Jell-Ojobor, Maria

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Maria Jell-Ojobor is an Assistant Professor of International Business and Strategy. Before joining John Cabot University, she was an Assistant Professor at Luiss Guido Carli University in Rome and was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Vienna, WU University Vienna and Corvinus University in Budapest. She earned her master's degree (magister) and doctorate degree in International Management from the University of Vienna. Professor Jell-Ojobor's research focuses on the governance of international strategic networks such as franchising and supply chains, as well as sustainability and digitalization in international companies. Her work has been published in renowned international management journals such as the Journal of International Management, International Business Review, International Marketing Review, Journal of Business Research and Business Strategy and the Environment. Before entering academia, Professor Jell-Ojobor worked as a project manager at multinational healthcare companies and international organizations in Europe and Africa.

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2014 - 201932020 - 20249
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Now showing 1 - 10 of 12
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    Blockchain Technology and Governance of Franchise Networks
    (2024) Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Russwurm, Roland; Windsperger, Josef
    This study explores the implications of the introduction of blockchain technology for the governance of franchise networks. In light of the limited prior research on this topic, the study employs a twofold approach. It begins by identifying the central themes present in current research at the intersection of franchising and blockchain technology. Next, it examines existing instances of implementations of blockchain technology and connects them to corresponding value chain operations in the franchising context. The study takes a comprehensive approach, combining bibliometric analysis with a semisystematic literature review, to offer insights into blockchain technology's potential future impact on the franchise industry. Specifically, it shows that franchise network governance can benefit significantly from attributes of blockchain such as transparency, efficiency, and trust as well as from its various applications such as smart contracts and decentralized autonomous organizations.
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    From catalyst to burden: shopping malls and franchising in Brazil
    (2024) Grünhagen, Marko; Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Hess, Julia E.; Da Silva Filho, Haroldo Monteiro
    Purpose This research links the global advance of the franchise model to the geohistorical foray of shopping malls through an empirical longitudinal study in the largest emerging market in Latin America, Brazil. Design/methodology/approach We conducted an analysis of a multi-year set of qualitative interviews with the same franchised mall tenants (23 interviews in 2017 and 12 follow-up interviews in 2022) via an iterative procedure of transcript data coding and theme identification. Findings Shopping malls were key catalysts in the pre-pandemic growth of franchising in Brazil, yet during the pandemic, malls became liabilities. Attitudes towards malls as franchise hosts changed, flipping the mall perception from catalytic host to burdensome trap. Mall management companies, as key gatekeepers, deserve more research attention. Originality/value Our study reveals the detrimental role shopping malls, with their static rules and high cost structures, have played as franchise businesses struggled to survive during the global pandemic. While franchising represents one of the most influential retail business models today, shopping malls have been among the most important brick-and-mortar retail institutions since the 1950s. Jointly, they constitute a unique retail symbiosis with little attention in the academic literature.
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    Governance of international franchise networks: Combining value creation and value appropriation perspectives
    (2022) Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Hajdini, Ilir; Windsperger, Josef
    This study develops a new perspective on the franchisor’s choice of international governance modes as a value creation and value appropriation mechanism. Value creation refers to knowledge creation from the joint use of the franchisor’s intangible system-specific knowhow and foreign partners’ intangible local market knowhow; value appropriation refers to efficient knowledge exploitation based on transaction cost savings under conditions of uncertainty and transaction-specific investments. Based on primary data from 162 international franchise systems headquartered in eight countries, the results highlight the importance of intangible knowledge-based resources (franchisor’s system-specific knowhow and franchise partners’ local market knowhow) and transaction cost factors (transaction-specific investments, environmental uncertainty, and cultural uncertainty) for the franchisor’s choice between equity modes, such as wholly-owned subsidiaries, and joint venture franchising, and non-equity modes, such as single-unit franchising, area development franchising, and master franchising.
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    Knowledge Attributes and Internationalization of E-service Firms: Literature Review and Conceptual Model
    (2023) Vayle, Alexandra; Jell-Ojobor, Maria
    While previous international business studies have addressed e-commerce in the form of online retail shopping, there is a lack of research on how e-service firms enter international markets. Our study attempts to address this gap by systematically analyzing the relevant literature and developing a conceptual model that explains the internationalization of e-service firms. Specifically, we explore how their specific knowledge attributes affect the internationalization process and the choice of entry mode of e-service firms. Our conceptual framework distinguishes hard and soft service components of e-service firms by two types of knowledge characteristics—codifiable firm know-how and non-codifiable (intangible) firm know-how. We develop three propositions on the entry mode choice of e-service firms—low-control modes, network modes, and high-control modes.
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    The choice of master international franchising – A modified transaction cost model
    (2022) Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Alon, Ilan; Windsperger, Josef
    This study develops and tests a novel transaction cost model of master international franchising. Based on data from international franchise firms headquartered in six countries, we show that master international franchising is the franchisor’s preferred governance mode under the following conditions: large bilateral franchisor’s and franchisees’ transaction-specific investments, high institutional uncertainty and high behavioral uncertainty. Our model extends the literature by presenting a modified transaction cost model of master international franchising that investigates the bonding effect of bilateral transaction-specific investments and environmental uncertainty as determinants of the franchisor’s choice of international governance mode. In addition, by using primary data from international franchise companies, our study contributes to the transaction cost literature in international business and international franchising that is mainly based on secondary data.
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    The Choice of Governance Modes of International Franchise Firms — Development of an Integrative Model
    (2014) Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Windsperger, Josef
    This paper examines the evolution of the international franchise research with special focus on the governance modes of the international franchise firm and develops a new model for the franchisor's choice of the international governance modes. International governance modes in franchising refer to wholly-owned subsidiaries, joint venture franchising, area development franchising and master franchising. Although many studies on the governance modes of the international franchise firm have been published in the last two decades, no prior study develops an integrative framework that investigates the determinants of the international governance modes by combining organizational economics and strategic management perspectives. Specifically, this study explains the governance modes of the international franchise firm by applying transaction cost theory, agency theory, resource-based and organizational capabilities theory and property rights theory.
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    Being good at being good—The mediating role of an environmental management system in value-creating green supply chain management practices
    (2022) Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Raha, Aveed
    This study adopts a resource-based view to explain the complementary role of the corporate structure in the value creation of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices. Using 8-year panel data collected from 317 US international manufacturers, we analyze the influence of GSCM practices on corporate financial performance (CFP) and the mediating role of a certified environmental management system (EMS) in this relationship. We show that GSCM practices have a positive impact on accounting-based financial performance, meaning, return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE). In contrast, firms that implement GSCM practices and a certified EMS simultaneously achieve a higher market valuation in terms of Tobin's Q in addition to a higher ROA and ROE in the following year. Our study demonstrates that, through their synergistic combination with a firm's complementary EMS, utilizing GSCM practices can result in intangible assets as sources of long-term financial benefits. Our results have several theoretical and managerial implications. They also address the limitations of the prior use of varying survey-based items for internal and external GSCM practices and add nuance to the existing GSCM practices in the literature.
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    Determinants of the Governance Structure of the International Franchise Firm: A Case Study Analysis in the Automotive Rental Industry
    (2017) Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Windsperger, Josef
    Purpose The governance structure of international franchise firms varies from higher control modes, such as wholly owned subsidiaries and joint venture franchising, to lower control modes, such as area development and master franchising. Based on organizational economics, strategic management, and international business perspectives, the purpose of this paper is to use the case study analysis to empirically evaluate an integrative model on the franchisor’s choice of international governance modes. Design/methodology/approach The study applies qualitative methods, such as in-depth case analysis, to investigate a large set of variables that influence the governance structure decision of the international franchise firm. Specifically, it applies a theory-testing case study with two major competitors in the European automotive rental industry, i.e. Europcar and Sixt. Theory-testing case research is justified by the lack of explanatory research due to the complexity of the franchisor-franchisee relationship phenomena, such as the factors that influence the franchisor’s choice of international governance modes. The investigation of the complex governance structure phenomenon requires a holistic analysis. Findings The case study shows that environmental, behavioral, transaction-specific, resource-based (system-specific, market-specific, financial resources), and international strategy considerations are important determinants of the governance mode decision of the international franchise firm. Research limitations/implications The study responds to the recent call in organizational economics, marketing, strategic management, and international business literature to develop and test a multi-theoretical framework to explain the governance structure of inter-organizational networks, such as franchise networks. Originality/value Few previous studies in international franchising have used more than one theoretical perspective to explain the governance structure of the international franchise firm. This study contributes to the theory-testing case study literature by applying a rigorous method of conducting case research. This includes developing a theoretical framework and a systematic research design. A systematic research design requires a holistic analysis by investigating the international franchise governance modes from a variety of theoretical perspectives which are the organizational economics, strategic management, and the strategy-structure perspective.
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    Inclusive value creation in the coffee industry. A framework of blockchain-enabled dynamic capabilities for sustainable international supply chain transformation
    (2022) Jell-Ojobor, Maria; Kramer, Michael Paul
    The components that characterize sustainable business models in the coffee industry – such as fair prices, conducive working conditions, sustainable production, and ecological protection – pose challenges for international coffee manufacturers in maintaining their financial performance. Therefore, sustainable business models must be more competitive than traditional ones. While sustainability strategies are to a large extent public – meaning, they can be imitated by others – when combined with complementary assets, they can yield additional assets, resources, and capabilities, ensuring these firms a long-term competitive advantage. Based on the dynamic capabilities of resource-based theory, our study explains how the use of blockchain technology reinforces critical dynamic capabilities to differentiate the brand as a source of intangible assets and inclusive value creation in sustainable international coffee supply chains. Overall, our study helps balance the distribution of value among the coffee supply chain partners located in industrialized and developing countries.
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    Strategic CSR and the Competitive Advantage of Franchise Firms
    (2019) Jell-Ojobor, Maria
    Although corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a widely researched topic, there is a lack of its application in the franchise literature. The integration of CSR into the franchise business model is vital as it affects the franchise firm’s growth and survival. Based on resource-based and organizational capabilities theories, our study explains how CSR strategy impacts the creation of intangible brand name assets as critical source of sustainable competitive advantage and, hence, increased financial performance. We adopt a multi-stakeholder-oriented CSR construct of economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic responsibility dimensions. Using data from Austrian franchise firms, our results show that those CSR dimensions have a positive impact on brand name asset creation. Specifically, philanthropic responsibility strategy has the greatest impact on brand name assets, followed by legal, ethical, and economic responsibility strategies. Overall, this is the first study in franchising which explains the strategic role of CSR.