bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Is more really better? Performance measure variety and environmental uncertainty
Authors: Rikhardsson Pall , Wendt Stefan , Arnardóttir Auður Arna , Sigurjónsson Throstur Olaf 
Published: August 2020

PurposeThis paper asks the question of whether more environmental uncertainty affects the design of performance measurement systems in terms of a greater variety of performance measures and whether this leads to more management satisfaction with the performance measurement system and improved firm performance.Design/methodology/approachInformation processing theory is used to frame the hypotheses and findings. A questionnaire was sent to the 300 largest companies in Iceland, where environmental uncertainty has been prevalent.FindingsThe results indicate that increased uncertainty leads to a larger variety of non-financial performance measures, such as customer measures. A positive relationship is found between management satisfaction with the performance measurement system and firm performance. However, the variety of performance measures was not linked to management satisfaction or firm performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe results suggest that managers increase the variety of performance measures when uncertainty increases. However, it is not the variety itself that increases management satisfaction or improves firm performance.Practical implicationsPerformance measurement design is affected by environmental uncertainty. Managers focus on important stakeholder groups such as customers under such conditions and can consult research and practice for the purpose of customer relationship management and customer profitability measurement to improve measurement selection.Originality/valueThis work focusses on performance measurement system design, examining the use of more than 50 different performance measures, and differentiates between small and medium-sized firms and between service and non-service firms.
Knowledge transfer mechanisms in franchise network
Authors: Iddy Judith Jacob 
Published: August 2020

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the use of knowledge transfer (KT) mechanisms in a franchise network.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses qualitative and grounded theory techniques to collect and analyze data from a franchise network based in Africa. This approach enables the triangulation of data from different sources including field visits, observation, interviews and company reports.FindingsThe findings suggest that training is the most preferred mechanisms for transferring localized knowledge. The results highlight the importance of identifying franchisees’ training needs for transferring relevant knowledge according to experience and market profile of franchisees. Additionally, a collaborative environment within the network facilitates the sharing of best practices.Research limitations/implicationsData/insight from Africa in this study provides both theoretical and practical implications. Propositions presented can help advance KT and franchise research.Originality/valueFranchising and knowledge management research in emerging markets especially in Africa is rare. This paper provides valuable insights for understanding KT practices in the African franchise market.
Demystifying the differences in the impact of training and incentives on employee performance: mediating roles of trust and knowledge sharing
Authors: Lee Yuk Ling Angie , Malik Ashish , Rosenberger III Philip J. , Sharma Piyush 
Published: August 2020

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the differences in the mediating roles of trust and knowledge sharing (formal vs informal) in the process by which training and incentives influence organizational performance (sales increase and labor productivity).Design/methodology/approachThe data from an online survey of Senior Managers from 119 firms in Hong Kong’s clothing industry (HKCI) was analyzed using SmartPLS software.FindingsTrust has a stronger mediating impact in the effects of incentives (vs training) on both formal and informal knowledge sharing. Informal (vs formal) knowledge sharing has a stronger mediating impact in the effects of trust on sales increase and labor productivity.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research may consider different dimensions such as knowledge donating and collecting behaviors, as well as motives, such as self-enjoyment, reciprocity or social interaction ties to study knowledge sharing behavior.Practical implicationsThis study shows that incentives are more likely than training to help build a trusting environment in an organization and that informal knowledge sharing has a stronger influence on organizational performance than formal knowledge sharing.Originality/valueThe study’s distinctive contribution is the under-researched context of HKCI for investigating the mediating effects of trust and formal and informal knowledge sharing between ability and motivational practices on performance.
Designing place brand architecture: the potential of a sub-brands strategy
Authors: Zelenskaya Elena , Elkanova Elena 
Published: August 2020

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the problem of place brand architecture. Despite being a well-established research domain in the field of product and services marketing, brand architecture remains an under-explored phenomenon in relation to places. The paper aims to discuss a new approach to a sub-brands strategy that builds on both the supply and the demand sides, and explores the benefits and challenges of the suggested strategy.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper is based on a case study of St Petersburg, Russia, using both secondary and primary data. The primary data consists of in-depth interviews with stakeholders involved in city branding and applies thematic analysis.

Findings
The results demonstrate that place brand architecture helps to design a differentiated system of sub-brands that are customer-focused and reflect the complexity of a place. The paper outlines the benefits (such as, flexibility of the sub-brands strategy and the increased credibility of the brand) and the challenges for strategy implementation (such as, higher promotional expenditure and communication risk and stakeholder misalignment).

Practical implications
This paper will be helpful for place brand and tourism managers who seek to attract new target groups and avoid various problems, such as the overcrowding of popular sights.

Originality/value
While the existing literature on place brand architecture is mainly approached from a geographical perspective, this paper proposes a new target-group-specific approach that incorporates the supply and demand sides.
Executive director remuneration and company performance: panel evidence from South Africa for the years following King III
Authors: Padia Nirupa , Callaghan Chris William 
Published: August 2020

PurposeIn the wake of certain corporate scandals, many stakeholders are questioning if current high levels of executive remuneration, world-wide, are in fact related to company performance. After the implementation of King III in 2010, there has been an expectation that governance has improved in South African companies. If so, empirical testing should find executive remuneration to be positively related to forms of performance that reflect an increase in company value, like Tobin's Q, or return on assets, rather than measures such as total revenue.Design/methodology/approachAgency theory predicts that if executive remuneration is not carefully designed to maximise the value of the company, executive directors will tend to maximise revenue instead. To test this prediction, hand-collected panel data from Johannesburg Stock Exchange company reports are linked to company performance data to test this prediction, across the years 2010–2017, post King III.FindingsResults challenge certain important assumptions. Generalised method of moments tests find total revenue, rather than value added measures of performance such as Tobin's Q or return on assets, to predict executive director remuneration. This is notwithstanding the significance of Tobin's Q in testing based on ordinary least squares. Implications of these findings for the field are derived and discussed.Originality/valueUnique findings suggest that complacency about the relationships between executive director compensation and company performance is unwarranted. In light of a decline in the country's international rankings on the quality of its corporate governance, a renewed focus on the effectiveness of human resource compensation strategy may be necessary in this context.
Sustainability efforts in the fast fashion industry: consumer perception, trust and purchase intention
Authors: Neumann Hannah L. , Martinez Luisa M. , Martinez Luis F. 
Published: August 2020

Purpose
This study aims to test for factors affecting environmental sustainability and purchase intention in the fashion industry. Accordingly, the authors developed a framework that depicts the relationships between perceptions of social responsibility, consumer attitude, trust, purchase intention and perceived consumer effectiveness.

Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was conducted with an internationally diverse sample of 216 consumers. Data were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling.

Findings
The results indicated that perceptions of social responsibility directly affect consumers’ attitudes towards these fashion brands, as well as trust and perceived consumer effectiveness. Also, consumers need to perceive sustainability efforts of these brands as altruistic, and trust was found to be a direct predictor of purchase intention. However, both consumer attitude and perceived consumer effectiveness did not predict purchase intention.

Research limitations/implications
The survey was primarily distributed to young people. Therefore, a generalisation of the findings to other age groups might be limited.

Practical implications
Practicing managers should emphasise the fact that environmental sustainability and fast fashion brands could be sustainable to increase trust among consumers.

Social implications
When it comes to environmental issues, positive perceptions regarding the companies’ social responsibility efforts are vital to enhance both consumers’ trust towards the brands and their individual feeling of empowerment.

Originality/value
This study intends to shed light on the key elements that shape consumers’ attitudes and willingness to purchase green apparel.
Perceptions of HPWS and performance: cross-level effects of team psychological contracts
Authors: Schreuder Frits , Schalk René , Batistič Sasa 
Published: August 2020

PurposeThis present study aims to examine how experiences of high-performance work systems (HPWS) in work teams affect employee’s work attitudes and performance. At the team level, the study explored the role of supervisory support in the relationship experienced HPWS -team performance. In explaining employee attitudes and behaviours at the individual level, such as organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB), the study adopted a psychological contract approach.Design/methodology/approachThe moderating role of supervisory support was investigated at the team level while exploring mediation effects of psychological contract beliefs in work teams in cross-level relationships with individual attitudes and behaviours.FindingsResults indicate partial mediation of fulfilment of psychological contracts in work teams in the experienced HPWS-OCB relationship. At the team level, supervisory support perceptions moderate the effects of shared experiences of HPWS on product and service innovation in work teams.Originality/valueThe focus on the employee perspective of HPWS, the factor-analytic approach of measuring HPWS experiences and the role of team psychological contracts in employee attitudes and behaviours represent the main contributions of this study to HR research.
An investigation of knowledge protection practices in inter-organisational collaboration: protecting specialised engineering knowledge with a practice based on grey-box modelling
Authors: Kaiser Rene , Thalmann Stefan , Pammer-Schindler Viktoria 
Published: August 2020

Purpose
This paper aims to report an interview study investigating knowledge protection practices in a collaborative research and innovation project centred around the semi-conductor industry. The authors explore which and how knowledge protection practices are applied and zoom in on a particular one to investigate the perspective of three stakeholders which collaborate: the SUPPLIER of a specialised machine, the APPLIER of this machine and a SCHOLAR who collaborates with both, in an effort to develop a grey-box model of the machine and its operation.

Design/methodology/approach
A total of 33 interviews have been conducted in two rounds: 30 interviews explore knowledge protection practices applied across a large project. Qualitative content analysis is applied to determine practices not well covered by the research community. A total of three follow-up interviews inspect one specific collaboration case of three partners. Quotes from all interviews are used to illustrate the participants’ viewpoints and motivation.

Findings
SCHOLAR and APPLIER communicate using a data-centric knowledge protection practice, in that concrete parameter values are sensitive and hidden by communicating data within a wider parameter range. This practice balances the benefit that all three stakeholders have from communicating about specifics of machine design and operations. The grey-box model combines engineering knowledge of both SUPPLIER and APPLIER.

Practical implications
The line of thought described in this study is applicable to comparable collaboration constellations of a SUPPLIER of a machine, an APPLIER of a machine and a SCHOLAR who analyses and draws insights out of data.

Originality/value
The paper fills a research gap by reporting on applied knowledge protection practices and characterising a data-centric knowledge protection practice around a grey-box model.
Optimization of machining parameters when machining beyond recommended cutting speed
Authors: Kaladhar M. 
Published: August 2020

Purpose
Even though austenitic stainless steels have been extensively used in industries, owing to some of the characteristics of the material, its performance in machining is difficult to understand, in particular at high cutting speeds. There is no availability of dependable and in-depth studies pertinent to this matter. In this work, performance of AISI 304 austenitic stainless steel was studied in terms of surface roughness (Ra) and material removal rate (MRR) at high cutting speeds. Subsequently, parametric optimization and prediction for responses were carried out.

Design/methodology/approach
Turning operations were conducted using L9 orthogonal array and the outcomes were analyzed to attain optimal set of machining parameters for the responses using signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio and Pareto analysis of variance (ANOVA). In the present work, the cutting speed values were considered beyond the recommended range as designated by tool manufacturers. Finally, multiple regression models were developed to predict responses.

Findings
From the results, 350 m/min was found to be a significant speed. The investigation reveals that even though the speeds are taken beyond the recommended values, the results are favorable. The optimal machining parameters values for surface quality obtained were cutting speed of 350 m/min, feed of 0.15 mm/rev and depth of cut of 2.0 mm. In case of MRR, the optimal values were: cutting speed of 400 m/min, feed of 0.25 mm/rev and depth of cut of 2.0 mm. It was found out that there was an improvement in Ra and MRR (around 15 and 4%) due to optimization. The results indicate that Pareto ANOVA is easier than S/N ratio. This revealed that the feed rate and depth of cut were mostly affected parameters for Ra and MRR. The developed models are capable of predicting the responses accurately.

Practical implications
The outcome of the work reveals that even though the speeds were taken beyond the recommended value, the results are favorable for manufacturing industries when the tool cost is considered insignificant.

Originality/value
No work was reported on machining of the chosen material beyond the recommended cutting speed. Moreover, it was observed from the past works that cutting speeds were limited to 100–300 m/min.
Maladaptive migration behaviour in hybrids links to predator‐mediated ecological selection
Authors: Pärssinen Varpu , Hulthén Kaj , Brönmark Christer , Skov Christian , Brodersen Jakob , Baktoft Henrik , Chapman Ben B. , Hansson Lars‐Anders , Nilsson Per Anders 
Published: August 2020

Abstract

Different migratory species have evolved distinct migratory characteristics that improve fitness in their particular ecological niches. However, when such species hybridize, migratory traits from parental species can combine maladaptively and cause hybrids to fall between parental fitness peaks, with potential consequences for hybrid viability and species integrity.

Here, we take advantage of a natural cross‐breeding incident to study migratory behaviour in naturally occurring hybrids as well as in their parental species and explore links between migratory traits and predation risk.

To achieve this, we used electronic tags and passive telemetry to record detailed individual migration patterns (timing and number of migratory trips) in two common freshwater fish species, roach Rutilus rutilus, common bream Abramis brama as well as their hybrids. Next, we scanned for tags regurgitated by a key avian predator (great cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo) at nearby roosting sites, allowing us to directly link migratory behaviour to predation risk in the wild.

We found that hybrid individuals showed a higher number of short, multi‐trip movements between lake and stream habitats as compared to both parental species. The mean date of first lake departure differed between bream and roach by more than 10 days, while hybrids departed in two distinct peaks that overlapped with the parental species' averages. Moreover, the probability of cormorant predation increased with multi‐trip movement frequency across species and was higher for hybrids.

Our data provide novel insights into hybrid viability, with links to predator‐mediated ecological selection. Increased exposure to predators via maladaptive migratory behaviour reduces hybrid survival and can thereby reinforce species integrity.
Effects of spatial distances on the assemblage dissimilarity of macroinvertebrates with different dispersal pathways and abilities in southern Brazilian streams
Authors: Kotzian Carla Bender , Pires Mateus Marques , Hepp Luiz Ubiratan 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThe magnitude of distance–decay relationships (DDRs) in stream macroinvertebrates can vary with their preferential dispersal pathways (overland and watercourse) and abilities as well as with environmental dissimilarity. We assessed DDRs in the compositional dissimilarity of macroinvertebrate assemblages in southern Brazilian streams using overland and watercourse distances (WD) as explanatory variables. We conducted additional separate assessments for taxonomic groups and according to a classification that took into account differences in the dispersal abilities and main pathways among macroinvertebrates. Assessments were conducted separately for (a) strong‐flying insects with overland dispersal (Anisoptera), (b) weak‐flying insects dispersing preferably through riparian corridors (Chironomidae, Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera and Zygoptera), and (c) watercourse dispersers (Mollusca, Psephenidae and Elmidae). The environmental dissimilarity associated with spatial extent was accounted for via partial Mantel tests. Overland and WD were positively correlated with the dissimilarity of the total macroinvertebrate assemblage, weak‐flying insects, watercourse dispersers, and most taxonomic groups. DDRs were stronger with overland than WD. However, no consistent pattern emerged after accounting for environmental dissimilarity. Strong‐ and weak‐flying insects were correlated with environment, while watercourse dispersers, with geographic distances. Additionally, taxonomic groups were differently related with environment and geographic distances. The distinct responses of each taxonomic group to the environmental specificities of the study area such as substrate composition and land use likely explain the observed results. Thus, our findings indicate that combining taxonomic and natural history information is an effective approach for comprehending the underlying mechanisms generating spatial structure in stream macroinvertebrate assemblages.
Species interaction: Revisiting its terminology and concept
Authors: Nakazawa Takefumi 
Published: August 2020

AbstractTerminology can profoundly influence scientific research. Here, I discuss the term “species interaction,” which constitutes the core of ecology. The term has the merits of underlying many fundamental ecological ideas (e.g., competitive exclusion, trophic cascade and keystone predation) and making ecological research more interdisciplinary (e.g., biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management). Meanwhile, it has the demerits of causing problems of synonymy and polysemy, masking the fact that interactions occur at the individual level, and reinforcing the counterfactual view that an ecological community is a network of interactions between homogeneous species. This means that the facile use of the term may impede our understanding of community dynamics, which is a great concern considering recent evidence that individual heterogeneity is ubiquitous (e.g., due to ontogeny, sex and genotype) and crucial for community dynamics. To further extend the debate, I present some prospective scenarios in which future research trends may affect the importance of the terminological debate. For example, the term may obtain other definitions due to the establishment of new analytical techniques (e.g., DNA metabarcoding and causation analysis), or the debate may become obsolete if a consensus is reached that interactions occur between individuals (i.e., a paradigm shift). These arguments indicate that how we can use the term depends on how we view interactions between organisms. I suggest that multifaceted approaches that consider not only the terminology but also its associated concept and relevant research methodology are needed to overcome the issues of such ambiguous terminology and guide the future development of ecology.
Resistance to serine in Bacillus subtilis: identification of the serine transporter YbeC and of a metabolic network that links serine and threonine metabolism
Authors: Klewing Anika , Koo Byoung‐Mo , Krüger Larissa , Poehlein Anja , Reuß Daniel , Daniel Rolf , Gross Carol A. , Stülke Jörg 
Published: August 2020

SummaryThe Gram‐positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis uses serine not only as a building block for proteins but also as an important precursor in many anabolic reactions. Moreover, a lack of serine results in the initiation of biofilm formation. However, excess serine inhibits the growth of B. subtilis. To unravel the underlying mechanisms, we isolated suppressor mutants that can tolerate toxic serine concentrations by three targeted and non‐targeted genome‐wide screens. All screens as well as genetic complementation in Escherichia coli identified the so far uncharacterized permease YbeC as the major serine transporter of B. subtilis. In addition to YbeC, the threonine transporters BcaP and YbxG make minor contributions to serine uptake. A strain lacking these three transporters was able to tolerate 100 mM serine whereas the wild type strain was already inhibited by 1 mM of the amino acid. The screen for serine‐resistant mutants also identified mutations that result in increased serine degradation and in increased expression of threonine biosynthetic enzymes suggesting that serine toxicity results from interference with threonine biosynthesis.