bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Wine retailing in Ireland: the diffusion of innovation
Authors: Murray Agnes , Demick David 
Published: September 2006

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate how new wines are introduced to and adopted by the consumer within the grocery retail sector in Ireland.Design/methodology/approachSemi‐structured interviews were carried out with eight wine buyers/distributors for the grocery retail sector in Ireland and two retail store managers. Interviews were conducted early in 2004. Observation of wine displays in stores was used to confirm marketing communications and promotional techniques employed.FindingsThe findings confirmed a market that is growing, especially in the grocery retail sector and at the lower end of the pricing points. Competition and a desire for growth create the demand for new products and all the elements of the marketing mix are used to support the market entry and adoption of the product by the consumer.Research limitations/implicationsThis is an exploratory study with a small sample size; further studies could be carried out to confirm the findings of this study or to replicate elsewhere in the UK or in the non‐wine‐producing countries of Europe.Practical implicationsThe findings highlight the strength of competition within the grocery sector and the continued use of discounting as a promotional strategy; this has implications for wine producers in the longer term. There is a need to educate the customer with a view to encouraging them to trade up.Originality/valueThe paper provides some insight into the distribution and marketing of wine in the grocery retail sector in Ireland.
An improved analysis of bagging of textile fabrics. Part I: theoretical
Authors: Amirbayat J. 
Published: September 2006

PurposeAims to analyse the stress distribution in a circular flexible sheet. Part I provides a theoretical approach to the analysis of the bagging deformation in textile fabrics.Design/methodology/approachThe investigation includes analysing the stress distribution in a circular flexible sheet clamped around its circumference under an externally applied force by a spherical object. Movement of the material normal to its original plane is then related to the external force and the elastic properties of the sheet, i.e. the elastic modulus and the Poisson's ratio. The effects of the size of the force‐applying object, relative to the sample radius, are also investigated.FindingsThe relationship between the applied force on the centre of a flexible sheet material by a spherical object and the sag of the sheet was derived. Poisson's ratio has an important role on the mechanism of deformation, restricting the extension of the sheet when it is high and intensifying the discontinuity of the strain at the interface.Research limitations/implicationsThe work could be expanded to industrial fabrics and to composite materials.Practical implicationsThe two papers provide a first step in an attempt for a better understanding of the stresses involved in bagging of a linear elastic sheet. They provide the basis for the development of fabrics that can withstand bagging problems. This research may also put forward improved methods of measuring bagginess. Some of the theoretical work may be used to predict bagginess of fabrics based on properties.Originality/valueThe paper has two improvements on previous work: the inclusion of the effect of fabric Poisson ratio, and the suggestion of a better method of calculating the overall anisotropic properties.
Problem solving within professional services: evidence from the medical field
Authors: Jaakkola Elina , Halinen Aino 
Published: September 2006

PurposeTo test the validity of the presumed characteristics of professional services by studying their manifestation in the problem solving that occurs in service production.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses medical research as secondary data to study the existence of associations between the presumed characteristics of professional services and problem solving in the medical context. A systematic review of empirical studies concerning physicians' prescribing decisions is conducted.FindingsSupporting assumptions presented in the literature, specialist knowledge of professional and customer participation was found to influence prescribing decisions. The assumption regarding collegial control was partially supported. Some degree of contradiction was found with respect to the presumed professional autonomy and altruism. Whilst the professional services literature emphasises factors related to the client's problem, the service encounter and the profession, we conclude that problem solving is influenced also by factors embedded in the related organisational, market and institutional environments.Research limitations/implicationsFurther empirical validation of the presumed professional characteristics is needed. The results indicate that professional services research should pay more attention to the role of the wider context in professional problem solving. Medical researchers might also benefit from a broader perspective on patient participation.Practical implicationsAn holistic view of factors that influence physicians' prescribing decisions is of use to managers of health care organisations, marketers of pharmaceuticals, and policy makers and third‐party payers.Originality/valueBy using an interdisciplinary approach, the paper contributes to professional services research by providing empirical support for the often repeated characteristics of professional services and outlining factors that potentially influence problem solving within professional services.
Board governance of independent schools
Authors: McCormick John , Barnett Kerry , Babak Alavi Seyyed , Newcombe Geoffrey 
Published: September 2006

PurposeThis paper develops a theoretical framework to guide future inquiry into board governance of independent schools.Design/methodology/approachThe authors' approach is to integrate literatures related to corporate and educational boards, motivation, leadership and group processes that are appropriate for conceptualizing independent school board governance processes.FindingsShows that the institutional role of an independent school board is likely to be quite different, and considerably more significant than the role of a board of a systemic school.Originality/valueThis paper develops an original theoretical framework that will provide a sound basis for investigation of an important but neglected aspect of educational administration in Australia.
“New” educational injustices in the “new” South Africa
Authors: Brown Kathleen 
Published: September 2006

PurposeOutlines a framework for social justice, describes both the social and educational context of South Africa, highlights inequitable funding practices, and then advocates for policy changes in the form of vertical equity.Design/methodology/approachProvides a retrospective review of mandated segregation by race to hypothetical de‐segregation by post‐apartheid policies to de facto re‐segregation by class, in the “new” South Africa.FindingsDescribes how overt racism in the form of apartheid laws has been replaced by covert racism and class domination in the form of school fees.Originality/valueReveals how “new” educational injustices are preventing poor and marginalized groups from getting universal access to high‐quality education in the “new” South Africa.
Strategic management of store brands: an analysis from the manufacturer's perspective
Authors: Oubiña Javier , Rubio Natalia , Jesús Yagüe María 
Published: September 2006

PurposeThe main aim of this research is to provide empirical analyses about the store brand management by manufacturers and retailers from the manufacturer's perspective, in the current context, which is one of intense competition between manufacturer and store brands. Particularly, this research pursues to analyse the profile of store brand manufacturers, their perceptions about the retail management of these brands and their own product management of the same.Design/methodology/approachA postal survey was carried out directed at manufacturing business units of mass consumer products in Spain. Multivariate techniques are used in the information analysis such as contingency tables, variance and principal component analysis.FindingsThe results highlight the differences between manufacturers and non‐manufacturers of store brands in their competitive position and in the type of manufactured product; the consensus of both groups regarding the perception of favourable merchandising for store brands; the greater number of production and market motivations versus the relational motivations in the manufacture of store brands; the no convenience of producing store brands for leading manufacturers, and the slight differences in the manufacturing process between manufacturer and store brands.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation of this research is the fact that only the manufacturers' perceptions have been considered. It would be beneficial in future research to consider the opinion of retailers about their own management of these brands.Originality/valueThe main value of the paper is the empirical analyse of the store brand management from the manufacturer's perspective. This subject has been analysed from a general and basically theoretical perspective until now.
Regional regulation analysis of performance in Spanish retailing
Authors: de Jorge Moreno Justo 
Published: September 2006

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact on Spanish retail firms' efficiency of the regulatory process experienced in the period 1994‐2002. In particular, the paper aims to study the influence of the Retail Trade Act of 1996, by means of which the Spanish state transferred authority to concede licenses for opening commercial establishments to the regions.Design/methodology/approachThe objectives have been achieved by non parametric methodology of analysis of efficiency at static and dynamic level (kernel density).FindingsThe results confirm a decrease in firms' technical efficiency in the post‐regulatory period between 1996 and 2002. The different patterns of convergence/divergence in the distribution of technical efficiency depend on firm size. Small firms experience a process of divergence to lower efficiency levels from 1994 to 2002.Research limitations/implicationsPerhaps more regional analysis is also needed. In this sense, it would be interesting to consider the region within which the firms operate, and hence take into account the differences in regulatory processes in each region by size or more precisely by outlet type.Practical implicationsIt is necessary to consider the implications that the regulatory processes can have for management in the environment of the retail industry.Originality/valueThe analysis of the efficiency with features of density kernel. As well as the usage of stochastic kernel. This has enabled dynamic effects in the analysis.
Combining social shaping of technology and communicative action theory for understanding rhetorical closure in IT
Authors: Pozzebon Marlei , Titah Ryad , Pinsonneault Alain 
Published: September 2006

PurposeProposes the concept of rhetorical closure to address the phenomenon of pervasive IT “fashions”. Suggests that prevailing discourses surrounding IT are dominated by the rhetoric of closure and that such closure, although mutually constructed by suppliers, consultants and managers, has had several adverse consequences in terms of organizational change and results. Stimulates a critical thinking regarding the persistence of successive waves of new IT fashions and the consequences of closure on practice.Design/methodology/approachTheoretical framework informed by political views within the social shaping school combined with Habermas' theory of communicative action. Illustration of the argument is based on 22 semi‐structured interviews (senior practitioners from client‐firms, software suppliers and consulting‐firms working on ERP projects).FindingsOutlines the nature of the “chain reaction” produced by rhetorical closure from individual practices to the segment level. Identifies occasions for breaking down rhetorical closure at the three levels of analysis. At the individual level, opportunities are related to daily users' practices. At the organizational level, opportunities are related to ongoing organizational decisions and negotiations regarding IT adoption. At the segment level, opportunities are related to forming coalitions, networks and groups of users.Originality/valueAdopts an original perspective, examining the concept of rhetorical closure from a combination of two approaches: social shaping of technology and communicative action theory. Connects different types of closure to different types of rationality, and recognizes the specific validity claims underlying them. Calls into question current decision‐making processes that sustain IT pervasiveness and taken‐for‐granted assumptions of inevitability associated with new IT fashions.
Breaking into emerging international hotel markets
Authors: Velo Veronica , Mittaz Cristina 
Published: September 2006

PurposeThis paper examines some of the most difficult barriers that hotel chains must overcome when trying to expand internationally. It argues for the importance of the role of well educated hotel management trainees and new graduates in this process.Design/methodology/approachThe methodology was to compare the problems faced by three major international hotel chains (Mövenpick, Kempinski, and Radisson) when expanding into emerging markets with those of a “base case”: The Moscow Aerostar Hotel. Data were obtained through interviews and processed in a comparative manner, contrasting it with the contents of the main case.FindingsHaving identified the common issues that the companies interviewed had to resolve when expanding, which skills educators in hospitality management should enhance in order to produce professionals who are mentally equipped to face current and future challenges with regards to the internationalisation of hotels were determined.Practical implicationsThe recommendations arising from this piece will be of use to educators in hospitality management when designing programmes of study and curricula to meet the needs of the labour market. Equally, it will warn practitioners of the common problems to be faced when breaking into international hotel markets based on the experience of colleagues in the industry.Originality/valueBoth practitioners and educators in the hospitality domain will benefit from the synthesis offered in this paper, as it puts together convergent views on what currently worries major players in the field during this time of challenging, but unavoidable globalisation.
Firm structure of the separated turbulent shear layer behind modified backward‐facing step geometries
Authors: Darbandi Masoud , Taeibi‐Rahni Mohammad , Reza Naderi Ali 
Published: September 2006

PurposeOne major challenge in turbulent flow applications is to control the recirculation zone behind the backward‐facing step (BFS). One simple idea to do so is to modify the original BFS geometry, of course, without causing adverse or undesirable impacts on the original characteristics of the primary stream. The main objective of this work is to examine the solidity of the recirculation zone behind several different geometries which are slightly to moderately different from the original BFS geometry.Design/methodology/approachThe implemented modifications cause complicated irregularities at the boundaries of the domain. The experience shows that the mesh distribution around these irregularities plays a critical role in the accuracy of the numerical solutions. To achieve the most accurate solutions with the least computational efforts, we use a robust hybrid strategy to distribute the computational grids in the domain. Additionally, a suitable numerical algorithm capable of handling hybrid grid topologies is properly extended to analyze the flow field. The current fully implicit method utilizes a physical pressure‐based upwinding scheme capable of working on hybrid mesh.FindingsThe extended algorithm is very robust and obtains very accurate solutions for the complex flow fields despite utilizing very coarse grid resolutions. Additionally, different proposed geometries revealed very similar separated regions behind the step and performed minor differences in the location of the reattachment points.Research limitations/implicationsThe current study is fulfilled two‐dimensionally. However, the measurements in testing regular BFS problems have shown that the separated shear layer behind the step is not affected by 3D influences provided that the width of channel is sufficiently wide. A similar conclusion is anticipated here.Practical implicationsThe problem occurs in the pipe and channel expansions, combustion chambers, flow over flying objects with abrupt contraction on their external surfaces, etc.Originality/valueA novel pressure‐based upwinding strategy is properly employed to solve flow on multiblocked hybrid grid topologies. This strategy takes into account the physics associated with all the transports in the flow field. To study the impact of shape improvement, several modified BFS configurations were suggested and examined. These configurations need only little additional manufacturing cost to be fabricated.
Gender suppression in New Zealand regional sports trusts
Authors: Shaw Sally 
Published: September 2006

PurposeGender relations in organisations remain contested and unresolved. While researchers increasingly focus on how gender is articulated, there is also a need to examine gender suppression, or how gender is deliberately not expressed in organisations. The purpose of this research is to examine gender suppression within regional sports trusts (RSTs) in New Zealand (NZ).Design/methodology/approachSurveys were sent to all 17 chief executive officers of RSTs in NZ, of which ten replied. Of these, six agreed to a phone interview. The data were transcribed and coded.FindingsThere was evidence of gender suppression within the RSTs articulated through four organisational practices, which were: employing the “best person for the job”; the importance of gender balance; gender equity policies; and the role of external funders influencing gender relations.Research limitations/implicationsThe examination of gender suppression provides one area of analysis within the multiple elements of gender relations. Areas for future research are addressed.Practical implicationsIn order to de‐stabilise the gendered status quo within the RSTs, employees and other organisational members may be encouraged in future to discuss gender relations. Suggestions for how this may be achieved are proposed.Originality/valueGender suppression has not been widely analysed in its own right in organisational analysis, this study represents a theoretical and empirical engagement with this concept in order to further understandings of gender relations.
Empirical evidence of women under‐representation in the construction industry in Nigeria
Authors: Adeyemi Aderemi Y. , Ojo Stephen O. , Aina Omotayo O. , Olanipekun Emmanuel A. 
Published: September 2006

PurposeFemale resource represents about half of Nigeria's human resources. For optimal utilization of human resources, gender equality and equity, it was considered that women should be adequately represented in the construction industry which is the prime motivator of the country's economy. A survey was, therefore, conducted to know the level of participation of women in some selected categories of workforce in the industry.Design/methodology/approachThe research was designed to generate quantitative data on women participation in the construction industry in Nigeria. Data were, therefore, collected from medium and large construction contracting companies on the male/female numerical strength in some selected categories of workforce, the suitability of some construction tasks for women and constraints to female entry into the construction industry using questionnaires, interviews and visits to construction sites.FindingsThe survey revealed that only 16.3 per cent of the sampled companies' workforces were women. Approximately, 50 per cent of these women were employed as labourers, 37.5 per cent as administrative staff, 10 per cent as management staff and 2.5 per cent as craftswomen. Paired t‐test performed on the male/female numerical strength showed that women were underrepresented in the construction industry in Nigeria. The survey also indicated that women preferred office related construction processes to site production.Originality/valueFindings in this field survey represent the unbiased level of women's participation in Nigeria's construction industry and the data are useful for policy formulation in relation to mainstreaming female into the construction industry.
Work‐family conflict: a study of lesbian mothers
Authors: Tuten Tracy L. , August Rachel A. 
Published: September 2006

PurposeAmong the most consistent predictors of work‐family conflict for working parents are the number of hours worked, job role autonomy, and degree of support managers offer parents. Yet, little is known about the unique work experiences of lesbian women in terms of work‐family conflict. This paper seeks to identify correlates of work‐family conflict, specifically work interference with family (WIF), among lesbian mothers and identifies the role that being “out” at work plays in their experience of WIF.Design/methodology/approachA survey of 58 working lesbian mothers engaged in long‐term, same‐sex relationships that they categorized as a family was used to collect data on constructs related to work‐family conflict and related variables. The vast majority of the sample were managers or professionals.FindingsAnalyses indicate that increased job role autonomy, fewer hours worked, and increased managerial support are associated with less overall WIF. Additionally, the extent to which participants are “out” at work is associated with reduced WIF, and explains variance beyond the other constructs examined.Practical implicationsManagers can play an essential role in helping reduce WIF among lesbian women via formal steps including offering written support for non‐discrimination policies and benefits for domestic partners. Managers can also take more informal steps such as role modeling acceptance. Finally, managers can modify features of the work environment and jobs themselves.Originality/valueBeing “out” at work can be advantageous for lesbian workers as a strategy for ameliorating WIF. Managers are in a position to make this kind of disclosure possible.