EXECUTIVE

T h e J o u r n a l o f D e v e l o p i n g A r e a s Special Issue on Kuala Lumpur Conference Held in August 2014 Volume 49 No. 5 2015 THE LONGEVITY OF LARGE ENTERPRISES: A STUDY OF THE FACTORS THAT SUSTAIN ENTERPRISES OVER AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME Malik Muhammad Sheheryar Khan* University of South Australia, Australia ABSTRACT The high mortality of companies has been a common trend especially following major economic events such as the 2008 global finance crisis. Many companies such as Lehman Brothers were seemingly performing companies until their abrupt co llapse which left the business world shocked. Many organisations currently are strategizing towards sustainability and ultimately longevity. However, not many companies have managed to survive for at least a century and remain relevant in the current marke t. The study therefore focuses on creating a framework which illustrates the main factors that are an imperative for any company to survive for a long period of time. The framework includes; five main factors which are responsible for organi sational longevity, i.e. Resources, Innovative Capability, Organi sational Culture, Organi sational systems and Strategy. Framework proposed can be applied within large scale business enterprises that have to bear the brunt in the wake of recession. Maintenance of a ll the factors promoted longevity among organi sations. JEL Classifications : M10 , M14 Keywords : Longevity, Organisation, Sustainability, Framework, Stability Corresponding Author’s Email Address : [email protected] INTRODUCTION Organi sational Longevity can be defined as the continued existence of organisations even after the founding members leave (Haugh and Talwar, 2010, p. 485). The high mortality of companies has been a common trend especially following major economic events such as the 2008 global finance crisis. Many companies such as Lehman Brothers, Enron and Arthur Anderson were seemingly performing companies until their ab rupt collapse which left the business world shocked following the crumble of companies which once symbolized power and stability. This trend can be attributed to the fact that c ompanies many a times fail to understand that organi sational change and learnin g are inevit able for accomplishing success and show high degree of reluctance for change. Organisational longevity is essentially one of the aspects that can categorize the sustainability of a company or enterprise. According to Pawlowski (1999) in order for an organisation to sustain itself, it must be stable, continuous and long lived. Most o rganisations live in the now and wish to solve the problems and address the needs of today and make money whilst they are at it. This shows need of stability and continuity among organis ations . Organisational longevity can be accredited to enhancement of t he company’s self - renewal process which fosters a prompt measure to instigate changes which address the recently emerged problems including proactive thinking and planning (Montouri, 2000). 42 Krell (2000, p.8 ) defines two aspects of organis ational long evity . Firstly, organis ations are like living things and thus theories of human life are applicable across organisa tions as well, secondly, organis ations need to identify the traits which can ensure longer life or better sustainability. Among the models th at have focused on organis ational capabilities, 7S model by Waterman et al (1980) focussed on 7 factors which were responsible for sustainability, i.e. strategy, structure, systems, shared values, style, staff and skills they primarily focus on the stability and continuation spectrum. Further, model proposed by Hubbard et al (1996) also focussed on factors like; culture, structure, systems, human resource capacity and financial resources, but didn’t give importance to the concept of longevity. Geus (2002, p.2 4) indicates that there are four attributes, 1) environment sensitive regardless of whether their fortunes were as a result of knowledge or other natural resources; 2) cohesive and have a significant sense of identity among employees and suppliers; 3) invo lving tolerant and accommodative experiments, eccentricities and outliers that which eventually expanded their knowledge of their capabilities as an organisation and 4) conservative financing, in which capital is not utilized in risky ventures but rather m oney is used to grant the organisation financial flexibility. Geus (2002) extrapolates the grim outlook of high company mortality of Fortune 500 companies or their equivalent by explaining that most of these companies have a life expectancy of only forty t o fifty years. For instance, one -third of the Fortune 500 companies in 1970 had failed by the year 1983 either through mergers & acquisitions or business failure . It has become common to witness many large companies last only an average of 12.5 years. In order to survive the dynamic and unpredictable business climate, it is imperative for organisations to invest in achieving business excellence in all aspects of organisational processes. This entails process systems, innovation and technology, communicatio n systems, project management, resource management and management of change successfully (Harrington, 2006, p. 43). Working upon the strategies, companies tend to follow the latest strategic models which are in fashion rather than selecting strategic tools on the basis of their utility and applicability. However, not all concepts deliver results and when not deliver desired results does, they are promptly discontinued or put to minimal usage. This paper would review the literature on the concept of organi sational longevity in order to determine the factors which contribute towards it. The aim and objectives of the study are as follows: 1. The importance of sustaining organisations over an extended period of time is widely acknowledged in the management literature (references).The purpose of this inquiry is to seek to answer the question as to what are the vital factors which contribute to o rganisational longevity. 2. Review the literature to identify the factors thought to be vital in sustaining organisations over an extended period of time. 3. Providing interpretation and explanation of the findings with reasoned arguments drawn from the empiric al and literature evidence to develop a framework of critical factors essential for organisational longevity. 43 FACTORS AFFECTING ORGANISATIONAL LONGEVITY Resources Material and human resources are both responsible for the longevity of the organis ation. Dunphy, Griffiths and Benn (2003, p. 57) posit that allocation of time as well as money to strategic plans within a company helps enhance sustainability of various projects.

However, other than time and money, human resources also play a pivotal rol e, because they offer the required intellectual, planning, co -ordination and problem -solving skills in managing projects strategically (Roome, 2005, p. 240). Involving employees and empowering them with responsibilities gives them autonomy and intrinsicall y motivates them to contribute to the growth and sustainability of the organisation (Holton et al., 2010, p. 154). Moreover knowledge generated, built and shared by the employees acts as a strategic asset for the organis ation and boosts the organis ation’s competence for promotion of innovation (Bollinger and Smith, 2001, P. 11) . Similarly, allocation of resources to the project is also important to maintain the sustainability for the organis ation. However, finances should also be used strategically which in turn would promote growth and development of the organis ation (Siebenhuner and Arnold, 2007, p. 341; Doppelt, 2008, p. 54). Companies that have survived many years are known to have great financial muscle which is an advantage in case of a profitable capital intensive investment or financial crisis. Moreover, strong partnerships are also based on the financial capability of an organis ation (Spithoven et al. 2013) . Strategies adopted for successful allocation and application of resources should be designed based on the present availability of resources. Many researchers have studied the need of resource management from multiple angles. According to Geus (2002), longevity companies used their cash resources sparingly. These companies under stood what it meant to have a cash reserve in hand which would allow them to avail opportunities. The other aspects that lead a company to longevity according to Geus are sensitivity to the environment, cohesiveness and tolerance (See Figure 1). 44 FIGURE 1: MODEL FOR CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITY AND LONGEVITY Source: Geus (2002) Also, Harrington (2006, p. xxi) adds t hat the directing of resources and assets is important in shaping business outcomes. Moreover, Harrington (2006, p. 47) points out that in order to survive the dynamic business market and sustain an organisation for a long time, it is important to ensure t hat organisational excellence is made a priority. As per Harrington (2006) there are five elements which contribute towards organis ational excellence of which fundamental factors include; process management, knowledge management systems, project management , resource management and management of change successfully (See Figure 2). Organisational Culture Organisational culture refers to values, assumptions and expectations that define an organisation. . (Upadhyay et al. 2010) , p. 51) proposes three cultural levels including the first level, second and third level. The first level comprises of visible elements such as facilities and dress code wh ile the second level involves strategies, objectives, and philosophies and values a company has. The third level comprises feelings, attitudes and assumptions among organisational staff. According to Bart and Baetz (1998, p. 827), the mission statement and vision of the company significantly affects the organisational performance. Although sometimes ignored, aspects such as company values and other cultural aspects in a company are what shapes up current employees and newly oriented ones to either believe i n achieving objectives or organisational mission. There are four main organis ational cultures which support sustainability, clan, adhocracy, market and CORPORATE SUSTAINABILTY AND LONGEVITY Sensitivity to the environment: Ability to Learn and adapt Cohesion and identity: Ability to build a community and a persona for itself Tolerance and Flexibility: Ability to build constructive relationships with other entities, within and outside Conservative Financing: Ability to govern its own growth and evolution effectively . 45 hierarchy cultures. While clan and adhocracy are used by businesses which operate in high risk and high volatility environment and therefore for them the concept of stability and longevity is not prioritized however, market and hierarchy cultures thrive on stability with low risk investments. Martins and Terblanche (2003, p. 45) discusses the role of organis ations culture towards innovation and creativity, which in turn stimulates a set of mutually shared values which ensures that every aspect of firm in totality is on the same track. FIGURE 2: ORGANISATIONAL EXCELLENCE MODEL Source: Harrington (2006) Organisational Systems Organisational systems essentially refer to all the units of an organisation that define it including production or manufacturing systems, quality management systems and communications among others (Collins, 2001, p. 97). The process system involves defini tion and ensuring the set terms of inputs, outputs, feedback mechanisms and measurement systems are in check within an organisation (Harrington, 2006, p. 48).Quality systems on the other hand ensures that continuous improvement is constantly undertaken and that companies strive to sell and provide quality products and services. Golden and Powell (1999, P.169) discussed about the role of flexibility along with quality and cost - ORGANISATIONAL EXCELLENCE Process Management: Output requirements Input requirements Reliable transf ormation process Feedback measurement system Project management: Intellectual capacity Proper scheduling Proper planning Change management: Defining aspects to be changed Defining change implementation Implementing change Knowledge management: Defining requirements Infrastructure evaluation Design & development Pilot Deployment Continuous improvement Resource management: Money Inventory Customers Investors Suppliers Alliance partnerships Employees Patents Real estate Goodwill 46 efficiency within the system as the minimal requisites for corporates to contest c ompetition effectually. Understanding the organisational systems is thus necessary to ensure that the organisation in its entirety is meeting its business objectives and long -term sustenance is one of the key one. Innovative Capability The dynamism witnessed among long lived companies is a clear indication that in order to achieve longevity, flexibility, creativeness and innovativeness are paramount to achieving survival in harsh economic market (Mitleton, 2006, p. 226). For instance, co mpanies that deal with finite resources must invent possible alternatives they can engage in years to come by creating a pool of resources or better still innovative new ways of doing things (Dopplet, 2008, p. 14). However, achievement of innovative capabi lity within the organis ation is plagued with financial constraints. Hottenrott and Peters (2009) in their research paper discuss about the correlation between innovative capability of the organis ation and financial constraints. The researchers assert that although innovation promotes organisational level productivity, competitiveness and sustainable long term business growth and complacent market positioning however, there is a constant concern about financing the investments in innovative products or servi ces or carrying out the relevant research and development for inventing a breakthrough product. Innovation within the organis ation drives business growth and also improves sustainability within the organis ation. Pricewaterhouse Coopers (2012, P.2) in their report advocated that in order to be competitive in the international marketplace, companies must emphasis e extensively on innovation not only in their products but also in functioning. Innovation must be done constantly but keeping the cost -optimization in mind. Strategy Business strategy is an integral part of maintaining an organisation at a certain advantage above other. The core business strategies are aimed at, core competencies within the organis ation, marketing, and growth. When strategies are aligned with organis ational objectives, sustained good performance and excellence is usually the intended outcome; all of which are precursors to an organisation’s extended lifespan (Johnson and Scholes, 20 02, p. 111). Importance of strategy for sustainable growth of the organis ation is cited by Porter (Lee et al. 2014 , p. 62), when he discussed the example of Japanese firms which are world renowned for their impeccable operational effectuality. . It was this operational effectiveness which facilitated organisational longevity f or Japanese enterprises and gave them an upper hand over the western world firms. Gebauer, Gustafsson and Witell (2011, P. 1273) are of the opinion that companies can only attain sustainable competitive advantage when they attempt differentiation in offerings taking into considerations the strategic, financial and marketing opportunitie s. Factors that are found to be substantially influencing the longevity of a business organis ation can also be classified into two main parts, internal and external. The internal factors are associated to various kinds of capabilities, relative and absolu te aspects of management procedures. On the other hand, the external factors consist of aspects that are 47 relevant and significant enough to impinge upon an organis ation without basically including specific competitive factors including interests and pace o f the entire social order. The internal factors that are typically associated to longevity of an organis ation can be considered to be management’s quality of decision making capabilities, quality of planning, quality of organis ing, staffing standard and q uality control. If all the internal factors are considered collectively, the points that are just enumerated form the very basis of the life of the organis ation at any given moment. According to (Yang and Zhao, 2011 p: 89) , the management capabilities of a business organis ation are considered to be quite effective for the long ru n. However, there are several other longevity factors that are taken to be quite significant but are mostly associated to short term goals. For instance, organis ational strengths like strong cash position, good control over key raw materials, patent monopo lies, low level of debt and such. So, in case an organis ation is suffering from weaknesses like inefficient production system, inadequate level of market coverage, high cost of raw materials, submarginal level of transportation, poor quality employees, poo r public relations, non -competitive public charges, inadequate level of financing are some of the reasons why an organis ation may fail to have a longer life span. In fact, as stated by (Loukis, Spinellis, and Katsigiannis, 2011 p: 67) , one of the maj or factors behind longevity of an organis ation is the capacity of the management to resist the above mentioned weaknesses. Moreover, according to (Saleem, 2011 p:90) , the larger a business organis ation, the greater the possibility that it will encounter various adverse circumstances that lead to a lowered life span. PROPOSED MODEL BUILDING FOR ORGANIS ATIONAL LONGEVITY Based on the models developed towards longevity (Geus, 2002) and organis ational excellence (Harrington, 2006), the researcher proposes a model and identifies five factors which contribute towards organis ational longevity (See Figure 3). These five factors are; resources, organisational culture, organisational system, innovative capability and strategy.

In terms of resources, Allocation of resources, including human resources and money to strategic plans within a company helps enhance sustainability of vario us projects. The challenge is ensuring that too much capital is not spent on risky ventures that might not be profitable or stimulate growth and development. Finances should be used strategically in innovative projects that will generate more income and co ntinue achieving increased financial performance. The practices and routines within the organisation is determinant of the organisational culture. It is the organisational culture which inculcates values among the employees. Further organisational systems comprise of production systems, quality management systems and communication systems among others. The establishment of a comprehensive assembly of systems is because it is easier to relay information and monitor smooth undertaking of events. The innovativ e capability of an organisation is responsible for new creations and better ways to survive the economic climate that is constantly changing. The dynamism witnessed among long lived companies is a clear indication that in order to achieve longevity, flexib ility, creativeness and innovativeness are paramount to achieving survival. It is very important for organisations to engage in open minded possibilities, be flexible and willing to diversify or perfect their niche in order to survive the tides of differe nt economic climates 48 FIGURE 3.MODEL FOR ORGANISATIONAL LONGEVITY .

Strategy on the other hand relates to planning in such a way that an advantage over competing companies is achieved. This can be through creation of core competencies, marketing strategies and growth strategies. Because strategies are set in alignment with organisational objectives, sustained good performance and excellence is usually the intended outcome; all of which are precursors to an organisation’s extended lifespan. It is essential that companies keep on strategizing, assessing progress and re -strategizing in order to maintain a competitive advantage and sustain a core competence. This sets a company apart from the rest leading to organisational excellence which is an essential pre - requisite to business longevity. By and large, organisational longevity is a complex aspect owing to the fact that it takes companies years to build an organisation , yet a period of bad strategies or decision making may result in the mortality of a stable company abruptly.

Numerous factors contribute to organisational extended lifespan and they are based on excellence models and strategic elements. The factors that p rominently stood out have been analysed below in detail. An organis ation is expected to live longer in case, it has expertise in aspects like strategic management, well planned organis ational systems, high standard of resources especially with respect to quality human resource with a large cash reserve, excellent organis ational culture and high capacity to initiate innovation. If a large scale organis ation ORGANISATIONAL LONGEVITY Organisational Systems  Productivity  Quality Resources  Human Resource Capital  Financial Resource Capital Innovative Capability  Standard R&D  Flexibility  Creativeness Organisational Culture  Democratic Culture  Employee Values Strategy  Effective Short Term Strategies  Long Term Sustainable Strategies 49 is able to implement the model , the organis ation is expected to get benefitted with respect to internal as well as external factors that contribute to longevity of the organis ation. The internal factors will strengthen the internal working capacity of the organis ation while external fa ctors will enable the organis ation to take advantage of any external business opportunity coming its way. CONCLUSION S Organisational longevity has over the years gained precedence following the high number of large and stable companies that have succumbed to the economic pressures of today’s harsh business climate. Following an analysis of the literature about organisational sustainability and longevity, the findings indicate that many factors are indeed linked to organisational longevity , although five m ain factors are an imperative in the survival of a company for many years. Firstly, allocation of resources, including human resources, money, to strategic plans within a company helps enhance sustainability of various projects. Secondly, the establishment of a comprehensive assembly of systems , in order to ensure that information is regularly relayed and monitor ed for smooth undertaking of operations and events. For instance, process systems will determine whether the output defines company excellence whic h in the long run determines the viability and lifespan of an organisation. Thirdly, the dynamism witnessed among long lived companies is a clear indication that in order to achieve longevity, flexibility, creativeness and innovativeness are paramount to a chieving survival. . It is very important for organisations to engage in open minded possibilities, be flexible and willing to diversify or perfect their niche in order to survive the tides of different economic climates. Fourthly, it is the culture of the organisation which develops the values required in employees to achieve the objectives of the organisation and its mission. Finally, because strategies are set in alignment with organisational objectives, sustained good performance and excellence is usual ly the intended outcome; all of which are precursors to an organisation’s extended lifespan The outcomes of the study could have been more exhaustive if the study was based on a particular organis ation. The study has considered organis ations that are larg e scale. However, the proposed model could have been more accurate and effective for ensuring longevity for an organis ation, if the field in which the organis ation is operating is known. This particular limitation can be associated to another major limitation which is paucity of time. The study has a good future scope. The study indeed throws light on the various concepts of the factors that contribute to the longevity of an organis ation. In fact, the study can be used as a strong base material for secondary research studies dealing with subject matters like sustainability of business organis ations. With the aid of the study, the researchers in future will also get an idea about how new models can be proposed. The proposed model for this study can be used as basic structure based on which more complex models can be made. 50 ENDNOTES Acknowledgement *I would like to thank my supervisors Dr Howard Harris and Dr Saras Sastrowardoyo for inspiring me, guiding me and providing me with the motivation to write and get my work published. 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