Transcript Document 7551137

INTRA-FIRM AND INTER-FIRM
KNOWLEDGE TRANSFERS AND
PRODUCTIVITY IN RETAILING
Dolores Añon Higon (Aston)
Jeremy Clegg (Leeds)
Irena Grugulis (Bradford)
Allan Williams (Exeter)
Cecelia Lam, Ödül Boszkurt, +
AIM
To investigate how, and to what extent,
inter and intra-firm knowledge transfer
contribute to productivity and productivity
growth differences in the retailing sector in
the UK.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
 1. What factors influence the observed variation in
productivity within the retailing sector, and how
strong are the relationships?
 2. How does domestic versus foreign ownership
mediate the relationships between knowledge
transfer and productivity?
 3.
How do different knowledge transfer channels
contribute to these relationships?
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
PRODUCTIVITY IN RETAILING
Real time quality control
Quality measurement
Localised competition and prices
Regulation
Diversity
CF contd.
RETAILING AND KNOWLEDGE
Employment, skills and job design
Customer management
Inter-intra transfers: transaction costs
CF Contd.
KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
Ownership advantages; MNEs v national
Explicit versus tacit
Channels
(Clusters, communities, mobility, internal controls)
METHODOLOGY
MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
MULTI METHOD
Secondary data
Firm level questionnaires
Case studies
METHODOLOGY contd
SECONDARY DATA: NATIONAL
ARD
(ownership, location + kt proxy variables)
Links to AFDI, BERD
FAME
(Productivity, individual enterprises)
MV analysis
METHODOLOGY contd
FIRM LEVEL SURVEY
Sub sector: food
Questionnaire survey
(Level, postal?, response rate)
Focus: ownership, kt channels
Analysis: MV, BV + secondary
METHODOLOGY contd
FIRM LEVEL INTERVIEWS
Desirable
but not in original research proposal !!
METHODOLOGY contd
4 CASE STUDIES
Ownership versus productivity
Participant obsv. + multi-level interviews
Meaning, management, contested
Analysis: qualitative
Theoretical Underpinning
 Ownership (MNE, non-MNE)
Basis of competition (cost/quality)
Processes of transferring knowledge and
skills
Appropriateness of processes
Questionnaire Survey
Link between other two parts of project,
partic for ownership data
Discussions with team one (combine?)
Delay start, telephone interviews
Change to smaller number of head office
interviews
Supply chains
Regulation
Key issues that will be covered but in
brief (constraints of research)
Multiple measures of performance and
productivity
FAME
Branch level data (case studies)
Intended and unintended consequences
(case studies)
The next six months
Cecilia Lam (Aston), literature review,
begin econometric study
Odul Boskurt (Bradford/Leeds), literature
review, negotiate access, initial
interviews and observations
Exeter researcher – now or delay?
The next six months (cont.)
Meetings between team members and key
contacts
Team meeting (January)
Meeting with Sheffield team (before
Christmas?)