This paper analyses the main institutional mechanisms that foster the emergence andperformance of firms in knowledge-intensive sectors in developing countries. We use theempirical data collected in 2005 and 2006 in the South African computer hardware andsoftware sectors and the Malaysian...

The value of information technology investments is becoming a topical issue for corporate governance under the recent regulations enacted in the US (Sarbanes Oxley Act, US Congress, 2002). Increasingly, it is becoming clear that the absence of a definitive approach to evaluating IT investments...

According to Gartner, human data-entry errors, and lack of proper corporate data standards result in more than 25 percent of critical data used in large corporations to be flawed. While the issue of data quality is as old as data itself, it is now exposed at a much more strategic level, e.g....

Highly complex enterprise software packages have become a standard way of competing in many industries. By the late 1990s, enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems had enabled Fortune 500 firms to present one face to their customers via integrated cross-functional business processes,...

Business process integration and automation have gained popularity among business community, in the recent past. This increased popularity can be seen as a result of the widespread use of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems as part of maximizing the benefits of Business Process...

This paper investigates the dynamic relation between callers' socialties and their wireless phone service consumption. We construct a largepair-level panel dataset with information on the number of each pair'scommon contacts, calling activities, prices, and each caller'scharacteristics over a...

Recent social spending inflation in China has led to its growth rate far exceeding that of income and other consumption. In this paper, we estimate private returns to social spending, such as higher social status and larger social network that serve as certain functions. In almost all...

Prepared for a Conference on Transnational Networks in Princeton in 2001, this paper explored the comparative dynamics of the trans-local networks which South Asian migrants from Mirpur (Pakistan), Jullundur (India) and Sylhet (Bangladesh) have constructed around themselves.

This dissertation examines how a fundamental group decision-making bias referred to as group polarization may influence boards’ major strategic decisions (i.e. acquisition premiums, executive compensation, and diversification) and the diffusion of practices through interlock networks. I begin...

The scope of my dissertation is to understand how consumers’ online communication affects consumers’ behavior and market outcomes. The recent growth of consumer generated media (CGM), also known as “new” media, has provided consumers easier interaction, both to search for product...