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The digital transformation of all areas of life also involves the public sphere. The government and politicians are called upon to digitally redesign state and local public services in all areas - from education to health care and transport. Digital platforms play a central role in the digital transformation. On the one hand, platform companies are drivers and supporters in the digitization also of public services. On the other hand, they are often market-dominating companies that can reduce the government's ability to design the digital services. Governments are requested, on the one hand, to develop their own platform strategy for the public sector and, on the other hand, to reduce the power of the market-dominating global platforms and to ensure competition.

Private cartel damages litigation is on the rise in Europe since early 2000. This development has been initiated by the European courts and was supported by various policy initiatives of the European Commission, which found its culmination in the implementation of the EU Directive on Antitrust Damages end of 2016. This paper explores the impact of this reform process on effective compensation of damaged parties of cartel infringements. For that purpose we analyse all European cartel cases with a decision date between 2001 and 2015, for which we analyse litigation activity and speed. Overall, we find a substantial reduction of the time until first settlement (increase in litigation speed) together with a persisting high share of cases being litigated (high litigation activity). This supports the view that the reform not only increased the claimant’s expectation about the amount of damages being awarded, but also resulted in an alignment in the expectations of claimants and defendants in the final damages amount, i.e. the European Commission succeeded in reaching its objective to clarify and harmonize legal concepts across Europe.

 

View all ESMT Working Papers in the ESMT Working Paper Series here. ESMT Working Papers are also available via SSRN, RePEc, EconStor, and the German National Library (DNB).

This chapter examined the experiences of tertiary students in Bogota when taking public transport. Based on a sample of 1065 students, results showed that more than 70% of females and nearly 50% of males had experienced sexual violence at some point in the last three years, about one-third of both males and females had experienced theft, and about one-fifth other serious crimes. As expected, females in the sample felt significantly less safe than males in public transportation settings. However, rather than gender, the best predictors of low perceptions of safety were prior experiences of multiple types of sexual victimization (e.g., sexual looks and gestures, sexual comments, groping, touching inappropriately) as well as poor guardianship of vehicles and stops/stations. The study shows that fear of crime in public transport is not merely a social construction, but is directly related to prior experiences of violence in these public spaces.

This chapter examines the influence of both the physical and social environment on sexual harassment and on the perceptions of transit safety among university students. We compare results from four cities: Los Angeles in North America, Bogota in South America, Stockholm in Europe and Manila in Asia. Based on a total sample of over 2800 students, we used descriptive statistics and logistic regression models to evaluate the effect of environmental factors while controlling for individual characteristics. Our results provided evidence that environmental factors increase opportunities for crime in transportation settings. Specifically, in most models, litter and vandalism, poorly guarded and poorly illuminated settings had an impact on the risk of victimization. Also, in most models, two elements of social disorder (drunkenness and panhandling) affected risk. However, some environmental characteristics affect some types of sexual offenses but not others, and factors affect the risk of victimization differently depending on the city.

Through two studies we observed, that leaders must make a concerted effort to encourage assertiveness and speak-up behavior in their area of responsibility by asking open-ended questions before posing solutions, even (and especially) in high-stakes and urgent situations. When people are under pressure, it’s not uncommon for many to shut down and grow quiet as oppose to proactive. This is why inquiry must be used as a means for getting information — especially during crises. Further, leader’s encouragement will help to create an environment of psychological safety, and the solutions they gather will be much better for it. A business framework that emphasizes leading with questions, and one that trains and retains leaders with this skill set, is capable of achieving operational excellence.

Previously published on HBR.org
December 9, 2019

Following the turn to practice in organization theory and the emerging interest in the microfoundations of ambidexterity, understanding the role of individuals in realizing ambidexterity approaches becomes crucial. Drawing insights from Greek philosophy on paradoxes, and practice theory on paradoxes and ambidexterity, we propose a view of individual ambidexterity grounded in paradoxical practices. Existing conceptualizations of ambidexterity are largely based on separation strategies. Contrary to this perspective, we argue that individual ambidexterity can be accomplished via paradoxical practices that renegotiate or transcend boundaries of exploration and exploitation. We identify three such paradoxical practices at the individual level that can advance understanding of ambidexterity: engaging in “hybrid tasks,” capitalizing cumulatively on previous learning, and adopting a mindset of seeking synergies between the competing demands of exploration and exploitation.

With permission of SAGE Publishing

Citizen Science (CS) projects involve members of the general public as active participants in research. While some advocates hope that CS can increase scientific knowledge production (“productivity view”), others emphasize that it may bridge a perceived gap between science and the broader society (“democratization view”). We discuss how an integration of both views can allow Citizen Science to support complex sustainability transitions in areas such as renewable energy, public health, or environmental conservation. We first identify three pathways through which such impacts can occur: (1) Problem identification and agenda setting; (2) Resource mobilization; and (3) Facilitating socio-technical co-evolution. To realize this potential, however, CS needs to address important challenges that emerge especially in the context of sustainability transitions: Increasing the diversity, level, and intensity of participation; addressing the social as well as technical nature of sustainability problems; and reducing tensions between CS and the traditional institution of academic science. Grounded in a review of academic literature and policy reports as well as a broad range of case examples, this article contributes to scholarship on science, innovation, and sustainability transitions. We also offer insights for actors involved in initiating or institutionalizing Citizen Science efforts, including project organizers, funding agencies, and policy makers.

With permission of Elsevier

The article examines the legal qualification of state-led information operations that aim to undermine democratic decision-making processes in other states. After a survey of the legal attitudes of states towards such operations during the Cold War, the impact of the digital transformation on the frequency and quality of information operations is explained. The article then assesses scholarly responses to the outlined paradigm shift regarding the prohibition of intervention, respect for sovereignty and the principle of self-determination. The study then inquires whether it is possible to detect a change in how states qualify adversarial information operations by tracking recent state practice and official statements of opinio juris. The survey concludes that there is insufficient uniformity to allow for an inference that the content of the analysed rules of customary international law has already shifted towards more restrictive treatment of foreign interference. As a possible way forward, the article ends with a proposal to focus on deceptive and manipulative conduct of information operations as the most viable path to outlaw such state behavior in the future. Instead of attempting to regulate the content of information, this approach is better suited to safeguard freedom of speech and other potentially affected civil rights.

© Cambridge University Press and The Faculty of Law, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem 2020

This compact case describes an incident between an aspiring manager and an employee, related to an interpretation of expected engagement of the latter in a planned Agile Boot Camp—an event designed to bolster the transfer of the organization towards new ways of working. Alexander, the main case protagonist, overhears Victor, his employee, say that he will take only a passive part in the event since it is classified by Human Resources (HR) as training, and not as a workshop, in terms of how working time for such an activity is accounted for. Alexander, for whom the Boot Camp is very important, feels the urge to engage in the conversation (which he does in part B of the case).

Key teaching/learning objectives
1. Explore the influence of perception, cognitive dissonance, and communication on employee choices
2. Explore students' reactions to situations where their authority and intent are challenged (overtly or covertly)
3. Discuss resistance and reluctance to change