title
stringlengths 6
301
| keywords
listlengths 0
23
| messages
listlengths 2
2
|
|---|---|---|
Delineating the outcomes of sponsorship: Sponsor image, word of mouth, and purchase intentions
|
[
"Sponsorship",
"Sports",
"Marketing models"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Corporate investments on sponsorship have increased rapidly over the last decades (Koo et al., 2006). Sponsorship expenditures increased worldwide from $2 billion in 1984 to $28 billion in 2004 (Carrillat et al., 2005; Koo et al., 2006). In Europe, it has been reported that $7.4 billion were invested on sponsorship programs in 2004 (Seguin et al., 2005). The amplified investments relate to the effectiveness of sponsorship as a marketing communication tool (Dolphin, 2003; Seguin et al., 2005). Although the growth in sponsorship investments is well documented in the literature along with the plethora of options now available to sponsors, several researchers have indicated the lack of evidence about how and when sponsorship works (Hoek, 1999; Meenaghan and O'Sullivan, 2001). Sponsorship effectiveness is mainly evaluated by marketing practitioners based on indicators related to product sales (Carrillat et al., 2005) and stock prices (Tsiotsou and Lalountas, 2005). Recent academic research, however, has addressed the importance of attitude research in understanding sponsorship outcomes (Alexandris et al., 2007). A variety of attitudinal and behavioral outcomes, such as media exposure, awareness, recognition and recall rates, sponsor image, purchase intentions, and word-of-mouth communication have all been proposed as sponsorship outcomes (Christensen, 2006; Gwinner and Swanson, 2003). However, as Christensen (2006) noted, sponsorship evaluation research is still at early stages, due to lack of established theoretical frameworks that can explain a consumer's decision making process.One of the basic forms of sponsorship is sport sponsorship, which involves sponsoring sport associations, teams, athletes, facilities, events, leagues and competitions. The current study was conducted in the context of professional sport sponsorship, aiming at investigating attitudinal and behavioral factors as sponsorship outcomes. Specifically, the objectives of the present study were set as follows:* to propose an attitudinal/behavioral model in sponsorship evaluation;* to measure sponsorship effectiveness by examining the antecedents of sponsor image, purchase intentions, and word of mouth; and* to examine the examine the role of sport involvement on these outcomes.\nConceptual framework and hypotheses: There have been some recent attempts to theoretically develop and empirically test models to investigate the influence of attitudinal constructs on sponsorship outcomes (Alexandris et al., 2007; Gwinner and Swanson, 2003; Madrigal, 2001). Despite these efforts, research on sponsorship evaluation is still not well established (Alexandris et al., 2007; Christensen, 2006), since the interactions among the constructs that have been proposed as antecedents and consequences of sponsorship programs are complex and dynamic.As previously noted, a variety of attitudinal and behavioral outcomes, such as media exposure, awareness, recognition and recall rates, sponsor image, stock prices, purchase intentions, and word-of-mouth communication have all been proposed as sponsorship outcomes (Christensen, 2006; Tsiotsou and Lalountas, 2005; Gwinner and Swanson, 2003). The present study proposes a model that incorporates attitudinal (sponsor image) and behavioral outcomes (purchase intentions and word of mouth) of sponsorship in order to understand how and when sport sponsorship works. These attitudinal constructs have not been empirically tested in an integrated model so far. The sponsorship outcomes and antecedents, used in this study, are reviewed below, while the proposed relationships among them are presented.\nSponsorship outcomes: Sponsor image, purchase intentions, and word-of-mouth communications\nAntecedents of sponsorship: Team attachment\nMethodology: Questionnaires were collected from fans of a professional basketball team in Greece. The questionnaires were distributed in the basketball arena, before the start of a basketball game (n=470). A team of five researchers distributed the questionnaires, and collected them back. From these questionnaires 354 (n=354) were returned, achieving a response rate of 75.3 percent.Measurement model\nResults: Respondents ranged in age from 18 to 65 years (mean = 31.9), with males making up 90 percent of the sample (n=354). The majority of the subjects were single (67 percent). Subjects included university students (18 percent), high school graduates (39 percent), bachelor degree holders (37 percent), master degree holders (4 percent) and graduates of continuing education centers (2 percent). Fun club members accounted for 55 percent of the respondents, season ticket holders accounted for 15 percent and single ticket holders for 30 percent.Initial analyses\nDiscussion and managerial implications: The study aimed to test an integrated model of sport sponsorship, in which team attachment was proposed to influence attitudinal (sponsor image) and behavioral intention outcomes (purchase intentions and word of mouth). Prior research examined the above constructs either in isolation or in relation to other constructs, which were not included in this study. The results revealed some clear patterns and supported the proposed framework.First of all, a significant and fairly high amount of variance on purchase intentions (49 percent) and word of mouth (65 percent) was explained by Involvement, team attachment and sponsor image. This finding provides support for the inclusion of these variables in the proposed model and it indicates their important role in the sponsorship effectiveness.Team attachment exhibited fairly strong total effects on both sponsor image and purchase intentions, which implies that highly attached fans are more likely to develop positive image about the sponsor and express willingness to buy its products, as has been previously proposed. The important role of team attachment has also been shown in previous studies that have been conducted in the context of American collegiate sports and/or professional sports (Gwinner and Swanson, 2003). Sponsor image was also shown to have direct and fairly strong total effects on both purchase intentions and word-of-mouth. It is, however, important to note that sponsor image was shown to be a mediator of the relationship between sport attachment and word-of-mouth. Both these findings provide support for the value of team attachment and sponsor image in predicting behavioral sponsorship outcomes, as has been proposed. They are also in line with the phenomenon of \"transfer of goodwill,\" as proposed by Meenaghan (2001). Highly attached fans are more likely to develop positive image about their team's sponsor and consequently express positive intentions to say good things and buy the sponsor's products. It could, therefore, be proposed that marketers should work on the development of team attachment and the creation of positive sponsor image, in order to increase sponsorship effectiveness. They should create programs and actions that will increase fans attachment to the team. This can be done by increasing their involvement with the team's social events and activities. Furthermore, sport teams marketers should extensively promote sponsorship through different types of communication strategies. Examples can be indoor and outdoor advertisement, print material (e.g. match day program, newsletters), electronic mass media, internet (e.g. website), announcements in the stadiums, public relations actions. These actions can help on increasing sponsorship awareness and build the sponsor's image.In addition to predicting sponsorship outcomes, this study provides empirical evidence for the role of sport activity involvement as antecedent of team attachment. As hypothesized, the involvement-attraction dimension had a strong direct effect on team attachment. As previously discussed, attraction refers to the perceived importance that an activity holds for an individual and the interest, pleasure and enjoyment derived from the activity (Kyle et al., 2004). This means that sport activities which are considered as fun, attractive and spectacular are more likely to develop attached fans. The challenges for the team managers and organizational bodies are clear.The results, however, showed that the effect of involvement-centrality on team attachment was negative. This was the only unexpected finding of the study and might relate to the three fan groups' characteristics (season ticket holders, fun club members, and single ticket holders). It is likely that one or more of these groups (e.g. single ticket holders) are highly involved with the activity (basketball), but not much attached to the specific team. That is, it may be that fans who rank high on sport involvement-centrality feel a stronger attachment to the sport in general than to any specific team. However, this finding may also be influenced by the sample utilized in this study. Due to the limited sample size, we were not able to test the proposed model for each of the three groups separately. This relationship should be investigated more thoroughly in future research.Summarizing the managerial implications, the present study presents some information on the following issues:* the sponsorship selection criteria;* the advancement of the sponsorship-leveraging strategy; and* the sponsorship evaluation criteria.The challenge for marketers is, therefore, to determine the levels of fan involvement and fan attachment with their teams, before taking decisions about sponsorship investments. In terms of sponsorship-leveraging strategies, sponsors should plan activities-events (e.g. sponsor autograph sessions with team players) and develop promotions (e.g. create communications, in which team players and/or coaches could endorse sponsors' products), in order to boost fans involvement and attachment to their team and enhance sponsor/brand image. One of the main strategies for the building of sponsor's image is the inclusion of social objectives within their sponsorship programs. Examples of these objectives could be the support of the developmental leagues, kids' sports, promotion of the sponsored sport in the society and support of charitable events organized by the team and/or the league. In terms of the evaluation criteria, the results of the study provided evidence that sponsors should not use solely exposure and awareness as evaluation criteria of sponsorship, but also sponsor image, word of mouth, and purchase intentions. This implies that more work is required in evaluating sponsorship; cooperation between the sport team marketers and consumers in order to identify opportunities for sponsorship leveraging and accomplishing attitudinal and behavioral outcomes is, in this case, required.\nFuture research directions/limitations: Future research possibilities in sponsorship are numerous. A replication of the study in other sport teams, events, and sports (e.g. soccer, football, and golf) is recommended. The variety of alternative sponsorship outcomes that were identified in the literature betrays a promising area of future sponsorship research. For instance, we have not considered the effect of sponsorship on brand familiarity, brand personality, brand beliefs, and attitude toward sponsorship in general. Furthermore, the issue of sponsor fit was not examined in the current study. There has been evidence that high-fit sponsorship programs are more effective than low fit ones (Becker-Olsen and Hill, 2006). Future studies could address and measure the sponsorship fit, in relation to the variables used in this study.Consistent with previous recommendations (Meenaghan, 2001), sport fans segmentation arises as a necessary topic of investigation in sponsorship studies. So far, sport fans have been treated in studies as a unified segment. Sport activity involvement is a useful segmentation criterion and should be used in conjunction with other segmentation variables (e.g. team loyalty and self expression) to identify distinct sport fan groups. Thus, in order for sponsors to develop and employ effective strategies for leveraging sponsorships, sport fans segments and their behavior should be known in advance.This study was intended to empirically test a theoretical model. However, as with any study, a number of limitations must be acknowledged. First, this study considered just word of mouth and purchase intentions, as endpoints of sponsorship and not actual behavior. Future studies should investigate how purchase intentions influence actual behavior. Second, the study is limited to fans of one sport team, to one team sponsor (major sponsor) and one sport (basketball). Thus, the reported results reflect only the fans of the team, the specific brand, the major sponsor, and the sport studied, while generalizations should be made with caution.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to propose a model in which fans' team attachment is the determinant of three sponsorship outcomes: sponsor image, purchase intentions, and word of mouth. Furthermore, following the sponsorship literature, the role of sport fans' involvement on the development of team attachment was examined.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Questionnaires were collected from fans of a professional basketball team in Greece (n=354). Structural equation modeling was employed in order to test the model fit and estimate the model coefficients.\nFindings: - The findings supported the premise that highly attached fans are more likely to develop positive image for their team sponsor, exhibit higher intentions for purchasing and recommending the sponsor's products.\nResearch limitations/implications: - The proposed model on sport sponsorship outcomes was supported. The results of the study contribute to our understanding of the role of team attachment and sponsor image in predicting sponsorship outcomes.\nPractical implications: - The findings from this research have practical implications for both sport team marketers and sponsors. Both parties need to have a good understanding of how and when sponsorship works to maximize its value.\nOriginality/value: - The main contribution of this paper is the incorporation of sport involvement, team attachment, sponsor image, purchase intentions, and word of mouth within an integrated sponsorship model, and the testing of their interrelations. While these variables have been used in the sponsorship literature before, they have not been empirically tested in an integrated model.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Leadership team cohesiveness and team performance
|
[
"Leadership",
"Team performance",
"Transational leadership",
"Transformational leadership",
"Gender"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: As with individual performance, group performance is a vital determinant and frequently used indicator of organizational outcome. DeNisi (2000) argues that there is a belief among managers and the public that improving performance will assist organizations in their pursuit of excellence. Probably, the major emphasis of performance research has been on identifying antecedents and how they relate or lead to desired outcome measures (Viswesvaran and Ones, 2000). Similarly, for teams, researchers have asked what goes on when a team gets together in an organizational framework and which of these variables can predict or enhance performance (Cooke et al., 2003). Using measures of team performance as the criteria, the present study examines the interactive effects of three such variables, leadership, which has traditionally been studied in the context of individual performance, knowledge level and team cohesiveness. In addition, gender, which has been found to be an antecedent, as well as a moderator of performance, will be included in the prediction model.Over the past decade or so, organizations have begun to use teams to a much greater extent (DeShon et al., 2004). Thus, when human resources personnel were asked what they considered their number-one priority, they answered that teamwork and how to capitalize on it so as to make it work better was the major issue for them (Roomkin et al., 1998). In a comprehensive review of the history of groups and team usage, Sundstrom et al. (2000) found that the surge of work group applications can be found everywhere in the organization ranging from production, service, management, and projects. Aside from management's perspective, the researcher's focus on the process has led to many new insights as to the \"correct\" makeup of a team that is likely to achieve organizational goals. For example, Beal et al. (2003) argue that one of the important goals of organizational research, especially as it relates to teams, is to identify the factors and processes that give rise to increased performance.What exactly constitutes a team? Similar to the definition deployed by other researchers in the field, we define a team as two or more people, each with separate responsibilities and/or assignments, working together for a common goal (Salas et al., 1992). It is the latter part of the definition that is most critical as it helps to concretize the dependent variable here. Achieving the team's, and therefore, the organization's goal can be objectified by examining the team's performance, usually through a quantitative measure. By integrating the distinctive skills and characteristics of team members, better performance is expected as compared to individuals working independently to achieve the same goal (Naquin and Tynan, 2003).\nLeadership: When discussing a team, it seems contradictory to also talk about leadership.If a team is truly working together, where is the place of a leader in such a situation? Yet, even a team has a dominant person who, for our purposes, can be called a leader who may very well play a central role in determining group performance. However, little is known of the impact of this dominant team member. The studies on leadership have avoided group performance and tended to focus on antecedents and outcomes related to the individual (see Lim and Ployhart, 2004). In a meta-analysis of leadership correlates, not a single study with a group measure of performance was included (Judge et al., 2002). Usually, leadership is studied in the context of criteria such as of individual characteristics and situational factors each of which may also affect team performance (e.g., DeShon et al., 2004). Our purpose, here too, is to see if we can develop a prediction equation consisting of various types of antecedents.Several taxonomies for categorizing leaders by style have been suggested in the literature. It would appear that the transactional/transformational leadership theory has been the focus of most of the recent attention (see, for example, Judge and Bono, 2000). Especially, with the modern organization and its complexities, this categorization has allowed investigators to distinguish between meaningful, substantial and practical techniques. Transactional leadership is associated with contingent reinforcement and allows the worker freedom to perform as he/she sees fit with the leader intervening when a problem occurs. Here, the leader and subordinate are involved in a series of exchanges or bargains so as to assure goal attainment. In contrast, transformational leaders are not involved in bargaining rather they motivate the worker to achieve transcendental, longer-lasting goals instead of short-term ones. The latter leader is often viewed as charismatic, a visionary who provides individual attention and intellectual stimulation. The advantages of transformational leadership are obvious, especially at the top of the organizational pyramid, and may be considered as fact as it has been observed across many studies (Bass, 1990; Conger and Kanungo, 1988).Although few studies have been done on the relationship between leaders and team performance, two recent ones do indicate that transformational leadership is effective for teams. Bass et al. (2003) compared transactional contingent reward and transformational leadership of infantry unit leaders and found that both active transactional and transformational leadership are needed to perform successfully. A passive leader would not be expected to reach desired goals. Also using a military setting, Dvir et al. (2002) compared an experimental group of leaders trained with transformational concepts with a control group of leaders provided with eclectic training. Findings showed that the transformational group had a greater positive impact on the direct followers' development and on indirect followers' performance than the control group leaders.In summary, although many argue that leadership effectiveness should be assessed in terms of team or organizational effectiveness (e.g. Hogan et al., 1994), in reality, except for a few studies, most investigators evaluate leadership effectiveness in terms of ratings on individuals provided by superiors, peers, or subordinates (Judge et al., 2002). In the present study, we examine some of the leadership qualities of the dominant member of a team, as well as some specific group characteristics, in order to predict team effectiveness.\nKnowledge, abilities, and intelligence: Probably no other trait in psychology has been studied and tested as much as intelligence or mental abilities (Schmidt and Hunter, 2000). This truism holds for organizational research, also. Whether the focus is on the leader or the team, intelligence seems to play a major role. In a recent meta-analytic study by Judge et al. (2004), the authors found that intelligence, regardless whether it was assessed objectively or perceptually, is related to leadership effectiveness. In their analysis, the criteria included both subjective and objective outcomes. Even if we assume that a leader should have certain levels of intelligence, why is knowledge important for team performance? In a recent investigation of this issue, Tjosvold and Yu (2004) argued that teamwork capability is determined to a large extent by the abilities of its members. By using these abilities together, they are able to maximize the whole group's effectiveness beyond what would be expected from working individually.The knowledge construct subsumes all types of mental abilities as team members try to use any and all information for providing assistance, support, and understanding of the issues involved. Group goals are facilitated when each member's knowledge is applied. Tjosvold and Yu (2004) found that applying abilities for mutual benefit predicted in-role and extra-role team performance. In addition, they speculated that situational or structural variables (e.g., leadership style) may play a critical role in this process and recommended that such factors be considered in future research.\nCohesion: One set of antecedents that organizational researchers have studied in relationship to performance are the social and motivational forces that exist between group members. Beal et al. (2003) posit that such forces are an integral part of the concept of cohesiveness which, it is argued, facilitates better performance. Group cohesion motivates, as well as allows, for coordinating activities. Although many different definitions of cohesion have been offered in the literature, the results from an extensive meta-analysis of the technique as reported by Beal et al. (2003), showed that, contrary to a few negative findings in the literature, overall cohesion can be considered a correlate, if not determinant, of performance. In particular, when examining some of the components of cohesion such as interpersonal attraction, task commitment, and group pride all were found to be related to group performance. Although these factors are defined differently across the spectrum of researchers, it is interesting to see that the social and motivational component plays a critical role in the cohesiveness construct. Therefore, it would be expected that a group led by a transformational leader who stresses motivation and stimulation would also evince greater group cohesion.\nGender: Research on gender and group leaders has focused on how men and women differ as leaders (e.g. Carli and Eagly, 1999; Morgeson, 2005). A meta-analysis of 45 studies found that female leaders were more transformational than male leaders (Eagly et al., 2003). However, little research has focused on the gender of team members and its relationship to group performance. In one recent study, team member gender was examined in relationship to team structure (Berdahl and Anderson, 2005). The authors reported that besides women's preference of equality norms in groups, a centralized group structure was preferred by men and a decentralized one by women. This would be consistent, though not with a perfect correlation, with a transactional (men)-transformational (women) distinction. In another study where gender was not central to the study but was analyzed more like a covariate, Cooke et al. (2003) found no difference in performance between teams made up of men and women. Using another outcome measure, commitment, which is often an antecedent of performance, Riordan and Shore (1997) found that women have higher levels of commitment toward their work units (groups) than men. As discussed above, commitment, a motivational concept, is often engendered from transformational leadership. Other relationships between gender and attitudes and behaviors were not found to be significant. The authors argue that there may be other structural variables (perhaps, leadership style) that interact or moderate the gender-performance effect. Based on some of the differences in gender results, we hypothesize that gender needs to be examined in understanding the process that leads to team performance.\nSummary of hypotheses:: According to the above, three hypotheses were formulated:H1. Transformational leaders, as compared to transactional ones, lead to higher levels of team cohesiveness.\nMethod: Sample characteristics\nResults: Descriptive analysis\nDiscussion: The purpose of the present study was to examine some of the antecedents of team performance. As organizations have placed many of their functions in the hands of teams, it behooves us to explain the process and try to understand what will help produce better, if not optimal, performance. Variables shown to be significant predictors in other contexts were used here. Team cohesiveness and knowledge are typical variables that have been studied in research on teams. Leadership which is usually associated with studies testing predictors of individual outcomes was included. Finally, gender, a common moderator in organizational research, was studied in two roles: moderator and as an independent variable.Findings supported some, but not all, of the study hypotheses. From the overall results, it appears that team cohesiveness and knowledge of tasks were significant predictors of team performance. Also, as expected, transformational leadership style was associated with higher levels of team cohesiveness. This popular style of managing followers focuses on the group process and would seem to fit into the transformational framework. Yet, contrary to our hypotheses, leadership and gender were not found to be predictors of performance. Finally, and as predicted, gender was seen as a moderator of team performance explaining more of the outcome variance for men than for women.Besides the theoretical importance of confirming the role of knowledge and cohesiveness in predicting team performance, it seems that we have shown that the first of these is important, regardless of gender. This may relate to the fact that for both men and women knowledge is seen as a way to attain team goals. For all team members, knowledge, particularly objective knowledge, eases the achievement of the group goals.Interestingly, cohesiveness, a variable that relates to some of the team's functioning was not found to be an important predictor among women. This was somewhat unexpected as women are often role stereotyped as being interested in some of the personal and shared aspects of social interactions that are likely to occur in a team setting (Schwarzwald and Koslowsky, 1999). Perhaps, the measure was not sensitive here to assess this aspect of women's role. It may be worthwhile in future research with this variable to highlight specific aspects of cohesiveness that focus on the quality of the interaction between team members.In identifying some of the practical implications from the study findings, it would appear that for an organization to improve team performance, it would be beneficial if the manager were to provide opportunities for enhancing knowledge level and encouraging team cohesiveness. Enhancing knowledge level can be accomplished by choosing teams that incorporate individuals with integrated knowledge that cover the main functional areas of business administration coupled with strong learning motivation. Team cohesiveness can be achieved by adopting a transformational leadership style and building a team with individuals who work well with each other and are willing to expend effort in order to increase the team's performance.\nLimitations and future research: The study's advantages are quite clear. Several of the measures such as knowledge and, perhaps, most importantly, team performance was derived from objective, behavioral measures. Yet, several of these positive points were accompanied with problems associated with the sample, namely, graduate students in an artificial game situation. Would a working group in a real setting behave the same way? The student setting here permitted a degree of internal validity to be achieved but its external validity is questionable.Also, the scale used for determining leadership style consisted of just one item. This did not allow for measures of internal reliability and may very well have missed some of the important nuances associated with the leadership construct. The poor prediction afforded by the leadership measure can be attributed, at least in part, to the use of this less powerful item. (Interestingly, it did relate significantly to cohesion, as hypothesized). A more accurate scale, such as the MLQ, developed by Bass and Avolio (1991) needs to tested and may allow for a better test of the hypothesis.Team performance remains a major issue for organizational researchers. Yet, little data on what makes for a successful team was discussed here. Naquin and Tynan (2003) argue that, often, when a team fails, individuals are blamed for the lack of achieving the desired goals. Thus, it may be worthwhile in future research to look at some of the dynamics associated with team failure in our situation. Would people attribute failure to the fact that cohesiveness was low, or that a transactional leader was not able to extract that extra amount of work required to achieve? Looking at the causes of team failure may yield the flip side of the benefits.Finally, there is another aspect of performance that was not gauged here. Recent research has shown that cohesion, which reflects to some extent the interaction among team members, would be positively associated with contextual performance. Unlike task performance which was studied here, contextual behaviors such as organizational citizenship can be expected to increase when the group becomes more cohesive. For example, helping and teaching others or working over time on a project when it is not called for, can be expected from members who have ties to the group and also feel for the group as whole and not only for themselves as individuals (for a discussion of some of these issues, see LePine et al., 2000).\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - To examine leadership style (transactional versus transformational), knowledge level, and team cohesiveness as antecedents of team performance.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The study was conducted among students studying for an MBA. The 252 participant students were involved in a computerized business simulation course which required forming teams of about six members. Each team represented the management of one firm that competed with the other groups.\nFindings: - Transformational leadership was associated with a higher level of team cohesiveness, as compared to transactional leadership. Both knowledge level and team cohesiveness predict team performance, particularly among men.\nResearch limitations/implications: - The student sample may not necessarily represent responses from workers in an actual organization. From a measurement perspective, the reliability of the one item scale of leadership could not be ascertained.\nPractical implications: - For improving team performance, a manager should enhance team knowledge and encourage greater team cohesiveness.\nOriginality/value: - Using a simulated research design, leadership style, an antecedent associated with individual performance, was also found to be related to team performance.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Key steps to implementing a successful blended learning strategy
|
[
"Learning methods",
"E‐learning",
"Human resource management",
"Workplace learning"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nHow does learning happen in the workplace?: Most learning is self-directed and takes place informally outside the boxes on the organisation chart. This informal learning, such as a quick search for information on the web or advice from a peer, is the way most people learn on a daily basis, yet it is often overlooked.The quantity of informal learning is surprising. The US Government estimates 70 per cent or more of work-related learning occurs outside formal training. Since most of us participate in these informal learning activities, why is this statistic so surprising? What has led us to a situation where organisations overwhelmingly invest in formal training but workers overwhelmingly learn informally? There are several reasons for this lack of attention. Perhaps the biggest reason is because no single group or department is really in charge of informal learning, and there is often no budget for informal learning as there is in the case of formal training.In 2005, SkillSoft commissioned an independent survey across a random sample of 3,000 employees to ascertain their attitudes to and preferences regarding learning and development. When asked how they preferred to train, 20 per cent of respondents said they liked to learn informally - from colleagues and by making use of online learning materials at the point of need - 13 per cent preferred to attend instructor-led courses and workshops; but the overwhelming majority (67 per cent) opted for a mix of both i.e. a blended learning approach.Many organisations have told employees that they must take responsibility for their own learning. Unfortunately, most of these companies fail to help employees identify their learning needs and to fund the necessary learning resources. However, some organisations are beginning to appreciate the value of supporting informal learning. Deloitte and Accenture are just two companies that have invested heavily in learning facilities that support both formal training and informal learning.Since both methods are essential to increasing workplace skills, tremendous performance gains (both strategic and tactical) are available from the blending of formal training with informal learning.\nEstablishing a blended learning environment: The ideal blended learning model is one that integrates a wide range of functions that empower learners with more control to participate in several formal and informal learning activities. This notion of design is based upon building a fully \"learner-centric\" environment to allow learners to navigate from informational to instructional content, from skills assessment to supportive tools, and from coaching to collaborative environments.In SkillSoft's experience - having worked closely with a number of organisations globally that have successfully introduced blended learning - the highest level of blended learning is a combination of formal and informal learning with a learner centric point of view. Nothing else will produce the ongoing and consistent support for performance gains and learner satisfaction.This includes the provision of a \"one-stop\" learning environment - integrating all resources as much as possible into a single access point. This approach streamlines the informal learning process by supplementing self-directed learning with mentors and experts and making resources available 24 x 7. It uses technology to keep content current and makes it easier for learners to collaborate and network both synchronously and asynchronously.The following eight steps provide an overall structure to both the sequential formal training events and to the random informal blended learning activities. The first step starts the learner with the formal training that follows in sequential order. The fifth step allows the learner to transition into the remaining informal steps that happen as they are needed.Step 1. Ensure learner readiness\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - This paper proposes to illustrate how organisations can successfully establish a blended learning environment.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Provides a structure for combining formal and informal learning resources within a blended learning model and outlines the eight key steps followed by organisations already implementing a successful integrated learning strategy. Draws on pedagogical information provided by Dorman Woodall, director of SkillSoft Learning, and includes data gathered from a variety of SkillSoft's Fortune 500 customers.\nFindings: - Many organisations now recognise that on-demand solution finding is a primary source of employees' daily learning and are searching for ways to support this informal learning in tandem with their more formalised training programmes. Since both methods are essential to increasing workplace skills, tremendous strategic and tactical performance gains are available from this blending of formal training with informal learning. The ideal blended learning model is one that integrates a wide range of functions that empower learners with more control to participate in several formal and informal learning activities. The highest level of blended learning is an easily-accessible and searchable combination of formal and informal learning with a learner-centric focus.\nPractical implications: - Outlines an overall structure for implementing sequential formal training events and random informal blended learning activities.\nOriginality/value: - Provides a blueprint for anyone seeking to introduce a blended learning strategy.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Women's experiences and acceptability of medical termination of pregnancy: Results of an introductory study in Thailand
|
[
"Abortion pills",
"Medical abortion",
"Medical abortion introduction",
"Medical termination of pregnancy",
"Mifepristone",
"Misoprostol"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: In Thailand, the issue of termination of pregnancy (TP) is often controversial and emotional and has significant socio-cultural and religious implications. Thus, women who have faced this situation have often hidden the issue and sought various means to terminate an unplanned or unwanted pregnancy[1]. One of the most commonly sought ways has been with medical abortion products. Illegal in Thailand, the products have become known and available throughout the country largely via the internet. They are now obtainable, albeit in diverse regimens and at significant cost to consumers. Due to the danger of self-medication resulting in complications, the rapid and widespread uptake of medical abortion products created an issue that required urgent attention.\nMaterial and methods: Design of the study\nResults: Recruitment started in March 2012 and finished in November 2014. A total of 446 women were recruited. Three women were excluded from the analysis due to their gestational age of more than nine weeks. In total, 443 healthy pregnant women with 63 days or less of gestation were enrolled in the study. Eight women were lost to follow-up and excluded from the analysis. Therefore, 435 women were included for efficacy, safety and acceptability analysis. Protocol violation happened in the cases of two women who received only mifepristone.\nDiscussions: The MTP regimen used in the early TP (less than or equal to 63 days) consisted of 200 mg mifepristone orally followed 24-48 hours later by 800 ug misoprostol vaginally or sublingually. Then, the women need to come for follow-up on days 10-14[13, 14]. Protocol violation happened in the cases of two women who received only mifepristone. Of the two women who only received Mf and not Ms, one woman who completed abortion was confirmed on the follow-up visit. The other woman had a continuing pregnancy confirmed by ultrasound. This case had a twin pregnancy. When the first fertilized embryo expelled, the provider thought that the woman had had a completed abortion, so the provider decided by herself to ignore the remaining tablets of Ms. These results suggest that whether abortion is completed or not, providers need to administer the full course of Mf and Ms based on the study protocol.\nConclusions: The regimen of MTP, or the combination package of mifepristone and misoprostol for TP less than 64 days since LMP[13, 14] consisting of 200 mg mifepristone orally followed 24-48 h later by 800 ug misoprostol vaginally or sublingually, has been demonstrated as effective and easy to use. Counseling and information given to women in order to use misoprostol at home by themselves is highly acceptable among women both in Bangkok and other provinces. No serious adverse events were recorded. Overall, most of the women in both rural and urban areas were either satisfied or highly satisfied with the regimen for TP. Reproductive health referral networks are an important channel to assist women to access the safe abortion services as soon as possible. To reduce stigmatization, MTP should be integrated into the Reproductive Health and Family Planning Clinic of each health facility.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to understand women's experiences, acceptability and outcomes of using the medical termination of pregnancy (MTP). The study is conducted at nine reproductive health and family planning clinics at university hospitals as well as regional and provincial hospitals located in Bangkok and the locations within Thailand.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This is a descriptive research recruiting healthy women with pregnancy up to 63 days since the last menstrual period (LMP) who opted for MTP during 2012-2014.\nFindings: A total of 443 women who were referred from the reproductive health networks voluntarily participated in the study. Overall, 92.6 percent of participants had a complete abortion. No serious adverse events were found for cases using misoprostol at home or at clinic. More than 98.3 percent of the women felt satisfied or very satisfied with the method. More than 80 percent of participants thought that the side-effects of the method were as expected or less than expected. More than 95 percent of the women recommended having MTP available in Thailand.\nOriginality/value: The introduction of MTP that uses a mifepristone and misoprostol regimen (Medabon(r)) in pregnancies up to 63 days, since LMP demonstrates that misoprostol can be safely used by women at home or at clinic. The administration of misoprostol at home reduces the number of hospital visits, which saves time and costs for traveling from home to the facility. In addition, women have more privacy and control over their bodies by self-administering misoprostol. The MTP's introductory results also show that MTP service provision is well integrated into reproductive health and family planning services. It is useful for stakeholders who would be involved in design and planning of health system services before the MTP is made broadly available throughout the country.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Survey of management practices enhancing labor productivity in multi-storey building construction projects
|
[
"Australia",
"Labour productivity",
"Construction management practices",
"Multi-storey building projects"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The construction industry is a significant contributor to the economy of a country. In Australia, the industry comprised 8.29 percent of the annual gross value added in the year 2015 (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016a). Despite its significance, the productivity growth of the industry is low. According to the Australian Productivity Commission (2015) report, in the year 2013-14, the labor productivity growth for the total economy was 1.4 percent whereas the labor productivity growth in the construction industry was -1.0 percent. The report also indicated that multifactor productivity in construction industry declined but only marginally. Thus, the labor productivity growth rate was low when compared to muti-factor productivity. Multifactor productivity is measured as output per unit of combined inputs of labor and capital, while labor productivity is measured as output per unit of labor input in \"hours worked\" (Productivity Commission, 2013). Previous researchers in Australian context reported the loss of productivity due to management-related problems. Hughes and Thorpe (2014) identified rework, lack of materials and overcrowding as some of the major productivity deterrents. However, knowing the management practices that could enhance productivity could reduce the negative effects of the loss of productivity such as project delay, liquidated damage, and reduction in profit margins of contractors. Improvement in the project level productivity can enhance the industry level productivity because the output and input used for computing the industry level productivity are obtained from the projects. In most construction productivity studies conducted at the project level, the term productivity and labor productivity are used interchangeably. El-Gohary and Aziz (2013) explained that in construction, productivity usually refers to labor productivity. In this research, the term productivity refers to the labor productivity at the construction project level.\nLiterature review: In Australia, the construction projects can be broadly classified into two: engineering and building. This research focuses on productivity improvement in building construction projects because a significant level of activity occurs in this sector. In June 2016, the values of works done in the Australian building and engineering sectors are 54 and 46 percent, respectively (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016b). Building construction projects can be classified based on the number of storeys. According to Australian Government (2006), a multi-storey building has a rise in storeys of more than three. This research investigates productivity improvement in multi-storey building construction projects as their construction processes are more complex due to the involvement of complex engineering services. The South Australian Department for Communities and Social Inclusion (2016) apartment design guideline states that apartments having two, three, and four storeys are simple to construct whereas towers over four storeys have more complex design and construction systems.\nResearch methodology: This study uses exploratory sequential mixed methods research design involving a combination of qualitative and quantitative data in two phases. Mixed research designs have been classified into three categories: convergent parallel, explanatory sequential and exploratory sequential (Creswell, 2013). In convergent parallel mixed methods, the researcher collects both qualitative and quantitative data, analyses them separately, and then compares the results to see if the findings confirm or disconfirm each other. Explanatory sequential mixed methods involve a two-phase project in which the researcher collects quantitative data in the first phase, analyses the results, and then uses the results to plan or build on to the second qualitative phase. In exploratory sequential mixed methods, the researcher first begins by exploring with qualitative data and then uses the findings in a second quantitative phase. The qualitative phase may be used to build an instrument that best fits the sample under study, to identify appropriate instruments to use in the follow-up quantitative phase or to specify variables that need to go into a follow-up quantitative study (Creswell, 2013). In this research, the exploratory sequential mixed methods are used because CM practices identified by previous studies might not be applicable to the Victorian construction industry and there could be other practices that are specific to local industry. Thus, exploratory study is conducted first by collecting and analyzing qualitative data obtained from interviews during the first phase. To prioritize the practices and to generalize the findings, quantitative data are collected and analyzed during Phase II of the research.\nData analysis, findings and discussion: In Table I, the summary of the interview results for the CM practices that could enhance productivity in multi-storey building projects is presented. For the sake of brevity, all the interview results are not included in the table.\nConclusion: In total, 47 CM practices that have the potential to improve productivity in multi-storey building projects are identified and prioritized. Well-defined scope of work, safety and health policy, safety and health plan, hazard analysis, long-lead materials identification, task safety analysis and toolbox safety meetings are found to be the top seven practices. The finding indicates that the seven practices are equally significant, and they should be jointly implemented to enhance productivity in multi-storey building projects. The finding of this study also revealed that safety and health related practices are the most significant practices. However, construction equipment management practices are the least important management practices for enhancing productivity in multi-storey building projects. Future researchers can investigate the correlation between labor productivity and the management practices in multi-storey building projects in other contexts. Furthermore, the association between activity level productivity and the management practices can be studied.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify and prioritize management practices that have the potential to improve labor productivity in multi-storey building construction projects.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The study adopted two-phase mixed-methods research design and 58 project managers, contract administrators and project coordinators were involved in the survey. During Phase I, qualitative data were collected from 19 experts using interviews and the management practices that could enhance labor productivity in multi-storey building construction projects were identified. In Phase II, quantitative data were collected from 39 contractors involved in the delivery of multi-storey building projects by using questionnaires. The data were analyzed to prioritize the practices identified in Phase I.\nFindings: Well-defined scope of work, safety and health policy, safety and health plan, hazard analysis, long-lead materials identification, safe work method statement, and toolbox safety meetings are the top seven practices that have the potential to improve labor productivity in multi-storey building projects.\nOriginality/value: The research identifies the management practices that can be implemented to enhance labor productivity in multi-storey building construction projects in the context of Australia. Being the first study in the Australian context, the findings can be used as benchmark for international comparison.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Does stress matter in mall experience and customer satisfaction?
|
[
"Mall experience",
"Customer satisfaction",
"Stress",
"Shopping motivation",
"Shopping frequency"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Stress is a common feeling state that may be important in mall environments due to several circumstances that are typical to retail environments, including crowding, parking difficulties, service complexity, scarcity and messy shelves (Baker and Wakefield, 2012; Gilboa and Vilnai-Yavetz, 2013; Sujan et al., 1999). Stress is a psychological response that occurs when a shopper is overwhelmed by any of these circumstances or situations (Lucia-Palacios et al., 2018; Moschis, 2007). Previous research has quantitatively addressed the consequences of stress in retailing, finding that it can increase store abandonment, complicate decision-making and reduce repatronage intentions in shopping centers (Albrecht et al., 2017; Baker and Wakefield, 2012; Maier and Wilken, 2014). However, as far as we know, there are still important experiential outcomes whose relationship with stress has not been examined, such as mall experience and customer satisfaction.\n2. Theoretical background: 2.1 Mall experience and its relationship with satisfaction\n3. Methodology: 3.1 Model specification\n4. Results: 4.1 Descriptive results\n5. Discussion and theoretical implications: This article aims to address how stress influenced mall experience, measured through customers' cognitive and affective responses, as well as customer satisfaction with the mall. In addition, this research takes into account the fact that the effect of stress on experiential outcomes and satisfaction may differ depending on shopping motivation and shopping frequency. The findings expand our knowledge on the influence of stress on mall experience and satisfaction.\n6. Managerial implications: This research offers several practical implications. Managers should try to reduce customers' stress while shopping to provide them with a pleasant and satisfactory experience. To do so, and in accordance with prior research, mall managers should act on the main causes of stress; namely, crowding, parking hassles and traffic jams. For example, they could reduce perceptions of crowding by providing relaxing zones in the mall and supervising the service provided by the stores' personnel, increasing their availability (Lucia-Palacios et al., 2018). They should make parking easier for their customers by installing better signs to indicate free parking spaces and by regulating the traffic at the entrances and exits of the mall. A convenient mall layout could help customers cope with their level of stress, helping them to achieve their shopping goals and improving their shopping experience.\n7. Limitations and future research: Finally, this research has some limitations that can offer opportunities for further research. First, the data collection took place in a Spanish shopping mall. Other contexts, such as downtown commercial areas or shopping malls in other countries, could provide evidence different from ours. Second, this research uses cross-sectional data. Future studies could address this issue with a dynamic sample, using longitudinal data, which could increase the interest of the present findings. Could stress have implications in the long run? That is, do repeated stressful shopping experiences have an impact on long-term marketing outcomes such as engagement and loyalty? Third, the article proposed to control for shopping motivation when examining the role of stress in the retail customer experience. However, no evidence of the moderating effect of shopping motivations on the relationship between stress and CCR was found, contradicting our expectations. Therefore, there may be additional variables that interact with shopping motivation and modify the effects of stress on CCR. Although not shown in this article, the authors tested whether shopping frequency could interact with shopping motivation, since a less effortful experience could alleviate the effects of stress on CCR for utilitarian customers (Magnini and Karande, 2011). No significant interaction was found, however. Further research could consider whether there are additional situational and individual characteristics that modify the relationships proposed here. For example, future research could consider the impact of goal abstractness, instead of differentiating between utilitarian and hedonic shopping motivations, since shoppers with more concrete goals could be affected by stress more significantly than those with more abstract goals. Fourth, this research addressed the quadratic effect of stress on CCR, but other relationships among the variables of interest could be analyzed. Future studies could consider whether there is a mediation effect of customer affective and cognitive response in the relationship between stress and satisfaction with the mall. Finally, future work could consider additional effects of stress on shopping behavior that have not been analyzed, such as time and money spent in the store or the mall.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This paper aims to demonstrate that stress is a relevant feeling to take into account in mall experience and customer satisfaction management. Furthermore, it is proposed that its effects on mall experience and satisfaction differ depending on shopping motivation and frequency.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The method is based on seemingly unrelated regressions models and data were obtained through a survey of 1,088 mall clients. Mall experience is addressed through customer cognitive and affective responses. Both terms together with stress and customer satisfaction with the mall are constructs measured by seven-point Likert scales. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to validate these measures.\nFindings: The results show that stress reduces customers' affective response and satisfaction. The effect of low levels of stress on customer affective response is less negative for frequent shoppers, and the influence of high levels on satisfaction is less negative for them. Furthermore, stress has a U-shaped effect on customers' cognitive response, an effect that is reduced for frequent shoppers.\nPractical implications: Mall managers should try to reduce stress in the management of their customers' experience. Moreover, they should increase the shopping frequency of their clients by implementing marketing strategies, such as frequency programs and serial concerts, and assist shoppers in reorganizing their shopping goals by implementing organizing tools and new recommendations and suggestions.\nOriginality/value: Given that previous work on shopping stress is scarce, this paper expands the extant literature by analyzing its effects on mall experience and customer satisfaction. Furthermore, it shows that these effects may vary depending on shopping frequency and motivation.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Can internet searches forecast tourism inflows?
|
[
"Forecasting",
"Google",
"Tourism",
"Nowcasting"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: The popularity of the internet has given rise to a whole range of new activities and has changed the way we go about traditional activities. We increasingly read the press online, look for medical information on the web before - and after - visiting the doctor, buy products and services online (books, music, air tickets, etc.), participate in social networks, conduct operations with banks and government, write e-mails, make telephone calls and watch TV online. This myriad of activities leaves tracks on the web, generating an enormous volume of information on products, people, institutions, purchase intentions, voting intentions, economic activities and so on. This is what has come to be known as big data, a body of information so extensive and varied that it cannot be processed by software used in traditional databases. In the words of Gary King, the director of Harvard's Institute for Qualitative Social Science: \"It's a revolution, we are really just getting under way. But the march of quantification, made possible by enormous new sources of data, will sweep through academia, business and government. There is no area that is going to be untouched\"[1].\n2. Main trends of the tourism industry in Spain: Spain is one of the world's main tourist destinations (third in terms of arrivals and second in terms of tourism receipts). The importance of the tourist industry for the Spanish economy has been well known for decades, in fact, Spain is the developed country with the greatest dependence on tourism in the world: more than 10 per cent of its GDP and almost 12 per cent of employment are linked to this industry (Table I).\n3. The online searching behaviour of potential travellers: construction of indicators of online searches: Seminal papers using Google trends to forecast economic variables focused on forecasting unemployment claims (Choi and Varian, 2009a; Askitas and Zimmermann, 2009). Following Choi and Varian (2009b), who showed how to use searches to forecast travel to Hong Kong, other studies have focused on other tourists destinations, (Saidi et al., 2010), on Dubai and Jackman and Naitram (2013) on Barbados among others). Several studies have been published by researchers working for Central Banks whose main objective is to provide complementary tools to policy makers: Suhoy (2009) tests predictive ability of queries for real growth of industrial production, retail trade, trade and services revenue, consumer imports and service exports and unemployment rates in Israel, Carriere-Swallow and Labbe (2013) use google trends to improve now-casting models for automobile sales in Chile, McLaren and Shanbhogue (2011) examine the use of online searches for labour and housing markets in the UK, Artola and Galan (2012) focus on British tourist inflows to Spain and, Matsumoto et al. (2013) analyze travel consumption in Japan.\n4. Model and regression results: The analysis presented here follows the simple procedure proposed by Choi and Varian (2009b). The strategy goes as follows:\n5. Errors and shortcomings: In the above analysis, we showed that the inclusion of an indicator based on online searches improves our short term forecast of tourist inflows up to 2012 - reducing out of sample mean square errors by 42 per cent - suggesting that there is valuable information in online searches that can improve the set of conventional statistics used by analysts. However, the performance of our models worsens in the following years. This reminds us of how the formerly successful use of Google search terms to identify flu outbreaks (Ginsberg et al., 2009) failed in subsequent years. As from 2009, Google Flu Trends (GFT) has been over-predicting flu. Butler (2013) reported that GFT trends was predicting more than double the proportion of doctor visits for influenza-like illness. Our exercise confirms that Google trends may provide good results now but indices and usage can change rapidly, algorithms change on a regular basis and the user base can move away on a rumour or policy or any other reason zfinally not translated into an actual outcome.\n6. Conclusions and future developments: Given the central role of tourism in the current account recipes a step forward should include setting a collection of appropriate key words so as to determine which are the main segments of interest for the potential travelers: i.e. when looking for search terms related to vacationing in Spain they might include terms associated with a low level of expenditure (e.g. camping, cheap, etc.) or, on the contrary they may include key words associated with a higher level of expenditure (e.g. golf, sailing, paradores)[13]. This framework might complement the forecasting of tourist inflows and, ultimately help in projecting tourist expenditure. In addition, future research and success of Big data will depend very much on deeper access to data for researchers, and the view of Big Data as a supplement rather than a substitute of traditional data.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to improve the forecast of tourism inflows into Spain by use of Google - indices on internet searches measuring the relative popularity of keywords associated with travelling to Spain.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Two models are estimated for each of the three countries with the largest tourist flows into Spain (Germany, UK and France): a conventional model, the best ARIMA model estimated by TRAMO (model 0) and a model augmented with the Google-index relating to searches made from each country (model 1). The overall performance of both models is compared.\nFindings: The improvement in forecasting provided by the short-term models that include the G-indicator is quite substantial up to 2012, reducing out of sample mean square errors by 42 per cent, although their performance worsens in the following years.\nResearch limitations/implications: Deeper study and conceptualization of sources of error in Google trends and data quality is necessary.\nOriginality/value: The paper illustrates that while this new tool can be a powerful instrument for policy makers as a valuable and timely complement for traditional statistics, further research and better access to data is needed to better understand how internet consumers' search activities translate (or not) into actual economic outcomes.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Cultural influences on knowledge sharing through online communities of practice
|
[
"Knowledge management",
"Culture",
"Knowledge sharing"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Knowledge management is a complex socio-technical system that encompasses various forms of knowledge generation, storage, representation, and sharing. Specific features and functionality of knowledge management (KM) systems are always based on assumptions inherent in cultural backgrounds of their designers and managers. However, if these systems are used by people with professional or national culture backgrounds, which differ from those of the designers, features intended to support knowledge generation and sharing may actually inhibit these processes (Branch, 1997).Recent research on organizational learning and knowledge creation indicates that knowledge sharing, communication, and learning in organizations are profoundly influenced by cultural values of individual employees (Hofstede, 2001; Hambrick et al., 1998; Hutchings and Michailova, 2004; Pfeffer and Sutton, 2000). Furthermore, studies of cognitive strategies and methods of learning and knowledge generation suggest that cognitive styles differ by national and ethnic cultures (Korac-Kakabadze and Kouzmin, 1999). Different ethnic groups have been found to have different preferences for symbolic versus semantic learning and cognition, and for different forms of verbal and visual presentation of information and learning content (Ginsburg et al., 1981).Therefore, determining how different or similar knowledge sharing strategies of representatives of various national and ethnic groups are is one of the most important pre-requisites for successful design of flexible KM systems, adoptable to styles and preferences of employees in multinational, globally-dispersed corporations. Such research will help to make sure that knowledge management system design and development decisions are consistent with the employees' values, perceptions, preferred styles of communication, and cognitive and learning styles, which are shaped by particular cultural contexts.Despite growing recognition of the importance of cultural influences on knowledge management, there is a lack of related empirical research. To address this gap this qualitative study, conducted over a period of 12 months at overseas offices of Caterpillar, attempted to answer the following research questions:* How do differences in cultural values, assumptions and preferences affect the way employees in overseas offices access and share professional knowledge?* What are the employees' perceptions of preferred approaches to information seeking, knowledge representation and sharing?* What are culture-specific barriers to knowledge sharing?Although some of the study findings are general in nature, and apply to knowledge sharing practices in general, the main emphasis of this particular study was on knowledge sharing through an online corporate knowledge sharing system. Therefore, the study findings will be of special interest to knowledge managers, interested in implementing corporate-wide online knowledge exchange systems, and online communities of practice.\nTheoretical framework: Knowledge management and communities of practice\nAssumptions about cultural influences on knowledge sharing: Since this was an exploratory study, no specific hypotheses for testing were formulated. However, the above literature review helped us formulate a list of potential cultural differences in knowledge sharing patterns. Specifically, we assumed that:1. In Asian cultures, such values as modesty and the desire to save face would constitute a significant barrier to active participation in online knowledge sharing communities. Posting questions online could be threatening to people, concerned with saving their own face: in an open forum like this, there is always a threat of ridicule. At the same time, responding to questions and making suggestions online could also pose threat to other people's \"face\": what if the posted question was rather trivial, and the ease with which an answer was found hints at the inquirer's incompetence? Finally, in cultures that put a significant weight on modesty, community members are likely to avoid being too active in online and other open-forum discussions, out of fear of appearing too immodest and boastful.2. The above considerations could be affected by the generation gap: older people may be more sensitive about \"face\"; younger people, especially those who are more exposed to global influences, could have higher tolerance for \"face-threatening\" situations.3. In more hierarchical and \"vertical\" cultures top managers' need for control over the information flow, and the desire to restrict access to critical information by lower-level employees could lead to significant organizational barriers to knowledge sharing. Since active participation in online knowledge sharing presumes that individual employees will feel free to post questions and respond to postings without checking with their supervisors first, such behavior could be seriously limited in hierarchical societies.4. In hierarchical and \"vertical\" societies higher-level managers may not be participating in online communities, since they would consider these activities to be not in line with their status image. Therefore, they would tend to delegate this responsibility to their secretaries and lower-level employees.5. Another barrier to participation in online communities could be cultural preference for face-to-face communication, which depends on cultural assumptions about what is polite, and which mode of communication is more conducive to establishing trust.6. In-group oriented members of collectivist cultures would tend to focus on the needs of various collectivities they belong to, which is why they might be more willing to share what they know with others. At the same time, a potential barrier to knowledge sharing in such cultures could be the sharper distinction made between in-group and out-group members. Put differently, an employee might stay away from sharing knowledge with someone not considered a member of a narrowly defined in-group (even though these employees could be members of the same larger organization they in which they both belong).7. The levels of information hoarding could vary from country to country. Thus, Michailova and Husted (2003) have found Russian organizations to be characterized by a significant level of information hoarding and the lack of information sharing among employees. They believe that this behavior results from the need to cope with significant uncertainty (brought about by rapid economic changes); and the traditionally high respect for hierarchy and power. Therefore, we assumed that in countries characterized by unstable or rapidly changing economic conditions, and by strong hierarchies and power distance, knowledge sharing may be inhibited, and information hoarding could be present within organizations.\nResearch method: The study utilized a qualitative methodology, and was based on in-depth interviews and the analysis of online participation records and other relevant materials. Phone or face-to-face interviews, followed up by e-mails and/or additional phone calls, were conducted in Russia, China, and Brazil, and at the US headquarters of Caterpillar. A total of 36 managers and employees have participated. In interviews, the participants were asked a number of open-ended questions, which were intended to generate rich descriptions of knowledge sharing and problem-solving situations and strategies.The data collected in each of the three countries were coded and analyzed by different researchers independently using the qualitative data presentation and analysis methods proposed by Miles and Huberman (1994), including development of summary sheets for each interview, coding of individual interview data, and coding of the overall data set. For each of the three countries, the lead researcher utilized help from one additional researcher who provided rating reliability checks by independently coding and analyzing samples of interview transcripts. At the final stage, data from the three countries were analyzed together, to detect commonalities and differences between the country sets.\nFindings: Despite the fact that all three countries in this study can be classified as more \"collectivistic\" than the USA, the study results suggest that the extent to which national culture impacts knowledge sharing differs significantly among these three countries. Thus, employees in China are more likely to shy away from contributing to online community discussions because of worries about face, modesty, and the lack of language proficiency, than are their Russian counterparts. On the other hand, competition among employees is not such a major barrier to knowledge sharing in Russia and Brazil, as it is in China. In the following sections of the article, we present some of the main study findings, and discuss them in light of our earlier assumptions about potential cultural differences.\"Saving face\"\nDiscussion and research implications: Since this study investigated knowledge sharing patterns in an online environment, one plausible explanation for lower than expected importance of several cultural values could be that these differences are less pronounced online than they are in face-to-face interactions. For instance, since the organizational status of other community members is unknown, employees might be less hesitant to post a comment or an answer to someone else's question on the discussion board. Given the scarcity of empirical studies specifically addressing the impact of national culture characteristics on online knowledge sharing, there is a definite need to further examine this relationship.At the same time, more research is needed to identify the influence of organization culture factors in this context as well as the link between the organizational and national culture. As the findings in all three countries have shown, the expected impact of national cultural characteristics was in some cases less pronounced than initially expected, which could be attributed to the fact that the organizational culture was in some instances stronger in shaping individuals' knowledge sharing patterns. Besides the influence of national and organizational culture on online knowledge sharing behaviors, future research could also address the impact of individual psychological traits, gender, or occupational groups.In addition, the issue of in-group - out-group distinction in online CoP warrants further investigation. Could it lead to the rejection of new community members and does it make the movement from peripheral to a more central participation more difficult? Or is this distinction not as visible as and less relevant in online environments than it is in personal interactions?The main limitation of this study is that it was conducted among the online community members of one company. The results of the study could be strongly affected by the dominant professional culture of this organization (engineering), the fact that the firm's headquarters is located in the USA, and other factors, unique to this specific case. Therefore, to determine whether the study findings can be applied to online communities of practice in a wide range of organizations, there is a need for conducting similar studies at additional multinational firms of similar size, operating in other industries.\nImplications for knowledge management practitioners: The study results suggest that any rollout of a knowledge management system in a new country or region should be tailored to values and cultural preferences of employees in each of the countries, where corporate KM systems will be used. Specifically, in some countries there is a need for the development of online interfaces, which reflect local preferences for colors, layout, and other design elements; at the same time, employees in other countries may be less sensitive to these issues, or will have preferences, similar to those of the employees of the corporate headquarters. The bottom line is that any introduction of country-specific knowledge sharing systems, websites or online community web pages should be based on a cultural needs assessment, and identification of culture-specific barriers to knowledge exchange.Furthermore, when developing guidelines for online community usage, and conducting training on acceptable online etiquette, the rules for the development, posting, updating, and editing of questions and knowledge entries, and the rules for responding to inquiries, KM managers should not assume that it is enough to translate into various languages the existing corporate manuals and training materials. Instead, they should be aware of a possibility that assumptions about acceptable rules of online community behavior could vary significantly from country to country, and even those procedures, which appear self-evident to the headquarters employees, may need to be carefully explained, or adjusted to local preferences.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this study is to explore cultural factors influencing knowledge sharing strategies in virtual communities of practice.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - A qualitative research design was employed. Data collection was based on in-depth interviews. The authors assumed that such factors as degree of collectivism, competitiveness, the importance of saving face, in-group orientation, attention paid to power and hierarchy, and culture-specific preferences for communication modes, would explain differences in knowledge seeking and sharing patterns.\nFindings: - The results showed that these factors had different levels of importance among employees in the three participating countries. The issue of saving face was less important than expected in China. Modesty requirements as well as a high degree of competitiveness among employees were found to be serious barriers to information sharing in China, but not in Russia and Brazil. Perceived differences in power and hierarchy seemed to be less critical in all three countries than initially assumed.\nResearch limitations/implications: - Since this study was conducted among the online community members of Caterpillar Inc., the results could be affected by factors unique to this specific case. Thus, future research should investigate the influence of other factors such as the organizational culture, or occupational groups on knowledge sharing strategies.\nPractical implications: - Before any introduction of country-specific knowledge sharing systems, a cultural needs assessment should be conducted.\nOriginality/value: - The impact of national culture factors on knowledge sharing has been largely neglected in the literature, and the findings will assist knowledge managers charged with the design of flexible knowledge management systems.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The effect of workplace spirituality on team effectiveness
|
[
"Trust",
"Team performance",
"Organizational culture"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Over the past few years, workplace spirituality (WS) has increasingly been recognized as an important area of research in the academic field. Its implications for organizations have been highlighted as important because companies can gain positive benefits by developing a humanistic environment in which workers can achieve their full capacity (Turner, 1999). This paper proposes a new model aimed at understanding the impact that WS has on work teams.Teams have become the basic unit for many organizations around the world (Lawler et al., 1995). Both large and small companies delegate responsibilities such as projects, budgets or important research to work teams in order to face competition and meet customer demands. Over the past few years, companies have been using more work groups in order to conduct difficult work and deal with different tasks (Jackson and Ruderman, 1996). The use of teams has become the symbol of an ideal model of work and working behavior for organizations (Erden and Ozen, 2003). However, teams are not built easily and require certain conditions in order to become successful and efficient. These conditions are evident in the organizational culture, and WS plays an important role in developing and creating an environment that will have a positive impact on teams. This paper states that those organizations rich in spirituality will have working conditions that support teams' effectiveness.This paper contributes in several ways to the research field. First, even though important research has been done on WS, little has investigated its effect on work teams. The majority of the research has focused on analyzing it in relation to organizational commitment at the individual level (Rego and Cunha, 2008). Second, understanding and analyzing the effects and implications that WS has on work teams will uncover relevant information for those team-based organizations that might be interested in providing ideal conditions for work teams, and it will provide new guidance for future research.The remainder of the article is as follows: part 2 will present a literature review about WS as an element of organizational culture, its definition and its effects on organizations; it will also discuss the implications of those effects on team effectiveness. Part 3 will present a theoretical model aimed at understanding the relationship between WS and team effectiveness. Finally, part 4 draws conclusions and discusses limitations and implications for future research.\n2. Theoretical background: 2.1 Workplace spirituality definition and its effects\n3. Theoretical model: The theoretical model for the effect of workplace spirituality on team effectiveness is shown in Figure 1.\n4. Conclusions and implications for future research: Companies are increasingly incorporating the aspect of spirituality within their organization in order to create a better environment for their employees. The objective of this paper was to develop a theoretical model aimed at understanding the impact that WS has on work teams. It is stated that when team members perceive spirituality at work, some important attributes such as trust, creativity and respect can be found within the organization and will have an effect on team effectiveness, which is proposed to encompass team member satisfaction, team conflict and team performance. With regards to trust, it is proposed that it will present a positive association with team member satisfaction and team performance, and a negative association with task, relationship and process conflict. With regards to creativity, it is proposed that it is positively associated with team member satisfaction, team performance, task related and process conflict and negatively associated with relationship conflict. Finally, respect is expected to be positively associated with team member satisfaction, task conflict and team performance, but it is expected to be negatively associated with relationship and process conflict. Propositions and a theoretical framework illustrating these relationships are presented.This article contributes in several ways to the research field. First, teams are used as the unit of analysis for study. So far, the majority of research about spirituality at work has focused primarily on the individual level. Second, the article reveals important information about understanding the effects that spiritual workplaces can have on work groups. Organizations that focus primarily on teams can have a better understanding about the implications and effects that WS can have on their employees, and they can improve or develop an organizational environment by implementing programs aimed at boosting the attributes proposed in this article.With regard to the implications for future research, other outcomes for measuring team effectiveness such as commitment, cooperation or communication could be incorporated. Also, the model presented here does not establish that trust, creativity and respect are the only factors encountered in those organizations that promote spirituality at work. Future research could investigate other attributes that might play an important role with regards to team effectiveness. Finally, the concept of national culture could bring important and interesting implications to this research area. It would be interesting to see if different cultures present different or similar attributes and how they affect team effectiveness.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical model aimed at understanding the impact that workplace spirituality (WS) has on team effectiveness.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - A literature review uncovers aspects of the implications that WS has for organizations and how it is related to team effectiveness.\nFindings: - A theoretical model aimed at understanding the effect of WS on team effectiveness is presented. It is proposed that workplace spirituality is an element of the organizational culture and that it has an important effect on team effectiveness. In this sense, trust, creativity and respect are hightlighted as being important attributes presented in those organizations in which WS is encouraged.\nResearch limitations/implications: - With regard to limitations, other attributes such as communication or cooperation could also be considered for inclusion about spirituality in the workplace. Also, the concept of national culture could introduce important and interesting implications.\nOriginality/value: - The paper contributes by analyzing the effects of WS on teams. Past literature had focused primarily on studying the impact of WS at the individual and organizational level.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Investigating the effects of psychological empowerment and interpersonal conflicts on employees' knowledge sharing intentions
|
[
"Psychological empowerment",
"Task conflict",
"Knowledge sharing",
"Trust",
"Relationship conflict"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: In today's knowledge-driven business environment, the development and management of critical knowledge have become both critical and challenging tasks by which managers acquire sustainable competitive advantages for their organizations. One way to accomplish this is by encouraging employees in different units to actively share knowledge with one another, thus enabling them to develop a varied range of skills and competences (Renzl, 2008). However, in practice, it is difficult to facilitate effective interpersonal knowledge-sharing activities among employees, due to a variety of human and organizational/environmental factors, including concerns related to interpersonal relationships, self-interests and organizational incentives (Yang and Wu, 2008). Therefore, many researchers have investigated the human and organizational factors that influence employees' intention to share knowledge with one another in various organizational contexts (Bock et al., 2005; Bock et al., 2006; He and Wei, 2009; Kankanhalli et al., 2011; Kankanhalli et al., 2005; Lin and Huang, 2010; Ouellet, 2015).\n2. Theoretical background: 2.1 Interpersonal conflicts\n3. Research model and hypotheses: 3.1 The research model\n4. Research method: 4.1 Development of instruments\n5. Discussion and implications: 5.1 Discussion\n6. Conclusion: This study was an attempt to advance the understanding of employees' knowledge sharing intentions in organizations from an integrated perspective of interpersonal conflicts, psychological empowerment and interpersonal trust based on the empowerment theory. To achieve this aim, a multi-view research model that integrates these key concepts was developed. The research results support the hypotheses based on the proposed model, with a few exceptions. Overall, the results provide managers with significant insights into effective methods for designing their management mechanisms and facilitating favorable interpersonal relationships to encourage interpersonal knowledge sharing.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate how different forms of interpersonal conflicts and employees' psychological empowerment may affect knowledge sharing intentions directly or indirectly via interpersonal trust in the workplace.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Survey data collected from 249 employees of 37 of the top 500 corporations in the manufacturing industry in Taiwan were used for the data analysis. The research model was analyzed using the component-based structural equation modeling technique, namely, the partial least squares (PLS) approach.\nFindings: The results indicate that both relationship and task conflicts have significant indirect effects on employees' knowledge sharing intentions via psychological empowerment and trust. Additionally, psychological empowerment significantly influences employees' knowledge sharing intentions both directly and indirectly via trust.\nResearch limitations/implications: The primary theoretical implication is an advancement in the understanding of the critical antecedents of and their different effects on employees' knowledge sharing intentions from the perspectives of conflict management and individual psychological empowerment. Future research may concentrate on investigating the bidirectional interactions among trust, relationship conflicts and task conflicts in different knowledge-sharing contexts.\nPractical implications: This study provides practical insights into conflict resolution intended to facilitate psychological empowerment and interpersonal trust that encourage knowledge sharing in the workplace.\nOriginality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first knowledge sharing study that empirically examines how task and relationship conflicts affect employees' knowledge sharing intentions differently via the mediation of their perceived psychological empowerment and interpersonal trust in one another in the workplace.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
What is the essence of leadership? The spiritual, environmental, team leading, talent managing guide to the top job
|
[
"Transformational leadership",
"Team performance",
"Leadership",
"Human resource management"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: So you are a leader, or want to be a leader, and you decide to read the literature on what it means to be a successful one. You need to ensure you have a lot of time to spare for reading: there are few areas that have exercised the minds of management academics more. And there are thousands of articles and hundreds of books to prove it.\nBody and mind: Let's start not with the more conventional aspects of leadership, but the more \"left field\" ones. In their article \"Environmental and spiritual leadership: tracing the synergies from an organizational perspective\", Crossman (2011) assess the similarities between aspects of spiritual leadership and environmental leadership qualities. While are both relatively new kids on the block in the management literature, they encompass themes that are much older in application to other areas. In the case of environmental leadership (EL), this can be regarded as the ability of a manager to drive forward a vision of sustainability for an organization; spiritual leadership (SL) invokes the sense that a leader is bringing others forward so that they feel there is a \"calling\" or shared goal.Apart from the obvious synergies where both can be often characterized by a \"religious zeal\" or \"evangelical\" approach by leaders - one thinks of the \"cult of Mac\" and Steve Jobs, or Anita Roddick and The Body Shop - what other traits combine in EL and SL? Crossman firstly draws our attention to the belief systems of some indigenous peoples who have pantheism - that is, their religious belief incorporates the natural world, and means that they therefore treasure it and avoid harming or wasting resources. Business organizations working with these people - such as native Americans or Aborigines in Australia - would do well to understand this, and certainly include it in their corporate social responsibility (CSR) obligations.\nThe bottom line: However within the context of typical firms, Crossman also highlights concepts where EL and SL overlap: common good, social good, sustainability, stewardship, humility, compassion, meaning and connectedness are all notions that are included in aspects of these two areas of leadership. The author answers the \"so what?\" question by addressing businesses to their \"values\", something which they would at least profess to say are at the center of their vision, mission and other corporate statements. Secondly, there is plenty of evidence to suggest EL and SL provide organizations with better leadership overall, better profits and higher levels of productivity, thus providing the Doubting Thomases of the corporate world at least some pause for thought when they look at their bottom lines.This thought may well include how a firm can identify future leaders, in particular whether they have EL and SL qualities that can drive the business forward and improve those numbers. Identifying these so-called \"high potentials\" (HPs) is the focus for Fernandez-Araoz et al. (2011) in their article \"How to hang on to your high potentials (how companies are using programmes geared to developing future leaders)\". They point to research that shows that only 15 percent of firms in North America and Asia feel they have identified the right people in the organization to fill their top jobs. They describe the problem as the \"war for talent\".\nTalent management: After conducting a huge amount of research on managing potential top performers, Fernandez-Araoz et al. (2011) identify three sets of activities that have brought success to companies around the world:1. Establish clear strategic priorities deigned to develop high potentials.2. Identify HPs clearly around the organization.3. Training programs dedicated to HPs and managing closely their rewards and retention.Taking the first activity, this will involve typically a firm aligning the development of HPs with the company's goals, so this might include an international pool of candidates for a firm with a global approach, or one that contains a number of people from developing economies if that where the future focus will be. One key aspect of this is that it should be flexible and be able to change with the organization's goals should they change due to new opportunities or economic factors.While anointing HPs around the company can be potentially hazardous as recommended in the second activity, it is probably more difficult to identify them in the first place. The authors prescribe a model that show five \"essentials\" of HPs, which range from aspects that are easily improve and change, such as knowledge and skills, to those more core values that can be more difficult to imbue, such as a sense of identity as a senior executive, leadership assets and motives. While it may seem demotivating to parade these potential high achievers to the \"regulars\" on the front line, the authors argue that the process should be as transparent, and therefore as defendable, as possible. This is a better state of affairs than companies who do not inform HPs who they are, while the rest of the executives know who they are anyway, or for firms which have a closed system of choosing HPs which is open to nepotism or other unfair practices they do not want everyone to see.\nImplementation: The third activity involves very close to HPs development once they are chosen, and is designed to ensure they are able to actually lead when their time comes, rather than go the way of so many teenage \"phenoms\" that promise to set the sporting world alight with the brightness of their talent, only to see a career end in the minor leagues when they failed to perform on the highest stage.Training may well involve an MBA or other form of executive study program that has a high quality leadership module, and involves putting research into practice in some way through case study work and projects. Including current CEOs and top management in this process is also recommended, as are job rotations to broaden experience. In terms of rewards, these should be modest and only part of an overall package that put recognition and achievement top of the list of priorities.Training should ideally equip HPs for as many scenarios as possible, and one criticism of management education has been that a top MBA often fails to achieve this, favoring theory of practical skills that leave HPs stranded when the pressure is on. One area this is particularly applicable to is conflict management, and what leadership practices best support this activity.\nUs vs them: In their article \"Linking transformational leadership and team performance: a conflict management approach\", Zhang et al. (2011) look at how transformational leadership activities can improve performance through conflict management approaches in teams. Transformational leadership shares some aspects of environmental leadership and spiritual leadership we saw earlier, in that transformational leaders present a cause which rises above transactional benefits such as salary, and gives additional purpose to an organization's employees. There are typically six distinct attributes of a transformational leader (TL):1. Representing a vision.2. Representing a model to follow.3. Providing incentives to pursue shared goals.4. Expectation of high performance.5. Supporting individuals.6. Displaying high intellect and stimulating others.Among the challenges of a TL is dealing with conflict in teams, and whether they should take a collaborative approach or a competitive approach. While a collaborative approach will open up discussions between people to help mutual understanding, a competitive approach will typically produce an \"us vs them\" mentality, where opinions are more likely to be enforced rather than openly debated.In their study, Zhang et al. (2011) used organizations based in China, and as such found this cultural context reduced the likelihood teams would favor a competitive approach over a collaborative approach, in order to be able to save face in the long term. What they also found was that transformational leaders were much more effective utilizing a collaborative approach, and were better positioned at preaching the benefits of such an approach to team members.In their conclusion, the authors note that improving the capacity to manage conflict collaboratively is an important tool for effective transformational leadership, and the concept of capacity provides all leaders with a useful challenge. Whether the style of leadership is transformational, spiritual, environmental or any other type, what capacity do current and potential leaders have for these styles, and how do they benefit the business overall? Whatever the outcome, beware aware of these capacities is perhaps the most important leadership trait of all.\nComment: The variety of leadership approaches and their strategic implementation are the main takeaways looking back at the research reviewed here. While Zhang et al. (2011) look at a specific aspect of leadership and management in China, Crossman (2011) and Fernandez-Araoz et al. (2011) get to the essential elements of different styles of leadership. Reflection on these and acknowledgement of how they impact on organizations is a key skill, and will help development of businesses in straitened times.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.\nFindings: - So you are a leader, or want to be a leader, and you decide to read the literature on what it means to be a successful one. You need to ensure you have a lot of time to spare for reading: there are few areas that have exercised the minds of management academics more. And there are thousands of articles and hundreds of books to prove it.\nPractical implications: - The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.\nOriginality/value: - The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
A scale for measuring the applicability of lean practices in IT support services
|
[
"Measurement",
"Perception",
"Applicability",
"Scale",
"IT service",
"Lean practice"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Although there is an increasing awareness among the IT support service providers of the need to become service-oriented and customer-focused, many of them are finding it difficult to change their culture and processes (Cater-Steel, 2009). The culture of many IT support service providers is technology-focused rather than customer-centric (Bruton, 2004). CMMI framework is widely used in practice to evaluate and to improve processes (Rohloff, 2011). Many IT organizations in India have achieved Level 5 status in the capability maturity models (Prasad and Nori, 2008).\n2. Research methodology: Research framework development\n3. Research implications: The purpose of the present research was to develop and validate a scale for measuring the perception of IT support service practitioners about the applicability of lean practices in IT support service environment. Results provided support for the 13-factor structure of a proposed 57-item scale, consisting of current and ideal usage of the lean practice from practitioners' perspective. Moreover, the internal consistency and reliability of the scales were found to be generally acceptable. Finally, the scale showed an acceptable degree of construct validity. Perhaps most importantly, the scale assesses perception of IT support service practitioners about the applicability of lean practices in terms of current and actual usage with easily understandable items.\n4. Conclusion and future work: The present study offers a sound scale that assesses the perception of IT support service professionals about the applicability of lean practice. An empirical study resulted in a state-of-the-art description of the variables. By further scale development, the scales were found to demonstrate high degree of unidimensionality, reliability and validity.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present research that was conducted with an objective to conceptualize and develop an instrument for the measurement of the perception of IT support service practitioners about the applicability of lean concepts in IT support services.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Scale items were identified from current literature and the survey instrument was used to collect data from IT support service practitioners. The constructs' measurement models were tested and the scale was validated by using statistical tools.\nFindings: The results of the study indicate that the operational measures developed here satisfy the criteria for unidimensionality, reliability and validity.\nResearch limitations/implications: While selecting and excluding measurement items for the survey, the researchers have followed established principles of survey research; but it may have been affected by the personal bias of the author. The sample for the survey was drawn from IT support service companies located in India, thus the results are generalizable only to the extent that these businesses represent the population of all businesses. Another limitation is that no prior survey/case studies were carried out to collect IT service practitioner's perception about the applicability of lean practices.\nOriginality/value: This paper provides a new measurement instrument for measuring the applicability of lean practices in IT support service environment.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Implementation of a multimodal patient safety improvement program "SafetyLEAP" in intensive care units: A cross-case study analysis
|
[
"Patient safety",
"Quality of care",
"ICU",
"Prospective surveillance"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Safety continues to be a common problem in healthcare. Approximately, one in ten hospitalized patients is injured as a result of a clinical intervention (Brennan et al., 1991; Forster et al., 2004; Baker et al., 2004; Sari et al., 2007; de Vries et al., 2008; Aranaz-Andres et al., 2008; Williams et al., 2008; Zegers et al., 2009; Soop et al., 2009; Baines et al., 2013; Sousa et al., 2014; Rafter et al., 2016). Prospective detection systems have emerged as a promising approach to systematically detect and monitor safety risks and incidents. Specifically, \"prospective clinical surveillance,\" also known as \"audit and feedback\" (Jamtvedt et al., 2012), has been implemented in multiple acute care hospitals, and on multiple services for prospectively monitoring adverse events (AE) (Forster et al., 2006, 2008, 2011; Wong et al., 2015).\nMethods: Design and setting\nResults: The study took place between 2013 and 2015. Overall, the adherence with the SafetyLEAP program at each hospital was 64.47 percent (ICU no. 1), 100 percent (ICU no. 2), and 26.32 percent (ICU no. 3). Details of the adherence to each component can be found in Table III, and the results of each component of the program are described below:\nDiscussion: Our comparative case study evaluated the implementation of the SafetyLEAP program. It is important for organizations to learn from safety incidents, and to implement interventions to improve safety. Thus, we described the implementation and evaluation of the SafetyLEAP program, a new approach to detect, improve, and evaluate activities related to patient safety in the ICUs of three large hospitals. Despite the rigorous process in the implementation of the SafetyLEAP program, it was deployed with varying levels of success. The hospitals (ICU no. 1 and 2) that completed the overall SafetyLEAP program showed several positive traits including: the ability to identify opportunities for improvement; the ability to follow a quality improvement process; and the ability to demonstrate positive changes in patient safety. In these two deployments (ICU nos 1 and 2), problems were identified and the teams undertook improvement efforts that resulted in positive changes to patient safety. However, it is unclear in ICU no. 1 whether the improvement effort was the result of the Hawthorne effect, or the actual impact of the intervention. We feel it is improbable that the AE reduction was due to our intervention; especially, as there were no objective measures of any changes in practice in the unit. Regardless, we observed the main factors influencing the adherence to the program to be the level of engagement of a local champion. We also observed the identification of appropriate resources within the unit to be critically important.\nConclusion: The SafetyLEAP program allowed for the identification of patient harm in the ICUs of three select hospitals. Overall, the success in improving patient safety was directly dependent on the engagement of the care teams. The findings of this study will help refine future research and future improvement work focused on monitoring and improving safety in health care. It will also contribute to health provider knowledge and will help maintain the focus on patient safety in clinical practice. This work has the potential to influence policy on the design and implementation of safety initiatives.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Patient safety remains a top priority in healthcare. Many organizations have developed systems to monitor and prevent harm, and have invested in different approaches to quality improvement. Despite these organizational efforts to better detect adverse events, efficient resolution of safety problems remains a significant challenge. The authors developed and implemented a comprehensive multimodal patient safety improvement program called SafetyLEAP. The term \"LEAP\" is an acronym that highlights the three facets of the program including: a Leadership and Engagement approach; Audit and feedback; and a Planned improvement intervention. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the implementation of the SafetyLEAP program in the intensive care units (ICUs) of three large hospitals.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A comparative case study approach was used to compare and contrast the adherence to each component of the SafetyLEAP program. The study was conducted using a convenience sample of three (n=3) ICUs from two provinces. Two reviewers independently evaluated major adherence metrics of the SafetyLEAP program for their completeness. Analysis was performed for each individual case, and across cases.\nFindings: A total of 257 patients were included in the study. Overall, the proportion of the SafetyLEAP tasks completed was 64.47, 100, and 26.32 percent, respectively. ICU nos 1 and 2 were able to identify opportunities for improvement, follow a quality improvement process and demonstrate positive changes in patient safety. The main factors influencing adherence were the engagement of a local champion, competing priorities, and the identification of appropriate resources.\nPractical implications: The SafetyLEAP program allowed for the identification of processes that could result in patient harm in the ICUs. However, the success in improving patient safety was dependent on the engagement of the care teams.\nOriginality/value: The authors developed an evidence-based approach to systematically and prospectively detect, improve, and evaluate actions related to patient safety.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Principals and teachers "craft coherence" among accountability policies
|
[
"Principals",
"Policy",
"Standards",
"Teacher evaluation",
"Common core"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Efforts to improve instructional quality and student performance through the adoption of standards for student learning (Hargreaves et al., 2010; Volante, 2012) and teacher performance (Flores, 2012; Hallinger et al., 2014; Liu and Zhao, 2013) have gained prominence internationally. Standards-based reforms focus on setting learning standards, administering assessments to measure students' progress, and imposing accountability (Mehta, 2015). In a recent outgrowth of the accountability movement, teacher evaluation policies have been developed to improve instruction and, ultimately, student learning by setting rigorous expectations for teachers' practice, providing feedback on the extent to which teachers meet these expectations, and linking performance to consequential personnel decisions (i.e. tenure, dismissal) (Firestone, 2014; Hallinger et al., 2014). Although there is substantial research on standards and teacher evaluation, scholars argue that research is needed to understand how standards and accountability policies interact to influence teaching and learning (Coburn et al., 2016; Reinhorn et al., 2017).\nConceptual framework: crafting coherence: Achieving coherence among multiple policies depends on both initial policy design and the response of educators in schools. When policies align to support shared goals, educators receive clear guidance as well as coordinated support for achieving these goals. By contrast, policy incoherence can impede school improvement by dividing educators' attention among multiple initiatives, resulting in a diluted, hybrid of multiple ideas that are layered on top of old practices and have little if any effect on student learning (Elmore, 2004). Weak alignment of previous state standards with other policies and instructional resources may have diminished the influence of standards on teachers' practice and students' learning (e.g. Polikoff, 2012; Spillane, 2004). Coburn et al. (2016) argue that policymakers have developed increasingly more sophisticated approaches to aligning academic standards with curriculum, assessments, professional development (PD), and teacher evaluation. Nevertheless, questions remain about how educators respond to more recent standards and accountability policies and the educator capabilities and organizational conditions that support or constrain their response.\nMethods: This study was designed to focus on CCSS implementation. Although no interview questions focused on teacher evaluation, teacher evaluation emerged as an important source of information for learning about the CCSS during interviews with principals and teachers. Consequently, this study provides limited insight into the microprocesses of the sensemaking process (Coburn, 2001), including how prior experiences influenced educators' understanding of these policies. Instead, this study describes a comparative case study of three high-poverty urban elementary schools (Yin, 2009), which explored the extent to which educators viewed the CCSS and teacher evaluation as complementary or in conflict with each other and the goals of their school. This study addresses the following questions:\nFindings: The implementation of the teacher evaluation framework in conjunction with new standards seemed to encourage educators to focus on executing particular pedagogical approaches deemed \"effective\" by the Danielson Framework and viewed by educators as aligned with the CCSS at the expense of attention to content. Educators at all three schools described themselves as committed to implementing the CCSS. Nevertheless, educators at Sunnyside and Park defined their goals for instruction and student learning in terms of general pedagogical approaches emphasized by the teacher evaluation framework (e.g. higher-level questioning). By contrast, educators at Bay Elementary focused on content and pedagogy by developing and using CCSS-aligned curriculum to support their students in meeting standards and engaging in professional learning opportunities that assisted teachers in understanding how their work with curriculum and students connected to the expectations of the Danielson Framework. Although educators in all three schools described the CCSS and Danielson Framework as complementary, educators at Bay Elementary were better able to articulate how the expectations for student learning described in the CCSS related to the teacher evaluation framework than educators at Sunnyside and Park. Furthermore, evidence from classroom observations suggested that teachers' practice was most closely aligned with the CCSS at Bay (see Table II).\nDiscussion: Crafting coherence between policy and practice requires integration that goes beyond the level of words to permeate the way teachers work with students around content (Honig and Hatch, 2004; Louis and Robinson, 2012). Principals and teachers in all three schools described connecting school priorities with standards and teacher evaluation. Only in Bay did teachers describe and were observed engaging in PD that addressed the connections between the CCSS and the teacher evaluation framework. These opportunities seemed to support teachers in both understanding the connection between policies and integrating them in their practice. At Sunnyside and Park, by contrast, the teacher evaluation policy seemed to supersede the CCSS because of its more direct implications for teachers' practice (Coburn, 2001) and relevance to teachers across grade-levels and subject areas. In contrast to previous research (Russell and Bray, 2013), educators did not describe the more direct consequences for teachers' professional status posed by the evaluation policy as an important factor in determining how they responded to policy.\nImplications and conclusions: Policy implications\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how US school leaders and teachers make sense of multiple accountability policies, including the Common Core State Standards and teacher evaluation, and how this process relates to school priorities and classroom practice.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This study uses a comparative case study approach to understand how principals and teachers in three high-poverty urban schools respond to policy.\nFindings: Although principals and teachers viewed academic standards and the teacher evaluation framework as complementary, two of the three schools focused on meeting the expectations of the teacher evaluation framework at the expense of attention to academic standards. Without attention to the connections among policies and school priorities, the introduction of new policies may detract from rather than reinforce attention to academic standards.\nResearch limitations/implications: Principals who are stronger instructional leaders may be better able to \"craft coherence\" among multiple standards-based policies and school priorities for instruction and student learning. Although their experiences are not generalizable, findings suggest that attending to standards for student and teacher performance without connecting to the implications for content and students' learning may lead to superficial integration of accountability policies with school priorities.\nPractical implications: Findings provide further evidence that principals play an essential role in responding to policy and suggest that districts and external support providers can assist their efforts by creating opportunities for professional learning about the connections among multiple policies and their implications for practice.\nOriginality/value: This paper extends Honig and Hatch's conceptualization of \"crafting coherence\" to the work of teachers and the implications for classroom practice.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Consumer confusion in German food retailing: the moderating role of trust
|
[
"Complexity",
"Gender",
"FMCG",
"Broader-scope trust",
"Consumer confusion",
"Non-purchase"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Today's consumers act in a highly complex environment with a magnitude of choices for products and product variations, as well as for brands, stores, and shopping channels. In coping with this complexity, consumers are confined by their cognitive and affective skills. Given the limited nature of these skills (Simon, 1982, 1991), it is not surprising that consumers do not always achieve a full understanding of product information and, as a result, they become confused.\n2. Literature review and hypothesis development: 2.1. Literature review\n3. Method: 3.1. Data collection and sample\n4. Results: Of the 516 participants in this study, 51.2 per cent were women (see Table II for sample demographics). Ages averaged 50.9 years (SD=16.5, n=498). This age distribution, impacted by the study's focus on heads of household, is comparable to the average age of the segment of the German population between ages 18 and 90 (M=50.6 years) (Destatis, 2011). Average monthly household income was 2,464 (SD=1,414, n=139). Subjects had been identified as having experience in shopping for food products, but to ensure that they would be able to answer all the survey questions, we determined whether or not they regularly purchase FMCGs. All respondents met this criterion. Average weekly spending on FMCGs was 84.74 (SD=49.35, n=505). On average, participants reported a level of confusion of M=3.90 (SD=1.61, n=502). Regressions and t-tests were then applied for calculating the conceptual framework (see the following text for the t-tests, and refer to Table III forthe regression).\n5. Discussion and implications: The goal of this study was to investigate possible outcomes of consumer confusion concerning purchase behaviour and needs, specifically with regard to the shopping process and the role of broader-scope trust. Results of the study do, indeed, support the notion that consumer confusion is associated with purchase behaviour, and identify a number of outcomes that have importance for food retailers (For an overview of the results of the tested hypotheses, please refer to Table IV).\n6. Limitations, further research, and conclusion: The goal of our study was to investigate negative outcomes of consumer confusion in food retailing, and evaluate the moderating effect of broader-scope trust on these outcomes. A limitation of our study lies in the nature of the self-reported data of our questionnaire. To validate our results, further research - in the form of behavioural experiments or field studies - should extend the assessment of consumer confusion and its outcomes that we have initiated.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Due to the rising number of product, service, and shopping possibilities available to consumers, food shopping has become increasingly more complex. As a result, consumers can become confused, and this state of confusion may influence their purchase behaviour (e.g. may cause them to not buy a product) and the personal needs they have in a shopping environment (e.g. certification to signal product quality, salesperson consultation for assistance in decision making, or governmental regulation). However, trust can reduce complexity, and may thereby moderate the influence of consumer confusion for negative outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to identify outcomes of consumer confusion and to investigate the moderating role of broader-scope trust on the negative outcomes of this confusion.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A conceptual model was developed to study potential negative outcomes of consumer confusion. In order to assess consumer confusion and the degree of negative outcomes, a telephone survey method for the questionnaire was applied, querying 516 participants who regularly bought food products.\nFindings: The results clearly suggest that consumer confusion evokes various negative outcomes that are of relevance for food retailing. The intensity of the influence of consumer confusion on several of those negative outcomes could be decreased by broader-scope trust. Further, an interaction effect linked to gender was observed.\nOriginality/value: To the best of the knowledge, this is the first international journal publication on the moderating role of trust on the outcomes of consumer confusion.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Key dimensions of value creation ability of supply management
|
[
"Capability",
"Strategy",
"Supply chain management",
"Value creation",
"Supply management",
"Key supplier"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Value creation as a basic premise of business has been discussed in strategic management literature from different perspectives and theoretical viewpoints. It has been argued that value creation, competitive advantage and firm performance are the primary pursuits of business (Porter, 1985; Barney, 1991). Recently, studies have departed from this traditional, firm-centric view of value creation to emphasise the increasing role of customers (Prahalad and Ramaswamy, 2004; Zhang and Chen, 2008), suppliers (Walter et al., 2001; Moller and Torronen, 2003), networks (Bovet and Martha, 2000; Kahkonen, 2012) and business ecosystems (Adner and Kapoor, 2010) in value creation. Because firms do not operate in an isolation but rather in the business environment forming around different relationships and networks, also the role of supply management as a function that contributes value to a firm has been acknowledged (Hartmann et al., 2012; Kahkonen and Lintukangas, 2012a, b). To date, research on purchasing and supply management has focussed mainly on how the purchasing function itself generates added value; the question of how firms can create value by using their supplier networks has received far less attention (van Weele and van Raaij, 2014).\nThe ability of supply management to create value: Defining value and value creation\nMethodology: This paper examines if KSM, the strategic level of supply management and a firm's SRM capability influence the ability of supply management to create value. Quantitative methods are the appropriate choice in empirical studies which require identifying the factors that influence an outcome or examining the relationships between concepts (Creswell, 2014). Therefore, a survey was designed in order to perform a multivariate analysis and increase the generalisability of the results.\nDiscussion: This study shows that the supply management dimensions of KSM, the strategic level of supply management and SRM capabilities are significant dimensions of value creation. The findings support the contemporary understanding of value creation where firms endeavour to create value for the company, its customers and its suppliers. This builds on the value creation logic based on networks (Stabell and Fjeldstad, 1998) and thus, the value creation potential of supply management as a function responsible for external resources is seen remarkable (Kahkonen and Lintukangas, 2012a).\nConclusions: The traditional perspective suggests that the value added by a purchasing department mainly results from the monetary savings generated. The modern view, by contrast, highlights the role of suppliers as significant value co-creators. While previous research concentrated primarily on the ability of a firm to create value, this study focussed on the ability of a firm's supply management to create value. The research of Hartmann et al. (2012) and Kahkonen and Lintukangas (2012a) shows that supply management has a clear connection to value creation; however, the literature shows that the supply management dimensions affecting its value creation ability have been less extensively studied. Thus, this paper endeavoured to ascertain which dimensions of supply management contribute its ability to create value.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the dimensions of supply management that may contribute to its ability to create value. Based on previous literature, this study proposes that key supplier management (KSM), the strategic level of supply management and supplier relationship management (SRM) capabilities can be supply management factors that significantly influence its ability to create value.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The issue is examined using survey data collected in Finland, and the concepts are tested using regression analysis.\nFindings: The results show that KSM, the strategic level of supply management and SRM capabilities are significant dimensions of value creation in supply management. The findings support the contemporary understanding of value in which firms endeavour to create value for the company, its customers and its suppliers.\nOriginality/value: Previously, value creation has received minor attention in supply chain management research. Although previous research clearly shows that strategic supply management plays a significant role in firms' competitiveness and performance, its role and potential in value creation have been less studied. Thus, this study contributes by empirically examining the factors affecting the ability of a firm's supply management to create value.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Scenario-planning in strategic decision-making: requirements, benefits and inhibitors
|
[
"Scenario planning"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: As the rate of change increases, business leaders make decisions in complex and uncertain business systems (Sargut and McGrath, 2011). Within these systems, organizational survival depends on executives' strategic agility, where contrasting capabilities, flexibility and 'mindful responses' enable the longevity of firms (Lewis et al., 2014). One of the key requirements to obtain such agility is strategic foresight (Hammoud and Nash, 2014). Strategic foresight entails a set of methods, processes and tools available to leaders in their decision-making (Vecchiato and Roveda, 2010; Vecchiato, 2012).\n2. Theoretical considerations: 2.1 Corporate foresight\n3. Methodology: The study explores the requirements, benefits and inhibitors of scenario-planning by strategic decision-makers operating in the fast-paced complex context of South Africa, the conditions that enable or inhibit the use of scenario-planning as well as the perceived benefits thereof.\n4. Empirical findings: 4.1 Perceived requirements of effective scenarios\n5. Discussion of findings: The findings of this study suggest poor utilization of scenarios in strategic decision-making in the South African context, linked to practical inhibitors, process inadequacies and environmental constraints, despite the potential benefits thereof.\n6. Research implications: Given variability in the use of scenario-planning processes, essential process requirements and the implications of benefits and inhibitors, the use of scenarios thinking in strategic decision-making should be improved. Figure 1 provides an overview of the key findings of this study.\n7. Managerial implications: The findings compiled in Tables II to IV provide a foundation of several research implications of meeting the requirements, gaining the benefits and handling the inhibitors of scenario-planning, such as an integrated framework of thinking skills in strategic decision-making rather than relying on scenario-planning as a tool, as shown in Figure 2.\n8. Conclusions and suggestions: Given the increasing complexity of the business environment, this study contributes to a framework of scenario thinking that stresses greater emphasis on developing strategic decision-making competence, changed mindsets and organizational agility. Further, it contributes to identify a set of requirements, benefits and inhibitors of scenario-planning in strategic decision-making. From the cases studied, it is evident that industry-, organizational- and leadership-related factors enable or inhibit scenario-planning.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the corporate requirements, benefits and inhibitors of scenario planning in strategic decision-making.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This paper is based on a sample of 15 case studies with executives in the South African context to reveal the perceived corporate requirements, benefits and inhibitors of scenario-planning.\nFindings: From the cases, it is evident that industry-, organizational- and leadership-related factors enable or inhibit scenario planning. Requirements, benefits and inhibitors are revealed in strategic decision-making.\nResearch limitations/implications: Further research to determine supportive tools and technologies for enabling scenario-planning across multiple contexts is needed.\nPractical implications: This paper expands insights into the requirements, benefits and inhibitors of scenario-planning in strategic decision-making.\nOriginality/value: Given the increasing complexity of the business environment, a framework of scenario-thinking is presented and recommend greater emphasis on developing strategic decision-making competence, changed mindsets and organizational agility.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Perceived outcomes of public libraries in Finland, Norway and the Netherlands
|
[
"User studies",
"Value analysis",
"Public libraries"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Public libraries are no longer the taken-for-granted institutions they were some decades ago. The increasing availability of information and, broader content on the World Wide Web has provided citizens with ample alternatives to paying a visit to a library branch. Search engines like Google and recommender functions on sites of e-book vendors like Amazon have partly taken over the information and advisory function of front-office staff. Add to that the public spending cuts due to the current economic recession in large areas of the world, and it becomes quite understandable that local and other authorities have begun to question the self-evidence of their investment of taxpayers' money in the public library systems.\nLiterature review: \"There is a growing body of national and international studies that have attempted to measure the impact of the public library in various aspects of life of individuals and on communities, often as an instrument in advocacy efforts on behalf of public libraries\" (Huysmans and Oomes, 2013). These studies often report on what Poll (2012) calls \"soft measures.\" These measures base statements on outcomes on the respondents' estimation of actual or potential benefit of the library. The so-called \"solicited evidence\" that stems from these measures (Streatfield, 2002 in Poll, 2012) is more subjective than \"observed evidence\" that stems from studies using observation instead of questioning people.\nBasic facts on public libraries: It is likely that the level of library services has an influence on their use (Vakkari, 1988; Sin, 2012) and consequently, on the perceptions of benefits produced by the services. Also more general social factors like legislation likely affects the differences between the countries in behavior and attitudes (Ragin, 1987). In the following basic statistics on library systems and major characteristics of library law in the countries compared are presented.\nResearch design: Data collection\nFindings: The profiles of benefits are compared first followed by the comparison of the structure of benefits between the countries observed.\nDiscussion: In the research presented here, contributions have been made to the research on the value of public libraries in the following ways:\nConclusions: This study is the first to compare systematically the benefits users derive in the major areas of life from the public library in various countries. There was a great difference in the level and extent of the benefits between Finland, on one hand, and Norway and the Netherlands, on the other hand. Finns perceived benefits more frequently and across a broader range of life spheres compared to Norwegians and the Dutch. It is suggested that the major factor explaining these differences is the resources invested in library services and consequently, the level of those services. Comparing only three countries is too limited for producing valid results on the relations between the supply of library services and their use and the benefits derived from that use. Analyzing these associations in a larger sample of countries would create reliable results also for policy making.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to compare the perceived benefits of public libraries and their structure in the major areas of life between Finland, Norway and the Netherlands.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The data were based on representative samples of Finnish, Norwegian and Dutch adult library users. In Finland a mail survey was used and in Norway and the Netherlands web surveys were used for data collection. The distribution of the proportion of those benefiting from the library in various areas of life at least sometimes was compared across countries. The structure of benefits was compared across countries by factor analysis.\nFindings: The results showed that the level of the nineteen benefits observed was considerably higher, and the range of benefits remarkably broader in Finland compared to Norway and the Netherlands. It is likely that the greater supply of library services in Finland compared to the other two countries explains the differences in benefits derived from the public library. The study validated the measurement instrument for the perceived overall outcomes of public libraries.\nResearch limitations/implications: Comparing only three countries is too limited for producing valid results on the relations between the supply of library services and their use and the benefits derived from that use. Analyzing these associations in a larger sample of countries would create reliable results also for policy making.\nPractical implications: The policy implications of these findings are discussed.\nOriginality/value: This is the first across-country comparison observing perceived benefits of public libraries across major areas of life.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The significance of grassroots and inclusive innovation in harnessing social entrepreneurship and urban regeneration
|
[
"Social enterprises",
"Urban regeneration",
"Grassroots innovation",
"Inclusive innovation",
"Grassroots"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Throughout the world, many urban communities are experiencing profound socioeconomic decline (Clark, 2013; Tighe and Ganning, 2015). Life in some of these communities is, for instance, often associated with degraded infrastructure, serious environmental hazards, unhealthy housing or substandard services (Anguelovski, 2013). In some neighbourhoods, however, a movement of activists has emerged, and is becoming organised to counter these long-term conditions (Anguelovski, 2013), and therefore, contribute to urban regeneration.\nLiterature review: Grassroots and inclusive innovation\nMethodology: The present investigation focusses on the associations between grassroots and inclusive innovation, social entrepreneurship and urban regeneration. Furthermore, the study addresses knowledge gaps identified in contemporary research (Doherty et al., 2014; Short et al., 2009) by examining Homebaked, a social enterprise operating in a neighbourhood, Anfield, Liverpool (UK) affected by socioeconomic decline. As the research questions suggest, the study's unit of analysis, interpreted as \"a bounded set of elements comprising the entity which is the focus of research\" (Gronn, 2002, p. 444) is represented by how in specific ways in which grassroots and inclusive innovation are operationalised along with their subsequent impacts.\nFindings: Ways in which Homebaked promotes grassroots and inclusive innovation\nDiscussion: Aligned with the notions of inductive research concerning model development (Thomas, 2006), and those associated with rigour in qualitative research (Gehman et al., 2018; Gioia et al., 2013), this study revealed six distinct dimensions. One framework (Figure 1) comprises two of these, which are related to ways in which Homebaked promotes grassroots and inclusive innovation, while the second framework (Figure 2) illustrates four linked to impacts resulting from these forms of innovation. As the themes associated with these the dimensions demonstrate, there is a strong practical component to each. Indeed, the importance of technology (e.g. equipment) emerged in the findings, further supporting innovative practices and initiatives. Within this context, crowdfunding events and more recent social media activities have helped reach and draw the attention of former residents world-wide (PA2) or address new and growing issues resulting from increased product demand (PA8).\nConclusions: By selecting Homebaked, a social enterprise based in Liverpool, UK, the present study examined how grassroots and inclusive innovation are promoted, as well as their resulting impacts on urban regeneration. In doing so, the study proposes two frameworks based upon various dimensions related to grassroots and inclusive innovation as revealed through qualitative content analysis. In addition, the study addressed persistent knowledge gaps highlighted in contemporary research (Doherty et al., 2014; Foster and Heeks, 2013; Pellicer-Sifres et al., 2018; Short et al., 2009) and uncovered various important outcomes concerning the addressed research questions.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the dimensions of inclusive and grassroots innovations operationalised by a social enterprise and the impact of these activities on urban regeneration. To this end, the case of Homebaked in Liverpool, UK, is presented and discussed.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Face-to-face interviews with members of Homebaked's management, staff and volunteers were conducted; the interviews were complemented with on-site observations and review of archival information of the social enterprise.\nFindings: The data gathered revealed the organisation's involvement in both types of innovation as a means to achieve long-term urban regeneration related goals. For instance, innovative, strategic and human dimensions, together with the human dimension emerged as key ways of innovating. The impacts of innovative practices comprised encouraging inclusiveness among residents and non-residents, with approaches including hands-on training workshops, job and volunteering opportunities being predominant.\nOriginality/value: First, the study advances the theoretical and applied understanding of grassroots and inclusive innovation in the context of a social enterprise. For instance, an innovative/strategic and human dimension emerged as predominant ways in which grassroots and inclusive innovation elements were manifested. These dimensions were based on technology uptake, implementation of new product/service concepts or harnessing the skills of local and non-local individuals. Similarly, four dimensions associated with the impacts of these types of innovation were revealed. Second, the study addresses acknowledged gaps in the literature, particularly regarding the limited contributions illuminating processes and determinants of innovation among social enterprises.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Why every organization needs to become more brain-savvy
|
[
"Leadership development",
"Engagement and learning",
"Organizational change and learning",
"Neuroscience and organizational change – providing the evidence"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Most organizations across the world want to know how they can be more productive. As global competition increases, competitors are no longer just local, they can be found in every corner of the world. At the same time, as the pressure grows, there is an increasing concern about employee mental and emotional well-being. In some countries, absenteeism because of depression and stress has overtaken absenteeism because of musculoskeletal problems. What can leaders do about these two seemingly conflicting problems?\nA win-win: Some of the answers are emerging from the field of neuroscience - the study of the nervous system including the brain. As our understanding of the brain increases, we can begin to apply this knowledge to our work. If every organization and every leader, all of us in fact, understand a little bit more about the brain, then we can work with the brain rather than despite it. We can identify what helps the brains of employees to stay focused and keep performing at their best. It also means that we can identify what the brain needs to stay calm and well-balanced.\nOur brains are not designed for twenty-first century organizations: One of the challenges we face is that we are trying to get the best out of brains that are not designed for the twenty-first century workplace. Work has changed hugely over the years but our brains have not. With the exception of the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain behind our foreheads where we do our considered thinking and planning and control our emotions, our brains have not evolved since our ancestors were out on the savannah. Our brains are designed to deal with the challenges of the savannah not the stressors in the contemporary workplace.\nSome of the areas that leaders (and all of us) need to learn about: As neuroscience comes out of the lab and into the workplace, there are many applications and insights that are relevant to leaders. Here are some examples of the areas where leaders would benefit from deeper knowledge:\nThe differences some leaders have seen: Applying neuroscience in the organization is still quite new. So in 2014, I started some research with a colleague. We took a group of leaders in four organizations (Lloyds Banking Group, BAE Systems, Orbit Housing Group and the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills) and provided them with a basic grounding in applied neuroscience. We then asked them to try out some of the approaches over the coming months. We measured their knowledge before and after the initial workshop and we also measured what their teams said about their leadership skills before the first workshop and six months later. Their teams noticed positive shifts in all areas, for example, less micro-managing, greater focus on what people were doing right, better understanding of what motivated the team member. Leaders also provided examples of the positive impact their deeper knowledge about the brain had on performance: one HR director talked of improved performance management conversations and outcomes because of a better understanding of the threat response and its impact on performance. Two leaders shared an improved cost-performance index. The index had flat-lined for two years, but, following the workshop, the leaders changed their way of working with the team and they attributed the improvement to this. They recognized the need to let the team reach their own insights about what needed to be done, have more control over decision-making, and less micro-management (Scarlett, 2016).\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This paper aims to set out why every organization and every leader would benefit from understanding more about the brain and what helps it to perform at its best. It provides some examples of what leaders would benefit from knowing and touches on some applied neuroscience research conducted with leaders in four organizations.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The paper sets out two challenges facing all organizations: improving productivity while also promoting mental and emotional wellbeing at work. It touches on research conducted with leaders in four organizations exploring the impact of learning about the brain on their ability to lead others.\nFindings: The paper suggests that leaders who have a better understanding of the brain are better equipped to improve productivity in the organization and to promote emotional and mental well-being at work.\nOriginality/value: The paper sets out why every organization needs to teach leaders, managers, all employees about the brain and what helps it to perform at its best. It provides some examples of what knowledge people would benefit from acquiring. It shares some research conducted into applying neuroscience in the workplace.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Customer attrition analysis in the securities industry: a large-scale field study in Korea
|
[
"Churn prediction",
"Field study",
"Brokerage and investment banking",
"Target marketing"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: In competitive markets, customers have access to numerous alternatives and thus, can easily switch a service or even the provider. Such customers are referred to as churned customers (Amin et al., 2019, p. 290). Customers are capital in the sense that no company can exist without customers (Gourio and Rudanko, 2014). Annual spending on advertising alone amounts to 2-3 percent of the gross domestic product (Galbi, 2001). Arkolakis (2010) also finds that US corporations as a whole expense approximately 8 percent of the gross domestic product on marketing to loyal customers. Given that the economic environment has become more competitive (Colgate and Danaher, 2000; Jones et al., 2000) and business entities are accumulating more customer knowledge (Verbeke et al., 2012), the notion that customers capital has intrigued the marketing profession, leading the banking and financial services industry (where a huge volume of transaction data is being generated day-to-day) to rethink customer churn predictions, especially on the empirical side.\nLiterature review: Customer-base analyses in the financial services sector\nResearch design: We adopt the canonical RFM framework and check whether it performs well in the securities industry. To mitigate model risks and reach a general conclusion, we examine the RFM framework using three different customer attrition prediction techniques: logistic regression (e.g. Hernandez and Mazzon, 2007, among others), XGBoost, a gradient boosting decision tree (e.g. Lemmens and Croux, 2006), and the artificial neural network (e.g. Moutinho and Phillips, 2002). The logistic regression serves as the standard benchmark, complemented by the other two statistical learning methods. Notably, this study does not incorporate a limited data set in the securities industry or use a statistical technique that might correspond too closely to the sample. Our research design is rather general, which can serve as a lower bound for more advanced and sophisticated set-ups.\nResults: The results show that the RFM framework can effectively explain the attrition of retail investors. The benchmark logistic model shows that there is an area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) of 0.78. The XGBoost decision tree and the artificial neural network model reveal more promising results: an AUC of 0.86 for the XGBoost decision tree and 0.80 for the artificial neural network. We further employ two lift measures proposed by Coussement and De Bock (2013): the decile lift (DL) and the lift index (LI). These two lift measures confirm that the RFM model can effectively predict customers' future actions. We proceed to document more detailed results below.\nDiscussions and implications: Discussion of findings\nConcluding remarks: This study utilizes an extensive field data set to validate the use of the traditional RFM framework in the securities industry. The results from three different binary selection models all indicate that the RFM-based customer attrition model works well with large-scale field data. Given that we base our conceptual framework on a simple RFM structure, the results of this paper indicate that there is a need for a more sophisticated customer attrition framework that takes into account other factors such as attention or duration.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify the attributes that predict customer attrition behavior in the brokerage and investment banking sectors.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors analyze the complete stock trading records and customer profiles of 458,098 retail customers from a Korean brokerage house. The authors develop customer attrition prediction models and further explore the practicality of these models using statistical classification techniques.\nFindings: The results from three different binary selection models indicate that customer transaction patterns effectively explain the attrition of active retail customers in subsequent periods. The study results demonstrate that monetary value variables are the most critical for predicting customer attrition in the securities industry.\nResearch limitations/implications: This study contributes to the customer attrition literature by documenting the first large-scale field-based evidence that confirms the practicality of the canonical recency, frequency and monetary (RFM) framework in the investment banking and brokerage industry. The findings advance previous survey-based studies in the financial services industry by identifying the attributes that predict customer attrition behaviors in the securities industry.\nPractical implications: The outcomes can be easily operationalized for attrition prediction by practitioners in financial service firms. Moreover, the ex post density of inactive customers in the top 10 percent most-likely-to-churn group is estimated to be five to six times the ex ante unconditional attrition ratio, which ascertains that the attributes recognized in this study work well for the purpose of target marketing.\nOriginality/value: While the securities industry is regarded as one of the most information-intensive industries, detailed empirical investigation into customer attrition in the field has lagged behind partly due to the lack of suitable securities transaction data and demographic information at the customer level. The current research fills this gap in the literature by taking advantage of a large-scale field data set and offers a starting point for more elaborate studies on the drivers of customer attrition in the financial services sector.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
From Ossau and Iraty to PDO Ossau-Iraty: The long-term construction of a product based on two distinct places
|
[
"Identity",
"Actor‒network theory",
"Geographical indication",
"Controversy"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Geographical indications (GIs) are internationally defined as \"indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a [WTO] Member, or a region or locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin\" (Article 22 of trade-related aspect of intellectual property rights - TRIPS - signed by WTO members). More than collective property, this definition refers to a peculiar sense of place, known as terroir in Mediterranean countries (Bowen and Mutersbaugh, 2014; Kizos et al., 2017), or the \"origin-of-food\" perspective (Fonte, 2008). This means that the collective dimension of place-based products is spatial as well as temporal: localization do not only refer to established frontiers (GIs' area of production), it also refers to \"a common history, a common belonging that is solidified in collective norms and regulations\" (Fonte, 2008, p. 207). Local stakeholders share a sense of belonging that has been built through space and time, and which is translated into a collective qualification of their product.\n2. Theoretical and practical framework: 2.1 Controversies, actor network theory and GIs\n3. Findings: The author reconstituted two main trajectories, one concerning Ossau-Iraty and its collective management, and the other concerning Bearn producers and their different choices to valorize their product. Anchoring this story in the seventies, It is understood that Bearn producers and Basque producers did not live under the same contexts, which contributes to explain the controversial nature of Ossau-Iraty's creation (Section 3.1). Ossau-Iraty can be considered as an industrial product, developed in order to sustain the development of dairies, whereas on-farm production, in Bearn and Pays Basque, is marginalized. This situation started changing in the 1990s (Section 3.3), when on-farm producers took the opportunity of a change in national regulations to appropriate Ossau-Iraty's management and specifications. Still, most of Bearn producers did not comply to the PDO; they chose their own way of valorizing their product. During the 2000s, Ossau-Iraty's leaders succeeded in specifying it and room was made for on-farm production and traditional practices (Section 3.4).\n4. Discussion and conclusion: Within every GI, stakeholders have to translate what makes their product's quality and what makes its traditional nature into collective norms. Based on this current translation of past, stakeholders collectively build their product and erect rules to manage its processing and valorization. GIs are not only built facing past, they are also driven by a collective goal (facing present and future), which can be more or less clarified by local stakeholders. As it is an economic object, it is principally oriented toward a better valorization of the protected product (Fonte, 2008). It can lead to tensions or conflicts for sharing the added value thus obtained, but divergences between stakeholders can also go beyond the economic dimension and refer to stakes of local heritage and local development.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to understand how a geographical indication (GI) is built through time and how its (non)appropriation by local producers shapes it. The reciprocity of such process is also considered: how the creation of a GI changes local relationships between producers, within the GI and out of it? The case of Ossau-Iraty is relevant: in south-west of France, this protected designation of origin (PDO) has been based on two distinct regions: Bearn (Ossau) and Pays Basque (Iraty). Since then, most producers of Bearn have rejected this PDO.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The author adopts a diachronic perspective: the trajectory of the local dairy ewe sector is described, focusing on the trajectory of on-farm cheese makers from Bearn and Pays Basque and the trajectory of Ossau-Iraty. Based on different methods (qualitative interviews and archive research), this paper aims at analyzing the interactions within such heterogeneous networks.\nFindings: When the PDO was created (1980), the opposition between producers of Bearn and Pays Basque was based on strong senses of place, which would be translated in a different perception of tradition: to Bearn producers, PDO Ossau-Iraty would be an industrial cheese, in which they did not recognize their product and themselves. With time, the producers who have been involved in the PDO worked on its specifications. The recognition of symbolic practices such as on-farm production or Summer pasture production, the recognition of differences between Basque cheese and Bearn cheese are changes that contribute to the evolution of perceptions within the local producers' community. The author observes a recent convergence between Basque producers and Bearn producers, as their distinct products share common and strong qualifications within PDO Ossau-Iraty that contribute to their respective valorization. However, it seems to occur at an institutional level and the adhesion of the local producers might still be at stakes.\nResearch limitations/implications: A statistical study could reinforce the author's exploratory and historical research. Furthermore, it would have been relevant to take local inhabitants and local consumers into account, as they have participated in the products' qualifications as well.\nOriginality/value: A long-term analysis (40 years) contributes to better understand how cheeses are valorized and how such process is based on controversial processes. It contributes to root GIs into local histories, which are nor as consensual neither as uniform as we would primarily think, and to identity levers for sustainable local development.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Identifying the influencing factors on the quality of China's forestry exports: Based on the exports from China to ten developed countries
|
[
"Export",
"Quality",
"Trade",
"Forest products"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: In recent years, with the rapid development of China's forestry industry, the export trade volume of forest products has continuously improved. By the end of 2015, the export trade volume of China's forest products had reached $140bn, which was the highest in the world. However, several problems associated with the rapid quantity growth cannot be ignored: on the one hand, China has become the world's wood processing center. Although the total export of forest products has yearly increased, the added value of exports is low, and the international competitiveness is weak (Guan and Gong, 2015). On the other hand, with the disappearance of China's demographic dividend and the rapid increase of labor cost, the price competitive advantage of forest product trade will be unsustainable (Wu et al., 2016). Therefore, the transition of China's forest product industry from the type of quantity to the type of quality has become the inevitable trend. In this respect, the quality of forestry exports has become an important indicator to measure the level of forest product trade. Therefore, the following questions deserve deep discussion:\nResearch methods and data collection: Product quality measurement method\nModel specification of the influencing factors of product quality: In the empirical analysis of the influencing factors of forest exports, the quality measurement values of four varieties of forest products (including fiberboard, particleboard, plywood, paper and paperboard) are specifically regarded as the explained variables. According to the existing studies (Martinez-Zarzoso and Burguet, 2000; Caballero and Krishnamurthy, 2004; Hallak and Schott, 2005; Oladi et al., 2008; Faruq, 2011; Eshraghi and Ismail, 2013; Fan et al., 2015), the following explanatory variables are selected: first, per capita GDP of the importing country. The larger the market preference for high-quality product is, the higher the quality threshold is. Second, GDP of the importing country. It can reflect the consumer market scale of the country. The country with greater market scale has large uncertainty about the demand of product quality. There is higher probability that the product access threshold could be correspondingly lowered due to the large market scale, which is not good for the improvement of product quality. The second is that the greater the market scale is, the stronger the product competition is (Mayer et al., 2014). If the country wants to capture a certain market share, the product quality has to be improved. Third, degree of trade openness of the importing country. The higher the degree of trade openness of the importing country is, the lower the access threshold of market is, which is not conducive to the quality improvement of the exports of the exporting country. Fourth, distance factor. Harrigan et al. (2015) considered that only the products with the best advantage can be exported to further afield. This advantage may be from higher product quality or lower price. The transportation cost of wood products is relatively high. Thus, the quality of wood products shall be quite high if the products are exported to farther. Therefore, the farther the distance of bilateral countries is, the higher the quality of China's forestry exports is. Fifth, forestry fixed investment of the exporting country. The forestry fixed investment of the exporting country consists of the supports from forestry science and technology, infrastructure and financial aspects, which would conduce to improve the quality of wood processing products. The higher the amount of the investment is, the greater the effect on quality improvement is. Sixth, number of the higher education graduates in forestry sector of the exporting country. The number of the forestry workers with higher education reflects the labor pool of high-quality practitioners, which can promote the production quality improvement of forest products. Seventh, trade level of forest product of the importing country. This is expressed by the export value of forest products of the importing country. The higher the export value is, the more advanced the country's forest industry is. Thus, the demand for the high quality of forestry imports is relatively higher, which may in turn motivate the quality of forestry exports from China to those countries. Eight, whether Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) member states. In general, as APEC member countries, the strong mutual trade facilitation may cause larger total volume of import and export products compared with non-APEC member countries. However, due to the reduction of the thresholds in the mutual import and export trade and the increase in total volume, the quality of their trade products would also be affected. Based on the definitions of the explained variables and explanatory variables above, the model is set as follows:(12)\nData collection: First, in terms of the quality measurement of forestry exports, the export data of China's forest products for the major developed countries from 2000 to 2014 are mainly selected. Four typical forest products are targeted as the research objects, including fiberboard, particleboard, plywood, paper and paperboard. In these four varieties of forestry exports, the export volume to the major ten developed countries (Asia: Japan; Europe: Belgium, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands; North America: Canada, the USA; Oceania: Australia) accounts for more than 75 percent of the total export volume from 2000 to 2014.Therefore, our study samples have a certain representativeness. In order to comply with a more refined demand of the nested logit model for product classification, the forestry exports data in this research are acquired from the online forestry statistic database and forest product yearbook of the Food and Agriculture Organization of which the product classification method is HS8 encoding. Since the statistical data of product unit price (Psgt) cannot be obtained, this research refers to the method by Khandelwal (2010) and uses the export volume divided by total product export volume. In addition, we select population scale of the exporting country to control the product differentiation and the data are from the World Bank website. In terms of data processing, the samples with missing data and the samples with the trade scale of less than $1,000 are eliminated. The specific variables are shown in Table I.\nResults: Quality measurement results\nEmpirical results of the influencing factors on export quality of forest products: Test results of model applicability\nDiscussion: This research has measured the quality of four varieties of forestry exports from China to ten developed countries from 2000 to 2014. Meanwhile, the influencing factors have also been analyzed to understand how to improve forestry exports' product quality. The research findings show that the quality of plywood is the highest, which may be related to the quality supervision of the relevant administrative departments, total export volume of the products and trade barriers of the developed countries. For example, the National Standard of Artificial Board-Molded Plywood formulated by China's National Quality Supervision Bureau was officially approved and issued in March, 2009. This has a certain promoting effect on the improvement of the export quality of the plywood. In addition, according to the data of Statistical Yearbook for Forestry of China from 2000 to 2014, the average annual export volume of plywood was more than 8m cubic meters. The average annual export volumes of fiberboard, particleboard and paper and paperboard were 2m cubic meters, 0.3m cubic meters and over 5m tons. Therefore, in terms of the quantity, the export volume of plywood was the largest and its production process was relatively mature. In addition, external factors are also important factors that force forest exports to improve product quality. Especially in recent years, China's forest exports have encountered trade barriers and frequent product quality surveys, which makes enterprises more seriously to ensure the high-quality products in order to achieve higher international market requirements. According to the statistics from the website of China's Ministry of Commerce, the number of investigations on \"Anti-dumping and countervailing\" for plywood in the ten developed countries was at the most. For example, in America, the investigations on plywood from 2000 to 2014 were more than 15 times. It implies that this kind of trade barriers may cause the improvement of China's export plywood quality.\nConclusion: In this contribution, Khandelwal (2010) model was used to measure the quality of forest products exported by China to ten major developed countries from 2000 to 2014. Meanwhile, the factors affecting the quality were analyzed in the empirical research. It was found that the quality of plywood and fiberboard exported by China was declining, while the quality of particleboard and paper products was on the rise. The average annual variation of forest product quality was relatively small. Further empirical analysis showed that the GDP of the importing countries and the number of graduates of forestry higher education in the exporting countries had a significant effect on the quality of forest exports. Moreover, the bilateral distance cost of the exporting and importing country had a certain negative effect on product quality. In the future, China should continue to strengthen the trade links with the developed countries and continue to expand trade scale. In addition, it is imperative for government to implement the policies to enhance product quality, such as gradually improving the education level of employees of forest exports, strengthening vocational skills through training, and improving the production level of forest exports. Besides, transportation infrastructures should be further improved to reduce transportation costs of the domestic forest products.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: China is not only the biggest importing country of the raw materials of forest products, but also the biggest exporting country of intermediate and final forest products. The paper aims to discuss these issues.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors use the Khandelwal (2010) method and trade data from 2000 to 2014 of bilateral forest products between China and ten main developed countries to evaluate the quality of China's forestry imports and exports. Subsequently, the influencing factors of product quality are analyzed.\nFindings: The results show that the current export quality of plywood and fiberboard is decreasing, and the export quality of particleboard and paper products is on the rise. A further study finds that several factors have the positive effects on the quality of forestry exports, including gross domestic product of the importing country, forestry export value of the importing country as well as the number of forestry higher education graduates of the exporting country. Moreover, the study also finds that the status of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation member has a negative effect on the quality of forestry exports, while the distance cost has a negative influence on fiberboard, paper and paperboard.\nPractical implications: The study suggests that China needs to strengthen the research and development investment on forest products, and improve the quality of forest products to promote the trade development of forestry exports.\nOriginality/value: The existing literature has not shown much research regarding the quality of China's forestry exports through econometric analysis. Therefore, the research results provide new perspective about the influencing factors on China's forestry trade activities.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The impact of quality management systems on the performance of manufacturing firms
|
[
"Operational performance",
"Quality management",
"Business performance",
"Product quality",
"ISO 9001 effectiveness"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: The implementation of an international quality management system (QMS) represents the basic precondition for a company's success and entrance to the markets. A QMS may be adopted on a voluntary basis by companies to improve their competitive power and/or a better quality product. It cannot be denied that the ISO 9001 standard is a QMS that has had an important impact on the development of quality management and it has arguably made the most influential contribution to quality management that there has been to date (Heras, 2011). It aims to assist companies in establishing a solid quality system to maintain the quality level (Lin and Chai, 2012). However, in order to become certified and adhere to the ISO 9001 standard, a company requires a high investment of organizational time, effort and resources.\n2. Theoretical background and conceptual foundation: 2.1. The effectiveness of the ISO 9001 standard\n3. Research methodology: 3.1. Research population and sample\n4. Data analysis and results: 4.1. Construct validity of ISO 9001 effectiveness and objectives\n5. Discussion: The three ISO 9001 objectives and the three dimensions of firms' performance have been defined and well measured by respective items and they also have sound psychometric properties. The manufacturing firms that implement the ISO 9001 QMS, through achieving the prescribed objectives of the standard, benefit from improvement in the value of product quality (H1) and operational performance (H2). This finding is in line with the studies of Shih et al. (1996) and Koc (2007) who claim that product quality is improved in certified firms due to the systematization provided by ISO 9001. In addition, the findings from the work of Samson and Terziovski (1999), Lin and Jang (2008), Feng et al. (2008) and Jang and Lin (2008) also suggest that quality management appears to have a direct positive effect on firms' operational performance success.\n6. Conclusions: The results of this study provide a theoretical basis for quality management and clarify the controversial subject about the contribution of ISO 9001 implementation to a firm's performance. This research gives the definition of ISO 9001 effectiveness, identifying three interconnecting dimensions, the objectives of the standard. The evidence provided in this paper suggests that the ISO 9001 effectiveness has no direct impact on manufacturing firms' business performance, including financial and marketing measures. However, the level of the standard's effectiveness directly contributes to product quality and operational performance, while indirectly contributing to business performance through the moderator of operational performance. Furthermore, the present study indicates that operational performance must be taken into account to explain the contribution to product quality.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide additional evidence of the impact of ISO 9001 effectiveness on three dimensions of a firm's performance, namely product quality, operational performance and business performance.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The analysis includes an initial exploratory factor analysis (EFA), followed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM), in order to investigate the relations between the constructs of the proposed model. A sample of 287 ISO 9001 certified Greek manufacturing firms is used for this purpose.\nFindings: According to the study findings, ISO 9001 effectiveness directly contributes to product quality and operational performance. Although it has no direct impact on manufacturing firms' business performance, it has an indirect impact through the moderator of operational performance.\nResearch limitations/implications: The sample of the responding manufacturing companies is limited to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from one country (Greece). In addition, the effects of the internal business environment and endogenous business factors have not been assessed through the present study.\nPractical implications: The study offers clear implications for managers who focus on elements that will increase the ISO 9001 effectiveness and desire to choose strategies, allocate resources and improve their firm's performance.\nOriginality/value: The present study contributes to the literature gap aiming at examining the degree to which ISO 9001 effectiveness influences the performance of certified firms. The concept of \"ISO 9001 effectiveness\" is introduced as the extent to which its prescribed quality objectives are met.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Managerial level, personality and intelligence
|
[
"Intelligence",
"Personality",
"Managers",
"Psychometric tests"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Although personality and intelligence are established predictors of job performance, in particular cognitive ability (IQ) and trait Conscientiousness (Chamorro-Premuzic and Furnham, 2005; Salgado, 1997), there is more speculation than scientific evidence on whether individual difference predictors of performance are actually manifested across different levels of management (e.g., from lower or junior to higher or more senior). That is, do senior managers have a different ability and personality profile from less senior managers? This paper explores this issue using test data on a large working sample.The job of a manager is essentially about planning, organising, directing and controlling. It is about the effective use of financial, human, information and physical organisational resources to achieve specific goals. However, the nature of managerial jobs differs from organisation to organisation and, more particularly, level (or grade) to level.In one of the few studies aimed at answering this question, Moutafi et al. (2007) examined a sample of 900 British managers categorised at three levels, namely junior/specialist, middle and senior management. Using scores on the Five Factor Inventory (Costa and McCrae, 1992) they found senior managers to be more Conscientious and Extraverted, but less Neurotic, than their more junior counterparts, even when gender and age were controlled for. They also found using the Myers Briggs Type Inventory (MBTI) that seniority was associated with being an Intuitive rather than a Sensing type. It is however unclear whether those differences occur because of self-selection, formal selection or a simple process of attrition. They called for further work in this neglected field. This paper is a response to that call, using different measures of cognitive ability, personality and also potential derailers or management challengers (Hogan and Hogan, 1997). To our knowledge, other measures of personality and intelligence have not yet been explored in connection to managerial level. This study will examine scores on four tests.Intelligence at work\nMethod: Participants: Participants were middle and senior managers aged between 27 and 61 (Median Age Group 40-45 years) attending a series of assessment centres in Great Britain. There were 2,863 males and 628 females but numbers varied in the analysis as not all candidates completed all tests used in this analysis. Based on their level, they were divided into three groups across the organisations. The first was the most senior group which comprised those managers who managed other managers. They were usually at board level or else reported to board level managers. The second were managers who were essentially middle managers. In most instances supervisors reported to them and they reported to the first group. The third group were not strictly junior managers but rather those in more specialist roles that have few or little management responsibilities. Many organisations recognising the limited natural management and people skills of certain highly capable specialists (often in finance, engineering, IT) give them limited management responsibility. They were described as non-managers. Two consultants classified participants into one of these three groups. Their agreement over all exceeded 95 per cent.Measures\nDiscussion: The first research questions probed the idea that Managers of managers would have highest scores on both (indeed all) intelligence tests. The results showed both tests yielded significant differences but in opposite directions. However, all the differences lay in the Non-managers as the two manager groups did not differ from each other. Thus the most senior managers scored least well on one test (Graduate Management Assessment) but highest on the other (Watson Glaser). Whilst test scores were significantly correlated (r=0.39, p<0.001) the tests were slightly different. The GMA was more a measure of fluid intelligence (i.e. abstract thinking) while the WG was more a crystallised intelligence test. Further a particular appeal of the WG is its face validity in the sense that the issues and problems are conceived very much in business terms. Further the GMA is a shorter test than the WG. It has been shown many times that fluid intelligence declines more with age than crystallised intelligence (Deary et al., 2000). Further speed of processing declines. Thus on brief fluid intelligence tests involved with abstract reasoning older people are less likely to do as well as younger people (even if at their age they would get equivalent scores) while on more contextualised, crystallised tests age differences (in adulthood) would be less noticeable.This fact may help explain the results from the different tests. Ideally one should redo the study partialling out the effects of exact age. However, whilst the testers confirmed that the manager or managers tended to be eight to 12 years older on average than the managers who were five to ten years older than the non-managers, no systematic formal data was collected on age.One other factor could account for these anomalous findings. This was the fact that non-manager group contained a number of specialists often from IT, engineering, or R&D type jobs who, though senior, were not strictly speaking managers of people. These individuals are often recognised for their exceptional cognitive ability and technical knowledge but are also often thought to be rather poor at management and leadership roles. Hence many are senior in organisations but strictly non-managers. It is possible that some of these usually very intelligent individuals help account for the high fluid ability scores of the non-manager. However it is true that the standard deviations were higher for non-managers only on the WG test.An inspection of the means (and standard deviations) in Table I however suggests that there are in fact relatively little differences in scores between the three groups, often less than one point on the scale. This however does not imply that intelligence is not important in management as those scores do indicate that nearly all the participants were in the top quartile of scores.The results for the analysis of the personality scale (FIRO-B) showed interesting differences, particularly for the dimensions of Inclusion and Control which were clear. The more senior a manager the more he or she is required to be Inclusive. They may be required to socially express gratitude for being invited by all sorts of groups to be included. They need to attend a wide variety of social functions from committees and conferences to social gathering and \"appear\" to enjoy the experience. However, this could lead to considerable demands on their time hence it may be their Wanted Inclusion declines. Interestingly the senior managers had a fairly large disparity score. This probably does not reflect a fear of rejection but rather a desire to sufficiently keep in touch with their staff while having sufficient time to work on their own.The results for the Control dimension were clear and statistically significant. As predicted senior managers had highest Wanted Control scores and the highest disparity. That is, they have a much greater need to control others than be controlled by them. This reflects their role. The clinical interpretation of the FIRO-B instrument offers a typological description of various combined scores (Ryan, 1977). The senior manager's profile is described as \"Self Confident\" because they \"tend to be comfortable and confident in making decisions and assuming responsibility ... . A need for recognition exists, along with a high level of aspiration but they are not prone to over excited themselves in a frantic effort to obtain these ends. They respect the limits of reality and work within the realm of their abilities\" (Ryan, 1977, p. 16). On the other hand the other two groups have a \"Matcher\" profile. Interestingly the profile offers different interpretation for males and females. Indeed there was a sexxlevel interaction indicating that neither females nor managers had the lowest scores.Ryan's (1977) analysis is:A male \"Matcher\" is capable of making decisions and taking on responsibility, but he wants reassurance and support from others while he is doing so. He prefers to share an area of responsibility, rather than do it along. He is democratic. He does not put excessive demands on others for support but merely asks others to match the level of responsibility he assumed. The \"Matcher\" is not dependent but does have some doubts about his ability. He is fearful of criticism and failure. He finds reassurance and safety in sharing responsibility with others. He not only shares the responsibility, but also expects others to share the guilt whenever criticism or failure occurs (Ryan, 1977, p. 20).Certainly the profile analysis confirms what one expects of managers and non-managers. There was no difference regarding Expressed and Wanted Affection. All three groups received similar scores.The results for the Hogan Development Survey did yield three interesting differences. The non-manager group scored significant highest on Diligent (Obsessive-Compulsive) and Dutiful (Dependent). Diligent people are described as perfectionistic, inflexible and critical of others' performance. On the other hand the Dutiful are described as eager to please and reliant on others for support and guidance. They are reluctant to take independent action or to go against popular opinion. This certainly makes sense from a management perspective. Senior managers cannot afford to be either dependent or obsessive as it would affect their ability to do the job. Yet specialists often have this sort of profile and interest in detail.There was also a significant difference on histrionic (colourful) with a curvilinear pattern. The manual describes those with high scores in being concerned with dramatic, engaging and attention-seeking acts being preoccupied with being noticed and hence may lack sustained focus. The non-managers had the highest scores and the middle managers the lowest. It is not difficult to explain how high scores may certainly benefit some senior managers who are often in the lime-light of business.Studies such as this show personality and ability differences between people at different levels of seniority within and between different organisations. The fact they came from different organisations clearly attests to the generalisability of these findings. Whilst many, but not all, of the hypotheses were confirmed they cannot speak to the process that explains why they occur. Cross-sectional data cannot show causal relations. Thus it is not clear whether the difference between levels is a function of selection or socialisation or both. That is, it may be that people with a particular personality and ability profile get selected for promotion while others do not. Equally it is possible that these factors change as a function of taking on more management responsibility. However, the data on the stability of intelligence and personality over time leads to the inference that it is more likely to be selection processes that determine these differences. Indeed longitudinal studies looking at individual difference predictors of success at work suggest that individual differences measured at selection can significantly predict success in the organisation as much as 20 years later (Howard and Bray, 1988).Equally the very fact of identifying people as high flyers or high potential through ratings or test scores early in their career may itself give them much greater chances of promotion. Nevertheless the role of individual difference factors in a person's career trajectory remains an important and neglected topic, no doubt mainly because of the necessity for but difficulty of doing, extensive longitudinal research for many people in many different organisations.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether managers at different levels differ in terms of ability and personality.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Assessment centre results for over a thousand managers on two cognitive and two non-cognitive tests were subject to analysis of variance.\nFindings: - Non-manager specialists scored highest on one ability test, but lowest on the other. Senior managers had highest Expressed Inclusion and Control scores but lowest Wanted Inclusion and Control scores. Non-managers were found to be most diligent and dutiful.\nResearch limitations/implications: - Level is inevitably confounded with age and experience, which may impact onto the individual difference variables making it difficult to accurately attribute causality.\nPractical implications: - It is important to use psychometric test data to help in selection of all managers. Different levels require different profiles.\nOriginality/value: - An exploration of individual differences in a large sample of managers that may relate to promotion to senior management levels.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
What matters most in leader selection? The role of personality and implicit leadership theories
|
[
"Personality",
"Implicit leadership theories",
"Leader selection",
"Selection bias",
"Selection interviews"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Given the centrality of leadership to the success or failure of organizations and even societies, there are few more important questions than, \"What makes a leader great?\" (Judge and Bono, 2000, p. 751).\nLeader selection: Given the importance of choosing the right person for leadership roles, surprisingly little research attention has been focussed on understanding formal leader selection processes in organizations. In a notable exception, Howard (2007) provides an extensive review of best practices for leader selection in organizations by examining the objectives of selection, current selection techniques and their effectiveness, and how specific selection techniques might be combined into an effective overall selection system. Howard's (2007) chapter draws concepts from general selection theory and research, while providing specifics regarding leader selection when possible. Despite providing an excellent overview of selection best practices relating to leadership, Howard's (2007) review stops short of examining possible rater biases in making leader selection decisions. Furthermore, although she includes a discussion of the use of personality inventories as a selection tool, she does not speculate on the effects of either applicant or rater personality on selection decisions and outcomes. Similarly, while she discusses key leadership competencies and performance domains as key criteria for leadership selection, she does not consider whether or not raters who make leadership selection decisions actually do so based on an ideal leadership profile. The current study attempts to examine the question of what matters most in the actual process of leader selection - personality factors or an ideal leadership type based on an ILT.\nThe FFM of personality: Prior research suggests that applicant personality traits are predictive of employment interview performance and selection decisions (Cook et al., 2000). Indeed, the use of personality tests in the context employee selection has become commonplace (Rothstein and Goffin, 2006). According to one recent survey of recruiters, 30 percent of all US firms have used personality tests for applicant selection (Heller, 2005), while another estimate suggests that the costs of personality testing are in the $400 million range and growing (Hsu, 2004).\nILTs: ILTs are representations that followers hold at an unconscious level to differentiate leaders from non-leaders (Shondrick and Lord, 2010). These representations may contain both positive (prototypical) and negative (anti-prototypical) leadership traits (Epitropaki and Martin, 2004). Although differing prototypical and anti-prototypical traits may be contained in any given person's ILT and in varying degrees of strength, substantial empirical research conducted over the past three decades (e.g. Epitropaki and Martin, 2004; Lord et al., 1984; Offermann et al., 1994) has identified a small number of prototypical and anti-prototypical traits that appear to generalize across the ILTs of many people. Common prototypical leadership traits include sensitivity, intelligence, dedication, and dynamism, while tyranny and masculinity are common anti-prototypical leader characteristics (Epitropaki and Martin, 2004; Offermann et al., 1994). Dynamism is a characteristic applied to individuals who are energetic and charismatic. This dimension appears likely to relate to transformational leadership. Dedication is similar to conscientiousness and includes the concept of motivation, which may help inspire followership in others. Leader emergence also seems likely to be associated with intelligence (Taggar et al., 1999), while sensitivity may relate to personality trait of agreeableness (Keller, 1999). Sensitive leaders are generally sincere, understanding, and helpful (Epitropaki and Martin, 2004), characteristics often associated with individual consideration.\nMethods: Participants\nData analysis and results: Table I presents the descriptive statistics including means, standard deviations, and correlations. Of note are the significant correlations between each personality variable for both the rater and the applicant and interview score. To further investigate these relationships, we used the methodology of Raudenbush et al. (2010) to perform random coefficient modeling analyses to test each hypothesis. H1 and H2 were examined using HLM software (Raudenbush et al., 2010) with the control variables (intelligence, interview experience, race, gender, race congruence, and gender congruence) included in Step 1 and the main effects (personality) entered in Step 2. H3 was also tested using random coefficient modeling by including the control variables in Step 1, the main effects in Step 2, and the interaction effects in Step 3. For this hypothesis, we would consider the ILT variables to moderate the relationships between personality scores and interview scores if the interaction term entered in Step 3is significant.\nDiscussion: To this point, very little research has addressed the process of hiring future leaders (e.g. Howard, 2007). The purpose of this study was to investigate the utility of traditional methods for selecting future leaders. We chose to study this issue in the context of traditional structured interviews, which are widely used in many organizations and are sometimes the only analytic method used to select employees. In theory, raters should search for future leaders using their perception of an ideal leader as portrayed by their ILT (Shondrick and Lord, 2010).\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to determine the primary basis upon which raters make decisions in the context of selection for formal leadership positions. Specifically, this paper examines the applicant's personality, the rater's personality, and the congruence between the applicant's personality and the rater's implicit leadership theories (ILTs) as predictors of interview scores.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The hypotheses were tested via random coefficient modeling analyses using HLM software with the control variables included in Step 1 and the main effects entered in Step 2, and interaction effects in Step 3 as appropriate.\nFindings: Analyses suggest that both applicant and rater personality impact interview scores, but raters do not appear to select leaders on the basis of their conceptualization of an ideal leader.\nResearch limitations/implications: The results suggest that raters may not consider their own ILTs when attempting to identify future leaders. Given this lack of a natural tendency toward selecting individuals that match one's perceptions of an ideal leader, future research should focus on adapting current selection methods to leader selection and the development of new selection methods that are more valid.\nPractical implications: These findings suggest that current staffing practices may not encompass the most effective tools for selecting future leaders of the organization. These results highlight the importance of clarifying the outcome goals of the selection process in advance by giving raters a clear representation of the qualities and ideals that should be present in potential leaders.\nOriginality/value: This study is among the first to examine the relationships between personality and ILTs in the context of a formal leadership selection process and makes a significant contribution to the literature by providing insight into the influence of both rater and applicant personality differences along with rater conceptualizations of ideal leadership in the context of formal leadership selection.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Organizational virtuousness perceptions and task crafting: The mediating roles of organizational identification and work engagement
|
[
"Employee behaviour",
"Organizational behaviour",
"Jobs"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The increasing complexity and unpredictability of today's business environment requires employees to perform tasks in an increasingly autonomous and proactive manner. In line with this trend, over the past few decades, there has been burgeoning scholarly interest in job crafting, which refers to the physical and cognitive changes that job holders make in the task or relational boundaries of their work (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). Distinct from formal job design initiated by managers, job crafting focuses on employees' proactive redesigning of their jobs which takes three forms. Physical changes refer to changes in the scope or nature of tasks, whereas cognitive changes refer to changes in one's perceptions of the job; changes in relational boundaries indicate changing the quality and amount of work interactions.\nTheoretical background and hypotheses: The impact of job design or characteristics on job incumbents' responses has long been a key research question for organizational researchers. While traditional job design research has focused on the top-down managerial interventions of modifying employees' jobs (Hackman and Oldham, 1976), there is increasing interest in the bottom-up process of employees shaping their own jobs. Job crafting is the proactive behavior of redesigning one's job roles by changing the task, cognitive, and relational boundaries of the job (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). It enables individuals to experience work meaningfulness and positive work identities, and has a positive impact on work attitudes and job performance. For example, job crafting has been found to increase job satisfaction and commitment (Leana et al., 2009), well-being (Slemp and Vella-Brodrick, 2013; Tims et al., 2013), job performance (Bakker et al., 2012; Leana et al., 2009), and employability (Brenninkmeijer and Hekkert-Koning, 2015).\nMethod: Data collection and participant characteristics\nData analysis and results: Tests of reliability, validity, and common method variance (CMV)\nDiscussion: Beyond investigating the direct link between employees' perceptions of organizational virtuousness and task crafting, our research revealed the underlying sequential mediation mechanism by which organizational virtuousness perceptions relate to task crafting. As predicted, employees' perceptions of organizational virtuousness were positively associated with task crafting. While organizational identification was not solely responsible for mediating this relationship, it did intervene in the relationship between organizational virtuousness perceptions and task crafting through the intermediary process of work engagement. The post hoc results confirm this sequential mediation by ruling out alternative causal relationships. The results of this study extend previous research on organizational virtuousness and job crafting by suggesting reciprocity and social identity-based motivation as key underlying mechanisms of task crafting.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between employees' perceptions of organizational virtuousness and task crafting, and to test the mediating roles of organizational identification and work engagement in this relationship.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors collected questionnaires from 175 Korean flight attendants and conducted structural equation modeling analyses.\nFindings: Employees' perceptions of organizational virtuousness were positively associated with task crafting. While organizational identification was not solely responsible for mediating this relationship, it intervened in the relationship between organizational virtuousness perceptions and task crafting by affecting work engagement.\nResearch limitations/implications: While this study provides important insights into the roles of organizational virtuousness, organizational identification, and work engagement in promoting task crafting, the use of self-reported, cross-sectional data limits causal inferences between variables.\nPractical implications: Based on the present findings, managers can better understand the antecedents and mediating processes affecting employees' task crafting.\nOriginality/value: This study adds value to the positive organizational psychology literature by revealing crucial intermediary processes linking organizational virtuousness perceptions and task crafting, thus suggesting reciprocity and social identity-based motivation as potential underlying mechanisms of task crafting.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Barriers on access to and use of adolescent health services in Ghana
|
[
"Barriers",
"Adolescent",
"Adolescent health services",
"Ghana"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Adolescents (10-19 years) are the future leaders of our society and an untapped human resource. About one-fifth (more than 1.2bn) of the global population are adolescents, and many of the world's adolescents live in developing nations[1, 2]. Adolescents are perceived to be healthy, however, they are vulnerable and exposed to many health risks leading to premature deaths[2-5]. In 2015, about 1.3m adolescents died globally from causes that could have been prevented[2]. Over two-thirds of these deaths occurred in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) with 45 percent from Africa[6]. According to Neal et al.[7], approximately 16m girls aged 15-19 years and 2.5m girls under 16 years give birth each year in developing regions. About 3m girls aged 15-19 years undergo unsafe abortions every year[8]. Moreover, about 2m adolescents are living with human immune virus (HIV) globally[9], and over 41 percent of new HIV infections in every year occur among adolescents[2].\nMaterials and methods: Study area\nResults: Socio-demographic information\nDiscussions and implications: Consistent with extant studies, negative provider attitudes were found as a major barrier to using adolescent health services[25-27]. Adolescents are more likely to seek or continue with care if they perceive providers to be adolescent friendly[16]. In addition, adolescents will not hesitate to disclose sensitive information about their health to providers who are non-judgemental[28]. Therefore, there is a need for health care managers or supervisors of the ACs to reinforce or encourage adolescent-friendly attitudes among adolescent health care providers. This can be achieved through the use of incentives, negative reinforcement or on the job training[12].\nConclusion: Improving access to primary health care to all manner of persons is a global dream. However, the realisation of this dream may be delayed if efforts are not made to reach out to underserved populations like adolescents. The purpose of this study was to explore barriers to accessibility and utilisation of adolescent health services. It was found that adolescents encountered negative provider attitudes, inadequate resources in adolescent health facilities, weak parental and community support for adolescent health interventions and personal constraints. This study provides useful information for health policymakers and practitioners, especially those whose remit includes adolescent health. That notwithstanding, the study has limitations such as the research approach. Qualitative studies are not ideal for generalisations, therefore, a generalisation of the findings should be used with caution.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore perceived barriers to accessing and using adolescent health services in Ghana.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The study was a qualitative study adopting a case study design. In total, 24 adolescents were recruited from four adolescent health facilities in Tema, a suburb of Ghana, using convenient sampling. In-depth interviews with respondents were conducted coupled with the taking of field notes and personal observations. Data collection took place between January and May 2017. Data were transcribed, managed and coded for themes. Thematic analysis was guided by Braun and Clarke's (2006) Framework.\nFindings: The findings of this study revealed that majority of the respondents were females (54 percent) older adolescents (above 15 years (60 percent), students (79 percent)), had junior high school education and stayed with their biological parent(s) (70 percent). Adolescents in this study perceived four main barriers that restrict their access to or use of adolescent health services. The barriers were found at the facility level, provider level, community level and personal level.\nOriginality/value: The findings of this study provide evidence-based information for planning adolescent health care interventions that would improve adolescents' access to and use of health services in Ghana.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Give and you shall receive: investing in the careers of women professionals
|
[
"Career development",
"Perceived organizational support",
"Women professionals"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: There has to be a commitment - a really deep commitment - on the part of the most senior people in the organization to give more than lip service to the idea that the human resource is the most precious thing. Everybody says it, everybody's mission statement is very clear about using words that capture that idea. So what do you have in place that allows that to really happen? (Senior Vice President Interviewee married, age 60s, no children).\nIntroduction: The most crucial form of capital is an organization's human talent; developing, keeping, and drawing upon this knowledge base is key to the vitality and longevity of any company (Aryee et al., 2016). Research points to the benefits of investing in the knowledge-based equity of the firm, or human capital, particularly in organizations where the experience or expertise offered for sale is often delivered through or shaped by its professionals (Walsh et al., 2008). With a growing labor shortage and aging workforce, organizations run the risk of disadvantage if they underestimate the criticality of identifying and grooming their most promising talent for future leadership roles (Burke and Vinnicombe, 2005).\nTheoretical background: The reasons female professionals opt out of their organizations are complex and numerous, but they frequently include the inability to overcome significant structural and cultural barriers to the C-suite (Buse et al., 2013; Smith et al., 2012). One of the most difficult barriers arises from organizational systems and norms that were adopted during a time when the sole male-breadwinner model was common, and when women were not well represented in the workforce (O'Neil et al., 2008). Since these structures were created largely by and for men, what is considered \"normal\" at work tends to privilege traits, behaviors and work practices that are socially and culturally ascribed to men, and that benefit individuals whose primary (or only) focus is their career (Ely and Meyerson, 2000).\nMethodology: Sample\nResults: Respondents discussed three key organizational initiatives that signaled organizational career support. These were making career development a central priority, building organizational role models from senior levels, and sustaining professionals through mid-career challenges through, offering autonomy and control, and providing infrastructures of support. We noted that, surprisingly, responses from our corporate respondents vs our entrepreneurs did not differ. Both groups had meaningful and almost identical ideas about what organizational support looked like. We discuss each theme and present exact quotations to substantiate the meaning behind each one, as well as to demonstrate the rich language behind the ideas.\nDiscussion: A work-exchange model of career development\nConclusion: In this study, we applied a social-exchange framework to identify a set of organizational initiatives that would signal support of and long-term investment in the career development of women professionals. Specifically, we identified ways in which organizations could retain and develop their female talent through investing in their careers in-house, and providing infrastructures of support as these professionals' ebb and flow through career phases. Our findings point to a proposed work-exchange model, whereby we contend women professionals would respond to and reciprocate investments in their careers with increased commitment and performance, and longer tenure. This model represents a beginning point for reconsidering how to signal support of female professionals' careers and develop a long-term work relationship that results in women ascending into top leadership roles. The career-oriented investments identified in this study could engage female professionals in ways that provide increasingly substantial and simultaneous returns for both their careers and their organizations.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore what organizations can do to facilitate the retention and advancement of women professionals into top leadership positions. A social exchange framework is applied to examine ways organizations can signal support for and investment in the careers of women professionals, and ultimately the long-term work relationship.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This paper employed a qualitative methodology; specifically, semi-structured interviews with 20 women executives, in primarily the US hospitality industry, were conducted. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and content analyzed.\nFindings: Organizations are likely to strengthen the retention of their female professionals if they signal support through purposeful, long-term career development that provides a sightline to the top, and ultimately creates more female role models in senior-level positions. Organizations can also signal support through offering autonomy over how work is completed, and designing infrastructures of support to sustain professionals during mid-career stages. Findings are used to present a work-exchange model of career development.\nResearch limitations/implications: This research is an exploratory study that is limited in its scope and generalizability.\nPractical implications: The proposed work-exchange model can be used to comprehensively structures initiatives that would signal organizational support to - and long-term investment in - female professionals and enable them to develop their career paths within their organizations.\nOriginality/value: Through offering a work-exchange model of career development, this paper identifies components of organizational support from a careers perspective, and highlights the factors that could potentially contribute to long-term growth and retention of women professionals.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Retrospective medical record evaluation: Reliability in assessing causation, preventability, and disability of adverse events
|
[
"Medical record review",
"Adverse events",
"Data abstraction tool",
"Administrative data",
"Data analysis",
"Medical management"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Since the 1999 publication of the report \"To Err is Human\" produced by the Institute of Medicine, the general public has become increasingly aware that adverse events in medicine are common and are one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality within the US (Kohn et al., 1999). Retrospective analysis of medical records revealed that 2.9 per cent up to 16.6 per cent of hospital admissions led to adverse events (Thomas et al., 2000; Wilson et al., 1995). We defined an adverse event as \"an unintended injury or complication, which resulted in disability, death, or prolongation of a hospital stay, and that was caused by healthcare management rather than the patient's disease\" (Wilson et al., 1995). Methods for identifying events included voluntary reporting, direct observation of healthcare personnel, computerized screening algorithms, screening administrative data, and retrospective chart review (Karson and Bates, 1999).Evaluation of medical records is generally considered to be the gold standard for monitoring adverse events (Zhan and Miller, 2003). They contain rich clinical details that allow identification of various medical injuries and allow the analysis of circumstances and causes of errors (Weingart, 2000). Medical record review, however, is highly dependent on the accuracy, completeness, and legibility of patient records (Lilford et al., 2003). Indeed, Pourasghar et al. (2008a) found that medical records at an Iranian university hospital were incomplete in one way or another, especially due to poor handwriting, lack of documentation of requested information, and missing pages (Pourasghar et al., 2008a). Replacement with an electronic medical records system has some advantages over the paper-based medical records system with regard to monitoring adverse events, although there were signs in one study of deterioration of documentation on some pages related to physicians (Pourasghar et al., 2008b). As a result, some information, such as the effects of an adverse event on a patient, is not generally recorded and often the adverse event itself is not explicitly stated in the medical record. Furthermore, judgments regarding the causes of adverse events are influenced by the degree of heterogeneity in the reviewers' training and background (Lilford et al., 2003). Therefore, a systematic approach is needed when performing a medical record review (Wilson, 2003).In view of a steady increase in the number of malpractice claims, a two-stage methodology of medical record review with 20 screening criteria was developed in the 1970s for the Californian Medical Insurance Feasibility Study (Mills, 1978). This was done to obtain adequate information about patient disabilities resulting from poor healthcare management and to provide the opportunity to consider alternative compensation plans. In 1989, the Harvard Medical Practice Study was presented with 18 adjusted screening criteria aimed at developing more reliable estimates of the incidence of adverse events and negligence in hospitalized patients (Hiatt, 1989). In 1995, the two-stage screening method was further refined by Wilson et al. (1995) in which medical records were first screened according to 18 predefined criteria to identify records of patients more likely to have suffered an adverse event. Medical records meeting at least one of the screening criteria were forwarded for detailed clinical review to verify the occurrence of an adverse event and to obtain information about its cause and nature (Wilson et al., 1995). Finally, a revised review form was created by Woloshynowych et al. (2003) that used more uniform taxonomies, introducing the term \"principal problem\". It also provided a comprehensive list of contributory factors to include organisational and environmental factors that influence the provision of healthcare. The latter was based on a previously devised framework by Vincent et al. (1998) that aimed to encompass the many factors influencing clinical practice.By contrast,Classen et al. (1991) described a purely electronic initial screening strategy for the detection of adverse drug events. In this system, specific events - including the ordering of certain drugs, ordering of antidotes, certain abnormal laboratory values, and abrupt stop orders - served as sentinels or \"triggers\" to initiate a more detailed concurrent chart audit (Classen, 1991). In 2000 the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and Premier (a healthcare alliance comprising 1,600 hospitals across the US) refined a robust measurement tool to detect adverse drug events in medical records using a list of 24 triggers, since electronic clinical databases were unavailable in many institutions (Rozich, 2003).By means of the Belgian Hospital Discharge Dataset (B-HDDS) as an alerting system to indicate records meriting detailed examination, a one-stage data abstraction tool was developed. The aim of this tool was to provide a standardised method of recording and collection of data for the detection of five selected adverse events: pressure ulcer, pulmonary embolism/deep vein thrombosis, postoperative sepsis, ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), and postoperative wound infection. The current study used this systematic approach for medical record review, with the aim of evaluating the reliability of the detailed assessment of adverse events with regard to causation, preventability, and disability by two different teams of reviewers, located in two different regions of the country.\nMethods: Study population, data source and sampling strategy\nResults: Patient information and medical record evaluation\nDiscussion: Using an identical sampling strategy and standardised data abstraction tool for retrospective medical record review by two separate research teams in two different regions of Belgium, we compared results of estimates of cause and consequences of five selected adverse medical events in acute-care hospitals. The assessment of adverse events in terms of causation and preventability is often ambiguous. The evidence may be incomplete or conflicting (Hiatt, 1989). To capture this ambiguity, both research teams had to rate causation and preventability according to the confidence with which they made their judgments, rather than simply indicating the presence or absence of an event.No significant difference was found between the hospitals and the research teams in terms of identifying adverse events. By contrast, we observed significant differences in the evaluation of causation, preventability, and disability of adverse events by both teams. Team 1 determined that there was a high probability for health care management causation (score 4, 5, and 6) in more than 95 per cent of discovered adverse events, in contrast to only 39 per cent determined by team 2. A similar pattern was found with regard to preventability, with team 1 providing high evidence of preventability in more than 80 per cent of events, in contrast to approximately 52 per cent of cases by team 2. Compared to team 2, team 1 found more adverse events leading to harm after discharge to home (4.8 per cent versus 1.6 per cent) and more cases needing urgent medical intervention to sustain life (6.6 per cent versus 1.9 per cent). An inverse pattern was found with regard to events causing death, with team 2 finding more than team 1 (13 per cent versus 5.3 per cent).Our results were generally consistent with prior research. During a two-stage medical record review, Brennan et al. (1991) realised that judgments on the causes of adverse events and estimates of disability were difficult and a potential source of error. They found that this was due to incomplete medical files, and with regard to the reviewers, lack of appreciation for the severity of underlying illnesses. In a discussion on the strengths and weaknesses of eight different methods to measure adverse events, Thomas et al. (2003) concluded that incomplete documentation could have affected one's ability to detect both latent errors and active errors that may have led to adverse events. Similarly, Michel et al. (2004) concluded that it is difficult to judge the iatrogenic and preventable nature of adverse events on the basis of sometimes piecemeal data. Pourasghar et al. (2008a) evaluated 300 randomly selected medical records to qualitatively determine the quality of documentation. Almost all medical records were incomplete in one way or another, apparently mainly due to poor handwriting, missing chart pages, and imperfect documentation (Pourasghar et al., 2008a). Lilford et al. (2003) pointed out the degree of heterogeneity in the raters as contributing to the problem.Several explanations could be hypothesised to explain our results on the discordant appraisals between the two review teams. First, the presence of an adverse event was assessed against predetermined clinical criteria (explicit method), whereas the characteristics of the adverse events were based on expert assessments (implicit method). Second, incomplete medical records could have adversely affected the assessment of adverse events (Wilson et al., 1995; Brennan et al., 1991; Thomas and Petersen, 2003; Hiatt et al., 1989;Pourasghar et al., 2008a). Missing nursing progress notes could have had a significant impact on the evaluation of adverse events. Indeed, overall, 84.9 per cent of medical records were complete in the hospitals visited by team 1 in contrast to only 64.8 per cent in the hospitals visited by team 2. Third, differences in the professional background of reviewers (i.e. internal medicine versus surgery) could have influenced the evaluation of adverse events. This difference might have contributed to a difference in rigour as regards the degree of causation and preventability (Weingart et al., 2000).Although no classic inter-rater reliability test was performed by means of a random re-abstraction sample and exchange between the two teams, differences in assessments of adverse events was unlikely to be caused by real differences in the patient population of the two regions of Belgium, given the identical sample strategy used. Another unlikely explanation for the differences observed between the two teams is that only 1.5 per cent of the medical records were presented to the expert panel.\nConclusion: Despite general consensus on the need to monitor the quality and outcome of hospital care, questions persist about how to operate in a clinically credible and efficient fashion. Medical records, with their rich clinical details thus far, have been the primary source for researching medical errors and are often considered to be the gold standard for monitoring adverse events (Zhan and Miller, 2003). Nevertheless, several disadvantages of using medical records have been pointed out. Medical record review is expensive and time-consuming, judgements about adverse events are not reliable, and medical records can be incomplete (Thomas et al., 2003). In the present study, we used a retrospective medical file review design to compare the findings of two independent review teams, which used a standardised data abstraction tool to determine the cause, preventability, and disability of adverse events. In terms of identifying adverse events through medical record review, no difference was found between the research teams. By contrast, large differences between teams were found in the assessment of causation, preventability, and disability of adverse events. Several hypotheses could explain these differences:* the incompleteness of medical records;* the heterogeneity of the reviewers' background;* the lack of reproducibility when using an implicit method of adverse event evaluation; and* the subjectivity in the interpretation of the adverse event characteristics.Therefore, one should bear in mind the importance of training, preparing, and selecting the reviewers, as well as using a maximum number of explicit criteria during the medical record review.\nAcknowledgements: This study was funded by a Belgian Knowledge Centre (KCE) Grant HSR 2006-21. The authors thank Dr Stephan Devriese and Dr France Vrijens for their support and critical readings during the course of the project.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this article is to assess the reliability of an in-depth analysis on causation, preventability, and disability by two separate review teams on five selected adverse events in acute hospitals: pressure ulcer, postoperative pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis, postoperative sepsis, ventilator-associated pneumonia and postoperative wound infection.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The analysis uses a retrospective medical record review of 1,515 patient records by two independent teams in eight acute Belgian hospitals for the year 2005. The Mann-Whitney U-test is used to identify significant differences between the two review teams regarding occurrence of adverse events as well as regarding the degree of causation, preventability, and disability of found adverse events.\nFindings: - Team 1 stated a high probability for health care management causation in 95.5 per cent of adverse events in contrast to 38.9 per cent by Team 2. Likewise, high preventability was considered in 83.1 per cent of cases by Team 1 versus 51.7 per cent by Team 2. Significant differences in degree of disability between the two teams were also found for pressure ulcers, postoperative pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis and postoperative wound infection, but not for postoperative sepsis and ventilator-associated pneumonia.\nOriginality/value: - New insight on the degree of and reasons for the huge differences in adverse event evaluation is provided.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Another kind of difference: A new organizational approach
|
[
"Management development",
"Human resources"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: We often hear the rhetoric from business leaders that their employees are the most important resource, yet in practice we observe that it is the self-interest of many business leaders that prevails. We only need to look for examples at companies such as Enron, WorldCom and the Lehman Brothers. It appears that what is important to business leaders are the skills, knowledge and experience of their employees, but not necessarily the person.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Argues that a new approach needs to be adopted if organizations are truly to be transformed into ones which could be characterized as diverse.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Considers whether an authentic developmental approach could be undertaken as a means to ensure organizations are authentic, using case material from an authentic development program delivered in the context of a diverse higher-education institution.\nFindings: Shows that, in order to create and cultivate an authentic organization, the individual life stories of all employees in addition to the organization life story would need to.\nPractical implications: Considers that it is imperative, in order to demonstrate courage and commitment, that the program be commenced with the owners, board of directors (including non-executive members), the senior management team, human-resources team and new members to the organization as part of the induction or graduate training. Both direct and indirect resources would require long-term commitment (two-five years) alongside the recognition that employees of the organization may leave as they were either not suited to the corporate approach or there is a mismatch in values, which might necessitate additional cost. The program would be driven by external expertise as a safe environment needed to be created alongside a commitment to confidentiality. Finally, the results of the program would be aligned with the performance-management initiatives and other change initiatives adopted as a result of the outcomes identified.\nSocial implications: Claims that today's talent holds very different expectations of work and possesses a range of dissimilar values. In particular, the millennials - sometimes called generation Y, gen net, Google generation and technology generation - hold very different expectations about the concept of work. Furthermore, if successful organizations wish to remain attractive and retain their talent, they would need to cultivate an organizational-development approach that is best fit for today's society. In order to achieve this aim, it is crucial that an authentic leadership approach is adopted.\nOriginality/value: Presents case material primarily based on evidence from a study of millennials/generation Y/gen net/Google generation/tech generation who have explored their values and how these relate to the organization.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Leadership styles and self-efficacy in determining transfer intentions of safety training
|
[
"Self-efficacy",
"Leadership styles",
"Safety training",
"Intention to transfer"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Safety at work has represented a topic of strong interest for many decades (Vignoli et al. 2014). Currently, in spite of a continuous decrease in the number of accidents at work (partially owing to the financial crisis and consequent unemployment), in Europe, almost 3,000 workers are still dying every year because of accidents at work (Eurostat, 2016). Aiming to respond to this kind of phenomenon, the European Commission developed a new strategic framework on safety and health at work (European Commission, 2014), which encouraged member states to use European funds to promote actions related to OHS such as training in the period 2014-2020.\nTransfer of training and intention to transfer: Applying what has been learned during training to the job refers to the concept of transfer which has been defined as \"the extent to which the learning that results from a training experience transfers to the job and leads to meaningful changes in work performance\" (Blume et al., 2010, p. 1066). The model of transfer process (Baldwin and Ford, 1988) is among the most used models in organizational psychology (Brown and Sitzman, 2011) and describes the process of training transfer referring to three main sequential categories: training input, training output and condition of transfer.\nResearch questions and hypotheses: Therefore, the aim of this study is to augment knowledge concerning the factors which could influence the transfer process of safety training on open skills. According to the model of transfer process, we will investigate which factors are able to trigger this process considering both trainee characteristics (i.e. self-efficacy) and work environment characteristics (i.e. leadership styles of the supervisor, specifically transformational and passive).\nMethods: Procedure and participants\nResults: Means, standard deviations (SD), inter-correlations and alpha reliabilities of the variables are presented in Table I. Self-efficacy is related to transformational leadership (r = 0.27, p < 0.05) and intention to transfer (r = 0.24, p < 0.05), while it is not related to passive leadership. Furthermore, transformational leadership is related to intention to transfer (r = 0.45, p < 0.01).\nDiscussion: The purpose of this study was to augment knowledge on how work environment and personal characteristics are able to affect transfer intention of NTS to the work context. To investigate our hypotheses, the model of transfer process of Baldwin and Ford (1988) was used. Results supported the relationship between self-efficacy and intention to transfer, confirming the relevance of self-efficacy in the transfer process, especially when the content of training refers to open skills (Blume et al., 2010) such as NTS.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This study aims to investigate the factors that can influence the transfer process of training in open skills, i.e. non-technical skills (NTS). Specifically, according to the model of the transfer process, the aim of this paper is to analyse the effects of both personal (e.g. self-efficacy) and work environment (e.g. safety leadership styles) antecedents of intention to transfer.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A total of 88 workers belonging to two different plants of the same chemical company filled in a questionnaire at the beginning (T1) and at the end (T2) of the training intervention. The majority of the sample was composed of men (95.5 per cent), with the mean age being 45.19 years old, and they had worked in the same company for an average of 17.2 years. Personal (self-efficacy) and organizational (transformational and passive leadership) factors were measured at T1, while intention to transfer was measured at T2. To investigate the combined effect of both personal and environmental characteristics on the transfer process, a moderation analysis was conducted following the Preacher and Hayes approach.\nFindings: Results showed that all the antecedents investigated (except for passive leadership) impacted on the intention to transfer. Furthermore, high levels of self-efficacy combined with higher levels of transformational leadership resulted in higher levels of intention to transfer.\nResearch limitations/implications: The sample size is quite small, and effective transfer of NTS has not been measured.\nPractical implications: Results suggest that organizations should focus on fostering self-efficacy of the trainees and transformational leadership of the supervisors so as to facilitate the transfer process of NTS.\nOriginality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study which has considered both individual and contextual characteristics to analyse the transfer process of NTS.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Symmetry influences packaging aesthetic evaluation and purchase intention
|
[
"Purchase intention",
"Symmetry",
"Package design",
"Aesthetic evaluation",
"Perceived complexity",
"Perceptual fluency"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, Giotto's Madonna Enthroned, Veronese's Christ in the House of Levi, the front facade of St Paul's Cathedral in London, quartz crystals, snowflakes, cypress trees, butterflies and cars. They all share the same characteristic, all are symmetrical. Symmetry is everywhere.\nLiterature and hypotheses: Two main research streams on package design can be identified in the literature: holistic and analytical. The holistic vision of packaging studies the influence of all components on consumer reactions (Silayoi and Speece, 2004, 2007; Vila and Ampuero, 2007; Orth and Malkewitz, 2008; Stoll et al., 2008; Wang, 2013), and the analytical examines the influence of one or several components on consumer reactions. Research on package colour (Gordon et al., 1994; Garber et al., 2000; Roullet and Droulers, 2005; Zeghache, 2014), package shape (Berkowitz, 1987; Raghubir and Krishna, 1999; Krider et al., 2001; Folkes and Matta, 2004; Raghubir and Greenleaf, 2006), package size (Folkes et al., 1993; Wansink, 1996), package visual information (Rettie and Brewer, 2000; Underwood et al., 2001; Underwood and Klein, 2002; Kuvykaite et al., 2009; Hota and Charry, 2014), package size and shape (Wansink and Van Ittersum, 2003), package shape and colour (Schoormans and Robben, 1997) and package visual information and shape (Garber et al., 2008) are all part of this analytical approach. Symmetry, as a component of the front of packaging, has not been a research subject in this analytical approach. The best way in which to display visual information on front of packaging remains an unresolved issue in practice, as evidenced by the varying degrees of symmetry displayed on front of packaging in the same product category. Moreover, there are still significant gaps in the theoretical knowledge on how consumers process and respond to more or less symmetrical information displayed on the front of packaging, which is the focus of our study.\nMethodology: To study the influence of vertical symmetry, participants were exposed to four sets of products, each composed of the same product category but with one symmetrical and one asymmetrical package design (within-subject design).\nResults: Preliminary results\nGeneral discussion: The aim of this research was to test the influence of the symmetry of information items displayed on the front of packaging on aesthetic evaluation and purchase intention. The results showed that beyond the semantic content of information displayed on the packaging, the vertical symmetry in the disposition of the information items influenced packaging aesthetic evaluation and product purchase intention. Aesthetic evaluation and purchase intention were higher when information on the packaging was symmetrically rather than asymmetrically displayed. In light of these results, the contributions of this study are both theoretical and practical.\nPractical implications: Our findings offer important insights for package designers and product manufacturers. For product manufacturers who sell their products to mass retailers, the latter have more control over marketing decisions, such as product position on the shelves and retail price. However, producers have control over some marketing decisions, such as package design. This study highlights the need to consider package design and, more precisely, the layout of the information presented on the front of the packaging, since symmetrical display, which involves no additional cost to the manufacturer, has been shown to lead to better evaluation and purchase intention.\nLimitations and future research: The limitations of this study offer opportunities for future research. First, our study has only dealt with four food products categories (orange juice, chocolate bars, biscuits and pasta). Other food products as well as non-food packaged goods should also therefore be studied. Second, expanding this research on symmetry to other communication media, such as print advertising (Pieters et al., 2010), websites (Tuch et al., 2010) and billboards, could help to produce further relevant insights. Third, the present research focussed on vertical symmetry, but horizontal, or combined vertical-horizontal symmetry, as well as oblique symmetry may also be considered in future studies (Wagemans et al., 1992). Fourth, the packaging images used in this study were fixed images displayed on a screen in a laboratory, but there is evidence to suggest that consumers might respond differently in a real-time shopping environment (Tonkin et al., 2011; Sherman et al., 1997). Observing that over 73 per cent of consumers agreed to utilising packaging to assist in their purchase decision, Wells et al. (2007, p. 684) concluded that \"it was obvious that consumers placed a high dependence on the extrinsic attributes of packaging to aid the purchase decision\". However, retail packaging is only one of the many factors that impact food consumptions and should be reassessed in the face other influences of the visual context surrounding a package (Orth and Crouch, 2014; Orth and Wirtz, 2014). The validity of the present study could therefore be improved by a more realistic research context. Fifth, it could be interesting to use objective measurement tools as an eye-tracking device in order to assess the influence of symmetry on visual attention (Huddleston et al., 2015). Finally, since research using geometric stimuli has highlighted the influence of perceived symmetry on memorisation (Attneave, 1955; Bertamini et al., 2013), future research should study the influence of the symmetrical disposition of information items displayed on the front of packaging on memorisation, as determined by means of explicit but also implicit memory testing.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of the symmetrical disposition of information items displayed on the front of product packaging on perceived complexity, perceptual fluency, aesthetic evaluation and product purchase intention.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A sample of 104 participants was exposed to fast-moving consumer goods packaging. A within-subject design experiment was carried out to assess the influence of the symmetrical disposition of information items displayed on the front of the packaging. ANOVA and a PROCESS procedure to assess mediation (Hayes, 2013) examined the relationships among the factors influenced by symmetry.\nFindings: This study found that the symmetrical disposition of information items around the vertical axis (mirror symmetry) decreased visual complexity and highlighted an \"indirect-only mediation\" of visual complexity on the aesthetic evaluation of the packaging through processing fluency. This research also highlighted the fact that packaging aesthetic evaluation had a positive influence on purchase intention.\nOriginality/value: This study extends knowledge on package design by showing that the elements on which the producer can act (in this case, symmetry on the front of packaging) have an influence on the consumer's evaluation of the product and intention to purchase.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Consolidation vs fragmentation: The case of the European mobile communications market
|
[
"Telecommunication services",
"Mobile communication systems",
"Europe"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Periodically, in almost every industrial sector in Europe, rumours begin to fly about the need for consolidation. This is to be expected since the bringing together of relatively small-scale operations in individual nation states should in theory produce significant economies of scale and scope. In practice there are many barriers to consolidation, whether political, economic or social, and it may never take place at all or may involve somewhat unlikely partners, but this does not detract from its desirability per se. In contrast, the case for fragmentation is heard much less frequently, and even then most often in relation to conglomerates involving companies operating in several different sectors which no longer serve their original purpose.One outcome that is most unusual in practice is where there is almost universal advocacy of consolidation but the end result is fragmentation, yet that is in essence what has been happening in recent months in relation to the mobile telecommunications sector in Europe. On the face of it, the telecommunications industry is a classic case of potential gains from consolidation, irrespective of whether it is the fixed-wire, mobile or Internet aspects that are under consideration. A Europe where there are different incumbents in every nation state, and where the situation is about to escalate sharply with the entry of new members, just does not make good business sense. In the case of mobile communications, the advent of so-called \"third generation\" (3G) technology was supposed to provide the long-awaited trigger for a round of consolidation, especially bearing in mind the much weakened financial condition of most incumbents in the aftermath of the bursting of the technology bubble of the late 1990s. According to the prevailing wisdom, the larger mobile operators would use the 3G licensing process as an opportunity to enter new markets, expanding their footprint in the process. The smaller incumbents, unwilling or unable to finance an expansionary strategy, would gradually fall victim in their domestic markets to the new entrants' superior financial and marketing fire power, including their pan-European brands, and agree to be taken over on beneficial terms.In the event, however, the reality has proved to be quite different. Not only have almost all incumbents been forced to scale back their ambitious plans for expansion but overseas markets have been exited, investments sold, licences returned, and write-offs made. The purpose of this paper is to examine why there has been fragmentation rather than consolidation in the European mobile communications market. More particularly, the paper argues that this fragmentation has occurred in three different ways: In the first place, licensees have exited one or more of the five largest European markets; secondly, they have pursued regional rather than pan-European strategies; and, thirdly, they have entered and/or abandoned markets in accordance with sharp fluctuations in their (primarily domestic) political and economic environments.With this in mind, the paper is structured as follows. In the next section an overview of the European mobile communications market in the light of 3G licensing is provided. This is followed by a discussion of each of the three ways in which the sector has been fragmented. Conclusions are then drawn in the final section.\nMobile communications in Europe: During the 1990s, mobile communication services were delivered in Europe largely by means of a so-called second generation (2G) technology known as GSM - the Global System for Mobile. GSM was originally developed to handle voice telephony, but as a digital technology (unlike 1G which is analogue) it is capable of being enhanced to handle substantial volumes of non-voice data, albeit at fairly slow speeds. This has largely been achieved so far via the introduction of the General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) - a packet-switched technology that permits users to stay permanently on-line with a theoretical maximum transmission speed of 115 Kbps. GPRS is often referred to as 2.5G since it was envisioned as an intermediate stage between 2G and the ultimate goal of a technology capable of operating at up to 2 Mbps. This technology already exists, although it is suffering considerable teething problems, in the form of a so-called third-generation (3G) standard known in general as IMT-2000 but in Europe specifically as UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) (Curwen, 2002a). It is important to note that 2G and 3G are always licensed in Europe, with regulators imposing strict limits on the number of licensees in any one country, whereas GPRS is an overlay on GSM and hence needs no licence.The European Commission required that member states introduce UMTS before January 2002 (European Commission, 1998). Just over half of the European Union (EU) member states awarded their 3G licences during 2000, although the process did not conclude until June 2002. Outside of the EU, the licensing continues, with Estonia awarding three licences as recently as July/August 2003 and with several accession countries yet to issue licences. 3G licences are awarded through one of three mechanisms: auctioning the licence to the highest bidder, holding a \"beauty contest\" where bidders compete on the basis of the quality of their bids and pay a lump-sum and/or annual fee for the spectrum, or some combination of these. However, if there are fewer qualified bidders than licences available, it is customary to allocate the licences to the bidders at the minimum reserve price.Of all the licensing processes that have taken place across Europe, the most analysed have been those that took place in Germany and the UK (Binmore and Klemperer, 2002; Klemperer, 2002; van Damme, 2002). The German government sold six licences for a total of $45.9bn while the UK government received $34.2bn for the five licences that it offered. Although these two auctions raised the expectation of governments in relation to the value of 3G licences, most subsequent licences, such as those in the Netherlands and France, were awarded for considerably less than anticipated. Indeed, France only managed to award two of its four licences at the first attempt in May 2001 and had wait another year to award one more at a reduced fee that was retrospectively applied to the initial two licensees. Compared on the basis of dollars per head of population, the auctions achieved anything between $585 in the UK and $40 in Greece, whereas the beauty contests often involved nominal amounts.As of October 2003, all EU member states have awarded some, though not necessarily all, of their 3G licences, as have many accession countries and EFTA member states. Across Europe, which we define here more broadly to encompass 41 countries[1], a total of 225 mobile licences (both 2G and 3G) have been awarded. Whereas all 41 countries have awarded 2G licences, the same is not true for 3G. To date (October 2003), only 27 out of the 41 countries have awarded 3G licences. Between them, the 41 countries have offered a total of 122 2G licences and 103 3G licences, but whereas the 2G licences are all operational, this is true of only 88 3G licences[2].Across Europe, 13 companies own more than six mobile licences - Vodafone (30 licences), Orange (22), T-Mobile (16), TeliaSonera (16), Tele2 (12), TDC (10), Telenor (10), KPN (9), Telecom Italia Mobile (9), mmO2, (8), Hutchison Whampoa (7), OTE (7) and Telefonica Moviles (6). Collectively, they own 72 percent of all the mobile licences that have been issued, with the largest five companies alone accounting for 43 percent of all the licences. It is important to note, however, that Vodafone and Orange between them own 23 percent of Europe's licences. The global number of licences held can, however, be deceptive since it is by no means certain that in any given market an operator will own both a 2G and 3G licence. Although they own roughly the same number of licences overall, Hutchison Whampoa owns only 3G licences in the seven countries where it is present, whereas mmO2 operates both 2G and 3G licences in four countries and OTE holds only one 3G licence in its six markets.Where governments have licensed 3G services, the number of licences offered has often been the same or greater than the number of 2G licences. Where more 3G licences have been awarded, the underlying argument is that the presence of more companies in a market inevitably leads to greater competition. Despite this, governments have sometimes failed in practice to increase the number of operators present in the market: The licensing process may not have attracted sufficient bidders in the first place and licences may have been returned as the full cost of building the network has become apparent (Curwen, 2002b). The 3G licensing process raised around EUR110bn for governments across Europe, to which must be added the costs of constructing the actual networks and developing services. At one stage, it was estimated that these licence costs alone accounted for more than a third of the total debts of BT and KPN and nearly all of the debts of Telefonica (The Economist, 2001, p. 71).The considerable financial outlay that 3G represented, coupled with the slower than expected deployment of the technology, inevitably led to concerns being expressed about the wisdom of entering the market in the first place. The remainder of this paper focuses on how these doubts have affected both the scale of the players within the European market and the degree to which it is a single market. We identify three different ways that the scale of the larger owners of mobile communications licences has been affected, and suggest that as a consequence, most operators no longer view Europe as a single market (if they ever did) but rather as a series of national and regional markets.\nThree ways to fragment: Exiting from major markets\nConclusions: As indicated in the introduction, the European mobile communications market appeared in the late 1990s to be an obvious case for consolidation, especially in preparation for the forthcoming enlargement of the EU. This consolidation was very unlikely to take the form of takeovers and/or mergers involving the big five players - BT, Orange, Telefonica Moviles, TIM and T-Mobile - because previous attempts to achieve this in the fixed-wire market such as Deutsche Telekom's attempt to buy Telecom Italia, had fallen foul of political sensibilities. However, there was nothing to stop these operators competing in each others' markets as, indeed, they often did via GSM. Despite this, the domestic operator tended to remain dominant or to operate an effective duopoly - the exception was, and still is, the UK - so the development of 3G appeared to provide an opportunity for those falling behind in the 2G market to make up ground. Equally, it provided an opportunity for new entrants that had previously seen no benefit in entering the GSM market due to the strength of the incumbents, but these were expected to build up their business and then sell out at a profit. Certainly, this was the expectation in respect of Hutchison Whampoa which had previously used that strategy very successfully in relation to Orange in the UK.Outside the big five markets the expectation was that fiefdoms would be created. For example, T-Mobile had an obvious interest in mopping up stakes along its eastern border, OTE in acquiring stakes in the Balkans and the Nordic operators in merging together. Equally, the operators with pan-European aspirations, most obviously Vodafone and Orange, had an incentive to mop up anything available at an acceptable price. Inside the EU the main thrust was of necessity the acquisition of 3G licences whereas outside it the main thrust would take the form of acquiring stakes in existing 2G operators with prospects of acquiring 3G licences at a later date.However, notwithstanding the expectation, consolidation within the mobile communications market has not been forthcoming. The single most important factor underpinning this is the substantial financial investment required by 3G. The cost of acquiring the licences, constructing the networks and developing the necessary services has placed a considerable financial burden on mobile operators, a burden that for some operators was compounded by their desire to acquire majority, and then outright, control of their 2G businesses. The resulting reaction of mobile operators to this burden fragmented the European market. Across Europe, assets were sold and 3G investment plans scaled back or frozen. Perhaps the most dramatic reaction to the financial burden faced by mobile operators was the decision by BT to de-merge its mobile arm, spinning off mmO2 while retaining a series of other mobile investments that it subsequently sold.The decision by BT to exit the mobile market highlights the contribution of parent companies to the fragmentation of the mobile market. To all intents and purposes, France Telecom curtailed the expansionary ambitions of Orange. Not only did France Telecom not transfer all of its mobile businesses to Orange at the time of the merger, but it has also proved unwilling to dilute its stake in Orange with the consequence that Orange could not use its shares, rather than cash, as a \"currency\" to acquire other mobile operators. Once France Telecom has re-acquired those shares it does not already own in Orange, it will use the considerable cash flow that Orange generates to alleviate its own financial predicament. At best, this will prevent Orange from expanding into new markets; at worst, it will encourage Orange to exit those markets where it is only marginally profitable, thereby further fragmenting the European mobile communications market.Orange also illustrates another driver of fragmentation, namely, disagreement between partners in bidding consortia. Orange exited the German market after an acrimonious and costly dispute with the founder of MobilCom, while in Italy, BT's refusal to contribute additional funds to Blu when bidding for a 3G licence ultimately resulted in the company being liquidated. More recently, T-Mobile has been unable to conclude a deal with Elektrim, its fellow shareholder in Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa (PTC), that would see it take control of the Polish operator even though Elektrim's 50/50 partner Vivendi Universal was enthusiastic. However, this is likely to be just a temporary disagreement as Elektrim is heavily indebted and could readily use the money from T-Mobile to pay down its debt.Although T-Mobile is likely to be only temporarily delayed in its ambitions to acquire PTC, one immediate impact of the delay is that T-Mobile cannot use its common single brand in Poland. While most of the larger mobile operators continue to attempt to introduce a single brand throughout their European footprint, the degree to which they have been able to do so varies. Vodafone is the most advanced in its use of a single brand in Europe, with only Belgium, France and Switzerland having as yet not been re-branded. In each case, Vodafone is a minority shareholder and thus needs the agreement of other shareholders who so far have been unwilling to consent to the change. This difficulty has also prevented Orange from adopting a single brand. The only two companies that operate a single brand throughout all of their mobile businesses are mmO2 and Hutchison Whampoa, and in both cases the parent company is always either the majority or outright owner. At the other extreme is Tele2, which operates three different brands across Europe and appears to have no intention of moving towards a single European brand. The continued use of three brands would appear to suggest that Tele2 views Europe not as a single market but rather as a series of national mobile markets.In conclusion, it is evident that things have not worked out as anticipated. Naturally, it is always possible to argue that the economic case for consolidation has not gone away and hence that it will still come about at some (indeterminate) future point in time, but as we have sought to demonstrate, there are many and varied reasons why it has not transpired and these will not readily be reversed.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - In recent times there has been much speculation about the need for consolidation in the European telecommunications industry. However, consolidation has not happened as expected with the market fragmenting instead. This article seeks to explain this phenomenon.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - A distinction is made between second and third generation mobile technologies, and the ownership of mobile licences in 41 European countries identified. The ownership footprints of mobile operators are mapped, with patterns of consolidation and fragmentation commented upon.\nFindings: - The results show that, although many mobile operators have been intent on building empires both within and outside Europe, almost all of these operators have been forced to curtail their ambitions. As a consequence, consolidation has not occurred as expected.\nOriginality/value: - It was widely anticipated that mobile operators would use third generation licensing to expand their footprints into new markets. This paper, however, argues that this has not happened and the European market has instead fragmented.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Ethical leadership in education and its relation to ethical decision-making: The case of Arab school leaders in Israel
|
[
"Gender",
"Ethics",
"Educational administration",
"Middle management",
"Social justice"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: During the past 30 years there has been a rise in the research into ethical leadership in education (Cherkowski et al., 2015; Holte, 2014; Lapointe et al., forthcoming). In the late 1970s, Hodgkinson (1978) called for the restoration of a moral foundation of theories on educational leadership. A few years later, Greenfield (1981) and Foster (1986) emphasized the need for further study into the ethical and moral aspects of educational leadership. Starratt (1991) was among the first to propose a conceptual framework for ethical leadership and to suggest that ethical leadership should no longer be defined as a style but as the basis for moral dimensions and actions. Sergiovanni (1992) pursued this approach in his moral model by integrating the concern for both collective and individual needs and interests. More recently, international research into ethical educational leadership has posed several questions (Cherkowski et al., 2015; Kristinsson, 2014; Langlois and Lapointe, 2010; Langlois et al., 2014): does being an ethical leader have the same meaning everywhere, without any consideration of a particular history, religion or culture? Finding answers to this question could foster a better understanding of both national specificities and universal commonalities associated with ethical leadership, as well as of the cultural and social characteristics that facilitate or hinder the development of ethical leadership.\n2. Theoretical background: 2.1 The social and cultural context of this study\n3. The research aims: Our purpose in the research is to understand the role that different ethical dimensions play in the exercise of ethical leadership. This study aims specifically to describe the various aspects of ethical leadership among AI school leaders, members of a culturally distinct minority group within a culturally different majority group. In addition, this study aims to examine the relationship between AI school leaders' various ethical dimensions (critique, justice, care) and ethical decision making and the interrelation with other work aspects of leadership (ethical sensitivity as well as ethical climate). The study also looks for possible interventions of the leaders' background characteristics (such as gender, type of school they work in and seniority) in the various ethical dimensions of their leadership. Thus the study's findings may clarify the validity of the tool to measure ethical leadership.\n4. Method: 4.1 Population and sample\n5. Results: 5.1 The sample background characteristics\n6. Discussion and conclusions: Overall, the findings of this study support the construct of the ELQ based on three dimensions (care, justice and critique), which are linked to the various aspects of leadership work: the ability to identifying an ethical dilemma, to solve it and to make decisions when confronting an ethical dilemma. Each of these dimensions as well as the aspects of leadership work were found in our study to be a distinctive factor within the questionnaire, yet all of factors positively correlate to one another. Such connections have been found in previous studies (Dempster et al., 2004; Langlois et al., 2014).\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate ethical leadership in the context of the Arab educational system in Israel. It questions the relations of ethical leadership dimensions with decision making as well as background characteristics of the educational leaders.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Arab educational leaders (n=150) from diverse Arab schools responded to valid research tool of 40 items constructed of six subscales: three ethical leadership dimensions (critique, justice and care) and three leadership work aspects (ethical sensitivity, climate and decision making). Averages were calculated for each subscale.\nFindings: Significant relations were found among ethical leadership dimensions and decision making, the leaders' school type and their seniority.\nResearch limitations/implications: This study is based on research in diverse countries, using a common conceptual frame. Its limitation is the sample's narrow scope.\nPractical implications: The study results may inform the developing ethical qualities in educational leadership.\nOriginality/value: The authors recommend widening the scope of the sample examined to further clarify the concept of ethical leadership and its implications to the practice of educational leadership.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Ethical managers in ethical organisations? The leadership-culture connection among Finnish managers
|
[
"Ethical leadership style",
"Ethical organizational culture",
"Ethical virtues",
"Professional ethics",
"Leadership",
"Organizational culture",
"Finland"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Leadership should be a key source of ethical guidance for an organisation (Kanungo and Mendonca, 1996; Ciulla, 1998; Mendonca, 2001; Brown et al., 2005). However, the rapid changes of the working life, technological breakthroughs, and the pressures in business organisations to make profit can have significant effects on managers' possibilities to implement ethicality in their leadership behaviour (Toffler, 1986; Jackall, 1988; Lamsa, 1999; Lamsa and Takala, 2000). Yet, to ensure long-term success in addition to solving traditional economic problems, managers need the ability to consider ethical issues in their behaviour.The goodness of leadership has been a topic of discussion for centuries, particularly among philosophers and political theorists. More recently and partly in response to increasing public awareness of the ethicality of leadership in business contexts, the issue of ethics has received growing interest among leadership and management researchers (e.g. Trevino et al., 2000; Aronson, 2001; Ciulla, 2005; Ghoshal, 2005; Eberlin and Tatum, 2008; Trevino et al., 2008; Howard, 2010; Kujala et al., 2011; Ciulla and Forsyth, 2011). However, as Toor and Ofori (2009) point out, ethical leadership is mostly discussed in theoretical and conceptual terms, and there is a lack of studies providing empirical evidence about ethical leadership. What is more, studies are often carried out using university students as respondents (Toor and Ofori, 2009). Some studies have also measured ethical leadership with subordinates' assessments (Brown et al., 2005; Walumbwa and Schaubroeck, 2009), whereas few studies have looked at managers' own perceptions of their ethicality.Managers' personal views of their leadership behaviour are important, because there is a large consensus that personal characteristics (e.g. dispositional traits, self-concept) have a significant role in directing individual's behaviour (e.g. McCrae and Costa, 1996, p. 58; McAdams and Adler, 2006), also in the work context (Furnham, 1997, p. 143). In the present study we assume that an ethical person in a leadership position behaves ethically and thus promotes ethical organisational culture. This association was empirically tested by using a large sample of Finnish managers. In general, leadership can be seen as a culture-influencing activity, \"the management of meaning\", as brought forth by Smircich and Morgan (1982). Furthermore, Kets de Vries (1994) argues that leaders can have a far-reaching effect on organisational culture through their personal characteristics and behaviour.Ethical leadership\n2. Method: Participants and procedure\n3. Results: Ethical leadership and managers' background factors\n4. Discussion: The results showed that the more ethical the managers evaluated their own leadership behaviour, the better ratings they gave on ethical organisational culture, and thus supported our main hypothesis (H3). The finding also supports previous arguments concerning the connection between leadership and organisational culture (Smircich and Morgan, 1982; Schein, 1985; Kets de Vries, 1994; Block, 2003; Giberson et al., 2009), specifically the connection between ethical leadership and ethical culture of an organisation (Trevino and Weaver, 2003). From the practical point of view, this result implies that an ethically behaving leader can develop the ethical culture of his/her organisation through such leadership behaviours as paying attention not only to results but also the means how the results are achieved, acting in a trustworthy manner, supporting open discussions about values among organisation members, rewarding ethically appropriate actions, and creating ethical codes and norms (Weaver et al., 1999; Trevino and Weaver, 2003; Brown et al., 2005). Especially upper management has been considered to set the ethical guidelines of the organisation (Posner and Schmidt, 1992), but also the importance of human resource management practises has been highlighted in creating trust and increasing ethical behaviours in organisations (Pucetaite et al., 2010). Although we assumed in this paper that an ethical person in a leadership position behaves ethically and promotes ethical organisational culture, it is also possible that the ethical organisational culture socialises managers into behaving ethically, or that managers already valuing ethicality seek their way to matching organisations, as the value congruence theory suggests (Brown and Trevino, 2006). For example, Biggart and Hamilton (1987) bring forth that all actors must embody the norms of their positions and convince others in ways coherent with their normative obligations (p. 435). Therefore, it can be the organisational culture which sets limits for the kind of leadership behaviour.Managers' self-evaluations of their ethical leadership style were connected to all eight dimensions of the ethical culture of an organisation, that is, the organisational ethical virtues. The strongest association was found between ethical leadership and sanctionability: The managers who evaluated themselves as ethical leaders also saw that in their organisation (un)ethical actions have consequences. This result is logical, as managers have the possibilities to influence the virtue of sanctionability through rewards and punishments. For example, the sanctionability items (such as \"In my immediate working environment, only people with integrity are considered for promotion\") refer to decisions under the manager's authority.The more ethical the managers evaluated their leadership style, the higher ratings they gave on transparency and discussability in their organisations. Thus, ethical leadership can encourage transparent behaviour and culture: in transparent organisations there is adequate awareness of potential violations and incidents, which are intervened in. In transparent organisations also the behaviours of managers are under observation, which can motivate into ethical leadership. What is more, an ethical leader encourages discussions about ethical issues and handles reports of unethical conduct with caution. Discussionability is an important dimension of organisational culture, as many conflicts can be solved through talking. Managers are in a key position in supporting discussionability, and they can contribute to it by being available to employees and providing resources and initiatives to discussions.As for the descriptive results, also H1 got support from our results. The results showed that on average managers evaluated themselves as quite ethical leaders. Leaders from upper management level evaluated themselves as more ethical than did middle managers, supporting the sub-hypothesis H1a. It might be that because upper managers have more job control (Feldt et al., 2009) they therefore also have more possibilities to implement ethical values in their work. Moreover, it has been suggested that when individuals gain power, their self-evaluations grow more favourable (see Ciulla and Forsyth, 2011, p. 236), which can account for the detected positive evaluations of the upper management. One explanation to the differences can be the various demands directed at middle-level managers. They often face conflicting expectations from both upper management and lower organisational levels (Marshall and Cooper, 1979; Jackall, 1988), which can make it difficult to carry out ethical values at work. Also executing organisational changes and new strategies, which are often responsibilities of the lower level managers, can create additional pressures to them.Women gave more positive evaluations of their ethical leadership than did men. There are some possible explanations to this result. First, previous studies have shown that men detect less ethical problems (Chonko and Hunt, 1985), and that women make more ethical decisions (Glover et al., 1997). Second, social desirability can explain the gender differences. Women might face more pressures to act ethically as leaders. However, it is important to recognise that the mean differences between men and women in our study were quite small, although they reached statistical significance due to the large sample size.From the different age groups 41-50-year-old managers evaluated themselves as most ethical leaders. A reason for this finding can be found from self-confidence and cumulated (work) experiences, which increase along with age, and also with managerial level (Weeks et al., 1999): In the present study upper management levels were overrepresented in the older age groups. In addition, self-knowledge and leadership competences, alongside other expertise learned at work, develop with age and experience. This can lead to better evaluations of one's own leadership when compared to younger managers. It is also possible, that older managers pay more attention to ethical issues.Also the ratings of ethical culture shared some significant differences with the background factors, supporting our H2. First, upper managers gave the most positive evaluations of ethical culture compared with lower management levels. This result gave support to our sub-hypothesis H2a, and is also in line with Trevino et al. (2008). Senior managers act as representatives of the entire organisation, and therefore identify themselves strongly with the organisation and its image. A more positive perception of organisational ethics can reflect the managers' need to protect the organisation's image as well as their own identity.Second, gender and age differences also appeared in the ratings of ethical culture. As assumed in the sub-hypothesis H2b, men gave better evaluations of the ethical culture than did women, which can relate to management level: men were overrepresented among upper managers, who, as described above, had more positive views about ethical culture. On the other hand, women can be more critical towards ethical culture than men, as discussed previously concerning the ethical leadership evaluations. From the age groups, over 60-year-olds gave the most negative evaluations of the ethical culture. Perhaps older managers are already directed towards retirement, and therefore being \"on the way out\" of an organisation may result in a personal detachment from the organisation. This can lead to being more critical concerning the existing culture and its ethicality compared to younger age groups.From the different lines of business, financing, and insurance gave highest ratings of ethical culture. In general, it can be said that the financial and insurance sector is at its inmost nature about trust, which is also an element of the ethical organisational culture. A regulative environment and acting in a trustworthy manner have traditionally been important conditions for the companies in this business branch. Therefore, the importance of ethics may have been implemented as a salient part of the organisational culture. However, since the recent economic crises and problems have largely their roots in the unethical behaviour of the finance sector companies, it may be that Finnish managers in banking and insurance have a tendency to overemphasise the high ethical culture of their organisations. In Finland the finance and insurance companies wanted to highlight their ethical actions despite the economic crises, and draw a distinction between the banking failures in other countries. The data gathered in this study was done in the autumn 2009, when the regulative environment of the finance sector was increasing due to the global economic collapse. As the finance sector has been and increasingly is a business branch with strong regulations, it can be that managers in the sector understand that following official regulations is the same as being ethical. In general, this result is interesting and worth investigating more in the future.Limitations and avenues for future research\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The main aim of the present study is to discover whether the managers' self-evaluations of their ethical leadership style are associated with their assessments of the ethical organisational culture (measured with an eight-dimensional Corporate Ethical Virtues-model). It aims to hypothesise that the more ethical the managers evaluate their own leadership style to be, the higher evaluations they give on the ethical culture of their organisation. The underlying assumption is that ethical managers can enhance the ethical culture by behaving in accordance with their own values.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - This quantitative research was based on a questionnaire study with 902 respondents throughout Finland. A linear regression analysis was conducted to examine how ethical leadership was related to ethical organisational culture.\nFindings: - Managers who appraised their own leadership style as ethical also evaluated the ethical culture of their organisations more positively. The result implies that an ethically behaving leader can develop the culture of his/her organisation towards more ethical practices. The results also showed that differences in evaluating both ethical leadership and culture emerged concerning background variables.\nResearch limitations/implications: - The data collected were based only on self-assessments from one data source, and therefore future studies, e.g. including employee ratings, are needed.\nPractical implications: - Promoting ethical virtues in organisations can lead to a virtuous circle, which supports both ethical culture and ethical leadership.\nOriginality/value: - This empirical study contributes to the research on ethical leadership by examining it in relation to ethical organisational culture.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Board characteristics and real performance in Malaysian state-owned enterprises (SOEs)
|
[
"Corporate governance",
"Quantile regression",
"Real performance"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Value creation and firm performance are among critical concerns for shareholders. The challenge of separating management and ownership creates an agency problem between agent and owners, due to the owners' belief that the management may act opportunistically at the expense of the shareholders (Coleman and Biekpe, 2006). With separation, the ability of shareholders to effectively monitor operations is reduced. This is evidenced by the collapse of various corporations over the last few decades. The separation of ownership and management presents challenges to the monitoring process. As such, regulators have introduced mechanisms that reduce the conflict of interest between shareholders and management through corporate governance. These practices have existed for a long time, but only recently have researchers focussed on the efforts of regulators to curb opportunistic behaviour that consequently leads to the enhancement of investor goodwill, confidence, and improved economic health of listed corporations (Coleman and Biekpe, 2006; Chuanrommanee and Swierczek, 2007). The issue of agency conflict is more visible among state-owned enterprises (SOEs), as the government plays the role of an owner and appoints managers (agent) with minimal supervision and control due to political factors (Gailmard, 2010; Allini et al., 2016).\n2. Review of literature: 2.1 Overview of SOEs and transformation policy\n3. Methodology: The present paper focusses on SOEs in Malaysia, where the government is actively involved in listed corporations under their control. These companies are very active in the market and constitute a huge part of the market capitalisation. This study analyses the impact of board characteristics and real performance in listed SOEs in Malaysia for the financial years 2002-2011. Empirical data regarding board characteristics is collected from annual reports of the companies, and financial data are collected from the Bloomberg database. Overall, all SOEs except those in the financial sector have been included in the analysis. Our approach for sampling is to choose all SOEs listed on Bursa Malaysia, with the condition that the companies should have available data. Companies with missing data are excluded from the sample.\n4. Descriptive statistics: Table III shows the descriptive statistics for the continuous variables used in the regression model. There are a few results to indicate that the SOE transformation policy has favourably influenced real performance. As can be seen in Table III, the performance has changed from 9.6 per cent to 15.3 with an average of 8.2 per cent for the entire period, however, the lack of significance for the dummy period variable in the regression results (Table V) indicates that this improvement is not different between the periods, which suggests that the transformation policy has not achieved its intended goals.\n5. Findings of the empirical model: Tables III and IV provide descriptive statistics of the main continuous variables included in the estimated model[4]. As this study uses quantile regression, diagnostic tests for normality assumption of OLS regression are not required. This does not cause a problem for quantile regression estimation since quantile regression provides robustness to any deviation from normality and high skewness (Mata and Machado, 1996). Furthermore, this approach relies on the generalisation based on the median approach for different levels of regression, as compared to OLS, which is mainly based on the mean and thus, is affected by extreme values. The empirical estimation shows the results of regression based on quantiles at 0.10, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 0.90 quantiles, along with the OLS estimation (see Table V). The results will be explained with Figures 1-6 representing the coefficient of each variable to present a full picture of the analysis and its trends[5].\n6. Sensitivity analysis: Sensitivity analysis is a means to anticipate the results of the research model under different circumstances and models compared to the main prediction model to confirm the findings of the research. In the present study, we attempted to run the regression model for the same sample for the years 2007-2011 separately from the previous period of 2002-2006. This was mainly done to see whether the results are consistent with the baseline results reported in Table V. The results of the test show that most of the results are similar to the baseline results, with the exception of a few of the variables, which shows an influence on the performance of SOEs. In particular, Table VI shows that the results are in several cases consistent with the previous results reported in Table V. Few exceptions are worthy to be reported. With regards to the board non-executive directors and independence of the board, they are shown to have a positive impact on the real performance of medium and large companies only. This could be due the fact the large SOEs are under scrutiny to perform better than other with emphasise of the government on the top companies and assign them as the target top performers which put a pressure on the companies and their BOD to perform the expected role. Board size maintains its impact on the performance for the small companies only which is consistent with results of Table V. Board meetings shows a negative result, which reveals that more meeting indicate lower performance. This can be obvious as a more meetings can be a signal of a more discussion on the performance aspect. Directorship holds a negative relationship as in Table V. Overall, the results of the sensitivity analysis show a few differences in the influence of board characteristics on real performance. However, we emphasise that such a relationship does not hold for all sizes of companies. Therefore, we argue that conflicting results in the relationship between board characteristics and performance in various context could be due to the analytical approach used, which produced various results depending on the size of the companies.\n7. Conclusion: From a theoretical perspective, the study aims to demonstrate the link between the BOD characteristics and real performance. The significance of the issue lies in the matter that SOEs are characterised with a more complex agency problem, and managers may have a tendency of opportunistic behaviour. The significance of using real performance measures instead of traditional measures matters because the impact of board directors on real performance reflects the reality of companies rather than a cosmetic picture.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between board characteristics and real performance among state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Malaysia in a longitudinal period following the introduction of transformation policy.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The study deviates from prior research in utilising a real performance measure rather than traditional measures of performance. The authors adopt the quantile regression approach to examine the impact of board characteristics on real performance in a comparison using ordinary least squares.\nFindings: The results of quantile regression reveal that the impact of board mechanisms on real performance was not as expected. Specifically, board size and duality had a bearing on real performance. Board independence also is considered as influential factor through the time. However, such effects were not homogenous across different quantiles. The dummy year variable to compare the period pre- and post-transformation policy reveals that the dummy year is not significant, indicating that performance post-transformation is indifferent compared to the pre-transformation policy period.\nPractical implications: It is important for government to reconsider the policies embedded in the transformation policy. This study provides insights on the enhancement of board effectiveness and new developments regarding GLCs.\nOriginality/value: This is an early to attempt to measure real performance and its link to board characteristics in SOEs post-transformation policy.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Enhancing supply chain performance through collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenishment
|
[
"Developing countries",
"Collaborative planning",
"Demand forecasting",
"Replenishment",
"Supply chain innovation"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment (CPFR) is an important business process for managing demand uncertainty, point-of-sale data, and promotional and replenishment plans. Companies implement CPFR not only to reduce inventory, cost, and lead times but also to improve forecasting accuracy, customer service and sales volume. Although many companies in developed countries have benefited from CPFR application, its implementation in developing countries has been slow (Fu, 2016; Panahifar et al., 2015). This study is principally concerned with the Nigerian manufacturing companies where context-specific CPFR study remains unknown. Nigeria is a developing economy and Africa's largest economy. It is also the second-largest manufacturing hub in Africa. The manufacturing industry is the second-largest employer of labor in the country. A comparative analysis shows that Nigeria's contribution to the GDP falls below that of many developing countries. While Nigeria's manufacturing sector's contribution to the GDP was less than 10 percent in 2014, China's was 32 percent and Malaysia's was 22 percent. This indicates that strategies are needed to improve the manufacturing processes of Nigerian manufacturing companies. Therefore, this paper argues that improving the supply chain performance (SCP) of the industry might drive shareholder wealth, the country's diversification agenda and GDP.\nSupply chain performance: Supply chain performance is an important driver of organizational and market performance (Adams et al., 2014; Youn et al., 2014). It is defined as \"the benefits derived from supply chain cooperation, including efficiency improvement, cost reduction, and enhancement in cycle time\" (Yul and Kyu, 2015). Previous research has shown that an efficient and effective supply chain delivers quality products on time and in the right quantities (Prajogo and Olhager, 2012), reduces order cycle time (Qrunfleh and Tarafdar, 2014) and provides mutual benefits for supply chain partners (Hsin et al., 2013). As such, firms must proactively engage in practices that will enhance SCP. Based on these lines of argument, this paper argues for the integration of CPFR and SCIC as practices that will further improve the performance of the supply chain.\nCollaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment: CPFR is \"a business practice that combines the intelligence of multiple SC partners and synchronizes them into joint forecasting and planning with the aim of improving demand visibility and SC efficiency\" (Danese, 2007). CPFR has been examined with regard to how it influences or is influenced by demand management (Rexhausen et al., 2012), production systems and product lines (Kalchschmidt, 2012) and inter-organizational information systems capability (Hadaya and Cassivi, 2007). Similarly, CFPR improves forecasting accuracy (Ireland, 2005), expedites information sharing, guarantees supply chain visibility, predicts demand, reduces costs, cycles time and facilitates the bullwhip effect (Yu et al., 2010). However, how it influences innovation capability in the supply chain remains under investigation.\nSupply chain innovation capability: Innovation capability is useful for knowledge creation and new product development (Zheng and Zhao, 2013) as well as business performance (Hult et al., 2004). It also improves customer service and avoids the stockpile of inventory. SCIC is the firms' ability to acquire new knowledge and capabilities through a tangible and intangible resource base to enhance SCP. Although innovation is a crucial determinant of a firm's success, it can only occur if a firm has the capability to innovate and transform knowledge and ideas into new products, processes and systems for the benefit of the supply chain. Seo et al. (2014) suggested ways in which innovativeness influences supply chain integration and firm performance. In a different research approach, this paper examines how innovativeness affects CPFR and SCP.\nTheoretical and conceptual framework: The research framework of this study is an extension of the theoretical framework of Nakano (2009), who theorized a direct relationship between CPFR and SCO. This study extends the theoretical framework by introducing the mediation of SCIC. Similarly, the social exchange theory (Homans, 1958) and the dynamic capabilities theory (DCT) (Teece, 2007) are the theoretical lenses at which this paper explained the mediating effect of SCIC on the relationship between CPFR and SCP. The social exchange theory was employed to demonstrate how CPFR will increase forecast, plan and optimal stock replenishment policies in order to enhance SCP. The DCT was employed to show that innovation capability is a competence that develops due to changes in business processes. DCT examines how firms build, integrate, configure and reconfigure their internal and external processes and competencies to encourage innovation and achieve competitive advantage (Miles, 2012; Teece, 2007). Thus, CPFR is considered as an external collaborative process that influences collaborative and process capabilities for SCP (Rodriguez-Diaz and Espino-Rodriguez, 2006). Therefore, firms should utilize knowledge of CPFR to build innovation capability across the supply chain.\nHypothesis development: Relationship between CPFR and SCP\nMethod and measurement: This study was based on a quantitative research design grounded on cross-sectional survey. Data were collected from members of the Manufacturers' Association of Nigeria (MAN) between August 2014 and November 2014. MAN is an organized body that represents the interests of Nigerian manufacturing companies. With 1,574 companies in its database, 1,035 clustered companies were targeted, and 323 companies were randomly selected from eight clusters. The questionnaire was self-administered with the help of eight research assistants who were also staff members of MAN at different branches. Of the total questionnaires distributed, 292 were returned and 286 were found to be usable. Even though personally administered questionnaires are expensive in terms of time, money and effort, they perform better than mail or telephone surveys (Szolnoki and Hoffmann, 2013). As such, the response rate of the study was 90.4 percent, higher than the recommendation by Sudman et al. (1965), who pointed out that self-administered questionnaires should have a completion rate of about 76 percent and a rejection rate of 24 percent.\nResult: The profiles of the manufacturing companies include those in the business sector, the job title of respondents, ownership structure, firm age, number of employees, annual revenue and costs due to supply chain activities. Table I provides the demographic characteristics of the study.\nValidating the structural model: Testing of the mediation effect followed the arguments of Baron and Kenny (1986). The procedure involves the following: \"(a) the total effect of X on Y (t) must be significant; (b) the effect of X on M (a) must be significant; (c) the effect of M on Y (b) must be significant; (d) the direct effect of X on Y adjusted for M (t) must be smaller than the total effect of X on Y.\" A hypothesis of full mediation is supported when the inclusion of a mediator turns an already significant relationship of X-Y non-significant. Furthermore, a hypothesis of partial mediation is supported if the introduction of a mediator hinges on the significance of all three paths, X-Y, X-M and M-Y, but the product of multiplying X-M and M-Y standardized coefficients (r) must be greater than the new standardized X-Y standardized coefficient. The first procedure is validated in Figure 2, while procedures b-d are validated from Figure 3.\nDiscussion of findings: The objective of this paper is to examine the antecedence of SCP through CPFR and SCIC. Results of the study suggest that CPFR has a significant relationship with SCP and SCIC. Further analysis of mediation indicates that SCIC is a full mediator between the relationship between CPFR and SCP. In relation to the research problems, this paper has demonstrated how to link CPFR with innovation capability to improve cost efficiency, customer responsiveness, and market performance of manufacturing companies in Nigeria. The findings indicate that partners can develop SCIC from CPFR implementation. Thus, firms need to adjust their production processes and improve demand, forecast, and replenishment collaboration with suppliers and retailers. Second, the study has provided additional literature on the dearth of empirical literature that links CPFR and SCIC. Third, the study can help to increase CRPF implementation among the manufacturing companies in Nigeria and other developing economies as well. Fourth, the study has shown the role of SCIC in resolving the mixed results between CPFR and SCP. Results of the Baron and Kenny (1986) four-stage mediation condition confirmed that SCIC is a full mediator between CPFR and SCP. The introduction of the mediating role of SCIC in the relationship between CPFR and SCP increases the regression weight of CPFR and SCP from 0.44-0.56.\nConclusion: The finding of this study has extended the usual direct findings on the relationship between CPFR and SCP. The paper contributes to the limited studies on CPFR and SCP by extending this line of study into the realm of innovation capability. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to integrate the social exchange theory and the DCT to examine the collaborative processes of CPFR in the supply chain context. As such, this study stressed the importance of boundary theoretical spanning by bringing CPFR and SCP into the domain of innovation capability. The results of this study provide evidence that SCIC is a multidimensional construct that can relate to CPFR to improve the supply chain. This clearly indicates that investment in innovation capability is a strategic option for supply chain partners to pursue.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Despite the importance of collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenishment (CPFR), its influence on supply chain innovation capability (SCIC) and supply chain performance (SCP) has not been sufficiently examined. The purpose of this paper is to examine the antecedence of SCP through CPFR and SCIC.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Through cluster and stratified random sampling, 286 responses from top managers of 1,574 Nigerian manufacturing companies were analyzed. Data analysis was performed using structural equation modeling with AMOS graphics.\nFindings: The results show that SCIC has a full mediating effect on the relationship between CPFR and SCP. Specifically, CPFR has a significant relationship with both SCP and SCIC, and SCIC also relates significantly to SCP.\nPractical implications: This study offers implications for manufacturers in developing countries in general, and in Nigeria in particular, by providing a guideline on how to improve SCP through CPFR.\nOriginality/value: The paper contributes to the limited studies on CPFR and SCP by extending this line of study into the realm of innovation capability and innovation. It integrates the social exchange theory and the dynamic capabilities theory to examine the collaborative processes of CPFR in the supply chain context. This study stressed the importance of boundary theoretical spanning by extending CPFR and SCP into the domain of innovation capability.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The LMRDA. Another labor law that benefits firms?
|
[
"Event studies",
"Labour law",
"Union-management relations"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: It has been demonstrated empirically that the laws governing private-sector Labor Relations in the USA make a difference. The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the major law governing union-management relations in the USA, mostly comprises three different laws passed at different times: the Wagner Act (1935) the Taft-Hartley Act (1947) and the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (1959). Olson and Becker (1990) demonstrated that the Wagner Act (1935) was detrimental to firms, and Abraham (1996) demonstrated that the Taft-Hartley Act was beneficial to firms. This work examines the impact of the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (\"LMRDA\") and assesses whether it benefitted firms, as most would expect[1].\n2. The Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act: This section of the paper chronicles the passage of the LMRDA and discusses the provisions of the law.\n3. Assessing the impact of the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act: 3.1 Event studies\n4. Results and discussion: The results for the three tests are presented in Table III.\nAppendix 1: Methodology\nAppendix 2: Samples[6]\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This paper aims to examine the impact of the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA). It is expected that returns would have increased in response to the law's passage, as it imposed a number of restrictions on unions vis-a-vis management and instituted many rules regulating unions' internal affairs.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This paper uses event study methodology, which examines the impact of the law's passage on the shareholder returns to the firms likely to have been affected by the law. Three different samples are used. Shareholder returns are examined on critical dates associated with the passage of the law to assess whether it benefited the firms in the samples.\nFindings: Shareholder returns to firms expected to have been affected by the LMRDA fell in comparison to their competitors' returns, indicating that the law was viewed by investors as being beneficial for firms. Presumably, the restrictions the law placed on unions were judged to be more important by investors than the improvement in unions' image that might have resulted from the law, indicating that the law benefitted firms.\nOriginality/value: This is the first paper that has examined the impact of the LMRDA empirically to assess its impact on firms.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Thermodynamics and London office property cycles
|
[
"Absorption",
"Property cycles",
"Commercial vacancy",
"Oversupply of space",
"Property cycle duration",
"Property market modelling"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: The paper presents a top-down model of property cycles. When we construct the model, we posit that the market expands when it is supplied with momentum from the financial sector and general economic growth. This energy is turned into demand for space which in turn reduces vacancy and increases rents. We also assume that the amount of energy supplied is finite and becomes exhausted at some later stage. When this tipping point is reached, the market cannot grow any longer and corrects.\n2. Literature review: When one looks at the structural models, an assumption is made that the real effective rent is inversely proportional to the changes in vacancy. When a polynomial is used to model rents, the vacancy is taken with a negative sign to account for this. Otherwise, a product of rents and vacancies is assumed to be a function of other variables. This again, provides for an inverse relationship between vacancy and rents. Smith (1974) provided an empirical support for the inverse proportionality relationship between rents and vacancy.\n3. The model: It is postulated that a real estate cycle comprises the following four phases:\n4. London central - the City of London: The current cycle, and two historic cycles are discussed, spanning from 1993-2003, 2004-2009 and 2009-current.\n5. London Central - Midtown: Three Midtown office cycles are shown: 1993-2003, 2003-2009 and 2010-current.\n6. London Central - Docklands: Three Docklands cycles are shown: 1993-2003, 2004-2009 and 2010-current.\n7. London Central - the West End: Three West End cycles are shown: 1993-2003, 2003-2009 and 2009-current.\n8. Demand-driven rental growth: Let us consider demand-driven real rental changes between Points 1 and 2. If the absorption was to be driven by need for space only, then the real rents between those two points should not change. This is because there is a considerable amount of vacancy present at Point 1, which would be enough to satisfy space requirements of tenants. On a chart with real rents drawn, it would be a horizontal line joining those two points.\n9. Conclusions and policy recommendations: The model utilises techniques developed in thermodynamics to describe the behaviour of property cycles. It is assumed that a property cycle consists of three to four distinct phases, and two turning points which are associated with market shocks. It is observed that the first market shock, resulting from the market having no options, breaks down the relationship between rents and vacancy.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to extend the studies of commercial property cycles by providing a cross-field approach to property markets modelling.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The approach allows for the incorporation of market shocks into the property cycle model as fundamental building blocks; assessment of overall market absorption generated through cyclic activity; and timing estimation of major market events. An ideal model is first constructed, which relies on an observation that a property cycle consists of four distinctive phases. These are described formally through appropriate formulae. Subsequently, it is observed that an analogous cyclic behaviour is described in physics as the Otto cycle. The formulae derived in physics for the Otto cycle are now redefined so to be applicable to the property market.\nFindings: The model has been applied to the London office market, both to the historic and the current data sets. This allowed for the comparison of model predicted absorption and vacancies with the historic records, providing for assessment of the model accuracy. The model predicted that absorption was also compared with historic space supply allowing for estimation of oversupply and resultant vacancies. London office submarkets were analysed and compared to each other, allowing for estimation of their relative attractiveness as perceived by tenants and developers.\nPractical implications: The model may be used to estimate cycle generated absorption; therefore, over and under supply of space due to developers' activity may be assessed. It is also possible to use the model to assess the timing of future market peaks and troughs.\nOriginality/value: This is the first research directly applying the methodology developed in physics to commercial property cycles.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Strategy by degrees: How corporate universities can help companies plan for the future
|
[
"Corporate strategy",
"Germany",
"Education",
"Universities"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Corporate universities date back to the 1950s when General Electric founded \"Crotonville\" to train its managers. They fulfill a broad range of needs from elite \"boot camps\" to training in company procedures and philosophies and there are now over 1,500 of them in the USA. Some even function as adult education colleges for employees. Such diversity makes it hard to generalize but new research from Germany - where corporate universities are relatively new - reveals a new and growing emphasis on strategy process and development. This, in turn, suggests a new and decisive role for the corporate university.\nUnderstanding strategy: Academic thinking on strategy can be broadly divided between content and process: \"what do we need to do?\" and \"how do we decide what we need to do?\" Process is the more complex of the two because it covers not only strategy formulation and target setting but also implementation and monitoring. The complexity of strategy process means researchers have disagreed whether a general model can be found. Some even argue that process is necessarily messier than content and can't be systematized. Deviation becomes the norm.Some researchers now argue that strategy development is a key learning process. Strategies as implemented rarely follow the original strategy planning. This is because companies find that only part of the plan works in practice or that it has to be adapted or discarded due to external pressures from competitors or the market. To put this another way, strategy is an ongoing creative process that cannot be defined simply by setting targets and meeting them. New initiatives can emerge at any time. Planning is therefore only the first part of a continually evolving process.\nStrategy and corporate universities: Corporate universities have really risen to prominence since the late 1980s in the USA and the late 1990s in Europe. This took place at the same time as the huge upsurge of interest in organizational learning. Companies like DaimlerChrysler, Lufthansa and Motorola have invested heavily in this new way of training staff. Corporate universities are now one of the most visible ways of integrating knowledge and everyday business processes.Where a corporate university is established, the parent organization's understanding of both learning and strategy processes changes dramatically. The new focus on collective learning shifts an organization away from top-down strategic planning. The corporate university becomes the means by which learning and strategy process are connected. This tends to happen organically even if a corporate university is not deliberately strategy-oriented.Research has actually identified three main focuses within corporate universities: individual qualification, organizational change, and strategic renewal. These all involve processes of change but only those universities concerned with strategic renewal can be said to be actively involved in strategy development. They focus on dialogue, exploring \"what if\" scenarios and often involve senior management.\nGerman lessons: The new and growing importance of corporate universities in strategy development is confirmed by a 2001 survey for the German Ministry of Education and Research. 1,000 companies were asked what effect corporate universities have on the strategy process and to give their views on why universities were established and what their targets might be. Around 30 per cent replied.The prime motive for establishing a corporate university turned out to be management development but running a very close second was the desire to optimize the implementation of company strategy. This is in marked contrast to the USA where corporate universities focus on increasing productivity through better skills. The difference in focus means that German corporate universities tend to offer equal amounts of traditional training and learning through forums, change workshops and action projects. These newer types of corporate learning parallel established components of the strategy process such as off-site forums, knowledge pooling sessions and scenario workshops.Another key indicator of German corporate universities' strategic focus is that more than two thirds of them target senior management. As this might suggest, German corporate universities are often linked to the board of directors and given high importance. In the USA, they are generally an offshoot of HR. The involvement of the board is another indicator of strategic importance.Finally, German companies were asked to describe differences between traditional training and corporate universities. Nearly 90 per cent gave answers that emphasized strategy, e.g. training safeguards strategy; or, knowledge transfer widens and improves focus on strategy.\nThe future - but not yet: The average age of German corporate universities is only 18 months old, which means it is too early to generalize about their strategic importance. As with any emergent concept, there is likely to be a gap between what people say about how it should work and how it actually works. Several large companies describe their universities as \"strategic innovators\" but it's uncertain whether the universities actually link organizational learning to strategy process. It is also true that in German business generally strategy is still largely a matter of planning and implementation as opposed to ongoing process.However, the rise of the corporate university in Germany and Europe does show that companies have a greater understanding of the strategic importance of organizational learning. A company that makes a commitment to learning will inevitably come to understand that learning is a process and not merely a matter of gaining specific competencies or skills. If organizational learning is to be utilized as a key means of gaining and retaining competitive advantage then it also has to be continuous. These realizations will move learning closer and closer to the strategy process and, in turn, change the function of the corporate university.\nComment: This review is of \"Strategic learning in Germany's largest companies: empirical evidence on the role of corporate universities within strategy processes\" by Heiko Hilse and Alexander T. Nicolai. The article gives detailed accounts of strategy process theory and its own empirical research.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - Reviews the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Scans the top 400 management publications in the world to identify the most topical issues and latest concepts. These are presented in an easy-to-digest briefing of no more than 1,500 words.\nFindings: - Corporate universities date back to the 1950s when General Electric founded \"Crotonville\" to train its managers. They fulfill a broad range of needs from elite \"boot camps\" to training in company procedures and philosophies and there are now over 1,500 of them in the USA. Some even function as adult education colleges for employees. Such diversity makes it hard to generalize but new research from Germany - where corporate universities are relatively new - reveals a new and growing emphasis on strategy process and development. This, in turn, suggests a new and decisive role for the corporate university.\nPractical implications: - Provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.\nOriginality/value: - The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to digest format.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
A framework for responsive health policy and corporate communication
|
[
"Risk assessment",
"Communication",
"Health and safety",
"Corporate communications"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Risk perception concerning public health crisis (PHC) and scares have a variety of sources and phenomena (i.e. GMOs, bovine spongiform encephalitis (BSE), suspicions of radiation from mobile phones, nuclear power, HIV/AIDS, side effects of vaccines, climate change, emerging infectious diseases, including the avian flu). These crisis and/scares oblige people to make decisions about a diversity of safety, health and environmental risks or perceived risks. The diversity of crisis or scares-related news disseminated by news media, at work or at any other context during their daily community and family activities install citizens to make choices citizens based on related information. Yet, that information is not always carefully selected or clearly presented. This paper discusses the development of a systematic approach for risk communicators and technical experts who want to provide accurate information about public health risks in the context of corporate communication practice. The model under conceptual development by the author adapts practical approaches from risk perception and corporate communication to identify the most relevant aspects to be considered on this important public health policy development.The driving forces\nSystemic risk assessment: Determining an acceptable level of risk leaves open the question of how to identify that level. That is the domain of risk reduction and prevention. Major improvements still needed in this domain include reducing the vulnerability and strengthening the resilience of major systems against a variety of hazards.First, improved risk prevention within major systems often entails additional costs that may seem unnecessary. As identified by Benoit and Czerwinski (1997), if governments are faced with fiscal constraints, they may be tempted to reduce spending on activities such as infrastructure maintenance or the training of personnel. That impact may not be felt in the short-term, but over time it can lead to a significantly reduced ability to manage risks and crisis. Especially in public utilities, it is often necessary to clarify the regulatory framework with regard to safety obligations as also argued by Dressel (2001).Second, whether the system in question is a critical infrastructure at risk from terrorist attack, or a public health system confronted with the resurgence of infectious illnesses, an unknown communicable disease, or an ecological system endangered by pollution, a crucial key to successfully reducing risk could well be diversity and a largely decentralised but effective management of the systems themselves.Third, information on risk and safety should be organised at system level. The development of new technologies such as remote sensing can make a considerable contribution to risk prevention by providing early warning of structural weaknesses in dams, transport infrastructures and other key installations. It should be noted that application of these technologies is not widespread and would benefit substantially from efforts to accelerate their diffusion. In this sense, a variety of instruments have been developed to continually assess and monitor risk factors inside complex systems. Living probabilistic safety assessment (L-PSA), for instance, is a dynamic tool developed in the past 15 years in the nuclear industry. The aim of L-PSA is to constantly adapt probabilistic safety assessment models to evolutions in both nuclear power plant features and the relevant risk modelling. The result reflects the measure of risk at a specific time and under specific plant conditions.Fourth and lastly, because of the sheer size of contemporary human systems, efforts at broad-based cooperation and coordination between public and private actors is key. At a time of rapidly changing technologies, practices and market conditions, a major challenge for public health policy is to define, apply and enforce appropriate regulations. As the most centralised modes of risk management are becoming less effective, cooperation with the private sector could make the task easier and increase regulatory effectiveness. Such efforts would seem to stand a better chance of success when they benefit from high-level political backing, or indeed are initiated by political leadership. The USA is a case in point. In response to the findings of a presidential commission, a Presidential Decision Directive (PDD63) on \"Protecting America's critical infrastructures\" was issued in 1998, launching a major interagency initiative (OECD, 2003).Public/private cooperation can also aim at creating win-win situations with regard to risk prevention. For instance, insurers can require, at least as a minimum condition for providing coverage, that safety rules and regulations are respected. By doing so, they benefit from the scale economies of a common system of norms and standards. In turn, regulatory authorities can rely on the insurance sector for enforcement.This, whilst the driving forces identified above clearly place priority on responsive planning, the concepts taken form the dimensions of risk perception, system risk characterisation and systemic risk assessment, allow us to discuss a systematic approach to bridging health policy and corporate communication.Media cooperation\nCrisis communication standards: As also recently reviewed by Coombs (1999), researchers have developed a variety of recommendations for crisis response. The main lines of research are image restoration theory (Benoit, 1997), corporate apologia (Hearit, 2001), impression management (Allen and Cailouet, 1994), and situational crisis communication theory (Coombs and Holladay, 1996). Often the recommendations can appear to be contradictory. This is problematic for crisis managers and executives trying to determine how to effectively apply crisis response strategies. The crisis communication standards (CCS) approach attempt to integrate the various ideas and resolve any inconsistencies.The CCS are based on crisis response strategies being divided into three categories. Instructing information tells stakeholders what to do to protect themselves physically from the effects of the crisis. Instructional strategies would include warnings to stakeholders and directions for how stakeholders should act. Adjusting information helps stakeholders cope psychologically. Adjustment strategies include expressing concern for the victims, explaining what happened, and noting corrective action as soon as it is feasible. Previously, researchers have treated corrective action and expressions of concern as reputation repair crisis response strategies but both fit better as adjusting information. Finally, crisis response strategies can be used to address reputational concerns. Crisis managers maximize the reputational protection by selecting the crisis response strategies that best fit the reputational threat presented by the crisis.Following situational crisis communication theory, the reputational threat is assessed by identifying the crisis type and any history of similar crises. Crisis type is the frame used to interpret the crisis (Lerbinger, 1997). The CCS uses the level of crisis responsibility associated with a crisis to group the crisis types. Perceptions of crisis responsibility is a reputational threat because it is negatively related organizational reputation (Coombs and Holladay, 1996).There are three groups of crises: mild, moderate, and severe reputational threats. Crisis history, whether or not an organization has experienced similar crises, is a direct threat to the organizational reputation. Research has shown that a history of similar crises intensifies the reputational damage of a crisis (Coombs and Holladay, 1996). Still according to Tyler (2005), crisis types and crisis history can be combined to establish the reputational threat of a crisis situation. Identifying the crisis type provides an initial assessment of the reputational threat by indicating the level of crisis responsibility associated with the crisis. The initial assessment is then adjusted if there is a history of similar crises. For instance, a crisis with a mild reputational threat and a history of crises will become a moderate reputational threat. The threat is connected to the selection of crisis response strategies.As noticed by Sturges (1994 in Coombs, 2004, p. 467), the CCS hold that crisis managers must provide instructing and adjusting information before taking any action designed to address reputational concerns. Crisis managers select crisis response strategies based upon the reputational threat of the crisis. Mild reputational threats require only instructing and adjusting information. Moderate reputational threats require diminish strategies. Severe reputational threats demand reinforcing strategies. Deny can be used for rumours or challenges, charges that your organization is acting in an immoral manner. Reinforcing strategies can be used with any crisis.\nDiscussion on a framework for public health crisis management and corporate communication: Having established some principles from the literature review, we now reach the point of presenting a framework for public responsive health policy and corporate communication in the context of health crisis and scares. Table I puts together the dimensions of analysis that sprang from the multidisciplinary analysis undertaken. Resulting from the framework, it is now possible to put forward a clear identification of areas of applied research and theory development.As shown in Figure 2, there are at least six intersections that need to be considered in terms of understanding the diverse sources of influence on public risk perception:1. the intersection of the news media;2. the intersection of government communication;3. the intersection of expert risk characterisation;4. the intersection of corporate communication;5. the intersection government and expert risk characterisation; and6. the intersection between corporate communication and expert risk characterisation.Whilst the intersections 1-4 represent the area of contact between dimensions presented in this framework, they also imply the intersections that affect primarily public risk perception. The intersections 5 and 6 relate to exchanges of information that occur in risk characterisation and they mould, although with different effects, the standpoint of both corporations and governments.In PHC, all six intersections need to be monitored as from each will spring up a diversity of inputs that affect public risk perception and promote responses that whilst unlikely to be coherent may also promote undesirable public behaviours. This is to be explored in a follow up paper.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The paper aims to contribute to the development of a systematic framework of analysis pertaining to the relationship between public health crisis (PHC) and scares and corporate communication practice. It aims to clarify the complex relationship between public health policy development and corporate crisis and risk communication issues.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Literature review in the fields of crisis communication, crisis and risk management and public health policy; the multidisciplinary approach provided principles for a framework of analysis.\nFindings: - The framework proposed identifies fields of intersection between governments, corporations, the media and the experts in the context of risk perception management providing inputs for both public health policy and corporate communication new developments.\nResearch limitations/implications: - The need for further research arises from the identification of the different areas of intersection between governments, corporations, the media and the experts and further elucidation of its dynamics should be pursued.\nOriginality/value: - The framework builds a bridge between disciplines that have not been articulated for the practice inherent in public health and scares-related communication issues. It proposes a multidisciplinary framework of analysis applicable to any type of PHC or scare.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Inter-organizational coordination patterns in buyer-supplier-design agency triads in NPD projects
|
[
"Design",
"New product development",
"Coordination",
"Case study",
"Triads"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: The number of firms that approach external knowledge domains and collaborate with external parties rather than rely solely on their own R\n2. Literature review: 2.1. Supplier involvement and outsourcing design\n3. Research design: Due to the paucity of research examining IOC patterns between buying firms and multiple suppliers of different roles in an NPD setting, we adopted an exploratory approach and used the case study methodology with the goal of theory building (Barratt et al., 2011; Eisenhardt, 1989; Yin, 2009) More specifically, we relied on the multiple, comparative case study design (Dul and Hak, 2008; Yin, 2009) to uncover the similarities and differences in IOC approaches.\n4. Results of the cross-case analysis: The cross-case analysis of the degree of involvement of each party and IOC mechanisms in the triad and IOC mechanisms used such as communication and control (Table II) led to identifying four patterns of buyer-supplier-supplier interaction: buyer as mediator, buyer-designer partnership, designer as integrator, and team design activities. A pattern is defined by the degree of involvement of each member in the triad, the party holding the decision-making authority (locus of control), and communication intensity between the triad members. The four patterns are illustrated in Figure 2. The size of the circles stating the triad members defines the degree of involvement; the smallest size indicates low involvement, mid-size indicates moderate involvement, and the largest size indicates high involvement. The colored circles show the triad member which has the decision-making authority and integrate the other parties (locus of control). The arrows indicate communication intensity. The extent of communication is indicated as low, medium, or high, as illustrated by dashed lines, straight lines, and bold straight lines, respectively.\n5. Discussion: Our findings illustrate that when buying firms outsource design to design agencies and involve other suppliers in these NPD projects, four types of IOC approaches can be adopted: buyer as mediator, buyer-designer partnership, designer as integrator, and team design approach. The results highlight that these four approaches are characterized by patterns of degree of involvement, communication intensity, and locus of control. Surprisingly, we found that the other IOC mechanisms that we examined - formal and informal controls - did not clearly differ among the cases. In addition, the model shows that IOC patterns depend on the combination of project novelty and design approach.\n6. Conclusion: In this paper, we investigated IOC patterns in triads between buying firms, design agencies, and other suppliers in NPD projects. Based on organizational information-processing and resource dependence theories, and using data collected by means of seven multiple-case studies of five design agencies, we proposed a model that outlines the most appropriate IOC pattern, depending on two determinants: project novelty (incremental vs radical) and design approach (user oriented vs design driven). We distinguished among four different triads that fit the four combinations of novelty and design approach: buyer as mediator, buyer-designer partnership, designer as integrator, and team design approach. The results highlighted that these four approaches are characterized by patterns of degree of involvement, communication intensity, and locus of control. Surprisingly, we found that the other IOC mechanism we examined - formal and informal controls - did not clearly differ among the cases.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate inter-organizational coordination (IOC) patterns between the buying firm, design agency, and component supplier in new product development (NPD) projects and to identify the determinants of these approaches.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Seven NPD projects are examined using the multiple-case study method. Data are collected from five design agencies, two buying firms, and two suppliers in Italy and the Netherlands.\nFindings: Building on organizational information-processing and resource dependence theories, and based on the case study findings, four patterns of IOC approaches are proposed: buyer as mediator, buyer-designer partnership, designer as integrator, and team design activities. Two determinants of these approaches are suggested: the degree of novelty of the product/project (radical vs incremental) and the design approach (user oriented vs design driven).\nResearch limitations/implications: Although the NPD projects are chosen from a wide variety of industries, the relatively small number of cases limits generalizability. The four IOC approaches proposed in this study should be tested in wider samples, possibly by means of the survey method.\nPractical implications: The findings suggest that practitioners need to understand the determinants of the different IOC approaches to manage joint NPD projects most effectively. The authors also suggest that practitioners pay attention to the distinct roles of different types of suppliers while deciding on the appropriate coordination mechanisms to adopt. Finally, the results illustrate that buying firms need to consider empowering a supplier in an incremental NPD project if the supplier has a very distinctive capability that does not exist in the buying firm.\nOriginality/value: Previous research primarily focusses on dyadic-level buyer-supplier relationships in NPD projects. In this study, the authors adopt triads as the unit of analysis and specifically focus on cases that involve both component suppliers and design agencies.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
An integrative transformative service framework to improve engagement in a social service ecosystem: the case of He Waka Tapu
|
[
"Social services",
"Māori",
"Transformative service research",
"Hard-to-reach",
"Activity theory",
"Engagement theory"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Recent developments in service research and calls to action (Anderson et al., 2013; Gebauer and Reynoso, 2013; Fisk et al., 2016; Ostrom et al., 2015; Rosenbaum et al., 2011) outline the need to focus service researchers' efforts on improving and enhancing the well-being of service customers (Anderson and Ostrom, 2015). This contemporary movement in the service research discipline focuses on areas such as financial services to reduce one's debts or educational opportunities that improve literacy (Anderson et al., 2013). Furthermore, vulnerable populations have been highlighted as the focal point of attention, for example, alleviating poverty of populations at the bottom of the pyramid (Fisk et al., 2016; Gebauer and Reynoso, 2013) or assisting populations marginalised because of their cultural background or ethnicity (Corus and Saatcioglu, 2015).\nTheoretical framework: Transformative service research\nAn integrative approach: The theories outlined above depict a closeness of the three approaches, especially when employing a common \"co-creation language\". The next sections present an integrative framework for analysis.\nContext for case study: Cultural context: Maori as the indigenous population of New Zealand\nMethodology: Given that relatively little is known about how social services engage with \"hard-to-reach\" clients, this study adopted an exploratory case study approach to examine the utility of the theoretical framework (Yin, 2014). Mixed methods including document analysis and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from April to September 2014 (Table I). Ethics approval for the methodology as well as permission to publish the results from the social service provider were obtained, the latter also received a full report with the findings.\nData collection: A total of 27 semi-structured interviews were undertaken with staff (five), clients (15) and stakeholders (seven), including He Waka Tapu board members, referring services and funding agencies. The interview guidelines were developed, drawing on publically available documents, such as policies, and on the conceptual approach. The guidelines covered topics including who and what the service as a system consists of, what each actor seeks to offer in the service relationship, what each client expects from the service, how the service is understood, configured, negotiated and delivered and what historical and cultural background is necessary to understand how the client-service engagement functions. For an overview of the data collection, see Table I.\nData analysis: Following Miles et al. (2014), the semi-structured interviews were audio-recorded for later transcription. Verbatim notes supplemented audio recordings. Transcripts and notes were entered into Dedoose, version 7.1.3, to be coded thematically. Dedoose (2014) is a cloud-based software used in a range of disciplines, such as in consumer studies, tourism and recreation, branding (Chen, 2016; Flax et al., 2016; Florenthal, 2015; Lieber, 2016; Razani et al., 2016), management and organisational studies (Reinecke and Ansari, 2016), education (Bearman et al., 2016) and healthcare and social work (Akiva and Petrokubi, 2016; Brooks et al., 2011; Farthing, 2014; Hunter and Hollis, 2013; Lakind et al., 2015). Dedoose was designed particularly for the analysis of qualitative and mixed methods data and, due to the cloud-based nature, for the use of team research (Lieber, 2016) with team members dispersed across time and space (Moylan et al., 2015). Due to combining research streams of service research and social work and the fact that team members were spread out across New Zealand, Dedoose was deemed a suitable computer-assisted qualitative data analysis software (CAQDAS) package for the research project and a software which has proven suitable for the New Zealand context (Neely et al., 2016).\nFindings: Engagement in the client activity system\nDiscussion: Practical implications\nConclusion and future research: The concept of the growing research field of TSR (Anderson et al., 2013) was combined with CHAT (Engestrom, 2015), which has already found a pathway into service research (Mickelsson, 2013), as well as with RET (Higgins and Scholer, 2009), to create a framework for investigation of social service co-creation to improve well-being. A case study approach was chosen to investigate the indigenous social service provider, He Waka Tapu. Findings have indicated inhibitors as well as enablers of service co-creation when applying the integrative research framework to He Waka Tapu. Yet, some limitations have to be kept in mind. The above analysis represented in Figure 3 sits in a historical/political context. Significant health, social and economic disparities have arisen between Maori and non-Maori due to colonisation, institutional racism and poverty (i.e. the co-destruction of value or well-being) and kaupapa Maori social services are facilitating a recovery, revitalisation and restoration of whanau well-being. Within this historical/political context, a richer analysis then needs to not only understand the past and present, but also future trajectories of these interacting activity systems. Further, the findings might not be readily transferable to other contexts, such as other ethnicities, social service scenarios or other well-being settings.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This study aims to understand the engagement between an indigenous social service provider and marginalised clients deemed \"hard-to-reach\" to gain an insight into how to improve the client's engagement and well-being through transformative value co-creation.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The exploratory study's findings draw on primary data employing a qualitative research approach through document analysis and in-depth interviews with clients, social workers and stakeholders of the focal social service provider in New Zealand.\nFindings: The findings indicate that there are inhibitors and enablers of value or well-being co-creation. The lack of client resources and a mismatch between client and social worker are primary barriers. Other actors as well as cultural practices are identified as enablers of well-being improvement.\nResearch limitations/implications: This research reports on a single social service provider and its clients. These findings may not be readily transferrable to other contexts.\nPractical implications: Findings indicate that social service providers require a heightened awareness of the inhibitors and enablers of social service co-creation.\nSocial implications: Both the integrative framework and the findings provide a sound critique of the prevailing policy discourse surrounding the stigmatisation of members of society deemed \"hard-to-reach\" and the usefulness of such an approach when aiming at resolving social issues.\nOriginality/value: This is the first exploratory study that reports on the engagement between a social service provider and its clients in a dedicated Maori (indigenous) context by employing an integrative research approach combining transformative service research, activity theory and engagement theory.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Buying CSR with employees' pensions? The effect of social responsible investments on Norwegian SMEs' choice of pension fund management: A conjoint survey
|
[
"Corporate social responsibility",
"Small- to medium-sized enterprises",
"Conjoint analysis",
"Pension funds",
"Corporate brand credibility",
"Social responsible investments"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: When companies choose investment managers to manage pension funds for their employees, the employees might expect that their employers would emphasize the financial aspects in their choice, because pension fund value largely affects the employees' pensions. However, in practice, the company's choice may not be as obvious. Companies meet pressure from external stakeholders as well, to include moral considerations in addition to financial aspects in their investment decisions (Jansson and Biel, 2011; Jensen, 2002; Sparkes and Cowton, 2004). Therefore, companies might care about appearing social responsible toward the public and avoiding association with unethical business partners (Biong et al., 2010). Hence, managers may emphasize social responsibility (SR) in addition to expected returns when investing their employees' deposits to build their companies' reputation as being good and responsible (Jansson and Biel, 2011; Renneboog et al., 2008b). This priority might be attractive since the employees, not the company, bear the financial risks of the deposit investments.\n1. Theoretical framework and hypotheses: Pension funds assure employees' future income for a long period (Sievanen et al., 2013). Hence, balancing expected return and costs while reducing personal and organizational risk should prevail in pension fund choice (Hofmann et al., 2007). For example, a survey shows that a majority of Norwegian employees will emphasize expected return on their occupational pension deposits rather than ethical and SRIs (Ditlev-Simonsen and Wenstop, 2014). Similarly, Jansson and Biel (2011) found that private investors were significantly less positive regarding short- and long-term returns of SRI than institutional investors. On the other hand, there are investors who choose SRI as a way to maximize financial return as well as social impact (Jansson and Biel, 2011; Jansson et al., 2014; Sievanen et al., 2013).\n2. Method: 2.1 Research context and sampling frame\n3. Results: 3.1 Main effects\n4. Discussion - implications: Our findings show that when Norwegian SMEs would choose pension fund management for investment of their employees' pension deposits, the fund managers' SRI offering stands out as the most important choice criterion, followed by the pension fund management's corporate brand credibility. Expected return and fees are less important. In contrast, a survey among Norwegian employees show that they prefer return rather than ethics in their own pension investments (Ditlev-Simonsen and Wenstop, 2014). Similarly, Jansson and Biel (2011) found that private investors had significantly less positive perceptions of financial returns of SRI than institutional investors and investment institutions. Do these findings imply that the employers invest their employees' pensions contrary to the employees' best interests? The answer is not clear-cut. Empirical studies of the financial performance of SRI funds compared to conventional funds are mixed. SRI funds can do better, similar or worse than conventional funds and SRI can be a rational investment strategy (e.g. Berk and Green, 2004; Peylo, 2014; Renneboog et al., 2008a). Therefore, the company managers may implicitly assume that the SRI investments also would provide a satisfactory return. Unfortunately, the conjoint method assumes the SRI and expected return factors to be non-correlated, so further analysis of the data will not provide additional insight. On the other hand, extant research shows that employees and private persons find pension issues difficult and confusing. Generally, they do not make active pension investment choices, or they are not well informed about the consequences of their pension investments or how their employers invest their pensions, so they have to trust others (e.g. Harrison et al., 2006; Hauff, 2014; Jansson et al., 2014). In our pre-study we found that the vast majority of the SME's in the population choose a moderate risk profile for all employees, despite press articles from pension experts suggesting that younger employees should choose a more offensive and that older employees should choose a more cautious profile. The findings from the pre-study indicate that at least some of the employees might be better off by choosing a different risk profile. Therefore, it might be relevant to ask the question of whether the company managers' choice priorities are in line with the employees' preferences.\n5. Conclusions: Research indicates that a majority of employees and private SRI mutual fund owners prefer return rather than ethics for their investments (Ditlev-Simonsen and Wenstop, 2014; Nilsson, 2009). Conversely, our study shows that the employers' emphasize SRI at the expense of expected return and costs when choosing management for their employees' pension funds. The employers' SRI preferences might be consistent with achievement of satisfactory return but may also be influenced by expectations from external stakeholders to appear as good and responsible managers. Since the employees' pension deposits are costless to the company, this investment strategy may be even more attractive, although employees' pensions can suffer. However, empirical studies on the performance of SRI compared to conventional funds show mixed results. Therefore, if CSR improves a company's competitiveness and secure the employees' workplace as some studies indicate, and the employees are fully aware of the firm's values and strategies, the company's practice might serve the employees' long-term interests (Chun et al., 2013; Jensen, 2002). Still, unless the employees are not fully informed of the consequences of their employers' investment choices the ethics of their employers' practices might be questionable and the employees may pay the price of their employer's ethicality with their pension deposits.\n6. Limitations and further research: Although SRI stands out as the most important factor for the companies' choice of pension fund management, one limitation is that the importance weights depend on the number of factors and the specific factor levels in the study, as in all conjoint studies.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Employees often expect an emphasis on financial aspects to be predominant when their employers choose a fund management company for the investment of employees' pension fund deposits. By contrast, in an attempt to appear as socially responsible company managers may emphasize social responsibility (SR) in pension fund choices. The purpose of this paper is to examine to what extent managers for small- and medium-sized companies emphasize SR vs expected returns when choosing investment managers for their employees' pension funds.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A conjoint experiment among 276 Norwegian SMEs' decision makers examines their trade-offs between social and financial goals in their choice of employees' pension management. Furthermore, the study examines how the companies' decision makers' characteristics influence their pension fund management choices.\nFindings: The findings show that the employers placed the greatest weight to suppliers providing funds adhering to socially responsible investment (SRI) practices, followed by the suppliers' corporate brand credibility, the funds' expected return, and the suppliers' management fees. Second, employers with investment expertise emphasized expected returns and downplayed SR in their choice, whereas employers with stated CSR-strategies downplayed expected return and emphasized SR.\nOriginality/value: Choice of supplier to manage employees' pension funds relates to a general discussion on whether companies should do well - maximizing value, or do good, - maximizing corporate SR. In this study, doing well means maximizing expected returns and minimizing costs of the pension investments, whereas doing good means emphasizing SRI in this choice. Unfortunately, the employees might pay a price for their companies' ethicality as moral considerations may conflict with maximizing the employees' pension fund value.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Communicative leadership: Fostering co-worker agency in two Swedish business organizations
|
[
"Communication",
"Leadership",
"Discourse",
"Co-worker agency",
"Communicative leadership",
"Discursive leadership"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Communication is inextricably linked to the enactment of leadership, as Barge and Hirokawa (1989, p. 172) emphasize: \"leadership occurs through the process of interaction and communication.\" During the past decade, communication lenses to the study of leadership have emerged, in which researchers focus on the socially co-constructed, relational, and discursive aspects of leadership (Fairhurst and Connaughton, 2014; Kramer and Crespy, 2011; Fairhurst, 2007). Departing from research traditions focussing on traits, styles or charisma of individual leaders, leadership is considered a relational phenomenon, co-constructed in the social interactions among people acting in context (Fairhurst and Uhl-Bien, 2012). It is constructed in the organizational and macro-social contexts in which it occurs, and shaped by structures, cultures, and processes as well as individual actors (Barge and Fairhurst, 2008; Fairhurst and Grant, 2010; Johansson, 2003).\nLeadership as a relational and discursive process: This study examines leaders' and co-workers' discursive constructions of leadership. We view leadership as a relational, and discursive process, which is constructed in organizational, social, and temporal contexts (Fairhurst, 2007; Tourish, 2014). A relational view on leadership implies that leadership occurs in the interactions among people acting in context, and is not just a trait or behavior of an individual leader (Fairhurst and Uhl-Bien, 2012). While relational leadership research has developed richly in fields such as management, psychology, sociology, and others (for extensive reviews, see Dinh et al., 2014; Fairhurst and Connaughton, 2014; Schedlitzki and Edwards, 2014), our study adopts both a relational as well as a discursive understanding of leadership, which considers that it is co-constructed in social interactions (Fairhurst and Grant, 2010). According to Fairhurst and Uhl-Bien (2012), a discourse perspective and associated forms of organizational discourse analyses offer means to studying leadership as a relational, interactional, and contextual process. A discursive approach seeks to understand how individuals make sense of unfolding conversations through constructing meaning and avoids conceptualizing leadership as being a set of traits or qualities of the leader alone (e.g. Cunliffe and Eriksen, 2011; Uhl-Bien, 2006; Uhl-Bien et al., 2012). Instead, it considers how communicative interactions between leader and member negotiate direction and meaning (Fairhurst and Grant, 2010).\nLeadership discourse and agency in social and cultural contexts: A discourse perspective brings forward how leadership is rooted in power and culture, demonstrates how leadership actors impact and are subject to the context, and gives leadership actors the power to define their situation (Fairhurst and Uhl-Bien, 2012). For example, Fairhurst (2007, p. 14) theorized how studies of leadership discourses allow the study of \"the reflexive agency\" of leadership actors. That is, the flow of leadership actors' discourse organizes action and impacts the interaction context, which further enables and constrains individuals' agency (Barge and Little, 2008). Agency, defined as a capacity to act, thus, is discursively created in interaction, and not only in the hands of leaders (Tourish, 2014). Empirical studies on leadership discourse have focussed on framing and footing (Fairhurst, 1993, 2005; Johansson, 2003); other themes include leadership as a distributed process (Clifton, 2012), and issues of agency and control (Hall, 2011). Examining discursive constructions of leadership allows us to attend to both leaders' and co-workers' roles in leadership exchanges. In doing so, leader/follower dualisms that attribute too much agency to leaders can be avoided.\nCommunicative leadership: The concept of communicative leadership originated in Swedish business organizations in the 1990s (Hogstrom et al., 1999). The most well-known organization that implemented it is Volvo Group, which has evaluated leaders' communication practices via a communicative leadership index since 2002, due to its positive effects on organizational performance, particularly employee well-being and engagement (Nordblom and Hamrefors, 2007). The index is an important part of leadership training. In practice, the term communicative leadership ascribes a positive notion to leaders' communication abilities and conveys that \"communicative\" leaders are better communicators and achieve better results than leaders who are not very communicative. As a consequence, Volvo, among other organizations, invests in leader communication training and develops programs to foster leader communication skills.\nMethodology: We selected two long-standing Swedish manufacturing organizations that include communication modules in their leader development programs and regularly evaluate leader communication, for the purpose of revealing richer findings than by examining a single organization.\nFindings: This study employed a discursive leadership lens (Fairhurst, 2007) to analyze our research questions:\nDiscussion and implications: These findings support and expand theoretical conceptualizations of leadership as a relational and discursive process in which communicative behaviors enable and constrain the agency of both leaders and co-workers differently in organizational, social, and cultural contexts (Fairhurst, 2007; Tourish, 2014).\nConclusion: We conclude that leaders' and co-workers' understandings and experiences of communicative leadership expressed as discursive constructions in the interviews, emphasized that communicative leadership processes enhance co-worker agency; these include facilitating autonomy, sharing responsibility, and mutual participation. Relational processes such as responsiveness and dialogue were seen to enhance mutual participation in both organizations. The leader/co-worker relationship was shaped by broader Swedish cultural macro discourses and influences and thus agency was not solely an individual phenomenon.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to enhance the knowledge of how leadership concepts are embraced by leadership actors and perceived to influence relationships between leaders and co-workers. Specifically, the authors aim to investigate how leaders and co-workers discursively construct the concept of \"communicative leadership\" and its practices and perceive that communicative leadership influences relationships, work processes, and agency.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors analyzed interviews with leaders and co-workers in two Swedish business organizations about their understandings and experiences of leadership.\nFindings: Communicative processes that enhance co-worker agency, defined as a capacity to act; include: facilitating autonomy, sharing responsibility, and mutual participation. Relational and discursive leadership processes such as responsiveness and dialogue were seen to enhance mutual participation in both organizations. Broader Swedish cultural macro discourses shaped the leader/co-worker relationship, making agency a relational accomplishment rather than an individual phenomenon.\nResearch limitations/implications: This study relies on data from individual and focus group interviews, rather than direct observation of leadership processes.\nPractical implications: Findings suggest that organizations would benefit from making explicit their goals and expectations for communicative leadership in their respective social and cultural contexts.\nOriginality/value: The authors provide new theoretical and empirical knowledge of leaders' and co-workers' discursive construction of a leadership concept; leadership communication research in the Swedish context; empirical research on communicative leadership as an empowering form of leadership communication; and how leadership communication discourse on a micro level is connected to organizational and macro-social cultural levels.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention: The effects of goal orientation, organizational learning culture and developmental feedback
|
[
"Learning organizations",
"Career development",
"Job satisfaction",
"Employee turnover"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: For an organization to have a sustained competitive advantage in the product and labor market, it needs highly committed and engaged employees. Recently, many firms try to become an employer of choice, which refers to an organization that outperforms their competition in attracting, developing, and retaining people with business-required talent (Joo and McLean, 2006). Recently, managers and researchers in diverse fields have been interested in employees' turnover intention (Lambert et al., 2001). The turnover issue has long been a critical organizational issue. Turnover intention has been emphasized as an important factor for the financial performance of organizations (Lambert et al., 2001) and has been influenced by diverse variables in organizations. For example, Mobley et al. (1979) proposed four core antecedents of employee turnover including demographic characteristics influencing a person's decision, job satisfaction, work environment factors, and turnover intention.With regards to turnover, what predicts organizational commitment and career satisfaction has been an important research agenda in the field of human resource development (HRD) and organization development (OD). Organizational commitment is one of the predictors of turnover intention (Arnold and Feldman, 1982; Hollenbeck and Williams, 1986). Organizational commitment refers to an individual's feelings about the organization as a whole. It has become more important than ever in understanding employee behavior because it is identified as more stable and less subject to daily fluctuations than job satisfaction (Angle and Perry, 1983; Mowday et al., 1982). Career satisfaction is another major factor that determines turnover. Career satisfaction is commonly assessed as a subjective career success that is defined by the individual's satisfaction with their career accomplishments (Judge et al., 1995). Significant predictors of career satisfaction include goal-specific environmental supports and resources, which provide social and material supports for employee's personal goals (Barnett and Bradley, 2007).In the field of HRD and OD, career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention are frequently used variables for satisfaction, performance, change, and innovation. Although there are diverse studies exploring the relationships among career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention (Lambert et al., 2001; Shields and Ward, 2001), little research has been conducted, focusing on the common antecedents of three variables simultaneously to reflect the dynamics in organizations. For example, while a few studies have examined relationships among organizational learning culture, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment (Wang, 2005; Xie, 2005), little research examining goal orientation, organizational learning culture, and developmental feedback within one study as antecedents of career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention has been found.In addition, many studies on career satisfaction and organizational commitment have focused on leadership, rather than organizational climate and personal characteristics. Even if several studies have included organizational and personal factors influencing career satisfaction and organizational commitment, these factors are related to demographic information such as organizational size (Mathieu and Zajac, 1990) and socio demographic status (Ng et al., 2005). Based on these findings, we have considered more influential factors in organizational and personal level to distinguish previous research, still maintaining leadership factor for career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention. Through this process and literature review, organizational learning culture, goal orientation, and developmental feedback are selected as organizational, personal, and leadership factors, respectively. Goal orientation, one of the personal characteristics, is an important individual factor relevant to learning, motivation, and performance (Kozlowski et al., 2001). Goal orientation could be explored through integrated perspectives with goal setting, performance feedback, and work role innovation (Farr et al., 1993). Organizational learning culture and developmental feedback would be the contextual components (related to organization and leadership) to enhance career satisfaction and organizational commitment. Organizational learning culture refers to \"an organization skilled at creating, acquiring, and transferring knowledge, and at modifying its behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights\" (Garvin, 1993, p. 80). Supervisor developmental feedback provides valuable information to employees and enables the employees to learn, develop, and make improvements on the job (Zhou, 2003).The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of personal characteristics (i.e. goal orientation) and contextual characteristics (i.e. organizational learning culture and developmental feedback) on employees' career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention. The theoretical contribution of this study lies in its inclusive approach encompassing both personal and contextual factors. Another contribution is that it links organizational commitment research with organizational learning and career research. The research question of this study was:RQ. What is the relationship between organizational culture, goal orientation, and developmental feedback and three attitudinal variables (i.e. career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention), respectively?This paper is divided into four parts. The first part provides a theoretical framework and hypotheses. Then, research methods including data collection and measures are described. The next part summarizes the research findings, based on hierarchical multiple regression analyses. Finally, the implications, limitations, and future research areas will be discussed.\nTheoretical framework and hypotheses: Based on the comprehensive literature review, a set of constructs was selected: goal orientation for personal characteristics and, organizational learning culture and developmental feedback for contextual characteristics. As mentioned earlier, these constructs are considered necessary for influencing career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention.Career satisfaction\nMethods: Sample and data-collection procedure will be described. Then, the information about six measures will be elaborated below. Finally, the analytical strategy will be briefly discussed.Sample and data-collection procedure\nResults: The results of the study are reported in two parts. First, the descriptive statistics, correlations, and reliabilities of the reduced measurement model analyses were reported. Second, the hierarchical multiple regression models were tested and the results of the hypothesis testing were addressed. Descriptive statistics, correlations, reliabilities, and hierarchical multiple regression analysis were conducted, using SPSS 16.0.Descriptive statistics, correlations, and reliabilities\nDiscussion and conclusion: The findings of this study are discussed on the basis of the hypothesized model, with comparisons to previous research. Then, we will discuss the implications of this study for research and practice in the field of HRD and OD. Next, the limitations of this study and recommendations for future research are discussed. Finally, some conclusions follow.Discussions\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of personal characteristics (goal orientation) and contextual characteristics (organizational learning culture and developmental feedback) on employees' career satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Subjects were drawn from four Fortune Global 500 companies in Korea. Descriptive statistics and hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to explain the variance in outcome variables.\nFindings: - The results indicate that career satisfaction is predicted by organizational learning culture and performance goal orientation. Organizational learning culture, developmental feedback, and learning goal orientation are the significant predictors of organizational commitment. Finally, organizational learning culture, career satisfaction, and organizational commitment turn out to be the predictors of turnover intention.\nPractical implications: - By enhancing organizational learning culture and by considering goal orientation, human resource development/organization development practitioners could play important roles in improving organizational commitment, in career satisfaction, and in decreasing turnover.\nOriginality/value: - The theoretical contribution of this paper lies in its inclusive approach encompassing both the personal and contextual factors (such as organizational learning, leadership, and personality) on career and organizational commitment research. It is an interesting finding that while performance goal is associated with career satisfaction, learning goal orientation is related with organizational commitment.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The cross-cultural validity of the Learning-Centered Leadership framework and its assessment instrument for principals
|
[
"Assessment",
"Cross-cultural comparison",
"Evaluation",
"School leadership",
"Validation study"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The belief that there are general and common elements in contemporary, international education policy (Ball, 1998; Brown and Lauder, 1996) has brought growing interest in sharing leadership theories and successful models of effective schools cross-culturally. Such interests are particularly strong from countries that are at the beginning stage of establishing a knowledge base for school leadership development (Chu, 2003; Hallinger, 2011; Hallinger et al., 2005; Walker et al., 2012).\nBackground and literature: The changing role of school principals in China today\nMethod and data: Methodological challenges of validating conceptual constructs across cultures\nResults: Face validity and content validity - detesting the \"reality gap\"\nDiscussion: The extent and the depth of this study were limited, partially due to time and resource constraints, partially due to the exploratory nature of the work and some insights were only gained post facto. Findings of this paper provide opportunities for future research to further explore the possibility of adapting the LCL framework and the assessment instrument theoretically and empirically.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to select a theoretical framework for effective school leadership that is connected with research, standards and current practices in the USA, and examine its validity and generalizability cross-culturally.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The paper uses both qualitative and quantitative methods through expert panel evaluation, cognitive interviews, and field testing of the instrument. The author asks: How well does the Learning-Centered Leadership (LCL) framework align with the professional standards and current practices of principals in urban Chinese schools in the opinion of the experts? Is there evidence that its leadership assessment instrument has construct validity in Chinese urban schools based on the re-examination of its content and measurement criteria? And is there evidence that the instrument is yielding consistent results when taken by the intended participants? How effective are the analytic strategies employed by this study in detecting the equivalences and discrepancies in how educational leadership is defined and evaluated, between two vastly different educational systems?\nFindings: The paper finds evidences that give support to the claim that there is strong cross-cultural alignment on the overarching goal of improving student learning. However, the US framework and assessment will need to be modified to reflect the Chinese reform priorities that emphasize the balance between academic and social learning.\nOriginality/value: The belief that there are common elements in contemporary international educational policy has brought growing interest in sharing leadership theories and successful models cross-culturally. This paper addresses the challenges in understanding the complexity of cross-cultural translation of theories and applications, and explores viable solutions to meaningful adaptation.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
An Indonesian model of successful school leadership
|
[
"Education",
"Islam",
"Principals",
"Indonesia"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Considering the importance of the principal's roles in school success, Day et al. (2000) explicitly studied successful head-teachers in successful schools in England. They developed a valued-based contingency school leadership model, which will be described later in this article. Building upon this study, the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP) was formed, with researchers in eight different countries (Australia, Canada, Denmark, China (Hong Kong), England, Norway, Sweden, and the USA) conducting multiple-perspective case studies and surveys concerning successful school principals (Leithwood, 2005).While it is acknowledged that the contexts of both country and school might be influential in shaping the principals' leadership characteristics and practices, the ISSPP, unfortunately, has been mainly concerned with school leadership in Western and Scandinavian contexts, with Asia represented by cases studies from China. Relatively few studies on school leadership have been conducted in Asian schools with fewer still available in English (e.g. Cheng, 1996; Hallinger and Heck, 1998; Wong, 2005). This lack of information about Asian and other contexts of school leadership may limit our understanding of a worldview of school leadership, and more particularly of successful school leadership. This article, therefore, is focused on characteristics and practices of principals' leadership in successful schools in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It also develops a model of Indonesian successful school leadership.\nSuccessful school leadership from the ISSPP perspectives: Leithwood et al. (see Geisjel et al., 2003; Leithwood and Duke, 1999; Leithwood and Jantzi, 2000; Leithwood and Riehl, 2003; Yu et al., 2002), after conducting a series of studies on school leadership, proposed a core set of basic leadership practices which are valuable in almost all school contexts. Three key practices are found in this core set:1. setting directions includes building a shared vision, developing consensus about goals and priorities, and creating high performance expectations;2. developing people includes providing individualized support, offering intellectual stimulation, and modeling important values and practices; and3. redesigning the organization includes building a collaborative culture, creating and maintaining shared decision-making structures and processes, and building relationships with parents and the wider community.The core set of basic school leadership practices supports Hallinger and Heck's (1998) proposal for school conditions through which leadership may exercise its influence. These conditions include purposes and goals, school structure and social networks, people and organizational culture.As indicated earlier, the ISSPP was inspired by Day et al.'s (2000) work on school leadership in the UK contexts. From this study, Day et al. developed a model of \"values-led contingency leadership\", which includes dimensions of values and vision, integrity, context, continuing professional development, and reflection (Day et al., 2000). In comparison to the previous research of MacBeath et al. (1998), Day et al. (2000, p. 165) suggested that their findings revealed a distinct characteristic, that is, \"good leaders are informed by, and communicate, clear sets of personal and educational values, which represent their moral purposes for the school\".\"A contemporary model of educational leadership\" developed by Gurr et al. (2003, p. 33) confirmed the findings of Leithwood et al. (2000, 1999, 2003), Hallinger and Heck (1998), MacBeath et al. (1998), and Day et al. (2000) regarding successful school leadership practices. This model, which was developed in a study of Victorian school leadership as part of the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP), maintains that successful school leaders intervene in a variety of school aspects. These include interventions that either directly or indirectly influence the students' outcomes. \"Teaching and learning\" is believed to have a direct influence on \"students' outcomes\", and \"teaching and learning\" is directly influenced by \"school capacity\". \"School capacity\" is affected by some \"other influences\" including the policies and program of external organizations, organizational characteristics, community resources, stakeholders and the social and economic landscape. These \"other influences\", according to Gurr et al. (2003) vary with the contextual variations of schools.Support for the above findings was also provided by a study on Tasmanian successful school principalship by Mulford and Johns (2004). This study, also part of the ISSPP, found that the principals' personal set of beliefs and values was the basis for their leadership practices. These beliefs and values led the principals in their decisions and actions regarding support and capacity building provided for both individual people in the school and the schools as organizations that include in themselves the elements of school culture and structure. Also, the successful school principalship was concluded to be an interactive, reciprocal and evolving process which involves many players, and which is influenced by and, in turn, influences the context in which it occurs (Mulford and Johns, 2004, p. 56). Furthermore, the findings support a claim made in most school leadership research that successful school leadership facilitates the attainment of student achievement through the provision of better school conditions (e.g. Leithwood and Reihl, 2003). This indirect relationship is able to create the quality curriculum and instruction, which, in turn, achieve better student outcomes.From the above review of the literature, propositions about successful school leaders are drawn in that they demonstrate ability in:* analyzing the school contexts and situations both internal and external to school;* visioning and setting strategies;* having strong personal and professional values and respecting and aligning others' personal and professional values;* developing strong teaching-learning characteristics including curriculum and instruction;* fostering professional development of themselves and staff through methods such as intellectual stimulation, providing individualized support and modeling;* redesigning the organization including identifying and creating and/or changing the school cultures and modifying organizational structures; and* building collaborative cultures in which the high involvement of the school's other stakeholders in the decision-making processes is exercised.\nThe Yogyakarta case studies: Indonesian school context\nSuccessful school leadership: an Indonesian model: The findings of this study presented and discussed in the following sub-sections were based on emerging themes drawn from the interviews with all the aforementioned respondents. The major themes of the principals' leadership characteristics and practices include defining school success; holding enduring beliefs and values; analyzing contexts; developing vision and strategies; building school capacity; and establishing broader collaboration.1. Defining school success\nEstablishing broader collaboration: Each of the principals showed the ability to promote and establish collaboration and partnerships with not only the immediate school community members, but also broader communities. This ability was congruent with the nature of school-based management in which school principals are given more freedom in making decisions about their school affairs (Caldwell and Spinks, 1998; Mohrman and Wohlstetter, 1994). Examples of networks built by the principals were those with universities and other educational institutions. These also included partnerships with companies that provided funds in the form of scholarships for students. In SMAN C, the top ten graduates received scholarships from a Singaporean university to continue their studies at postgraduate level.\nSummary: To summarize, in this study a model of successful school leadership in the context of Indonesia was developed, which is drawn directly from the findings and based also on the investigator's reflections on the data and the relevant literature. In this model there are four clusters of school leadership process. Clusters I A, B, and C are the foundations of the principals' leadership, as shown in Figure 1, with which they underpinned their leadership activities. As well, these foundations existed as factors overwhelming other subsequent leadership practices. Cluster II indicates the leadership functions of promoting and developing a shared vision, establishing high expectations, and setting directions. As indicated in Figure 1, besides being underpinned by the three foundations, the vision component inspired other leadership functions and activities pictured in Clusters III A, B, C, and D. These four clusters respectively included setting pre-conditional, academic, non-academic, and evaluative strategies; building personal and professional capacities; building school organizational capacities; and creating school networks, collaboration, and partnerships. As shown in Figure 1, these activities had close and reciprocal relationships with one other and other components of leadership, such as leadership outcomes. The leadership outcomes of the principals are put in Cluster IV, which included student outcomes and school outcomes. Overall, the principals based their leadership on the firm foundations from which their vision and strategies were generated. They were able to transform their schools to become better places for students to experience learning. More importantly, they had the ability to enhance the continuous improvement of their students and their schools.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - This paper seeks to explore principals' leadership in successful Indonesian secondary schools from the perspectives of multiple sources of data.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Inspired by the ISSPP, three schools which met the set criteria of successful schools were selected to be the cases for this study. Within each, individual or group interviews were conducted with the principal, vice-principal, three teachers, one support staff member, two groups of students, one group of parents, and the school committee president. The collected data were transcribed, coded and categorized following the emerging themes, and interpreted using inductive and deductive methods.\nFindings: - Whilst confirming several common practices of successful school leadership from earlier research, the principals from the three successful schools in Yogyakarta also demonstrated significant differences, particularly in terms of beliefs and values that underpinned their leadership. These values include Islamic and cultural beliefs and values which were strong and enduring, and which were articulated in the school leadership and strategies. The principals demonstrated ability in developing the school vision, setting strategies, building capacity, and establishing a broader network to achieve the benefits of school improvement.\nOriginality/value: - The paper provides an insight into school leadership practices in the Asian context, particularly in Indonesian Muslim schools, which have suffered from a lack of attention from international researchers. The paper will also contribute to a worldview of successful school leadership characteristics and practices, the research into which has been piloted in the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP).\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Finding eWOM customers from customer reviews
|
[
"Word-of-mouth",
"Sentiment analysis",
"Text mining",
"Online customer review",
"Product sales"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Enabled by Web 2.0 technologies, social media provide an unparalleled platform for consumers to share their product experiences and opinions through word-of-mouth (WOM). With this platform, WOM is generated in unprecedented impacts on firm strategies and consumer purchase behavior. Online customer reviews that act as a part of WOM marketing (Duan et al., 2008) provide an alternative and effective marketing channel for firms to advertise their products with low marketing costs. Previous studies affirmed that customer reviews have impacts on product sales and that different features in customer reviews will influence firms' product sales in different ways (Liu, 2006; Ghose and Ipeirotis, 2011; Chevalier and Mayzlin, 2003). The literature confirms that some types of WOM information tend to be more diagnostic than others (Herr et al., 1991; Mizerski, 1982).\n2. Literature review: 2.1 Review mining and sentiment analysis\n3. Models and methodology: Our literature review has revealed that the community is considerably paying attention to the quantitative measures of consumer-generated product reviews and their influences on product sales (Chen and Xie, 2008; Li et al., 2011; Ghose and Ipeirotis, 2011). Whilst a considerable amount of research has been available on WOM in social media and its implication for business intelligence and e-commerce applications, the early attempts in this area mainly focus on exploring the relationship between customer reviews and product sales (Reinstein and Snyder, 2005; Archak et al., 2011; Liang et al., 2015). Little attention has been paid to understand the relationship between reviewers and product sales.\n4. Empirically study and results: We use a longitudinal data set collected from an e-commerce company to empirically validate our proposed method. We initially describe our data set and then use the data set to identify eWOM customers based on their online reviews and product sales information. Finally, a logistic regression model is used to evaluate the results.\n5. Business application of our method: Customer segmentation is an important issue in customer relationship management (CRM) and has been studied by many researchers. Traditionally, studies on customer segmentation segmented customers based on customers' purchase behavior. The recency, frequency and monetary model and customer lifetime value (CLV) model are generally used to measure customers' purchase value. However, customers' value is much more than purchasing. He and Yan's (2015) mining blogs and online forums to analyze the effect that social media has on customer co-creation and point that integrating social media data with the traditional customer data in the CRM system is becoming necessary. Customers are cheap and efficient channels for firms' advertising, and customers' WOM value comprises an important part of CLV. Regardless of the importance of customers' WOM behavior, observing customers' WOM behavior in traditional marketing is difficult for firms. Our method provides a way to help firms overcome this problem, and by combining our method with previous customer segmentation method, firms can understand customers' value specifically. After segmenting customers concretely, firms can establish different strategies to encourage customer engagement. For example, the firm can improve its product sales based on our results. First, our method provides the firm with the eWOM customers that have strong influence on product sales. And then the firm can utilize this information to manipulate the presentation of reviews. Second, the firm can sell the product at a big discount price or give product with no charge to the eWOM customers to stimulate the reviews. This strategy is more effective in the early-to-market by present proper reviews before officially listed. Here, we propose a framework for customer segmentation based on our method and previous study. Figure 6 shows the new framework of customer segmentation. Customers buy products and make online reviews on websites. On the basis of customers' transactional data, in our research, we have calculated the net present value of each customer:\n6. Conclusion and limitation: In this study, a framework is proposed to identify eWOM customers from customer reviews. The framework initially uses the text mining and sentiments analysis technique to analyze the content of consumer-generated product reviews. Subsequently, we categorize the available information from the reviews into four types of features, namely, basic, stylistic, semantic and lexical features, and then we adopt the correlation-based filter method to understand the influence of text-based features on product sales and select the feature subset that has predictive power. On the basis of the selected features, to identify eWOM customers from all of reviewers, we employ constrained clustering methods which expand classical clustering methods by integrating background knowledge into the clustering algorithm. The results affirm that online product reviews which are made by the eWOM customers who are identified by our proposed method are more related to product sales than customer reviews that are made by non-eWOM customers, and the predictive power of the reviews generated by eWOM customers is significantly higher than that of the reviews generated by non-eWOM customers. These scenarios prove that our proposed method is useful to help firms find eWOM customers and has great business application. By combining our method, a new framework is proposed for customer segmentation, which focuses not only on the traditional purchase value but also on their online WOM value, thereby helping firms establish different strategies to encourage customer engagement and improving product sales and firm performances.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) customers from customer reviews. Thus, firms can precisely leverage eWOM customers to increase their product sales.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This research proposed a framework to analyze the content of consumer-generated product reviews. Specific algorithms were used to identify potential eWOM reviewers, and then an evaluation method was used to validate the relationship between product sales and the eWOM reviewers identified by the authors' proposed method.\nFindings: The results corroborate that online product reviews that are made by the eWOM customers identified by the authors' proposed method are more related to product sales than customer reviews that are made by non-eWOM customers and that the predictive power of the reviews generated by eWOM customers are significantly higher than the reviews generated by non-eWOM customers.\nResearch limitations/implications: The proposed method is useful in the data set, which is based on one type of products. However, for other products, the validity must be tested. Previous eWOM customers may have no significant influence on product sales in the future. Therefore, the proposed method should be tested in the new market environment.\nPractical implications: By combining the method with the previous customer segmentation method, a new framework of customer segmentation is proposed to help firms understand customers' value specifically.\nOriginality/value: This study is the first to identify eWOM customers from online reviews and to evaluate the relationship between reviewers and product sales.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Work placements at 14-15 years and employability skills
|
[
"Employability skills",
"Work experience",
"Secondary school students",
"Work placements"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: It is generally agreed that equipping young people with the skills needed for employment is crucial to both their economic success and the more general economic success of the country in which they live. Furthermore, at least in the UK, employers have dissatisfaction with the employability skills of young recruits. For example, half of the employers surveyed by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) reported dissatisfaction with the skills of school leavers and about a third being dissatisfied with the skills of graduates (Confederation of British Industry (CBI), 2007, 2017; see also Martin et al., 2008). The Confederation of British Industry (2012) reported that the majority of employers were dissatisfied with employability skills of the school leavers they had recruited: 69 per cent dissatisfied with business and customer awareness and 61 per cent dissatisfied with self-management ability. More recently, the Confederation of British Industry (2016) reported that half of businesses were not satisfied with school leavers work experience. Despite a general agreement that there is a need for improvements, there are still debates and uncertainties about how best to achieve such objectives.\nMethod: Participants\nResults: Ratings of employability skills: students and employers\nDiscussion: The students who took part in the work placement reported an increase in their own employability skills from before to after the placement. For all the skills there was a significant increase in the ratings. Overall there was a 13.3 per cent increase in student ratings from 3.21 to 3.61. The students began with a generally positive view of their skills and this was enhanced by the placement. In addition, there was a particularly striking increase in the percentage of students who rated their employability skills as very good. Before the placement these ranged between 17 and 57 per cent, after the placement these ranged from 28 to 82 per cent, with large increases for time-keeping and appearance.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: In the UK, concern frequently has been voiced that young people lack appropriate employability skills. One way to address this is to provide work based placements. In general, previous research findings have indicated that young people find such placements useful because of help with career choice and relevant skills. However, most studies are retrospective and involve sixth form or degree students. The purpose of this paper is to extend previous research by collecting information before and after the placements.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This investigation involved questionnaires with nearly 300 14-15 year-old students who provided a pre- and post-placement self-reports about their employability skills and their work-experience hosts provided ratings of employability skills at the end of the placement.\nFindings: There was a significant increase in student ratings of their employability skills from before to after the placement, and although the employers gave slightly lower ratings of some employability skills than the students, the two sets of ratings were reasonably close. In addition, the students had high expectations of the usefulness of the placements and these expectations were fulfilled as reported in the post-placement questionnaire.\nOriginality/value: These positive findings, extend the knowledge of the effects of work based placements, by focussing on the opinion of the young people themselves, using a pre- to post-placement design, by validating student self-reports with host employer ratings, and by focussing on a younger than usual age group.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Temporal changes in factors affecting convention participation decision
|
[
"Conventions",
"Decision making",
"Work study"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Associations play an important role in the lives of contemporary adults. Statistics show that over 70 per cent of adult Americans hold at least one association membership, and about 25 per cent of them belong to four or more associations (American Society of Association Executives, 2003). The majority of associations hold conventions every year. A central characteristic of associations' conventions is that attendance is voluntary (Hiller, 1995). In the same way a consumer would choose a product that satisfies their needs the most, an association member is likely to choose a particular convention that is perceived to provide the most benefit. Owing to the voluntary nature of participation, association convention attendees tend to demonstrate a similar pattern of decision making to that of consumers.The associations, the host destinations, and the convention attendees are three key players of association convention tourism (Oppermann and Chon, 1997). The common goal of associations and host destinations is to maximize the number of attendees, as the number of participants is often an indication of the convention's success. In today's competitive environment, marketers of associations and destinations have three challenges: attendance, attendance, and attendance (Shure, 2002). Optimizing attendance relies on a clear understanding of the dynamic decision-making process of potential convention attendees. This will be of great interest not only to associations and destinations but also to suppliers of the convention industry, especially in these challenging times where most are struggling to reverse decreasing attendance. The decision can mean millions of dollars, in either direction, to the industry.Despite the pervasiveness of associations and their competitive marketing activities, there is a distinct lack of research on the perspective of association convention attendees, especially regarding issues pertaining to their participation decision-making behavior. In an attempt to augment the body of research on the topic, a handful of researchers examined association members' convention participation behaviors (Grant, 1994; Lee and Back, 2007; Rittichainuwat et al., 2001; Oppermann, 1998; Oppermann and Chon, 1997; Price, 1993; Yoo and Chon, 2008; Zhang et al., 2007). Such studies focused on measuring association members' convention participation decision behavior at the time of observation. Convention participation decisions may change over time but there has been no study to date that explores the dynamic decision-making process for convention participation. In order to fill the research gap, this study, by employing a longitudinal research design, examined whether convention participation decisions change over a period of time. More specifically, the objective of this paper was to investigate whether of not there is a change in the importance of convention participation decision-making factors in influencing the participation decision over time.\nLiterature review: Decision making and attitude\nMethodology: Scale development\nResults: The study panel consisted of more males (60 per cent) than females (40 per cent). Age groups between 41 and 50 represented the highest portion of respondents, accounting for 35.2 per cent. Geographically, 25.7 per cent of the panel members were from Hong Kong SAR, followed by the USA (14.3 per cent) and Korea (14.3 per cent). Educator (72.4 per cent) was a dominant profession of the panel members. The majority of respondents had at least one association membership, three or four memberships (25.7 per cent), followed by two (22.9 per cent) and one (15.2 per cent). Respondents indicated their average number of conventions attended per year as two (30.5 per cent), one (25.7 per cent) or four (13.3 per cent). While 33.3 per cent of potential attendees would finance their travel costs partially themselves and partially from their organizations, 27.6 per cent would receive full funding support for attending the convention (see Table III).Each of the five convention participation decision-making factors was subjected to a paired t-test to see if they were statistically different in relative importance in influencing the participation decision over time. Table IV shows the results of the t-tests. Overall, a change in the magnitude between Time 1 and Time 2 was minimal for most of the decision-making factors. Of five paired t-tests performed, the temporal change in only one factor \"professional and social networking opportunities,\" was statistically significant at a 0.01 level of probability. Further, to see whether the study samples' overall evaluations changed over time, the mean scores of each decision-making factor in Time 1 were compared with the mean measures of the importance scales in Time 2. As shown in Table IV, the mean score of the importance of three decision-making factors (i.e. destination stimuli, networking opportunities, and educational opportunities) was higher in Time 1 than in Time 2. On the contrary, the mean size of the magnitude of two factors (i.e. safety and health situation, and travelability) increased between Time 1 and Time 2.In the next step, the sample was categorized into three different sub-groups based on their likelihood of attending the convention. Respondents who had pointed to the scale end of 1 (=very unlikely) and 2 were grouped as \"potential non-attendees\" (n=47), while those who had rated 6 and 7 (=very likely) were combined for the group of \"potential attendees\" (n=32). Panel members who had indicated the middle points of the likelihood scale between 3 and 5 (n=28) were grouped as \"hesitant potential attendees\". The paired t-tests were conducted for each sub-group to compare temporal changes in the effects of the convention participation decision-making factors on their participation decision.Table IV shows that there were only a few significant changes in the decision-making factor in influencing the participation decision across sub-groups. For the potential non-attendees' group, there was no significant shift in all five decision-making factors over the two time periods. In contrast, a significant important change was found for the factors \"safety and health situation\" and \"travelability,\" among the groups of hesitant potential attendees and potential attendees, respectively.An examination on the sample profile made it possible to further identify a group of respondents (n=36) who changed their participation decision over the surveying period. That is, some people who had been grouped as \"potential non-attendees\" at the time of the first survey modified their participation decision later to being classified as \"potential attendees\" or \"hesitant potential attendees\" at the time of the second survey, and vice-versa. As presented on the bottom row of Table IV, the results of the paired t-tests on this sub-group revealed that there was a significant change in the magnitude of the following decision-making factors in influencing their participation decision: \"networking opportunities\" and \"safety and health situation\". Additionally, in terms of their ranking, \"safety & health situation\" changed to be the most important influencing factor at Time 2, whereas the importance on \"networking opportunities\" declined from the first to the third position during the second-time survey.In conclusion, three of five hypotheses were accepted: H2 (by the whole sample and the sub-sample), H4 (by the sub-sample), and H5 (by the sub-sample). That is, the importance of the factors such as \"professional and social networking opportunities,\" \"safety and health situation,\" and \"travelability\" significantly changed over time in influencing the participation decision. However, \"destination stimuli\" and \"educational opportunities\" were exceptions to this trend.\nConclusion and implications: A comparison of the study panel's importance scores of each influential convention participation decision-making factor over a specified two points in time revealed that the respondents had a different overall evaluation over time about factors such as professional and social networking opportunities, safety and health situation, and travelability. Professional and social networking opportunities appear to be a major decision-making factor of the convention participation decision, yet the magnitude of this factor is likely to change over time as convention delegates' information is not static but rather constantly evolving. For instance, if a person is seeking out job prospects at a particular convention, they might change the convention participation decision depending on the presence or absence of significant others who have the potential to provide the candidate with opportunities, such as position information, career advice, and interviews at the convention. Similarly, a possibility of colleagues' or friends' attendance at a specific convention might create an impact on a potential delegate's participation decision.The Second Asia-Pacific CHRIE Conference was held in Phuket, Thailand on May 27-29 2004, and longitudinal surveys were conducted at two different times: February and May 2004. In March 2004, two months prior to the conference, there was an incident involving a bomb explosion at a Thai-Malaysia border town in the southern part of Thailand. Again in late April 2004, there were attacks on security forces by Muslim insurgents in ten locations in the far southern provinces of Thailand and over 100 people were killed. Consequently, many government advisories worldwide warned travelers to defer non-essential travel to the southern provinces of Thailand. In response to these incidents, the conference chairman sent out an e-mail to prospective convention delegates assuring them that they should not be concerned about safety and could be confident about their stay at the convention destination. Nevertheless, it is still possible that potential attendees, especially those who were hesitant about convention attendance initially, reacted negatively to the destination safety issue during the second period of this study's survey. This may be a possible indication of the temporal change in the importance of safety conditions of the convention destination in influencing the participation decision. Possibly the safety and health situation might have been regarded as a hygiene factor by potential delegates, in that there would be an expectation that the destination was safe, and the safety and health issues would only become important if problems arose (Crompton, 2003; Herzberg et al., 1959).The importance of travelability in influencing the participation decision also changed over time. It is reasonable to expect that a person might confirm their decision to attend a specific convention, or vice versa, because travel funding had, or had not, been secured during the time of the second survey. This finding is consistent with a study by Um and Crompton (1992), which showed that the importance of inhibitors (constraints) changed to become more significant in the later stages of the actual choice of the holiday destination.Since there has been no study in the literature assessing longitudinal changes in the effects of convention participation decision-making factors on the participation decision, the empirical results of this study can serve as a theoretical base in explaining attitude change over time. The development of a reliable and valid measurement scale enabled monitoring of the temporal changes. The sound and robust instrument will significantly aid future researchers' investigation on this important area of research.From a more practical perspective, the measurement scale can be useful when evaluating the impact of marketing strategies by carefully monitoring changes in the convention participation decision-making variables. The study suggests that, as potential attendees are not homogenous, differentiated promotion and communication strategies should be applied to sub-segment groups to assist in changing their attitude toward the convention participation decision, consequently leading into one for convention attendance. An application of the research tool can help marketers and meeting professionals to identify more efficient ways to allocate promotional resources, whereby ultimately leading to higher attendance and profitability for all.In addition, the study indicated that the impact of convention participation decision-making factors on the participation decision could be double-edged. This means that not all decision-making factors have the same effect on the participation decision at a given period. Therefore, it would be necessary to periodically monitor the convention participation decision-making factors of target market segments in order to identify the most influential factor to appeal to for a particular association convention. The research findings suggest that promotional campaigns should include messages stressing professional and social networking opportunities, and convention information emphasizing affordable costs and traveling time. In addition, association and convention organizers should convince prospective delegates that the convention destination is safe to travel to by continuously providing them with the most updated information on safety, security and health precautions.The statistical results presented in this study are preliminary in nature. Therefore, the implications should be considered with certain caveats. In particular, this study is somewhat limited in terms of longitudinal aspects, which would make it possible to analyze the potential time-lag for the hypothesized relationships. Arguably, a three month split between the two sampling periods may not be sufficient to assess temporal changes in the effects of the convention participation decision-making factors on the participation decision. Given a longer time frame, there may possibly be different forms of changes that affect the research results since the external environment is one such dynamic. For example, the sudden availability of discounted airfares may cause some destinations that were discarded at an earlier stage to become attractive alternatives. In this case, the destination factor could change from an inhibitor to a facilitator. The topic of temporal fluctuations therefore appears to be relevant to further investigations.In addition to studying the existence of temporal decision changes, future studies can also investigate the directions of change by conducting separate relationship analyses on each of the longitudinal data sets. Testing the change of rankings in beta coefficient values between Time 1 and Time 2 can provide an indication of temporal changes in the relative contribution of each decision-making factor on the participation decision.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to examine whether factors that may affect potential attendees' convention participation decision change over time. In today's competitive environment, marketers of associations and destinations make considerable efforts to increase the number of attendees for the conventions they host. Optimizing attendance relies on a clear understanding of the dynamic decision-making process of prospective attendees.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The study panel was selected from a pool of hospitality and tourism association members, and they were surveyed with an identical questionnaire on two separate occasions. The 107 paired sets were used for data analysis.\nFindings: - The study showed that there were significant changes in the effects of the following factors on the convention participation decision: networking opportunities, safety and health situation, and travelability.\nResearch limitations/implications: - The generalizability of the research is limited by its time scope and sample size. A three-month split between the two sampling periods may not be sufficient to assess the temporal changes. The empirical results of the study can serve as a base to reveal how potential attendees' convention participation decision may change over time. Using the measurement scale, industry practitioners can evaluate the impact of their marketing strategies and assist in changing potential attendees' convention participation decision into one for convention attendance.\nOriginality/value: - The study is the first attempt to assess the dynamic aspects of the convention participation decision-making process.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The expatriate as company leader in the UAE: cultural adaptation
|
[
"Leadership styles",
"UAE",
"Expatriate leadership",
"Management",
"Organizational culture",
"Expatriation"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Leadership, always a popular topic for scholars, shows no sign of becoming less compelling despite many thousands of existing articles. Leadership refers to the motivation from senior management that drives organizations to achieve their strategic goals. Different leadership styles include participative, consultative, consensus, democratic and autocratic leaderships. Participative leadership invites input by distributing the authority to make decisions amongst a number of staff. This type of leader enables improved employee performance and, through this, better organizational outcomes, employee involvement, succession planning and improved efficiency. Consultative leadership involves discussing situations with staff before a leader makes a decision (Oshagbemi, 2008). This style also increases employee participation and feelings of ownership of decisions.\nOrganizational culture and issues: Organizational culture comprises the values and attitudes consistently held by members of an organization, resulting in certain practices (Ashkanasy and Jackson, 2001). It consists of shared rules, meaning and symbolism. National culture impacts organizational members' interpretation of experiences, and thus affects the organization's culture (Soin and Scheytt, 2006). External elements also influence organizational culture, including political and societal factors (Peng, 2002).\nOrganizational culture and leadership: Organizational culture can have a significant effect on leadership. To succeed, leaders need to adapt to the culture of the organization or take the cultural influence into consideration before embarking in a different direction. A culture of support can facilitate effective leadership, using common values to create organizational harmony. Leadership and trust can develop concurrently among staff members who share common goals and values (Kouzes and Posner, 1995). Leadership effectiveness is founded on trust from employees.\nOur research: We interviewed 25 executive expatriate leaders in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to determine the impact of organizational culture on their leadership style and management of staff. Interviewees worked in the public and private sectors and their nationalities included Australian, British, American, Russian, Indonesian, Philippino, Nepalese, Iranian, Pakistani, Indian and Sri Lankan. Interviewees' experience in UAE organizations varied from 3 months to 30 years. The length of time in their current organization was between 2 months and 25 years, with positions ranging from store managers to presidents and chief executive officers (CEOs).\nDiscussion: Leadership styles\nHow organizational culture affects leadership styles: All the leaders we interviewed stated that the organizational culture had a significant impact on their leadership style and they had become more consultative in their approach. While the national UAE culture exists alongside organizational culture, individual organizational cultures differ to some degree, based on outside influences such as the foreign culture from which some of its employees originate.\nMethods expatriate leaders use to adjust to organization culture: Adapting to the organizational culture may entail following the rules, talking to local colleagues, observing their behaviour and practices and copying them. Some expatriates emphasized learning Arabic and communicating with locals, interacting with local people, joining in company celebrations, consulting books and their organization's website, as well as listening to and consulting staff and networking and meeting people from all nationalities. Some stated that on their arrival, the culture of their organizations was deeply entrenched. They found that working within their organization's culture was more productive than working against it. Taking advice from other expatriates as mentors, successful or otherwise, about what styles worked or did not work was also useful. Arriving in the UAE with ill-informed preconceptions and expecting to continue their leadership style as practiced in their home country was the worst possible scenario and would often set the manager up for failure.\nRecommendations: Individual adaptation\nConclusion: The results of our research indicate that consultative leadership is most widely used and most effective in the UAE. Organizational culture affects expatriate leadership styles. To promote success, expatriate leaders need to adapt to the organizational culture, unless they have the need and the power to change it, and this must be done very slowly and in a consultative manner. Communicating openly with staff, team building and involving staff in decision-making are all useful.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this article is to explore the impact of organizational culture, adaptation, political environment and leadership for expatriate managers working in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Expatriate leaders on overseas assignment often attempt to transfer their home organization culture to their new location. The subsequent cultural clash can have a destructive impact on both the leader and the organization.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Expatriate leaders' experiences in the UAE were collected through interviews, with a specific focus on cultural adaptation and most effective leadership styles for implementing strategic organizational change.\nFindings: Our research revealed that a consultative style was found to be most effective by expatriate leaders in the UAE. Communication with local staff, team building, motivating staff and involving staff in decision-making were highly effective approaches in assisting expatriate leaders to succeed within their organizational cultures. Several strategies have been identified based on the experiences of the expatriate leaders interviewed in our study.\nPractical implications: The findings offer practical advice for organizational leaders anticipating an assignment in the UAE and human resource management practitioners preparing expatriate leaders for their duties there. The authors also provide suggestions for expatriate leaders to enhance their adjustment to the organizational and political culture.\nOriginality/value: Numerous studies have been done on organizational cultural adaptation; however, comparatively little research has been offered on practical organizational adaptation and leadership specific to the UAE.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Models of governance and the changing role of the board in the "modernised" UK health sector
|
[
"Boards",
"Performance management",
"United Kingdom",
"Health services sector",
"Public sector organizations",
"Governance"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The emergence of more network-based modes of governance has been apparent across many public services in the UK over the past decade, but has been particularly evident in the health sector. Networks have been developed specifically to redesign complex patient journeys across different service providers, and cancer services represent an important and early example. Managed clinical networks for cancer have been established across the UK National Health Service (NHS) since the late 1990s, in order to streamline patient care and promote the flow of knowledge and good practice between the different professions and organisations involved in service delivery and commissioning (National Health Service, 2000; Edwards, 2002).This more collaborative approach corresponded with a change of government in the UK in 1997, and had the potential to represent a significant change in the governance of public sector. Since the early 1990s, the UK health service had been governed through an internal market (or \"quasi-market\") model where the NHS was divided into purchasers and providers. These purchasers and providers were aligned through internally regulated contracting processes and this model represented a more market-like NHS, top driven through forceful implementation strategies.When the Labour government was elected in the UK in 1997, following many years of Conservative rule, \"modernisation\" became the narrative for the package of proposed reforms. Previous Conservative governments had emphasised marketisation and privatisation, while New Labour attempted to shift the focus towards greater collaboration between providers and towards holistic governance, partnership and networking (Newman, 2001; Hamilton and Redman, 2003). The proposed networks were seen originally as preserving substantial local autonomy, open to pressure from below and regulated only in a \"light touch\" manner.The UK public sector is increasingly focused on innovative (and sometimes \"faddish\") modes of delivering service, particularly within health care (Ferlie and Pettigrew, 1996). Since the inception of the NHS, the Department of Health (DOH) has implemented a range of different models in the health service, with the internal market model and managed networks represented two contemporary examples. To an ever-increasing extent, these emerging models in the public sector reflect what the government consider to be examples of \"good\" practice in the private sector. The managed network model represents a recent example of a mode of service delivery that has been introduced to transform the delivery of cancer services in the UK.There is considerable speculation regarding changing governance structures and whether New Labour's modernisation agenda represents a genuine shift towards a more decentralised and \"softer\" form of governance. It has been commonly suggested that the latter era of the Conservative governments in the 1990s brought a more concentrated focus on what has been theorised as new public management (NPM), concentrating on contracts between purchasers and providers as the dominant mode of governance, and the rise of powerful non-executives (Ferlie et al., 1996).With the more recent change of government in 1997, New Labour brought an ideology of collaboration and decentralisation, indicating the emergence of what has been termed a post-NPM philosophy, focusing on \"soft\" governance. The following section will consider the dualistic ideologies of NPM and \"post-NPM\" (Ferlie et al., 1996; Newman, 2001) governance and how they apply in particular to the UK health service.\nGovernance and accountability in the UK public sector: NPM vs post-NPM: The introduction of the internal market model in the UK led to the development of a public sector based on market competition and business-like principles. This development followed on from a greater emphasis on managerialism in the public sector, with decreasing professional self-regulation. Previously line managed organisations (bureaucratic hierarchies) were divided into purchasers and providers, with an emphasis on contract-based, rather than hierarchical, governance (Ferlie et al., 1996; Newman, 2001). This rise of the internal market, with the underlying ethos of managerialist command and control and contracting out of public services reflected a movement towards what has been academically theorised more broadly as an NPM ideology.NPM refers to the dominance of managerialism in the public sector, reflecting developments in the private sector that are considered to represent \"good\" management. NPM does not refer to particular change initiatives, but instead represents an ideological shift to a system based on market principles and private sector models (Ashburner et al., 1996). Bevir and Rhodes (2003) propose that there are six key aspects of NPM evident in the UK public sector - privatisation, marketisation, corporate management, decentralisation, regulation and political control. With the advent of the internal market model, each of these aspects of NPM was realised, to varying degrees.New public management and health care\nManaged clinical networks and a model of public sector governance: If managed clinical networks for cancer were developing and operating within an NPM archetype, we would expect to see a structure based on principles of command and control, with the DOH as the strategic core, and micro-management delegated to general managers who would be responsible for implementing policy and operational development on a local level. Network Boards would be comprised of network stakeholder executives and powerful non-executives drawn from private industry. Network performance would be monitored and assessed through strong performance management and adherence to explicit standards and performance targets. On the basis of previous attempts at decentralisation, we would not expect network governance to have been devolved to a local level, but would expect decision making power and accountability to have been retained by the DOH.Alternatively, under a post-NPM ideology, the DOH would be focused on empowerment of local providers and marginalised stakeholders within cancer networks, who would have a greater role in strategic decision making and over which the government would have limited direct control. According to New Labour's own \"joined-up government\" philosophy (National Health Service, 2000), the balance of power would be decentralised to local stakeholders and would mean, as Rhodes (1997) suggests \"governing without government\". The Government may have responsibility for steering network development and function, but the responsibility for network management and operation would be devolved to local providers. Rhodes argues that if networks were fully integrated, they would be able to resist government steering and develop their own policies and context.This paper explores the changing model of governance under New Labour's modernisation agenda, in particular the layers of accountability in cancer networks and the role of network Board. This paper considers whether a post-NPM ideology is emerging in practice, or whether the NPM ideology has remained dominant. Although the managed clinical network model represents a distinctive case in the delivery of cancer services, the ideology of networks and joined up government extends to other health and public services. As such, the findings presented here may have implications for the governance of other public services in the UK.\nMethodology: studying network governance: Comparative case studies were utilised to provide an in-depth understanding of the relationships between the organisations and professional groups involved in these five managed clinical networks. Yin (1999) also suggests that case studies are particularly suited to the complex nature of health service systems, which are characterised by continual and rapid change. These London networks are comprised of multiple teaching and local district hospitals, as well as service commissioners and health authorities - contained within a relatively small geographical area. This complexity is not evident to the same degree in the cancer networks in other parts of England and Wales, therefore the selection of these five cases is also considered to represent more complex cancer networks.Case studies - triangulation\nResults: centralised accountability and limited local control: The following section provides an overview of the cancer network structure and remit, followed by a detailed analysis of the accountability arrangements within and beyond that structure. Due to the necessity to follow the national policy agenda, each of the five networks were structured in similar ways. As such, this section presents an amalgamated narrative of the case study findings, with vignettes from particular networks as appropriate. Table III provides an overview of all five networks.Network structure\nDiscussion: centrally derived accountability framework through top-down performance management: These findings partially reflect those recently presented by Farrell (2005, p. 108), regarding the role of Boards in the governance of a UK state school. Farrell found that the governing school Boards were not involved in strategic leadership or policy direction, while Head Teachers were more likely to play an active role. Designated sub-committees made service level decisions, but these were not definite until they had been approved by the school Board. The governing Boards were then only involved in approving decisions made elsewhere - what Farrell calls \"the lowest level of participation\".Fundamentally, the structural reconfiguration arrangements of the networks that were decreed by NICE and the DOH and the standards imposed were tightly controlled on a national level, ensuring that there was little flexibility for innovative decision making or strategic planning by the Boards or wider networks. Largely, the managed network remit was decided on a national level through the NHS cancer policy (2000) and the role of the local network stakeholders was to implement this remit. When the local network stakeholders could not agree (such as in Network D), the SHA - as the representative body of the DOH - intervened to make the necessary decision. Ultimately, the role of the network Boards was limited to a \"sign-off\" function, with control retained centrally.Both the network management teams and Boards only had minimal decision-making influence within a prevailing centralised bureaucratic structure. Although the espoused logic of the network model was to decentralise decision making and \"shift the balance of power\" to a local level (Department of Health, 2001), decision making power and budgetary responsibilities were ultimately ascribed to PCTs and SHAs. NICE guidelines, stringent standards for network formation and function, a national peer review programme and performance management targets have all ensured that network Boards (and network stakeholders more generally) only had limited scope for strategic decision making. As such, it is worthy exploring the role of central government and its associated agencies in the governance of the networks.Persistence of NPM governance? Centralised command and control\nConclusion: Power (1997, p. 11) suggests that, alongside the rise of NPM governance, there has been a move from local, ad hoc audit towards a national, standardised framework. This can be considered to reflect decreasing trust in the local delivery of health care in the UK and in the ability of the medical profession to effectively self-regulate. Further, Power suggests that the increasing focus on audit and measuring performance is not only intended to improve the quality of service but also to \"make these improvements externally verifiable via acts of certification\". Through creating and meeting performance targets, the DOH and New Labour can be seen by the media, consumers and wider society as acting to provide an efficient and effective health care system.Ultimately, the role of the Board in the managed network model has evolved to be predominantly constrained within a model of centralised accountability and medical dominance on a local level. The key finding presented here is that while central government dictated the structure and function of these networks, and decision making on a local, clinical level is caught by a traditional cast of medical players, the role of the network Board was largely redundant and limited to \"sign off\" of decisions made elsewhere, rather than having a role in strategic planning. The prevailing ideology of NPM, and the continuing focus on centralised performance management and competition between providers, has ensured that the network model has had little impact on governance or accountability arrangements in the UK's modernised public sector.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The aim of this paper is to show that there has been an increasing focus on networks as a model of service delivery and governance in the UK public sector. As an early example, managed clinical networks for cancer were initially considered to represent an ideological move towards a softer model of governance, with an emphasis on moving across the vertical lines that were strengthened or established during the new public management (NPM) movement of the 1990s. The NPM ideology of the 1990s emphasised the role of Boards and powerful non-executives in governing public services. This paper seeks to explore the role of the Board in the UK health sector under the apparent emerging \"post-NPM\" ideological framework of accountability.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The paper is based on findings from five comparative case studies of managed clinical networks for cancer in London.\nFindings: - The paper finds that cancer network boards have had limited strategic influence as these networks are constrained by a continued emphasis of centralised performance management and structural reconfiguration, which become dominant during the NPM era.\nPractical implications: - The inability of the post-NPM governance ideology to make a significant impact in the UK, and the resulting confused and conflictual framework, have hindered the initial intention of cancer networks as a forum for spreading best practice across organisational boundaries.\nOriginality/value: - There is only limited research on the emergent remit, structure or strategy of public sector Boards in the UK, and very limited research on the role of Boards in health care networks: the paper provides some illumination on this limited area of study.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Chinese young consumers' brand loyalty toward sportswear products: a perspective of self-congruity
|
[
"Self-congruity",
"Brand loyalty",
"Perceived quality",
"Brand association",
"Chinese young consumers",
"Sportswear"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: An executive summary for managers and executive readers can be found at the end of this issue.\nIntroduction: The global sportswear market was worth US$263 billion in 2013 with a growth rate of 7 per cent and was expected to grow at a rate of 7.5 per cent through 2017 (Euromonitor International, 2013; Harrison, 2014). Valued at an estimated US$25 billion, the Chinese market for sportswear is, by far, the second largest globally just after the USA (Euromonitor International, 2013). The Chinese sportswear market had seen tremendous growth over the past few years at a compounded annual growth rate of nearly 30 per cent (Trefis Team, 2014). High growth in this sector has been driven by rising disposable income, substantial improvement in living standard, which has led to higher awareness of healthy lifestyle and of international-level sports events (Research and Market, 2012).\nTheoretical background and literature review: Brand loyalty and its antecedents\nResearch methodology: Instead of studying the general population in the Chinese sportswear market, this study particularly focuses on one of the major segments: young consumers aged 18-24 years. Being born between 1990 and 1996, these consumers are the older segment of the post-1990s generation, which is approximately 135 million strong and is expected to have an increasing impact on China's economy and society (KPMG, 2013). This particular segment was chosen in this study for the following reasons: being the youngest and newest generation of independent consumers (KPMG, 2013), growing interest in sportswear (Euromonitor, 2014; Tong and Hawley, 2009), strong purchasing power (Qiu and Lin, 2013) and strong brand consciousness (MacCharles and Gao, 2012). Considering these consumers' independent consumer life just begins, marketing toward this segment and developing them into loyal customers is of strategic long-term importance to companies.\nResults: Purchase behavior toward sportswear products\nTheoretical implications: This research makes a number of contributions to the literature of brand loyalty. First, there is a growing interest in understanding consumers' brand loyalty from a self-congruity perspective (Sirgy, 1986; Kressmann et al., 2006; Liu et al., 2012). This study contributes to this field of study by empirically confirming the influence of consumers' self-brand congruity on brand loyalty toward sportswear products in the Chinese market. Instead of investigating the direct relationship between self-congruity and brand loyalty, this study expands prior research on the self-congruity perspective of brand loyalty through incorporating the mediation effects of both cognitive (perceived quality) and affective (brand association) brand evaluations.\nManagerial implications: Chinese sportswear market represents the second largest market in the world and is growing in size, with even more consumers from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities joining the consumers in premier large cities in their sportswear consumption. At the time of restructuring in the Chinese sportswear market, this study provides an insight of the consumption behavior of a particular segment - young consumers aged 18-24 years. Important implications could be derived from this study for managerial choices for both domestic and global brands in building strong brands and retaining loyal customers in the Chinese market.\nLimitations and directions for future research: This research has several limitations that suggest promising avenues for future research. First, this study only examined the mediation effects of two variables (brand association and perceived quality) on the relationship between brand self-congruency and brand loyalty. Future studies could investigate the mediation effects of other cognitive and affective brand evaluations, such as economic value, brand trust, etc. Second, this study only examined brand self-congruency as antecedent for brand loyalty. Future studies could further investigate the antecedents of brand self-congruity, as well as behavioral outcomes other than brand loyalty, such as word of mouth. Third, this study focused on general sportswear products. Consumers might have different behaviors toward sports shoes, sports clothing and accessories. Future studies could choose a particular sportswear product category, such as shoes, to investigate. The fourth limitation comes from the convenience student sample recruited by using the street-intercept interview method. To enhance the generalizability, future research could recruit a larger sample from different premier cities in China. Also it is important to investigate the consumers in Tier-2 or Tier-3 cities when the Chinese sportswear market expands. Lastly, the current study only provides a static comparison between domestic and global brands. Future research could be designed to investigate the moderating effect of COO on the relationship between self-congruity and brand loyalty.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This study aims to investigate Chinese young consumers' brand loyalty toward sportswear products from a self-congruity perspective. With different performance observed between global and domestic sportswear brands in the Chinese market, this study also aims to examine the impact of country of origin on Chinese young consumers' behavior toward sportswear brands.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A survey with street intercept method was conducted in Shanghai to collect data for this study. Multiple independent t-tests and structural equation modeling (SEM) with bootstrap method were used to test the hypotheses.\nFindings: The SEM results indicate a significant influence of brand self-congruity on consumers' brand association and perceived quality, which, in turn, influenced consumers' brand loyalty. The multiple t-test results suggest a significant difference between Chinese and global sportswear brands in terms of consumers' brand association and attitudinal brand loyalty. No significant difference was found in terms of consumers' behavioral brand loyalty.\nResearch limitations/implications: The main limitation of this study comes from the convenience student sample.\nPractical implications: First, brands need to strategically design the brand image to represent the largest segment of the target market. Second, while global brands could focus on their pricing strategies, domestic brands need to focus more on maintaining a positive brand association in consumers' mind.\nOriginality/value: This study contributes to the growing research on the self-congruity perspective of brand loyalty by empirically confirming the indirect effect of brand self-congruity on brand loyalty via the mediation effects of brand association and perceived quality in the context of the ever-growing Chinese sportswear market.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Do bidders compensate for shipping fees in online auctions?
|
[
"Online auctions",
"Shipping fee",
"Bids",
"Auctions",
"Internet",
"Freight forwarding",
"Fees"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: An executive summary for managers and executive readers can be found at the end of this article.\nOverview: In response to the rapid growth of online auctions a large body of research has emerged. Over the past decade researchers have investigated the effects of various factors on auction prices. Numerous studies have investigated variables such as buyer and seller expertise and reputation, early vs late bidding behavior, the use of starting bids and reserve prices, length of auction and ending time, etc. (Ariely and Simonson, 2003; Chan et al., 2007; Dholakia et al., 2002; Kamins et al., 2004; Li et al., 2009; Park and Bradlow, 2005, Reynolds et al., 2009; Suter and Hardesty, 2005; Yao and Mela, 2008; Zeithammer, 2006). This research has resulted in a rich understanding of auction design and bidder (consumer) behavior. Studies indicate, for example, that the use of starting bids and reserve prices result in fewer bidders (Bajari and Hortacsu, 2003), and that bidders become more rational with experience (Kagel and Richard, 2001). To date, however, only a few studies have examined the effect of shipping fees on winning bids, and most of these treated shipping fees as a control variable. See Table I. Overall, the results are equivocal; some studies have found shipping fees to have a negative effect on auction prices (Song and Baker, 2007; Hou, 2007; Melnik and Alm, 2002; McDonald and Slawson, 2002), whereas others have found shipping charges to have no effect on winning bids (Clark and Ward, 2008; Zhang, 2006; Gilkeson and Reynolds, 2003). Although their results were mixed, Hossain and Morgan (2006) reported that as shipping fees increased their adverse impact on auction prices became stronger.When viewed collectively, the studies listed in Table I indicate that as shipping fees become more costly - relative to the value of the item being auctioned - their effect on the winning bid tends to becomes significant. For example, in those studies that found shipping charges to have no effect on auction prices the fees were relatively small; in Clark and Ward's (2008) study the average fee equated to only 6.77 percent of the winning bid, and in Zhang's (2006) study the shipping fee averaged only 4.34 percent of the auction price. The fees were larger, in comparison, in those studies that found shipping charges to have a negative effect on auction prices. In the Melnik and Alm (2002) study, for example, the shipping fee equated to 8.71 percent of the winning bid; and in Song and Baker's (2007) study of MP3 players the fee averaged 10.36 percent of the auction price. Hou (2007) found that shipping charges averaged 20.7 percent of the auction price of LCD monitors, and in Song and Baker's (2007) study of DVD's shipping fees equated to 78.65$. of the winning bid. In effect, it appears that as the shipping fee increases beyond some minimum threshold its effect on winning bid prices becomes more substantial.It is especially important to note that the impact of shipping fees on profitability varies substantially across the studies listed in Table I. In McDonald and Slawson's (2002) study of Barbie Dolls, and Song and Baker's (2007) study of DVD's, for example, the winning bid declined by more than $1 for every $1 increase in shipping fees. In these auctions bidders more than fully compensated for shipping charges, and thus the addition of these fees actually reduced sellers' profits. However, Melnik and Alm (2002) reported that winning bids for gold coins declined by only $0.55 per every $1 of shipping fee; and, in their study of MP3 players Song and Baker (2007) found that winning bids declined by only $0.44 per every additional $1 fee. Because bidders in these auctions did not fully compensate for shipping fees the sellers realized incremental revenues and profits. Finally, in Clark and Ward's (2008) study of Pokemon cards, and in Zhang's (2006) study of iPods, shipping fees had no effect on auction prices. In these auctions bidders did not compensate for shipping charges, and thus it appears that these sellers profited dollar for dollar from these fees.In summary, there is no general consensus as to what extent online auction bidders compensate for shipping charges, and whether these fees increase or decrease sellers' revenues and net profits. Previous studies have only indirectly addressed this issue, and the results clearly are mixed. Accordingly, the present study will directly examine the effect of shipping fees on winning bids. In doing so, it will also investigate whether experienced bidders are more likely to compensate for shipping fees (i.e. as compared to less experienced bidders), and will examine the indirect effect of shipping fees on auction prices via the number of bids per auction.\nHypotheses: Shipping charges\nMethodology: Sample data\nResults: Hypothesis 1\nManagerial implications and applications: An important issue for individuals (and small businesses) who derive their income by selling goods via online auctions is whether to specify a shipping fee. Shipping costs, if not somehow passed on to buyers (i.e. through fees or higher prices), can significantly erode profit margins. Whether it is more profitable to specify a shipping fee - or to offer free shipping - depends on the extent to which bidders adjust their offers downward to compensate for such charges. Another key factor is whether shipping fees deter some people from entering an auction, thus resulting is less competitive bidding and lower winning bids. To address the issue this study examined online auctions for 19-inch LCD monitors and 1921 Morgan Dollar coins. Overall, the results indicate that sellers benefited from shipping fees. Although monitor buyers compensated to a large extent for shipping fees they did not fully adjust their offers downward. On average, for every $1 of shipping fee, winning bids declined by only $0.83. Even after taking into consideration the indirect effect of shipping fees (i.e. higher fees - fewer bids - lower prices) winning bids for monitors still declined by only $0.95 per $1 of fee. As a result, monitor sellers profited - albeit by a very slight margin - from shipping charges. In comparison, coin sellers profited to a much greater extent from shipping fees. The results indicated that shipping fees had virtually no effect on winning bids for coins. Bidders in these auctions, for the most part, did not lower their offers to compensate for shipping fees. Accordingly, coin sellers who specified a shipping fee profited almost dollar for dollar from the fee. Everything else being equal, it appears more profitable for sellers who utilize online auctions to specify a shipping fee than to offer free shipping.The most likely reasons as to why coin auction bidders did not compensate for shipping fees are because the charges, in absolute terms, were nominal; and because collectors derive intrinsic value from the coins. With an average cost of $3.80 (which is approximately 9 percent of the average winning bid), shipping fees in coin auctions appear to be of little concern to bidders. Moreover, because coins are a collector item and each one is unique, their hedonic value seems to outweigh the relatively minor shipping charges. Considering the time (and costs) involved in visiting coin dealers and traveling to out-of-town conventions, coin buyers might even consider the relatively small shipping costs to be a bargain. LCD monitors, on the other hand, are a utilitarian, standardized item and do not provide the same level of intrinsic value. Although the various models have distinct features (i.e. in terms of screen size, resolution, contrast, etc.), there are numerous auctions of each particular model at any one time. Given a large online supply (and the availability of new monitors at numerous retail stores), price becomes a critical factor in the purchase of monitors. With shipping fees averaging $22.81 (almost 27 percent of the average winning bid in those auctions) monitor bidders are more apt to focus on total cost and adjust their offers accordingly. Overall, the extent to which bidders compensate for shipping fees appears to depend on the type of item (hedonic and unique vs utilitarian and standard), the availability of similar items, and the magnitude of the shipping charges. For unique items with hedonic value bidders appears to be willing to disregard shipping fees. For standard, utilitarian items that are widely available and are costly to ship bidders tend to adjust their offers downward - at least partly - to compensate for shipping fees. However, perhaps because the \"thrill of victory\" provides a certain level of hedonic value in itself, bidders appear willing to pay extra and absorb some of the shipping costs.Another interesting and consistent finding was that higher shipping fees resulted in fewer bids, which in turn decreased auction prices. In the case of both monitors and coins, though, the end result was relatively minor. Perhaps this is because a majority of bidders waited until the end of the auction to place their offers, thus suppressing any potential \"bidding wars.\" Thus, even though shipping fees resulted in fewer bids, sellers were still better off by charging a fee than by offering free shipping. Overall, the direct and indirect effects of shipping fees did not negate the additional revenues produced by these fees - even in the case of monitors.The results also indicate that when faced with substantial shipping charges - as was the case in monitor auctions - experienced bidders were slightly more adept at balancing both focal and ancillary information. However, when faced with relatively minor shipping charges - as was the case with coin auctions - inexperienced bidders performed as well as experienced bidders. These findings are consistent with previous literature which has shown that consumer expertise becomes more relevant as the task becomes more complex (Alba and Hutchinson, 1987; Bettman and Park, 1980). Interestingly, inexperienced bidders did not appear to fall victim to auction fever. Given no difference among experienced vs inexperienced bidders in coin auctions, and only a slight difference in monitor auctions, it appears that online auction bidders slide down the learning curve fairly quickly. Overall, these results are favorable for sellers. Whether offering relatively common items that have wide appeal, or highly unique or rare items that attract more sophisticated bidders, sellers are better off by specifying a shipping fee.In summary, the results of this study have significant implications for online sellers. There are many auction design variables (e.g. the use of a starting bid, reserve prices, number of pictures, ending date, etc.) that directly or indirectly affect bidder behavior and, in turn, winning bid prices. Among these variables is the specification of a shipping fee (i.e. vs free shipping). Although shipping fees might result in fewer bidders, this condition leads to higher profits because most bidders do not fully compensate for these fees. In some instances (e.g. Morgan Dollar coins) bidders do not adjust their offers at all, and in others (e.g. 19-inch LCD monitors) bidders only partially compensate for shipping fees. Although auctions with nominal (or no) shipping fees might attract more bidders, the incremental revenues realized from higher shipping charges outweigh any reduction in winning bid prices.\nLimitations and future research: This study examined only two product categories, coins and monitors. Results might differ within other product categories. Before a more definitive conclusion regarding shipping fees can be reached data on a wider range of items should be collected, and boundary conditions should be investigated. Future research should test for threshold conditions to determine at which point the adverse impact of higher fees result in lower profits. Somewhere between the 27 percent average fee (i.e. vis-a-vis the winning bid) of the monitor auctions, and the 79 percent average fee found in Song and Baker's (2007) DVD study, it is likely that shipping fees become unprofitable. The key issue is at which point that happens.One challenge when examining the effect of any variable on price is that many factors play a role, and thus parcelling out these factors and isolating the effect of shipping fees is key. In order to hold other factors constant a quasi-experimental, field study could be conducted. Investigators could purchase multiple quantities of a certain item(s) and offer them for sale at an online auction. Background factors (e.g. starting bid, book value) could be kept constant, and the shipping fee could systematically be manipulated. Doing so would allow researchers to more precisely to determine whether the effects of shipping fees are simply linear, whether any \"floor\" or \"ceiling\" thresholds exist, or whether the effect is curvelinear (getting stronger at higher fee levels) or quadratic.Research might also address how shipping charges influence bidders' entry decisions. For example, do bidders compare shipping charges among auctions prior to their participation? If so, to what extent will a shipping charge be perceived as unreasonable, and will bidders simply walk away from those auctions? Do experienced and inexperienced bidders make different entry decisions? And, are inexperienced bidders more likely to enter auctions with free shipping? A better understanding of these issues would be valuable for sellers who want to maximize profits.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to determine whether online bidders adjust their offers downward to compensate for shipping fees; whether shipping fees affect the number of bids in an auction, and thus indirectly influence winning bid prices; and whether experienced bidders more fully compensate for shipping fees, as compared to less experienced bidders.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Data were collected from eBay, covering 530 auctions of 19-inch LCD monitors and 242 auctions of 1921 Morgan Dollar coins. Several regression models were employed to test the hypotheses.\nFindings: - Shipping fees had a large, negative effect on winning bids in monitor auctions, but had no effect in coin auctions. Auctions with larger shipping fees resulted in fewer bids, which in turn lessened winning bid prices. Experienced bidders adjusted more fully than inexperienced bidders in monitor auctions, in which the fees are more substantial.\nResearch limitations/implications: - Data should be collected on additional product categories, and in order to control for background variables a controlled experiment should be conducted.\nPractical implications: - Shipping fees appear to result in greater revenues for online sellers. Even though monitor bidders adjust their offers downward to compensate for fees, each additional $1 of shipping fee resulted in an additional $0.05 of profit for sellers. Coin sellers appear to have profited dollar for dollar from fees.\nOriginality/value: - Previous research has only indirectly examined the impact of shipping fees on winning bid prices. Given the dramatic growth of online auctions in the past decade, an examination of shipping charges is of both practical and theoretical importance.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Sharing #MeToo on Twitter: incidents, coping responses, and social reactions
|
[
"Disclosure",
"Harassment"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Recent activism and solidarity among targets of sexual harassment and assault have centered largely on social media posts that allow targets to describe their experiences and interact with a large audience. We focus in the current study on the incidents disclosed by survivors of harassment and assault using #MeToo and we examine the social reactions of others to #MeToo. With the increased use and reach of social media, it is important to recognize that these platforms are being used to disclose harassment and assault, and survivors should be aware of the range of social reactions they may encounter online. Social media represents an outlet that can expand one's support networks as well as invite backlash. We conducted both descriptive and comparative analyses of the content and sentiment of #MeToo tweets as well as analyses of coping strategies referenced by survivors. #MeToo is a global movement that encourages survivors to publicly express solidarity based on their own experiences; these tweets may be relatively more inclusive in terms of content than those obtained via convenience surveys or those resulting from targeted campus or workplace surveys that focus on only one setting or specific behaviors. The primary goals of this study were to understand the nature of coping mechanisms, types of sentiment expressed, and their links with types of harassment and assault incidents disclosed using #MeToo.\nTwitter, the #MeToo movement and social activism: The \"MeToo\" movement (prior to its hashtag) began in 2007 as a show of advocacy and empathy for survivors and it recently gained attention in 2017 on the social media platform Twitter beginning with a short post known as a \"tweet\" (in 2017, tweets were limited to 140 characters). Alyssa Milano, an American actress, initially used #MeToo in a tweet on October 15, 2017 to encourage users to share their own experiences, writing \"If you've been sexually harassed or assaulted write 'me too' as a reply to this tweet\" (Milano, 2017). Milano (@Alyssa_Milano) has a recent history of using her celebrity status to advocate for social justice causes and her reach on Twitter is wide, with over 3.4 million followers (i.e. subscribers) in 2017. The initial #MeToo tweet reached many of her followers, who then retweeted (i.e. copied and re-posted) the message, resulting in a snowball effect with hundreds of thousands of posts within 24 h (Anderson and Toor, 2018). The use of the MeToo hashtag, which is a searchable term, continued throughout 2017 and into 2018 with more than 19 million tweets from October 15, 2017 to September 30, 2018; on average, more than 53,000 tweets per day[1] (Anderson and Toor, 2018). Millions of tweets have now documented survivors' stories (Park, 2017), including descriptions of various types of sexual assault and harassment, discussions of misogyny in the entertainment industry and national politics (Anderson and Toor, 2018).\nOnline disclosures and social reactions: Although the initial #MeToo tweet prompted users to indicate their solidarity via shared experiences, some Twitter users did not disclose personal stories but instead provided social reactions to #MeToo. This is not unlike more general online disclosure prompts; in an examination of over 1,900 tweets from 2014 related to depression, a third were direct disclosures from depressed individuals, and an additional 40 percent were either supportive or helpful reactions to the disclosures that encouraged help-seeking or provided information (Cavazos-Rehg et al., 2016). The remaining tweets were mainly discussions of substance use and depression, or work-related pressures but did not necessarily take on a negative tone.\nCoping with harassment and the impact of social reactions: By assessing personal disclosures of assault and harassment, we were also able to examine self-described coping strategies using existing theories and frameworks of trauma-based coping. Hobfoll (1991) emphasized that severe psychological consequences follow from situations where targets' core beliefs are threatened or they perceive that they do not have adequate coping strategies. Assault and harassment targets often use multiple tactics to manage their experiences with previous studies indicating they most avoid or ignore their perpetrators (Magley, 2002). More broadly, harassment targets may use cognitive responses that are generally internally focused and attempt to manage their own emotions and/or they may use behavioral strategies that are generally problem-focused. In Magley's (2002) coping conceptualization, which is the basis of our coding schema, cognitive and behavioral responses could also involve either engagement or disengagement, similar to an approach - avoidance preference.\nCurrent study: We had multiple goals related to our analysis of #MeToo tweets. We focused on both the content and sentiment of tweets to describe the tone of survivors' disclosures and of non-targets' social reactions. Sentiment analysis can be viewed as a complement to human-based assessment in examining social media responses. An evaluation of sentiment alone can be limited in that it provides a one-dimensional assessment relying on positive, negative or neutral valence of text with no context (Gaspar et al., 2016). Our evaluation and coding of other aspects of tweets, including context and content of incidents, provides additional critical details regarding the overall nature of #MeToo disclosures and reactions.\nMethods and data: We began by gathering #MeToo tweets using the Meltwater Outside Insight social media analytics application (Meltwater: Outside Insight, 2018) from the 24 h following the tweet from Alyssa Milano on October 15, 2017 at 1:21 p.m. GST. We chose this period given the massive quantity of information that was tweeted within ten days after the movement began (Park, 2017); 24 h would allow us to study the initiation of the movement on Twitter. Using filters to access only English-language tweets that we could subsequently code, with #MeToo as a keyword and searching for original posts that did not include retweets (i.e. non-original content), we accessed 130,000 tweets. To reduce our data to a limit of 10,000 tweets that our software programs could manage, we selected the initial 10,000 tweets from the 130,000 tweets, all of which were posted on October 15. By collecting tweets from the earliest moments of the use of the hashtag, we were more likely to obtain samples that were legitimate responses to Milano's prompt, rather than meta-commentary about the volume of resulting tweets.\nResults: We first extracted sentiment and contextual information from the #MeToo tweets. Using our aggregate measure of sentiment, the 7,634 tweets had a slightly negative tone (M=-0.49, SD=3.61) and generally indicated anger and sadness (empathy for survivors) as opposed to disbelief or skepticism. The subset of 2,102 individually coded tweets also had slightly negative sentiment (M=-0.59, SD=2.47), and was not significantly different from the larger data set.\nDiscussion: Our examination of #MeToo tweets allowed for a description of types of experiences, self-reported coping and others' social reactions. The most commonly disclosed experiences involved unwanted sexual attention or sexual assault, the latter of which is less commonly reported in survey samples with more general populations (i.e. around 20 percent prevalence; Post et al., 2011). Most incidents took place at work or school. Overall, the average tone of the entire sample of tweets (n=7,634) displayed slightly negative sentiment, appearing to reflect the types of words survivors used in their descriptions of harassment and assault incidents, as well as their outrage against perpetrators. The few negative social reactions were mainly instances of egoistic tweets that drew attention away from survivors' stories to the commenter's personal emotions (often anger or sadness).\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine 2,102 #MeToo tweets and focuses on the content of the tweets and social reactions to these tweets. For a subsample of 912 tweets that included disclosures of sexual assault or harassment, the incident type and context, along with coping were also examined.\nDesign/methodology/approach: #MeToo tweets were retrieved from a 24 h time period immediately after the initial tweet prompting responses. Both sentiment analysis and content and context analyses were performed.\nFindings: Although the overall sentiment of tweets indicated a negative tone, the majority of positive social reactions indicated validation and belief of survivors, offered emotional support and called for social change. Targets who disclosed generally described workplace harassment and assertive coping responses.\nResearch limitations/implications: Sentiment analysis can be limited given a lack of context. Not all targets using #MeToo shared details of their harassment or assault; those who did reported using more assertive coping responses than traditional samples of survivors.\nPractical implications: Social media platforms offer unique opportunities for targets to share personal stories and receive emotional and social support they may not have access in-person.\nSocial implications: #MeToo provided targets with a groundswell of social and emotional support, along with a less frequent amount of backlash against the movement.\nOriginality/value: A multimethod approach was used with both sentiment analysis and text coding to examine #MeToo, allowing for a description of types of incidents shared, coping strategies and social reactions.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Employee engagement is a two-way street
|
[
"Employee turnover",
"Employee attitudes",
"Retention",
"Organizational culture",
"Management styles"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Successful organizations recognize that employee retention and talent management are integral to sustaining their leadership and growth in the marketplace. Creating a retention-rich organization that attracts, engages and builds lasting loyalty among the most talented employees is a key to success in the modern globalized economy.\nWhat is an engaged employee?: An engaged employee is willing and able to contribute to company success. Put another way, engagement is the extent to which an employee puts discretionary effort into his or her work, beyond the required minimum to get the job done, in the form of extra time, brainpower or energy.Kahn (1990) defined engagement at work as \"harnessing organizational members' selves to their work roles\". Engaged people employ and express themselves physically, cognitively and emotionally as they perform their roles.The notion of flow, which Csikzentmihalyi (1975) advanced, is also related to employee engagement. Csikzentmihalyi defines flow as the \"holistic sensation\" that people feel when they act with total involvement. Flow is the state in which there is little distinction between self and environment. When individuals are in the state of flow, they need little conscious control for their actions.An engaged employee is aware of business context and works with colleagues to improve performance within the job for the benefit of the organization. The organization must work to develop and nurture engagement, which requires a two-way relationship between employer and employee.\nEmployee engagement and customer service: In these days of intensive focus on customer satisfaction, employee-engagement programs are seen as a key element on the journey to \"customer service through operational excellence\". As an employee becomes more engaged, he or she becomes less likely to leave the company and more concerned to meet the customer's needs. This is most evident in a service business. An engaged employee concentrates on giving the customer a reason to return, thus building customer loyalty over time. However, even in a business where there is little direct contact between employees and customers, engaged employees can still indirectly affect revenue growth - for instance, by supporting other employees who do have direct contact with customers, or by pioneering an innovation that boosts sales.\nKey drivers of employee engagement: Research shows that committed employees perform better. If we accept, as many believe, that engagement is one step up from commitment, it is clearly in the organization's interests to understand the drivers of engagement.Both pay and benefits can motivate workers - to an extent. But raising compensation and offering more benefits are not, by themselves, effective drivers of employee engagement. Corporate cultures characterized by teamwork, pleasant working conditions, the considerate treatment of employees, growth opportunities, skill enhancement and abundant training opportunities can all contribute to employee engagement. Employees' belief that they have a future with their employer is a leading driver of employee commitment, which is a recognized precursor to engagement.It makes good business sense to provide flexible-working opportunities and appropriate policies for employees. It helps companies to retain skilled employees, raise employee morale and minimize absenteeism. Organizations that help their employees to work in a way which best supports them in balancing their work and home environments are more likely to have engaged employees.The talent game is in constant flux as shifts take place in people's work ethics, favored means of communication, career expectations and so on. Leaders and managers, in response, need constantly to be adapting their approach to employees. Companies' efforts to engage workers will increasingly depend on organizations' ability to cater to employees' individual preferences - perhaps, even, to the extent of creating a choose-your-own menu of motivation and retention programs. The drivers of engagement also seem to vary from one workplace to the next, necessitating a customized approach.\nConclusion: Having a fully engaged employee is a win-win situation. Engaged employees stay longer and contribute in a more meaningful way. The term \"employee engagement\" may sound new, but it has long existed as a core management practice. In today's competitive environment, companies need to ensure that, in philosophy and practice, they acknowledge the importance of the manager in retaining employees. A highly engaged workforce is the sign of a healthy organization, whatever its size, geographical location and economic sector.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to highlight the significance of creating a retention-rich organizational culture and discuss the drivers of employee engagement.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The paper presents the personal view of the author, based on research findings and practical experience.\nFindings: - The paper advances the view that finding and retaining talent are critical elements of an organization's ability to improve profitability, manage costs, grow by acquisition, innovate, develop new products and services, and discover new markets. Corporate cultures characterized by teamwork, pleasant working conditions, considerate treatment of employees, growth opportunities, flexible-working practices, and good leadership and management practices foster employee engagement.\nPractical implications: - The paper argues that, in today's competitive environment, companies need to acknowledge the importance of the manager in retaining employees.\nOriginality/value: - The paper illustrates why employee engagement is based on a two-way relationship between employer and employee.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Unintended consequences of a digital presence: Employment-related implications for job seekers
|
[
"Gender",
"Career development",
"Impression management",
"Human resourcing",
"Digital presence",
"Employment-related ratings",
"Job search"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment [...] You had to live - did live, from habit that became instinct - in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every moment scrutinized - (Orwell, 1949).\nIM theoretical background: IM is defined as a process through which individuals adjust their behaviors to appear desirable to a given target (Rosenfeld et al., 1995). In the job search context, job seekers use IM to exert social influence on a targeted employer or interviewer so that they will receive favorable interview evaluations (Tsai et al., 2005). Indeed, selection interview studies provide empirical support suggesting IM tactics can be effective techniques for positively influencing employers' evaluations and employment-related decisions (Barrick et al., 2009; Ferris et al., 2002; Gilmore and Ferris, 1989; Higgins et al., 2003; Howard and Ferris, 1996; Kacmar and Carlson, 1994; Stevens and Kristof, 1995; McFarland et al., 2002). In face-to-face settings, verbal and nonverbal behavior behaviors are the most common ways of managing impressions (Barrick et al., 2009; Stevens and Kristof, 1995). This study focusses on both verbal and nonverbal IM tactics appearing in job seekers' online profiles.\nVerbal and nonverbal IM a digital context: The study of verbal and nonverbal IM have largely been limited to examination during the face-to-face selection interview (e.g. Ellis et al., 2002; Stevens and Kristof, 1995; Swider et al., 2011). Until relatively recently, initial interactions between the job seeker and the potential employer took place in the job interview. This is a logical limitation to the current job search literature.\nMethods: Sample\nAnalysis: Prior to conducting the regression tests, the predictor variables were standardized and salary was transformed to its square root to prevent the data being positively skewed. Next the moderator terms were created and the hypotheses were tested by regressing the hiring recommendations and salary recommendations on the explanatory variables in three block steps in order to determine the incremental variance explained.\nResults: Descriptive statistics and intercorrelations\nDiscussion: While it has become common practice for employers to research potential employees using the internet (see Rosen, 2010), there has yet to be any systematic study of the effect of these impressions on outcomes for job seekers. The present study found positive associations between verbal IM utterances displayed online and hiring and salary recommendations. In addition, the use of professional images was also positively associated with these employment-related recommendations for job seekers. Gender was found to moderate in an unexpected direction for women. Interestingly, as the use of verbal IM utterances intensified, effects on hiring and salary recommendations were stronger for women. A similar gendered effect was found for the use of professional images and hiring recommendations. We discuss the results below.\nConclusion: In a context where individuals freely post information in the form of statements and pictures online, this study investigated digital impressions of job seekers and employer employment-related evaluations. In doing so this study provides practical insight into the ways in which job seekers can improve their job search success. This research represents a first step toward studying job search phenomena online within competing social spaces, thus providing groundwork for future research on job search and digital IM.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate how job seekers' digital profile influences employment-related outcomes, namely recommendations on hiring and salary.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A sample of 118 job seekers sharing information online about job searching was identified using a social networking platform. Using an impression management (IM) framework, two research assistants coded for use of verbal IM (e.g. utterances) and the use of nonverbal IM (e.g. professional images). Three HR managers evaluated the profiles and provided hiring-related recommendations. Data were analyzed used OLS moderated regression and simple slope analysis.\nFindings: Consistent with IM theory, use of verbal and nonverbal IM were both positively related to employment-related recommendations. Gender was found to moderate the use of IM utterances and employment-related recommendations in an unexpected direction for women.\nOriginality/value: Findings suggest that an IM framework can be applied to studying digital social spaces of job seekers. The study provides evidence in support of the notion that previously established effects of IM efforts extend from an interview setting to a digital context.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
User perceptions towards an ERP system: Comparing the post-implementation phase to the pre-implementation phase
|
[
"Involvement",
"ERP",
"Acceptance",
"Position",
"Post-implementation",
"Repeated measures ANOVA"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Companies around the world have implemented Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems to integrate their business processes and stay competitive. The focus in comprehending the value of ERP systems has shifted to better utilization and usage patterns characterized as best in class. As with any information system (IS), user perceptions about an ERP system play an important role in its usage and eventual success (Delone and Mclean, 2003). This study aims to evaluate this issue by assessing user perceptions of an ERP system and its implementation from a longitudinal perspective.\n2. Theoretical background and hypothesis: A recent comprehensive literature review of the ERP research (Schlichter and Kraemmergaard, 2010) classified 885 peer-reviewed articles published from 2000 to 2009 into different topic areas. The highest percentage (30 percent) of the research focussed on implementation aspects (how the ERP system can be introduced into the organization), which include topics such as ERP selection, implementation steps and problems, and critical success factors. The second highest percentage (20 percent) of the research focussed on management issues (how the implementation of ERP affects the management and the organization), which includes papers on organizational change, best practices, and cultural issues. Therefore, the top two ERP research categories account for 50 percent of the ERP research to date. The results seem to be consistent with a previous literature review (Moon, 2007), which looked at 313 articles between 2000 and 2006 and found that 43 percent of the research published focussed on the implementation theme and only 14 percent on using ERP. The review by Schlichter and Kraemmergaard (2010) provides a conceptual framework of the different areas of concern in ERP research and concludes that assessment of how to optimize the use of the ERP system in the organization remains a major area of concern.\n3. Research methodology: In order to examine the hypotheses, we collected data from a large aircraft manufacturing company in the Midwestern USA that is a major competitor in the aerospace industry. The natural setting and the support from management gave us access to survey the employees prior to the implementation and several months after the ERP system went live, so we were able to match the responses in the post-implementation phase to those in the pre-implementation phase. We also solicited open-ended comments in the post-implementation phase. Comments, interviews, and other qualitative data are critical to complement a research study, especially when it is anonymous (Gonzalez et al., 2010). The qualitative data usually provides extra insight as to what employees are thinking, beyond the structured survey method.\n4. Analysis and results: For each of the four ERP system related perceptions measures in our study, the count, mean, and standard deviation in T1 and T2 are listed in Table II. The results of the RM-ANOVA with time as a single independent variable were as follows: the capability measure dropped significantly from an average of 4.20 in T1 to 3.58 in T2 (p<0.001); the value measure dropped significantly from an average of 4.44 in T1 to 3.73 in T2 (p<0.001); and the timing measure dropped significantly from an average of 3.46 in T1 to 3.16 in T2 (p<0.05). Interestingly, however, the acceptance measure did not drop significantly. It went from an average value of 4.13 in T1 to 4.08 in T2 (p=0.582). Figure 2 shows a plot of each of the meansfor the four measures over time.\n5. Discussion: Employees at this company were not very positive about the ERP system in the pre-implementation phase (T1), but they were even less positive about it in the post-implementation phase (T2). The results clearly indicate that in the post-implementation phase, employees' perceptions of the ERP system' capability, value, and timing dropped significantly, whereas perceptions of employees' acceptance of the ERP system did not change much. This can be explained somewhat by the hype usually generated in the pre-implementation phase of an ERP system, to sell the employees about the system and all it can do for the company. Surprisingly, even though the users were disappointed with the ERP system and perceived the project as rushed with not enough time to get the employees ready for the change, they still felt that the change was important and had to be made. Thus, better results can probably be obtained by investing more time in making the users comfortable with the ERP system in the pre-implementation phase.\n6. Implications: Our study has several implications for researchers and practitioners. Researchers can build on our work by further investigating the post-implementation phase, especially the immediate post-implementation phase (several months after going live). A better understanding of this phase can pave the way for a more successful experience in following phases and to increased usage of the ERP system. As for practitioners, our study provides specific measures of user perceptions toward an ERP system and user characteristics that shape such perceptions. Measuring and properly managing user perceptions in the pre-implementation phase can reduce user resistance to the new ERP system in the post-implementation phase. Implementing interventions, such as offering training or education to employees with certain positions in the company, can help overcome negativity and increase user acceptance of the new ERP system. Further, managers need to give more attention to transition strategies by including realistic expectations prior to implementation. Communication regarding an appropriate time frame when system usage may reach steady state and best practices on using features and functionalities of the ERP system can be effective in managing user perceptions through the transition.\n7. Conclusions: We used four user perceptions (capability, value, timing, and acceptance), originating in the Human Resource Management literature, to examine users' perceptions toward a new ERP system in the post-implementation phase. These perceptions were then compared to ones in the pre-implementation phase using involvement in the ERP implementation process and position in the company as contingency variables. The four constructs offer alternatives to the typical measures (ex. ease of use, usefulness, usage, etc.) used in classical IS frameworks such as TAM. We analyzed 141 T1-T2 matched survey responses and 81 open-ended comments in T2. Our analysis of comparing the overall means of the measures in T1 and T2 was consistent with our analysis of the comments. Our analysis by level of involvement and position in the company support some of our hypothesis but not all.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore how key users' perceptions (capability, value, timing, and acceptance) toward an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system change from the pre-implementation to the post-implementation phase. The paper also examines how this change differs with varying levels of user involvement in the implementation process and users' positions in the company.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors survey the employees of a major aircraft manufacturing company in the Midwest and analyze the data using repeated measures ANOVA. The authors use time as a within-subject independent variable, and involvement/position at the company as between-subject independent variables.\nFindings: The results reveal a significant drop in users' perceptions regarding the capability, value, and implementation timing of the ERP system. However, the perception of acceptance did not change significantly. Furthermore, there were more significant interactions of users' perceptions with employee position than employee involvement in the implementation process.\nResearch limitations/implications: The study offers a better theoretical understanding of how users' perceptions regarding an ERP system evolve over time. The use of one company is a limitation of the study, so future research can focus on extending the study in different sectors.\nPractical implications: Management can design interventions to minimize users' negative perceptions about the ERP system and increase usage in the post-implementation phase. For example, management can design training customized toward users' positions in the company.\nOriginality/value: Post-implementation research in the ERP field is rare. Conducting a survey of users' perceptions allows the authors to take an in-depth look at attitudes toward an ERP system.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Role of green policy on sustainable supply chain management: A model for implementing corporate social responsibility (CSR)
|
[
"Innovation",
"Supply chain",
"Continuous improvement",
"Supply chain management",
"Supplier evaluation"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The eco-friendly strategy has become a competitive strategy for the companies to survive in the emerging markets such as India. Study warned that if not confronted, climate change had the potential to contribute to conflicts and wars over diminishing resources such as food and water. By 2050, the combined GDP of the emerging economies will be more than 50 percent of the total GDP of the world. This would not be achieved without leaving carbon foot prints in the world. Moreover, Nidumolu et al. found that the quest for sustainability can lead to organizational and technological innovations that can yield both top-line and bottom-line returns for companies. Hollos et al. (2012) examined the implications of sustainable supplier cooperation and studied the influence of supplier cooperation on performance of the organization. Moreover, the survey of Western European firms showed that sustainable supplier cooperation has generally positive effects on firm performance across social, green, and economic dimensions. However, the study also showed that only green practices have positive significant effects on economic performance, not social practices such as child labor rules.\nLiterature review: Zhu and Sarkis suggest that green supply chain management (GSCM) practices consist of four major dimensions: internal environmental management, external environmental management, investment recovery, and eco-design. Internal environmental management includes commitment of GSCM by senior managers, support for GSCM by mid-level managers, cross-functional cooperation for environmental improvements, total quality environmental management, environmental compliance and auditing programs ISO 14001 certification, and environmental management systems. The external environmental management including GSCM practices provides design specification to suppliers that include environmental requirements. This cooperation is in the areas of purchased item, cooperation with suppliers for environmental objectives, environmental audit for suppliers' internal management, suppliers' ISO 14000 certification, and second-tier supplier environmental-friendly practice evaluation, cooperation with customer for eco-design, cooperation with customers for cleaner production, and cooperation with customers for green packaging. Investment recovery includes investment recovery (sale) of excess inventories/materials, sale of scrap and used materials, and sale of excess capital equipment. Eco-design includes design of products for reduced consumption of material/energy, design of products for reuse, recycle, recovery of material, component parts, design of products to avoid or reduce use of hazardous, and products and/or their manufacturing process. Researchers indicate that supply chain measurement should involve integrated measures applied to the whole process in order to prevent optimization at one point without reflecting potential consequences at other points in the supply chain. Scapens et al. suggests that supply chain performance measurement system is needed to deal with innovative strategies like teamwork and non-financial metrics such as lead times. Characteristics of employees in an organization should be considered as an important variable for the overall supply chain performance (Gunasekaran et al., 2001).\nMethodology: This paper included the respondents from both manufacturing and service firm located in India. The sampling companies which have adopted sustainable practices were included in the research. Questionnaires were mailed to the top management of these firms in 1,000 firms. A variety of industries were included - electronics and allied industries, industrial machinery, and business consultant and services. The valid mailing was 528 surveys, from which 326 responses were received. Of the surveys completed and returned, only 227 were usable. The effective response rate was approximately 23.51 percent. This is acceptable according to research the response rate for a mail survey needs to be less than 20 percent. Moreover, non-response bias was investigated by kh2. The result was non-response bias. Therefore, for this study, the response rate is considered acceptable.\nResults and discussion: Table I on next page shows the correlation matrix for all variables. Variance inflation factors (VIF) were used to check potential problems relating to multicollinearity, with non-orthogonality among independent variables inflates standard errors. The VIFs range from 1.03 to 2.82 well below the cut-of value of 10 recommended. Thus, they are not correlated with each other between independent variables. Hence, there are no substantial multicollinearity problems encountered in this study.\nContributions and future suggestion for research: Theoretical contributions and future suggestion for research\nConclusion: The paper examines the role of EP in enhancing the adoption of sustainable strategy. Though the study provides some useful insights into the role of EP on firm's competitiveness, certain limitations should be recognized. First, the study used single-informant reports to measure each of the theoretical constructs. An alternative approach would have been to combine information from multiple informants, although the practical difficulties associated with using information from multiple-informant reports are well recognized by management researchers. Second, the cross-sectional research design limits the extent to which inferences can be made about the causal ordering of variables. Finally, the manufacturing sectors and service sector that we studied provided an appropriate setting, although research in other industries is required. Consider that the pace of strategic change in some industries may differ from the manufacturing sectors that we studied.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Green supply chain management (GSCM) has become the driver of sustainable strategy. This topic has been gaining increasing attention within both academia and industry for making the industry competitive. With the ever increasing demand for reducing carbon foot prints and greenhouse gas emission, there is a need to study the various parameters and drivers of sustainable development, especially in supply chain management. The need for developing the sustainable model including the drivers of sustainability needs to be designed. The paper aims to discuss these issues.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Using resource-based theory and value chain analysis; the authors have developed a model for sustainable strategy. The data were collected and analyzed to find the key drivers of sustainability. The data were analyzed with the help of regression and correlation analysis.\nFindings: After providing a background discussion on GSCM, the authors categorize and review recent GSCM literature under three broad categories, with a special emphasis on investigation of adoption, diffusion, and outcomes of GSCM practices. Within this review framework, the authors also identified GSCM research questions that are worthy of investigation. The study suggests that the main drivers of GSCM include the environmental policy and the green human resource management by providing them training for adopting sustainability practices. Besides this, another key driver is the sustainability criteria in supplier selection which was found to be enhancing the outcomes of sustainability.\nResearch limitations/implications: The model suggests that we need to have management support for implementing the sustainability strategy in the organization.\nPractical implications: The study guides the managers for implementing sustainable supply chain management practices in the organization.\nSocial implications: The model including the environment policy (adoption), green human resource management (diffusion), green technology (diffusion), and GSCM.\nOriginality/value: Additional organizational theories which are considered valuable for future GSCM research are also identified with a conclusion for this review.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Rejecting options from large and small choice sets: the mediating role of confidence
|
[
"Satisfaction",
"Confidence",
"Rejection decisions",
"Small vs large choice sets"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Literature in choice and decision-making has predominantly focused on selection decisions. Indeed, marketing managers need to consider which product line to launch, and consumers themselves often choose a product from an array of various alternatives. However, there are many instances where individuals have to make rejection decisions - that is, they need to decide which option to \"throw out\" from a pool of options and keep the rest. For example, consumers may plan to buy two pairs of jeans but try on four pairs at the retail store and so they might not necessarily decide which two to buy but which two to reject. It is thus important to understand not only how individuals select which option to accept but also how and which they reject from their consideration set.\nTheoretical background: Selecting an option among many\nThe current research: In summary, in rejection decisions, assuming that the decision-maker has no a priori preferences, we propose that large (vs small) choice sets should increase confidence and in turn satisfaction with the decision.\nExperiment 1: In Experiment 1, we tested the hypothesized effect by contrasting few versus more choices in both selection and rejection decisions. In selection decisions, more choice should reduce confidence and satisfaction, consistent with the broader findings in the choice overload research. But in rejection decisions, more choice should increase confidence and satisfaction. To be sure, the role of confidence in the (selection-based) choice overload literature has not been tested specifically but the literature does lend support to the view that more options increase the difficulty of selecting from multiple options because individuals become less confident in which option might be the best (Chernev et al., 2014; Chernev and Hamilton, 2009; Dhar and Nowlis, 1999; Haynes, 2009). Whereas, given our theorizing for rejection decisions, more options should lead individuals to be more confident in rejection decisions. This confidence should then increase satisfaction with the decision. Formally, we have the following hypothesis:\nExperiment 2: Beyond rectifying or at least limiting the concerns that were likely in Experiment 1, Experiment 2's primary objective was to assess the underlying mechanism. We have found that confidence mediates the effect. We test this notion here differently by not measuring it and then assessing its potential mediating role given that mediation findings can arise by co-varying with the \"true\" mediator. Instead, we brought in regulatory focus (Higgins, 1997, 1998). According to the regulatory focus theory, a focus on prevention entails minimizing negative outcomes. Thus, if a rejection decision involves a goal of not rejecting the best option, and consistent with decision compatibility effects (Chernev, 2009; Fischer et al., 1999; Nowlis and Simonson, 1996) and with Chernev's study (2009), the impact of large choice sets in rejection decisions on decision confidence and satisfaction should be stronger when individuals have a prevention focus in mind likely because such a focus would strengthen a goal of not rejecting the best option. Thus we have the following hypothesis:\nExperiment 3: In this experiment, we manipulated the attractiveness of the choice set provider - assuming that this manipulation would potentially affect the perceived attractiveness of the options from which individuals could choose (Keller, 1993). Prior research has already examined attractiveness as a possible moderator for the choice overload effect in selection decisions (Chan, 2015; Chernev and Hamilton, 2009). These authors concluded that the effect generally arises for attractive options but not for less attractive ones. They have not examined option attractiveness in the context of rejection decisions.\nGeneral discussion: In the current investigation, we propose that large (vs small) choice sets increase satisfaction in rejection decisions. We posit that, in rejection decisions, when individuals are unsure of what they like or dislike, large choice sets should increase decision confidence that in turn increases one's satisfaction with the decision.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Literature on choice has predominantly focused on selection decisions rather than rejection decisions. Research on rejection decisions has also only studied rejecting one option from two alternatives. This research aims to study the differences in decision confidence and satisfaction in rejection decisions between choice sets of small and large sizes.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors conducted three behavioral experiments in which they first tested the overall effect (Experiment 1) and then found out whether regulatory focus (Experiment 2) and the attractiveness of options (Experiment 3) moderated it.\nFindings: The authors observed that decision satisfaction increased when rejecting larger (vs smaller) choice sets. Decision confidence mediated it (Experiment 1). The effect was strongest when participants had a prevention focus (Experiment 2) and when they were rejecting relatively unattractive options (Experiment 3).\nResearch limitations/implications: This research expands the understanding of how individuals make rejection-based decisions and in particular how individuals make choices for one option out of many as in the selection-based choice overload literature.\nPractical implications: The authors show how choice sets of varying sizes affect rejection decisions commonly faced by managers and consumers. This research provides implications for improving confidence and satisfaction, both of which are important elements of everyday decision-making, by suggesting that choice outcomes may differ depending on whether one is making a selection or a rejection decision and whether the choice set size is small or large.\nOriginality/value: This is the first study to examine rejection decisions with more than two alternatives. The findings complement the large body of work on the choice overload effect that focuses on selection decisions.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Taking the ERP plunge in stages: Socio-technical challenge to new ventures
|
[
"Strategic alignment",
"Manufacturing resource planning",
"Internal control",
"Internal auditing",
"Corporate governance",
"Organizational development"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIt's much more than merely an information system: Long gone are the days when only large organizations used enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems to integrate their processes and data. These days companies, both large and small, and within diverse sectors, take advantage of ERP technology's benefits and there are an array of packages for comprehensive, integrated business management systems to choose from. These systems reflect a new phase in integrating business processes and information resources within and between organizations. But when should newly-established firms take the ERP plunge? Their managements will, sooner or later, have to consider questions such as: \"Do we need an ERP system or can we do without it?\" and \"When do we need it - now, or as we grow and when we can better afford it?\" And \"When will we know the time is right?\"As for the \"Do we need it?\" maybe the answer lies in the fact that new firms have failed because entrepreneurs have been inefficient in their dealings with management production and organizational design and development. How to integrate ERP implementation along with the new venture's organizational development may be of critical importance to the new firm's survival and growth. As for the \"when\", taking it in stages may help. For example:1. Stage 1: The initial phase - assessing organizational niche.2. Stage 2: Searching for solutions phase.3. Stage 3: Building standards phase.4. Stage 4: Leveraging the value of IT stage.It is suggested that the alignment of organizational development issues in the ERP implementation process is just as important as the economic considerations of adoption. Also, ERP should be considered not only as an information system, but also part of corporate governance systems. Its implementation also facilitates the development of IT governance in pursuing overall strategic alignment, value delivery, resource management, risk management, and performance.\nConstrained resources limit choice of vendor: When a Taiwanese IC (integrated circuit) design company - a new venture but part of a much wider group - was in its infancy, constrained resources led it to choose an ERP system from a local software vendor. The new company's main focuses were initially on R&D and saving costs but it recognized the eventual need for a business management system that could integrate all facets of the business including planning, manufacturing, sales and marketing. It spent about a year to identify the most appropriate ERP system. Many of the systems provided by international vendors such as SAP were thought to be inappropriate because of business practices in Asian countries often being markedly different from Western ones.During the searching for solutions phase, when the company was starting to outsource its manufacturing processes, there was no ERP system for an IC design house developed by local ERP vendors and, for new ventures, solutions provided by SAP were considered to be too costly. Two Taiwanese providers were considered but neither could deliver the whole desired package. The solution came in an agreement between the two to form a strategic alliance to support the IC design company's ERP implementation project. The suppliers reasoned that the rapid growth of the Taiwanese IC design industry would lead to huge future opportunities, and also that the business group to which their customer belonged comprised 30 companies and was consequently an attractive entry point for potential relational ties.\nERP as part of the company's corporate governance system: The building standards phase involved fine tuning the standard system - a key process in the implementation - and requiring translating business needs into appropriate parameter settings. Standards development and QMS needed to be employed, as the company saw ERP as part of its corporate governance system. ERP was designed to improve management transparency and accountability, and clarify the division of roles between management oversight and business execution.In the leveraging the value of IT phase, the company not only considered how ERP implementation can enhance the firm's standard setting, internal audits, and corporate governance, but also carefully examined the ERP system itself. That is, the implementation of ERP also facilitates the development and controlling of how IT operates within the business, to ensure the value of IT investments. The mechanism of ERP implementation in this stage can be referred to as the development of IT governance. For example, even though almost all their peer high-tech firms have ERP systems, the case-study company's CEO still asks for the evaluation of the value of return-on-investment.\nChallenges from both the technical and human side: In spite of the growth in the ERP market, there is evidence of growing dissatisfaction in that it has failed to deliver the anticipated benefits. Many organizations have serious conflicts with their business strategies and the success of many ERP projects is marred by delays and cost overruns. Adopting organizations must develop a quantifiable business model, define its best practices, and then structure its ERP implementation to achieve its business goals. But the challenges of implementing ERP can come from both the technical and the human side, such as scope creep and change management. In fact, ERP is a socio-technical challenge that needs a fundamentally different outlook from technologically-driven innovation, and will depend on a balanced perspective where the organization as a total system is considered.A related implementation issue is alignment. There are several aligning mechanisms that should be taken into consideration including strategic alignment, system and process alignment, and knowledge alignment. Misalignments can hamper a firm's efforts to effectively control and coordinate its business activities.\nComment: This review is based on \"An exploratory study of alignment ERP implementation and organizational development activities in a newly established firm\" by Dr Jau-Rong Chen, who explores how enterprise resource planning implementation can facilitate the organizational development of new ventures. Using a case study from a Taiwanese IC design house, she addresses the questions: \"What are the appropriate ERP implementation considerations for a newly-established firm's growth?\" and \"How can ERP implementation and organizational development activities be aligned over time?\"\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.\nFindings: - Long gone are the days when only large organizations used enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems to integrate their processes and data. These days companies, both large and small, and within diverse sectors, take advantage of ERP technology's benefits and there are an array of packages for comprehensive, integrated business management systems to choose from. These systems reflect a new phase in integrating business processes and information resources within and between organizations. But when should newly-established firms take the ERP plunge? Their managements will, sooner or later, have to consider questions such as: \"Do we need an ERP system or can we do without it?\" and \"When do we need it - now, or as we grow and when we can better afford it?\" And \"When will we know the time is right?\"\nPractical implications: - Provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.\nOriginality/value: - The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
How leadership for an ICT reform is distributed within a school
|
[
"Singapore",
"Schools",
"Leadership",
"Managers",
"Transformational leadership",
"Resource management",
"Information communication technology",
"Instructional leadership",
"Technology"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Compared to the broader field of leadership in schools, there are relatively few studies on the role of leaders in information communication technology (ICT) implementation in schools and these studies generally do not build on what is already known in the general literature on leadership in schools (Anderson and Dexter, 2005; Feldner, 2003).Although few studies which focus on leadership for technology reform in schools have been conducted, leadership is highlighted in the literature on technology use in schools as being key, not just for ICT implementation, but for successful ICT implementation. Success is usually defined as integration into the curriculum and the use of ICT to help students construct knowledge (Flanagan and Jacobsen, 2003; Hew and Brush, 2007; Inan and Lowther, 2010). Fishman et al. (2002) proposed that leadership is an \"integral part of the successful use of technology in [...] school reform\" (p. 7). Anderson and Dexter (2000), based on their findings from a national survey in the USA in 1998, found that indicators of leadership were more critical than infrastructure indicators in predicting successful ICT implementation, defined by the authors as use of the internet, integration of technology into the curriculum, and the extent to which students use ICT tools to support their learning.In a comprehensive four-year (1997-2000) case study of a school which successfully implemented technologies for learning, conditions which contributed to this success included strong and enthusiastic leadership, clear goals, a culture of staff collegiality, the sharing of leadership, and the provision of professional development (Prain and Hand, 2003). All these conditions can arguably be subsumed under leadership since leadership support is required to translate goals into practice, sustain a collegial culture, and provide resources for professional development.\nLiterature on distributed leadership: Distributed leadership defined\nResearch Aim: Since the literature indicates that leadership is critical in influencing the way teachers use ICT, it is important to study the enactment of leadership, particularly how leadership is distributed amongst individuals. The objective of the study was to provide insight into how leadership was distributed in a school reform involving the use of ICT for instruction. The key questions included the following:* What were the leadership actions enacted?* Who enacted these leadership actions?* What pattern, if any, was there in the distribution of leadership?\nMethodology: As distributed leadership is intimately dependent upon the context, upon the organisation as lived and emerging from specific situations (Bennett et al., 2003a; Spillane et al., 2008), this study adopted a naturalistic inquiry approach (Lincoln and Guba, 1985) involving the case study of a school in the process of implementing a reform involving the use of ICT for instruction. According to Lincoln and Guba (1985), key characteristics of naturalistic inquiry include a natural setting, idiographic interpretations based on the specifics of a case, and an emergent research design to cater to unpredictable situations which emerge from human interactions. These characteristics are in line with the fluid, emergent, and context-dependent concept of distributed leadership.The case study involved observations of relevant meetings, workshops, and analysis of e-mail correspondence to surface emerging leadership practices in action. Identified leaders were interviewed to give their explanations and interpretations of the leadership actions observed. As followers are an integral part of leadership practice (Gronn, 2008; Heck and Hallinger, 1999; Southworth, 2002), the case study involved interviewing followers for their perceptions of leadership provided, and its impact. Gunter (2001) notes that in a study of leadership, such an approach enables the \"interplay between what is said is done and what is experienced as being done\" (p. 59). The approach taken in this case study is similar to what M. Brown et al. (2000) refers to as \"a contextualised perspective in action\" (p. 243) which includes observing the leader in action, reflecting with the leader what is going on and why, eliciting the views of significant others, and synthesising the different evidence to form a vignette of the leader concerned in a specific context.Figure 1 (adapted from Spillane et al., 2004) functions as an advanced organiser to illustrate how the two main methods of observation and interview are related to the theoretical perspective of distributed leadership and the three research questions.Distribution of leadership\nFindings: The objective of the study was to provide insight into how leadership was distributed in a school reform involving the use of ICT for instruction.What were the leadership actions enacted?\nDiscussion: In the literature, although there are indications that besides the principal, there are others who perform instructional and transformational leadership, there is a scarcity of studies which examined how instructional and transformational leadership are shared by different people (Yukl, 2001).In one extensive study by Leithwood et al. (2004) on how transformational leadership is performed by different levels of leaders, the finding was that what leaders at different levels of an organisation did was \"basically the same\", with the key difference being the \"parts of the organisation\" to which leadership was applied (p. 73). In this study, the authors summarised the transformational leadership by naming the transformational leadership function performed (such as vision and intellectual stimulation). Although Leithwood et al. (2004) differentiated between the effects of the leadership provided by different leadership sources, such as regional directors and teacher coordinators, they did not explicate the differences in leadership practices. We are not told the differences between say the intellectual stimulation provided by regional directors and the intellectual stimulation provided by the teacher coordinators. In other words, there was no indication of differences between the transformational leadership provided by people who were at different levels in the chain of command.In our study, while both SM and MM in Greenville Elementary performed transformational leadership, there were differences in the nature and purpose of the leadership provided. These differences served the complementary functions of providing leadership at the school and specific reform level, at a strategic and instructional level. The leadership performed by MM primarily resembled instructional leadership. Beyond transformational and instructional leadership, SM and MM also provided leadership through management of resources. Table III summarises the similarities and differences in the leadership provided by SM and MM in Greenville Elementary.Conclusion\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to examine the process of information communication technology (ICT) reform in a government school in Singapore. The focus is on the distributed leadership actions performed by various individuals, and how the multiple leaders and their leadership practices interacted with one another.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - A naturalistic inquiry approach was adopted, involving the case study of a school in the process of implementing an instructional reform involving the use of ICT.\nFindings: - It was found that distributed leadership for ICT implementation requires a combination of transformational leadership and instructional leadership to develop teachers' capacity to enhance their instruction with ICT, emotional leadership to support teachers' effort to change, and strategic management of resources to sustain teachers' change efforts. Transformational leadership is performed mainly by senior management (SM). Instructional leadership is performed mainly by middle management (MM). Both senior and middle management provided emotional leadership and strategic resource management. In addition, SM provided second-order changes leadership, while MM provided first-order changes leadership.\nOriginality/value: - The paper rectifies the current disproportionate focus on the role of the Principal by uncovering the leadership actions performed by other school members, and how these leadership actions are interrelated. In particular, the paper provides insight into how leadership was distributed in a school reform involving the use of ICT for instruction.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Exploring correlates of work exhaustion and physical exhaustion for a sample of massage therapists and body workers
|
[
"Work exhaustion",
"Physical exhaustion",
"Job satisfaction",
"Hours of work",
"Rest allowances",
"Therapists"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Increased changes at work, such as: global competition, customer demand for services, use of technology, and micromanagement have helped to create a more demanding job environment for many employees (Maslach and Leiter, 1997). The current recession has required many to work harder as a result of a having a reduced work staff (Careerbuilder, 2011). Such added \"pressure to produce\" over a period of time can lead to exhaustion, which is generally acknowledged as the first stage or dimension of burnout (Cordes and Dougherty, 1993; Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004). Two additional dimensions generally follow in the burnout process, depersonalization or cynicism (felt distance or indifference towards work), and diminished personal accomplishment or efficacy (Maslach and Leiter, 1997; Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004).\nTypes of exhaustion, measuring exhaustion and a framework for testing study hypotheses: Defining types of exhaustion\nVariable set order for testing impact on exhaustion, occupation outcomes and study hypotheses: Prior research (Bekker et al., 2005; Lee and Ashforth, 1993; Manlove, 1993) has entered general antecedent variable sets in the following order when testing their incremental impact for explaining work/emotional exhaustion:1. demographic variables set;2. job demands variables set; and3. work attitudes variables set.From these sets, the work attitude of job satisfaction had the strongest impact (Bekker et al., 2005; Lee and Ashforth, 1993). To further test the incremental impact of work attitudes, we will enter the occupational demand variables as Step 3, before entering work attitudes in Step 4. Finally in Step 5 we will test the impact of each type of exhaustion on two outcomes, being forced to stay in an occupation and intent to leave an occupation. To summarize, we will test for the incremental impact on work exhaustion and physical exhaustion of the following variable sets (specific variables included):1. demographic/control variables (gender, years in practice, highest education level, social desirability response bias);2. job demands (surface acting, deep acting, average number of days worked/week, average number of continuing education hours completed/year);3. occupation demands (accumulated costs, limited occupational alternatives, continuing education costs); and4. work attitudes (job satisfaction, occupational identification).Given the \"exploratory\" nature of our study for investigating antecedents of work exhaustion and physical exhaustion no specific a priori variable predictions about their differential impact on type of exhaustion were made. Instead based on prior work (emotional) exhaustion research, we will hypothesize about the general incremental variance explained for both types of exhaustion as variable sets are added. After this we will then further examined specific variable relationships to work versus physical exhaustion within each set. This is our second study hypothesis (H2). For our third hypothesis (H3) we added both exhaustion variables as Step 5 to test their impact on being forced to stay in occupation and intent to leave occupation. Below are the two hypotheses:H2. The demographic/control variables set, followed by the job demands set, then the occupational demands set, and finally the work attitudes set will each incrementally explain both work exhaustion and physical exhaustion.H3. The demographic/control variables set, followed by the job demands set, then the occupational demands set, the work attitudes set, and finally exhaustion variable set will each incrementally explain both forced to stay in occupation and intent to leave occupation.\nMethod: Sample and procedure\nResults: Factor analyses to test H1\nDiscussion: While prior research had suggested such a work versus physical exhaustion distinction (Blau, 2009; Blau et al., 2009; Pines and Aronson, 1988), this is the first study we know of to reliably measure and empirically identify a difference between the constructs of work exhaustion and physical exhaustion. The study used an on-line sample of MTBWs, an occupation that is acknowledged for being physically demanding, given the repetitive motions associated with giving massages, as well as mentally demanding, given the need for strong communication skills to develop trusting, personal relationships with clients (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011). MT and BW can be characterized as a health and personal care-related occupation, since clients generally seek massages for medical benefits and/or relaxation purposes (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011). A meta-analysis on the benefits of massage therapy indicates that reduction of anxiety and depression was the largest beneficial effect (Moyer et al., 2004). Females have been found to dominate health and personal care-related occupations (Catalyst, 2011), and our on-line MT and BW sample was 79 percent female, which is consistent with expected female domination.Common regression-based correlates of both types of exhaustion included gender, surface acting, continuing education, accumulated costs and job satisfaction. Given the self-report study design we first controlled for social desirability response bias (Paulhus, 1984) which had significant but small negative impacts on both types of exhaustion. Although females perceived higher work and physical exhaustion, their perceived impact on physical exhaustion was somewhat greater. Prior research has found surface acting to be more strongly positively related to emotional/work exhaustion than deep acting (Naring et al., 2006). In our study surface acting was positively related to both work and physical exhaustion. However, although there was no relationship of deep acting to work exhaustion, we found deep acting to be positively related to physical exhaustion, suggesting that both types of emotional labor, surface and deep acting, can be physically draining. Unfortunately we do not know the different massage techniques used across our sample. In addition, our average daily client contact measure was too general to allow for meaningful analysis.We tested occupational variables as a new set of demands (Hobfoll, 2001) to help explain exhaustion and found that continuing education costs and accumulated costs, i.e. perceiving one is more entrenched or \"trapped\" in their occupation (Carson et al., 1995) positively impacted on both work and physical exhaustion. Job satisfaction has been found to be a negative antecedent of emotional exhaustion (Bekker et al., 2005). While job satisfaction had a significant negative impact on both types of exhaustion in our study, it accounted for over half (27 percent) of the total variance (50 percent) explained in work exhaustion. Furthermore, job satisfaction had a significantly stronger negative relationship to work exhaustion than to physical exhaustion. One's work attitude is a critical resource in dealing with mental stress (Hobfoll, 2001).A greater number of days worked/week positively impacted only on physical exhaustion which is consistent with the physically demanding nature of MT and BW (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011). Higher education level, which could be viewed as a resource (Hobfoll, 2001) had a negative impact on work exhaustion, while years in practice had a positive impact on only work exhaustion. Also surprising was finding occupational identification to be significantly positively related to physical exhaustion. Although not significant, occupational identification was also positively related to work exhaustion. We had expected occupational identification to be an energy-related resource variable (Hobfoll, 2001) and not a \"demand\". On further reflection, items such as \"if a story in the media criticized this occupation I would feel embarrassed\" or \"when someone criticizes massage therapy it feels like a personal insult\", suggest that higher occupational identification can be stressful and thus increase one's perceived exhaustion. The pattern of beta weights paralleled the correlations, i.e. physical exhaustion had a stronger impact on forced to stay in occupation while work exhaustion had a stronger impact on intent to leave occupation.Study limitations\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The aim of the paper is to formally test that physical exhaustion is distinguishable from work exhaustion, and to investigate common as well as differential correlates of each type of exhaustion.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - An on-line survey sample of 1,895 complete-data massage therapists and body workers (MT & BWs) was used to test the study hypotheses.\nFindings: - Factor analytic support was found for distinguishable measures of work exhaustion and physical exhaustion. In separate regression models common significant correlates for both types of exhaustion included: gender (females higher), higher surface acting, higher accumulated and continuing education occupational costs, and lower job satisfaction. However, job satisfaction had a significantly stronger negative correlation to work exhaustion versus physical exhaustion. Looking at impact on occupational outcomes, physical exhaustion had a stronger positive correlation to being forced to stay in occupation than work exhaustion, but work exhaustion had a stronger positive correlation to intent to leave occupation than physical exhaustion. Unique correlates for work exhaustion included more years in practice and lower education level, while unique correlates for physical exhaustion included: more average days worked/week, higher deep acting, and higher occupational identification.\nResearch limitations/implications: - From a measurement perspective, the three-item measure of physical exhaustion and five item measure of work exhaustion each had a good reliability. However, ideally more items should be used to measure physical exhaustion, and other work exhaustion scales should be utilized to validate the results. Expanding the job demands-resources framework to also include occupational-level variables, such as accumulated costs, seems to hold promise for helping to further understand the antecedents of exhaustion.\nPractical implications: - Work and physical exhaustion can impact on occupational outcomes and are risks for other samples such as nurses, home health care aides, physical therapists, and athletic trainers. Many MT & BWs work alone and meditation is suggested as an effective method to improve job satisfaction, reduce work exhaustion and decrease occupational intent to leave.\nOriginality/value: - The paper uses a sample of massage therapists and body workers and overall the findings suggest that work exhaustion and physical exhaustion are related but distinct exhaustion components.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Conceptualising patterns of career commitment: the leaving process in hospitality
|
[
"Career development",
"Self-efficacy",
"Hospitality",
"Career commitment",
"Career inheritance",
"Life history"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Career requirements have shifted for a twenty-first century employee, who now works toward becoming a lifelong learner, can use sophisticated information technologies, and more importantly, self-manages their career and adapts to changes caused by increased globalisation, pressure for productivity or changing and blurring of industries and jobs (Amundson, 2005; Sullivan and Baruch, 2009). Such career complexities have recently become evident in the rapidly changing work environment of the hospitality industry (WTTC, 2017). A leading generator of income, hospitality employs 3.2 million people, and is the third largest private sector employer representing 10 per cent of the UK's employment (UK Hospitality, 2018). The industry plays a significant role in creating new jobs, both in a region and within minority groups as revealed by Casado-Diaz and Simon (2016) and Salihoglu and Gezici (2018). However, the hospitality and tourism sector in the UK needs to recruit 1.3 million staff by 2024 as a quarter of hospitality and tourism businesses have vacancies of which 38 per cent are considered hard-to-fill (People 1st, 2017). Inconvenient hours, low pay and benefits, the transient nature of work, unclear career paths and a perceived lack of career progression continue to be cited as reasons for low retention rate in this industry in the UK (Baum, 2015; Hawkins, 2018). Fourth Analytics 2017 found that 86 per cent of employees in the UK are paid by hour due to the nature of the business (Daly, 2017). Largely due to seasonality, the industry also requires businesses to \"operate on a small skeleton permanent workforce and employ additional casual staff during peak periods\" (Goh and Lee, 2018, p. 20). Yet, not surprisingly, in 2015 18 per cent of hospitality and tourism businesses stated staff lacked the necessary skills to meet the business needs (Kent, 2017). The dominant labour supply strategy based on casual contracts (Davidson et al., 2010) means that individuals have little protection in law, are paid the national minimum wage and, as a result, are less likely to be committed to the organisation or the industry altogether. The Workforce Commission 2030 put forward three recommendations to help hospitality and tourism businesses improve productivity with one of the three recommendations being a national campaign to eliminate negative perceptions of hospitality careers (UK Hospitality, 2018).\n2. Theoretical background: It is important to understand why people leave the hospitality industry, even though some do return. As such, this research focuses on those no longer employed in the industry, which is an under-researched population group (Brown et al., 2016). The following sections examine separately the concepts of career commitment, career inheritance and self-efficacy. Consequently, the proposed interaction between these concepts forms the theoretical framework of the complexities of career-decision making in the hospitality industry.\n3. Research design: A flexible approach to data collection is adopted, to bring out themes related to career commitment, career inheritance and self-efficacy, and to standardise the interview process (Miller, 2000). This research draws on principles of life history- the historical categorisation of individuals' events and career stories (Goodson and Phillimore, 2004), which involves analysing one's \"life as a whole\" (Atkinson, 2002; Ladkin, 2004). Individual retrospective memories became \"a window onto broader social and societal conditions\" (Cole and Knowles, 2001, p. 12). To best capture participants' responses related to the three concepts, semi-structured interviews were chosen due to a lack of qualitative research on understanding turnover in the hospitality industry.\n4. Results: 4.1 Career commitment: a developmental process\n5. Discussion and conclusions: Results illustrate how each of the three overarching concepts provides insights into the process that led hospitality professionals to exiting the hospitality industry. It is the aim of this final section to demonstrate the unique interaction between these three concepts, which forms the basis for the concept of the leaving process.\n6. Conclusions: This paper provides new insights into career trajectories of hospitality professionals through the unique interaction between career inheritance (Inkson, 2004, 2007) and self-efficacy (cf. Bandura, 1977), and their influence on career commitment (Meyer et al., 2002), represented as the concept of the leaving process, the original contribution of this research.\n7. Limitations and future research: Although current research provides theoretical and practical implications, there are some limitations to note which provide suggestions for future research. The schematic illustrations of the patterns of the leaving process are only visual representations of the research findings and are not representative. To standardise the leaving process, future research could employ a quantitative research design with the same conceptual framework using a larger sample population. Due to lack of current research on the possible relationship between the three concepts, future exploratory research should employ causal hypotheses, for example high self-efficacy and low career inheritance increases the decline in career commitment. Each of the concepts could be measured separately using either current scales, for example the Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy scale by Betz and Hackett (2006) or the Career Commitment Scale by Farmer (1985) or devising new ones. Gaining generalizable results will allow for exploration and replication of the proposed framework in other service sectors. A social database could be used to conduct a network analysis to research individuals' entire career paths, including number of employers and types of jobs performed. This may provide a more detailed analysis of factors that impact on the duration of the leaving process such as the working environment or the lack of a degree. This will validate the leaving process as a conceptual tool applicable in other settings. Future studies could also focus on factors that impact the intention to leave. Due to the uniqueness and originality of the concept of the leaving process, further research is required to shed light on adequate managerial tools that could help to slow down or prevent the leaving process. Within the HRM literature, the focus has been directed towards collective turnover (Hancock et al., 2017) and how individuals' career decisions impact on their colleagues and the overall organisation performance, which is considered another avenue for future research. Finally, this research focussed on the individual's perspective of career management and career decision-making. Future research should consider organisational needs and societal trends, such as talent management or employment shortages.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This paper aims to examine the interplay between self-efficacy and career inheritance and its influence on career commitment in the hospitality sector. High labour turnover, unclear career paths and the transient nature of the work available in hospitality render it a suitable industry context that allows us to explore career commitment patterns.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Drawing on life history methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with hospitality professionals holding a relevant degree but no longer employed in the hospitality industry.\nFindings: The findings revealed the interplay between self-efficacy, career inheritance and career commitment, as well as the speed of decline of career commitment, visualised as patterns of the leaving process. Although an infinite number of variations are possible, data unveiled the three main patterns.\nResearch limitations/implications: The schematic illustrations of the patterns of the leaving process are not representative. The purposive sample comprises only ex-hospitality professionals, and generalisations can be considered in future studies.\nPractical implications: This newly conceptualised understanding of career commitment enables researchers to reconsider the fundamental reasons why individuals leave the hospitality industry, whilst also offering hospitality managers deeper insights into how the three identified patterns could inform recruitment and selection.\nOriginality/value: This paper contributes to the literature through its meaningful theoretical extension in the context of career development studies. The unique concept of the leaving process addresses the prevalent issue of turnover and generates important implications.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Diagnosing urban rail transit vehicles with FMEA and fuzzy set
|
[
"Maintenance",
"Diagnoses",
"Failure Mode and Effects Analysis",
"Fuzzy-set",
"Urban rail transit"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: As an efficient transport system, the urban rail transit (URT) system has recently become very popular and is now the main urban passenger transport system of many mega-cities, especially in highly populated areas such as Shanghai in China. Since the availability and service state of a URT system directly influence the normal activity of the city and its people to a great extent, more and more attentions are turning to researches on the URT operation and management. As one of the most important aspects, how to analyze and optimize the maintenance in order to support the operation of a URT system is the key issue of the study in this paper.\n2. FMEA for URT train system: 2.1. FMEA\n3. Treatment for FMEA based on fuzzy-set: 3.1. Assessing FMEA based on fuzzy-set\n4. Further improvements of the proposed approach: As can be seen from the abovementioned, the FMEA and fuzzy-set-based approach was introduced into the analysis and diagnoses for the URT vehicle maintenance. Initial application into the vehicle maintenance of Shanghai URT System showed that the proposed approach had a good performance. However, there are still options for further improvements such as introducing PCM into the fuzzy membership determination, using dynamic update mechanism in the database, etc.\n5. Conclusions: In recent years, the URT system has bloomed and become the mainstay of urban passenger transport in many mega-cities, especially in those highly populated areas such as Shanghai in China. It is believed that how to analyze and optimize the maintenance is important to support the URT operation and management. In this paper, the technique of FMEA is introduced to record and examine the state of a URT vehicle. The fuzzy-set-based treatment for FMEA tables is put forward such that the linguistic/semantic and vague/uncertain information in FMEA tables can be quantified, and consequently the strategies of URT vehicle maintenance can be analyzed and diagnosed. Furthermore, recommendations for further improvement of the proposed approach are also provided. Initial application into the vehicle maintenance of Shanghai URT System shows, that the proposed approach has a good performance and consequently is worth further development.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to develop an effective treatment to analyze and diagnose urban rail transit (URT) vehicle maintenance strategy.\nDesign/methodology/approach: In this paper, the technique of Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) is introduced into the examination of URT trains, first. Then the method of fuzzy-set-based assessment for FMEA is presented, which is the quantitative tool of Fuzzy-Set-based treatment for FMEA in analysis and diagnoses to URT maintenance strategy. Moreover, recommendations for further improvement of the proposed approach are also provided. Initial application into the vehicle maintenance of Shanghai URT System shows, that the proposed approach has a good performance and consequently is worth further development.\nFindings: The paper presents a FMEA and fuzzy-set-based theoretical approach for analyzing and diagnosing current methods in URT vehicle maintenance strategy.\nPractical implications: With rapid development of URT systems in the world especially in those highly populated areas, much more attentions are turning to researches on URT maintenance, nevertheless, few quantitative research achievement are mentioned or applied. This paper is a tentative attempt at introducing fuzzy-set theory into quantitative analysis and diagnoses of URT maintenance strategy.\nOriginality/value: The study in this paper is helpful in theory and practice of URT maintenance and its methodology could be further applied into a broad family of facility group or system in other engineering fields.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Marketing model of promotion of remote education by modern university
|
[
"Marketing",
"Promotion",
"Modern university",
"Remote education"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Global technological modernization and digital transformation cover almost all spheres of economic activities. In the sphere of higher education, this tendency led to formation of remote education, which is an innovational form of provision of educational services. Within this form, university received a possibility to gain advantages from the \"scale effect\" during provision of educational services by providing them to unlimited number of consumers around the world with fixed expenditures of resources.\nMaterials and method: Peculiarities and advantages of remote education as an innovational form of provision (and receipt) of educational services, as well as barriers on the path of its distribution are viewed in multiple works of authors such as Annear (2018), Aria and Archer (2018), Blieck et al. (2018), Bogoviz et al. (2017), Chashchin et al. (2013), Chen et al. (2018), Cook (2018), Crisp (2018), Esfijani (2018), Funes and Mackness (2018), Gil-Jaurena and Dominguez (2018), Isaev et al. (2013), Komninou (2018), Kravets et al. (2013), Li and Zhou (2018), Morozova and Popkova (2014), van Ingen and Matzat (2018).\nResults: As a result of automatized processing of data in Microsoft Excel, the following regression curve was obtained, as shown in Figure 1.\nConclusions: Thus, the working hypothesis (including both sub-hypotheses: H1 and H2) is proved in the course of the research. By the example of leading universities of Rostov Oblast, it is shown that modernization on the basis of new information and communication technologies (primarily, the internet) stimulates growth of competitiveness of a modern university. Thus, remote education is a perspective direction of development and increase of effectiveness of modern university's activities.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to substantiate the necessity of marketing of remote education by the example of leading universities of Rostov Oblast of modern Russia and to develop the marketing model of promotion of remote education by the modern university.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors use the method of economic statistics and regression and correlation analysis. Based on the data of the single information system of the Russian Federation in the sphere of purchases, the authors selected orders of the leading universities of Rostov Oblast for access to the internet for 2017, which are the indicator of their modernization on the basis of new information and communication technologies. Based on the data of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, the authors determined the incomes of the leading universities of Rostov Oblast in 2017 and their positions in the regional ranking of effectiveness of activities of universities of Rostov Oblast. These data became a statistical basis for compiling the regression curve, which reflects regression and correlation of expenditures for access to the internet and total expenditures of the leading universities of Rostov Oblast in 2017.\nFindings: It is concluded that modernization on the basis of new information and communication technologies (primarily, the internet) stimulates the growth of modern university's competitiveness. Due to this, remote education is a perspective direction of development and increase of effectiveness of modern university's activities. The necessity for marketing of remote education is predetermined by its lower value as compared to traditional education and, accordingly, lower demand for educational services that are provided in the remote form.\nOriginality/value: The authors' marketing model of promotion of remote education by modern university is developed and presented. The advantage of this model is harmonization of commercial and non-commercial goals and priorities of modern university's activities, due to which balance of its social function in the economic system and its entrepreneurial function, which consists in the necessity for providing self-financing and maximization of the received profit, are ensures.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The anatomy of the inconspicuous luxury fashion experience
|
[
"Fashion",
"Qualitative research",
"Signalling theory",
"Luxury consumption",
"Inconspicuousness"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Over the past two decades, the pursuit of luxury possessions has stimulated the growth of the luxury market in which a 2015 report reveals that the industry was worth US$251 million (Statista, 2015). Recently, the industry has been affected by declining demands in key markets such as Hong Kong and China following a crackdown on bribery in China (Neate, 2017). The overall market outlook for the luxury industry continues to be challenging, with slow growth in several developed nations (Deloitte, 2017). This drop in demand has strong implications as Chinese consumers account to 31 percent of global luxury sales (D'Arpizio et al., 2015). Despite the market fluctuations, the luxury goods sector is resilient and consumers are still consuming luxury brands (Barnier et al., 2012). Particularly, consumers in emerging markets such as China, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates continue to drive the industry's growth (Deloitte, 2017). Among the luxury goods, bags and accessories are the fastest growth categories with sales growth of 13.4 percent in 2015. The sales growth of apparel/footwear and jewelry/watches were recorded at 4.4 and 2 percent, respectively (Deloitte, 2017). These developments in the luxury industry clearly indicated the challenges of the market's volatility, which has attracted much interest of economists, scholars, and marketers alike to understand the luxury business landscape.\nThe many faces of luxury: The term \"luxury\" is derived from the old French, \"luxurie,\" which implies \"lasciviousness, sinful, self-indulgence,\" (Berthon et al., 2009, p. 46). The concept of luxury exists in various forms of consumption practices (Dubois et al., 2005) and is routinely used to describe products, services, or lifestyles in daily life (Wiedmann and Hennigs, 2013) yet scholars have struggled to reach a consensus concerning its definition (Amatulli et al., 2016). For example, some researchers have used the terms luxury and premium brands interchangeably (Hieke, 2010) whilst others simply interpret luxury as the opposite of necessity (Vigneron and Johnson, 1999). Phau and Prendergast (2000) postulated four crucial elements for a product to be luxurious: exude exclusivity; recognizable brand identity; perceived quality and high brand awareness; and preserve high sales levels and customer loyalty. The different perspectives in conceptualizing luxury have led to fragmented and confusing findings in the luxury consumption literature.\nLuxury and (in)conspicuousness: Previous luxury research has focused on the meanings of luxury (Granot et al., 2013), luxury consumer profiles (Dubois and Duquesne, 1993), luxury perceptions (Janssen et al., 2017; Vigneron and Johnson, 1999, 2004; Godey et al., 2013), and values of luxury (Choo et al., 2012; Wiedmann et al., 2009). There has also emerged a strong strand of literature examining attitudes toward luxury (Dubois and Laurent, 1994), and motivations for specific luxury choices (Husic and Cicic, 2009). The phenomenon of mass marketing luxury brands was also once a popular research topic (Nueno and Quelch, 1998). A more recent line of research has focused on the role of self-identity (Al-Mutawa, 2016; Wiedmann et al., 2009), moral norms (Kim et al., 2009), and social dimensions (Bian et al., 2015) in luxury consumption research. Many of these past studies have supported the association between luxury and conspicuousness.\nSignaling theory and luxury: Signaling literature in economics has been centered around the wealth facet where status goods are believed to have no functional value and purchasing motives are purely for its status symbol (Bourdieu, 1984). This notion is related to Veblen's theorizing of conspicuous behaviors in which preferences for luxury are driven by human desires to increase status (Cummins, 2005). Status signaling may not only be visible in conspicuous brand consumption, but also in choices of education, social ties, charity giving, and purchasing of environmentally friendly products (Carter and Gilovich, 2012; Glazer and Konrad, 1996; Lin, 1999; Sivanathan and Pettit, 2010). These signals can all indicate wealth, income or taste to other individuals of the same or higher social class.\nMethod: This study is qualitative in nature with an interpretive philosophical perspective to uncover meanings linked to inconspicuousness, focusing on the experience, consumption, and ideologies behind inconspicuous luxury consumption (Goulding, 1999). Three techniques were employed in data collection for the purpose of triangulation (Belk et al., 1988): online blog data, semi-structured in-depth interviews and observation. Online blog data was first collected to gain preliminary insights into luxury bloggers' (who are also luxury consumers) perceptions and experiences associated with luxury consumption. Interviews and observational data were then collected concurrently at participants' homes.\nFindings: Through analysis of exemplary quotes and images derived from the data sets, we discovered four themes that informants concurred with when describing the meaning of true luxury.\nA typology of inconspicuous luxury consumers: Based on past literature and the exploration of inconspicuous consumers' meanings of luxury and associated desires and sentiments, we identify \"cultural capital\" and \"need for identity signaling\" that underlie the concept of luxury inconspicuousness. Our analyses uncover four types of consumers yielding a typology of inconspicuous luxury consumers (see Figure 1) which produce new knowledge in luxury research.\nDiscussion: The study on inconspicuousness is novel in itself as there has been limited research in this area. Conspicuous consumption has overtaken academic research for decades. Fashion brand managers have focused their marketing strategies on luxury's power to communicate public identities and \"keep up with the Joneses\" (Christen and Morgan, 2005; Matt, 2003). However, we have seen consumers shift toward inconspicuousness (Eckhardt et al., 2015) thus making targeting problematic for marketers to appeal to this consumer segment without an understanding of their perceptions, motivations, emotions, experiences and behaviors toward luxury. Findings from this study reveal that inconspicuous choices are not simply made for associative or dissociative motivations (Han et al., 2010) but there are several symbolic consumption schemas that may come into play such as social and cultural resources that depict their roles in society and how they plan purchases (see Table I for a review of key research on inconspicuousness). Previous theories on \"old\" luxury, conspicuous consumption and segmentation of social classes that profess luxury goods are for elite snobs (Leibenstein, 1950) and high-income earners (Wu et al., 2017), are not necessarily applicable to today's global luxury consumer with access to information online and has preferences to renting luxury rather than ownership as a form of sustainability (Heinrichs, 2013).\nConclusions and implications: Extending Han et al.'s (2010) study that wealthy consumers purchase subtle brands for dissociation from mainstream, our study demonstrate that those with high cultural capital, taste and needs for personal self-enhancement appreciate luxury more. There are several managerial implications this study offers. Luxury fashion brands should evaluate whether inconspicuous consumers would fit with their brand image while also monitoring direct competitors' success with this segment. To offer luxury designs that appeal to inconspicuous luxury consumers, they must abide by luxury meanings found in our study. It must be subtle, identifiable only to the few, offer hedonic and utilitarian values and display a symbolic story that inconspicuous consumers can relate to and enjoy experiencing. The more emotionally involved inconspicuous consumers are with their luxury possessions, the greater the chances of them finding congruency with the brand symbols.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to address the following questions: how do consumers construct meaning around their inconspicuous luxury fashion experiences? What desires do inconspicuous consumers strive to fulfill? What sentiments do they associate with their inconspicuous luxury fashion consumption?\nDesign/methodology/approach: This exploratory research begins with a netnographic study of 11 online luxury blogs followed by in-depth interviews and home observations of ten luxury consumers with inconspicuous preferences in Dubai.\nFindings: Inconspicuous choices are not simply for associative or dissociative motivations but several symbolic consumption schemas come into play. A typology of inconspicuous luxury fashion consumers has emerged: fashion influencers, trendsetters, fashion followers, and luxe conservatives.\nPractical implications: The findings have potential to yield important managerial implications for fashion retailers and brand communications. The typology of inconspicuous consumers provides a basis for developing a more targeted relationship marketing program for luxury fashion brands.\nOriginality/value: This research advances luxury knowledge in fashion and consumer behavior research by unveiling how consumers construct meanings around their inconspicuous consumption. The typology developed in this study marks the starting point for further extensions to explore the complexities of inconspicuous luxury consumers, which are grounded in the roles they take on in society, how they plan their luxury consumption journey and how they eventually use these possessions for self-identification and communication to others.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Management 2.0: managing the growing intangible side of your business
|
[
"Intellectual capital",
"Intangible assets",
"Business performance",
"Social networks",
"Brands"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: We live at the intersection between what are often described as the industrial and the knowledge economies. The first is a tangible economy - it involves raw materials, machines and products you can see and touch. The second is an economy based on intangibles - it involves knowledge, ideas and services you cannot see or touch. The basic concepts and tools that work in a tangible economy do not always work in an intangible economy. In fact, they are increasingly failing to work in tangible contexts as well. The profits of every business today, even including a \"manufacturer\" like Boeing, come from a mixture of tangible and intangible value. That is why every manager needs to add intangibles management to his or her toolkit today.\nIntangible assets: Knowledge is the new oil\nAssessing Intangibles: I-capex is the new capital expenditure\nManaging intangibles: Innovation is the new strategy\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The future success of organizations increasingly depends on what they know rather than what they do. Knowledge is embedded in a number of distinct types of intangibles in an organization. Management of intangibles requires different tools and approaches than those commonly used to manage industrial-era tangibles-based businesses. The purpose of this article is to propose a simple framework for management of knowledge intangibles.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The author examines and synthesizes a number of new and/or prominent theories of management (such as intellectual capital, business performance management, innovation and network analysis) through the lens of her 25 years of practical experience as a financier and strategy consultant helping companies create intangibles management capabilities.\nFindings: - The result is a set of ten concepts that together provide a primer on the management of intangibles. Each concept is presented together with its tangible counterpart to help the reader envision its role in the organization. The concepts are: knowledge is the new oil; intangibles are the new raw material; intellectual capital is the new factory; i-capex is the new capital expenditure; assessment is the new ROI; performance measurement is the new scorecard; innovation is the new strategy; orchestration is the new command and control; maps are the new organization chart; and reputation is the new bottom line.\nPractical implications: - The article includes exercises to enable the reader to apply each of the ten concepts in his or her own organization.\nOriginality/value: - The article helps executives increase their understanding of diverse trends by filtering them through the lens of intangibles management. Understanding of these concepts is increased through comparison with the common building blocks of tangibles management. The article introduces two original concepts: intellectual capital seen as the \"new factory\" and spending on intangibles seen as \"intellectual capital expenditures.\"\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Anthropomorphized vs objectified brands: which brand version is more loved?
|
[
"Brand love",
"Anthropomorphism",
"Anticipated separation distress",
"Emotional connection",
"Self-brand integration"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Since Fournier (1998) identified love as a distinguishable facet of all strong brand relationships, brand love has been considered an intrinsically interesting construct in research on consumer-brand relationships (Batra et al., 2012; Huber et al., 2015; Karjaluoto et al., 2016; Palusuk et al., 2019). The question of how to make consumers develop love relationships with a brand is still a highly pertinent topic of research. Most of the prior literature on the antecedents of this relationship has mainly focused on the following domains: the characteristics of products and brands, consumers' characteristics and identities, and consumers' experiences with brands.\n2. Theoretical framework and research hypotheses: 2.1 Brand love as a consumer-brand relationship concept\n3. Method: 3.1 Study design and data collection\n4. Results: 4.1 Validation of scales and manipulation checks\n5. Conclusions: 5.1 Theoretical implications\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to deal with the role of the human metaphor (anthropomorphism) and consumers' liking for the humanized version of the brand as antecedents of three key components of brand love: self-brand integration, positive emotional connection and feelings of anticipated separation distress.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A sample of 399 consumers provided information about a brand from a stated list of 16 brands of clothing.\nFindings: Both anthropomorphism and consumers' liking for the humanized brand have positive effects on specific components of brand love. The results confirm that brand anthropomorphism is only desirable when the humanized version of the brand is attractive for consumers.\nResearch limitations/implications: A potential shortcoming is the qualitative technique employed to observe anthropomorphic thought. Collecting ratings of anthropomorphic and non-anthropomorphic traits could be viewed as a method more easily applied in market research surveys.\nPractical implications: Managers have to control how consumers imagine the brand as a human entity because it affects brand love. For example, by tracking consumers' opinions and traits of those people associated with the brand and brand user stereotypes can condition consumers' imagination of the humanized brand.\nOriginality/value: Compared to the limited number of studies about the relationship between anthropomorphism and brand love, this study focuses on the effects of anthropomorphism as a process, and not as a personal trait, on brand love. It also relies on consumers' imagination instead of brand personification strategies to stimulate anthropomorphism.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Traditional and alternative methods of measuring the understandability of accounting narratives
|
[
"Measurement",
"Comprehension",
"Understandability"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Accounting narratives have grown in importance over the past 20 years (e.g. Bryan, 1997; Arthur Andersen, 2001; Aerts, 2010). They represent opportunities for management to describe, discuss and evaluate the financial and non-financial performance of the company. Accounting narratives commonly found in annual reports are the chairman's statement, chief executive's review and business review. These narratives set the context for the financial statements.\n2. Prior accounting literature into understandability: Accounting narrative research has a long pedigree stretching back to the 1970s. It has been categorised into two main streams in a comprehensive overview of the then extant literature by Jones and Shoemaker (1994): content analytic studies and syntactical studies. This broad dichotomy still holds today with content studies investigating the thematic structures and patterns within the narratives and the syntactical studies investigating the interrelated, but distinct, topics of readability and understandability. Early researchers such as Taylor (1953) or Klare (1963) used the terms \"readable\" and \"understandable\" as broadly synonymous. However, later studies such as Smith and Taffler (1992b), Jones and Shoemaker (1994, p. 172) and Clatworthy and Jones (2001) concur stating that there are two main approaches to measuring textual difficulty: the first using syntactical difficulty and the second using \"sophisticated psycholinguistic and socio-linguistic techniques such as Cloze, multidimensional scaling, association analysis and classification analysis\". The former are usually termed \"readability studies\" while the latter are normally termed understandability studies.\n3. Background to instrument development: The C-test was first developed in 1981 as a test of general language proficiency, and has been used mainly with children learning their first or second language, or with adults learning a foreign language (Grotjahn et al., 2002). Like the Cloze procedure it makes use of the reader's ability to predict missing information from the surrounding context. However, in the C-Test the words in the text are only partly deleted. Research into the C-Test has provided evidence of its use and acceptability as a measure of general language proficiency (Connelly, 1997; Eckes and Grotjahn, 2006; Grotjahn et al., 2002; Katona and Dornyei, 1993).\n4. Research method: We devised four different tests to measure comprehension using a common documentary base. Two of the tests we compiled were Cloze related: a conventional Cloze test, and a simpler variant, the C-test and two were \"question and answer\" comprehension tests (the MIT and SVT procedures). The four tests were based on a real-world, narrative from an Australian listed company's annual report. An experiment was designed to match readers' performance with one of each kind of test (i.e. one Cloze-based (Cloze or C-test)), with one comprehension test (SVT or MIT). The tests were administered to university students. Highly correlated performance outcomes should indicate that the two instruments are measuring a common factor.\n5. Results and interpretation: In Table I, we present a summary of the percentage test scores. It must be remembered that test groups 1 (Cloze) and 3 (MIT) were paired as were tests 2 (C-test) and 4 (SVT). In each case, we present the descriptive data: the number of subjects (n), the mean per cent scores, the standard deviation, the median per cent scores, the minimum and maximum scores achieved and the total possible raw score (TPS) -i.e. number of correct responses achievable.\n6. Discussion: The four tests needed to be constructed, administered and interpreted. We, therefore, evaluate them against these criteria below, using our own experience, and also drawing, where appropriate, upon the prior literature. We also compare them to more traditional reading comprehension tests.\n7. Conclusions, limitations and future research: Accounting narratives are a key part of the modern annual report. They represent opportunities for management to discuss and contextualise the results. However, for effective communication to occur, they need to be written in a comprehensive way so that the message from management is correctly transmitted and understood by the annual report's readers. There have been attempts by accounting researchers to measure the understandability of the accounting narrative, principally using the Cloze procedure.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The study aims to explore the use of alternative measures of \"understandability\" on accounting texts. This includes the meaning identification test (MIT) and the sentence verification technique (SVT), which have not previously been used by accounting researchers, as well as variants on the traditional Cloze tests such as the C-Test.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This study focuses on the understandability of accounting texts and evaluates how reliable the Cloze test is as a measure of comprehension. An experiment was designed and conducted to measure users' performance with a variety of comprehension measures (MIT, SVT, Cloze, C-Test).\nFindings: The study concludes that the outcomes from the MIT and SVT comprehension tests are not significantly associated with those from the Cloze tests. This implies that while the Cloze test is a good measure of the predictability of accounting narratives, and of textual redundancy, it does not necessarily measure the understandability of the text.\nOriginality/value: These measures of understandability, which have not previously been used in accounting, would enable researchers to test the communicational effectiveness of using different accounting narratives such as annual reports or prospectuses. Such a measure could be used to improve the understandability of accounting narratives. The strengths and weaknesses of the various tests are assessed. It is suggested that there is a need for further experimentation especially with the MIT test.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Exploring the effects of social media features on the publics' responses to decreased usage CSR messages
|
[
"Social media",
"Message source",
"CSR campaign",
"Decreased usage",
"Social cue"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Businesses in a variety of industries adopt corporate social responsibility (CSR) commonly as a strategic communication practice, and thus, it has attracted significant attention from scholars and communication practitioners (Kim, 2011; Torelli et al., 2012). As previous studies have proposed, CSR initiatives relevant to business practices can help companies influence stakeholders' perceptions and gain competitive success by addressing social concerns or making meaningful social contributions (Gaither et al., 2018). However, these findings may not be generalizable to all business-related CSR initiatives.\nLiterature review and hypotheses development: Negative perception toward decreased usage CSR messages\nMethods: Study design\nResults: Manipulation checks\nDiscussion: As CSR campaigns are becoming increasingly important in daily business practice, research that investigates the potential effects of components of CSR messages has been considered crucial to both academia and professional practice. With the increase in social media development, CSR messages have become more visible to consumers. Given the importance of social media features on the effectiveness of CSR messages, this study examined how message sources and social cues differently influenced the effects of CSR messages that discourage the consumption of a company's own product. Based on the mechanism of perceived motives and the signaling theory, this study demonstrated the main effects of a non-company source and positive social cues in generating more positive responses toward the company and the CSR campaign.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the way the message source and presence of positive social cues influence the evaluations (attitude toward the corporate social responsibility (CSR) message and company, and word-of-mouth intention to support the campaign) of the decreased use CSR messages on Facebook.\nDesign/methodology/approach: In the context of Facebook, this study adopted 2 (message source: a CSR message in a sponsored ad format vs a CSR message posted by another Facebook user) x 2 (social cue: highly salient, positive social cues vs no social cues) factorial experimental design.\nFindings: The main effects of message source types and presence of positive social cues on decreased usage CSR campaigns proved to be effective in generating better consumer responses to the company and campaign.\nResearch limitations/implications: The findings are expected to advance the CSR literature by offering a detailed understanding of CSR campaigns that discourage consumption of the company's own product to support a social cause. It is suggested to test the effects with other CSR examples to increase the ability to generalize the results further.\nPractical implications: The results suggest campaign strategies on social media for public relations practitioners and corporate managers who work for companies conducting social responsibility campaigns that discourage consumption of their own products.\nOriginality/value: This study contributes to the CSR literature by examining the concept of CSR campaigns that advocate decreased usage, which has received scant scholarly attention to date.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Co-innovation platform affordances: Developing a conceptual model and measurement instrument
|
[
"Co-innovation",
"Affordances",
"Co-innovation platform",
"Collaborative innovation network"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Widespread adoption of information and communications technologies (ICTs) has enabled businesses to innovate collaboratively with their customers and partners across geographies. These developments have coalesced into the phenomenon of open innovation (Chesbrough, 2012) and the study of co-innovation (Gloor, 2006; Leavy, 2012; Lee et al., 2012). Researchers and practitioners have highlighted the transformational potential of co-innovation in how businesses develop new ideas and bring them to market (Gemser and Perks, 2015). A recent and notable development with co-innovation models is the application of social technologies to engage actors through social mechanisms (Brown and Wyatt, 2010; Harrisson et al., 2011; Kahnert et al., 2012; Martini et al., 2012; Piller et al., 2012). In this paper, we use the term actor to emphasize the individual in an active role in relation to the co-innovation information system (IS) platform, an IT artifact.\n2. Literature and theory: Gloor (2006) defined a co-innovation network as \"a cyberteam of self-motivated people with a collective vision, enabled by the web to collaborate in achieving a common goal by sharing ideas, information, and work.\" Stakeholders (actors) in a co-innovation platform typically come from diverse backgrounds to work collectively on problems presented to or proposed by members of the virtual network (Lee et al., 2012; Paulini et al., 2013; Raesfeld et al., 2012; Song et al., 2013). With rapid growth and diffusion of social technologies, the co-innovation model has expanded to encompass networks of diverse actors who collaborate in innovation activities primarily through a social media platform. Social product development platforms such as Edison Nation and Quirky are well-known examples of co-innovation communities enabled by social media. Co-innovation platforms enable value co-creation across the innovation cycle (e.g. collaborative idea submission, evaluation, and development of co-invention activities). This combination of social technologies with open innovation strategies offers the potential for business transformation in how new products and services are identified, developed, and marketed.\n3. Construct and instrument development process: Wang et al. (2015) argued that measuring users' perceptions of affordance requires contextually situated qualitative research followed by quantitative processes to validate emergent measures. Accordingly, we developed our instrument in six phases, including case studies, item generation, item pre-test, questionnaire pre-test, pilot study, and field study (as illustrated in Figure 1). The first phase, construct development, was based on an exploratory case study. Item creation in the second phase was based on an in-depth single case study. Following the case studies, we validated our empirical findings by reconciling with the affordances literature and the definition of co-innovation by Gloor (2006) to select the sub-constructs and generate the measurement items. In the third and fourth phases, the measurement items were pre-tested for face validity and content validity. We had a panel of judges sort the items into separate affordance categories based on the similarities and differences among items. Then, based on their placement, the items were re-examined and ambiguous items were modified or eliminated. The subscales were then combined into an overall instrument for a second pre-test using two independent expert panels. The pre-tests helped ensure that the items of the new measures were valid in the context. In the fifth phase, the instrument was pilot tested to obtain an assessment of the scales' reliability. Items that did not contribute to the reliability were culled. Phase 6 was a full-scale test with a larger number of subjects to further evaluate instrument validity and reliability within the co-innovation context. Subscales were further refined and the instrument's predictive (nomological) validity was assessed.\n4. Case study I: We conducted an initial case study of co-innovation platforms to identify the key functions afford by typical co-innovation platforms. Following Treem and Leonardi (2012), we used a theoretical sampling approach to select 22 publicly accessible co-innovation platforms[2], based on variation in the platform owner, business model, and subject area. The 22 platforms provide a diverse mix that was nonetheless centered on co-innovation activities (vs general social platforms or virtual communities). The method for collecting and analyzing the case study data included the following steps as advised by O'Riordan et al. (2012):\n5. Case study II: To move from the conceptual level of co-innovation functions to developing the measurement items, we conducted a second case study. Case selection was based on the \"information-oriented case selection\" suggested by Flyvbjerg (2006) and the revelatory single case study approach supported by Yin (2009). While large-scale socially enabled co-innovation platforms are relatively rare, Quirky.com has successfully implemented such a model using social media technology (Piller et al., 2012). Thus, case study data were collected from Quirky.com for the following reasons: co-innovation in Quirky included a broad range of socially enabled interactions and accordingly provided more opportunities for external actors to collaborate or to be engaged; the numerous co-innovation opportunities in this network provided a rich phenomenon to study; and different types of data (e.g. user profiles, product profiles, and forum discussions) were publicly available to study.\n6. Initial measurement item development: Studying the attributes of ideation, collaboration, and communication tools in a natural setting supported our measurement development by providing dependable sources of evidence (Blaikie, 2009; Creswell, 2013). The two case studies grounded our study of co-innovation PAs in this specific context and highlighted the platform properties and their relationships with actors' actions and goals. To create a well-supported general research instrument, and to follow best practice in measurement construction (Mackenzie et al., 2011), our next step was to generate a set of items that fully represents the conceptual domain of the ideation, collaboration, and communication. Acknowledging the context specificity of affordances (e.g. Wang et al., 2015), these items were mainly developed from the detailed results of the second case study to fully capture essential aspects of each subscale (see Churchill, 1979; Nunnally and Bernstein, 1994). The measurement items were refined through two pre-tests, which helped ensure that the items of the new measures are valid in the context, and the resulting questionnaire is understandable by the target respondents. The first pre-test helped investigate the face validity and identify problems in item selection, comprehension, and grouping. After the first pre-test, items were turned into a questionnaire for the second pre-test to examine wording, scaling, and formatting.\n7. Specify the measurement model: After assessing the content validity of the generated items, we formally specified the measurement model that captures the expected relationships between the items, the affordance construct, and its dimensions (MacKenzie et al., 2011). We modeled PAs as a second-order formative construct (see Jarvis et al., 2003) comprising of three first-order reflective constructs: platform ideation affordances, platform collaboration affordances (PCLAs), and platform communication affordances (Figure 2). We used four criteria to determine the existence of a formative construct (Cenfetelli and Bassellier, 2009; Diamantopoulos and Winklhofer, 2001; Jarvis et al., 2003; Petter et al., 2007): the predictability of the affordance construct by the proposed second-order measures; the sensitivity of the construct to the exclusion of any second-order measures; the possibility of changing one measure without requiring a change in all other second-order measures of the construct; and the existence of different antecedents and consequences for the second-order measures.\n8. Pilot study: We conducted a pilot study to ensure that the scales demonstrated the appropriate levels of reliability and validity. We also examined the measurement model specification in two steps following the recommendations of Hair et al. (2011, 2013): examination of first-order reflective constructs and estimation of latent variables, and assessment of formative second-order constructs. The sample for the pilot study was drawn from the Quirky community and data were collected online using Qualtrics online survey software. More than 650 Quirky users were randomly selected[4] and invited to participate in the pilot study. The respondents were also asked to provide feedback on the items, format, and scaling. The respondents were all active members of Quirky, contributing to the platform on a weekly basis, with at least one-month experience with co-innovation. A total of 72 complete and usable questionnaires were returned. Since data were normally distributed, this sample size is a reasonable number for multivariate analysis with SEM-PLS (Hair and Anderson, 2010). The sample was relatively balanced according to all known demographic factors. We employed SmartPLS version 3.0 (Ringle et al., 2015) to assess the reliability and validity of the construct of co-innovation PA and its subscales.\n9. Field study: The refined measurement instrument used in the field study is presented in Table IV. The data for the field survey were collected from a random sample of Quirky members. From 600,000 potential respondents, 1,000 Quirky members were randomly invited to participate in an online survey on the PAs and their behavioral intention. Of the 320 Quirky members who responded, 59 responses were removed due to the respondents' lack of co-innovation experience or incomplete data, leaving a final sample of 261 usable responses for analysis. The measurement models of different affordance constructs were tested as three different first-order reflective constructs. Then, the second-order construct of affordances was examined as a three-dimensional formative construct.\n10. Discussion and implications: In this paper, we focus on co-innovation PAs that enable organizations to collaboratively innovate with social actors. In a series of studies (including two case studies, pre-tests, a pilot study, and a field study), we followed a rigorous scale development process to establish an instrument for the construct of co-innovation PAs. The results of our studies reveal three distinctive components - ideation, collaboration, and communication - of co-innovation PAs. In testing the measurement instrument developed for co-innovation PAs, we operationalized PAs as a second-order formative construct comprised of three second-order constructs and demonstrated satisfactory reliability and validity of the instrument. The final result is a reliable and parsimonious instrument with 12 items (see Table IV). The results of this study show that the predictive (nomological) validity of our model of PAs is promising. More generally, this study demonstrates how quantitative measurements may be developed to investigate sociotechnical phenomena from the perspective of affordances in research.\n11. Limitations: In recommending the instrument that we developed for co-innovation PA, we note its limitations and the opportunities for further development. The instrument is developed to be generally applicable to co-innovation platforms, but it was tested with respect to a particular type of co-innovation platform. Based on the results of the first case study, we assume that most co-innovation platforms have the three functions of ideation, collaboration, and communication in some form. However, some co-innovation platforms, such as a customer virtual community, may limit actor participation to a single function such as communication. Although this instrument could be easily adapted for co-innovation platforms adopting different business models, additional checks for validity and reliability would be prudent if a sub-construct is removed. Moreover, cumulative and comparative research is needed on other co-innovation platforms to further assess the generalizability of the scales.\n12. Conclusion: As businesses increasingly adopt open innovation models and collaborative innovation platforms, and with rising academic interest in these phenomena, we need to ensure the quality of measurement to instill confidence in research results among both academic and practitioner audiences. The proposed measurement scale contributes to the existing literature by establishing a basis for theoretical advances on PAs design. The development of a valid and general instrument to measure affordances of co-innovation platforms supports the research community and can also contribute to co-innovation platform design, development, and evaluation.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The importance of co-innovation platforms has been well established, but a valid and reliable instrument to measure the affordances of these platforms for co-innovation behavior has not yet been reported in the literature. A robust, validated instrument to measure co-innovation platform affordances (PAs) will facilitate the conduct of studies across different platforms and contribute to enhanced understanding of co-innovation behaviors, outcomes, and platform design. The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize co-innovation PAs, develop a reliable measurement instrument capturing critical facets of co-innovation, namely ideation, collaboration, and communication, and validate the instrument.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The construct of PAs was conceptualized based on the findings from two case studies of co-innovation networks and the key characteristics of social mediating technology affordances. The measurement items newly developed via a case study underwent a two-round exploratory analysis to ensure face validity and content validity. The resulting instrument was subjected to a pilot study and a field study to establish the necessary reliability and validity.\nFindings: The findings of the study reveal that co-innovation PAs have three distinctive components, namely ideation, collaboration, and communication. Furthermore, the results of the study suggest that PAs are most appropriately operationalized as a second-order construct comprising all three components. The empirical results from the field study show a high degree of confidence in both translation validity and criterion-related validity.\nOriginality/value: Drawing from co-innovation and affordances literature, this study develops and validates a general instrument to measure co-innovation PAs. The result is a reliable and parsimonious instrument with 12 items. The authors believe that the instrument can contribute significantly to future empirical investigations of co-innovation behavior on virtual platforms.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The impact of consumer resistance to brand substitution on brand relationship
|
[
"Brand name change",
"Brand trust and loyalty transfer",
"Resistance to change theory"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: An executive summary for managers and executive readers can be found at the end of this issue.\nConsumer resistance to brand name change: The transfer of brand trust and brand loyalty will be approached under the lens of the RCT. RCT roots in the human relations movement (Mayo, 1933), epitomizing a common pattern: an introduction of new technologies and/or new ways to organise work, followed quickly by resistance to change and the employees' resistant behaviour (e.g. Coch and French, 1948; Lawrence, 1954).\nConceptual model: We discuss the impact of each of these factors on CRTBNC. We also address the potential impact of CRTBNC on the transfer of brand trust and brand loyalty transfer from the old to the new brand.\nMethodology: The causal nature of our research question suggested a quantitative methodology. Nevertheless, to better understand how consumers view the transfer of trust and loyalty towards the brand and which factors influence the efficiency of this process, we conducted a preliminary qualitative study with a sample of 18 consumers of different ages and occupations. Using a pre-tested online questionnaire, a final sample of 313 consumers has indicated:\nResults: Sample description\nConclusion, implications, limits and extensions: The aim of this study was to understand how CRTBNC can be diminished, and how it influences the transfer of brand trust and loyalty towards the substitute brand in the case of a brand name change. Our study has several theoretical, managerial and methodological implications that we are in the process of developing.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this research is to propose and test a model that aims to identify key determinants which could alleviate the loss of brand trust and loyalty caused by brand name change using the resistance to change theory (RCT).\nDesign/methodology/approach: Because of the causal nature of the research, the quantitative research methodology was considered as best suitable. An online questionnaire was administered on a sample composed of 313 consumers.\nFindings: The paper provides empirical insights regarding the fact that consumers' resistance to the brand name substitution is the main determinant of the transfer of consumers' trust from the old to the new brand. Finally, loyalty transfer heavily relies on trust transfer.\nResearch limitations/implications: Because of the convenience sample used, the research results may lack generalisability. Furthermore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed hypotheses based on different brand name change cases.\nPractical implications: The paper includes implications for the alleviation of consumers' resistance to the brand name substitution, a main determinant for the loss of brand trust and loyalty in the case of brand name change.\nOriginality/value: This paper fulfils an identified need to study how consumers' resistance to the brand name change can be diminished. Overall, our research supports the use of the RCT for a better understanding of brand name change-related issues.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Murakami on the bag: Louis Vuitton
'
s decommoditization strategy
|
[
"Luxury brand",
"Artists",
"Commoditization",
"Partnerships",
"Value chain"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Luxury is one of the fastest growing markets and the variety of new luxury goods is ever increasing. The brand is considered as a key resource for organizations in the luxury market. It gives a symbolic dimension and emotional value. Nevertheless, since the 1980s luxury has become much more democratized. For this reason companies need to find a specific positioning. Some of the most prestigious brands with the most prestigious reputation focus on their upscale differentiation strategy. Typical tactics to achieve it this successful are co-branding, the extension of brand territory or partnerships with other important players in the luxury world such as celebrities, activists and artists. This article deals with the latter case: the cooperation between a luxury brand and a famous artist. This type of cooperation has because they have seldom been documented in terms of management. More precisely we define this strategy as a type of \"de-commoditization strategy\", namely the attempt to avoid the commodity trap and maintain the perceived value of the offer product perceived by customers.\nThe commodity trap and its effect on the different parts of the luxury brand value chain: In this part, we show how commoditization affects luxury brands. We stress the fact that the spectacular growth of large luxury brands on a global scale has been supported by the creation of large retail networks. However, as they invest in a distribution network, brands may be faced with the commodity trap.\nMethodology for a case-study: Our research question can be summarized as follows: how may partnerships between artists and luxury brands counter commoditization and what is the specific role of retail?\nThe Louis Vuitton-Muramaki Alliance: The different stages of the project\nOur findings and our perspective on future avenues for research: We may now go back to our initial questions: \"What are the expected benefits of the partnership in terms of commoditization? What is the role and involvement of each part of the value chain, especially retail? Finally, how replicable and imitable is such a strategic alliance to avoid the commodity trap in the long run?\"\nConclusion: recipes for growth, avoiding the commodity trap: With the recent globalization of art and luxury fashion, both designers and artists are facing the commodity trap, possibly because of the acceleration of trends, but also because of a change in the scale and scope within which \"prestige\" and \"values\" are being defined. However, instead of considering commoditization only as a trap, luxury brands may decide to use it as a chance to orchestrate fashion for different audiences. There seem to be different \"circles\" (art collectors, fashion lovers and \"hip\" professionals). The regularity of this orchestration seems directly related to the commoditization of \"things\" in an industrial world where usages and practices vary in different environments but are closely interconnected (Silverstein and Fiske, 2003). Whereas nineteenth century satirical writers used to mock the backwardness of provincial taste, such is no longer the case.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: As some areas of the luxury market have been industrializing because of their expanding scale and scope, the commoditization trend is threatening luxury brands along the value chain. Too many products might flood the market. Because the commodity trap has not so far been commonly referred to as the source of the problem, the efforts of firms to decommoditize have seldom been described. The purpose of this paper is to describe and interpret one type of successful reaction to this problem: the exclusive partnership made by Louis Vuitton with artist Takashi Murakami. The paper identifies the strategy along the value chain and its step by step implementation and influence on commoditization.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The paper identifies the strategy behind this partnership and its step by step implementation. It uses a qualitative method because it would like to understand complex phenomenon and explore in depth, some strategic operations and decisions. More precisely, it is a case study research because it works on a contemporary situation and allows to retain the meaningful characteristics of real-life events as organizational, managerial and social processes\nFindings: LV strategy raises the difficulty for competitors to imitate or to propose same value products as the value added to LV product is almost unique with Murakami\nResearch limitations/implications: There are no research on partnerships between art and luxury. Our extensive analysis of the partnership between LV and Murakami gives a comprehensive view of how this kind of collaboration helps to fight back commoditization. However, more case studies should be studied to know if the strategy is replicable.\nPractical implications: This research gives a comprehensive analysis of the adaptation of the value chain to make the partnership a success. It also underlines the need to conduct and to adapt the whole value chain to the specifities of the artist.\nOriginality/value: There are few research investigating the links and partnerships between artists and luxury brands. The originality is to describe a particular partnership concerning all the parts of the upstream value chain - especially operations - it also makes recommendations concerning potential partnerships between art and luxury to fight back against commoditization.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Favour and opportunity: renqing in Chinese business relationships
|
[
"China",
"Business-to-business",
"Guanxi",
"Chinese relationships",
"Renqing"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Managing international business relationships is a significant challenge, and the growing economic importance of China adds a new dimension to this challenge. It is increasingly important to be able to understand how to do business in China, and as Trimarchi et al. (2010) note developing an understanding of business interactions in this context is crucial. Much of the empirical and conceptual research has attempted to compare the differences between Western and Eastern business relationships (Wilson and Brennan, 2001; Shu, 2004; Pressey and Qiu, 2007) or how to manage relationships in a Chinese context (Ambler et al., 1999; Matthyssens and Faes, 2006; Liu et al., 2008).\nGuanxi and business relationships: Business relationships are culturally bound, with cultural or psychic distance being recognized as a critical dimension in the relationship atmosphere (Johanson and Vahlne, 1977; Hakansson, 1982; Vahlne and Johanson, 2002); therefore, there is a need to understand business relationships within their own cultural context. A distinctive characteristic within the wider environment surrounding business relationships in China is Guanxi (Ambler, 1994; Davies et al., 1995; Fan, 2002a, 2002b).\nGuanxi dimensions: Guanxi comprises three associated dimensions, ganqing (feelings), renqing (favours and reciprocity) and xiren, (deep trust) (Hwang, 1987; Wang, 2007; Barnes et al., 2011; Yen et al., 2011). These are considered below.\nThe research problem: Although ganqing and xiren are important concepts of guanxi, research indicates that renqing is the key to guanxi (Wang et al., 2008, Shi et al., 2011, Yen et al., 2011). Most of the research that has investigated favours (as an aspect of renqing) has been conceptual and has indicated that favours occur in guanxi relationships and have increased in size or value with each guanxi exchange. Conceptual research by Wang (2007) about renqing has provided description of the concept. Davies et al. (1995) did conduct early empirical research into favours; however, this research is limited simply to the study of favours. Hence, it only considers an aspect of renqing. To understand renqing, it is important to explore other aspects such as empathy and help. Thus, we propose that:\nMethodology and data collection: Birkinshaw et al. (2011) remind us of the value of using qualitative research to investigate aspects surrounding culture to grasp the rich and diverse nature of the phenomena. They see this as being particularly relevant to understanding the interplay between context and culture, a point reinforced by Brannen and Doz (2010). Hence, because of this and the exploratory nature of the propositions developed above, a qualitative method was chosen.\nFindings: The findings from analysis of the empirical data indicate that in a Chinese business context, renqing comprises both favours and opportunities. It was also often described as \"help\" indicating its social context. The findings also suggested that help was important both in an organisational and a personal context; see Table II for a summary. The data collected illustrated different types of favours and opportunities that are exchanged. The following categorisations of favours were identified in an organisational context, bypassing processes, expert input and additional support. In a personal context, favours were personally provided by the individual, such as provision of a personal item or providing financial support. Additionally, opportunities related to profile and skills development, for example, offering training which help with career progression were also reported.\nFavours: The findings suggested that favours are important in Chinese business relationships. In this context, favours can be seen as performing special acts that require the individual to go beyond what would normally be expected of them in a business relationship. They are given by individuals in a relationship and are a result of empathy between the two individuals concerned:\nOpportunities: The findings also illustrate another form of help: opportunities. According to Buyer 12, opportunities, and the benefits that the recipient receives, are important in business relationships with Chinese organisations:\nDiscussion: The purpose of this research was to explore renqing in more depth and to investigate the applicability of the outlined propositions (P1 to P3).\nConclusion: The importance of \"help\" in Chinese business relationships in both business and personal contexts has been revealed. Additionally, the difference between favours and opportunities has been explored. The research provides a unique insight into how the Chinese interviewees within this research study construct their perception of renqing, and also what is recognised as renqing. This expands on the existing conceptualisations which have provided surface-level descriptions of favours or renqing. In particular, through identifying and describing the two distinct forms of renqing, favours and opportunities, this contribution extends existing theory about Chinese business-to-business relationships which previously only emphasized favours as a form of renqing. This allows managers to understand what constitutes renqing for their counterparties and through providing favours and/or opportunities, managers can enhance the relationship. The provision of renqing from, or to, a counterpart is an important indication of the value of the relationship. Managers can use this knowledge to determine which relationships they would like to further develop. Furthermore, these findings can be used to train managers about their expectations of interactions within Chinese business relationships.\nLimitations and further research: This research was exploratory in nature and is not intended to be generalised. The context of the research is specific, a large multinational organisation operating in China, and as such, further research is needed to support the propositions developed here.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact and effect of renqing in Chinese business relationships. The research focused on a multinational organisation that is based in China.\nDesign/methodology/approach: As the research was exploratory, a qualitative approach was adopted. The researcher was based in the organisation for a six-month period, and interviews were undertaken with purchasing managers.\nFindings: The findings show that the Chinese concept of renqing comprises favours and opportunities.\nResearch limitations implications: The research is exploratory and further research is required to confirm the wider applicability of the findings.\nPractical implications: The findings illustrate the importance of understanding the use of both favours and opportunities in business relationship in China. The findings also indicate the importance of being sensitive to cultural factors in business relationships.\nOriginality/value: This exploratory research indicates that previous conceptualisation of Renqing was limited, as the aspects it encompasses, favours and opportunities, were not identified. This research identifies the importance of opportunities in Chinese business relationships.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Evaluating deceased organ donation: a programme theory approach
|
[
"Realist evaluation",
"Complex adaptive systems",
"Organ donation",
"Programme theory",
"Transplantation services",
"Transplant coordination regimes"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: The worldwide demand for donated organs and tissues has grown substantially, driven by the steady addition of new organs to transplantation repertoire. The first successful corneal transplantation is now over a century away (1906), subsequent opportunities arriving spasmodically (kidney, 1954) and then latterly at a faster pace (liver, heart, pancreas, lung, intestines, hand, face, etc.). Technical innovations automatically generate increasing demand but supply remains a problem resulting in yet further health service waiting lists. Advances in donation numbers have been halting and securing more organs for transplantation presents a major health challenge. This quest has met with considerable variation across continents, countries and regions. \"League tables\" of high and low performers abound in the professional and popular literature, as do explanations for relative success or failure (Johnson and Goldstein, 2004; Abadie and Gay, 2006). Spain is customarily positioned as the clear world leader in the donation league tables, with UK, Germany and Sweden bringing up the rear. To date, research has struggled to understand these disparities and the reasons behind them and major policy modifications seem unable to overcome them.\n2. Organ donation and transplantation as a complex adaptive system: A complex adaptive system is a collection of individual agents with freedom to act in ways that are not always totally predictable, and whose actions are interconnected so that the action of one part changes the context for other agents (Plsek and Greenhalgh, 2001). The dynamics of these multiple, diverse and interconnected elements imbue any attempt to change the system with significant unpredictability. In complex, open systems like the donation/transplantation process, any innovation must be understood as an adaptation to a system rather than a novel treatment aimed at a fresh outcome. To predict and test the efficacy of an \"improvement\" targeted at one aspect of the system requires knowledge of the whole system.\n3. Policies designed to improve donation rates - an ex ante assessment: We now move to a critical consideration of two policies designed to tackle the problem of low donation rates. Once again we call on a programme theory approach and use logic maps to locate the proposed reforms within the \"whole system\", thus gaining a measure of their likely reach and potential impact. To understand these policies we need to introduce a second logic model to our inquiry (see Figure 2), which might be termed the \"consent pathway\".\n4. How to put complex systems to evaluation?: Having established the endless complexity of the donation and transplantation system and the perils of some of simpler ideas on its transformation, we reach the ultimate question. How should such complex programmes be evaluated (Pawson, 2013) in a way that can contribute to their improvement (Berwick, 2008)? The solutions raised in this section should be regarded as tentative; indeed they are work-in-progress, currently being pursued in a range of pilot inquiries and scoping studies.\nConclusion: The importance and urgency of all service reform is often marked with the use of metaphors about life and death situations. In the case of organ donation this is literally the case - body parts from brain dead patients with beating hearts are removed in the hope of prolonging the life of another human being. Hundreds of people are involved in this single transaction. Inevitably, their interpretations and practices vary widely. Unequivocally, the consequence is substantial diversity in transplantation outcomes. The beating heart of the donation process is the organisation. We have attempted to show how death and life depends on the accumulation of series of embedded, institutional sub-processes.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Organ donation and transplantation services represent a microcosm of modern healthcare organisations. They are complex adaptive systems. They face perpetual problems of matching supply and demand. They operate under fierce time and resource constraints. And yet they have received relatively little attention from a systems perspective. The purpose of this paper is to consider some of the fundamental issues in evaluating, improving and policy reform in such complex systems.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The paper advocates an approach based on programme theory evaluation.\nFindings: The paper explains how the death to donation to transplantation process depends on the accumulation of series of embedded, institutional sub-processes. Evaluators need to be concerned with this whole system rather than with its discrete parts or sectors. Policy makers may expect disappointment if they seek to improve donation rates by applying nudges or administrative reforms at a single point in the implementation chain.\nOriginality/value: These services represent concentrated, perfect storms of complexity and the paper offers guidance to practitioners with bio-medical backgrounds on how such services might be evaluated and improved. For the methodological audience the paper caters for the burgeoning interest in programme theory evaluation while illustrating the design phase of this research strategy.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Employment characteristics and retention predictors among hourly employees in large US theme parks and attractions
|
[
"Turnover",
"Human resources",
"Retention",
"Theme parks",
"Employment charactersitcs",
"Hourly employees"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The global economy is recovering from the recession of the first decade of the twentieth century, it becomes imperative that companies retain their high performing employees (Gentry et al., 2007). If human capital is viewed as a sustainable competitive advantage, retaining valuable employees must be one of the top priorities that industry leaders must adopt (Cardy and Lengnick-Hall, 2011). Retention of employees allows companies to direct their resources for development and performance enhancing efforts (Gentry et al., 2007).\nLiterature review: As noted by Maertz and Campion (1998), most of the literature is framed around reasons for turnover as opposed to why people stay with an employer (Hausknecht et al., 2009). Steel et al. (2002) also concluded that the reasons for staying and those for leaving were different. Retention research can also assist talent acquisition teams to design programs not only to retain employees but also to attract similar high achieving employees.\nMethodology: Instrument development\nFindings and discussion: General profile of the respondents\nConclusions: The study evaluated and analyzed hourly employees' perception regarding their employment experience in large US theme parks and attractions. With many of these facilities relying on hourly employees for their operation, the findings highlighted key variables that might suggest potential strategies for reducing turnover and increasing retention.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The aim of this paper is to evaluate and analyze hourly line-level employees' characteristics and their perceptions of their employment experience in large US theme parks and attractions, as well as to explore predictors for their retention.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The research instrument adopted a theoretical framework based on previous retention studies of hourly employees in various industries. Following a qualitative phase with theme park employees, the survey was tailored to the uniqueness of the industry. Since major theme park companies are protective of their employee database, a \"snowball\" sampling technique was adopted using a variety of Social Networking Sites (SNS). A total of 307 usable responses were attained.\nFindings: The results indicated that of the 27 employment characteristics studied, the most important were perceived to be advancement opportunities, humane approach to employees, and a fun and challenging job. Importance-Performance analysis revealed that the largest gaps were recorded in the areas of pay, advancement opportunities, and a humane approach to employees. The results also confirmed that hourly employees' retention was predicted by employees' level of satisfaction, better experience with pay, and better experience with employee development training classes. However, hourly employee retention was also predicted by the employees' negative experience with flexible working hours and performance reviews.\nResearch limitations/implications: Data collection through Social Networking Sites (SNS) may not necessarily be as reliable a source for data collection as other methodologies, though some contemporary research justifies its reliability. Utilizing the \"snowball\" technique and the absence of random sampling may have slanted the responses. Although demographic data on the typical theme park employee is unavailable, the data was skewed towards younger employees who may not necessarily represent other age groups. Due to the US theme park industry's leading presence in Central Florida, the sample primarily represented hourly employees working for the Central Florida theme park industry.\nPractical implications: As the labor pool continues to decline, employers must adopt new creative strategies to keep their employees and attract new ones at the same time. This may be attained by developing and revising mission statements, values, and corporate visions that may be applicable to hourly employees: the largest labor segment in the theme park and attraction industry.\nOriginality/value: While recent hospitality turnover research focused on its antecedents, this study explores the predictors of why employees stay. Previous retention studies have focused on hotels or restaurants and not on the unique group of theme park hourly employees that work in different settings and employment conditions. Knowing why people stay can help reduce turnover and thus lower the cost of staffing.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Influences of career establishment strategies on generation Y's self-directedness career: Can gender make a difference?
|
[
"Gender",
"Generation Y",
"Career strategies",
"Career establishment stage",
"Self-directedness career",
"Self-nomination strategy"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The dynamism of career landscape is impacting the way careers are being managed. Customarily, people looked at careers as a ladder from job to job, for always, not with just one or, at most few organizations. These contemporary views of career development denote that employees must be flexible and adaptable to succeed in a highly changeable and uncertain environment. As employees go through their life, they are on a search for meaning of career and self-fulfillment, and careers are made up of their choices and experience. The current study aims to examine the influences of career establishment strategies on generation Y's self-directedness career. The work-related cultural value along with gender differences have brought several issues such as work-life balance, self-managed career and intensive use of appropriate career enhancement strategies among generation Y (Roziah et al., 2013; Wong and Roziah, 2015; Dalci and Ozyapici, 2018). Merel et al. (2010) argued that Hofstede's study has been extensively used in different areas. It is also important to emphasize that Hofstede's cultural dimensions have been used in the career-related studies (Dalci and Ozyapici, 2018).\nLiterature review: Reviews of growing literatures on career development have suggested that individual elements (e.g. personal attributes) and contextual elements (e.g. career strategies) affect individual career management and decision. Grounded in Bandura's social cognitive theory, learning occurs when individual is integrated fully with the environment and others. It also acknowledges that individual and environmental/contextual elements are two different entities which are inseparable from one another (Lent et al., 1994). In this case, the contextual element is related to generation Y employees, whereby massive restructuring and rapid downsizing have influenced the notion of career establishment stage with relevant career strategies used in the dynamic business environment (Greenhaus et al., 2010). The underpinning theories used to support current research are SCCT (Lent et al., 1994) and five stages of life career (Super, 1997) as discussed in the following sections.\nMethodology: Population and sample\nDiscriminant validity: Discriminant validity explains the extent to which a construct is truly distinct from other constructs. As shown in Table II, the correlations for each construct were less than the square root of AVE for the indicators measuring that particular construct, which indicating adequate discriminant validity. All Heterotrait-Monotrait (HTMT) of correlation values for current study are clearly lower than the more conservative value of 0.85. As can be seen in Table III, neither of the confidence intervals includes the value 1. The bootstrap confidence interval results of HTMT criteria also clearly indicated the measurement model demonstrates adequate discriminant validity in this study (Hair et al., 2017b).\nData analysis: We used PLS path analysis to perform data analysis (Figure 1). The empirical finding suggests that 34.5 per cent of the variance of self-directedness at career establishment stage of generation Y can be explained by creating career opportunities, seeking career guidance and self-nomination strategies. A closer look shows that creating career opportunities strategy (b = 0.265, p < 0.01), seeking career guidance strategy (b = 0.216, p < 0.01) and self-nomination strategy (b = 0.241, p < 0.01) were positively related to Gen Y's self-directedness at career establishment stage (Table IV). It was found that creating career opportunities was the best predictor to self-directedness at career establishment stage as compared to another two strategies, i.e. seeking career guidance and self-nomination. Thus, H1, H2 and H3 of this study were supported.\nDiscussion: As shown in Table III, all three different types of career strategies, namely, creating career opportunities, seeking career guidance and self-nomination strategies demonstrated a significant relationship with career self-directedness of generation Y's at their career establishment stage. The findings of this study are consistent with Kim et al.'s (2017) and Ng et al.'s (2017) findings whereby creating career opportunities strategy is important in improving and developing generation Y employees' skill, knowledge and abilities for current job requirement or for future job position. The knowledge and skills gained enable them to be more determined and confident about their career paths either inside or outside the organization. They will be more likely to take initiatives and accountability to manage their own career development especially during career establishment stage. They are not only learning skills and knowledge as required to perform the relevant tasks and duties, but they also socialized effectively with organizational and individual norms, values and expectations. In other words, generation Y is making a place for themselves in the occupation and the organization. It is important to maintain themselves in one form or another for a significant period (Greenhaus et al., 2010).\nImplication for practice: Our study findings lend support to the relational career perspective which highlights the mutual and interdependence nature of relationships in practicing career strategies to attain career success. As individual is the master agency in managing protean career, generation Y employees should improve their competencies and expertise in managing own career growth. They are encouraged to acquire and improve work-related skills and abilities through education, training and job experiences. Generation Y employees can also develop skills by acquiring additional responsibilities on their current job via self-nomination strategies, by working with experienced colleagues or by joining occupational associations that provide occupational insight through seeking career guidance strategies. In essence, self-initiative is critical to commit the relevant and appropriate career strategies for all career development stages. It is important that positive attitude toward social group should be encouraged so that the generation Y employees could make realistic and purposeful career choices via appropriate career strategies. It is critical that career counselors should identify generation Y employees' values to ensure that their self-directedness career is aligned with their work values.\nLimitation and future research: This study has some limitations and suggestions for future research. First, the samples of this study are employees from MNCs in Malaysia E&E industry, thus limit the generalization of the study findings. Further studies can be done by including different industries (e.g. banking, hospitality, SME) for the purpose of improving generalizability. Second, the cross-sectional design of this study unable to establish causal relationship among identified variables. Thus, longitudinal approach to causally infer the impact of constructs on self-directedness at career establishment stage among generation Y employees is required. Third, the age gap among generation Y is about 16-20 years. There is potential variation in term of career expectation and career life stages among the respondents. Therefore, details breakdown of age-group within generation Y would enrich the research findings. Forth, it is recommended to consider some contextual variables such as working experience, career adaptability, HRD practices need to be considered to obtain more comprehensive results on self-directedness predictors at individuals' career establishment stage.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of generation Y's career establishment strategies on self-directedness career and to determine the moderation effect of gender on the relationship.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Data were collected from 188 full-time employees from different functional areas and departments of selected MNCs in Malaysian Electrical and Electronic Industry. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used to examine the influences of establishment strategies and the moderating role of gender on self-directedness career.\nFindings: Findings show that there are significant positive relationship between career strategies and self-directedness career at career establishment stages of generation Y. There is a significant difference between males and females in career establishment strategy (i.e. creating career opportunities) and self-directedness career.\nResearch limitations/implications: This paper explains self-directedness career based on the review of related career literatures whereby some may not specifically referring to Generation Y.\nPractical implications: Such insights are useful for HRD practitioners dto develop relevant HRD interventions to assist individuals and organizations in career development.\nOriginality/value: This paper offers new insight into the predictors of self-directedness career and the moderating role of gender on the relationships.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Revenue maximizing itemset construction for online shopping services
|
[
"Internet",
"Electronic commerce",
"Web site design",
"Revenue maximization",
"Click‐through maximization",
"Itemset construction",
"Price comparison service",
"E‐commerce"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1 Introduction: Recently, shopping items on the internet have been not only tremendously increased in numbers but also become diverse in terms of their sources due to the emergence of various electronic commerce business models (Ramachandran et al., 2011; Wu et al., 2011). Social commerce and online auction services allow individual sellers to sell their items, resulting in the dramatically increased number of items for sale on the internet (Zhou et al., 2008). Moreover, the rapidly growing number of online shopping malls accelerates this phenomenon (Chang and Lee, 2010).Although the huge number of items in various online shopping malls gives an attractive benefit to price-sensitive customers by allowing them to select items from a wide range of choices, such information overload disturbs customers in making a better purchase decision (Chen et al., 2008). Customers are often required to repeatedly visit numerous online shopping malls to compare various purchasing choices, which is an extremely tedious task.Accordingly, price comparison shopping services (PCSSs) such as Google Shopping and Amazon gather item information from online shopping malls and offer a set of items for each item type, which we call an itemset, to customers for facilitating comparisons of the items' prices in a single web page (Pathak, 2010). For instance, in Google Shopping, there exists an itemset named \"Sony Micro Vault USB Flash Drive\" consisting of 93 distinct items collected from different online shopping malls (accessed 29 December 2011). With PCSSs, customers are able to compare the items without having to visit the individual malls and thereby can also significantly reduce item search time (Garfinkel et al., 2008; Ong, 2011).Figure 1 shows primary tasks of a PCSS. A PCSS periodically gathers new item information from numerous online shopping malls by using so-called shopbots. For each newly gathered item, its membership needs to be determined against an itemset, and this is called an itemset construction task. Later, for an itemset requested by a customer, the items in the itemset are usually sorted by their prices in an increasing order and presented to the customer.When a customer clicks on an item in an itemset, she or he is redirected to an item purchase page of the corresponding online shopping mall from which the item information is collected. Meanwhile, on the PCSS side, this redirection information is stored and further utilized for revenue calculation, since the online shopping malls pay fees to the PCSS based on the number of redirections made from the PCSS to the mall, as discussed in Pathak (2010). That is, the revenue of a PCSS is directly proportional to the click-throughs made by its customers.On the other hand, the customers' click-throughs at a PCSS site are closely related to how items are presented to customers, and it has been already reported that the click-throughs can be increased by suggesting better items to customers (Albadvi and Shahbazi, 2009; Ong, 2011). Therefore, an itemset construction method that automatically constructs itemsets to incur more click-throughs is essential not only to reduce operational cost but also to improve revenue of a PCSS.In this paper, we propose a new approach aiming to maximize the revenue of a PCSS through constructing itemsets that can increase the click-throughs of items. Specifically, we suggest three itemset construction methods, namely naive method (NM), exhaustive method (EM), and local update method (LM). NM attempts to find the best itemset for an item by searching for the most similar itemset in terms of textual similarity between the item and the itemset, while EM tries to find the best itemset for each item to maximize click-throughs of all items by considering all the possible memberships of the items. Although EM produces the itemsets that can produce the maximum click-throughs, practical use of EM may be limited in real-world settings due to its high computational cost. Therefore, through combining NM and EM, we also propose LM that attempts to improve click-throughs by allowing only local membership updates of items with an affordable computational complexity.The remainder of this paper is organized as follows. First, previous studies related to the itemset construction task are discussed in Section 2. The itemset construction problem we consider and the research framework of this study are presented in Section 3. In Section 4, the proposed methods are fully described. Experimentation results to show the effectiveness of the proposed methods are shown in Section 5, and managerial implications will be discussed in Section 6. Finally, we conclude the paper in Section 7.\n2 Literature review: An itemset construction task can be regarded as an application of duplicate detection that aims to identify the membership of an instance against a set of groups by comparing similarity between the instance and the group. Since most of the existing itemset construction approaches rely on the methods developed for duplicate detection, we briefly review previous studies related to duplicate detection, and then discuss work that focuses on the itemset construction in PCSSs. Table I summarizes the approaches presented in the previous research.Duplicate detection has been an active research area for many years (Elmagarmid et al., 2007). Xiao et al. (2011) proposed an algorithm that filters irrelevant instances by exploiting ordering of terms appearing in instances. Bilenko and Mooney (2003) reported a method for detecting duplicate text documents based on textual similarity measures such as string edit distance. Meng et al. (2010) proposed a duplicate detection method based on neural network and genetic algorithm. Kopcke et al. (2009) presented a platform for duplicate detection, which supports matching strategy selection, parameter learning, and performance evaluation.In addition, there have been studies that aim to reduce computational complexity for detecting duplicates. Hajishirzi et al. (2010) developed a method for detecting near duplicates by devising a hashing scheme that defines a short signature of an instance. Li et al. (2010) presented an efficient similarity estimation method to reduce processing time required to comparison between instances.There is also a line of research that mainly focuses on the itemset construction problem in PCSSs, aiming to determine the best itemset for an item. Recently, Kopcke et al. (2010) proposed a learning-based itemset construction method by detecting duplicate items independently of classification standards, and showed empirical results using the items obtained from online shopping malls. They combined several learning techniques and suggested an approach to effectively adjust parameters for improved itemset construction results.Bilenko et al. (2005) developed an adaptive approach for itemset construction by using a composite similarity function based on a linear combination of averaged perceptron functions that measure textual similarity between item descriptions. They pointed out that a better textual similarity function can result in the improved performance of an itemset construction task.Finally, Yuan (2002) reported on a personalized item ranking method by using reinforcement learning. She considered a current state of an itemset for each customer by measuring its reward according to the feedback behavior of the customer. The current state is employed for ranking items for a customer by considering the customer's behavior in the past in order to improve item ranking quality over time. Similarly, Chang and Lee (2010) developed a model which gives customers price ranked items by taking into account price discount effects such as credit card installment commission, promotion, and multi-item selection.Although the methods proposed by the previous research have successfully coped with the itemset construction problem in terms of either textual similarity or customer's satisfaction, they did not pay attention to click-through improvement which is essential in improving the revenues of PCSSs.\n3 Research framework: 3.1 Problem definition\n4 Itemset construction methods for revenue maximization: 4.1 Textual similarity functions\n5 Experimental results: 5.1 Real-world data collection\n6 Managerial implications: Practitioners are expected to be provided with the following managerial implications in real-world settings from the results presented in this paper. First, the revenue of a PCSS can be improved by applying the proposed methods such as NM, EM, and LM. Although all the proposed methods were effective to increase the number of click-throughs, the decision to choose the best method for a PCSS among the proposed methods can differ according to its operational strategy because there is a trade-off between the improvement of the number of click-throughs and computational cost. Despite of the superior performance in the number of click-throughs achieved by EM, its intensive computation remains the drawback. Fortunately, while LM cannot guarantee the maximum number of click-throughs, it is attractive due to its satisfactory results in terms of both the click-through improvement and computational cost.Second, the proposed click-through estimation model provides valuable information on the item related features such as item description, item rank, proportion of a mall, and promotion which can influence to the number of click-throughs of an item in a particular itemset. According to the experiment results, item rank was the dominant item related feature in most of the categories, and the number of click-throughs of an item tended to rapidly decrease as its rank decrease. These findings can be further utilized to re-organize and develop itemsets and categories so that a PCSS can yield more click-throughs to grow revenues of the existing items (Redden, 2008). In addition, the proposed methods allow a PCSS to focus on items that can produce more click-throughs by utilizing the item related features.Finally, the proposed methods help a PCSS in enhancing customer satisfaction by providing a larger coverage and a higher freshness of items to customers compared to the manual method. The coverage of items in a PCSS is important to customers who need to compare as many items as possible, while the freshness of items is essential for customers who seek out new items. By applying the proposed methods, a PCSS will be able to provide sufficient and up-to-date comparison results to customers through automatically constructing itemsets with a large number of updated or newly gathered items from various online shopping malls at a low cost within a short time. That is, the PCSS will be able to become more competitive than the others that rely on manual itemset construction. Moreover, this implies that even a small or medium sized PCSS can efficiently provide a large number of itemsets and items to customers by using the proposed methods.\n7 Conclusion and future research: 7.1 Discussions\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - Revenue maximization through improving click-throughs is of great importance for price comparison shopping services (PCSSs) whose revenues directly depend on the number of click-throughs of items in their itemsets. The purpose of this paper is to present an approach aiming to maximize the revenue of a PCSS by proposing effective itemset construction methods that can maximize the click-throughs.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The authors suggest three itemset construction methods, namely naive method (NM), exhaustive method (EM), and local update method (LM). Specifically, NM searches for the best itemset for an item in terms of textual similarity between an item and an itemset, while EM produces the best itemset for each item for maximizing click-throughs by considering all the possible memberships of the item. Finally, through combining NM and EM, the authors propose an LM that attempts to improve click-throughs by locally updating the memberships of items according to their ranks in each itemset.\nFindings: - Through evaluation of the proposed methods based on a real-world dataset, it has been found that improvement of click-throughs is small when itemsets are constructed by using the textual similarity alone. However, significant improvement in the number of click-throughs was achieved when considering items' membership updates dynamically.\nOriginality/value: - Unlike the previous studies that mainly focus on the textual similarity, the authors attempt to maximize the revenue through constructing itemsets that can result in more click-throughs. By using the proposed methods, it is expected that PCSSs will be able to automatically construct itemsets that can maximize their revenues without the need for manual task.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Promoting business/IT fusion: an OD perspective
|
[
"Communication technologies",
"Information systems",
"Organizational development",
"Senior management"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Information technology/information systems (IT/IS) do not exist in isolation, but are used in social and organisational contexts. Although it is generally accepted that the new ITs are integrally part of most forms of commercial, industrial and governmental initiatives, evidence suggest that many of these innovations are ineffective and under-utilised. The IS/IT industry often does not deliver what businesses expect of it, resulting in an \"expectation gap\" and various human behavioural issues. According to one study that involved 45 leading researchers and consultants and 14,000 user organisations - between 80 per cent and 90 per cent of IT investments do not meet their performance objectives. They are either over budget, over time or do not meet the technical specifications. Organisations are also lacking an integrated approach to organisational and technical change and often do not successfully attend to the non-technical, i.e. the human and organisational aspects of changing technology.Many of the problems facing IT departments are neither technical nor fiscal, but managerial and organisational. IT executives are often unaware of the many human and organisational factors to which project failure can be attributed. According to Mann (2002), factors such as the difference in perception between IT and business; ownership struggle, cultural differences, different future perspectives; ineffective communication, credibility issues, relationship and interaction problems and lack of recognition contribute to widening the gap. These viewpoints are supported by other authors such as Aggarwal and Rezaee (1996), Kunda and Brooks (2000), Travis (2002), Fielding (2002) and Riggle (2002). They do not have a holistic perspective on IT-related organisational change and organisational issues. It is widely felt that there is little consideration for the non-technical issues such as user needs and business strategies, that they are not well understood, that their importance is under-estimated and that action in this area is under-resourced (Wynekoop and Walz, 1999; Nielsen et al., 1999; Sawyer et al., 1998; Whittaker, 1999; Riggle, 2002). According to King (1998) there is much evidence that organisational issues are not properly addressed during the systems development processes.Not so long ago, organisations following the traditional alignment model asked \"How do we use technology to help us do what we do? How do we maximise the value of IT to enhance business performance? How do we make sure that IT becomes part of the strategy and not just a response mechanism\"? Establishing a relationship between business and IT was therefore traditionally done through \"strategic alignment\": set the business strategy and then determine how technology can help. Recent viewpoints are that traditional alignment approaches increase risk and prevent organisations from exploiting opportunities (Dickson and DeSanctis, 2000; Smaczny, 2001). Instead of promoting business growth, IT often inhibits it. To solve the problems in the fast-changing environment of today, it is proposed that a successful business-IT relationship can only be achieved through \"a higher degree of strategic alignment\", namely the fusion of business and IT. According to the Oxford Dictionary, fusion means: \" A merging of divorced, distinct, or separate elements into a unified whole\". Such fusion between IS/IT and business should be achieved on the strategic, tactical and operational levels.\nOrganisational development: Organisational development (OD) is \"a system-wide application of behavioural science knowledge to the planned development, improvement and reinforcement of the strategies, structures and processes that lead to organisational effectiveness\" (Cummings and Worley, 2001). OD applies to the processes, strategies and structures of the entire system, such as an organisation or a department within an organisation (for example the IT department). The purpose of OD is to improve organisational effectiveness and create an organisation that can solve its own problems, is capable of high performance and provides a high quality of work life.In the past, research has focused on OD, but mostly from the viewpoint of the internal or external OD consultant, providing professional services - diagnosing problems, developing solutions and helping to implement them. However, according to Doyle (2002) the role of the change agent, who aids OD and transformation, is changing beyond the single individual \"to encompass a more diverse, multi-functional, mixed status cast of characters\". These people have to combine OD responsibilities with their operational, professional or technical roles. According to Cummings and Worley (2001) functional managers cannot deny their responsibility toward OD. According to McNamara (1999) OD must now focus as much on processes between the parts of the organisation as on the parts themselves. Understanding and fulfilling the OD role would greatly counter the typical problems experienced that are caused by the IT-business gap because it directly addresses the issues contributing to the gap in the first place. Just as OD looks at the organisation from a holistic and integrated point of view, business and IT should be fully integrated (Eckhouse, 2002; Fielding, 2002; Logan, 2002).To achieve a successful transformation from a state of non-fusion to fusion, the strategy should involve more than just cutting costs, increasing return on investment, or restructuring the business (business reengineering). The process must be driven and implemented throughout all the layers of the organisation through a top-down and bottom-up process. Where necessary, core values, attitudes and the embedded organisational culture needs to be analysed, changed and aligned and steps need to be taken to bridge the differences (Logan, 2002). Correia (2002) states that the solution lies in better management and not merely in designing better tools.Failure to invest in and integrate OD initiatives and IT will block effective change in many organisations. O'Connor and Smallman (1995) noted that \"capitalizing in IT requires something more fundamental than merely changing a corporation's structures, business processes and strategy\". They must change what they do, how they do it, how they work with each other, how they work by themselves.To build a healthy IS/IT department and to contribute towards a healthy organisation is the task of the IT executive. A holistic view, expertise and judgment in social, technological and systems theory and practice are required on all levels in the organisation (McKendrick, 2000; Doyle, 2002; McClenahen, 2002). Kunda (2001) includes the motivation and level of enthusiasm of IT personnel, interactions and communication, organisational resources and support, cognitive skills of all stakeholders and organisational culture in his list of factors influencing IT project success and a positive business-IT relationship. According to Appelbaum (1997) \"integrating organisational development and technological intervention into a total system is one of the more difficult tasks for an executive or consusltant to execute\". One possible solution to the problem is through the implementation of \"soft systems\" - which are more participative, integrative, socio-technical methods - such as OD.\nThe research: Purpose of the research\nResults: The first research question was concerned with identifying the factors influencing the business-IT interface from the literature and then verifying it from an industry perspective. Reasons for IT project failure and the poor business-IT relationship were identified and classified into 25 categories, namely:1. The real business need is not understood and documented - ineffective requirement specification (Correia, 2002; Aggarwal and Rezaee, 1996; Riggle, 2002; Whittaker, 1999; Mann, 2002).2. Project scope changes (changing business needs/technology) (Aggarwal and Rezaee, 1996; Correia, 2002; Whittaker, 1999; Callon, 1996).3. Insufficient client expectation management (Mann, 2002; Murray, 2001).4. Lack of communication (Mann, 2002; Whittaker, 1999; Callon, 1996; Fielding, 2002).5. Poor documentation practices (Riggle, 2002; Aggarwal and Rezaee, 1996).6. Testing (Murray, 2001; Aggarwal and Rezaee, 1996).7. People-, behavioural and cultural issues (Mann, 2002; Logan 2002; Cormack, 2001).8. Adverse interpersonal relationships (Mann, 2002; Katz and Tucker, 1995).9. Lack of business ownership/collaboration (Mann, 2002).10. Lack of shared goals (Kunda, 2001; Logan, 2002).11. Negative attitude towards the IS/IT function (Logan, 2002; Patching and Chatham, 1998).12. Lack of strategic alignment (Smaczny, 2001; Dickson and DeSanctis, 2000; Henderson, 1998; Britt, 2002).13. Strategic role/involvement of IT manager (Eckhouse, 2002; McClenahen, 2002).14. Skills, attributes and attitudes of IT personnel (Whittaker, 1999; Kunda, 2001; Fielding, 2002; Coghlan and Hurley, 1996).15. Lack of shared responsibility (Travis, 2002; Murray, 2001).16. Insufficient equipment and infrastructure (Murray, 2001; Aggarwal and Rezaee, 1996).17. Lack of senior management involvement (Travis, 2002; Whittaker, 1999; Murray, 2001).18. Lack of knowledge transfer between IT and the business (Riggle, 2002; Travis, 2002; Trauth et al., 1993).19. Different measures of success.20. Management issues (Kunda, 2001; O'Connor and Smallman, 1995; Wang, 1995).21. IT management issues (Correia, 2002; Coghlan and Hurley, 1996; Whittaker, 1999).22. Project-specific issues (Callon, 1996).23. Project management issues (Whittaker, 1999; Fielding, 2002; Travis, 2002; Aggarwal and Rezaee, 1996).24. Project manager issues (Whittaker, 1999; Murray, 2001).25. Finances (Whittaker, 1999).Survey results\nSummary and conclusions: This research focused on the business-IT interface and aimed to investigate the gap between the business and the IS/IT function, and to describe the role of the IT executive in promoting business/IT fusion. The results indicated that the research findings support the perspectives of the leading authors in the field. The research further indicated how the role of OD could create IT-business fusion.A review of the literature and empirical studies indicated that the traditional model of strategic alignment is not enough to close the gap. A linear process of creating the business strategy with the IT strategy following it is not enough to ensure successful IT implementations. The strategic alignment model therefore no longer provides companies with the correct answers to the problems in a fast-changing environment such as information communication technology (ICT). A new approach is needed - a higher level of alignment, also termed fusion by a few researchers and practitioners. Such fusion has to be achieved on all levels of the organisation (strategic, tactical and operational).Fusion between the customer (client/end user) and the IT professionals will only materialise if:* The needs of the client are solved by means of an IT implementation. For this it is necessary that the real need is identified and documented properly before the solution is designed, coded and implemented.* Successful ongoing \"partnerships\" are forged between IT and business units, as are interpersonal relationships between the various stakeholders in the IT/business relationship. This would lead to a learning organisation where the user and the technical specialist understand each other's world and share responsibility for the success of IT implementations. Such healthy relationships would lead to greater customer value and profitability.There are a number of important role-players responsible for the creation of fusion, of which the IT executive is an important one. The role of the IT executive is changing, requiring special leadership capabilities and a more participative, people-oriented style. In return, business must treat IT as both a creator of value and an important player in the design of the organisation's strategy.The radical organisational change is extending the responsibility for OD beyond the external OD consultant to functional managers who combine these responsibilities with their existing operational, professional or technical roles. By integrating the OD and IT role, the IT executive will be able to achieve synergy between business and IT leading to greater organisational effectiveness and utilisation of resources.\nLimitations of the study: Owing to the large number of IT-related industries and geographic constraints, only companies in Gauteng region, which is considered as the economic heart of South Africa, have been included in the study. The small sample size might hinder the generalisation of the results and could be further extended. Many of the issues have only be touched on and needs further exploration.\nFuture research: The research includes aspects from many different disciplines and serves as a starting point for a body of knowledge regarding the role players in the business/IT interface. Identification of the issues will open up many research opportunities. Possible areas for future research are:* developing a measuring instrument for fusion in the business/IT interface;* a business strategy to promote fusion;* fusion within the IT function (internal fusion); and* role clarification and the development of business/IT role players.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - It is generally accepted that new information technologies are an integral part of most forms of business initiatives. Evidence suggests that many of these innovations are ineffective and under-utilised. The information systems/information technology (IS/IT) industry often does not seem to be capable of delivering what business clients expect. Owing to this \"expectation gap\" and various behavioural issues, business experts have a negative perception of the IS/IT function. It is proposed that a new way of alignment between IT and business is necessary The research aims to address two problems, namely, what factors are influencing business-IT interface within organisations, and how the IT executive could contribute towards fusion fulfilling an organisational development (OD) role.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - A triangular and qualitative research approach was followed, including a literature study, questionnaire and interview.\nFindings: - Results indicated a number of reasons leading to IT/business failure and also indicate how fusion can be created by fulfilling an OD role.\nResearch limitations/implications: - Only companies in the Gauteng region, which is considered to be the economic heart of South Africa, have been included in the study. The small sample size might hinder the generalisation of the results and could be further extended.\nOriginality/value: - The research indicates how a healthy business-IT interface can be achieved through the fusion of the IT function and the rest of the business by integrating OD initiatives.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Strategic engagement and alignment of corporate talent
|
[
"Talent",
"Alignment",
"Leadership",
"Strategy",
"Engagement",
"Development",
"Organizational development",
"Organizational performance"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nStrategic engagement and alignment of corporate talent: creating the culture: This paper describes how organizations can shape their culture so that all stakeholder groups from the executive to those at the sharp end of the business have a common understanding and focus on three areas:1. strategic alignment;2. engagement; and3. talent.We examine briefly what we mean by these terms and how they play out in implementation. Then we consider how an intervention that embraces all three can shift the culture to one where alignment, engagement and talent-focus naturally becomes \"the way we do things.\"The methodology is gleaned from 25 years' practical experience in the design and delivery of interventions to leverage leadership and team dynamics to support corporations with the development of progressive strategies for talent management.\nStrategic alignment: It is established best practice for organizations to give clear messages regarding their raison d'etre and direction. This usually manifests in some combination of purpose, vision, mission and values at the corporate level and confirmed in strategic documents, such as the annual report and company website. Verbally, this information is typically reinforced in a top-down manner through staff conferences and team briefing (or some variation).In terms of process, many organizations are good at cascading the performance objectives associated with delivering the business vision. Board-level key performance indicators (KPIs) get devolved to divisional KPIs and so on down to personal performance metrics. These are confirmed in writing, measured and reported, serving to align the efforts of the business.The limitation is that it is a rational activity and rarely captures hearts and minds. Nor does it ensure that people play to their personal and team strengths in the delivery of objectives.\nEngagement: Employee engagement is justifiably high on the corporate agenda and conceptually linked to employee opinion and retention. I propose that engagement is a two-fold matter: relational and purposeful. Relational engagement concerns the extent to which an employee feels valued as a person, by their boss, the wider leadership of the business and by their peers. Purposeful engagement relates to the extent an employee feels their work is of value in serving the purpose of the organization. It is in short the extent to which someone feels that they matter in the context of the work done by their employer.Employee engagement is therefore primarily achieved through good management supported by processes including performance appraisal, personal development and team development. The result may be confirmed by employee opinion surveys and adds value, principally in terms of performance, attendance and retention. It is also a product of selecting good managers and developing them to engage with their people.\nTalent: Talent management strategies at the end of the last century and the beginning of this one were primarily associated with the recruitment, identification, development and retention of \"high potential\" employees. Whilst having many positive features, they were also regarded by many as divisive and negligent of the wider talent in the workforce.More progressive talent management strategies, such as the now well-established Strengths Movement (Buckingham and Coffman, 2005) seek to play to the strengths of everyone in the business and to invest in the development of everyone according to their potential. My own philosophy, which I label as \"talent liberation\" (Wilson, 2010), affirms that \"organizations reach prime performance when they recognize, value, develop and use the unique talents of all their people in the delivery of their objectives.\" These approaches obviously overlap and both can be placed within the wider discipline of positive psychology.I define progressive strategies for talent management as \"the total mechanisms adopted by an organization to identify, secure, value, develop and deploy the talent necessary for the delivery of its purpose and vision.\" Such mechanisms include the development of a corporate philosophy on talent and appropriate systems and processes as well as the establishment of an organizational culture consistent with the stated talent philosophy. This is captured in the model shown in Figure 1.\nJoined up thinking: Clearly strategic alignment, employee engagement and talent management are linked. Every organization wants to point the best of each of their people at the delivery of the business objectives in a focused and engaging way. All the components discussed above are helpful and probably (in one form or another) essential. However, they can be greatly enhanced through the regular and systematic roll-out of a program that models and reinforces best practice in these three disciplines.So let us first assume that the organization has the following basics in place:*a clear purpose and vision that steers everything everyone does;*natural and programmed engagement in all they do at all levels;*systems and processes that enable the vision to be delivered efficiently;*a constructive culture (or character) that promotes helpful behaviors consistent with the task in hand (driven by simple, and relevant corporate values);*metrics (results) that measure progress towards the delivery of the vision;*an understanding of what success means to everyone involved; and*a clear philosophy and set of processes to point talent at the delivery of the vision.In summary such organizations can be represented as shown in Figure 2 in what we call \"prime focus\" (Wilson, 2011).We have found that a great deal can be reinforced and communicated by a program comprising the following:*an annual strategic workshop for the senior management team, led by the chief executive, providing opportunity to share the business vision, co-create a strong sense of the future, identify blockages and opportunities, establish and share personal strengths and point these at measurable value-adding actions to deliver the vision;*workshops led by directors the next level down that repeat the above procedure in the context of their part of the business;*workshops led by managers at each subsequent level to repeat the exercise again in a manner appropriate to context;*at the sharp end, supervisor involvement in similar events with their teams to ensure that everyone has had the opportunity to co-create their part of the organization's future, and work out how to bring the best of who they are to the team effort; and*follow-up to confirm delivery of value-adding commitments and support along the way in the form of managerial encouragement and coaching.In this respect, it can be seen that everyone in the business has opportunity to engage with their future. Their work will consciously be in alignment with the strategy. Critically, they will have established, in dialogue with their colleagues, how to bring their strengths and best efforts into play.We have found this approach adds significant value but we do highlight some health-warnings.*Language - Communication of the business vision must be done in a language that is suited to the audience and authentic to the deliverer. The message should be delivered from the heart with little (if any) use of plans, complex timelines and slide presentations.*Relevance - As the message is cascaded to the business, it should retain its link to the corporate purpose and at the same time major on the future as it plays out for the particular audience. Sufficient corporate steer should be given to ensure strategy isn't diluted and scope should be provided to allow participants to add the detail and feel they have co-created their own future.*Focus on the important - Careful facilitation is required to keep people focused on important matters and avoid time being wasted on trivia. This is especially the case when exploring blockages, issues and opportunities.*Personal growth and contribution - These interventions work well when people have opportunity to grow authentically. There should be adequate time and process for them to consider what they personally bring in the way of talents and strengths, how these add value, how they can be developed further and put to good use. This is best done before group work to tackle blockages, issues and opportunities so that groups can be formed of people with the most suitable talents for the matter in hand.*Personal commitment and value-add - Nothing changes unless we do something. Interventions of this type add most value when they are action orientated. Whatever corporate learning and commitment arises, there should be opportunity for each participant to say what the future means to them, what they bring to it, what their most powerful new commitment is and what value this will add.*Measurement and follow up - Only a small proportion of commitments made at interventions are delivered by those making them. This can be enhanced by robust follow-up. Wherever possible, commitments to action or personal development should be transferred from the workshop to mainstream performance management and personal development processes. Coaching (by managers or coaches) adds significant value in the support of delivery and a follow-up event to celebrate gains will focus minds.*Skilled facilitation - Interventions can unearth some big issues and there is danger that emotions will run high. It is essential that workshops are facilitated by experienced professionals, and preferably at least two people so that they can manage the process, observe the energy in the room and share decisions on how to flex the timetable and exercises. Some \"tangents\" will prove extremely valuable to the business and many will be irritating distractions. The job description for facilitators is \"skilled, experienced, flexible and focused.\"\nIn summary: Too often organizations think in discipline silos, such as leadership development, culture change and talent management. Blending these together into one program that makes sense on all fronts and fits perfectly the strategic needs is an art form worth exploring.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to share a methodology for strategic engagement and alignment of corporate talent.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The methodology is gleaned from 25 years' practical experience in the design and delivery of interventions to leverage leadership and team dynamics to support corporations with the development of progressive strategies for talent management.\nFindings: - Managers and staff are motivated to add significant value to their organizations when they are provided with the opportunity to co-create their future and work out how to align their talents to its delivery.\nResearch limitations/implications: - This work is based on practical assignments with clients over a 25-year period.\nPractical implications: - Organizations have identified significant bottom-line benefit from the actions delivered by managers through these techniques.\nSocial implications: - Social benefits lie in two areas. First, when people are provided opportunity to engage with the delivery of their futures this provides opportunity for more democratic and socially acceptable outcomes. Second, these methods have been used by change agents and social entrepreneurs, including the United Nations and British Council.\nOriginality/value: - To the best of the author's knowledge these methods are not used elsewhere. Experiential engagement with future vision and the alignment of talent in this way is novel, efficient and value-adding.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Integrated project delivery implementation framework for water and wastewater treatment plant projects
|
[
"Construction",
"Project management",
"Novel model"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Water and wastewater treatment facilities remove biological and chemical waste products from water and wastewater, provide clean water and allow the wastewater to be used for other purposes. The complex nature of processes in water and wastewater treatment facilities require highly specialized expertise in planning, cost estimating, design and construction of such facilities. This type of construction includes rehabilitation, expansion and new construction of these treatment facilities, and requires a highly skilled team of individuals to ensure a successful project undertaken by large construction firms (Abi Shdid and Andary, 2016). Water and wastewater construction projects have historically been delivered using the traditional design-bid-build (DBB) delivery method and have therefore suffered from shortcomings inherent to DBB (Abi Shdid and Andary, 2016). This is partly due to the public nature of these projects and the existing public contract laws that make implementation of integrated project delivery (IPD) in public projects rather challenging. IPD is an emerging construction project delivery system that is becoming increasingly popular and is the subject of great interest in the architecture/engineering/construction industry. It aims at integrating project parties, systems, and business structures and practices into one multiparty agreement that fosters highly effective collaboration commencing at early design stages and proceeding through to project completion. IPD promises improved delivery of projects through increased productivity and decreased waste of time and money, while aligning the interests and practices of all involved parties. Major organizations, construction magazines and journal articles have described projects that successfully implemented IPD with positive outcomes, such as lower construction costs, shorter schedule and fewer RFIs. However, the drawn relationship between IPD and project key performance indicators (KPIs) is shown to be of a general nature and tenuous at best (Ernstrom et al., 2006; American Institute of Architects California Council, 2007; Post, 2011; Kent and Becerik-Gerber, 2010). A close look at these studies reveals no existing guideline to project participants that correlates or links individual IPD principles to particular project KPIs that may be of interest to the owner. Collection and analysis of actual project data is necessary to scientifically or statistically validate such widely-accepted claims.\n2. Literature review: 2.1 Delivery methods in water and wastewater projects\n3. Research methodology: 3.1 Research design\n4. Results: 4.1 Open communication\n5. Discussion: When analyzing the individual links between the IPD principles and the KPIs displayed in Figure 8, several interesting facts can be pointed out. While open communication was expected to have an effect on the KPI of cost of field rework, the results show no such effect. According to Abi Shdid et al. (2019), the implementation of IPD principles - including open communication - in the delivery of a case study project resulted in high level of improvement in cost of field rework. This is most probably due to the fact that field rework is highly influenced by other factors such as inadequate project supervision, inadequate design specifications and lack of proper inspection by the designer. It is important to note that IPD principles implemented during the construction phase of a project show no effect on design-related KPIs. For example, open communication, collaborative decision making and project's staff performance evaluations had no effect on cost of errors and omissions or on the RFIs per unit price. Implementing such IPD principles during the project execution phase cannot affect such things as contract documents being incomplete, conflicting or erroneous, thereby requiring revisions and clarifications to be provided by the designers. CURT (2004a, b) stated that in order to achieve the desired IPD outcomes, owners must collaborate through information sharing early in the design process.\n6. Conclusions: Although the construction industry has a general positive perception of IPD, the correlation between IPD and various project KPIs has so far been overlooked. This is the first study to investigate the correlation links between various IPD principles and performance indicators of a project through a statistical regression analysis of a rather large data set representing actual water-related public projects. The results demonstrated that while significant correlation does exist between some IPD principles and certain project KPIs, many widely-accepted IPD principles provide little or no improvement in KPIs of water and wastewater projects. This study thus provides owners and contractors of water and wastewater construction project with a guideline framework for assessing the type and level of IPD implementation needed to improve the success of a project, relative to database of past projects delivered using the traditional DBB delivery method. This practical tool allows utility owners, engineers and contractors to identify which IPD tools to implement in their project delivery in order to improve certain aspects of the project performance. When compared to the normally-accepted approach of implementing the full gamut of IPD principles in a project, this selective implementation will save projects money as well as managerial time.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The public nature of water and wastewater construction capital projects has rendered design-bid-build (DBB) as the delivery method of choice for such projects over the past years. Shortcomings inherent to DBB have had a negative effect on the key performance indicators (KPIs) of these projects. Numerous studies have been published about the benefits offered by integrated project delivery (IPD) in improving the delivery of DBB projects. Links correlating IPD principles to improvements in KPIs of DBB construction projects have not been established scientifically, thus leaving owners with no guidance on which IPD principle(s) to implement in order to improve a particular project KPI. The paper aims to discuss this issue.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Actual data were collected from 43 water and wastewater construction projects - including two control projects with full implementation of selective IPD principles - and used to compute major projects KPIs. Regression analysis and a focus group are then utilized to determine the effect of each implemented IPD principle on various project KPIs.\nFindings: Implementation of open communication was found to have a significant effect on reducing project cost overrun, and the co-location of teams significantly reduced the time to respond to RFIs. Collaborative decision making significantly reduced the cost of field rework. Other IPD principles showed less-significant effects on project KPIs and were concluded to be ineffective at improving the projects' performance.\nPractical implications: An implementation framework is developed that can guide utility owners on which IPD principle(s) to implement in order to improve specific project KPIs.\nOriginality/value: This study demonstrates that not all IPD principles will result in performance improvement of a project. A selective and cost-effective implementation of certain IPD principle will have to be based on the nature of the project and the particular KPIs targeted for improvement.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Corporate reputation based theory of choice between organic, hybrid and inorganic growth strategies
|
[
"Strategy",
"Strategic management"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Firms conduct a careful analysis of the pros and cons of all strategic growth options namely organic, inorganic and hybrid routes before making a strategic choice (Ghemawat and Levinthal, 2000). Extant studies have generally relied on theories like transaction cost (Williamson, 1971) and organizational learning to explain the choice between the three possible modes of strategic growth (Rodriguez et al., 2005; Meyer and Nguyen, 2005). They assume that if a firm has a motive to gain market knowledge, then, while expanding into international boundaries, it will opt for acquisition, but it may happen that because of the unavailability of an appropriate acquisition target, a firm opts for an organic route. In other words, the intent may not always convert into the desired action. This implies, apart from the firms' motive and intentions, there are other factors, which may influence not the intended mode of strategy implementation, but the actual mode chosen. The research seeks to fill this gap in the literature by focussing on resource based. I explain the role of corporate reputation in the media and relative performance of the firm as drivers of choice of growth strategies. Past literature has explained the impact of the firm's reputation on its financial risk and financial reporting quality (Cao et al., 2012). However, not only financial attributes but also strategic attributes of the firm are impacted by corporate reputation, especially as reflected in the mass media (Deephouse, 2000). Less reputed firms may not find an appropriate partner for alliances, as a result, may forcefully opt for organic expansion (Dollinger et al., 1997). Similarly, firm's relative performance influences its strategic decisions about growth prospects. Due to poor relative performance compared to competitors, a firm may not get hold of desired joint venture partner and as a result forcefully opts for organic route.\nLiterature review: Corporate reputation\nHypothesis development: Corporate reputation\nResearch design: Data\nMethodology: Since the data on corporate reputation and growth strategies were collected qualitatively, using content analysis after which a quantitative technique was applied to the content analyzed data, along with financial data, overall a mixed research methodology was used. Furthermore, since the dependent variable was censored and proportional, a Tobit model was applied to the data (Barclay et al., 1995). Also, the data had both time series and cross-sectional elements so that a panel Tobit regression was applied. To choose between random effect and fixed effect panel regression, a Hausman test was run and a random effect model was chosen as kh2 value was not significant.\nResults and analysis: I used Tobit regression to test H1-H3. A Tobit regression was used, because the dependent variable was proportional. Furthermore, three different sets of Tobit regressions were run to capture the impact of independent variables on organic, hybrid and inorganic growth strategies, as reflected in three subsets of each hypothesis.\nDiscussion and conclusion: My research objective was to investigate the impact of corporate reputation and relative performance of firms on their growth strategies, and the moderating role of competitive intensity. In this paper, the deterministic view of the resource-based theory is extended and I suggest that a firm's reputation and relative performance influences its choice between organic, hybrid and inorganic growth strategies.\nManagerial implications: The study has several managerial implications. First, this work is particularly relevant for managers who have been attempting to grow with a hybrid strategy, i.e. forming alliances and joint ventures, but have been unable to do so. If managers of these firms invest in impression management activities, then they can come to the limelight and as a consequence, obtain the desired partners for alliances and joint ventures. More specifically, a public relations department can contribute to the strategic growth of a company by managing appropriate relationships with the media and further promoting positive attributes of the firm, so that such stakeholders as competitors and suppliers perceive the firms' performance in positive light. Second, it may be that due to a bust in the industry life cycle or the maturity stage of a particular industry, the media does not pay sufficient attention to players in that industry or the firm does not have enough resources to manage impressions through corporate social responsibility activities, etc. In such cases, managers can rely on relative performance, by ensuring that their performance is above the industry average, so that they can gain the desired acquisition targets and joint venture partners.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how organizational resources: mass media corporate reputation and relative performance influences firms choice between organic, hybrid and inorganic growth strategies and how industry competition moderates this relationship.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Using panel data and Tobit regression on sample of firms from emerging markets, i.e. India, the study is conducted.\nFindings: The results indicate that firm's corporate reputation, its relative performance with respect to competitors, positively influences hybrid growth strategy and negatively influences organic growth strategies. Further, results show that competition acts as a moderator of firm's relative performance and growth choice.\nOriginality/value: The study contribute to resource-based view of the firm and corporate reputation literature by the extending the deterministic role of corporate reputation to not only firms' market-based performance but also strategic choice.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Remember the Alamo: implementing a campus-wide anti-bullying policy
|
[
"Leadership",
"Workplace bullying",
"Policy development"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIdentifying the need for anti-bullying policy: Human resource managers often know where the troubled departments exist in the organization. Further, such troubles may be beyond personality conflicts or simple misunderstandings. When the behavior falls within the parameters of the US Title VII anti-discrimination laws, human resources departments typically have a procedure for intake and investigation. Further, previously established procedures typically govern how to present Title VII findings when a complaint is reported. However, if the abusive behavior is bullying (Hollis, 2016), most targets of workplace bullying have no legal recourse in the USA. While the USA is behind Canada and Australia in prohibiting workplace bullying, only four states, California, Minnesota, Utah, and Tennessee, since 2014 have passed state statutes prohibiting bullying behavior. However, organizations can still curtail bad behavior through a comprehensive campus policy.\nWho should participate?: Various research and workshops on workplace bullying in higher education led to an invitation for a four-day visit to Alamo Colleges, a network of multi-campus community colleges in San Antonio, Texas. This visit was the culmination of their year-long process to develop an anti-bullying policy, vet the policy, and then present the policy campus-wide. The support from executive leadership in crafting and unveiling the policy is consistent with research that calls for leadership intervention to prevent workplace bullying (Cangemi et al., 2011). The Alamo College process of inclusion through all levels of their community during policy development is a model for other higher education institutions. They included students, staff, faculty, and administrators from across the system.\nKey players in implementing policy: The campus visit was part of an introduction of the policy through a variety of workshops at each campus in their system. The executive vice president, each campus president, and typically the chief diversity officer were present to answer workshop participants' questions about the policy. Some key questions included:\nOnce the policy is passed: Developing an anti-bullying policy that represents a cross section of the campus community can be a Herculean task. Once that policy is developed, human resources will face the next phase of implementation with the campus community to engage the process. Training is an integral piece of implementing a new policy; as Perry et al. (2010) noted, behavior-training informs the personnel and prevents bad behavior between personnel.\nConclusion: Workplace bullying jeopardizes the health of the organization's employees, destroys morale, and costs thousands of dollars per person in employee disengagement (Hollis, 2016). In many states in the USA, workplace bullying behavior, still legal in early 2017, remains a persistent and destructive business practice. For more information on the Alamo Colleges' anti-bullying policy, visit the Alamo Colleges website for policy H.1.2.3, www.alamo.edu/district/policies/. Remember the Alamo when thinking of best practices in creating and implementing an anti-bullying policy on campus.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this article is to describe how to implement anti-bullying policies in higher education.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The paper informs organizations on the personnel needed for successful implementation.\nFindings: Executive leadership is needed for policy development, policy introduction, and continued implementation.\nResearch limitations/implications: The paper informs organizations on the personnel needed for successful implementation.\nPractical implications: It demonstrates the importance of campus-wide leadership to educate the campus.\nSocial implications: The study highlights how to achieve policy acceptance and how to coach campus community to trust the policy.\nOriginality/value: The paper informs about the importance of campus-wide support and extensive leadership presence in implementing a controversial campus policy.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Drivers of LBO operating performance: an empirical investigation in Latin America
|
[
"Latin America",
"Delisting",
"Drivers",
"Macroeconomic variables",
"Going private"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Private equity and leveraged buyout (LBO) are playing an important role in financial markets, and they have attracted academic attention since the 1980s (Kaplan and Stromberg, 2009; Cumming and Zambelli, 2012). Most of the works done have focused on few industrial countries, mainly in the USA and Europe. However, private equity and LBO are also present in emerging countries. In particular, during the past few years, a real growth of this phenomenon has been observed in Brazil and other Latin American countries thanks to improvements in the institutional framework. The region drew 8.4 billion dollars in new commitments or 22 per cent of total private equity capital raised for emerging markets in 2011. This contrasts with only 700 million dollars raised in 2004. More than ever before, institutional investors are seeking exposure to Latin America's attractive growth story, including rising domestic consumption and commodity wealth, coupled with macroeconomic stability and fiscal discipline. It is the same observation as in Asia (Sannajust, 2009). According to the Global Limited Partner in Latin America survey, 65 per cent of investors expect to initiate or expand their private equity investment programs in the region.\n2. Literature review and hypotheses: To examine drivers of operating performance in LBOs, we build on the recent literature that suggests that both buyout deal characteristics (financial variables and capital structure variables) and macroeconomic and industry influences are important determinants of value creation.\n3. Data sources and descriptive statistics: We use several databases (Capital IQ, Worldbank) to analyze the drivers of LBO operating performance in Latin America and also activity reports from each firm to complete the missing data. We retrieved all the deals from Capital IQ, and we selected all the LBO operations with a closed transaction status in South America and Central America including Mexico from January 2000 to December 2008. The sample period ends in December 2008 to assess the performance of delisted firms as private companies in the first three years after the going-private transactions.\n4. Results: We based our measure of performance after the delisting on the difference between the ROA in the first and third year after the delisting and the firm's ROA for the last full year in which the company was publicly listed (year -1). Therefore, the dependent variable is the variation of ROA (DROA): ROAt+1 - ROAt-1, when we investigate short-term effects, and ROAt+3 - ROAt-1, when we look at long-term effects\n5. Conclusion: In this paper, we contribute to private equity research and more precisely to the improvement of knowledge on LBO transactions. The drivers of performance were identified through the analysis of 36 Latin American operations. The increase in foreign investments and in the number of equity capital operations and, more generally, the high-level growth rate of the economies explain the choice of Latin American countries for our research.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to extend the research on private equity by studying the drivers of leveraged buyout (LBO) operating performance in Latin America. The authors consider a large set of candidate drivers (financial, governance, macroeconomic and industry variables) and study their effects on performance over short- and long-terms.\nDesign/methodology/approach: To conduct this study, the authors used Capital IQ as a database as well as a hand-collected data set covering LBO in Latin America from 2000 to 2008.\nFindings: The empirical results show that macroeconomic variables have an important impact on LBO value creation. Governance variables show also that LBO transactions reduce information asymmetries between existing and new management teams. Consequently, a concentrated shareholder structure has a better impact on performance than diluted stockholders. Financial variables present significant effects after the delisting.\nResearch limitations/implications: The characteristics of the debts included in the balance sheets (maturity for example) are not available in the authors' data basis. A test including this information could bring other elements of explanation. The measure of cumulative abnormal returns around going-private announcements and their impacts on shareholder's value could also be of interest. This last study has been published for the UK (Wright et al., 2006). Further research should introduce other continents and particularly Asia in the analysis but also comparisons between the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) countries.\nOriginality/value: This study makes five main contributions. First, the authors construct an LBO sample with emerging markets and specially Latin America. It is the first time that an academic article has been realized. Data are very difficult to obtain to do empirical tests. Latin America is a part of emerging markets, which is an interesting study subject due to their attractiveness in terms of growth of private equity funds. Second, to understand clearly how LBOs create value, the authors construct a sample control to highlight the key factors. Criteria of size, sector of activity and Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes were strictly enforced. Third, the authors do not focus on the moment where the transaction is realized like many studies but before and after the delisting. Indeed, they observed, on the one hand, the operating performance between year -1 and year +1 and, on the other hand, the operating performance between year -1 and year +3. Generally, only the market reaction around the acquisition announcement is examined. Post-performance is not considered due to lack of data. Fourth, the authors take into account the macroeconomic effects on performance of LBOs. It is the first examination of the impact of macroeconomic factors on performance of LBOs in Latin America. And fifth, they analyze the impact of going-private decisions on employees.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
QSR brand value:
Marketing mix dimensions among McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Subway and Starbucks
|
[
"Marketing mix",
"Starbucks",
"McDonald’s",
"QSR",
"Relative measures",
"Value strategy"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Brand evaluation's role in assisting consumers in making choices for initial and repeat purchases has a long history (Veloutsou, 2014). Tied to the notion of brands is the concept of value creation; value creation as a construct has had a longstanding association with both consumer needs and firm value strategies (Kim et al., 2008). While a reciprocal connection between customer brand value and organizational brand value has been explicit in the literature (Veloutsou, 2014), relative measures in the context of chain restaurants has not been articulated to date (Aksoy et al., 2015). In the chain restaurant literature, recent research has measured customer satisfaction, loyalty and other measures by focusing on one brand (Lim and Loh, 2014), a case study (Jones et al., 2002) or a generic assessment of restaurants (Parsa et al., 2012), rather than considering competitors and how brands compare to each other. Further, little research has been completed comparing relative perceptions of regular customers vs non-customers. A greater understanding of these relative assessments has important implications for retention, new target markets and marketing effectiveness.\nLiterature review: QSR is a term used for a method of dining where the food is prepared and served quickly with a limited level of service. While QSRs have grown steadily, the segment has made headlines worldwide for health concerns and increased competition for the market leader McDonald's. In general, modern QSR is associated with US-based, global chains such as Burger King, McDonald's, Subway, Starbucks and KFC. Outside the USA, rapid growth has been observed mainly supported by a franchising business model with an increasing focus on positioning issues and the psychology dimension (Mathe-Soulek et al., 2014).\nMethodology: The survey instrument was developed after a review of the literature and construct definitions of the 7Ps. Each P is provided in Table I with items used to assess consumer perceptions. Survey items shown in Table I are how these items were phrased for identified QSR customers. A second measurement instrument was created for those identified as non-customers. For example, self-identified customers' question was phrased \"The taste and variety of food and drinks is meeting my expectations\", the phrasing for the same item for non-customers was \"The taste and variety of food and drinks is not meeting my expectations\". The process of completing the survey followed initially asking each participant if he/she is a regular consumer of QSR. If the participant was not, he/she would be given the non-customer questionnaire. If yes, he/she would be given the QSR customer questionnaire. For all participants, each P in the survey included two items and used a five-point scale ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). Respondents provided gender, age group and dining frequency information.\nResults: Group: QSR type for QSR consumers\nGroup: customers vs non-customers by brand: To assess perceived differences inter-brand for QSR, a second set of LR tests were performed based on the perceptions of the five QSR assessing - When customers and non-customers have the same referent, which variables predict group membership for a particular QSR? For each test, membership as a QSR customer vs non-customer was used as the DV with results in Table V. As with the overall analysis, tests used an analysis and holdout sample to verify results. To minimize redundant written explanation, Table V includes analysis sample n, holdout sample n, kh2, and Nagelkerke R2 values for each QSR brand test.\nDiscussion and conclusions: This study makes four main contributions by testing the following:\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: This study aims to examine the quick service restaurant (QSR) differentiation in the minds of consumers, customers and non-customers and addresses the use of absolute measures. The study integrated competitive context and customer vs non-customer perceptions to better understand marketing strategies and the impact on customer value.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A conceptual framework is provided with marketing strategy, 7Ps, value positioning and outcomes. A survey instrument to assess perceptions of QSR marketing mix dimensions and leading QSR brands as referents was used. The study used exploratory factor analysis, ANOVA and logistic regression to address research questions.\nFindings: The five QSR brands were differentiated by three marketing mix dimensions: quality, convenience and price. Subway and Starbucks customers perceived higher quality than McDonald's and Burger King. Price separated Starbucks and McDonald's customers. Overall, QSR customers perceived higher quality and convenience than non-customers. Age group was a predictor of customer membership of QSR overall and McDonald's.\nResearch limitations/implications: The study used participants in Germany and had more respondents identified as McDonald's customers or referent.\nPractical implications: The quality bundle represents unique resources for each QSR brand. Management teams should use a holistic mindset in considering the quality bundle reputation and how the various attributes support each other.\nOriginality/value: Consumers look to three factors for QSR rather than 7Ps: quality, convenience and price. Relative comparisons of perceptions among brands and between customers vs non-customers provided important contributions for QSR marketing mix factors.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Converting internal brand knowledge into employee performance
|
[
"Internal branding",
"Employer branding",
"Employee performance",
"Internal marketing",
"Brand identification"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Turning service employees into brand champions has become crucial in building a strong brand, especially in high-contact services such as financial, legal, and higher education (Dean et al., 2016; Morhart et al., 2009; Lohndorf and Diamantopoulos, 2014; Sujchaphong et al., 2015; Devasagayam et al., 2010; Papasolomou and Vrontis, 2006; Foster et al., 2010; Garas et al., 2018). Service employees often serve as the living brand, responsible for delivering on brand promises and shaping the way the customer perceives a service brand (Bendapudi and Bendapudi, 2005). Internal brand knowledge (IBK) is fundamental to achieving this outcome.\n2. Literature review and research model: 2.1 Internal branding: a cognitive-affective-behaviour model\n3. Methodology: 3.1 Sample and data collection\n4. Data analysis and findings: 4.1 Convergent validity\n5. Discussions and implications: 5.1 Discussion\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Internal branding efforts are essential in improving employee performance in services marketing. Drawing on reformulation of attitude theory, this paper aims to contribute to the internal branding literature by positing that while internal brand knowledge (IBK) is essential for transforming brand vision into brand reality, it is not brand knowledge per se but its integration with other brand- and customer-related aspects that drive superior employee performance. In particular, this paper develops a cognitive-affective-behaviour model of internal branding proposing that IBK results in higher levels of employee brand identification (EBI); this sense of identification then motivates employees to engage in both employee-related and brand- and customer-focussed behaviours (i.e. brand citizenship behaviour [BCB] and customer-oriented behaviour [COB]), which in turn foster employee performance.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The hypotheses were empirically tested using a sample of 697 from services industry in Vietnam.\nFindings: The findings indicate a sequential mediation model in that employee brand knowledge affects employee performance (both objective and subjective measures) through EBI, BCB and COB. Employee brand knowledge results in higher levels of EBI; this sense of identification then motivates employees to engage in employee-related brand and customer-focussed behaviours (BCB and COB), which in turn foster employee performance.\nPractical implications: Firms should understand that IBK may not directly result in high levels of service performance, and instead should embrace the culture of self-driven positive brand-connection attitudes that motivate employees to engage in BCB and COB that are consistent with their sense of self.\nOriginality/value: This study makes a unique contribution to the internal branding literature by unravelling a pathway that integrates employees' self-related psychological mechanism (EBI) and employee-related brand and customer-focussed behaviours (BCB and COB) through which employee brand knowledge is converted into employee performance.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The route to employability: Examining resources and the mediating role of motivation
|
[
"Employees",
"Motivation",
"Jobs"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Employment is a source of one's identity and livelihood. The recent economic slowdown resulting in widespread downsizing and layoffs (Mattioli, 2009) coupled with the rapid pace of skill obsolescence due to changing technologies (Clark, 2008; Kennedy and King, 2005; Loon and Casimir, 2008) has, once again, brought the topic of employability to the forefront of academic and practitioner discourse. Employability refers to a worker's ability to retain his or her job, or to get a desired job (Rothwell and Arnold, 2007). Obviously, employability is of great significance to employees. Employers too are concerned with ensuring an adequate pool of employable individuals who are competent, flexible, possess the right skill-sets and motivations in order to acquire and maintain a competitive advantage critical for organizational survival (Van der Heijden, 2002).\nEmployability: Employability refers to worker's ability to obtain and/or retain a job (Forrier and Sels, 2003; Rothwell and Arnold, 2007). It is portrayed as a form of adaptability that enables workers to identify and realize career opportunities that may facilitate job mobility within and between organizations (Fugate et al., 2004). Employability encompasses personal initiative (Fay and Frese, 2001) and functional flexibility (Beechey and Perkins, 1987) and is characterized as the ability to achieve career mobility through one's own know-how, skills, knowledge of the labor market, and adaptability, in general (De Cuyper et al., 2008).Objective employability refers to facts about one's professional profile, such as education or labor market position, for example. In contrast, subjective or perceived employability concerns the worker's appraisal of his or her ability to get a new job in the same organization or in a different organization (Berntson et al., 2006). Authors of recent publications in the realm of employability research have suggested that, particularly in times of organizational change, what matters most is not so much \"objective\" employability but instead \"subjective\" or \"perceived\" employability (see, e.g. Berntson et al., 2006; Berntson and Marklund, 2007; De Cuyper et al., 2008; Silla et al., 2008). Indeed, workers are more likely to act upon their perceptions rather than upon any objective reality, and therefore, the focus of this study is on subjective or perceived employability.Perceived employability is assumed to have overall favorable consequences. For example, a core assumption is that employability leads to gainful employment and higher productivity (Fugate et al., 2004) and that it contributes to employee health and well-being; evidence for which has been reported by Berntson and Marklund (2007), and De Cuyper et al. (2008). Accordingly, an important question concerns the factors that promote perceived employability; a question that has been addressed mostly from a supply side labor market perspective. For instance, studies have examined the associations between demographic factors such as age and gender and employability (Forte and Hansvick, 1999; Nielsen, 1999; Patrickson and Ranzijn, 2003), and between issues related to training and education and employability (Benson, 2006; Brown et al., 2003; Forrier and Sels, 2003; Mihail and Elefterie, 2006; Van der Heijden, 2002). Studies from the demand-side perspective have investigated the association between labor market conditions and employability. For example, Berntson et al. (2006) in their study using two national representative Swedish samples reported that labor market fluctuations are important antecedents to perceived employability. This paper attempts to fill a void in the literature, namely the lack of research examining whether resources embedded in one's job lead to opportunities that are, in turn, associated with perceptions of employability. We develop this idea in the next section.\nResources and employability: The relationship between resources embedded in one's job and perceived employability can be understood through insights from the job demands resources model (JD-R) (Bakker and Demerouti, 2007; Demerouti et al., 2001). Of particular interest in the context of this study are the resources; i.e. the physical, psychological, social, or organizational aspects of the job that are functional in achieving work goals, reduce demands and the associated physiological and psychological costs, and stimulate personal growth, learning, and development. Examples of such resources are work autonomy, feedback and variety. Autonomy refers to the amount of freedom and independence employees have in terms of carrying out their work assignments. Feedback refers to the extent to which the job provides knowledge of the results of the employee's work activities. Variety refers to performing multiple tasks that require the use of a wide range of employee's skills and abilities (Morgeson and Campion, 2003).Two arguments derived from the JD-R model are central to this study. First, job resources trigger motivational processes. Second, the motivational processes triggered by job resources relate to perceived employability. Below, we elaborate on both of these arguments.With respect to the first argument, one of the critical assumptions in the JD-R Model is that job resources trigger motivational processes (Bakker et al., 2005; Bakker et al., 2007; Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004). Consistent with research on motivation, we assert that such processes can be categorized into intrinsic or extrinsic, although being motivated in one way does not preclude the other (Gagne and Deci, 2005).Intrinsic motivational processes are those that motivate employees without an apparent reward. That is to say, people engage in some activities for their own sake (Deci, 1975), such as activities that promote learning, growth, and self-development. Conceptually, intrinsic motivation has been linked with a mastery goal orientation, the intrinsic interest in and value for learning (Ames, 1992). Specifically, in the domain of (perceived) employability, intrinsic motivation can also be linked to learning goals, in which individuals are concerned with increasing their competence (Dweck and Leggett, 1988).Job resources have the potential to provide workers with opportunities for learning and development that are experienced as intrinsically motivating. For example, autonomy leads employees to feel personally responsible for the work activities, feedback provides employees with knowledge of the effectiveness of their work activities, and variety provides employees with the opportunity to experience their work as more meaningful (see, e.g. Hackman and Oldham, 1976); all crucial conditions for learning. Evidence for this perspective comes from the study by Houkes et al. (2001) among teachers that reported a positive relationship between job characteristics and intrinsic work motivation. Accordingly, we hypothesize the following:H1. Resources (autonomy, feedback, and variety) will be positively associated with intrinsic job opportunities.Relative to intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivational processes is instrumental in that it leads to tangible rewards. It is conceptually linked to a performance goal orientation, a concern with extrinsic rewards rather than the intrinsic value or interest in the work activities per se (Ames, 1992). Extrinsic motivation is also conceptually linked to performance outcome goals, such as when employees strive to gain favorable judgments of their competence (Dweck and Leggett, 1988) and focus more on successfully meeting assessment and outcome criteria than on learning per se (Brophy, 2005).In the context of careers and (perceived) employability, examples of extrinsic motivation include enhancing job security and securing a promotion. Resources embedded in one's job facilitate opportunities for extrinsic motivation (Bakker and Demerouti, 2008; Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004). For instance, autonomy may provide the worker with opportunities to take credit of his or her achievements. Feedback may increase the likelihood of being successful in achieving one's (extrinsic) work goals. Variety may provide the workers with opportunities to show their worth on different domains, again increasing the possibility to achieve extrinsic rewards. Thus, such resources embedded in one's job will likely associate with perceptions of extrinsic job opportunities:H2. Resources (autonomy, feedback, and variety) associate positively with extrinsic job opportunities.Our second argument derived from the JD-R model is that the motivational processes triggered by job resources relate to perceived employability because motivational processes are likely a significant contributor to employees' personal adaptability and employability (Fugate et al., 2004). Intrinsic job opportunities promote employability because they provide the worker with a sense of competence that is critical to perceived employability, and to employability models in general (Berntson et al., 2006; Clark, 2008; Eby et al., 2003; Forrier and Sels, 2003; Van der Heijden, 2002). Also, extrinsic job opportunities likely relate to perceived employability as workers who see more opportunities to achieve tangible rewards are likely to perceive opportunities for upward mobility, which is a specific form of employability. Accordingly, we hypothesize the following:H3. Intrinsic job opportunities afforded by one's job associate positively with perceived employability.H4. Extrinsic job opportunities afforded by one's job associate positively with perceived employability.Taken together, H1 to H4, suggest a meditational role for intrinsic and extrinsic job opportunities in the relationship between resource and perceived employability (see Figure 1). Specifically, resources embedded in one's job provide intrinsic job opportunities, which, in turn, relate positively to perceived employability. Similarly, resources facilitate perceptions of extrinsic job opportunities which in turn are likely to enhance perceptions of employability. Therefore, we propose the following hypotheses:H5. Intrinsic job opportunities mediate the association between job resources and perceived employability.H6. Extrinsic job opportunities mediate the association between job resources and perceived employability.\nMethod: Procedure and participants\nResults: Preliminary analysis\nDiscussion: Drawing on the JD-R model, we focused on the relationship between resources embedded in one's job and perceived employability, accounting also for intrinsic and extrinsic job opportunities as potential mediators. We argued that job resources (i.e. variety, autonomy, and feedback) would associate positively with intrinsic and extrinsic job opportunities and that these in turn would associate positively with perceived employability.The pattern of results was as follows: resources were indeed associated with more intrinsic and extrinsic job opportunities corroborating the motivational potential of job resources asserted by the JD-R model. Extrinsic job opportunities, but not intrinsic job opportunities were positively related to perceived employability and extrinsic job opportunities fully mediated the relationship between resources and perceived employability.The latter is perhaps the most important conclusion of this study: Employees whose jobs provided more resources perceived more extrinsic job opportunities and subsequently, perceived more employability. This stresses the argument that extrinsic job opportunities consist of activities done in order to attain some separable outcome; in the present study, achieving better employability (Ryan and Deci, 2002). The intrinsic motivation process accentuates work activities that are done for the enjoyment of the work itself, whereas extrinsic motivation refers to a motivation through instrumental value of the outcomes (i.e. better employability). For instance, employees who do the work because they personally believe it is valuable for their employability are extrinsically motivated because they are doing it for instrumental value rather than because they find it interesting or enjoy doing it - they are working towards a specific goal. In this light, it is not surprising that we did not find a mediating role for intrinsic motivation on the relationship of resources and employability. It could well be that employees with higher intrinsic motivation have a job that already provides them with valued job resources that enhances learning, growth, and development and that perceived employability is not a salient factor.Further, we did some post-hoc analyses to examine if the association between job resources and intrinsic motivation is stronger than the association between job resources and extrinsic motivation and if the association between extrinsic motivation and employability is stronger than the association between intrinsic motivation and employability. We computed the significance of the difference between the beta coefficients with t tests (Enzmann, 2005). The difference between the beta coefficients of intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation was significant for feedback (bdiff.=0.11, p<0.01) and variety (bdiff.=0.24, p<0.01) but not significant for autonomy (bdiff.=0.10, ns). As also can be seen from the final model, the association between job resources and intrinsic motivation is stronger than the association between job resources and extrinsic motivation. Further, the non-significant path from intrinsic motivation to employability was deleted from the final model and there is only a path from extrinsic motivation to employability. Thus, the association between two out of three job resources (feedback and variety) and intrinsic motivation was stronger than the association between these job resources and extrinsic motivation. It is probably not surprising that variety is indeed more important for intrinsic motivation, since in many job design studies, variety has been found to be a more important determinant of intrinsic motivation and satisfaction than of extrinsic motivation (see Rousseau, 1977). Indeed, prior research on employee reactions to performance feedback and subsequent motivation also has shown that performance feedback is an important job resource for intrinsic motivation than for extrinsic motivation (Ashford and Cummings, 1983; Vallerand et al., 1993). Moreover, studies also have shown that negative feedback tends to undermine intrinsic motivation (Geister et al., 2006). However, for the third job resource that we studied, autonomy, we did not find it to be a better predictor of intrinsic motivation than of extrinsic motivation. People may desire autonomy to be in control and be independent and given that autonomy increases with position in organizational hierarchy, it may be why autonomy is more related to extrinsic job opportunities than to intrinsic job opportunities.Limitations\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - Drawing from the job characteristics model and the job demands-resources model, this study aims to examine the associations of resources (i.e. feedback, autonomy, and variety) with intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and employability.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling on data from 611 employees of a Dutch municipality.\nFindings: - Consistent with the hypotheses, the authors' results indicated that resources are related to both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and that the association between resources and employability was mediated by extrinsic motivation but not by intrinsic motivation.\nResearch limitations/implications: - The authors use a one-dimensional measure of perceived employability and do not make a distinction between internal and external employability and other dimensions of employability. The authors feel that distinguishing between internal employability and external employability will contribute to understanding if internal and external opportunities relate differently to perceptions of employability with the same organization and with a different organization.\nOriginality/value: - Job resources are important for improvement of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, but the route from job resources to employability is via extrinsic job opportunities and not via intrinsic job opportunities. That is, the perception of performance outcome goals by employees is important for the association between job resources and employability. The paper shows that, without denying the value of intrinsic motivation, it is important for management to emphasize the instrumental value of resources embedded in the job itself that have implications for employability and career advancement.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Understanding paternalistic leadership: how to work with Chinese leaders
|
[
"China",
"Leadership",
"Chinese leadership",
"Paternalistic leadership"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: The past decade, Chinese companies began to venture beyond their borders and invest internationally. Some examples include Lenovo taking over the computer division of IBM and Huawei, soon to become the largest cell phone manufacturer, expanding relentlessly. As a result, many Westerners now effectively work for Chinese organizations but often face confusion owing to little understanding of the Chinese culture. Paternalistic leadership (PL) is the most common leadership style in China. It is deeply embedded in Chinese traditions and customs reflecting the culture and society (Wu and Xu, 2012).\nChinese culture: Chinese people have a very distinctive culture, and their traditional culture and values influence their leadership style profoundly. Chinese culture is deeply influenced by Daoism (or Taoism), Confucian philosophy, and Legalistic traditions. For example, the Confucian value of harmony is prominent in the society and this value permeates Chinese leadership expectations. People are expected to strive for harmony and avoid open conflict with others, which applies to co-workers as much as any other member of society. Saving face is also part of the social/organizational etiquette that must be upheld. Members of an organization should avoid assigning blame for mistakes made by others, as this behavior leads to public shaming (Sposato and Rumens, 2018).\nWestern expectations: In Western settings, there is an expectation that employees should not bring their personal life to work (though in some contexts, the preoccupation with work-life balance might be disrupting this distinction). Those who mix personal and professional lives may be perceived as unprofessional. However, paternalistic leaders are expected to take a personal interest in the personal lives of his (and increasingly her) subordinates. Consequently, the lines between the personal and professional are blurred, as paternalistic leaders aim to create a family-like environment. This impacts the employees, as they will be expected to attend social events during non-working hours with members of the organization.\nThe three main Chinese PL behaviors: Benevolence: Is deeply influenced by the five basic cardinal relationships from Confucian philosophy. Benevolence is used to describe an expectation that favors are to be repaid; these favors can be \"cashed in\" for other favors in times of need.\nHow to work with a Chinese paternalistic leader: Remember that regardless of whose fault it is, it is never acceptable to point the finger, especially if it is the leader's fault. Never correct the leader and do not highlight any of their mistakes, no matter how visible or how small they are.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this viewpoint is to introduce Westerners to Chinese leadership, leader behaviors, and expectations. The main features of Chinese paternalistic leadership (PL) are explored before outlining practical advice on what to expect when working with Chinese paternalistic leaders and their organizations.\nDesign/methodology/approach: This viewpoint is developed from both a review of the literature on paternalistic leadership and 45 in-depth interviews with Chinese leaders and their subordinates. This systematic data collection is coupled with lived experience, as the author lived, worked, and studied in China for three years.\nFindings: The paper makes salient the three main behaviors of Chinese PL, as identified in the literature: benevolence, authoritarianism, and morality. This paper reports on how those unfamiliar with Chinese PL can negotiate and potentially thrive under this type of leadership.\nOriginality/value: The main contribution of this paper is the advice offered for those unfamiliar with PL; this advice is based on the academic literature and primary research. The advice, such as saving face and the importance of loyalty, makes the academic literature more accessible and lends practical application by highlighting how the research on PL is relevant to subordinates and colleagues.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Researcher perspective in the IS discipline: an empirical study of articles in the basket of 8 journals
|
[
"Perception",
"Empirical study",
"Bibliometrics",
"Content analysis",
"IS professionals",
"IS journal"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: The phenomena studied by researchers within the information systems (IS) discipline are complex, and involve multiple actors. Sometimes those actors view the phenomena in much the same way. In most circumstances, however, their attitudes exhibit material differences. For example, managers may consider organisational policies and procedures to be the key vehicles for ensuring reliability and consistency in the performance of tasks; on the other hand, employees who engage in front-line work may regard them merely as guidelines that require reflexive interpretation as they cope with the wide variety of circumstances that naturally characterise the workplace.Since interpretivism became mainstream within the discipline, it has been conventional to recognise that phenomena can be viewed from multiple perspectives, and that a comprehensive understanding of a phenomenon requires recognition that the different points-of-view of key actors need to be taken into account. This is illustrated by an Indian parable over two millennia old, in which several blind men have widely-varying interpretations of an elephant, because the perception of each of the observers is based on their tactile experience with a different part of the animal. Similarly, the Chinese expression Guan Zhong Kui Bao means \"to see a leopard through a narrow tube\", and hence to have a limited view of something.We contend that the person or team conducting a research project adopts the perspective of one or more of the stakeholders in the activity that they are observing. We use the term \"researcher perspective\" to refer to this phenomenon. A research project may involve only a single perspective. This would be the case, for example, where the following research question is adopted:What measures are most effective at achieving staff compliance with security policies?A research project to address that question would be likely to adopt the perspective of the Chief Security Officer (CSO), on behalf of the organisation as a whole. Other projects adopt dual and even multiple perspectives, as for example where a research question such as the following is addressed:Are Internet Services Providers' perceptions of their quality of service consistent with those of their customers?In devising a research design to address this question, a researcher would inevitably adopt the perspectives of both ISPs and customers of ISPs. In the resulting report, the researcher may well prioritise the interests of the ISP, which would then be the primary beneficiary; but the depth of consideration of the customers' interests might be sufficient that customers could be reasonably regarded as co-beneficiaries of the research effort.Authors may or may not make clear to their readers what stakeholder perspective they have adopted. Indeed, researchers may or may not intentionally choose a perspective, and may or may not even be aware of the fact that their focus is on one stakeholder's interests rather than another's. The viewpoint may be subliminal, habitual, or embedded in the research genre that the researcher is working within, such that they do not reflect on the interests they are prioritising.One of the authors has previously conducted several exploratory studies of the researcher perspectives adopted in papers in a number of venues in which IS research is published. Both authors have been active in ethical issues, and one has served as chair of the AIS Research Ethics Committee. Perhaps reflecting that background, each of us found the results in these studies surprising, even disturbing. Based on prior knowledge of the literature, the authors had anticipated strong orientation towards managerial interests, but not to the extent of c. 90%. We reasoned that, if such dominance is actually mainstream, members of the IS disciplinary community should know about it, should have some understanding of the situation, and should debate whether it is appropriate.We considered how we might gain insight into the extent to which the results from the several exploratory studies were indicative of the patterns within the IS discipline as a whole. Other authors have undertaken examinations of literature with the intention of identifying new departures, or philosophical gaps, which could be gainfully exploited by IS researchers. For example, Orlikowski and Baroudi (1991) argued that the then-dominant positivist approach should be complemented by the interpretive and critical research philosophies. Avgerou (2000) sought a stronger theoretical base, and a more inclusive attitude to research methods, themes that have remained active in the two decades since. Hevner et al. (2004) consolidated what they referred to as the design-science paradigm. Galliers and Whitley (2007) profiled European IS research. Orlikowski and Scott (2008) proposed moving beyond the \"Discrete Entity\" and \"Mutually Dependent Ensemble\" research streams, by recognising the \"entanglement\" of humans and technologies, and shifting the focus to \"Sociomaterial Assemblages\". Narrower frames that have been adopted include privacy (Smith et al., 2011) and electronic interaction research (Clarke and Pucihar, 2013).Our objective is to assess the extent to which the richness of the notion of researcher perspective is reflected in IS research, and to generate insights, identify opportunities, and suggest ways in which those opportunities might be exploited. The scope of our proposal is therefore significant, but far less ambitious than broad-scale conceptual shifts such as the recognition of sociomateriality.A study that encompassed, or purported to encompass, the entire output of the discipline would require far greater resources than are available to us. We accordingly set our sights much lower, and sought instead an approach that was capable of delivering significant findings, even if they cannot be generalised to the discipline as a whole. We selected as our focus the AIS Basket of 8 journals.The general research question that we sought to answer was:What are the characteristics of researcher perspectives adopted in articles in Basket of 8 journals?We commence with an outline of theory relating to researcher perspective, and a summary of the results of the exploratory research projects. This is followed by a discussion of methodological considerations and presentation of the research design and protocol that we devised for this study. The findings are then presented and discussed. The results open up a considerable number of opportunities for further investigation. We believe that exploitation of these opportunities will make significant contributions to the quality and the value of IS research.\n2. Literature review: The word \"perspective\" is frequently used in articles in the IS literature to refer to the approach adopted (positivist, interpretivist, etc.), or the theoretical lens applied (such as the technology acceptance model, or actor-network theory), or the target-audience of the research (in particular, academics, students or practitioners). These senses of the term are not the focus of the research reported here. We accordingly use the more specific terms \"stakeholder perspective\" and \"researcher perspective\", and provide definitions for each of them.This section draws on early outlines of researcher perspective theory in Clarke (2015, 2016), and a fuller exposition in Clarke and Davison (2020). We provide a brief outline of the theory, define terms, and distinguish single-, dual- and multi-perspective research. Our purpose is to provide only sufficient depth of explanation to support the presentation of our empirical results. We then briefly review prior empirical research, and further articulate the research question. 2.1 Stakeholder perspective\n3. Research method: This section describes the sample selection process, the nature of the content analysis applied to the works, and the process undertaken in order to encode each article. 3.1 Sample selection\n4. Findings: Of the 659 articles in the sampling frame, 548 (83%) were relevant to the study, in that they addressed the interests of real-world stakeholders. On the basis of the research process described above, we now report the results of our analysis, answering the specific Research Questions identified earlier. 4.1 Researcher perspectives evident in the basket of 8 journals\n5. Discussion: This section first discusses the aspects of the study that limit the scope for generalisation of the results. It then identifies opportunities for research that this work has opened up. It concludes with some thoughts regarding the implications for the IS discipline. 5.1 Limitations of the research\n6. Conclusion: Our objective was to assess the extent to which the richness of the notion of researcher perspective is reflected in IS research, and to generate insights, identify opportunities, and suggest ways in which those opportunities might be exploited. This article has examined the researcher perspectives adopted by over 500 articles in 3 years of the IS discipline's leading journals. We selected as our focus the AIS Basket of 8 journals because of the influence they have, particularly on entrant and early-career researchers. Our study has revealed two dominant characteristics of such research: adoption of a single perspective (rather than a balance between that and dual- and multi-perspective research); and adoption of the system sponsor's perspective (rather than a balance between that and the perspectives of other stakeholders).The content analysis technique adopted in this research provides a basis for the examination of researcher perspective in other journals and in conferences, in particular sectors of industry and government, and in particular research domains.The choice of researcher perspective pervades research activities, strongly influencing conception, design, formulation of research questions and expression of results. We contend firstly that choices of researcher perspective should be conscious rather than accidental, and secondly that those choices should be much more diverse.This study has enabled the identification and delineation of gaps and opportunities. Many opportunities for research exist that have been under-utilised, and that are capable of delivering value to industry, government and people, of both an economic and a social nature. The first area is single-perspective research that adopts the perspective of a stakeholder other than the system sponsor, such as suppliers, customers and employees, and non-participant usees. A second is dual-perspective research, reflecting the interests of both sides of dyads, and delivering insights into the needs and behaviour of both rather than of just one of them. Another is multi-perspective research into supply chains and industry networks, directly addressing the factors that underlie \"win-win-win\" strategies. A fourth is multi-perspective research in support of public policy decision-making.Dual-perspective and multi-perspective research are more demanding than single-perspective research. To enable adequate rigour to be achieved, and hence the delivery of reliable rather than haphazard insights, there is a need for development, application and refinement of a richer range of research techniques, beyond those currently regarded as being in the mainstream. That represents an opportunity for innovative research into research methods.We have speculated on the broader and longer-term implications of our work for the IS discipline. Greater adoption by researchers of alternative perspectives, dual perspectives and multiple perspectives may expose a significant proportion of contemporary IS research as representing a low-grade, echo-chamber service that few stakeholders beyond academia value highly. A shift in approaches and techniques may come about, which might be accommodated within the ever-changing scope and style of the discipline, or may lead to a bifurcation, with the business school culture withdrawing even further inside its walls, and the broader IS discipline pursuing its own course.A final consideration is the freshly-minted AIS Code of Ethics (AIS, 2019). This expressly requires the consideration of the interests of stakeholders, not just clients; and a breach of the AIS Code is subject to AIS Bylaw No. 4, with remedial measures including \"member censure, suspension or expulsion\".The analysis presented in this article has therefore not only identified important opportunities for IS researchers, but is also directly relevant to IS researchers' obligations. It provides a basis for the work of the AIS Member Conduct Committee in investigating accusations of non-compliance by IS researchers with their professional code.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of \"researcher perspective\" in articles published in the AIS Basket of 8 journals.\nDesign/methodology/approach: Purposive sampling: descriptive analysis of 659 articles published in three complete years of each of the eight leading journals (2001, 2008, 2015).\nFindings: When observing phenomena, IS researchers mostly adopt the perspective of one of the stakeholders in the activities, commonly that of the sponsor of the information system that is in focus. 96% of relevant articles adopted a single-perspective approach, and 93% of those were oriented towards the system sponsor.\nResearch limitations/implications: The discipline has not been exploiting opportunities to deliver greater value firstly through the adoption of perspectives other than that of the system sponsor, and secondly through dual- and multi-perspective research. Further, the ignoring of the viewpoints of other stakeholders is inconsistent with the requirements of the recently-adopted AIS Code of Ethics.\nPractical implications: The dominance of single-perspective/system-sponsor-viewpoint research greatly constrains the benefits that IS research can deliver to IS practitioners and to the world at large.\nOriginality/value: The authors are not aware of any prior investigation into the nature of researcher perspective. We contend that an appreciation of the current bias is essential if IS research is to adapt, and thereby make far more useful contributions to practice.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
How can employees engage customers? Application of social penetration theory to the full-service restaurant industry by gender
|
[
"Gender",
"Restaurants",
"Trust",
"Customer engagement",
"Mutual disclosure",
"Social penetration theory"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: Scholars have focused on how to form a long-term relationship with current customers because the cost of securing new customers is five times as much as that of retaining a current customer (Han and Hyun, 2015; Kotler et al., 2005; Reichheld and Sasser, 1990; Soderlund, 1998). In the service industry, the role of service providers is the formation of a long-term relationship with customers (Bitner, 1990; Gremler and Gwinner, 2000; Han and Hwang, 2013; Hyun, 2010). Social penetration theory (Altman and Taylor, 1973) indicates that self-disclosure is important in promoting cordial relations. Thus, one of the key requirements for the formation of a long-term relationship between service providers and customers is knowing each other by disclosing information or opinions about them (Crosby et al., 1990).\nLiterature review: Mutual disclosure\nMethodology: Measurement items\nResults: Descriptive statistics\nDiscussion and implications: The purpose of this research was to examine the effect of mutual disclosure on its outcome variables in the full-service restaurant industry. More specifically, this study investigated how server disclosure influences customer disclosure. In addition, this study examined the importance of server disclosure and customer disclosure in the formation of trust, which in turn positively affects commitment and loyalty. Finally, this study proposed that gender is a moderator in the relationships between:\nStudy limitations and future research: Despite the theoretical and practical implications of this study, the following limitations should be considered: the data utilized in this study were collected from full-service restaurant patrons in Korea only. Thus, the cross-cultural generalizability of the conclusions is rather limited, suggesting that findings must be applied to other countries with due caution. Future research must check the proposed model in different countries. In addition, it is critical to consider the difference between first-time and repeat customers because these two groups may perceive server disclosure differently. Thus, future studies need to examine the role of server disclosure based on the difference between first-time and repeat customers for theory development in this area.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this study is to understand how to engage customers socially in the full-service restaurant industry. More specifically, based on the existing theoretical background, it was hypothesized that server disclosure induces customer disclosure. By a literature review, it was further hypothesized that server disclosure and customer disclosure influence trust, which in turn positively affects commitment and loyalty.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The proposed hypotheses were empirically tested using data collected from 287 full-service restaurant patrons. Structural equation modeling was conducted to empirically test the proposed theoretical hypotheses and evaluate the proposed conceptual model.\nFindings: Based on the data analysis results, server disclosure was found to be a key predictor of customer disclosure. In addition, server disclosure and customer disclosure aid in the creation of trust, and can thus help to enhance commitment and loyalty. The theory building process revealed that gender is a significant moderator.\nPractical implications: First, restaurant managers need to develop a systematic training program which would help restaurant servers attain adequate knowledge of their job. Furthermore, the restaurant servers must know the importance of frankness when providing services; a frank confession is the key to understanding the minds of people. Finally, restaurant managers are required to hire employees with an outgoing and likeable personality because they are more likely to induce customer disclosure. To achieve this, restaurant managers should conduct in-depth interviews or personality tests in the recruiting process, which help clarify an applicant's personal traits.\nOriginality/value: Social penetration theory was applied to identify the relationship between server disclosure and customer disclosure, as it is first attempted in the hospitality industry. In addition, this study separated mutual disclosure into two subdimensions (e.g. server disclosure and customer disclosure) and investigated the impact of these two subdimensions.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The negotiation scorecard: a planning tool in business and industrial marketing
|
[
"Buyer-seller relationships",
"Negotiating",
"Business-to-business marketing"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: A major focus in the negotiations literature for many years has been the distinction between distributive bargaining versus integrative negotiations (Hopmann, 1995; Kersten, 2001; Lewicki et al., 2014; Thompson, 2014; Walton and McKersie, 1965). This is an important way of conceptualizing negotiations and isolating the distinguishing features of these two divergent orientations. The negotiations continuum (shown in Figure 1) provides a graphic portrayal of these concepts with purely distributive bargaining found on one end and purely integrative on the other with various extents of mixed motive negotiations between these extremes (Hawes and Fleming, 2014, p. 280). The negotiations continuum portrays the wide array of approaches that could be taken during an exchange interaction.\nDistributive and integrative negotiations: The negotiation literature identifies two different orientations to negotiations between sellers and buyers (Bartos, 1995; Barry and Friedman, 1998; Fells, 1998; Hopmann, 1995; Kersten, 2001). The first type is distributive negotiations, also called \"win-lose\" bargaining, in which one or both parties view the allocation of scarce resources as a fixed-pie, zero-sum gain. The focus here is on getting as much of the available value as possible while still convincing the other side to agree to the deal. This orientation is sometimes appropriate, but it can be hard on relationships because of an often used aggressive interaction style and/or the substantial resources extracted from the negotiating counterpart (Dietmeyer, 2007).\nIndicators of when to use each strategy: Table I shows a number of commonly faced situational factors that influence the likelihood of a given negotiation being more distributive or more integrative which were drawn from the extant literature on negotiation. The first situational factor is number of issues to be resolved. If there is only one issue, there is no opportunity to engage in logrolling which is one of the fundamental methods for expanding pie and, therefore, achieving an integrative outcome. Logrolling is defined as parties trading-off among at least two issues in such a way that each party achieves its desired outcome on the issue that it values most while making concessions on an issue that matters less to them. This leads to each side being more satisfied with the overall solution (Pruitt, 1983). For instance, if a seller is focused on getting a long-term contract while the buyer is interested in customized delivery term, then there is an opportunity to logroll so that both parties achieve their most important objective while giving on a less important area. With only one issue, the outcome will certainly involve a distributive outcome (Rubin, 1994). This is especially true if price is the only issue involved because the gain or loss is easily identified and so likely to be greatly desired by both sides. If there are multiple issues, however, then negotiators can seek opportunities to logroll and expand the pie.\nThe negotiations scorecard: There is value in examining each of the aforementioned issues one at a time and thinking through its individual impact on the likelihood of a negotiation taking on a distributive or an integrative orientation. While the aforementioned list may not be exhaustive, it is a good reflection of many negotiation situations. A given negotiator may choose to add some other factors or eliminate the use of some of those previously shown.\nPracticing adaptive negotiations via the scorecard: After having filling in the negotiations scorecard, computing the negotiations continuum value and placing that number on the negotiations continuum, the planner can then decide the appropriate orientation for the upcoming negotiation interaction. Once the suitable approach is determined, components of that negotiations strategy can be developed insuring consistency with that selected orientation. The net effect of the scorecard is to provide negotiators with a tool to systematically enable them to adapt their natural interaction style to fit the situation at hand and achieve a better result. The basis for extraordinary success as a negotiator is the ability to practice adaptive negotiations by using an interaction style which maximizes the potential for success given the negotiation context (Hawes and Fleming 2014). Perhaps, an industrial buyer person prefers a distributive style and has typically used that manner of interaction with other opponents in the past because of the comfort level. For an upcoming interaction, however, it is determined that conditions suggest the appropriateness of an integrative orientation. Consequently, he or she needs to adapt, adjust and vary from the distributive style with which he or she is comfortable to an integrative, more collaborative style which would be more appropriate under the present conditions. Rather than dogmatically sticking to a negotiation style regardless of the circumstances, adaptive negotiations involves being able to update and change interaction patterns based on an ongoing evaluation of the evolving negotiation context. Making this adjustment, or being an adaptive negotiator, is not easy, especially for negotiators with extensive experience (Holtom et al., 2010) but is important for career growth and development.\nLimitations: It is hoped that the ideas suggested here help improve the process of preparing for a negotiation within the business and industrial marketplace. This paper represents a step forward, but much additional research needs to be conducted. We recommend that the negotiations scorecard must be implemented, and, as a result of that process, there are sure opportunities for improvement. In particular, the list of situational factors needs refinement, and, perhaps, others can suggest some customized lists within certain industries or in various types of purchasing or selling circumstances.\nImplications: This paper contains several contributions which are important for both managers and academicians. The paper provides cogent advice from a variety of sources and disciplines for business and industrial professionals who are engaged in negotiations. This single tool, the negotiation scorecard, expedites the ability to evaluate a negotiation context and make a proper strategic decision on how to achieve an optimal outcome. Bringing this technique into the industrial marketing literature as a collected work is a benefit to researchers as it may provide a springboard for future study. The negotiation scorecard is the first tool of its kind designed to help identify whether a distributive or an integrative orientation is more suitable under a particular set of conditions. It can facilitate the negotiator's planning process. With this insight, it is possible for the negotiator to then determine and plan for the types of techniques that should be used. This is similar to the process of determining a priori what aspects of the selling process could be tailored when practicing adaptive selling.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: Given the ever-increasing complexity of business-to-business exchange, success is contingent on being able to adapt to any given situation. However, there is little in the way of guidance for how to adapt when it comes to negotiations. This paper aims to help business and industrial marketing professionals \"get it right\" by introducing a new tool which can be used to determine the appropriateness of using a distributive or an integrative approach for a given negotiation interaction.\nDesign/methodology/approach: To develop this tool, the authors identify key situational factors in the negotiating context that serve as indicators of the appropriate orientation (integrative or distributive) that should be applied based on the extant negotiation literature. From this, they develop a framework to guide negotiators in their selection of an orientation for a particular interaction to achieve the best possible outcome.\nFindings: The tool developed from the literature review and termed the \"Negotiation Scorecard\" enables business-to-business marketers to better gauge the negotiation context and develop an interaction style consistent with that situation. This can lead to better deals and/or enhanced long-term relationships within business and industrial marketing channels.\nOriginality/value: This tool is the first of its kind to provide negotiators with a structured and quantifiable metric to guide their planning for future negotiation interactions and offers proscriptive guidance as to the types of strategies and tactics they should plan to use and that they should expect to encounter.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Assessing competitive advantage of emerging markets in knowledge intensive business services
|
[
"Emerging markets",
"Service industries",
"Knowledge economy",
"Competitive strategy"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: An executive summary for managers and executive readers can be found at the end of this article.Services industries account for nearly two-thirds of the world's total output (World Factbook, 2008). In the USA alone, for example, the service sector accounts for more than two-thirds of GDP and 80 percent of workforce employment (Survey of Current Business, 2005). Globalization has also opened opportunities for outsourcing a host of manufacturing and service operations from high-cost to low-cost regions. China, India and other major emerging economies have benefited greatly from the recent trend to global outsourcing because of their particular strengths in manufacturing, technical, and human capital resources.Growth of the service sector is not restricted to advanced economies. Developing economies have accounted for a growing share of the world trade in services, ranging from 33 percent of GDP for China and 48 percent for India to as high as 80 percent for Panama (World Factbook, 2008). The average growth of services during the 1990s was 9 percent in China and 8 percent in India (Tata Services, 2002). A number of forces have influenced the growth and strategic importance of services including rising cross-border activities of firms, the need for scientific and technical expertise, new sets of challenges and opportunities resulting from advances in information technologies, and the need to sustain innovation and competitive advantage (Javalgi and Martin, 2007; Javalgi and White, 2002). Simply put, services permeate every aspect of a modern economy and are instrumental in connecting nations to each other with information, knowledge, goods, and services.There is widespread agreement that, over the past two decades, the global economy has shifted from manufacturing to technology-intensive and knowledge-intensive business service industries. The growth of knowledge and information technologies has heightened interest in knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) as a strategically important business sector (Aslesen and Isaksen, 2007). Information technology services, management consulting, legal, accounting, financial, engineering, and market research are some typical examples of KIBS (Strambach, 2002). Knowledge intensive services within the private sector constitute a large and growing part of the service sector's output. It is estimated that this sector of services more than doubled from $4.5 trillion in 1986 to $11.5 trillion in 2005 in constant dollars (Global Insight, 2007). The USA, the European Union, and Asia are the leading providers of knowledge-intensive services, accounting for nearly 90 percent of global value-added activity in 2005. Whereas the USA dominates with an estimated 40 percent share of world service revenues, and the EU's share is approximately 25 percent, both regions have stagnated or declined in the past ten years. Asia, on the other hand, is the only region which has shown a steady increase in share of knowledge-intensive services (22 percent) with China and India accounting for a significant share of this activity (National Science Board, 2008).This paper examines the competitive advantages of selected emerging markets in the growing sector known as \"knowledge-intensive business services\" (KIBS) and discusses policy implications for sustaining advantage. More specifically, the objectives of this paper are four-fold:1. to discuss the nature and classification of KIBS;2. to marshal conceptual and statistical evidence on KIBS in major emerging markets;3. to compare and contrast selected major emerging markets in regard to their KIBS activities; and4. to discuss policy implications.\nKnowledge intensive business services: study background: Services, unlike goods, have unique characteristics such as intangibility, inseparability, heterogeneity, and perishability. In addition to these general characteristics, knowledge-intensive business services also possess the additional characteristics of high customization, risk and uncertainty, and credence properties that add to their complexity and difficulty in being evaluated by customers (Zeithaml, 1981). Hence, the production and delivery of knowledge intensive services requires the producer to be able to create a service that is of consistent quality and whose quality can be judged with tangible methods that meet the customized specifications of customers. If the service is relatively low-knowledge intensive (e.g. transcribing legal depositions), the accuracy of transcriptions and speed with which the work can be completed offer palpable measures of quality. For high knowledge-intensive services such as engineering design or software development, however, quality is more difficult to measure; the quality and credibility of the service provider becomes a surrogate measure of service quality. Nations that are firmly invested in the knowledge economies of today will enjoy significant competitive advantages as providers of knowledge-intensive services.Key players in KIBS are generally private firms that rely heavily on knowledge or expertise related to a specific discipline (e.g. IT) or functional domain such as technical or customer service (Bilderbeek et al., 1998). Miles et al. (1995) classified KIBS into two categories. The first category deals with traditional professional services such as management consulting, advertising, accountancy, and legal services and which are based on social and institutional knowledge. The second category of services relates to technical knowledge and transfer of this knowledge. Technology-based services include information technology-related services, architectural and engineering services, medical and pharmacological research services, design, and R&D.The National Science Board (2008) offers an alternate classification of knowledge-intensive service industries consisting of two broad categories: market-driven and public-sector oriented. Market-oriented services include communications, financial, computer software development, and business services such as management consulting. Public sector services include services such as education, health, entertainment and tourism.We have greatly expanded and modified the National Science Board classification by grouping KIBS based on the level of skill or knowledge intensity (see Table I).As Table I shows, some knowledge-intensive services require high levels of skills and expertise (e.g. technical consulting) compared to others (e.g. data entry or customer call centers). An assessment of the competitive positions of services listed in Table I within the context of emerging markets will be further discussed in this article.In brief, KIBS play a key role in the creation and distribution of knowledge in a regional, national and international context. More importantly, when KIBS are international in scope, they facilitate the \"transfer of tacit knowledge from one knowledge system to another by enabling co-location and co-presence between themselves and client firms in a number of locations\" (Roberts, 2000, p. 165). The following discussion focuses on the drivers impacting globalization of knowledge-based services.\nDrivers impacting globalization of knowledge-based services: Key drivers for a knowledge-driven economy of an emerging market such as India or China include the recognition of and access to global talent; advances in telecommunications and information technology; the rise of offshore outsourcing of manufacturing and services; and the worldwide movements toward economic liberalization and improved legal protections for intellectual property. Their impacts on KIBS among emerging markets is presented in Figure 1 and discussed briefly in the following sections.Access to global talent\nThe competitive advantage of emerging economies in KIBS: Porter's (1990) seminal work on the competitive advantage among nations suggested that national competitiveness may not depend on the economy as a whole but on specific industry sectors such as heavy manufacturing or information technology. Hence, nations that possess such strengths will gain prominence in the global marketplace. India, for example, has received considerable international attention because of its strengths in the information technology (IT) sector. Its success in IT has spilled over to other knowledge-based services such as accounting, R&D, medical and pharmaceutical, engineering, and technical consulting (Kapur and Ramamurti, 2001).Indeed, China, India, and the other nations cited here have made giant strides and are showing two-digit annual growth rates. At the same time, our analysis shows that these nations still have a long way to go to achieve parity with industrialized nations. Taken at face value, the numbers suggest that China is in the lead, with India in second place, followed by Brazil, Mexico, Russia, and Turkey. Russia had a good science-engineering base in the past, but has experienced some setbacks because of recent political events. While it is now in a \"recovery\" mode, Russia is unlikely to be a large base for KIBS outsourcing. The following discussion and set of five tables (Tables III-VI) reveal the progress that major emerging markets have achieved in KIBS and related areas.The National Science Board (2008) has classified knowledge-intensive service industries into two broad categories: market-oriented, and public-oriented. Market (or private-sector) services consist of business, communications, and financial services; the public sector consists of education and health services. Globally, the revenues of the three market-oriented knowledge-intensive services grew at an annual rate of 4.8 percent between 1986 and 2005 compared to 2.7 percent for other service industries. Market-oriented services have grown from 22 percent of all services in 1986 to 30 percent in 2005 (Global Insight, 2007).Knowledge-intensive services have grown rapidly in major emerging economies. National Science Board (2008) estimates of value-added revenues for all types of KIBS (in constant 2000 US dollars) among seven major emerging markets are shown in Table III.Table III data for 2005 show that China led the way in knowledge-intensive services ($450 billion), followed by Brazil, Mexico, and India. China displayed double-digit growth from 1995 to 2005, a rate unmatched by other nations except for India. Independent estimates also suggest that market-oriented KIBS worldwide constitute about 30 percent of all services but have grown at a 4.8 percent rate v. 3.3 percent for all services (Global Insight, 2007). Growth rates, on the average, are also slightly higher in the three market-oriented sectors than in the two public-oriented ones. In sum, the evidence shows that all seven major emerging nations embarked on the route of emphasizing not just agriculture and manufacturing, but services and especially science-technology or knowledge-based services, with China leading the way.While value-added revenues from knowledge-intensive services constitute one way of demonstrating the level to which a nation has evolved as a knowledge economy, other key indicators are worth noting which reveal the competitive advantages and resources that can shape success in KIBS. Four indicators, discussed below, are science and engineering scholarship, research patents, knowledge economy index, and economic strengths.Science and engineering scholarship\nPolicy implications: The world's emerging nations have become important partners in the production and delivery of manufactured goods and a wide range of services. Advanced economies, with their voracious appetites for low cost goods and services, have become dependent on the resources of emerging economies to fulfill this demand. Knowledge intensive business services are the latest developments in today's global economy as firms in advanced nations partner with those in emerging economies to deliver a burgeoning variety of services. But the global environment for KIBS is dynamic and constantly evolving; nations that participate in this sector must recognize the strategic issues that can give them a sustainable competitive advantage. Key issues and their policy implications are discussed in the following sections.Investing in infrastructure\nConclusions and suggestions for future research: This study attempted to synthesize the evidence from a variety of sources to advance understanding of how emerging markets are positioned in the global marketplace for the production and delivery of knowledge intensive services. Although the existing literature reveals interesting insights into the nature of knowledge economies and KIBS, there is a need for empirical research that will help to advance theory building, theory testing, and identifying practical and field-tested strategies for firms in this environment.The production and delivery of knowledge-intensive services through international collaborations with off-shore partners offers a rich array of topics for future investigations. Some recommendations for future research include the following:* Apply existing international business theories such as the resource-based view, transaction cost analysis, and Dunning's (1995) eclectic paradigm to better understand the internationalization process of KIBS in emerging markets.* Develop an integrative model that elucidates the relationships among Porter's (1998) \"diamond\" framework to assess the competitive advantages of emerging markets in KIBS.* Identify key marketing issues and challenges for KIBS (e.g. service quality management; strategic alliances in global KIBS production and delivery; country of origin issues).* Identify best practices in outsourcing of KIBS. How do they vary by region? What are the success factors in outsourcing KIBS and how do they vary with knowledge intensity?* Conduct empirical investigations, both qualitative and quantitative, that can contribute to better theory building in this field.In conclusion, knowledge-based services have emerged as important engines for economic growth in emerging markets that are evolving into knowledge economies. Emerging markets in KIBS sectors are gaining prominence and achieving equal status with partners that are based in advanced economies. But because knowledge-intensive services are constantly evolving, the competitive advantages of firms and nations are ephemeral. Fueled by the global competition in the KIBS sectors, policy makers in emerging markets are seeking to build competitive advantage for their nations or regions with aggressive macro and micro-level policies. The global mindset and vision of policy makers will continue to shape the competitive map for knowledge-intensive services in the coming years.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The dramatic growth and international scope of knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) are evident in emerging markets such as China and India. Nations, like firms, seek to capitalize on their available resources and capabilities (e.g. people, technology, skills) in order to build and maintain core competencies in certain industry sectors. This paper has the following objectives: to discuss the classification of KIBS, to marshal conceptual and statistical evidence on KIBS in major emerging markets, to compare and contrast selected major emerging markets in regard to their KIBS activities, and to discuss policy implications.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - In this conceptual paper, extant literature is reviewed and discussed pertaining to the KIBS sectors. Several existing data sources are used to assess the comparative performance of major emerging markets in the KIBS sectors.\nFindings: - The emphasis is on finding comparative longitudinal statistics that are useful for comparison and contrast among major emerging markets. The analysis indicates that while the major emerging markets are building competitive advantage by focusing on knowledge-intensive business services, their progress differs sharply. For example, China shows the lead, followed by India, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, Turkey, and Indonesia. Smaller nations lag behind these in most indicators. It is evident that leading major emerging nations have not reached parity with highly industrialized countries.\nResearch limitations/implications: - The results show ranking and contribution of various major nations in the global knowledge economy, but additional time series and analysis are needed to assess comparative rankings. However, the classification and the indicators illustrated here offer a panoramic, comparative picture over the past decade. Using international business theories, research can develop statistical models to explain foreign market entry strategies of knowledge-intensive service firms.\nPractical implications: - The paper is of value to managers considering entry and/or expansion into major emerging markets in various sub-sectors of knowledge-intensive sectors. The specific industry and function pursued by a firm need to be identified and matched up with host nation characteristics (e.g. more software design and pharmaceutical research in India v. more manufacturing design and R&D facility in China). The paper also provides guidelines to policy makers to sustain their country's competitive advantage in the KIBS sectors.\nOriginality/value: - The paper looks at knowledge-intensive business services in major emerging markets. It offers both conceptual contributions and statistical evidence that key nations differ in their activities in regard to such high-level and complex service offerings.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
The relationship between servitization and product customization strategies
|
[
"Manufacturing strategy",
"Servitization",
"Customization"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Manufacturing firms may compete based on different business strategies, which, in turn, need to be supported by different strategies in the manufacturing function (Hill, 2000). Servitization, defined as manufacturing firms adding services to their core product offering, is an element of the business strategy of manufacturing firms. It is often implemented with the purpose of achieving market differentiation (Wise and Baumgartner, 1999). Servitization places additional demands on the manufacturing function, which is called upon to support the provision of services such as spare parts, product upgrades or technical support in addition to the core product business (Ulaga and Reinartz, 2011). Thus, it is important to understand the relationship between servitization and manufacturing strategy choices associated with the core product business. Because the study of servitization is relatively new, the relationship between servitization and different elements of manufacturing strategy is still insufficiently understood, and empirical evidence is limited.\n2. Theoretical background: 2.1 Product customization strategy and alignment\n3. Research model and hypotheses: We examine how product customization strategies impact the offering of BAS and ADS from both the demand side (how customers perceive the value proposition) and the supply side (the manufacturer's ability to provide the services) (Kastalli and van Looy, 2013). We submit that a manufacturer adopting a manufacturing strategy based on product customization is in a privileged position to offer both BAS and ADS; however, we posit different mechanisms by which customization strategies lead to BAS and ADS. These mechanisms are associated with the corresponding nature of value co-creation that takes place with the customer. Since BAS are product-oriented, we posit that product customization strategy intensity influences the provision of BAS primarily through the specific technical expertise of the manufacturer inherent in the customization process. Other service providers cannot provide the same expertise. Because ADS are customer-centered, we posit that product customization strategy intensity influences the provision of ADS primarily via the interactions that take place with the customer between the order penetration point and product delivery. Specifically, these interactions lead to the development of closer customer relationships and increased understanding of unique customer needs, both key for ADS.\n4. Data: Hypotheses were tested with data from the IMSS-VI. IMSS is a periodic data gathering of the strategies, practices and performance of manufacturers of metal products, equipment and instruments, among other related products (ISIC 25-30). The following information has appeared in studies using data from the current and previous IMSS (2017) editions, e.g. Golini and Kalchschmidt (2015) and Longoni and Cagliano (2015), and in the survey documentation.\n5. Measures: 5.1 Service provision\n6. Results: We used partial least squares path modeling to analyze the data. Procedures and results interpretation followed recommendations in Sanchez (2013) and Hair et al. (2014). The model was developed in RStudio 1.1.423 (RStudio Team, 2015) and implemented in R v.3.4.3 (R Core Team, 2017) using plspm (Sanchez et al., 2017) and auxiliary packages in a Linux-GNU system. Following recommendations in Sanchez (2013) and Hair et al. (2014), we specified a two-stage model with standardized data, path weighting, 1e-05 tolerance, 300 maximum interactions and 10,000 bootstrap samples.\n7. Discussion and conclusions: We found that customization intensity was positively and strongly associated with servitization. Product customization strategy favored the offering of BAS, posited to occur via the technical interdependency between customized products and product-oriented services. Product customization strategy also facilitated the offering of ADS, posited to occur via closer customer relationships forged in the pre-delivery customization stages. This effect takes place even after accounting for the indirect effect of product customization on ADS via BAS offerings. That is, the interactions with customers during the product design/configuration stages seem to leverage the ability to offer ADS beyond the interactions that take place with customers during BAS provision. We argue that this is because the interactions in the pre-delivery stages are oriented to the customer's processes of value creation, complementing those that occur during BAS which are more strongly focused on basic product operation. While both are important, the former do add value beyond the latter.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between product customization and servitization strategies, specifically the relationship between product customization strategy intensity and degree of servitization (offering of basic and/or advanced services) and the moderating role of product customization strategy alignment on that relationship.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The authors develop and test hypotheses through partial least squares path modeling to analyze data from the Sixth International Manufacturing Strategy Survey, involving 931 manufacturers in 22 countries.\nFindings: The results indicate that customization strategy intensity is positively associated with the offering of basic and advanced services; these relationships are not moderated by customization strategy alignment.\nPractical implications: Manufacturers pursuing product customization strategies may be especially well positioned to servitize, even those with misalignment in strategic choices. Paradoxically, while manufacturers of standard products might look at servitization as an attractive strategy to differentiate their value proposition, they appear to be less servitized than manufacturers pursuing product customization.\nOriginality/value: This is one of the first studies to examine how manufacturing strategy choices (intensity and alignment) influence the adoption of servitization strategies. The study introduces manufacturing strategy as a contingency factor that influences the adoption of servitization, answering calls for the study of servitization contingencies.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Exploring consumers' health perception across cultures in the early stages of new product development: Dried mango as a case study
|
[
"Focus groups",
"Health",
"Consumer-oriented new product development",
"Dried fruit",
"Food perception",
"Product and process design"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n1. Introduction: Success of new product development (NPD) is determined by degree of fit of the newly developed product to the needs and wishes of consumers (Grunert et al., 1997). Consumers are not attracted to products per se, but rather to perceived benefits that the products deliver when consumed (Grunert and Van Trijp, 2014). So the attractiveness of a product depends on how consumers perceive characteristics of a food product, its quality and its benefits. Understanding this perception in early stages of consumer-oriented NPD is necessary to create products with the desired quality (Grunert, 2005b).\n2. Method: Focus group was selected to collect data on quality perception of a dried mango. Focus groups can be used to explore and identify consumers' perception of product characteristics and accompanying consumer benefits, as well as other potentially relevant issues (Van Kleef et al., 2005).\n3. Results: 3.1 Nutrition\n4. Transformation of the results and its application for new product and process design: This section demonstrates how the in-depth consumer insights of product and process characteristics could be applied to achieve technical product and process specifications. This demonstration is built upon a multidisciplinary approach between consumer science and food technology.\n5. Discussion: Participants expressed their health perception of a dried mango in relation to four themes, namely, nutrition, naturalness, taste and well-being, all on each level of abstractness and interrelated. These different levels of expressing quality perceptions gave valuable insights into the concrete product and process characteristics, as elaborated for two \"natural dried mango\" product concepts. The results confirm previous findings that health-related quality perception of food included themes such as nutrition, naturalness and well-being (Asioli et al., 2017; Sijtsema et al., 2007). Moreover, health perception is interrelated with taste, e.g. naturalness was frequently linked to sweet taste and mango flavour. This supports the fact that quality dimensions are interrelated and exchangeably used by consumers to build their perceptions (Grunert et al., 1996). The acquired data from the focus groups gave more insights into how participants perceived healthiness of a dried mango from its concrete characteristics, quality cues and benefits and how they are interrelated.\n6. Conclusions: This exploratory qualitative study illustrates an approach to identify differences in health perception among consumers having different familiarity levels with a dried mango and how to apply this knowledge in early stages of NPD. The healthiness of a dried mango was perceived in four themes (nutrition, naturalness, taste and well-being) and on different levels of abstractness. At the same time, this perception is linked to and depending on the product category it is compared with (e.g. candy or fresh fruit) and to the eating context (e.g. position of the product in the diet). Chinese and Indonesian participants - who are relatively more familiar with a dried mango - mentioned more concrete characteristics than the Dutch participants.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore consumers' health perception and demonstrate its relevance in product and process design in early stages of new product development.\nDesign/methodology/approach: A dried mango was used as a case study involving three countries: Indonesia, China and the Netherlands. Data were collected from nine focus groups (n=53 participants) and were content-analysed to acquire in-depth insights.\nFindings: Four themes of health perception emerged, namely, nutrition, naturalness, taste and well-being, which were all expressed on different levels of abstractness. Participants' health perception of dried mango varied, it is related to the product category it is compared with, e.g. candy or fresh fruit, and the eating context, e.g. position in the diet either as a snack or a meal. In extension participants mentioned product and process characteristics. Application of the insights into product and process design was performed through iterative interactions between consumer scientists and food technologists. The development of two product concepts was elaborated to transform the insights into technical product and process specifications for a natural dried mango product.\nOriginality/value: This transformation suggests that iterative interactions are necessary to achieve relevant product and process characteristics in the simultaneous design of the technical product and process specifications based on consumer perceptions.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Customer loyalty towards traditional products - Polish market experience
|
[
"Loyalty",
"Poland",
"Traditional food products"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: In the competitive market of foodstuffs, consumer preferences play a vital role, since their satisfaction and loyalty determine producers' successes. An analysis of relationship marketing literature indicates that consumer loyalty is manifested by the degree of satisfaction with the product, trust in the brand, price sensitivity during purchase, and willingness to repeat purchase. Increased consumer expectations towards food, which on one hand results from contact with competitors and other cultures, and on the other hand from aspirations for preserving a national/regional identity and cultural values, both enhance interest in traditional food products. The positive attitude of Polish consumers towards traditional food, resulting from the quality of raw materials, production processes and places of origin, open up possibilities for the development of traditional foodstuffs in Poland. This development however is determined, among others, by the loyal behaviour of Polish consumers. Since the concept of customer loyalty towards traditional food products has not previously been comprehensively tested, this paper aims at describing the key determinants of Polish consumer loyalty, identified through the analysis of relationship marketing literature, with reference to traditional foodstuffs. To achieve this goal a detailed analysis of research results run so far by Polish and international research centres, groups and institutes has been conducted. This research with regard to different aspects of Poles' behaviour in the traditional food market, has been the base for conclusions on loyalty behaviours.\nChanges in the food market in Europe and Poland itself: The European Research on Traditional Foods (2007) stated that the European (EU-25) food and drink industry had an annual turnover of 836 billion in 2005 and is the largest manufacturing sector in the EU ahead of the automobile and chemical industries. It employed 3.8 million people. The sector is a net exporter with a trade surplus in 2005 for the EU-25 of 4.5 billion representing 20 percent of the global export market. SMEs made up 99 percent of the approximately 282,600 Food and Drink companies operating in the EU-25. These small companies produced 90 percent of the EU's food and drink product lines. In fact, European food companies are mostly micro (78.9 percent) employing nine people or less, or small (16.6 percent) with between 10 and 39 employees.\nThe development of traditional food: Traditional foods are a significant element of the cultural heritage every European Member State, and production and sale are critical economic inputs to many regions. There is a wide-ranging agreement on the rise in significance of the local food sector over the past decade. Mintel's research estimates the local food market to be worth more than PS5 billion in 2010, having grown by 27 percent over the past five years. It is also forecast that this will approach nearly PS6 billion by 2015 (Megicks et al., 2012). Guerrero et al. (2009) underline that Europe cannot be regarded as a homogeneous food culture, because noticeable differences exist not only at a national level but also at a more regional/local level in terms of food preferences, habits, food-related behaviour, and attitudes.\nThe essence of traditional food products: Vanhonacker et al. (2010) stress that traditional food products retain their market share and are even experiencing increased interest and demand from both researchers and consumers. Although many studies have discussed the underlying dimensions of the concept of traditional food, still the consumers and researchers have quite a broad and diverse conceptualisation as to what constitutes traditional food, varying between countries, cultures and even individuals. It is this reason that it is often intentionally or unintentionally misused. Defining traditional foods is not as easy as it might be presumed. There are very few definitions available, and most have developed relatively recently. In most, this is food that has been consumed regionally or locally for an extensive period of time (Trichopoulou et al., 2007). Apart from being one of the vehicles of culture, traditional food is also perceived as possessing healthy qualities, as tradition rarely honours any food that is not palatable or healthy. Guerrero et al. (2009) defines them as a \"product frequently consumed or associated with specific celebrations and/or seasons, normally transmitted from one generation to another, made accurately to a specific recipe according to gastronomic heritage, with little or no processing/manipulation, being distinguished and known from its sensory properties and associated with a certain local area, region or country\". In Europe the first formal definition came from the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, who defined traditional food products as agrifood products whose methods of processing, storage and ripening are consolidated with time according to uniform and constant local use (Pieniak et al., 2009). Quite an extensive definition of traditional food was also provided by The European Food Information Resource Network (EuroFIR), an organisation that aims to provide comparable or harmonised data on the nutritional composition of traditional foods across selected European countries. The EuroFIR scientific working group recognised the lack of a precise definition for traditional food at both the EU and national levels. In this situation in order to create databases for this category of products, the EuroFIR Scientific Management Board agreed in 2006 on the following definition: \"Traditional food is a food of a specific feature or features, which distinguishes it clearly from other similar products of the same category in terms of the use of traditional ingredients or traditional composition or traditional type of production and/or processing method\" (Costa et al., 2010). Traditional ingredients mean that they have been used in identifiable geographical areas and remain in use today, while traditional composition means a uniquely identifiable composition that was first established prior to the Second World War and had been passed down through the generations by oral or other means. Finally, the traditional type of production means that it had been transmitted from generation to generation through oral traditions or other means and applied prior to Second World War and remains in use despite its adjustment to different regulations (Trichopoulou et al., 2007). They also indicated that traditional means conforming to established practice or specifications prior to the Second World War, which implies prior to the era of mass food production and delineates the period when populations still applied simple and time-honoured approaches, before the introduction of technological innovation.\nDeterminants of consumer loyalty towards traditional products: The necessity to build loyal consumer behaviour\nThe profile of Polish consumer of traditional food: Polish consumers of traditional products are traditionalists who are unwilling to accept innovation. For them the concept of \"traditional product\" and \"innovative product\" are mutually exclusive (Gutkowska et al., 2009). Such an attitude is especially common among country dwellers, who emphasised that recipe and composition are attributed to traditional products. Another attribute of a traditional product indicated by the respondents was \"the Polish character of the product\", i.e. polish name, labelling, and the fact that it had been produced in a Polish production plant. The average consumer of traditional products is aged 30-39, has a good degree of education (mainly salaried employees) and a good financial situation. According to research conducted by Vanhonacker et al. (2010), in six countries including Poland, consumers of traditional food care about health, plan and prepare their meals, and are looking after their families. They are creative cooks and want to impress others with their cooking skills. Polish consumers are ethnocentric in their choice of traditional foodstuffs. They buy them in grocers, supermarkets, market places, and organic shops. They prefer foodstuffs, which they already know, and are generally long-term consumers of traditional food.\nConclusions: Changes which have been present in Poland's food market over the last years and have been caused by the market globalisation, growing competition and increased consumer knowledge about food, have created two main trends. One is connected with the continuous evolvement of consumer preferences towards the interest in traditional food products, the other refers to the necessity of creating loyal customers in contemporary markets. In this paper changes in the traditional food market in Poland have been discussed, the essence of traditional food products, components of consumer loyalty towards traditional foods as well as the profile of the traditional foods consumer.\nImplications for management and society: The research results presented in this paper have significant implications for management, namely producers and retailers of local food, in particular with regard to their future marketing effort. As the modern consumer has become multicultural, there are two tendencies in behaviour. On one hand, the modern consumer is willing to copy and follow activities undertaken by global corporations. On the other hand, the consumer is a local patriot who wants to preserve and support the cultural identity. The modern consumer considers the origin of products. Therefore, demand for traditional food is likely to grow. Hence, producers and entrepreneurs should monitor the behaviour of consumers of traditional food to adapt strategies to the changing trends in order to enhance loyalty. Consumers expect the products to be made of appropriate ingredients according to traditional recipes and production methods in order to keep their original taste and natural character. However, they also expect some innovations, such as a prolonged expiry date, more convenient packaging and storing. Producers of traditional foodstuffs should also widen the range of traditional products by, for example, modifying existing products and introducing new ones.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse key determinants of Polish consumers' loyalty, identified through the analysis of relationship marketing literature, with reference to traditional foodstuffs.\nDesign/methodology/approach: The paper's approach is a systematic review of the Web of Science, Ebsco and Pro-Quest electronic databases, from 1990 to 2014 as well as research results run by Polish and international research centres, groups and institutes. The paper focuses on two main aspects. One is connected with the development of traditional foodstuffs being a consequence of growing prosperity of the Polish society, and the emergence of consumers who rate quality, national/regional identity and own cultural values higher than the price. The other one is connected with key determinants of consumer loyalty towards traditional products. The paper uses secondary data, and presents research results run between Polish consumers of traditional food products. Attitudes and behaviour of Polish consumers of traditional products in relation to key determinants of loyalty, such as attitude towards the product, the level of satisfaction, trust, price sensitivity and frequency of purchase and willingness to do repeat purchase are identified in the paper.\nFindings: According to the analysed research, almost 90 percent of the respondents positively perceive traditional products. The results of the research confirm positive and emotional attitudes of consumers towards traditional products. This emotional attachment, which is very important in creating loyalty among consumers, makes them buy traditional food. Polish consumers are satisfied with the taste of traditional products, which are also perceived as fresh and natural. Consumers rate the quality of traditional products highly and underline their positive influence on their and their families' health. According to the research, Polish consumers pay little attention to geographical and quality indications, which are designed to build a trustworthy image of the products. Traditional products are perceived as expensive, which makes it difficult to build loyalty and affects the frequency of purchase. Almost 40 percent of the respondents buy traditional products once a month.\nPractical implications: The research results presented in the paper have significant implications for management, that is producers and retailers of local food, in particular with regard to their future marketing effort. Producers and entrepreneurs should monitor behaviour of consumers of traditional food to adapt their offer to changing trends in order to create their loyalty. Consumers expect the products to be made of appropriate ingredients and production methods in order to keep their original taste and character. They also expect some product innovations and proper communication to become loyal.\nSocial implications: The paper has significant implications for society. The process of building customer loyalty towards traditional products is important in the context of their quality of life and public attitude. Traditional foods are a part of culture and the identity of the population where they are produced. Therefore they carry a strong symbolic value for the customers. They are also perceived as healthy and nutritious products, containing a lot of vitamins and minerals. Creating loyal attitude towards them may improve the quality of customers' life.\nOriginality/value: The paper provides interesting insights about loyalty for traditional products. Based on the determinants of loyalty identified by the author in relationship marketing literature the analysis of these variables was conducted in relation to traditional products. Due to the best author knowledge this is one of the first attempts, if not the first, where loyalty determinants were described in relation to traditional products. The literature lacks comprehensive research on particular aspects of loyal behaviour in the market of traditional products.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Slumdog Millionaire: The rhetoric of chance or sentimental management of inequalities in pulp fiction
|
[
"Multimedia",
"Rhetoric",
"Film",
"Communication"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\n__NO_TITLE__: Rhetorically, critical narratives recycle the Marxian class struggle, or Gramscian ruling class hegemony, or postcolonial studies (Bhabha). These are robust traditions for socially sustainable critique of market and democracy's failures. Critical analysis of subversive visual rhetoric of \"balkanized\" film artists trying to talk back to mainstream audiences are less frequent. Where academy keeps silent, pulp fiction speaks up. Slumdog Millionaire is the most successful example of pulp fiction turned into a pastiche of The Prince and the Pauper, stripping global inequalities bare. They show how sweatshops can become boudoirs in a clash of generations. Will Slumdog Millionaire replace The Wealth of Nations and Communist Manifestos in the emergent rhetoric of multimedia pulp fiction?\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The purpose of this paper is to reinterpret rhetorical inventions in global multimedia and to re-conceptualize the theoretical analysis of processes of sentimental representation of global inequalities, unfair terms of exchange and attempts to balance them (\"Bollywood\" of Mumbai vs Hollywood of LA).\nDesign/methodology/approach: - Philosophical and qualitative analysis of the rhetoric of communication forged by global power games and applied to symbolic strategies of resistance, with a case study of a particular highly successful movie in global multimedia network, namely Slumdog Millionaire, which had been coproduced jointly by professionals from the former \"colonial power\" (the UK) and from the former \"conquered colony\" (India) in order to challenge the latest superpower (Hollywood and the USA).\nFindings: - Yesterday's underdogs are talking back and winning the symbolic game of multimediated communications by inserting a new professionally shaped response to the international inequalities laid bare and exposed to a growing critique. However, the ironies of the international division of labor and local cultural contexts can turn \"sweatshops\" into \"boudoirs\" subverting the rhetoric of Western domination. More Bollywood-like strategies are needed to redress the imbalance.\nOriginality/value: - Apart from the very specialist studies in the aesthetics of the film as an art form, this is the first attempt to demonstrate the common theme of resistance to the dominant rhetoric of multimedia industries on the level of coding symbolic meanings and disseminating them through aesthetically successful cultural commodities by groups and regions \"cast\" in subordinate roles by cultural industries.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Understanding the role of developer/builders in the concurrent commercialization of product innovation
|
[
"Product innovation",
"Building services",
"Construction industry",
"Supply chain management"
] |
[
{
"content": "Summarize the following paper into structured abstract.\n\nIntroduction: The complexity of the homebuilding industry presents challenges that resist the adoption of innovative products. Although developers/builders form only one group of stakeholders in the development and diffusion of new products, they are key players in this industry's notable resistance to innovation. Typical product supply chains contain many players including material suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, developers/ builders, installers, regulatory bodies and end users. Among these players, recent literature suggests that developers/builders do not fully comprehend the benefits of new-product adoption and promote resistance to diffusion (BTI, 2005). Recent research and the findings presented in the current paper support the claim that the developer/builder's resistance to innovation forms a barrier to innovation that is unique to the homebuilding products industry.Much of the business literature on new product development focuses on manufacturer R&D and best practice. Recommendations for managing the project of developing a new product incorporate coordination of concepts such as Concurrent Engineering (CE). CE advocates the establishment of a complete supply chain, possible only if every member of the chain foresees net benefits to joining. This paper attempts to improve the role, risks and benefits of developers/builders as users of innovative technologies in residential construction.The work presented herein is motivated by recurrent failures of small sized, resource-limited developers of new homebuilding products in bringing these products to market quickly and effectively. The diffusion of new homebuilding techniques and the growth of new industries in the provision of construction materials are stifled by these failures. A recent National Science Foundation (NSF) workshop addressed barriers to technology transfer in the US housing industry. The 2004 NSF workshop found residential technology diffusion as one barrier to current technology transfer (Koebel, 2004).Our research responds to this finding through the development of a unique framework for commercializing innovative products in the residential construction industry. Previous work developed and validated this framework for innovators in the residential construction industry through literature review and interviews that resulted in qualitative data from 15 case studies. The analysis and interpretation of these data offered conclusions about manufacturer practices in commercializing innovative construction products. Each interview described key decisions, risks and benefits during the successful commercialization of innovative products in the residential construction industry.This work further validates this framework based on survey results from a workshop of construction industry experts who also reviewed and critiqued the commercialization framework. While previous work centered on establishing the framework and tailoring it to the residential construction industry by testing it among manufacturers, this workshop acquired the perspectives of users of construction products, specifically builders. The workshop allowed us to discover roles and motivations of developers/builders, as business owners, in terms of risks and benefits in the adoption of innovative products.Figure 1 shows a typical supply chain for construction products. Our representation of the supply chain is somewhat unconventional due to the inclusion of parties, such as developers/builders and inspectors, who may not physically possess a product, but who play critical roles in deciding whether or not the product proceeds to the next owner in the chain.Risk along the supply chain plays a major role in determining the success of a product's development. Individual stakeholders of the supply chain can also influence strongly the success of commercialization through either veto or endorsement. Of the construction industry stakeholders, developer/builders are the most influential in determining commercialization success. Identifying their risks inherent in product commercialization is an important step in mitigating this risk. In this work, we establish the role and risks of developer/builders in the commercialization process through the following: determining roles and risks of developer/builders according to current literature; establishing manufacturers' impressions of builder/developers' roles and risks in commercialization through case study interviews; and soliciting opinions of stakeholders along the supply chain for these same roles and risks through workshop surveys. We then use a previously published case study to demonstrate that successful commercialization requires risk sharing among all supply chain members, specifically developer/builders. We finally advocate a new form of CE, termed Concurrent Commercialization (CC), as a risk-sharing solution early in the commercialization project.H1. The developer/builder is the most reluctant participant in the supply chain of an innovative product, due to perceived risks of adoption. Due to the magnitude of their role, developer/builder reluctance highly influences product success in residential construction.H2. Involvement of developers/builders early in the commercialization process mitigates the risks of adoption.\nLiterature review: Innovation literature\nResearch methodology: Plan of the research\nResults: Sources of developer/builder uncertainty\nAnalysis: A concurrent engineering approach to commercializing building products\nConclusions and future research: Developer/builders are the supply chain members most influential in determining commercialization success. We found out that addressing the developer/builder risk along the entire supply chain is one key determinant to a successful commercialization project. We also found that commercialization involves more than just technical product design; commercialization cuts across all functional areas. Addressing risk for developer/builder adoption requires solutions in all of these functional areas. Through these findings, we propose the extension of concurrent engineering to concurrent commercialization as a strategy for meeting the challenge of developer/builder adoption.Successful concurrent commercialization requires risk sharing among all members of a product's supply chain. We advocate concurrent management in commercialization, which requires information sharing and knowledge transfer among supply-chain members early in a commercialization project. BIM could be a technology that enables this transfer of knowledge within the members of the supply chain. Future research should develop the specification of concurrent commercialization in more detail in order to influence the development of BIM standards.\n",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Purpose: - The aim of this paper is to present part of continuing research on the challenges of entrepreneurial business ventures to commercialize innovative construction products in the residential construction industry.\nDesign/methodology/approach: - The authors use workshop and survey data on the role of the developer/builder to further develop the domain-specific commercialization model for residential construction products. The authors propose a cross-functional system to better facilitate innovation.\nFindings: - Successful concurrent commercialization requires risk sharing among all members of a product's supply chain. The authors advocate concurrent management in commercialization, which requires information sharing and knowledge transfer among supply-chain members early in a commercialization project and a special form of concurrent engineering for construction products, which is called concurrent commercialization (CC).\nPractical implications: - The research indicates that addressing the developer/builder risk along the entire supply chain is one key determinant to a successful commercialization project. It also indicates that commercialization involves more than just technical product design; commercialization cuts across all functional areas.\nOriginality/value: - The research data, along with the review of the literature on product innovation and commercialization, lead one to advocate concurrent engineering for construction products termed concurrent commercialization (CC). Since the research clearly indicates that the developer/builder is the most reluctant customer in the supply chain, CC applied to construction products emphasizes the influence of mitigating developer/builder risks in the design of a commercialization project.\n",
"role": "assistant"
}
] |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.