bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Remedy or cure for service failure?
Authors: Komunda Mabel , Osarenkhoe Aihie 
Published: February 2012

PurposeThis paper aims to contribute to a growing body of service recovery knowledge by examining the relationship between service recovery, consumer satisfaction and loyalty in a commercial banking environment.Design/methodology/approachA conceptual framework encompassing th\e concepts of service recovery, communication, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in the commercial bank setting is developed. A questionnaire is designed to focus on issues related to efforts made to investigate causes of service failure and to develop recovery strategies that meet customer expectations of how their banks should handle such problems.FindingsResults show that communication had a significant relationship with service recovery and that higher levels of redress independently increase positive consumer responses. The findings also show that the interaction of employee responsiveness and courtesy can also have a positive impact on consumer evaluations. Satisfaction was highest and negative word‐of‐mouth intentions lowest only under conditions of high responsiveness and courtesy.Research limitations/implicationsService recovery is process‐oriented, and does not assess whether the reported problem that led to the actual complaint has been resolved. This aspect of the study opens a number of directions for future research with the goal of increasing the still limited understanding of service recovery issues in commercial banks. To achieve an in‐depth view, a more comprehensive qualitative study that pursues the same research questions may be appropriate.Practical implicationsAn implication is that, when managing complaints related to customer dissatisfaction, the approaches undertaken by service quality leaders should aim to provide just resolutions/fairness in service recovery. This study also provides insight into a company's customer relationship management practices. However, in order to encourage customers to complain directly, a company, if complained to, needs to enhance the perception of a possible outcome.Originality/valueA conceptual framework is developed and used to investigate the relationship between service recovery, consumer satisfaction and loyalty.
Choosing e‐books: a perspective from academic libraries
Authors: Vasileiou Magdalini , Hartley Richard , Rowley Jennifer 
Published: February 2012

PurposeE‐books are an important and growing type of digital resource. Academic libraries have traditionally had a major role in selecting books and making them available to learners, scholars, and researchers. Therefore the processes and criteria that they apply in the selection and acquisition of e‐books may potentially have significant consequences for the future viability of e‐books as a product. This paper aims to report on research into the criteria and processes that academic libraries use to choose e‐books.Design/methodology/approachSemi‐structured interviews were conducted with 27 librarians in seven academic libraries in the UK.FindingsAcademic libraries purchase e‐books from a portfolio of different vendors. In order to select the books and packages that they acquire they apply a number of criteria, including business models, licence, price, platform, interface, subject coverage, and match to reading lists. High on the list of librarians' concerns are: the variation in and complexity of business models for purchasing, licence variety and digital rights management (DRM) restrictions, and perceived high prices.Originality/valueThis study focuses directly and in depth on the buying and selection processes and criteria. Insights offered by this study may be of value to publishers, aggregators and librarians.
Exploring the continuance intentions of consumers for B2C online shopping
Authors: Chen Yen‐Ting , Chou Tsung‐Yu 
Published: February 2012

PurposeLike any product purchases, the success of online shopping depends largely on user satisfaction and other factors that further affect customers' intentions to continue shopping online (continuance intentions). This study seeks to integrate fairness theory with the trust concept to construct a model for investigating consumers' continuance intentions toward online shopping.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey collected data from 226 users with online shopping experience to empirically validate the hypothesised model.FindingsThe results indicate that distributive fairness and interactional fairness exert significant positive effects on customers' satisfaction and trust in vendors. Satisfaction is a strong predictor of the continuance intentions of consumers. However the fact that the relationship between trust in vendors and consumers' continuance intentions is insignificant offers insight into trust: consumers continue shopping online with certain levels of misgiving.Originality/value –The findings suggest that a user's trust in an online vendor can be enhanced by increasing fairness, particularly distributive fairness and interactional fairness. This also implies that an online user's satisfaction and trust are not just related to products: therefore vendors should put effort into the pre‐ and post‐sale experiences.
Internet search tactics
Authors: Smith Alastair G. 
Published: February 2012

PurposeBates' information search tactics have been influential in the practice and teaching of online searching since they were published in 1979. This paper is about using information search tactics to search the internet, and aims to present a set of tactics useful in the practice and teaching of internet searching.Design/methodology/approachTactics used on the internet were gathered from the literature, web sites, and the author's experience of internet searching. These were compared with the information search tactics, and refined into a set of internet search tactics.FindingsThe article presents 34 internet search tactics: 18 of the original Bates tactics, interpreted in the context of the internet, and 16 new tactics. While many of the information search tactics are relevant, effective internet searching requires recognition of the role of relevancy ranking and full text searching in search engines. The uncontrolled nature of the internet means that evaluation of information resources is an integral part of internet searching, so a group of evaluation tactics have been proposed.Practical implicationsThe tactics provide a framework for teaching effective internet searching.Originality/valueBates' information search tactics do not appear to have been applied as a whole to searching the internet. The proposed tactics will be useful for librarians and researchers who need to carry out effective searching on the internet, and for information literacy education. Research into information seeking and search interfaces will be informed by the tactics.
Accelerating leadership performance in the first 100 days
Authors: O'Keeffe Niamh 
Published: February 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to establish how HR professionals can help to accelerate the performance of senior leaders in the first 100 days.Design/methodology/approachThe article begins with an appraisal of how many businesses approach the first 100 days, how resources are allocated and the scope to improve practices in these areas. Subsequently, the article outlines where HR can add value to the first 100 days process, while identifying what the challenges and pitfalls are for new leaders during those early days. The article concludes with an assessment of how to write and implement an effective 100‐day plan that can set the tone for an effective leadership transition, and a case study to outline how performance acceleration in the first 100 days can have an enterprise‐wide impact.FindingsThe article is clear that outside expertise and assistance in the first 100 days form a vital tool for HR practitioners. The case study sets out how the HR director at AppSense used experts in the first 100 days to accelerate the performance of the whole business as it faced the challenge presented by significant growth.Practical implicationsThe article takes a practical, real‐world view on what is achievable internally, and where outside help needs to be brought in to ensure newly appointed leaders get off to an accelerated start. It is based on seven years' experience of First100 consultants working with senior business leaders in global corporations, with findings derived from the challenges and opportunities these leaders have encountered in their first 100 days.Originality/valueThe article takes a practical view on how HR professionals can help to improve new senior leaders' performance in the first 100 days, on what is achievable internally, and where outside help needs to be brought in.
The creation of the Knowledge Zone of Curaçao: the power of a vision
Authors: Goede Miguel , Neuwirth Rostam J. , Louisa G. 
Published: February 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a case study of the creation of a Knowledge Zone (K‐Zone) in Curaçao to provide an insight into how a Knowledge Zone is established. After devising a vision, strategic alliances were formed. This created synergy and momentum, giving the project and process a life of their own.Design/methodology/approachThe project of creating a K‐Zone is based on a theoretical framework which draws upon the notion of a creative class, and how it can be attracted to a specific location. It also deploys change management methodology, which describes how change is implemented. The theory states that creativity will drive the economy in the future and that societies that are able to attract the creative class will excel. It is not clear what attracts the creative class but it is believed that a certain life style, concentrations of peers and virtual and physical connectivity are essential. To create these conditions some changes must be implemented and these changes are often resisted in the beginning.FindingsKnowledge Zones can be created if there is a clear shared vision, leadership and alliances that forge synergies. The project was started in 2010 by the UNA under the presidency of Dr Miguel Goede, the Rector Magnificus of the University of the Netherlands Antilles. With the support of the Board of Supervisors, the UNA entered/sought alliances with the nearby Carmabi Research Institute and the neighbouring school for nurses, which opened a new school building within the designated zone. The UNA also provided the impetus to start a campaign to construct a new hospital that was planned for the area neighbouring the university and to start a school of medicine. But the breakthrough came when the local telecom provider, United Telecommunication Services (UTS), decided to provide the university with dedicated internet connections that were capable of the highest speed available on the island.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to a framework for understanding the creative economy of Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) in the Caribbean and how change can be implemented in these settings.
Prepayment behavior of China's mortgage borrowers: evidence from the loan‐level data
Authors: Li Xiaowei , Kuang Weida 
Published: February 2012

PurposeThere exists a large volume of literature evaluating the mortgage prepayment risk based on the USA's and other developed countries' experiences. With access to detailed loan‐level data provided by a national mortgage lender in China, the purpose of this paper is to revisit the empirical question of the determinants of mortgage prepayment probability.Design/methodology/approachThe paper utilizes unique loan‐level data from a large national residential mortgage lender in China to provide insights into borrowers' prepayment behavior in China under recent market conditions, focusing on the customers' behavior and the segmentation analysis of the prepayment risk.FindingsThe results from a logit model indicate that housing appreciation rate and the stock market performance are important considerations for Chinese borrowers. It was also found that borrowers show the heterogeneous prepayment behavior in different groups. For instance, households who purchase new houses are less sensitive to the LTV ratio. These findings provide empirical support for the risk management in the rapid growing mortgage market in China as well as those in other transitional economies.Research limitations/implicationsBecause of the lack of the literature in the immature mortgage markets, the research results may lack generalizability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further using their own datasets.Practical implicationsThe paper includes implications for policy makers to further strategic decision making using a quantitative framework which has not been fully developed in most of the state‐owned banks in China.Originality/valueThis paper has contributed to the analysis of Chinese mortgage prepayment pattern using a large recent micro‐loan level data set. As mortgage borrowers' behavior can be country specific due to the differences in housing policies and housing market structure, this paper sheds new light on the driver factors determining mortgage prepayment in China's mortgage market.
Turning trash papers into gold
Authors: Tony Yu Fu‐Lai 
Published: February 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how a Chinese entrepreneur, Zhang Yin, exercises international entrepreneurship in her paper recycle business – Nine Dragons Paper company, and has become one of the most successful female business women in the world.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses an in‐depth case study or storytelling approach to explain the economic success of a Chinese female entrepreneur, Zhang Yin and her Nine Dragons Paper company. The illustration of Zhang's global coordination is divided into three parts: first, from Shenzhen, China to Hong Kong; second, from Hong Kong to Los Angeles; and finally, from the USA back to her home country, China.FindingsThis case illustrates and concludes that the business success of a paper recycling enterprise, namely Nine Dragons Paper, is attributable to the global coordination efforts of its founder, Zhang Yin, who is able to identify profit opportunities around the globe. With correct foresight, Zhang Yin is able to overcome cultural barriers, and venture into foreign markets. Her international entrepreneurship and global coordination enable world resources to be allocated in the most efficient way.Research limitations/implicationsAustrian economics, using storytelling approach, can be a very useful tool in interpreting entrepreneurial behavior and business strategies.Practical implicationsThe case provides us with an understanding of how the entrepreneur can earn profit by being alert to opportunities.Originality/valueThe case is the first of its kind to illustrate the international coordination function of a female Chinese entrepreneur and her paper recycle business.
Competing definition of climate change and the post-Kyoto negotiations
Authors: Anne Vlassopoulos Chloé 
Published: February 2012

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to examine the definitional debates linked to climate change and their impact on the policy actors
'
position and on policy content. It is suggested that while discussing about “climate change”, different policy arenas perceive different problems implying different responsibility attributions and different solutions.

Design/methodology/approach
– The study mobilizes different sources, such as regulations, research reports, and scientific papers, combined with personal interviews with international agents participating in the climate policy negotiations process.

Findings
– Initially, climate change has been defined as an environmental degradation problem. Progressively, other competing definitions of the problem occupied the public debate. Alternatively, climate change has been discussed as a development issue, a migration issue and a security issue. The paper argues that while this polyphonic discourse persists, the problem definition process remains unaccomplished, new institutional equilibriums cannot be established and, consequently, policymaking cannot follow.

Practical implications
– By focusing on the different perceptions and debates of the climate issue, this paper points to the conflicts transcending the international arena. This gives policy actors a wider view of the negotiating process in which they are involved.

Originality/value
– Most analyses explain the success or failure of international agreements by pointing to either the presence/lack of governmental compliance or the institutional complexity and need for coordination between enforcement agencies. Less attention is paid to the way public problems are perceived by different policy communities. This paper focuses on the definitional debates accompanying the post-Kyoto negotiations and their impact on the policy making process.
Examining China's science and technology statistics: a systematic perspective
Authors: Fred Simon Denis , Cao Cong 
Published: February 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss the reliability of official Chinese government statistics in general, overview the evolution of China's S&T (science and technology) statistical system while highlighting the main sources of such statistics, point out some of the particular problems related to China's S&T statistics, and provide perspectives about how to best use and interpret these numbers.Design/methodology/approachStatistics of China's human resources in science and technology has been used to illustrate how such S&T statistics should be interpreted.FindingsWhile the S&T data collection involving multiple government ministries causes problems, the interpretation of the data, including reconciling data from different sources and piecing information together, poses challenges to drawing an appropriate and overall picture of the development of S&T in China. In order to achieve a better understanding of China's S&T statistics, student researchers of Chinese science and technology have to comprehend the definitions, exhaust all the sources, and find and recognize discrepancies.Originality/valueThis paper represents the first effort to examine China's S&T statistical system, an important source of information regarding China's S&T development.
Research advancement on intellectual property strategy
Authors: Lau Antonio K.W. , Kong Sandy L.S. , Baark Erik 
Published: February 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review key academic literature on the characteristics of business firms' intellectual property (IP) strategy and to examine the implications for how Chinese firms can deal with today's business environment under the globalization.Design/methodology/approachA selection of peer‐reviewed articles from scholarly journals listed in major academic search engines is reviewed. The search results showed that ProQuest included 509 related articles and ScienceDirect included 121. The abstract of all the articles were reviewed. Finally, 26 articles were identified and comprehensively reviewed. The key characteristics of the role of internal and external contexts for IP strategy development were then analysed in terms of the challenges faced by Chinese firms.FindingsThe results show that IP strategies involve IP identification/generation, valuation, utilization and enforcement. Its effectiveness depends on both internal (i.e. company size, ownership of firms, business strategies and the value of the IP) and external factors (i.e. industry structure, level of competition, and novelty of technology). Given that many Chinese firms are developing new innovative capabilities and need to protect their IP in domestic or international markets, there is a need for these firms to align their emerging IP strategy with future business strategies.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focuses on the IP strategies and management in business organizations, and therefore excludes the articles from law and economics literature.Originality/valueThe paper suggests a conceptual framework and provides managerial implications on IP management at firm level, particularly relevant for Chinese business firms.
Service innovation research in China: past, present and future
Authors: Hua Li Jing 
Published: February 2012

PurposeChina always acts as a large low‐cost manufacturing economy under globalization. However, her services are also active and innovative today although still small. The purpose of this paper is to exhibit the roadmap of service innovation research in China and to predict the future research trend.Design/methodology/approachA literature review was organized under a cross framework – innovation in services, and service innovation with manufacturing. All literature was selected from Chinese academic periodicals and monographs in the last decade. The search keywords include “service innovation”, “knowledge‐intensive business services”, and “new service development”.FindingsThrough the review of Chinese literature, two critical characteristics of service innovation were proved, i.e. organizational innovation and regulation environment; and for China, the marketalization of services is urgent for the motivation and accumulation of service innovation capability.Practical implicationsPolicy makers should take services as significant as manufacturing, and put them into the national and regional innovation systems. Regulation should be reduced to a low level to stimulate service innovation. Government should also encourage the development of the services infrastructure, including social credit system, independent intermediary, grid, and NGOs, etc.Originality/valueThe paper gives an insight into the perspectives of management, sociology, and economics in the service innovation field using the Chinese research track as an illustration.