meisam ghasem nezhad

Emerging economies Firms (EMFs) are unfamiliar actors in a new host market. Hence, foreign market entry should be studied more as a position-building process. Given that position-building process lead to tensions and conflicts among key EMF stakeholders. Business Diplomacy (BD) is a practices that facilitates this process. Therefore, the purpose of this research is the typology of BD in EMFs, based on their positioning-building process over period of time. Through the lens of Path-dependence Theory, we review the literature to formulate a typology of Business diplomacy, then we identify statistical control variables.    For the purpose of this study, we used Sequence Analysis to identify sequence patterns of BD in EMFs position-building process. Iran Exemplary Exporters in the period of 2012-2020 are chosen as the statistical population of this research that 36 Firms were studied as a sample based on the judgment criteria. Data were collected through the board of director's activity annual reports in Codal Database. Using TraMineR in R-package, data analyzed through optimal matching (OM).   We empirically identify three different sequence patterns of business diplomacy. Firms in the Automotive, Petrochemical and Chemical Industries, Machinery and Equipment, Engineering Services, and the Paper Industry mainly follow first path. Firms operating in the Steel Industry, Automotive Industry, and Machinery and Equipment follow the second path. Firms operating in the Oil Industry, Steel Industry, Pharmaceutical Industry, Electrical Equipment and Paper industry follow the third path. The findings also show that business diplomacy pathways differ significantly in terms of firm's characteristics (i.e. industry, size, and international experience). We argued that EMFs follow different BD strategies in their position- building process in the host markets. In the first pattern, the most of EMFs execute reactive and proactive strategies, and few Firms have follow other strategies. In this pattern, the dominant strategic priority is pay attention to the business related stakeholders, and the pressure dimension has insignificant effect on changing the strategy. Also, we argued that the Firms in the automotive, petrochemical and chemical industries, machinery and equipment, technical and engineering services, and paper industries use the one-best-way approach. The dominant strategy in the second pattern is proactive strategy. This strategy has become the dominant view of firms in last years, and the strategic agenda of firms has shifted from business-related stakeholders to none-business-related stakeholders. In addition, we argued that this turn to none-business-related stakeholders has significantly occurred in the steel, automobile manufacturing, and machinery and equipment industries.    As a result, the contingency approach is prevailing in the second pattern. But the dominant strategy in the third pattern is defensive strategy. We argued that firms try to avoid unintended changes in the political environment, through defensive strategies, and manipulating none-business related stakeholders. In other word, they maximize profits in host markets through neutralize the non-market environment pressures. This turn to defensive strategy has been significantly occurred in the oil, steel, pharmaceutical, electrical equipment and paper industries. in addition, the results showed that firms in the automobile industry and machinery and equipment, simultaneously follow the first and second patterns, and firms in the paper industry simultaneously follow the first and third patterns, as well as firms in the steel industry follow the second and third patterns at the same time. To explain it more clearly, the dynamics of the environment exposes firms to continuous changes and companies may use strategies that conflict with each other. As a result, firms may follow a paradox approach. In nutshell, we argued that, firms by turn in strategic agenda from business related stakeholders to none-related stakeholders, facilitate their position-building process in host market. And this practice turn, influenced by Firms-level characteristics such as industry, size and international experience. Our research has implications from theoretical and methodological aspects: First, the existing research focused on advanced economy firms. But our research conducted in emerging economies context, which are very different from advanced economies context. Second, the results of this research have proposed a mechanism to overcome on emergingness liabilities. Third, the paradox approach in strategy emphasizes that in the complex and evolving world, firms faced with a heterogeneous environment and contradictory demands of business related and none-business related stakeholders. As a result, firms that follow the paradox approach in BD are more successful in creating and maintaining legitimacy. Fourth, the results of this research have confirmed the potential of quantitative research in process studies, especially in the strategy as practice area. In other words, identifying a pattern at the macro level through micro level data leads to the emergence of innovative insights that cannot be achieved only through a qualitative research design. Finally, some issues in management research, such as evolutionary view of strategy, require the analysis of sequence data; as a result, analyzing these data and identifying emerging patterns creates significant challenges, and traditional quantitative and qualitative researches suffer from this issue. Therefore, optimal matching approach has solved this challenge.we empirically identify Three different sequence patterns of business diplomacy. Frims in the Automotive, Petrochemical and Chemical Industries, Machinery and Equipment, Engineering Services, and the Paper Industry mainly follow first path. Firms operating in the Steel Industry, Automotive Industry, and Machinery and Equipment follow the second path. Firms operating in the Oil Industry, Steel Industry, Pharmaceutical Industry, Electrical Equipment and Paper industry follow the third path. the findings also show that business diplomacy pathways differ significantly in terms of firm's characteristics (i.e industry, size, and international experience).

The main issue of study is how increased traffic culture through behavioural interventions can create shared value for insurance companies? Based on, the purpose of this research developing a social marketing model for insurance companies through the experience of traffic Police behavioural interventions to increase traffic culture. Grounded theory was used to denote theoretical constructs derived from qualitative analysis of data. The statistical population of this research according to subject matter area are traffic police experts and insurance experts in Guilan province. Theoretical sampling is used to collect data from participants, based on; theoretical saturation takes placed in 20 interview. The findings show that insurance companies can use persuasion, warning, awareness and coercion strategies in response to higher-risk behaviours of insured persons that consequence of these Strategies is shared value creation.

Global economy, growing importance of innovations as well as wide use of technologies have changed the banking business worldwide. Financial technologies (FinTech) have become an integral part of banking. Start-up service providers, search engines, and social networks have expanded their services “interfering” in the fields traditionally covered by banks. The rapid rise of FinTech has changed the business landscape in banking asking for more innovative solutions.Some members of the financial services industry see the boom in FinTech as a threat to traditional banking industry. Others believe that FinTech has become a challenge that can be turned into an opportunity as it provides more flexibility, better functionality in some areas, and aggregation of services. The aim of the paper is to analyse the recent trends in banking, identifying opportunities and risks of FinTech for banks.The authors have studied the development of the financial innovation and technology market, assessed the existing practices applied in the field of FinTech, identified the main risks related to development of FinTech and financial innovations the banks are exposed to on the micro and macro level. The paper provides practical recommendations to commercial banks for strengthening the position in financial innovations and controlling the risks associated with introduction of financial innovations.

Today, competitive advantages of businesses with various products are dependent on a competitive analysis and developing a relevant strategy. One of the effective frameworks by which one can assess business portfolios is the General Electric (GE) Matrix, which itself focuses on two aspects namely market attractiveness and the business strengths. Therefore, this study asks what is the contribution of each of Chabahar Fishery Cluster’s business units, as far as the competitive advantages and relevant strategies of each unit are concerned? The objective of the study is then defined as how to identify the gap between market attractiveness in fishing industry and potentials of Chabahar Fishery Cluster and to provide appropriate strategies in line with the GE Matrix. Chabahar Fishery Cluster’s managers have been chosen as the target statistical population of the study. Marketing Management software is used to analyze data and results show those units which produced canned fish enjoyed better positions among other parts of the Cluster.

Due to dominant culture in the countries in transition, one of the issues to be investigated in these countries is the phenomenon of nepotism in the organizations which, as an environmental factor, could affect the employees’ performance. This study attempts to examine the functions of nepotism in Iranian public sector organizations and evaluate its impact on employees'' performance. Research methodology of this study is descriptive- survey. Thus, after an overview on theoretical bases and for the aim of collecting the required data, 150 questionnaires were distributed among administrative employees of Zahedan Municipality. Our findings showed that nepotism is a challenging issue that affects the performance of employees in the administrative systems of Iranian public sector. It was also found that nepotism, as an environmental factor, has made the performance of organization to be consistent with it, through overcoming intra-organizational factors.