“Dear CEO and Board”: How Activist Investors’ Confidence in Tone Influences Campaign Success

2023 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Brauer, Matthias; Wiersema, Margarethe; Binder, Philipp

Abstract: Activist hedge funds represent the most potent form of financial activism. Yet w ... Expand

Abstract: Activist hedge funds represent the most potent form of financial activism. Yet we do not fully understand how these activist investors, despite holding only a small stake in target firms, are able to influence management and the board to acquiesce to their demands, especially given the large uncertainty that their demands will improve shareholder value. Building on impression management (IM) theory, we propose that activist investors who express their concerns and demands with high confidence in their letters to target firms are likely to be perceived as knowledgeable and competent by the firm’s other shareholders, thus influencing the response of the firm’s management and board. In support of this theoretical proposition, results of our empirical analysis of 475 U.S. activist campaigns against U.S. companies between 2007 and 2019 suggest that confidence in tone in an activist’s letter, as a form of self-promotion, is positively associated with campaign success. We also observe that the positive association between confidence in tone in activist letters and campaign success is less for activists with greater success in prior campaigns and in campaigns with multiple activists. Our paper contributes to financial activism research by showing that activists’ verbal impression management can serve as an effective influence tactic in their campaigns. Our study also contributes to the emerging research stream on verbal IM by introducing a language attribute, confidence in tone, that has not been studied in management research and is distinct from past constructs examined in verbal IM research. Collapse

Topics: corporate governance strategic management organizational productivity decision making database system

Methods: descriptive statistic qualitative content analysis theory development linguistic analysis regression analysis method

Theories: behavioral theory

Barking Up the Wrong Tree? Reconsidering Policy Compliance as a Dependent Variable within Behavioral Cybersecurity Research

2023 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Cram, W. Alec; D'Arcy, John

Abstract: A rich body of research examines the cybersecurity behavior of employees, with a ... Expand

Abstract: A rich body of research examines the cybersecurity behavior of employees, with a particular focus on explaining the reasons why employees comply with (or violate) organizational cybersecurity policies. However, we posit that this emphasis on policy compliance is susceptible to several notable limitations that could lead to inaccurate research conclusions. In this commentary, we examine the limitations of using cybersecurity policy compliance as a dependent variable by presenting three assertions: (1) the link between policy compliance and organizational-level outcomes is ambiguous; (2) policies vary widely in terms of their clarity and completeness; and (3) employees have an inconsistent familiarity with their own organization’s cybersecurity policies. Taken together, we suggest that studying compliance with cybersecurity policies reveals only a partial picture of employee behavior. In response, we offer recommendations for future research. Collapse

Topics: IT security data breach computer data storage cybersecurity behavior top management support

Methods: survey linguistic analysis company material

What is the Metaverse and who seeks to define it? Mapping the site of social construction

2023 | Journal of Information Technology | Citations: 27

Authors: Dolata, Mateusz; Schwabe, Gerhard

Abstract: The Metaverse has become a buzz-phrase among tech businesses. Facebook’s rebrand ... Expand

Abstract: The Metaverse has become a buzz-phrase among tech businesses. Facebook’s rebranding to Meta is symptomatic of this. Many firms and other actors are trying to shape visions of the Metaverse, leading to confusion about the term’s meaning. We use social construction of technology (SCOT) theory to disentangle the conflicting notions proposing that what the Metaverse is and will become relies on the collective sensemaking processes. We point out similarities and differences between various concepts presented in the public media and link them to individual actors’ monetary, political, or social motives. We describe the tensions that occur because of the conflicting interests. As the Metaverse is an emerging phenomenon, opportunities exist to reorient it toward humanist values rather than singular interests. However, the complexity of the social processes that shape the Metaverse requires a considerate approach rather than premature conclusions about the Metaverse’s characteristics. The analysis presents the Metaverse as a new, continually evolving sociotechnical phenomenon, and calls for research that explores it as a dynamic, moving target. Collapse

Topics: virtual reality societal evaluation criteria technological change virtual world database system

Methods: linguistic analysis meta analysis

Short-Selling Pressure and Workplace Safety: Curbing Short-Termism Through Stakeholder Interdependencies

2023 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Qian, Cuili; Crilly, Donal; Lin, Yupeng; Zhang, Keyuan; Zhang, Rengong

Abstract: We advance a multistakeholder framework that highlights the influence of stakeho ... Expand

Abstract: We advance a multistakeholder framework that highlights the influence of stakeholders in tempering short-termist responses to capital market pressures. When firms face pressure from short sellers in the capital market, they sometimes shift attention to short-term stock performance and neglect critical investments that pay off in the long run. Relying on a quasi-natural experiment and establishment-level data on workplace injuries, we find that short-selling pressure causes an increase in employee injuries. Critically, however, the degree to which the response is short-termist depends on the salience of multiple stakeholders (analysts, shareholders, employees, and managers). We discuss the implications for understanding firms’ relations with their stakeholders and, particularly, how these stakeholders influence corporate responses to capital market pressures in ways that matter for long-term value creation. This study also contributes to strategy research by highlighting the downside of capital market deregulation. Funding: Rengong Zhang acknowledges the financial support from the CityU Strategic Research Grant. Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2022.1576. Collapse

Topics: IT personell turnover organizational productivity value creation innovation management website

Methods: descriptive statistic natural experiment autocorrelation analysis longitudinal research chi squared test

"Digital Sanctums of Empowerment": Exploring Community and Everyday Resilience-Building Tactics in Online Professional Communities for Women

2023 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Sengupta, S.; Tacheva, Z.

Abstract: Work and learning are essential facets of our existence, yet women have and may ... Expand

Abstract: Work and learning are essential facets of our existence, yet women have and may continue to face multiple restrictions that hinder and impede their professional outcomes. These restrictions are especially pronounced in the technical domains of Information technology and Computer science.This paper explores the power of informal online communities to act as collective shields of care in the context of professional development, especially for women. Using a mixed-methods comparative investigation of 400,268 conversational traces from three professional development communities on Reddit, we report resilience and communal empathy-building tactics, as well as calls for inclusivity and belongingness, which drive the collective identity of these online channels. The long-term goal of this work is to address the way in which such channels can be designed and curated to offer spaces for enrichment, empowerment, and advocacy with a focus on the professional development of women, especially those engaged in technical domains. Collapse

Topics: online community IT career Reddit Python application programming interface

Methods: BERT linguistic analysis mixed method qualitative content analysis cross sectional research

Ethical Marketing AI?A Structured Literature Review of the Ethical Challenges Posed by Artificial Intelligence in the Domains of Marketing and Consumer Behavior

2023 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Su, Yiran; Wang, Emma Junhong; Berthon, Pierre

Abstract: With the increasing use of AI in marketing, ethical repercussions are beginning ... Expand

Abstract: With the increasing use of AI in marketing, ethical repercussions are beginning to emerge. From privacy issues, through discrimination of marginalized groups, to emergent systemic social distortions, AI is changing the marketing ethical landscape. In this paper we conduct a structured literature review of the emerging ethical issues posed by AI in the domains of marketing and consumer behavior. We identify three clusters of ethical issues (algorithm, society and existential) and map these to the marketing domains of systems, brands, and consumers. We conclude that the field of ethical marketing AI is still very much in its infancy, but such is the rate of development ethical marketing AI is likely to become important field for academics and practitioners alike. Collapse

Topics: artificial intelligence marketing management responsible artificial intelligence consumer behavior social media

Methods: literature study machine learning literature sample structured literature research computational algorithm

Theories: socio technical theory

Zero is hero: Round number effects on knowledge-sharing platforms

2023 | Information & Management | Citations: 0

Authors: Zhang, Mingyue; Zhu, Tiancheng; Xu, Yu; Ma, Baojun

Abstract: With the inherent public goods problem embedded in knowledge-sharing platforms, ... Expand

Abstract: With the inherent public goods problem embedded in knowledge-sharing platforms, various incentive mecha­ nisms have been implemented, most of which are in the form of gamified elements. Among those motivating elements, reputation points are the most direct feedback about individuals’ contribution effort, which use nu­ merical units indicating progress. Although some research has found that points can incentivize users to contribute, empirical evidence regarding the influential patterns of such numerical units remains limited. Drawing on numerical cognition literature that an individual’s evaluation and judgments may be influenced by certain numerical cues, we particularly focus on the round number bias on knowledge-sharing platforms. Several hypotheses regarding users’ behavioral changes when their accumulated points approach round numbers have been proposed, including their contribution level, contribution quality, and writing style. By analyzing data collected from StackOverflow.com, we find that users perceive round numbers as category boundaries or end­ points and crossing such boundaries can motivate aspirational behaviors. Concretely, users significantly increase their post frequency and length, and write answers with more function words and second-person pronouns. Meanwhile, their posts will be more likely to be accepted as the best answers and gain more votes. We also explore the moderating effects of advanced explicit incentives and numbers’ magnitude. Theoretically, our research contributes to a body of literature on knowledge-sharing platform incentive mechanisms to motivate users’ contributions and sheds light on the utilization of numerical cues to guide individuals’ behaviors in usergenerated-content (UGC) provision context. Collapse

Topics: knowledge sharing public good gamification privacy decision making

Methods: experimental group experiment statistical hypothesis test pilot experiment descriptive statistic

Tackling Crises Together? – An Econometric Analysis of Charitable Crowdfunding During the COVID-19 Pandemic

2022 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Althaus, Maike; Poniatowski, Martin; Kundisch, Dennis

Abstract: Crowdfunding platforms enable individuals or groups to appeal to the public to ... Expand

Abstract: Crowdfunding platforms enable individuals or groups to appeal to the public to support a variety of ventures or campaigns. Whilst the majority of campaigns raise funds for private causes, some of the issues for which help is being sought have arisen as a direct consequence of world events and crises. Nevertheless, the research on charitable crowdfunding has largely ignored this connection. We use the COVID-19 pandemic, and related public health policies, to explore the impact of the global crisis on donation behavior on the donation-based crowdfunding platform GoFundMe. By using a quasiexperimental research design, we find that after the introduction of stay-at-home orders, campaigns in U.S. states with such measures experienced a significant decline in the number of donors and amounts donated, which is more pronounced for crisis-related than for non-crisis-related campaigns. Our findings contribute to the literature by providing novel insights on crowdfunding behaviors in times of societal crisis. Collapse

Topics: crowdsourcing crowdfunding pandemic social identity natural hazard

Methods: experimental group computational algorithm longitudinal research natural experiment descriptive statistic

Theories: self categorization theory psychological theory

Undesirable framing effects in information systems projects: Analysis of adjective usage in IS project business cases

2022 | Information & Management | Citations: 0

Authors: Benschop, Nick; Nuijten, Arno L.P.; Hilhorst, Cokky A.R.; Keil, Mark

Abstract: Many information systems (IS) projects encounter significant problems. The liter ... Expand

Abstract: Many information systems (IS) projects encounter significant problems. The literature suggests that decisionmakers can be misled by overoptimistic estimates. We argue that such overoptimism may also be present in the choice of language in business cases. In this study, we analyzed the usage of such framing in 20 business cases for large IS projects of the Dutch government. Our findings show that newly proposed systems are systematically framed using positive adjectives, whereas the existing systems are framed using negative adjectives. This pattern of framing may subconsciously bias the decision-makers toward investing in new IS projects. Collapse

Topics: IT project IT project management project management agile software development

Methods: linguistic analysis chi squared test Z-test qualitative coding nonparametric test

Theories: technological frames of reference

A Techno-Business Platform to Improve Customer Experience Following the Brand Crisis Recovery: A B2B Perspective

2022 | Information Systems Frontiers | Citations: 0

Authors: Behera, Rajat Kumar; Bala, Pradip Kumar; Rana, Nripendra P.; Kizgin, Hatice

Abstract: A platform is a business model that allows business-to-business (B2B) participan ... Expand

Abstract: A platform is a business model that allows business-to-business (B2B) participants to connect, interacts, create and exchange value. B2B exploits social media for brand building and branding is vulnerable to attacks, which leads to a brand crisis. B2B should characterise such crisis and respond proportionally to avert damage to social listening (SL). To diminish damages, the solution is to measure customer experience (CX), especially in a crisis situation. The study proposes an analytics-enabled customer experience (AeCX) platform for emotion detection in social media and measures CX after recovering from such crisis, by exploring recovery time objective (RTO), recovery point objective (RPO), techno-business features (TBF), SL and perceived risk (PR). A quantitative research methodology is used on primary data collected from 302 B2B participants. The study reveals improvement in CX and the results provide evidence that social media channels and the TBF of AeCX have become important. Collapse

Topics: business-to-business social media marketing management business model word of mouth

Methods: structural equation modeling statistical hypothesis test data transformation survey conceptual modelling

Theories: job engagement theory distributive justice theory