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1 – 10 of 16Ricardo Colomo-Palacios, Cristina Casado-Lumbreras, José María Álvarez-Rodríguez and Murat Yilmaz
The purpose of this paper is to explore and compare emotions perceived while coding and presenting for software students, comparing three different countries and performing also a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore and compare emotions perceived while coding and presenting for software students, comparing three different countries and performing also a gender analysis.
Design/methodology/approach
Empirical data are gathered by means of the discrete emotions questionnaire, which was distributed to a group of students (n = 174) in three different countries: Norway, Spain and Turkey. All emotions are self-assessed by means of a Likert scale.
Findings
The results show that both tasks are emotionally different for the subjects of all countries: presentation is described as a task that produces mainly fear and anxiety; whereas coding tasks produce anger and rage, but also happiness and satisfaction. With regards to gender differences, men feel less scared in presentation tasks, whereas women report more desire in coding activities. It is concluded that it is important to be aware and take into account the different emotions perceived by students in their activities. Moreover, it is also important to note the different intensities in these emotions present in different cultures and genders.
Originality/value
This study is among the few to study emotions perceived in software work by means of a multicultural approach using quantitative research methods. The research results enrich computing literacy theory in human factors.
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Cristina Casado‐Lumbreras, Pedro Soto‐Acosta, Ricardo Colomo‐Palacios and Patricia Ordóñez de Pablos
The aim of this paper is to present a tool which uses semantic technologies for personnel performance and workplace learning assessment in outsourced information technology…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to present a tool which uses semantic technologies for personnel performance and workplace learning assessment in outsourced information technology environments.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents the tool from a technical perspective and introduces a use case that depicts the main features related to human resource management issues.
Findings
Semantic technologies enable the monitoring of personnel throughout all of the phases of the management of outsourcing, basing itself on established communication standards used in leading business management tools and recent outsourcing efforts. This monitoring provides to human resource management issues an integrated approach to assess both employee performance and learning outcomes as a result of competence evaluation.
Originality/value
The paper shows that semantic technologies can be applied to human resource management tools to bring its intrinsic characteristics to human resource management tasks including personnel and learning assessment.
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Andrew J. Hobson, Linda J. Searby, Lorraine Harrison and Pam Firth
Vicente Rodríguez, Cristina Olarte-Pascual and Manuela Saco
The purpose of this paper is to study the optimization of the geographical location of a network of points of sale, so that each retailer can have access to a potential geographic…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study the optimization of the geographical location of a network of points of sale, so that each retailer can have access to a potential geographic market. In addition, the authors study the importance of the distance variable in the commercial viability of a point of sale and a network of points of sale, analysing if the best location for each point (local optimum) is always the best location for the whole (global optimum).
Design/methodology/approach
Location-allocation models are applied using p-median algorithms and spatial competition maximization to analyse the actual journeys of 64,740 car buyers in 1240 postal codes using a geographic information system (GIS) and geomarketing techniques.
Findings
The models show that the pursuit of individual objectives by each concessionaire over the collective provides poorer results for the whole network of points of sale when compared to coordinated competition. The solutions provided by the models considering geographic and marketing criteria permit a reduction in the length of journeys made by the buyers. GIS allows the optimal control of market demand coverage through the collaborative strategies of the supplying retailers, in this case, car dealerships.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the joint research of geography and marketing from a theoretical and practical point of view. The main contribution is the use of information on actual buyer journeys for the optimal location of a network of points of sale. This research also contributes to the analysis of the correlation between the optimum local and optimum global locations of a commercial network and is a pioneering work in the application of these models to the automotive sector in the territorial area of the study.
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Pedro Victor Núñez-Cacho Utrilla, Felix A. Grande-Torraleja, Antonio Luis Moreno Albarracín and Cristina Ortega-Rodríguez
The search for competitiveness by family-owned companies has led us to research topics that may help these companies succeed. The management of human capital is undoubtedly one of…
Abstract
Purpose
The search for competitiveness by family-owned companies has led us to research topics that may help these companies succeed. The management of human capital is undoubtedly one of the keys to success, and the practices of employee development (training, promotion, succession, career planning, mentoring and coaching) help improve the performance of these companies.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is based on studying a sample of 560 family companies and analyzing the relationship between performance of the family businesses and the use of employee development practices. The techniques used were confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling.
Findings
The results show that employee development has a direct effect on the indicators of performance in family companies. The authors have developed a series of practical implications for companies that justify investments in and efforts with regard to employee career development.
Research limitations/implications
Family businesses need to understand the development needs of their employees. In addition, the very processes and tasks performed. The authors have developed a number of practical implications for companies that justify the investments and efforts made in employee career development. This work validates the usefulness of the use of certain practices for the development of employees in family businesses, allowing the company to generate human capital to build a competitive position in the market.
Practical implications
The results of this study suggest that family businesses should understand the development needs of their employees and that various practices are available to help detect these needs. Family businesses should see individual development processes as an opportunity to improve the performance of employees, which could avoid conflicts in such businesses (Qiu and Freel, 2020). Companies should develop career and succession plans that enable these changes to be faced throughout the company, ensuring that when handover occurs, the candidates are sufficiently qualified in accordance with their career paths. The present research study shows that coaching is a powerful tool for improving performance. Moreover, mentoring appears to be an important part of employee development. For this reason, mentoring programs should be formally planned with designated objectives. In addition, family businesses should provide employees with real opportunities for promotion and the development of their skills and abilities, which is a way to retain nonfamily professionals (Ramankutty and Pujar, 2017).
Social implications
Family businesses are a very important part of the productive activity of a country and their continuity is necessary to maintain employment and income. The management of people in family businesses is a key aspect for their success, therefore knowing the key aspects for the development of human capital will have a positive influence on maintaining employment and income.
Originality/value
This paper addresses the study of people development processes in family businesses and proves its usefulness to improve performance, considering the formal planning of succession processes and professional careers, providing qualifications to candidates and ensuring that they are show satisfaction with their professional evolution in the company. Likewise, it is positive for family businesses to use coaching relationships, formally scheduled and employing a coach from abroad. The other tool that will favor the development of employees is mentoring, formally programmed, establishing objectives and properly studying the mentor's profile. For this tool to be applied successfully, it is necessary to get the participants to commit to the mentoring process. Finally, the organization must provide its employees with real opportunities to promote, training them and developing their skills.
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Elena Rivo López, Nuria Rodríguez López and Beatriz González Sánchez
The purpose of this paper is to gain insight into the features that the business structure known as a Family Office (FO) has in Spain by considering it as a useful tool for…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to gain insight into the features that the business structure known as a Family Office (FO) has in Spain by considering it as a useful tool for businessmen to manage and/or diversify their wealth. After reviewing the available literature, the authors put forward a model for the constitution of an FO in terms of a system of interdependent variables which prove useful in making sense of the different forms in which Spanish FOs are organized, governed and, ultimately, evolve.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors employed a case study method, selecting a sample of six Spanish FOs, being careful in that they stand for each of the different types of FO that have been distinguished in the literature. This research method is appropriate insofar as the notion of degree of development – even though it is acknowledged that applies in the business practice – has not been properly understood yet to the point that sound conceptual grounds for its study can be established.
Findings
We have identified and discerned among three variables which prove useful in understanding the constitution and development processes of an FO, namely: objectives‐scope of activity; structure‐outsource to in‐house ratio; and governance bodies. The relation between these variables and the development of an FO can be made manifest in terms of three propositions of a heuristic nature based on this case study. The authors can explain the relation between these variables and the degree of development of an FO in this way, and with it contribute foundational elements for the development of a theoretic framework that is appropriate for pursuing further research on the factors that can enhance the performance of an FO.
Research limitations/implications
The companies that have been sampled in this case study, even though complying with the significance criteria in a case study scenario, do not comprise the totality of operating Spanish FOs. Thus, in spite of the adequacy of this method, the results obtained cannot be extended as they are to the entire population of Spanish FOs. Nonetheless, they are helpful in suggesting a theoretic framework for a subsequent statistical study that can either reinforce or weaken the theoretic elements suggested.
Practical implications
Given the small‐sized deployment of the FO in Spain – about only ten per cent of those located in Europe – it seems important to make available to family firms what the main motivations and rationale for setting an FO may be, together with the best conditions to proceed doing so, thus expanding their knowledge on what the most appropriate structures and governance bodies are and what the consequences of the decisions taken in those regards may be.
Originality/value
A number of studies, most of them conducted by America‐based researchers, have been conducted in the recent past, with the aim of analyzing the deployment of FOs and the consequences for the entrepreneur family. Nonetheless, given the relatively recent constitution of this kind of structure, the number of studies devoted to it is still comparatively scarce. This is even more significant when it comes to the study of Spanish firms. Hence, this study impinges not only on the improvement of our understanding in terms appropriate for suggesting – and with further research, maybe establishing – a theoretic framework needed for any general study, but also on the optimization of the FO management.
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Cristina Bianca Pocol, Valentina Marinescu, Dan-Cristian Dabija and Antonio Amuza
The present paper explores Generation Z university students' clusters based on the consumption of daily fruits and vegetables in an emerging market economy, indicating young…
Abstract
Purpose
The present paper explores Generation Z university students' clusters based on the consumption of daily fruits and vegetables in an emerging market economy, indicating young people's reasons to adopt a healthy diet.
Design/methodology/approach
Using cluster theory, the authors analyse Generation Z university students who consume fresh fruits and vegetables, highlighting aspects of a healthy diet, in compliance with the WHO recommendations and challenges.
Findings
Data collected from over 459 Generation Z university students point out the possibility of typologizing them into nine clusters: three consuming fresh fruit and six consuming fresh vegetables. Most cluster members are aware of the value of regular fresh fruit and vegetable consumption in order to maintain health and overall well-being, but the authors also identified a cluster called “urban, but sick humanists at the beginning of their professional careers”, for whom a healthy diet based on fruits and vegetables is not a priority.
Research limitations/implications
Although this research only refers to consumers in the emergent economy Romania, it also allows the delimitation of specific categories which can be utilized by sector stakeholders, in order to identify issues addressed by each cluster member and to find the most appropriate solutions for encouraging/promoting a healthy diet.
Social implications
The paper also raises awareness of the importance of fruit and vegetable consumption in other emerging economies, given the advancement of processed food and reduction of time available to cook healthy dishes.
Originality/value
The results contribute to extending studies conducted on emerging markets concerning fruit and vegetable consumption among Generation Z university students, highlighting the importance of a healthy diet, and the proper targeting of these consumer clusters by fresh fruit and vegetable producers and distributors.
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Donata Tania Vergura, Cristina Zerbini, Beatrice Luceri and Rosa Palladino
The research carried out a bibliometric analysis of the literature on environmental sustainability from a demand perspective by analyzing the scientific contributions published in…
Abstract
Purpose
The research carried out a bibliometric analysis of the literature on environmental sustainability from a demand perspective by analyzing the scientific contributions published in the last twenty years.
Design/methodology/approach
A bibliometric analysis was carried out to outline the scientific studies development, identifying the most discussed topics and those that would require future research. In total, 274 articles published between 1999 and 2021 were collected through the Web of Science database and analyzed with the SciMAT software.
Findings
By systematizing the literature results, the study revealed a steady growth in the number of publications and in the research areas, highlighting a substantial evolution of the research topic.
Research limitations/implications
The study contribute for conceptual, methodological and thematic development of the topic, systematizing the results of existing studies and providing useful indications for the promotion of sustainable consumer habits.
Originality/value
The study attempts to bridge the gap in current literature by offering a holistic view on the role of consumer behavior in pursuing sustainability goals, identifying both the most treated areas and the emerging ones that can represent opportunities for future research.
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Mario Raposo, Cristina I. Fernandes and Pedro M. Veiga
Research into the relationship between entrepreneurial ecosystems and sustainability has deepened in terms of both quantity and quality even while still remaining a fragmented and…
Abstract
Purpose
Research into the relationship between entrepreneurial ecosystems and sustainability has deepened in terms of both quantity and quality even while still remaining a fragmented and divergent field. Hence, the purpose of this study is to put forward empirical evidence to advance the literature on the relationship between entrepreneurial ecosystems and sustainability. To this end, the authors furthermore identify and highlight a future research agenda.
Design/methodology/approach
The source of the empirical analysis in this article stems from the Community Innovation Survey, the leading statistical inquiry of innovation in companies carried out by Eurostat based upon the conceptual framework set out in the Oslo Manual. For modelling the variables, the authors applied binary regression based on logistic distribution.
Findings
The results of the research demonstrated how all of the variables considered for entrepreneurial ecosystems (co-operation with suppliers, co-operation with clients or customers, co-operation with universities; co-operation with government, public or private research institutes) return positive impacts on national sustainability
Research limitations/implications
Despite the data spanning only the nine countries in the database, the results enable insights into the theory as the results serve to strengthen already existing considerations on the positive effects of entrepreneurial ecosystems for the sustainability of countries.
Practical implications
The results of the research may generate important implications for company policy formulation. The identification of the relevance of the different actors in entrepreneurial ecosystems and their impact on sustainability may assist firms and policymakers to identify the leading actors and the resources necessary to sustaining their activities and thereby correspondingly establishing their priorities.
Originality/value
The research (1) both deepens the prevailing knowledge on this theme and fills a gap encountered in the existing literature; (2) in practical terms, for managers, entrepreneurs and politicians to better grasp how entrepreneurship constitutes a systemic phenomenon and these systems require approaching in terms of their impacts and greater contributions to obtaining sustainability.
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