bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An integrated framework to support the process of green management adoption
Authors: Garzella Stefano , Fiorentino Raffaele
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to develop an integrated framework that aims to support the commitment of managers to green management and environmental strategies.

Design/methodology/approach

– Relevant literature is reviewed and critically assessed. A framework is provided with the objective of supporting the process of green management adoption and the success of environmental strategies.

Findings

– Green management issues have the potential to inform a wide range of business processes. The proposed framework clarifies that a multi-criteria approach (including the activity sector, drivers of green management adoption, strategic horizon and level of strategy) is needed to analyze the many critical actions that firms can develop to embrace green management. This model allows firms to be well equipped to address environmental challenges in a strategic manner.

Practical implications

– This paper offers implications of interest to managers, pointing out that many actions may result in the adoption of socially responsible environmental policies. Specifically, the paper suggests strategies and practices that contribute to green management while simultaneously driving environmental, financial and competitive results.

Originality/value

– This article responds to the needs of managers who are engaged in environmental social responsibility for a framework to assist in identifying and exploiting the most effective ways of coping with the adoption of green management.
Pareto-principle application in non-IT supported CRM processes
Authors: Elbeltagi Ibrahim , Kempen Thijs , Garcia Elaine
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– This research covers a rather unexplored area of customer relationship management (CRM) by questioning the mechanism between on the one hand the Pareto-principle and on the other hand traditional non-IT supported operational CRM processes. Thus, the paper aims to explore whether a minority of processes and process-aspects deserves credit for achieving a majority of CRM goals.

Design/methodology/approach

– A qualitative approach is the most appropriate due to the assumption that access to the reality of a situation is only possible through social construction. A qualitative approach seeks to answer questions posed by studying different social settings. As noted by Berg, qualitative techniques make it possible for researchers to participate in understanding and perceiving others, as well as permitting them to discover how people structure their daily lives to make them more meaningful.

Findings

– The questioned mechanism of on the one hand traditional non-IT supported operational CRM process-aspects and on the other hand the Pareto-principle is confirmed by the majority of interviewees who answered affirmatively to small things making big differences in customer contact.

Research limitations/implications

– Regarding the limitations of this study, the results are hard to generalise as the research context depends on a single case study. However, the high levels of detail that allows for greater insight into manufacturing SMEs in HGV-Trailer that want to adopt non-IT support operational CRM where there is lack of financial resources justify the choice of this case study.

Practical implications

– This study is important for management to focus and develop social on top of technical competencies. This was clear from the importance of social intercourse as the glue that links all the non-IT supported operational processes from break down to invoices. It helps in removing the uncertainty from the view point of customers and highlights the importance of the care that companies need to give to the human side of the process more than objectifying things. Moreover, the finding provides an important implication for practitioners involved spare-parts purchasing process and the warranty claiming process should continuously assess whether they operate in support of a breakdown or not and subsequently use this insight to prioritize their tasks.

Originality/value

– This research tried to answer how the Pareto-principle applies to traditional non-IT supported operational CRM process-aspects by concluding that the first social intercourse, as well as problem ownership, belongs – from a customers' viewpoint – to the “vital few” leading to “trivial many” results of rational and emotional nature. This is especially true in the breakdown process, and processes that operate in support of breakdowns.
The process and structure of user participation: a BPM system implementation case study
Authors: M.E. de Waal Benny , Batenburg Ronald
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The aim of this study is to debunk the relationship between user participation practices and the development and success of information systems/information technology implementations. While most studies practically rely on how many participation activities are performed, the process through which users engage in user participation is not specified.

Design/methodology/approach

– A mixed method approach was applied to study the research questions. A number of relationships were tested by survey data collected among 143 end-users and 49 interviews of employees of a large Dutch social insurance organization that implemented a new and integrative business process management (BPM) system.

Findings

– The results show that specification of the participation context is of key importance for understanding the success of BPM implementation. Quantitative and qualitative analyses show that rich participation activities hold a stronger positive relationship with the BPM system development and implementation success than other participatory activities that only assist development or implementation. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the updated theory of user participation by Markus and Mao can be turned into a useful instrument for measuring the different aspects of participation.

Originality/value

– Most studies on user participation “only” measure how many participation activities were performed, and not how or why they were performed. Furthermore, the combination of qualitative and quantitative data and instruments resulted in a greater understanding of how exactly user participation was brought into practice and how the consequences of this practice were interrelated.
Modeling the enablers of organizational commitment
Authors: Nishat Faisal Mohd. , A. Al-Esmael Bader
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– Organizational commitment (OC) has important implications for both individuals and organizational outcomes. This paper aims to present an approach to understand the dynamics between various enablers that help to improve OC in the organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

– Using interpretive structural modelling, the research presents a hierarchy-based model and the mutual relationships among the enablers of OC in organizations.

Findings

– The research shows that there exists a group of enablers having a high driving power and low dependence requiring maximum attention and of strategic importance, while another group consists of those variables that have high dependence and are the resultant actions.

Practical implications

– This classification provides a useful tool to human resource managers to differentiate between independent and dependent variables and their mutual relationships which would help them to focus on those key variables that are most important for effective implementation of policies to improve OC in their organization.

Originality/value

– This research assumes importance in context of countries in the gulf region which are developing economies dependent on large-scale expatriate workforce. Meeting governmental legislation alongside managing differences in culture, work attitude poses a challenge to human resource managers. The findings of this study would serve as a guide to these managers to frame effective policies related to OC.
Which capabilities matter for successful business process change?
Authors: Christin Jurisch Marlen , Palka Wolfgang , Wolf Petra , Krcmar Helmut
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– Business process change (BPC) initiatives are complex endeavors, which require many different sets of capabilities from the organization (e.g. IT, change management, project management capabilities). This study aims to examine which capabilities matter for successful BPC.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper posits that a structured analysis of case studies will help in identifying the capabilities relevant for BPC. Against this background, the paper adopted a case survey methodology, which combines the richness of case studies with the benefit of analyzing large quantities of data. The paper identified and analyzed 130 case studies reporting the past BPC project experiences.

Findings

– The results show that project management, change management and IT capabilities have a positive impact on BPC project performance. IT capabilities also have a positive impact on the final process performance. Thus, IT capabilities matter for both BPC project and process performance.

Research limitations/implications

– The study had a few limitations, such as the use of secondary data. More so, assigning numbers to qualitative data unduly simplifies the complex phenomena under investigation and may leave out some of the richness of case research.

Practical implications

– The findings provide considerable support for determining which capabilities practitioners need to leverage and develop when improving their business processes.

Originality/value

– The study makes a number of contributions. It fills a gap in the literature concerning which capabilities matter for successful BPC. The paper offers a theoretical explanation of the effects of capabilities on the BPC project and process performance. Another contribution is methodological, in that the paper adopted the case survey method, which is still new to information systems research.
How “critical” are the critical success factors (CSFs)?
Authors: Ram Jiwat , Corkindale David
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The authors aim to examine the literature on enterprise resource planning (ERP) to establish whether the critical success factors (CSFs) for achieving stages of an ERP project have been empirically shown to be “critical”.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors used a systematic approach to review 627 refereed papers published between 1998 and 2010 on ERP, from which 236 papers related to CSFs on ERP were selected for analysis. The authors employed procedures from qualitative and interpretive research methods, to analyse and interpret the material using five-step procedure of gathering, categorising, coding, analysing and comparing the data.

Findings

– Prior studies have identified a large number of CSFs for ERP implementation success or improved performance outcomes. The authors have shown that a limited number of CSFs have been empirically investigated for their role in, and effect on, implementation success or post-implementation performance outcomes. While reporting the factors that have some evidence to support them, the authors question the utility of the general concept of CSFs.

Research limitations/implications

– The authors' findings question the validity of many of the claimed CSFs and the utility of the general body of literature on CSFs. The authors caution researchers who may plan to use claimed CSFs for ERP in their research to carefully examine the veracity of the claim before proceeding.

Practical implications

– The findings can help managers to focus their attention, priorities, resources and leadership on managing the CSFs that have been established to be critical for achieving ERP project implementation and/or performance outcomes.

Originality/value

– The results provide new insights into the usefulness of CSFs and indicate that merely identifying possible CSFs is not sufficient to help with ERP success. Further investigation is required to establish the criticalness of the proposed CSFs before managerial time is devoted to them.
Hospital resilience to natural hazards: classification and performance of utilities
Authors: Achour Nebil , Miyajima Masakatsu , Pascale Federica , D.F. Price Andrew
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to: explore major and potential challenges facing healthcare facilities operation specifically those related to utility supplies; and quantify the impact of utility supplies interruption on the operation of healthcare facilities through the development of an estimation model.

Design/methodology/approach

– A pluralistic qualitative and quantitative research approach benefiting from an online computer program that applies the discriminant function analysis approach. Information was collected from 66 hospitals following three major earthquakes that struck northeast Japan in 2003.

Findings

– Analysis demonstrated that healthcare utilities face three major challenges: vulnerability of infrastructure to natural hazards; low performance of alternative sources; and lack of consideration of healthcare utility supplies in resilience codes and legislations. The study also proposed a method to estimate the impact of utility interruption of healthcare facilities. A model has been developed for the case study hospitals in Northern Japan following three major earthquakes in 2003.

Practical implications

– The findings are expected to raise the awareness of the critical role utilities play for the operation of healthcare facilities which will potentially lead to upgrading resilience codes and legislations. The findings are also expected to pool the literature with more information about the resilience of healthcare utility publications.

Originality/value

– The topic and issues discussed in this research are original based on authors’ investigations following three major earthquakes that took place in northeast Japan. The study followed a statistical approach in addressing the inter-relationship between the utility systems post disasters to develop an innovative unique index to predict the impact of utility shortage on healthcare.
Evolution of US foot-and-mouth disease response strategy
Authors: Allen Heather , Taylor Alexandra
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiences of the USA and other nations with developed veterinary infrastructure and identify the critical factors that led the evolution of the US foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) response strategy.

Design/methodology/approach

– A thorough literature review was conducted, including official reports of US FMD outbreaks and peer-reviewed articles on outbreaks in previously FMD-free countries. Textual analysis was conducted on past and current publicly available US FMD response plans, identifying the use of the term “vaccination” or “emergency vaccination” indicating the potential use of these strategies.

Findings

– The USA has shifted from a strategy of exclusively stamping-out to a response strategy that would consider emergency vaccination, including vaccinate to slaughter and vaccinate to live, in any FMD outbreak. The factors that led to this shift in policy include economic factors, the emergence of new vaccine technologies, the changed landscape of the US livestock industry, and the experiences of other typically FMD-free countries.

Originality/value

– An outbreak in the USA is likely to rapidly outpace the current capacity for stamping-out. Experience from other FMD outbreaks, and lack of publicly available literature from the USA, indicates that it is critically important that further consideration, sufficient attention, and stakeholder deliberation need to occur to ensure vaccination strategies (to live and to slaughter) are implementable in an outbreak.
Causal ascription of rework in building and civil engineering projects
Authors: Ekambaram Palaneeswaran , E.D. Love Peter , M. Kumaraswamy Mohan , S.T. Ng Thomas
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– Rework is an endemic problem in construction projects and has been identified as being a significant factor contributing cost and schedule overruns. Causal ascription is necessary to obtain knowledge about the underlying nature of rework so that appropriate prevention mechanisms can be put in place. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– Using a supervised questionnaire survey and case-study interviews, data from 112 building and engineering projects about the sources and causes of rework in projects were obtained. A multivariate exploration was conducted to examine the underlying relationships between rework variables.

Findings

– The analysis revealed that there was a significant difference between rework causes for building and civil engineering projects. The set of associations explored in the analyses will be useful to develop a generic causal model to examine the quantitative impact of rework on project performance so that appropriate prevention strategies can be identified and developed.

Research limitations/implications

– The limitations include: small data set (112 projects), which include 75 from building and 37 from civil engineering projects.

Practical implications

– Meaningful insights into the rework occurrences in construction projects will pave pathways for rational mitigation and effective management measures.

Originality/value

– To date there has been limited empirical research that has sought to determine the causal ascription of rework, particularly in Hong Kong.
The health and safety impact of construction project features
Authors: Manu Patrick , Ankrah Nii , Proverbs David , Suresh Subashini
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– Despite the established significance of underlying accident causes to health and safety (H&S), and the persistent reporting of the underlying accident causal influence of construction project features (CPFs) which emanate from pre-construction decisions, no empirical research has focused on CPFs in terms of assessing their degree of potential to influence accident occurrence. The purpose of this paper is to, therefore, investigate this facet of the accident causal influence of CPFs.

Design/methodology/approach

– A mixed method design was used involving semi-structured interviews, and a questionnaire survey of UK construction professionals.

Findings

– CPFs generally have a moderate or a high potential to influence accident occurrence, implying a fair or severe potential to cause harm in terms of the H&S of workers. The degree of potential of CPFs to influence accident occurrence is influenced by: the extent to which certain proximate causes of accidents are common/prevalent within CPFs;and the degree of potential of those proximate causes to influence accident occurrence.

Originality/value

– These findings provide insight into the H&S consequences of CPFs, awareness of which is essential if pre-construction project participants are to implement appropriate risk control measures especially in the early phases of projects to mitigate the accident causal influence of CPFs. The findings reinforce the contribution of clients and their design and project management teams to accident causation, the significance of the early planning of H&S in construction project delivery, and the importance of driving mechanisms such as the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.
Framework for enhanced progress tracking and control of linear projects
Authors: Hegazy Tarek , Abdel-Monem Mohamed , Atef Saad Dina
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims at improving progress tracking and control of repetitive projects by developing a novel framework that automates the documentation of as-built information directly into the project schedule and also introduces enhanced linear scheduling formulation to support project control decisions.

Design/methodology/approach

– The proposed framework uses e-mail technology to facilitate detailed tracking of daily as-built events of all parties through bidirectional communication between site and head office. It also provides a new formulation for more accurate critical path and linear scheduling computation to accurately update the project's time and cost during construction.

Findings

– Using a case study of a road project, the paper proves that the proposed framework reduces as-built documentation effort and its schedule updates are more responsive to all as-built events than traditional scheduling techniques.

Research limitations/implications

– The proposed method applies to linear projects (e.g. highways) and can be extended to other repetitive projects such as high-rise buildings. It can also be extended to include voice features and procedures for forensic schedule analysis.

Practical implications

– The developed methodology presents a low-cost approach to document timely progress information for decision makers of massive linear projects (often associated with infrastructure) to have better control over the execution of projects, save documentation time and cost, and avoid disputes and problems.

Originality/value

– This research contributes in improving construction productivity by collecting timely as-built information using affordable communication technologies. It also presents novel advancements to the existing scheduling and control techniques to suit linear projects, which are most challenging.
Positionings in healthcare: diabetes training for Arabic-speaking immigrants
Authors: Ahlmark Nanna , Reynolds Whyte Susan , Curtis Tine , Tjørnhøj-Thomsen Tine
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this study is to explore how healthcare professionals in Denmark perceived and enacted their role as diabetes trainers for Arabic-speaking immigrants in three new local authority settings. The paper used positioning theory, which is a dynamic alternative to the more static concept of role in that it seeks to capture the variable, situationally specific, multiple and shifting character of social interaction, as the analytical tool to examine how people situationally produce and explain behaviour of themselves and others.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper generated data through observation of diabetes training and of introductory interviews with training participants in three local authority healthcare centres over a total of five months. The authors conducted 12 individual interviews and two group interviews with healthcare professionals.

Findings

– Healthcare professionals shifted between three positionings – caregiver, educator and expert. The caregiver was dominant in professionals’ ideals but less in their practice. Healthcare professionals other-positioned participants correspondingly as: vulnerable, difficult students and chronically ill. The two first other-positionings drew on dominant images of an ethnic other as different and problematic.

Practical implications

– Becoming more reflexive and explicit about one's positionings offer the potential for a more conscious, confident, flexible and open-ended teaching practice. Such reflexivity may also reduce the perception that teaching challenges are rooted in participants’ ethnic background.

Originality/value

– The paper provides a new understanding of healthcare practice by showing professionals’ multiple and reciprocal positionings and the potential and risks in this regard. The paper demonstrates the need for healthcare workers to reflect on their positionings not only in relation to immigrants, but to all patients.
Consumer debt delinquency by family lifecycle categories
Authors: Jian Xiao Jing , Yao Rui
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to document debt delinquency patterns by family lifecycle categories using multiple data sets that are nationally representative of American families.

Design/methodology/approach

– Based on previous research, 15 lifecycle categories appropriate for American families are defined by household head's age, marital status, presence of children, and age of children. Data used are from Surveys of Consumer Finances (SCF) in the USA in 1992-2010. Multiple logistic regressions are conducted to identify probabilities of debt delinquencies of families in various lifecycle categories by controlling for income, financial assets, holdings of several types of debt, and several other demographic and socioeconomic variables.

Findings

– The results show that among the 15 household lifecycle categories, the top three most likely to be delinquent are young couples with children aged seven or older, middle-aged singles with children aged 15 or older, and middle-aged singles with children under 15. Younger households are more financially distressed than their older counterparts. Presence of children increases the probability of debt delinquency.

Research limitations/implications

– In this study, multiple national data sets representing American families are used to document debt delinquency patterns by family lifecycle categories. Results shed light on this important topic and offer helpful information for both banking industry practitioners and consumer financial educators.

Practical implications

– The information produced by this study can help bank managers better identify their potential clients and understand their current customers. Different marketing strategies based on the research findings can be developed to attract and retain customers with different delinquency risks.

Originality/value

– This is the first study to examine debt delinquencies by family lifecycle categories with multiple SCF data sets in the USA. The 15 family lifecycle categories used are based on recent research that is specially designed for American families. The research findings provide straightforward implications for both bank managers and consumer educators.
Internationalisation of emerging market firms: an exploratory study of Chilean companies
Authors: Bianchi Constanza
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to explore how firms from a Latin American market internationalise using the resource-based view of the firm as a theoretical foundation. Specifically, it examines the internationalisation process of three Chilean companies that have become relevant international players.

Design/methodology/approach

– Drawing on interviews with company managers, as well as industry data and corporate reports, this paper provides insights into the successful internationalisation process of emerging market firms.

Findings

– The findings of this study suggest that specific capabilities and resources, such as belonging to a family conglomerate, domestic and foreign partnerships and networks, innovation and market orientation, and an experienced management team, are required for emerging market firms to internationalise and improve their performance in foreign markets.

Originality/value

– This study is one of the few to address the internationalisation process of Chilean companies.
How should firms deal with counterfeiting?
Authors: Hoecht Andreas , Trott Paul
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The production and sale of counterfeit products is big business in the international economy. Nowhere is this more evident than in China. This paper aims to review the anti-counterfeiting strategies that have been identified in the literature on counterfeiting.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper takes the form of a literature review.

Findings

– This paper reviews 11 anti-counterfeiting strategies that have been suggested by relevant literature and has identified some of the success conditions. It also finds that firms should seek to take a longer-term view and to protect their technology-based competitive advantage. This is already happening: Japanese blue chip companies have begun to relocate sensitive R&D and high-tech manufacturing away from risky locations and back to Japan.

Research limitations/implications

– The paper shows that the dominant legal enforcement (perspective) approach has been of limited success and explains the reasons for its failure.

Practical implications

– The paper concludes that anti-counterfeiting strategies should be seen as complementary rather than as mutually exclusive and that in the long run, as countries get more technologically advanced, governments will develop a strong self-interest in tackling the counterfeit problem themselves.

Originality/value

– The paper provides a systematic discussion of alternative anti-counterfeiting strategies that have been suggested by the literature and explores their success conditions in some detail.
Governance and enterprise restructuring: the case of Macedonia
Authors: Apostolov Mico
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– This paper is a case study of the Republic of Macedonia and focuses on the development of governance and enterprise restructuring. Thus, country's effective corporate governance and corporate control, which impact enterprise restructuring, are essential in the analysis of market-driven restructuring through domestic financial institutions and markets. The data used in this article are analyzed with an econometric regression model, which as employed in this study examines the interrelationships between governance and enterprise restructuring and set of policies that influence the governance patterns. Two basic hypothesis are taken in the analysis: first, governance and enterprise restructuring depend on set of policies, such as, large-scale privatization, small-scale privatization, price liberalization, competition policy, trade and foreign exchange system, banking reform and interest rate liberalization, securities markets and non-bank financial institutions and overall infrastructure reform; and second, governance and enterprise restructuring improves over time due to imposed policies. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– The data used in this article are analyzed with an econometric regression model, which as employed in this study examines the interrelationships between governance and enterprise restructuring and set of policies that influence the governance patterns.

Findings

– There is still more to be done in order to bring these economies closer to the standards of developed ones. Indeed, it is needed considerable improvement of corporate governance, institution-building to control agency problems and imposing already adopted regulation, as well as, enforcing new enterprise restructuring policies, within existing policies of overall transition economy restructuring.

Originality/value

– This paper is a contribution to the research developing the business aspects of the Macedonian economy, as there is constant lack of scientific papers that deal with the specific issues of corporate governance and enterprise restructuring.
Innovation in emerging markets – the case of China
Authors: Yip George , McKern Bruce
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– Multinational companies are increasingly locating R&D activities in emerging markets, particularly China. This paper aims to focus on why China is moving from imitation to innovation, how MNCs are evolving their R&D activities in China, the challenges they face, and how they deal with these challenges.

Design/methodology/approach

– As this is a viewpoint paper, the authors do not report any methodology other than the general research that the authors have been conducting for the last two years, primarily interviews with companies.

Findings

– The key finding is that China is moving from imitation to innovation and that multinational companies should develop strategies for conducting R&D there.

Originality/value

– This is a fairly original paper in that there has been only limited research on innovation in China.
Implementing a multi-staged methodology to micro and nanotechnology
Authors: Islam Nazrul , Brousseau Emmanuel
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to present a multi-staged methodology for the assessment of technology maturity profiles. In particular, this research is being developed to simplify the maturity evaluation procedure in order to combine a large number of inputs from R&D projects and thus to obtain a broad picture of technology maturity profiles that is not specific to a particular organisation, industry sector or particular process.

Design/methodology/approach

– A multi-stage method was employed. The first stage of which was a workshop involving a range of eminent academics and senior professionals from institutes or industry in order to outline the maturity scale and its defining characteristics. The second stage was to develop a questionnaire to investigate the maturity of particular technologies in the wider research portfolio. Finally, a case study was conducted to validate the practicability of the method by assessment of industry capability and advancement.

Findings

– Based on the responses received from the questionnaire, a maturity profile was constructed for each project, displaying percentages of R&D efforts along the adopted maturity scale. The findings demonstrate that the real value of the generic matrix is in tailoring the framework according to the particular context of a firm in order to identify risks that would compromise the exploitation of the emerging technologies under development.

Research limitations/implications

– There are some limitations in this study which provide ground for future research. For instance, the proposed methodology could be applied to industrially sponsored R&D projects in addition to the publicly funded projects, which have been targeted in this study. This study uses a case study to demonstrate the applicability of the method, but this could be applicable to other industry domain. Further testing of the method is necessary in order to increase its robustness and to better understand its applicability and feasibility.

Originality/value

– It could be considered that the success of this study could be emulated in a wider context of new manufacturing technologies which are being taken up by industry, utilising a comparable but amended scale of technology vs level of take-up and/or funding. It is potentially a useful way for funding bodies to monitor impact of sponsored R&D projects. For industry, it is also a vital link to the academic institutions developing emerging technologies, by guiding both industry sectors and individual customers to the relative maturity of particular technologies.
Readiness factors for the Lean Six Sigma journey in the higher education sector
Authors: Antony Jiju
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to reveal the readiness factors (RFs) which are required for the successful introduction and development of a Lean Six Sigma (LSS) initiative within the context of higher education (HE) sector. These RFs are a pre-requisite for the successful implementation, deployment and sustainability of LSS in higher education institutions (HEIs).

Design/methodology/approach

– The author uses secondary data from literature to justify the need for RFs before any HEI invests on continuous improvement (CI) methodologies such as LSS. The author would argue that these RFs must be assessed properly to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the HEI.

Findings

– The paper presents the RFs which are essential for the implementation and sustainability of LSS. It is important to note that RFs are prior to embarking on a CI initiative whereas success factors are determined once the senior management team decides to invest on a specific CI initiative (Lean, LSS, etc.)

Research limitations/implications

– This is a very theoretical paper based on the existing literature and authors’ experiences in the HE sector. The next stage of the research is to carry out empirical studies in a number of HEIs to determine the RFs for LSS as a business process improvement methodology.

Originality/value

– This paper makes an attempt to derive the RFs for the successful development of LSS in the HE sector from the current literature. The RFs would assist any HE sector who would like to launch a LSS journey for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of business processes across the business.
Internet addiction among young people in China
Authors: Jiang Qiaolei
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the interrelationships between internet connectedness, online gaming, internet addiction symptoms, and academic performance decrement among the internet-dependent young people in China.

Design/methodology/approach

– A paper-based survey was conducted among the young clients in one of the earliest and largest internet addiction clinics in China. A total of 594 in-patients (mean age=17.76 y) voluntarily participated in this study.

Findings

– By adopting the concept of internet connectedness, this study explored the internet use patterns among the young internet addicts, for example, internet café patrons and those who use internet with more goals or higher degree of internet adhesiveness had more internet addiction symptoms. Online gaming was found to play a significant role in the development of internet addiction. As expected, the level of internet addiction is significantly linked to academic performance decrement. Consistent with previous studies, males showed higher degree of internet connectedness and online game usage than females. Noticeably, the moderation effect of online game playing and the mediating effect of internet addiction were also tested.

Research limitations/implications

– This research is focussed on the internet-dependent group, thus the generalizability of the results need to be interpreted with caution.

Practical implications

– This study provides insight for parents, educators, health professionals, and policy makers regarding treatment and intervention for internet addiction among young people in China.

Originality/value

– Since very little research has been done focussing on diagnosed internet-dependent group, this paper scores as a pioneering study of its kind in China.
The effects of hedonic/utilitarian expectations and social influence on continuance intention to play online games
Authors: Chang I-Cheng , Liu Chuang-Chun , Chen Kuanchin
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The focus in this study is a model that predicts continuance intention of online multi-player games. In this integrated model, the social cognitive theory (SCT) lays out the foundation of two types of pre-use (pre-play) expectations, the flow theory captures the affective feeling with the game as a moderator for the effect from the two pre-use expectations, and subjective norm together with its associated antecedents cover a wide spectrum of social influences.

Design/methodology/approach

– A questionnaire was designed and pre-tested before distributing to target respondents. The reliability and validity of the instrument both met the commonly accepted guidelines. The integrated model was assessed first by examining its measurement model and then the structural model.

Findings

– The integration of cognitive, affective and social influence in this model explains a larger amount of variance compared to the competing models and existing studies.

Originality/value

– Unlike a popular trend that studies predictors of online games from either cognitive or affect angle, the work looks at both together to study how their joint effect is related to continuance intention. This marks an important improvement as cognitive expectations derived from SCT captures the pre-use experience that may be influenced or swayed by sources including those that are inflated or incorrect. By studying flow as a moderator in conjunction with other sources of influence, the authors are able to further the understanding of how the pre-use expectations may be shaped by one's own experience.
Formation of augmented-reality interactive technology's persuasive effects from the perspective of experiential value
Authors: Huang Tseng-Lung , Hsu Liu Feng
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which presence, media richness, and narrative experiences yield the highest experiential value in augmented-reality interactive technology (ARIT).

Design/methodology/approach

– A survey is performed to collect data. Valid questionnaires of 344 ARIT users are identified. The hypothesized associations are analyzed using structure equation modeling.

Findings

– Empirical results indicate that narrative experience induces a higher experiential value than other simulative experiences, including presence and media richness.

Practical implications

– Results of this study provide a valuable reference for managers attempting to design an ARIT process in order to optimize the experiential value in various online simulation environments.

Originality/value

– This study adopts an integrated framework that incorporates narrative theory, media richness theory, and presence in the online ARIT. Exactly how narrative experience, media richness, and presence affect the formation of experiential value in the ARIT process is explored as well.
Incremental performance of an eChannel addition
Authors: Lee Yung-Hsin , Shui-Lien Chen Lily , Fei Chen I , Lin Bing-Huei
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to use the Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model to evaluate the incremental performance of an eChannel addition.

Design/methodology/approach

– Data were collected from 53 Taiwan financial services firms. In total, 33 of them introduced their online services, whereas the other 20 firms did not introduce their online services during the period under examination.

Findings

– The research findings show that firm asset values increase following eChannel additions. Thus, eChannel additions enhance firm financial performance. A further analysis comparing the performance between firms with and without eChannel additions also shows that firms with eChannel additions have higher asset value growth rates, which further validates the capacity of eChannel additions to enhance financial performance.

Practical implications

– Managers and shareholders in firms making eChannel additions are not required to be concerned regarding stock price volatility, and managers in firms without any eChannel investment could use eChannels to enhance their stock price and seize future opportunities. Using eChannel is a valid approach for firms to provide enhanced services to current customers, access new markets, and extend market coverage, thus enhancing overall financial performance. Investors could confide those firms implementing eChannel additions.

Originality/value

– Studies investigating whether eChannel additions enhance firm financial performance are scant. No study has evaluated performance from a long-term perspective or from a volatility aspect (both are important considerations in eChannel performance evaluation). The research represents a pioneering work that empirically investigates these issues.
An empirical analysis of homeownership in urban China
Authors: Gan Christopher , Hu Baiding , Gao Cindy , Kao Betty , A. Cohen David
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– This paper seeks to investigate the impact of socioeconomic factors of homebuyers such as gender, age, marital status, education, economic status and race on home ownership and loan decisions in urban China.

Design/methodology/approach

– This paper employs logistic regression to investigate the socioeconomic factors affecting the consumers' house purchase decision in urban China and the factors affecting the housing loan application.

Findings

– Using a structured questionnaire to collect relevant data from household residents (both homeowners and non-home owners) in Nanjing in 2010, the findings document that male respondents who are non-minorities and have higher levels of education are more likely to purchase a house. The results also show that race, educational attainment, size of household and credit card ownership are significantly related to rejection for a housing loan.

Research limitations/implications

– The findings in this paper provide homebuyers with a better understanding of factors affecting the housing loans and their decision to purchase a house. Homebuyers can accurately assess their financial ability and improve the use of their credit to purchase a house. In addition, Chinese homebuyers should be encouraged to save since savings serve as a step in building their credit worthiness; therefore, their accessibility to housing loans can be improved and the rate of homeownership will be increased as well.

Originality/value

– This research would benefit both lender and borrowers. The research findings provide banks with a better understanding of homebuyers' characteristics that influence their accessibilities to housing loans. Homeownership requires affordable housing financing. Banks should consider repackaging their home loan products to make them more attractive to those with limited means. Such products should focus on making loans more affordable in real terms. First-time homebuyers are almost always young and earn low incomes.
Discovering academics' key learning connections
Authors: Pataraia Nino , Margaryan Anoush , Falconer Isobel , Littlejohn Allison , Falconer Jennifer
Published: January 2014

Purpose

– The aim of this exploratory study is to investigate the role of personal networks in supporting academics' professional learning. In particular, the paper examines the composition of academics' networks and the implications of network tendencies for academics' learning about teaching.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study adopts a mixed-methods approach. Firstly, the composition of academics' networks is examined using social network analysis. Secondly, the role of these networks in academics' learning about teaching is analysed through semi-structured interviews.

Findings

– Findings reveal the prevalence of localised and strong-tie connections, which could inhibit opportunities for effective learning and spread of innovations in teaching. The study highlights the need to promote connectivity within and across institutions, creating favourable conditions for effective professional learning.

Research limitations/implications

– While the study makes a valuable contribution to the literature, the generalisability of these findings is limited, because the sample is restricted to 37 academics. Participants' characteristics and networking behaviours may not be fully representative of academics in a wider range of contexts and settings. Another limitation is that the evaluation of people's learning was limited to self-reported measures. Future research should measure a broader range of evidence related to academics' professional networks.

Practical implications

– This study extends the discussion of professional learning in academia in a novel way, by taking a social network perspective. The approach employed attempts to enrich the limited understanding of academics' networks, by unpacking the ways in which academics' personal networks support their learning.

Originality/value

– The originality of this work lies in its intent to uncover relationships that condition professional learning and enhancement of teaching practice. Reflection on personal networks can potentially enable individuals to determine the effectiveness of their networks and the significance of their network connections.