bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Exploring the role of structural holes in learning: an empirical study of Swedish pharmacies
Authors: Di Vincenzo Fausto , Hemphälä Jens , Magnusson Mats , Mascia Daniele 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThere is a lack of studies investigating the role of the structural configuration of social capital – more specifically, structural holes – for employees' individual learning. The objective of this paper is to address this gap in the literature, ultimately enhancing understanding of the link between the structural configuration of social capital and individual learning.Design/methodology/approachAn online questionnaire survey was administered to employees affiliated to 22 pharmacies in Sweden to gather attributional and relational data on the individual level. Social network analysis techniques were used to describe salient structural characteristics of individuals' social capital. The impact of social capital on individual learning was explored through ordinal logistic regression models based on maximum likelihood estimations.FindingsThe presence of structural holes initially increases the degree of individual learning, then reaches a maximum and begins to gradually decrease.Practical implicationsThe results of the study provide valuable input for the development and management of networks within firms, in order to improve learning and innovation. In addition, given the close proximity between learning, as conceptualized in this study, and other job attitudes, human resource management practices in general could benefit greatly from the results.Originality/valueIn this paper, the authors focus on the structural configuration of social capital, more specifically structural holes, and its inter‐relationship with learning. Although prior literature has analyzed various beneficial effects of social capital, this study is the first of its kind to investigate the role of the structural configuration of the social capital for employees' individual learning.
Knowledge sharing motivational factors of using an intra‐organizational social media platform
Authors: Vuori Vilma , Okkonen Jussi 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThis paper aims to discuss the motivational factors affecting the knowledge sharing through an intra‐organizational social media platform and to answer the following research questions: “What motivates employees to share their knowledge through an intra‐organizational social media platform?”; “What impedes them sharing knowledge this way?”; and “Do these factors differ from those motivational factors regarding knowledge sharing in general?”.Design/methodology/approachThe paper approaches the issue from both theoretical and empirical viewpoints. The motivational factors regarding knowledge sharing in general are summed up from literature. The social media platform perspective to the issue is studied by conducting a survey in two companies.FindingsThe results reveal that the motivation to share knowledge through an intra‐organizational social media platform is the desire to help the organization reach its goals and helping colleagues, while financial rewards and advancing one's career were seen as least motivating. The key issues enabling the success of using a collaborative intra‐organizational social media platform in knowledge sharing are in line with the general knowledge sharing motivational factors, although supplemented with some additional features: reciprocity in knowledge sharing, making every‐day work easier and faster and ease of use are the key factors that make or break the success.Originality/valueThe empirical study reveals what motivates and impedes the employees of the companies to share knowledge via an intra‐organizational social media platform. The results are discussed in the light of those from earlier research about general knowledge sharing motivational factors.
Knowledge creation and inter‐organizational relationships: the development of innovation in the railway industry
Authors: Pezzillo Iacono Mario , Martinez Marcello , Mangia Gianluigi , Galdiero Caterina 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe main purpose of the paper is to explore the relationship between the design of inter‐organizational connections, the processes for knowledge creation and transfer, and innovation. The study aims to focus on the partnership between Firema, a medium‐large Italian company in the rail industry sector, and TEST, a research consortium.Design/methodology/approachThe coordination model defining the cooperative relationship is interpreted in the temporary project network (TPN) framework. In applying the methodology of case study analysis, a semi‐structured in‐depth interview was used as a tool and, in particular, interviews aimed at privileged observers.FindingsTEST, acting as a meta‐organizer, has the crucial role of organizing, governing and tuning the network of university departments, in synergy with Firema. The analysis draws attention to the possibility that TPNs are embedded in “latent networks”, in which inter‐organizational ties are routinely activated in order to accomplish a specific project.Practical implicationsThe authors provide a pragmatic description of the TPN‐related innovation activities and this may be valuable for managers and/or policy makers who wish to know about best practices in organizing networks directed to innovation. Practical considerations and methods that increase knowledge transfer while minimizing inter‐organizational coordination costs are explored.Originality/valueThis study was able to expand the understanding of TPNs in two respects. First, only a few studies have adopted the TPN framework to investigate the inter‐organizational coordination mechanisms among small or medium organizations. Second, the findings related to the TPN structural properties – time, team, task and context – deviate from how some have framed the ideal type TPN as in most senses unique, solving one‐off tasks between relative strangers.
The entrepreneurial marketing domain: a citation and co‐citation analysis
Authors: Kraus Sascha , Filser Matthias , Eggers Fabian , Hills Gerald E. , Hultman Claes M. 
Published: July 2012

PurposeEntrepreneurial marketing (EM) is at the brink of becoming an established discipline. To advance the field further and to better guide research efforts in different sub categories, the purpose of this paper is to examine the field's intellectual structure with the help of citation and co‐citation analysis.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is based on a two‐stage research design. First a citation analysis is carried out through which thematic clusters are identified. In a second step a co‐citation analysis is conducted to determine the intellectual structure of EM research.FindingsThis study exposes the most influential authors and publications and emphasizes conjunctions among scholars and their findings. Results show three streams that are the foundation of EM research: theoretical foundations of management, entrepreneurship, and marketing; the research interface of marketing and entrepreneurship; SME and new venture marketing.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of a bibliometric analysis are limited by the publications that have been selected as a starting point. However, through the selection criteria chosen to identify the database for analysis, the authors are confident that the results illustrate the intellectual structure of EM research in its entirety. The authors recommend that future research should be conducted in one of the three sub‐fields identified in this study.Practical implicationsBy laying out different research streams within EM it is hoped that future research will be guided in different directions. “Fine‐tuning” of research efforts will benefit small, new, and entrepreneurial firms.Originality/valueThe analyses conducted in this paper draw a picture of the field that is based on a quantitative approach and therefore sets itself apart from other literature reviews that have a qualitative core.
Entrepreneurial marketing in SMEs: the key capabilities of e‐CRM
Authors: Harrigan Paul , Ramsey Elaine , Ibbotson Patrick 
Published: July 2012

PurposeEntrepreneurial marketing in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) is very different to marketing prescribed theoretically for large organisations. The purpose of this paper is to present research evidence on the impact of internet‐based technologies (IBTs) on the customer relationship management (CRM) activities (i.e. e‐CRM) of SMEs in Ireland.Design/methodology/approachA mixed methods approach incorporating an online questionnaire, qualitative in‐depth interviews and projective techniques was adopted. Factor analysis was carried out on 286 respondents, which led to communication with customers and the management of customer information being distilled as key areas within e‐CRM in SMEs.FindingsTo varying extents, SMEs are adopting relatively simple IBTs to improve customer communication and information management capabilities and to create competitive advantage through e‐CRM. SMEs find the communication aspect of e‐CRM easier, but struggle to integrate customer information into their decision making. In all, e‐CRM tends to be ad hoc rather than strategic in SMEs.Practical implicationsSMEs must use technologies to compete with larger organisations in today's global marketplace. These technologies may be relatively simple, but the focus must always be on how they can impact on the relationship with the customer making it more efficient without losing effectiveness.Originality/valueThis study, by reporting how SMEs innovate in marketing, sheds light on an important theoretical and practical area. Theoretically, the paper breaks down e‐CRM into key capabilities that may apply to larger organisations as well.
Creative industries: aligning entrepreneurial orientation and innovation capacity
Authors: Parkman Ian D. , Holloway Samuel S. , Sebastiao Helder 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation, innovation capacity, and firm performance in the creative industries context.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses a survey‐based empirical analysis.FindingsInnovation capacity mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and two different measures of firm performance in the creative industries.Research limitations/implicationsThese results suggest that success in the creative industries requires significant alignment between the entrepreneurial management and creative capabilities of the firm. Firms must identify unique opportunities to exploit that will foster and best leverage their creative competencies.Originality/valueIn addition to providing initial insight on the relationship between entrepreneurial action, innovative capacity, and performance with the creative industries, the paper also is one of the first on the creative industries to focus on firm‐level strategy.
Exploiting the concept of a manufacturing system part IV
Authors: Parnaby John , Towill Denis R. 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe in detail how “process knowledge worker” based task forces can enable effective business process improvement (BPI). This successful methodology involves innovation (I), action learning (AL), and extends throughout the organisation (O). The authors show that the resultant IALO is a repeatable and transferable approach to sustainable business performance enhancement; also that IALO adequately covers “Senge's many faces” as identified by Ortenblad and enables effective change built on “best practice” business process systems engineering.Design/methodology/approachIALO has evolved over a significant time span traceable back to, and exploiting the “Concept of a Manufacturing System”. What is described in the paper is the proven working format, best procedures, and evidence of effective change. It has been embedded in appropriate systems epistemology and learning organisation literature to form a comprehensive contribution to knowledge of practical business process improvement.FindingsThis IALO has proven transferability across a wide geographical and market sector. To date the methodology has always had continuity via central engineering expertise available in an advisory capacity (as frequently happens with Toyota Production Systems specialists). This particular IALO has yet to be extensively tested outside such a scenario.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper provides one proven evolutionary and experiential route to actual implementation of an effective learning organisation capable of delivering substantially improved core business process performance. It thus provides a comprehensive framework against which future alternative approaches may be assessed.Practical implicationsExploiting task force execution via IALO requires active (not passive) support and resourcing at all levels in the enterprise. To ensure that adequate expertise in business process systems engineering is available, smaller organisations can be grouped together in club‐style configurations.Originality/valueIt has been previously shown in JMTM how a conceptual flow model of a business may be transposed into an integrated process methodology to engineer effective and sustainable business change. What is novel herein is the further transition into an active and effective IALO.
A critical review of empirical research methodology in supply chain management
Authors: Soni Gunjan , Kodali Rambabu 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review the extant literature on empirical research in supply chain management (SCM). It provides a comprehensive assessment of research methodology of 619 empirical research articles on SCM published between 1994 and 2009. In total, 21 journals were short listed out of 115 journals for the purpose.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviewed a set of 619 empirical research articles in SCM research with respect to empirical research methodology and its related aspects, using the empirical research approach given by Flynnet al.The paper demonstrates the present status of empirical research in SCM.FindingsIt is concluded from the analysis of the results that empirical research in SCM is increasing at a faster rate than ever, with theory building more in focus than verification. On the other hand, SCM researchers seems to have left several aspects of empirical research unexplored, such as action research, significance of triangulation of data and longitudinal data collection. Other significant findings revealed that SCM research is very scanty in developing countries, the majority of research papers are written at firm level only and several industrial sectors such as construction, retail, and agriculture are still unexamined.Originality/valueThere have been a couple of literature reviews in SCM but none of them focused exclusively on empirical research methodology in SCM. Also the sample size with respect to the number of papers (619 papers), as well as number of journals (21 journals), is larger than ever considered for literature review in SCM. The papers spans a longer time period of 16 years (1994‐2009).
What uncertainty?
Authors: Catulli Maurizio 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to follow a paper by Rexfelt and Hiort af Ornäs published in JMTM in 2009, which dealt with consumer acceptance of product service systems (PSS). This topic is important as it is a sustainable business model. It is proposed that the uncertainty consumers have towards the suitability of PSS to their needs can be further explored using existing management tools such as SERVQUAL, a tool to measure customer satisfaction and perceived quality.Design/methodology/approachThis study, supported by the British Academy, utilized qualitative research on two types of respondents: businesses that can be classified eco‐efficient PSS providers; and consumers. The providers were administered structured in‐depth interviews, and the respondents are Mr Chas Ball, Director of Policy at Car Plus, a trade association representing car clubs, and Mr Jonathan Hampson, Director of Streetcar, the largest car club company. Car clubs may be considered a type of eco‐efficient PSS. Consumers were involved in four focus groups (20 participants in total). The questioning route used in the two focus groups focused the attention of the participants on two types of eco‐efficient PSS provision: one represented by car‐sharing services, such as the ones provided by City Car Club and Street Car, mentioned in section 2; the other was an hypothetical provision of a bundle of maternity equipment and services, such as baby prams, baby car seats, travel cots and similar. The inclusion of this “hypothetical” provision was inspired by a study conducted in Sweden by Mont et al.FindingsConsumers are favourable to PSS provisions in principle; however they have concerns on whether this type of provision will live up to their expectations. These concerns are that the PSS might not perform satisfactorily in terms of its assurance, reliability, responsiveness, empathy and tangible components. The attractive aspect of PSS to consumers is as a “bundle” or products and services where the product can be replaced to accommodate consumers' needs. Business managers and policy makers will need to devise communications to reassure consumers that PSS provision meets the requirements set out by the SERVQUAL scale.Originality/valueThis paper identifies the applicability of a service quality measurement tool, SERVQUAL, to product service systems (PSS) and it extends the knowledge on consumers' acceptance of PSS.
Improving “last mile” delivery performance to retailers in hub and spoke distribution systems
Authors: Greasley Andrew , Assi Anand 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the “last mile” delivery link between a hub and spoke distribution system and its customers. The proportion of retail, as opposed to non‐retail (trade) customers using this type of distribution system has been growing in the UK. The paper shows the applicability of simulation to demonstrate changes in overall delivery policy to these customers.Design/methodology/approachA case‐based research method was chosen with the aim to provide an exemplar of practice and test the proposition that simulation can be used as a tool to investigate changes in delivery policy.FindingsThe results indicate the potential improvement in delivery performance, specifically in meeting timed delivery performance, that could be made by having separate retail and non‐retail delivery runs from the spoke terminal to the customer.Research limitations/implicationsThe simulation study does not attempt to generate a vehicle routing schedule but demonstrates the effects of a change on delivery performance when comparing delivery policies.Practical implicationsScheduling and spreadsheet software are widely used and provide useful assistance in the design of delivery runs and the allocation of staff to those delivery runs. This paper demonstrates to managers the usefulness of investigating the efficacy of current design rules and presents simulation as a suitable tool for this analysis.Originality/valueA simulation model is used in a novel application to test a change in delivery policy in response to a changing delivery profile of increased retail deliveries.
Evaluation of alternative assembly line arrangements with stochastic operation times
Authors: Das Biman , Garcia‐Diaz Alberto , MacDonald Corinne A. , Ghoshal Kalyan K. 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a computer simulation model to evaluate increasing versus decreasing mean operation times assembly line arrangement for normal and exponential distributions and the variances equal to 1 and 16.Design/methodology/approachThe model was developed on the basis of a realistic case problem and applied to a six‐station assembly line. The evaluation criteria were: the minimization of the total elapsed time; the maximization of the average percentage of working time; and the minimization of the average time in the system.FindingsThe increasing mean operation times line arrangement is superior to the decreasing mean operation times line arrangement for the normal and exponential distributions and the variances equal to 1 and 16, in terms of the total elapsed time and the average percentage of the working time evaluation criteria. The decreasing mean operation times lines is marginally superior to the increasing operation times line for the normal distribution for the variances equal to 1 and 16, in terms of the average time in the system evaluation criterion. The above inference can be made for the exponential distribution for the variance 16, but no definitive conclusion can be made for the variance 1. Overall, the increasing mean operation times line arrangement has proven to be superior to the decreasing operation times line arrangement for both the stated distributions and variances, in terms of the important evaluation criteria.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the computer simulation approach to solving assembly line problems that deal with the impact of normally and exponentially distributed operation times, with variances equal to 1 and 16, on the increasing and decreasing mean operation times assembly line arrangements.
Trust in buyer‐supplier relationships
Authors: Ian Stuart F. , Verville Jacques , Taskin Nazim 
Published: July 2012

PurposeDespite the extensive body of research on the relationship between trust and performance in a supply chain environment, the concepts and the relationship between them has not been fully understood. The purpose of this paper is to develop a model that links the antecedents of trust, trust itself and firm outcome success.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire survey was conducted to gather the data for this study. Statistical analysis included factor analysis with reliability and validity tests, and partial least square of structural equation modeling.FindingsThe data suggest that trust is built principally through supplier centric traditional performance metrics such as delivery reliability and product quality conformance. However, contrary to the extant literature, the people oriented trust enablers (e.g. personnel exchange, interpersonal contacts) have no bearing on the establishment of trust.Research limitations/implicationsThe research limitation is the relatively small sample size. However, this study can be perceived as a directional one for further research.Practical implicationsThe results can be used by the managers to improve their understanding on the relationship with other parties in the supply chain.Originality/valueThe significant value of this research can be retained by buying firm managers. The results are particularly important for them to improve their understanding in how they allocate time and resources in managing their supply chains and partner firms.