bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Discovering geographic web services in search engines
Authors: Lopez‐Pellicer Francisco J. , Florczyk Aneta J. , Béjar Rubén , Muro‐Medrano Pedro R. , Zarazaga‐Soria F. Javier
Published: November 2011

Purpose

There is an open discussion in the geographic information community about the use of digital libraries or search engines for the discovery of resources. Some researchers suggest that search engines are a feasible alternative for searching geographic web services based on anecdotal evidence. The purpose of this study is to measure the performance of Bing (formerly Microsoft Live Search), Google and Yahoo! in searching standardised XML documents that describe, identify and locate geographic web services.

Design/methodology/approach

The study performed an automated evaluation of three search engines using their application programming interfaces. The queries asked for XML documents describing geographic web services, and documents containing links to those documents. Relevant XML documents linked from the documents found in the search results were also included in the evaluation.

Findings

The study reveals that the discovery of geographic web services in search engines does not require the use of advanced search operators. Data collected suggest that a resource‐oriented search should combine simple queries to search engines with the exploration of the pages linked from the search results. Finally the study identifies Yahoo! as the best performer.

Originality/value

This is the first study that measures and compares the performance of major search engines in the discovery of geographic web services. Previous studies were focused on demonstrating the technical feasibility of the approach. The paper also reveals that some technical advances in search engines could harm resource‐oriented queries.
Automatic performance evaluation of web search engines using judgments of metasearch engines
Authors: Sadeghi Hamid
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce two new automatic methods for evaluating the performance of search engines. The reported study uses the methods to experimentally investigate which search engine among three popular search engines (Ask.com, Bing and Google) gives the best performance.

Design/methodology/approach

The study assesses the performance of three search engines. For each one the weighted average of similarity degrees between its ranked result list and those of its metasearch engines is measured. Next these measures are compared to establish which search engine gives the best performance. To compute the similarity degree between the lists two measures called the “tendency degree” and “coverage degree” are introduced; the former assesses a search engine in terms of results presentation and the latter evaluates it in terms of retrieval effectiveness. The performance of the search engines is experimentally assessed based on the 50 topics of the 2002 TREC web track. The effectiveness of the methods is also compared with human‐based ones.

Findings

Google outperformed the others, followed by Bing and Ask.com. Moreover significant degrees of consistency – 92.87 percent and 91.93 percent – were found between automatic and human‐based approaches.

Practical implications

The findings of this work could help users to select a truly effective search engine. The results also provide motivation for the vendors of web search engines to improve their technology.

Originality/value

The paper focuses on two novel automatic methods to evaluate the performance of search engines and provides valuable experimental results on three popular ones.
Preparing our leaders for the future
Authors: Newhall Steve
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Recent research released by global talent management company, DDI, shows that over the last decade, there seems to be little real improvement in leadership quality. In the most recent Global Leadership Forecast, only one in three leaders reported that their quality of leadership was high and only 18 percent of HR professionals reported strong bench strength to meet future business needs. Clearly a significant shift is required in developing our leaders if this trend is to change, so the aim of this article is to ask: what can DDI's 6th Global Leadership Forecast tell us about leadership effectiveness and development?

Design/methodology/approach

The Global Leadership Forecast is a comprehensive survey of the attitudes of leaders in relation to talent management practices, encompassing the views of more than 12,000 organizational leaders and 1,800 HR professionals from across 74 countries.

Findings

Leaders rate themselves poorly, do not possess the skills necessary for future business success and do not have a sufficient pipeline of talent within their organization. Leadership development, processes and practices require significant transformation if organizations are to meet the increasingly rapid pace of business change.

Originality/value

This article provides useful and current data on the attitudes of leaders to development and talent management as well as providing senior leaders and HR practitioners with a useful reference for planning an effective talent management strategy.
Igniting business performance through transformational coaching
Authors: Gaskell Carole , Logan Janet , Nicholls Lyn
Published: November 2011

Purpose

This case study aims to explore how coaching capability and leadership behaviors were developed at Ageas UK in order to improve business performance and create a cultural change at all levels of the organization.

Design/methodology/approach

Following its introduction in early 2010, the Full Potential Group “High performance through coaching” program continues to deliver highly‐pragmatic, experiential and business focused workshops across the Ageas UK management teams. The workshops incorporate a two‐day session together with a one‐day follow‐up six to eight weeks later.

Findings

With close to 150 of its management community having taken part in the program to date and receiving ongoing support from L&D to cascade and sustain the key principles, the return on investment at Ageas UK has been significant. Business performance gains from both a sales revenue and customer “upgrade” perspective have been considerable and managers are feeling more empowered and better able to lead, guide and support their teams.

Originality/value

The article shows that the key success factors for embedding coaching into Ageas' company culture and making it stick long‐term are: pro‐active support from the board and senior management teams; fully aligning the coaching program to the Ageas UK business strategy; creating a “full potential” transformational attitude and mindset of continual development and improvement; and executing a comprehensive sustainability plan.
Seniors extend understanding of what constitutes universal values
Authors: Burmeister Oliver K. , Weckert John , Williamson Kirsty
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to add one further value to the previously articulated “universal values” and to describe the constituent components of three universal values.

Design/methodology/approach

This interpretive/constructivist study of Australia's largest online community of seniors involved a 30‐month ethnographic investigation. After an initial period of 11 months of observing social interaction on the entire site, in‐depth, semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 30 participants, selected according to criterion sampling, a form of purposive sampling.

Findings

Four key moral values were identified: equality, freedom, respect and trust. All of them had been found in other studies, with equality and respect (as human dignity) identified as universal values. The findings from this study suggest that freedom is another universal value.

Originality/value

This study extends the understanding of universal values to include freedom. Further, it demonstrates the constituent components for freedom, and those of two other universal values previously identified in the literature, equality and human dignity, as well as revealing linkages between these three values.
Mechanisms for stakeholder co‐ordination in ICT and ageing
Authors: Finn Rachel L. , Wright David
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to discuss whether existing organisations that seek to integrate a range of stakeholders (i.e. senior citizens, industry, academics, public authorities, civil society organisations and the media) in the field of information and communication technology (ICT) and ageing are adequately meeting the needs of each of these stakeholder groups, and to determine whether a new, or re‐organised, mechanism is needed to better meet the needs of stakeholders.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors identify, describe, assess and compare the adequacy of various candidate multi‐stakeholder mechanisms in order to improve stakeholder co‐operation.

Findings

The authors' principal finding is that the stakeholder co‐ordination mechanisms discussed in this paper are not adequate to foster e‐inclusion co‐operation, co‐ordination and collaboration among all different types of stakeholders.

Practical implications

This analysis offers direction in how a new organisation, or the expansion of an existing mechanism, could ensure that currently un‐met needs are addressed. The strengths and weaknesses of the stakeholder co‐ordination mechanisms discussed here demonstrate that some organisational types are better for performing certain tasks and for integrating particular types of stakeholder. Thus, a federated, multi‐dimensional organisation offers one possibility for addressing the needs of all different types of stakeholders.

Originality/value

This paper provides an avenue of response to various calls for closer stakeholder collaboration by the European Commission and other stakeholders, in order to improve the quality of life for older persons and to meet European social objectives.
How to make Quality Circle a success in manufacturing industries
Authors: Prakas Majumdar Jyoti , Murali Manohar B.
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Quality Circle is a very effective program and low‐cost tool for implementing total quality management (TQM) in industry. A good number of manufacturing industries have so far adopted the Quality Circle program successfully, however the Quality Circle concept has failed in many other cases. To make successful use of the Quality Circle tool in manufacturing industries, knowledge and awareness of the probable reasons behind the failures of the Quality Circle is essential.

Design/methodology/approach

In this general review paper, after thoroughly reviewing literatures, the authors consolidate and highlight the probable reasons behind the failures of the Quality Circle, especially in manufacturing industries.

Findings

This study reveals that organizational Issues at the background stage; circle‐formation Issues at the implementation stage; and operational Issues at the operating/running stage of Quality Circle implementation, are the three main key areas of the problems which generally limit the success of the Quality Circle.

Originality/value

If the management is aware of and takes care of such anticipated problems, it is more likely that the Quality Circle programme will definitely be a success, leading to the effective implementation of TQM in the organization.
A QFD strategy for improving customer satisfaction: case study of telecom companies of Pakistan
Authors: Hussain Matloub , Tsironis Loukas , Ajmal Mian M.
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to argue that the quality function deployment (QFD) matrix that has been successfully used for developing products from customer needs can also be applied to improve the service quality of telecommunication companies.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents a case study of the two big telecom companies (Ufone and Mobilink) of Pakistan. Data have been collected by a cross‐sectional field study of users, frontline employees and management of telecom companies. The QFD matrix has been applied to identify customer needs, to do comparative analysis of the prepaid services of these companies and to recommend the suitable measure for incorporating these requirements into their services.

Findings

It has been found that through emphasizing two technical descriptors (Antennas and Base Station Controller System), a company will not only be in a competitive position to meet the customer's demand but will also gain an advantage over its competitor.

Research limitations/implications

Research findings are limited to telecom companies. Further research can be carried out in other service providing companies.

Practical implications

Research outcomes also imply that if managers want to listen to the voice of their customers and update their products and services accordingly, the proposed methodology of QFD is much more effective than the traditional approaches, in which decisions regarding the product or services are prioritized based on the manager's point of view.

Originality/value

Most of the previous research has applied QFD for developing products from customer needs. This is one of the few studies which have successfully applied the QFD Matrix in service providing companies.
Conceptualizing service quality in higher education
Authors: Jain Rajani , Sinha Gautam , Sahney Sangeeta
Published: November 2011

Purpose

In a pursuit of excellence, it is increasingly important to identify customer values and demands. Service quality has been identified as one such demand. The purpose of this paper is to develop the model for service quality in higher education.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed model is based on a current conceptualization of service quality, which suggests that service quality is a multidimensional and hierarchical construct.

Findings

In the proposed model, service quality consists of two primary dimensions which are defined by several corresponding sub‐dimensions: program quality: curriculum, industry interaction, input quality, academic facilities; and quality of life: non‐academic processes, support facilities, campus and interaction quality.

Originality/value

The paper has value for the institutes seeking to improve the quality of services they provide.
Global corporate social responsibility standard, ISO 26000 and its effect on the society
Authors: Young Park Ji , Wook Kim Soo
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify the effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and ISO 26000 on a company’s reputation and loyalty. After reviewing the related articles on CSR and ISO 26000, which is considered the global CSR standard, the authors aim to suggest the available empirical models and research questions to assess the effect of ISO 26000 on business management.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors examine the CSR and ISO 26000 related papers and find out the specific aspects of ISO 26000. Also the authors show all ISO 26000 contents and analyze them in order to understand the effects. Finally, the authors provide the whole empirical model and research questions for future studies.

Findings

The paper provides the research model and several hypotheses about whether ISO 26000 has had an effect on company reputation. Also a research model is suggested with proper research methodology.

Research limitations/implications

Due to the research purpose, the paper ends with the suggestion of an empirical model. Panel data need to be applied to verify the suggested model.

Originality/value

There are various papers regarding the effect of CSR. However, few papers exist about the causal relationship between ISO 26000, which is the global standard of CSR, and company reputation.
Board composition and CVB effectiveness: engaging stakeholders that can matter
Authors: Ford Robert C. , Gresock Amy R. , Peeper William C.
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Identifying, attracting, and maintaining the engagement of the right composition of people for a non‐profit Board is a major challenge. Executives should ensure that their Boards accurately represent the stakeholders that matter, both from industry and the community. The purpose of this paper is to describe ways and offer propositions for effective non‐profit executives to identify, recruit, and motivate the continuing engagement of the members needed on their Boards in order to acquire resources critical to their sustained success.

Design/methodology/approach

The Convention and Visitors Bureaus (CVBs) are used as an example, since at least 93 percent of CVBs have a governance structure that includes a Board of Directors. Successfully attracting the right mix of stakeholders is a result of an extensive recruitment effort by the CVB executive. Prior research reports that successful executives take great care in making selection decisions that reflect the interests of the community in the Board's composition. Based on the literature on Boards and governance, the authors develop propositions regarding the composition of CVB Boards.

Findings

While the research is exploratory, it is found that CVBs with more diverse Boards are more successful than those with less diverse Boards. It is argued that effective CVBs use a thoughtful process for heterogeneous Board selection. It is also suggested that Board performance should be evaluated on an annual basis to recognize the need for active involvement in the Board selection process.

Originality/value

The successful selection of Board members is important because of the implications for Board effectiveness. While there is a large body of literature offering advice on Board selection, there is little on recruitment. Moreover, there is little discussion of Board composition strategy based on balancing access to critical resources of stakeholders.
Price determinants of individual hotels: evidence from Milan
Authors: Sainaghi Ruggero
Published: November 2011

Purpose

This article aims to identify average room rate (ARR) determinants of individual firms located in a destination.

Design/methodology/approach

The sample is composed of 72 individual firms, operating in the 3‐5 star category; data were collected using financial statements and questionnaires. Independent variables are searched along “what” (product) and “where” (location) dimensions.

Findings

The empirical findings identify four main significant and relevant determinants related to the “what” positioning – number of rooms, number of employees, number of employees per room, years since the last refurbishment – and confirm the relevance of location, and especially the centrality inside the destination.

Practical implications

Empirical findings show the relevance of strong advantage (disadvantage) of location (where) that might compensate disadvantage (advantage) in the strategic positioning (what). Inside the determinants, the results suggest the importance of a broad commercial policy, able to differentiate the served targets, in order to optimise occupancy and, if possible, prices.

Originality/value

The paper suggests the usefulness of taking into greater account the link between destination and local firms as an important determinant of performance and explores what are key success factors for individual (not affiliated) firms.
MWSMF: a mediation framework for mobile hosts and enterprise on cloud
Authors: Narayana Srirama Satish
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Web services are going mobile. A mobile enterprise can be established in a cellular network by participating mobile hosts, which act as web service providers, and their clients. Mobile hosts enable seamless integration of user‐specific services to the enterprise, by following web service standards, also on the radio link and via resource constrained smart phones. However, establishing such a mobile enterprise poses several technical challenges, such as the quality of service (QoS), discovery aspects and proper integration solutions, for the network as well as for the mobile phone users. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the challenges and research associated with this domain and with establishing the mobile enterprise.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper summarizes the challenges and research in the mobile web services domain, along with a detailed discussion of the developed mobile web service mediation framework (MWSMF). MWSMF is realized based on the enterprise service bus (ESB) technology, as an intermediary between mobile hosts and web service clients. Moreover, to scale the mobile enterprise to the loads possible in cellular networks, some of the components of MWSMF are shifted to the new utility computing paradigm, cloud computing.

Findings

From the study it was found that ESB provides a good integration solution for the mobile enterprise research challenges. The detailed analysis of the MWSMF concludes that the mediation framework and its components are horizontally scalable, thus allowing to utilize elasticity of cloud platform to meet load requirements of mobile enterprise in an easy and quick manner.

Originality/value

The study addresses the research with providing services from smart phones and establishing mobile enterprise. The QoS challenges are addressed and the study introduces an integration framework using ESB technology. The porting of MWSMF onto the cloud is also addressed. As an added value, the research serves as a case study for porting enterprise applications to the cloud.
Perception framework for supporting development of context‐aware web services
Authors: Gilman Ekaterina , Su Xiang , Davidyuk Oleg , Zhou Jiehan , Riekki Jukka
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Context‐awareness is an essential property of any pervasive system perceiving its environment. Such a system captures and processes context, i.e. the features describing the relevant aspects of environment state and user behaviour. However, development of these systems still requires solving a number of research and engineering challenges. The purpose of this paper is to propose perception framework, a RESTful middleware which simplifies and accelerates the development of pervasive systems. Perception framework allows constructing services' application logic using rules and context. Moreover, it collects sensor data and produces the context information that is required for the rules. The authors present the architecture, design, complete implementation, and prototype‐based verification of perception framework.

Design/methodology/approach

Development of context‐aware services is achieved with a novel architecture supporting building of the logic of web services using rules which directly manipulate the available elementary context represented with the Web Ontology Language (OWL) ontology. These rules are described using the Rule Interchange Format (RIF) with support for different rule languages. The implementation of this framework is aligned with RESTful principles, providing a lightweight and flexible solution for large‐scale context‐aware systems.

Findings

The fully implemented prototype verifies the feasibility of constructing the logic of context‐aware web services with the rules supported by perception framework.

Originality/value

The contributions of this paper include: the requirement specification for a generic context‐aware pervasive middleware; and the design and implementation of the framework (i.e. perception framework) supporting the development of context‐aware web services. The perception framework includes a generic rule‐based reasoner allowing developers to use several RIF‐compliant rule description languages.
Children as agents of secondary socialisation for their parents
Authors: Watne Torgeir , Lobo Antonio , Brennan Linda
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the body of knowledge associated with consumer socialisation. The authors investigate how children function as socialisation agents for their parents in influencing their purchase intentions of computer and high‐tech products – essentially the idea of the young educating the old.

Design/methodology/approach

A review of the extant literature relating to consumer socialisation, social power and knowledge about computer related and small high‐tech products yielded meaningful hypotheses. A structured survey which was required to be completed by dyads (i.e. children and parents) was mailed to Australian families in the state of Victoria. Data obtained from 180 usable responses from the dyads were analysed to test the hypotheses.

Findings

Children are seen to possess expert power over their parents with regards to computer related and small high‐tech products; which make them an important agent of secondary socialisation for their parents. Men are perceived as being more knowledgeable than women, a phenomenon which leads mothers to be more inclined to seek their children's (son's in particular) advice.

Research limitations/implications

This study implies that when children are seen as experts by their parents, they become important agents of secondary socialisation. However, this only relates to the consumption of the product categories studied here. Future research needs to include other product categories in order to assess the validity of the measures.

Practical implications

Marketers of computer related and small high‐tech products can benefit from the findings when promoting these products to children and parents.

Originality/value

This research study is unique in Australia and possibly globally.
Extent of susceptibility to interpersonal influence and price sensitivity among Indian youth: is there a relationship between these two constructs?
Authors: Gupta Nitin
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the extent of susceptibility to interpersonal influence and price sensitivity prevalent among Indian youth, to test if there is a relationship between these two constructs and identify the reason for the same.

Design/methodology/approach

In order to empirically test the given objectives, instruments to measure susceptibility to interpersonal influence as well as price sensitivity were developed by using inputs from the literature. Responses were elicited from a sample of Indian youth (between 16 to 25 years) residing in various Indian cities. Relevant statistical tools were used to analyze the data.

Findings

Indian youth showed high scores on their traditional consumer behavioral traits of susceptibility to interpersonal influence and price sensitivity. It was shown that susceptibility to interpersonal influence had a significant impact on the level of price sensitivity among Indian youth. Gender played a significant role in this relationship.

Practical implications

The results provide many interesting insights with respect to the consumer behavioral traits of Indian youth. These insights will enable managers to develop effective marketing‐mix strategies, which would cater to the requirements of the Indian youth population.

Originality/value

This is the only contemporary paper in the extant literature which measures the level of susceptibility to interpersonal influence and price sensitivity prevalent among Indian youth and which attempts to identify an empirical relationship among these important constructs.
Drug prescription practices in Brazil: a structural equation model
Authors: Junior Ladeira Wagner , Dalmoro Marlon , Eduardo Maehler Alisson , Falcão Araujo Clécio
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The paper's aim is to analyze the functional relationships between factors related to the prescription of medical drugs in Brazil.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey was conducted among 232 medical doctors in Brazil. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Five hypotheses on the factors impacting drug prescription were proposed, and the constructs were validated using a set of techniques pertaining to the calculation of structural equations.

Findings

The process of medical drug prescription in Brazil is positively correlated with all the presented constructs. However, the study found that the five proposed hypotheses demonstrated varying degrees of positive effect levels, ranging from strong to weak. Particularly, factors such as the characteristics of the drug and information available on a drug have the weakest effect, while the cost‐benefit ratio of a drug has a moderate effect. The drug's brand and its related advertising have the strongest effect.

Practical implications

The results demonstrate the success of specific applications of advertising tools and brand construction in pharmaceutical marketing strategies targeting Brazilian physicians.

Originality/value

The study provides a broad map to understand the influences on drug prescriptions. Despite a prior study that found the behavior of physicians to be impacted by a different set of factors, this new research clearly shows that, in the Brazilian context, branding and advertising remain the major influences.
Prescription loyalty behavior of physicians: an empirical study in India
Authors: Abdul Waheed Kareem , Jaleel Mohammad , Laeequddin Mohammed
Published: November 2011

Purpose

This paper seeks to empirically identify the major factors that influence physician loyalty behavior in prescribing certain brands of drugs.

Design/methodology/approach

Testable hypotheses were developed with respect to physician loyalty behavior regarding drug prescription practices, and a survey questionnaire was designed to capture the data from 71 physicians, as a convenience sample. The hypotheses were tested by PLS path modeling.

Findings

The major finding is that tangible rewards to physicians by the pharmaceutical companies lead to prescription loyalty. The second major finding is that the professional values of pharmaceutical sales representatives (PSR) impact significantly on physician prescription loyalty. The hypotheses related to the impact of PSR personality, drug quality, corporate reputation and professional influence on prescription loyalty were not supported in the study.

Practical implications

The results should prove useful to pharmaceutical companies in developing physician loyalty to particular brands as well as enhancing the understanding of drug control authorities and governmental health policy makers, in controlling unethical medical practices by physicians.

Originality/value

This paper reports an original empirical study on physician loyalty behavior in the context of drug prescription.
The research on Chinese ancient management philosophies' similarities with contemporary human resources management thoughts
Authors: Kong Dong , Zhang JunJie
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Established on the detailed exploration of Chinese ancient management philosophies (CAMPs), the purpose of this paper is to extract enlightenments from CAMPs to see whether there exist some similarities between CAMPs and contemporary human resources management thoughts (CHRMTs) and pinpoint CAMPs' implications on human resource management practices nowadays.

Design/methodology/approach

Inspired by Lao Tzu's “When we can lay hold of the Dao of old to direct the things of the present day, and are able to know it as it was of old in the beginning, this is called (unwinding) the clue of Dao”, the paper explores, categorizes and integrates wisdom stemmed from CAMPs to evaluate whether there exist some commonly accepted arguments between CAMPs and CHRMTs.

Findings

CAMPs which have been passed on by generations for the past 2,500 years in China provide firm ground for human resources management thoughts and practices development; CAMPs' emphasis on people's well cultured morality and highly developed virtues has kindled a light to illuminate human resources management practices, not only in the past but also in the future. CHRMTs' principles concerning “people‐centered strategies”, employee recruitment and selection strategies, employee training and education strategies, staffing as well as employee retention strategies, can all trace their sources from CAMPs.

Originality/value

The research on CAMPs is not only significant to complement and extend CHRMTs but also useful to direct current human resource management practices.
Implications of I Ching on innovation management
Authors: Yuduo Lu , Yi Qian , Donghua Wang , Yao Lu
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The discriminative thinking that Chinese entrepreneurs are weak in innovations is widespread. But market competition, which is the main drive for innovations, has been introduced to post‐planning‐economy China for only 30 years or so, and China has only ten years' experience in modern global competition after her entry into the WTO in 2001. Who can say China will not be as innovative as today's advanced counterparts? The purpose of this paper is to explore the possible internal consistencies between one traditional Chinese philosophy, I Ching and modern Western innovation management science. The authors also empirically test the relations between I Ching tradition and innovation performances using cross country data.

Design/methodology/approach

First, the authors textually analyzed the consistencies between the book of I Ching and Western innovation management principles, then with that in mind collected cross‐country panel data and tested the hypotheses empirically.

Findings

It is found that the philosophies embedded in I Ching could be applied to Western innovation management practices, and cross‐country empirical analysis shows that countries with I Ching tradition achieve better innovation performances, ceteris paribus.

Research limitations/implications

Macro country‐level data were used to test the hypotheses instead of using micro firm‐level survey data. Because the macro data were not collected purposefully for this research, i.e. the authors only borrowed rather than collected the data, perhaps the persuasiveness of the empirical results will be weakened. The authors' future researches in this regard will be based on survey data.

Practical implications

Chinese entrepreneurs should have the confidence that Chinese ancient wisdoms are their strength rather than weakness in innovation activities.

Originality/value

The paper is pioneering in consciously combining I Ching philosophy with Western innovation management sciences. With this kind of synthesis, the paper constitutes a Chinese friendly road map for entrepreneurs to build innovation organizations.
Empirical study on the human‐nature view of Chinese enterprise managers
Authors: Zhi Li , Jianling Li , Nan Zhao , Zhangli Luo
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to construct the structure of Chinese enterprise managers' human‐nature view with Chinese characteristics, and also to make comparison analysis on human‐nature views of managers from different types of enterprises, and between managers and ordinary employees. Finally, this paper proposes some human resource management (HRM) suggestions for enterprises in China.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper constructs Chinese enterprise managers' humanity view model with Chinese characteristics. First, relevant studies about humanity assumptions from both China and the West are reviewed, followed by the hypotheses of this study. Then, the study adopts the self‐compiled enterprise managers' humanity view questionnaire (EMHVQ), together with interviews, to study managers' views on humanity in Chinese background.

Findings

The humanity view of Chinese enterprise managers has its uniqueness. Its structure is first level with two factors and second level with ten factors, an organic unity of “human complexity” and “human interests”. The two factors of the first level are “human complexity” and “human interests”. The dimension “human complexity” includes seven factors: complexity of human needs, validity of reward and punishment, work competency, groupism of behaviors, positivity of attitudes, contingency of management and influence of interpersonal relations; the dimension “human interests” includes three factors: driving function of profits, evasion of responsibility and dependency of incentives. Remarkable differences exist in humanity views among managers from different types of enterprises and between managers and ordinary employees, which will exert great influence on the management style of enterprises in China.

Originality/value

Both in China and the West, few scholars or experts adopt empirical research to construct the structure of managers' humanity‐view model specifically based on China's cultural background. This paper not only contributes to the further development of this field, but also provides valuable suggestions for HRM, both for China and the rest of the world.
The effect of traditional Chinese fuzzy thinking on human resource practices in mainland China
Authors: Yuan Li , Chia Robert
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of traditional Chinese fuzzy thinking and its particular effects on human resource management (HRM) practices in mainland China.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi‐structured interviews with practising managers and directors of Chinese companies were used to access the tacit message in HR practices cases and to capture the personal stories provided by Chinese managers with rich working experiences on HRM, in order to discover the cultural fundamentals beneath the surface of HR practices and so disclose their underlying significance. The data for the study were collected through in‐depth interviews with 21 top managers and HR managers in Chinese companies about the role of Chinese fuzzy thinking in Chinese HRM practices.

Findings

The results show that in HRM practices, the principle of Zhongyong significantly affects: preference in recruitment and selection practices; the preferred way of communication and negotiation; the relationship between superiors and subordinates and the relationship among employees; and the leadership styles.

Research limitations/implications

The research limitation mainly lies in an insufficient sample size, undivided geographical area and inadequate classification of the Chinese enterprises.

Originality/value

This is the first paper of its kind to empirically investigate the effect of the ideal of Zhongyong, which the authors claim originates from Chinese traditional fuzzy thinking, on HRM practices in China.
A passion for learning Chinese?
Authors: Akoorie Michèle E.M , Ding Qiang , Li Yafei
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Following the Olympic Games of 2008 and the World Expo in 2010, many Westerners have increasingly begun to pay attention to China; a country which combines ancient history with modern economic achievements. As a consequence there has been renewed interest in the West in learning about Chinese language and culture. Confucius education schools have even begun to spring up round the world, with the intention of promoting interest in Chinese language and cultural influences. The purpose of this paper is to focus on a community‐based Chinese culture education institution, in a provincial city in New Zealand, to understand the issues and risks of operating a cross‐cultural education institution business in a foreign country which is physically distant from China and to identify barriers which need to be overcome in order to run such an institution more effectively.

Design/methodology/approach

This research used a single site case study research design. Qualitative in‐depth interviews were used to develop an understanding of the rich, complex and idiosyncratic nature of human phenomena. In total, ten interviews were conducted with the Principal, Board members, teachers, local students of Institute A, students' parents (both Chinese and New Zealand), and institutional “outsiders”.

Findings

It was found that Institute's management team preferred the traditional Chinese educational methods which conflicted with ways used in the local (New Zealand) teaching system. It also found that the current management style conflicts with the professional style of organization management. The management team had a chaotic management and operational style, while lacking basic knowledge of the principles of effective administration concepts.

Practical implications

Identifying the risks and issues associated with the operation of a community‐based cultural education institution outside China will assist managers to understand the potential for cross‐cultural clashes between their belief in the principles of traditional Chinese education systems and the fit with the local culture. The finding of this study, in identifying the specific issues in relation to operational and professional modes of management, should assist managers to put into place an administrative system which is sufficiently flexible to accommodate both perspectives.

Originality/value

Although formerly a bi‐cultural nation, New Zealand has increasingly become a multicultural society. Interest in Chinese language and culture has also been fuelled by New Zealand's shift in immigration policy from 1974 (to a skills based rather than an ethnicity policy). This study is a first attempt to evaluate the efficacy of a Chinese community‐based educational institution in New Zealand.
Concept of strategic planning in electricity distribution business
Authors: Lassila Jukka , Kaipia Tero , Haakana Juha , Partanen Jarmo
Published: November 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to establish a methodological framework to address key issues in electricity distribution network development. The paper defines subtasks in the strategy process and presents key elements in the strategy work and long‐term network planning. The results are illustrated by a case network.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper describes the methodology for cost and reliability analyses in the strategy work. The focus is on techno‐economic feasibility of certain network development technologies in the network strategy and the surveys are linked to economic regulation, specifically to reliability of supply and allowed return. The study addresses the stages of strategic decision making and compilation of investment strategies.

Findings

The strategic planning concept and methods are applicable in practice; the results have proven valuable in the long‐term business development and in discussions with the company owners. Outage costs are an essential element in the economic regulation of the business, reliability being a key driver in network planning.

Research limitations/implications

There is no universal solution to strategic decision making, but each development task is highly case specific. This is due to diverging operating environments and targets set by the company owners; these issues strongly influence the strategy process.

Practical implications

The work illustrates strategic planning in an actual distribution company and shows how the methodology can be applied to the strategic network development. Nevertheless, the results cannot be generalised as such, but each network has to be considered individually.

Originality/value

The proposed concept can be applied to the long‐term development of distribution networks. The results are internationally applicable, yet diverging regulatory models call for specific methodology in each country.
Electricity industry reforms in Thailand: an analysis of productivity
Authors: Wattana Supannika , Sharma Deepak
Published: November 2011

Purpose

In the early 1990s, the Thai government initiated a process of reform of the electricity industry with the argument that such reform would improve the performance of the industry and contribute to enhancing the overall economic prosperity. The purpose of this paper is to examine the veracity of this argument by analysing both the technical and environmental performance of the Thai electricity industry.

Design/methodology/approach

A data envelopment analysis‐based methodology is employed in this study to measure the productivity of the Thai electricity industry, for the period 1980‐2006. This method enables the decomposition of productivity changes into technical and efficiency changes, and hence enables one to determine if changes in productivity are due to electricity reform (efficiency gains) or due to autonomous technological improvements.

Findings

The study reveals that the increase in the productivity of the Thai electricity industry over the period 1980‐2006 was mainly driven by technological improvements and that industry reform has had insignificant impact on productivity. Further, the impacts of electricity reform on the environment appear to be relatively modest – this too was driven by government regulation that supports the use of less environmentally detrimental fuels for electricity generation by the private producers, rather than electricity reform.

Originality/value

The analysis in this paper contributes to the literature on productivity and efficiency, by applying the DEA method to a time series data for a single industry. Additionally, the analysis of environmental performance of the Thai electricity industry – to the best of knowledge of the authors – is the first of its kind for the Thai electricity industry.
Operation and control of BESS using frequency‐linked pricing in real‐time market with high wind penetration
Authors: Chanana Saurabh , Kumar Ashwani
Published: November 2011

Purpose

Recently, many countries have been pushing for a higher share of renewable energy sources, especially wind, in their generation mix. However, the intermittent and uncertain nature of wind power imposes a limit on the extent it can replace the conventional generation resources. In a high wind penetration scenario, the Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) offers a solution to the grid operation problems. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the merits of price‐based operation of BESS in a real‐time market with high wind penetration using frequency‐linked pricing.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors propose a real‐time market in which real‐time prices are based on the grid frequency. A model for real‐time price‐based operation of a conventional generator and a BESS is presented. Simulations for different wind penetration scenarios are carried out on an isolated area test system. Wind speed sequence is generated using composite wind speed model. A simplified model of wind speed to power conversion is adopted to observe the impact of increase in wind power generation on the grid frequency and the real‐time prices.

Findings

The result of simulations show that BESS not only helps in dealing with uncertainty in wind power forecasts, but also reduces the fluctuations in frequency due to wind power's intermittency. Price‐based operation of BESS results in higher operating revenues by discharging it at peak prices and reduces operating costs by charging it at minimum prices.

Social implications

The study helps in achieving the societal goal of replacing fossil fuel generation by environment friendly generation and reducing green house gas emissions.

Originality/value

The novelty of this paper lies in the use of frequency‐linked pricing in real‐time market and proposing a control algorithm for operating BESS using these price signals.