Showing papers in "Journal of Advances in Management Research in 2019"

Factors affecting employee performance: A systematic literature review

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to synthesize the fragmented literature on organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), leader–member exchange (LMX), learning, innovative work behavior (IWB) and employee performance across different countries, disciplines and organizations, thereby broadening the literature breath and making gap identification comprehensive. Second, it provides information on how much studies have been concentrated on Africa with the goal of provoking scholarly work in a unique cultural setting on the interrelatedness of these concepts.,Relevant literature search was undertaken using key search terms, “employee performance,” “OCB,” “LMX,” “IWB,” “individual learning” and “team learning.”,The findings show positive relationships between the behaviors and employee performance. They also reveal an interesting diversity in the study across multidisciplinary fields holding both cultural and contextual significance for academia and practitioners.,The limitation of literature to peer-reviewed journals from the authors’ university library might have missed important information not in this domain. Further studies must make use of additional search terms and engines excluded from this study to provide a more comprehensive analysis.,The paper has important managerial implications for practitioners. The analysis can support the understanding of employee performance from a broader and more diverse view points; and help in providing insight into real-life opportunities, constraints and solutions in enhancing performance management.,This systematic literature review highlights important knowledge gaps which need to be explored especially in the African and Ghanaian contexts.

A sustainable assessment model for material selection in construction industries perspective using hybrid MCDM approaches

Abstract: Urbanization and globalization in India have led to the depletion of resources and degradation of the environment to meet the demands. Because of these issues, researchers and practitioners have begun to study various strategies to reduce the level consumption of resources to utilize it for present and future needs. In pursuit of finding solutions to the problems, sustainable building construction is found as the best key to avoid depletion of resources. Sustainable material selection is found as a vital strategy in construction. The paper aims to discuss this issue.,A three-phase methodology is proposed for framing the assessment model for construction industries to select materials for construction. In the first phase, a total of 23 sub-criteria of triple bottom line (TBL) and four brick materials as alternatives were identified. The second phase finds the weights and ranks of criteria and sub-criteria using the best worst methodology (BWM) the third phase involves ranking of materials concerning sub-criteria weights determined in phase II using Fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS).,The objective of study is fixed to identify the criteria list for the selection of material in construction industries from the literature review especially for Indian construction industries; to rank the criteria for selection of materials with the help of the BWM approach; and to prioritize the identified materials in the view of sustainability with the help of Fuzzy TOPSIS in construction industries perspective. This study analyzed and choosing right sustainable materials by the three pillars of sustainability which are the environment, economic and social, also called TBL, for Indian construction companies by framing a sustainable material assessment model.,The results of this study facilitate to frame an assessment model for evaluating and selecting sustainable building materials.

Analyzing the startup ecosystem of India: a Twitter analytics perspective

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to use Twitter analytics for analyzing the startup ecosystem of India.,The paper uses descriptive analysis and content analytics techniques of social media analytics to examine 53,115 tweets from 15 Indian startups across different industries. The study also employs techniques such as Naive Bayes Algorithm for sentiment analysis and Latent Dirichlet allocation algorithm for topic modeling of Twitter feeds to generate insights for the startup ecosystem in India.,The Indian startup ecosystem is inclined toward digital technologies, concerned with people, planet and profit, with resource availability and information as the key to success. The study categorizes the emotions of tweets as positive, neutral and negative. It was found that the Indian startup ecosystem has more positive sentiments than negative sentiments. Topic modeling enables the categorization of the identified keywords into clusters. Also, the study concludes on the note that the future of the Indian startup ecosystem is Digital India.,The analysis provides a methodology that future researchers can use to extract relevant information from Twitter to investigate any issue.,Any attempt to analyze the startup ecosystem of India through social media analysis is limited. This research aims to bridge such a gap and tries to analyze the startup ecosystem of India from the lens of social media platforms like Twitter.

Finding determinants of e-commerce success: a PLS-SEM approach

Abstract: With the growth in internet technology, the competition between the e-commerce firms has become fierce. This has forced these online vendors to consider customer-centric strategies apart from the retail strategies for generating revenue. The purpose of this paper is to propose a structural model to study the interrelationship between a formative endogenous latent variable (LV), i.e. e-commerce success, and other LVs representing the customer-oriented success factors such as website service quality (WSQ), customer support system (CSS), personalization and electronic word-of-mouth (EWOM).,The authors develop a structural model to validate the determinants of electronic commerce success. Survey-based data obtained from 265 respondents are used to validate the model hypotheses. To analyze the data, partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) is performed using smartPLS 2.0 software. The results on the interrelationships between the constructs are determined using path analysis.,The data analysis results infer the impact of these success factors on e-commerce success systems. After applying bootstrapping technique, the authors observed that WSQ, CSS, personalization and EWOM have a significant positive effect on e-commerce system success (ESS). Further studies can be performed considering mobile commerce and their critical success factors.,The findings of the study emphasize on the importance of these four exogenous variables for e-businesses in order to achieve a competitive edge over their competitors. The study provides a detailed managerial implication with respect to each causal relationship, so as to suggest some remedial measures to gain customer market.,Here, the authors consider an empirical model which shows the determinants of ESS. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, a distinctive system success framework is modeled considering a unique combination of exogenous variables not considered by previous studies.

Influence of eWOM information on consumers’ behavioral intentions in mobile social networks: Evidence of Iran

Abstract: Today, consumers play an active role in creating, generating and distributing the electronic word of mouth (eWOM) independent of marketers. Customer acquisition through referrals and word of mouth (WOM) has thus become an important goal for firms. In addition, mobile social networks have created valuable opportunities for eWOM. People are now able to discuss products and services of brands with their friends and acquaintances. The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of eWOM information on consumers’ behavioral intentions in mobile social networks.,This study employed the information adoption model (IAM), theory of reasoned action and social exchange theory to investigate the influence of eWOM information on consumers’ behavioral intentions in mobile social networks. The study used 394 respondents to evaluate the proposed model using SmartPLS software.,Results show that the quality and credibility of eWOM information has a positive direct effect on perceived information usefulness. Attitude toward eWOM information mediates the influence of perceived information usefulness on information adoption. Also, attitude toward eWOM information has a significant positive influence on behavioral intentions, such as purchase intention and forwarding of eWOM information. However, information adoption does not have any significant relationship with the forwarding of eWOM information.,This study seeks to address the dearth of research in the field of mobile social networks, especially regarding eWOM information. The study proposes a new model and empirically validates the hypothesized relationships. This research can serve as a stepping-stone for future research in this field.,This research is one of the first studies focusing on the influence of eWOM information, especially in mobile social networks. The research offers comprehensive and empirically validated factors pertaining to eWOM information in mobile social networks. The results of this study may be useful also for practitioners and managers of online companies.,A new eWOM IAM in mobile social networks is proposed based on information characteristics and consumer behavior. The model is validated afterward.

Impact of demonetization on diffusion of mobile payment service in India: Antecedents of behavioral intention and adoption using extended UTAUT model

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to explore the antecedents of the behavioral intention and adoption of mobile payment services like m-wallets and m-banking by users in India. This is done by examining the diffusion of mobile payment technology within an extended framework of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model. The study attempts to extend the UTAUT model further by introducing three more constructs, namely- perceived cost, perceived risk and demonetization effect and analyzes the impact of demonetization that happened in India from November 8, 2016 to December 30, 2016 on the mobile payment service adoption process. Demonetization event is a case in point to assess whether forced adoption breaks the normal diffusion process or lends support to the same in the long term.,A survey was conducted in order to gauge the intention behind the adoption of mobile payment modes by users in India. The questionnaire was administered online solely and 880 responses were received within a period of 20 days from February 3, 2017, to February 23, 2017, using Google Forms as a medium. Usable responses were 640. The study adopted partial least square based structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique to analyze the relation between latent variables: performance expectation, effort expectation, social influence, facilitating conditions, perceived cost, perceived risk, demonetization effect, behavioral intention and usage. For this purpose, SmartPLS3.0 software was used to create path diagrams and calculate estimate the significance of factor loadings using the bootstrap technique.,The key results indicates that behavioral intention, demonetization and facilitating conditions have a positive and significant impact on the adoption of mobile payment services in India. Overall, Model 3, which was extended UTAUT model, was observed to be a better model in explaining the antecedents of behavioral intention and usage. In addition to UTAUT antecedents, perceived cost and perceived risk proved to have additional explanatory power as antecedents of behavioral intention. Age acts as a moderating variable consistently across three models, implying that younger users give more importance to effortless interface of mobile payment services and get more influenced by peers and society that shapes their intention to use mobile payment services.,It is first of its kind attempt to assess the role of Demonetization in examining the antecedents of behavioral intention and adoption of mobile payment services by users in India under an extended UTAUT model. This study comprehensively examined the impact of forced adoption of mobile payment services by users in India in a natural setting provided by demonetization event that took place in India by conducting a primary survey right itself in the month of February, 2017 to get first hand response from the Indian users.

Capital structure, competitive intensity and firm performance: evidence from Pakistan

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to explore the moderating role of competitive intensity between the existing relationship of capital structure and firm performance.,Using the balanced panel data of listed non-financial firms of Pakistan, the present study adopts both the panel and OLS estimation techniques to draw the inferences.,The results exhibit that high debt ratio is harmful for the accounting performance of the selected sample firms of Pakistan. In addition, product market competition negatively moderates the relationship between capital structure and firm performance which suggests that high product market competition can be used as a substitute of debt financing to align the interests of a firm’s managers and shareholders.,The findings of the research provide evidence for the policy makers/regulators that the sample firms should discourage the high debt financing in the presence of competitive intensity in the product marketplace.,The core contribution of the current research is to examine the moderating role of product market competition on the leverage–performance relationship because, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no single study has previously explored this relationship in the context of Pakistan.

Understanding service quality: insights from the literature

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to review the service quality (SQ) literature in order to understand issues involved in its conceptualization and operationalization,The paper uses systematic literature review method The unit of analysis is peer-reviewed journal articles published during 1984 to 2017,Findings suggest manufacturing, banking, information technology, higher education, healthcare are the top sectors contributing to the SQ literature More than 60 models of the SQ have been identified Service-driven capabilities may be structured along adaptation with strategic drivers and imperatives, learning and alignment, and problem structuring In doing so the SQ literature is evolving across overlapping phases of conceptualization, expansion, re-conceptualization and integration,The paper contributes to the body of knowledge by presenting a unified synthesis of more than 814 articles published in the last three decades,Insights from the paper will help practitioners in understanding customers’ expectations and accordingly configuring effective service delivery systems, setting standards and communicating value to end-customers This in turn helps them in developing service-based competencies and achievement of competitive advantage,Insights from the paper may help in conceptualizing and delivering SQ-driven public services,The paper synthesizes and presents various facets of the SQ as a unified body of knowledge

Understanding succession planning as a combating strategy for turnover intentions

Abstract: Considerable research has linked leaders’ development practices to employee performance, but little research has concentrated on how succession planning minimizes the turnover intentions. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of succession planning on turnover intentions among banking professionals. Moreover, the authors examine whether succession planning enhances the employee job security and creates career attitude that mitigates the risk of employee turnover intentions.,Using the survey method, the authors recruited permanent employees of retail banking and the proposed model and structural relationships were tested via structural equation modeling.,The findings depict that succession planning provides job security and creates positive career attitude which in turn mitigate the turnover intentions among banks employees.,The present study helps the bank management to formulate a strategic and proactive succession system based on job security and build a strong career attitude to discourage the turnover intentions among banks employees. Moreover, the outcome supports the management of banks in case of the sudden resignation of a bank employee; they will be in a position to appoint a resourceful employee immediately on the vacant post to provide excellent customer services.,The current study successfully developed an empirical relationship between succession planning and turnover intentions which was skipped in the literature on human resource development. Furthermore, this study offers an important mediation mechanism for job security and career attitude for mitigating the turnover intentions among banks employees through succession planning.

Supply chain issues in SME food sector: a systematic review

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the significant supply chain issues in the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) food industry. The objectives are to identify the major themes and the dynamic evolution of SME food supply chain (FSC) issues, the current research trends, the different modelling approaches used in SME FSC, and the most addressed SME food sector.,In all, 3,733 published articles from 2002 to 2018 in the Clarivate Analytics Web of Science database were collected, from which 1,091 articles were shortlisted for the review. The authors used bibliographic coupling combined with co-word analysis to identify the historical relations of the research themes that emerged during the periods 2002–2014 and 2002–2018.,This research identified five major research themes such as production and distribution in alternative food networks, relationship, safety and standards in the FSC, greenhouse gas (GHG) emission impact of the farm food system, traceability and product quality in FSC and asymmetric price transmission in the FSC. Among the identified themes, GHG emission impact of the farm food system and traceability and product quality in the FSC have received increasing attention in recent years. The dairy sector is the most addressed sector (36 per cent), followed by fruits and vegetables (27 per cent), meat and poultry (18 per cent), seafood (10 per cent) and grains and oilseed (8 per cent). It is also identified that the dairy sector has received significant attention in the “GHG Emission impact of farm food system” theme. Similarly, meat and poultry sectors have received much attention in the “Traceability and product quality in the food supply chain” theme. Also, the authors identified that the empirical modelling approaches are the most commonly used solution methodology, followed by the conceptual/qualitative methods in the SME FSC.,This study maps and summarizes the existing knowledge base of supply chain issues in the SME food sector. The results of this review provide the major research areas, most commonly used approaches and food sectors addressed. This study also highlights the research gaps and potential future research direction.

Customer perception of CRM implementation in banking context: Scale development and validation

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to develop and validate a scale for measuring a customer’s perception of customer relationship management (CRM) initiatives of a bank. Based upon resource-based view, CRM technology capability has been conceptualized as a multidimensional construct comprising of technology, people and business resource (process). This study aims to develop a comprehensive scale for performance measurement of CRM technology capability, customer orientation and co-creation from the customer perspective.,A systematic scale development process was adopted consisting of three phases, a qualitative inquiry which included item generation through literature review, expert opinion and focus group study, scale purification and refinement using item analysis and exploratory factor analysis, and scale validation using confirmatory factor analysis. The study sample consisted of 324 respondents, with a usable response rate of 68 percent.,The findings of the empirical study resulted in a 42-item scale that measures CRM technology capability (technology, people and process), customer orientation, co-creation and relationship quality and outcome (RQO) (satisfaction, trust, commitment and loyalty). The predictive validity assessment model suggested that CRM technology capability has a higher impact on RQO. The empirical findings also suggest that technology is found to be the most important factor compared to people and process for CRM technology capability. The findings are aligned with literature review and expert opinion that the evolving collaborative-technologies-enabled CRM technology capability has changed the customer relationship paradigm.,The study focused on a scale specific to the banking sector to avoid conjoint factors, whereas a more generalized scale would have wider applicability across industries. The current study sought to broaden the coverage by including a large number of banks who have implemented CRM.,This reliable and valid scale can help practitioners in measuring the effectiveness of their CRM implementation from the customer’s perspective, and provide insights that will help them in bridging the gap between their intended objective and actual implementation. They can also use this study to measure pre- and post-CRM implementation to see the effectiveness. This study also provides relevance of customer orientation and offers insight about co-creation which has taken the center stage because of the emergence of collaborative technologies.,This will help in measuring perception of the customer which is an important stakeholder in the engagement. This can help organizations in proactively taking care of customer’s rights and measuring the level of satisfaction proactively, which has become a regulatory requirement in many economies.,This study is possibly one of the first to develop a psychometrically valid scale to measure the customer’s perception of CRM using direct measures. The findings provide insight into the factors that contribute to the effectiveness of CRM practices in the banking sector. This study demonstrates that CRM technology capability, customer orientation and co-creation play a very critical role.

Evaluating the impact of human resource planning programs in addressing the strategic goal of the firm: An organizational perspective

Abstract: Today, the employees stand firm as an integral part of the organization and are a precious asset. They are willing to learn, accept challenges and strive hard to deliver their level best. The role of the employees has become pronounced and significant, and it is no more conventional. They are now taking up responsibilities in strategic planning and development of the organization. Thus, HR department plays a profuse role in planning for the human resource of the firm to optimize the utilization of their potentials that would help support and meet the business as well as strategic goal of the firm. These HR planning programs ensure managing people within a planned framework and make them develop their performance that becomes a source of sustained competitive advantage for the firm. The paper aims to discuss these issues.,A descriptive research has been conducted with cross-sectional survey through a formalized questionnaire. Multistage sampling has been used in the study. Primary data have been collected from different manufacturing industries of India. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis have been conducted on the hypothesized research model. Structural equation modeling has been done to specify the relation between the measured and latent variables.,The HR planning programs, namely, staffing plan and succession plan, yield a better result in addressing the strategic goal of the company. Succession plan, staffing plan and talent management strategies augment the efficacious performance of the firm. Effectual performance aids in gaining a competitive advantage for the firm in a substantial way. Job analysis and design have no impact in achieving the strategic intent of the organization.,The study gives a comprehensive scenario of the HR planning programs that can help the organization to meet and uphold their strategic goals. The study provides a model that can solidify and bind the organization toward securing organizational intent and leading a steadfast business process in this dynamic competitive marketplace.

The strategic human resource management approaches and organisational performance: The mediating role of creative climate

Abstract: Despite the strategic importance of the approaches, most of the approaches consider “internal fit” or “external fit”, and do not consider the role of creative climate. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between approaches to strategic human resource management (SHRM) and organisational performance through a creative climate.,This paper has divided into three parts. First, the paper explores the literatures on the constructs. Second, it examines the relationships between constructs dealt with in the literature. Third, the review identifies the gaps in the literature and describes future recommendations of research for this field.,This study can serve as a starting point for future research on the relationship between SHRM practices, creative climate and organisational performance in terms of financial, human resource and customer retention. Researchers and practitioners need to understand the relationship between the three constructs.,The paper helps managers need to design strategic HRM policies and practices that are aligned with creative climate and organisational performance. Furthermore, it helps scholars/researchers focus their research on the relationship between HRM approaches (universal and contingency approaches), organisational performance and examining the role of creative climate as a mediator to overcome its causal limitations.

Literature review on supply chain collaboration: comparison of various collaborative techniques

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to create an understanding on the magnitude and dimension of supply chain collaboration (SCC) reported in the literature. The detailed review discusses various indicators that help companies to implement collaboration successfully and create awareness on the barriers faced while initiating collaboration in supply chain (SC).,The meta-analysis includes full-text papers retrieved from the Web of Science database using verified keywords. The articles are reviewed for identifying the performance indicators used to evaluate the SC. The systematic review is performed for the collaborative techniques in the following categories: information sharing (IS); vendor managed inventory; and collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment. The papers are then comprehensively analyzed for the approaches, and the key findings are mentioned along with the future scope.,The review suggests that the SC relationship, trust, quality of IS and technological involvement are to be focused for successful implementation of the collaborative technique. Proper collaboration helps SC partners to enhance their technique of operations in an effective manner which results in high business turnovers.,The review paper provides a quantitative study of SCC. A bird’s eye view of the scopes and benefits of using SCC for the academic scholars and industrial personnel are the primary concern discussed.

Predicting engagement and performance through firm’s internal factors: Evidence from textile sector

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the firm’s internal factors influence employee engagement (EE), which, in turn, enhances the performance of textile employees. Furthermore, the present study pursues to address the indirect effect of EE on the relationship between the firm’s internal factors and employee performance.,Data were taken from 355 participants working in textile mills through a survey approach. Structural equation modeling was run to confirm the proposed model and structural relationships.,Results highlight that internal communication and reward and recognition are significantly related to EE, except for work‒life balance. Furthermore, EE has a significant effect on the performance of textile employees.,The present study helps the textile managers to improve employee performance while focusing on the firm’s internal factors of engagement. Proactive internal communication and reward system will help to bring a competitive edge and achieve the organizational goals. The findings also provide managers the information to reduce the organization interruptions in enhancing EE and performance.,This study covered the hidden gap in the previous literature on EE and performance, especially in the field of the textile sector by employing Kahn’s theory of engagement.

Capital structure dynamics of Indian corporates

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the capital structure determinants and speed of adjustment (SOA) toward the target capital structure of firms.,The study has used the generalized method of moments (GMM) model and two-stage least squares (TSLS) to the panel data of 3,310 Indian firms, from January 2000 to March 2018, to determine the adjustment speed toward target capital structure. Further, the study employed a fully modified ordinary least square technique to shed light on the dynamic nature of the adjustment process.,The results of the GMM estimations indicate that Indian firms are adjusting their capital structure toward the target rate of 10.38 percent per year. Similarly, the findings of TSLS estimate specify a SOA of 15.49 percent per year. The low adjustment speed suggests the prevalence of higher adjustment costs of Indian firms.,Future research can be undertaken by including certain macroeconomic factors such as GDP, inflation and the interest rate, which also affect the SOA since firms are pretentious by market conditions while designing capital structure for firms.,In the current financial and regulatory set-up when there are frequent perturbations in the capital market, the study will be valuable for regulators, firms and academicians. The work would enable the concerned stakeholders to manage their scare resources and capital effectively by a better way to make informed decisions. It will facilitate managers of young companies to identify and regulate the factors that are more pertinent for them to make flexible financial decisions concerning the capital structure.,The study amplifies on previous studies and provides new insights on the speed of the adjustment process of Indian firms, helping to modify and refine their capital structures toward the optimum capital structure. This will not only enhance the financial flexibility in the capital structure of Indian corporates but also be of great value to the policymakers and other stakeholders.

Strategic capabilities for managing risks in supply chains: current state and research futurities

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the distinction and relationships between the significant strategic capabilities for managing risks in supply chains. This intersectional review exposes a substantial conceptual contradiction between the perspectives reported by various researchers. Further, the current paper classifies the literature into four categories according to the broad objectives investigated by the research papers.,Initially, a bibliometric analysis aligned with the concepts of a systematic literature review is conducted followed by a descriptive review focusing on models and methods. The software called BibExcel is utilized to extract and analyze the bibliographic information in a textual form from the research articles associated with strategic capabilities of the logistics sector. The results are exported to the software known as Gephi to visualize keyword co-occurrence analysis as networks. A well-structured descriptive review is also conducted to identify avenues for future research.,Despite conventional supply chain capabilities like efficiency and effectiveness, eight significant strategic capabilities of supply chains for managing risks are identified from the literature. These capabilities with positive connotations include flexibility, reliability, resilience, robustness, agility, adaptability, alignment and responsiveness. Considering the vast literature on flexibility/reliability along with its numerous dimensions and scope, the authors found that resilience, robustness, agility, adaptability, alignment and effectiveness are achievable through flexibility/reliability. Accordingly, it is appropriate to state reliability and flexibility as supply chain capabilities to achieve the other six supply chain competencies. Furthermore, the entire literature in this domain can be classified into four genres according to the addressed objectives, namely, concept development/validation, capability assessment, network design and performance evaluation.,The information revealed from the keyword co-occurrence analysis along with the research implications provided in the penultimate section will assist budding researchers in framing novel and promising research objectives. Supply chain administrators and policymakers can utilize the literature classification and the notable references provided in this review for locating potential methods for assessing supply chain strategic capabilities, designing the supply chain and evaluating the performance of the supply chain.,An integrated bibliometric and descriptive literature review procedure is utilized in this paper. Furthermore, this critical review is the first work on comprehensively mapping the research relationships among various strategic capabilities required for mitigating supply chain risks.

Online shopping environments and consumer’s Need for Touch

Abstract: Online shopping has become a commonplace thing nowadays as people can buy products from the comfort of their home. But such environments do not offer a complete sensory interaction as consumers are unable to touch products which is quite important for certain categories of products such as apparels. Therefore, in order to find whether every individual seeks touch equally, the purpose of this paper is to deal with the differences in an individual’s preferences for touch. The study also evaluates customer responses towards the introduction of touch-enabling technology which can, to some extent, compensate for the lack of touch. Lastly, the study includes customers’ views regarding showrooming and webrooming.,A total of 203 responses were received through online and offline questionnaires. The data were analysed using ANOVA, correlation and regression analysis through SPSS version 23.,The results revealed that gender influenced the Need for Touch (NFT) with women having higher NFT. The people who were high in NFT preferred to buy in-store, whereas their low NFT counterparts were comfortable with both online and in-store options. Lastly, it was found that there was a significant impact of NFT on online buying behaviour. The new technology when used by online retailers would break the barriers that exist between real touch and virtual touch.,Although previous authors have given several options like mental representations, verbal details and brand image as alternatives to touch but the use of touch-enabling technology can revolutionise the way online products are perceived. The study adds value by relating NFT with online preferences, showrooming and webrooming.

Impact of service quality on satisfaction and loyalty at manufacturer-distributor dyad: Insights from Indian SMEs

Abstract: Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role played by service quality (SQ) in manufacturer–distributor working partnerships in the context of Indian small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and present two models which propose and validate that contributions toward SQ, made by both the manufacturing unit and distribution firm lead to satisfaction which consequently results in business-to-business (B2B) loyalty. Design/methodology/approach The research design for this study includes a combination of literature review, exploratory interviews with a focus group and a questionnaire survey conducted through interview schedule from 101 information rich and willing respondents working in SMEs of northern India. Findings The paper brings out scales foe measuring organizational (internal) and distributor (external) SQ. Further, two models using structural equation modeling are developed. Model-I examines the effect of organizational SQ on distributor SQ. Model-II examines the impact of distributor SQ on satisfaction and loyalty and also tests a set of four propositions related to their working relationship. The models are empirically tested and are found to be fit. Research limitations/implications Future researchers may validate these scales, and empirically test the proposed models in alternate settings. Insights derived from this study may be transferred to other partnerships, which may exist in a manufacturing supply chain including suppliers, employees, retailers and end consumers. Practical implications This study would be of interest to SME practitioners interested in improving SQ with their distributors. The study also finds support for strengthening collaborative relationships with B2B partners to achieve a win-win situation. Originality/value There are very few empirical studies that measure SQ w.r.t. distribution function in SMEs and the concept is in nascent stage, especially in Indian setting.

R&D tax incentive scheme and in-house R&D expenditure: evidences from Indian firms

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of research and development (R&D) tax credit scheme on participating firm’s R&D expenditure in Indian manufacturing firms.,Tobit model is used to estimate the impact of R&D tax credit scheme on R&D expenditure.,The results suggest that there is a positive and significant effect of R&D tax incentive scheme on R&D. The introduction of the R&D tax credit scheme and the policy amendment are positively influencing R&D investment of the participating firms. However, industry-specific results suggest that these positive results are mainly driven by electronic and pharmaceutical industries. The study reveals that import of technology, import of raw materials, competition, profitability, age and leverage position of the firm also positively influence the R&D intensity of the firm.,The study is limited to the listed manufacturing firms in India.,The study evaluates the innovation policy to help the policymakers in designing an effective policy.,The paper provides evidence on the impact of R&D tax incentive scheme on firm innovation to explain the factors that contribute to the R&D expenditure of the participating firms. It also summarises the effectiveness of tax incentive scheme on different industry groups and firm size.

An EPQ inventory model considering an imperfect production system with probabilistic demand and collaborative approach

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to propose an economic production quantity (EPQ) inventory model considering imperfect items and probabilistic demand for a two-echelon supply chain. The production process is imperfect and the imperfect quality items are removed from the lot size. The demand rate of the inventory system is random and follows an exponential probability density function and the demand of the retailers is depending on the initiatives of the sales team.,Two approaches are examined. In the non-collaborative approach, any member of the supply chain can be the leader and takes decisions to optimize the profits, and in the collaborative system, all members make joint decisions about the production, supply, sales and inventory to optimize the profits of the supply chain members. The calculus approach is applied to find the maximum profit related to the members of the supply chain.,A numerical example is presented to illustrate the performance of the EPQ model. The results show that collaborative approach generates greater profits to the supply chain and the market’s demand represents the variable behavior and uncertainty that is generated in the replenishment of a supply chain.,The new and major contributions of this research are: the inventory model considers demand for products is random variable which follows an exponential probability distribution function and it also depends on the initiatives of sales teams, the imperfect production system generates defective items, different cycle time are considered in manufacturer and retailers and collaborative and non-collaborative approaches are also studied.

A novel algorithm for solving resource-constrained project scheduling problems: a case study

Abstract: Purpose Construction projects managers try their best for the project to go according to the plans. They always attempt to complete the projects on time and consistent with the predetermined budgets. Amid so many problems in project planning, the most critical and well-known problem is the Resource-Constrained Project Scheduling Problem (RCPSP). The purpose of this paper is to solve RCPSP using hybrid algorithm ICA/PSO. Design/methodology/approach Due to the existence of various forms for scheduling the problem and also the diversity of constraints and objective functions, myriad of research studies have been conducted in this realm of study. Since most of these problems are NP-hard ones, heuristic and meta-heuristic methods are used for solving these problems. In this research, a novel hybrid method which is composed of meta-heuristic methods of particle swarm optimization (PSO) and imperialist competitive algorithm (ICA) has been used to solve RCPSP. Finally, a railway project has been examined for RCPS Problem in a real-world situation. Findings According to the results of the case study, ICA/PSO algorithm has better results than ICAs and PSO individually. Practical implications ICA/PSO algorithm could be used for solving problems in a multi-mode situation of activities or considering more constraints on the resources, such as the existence of non-renewable resources and renewable. Based on the case study in construction project, ICA/PSO algorithm has a better solution than PSO and ICA. Originality/value In this study, by combining PSO and ICA algorithms and creating a new hybrid algorithm, better solutions have been achieved in RCPSP. In order to validate the method, standard problems available in PSPLib library were used.

Academia a new knowledge supplier to the industry! Uncovering barriers in the process

Abstract: In the era of Industry 4.0, knowledge component plays a vital role in manufacturing. For tacking the new complexities of the business, a concept of knowledge supply chain (KSC) is being proposed, which takes into account of knowledge component. Higher education institutes (HEIs) which are primary creator of knowledge are important foundations of such supply chain and act as the “knowledge supplier.” The purpose of this paper is to focus on why the HEIs are failed to become knowledge supplier in developing country like India.,This research paper adopts a resource-based theory to explore the concept and identify barriers which obstructs the progress of HEIs to become prominent knowledge supplier to industry. To tackle the research problem, an integrated hybrid approach of interpretive structural modeling–analytic hierarchy process is used. Expert elicitation was engaged to find out the prominence of each barrier and the interrelations among them.,Based on literature review, eight critical barriers were recognized. The findings put forward a four layer structural model. Based on this model, various remedial actions are also suggested to eliminate the barriers or lessen their negative effects on KSC.,This study finds its practical implication in higher education reforms as the identified barriers could enhance the decision-making quality regarding academia–industry interaction.,Using the results of the study, HEIs could improve their social sustainability as they have different stakeholders covering wider sections of society and one being industry.,Most of the existing studies talk about short-term interactions like technology transfer. This study takes into account the barriers which are acting as roadblocks in long-term knowledge supplying role of HEIs.

Diversity within management levels and organizational performance: employees’ perspective

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between employees’ perceptions of diversity within management levels (i.e. senior management, middle management and lower management levels) and perceived organizational performance. The study also examines differences in perceptions of diversity within different levels of management across nature and ownership forms of organizations.,Primary data were gathered from a sample of 400 employees from 162 organizations of diverse industries operating in India. Statistical techniques like analysis of variance and stepwise multiple regressions were used to analyze the data.,Employee perceptions of diversity at the senior, middle and lower management levels of organizations are weakly, most significantly and positively, and negatively related to perceived organizational performance. It has also been found that the perceptions of diversity within different levels of management differ across nature and ownership forms of the organization.,The study relies on self-reported questionnaires as the method of data collection, which can lead to common-method bias. Hence, further studies can collect data by using multiple sources. In addition, future researchers can employ both subjective and objective measures to fetch results that are more valid.,To harvest the benefits of diversity, organization should foster positive perceptions among employees toward diversity.,The study gives new insight into why employees’ perceptions are significant in considering the possible outcomes of diversity.

An assessment of advertising effectiveness of Indian banks using Koyck model

Abstract: The problem of differentiation and creating a unique selling proposition is higher in the banking sector, as, any new service or product introduced is very quickly imitated by the competitors. The benefits of advertising have been seen to have long-term effects on the firm’s performance and debate is still on whether the expenses of advertising should be amortized or expensed immediately has been the area of concern for many years. The purpose of this paper is to carry out a comparative analysis of advertising effectiveness on private and public sector banks in India.,This study has included 33 listed commercial banks out of 41 listed on S&P BSE 500. Out of 33 banks, 14 banks belong to private sector and 19 banks are public sector banks. Data are extracted for a period of 14 years from 2004 to 2017 from Ace Equity. In total, there are 462 firm-year observations. Interest income, operating income and return on assets are the accounting measures considered in this paper. All the variables are deflated by total assets at the beginning of the period. To assess the effect of advertising on financial measures, distributed lag model is used.,The results of Koyck model suggest that it takes lesser time for private sector banks to see a significant change in interest income and return on assets with a change in advertising expenses whereas in case of operating income, the results achieved are opposite.,This study may be useful from accounting point of view to find out whether advertising creates long-term or short-term impact on financial measures. The study would help in determining the number of years for which advertising expenses can be amortized. With the help of these results, it can be said that advertisement expenses can be capitalized and then expensed over coming years. This means, to some extent advertisement has some long-run impact on financial measures considered in the study. In order to achieve more robust results, this study can be performed on different sectors.

Multi-criteria clustering analytics for agro-based perishables in cold-chain

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to determine compatibility groups of different fruits and vegetables that can be stored and transported together based upon their requirements for temperature, relative humidity, odour and ethylene production. Pre-cooling which is necessary to prepare the commodity for subsequent shipping and safe storage is also discussed.,The methodology used in this journal is an attempt to form clusters/groups of storing together 43 identified fruits and vegetables based on four important parameters, namely, temperature, relative humidity, odour and ethylene production. An agglomerative hierarchical clustering algorithm is used to build a cluster hierarchy that is commonly displayed as a tree diagram called dendrogram. The same is further analyzed using K-means clustering to find clusters of comparable spatial extent. The results obtained from the analytics are compared with the available data of grouping fruits and vegetables.,This study investigates the usefulness and efficacy of the proposed clustering approach for storage and transportation of different fruits and vegetables that will eventually save huge investment made in terms of developing infrastructure components and energy consumption. This will enable the investors to adopt it for using the space more effectively and also reducing food wastage.,Due to limited research and development (R&D) data pertaining to storage parameters of different fruits and vegetables on the basis of temperature, relative humidity, ethylene production/sensitivity, odour and pre-cooling, information from different available sources have been utilized. India needs to develop its own crop specific R&D data, since the conditions for soil, water and environment vary when compared to other countries. Due to the limited availability of the research data, various multi-criteria approaches used in other areas have been applied to this paper. Future studies might be interested in considering other relevant variables depending upon R&D and data availability.,With the increase in population, the demand for food is also increasing. To meet such growing demand and provide quality and nutritional food, it is important to have a clear methodology in terms of compatibility grouping for utilizing the available storage space for multi-commodity produce and during transportation. The methodology used shall enable the practitioners to understand the importance of temperature, humidity, odour and ethylene sensitivity for storage and transportation of perishables.,This approach shall be useful for decision making by farmers, Farmer Producer Organization, cold-storage owners, practicing managers, policy makers and researchers in the areas of cold-chain management and will provide an opportunity to use the available space in the cold storage for storing different fruits and vegetables, thereby facilitating optimum use of infrastructure and resources. This will enable the investors to utilize the space more effectively and also reduce food wastage. It shall also facilitate organizations to manage their logistic activities to gain competitive advantage.,The proposed model would help decision makers to resolve the issues related to the selection of storing different perishable commodities together. From the secondary research, not much research papers have been found where such a multi-criteria clustering approach has been applied for the storage of fruits and vegetables incorporating four important parameters relevant for storage and transportation.

Branding effectiveness measurement in non-profit environment

Abstract: Literature suggests that branding effectiveness measures are present in for-profit sectors but lacks such comprehensive measures for the non-profit sector. Moreover, most of the branding effectiveness measures are either based on brand image approach or on brand identity approach. The purpose of this paper is, therefore, to propose an integrated branding effectiveness measurement metrics for non-profit organizations (NPOs).,Judgmental and simple random sampling techniques are used for data collection. The final sample comprises 150 respondents including donors, volunteers, beneficiaries and media who were administered interview schedules. Based on the ratings given by the respondents regarding branding effectiveness parameters of the five NPOs of a major city in Northern India, branding effectiveness score of each NPO is computed. The branding measures adopted by NPOs rated high are selected in the proposed brand effectiveness metrics.,The proposed metrics encapsulates brand identity parameters such as management profile, vision, culture, as well as brand image parameters such as brand awareness, brand understanding, brand association of the stakeholders, etc. The metrics also link the two through brand performance parameters.,Multiple hierarchical structures of government infested with bureaucracy and lack of specialized staff with focused approach have reduced the effectiveness of their socio-development programs in emerging economies. This has led to an increase in number, diversity and impact of NPOs that compete for resource generation. Branding is a powerful tool for NPOs not only for resource generation but also for driving the social goals. The branding effectiveness metrics would help NPO managers reinforce the internal identity by increasing the cohesion and the capacity of the organization as well as create a strong brand image by garnering the support of multiple stakeholders through mutual trust thereby creating a greater social impact.,The uniqueness of the study stems from the fact that the proposed branding effectiveness measurement metrics in non-profit environment encapsulates brand image, brand identity and brand performance parameters.

Financial flexibility, managerial efficiency and firm life cycle on firm performance: An empirical analysis of Chinese listed firms

Abstract: As the capital market in China is still developing, several constraints on a Chinese-listed firm’s financing strategy have a direct impact on its financial flexibility. The purpose of this paper is to reconstruct traditional financial flexibility index (FFI) derived from the western context, provide empirical evidence within eastern context by modified FFI and examine how the managerial efficiency of Chinese-listed firms is demonstrated with modified FFI to escort corporate life cycle hypothesis.,By tailored FFI to fit the contemporary operations of Chinese-listed firms, this study investigates how managerial efficiency varies across different life stages to demonstrate the moderating power in the firm performance of financially flexible firm.,It is found that financially flexible firms in the Chinese stock market generally experience good firm performance, yet the managerial efficiency could gradually be diminishing at their mature stage even firms’ financial flexibility remains consistent with the agency theory. This paper sheds light on the necessity to reexamine the components in financial flexibility based on the eastern context, and provides avenue to further understand the managerial behavior of Chinese listed firms when considering firm life cycles.,Although it is difficult for this current study to offer the precise weights on each factor in calculating financial flexibility, the judgment matrix method is adopted to at least provide reliable estimates in accordance with Chinese business contexts with less than 10 percent errors in contrast to the actual weights.,This modified FFI is particularly suitable for Chinese-listed firms under certain unique financial reporting regulations by adjusting a number of weights and factors. This study may help practitioners understand the managerial conduct of publicly listed firms in China.,The paper constructs a modified FFI with Chinese stock market characteristics embedded, and provides insightful evidence to explain the new pecking order theory by considering the life cycle stage of Chinese-listed companies.

Capital budgeting decision-making practices: evidence from Pakistan

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the current trends of capital budgeting practices (analysis techniques, discount rate estimations and risk assessment methods) among Pakistani listed firms and analyze the responses conditional on firms’ demographics and executive characteristics.,An online questionnaire was sent via e-mail to top 200 non-financial firms (in terms of market capitalization) listed on Pakistan Stock Exchange.,With a response rate of 35 percent, it is concluded that the theory–practice gap is low as Pakistani listed firms are using discounted cash flow methods of capital budgeting and preferring net present value over internal rate of return. Similarly, weighted average cost of capital is estimated using target value weights, and capital asset pricing model (with extra risk factors) is used to determine the cost of equity capital. For risk assessment, sensitivity analysis and scenario analysis are the dominant approaches; however despite the theoretical superiority, the use of real options is very low. Overall, investment decision responses significantly differ across firm’s demographics and executive characteristics.,Pakistani business schools need to address the low usage of advanced methods such as modified internal rate of return and real options among Pakistani listed firms.,This is the first comprehensive study on the topic in Pakistan and have highlighted the areas of capital budgeting where Pakistani firms’ practices deviates from finance theory.

Impact of bargaining power on supply chain profit allocation: a game-theoretic study

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to study the impact of bargaining powers of firms in supply chain coordination. It studies selected aspects of bargaining powers, namely, impatience, breakdown probability and outside options, and uses a bargaining-theoretic approach to analyze surplus allocation in a coordinated supply chain.,This paper proposes one-supplier one-buyer infinite horizon supply chain coordination game, where suppliers and buyers negotiate for the allocation of supply chain surplus arising out of supply chain coordination. Various aspects of the bargaining power of the negotiating parties are modeled and the paper studies impact of power levels on the results of the bargaining game.,A significance of impatience on the bargaining process and the surplus split has been established. This paper also demonstrates a rather counter-intuitive aspect of bargaining that the impatience (as perceived by the other party) can improve the bargaining position and therefore share of profits.,This paper has limited its analysis to three key components of bargaining power. Future works can study other aspects of bargaining power, namely information asymmetry, learning curve, inside options, etc. Further, the paper has considered an infinite horizon model – this assumption can be relaxed in future research.,Equations to derive optimal split of the surplus have been derived and can be leveraged to design an autonomous bargaining agent to discover equilibrium profit splits in a cloud or e-commerce setting. Further, insights from this paper can be leveraged by managers to understand their relative bargaining power and drive to obtain the best profit split.,This paper establishes that impatience (in terms of counter-offer probability) has a significant impact on the bargaining position and on the split of the surplus that the firm can get for themselves. It establishes the advantage of higher levels of impatience, provided the other party recognizes the impatience and factors it in their decision-making process.