bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The effects of atmospheric elements on customer impression: the case of hotel lobbies
Authors: Countryman Cary C. , Jang SooCheong 
Published: October 2006

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the atmospheric elements of color, lighting, layout, style, and furnishings that make up the physical environment of a hotel lobby. Previous research indicates that these atmospheric elements impact overall guest perceptions and impressions.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using a scenario approach along with photographs of the hotel lobby. Structural equation modeling was used to analysis the data to determine which of the atmospheric elements were more influential in the overall impression of the hotel lobby.FindingsThree of the atmospheric elements (color, lighting, and style) were found to be significantly related to the overall impression of a hotel lobby. Color was the most significant of these three atmospheric elements.Research limitations/implicationsThe focus of this research was the hotel lobby. While this physical environment is fairly important in helping to establish first impressions, there are other physical spaces within a hotel that have a large influence on guest perceptions and impressions. Hotel practitioners need to understand the importance of the atmospheric elements and their influence on overall guest perceptions and impressions.Originality/valueThis research examines atmospherics from a hospitality and lodging perspective. The topic has received limited research interest in the past but it is becoming recognized as an important consideration in future hotel design and construction. This research helps in establishing a foundation on which future research can be built.
Future global hospitality leaders: a comparison of European and US ethics
Authors: Brymer Robert A. , Wilborn LaChelle R. , Schmidgall Raymond S. 
Published: October 2006

PurposeThe purpose of this research paper is to describe the results and implications of an ethics survey completed by students attending hospitality schools in Europe and the USA.Designmethodology/approachA questionnaire containing ten scenarios with five oriented to work issues and five to school issues was given to students attending hospitality programs in Europe and the USA. For each scenario, the students indicated whether the action in the scenario was ethical, not ethical or not a question of ethics (NQE). In addition, students were queried regarding influences on their ethical beliefs.FindingsThe ethical beliefs of both groups of hospitality students were most influenced by their parents and least influenced by college courses in religion. The majority of European and US hospitality students indicated the actions in the scenarios were not ethical while a moderate minority indicated NQE. Overall, US students appear to be slightly less tolerant than their European counterparts.Research limitations/implicationsThe majority of European students are within their third and fourth years of college while the majority of US students are in their first and second years of study.Originality/valueBoth hospitality executives and students should find these research results most interesting as they reveal students' ethical views in a variety of settings oriented to work and school. Further, influences of the students' ethical beliefs are clearly reported from most to least important.
Operational challenges in the call center industry: a case study and resource‐based framework
Authors: Jack Eric P. , Bedics Tom A. , McCary Charles E. 
Published: October 2006

PurposeThe purpose of this conceptual paper is to examine key operational tradeoffs and challenges that call center managers face.Design/methodology/approachTo support the concepts advanced in this paper, an embedded case study is used from an inbound call center for a regional wireless phone company that operates in the USA. The research involved: a review of available service quality and call center management literature; development of a resource‐based framework to understand key operational tradeoffs; use of a case study approach with structured interviews of key managers and employees; and synthesis of this data in order to understand why and how these managers made key operational tradeoff decisions. The case study was done on an inbound customer service call center for a regional wireless phone company that operates in the Southeastern USA.FindingsThis research suggests that there are four key resource management decisions that must be addressed in order to improve service quality and effectively manage call center operations: the efficient deployment and use of labor, effective leveraging of technology, capacity management, and demand management.Research limitations/implicationsThe use of a single case approach limits the generalizability of results; however, this methodology is effective in providing rich data and a research framework to both build theory and advance future research in this arena.Practical implicationsIt is noteworthy that while technology, capacity management, and demand management systems are essential, labor remains a key differentiator in achieving high service quality. A call center must provide dependable service with knowledgeable, honest, polite and empathetic employees who can efficiently answer customers' questions while also promoting more products and services to improve profitability.Originality/valueWhile this research is primarily conceptual, it also uses a case study to explain why and how managers make key tradeoffs in order to compete effectively on service quality in the call center industry.
A framework for outsourcing IS/IT security services
Authors: Karyda Maria , Mitrou Evangelia , Quirchmayr Gerald 
Published: October 2006

PurposeThis paper seeks to provide an overview of the major technical, organizational and legal issues pertaining to the outsourcing of IS/IT security services.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses a combined socio‐technical approach to explore the different aspects of IS/IT security outsourcing and suggests a framework for accommodating security and privacy requirements that arise in outsourcing arrangements.FindingsData protection requirements are a decisive factor for IS/IT security outsourcing, not only because they pose restrictions to management, but also because security and privacy concerns are commonly cited among the most important concerns prohibiting organizations from IS/IT outsourcing. New emerging trends such as outsourcing in third countries, pose significant new issues, with regard to meeting data protection requirements.Originality/valueThe paper illustrates the reasons for which the outsourcing of IS/IT security needs to be examined under a different perspective from traditional IS/IT outsourcing. It focuses on the specific issue of personal data protection requirements that must be accommodated, according to the European Union directive.
Price endings: magic and math
Authors: Liang Jianping , Kanetkar Vinay 
Published: October 2006

PurposeThis paper aims to improve understanding of the effects of price endings on consumers' choice behavior. The research study described here was driven by three central questions. First, do consumers process a price holistically or process each digit as a stimulus? Second, do consumers “round” prices? Third, do price endings such as 9 or 0 have specific effects on purchase intentions?Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on a discrete choice experiment where consumers responded to two‐digit prices. Tomato soup and backpacks were the two product categories selected for the study. A total of 188 university students who had purchased these products completed an online survey indicating their choices for one of the four alternative products, with an option of not purchasing anything. Tomato soup prices were varied from 40 cents to 99 cents (every potential price ending was included) and backpack prices varied from $30 to $59 (no pennies). Each respondent made 20 choices for each product and the resulting database was used to construct the nested logit models.FindingsEstimated models suggest that consumers do not process price holistically. In other words, respondents processed prices by splitting numbers into two parts. Furthermore, the use of truncation and the effects of “odd/even” and “0” appeared to be statistically significant for both canned soup and backpack products. Although there was rounding of prices for the soup category, there was no statistically significant support for that in the backpack category. Finally, the effect of a 9‐ending was statistically significant for the backpack category but not for the soup category.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that consumers may not process prices holistically. This, in turn, means that price endings are likely to influence consumer price sensitivity and both retailer and manufacturer profits.Originality/valueThis is the first paper that examines price endings for all numbers from 0 to 9. In addition, the use of a discrete choice modeling method to infer individual choice behaviour in this context is new and innovative.
Explanatory factors regarding manufacturer brand price consistency
Authors: Luis Méndez José , Oubiña Javier , Rubio Natalia 
Published: October 2006

PurposeIn the marketing process, the positioning effort exerted by manufacturers for their brands is slowed by the commercial objectives of intermediary firms. In addition, to act as buyers, retailers act as suppliers of demand segments. When they receive privileged conditions in their product purchasing contracts, they do not always transfer them, totally or partially, to the final consumers through prices. The purpose of this paper is to analyse price dispersion tools available to consumer goods manufacturers to obtain price consistency.Design/methodology/approachAn empirical study was conducted that analysed the retail price dispersion of 66 manufacturer brands in the categories of packaged foods, drugstore products, personal care products, and cellulose derivatives marketed in 574 Spanish retail outlets in different cities.FindingsIn general, manufacturer brands achieve greater price‐consistency, and therefore less price dispersion, when the consumer's knowledge of the product category is greater and when there are considerable levels of differentiation.Research limitations/implicationsOne important limitation must be recognised. Manufacturers' prices offered to retailers were not controlled. Such data would have allowed one to check whether some price dispersion was caused by the discount strategy of the manufacturers themselves.Originality/valueIn this research the effect of retail competitive structure in Porter's model is incorporated. In addition, it is demonstrated that price consistency is more likely to occur for manufacturer brands, and that price dispersion is likely to be lower for such brands.
Storytelling and the “information overload”
Authors: Sax Boria 
Published: October 2006

PurposeThis article seeks to examine the various functions served by storytelling, from its origins in prehistoric times to the post‐industrial age.Design/methodology/approachHistorical records are rich in stories, yet they seldom provide the full social context in which these were told. This article attempts to reconstruct part of that context on the basis of anthropological and biological theories.FindingsStorytelling appears to have developed in archaic times as a means to organize vast and confusing amounts of information. It retains that function and becomes particularly important in transitional times such as the present.Practical implicationsToday, however, neither empirical nor theoretical analysis is able to cope with the information overload caused by new electronic media. As traditional markers of identity such as ethnicity and class become elusive, individuals, and companies as well, need to articulate their stories in order to define themselves.Originality/valueThis article places storytelling, arguably the most traditional of arts, in the context of a culture dominated by electronic media, thus helping people and institutions to use the power of narrative.
Review of The Truth of Stories: A Native Narrative by Thomas King
Authors: Hearne Betsy 
Published: October 2006

PurposeThis is a review of The Truth of Stories by Thomas King.Design/methodology/approachThis review examines the ways in which the Native American stories collected by Thomas King have been used to shape lives, value systems and public policies. It pays special attention to the controversial way stories have been used both to reflect and to manipulate images of oppressed ethnic groups.FindingsIn six essays, a Canadian professor of literature gives a Native North American perspective on the relationship between stories, culture, and social history. Thomas King's blend of storytelling and analysis models a creative approach to critical methodology.Originality/valueThis review not only introduces an important interpreter of Native American stories, but also suggests ways in which Euro/American scholarship can learn from Native American traditions.
An integral index for measuring aversion to large‐scale risks
Authors: Eisenhauer Joseph G. 
Published: October 2006

PurposeConventional measures of risk aversion based on first and second derivatives of utility are strictly local instruments, valid only for infinitesimally small changes in wealth. This paper to develop a global index suitable for assessing attitudes toward large‐scale risks.Design/methodology/approachIntegral calculus is used to measure the geometric area between an individual's actual utility function and a linear function displaying risk neutrality, over the entire range of potential wealth outcomes for a given risk. The area is then converted to an index number.FindingsLocal and global measures of risk aversion yield similar interpersonal comparisons only for small risks; with larger risks, local measures distort interpersonal differences. The analysis also shows that individuals having exponential utility functions evaluate risk exclusively on the basis of wealth dispersion, whereas those with logarithmic or square‐root utilities consider both the mean and variance of wealth.Research/limitations/implicationsThe global index is quantifiable if the functional form of utility is known; further research is needed to approximate the index when information about utility is limited.Practical implicationsThe most important risks encountered in practice, such as the possibility of unemployment or disability, involve variations in wealth far larger than differential calculus is designed to accommodate. The integral index therefore provides a more appropriate basis for measuring and comparing risk preferences.Originality/valueThe paper provides an innovative geometric interpretation of global risk aversion, and in contrast to local measures, the integral index captures differences in the intensity of an individual's aversion toward risks of various magnitudes.
Genetic search for redundancy optimization in complex systems
Authors: Agarwal Manju , Gupta Rashika 
Published: October 2006

PurposeConceiving reliable systems is a strategic issue for any industrial society for its economical and technical development. This paper aims to focus on solving highly constrained redundancy optimization problems in complex systems.Design/methodology/approachGenetic algorithms (GAs), one of the metaheuristic techniques, have been used and a dynamic adaptive penalty strategy is proposed, which makes use of feedback obtained during the search along with a dynamic distance metric and helps the algorithm to search efficiently for final, optimal or near optimal solution.FindingsThe effectiveness of the adaptive penalty function is studied and shown graphically on the solution quality as well as the speed of evolution convergence for several highly constrained problems. The investigations show that this approach can be powerful and robust for problems with large search space, even of size 1017, and difficult‐to‐satisfy constraints.Practical implicationsThe results obtained in this paper would be applicable on designing highly reliable systems meeting the requirement of today's society. Moreover, an important advantage of applying GA is that it generates several good solutions (mostly optimal or near optimal) providing a lot of flexibility to decision makers. As such, the paper would be of interest and importance to the system designers, reliability practitioners, as well as to the researchers in academia, business and industry. The paper would have wide applications in the fields of electronics design, telecommunications, computer systems, power systems etc.Originality/valueGenetic algorithms have been recently used in combinatorial optimization approaches to reliable design, mainly for series‐parallel systems. This paper presents a GA for parallel redundancy optimization problem in complex systems.
Broadband penetration and broadband competition: evidence and analysis in the EU market
Authors: Polykalas Spyros E. , Vlachos Kyriakos G. 
Published: October 2006

PurposeTo examine broadband competition and broadband penetration in a set of countries that employ the same regulation framework. To define the policy and strategy required to promote broadband in weak markets that do not employ alternative infrastructures.Design/methodology/approachStudy penetration and competition level statistics from 2002 to 2005 in a set of countries with different infrastructures deployed, services provided as well as in their social‐economic structures but employing the same regulation framework. Measure the level of inter‐platform and intra‐platform competition as well as the availability of bitstream access versus the incumbents' shares.FindingsThe paper concludes that a mature broadband market is the one that exhibits a high penetration ratio in combination with a high competition level. Bitstream access can counterbalance the inexistence of alternative broadband infrastructures, especially in weak markets. In particular the availability of numerous bitstream access types in combination with the proper price differentiation can fuel broadband adoption in relatively weak broadband markets.Originality/valueThe paper challenges the general rule that only platform (also known as facility) based competition guarantees long‐term growth of the broadband market. Bitstream and resale access do not lag local loop unbundling and can be used in weak markets that do not employ alternative infrastructures to fuel competition in the relevant markets. Different policies and strategies must be followed, in that case, on behalf of the local NRA.
A cost‐benefit analysis of real‐money trade in the products of synthetic economies
Authors: Castronova Edward 
Published: October 2006

PurposeMacro goals: To alert the telecommunications policy community to the emergence of persistent online worlds as a communications and policy issue. Also to provide game industry decisionmakers with solid economic research on which to base policy decisions. Third, to connect these two communities to each other, for mutual benefit. Micro goals: to conduct a solid cost‐benefit analysis of a knotty problem in game economics: what to do about people who break the rules and use real money to buy game items (swords, wands, gold pieces, etc.)Design/methodology/approachTraditional cost‐benefit analysis. Consumer surplus analysis of externality effects, with a parameterized estimate of effects sizes.FindingsReal‐money trading acts as a negative externality on the game subscription market. Seems likely to amount to several million dollars per 100,000 users per year.Research limitations/implicationsThe effects sizes are simulated only. More data from the game industry are needed before one can put a solid dollar estimate on them. Also, much of the material in the paper had to be really elementary in order for the results to make sense for both policy economists and game industry analysts.Practical implicationsThe analysis indicates a prima facie case for public policy intervention to help shield synthetic worlds from the deleterious effects of the global gold farming industry.Originality/valueInterest in real‐money trade in gaming is growing, as indicated by the extent of online discussion by gaming scholars. Despite this, the literature on the economic and policy issues raised by the topic is limited. The article is an original piece of work that takes understanding forward.
The evolution of the exchange‐traded fund: is active management on the horizon?
Authors: Rosella Michael R. , Pugliese Domenick 
Published: October 2006

PurposeTo discuss how product innovations in exchange‐traded funds (ETFs) have blurred the line between passive and active management, and to explore the legal ramifications of these developments.Design/methodology/approachDescribes how ETFs operate and how the ETF marketplace has grown; discusses the use of broad‐based indexes for most ETFs until recently; describes newer ETFs that provide targeted exposure to narrow market segments; and discusses underlying indexes that are based on performance‐based characteristics rather than market segments, along with possible difficulties in making performance‐based criteria widely available to investors.FindingsHistorically the SEC has expressed skepticism over actively managed ETFs because of uncertainty as to whether they can provide the same portfolio transparency and arbitrage opportunity that traditional ETFs can. As “Rule Sets,” or criteria for including companies in performance indexes, become more involved and less objective, the challenge will be to ensure that sufficient arbitrage opportunities exist to ensure pricing efficiency. If that challenge can be met, it may serve as a model for a truly actively managed ETF.Originality/valueExplains how the new generation of ETFs is coming closer to the line of active management and the legal issues that must be surmounted before truly actively managed ETFs are offered.
The downside of side letters
Authors: Levin Ian , Scanlan Kevin 
Published: October 2006

PurposeTo discuss possible disadvantages and other implications for private investment fund managers of issuing side letters to certain investors.Design/methodology/approachDiscusses the relatively common practice of issuing side letters; issues surrounding side letters that relate to private equity funds and hedge funds; recent SEC pronouncements regarding side letters; industry practices, including disclosure issues and corporate‐related issues; and ERISA consequences.FindingsSide letters (i.e. agreements that afford investors of a private investment fund with rights and/or benefits that are different, and often superior, to those granted to such investors under the governing documents of the fund) have been utilized for years by sponsors of private investment funds. In fact, in many cases, it has been impossible for sponsors of private investment funds to close on subscriptions from large and/or strategic investors unless they agree to provide such investors with side letters. In light of the recent focus of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on the use of side letters by hedge fund managers, fund managers should consider what affect certain side letter provisions may have on the fund and its investors, in particular, the consequences such side letters will have under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”).Originality/valueUseful reference for fund managers that describes the potential issues related to side letters.