence both individuals with high and low uncertainty avoidance. In the case of polysemous slogans, advertisers should consider that consumers with high uncertainty avoidance (vs low uncertainty avoidance) are impacted more by subjective comprehension (vs objective comprehension) when forming Aad and Abrand. Originality/value: This research contributes meaningfully to the marketing literature by examining previous work on ad slogan processing through subjective vs objective comprehension and extending the analysis by incorporating culture as an important factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Empirically, this paper questions whether accounting can help cope with crisis and preserve some form of feminist ideals. Theoretically, this paper aims to explore how accounting affects the division of emotional work in times of crisis. Design/methodology/approach: The paper relies on a qualitative study that investigates "life under lockdown" during the COVID crisis and focuses on middle-class well-educated couples aspiring for some form of gender equality and who introduced accounting tools (schedules, charts, to-do-lists, etc.) in their daily life to achieve it. Findings: The paper argues that accounting tools are not able to prevent couples from adopting traditional ways of carrying out emotional work. By favoring the masculine way of displaying emotions, they make invisible women's efforts for comforting. They even mask the unequal distribution of emotional work under some form of "neoliberal equality". Also, in a context where middle-class standards are perceived as crucial to meet for both parents to keep their social position, accounting tools, by holding parents accountable for these standards, let no time to find alternative ways of living. Consequently, traditional roles become impossible to reverse. Research limitations/implications: The paper investigates accounting, gender and emotions by showing the importance of making emotional work visible at a household but also at an organizational and societal level. It calls for an "integrative" emotional display that is crucial for resilience in times of crisis and invites to challenge neoliberal middle-class standards that make household life difficult for most women. Theoretically, it invites for further exploring how accounting tools are constructed and negotiated and how unpredictable elements of life other than emotions affect gender when accounting tools are introduced in times of crisis. Originality/value: This article contributes to the literature on gender-in-accounting by introducing the concept of emotional work and showing how accounting tools affect the gendered division of emotional work in praxis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Considering the emergence of Live Streaming Shopping (LSS) in Europe and the scant academic coverage it has attracted in terms of characterization, this study's aim is twofold: (1) explore how both consumers and retailers assess the distinctive attributes of LSS in order to identify its characteristics as a new form of commerce, or even retail format, and (2) analyze the motivations of both consumers and retailers for choosing it. Design/methodology/approach: A hybrid literature review – bibliometric and structured – summarizes the body of research available on LSS. Considering the research gap and the authors' two research questions, a qualitative methodology was adopted. This incorporates three primary data sets, collected in France from LSS experts, retail managers and consumers over 18 months. Findings: LSS is a new online retail format, to be added to the range of existing options as it exhibits a typical retailing mix that is substantially different from other formats. From the retailer's perspective, three main motivations are identified while for the consumer, a total of seven motivations to participate in LSS sessions emerged. This new online format appears to be part of the continuum reflecting omnichannel integration. Research limitations/implications: Once the LSS literature has been further developed, the bibliometric review could be repeated to better map the field within contemporary research. Practical implications: Today's retailers cannot ignore LSS: it is a multifaceted hybrid format and touchpoint that is part of an omnichannel strategy and through which both quantitative and qualitative objectives can be achieved. Originality/value: This paper (1) structures the emerging literature on LSS by developing the first hybrid literature review on the topic; (2) substantiates what characterizes LSS as a retail format from the consumer and retailer perspectives and a retail touchpoint in the consumer's omnichannel journey; and (3) proposes a definition of LSS and a research agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Through focusing on gig workers registered in three crowdsourcing platforms, the authors investigate how individual and collaborative job crafting may be positively related to the meaningful work and affective commitment those gig workers develop towards the crowdsourcing platforms they register in. Design/methodology/approach: The authors employed a quantitative research method in which they focused on date from surveys completed by 327 gig workers. They tested the hypotheses using SmartPLS 3, which is more suitable when dealing with complex models, non-normal data, small samples and higher-order constructs. Findings: The results showed that the proactive behaviour embedded within both individual and collaborative job crafting may lead to a sense of meaningfulness for gig workers and subsequently, their affective commitment towards the crowdsourcing platforms they register in. Specifically, the more gig workers undertake individual (H1) and collaborative (H2) job crafting behaviour, the greater the sense of meaningfulness they develop. Moreover, meaningfulness for gig workers positively affects their affective commitment towards the crowdsourcing platforms they register with (H3). Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first of its kind in the context of France and the European Union to focus on job crafting and its effect on both meaningful work and the affective commitment of non-traditional workers. This paper contributes by filling a gap in human resource (HR) management, in which empirical studies that address gig work have been limited so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the role that cloud adoption plays in the strategies of large firms. As an innovative and transforming technology, cloud computing can have a significant impact on firms. It may propel them to adapt their existing strategies to survive in today's unstable, rapidly expanding, digital environment. Methodology: The relationship between cloud computing and company strategy was explored through a qualitative research study. The author conducted 35 semi-structured interviews with business and IT stakeholders working in large French organizations. Findings: Analysis of the results demonstrates that large cloud-adopting firms are driven by three main needs: a need to maintain their place in a highly competitive market, a need to implement innovative solutions and a need to lower costs. Research limitations/implications: The limitations of this research include a number of contingency factors, such as the location of these firms (France) and their size (large). However, the academic literature does not address how adopting cloud services will affect the strategies used by large firms. Given the complex structures of these firms, it seems inevitable that they will adapt their strategies. This is highlighted by this study, which sheds light on the importance of the relationship between cloud adoption and company strategies. Practical implications: This exploratory research study stresses the importance of companies adapting their strategies and enables business professionals to focus on redirecting their strategies when adopting cloud services. In addition, this study provides examples of the behavior of large firms in the French market. Originality/value: Companies need to develop effective business strategies to survive, especially in today's modern world. This paper shows that cloud adoption is leading firms to alter their strategies, and has led to the emphasis of three types of strategy: competition, innovation and cost reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper examines antecedents to perceived injustice in exclusive talent identification practices. Design/methodology/approach: 31 in-depth interviews with individuals working in for-profit organizations in France were conducted and analyzed. Interviewees represented a variety of sectors such as transportation, aerospace, energy and telecommunications. Findings: The use of exclusivity in talent identification influences perceived organizational justice through ambiguous advancement policies, support from hidden networks, lack of diversity in the talent identification process, frequent gender discrimination, and premature labeling of talent. These practices suggest breaches in procedural, distributive and interactional justice by allocating advantages to some employees over others. Exclusivity yielded frustration, jealousy and potential retaliatory behavior against those individuals deemed to be unfairly identified as talent. Practical implications: The challenge of ensuring fair and equitable talent identification is a growing issue for organizations. For managers, it requires paying close attention to how some forms of exclusivity in talent identification may create unfair treatment of employees. Originality/value: While organizational justice research focuses on the background and practices that promote justice, our research finds its originality in examining the sentiments of injustice that remain contextual, subjective and comparative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare knowledge of business concepts acquired at the end of undergraduate studies of management in France and the USA. Design/methodology/approach – Mind maps were used to examine what knowledge students retained toward the end of their undergraduate studies in business and management. Data were collected from two groups of students, one in France and one in the USA and they analyzed on computer software. Findings – The results indicate that the learning process may be influenced not only by the structure and content of the program but also by the environment in which such content is assimilated. This study provides examples of how culture can influence the way we learn and represent core business knowledge. Research limitations/implications – The research was based on a number of undergraduate students and cannot therefore be generalized to other subjects or other levels of studies at the present time. Originality/value – The paper moves away from traditional manners of collecting data through questionnaires and surveys in order to study the impact of management education and what students learn at undergraduate level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore contemporary metaphors used in career literature pertaining to career development in an international context. Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative interviews with thirty-seven skilled self-initiated expatriates in one geographical location were conducted and used for data analysis. Findings – The metaphor of a "river" more aptly captures the career development directions and influences experienced by skilled self-initiated expatriates. Originality/value – The paper provides an analysis of career development influences which impact on the career direction of self-initiated expatriates. It provides useful information and recommendations for career (international career) academics and practitioners with regards to career development influences to be considered with regards to skilled self-initiated expatriates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to untangle the underlying mechanisms through which reputational signals promote stakeholders' intentions to donate in nonprofit organizations via stakeholder trust. Design/methodology/approach: The authors apply a moderated mediation model using an experimental design with N = 248 business and public management students of France. Findings: The results indicate that both a formal reputational signal (third-party certificate) and an informal reputational signal (self-proclaiming to be social entrepreneurial) affect stakeholder trust and intentions to donate. Stakeholder trust partially mediated the relationship between the formal signal and intentions to donate, and the mediation effect was stronger when an informal signal was present (vs. not present). Practical implications: Trust is central to the exchange of nonprofit organizations and their external stakeholders. To enhance trust and supportive behavior toward nonprofit organizations, these organizations may consider using formal and informal reputational signaling within their marketing strategies. Originality/value: This research highlights the pivotal role of formal and informal reputational signals for the enhancing stakeholders' trust and donation behavior in a nonprofit context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to focus on consumers' behaviours in a new trend of grocery retailing, called the drive-through format. It investigates the influence of logistics service quality and product quality (freshness of the product and the product in general) on consumers' reactions (satisfaction, average basket expenditure and shopping frequency) through the mediation of satisfaction. This work also examines whether convenience moderates the relation between perceived quality and consumer satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach: This study tests these relationships with both path and structural models using a data set of grocery drive-throughs in France, gathered during 2015–2016. To confirm the validity of each construct, this paper has based and purified variables using various scales established in previous studies by conducting exploratory and confirmatory analysis. Findings: Logistics service quality and perceived product are effective drivers of consumer satisfaction. As well, the results reveal a positive relationship between quality perceptions and behaviour (average basket expenditure and shopping frequency) through the mediating function of consumer (overall) satisfaction. Thus, the findings indicate that the positive effects of the interaction terms between convenience and both the perceived quality of service and the perceived quality of fresh products on satisfaction can lead to a higher purchase incidence in drive-throughs. However, the degree of consumer convenience does not alter the influence of product quality in general with regard to the formation of satisfaction in connection with drive-throughs. Originality/value: Despite the growth of the drive-through format, few studies have investigated customer satisfaction within grocery retailing, nor its consequences and drivers, especially logistics service quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the state of French medium sized business schools in the Grandes Ecole sector of education and how networks and alliances help business schools survive in an ever-changing and global environment. Design/methodology/approach: The material for empirical research for this paper was gathered by using a case study method of four small to medium sized provincial Institutions of Management Education in France. Findings: The paper demonstrates that all of the business schools studied rely on networks and alliances to face globalisation and internationalise their strategy and seems to follow the three typologies of mergers and acquisitions set down by Napier (1989): extension mergers, collaborative mergers and redesign mergers. At present, the networks and alliances are used on a marginal or peripheral way by networking only a part of the institution at one time. Research limitations/implications: Further research at a later date needs to be carried out in order to observe if the pattern will remain or if there may be networks which will start from the core of the institution since the organisations will in the future have more of an international or global culture. Originality/value: The value of this paper is to demonstrate that medium-sized business schools can compensate their limited resources and compete in the global education market. Alliances and networks appear as key ways in achieving goals of sustainability and survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss the advantage of a combinatory methodology presented in this study. The paper suggests that the comparison with results of previously developed methods is in high agreement. Design/methodology/approach: This paper introduces a combined compromise decision-making algorithm with the aid of some aggregation strategies. The authors have considered a distance measure, which originates from grey relational coefficient and targets to enhance the flexibility of the results. Hence, the weight of the alternatives is placed in the decision-making process with three equations. In the final stage, an aggregated multiplication rule is employed to release the ranking of the alternatives and end the decision process. Findings: The authors described a real case of choosing logistics and transportation companies in France from a supply chain project. Some comparisons such as sensitivity analysis approach and comparing to other studies and methods provided to validate the performance of the proposed algorithm. Originality/value: The algorithm has a unique structure among MCDM methods which is presented for the first time in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Big data analytics (BDA) increasingly provide value to firms for robust decision making and solving business problems. The purpose of this paper is to explore information quality dynamics in big data environment linking business value, user satisfaction and firm performance. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on the appraisal-emotional response-coping framework, the authors propose a theory on information quality dynamics that helps in achieving business value, user satisfaction and firm performance with big data strategy and implementation. Information quality from BDA is conceptualized as the antecedent to the emotional response (e.g. value and satisfaction) and coping (performance). Proposed information quality dynamics are tested using data collected from 302 business analysts across various organizations in France and the USA. Findings: The findings suggest that information quality in BDA reflects four significant dimensions: completeness, currency, format and accuracy. The overall information quality has significant, positive impact on firm performance which is mediated by business value (e.g. transactional, strategic and transformational) and user satisfaction. Research limitations/implications: On the one hand, this paper shows how to operationalize information quality, business value, satisfaction and firm performance in BDA using PLS-SEM. On the other hand, it proposes an REBUS-PLS algorithm to automatically detect three groups of users sharing the same behaviors when determining the information quality perceptions of BDA. Practical implications: The study offers a set of determinants for information quality and business value in BDA projects, in order to support managers in their decision to enhance user satisfaction and firm performance. Originality/value: The paper extends big data literature by offering an appraisal-emotional response-coping framework that is well fitted for information quality modeling on firm performance. The methodological novelty lies in embracing REBUS-PLS to handle unobserved heterogeneity in the sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to position the business apprenticeship model (a work-based learning model where student managers alternate between academic and workplace learning) at a political, institutional and student level in order to explain how it fits within the French business education landscape and how it is considered as a viable business model in management education.Design/methodology/approach Business apprenticeship is analysed through the prism of Osterwalder and Pigneur’s (2010) Business Model Canvas to evaluate the nine dimensions of the business model: customer segments, value proposition, customer channels, customer relationships, revenue streams, key resources, key activities, key partners and cost structure.Findings Two major advantages of the model are identified, namely, the potential for widening participation and affordability and three concerns are outlined: the corporate vision of the apprentice, the recent governmental reforms on funding this model, and the potential synergies between theory and practice.Research limitations/implications This paper is useful for all those who wish to develop an apprenticeship track within their business schools and for employers who are considering the development of apprenticeship partnerships with business schools.Originality/value This paper provides insight into business apprenticeship as a work-based learning model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of participative franchising on performance from the franchisee perspective. In particular, the paper analyses the impact of the franchisee autonomy – in human resource management and marketing decisions – affective commitment to the network and network innovativeness on the franchisee relative performance. Design/methodology/approach: A survey answered by 226 franchisees in France allowed to estimate a structural equations model through partial least squares regression analysis to test the hypothesised relations between autonomy, affective commitment, innovativeness and performance. Findings: According to the authors' findings, franchisee's autonomy in commercial policies, mediated by to franchisor's ability to innovate and acknowledge innovations stemming from the franchisees, and the affective commitment to the network, emerge as strong determinants of the franchisee's performance. Research limitations/implications: The results confirm the conclusions of other research, but extend and integrate them, providing evidence that the role of participative franchising should not be neglected. Practical implications: The results obtained provide evidence about the importance of bidirectional communication instruments in the relations between franchisor and franchisee, and participation tools for the identification, recognition and support to the innovative successful practices developed by franchisees to be quickly implemented by other franchisees in the network. Originality/value: This paper looks at franchisee autonomy, affective commitment and innovativeness as potential determinants of franchisee's performance, being the latter an underexplored topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper is the first of its kind to look at first-year undergraduates in France. The purpose of this paper is to measure the impact of holding down a job on the probability of students dropping out of higher education or passing their first year. Design/methodology/approach: Given the existence of relevant unobserved explanatory variables, probit models with two simultaneous equations have been estimated. The first equation will enable us to explain paid employment or working hours, and the second academic outcomes that allow for dropout. Findings: The results show that being employed means students are more likely to drop out during their first year and less likely to pass. The latter finding is comparable with results for subsequent academic years although the impact is greater for first-year undergraduates. The more intensive the work, the greater the adverse effects of employment. Originality/value: By refining the research, this negative impact of employment is not verified for all the student profiles. For some of them, e.g., those with honours at the secondary bachelor, employment does not harm their academic results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the valuation effect of derivatives use in the French market using a sample of 250 non-financial firms over the period 2000-2002. Design/methodology/approach - The approach taken is application of linear regression framework and panel data techniques. Findings - The paper finds that the decision to use derivatives has no effect on firm valuation. However, the extent of derivatives use is associated with lower firm value. Hence, it seems that French investors do not assign a premium value to derivatives use. Practical implications - The findings imply that managers should explain to investors that firms truly use derivatives for hedging purposes and how such a financial policy creates shareholders value. Originality/value - It is believed that this is the first study that examines the valuation effect of derivatives use in France. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Whilst country-of-origin (COO) effects have been studied extensively since the 1960s, little research has explored these effects with respect to ecological considerations. The purpose of this paper is to explore the COO ecological image (CEI) construct by defining its facets across consumers and professionals from two different countries, namely, France and Australia. Design/methodology/approach: Because of the exploratory nature of the research, the authors used two qualitative techniques, namely, semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Findings: Findings indicate the CEI construct is composed of eight dimensions, namely, policy, technological, economic, people characteristics, natural, climatic, historical and eco-product features. Research limitations/implications: The research provides insights into the CEI construct and justifies future studies to develop a scale measure for it. However, the generalisability of the results must be considered limited due to the qualitative exploratory nature of the study. Practical implications: The research offers implications for companies and policymakers by allowing them to understand how consumers form a CEI. It suggests new applications respective to how to leverage positive aspects of a CEI and how to mitigate negative ones. Originality/value: The study extends the literature on COO by identifying the possible dimensions of the CEI construct, thus providing better insights into the little-explored link between COO and sustainable products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to address the problematic yet under-researched issue of the disconnectedness of the temporary and permanent levels of organisation in project-based firms in terms of learning and innovation diffusion. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is based on a longitudinal case study of a pioneering French construction firm introducing the partnering method in France. Based on an abductive approach, the analytical framework combines insights of the literature on community and networks of practice to investigate the processes and mechanisms of diffusion of innovation in project-based firms. Findings: The function of semi-permanent organisational levels in connecting the temporary and permanent levels of the firm – the communities of practice (CoPs) and network of practice (NoP) exists besides the formal organization of the firm. As a social learning process, innovation diffusion involves both formal (i.e. vertical) and informal (i.e. horizontal) forms of organising and learning. Intermediary and informal ways of organising enables the embedding of innovation both in terms of content and connections. Foremost, CoPs/NoPs contribute to relational embeddedness. Boundary actors and objects are essential in crossing the different levels of embeddedness to overcome the learning boundaries between temporary projects and the permanent firm. Research limitations/implications: The investigation is built on a single case study and further empirical research is needed, preferably longitudinal case studies, as this allows greater capture of the diffusion process. The authors suggest further studies using practice-based perspectives to capture the formal and informal ways of organising innovation diffusion. Practical implications: Managerial interventions should favour the development of the informal dynamics of community and networks to foster both innovation and its diffusion. The managerial challenge lies in creating the right prerequisites for the existence of both the informal community logics of organising and the formal top management decision-making, and to orchestrate their timing in the diffusion process. Social implications: The study reveals the importance of both formal and informal networks in driving innovation. As such, project-based firms should be aware of these dynamics when striving for change. Originality/value: The study contributes to the literatures on diffusion of innovation, project marketing and construction management. It includes new insights related to the function of intermediary and informal organisational levels of project-based organisations, the dynamics and connection between the temporary and permanent levels of the project-based firm related to communities and networks of practice, and the boundary spanning activities that are involved between the formal and informal levels of the firm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present the actors, institutions and changing rules of the French system of industrial relations (IR). It questions whether the traditional view of the French model as “state-centric” is still adequate.Design/methodology/approach Based on institutionalist IR theories of social regulation and neocorporatism, the paper analyses the evolution of the French IR system from a “State-centric” model to the development of collective bargaining, both at the sector and company level, as well as of tripartite concertation.Findings Initially based on adversarial relations between trade unions and employers, compensated by strong state interventionism, the French IR system has experienced a series of reforms, adopted under the pressure of the unions in the 1980s and mostly under the pressure of the employers’ organisations since the turn of the century. These reforms boosted collective bargaining at the workplace level and tripartite concertation at the peak level. The paper analyses the limits of both developments and explains why a reversal of the hierarchy of norms was imposed in 2016 by law without prior concertation.Originality/value The paper presents an original explanation of the change of the initial French IR model, stressing the importance of power relations and the role of IR experts in the different reform moments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The banking industry plays a key role in society because of its role as a financial intermediary. Today’s banks are being asked to endorse environmental objectives, and recent studies have shown that large banks with strong financial performance are more likely to engage in environmental actions. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the link between corporate financial performance (CFP) and corporate environmental performance (CEP).Design/methodology/approach The authors focused on the French banking sector, using the data from a sample consisting of 191 observations covering 68 banks from 2008 to 2011. The environmental scores from the Vigeo database were the proxy measures for the extent to which banks engage in environmental actions. A panel regression model was employed for this study.Findings The findings show that high CFP was associated with high CEP. The findings also reveal that CFP and CEP may strengthen each other, suggesting a complex bidirectional relationship.Originality/value While many studies have examined whether it pays to be green, thus focusing on the causal relationship from CEP to CFP, few have considered that the causal direction might be reversed, from CFP to CEP. Furthermore, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to analyze the CFP-CEP relationship using French bank data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This research aims to explain, in the secular French context, the intention of managers to accommodate religious expression at work (REW) when they are not obliged to do so. This paper seeks to understand the determinants of managerial positions on REW. Building on previous studies on how organisations and managers deal with religious expression, this research seeks to extend the evidence on this important aspect of managerial behaviour in relation to accommodating REW. Design/methodology/approach: The hypotheses were tested using a structural equation model based on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) in diversity management (N = 151 French managers). This method highlights attitudinal and organisational determinants favourable to the intent to accommodate. Findings: The present research provides new insight by identifying two main direct factors affecting managers' accommodation, namely, organisational flexibility (flexible hours, autonomy) and perceived consequences (advantages, disadvantages) and one indirect factor, religiosity. In line with the contradictions within diversity management, the perceived consequences are ambivalent and highly context dependent. One issue to explore is that managers seek to deal with religious expression by making it invisible. Research limitations/implications: In the French context, the explanatory social norm might not be "religiosity" but rather "perceived secularity". The authors recommend that future studies use qualitative methods with interviews and photo elicitation to extend this first study. Indeed, the complexity of the managerial position requires an in-depth understanding of managers' attitudes and behaviours with regard to religion. How do managers apply a common ground strategy and create unity despite differences? Is the desire to make arrangements invisible with a view to inclusive neutrality specific to France, or can it be generalised to managers in other countries? Does the intention to accommodate not essentially depend on the manager-employee relationship dynamic? This research raises questions for scholars about the relationship with the other and ethical managerial conduct. Practical implications: France is a secular country where a debate is emerging on cases of discrimination due to REW. The results contribute to approaches to drafting company guidelines for managers and may help organisations anticipate the risks associated with REW. The discussion of the results reveals the importance of social norms in the sense of hypernorms (religiosity) and undoubtedly of secularism, nondiscrimination and gender equality in the decision-making process on accommodation. These inclusive norms should therefore be handled with care in the various guidelines that have been developed. Originality/value: REW is increasing but is a neglected dimension of diversity management. This study helps explore this new field by promoting an understanding of managers' intention to accommodate in a specific secular context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the role played by parental education endowments vs intergenerational transmission of education in education differences between second-generation immigrants and natives for the French case.Design/methodology/approach First, estimates of human capital accumulation functions are performed by using a representative sample of the French population. Second, the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition technique is implemented to underline the specific roles of differences in parental education endowments and of differences in intergenerational transmission in education between origins.Findings The econometric estimates of human capital accumulation function parameters underline that the determinants of education level (and their magnitude), differ substantially between natives and migrants. They also underline evidence of heterogeneity in the intergenerational transmission of education among the different origins of migrants in France. The Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition results show that parental education endowments account differences for a significant part of the education gaps among origins. No evidence is found that differences in parental transmissions of education explain these gaps.Originality/value The paper focusses on France, a country with a rich history of immigration in the twentieth century. The econometric analysis is based on a rich source of data for France that allows studying intergenerational mobility in education and also distinguishing natives from second-generation migrants based on their geographical origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose French retailer, Système U, has triggered controversial debates among professionals and parents recently, by inserting images revolutionising gender norms in its Christmas toy catalogue. As children’s perceptions did not feature in these debates, the purpose of this paper is to explore their reactions to this catalogue, its gender-incongruent images and their associated toys.Design/methodology/approach An exploratory qualitative study was conducted with 27 children aged five to ten, from middle-upper social class. The methodology combined in one session participant observation, interview with visual stimuli and a collage exercise. First, each child was observed as they browsed freely through the catalogue, commenting it. Second, the interview focussed on four gender-incongruent images inside the catalogue to further explore reactions. Finally, they participated to a collage exercise on a mini-questionnaire, aiming at checking their gender-flexibility.Findings First, all children tend to focus on their own-gender pages only, as they have an intuitive understanding of the catalogue’s gendered structure. Second, incongruent images tend not to be noticed, with an exception being girls aged nine to ten. Third, the children’s acceptance of the gender-incongruent images is influenced by the gender-constancy stage, with the rigidity peak about gender norms at five to six; children’s own-gender-flexibility, between eight and ten; and the collective nature of the game.Originality/value This paper reveals children’s reactions to a toy catalogue containing gender-incongruent images. It provides new insights into how children notice, understand and appreciate these images and concludes with practical implications for retailers about how to better adapt catalogues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Enterprise risk management (ERM) is a risk management approach that calls for integrating all the organization-wide risks and takes a portfolio view point of managing organizational risks. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factor that influence a firm’s decision to adopt ERM.Design/methodology/approach The authors employ a particular technique of survival data analysis, the Cox proportional hazards model, to investigate the factors that lead towards the decision of initiating an ERM programme. The authors constructed a unique sample of French firms derived from the information in 315 corporate news announcements for the hiring of a chief risk officer and information retrieved from publicly available annual reports to identify firms that initiated an ERM programme, over the period from year 1999 to 2008.Findings The results suggest that besides the growing international and local regulatory pressure, factors that are internal to the organizations like the expected probability of financial distress and its explicit and implicit costs, poor earnings performance and the existence of growth opportunities play vital role in motivating firms to adopt ERM. It was also found that corporate governance practices such as the independence of the board may also lead towards an initiation of the ERM.Originality/value This study makes theoretical and methodological contribution the ERM literature by employing a novel methodology and presenting empirical evidence based on data form French firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this tri-sectoral comparative study is to analyze the scope and content of vocational training policies, and their practical implications and outcomes for employers and employees at three French-based companies, one in the pharmaceutical sector, the second in the consultancy and information technology sector, and the third in the automobile industry. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is a qualitative study and relies on a cross-fertilization of methods valorizing the triangulation approach: in-depth informal interviews with different categories of personnel, participant and non-participant observation, and documentary investigation. Findings – Our results show that though the three companies investigated rank as training friendly organizations both in terms of the level of financial investments and training densities, these statistical regularities mask significant qualitative differences. The focus, goals, opportunities and outcomes of training policies at the three firms share few common attributes. The paper goes on to propose a typology identifying three types of training organisations: skill up-dating, learning, and capability enhancing. Originality/value – The paper demonstrates that product specificities and the technology associated with it matter less than the system of work organisation and the mode of management in determining the scope and content of training programmes as well as their outcomes in matters of professional development. Whereas researchers have invariably monopolized the term of learning organizations to designate service-sector corporations, staffed by highly skilled workforces, operating at the core of the knowledge economy, our findings shows that even neo-taylorist industrial firms can justifiably qualify to be learning organizations. Finally, the paper proposes a comprehensive analytical grid to facilitate further qualitative research in the field of vocational training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the consequences of the increasing prominence of soft skills, focusing specifically on the production of these skills and their recognition and recruitment. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on interviews conducted with managers in the service sector in France. Two types of services are covered: large-scale retailing and hotel and catering services. Findings – The paper shows that the demand for soft skills has caused the service labour process to become highly personified and underline the risks this entails. Practical implications – The personification of the service labour process encourages the development of specific human resource management practices in the spheres of recruitment, pay and training. Social implications – The results underline the need for institutional mediation in the regulation of the labour market. The personification of skills has many social implications in terms of discrimination and policies on training and skill recognition. Originality/value – The originality of the paper lies, first, in the fact that the results relate to France, whereas most of the literature on soft skills has focused on the UK, the US and other English-speaking countries. Furthermore, the article emphasises that managers' practices are shaped by their attitudes towards soft skills, and in particular whether they believe them to be acquired or innate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine whether the performance of the supporting activities is more influenced by information systems (IS) than the performance of the core competence. Design/methodology/approach – A mail questionnaire survey was sent to alumni of a French business school working in the IS departments of firms. A sample of 100 French firms was collected. Findings – The results of the study show that IS have relatively more influence on the performance of the core competence than on the performance of supporting activities, especially on the exclusivity and value creation components of the core competence. Research limitations/implications – The majority of the firms are in the industry sector. It would be useful to replicate the findings across a sample of firms distributed equally among the service and industrial sectors for comparison purposes. Also, it would be interesting to study the performance of the core competence and supporting activities by using objective measures. Practical implications – The paper reveals that the attitudes of top management and employees towards IS must be taken into account when integrating IS in firms. Originality/value – Several studies were conducted to examine the impact of IS on the performance of firms. The paper examines the impact of IS on the performance of the core competence and supporting activities, a subject not yet explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the last few decades, Artificial Neural Networks have been the center of attraction of a large number of researchers for solving diversified problem domains. Due to its distinguishing features such as generalization ability, robustness and strong ability to tackle nonlinear problems, it appears to be more popular in financial time series modeling and prediction. In this paper, a Pi-Sigma Neural Network is designed for foretelling the future currency exchange rates in different prediction horizon. The unrevealed parameters of the network are interpreted by a hybrid learning algorithm termed as Shuffled Differential Evolution (SDE). The main motivation of this study is to integrate the partitioning and random shuffling scheme of Shuffled Frog Leaping algorithm with evolutionary steps of a Differential Evolution technique to obtain an optimal solution with an accelerated convergence rate. The efficiency of the proposed predictor model is actualized by predicting the exchange rate price of a US dollar against Swiss France (CHF) and Japanese Yen (JPY) accumulated within the same period of time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – France is a country that widely relies on a skilled labour force. Nevertheless, very little is written in the management literature on the career experiences of skilled migrants, in particular from developing countries, in France. This paper argues that in order to understand the management of skilled migrants in France, there is a need to better understand their career experiences. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to fill this knowledge gap by offering an enhanced understanding of the career experiences of Malagasy migrant physicians in France. Design/methodology/approach – Based on the life story of 17 Malagasy migrant physicians and an interview with a Malagasy director of a private clinic who recruited Malagasy physicians to work in France, the paper sheds light on their career choices and challenges that they face in the French job market. Findings – The results clearly highlight two career profiles: firstly, those who succeeded in working as physicians either directly upon their graduation, or throughout an "interstitial" career in nursing, a way to eventually reach their profession of physician. Second, findings show that there were participants who definitively switched to a nursing profession. For this second group, migration emerges as a challenging experience leading to talent waste and therefore to downward career mobility. Originality/value – While literature on international careers frequently describe international mobility as being beneficial for skilled migrants, the findings yield limited support for this assumption. Instead, human capital was insufficient in explaining the career outcome of migrant physicians in France. Beyond the assumption that human capital is sufficient for undertaking a successful international experience, the paper contribute's to the literature on international careers by focusing on an under-researched group (i.e. Malagasy physicians in France) and demonstrating the complex nature of their career experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - This purpose of this paper is to investigate the introduction of French theory into English language accounting research and to assess the impact of the work of French social theorists on the accounting research domain. Design/methodology/approach - The paper presents a citation analysis of articles appearing in selected English language accounting research journals for a sample of French authors, during the periods from the inception of the journals to mid-2009. In performing this citation analysis, 39 French authors who are well known as social theorists, philosophers, economists or sociologists were included. The accounting research journals chosen for analysis included the top four journals listed in many league tables for accounting research along with several journals that regularly publish research in accounting history or that focus on alternative research paradigms. Findings - The citation analysis identified the following French authors as being the most frequently cited: Michel Foucault, followed by Bruno Latour and Pierre Bourdieu. The citation analysis also identified the English language accounting research journals in which French social theorists have been most often cited. The two most significant journals have been Critical Perspectives on Accounting and Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, followed by Accounting Organizations and Society, Management Accounting Research and European Accounting Review. The analysis also shows the effects of mimeticism, which seems to have produced a sort of isomorphism in the styles of publication. Accounting, Organizations and Society, appears to be the standard-setter of the critical-interpretive field of accounting research. Originality/value - This paper is the first known to provide a comprehensive analysis of the introduction of French theory into English language accounting research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- This paper seeks to explore the personal motives of subsidiary CEOs in taking initiatives in multinational corporations. In essence, the paper proposes that subsidiary initiative-taking is strongly driven by the socio-political positioning of subsidiary CEOs, which consists of specific "social aspects" that account for the basic orientation that subsidiary CEOs maintain in initiative-taking, as well as "political aspects" that affect the ability of subsidiary CEOs to strategize and the ways they do it in the highly politicized processes of initiative-taking. Design/methodology/approach -- The paper is based on four exploratory case studies undertaken in German subsidiaries in France. Applying a matched pair approach it compares two subsidiaries run by parent country nationals (PCNs) with two subsidiaries run by host country nationals (HCNs). Findings -- The paper demonstrates that the nationality of the subsidiary CEO alone does not explain subsidiary CEOs initiative-taking behaviour. Other factors that make up the socio-political positioning of subsidiary CEOs, such as career aspiration, career orientation, access to resources and specific skills to form internal and local coalitions, as well as "external" coalitions with the headquarters, need to be considered as well. Research limitations/implications -- Given the qualitative research design and exploratory nature of the study there are limits to how far the findings can be generalized and applied elsewhere. More in-depth research is needed to further develop the socio-political perspective put forward here, especially to more closely analyze the interplay of actors' (CEOs') socio-political positioning approaches within different contexts of subsidiary initiative-taking. Originality/value -- The socio-political perspective proposed here goes beyond and extends existing IRHM approaches, which narrowly focus on the overarching impact of nationality as a predictor of differences in the behaviour of subsidiary CEOs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - In this paper, it is set out a hybrid data analysis method based on the combination of wavelet techniques and principal-components regression (PCR). The purpose of this paper is to study the dynamics of the stock returns within the French stock market. Design/methodology/approach - Wavelet-based thresholding techniques are applied to the stock price series in order to obtain a set of explanatory variables that are practically noise-free. The PCR is then carried out on the new set of regressors. Findings - The empirical results show that the suggested method allows extraction and interpretation of the factors that influence the stock price changes. Moreover, the wavelet-PCR improves the explanatory power of the regression model as well as its forecasting quality. Practical implications - The proposed technique offers investors a better understanding of the mechanisms that explain the stock return dynamics as it removes the noise that affects financial time series. Originality/value - The paper uses a new denoising framework for financial assets. The paper thinks that this framework might be of great value for academics as well as for financial investors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to cover the emergence, history, and development of French business schools. It is a reflection on organizational tensions, more particularly within the Grandes Ecoles system, that the challenge of research has created following the schools internationalization of the last 20 years. Design/methodology/approach - Institutional theory, social dynamics, and history provide the frame of analysis. Findings - Internationalization of the French business schools context has transformed the rules of the game. Ability to produce international quality publications has become a competitive necessity to attract faculty and students. Research is now a priority to gain international credibility, hire new faculty and perform successfully in the accreditation process. The shift from teaching institutions to international and research-orientated business schools has created tensions and new challenges that need to be met. Originality/value - The paper provides an historical account of the French business schools evolution and of their new research imperative. It stresses the governance and strategic issues this new imperative creates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to discuss a multiscale pricing model for the French stock market by combining wavelet analysis and Fama-French three-factor model. The objective is to examine the relationship between stock returns and Fama-French risk factors at different time-scales. Design/methodology/approach - Exploiting the scale separation property inherent to the maximal overlap discrete wavelet transform, the data set are decomposed into components associated with different time-scales. This wavelet-based decomposition scheme allows the three Fama-French models to be tested over different investments periods. Findings - The obtained results show that the explanatory power of the Fama-French three-factor model becomes stronger as the wavelet scale increases. Besides, the relationship between the portfolio returns and the risk factors (i.e. the market, size and value factors) depends significantly upon the. considered time-horizon. Practical implications - The proposed methodology offers investors the opportunity to construct dynamic portfolio management strategies by taking into account the multiscale nature of risk and return. Moreover, it gives a new insight to fund rating and fund selection issues in relation to - heterogeneous investments periods. Originality/value - The paper uses wavelets as a relatively new and powerful tool for statistical analysis that allows a new understanding of pricing models. The paper will be of interest not only for academics in the field of asset pricing but also for fund managers and financial market investors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to test whether or not CSR disclosure (i.e. aggregate as well as its three sub-indicators) reduces the cost of debt for French corporations listed in the SBF 120 index between 2010 and 2015. Design/methodology/approach: CSR disclosure ratings of firms were collected from the Bloomberg database under three dimensions such as environmental, social and governance (ESG). Then, a pooled regression analysis was run. Findings: The results indicate that overall CSR disclosure score as a combination of ESG disclosure scores has a negative effect on the cost of debt (i.e. lowers the cost of debt). While environmental disclosure is negatively associated with the cost of debt, social disclosure is unexpectedly positively associated, and governance disclosure has an insignificant association with the cost of debt. Research limitations/implications: The study has two main limitations. First, the analysis does not consider contractual constraints and obligations that might exist in debt contracts (Jung et al., 2018). Second, the analyses cover a specific time period (i.e. between 2010 and 2015) for a specific country (i.e. France) excluding utilities and the financial sector. Practical implications: Overall, it is inferred from the results that financial markets for lenders take into account CSR disclosure when assessing the creditworthiness of borrowers. Specifically, environmental disclosure is the only subdimension of CSR that is influential on creditors' decisions to offer favorable interest rates. In line with this outcome, companies can assess their processes and be more aligned with eco-friendly practices, and investors are particularly advised to invest in those types of firms. Originality/value: This study extends scant literature on the association between CSR and the cost of debt by exploring how creditors treat CSR dimensions dissimilarly in granting loans to firms. The findings of this study have particular importance as financial debt is one of the most predominant forms of external financing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Using a representative survey of young persons having left full-time education in France in 1998 and interviewed in 2001 and 2005, the purpose of this paper is to examine the process of their integration into normal employment (a stable job with a standard employment contract) and the extent to which job matches are inefficient in the sense that the pay in a job is below an individual's potential earnings. The latter are determined principally by diploma level and educational specialisation, although other forms of training and labour market experience are relevant. Design/methodology/approach: A stochastic earnings frontier approach is used in order to examine workers' ability to capture their full potential earnings in labour markets where there is inefficient job matching (due to the lack of information, discrimination, over-education or the process of integration). Findings: The results suggest that young workers manage to obtain on average about 82 per cent of their potential earnings three years after leaving full-time education and earnings inefficiency had disappeared four years later. The results are robust to the treatment of selectivity arising from the exclusion of the unemployed in the estimation of the frontier. Originality/value: The stochastic earnings frontier is a useful and appropriate tool for modelling the process of labour market integration of certain groups (young persons, migrants and the long-term unemployed) where over-education due to inefficient initial job matches occurs. Over time this situation tends to be rectified as job mobility leads to improved matching and less inefficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose — The objective of the paper is to shed light on the prima facie divergence of work values of various ethnic minorities in France. The paper aims to evaluate the influence of entrepreneurial capital on labour market values and outcomes for each ethnic minority. Design/methodology/approach — The study uses a French survey rich in attitudinal variables, matched with the French 1999 census of the population. It hinges on the regional variability of entrepreneurial ethnic networks in order to identify the impact of the latter on work values and professional integration of ethnic minorities. Findings — It is shown that the contrasted labour market outcomes and work values of immigrants from North Africa and Southern Europe are, statistically, totally explained away by their different levels of entrepreneurial capital. Originality/value — This study hinges on a recent survey, which contains unusual information about the immigrant population of the first and second generation in France. Statistical analysis is made possible by the over-representation of these groups in the sample design. This paper is one of the first studies into the subjective work values of immigrants in France. The results enter an unchartered territory and provide original evidence of the importance of entrepreneurial ethnic networks in France. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: With India becoming a strategic trading partner for France, the purpose of this paper is to identify and describe cultural differences between India and France in order to achieve three main objectives: What traits or values are salient for Indians when negotiating with French people? The second to assess the utility and appropriateness of cultural dimensions as described by Hofstede (1991, 2001) and Trompenaars (1993, 2004) to gain insight into this process, and finally to prepare a French businessman to negotiate with an Indian partner. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative approach is best to achieve the research objectives. Expert profiles were defined according to the guidelines set out by Bogner et al. (2009). Snowball sampling method was used, whereby the first French businessmen interviewed provided contacts of other negotiators. Six semi-directive interviews were conducted lasting 1 h and 30 min each. Data collection and analysis were carried out according to Gioia's proposed methodology (Gioia et al., 2013). Findings: This qualitative inquiry enabled a deep inductive analysis, resulting in the emergence of seven key characteristics of the negotiation process in India. Cultural dimensions as defined by Hofstede (1991, 2001) and Trompenaars (1993, 2004) are useful in explaining four of these. However, three other characteristics cannot be directly related to these cultural dimensions, and among them, the seventh characteristic, the importance of having an Indian mediator in the negotiation, emerges as an original and decisive advantage for the foreign partner. Research limitations/implications: Interviewing a larger sample of experts would strengthen the precision, validity and reliability of the findings. Furthermore, investigating buyer–seller relationships and negotiation theories would help to gain an alternative and complementary insight into this complex topic. Originality/value: Cultural differences between France and India are a poorly documented and under-researched topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to understand to what extent the analysis of career scripts explains the inertia in implementing mandatory interviews designed to anticipate career lengthening in France. Design/methodology/approach: This exploratory approach is based on 26 interviews of French cadres (a mix of managers and professionals) aged 45 and over in the media agency sector. Findings: Two career scripts – one for the majority who perceive themselves in a dead end, and the other, more optimistic for those who experience job mobility – show several commonalities. Moreover, their combination suggests an entanglement with the previous business model of media agencies. Research limitations/implications: The survey was conducted on a non-random sample in a radically changing sector. However, the entanglement may explain the inertia with regard to changes in career scripts and agencies' business model. Practical implications: As these cadres need to work longer and move from traditional media expertise to cross-functional consulting capacity, mandatory interviews should be integrated into a human resources management strategy that fosters intra-organizational dynamics. Social implications: The lengthening of the professional life in France appears as a paradigm shift. The study of career sustainability in contexts becomes a critical research field for management development. Originality/value: The institutional approach of managers' careers is well developed, but there is a gap in understanding the entanglement of career scripts and business models. This may help address inertia in change processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - To explore and describe the roles, activities and strategies of French human resource development professionals. Design/methodology/approach - This paper is based primarily on exploratory and descriptive research. A range of secondary sources on European and French human resource development is critically reviewed to generate a number of research questions designed to identify the corporate perspective on human resource development by means of cases drawn from six organizations located in Eastern France. Findings - These confirm the lack of a clear understanding of human resource development on the part of French companies; the wide range of activities that is considered to fall within human resource development; an emerging interest in management development, career development and skills forecasting, but a neglect of training evaluation; the similarity of human resource development practitioner roles to those elsewhere in Europe; growing evidence of the involvement of line managers in human resource development activity, and a strong commitment to the strategic significance of human resource development. Research limitations/implications - The study was based on an opportunity sample of just six companies in Eastern France, and may therefore not be representative, but it does provide findings that expand upon and also qualify earlier research. Practical implications - This study provides new knowledge and understanding of the context and practice of human resource development in France and makes a number of suggestions for further research. Originality/value - This paper provides original research based on recent cases of corporate human resource development practice, and should be of interest to scholars of international human resource development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the issuance of sustainable development reports by French universities, based on two dimensions proposed by Ansari et al. (2010): extensiveness and fidelity. Design/methodology/approach – Three complementary data sources were used: an extensive literature review, exploratory interviews with sustainable development (SD) officers from French universities, and the four editions of the Responsible Campus Guide (Guide des Campus Responsables). The empirical data collected were then subjected to a dynamic multi-level analysis drawing on three theoretical frameworks. Findings – Four different profiles of universities appear, suggesting that the many isomorphic pressures exerted on universities influence the characteristics (extensiveness and fidelity) of their SD reports. Research limitations/implications – Further research is required to explore whether these findings are generalisable to business schools and universities in different contexts. Practical implications – This study will be of interest to other higher education institutions seeking to embark on a similar sustainability reporting track. It is also a way to observe the characteristics of SD reports, to analyse what and how first-time reporters communicate. Originality/value – This paper adds to existing research by focusing on a managerial innovation that is still relatively new in French universities. Its second contribution lies in its comparative approach introducing a distinction between early and later adopters of SD reporting. It also contributes to extending the existing theorisation of SD reporting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Over the past decade climate change has become an inescapable aspect of social responsibility for the major retail chains who have sought to incorporate the environmental considerations into their communication strategies. The purpose of this paper is to look more closely at communications campaigns based on environmental theme through social networks. Design/methodology/approach – In this respect, social media can be considered a direct communication tool conducive to the promotion of sustainable development. Therefore, the paper is based on a year-long study of one group’s official Facebook page. Findings – The conclusions highlight the need for retail chains to strengthen the perceived consistency of their communication strategies on this subject, in order to retain their credibility. Practical implications – Encouraging consumers’ contributions via Facebook may be considered as a relevant practice for greening retail, on the condition that internet users are convinced of the value and interest of this process, as examples of a company’s concrete actions, which provide hard evidence of its stated commitments. The authors also point out the implications of the results in the emerging context of omni-channel retailing. Originality/value – This paper provides two kinds of added value. First its explore retailers’ practice on the subject of green marketing. Second, it provides significant learnings regarding the potential impact of communication in social media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify the generational cohort effect on responsible consumer behavior. Based on the theory of planned behavior and the generational cohort theory, the authors test the impact of perceived consumer effectiveness (PCE), media exposure (ME), the social group influence of family and peers and self-identity on the intention of Generation X and Generation Y to purchase environmentally responsible products. Design/methodology/approach: The data were collected from 1,870 respondents in France. Based on the factor scores from a confirmatory factor analysis, the authors tested for interaction effects by employing regression and path analyses. A two-group structural model evaluated the strength of each cohort's direct effects and the significant differences between the groups. Findings: The results reveal a generational (cohort) effect on the relationship between PCE and ME and the intention to purchase environmentally responsible products. Research limitations/implications: The convenience sample shows bias toward younger people, especially students. In addition, some latent variables show low AVE scores, probably due to scale interpretation differences. By measuring purchase intention, the study disregards the actual behavior of consumers. Practical implications: To increase consumers' personal involvement in responsible purchasing behaviors, marketers could cater to the social desirability side of Gen Y by emphasizing products that express community values; on the other hand, marketers could appeal to the PCE of Gen X by providing more information and convincing them that their actions matter. Social implications: The efficiency of awareness and promotional campaigns for environmentally responsible products will be enhanced when marketers employ segmentation based on generational cohorts. Originality/value: The study contributes to a better understanding of responsible consumer behavior by identifying generational cohort differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between leverage and firm performance using small business data from France by estimating the effects of leverage on both average firm performance and the variance of firm performance. Design/methodology/approach: Focusing on French small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which tend to be dependent on bank loans, the authors examine the relationship between leverage and firm performance. This study was based on a unique panel data set of more than 2,157 manufacturing SMEs covering the years 2007-2015. The authors estimate the effects of leverage on both average firm performance and the variance of firm performance. Findings: Focusing on the average effects of leverage, the authors find that highly leveraged firms suffer from poor performance. In addition, the variance in firm performance is higher if firms are highly leveraged. Results also underline that leveraged firms are better performers when they have sufficient collateral assets. Research limitations/implications: The study, however, has also some limitations. The first one is that the findings were obtained for only one industry sector, so attempts should be made to study the issue, as it applies to other sectors as well. Second is the context where the study was conducted. This study has been conducted based on data gathered from SMEs in France within a specific socioeconomic context (2007-2008 global financial crisis), which may also limit the generalizability of the results for different contexts with different socioeconomic situations. It would also be useful, to have a better explanation for the performance of SMEs, to add to the model more financial variables or other types of variables such as those related to managerial skills or to the macro-economic environment. Finally, further research could examine the joint impact of both leverage and ownership structure on firm's performance as a large number of French firms are family firms. The limitations of this study, however, can in fact be an opportunity for future researchers to conduct studies addressing those limitations. Practical implications: This research has some implications for small business lending. SME owners and managers may, on the one hand, be encouraged by the fact that collateral assets can reduce agency costs, thereby positively affecting firm performance. On the other hand, high leverage can facilitate firm growth if firms have collateral assets. This implies that policymakers interested in stimulating SMEs should develop more suitable collaterals for high-risk SMEs with low asset tangibility. Social implications: The results also have implications for financial institutions. To prevent unexpected and extensive bankruptcies, banks might classify firms with negative cash flows as borrower in danger of bankruptcy. However, the results show that highly leveraged firms with good investment opportunities and high collateral assets reduce the probability of bankruptcy. This implies that banks need to evaluate the credit risk of very highly leveraged small businesses more carefully. Originality/value: It should be noted that the case of France remains marginal in terms of the conducted studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a case study of the multilevel factors that influence the way in which an organization approaches ethnic diversity management in France. Syed and Özbilgin's (2009) relational framework was adopted to understand and contextualize ethnic diversity management in a car manufacturing company in France.Design/methodology/approach In total, 37 semi-structured in-depth interviews with employees of different hierarchical levels in a French organization have been conducted and analyzed using the Gioia method.Findings The findings show that the lack of clear laws and the universal citizenship model on macro-level coupled with the gendered industry and superficial engagement with ethnic diversity on meso-level overlooks the difficult situation of ethnic minorities in the workplace, especially women. However, the findings also stress that it is on individual level that resilience and agency can be expressed, which means that despite the perceived barriers on societal and organizational level, ethnic minorities are motivated to improve the way they are treated in organizations.Originality/value Ethnic minorities are an understudied dimension of diversity management in organizations. The findings underscore the importance of the intersection of ethnicity and gender as this affects the career development possibilities and daily work experience of ethnic minority women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – In France, the vocationalization of higher education has resulted in an increase in the number of graduates and created new opportunities. The access of these vocational bachelor graduates to the labour market raises the issue of their professional prospects amid changing economic and social circumstances. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – To provide insights into these issues, the employment situation of bachelor graduates during the first years of active working life will be compared with other tertiary graduates entering the labour market in the same years, using econometric models that estimate the effects of vocational courses “all other things being equal”, incorporating a range of individual characteristics. Findings – Overall, vocational bachelor graduates experienced fewer difficulties in seeking to enter the labour market during difficult economic circumstances. They did not achieve upward social mobility with a lower probability of obtaining a managerial/professional occupation three years after graduation. These results confirm that diplomas continue to play a central and hierarchized role in France. Originality/value – The originality of this paper is to highlight the labour market transition of vocational bachelor graduates during a period of economic crisis, inquiring on the social benefit of this new diploma in France: what were the impacts of the changing economic conditions and influx of vocational bachelor graduates on their labour market transition and their chances of upward social mobility? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The paper seeks to adopt an institutional view of legitimacy to examine how a sample of French companies reacted to the introduction of the “New Economic Regulations” in French law in 2001 requiring that publicly listed companies disclose environmental information. Design/methodology/approach – The approach used in the paper is both quantitative and qualitative. A content analysis of environmental disclosure provided in annual reports, environmental reports and web sites by 26 French companies listed in the CAC 40 is performed throughout the period 2001-2011. Findings – The findings of this study show a significant and enduring improvement in the quality and quantity of environmental disclosure from 2001 to 2011. Even in the absence of penalties for non-compliance, the NRE law stimulated a stark and positive lasting change in the way that French companies account for their environmental information. These findings are consistent with the institutional view of legitimacy theory whereby legislation provides corporate managers with a representation of relevant audiences' perceptions about social and environmental reporting, prompting them to comply with the law to ensure organizational legitimacy. Originality/value – Social and environmental reporting studies generally adopt a strategic view of legitimacy to examine how organizations use social and environmental reporting to respond strategically to legitimacy threats. This study provides early empirical evidence about the relevance of institutional legitimacy theory in explaining environmental reporting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The purpose of this paper is to study the effectiveness of the risk management system in the European context, especially with regard to the risk management committee, the uncertainty of the environment and company performance. In summary, it evaluates European companies listed on the stock exchange in France, Germany and the United Kingdom to determine how risk management systems influence financial companies' performance. Design/methodology/approach -- To study the effectiveness of risk management systems and their influence on performance, the large companies selected in our sample are fairly representative of the European market, according to the Dutch indices of each country (SBF 120 in France, HDAX 110 in Germany and FTSE 100 in United Kingdom).The empirical evidence is based on an international quantitative analysis, using a data set involving 320 companies listed on the stock exchange over a ten-year period from 2005 to 2014. Findings -- The results indicate that the establishment of a risk management and control system by a company positively influences its management, and its performance level and value creation also improve. The results of this study demonstrate a significant strengthening of the role of the risk management committee in the three countries. The surveillance function is reinforced, and in particular, the internal control system is accentuated. Research limitations/implications -- This study has some limitations that can form leads for future research. One of these limitations is the sample size. The authors have represented the European context by three countries that certainly constitute great European powers, but have regulations different from other countries. The company size is also a possible research element. Indeed, risk management system varies between large, small and medium-sized enterprises, so it is important to study each type of company well. Originality/value -- This study identifies the risk management committee as a mechanism of control that is highly important in the company, and it proposes an international framework that comparatively and empirically evaluates how the risk management system used in large European companies can improve their financial performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]