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1 – 10 of 60Rufai Salihu Abdulsalam, Melissa Chan, Md. Asrul Nasid Masrom and Abdul Hadi Nawawi
The adoption of green building concepts and practices is rapidly gaining momentum globally due to their tendency to mitigate adverse effects of construction activities on the…
Abstract
Purpose
The adoption of green building concepts and practices is rapidly gaining momentum globally due to their tendency to mitigate adverse effects of construction activities on the environment. The purpose of this study is to examine the challenges and benefits of implementing green building development in Nigeria.
Design/methodology/approach
Primary data were collected from questionnaires administered to 122 participants selected using stratified sampling techniques in North-East Nigeria. Semi-structured interviews complemented survey findings with proposed solutions. The quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics to identify the benefits and challenges, while thematic analysis was used to identify effective measures to the challenges of green building.
Findings
Results show that “conservation of natural resources”, “reducing maintenance” and “heightened aesthetic” were rated higher as environmental, economic and social benefits, and thus were significant to green building development. The study revealed “economic issues”, “government issues” and “absence of standard assessment system” were the key factors as internal, external and general challenges to green building. Most practical solutions were related broadly to policy, awareness and support as measures to challenges of green building development.
Originality/value
The study is imperative to bridge the knowledge gaps and provide empirical information for green building policy guidelines specific to North-East Nigeria’s built environment sector. The understanding of policy implications will assist in building regulatory and monitoring agencies in developing new internal management policies to inform the public and investors about the effects of green building development.
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Husam Abdullah Qasem Almatari, Melissa Chan and Md Asrul Nasid Masrom
The construction industry is a major economic driver in Malaysia, playing a pivotal role in the developing nations economic growth. Malaysia's reliance on labor-driven…
Abstract
Purpose
The construction industry is a major economic driver in Malaysia, playing a pivotal role in the developing nations economic growth. Malaysia's reliance on labor-driven construction practices often sees local industry lagging in adopting technological advancements common to the construction sector on a global scale. This study investigates the challenges faced by project players in using new construction industrial revolution (IR) 4.0 technologies and the difficulties in implementing these technologies in construction projects.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative survey was distributed to 183 practitioners in the Malaysian construction industry. The collected data (N = 121) has been analyzed using statistical software to calculate relative importance index values for the identified factors. A triangulation approach to validate the factors obtained from the survey was conducted with an expert group to ensure there were no additional considerations identified in the study.
Findings
The study results show that the main factors in adopting construction IR 4.0 technologies are 1) high implementation costs, 2) hesitation to adopt technologies, 3) lack of standards, 4) legal and contractual uncertainty and 5) complexity. By investigating these factors, cost and regulation issues can gradually be resolved, with construction firms implementing new technologies, educating workers and ensuring government involvement in training for skill development to support IR 4.0.
Originality/value
The outcome of these efforts to resolve construction productivity would be beneficial in their industry impact on practice and digital transformation. Additionally, the results add to the body of knowledge for construction practitioners and technology developers to work together efficiently on the implementation of construction 4.0 technologies.
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Lauren Sealy Krishnamurti, Lindsey L. Monteith, Ian McCoy and Melissa E. Dichter
Little is known about the gender profile of callers to crisis hotlines, despite distinct gender differences in suicide risk and behavior. The authors assessed current knowledge of…
Abstract
Purpose
Little is known about the gender profile of callers to crisis hotlines, despite distinct gender differences in suicide risk and behavior. The authors assessed current knowledge of the role of caller gender in the use of crisis hotlines for suicide, specifically whether there are differences in frequency, reason for call and caller outcomes by gender.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a scoping literature review of peer-reviewed studies published since 2000 in Medline, PubMed and PsychInfo, examining a total of 18 articles based on 16 studies.
Findings
Overall, women represent a higher percentage of calls to crisis hotlines worldwide, despite men having higher rates of suicide. Primary reasons for calling hotlines were the same for men and women, regardless of geography or culture. When gender differences in reason for call were reported, they were consistent with literature documenting gender differences in the prevalence of risk factors for suicide, including higher rates of substance use among men and higher instances of domestic violence/abuse among women.
Research limitations/implications
There was variability in the studies the authors examined. This review was limited to research on crisis telephone hotlines and did not include text or chat services. Due to data reporting, the findings are constrained to reporting on a male/female gender binary.
Originality/value
Findings on gender differences in crisis line use suggest a need for continued research in this area to determine how to best meet the needs of callers of all genders.
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Edgar Ramos, Andrea S. Patrucco and Melissa Chavez
Considering the unprecedented supply chain disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in the agri-food sector, the possession of dynamic capabilities (DCs) …
Abstract
Purpose
Considering the unprecedented supply chain disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in the agri-food sector, the possession of dynamic capabilities (DCs) – particularly, the need for higher agility – seems to be the key to survival in highly uncertain environments. This study aims to use the dynamic capability view (DCV) theory to analyze how three key supply chain capabilities – organizational flexibility, integration and agility – should be combined to obtain the desired supply chain performance.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors designed a conceptual model in which the relationships between these three key capabilities and supply chain performance were hypothesized. The model was first tested through partial least square regression using survey data collected from 98 members of the Peruvian coffee supply chain. A fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was conducted to uncover how DCs could be combined in successful supply chain configurations.
Findings
The authors show that organizational flexibility is a driver of higher agility in agri-food supply chains, together with external and internal supply chain integration, that have a direct impact on agility, which positively affects supply chain performance. Higher levels of supply chain agility are necessary but insufficient to guarantee high performance, as sufficiency is reached when both integration (internal and/or external) and agility are present.
Originality/value
This study represents a pioneering attempt to apply the DCV theory to agri-food supply chains – characterized by many sources of uncertainty. All the DCs are included within the same model and the joint use of PLS regression and fsQCA provides evidence about the relationships between DCs and how they can empower agri-food supply to obtain the desired performance.
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Marta B. Calás, Han Ou and Linda Smircich
–The paper originated in challenges trying to theorize and research practices and processes of actors engaged in transnational activities for business and everyday life. Key…
Abstract
Purpose
–The paper originated in challenges trying to theorize and research practices and processes of actors engaged in transnational activities for business and everyday life. Key concern was the assumption that actors’ identities remain the same regardless of time/space. While intersectional analysis once seemed a reasonable analytical approach the authors wondered about starting from identity-based categorical schemes in a world where mobility may be ever more the ontological status of everyday experiences and social structuring. Thus, the paper addresses limitations of intersectional analysis in such situations and advances its recasting via mobile conceptualizations, redressing its analytical purchase for contemporary subject formation.
Design/methodology/approach
Discusses emergence of intersectionality at a particular point in time, its success and proliferation, and more recent critiques of these ideas. Develops alternative conceptualization – mobile subjectivities – via literatures on mobilities in the context of globalization. Illustrates the value of these arguments with ethnographic examples from a multi-sited ethnographic project and analyses. Concludes by examining implications for new feminist theorizations under neoliberalism and globalization.
Findings
Observing the constitution of a “mobile selfhood” in actual transnational business activities is a step toward making sense of complex processes in contemporary subject formation under globalized market neoliberalism.
Research limitations/implications
“Mobile subjectivities” suggest that analyses of oppression and subordination must be ongoing, no matter which “new subjectivities” may appear under “the latest regime.”
Originality/value
Theoretical and empirical analyses facilitated a reconceptualization of intersectionality as a mobile, precarious, and transitory accomplishment of selfhood temporarily fixed by the neoliberal rhetoric of “choice” and “self-empowerment.” This is of particular value for understanding transnational practices and processes of contemporary organizational actors.
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Melissa Jane Carey and Melissa Taylor
The purpose of this review was to explore the literature for evidence of the impact of interprofessional practice models on health service inequity, particularly within community…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this review was to explore the literature for evidence of the impact of interprofessional practice models on health service inequity, particularly within community care settings for diverse ageing populations.
Design/methodology/approach
An integrative systematic literature review was conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework combined with the EndNote reference management system. Following the collection and comprehensive screening process completion, a thematic analysis of the included articles occurred utilising within NVivo 12 software.
Findings
The review found that there was a paucity of evidence related to the relationship between interprofessional practice models (IPM) and health service equity for ageing populations. There is a need to improve collaborative practices between social care, public health care and health service providers to more clearly define team member roles. Key aspirations included the need for future innovations in health service delivery to place health service equity as a goal for interprofessional practice. There is a need to find ways to measure and articulate the impact for vulnerable populations and communities.
Research limitations/implications
The review offers insight into the need for health care delivery models to place health service equity at the centre of the model design. In practice settings, this includes setting interprofessional team goals around achieving equitable care outcomes for, and with, vulnerable populations. Implications for practice relate to improving how interprofessional teams work with communities to achieve health care equity.
Originality/value
There is a consensus across the literature that there continues to be health service inequity, yet IPE and interprofessional collaborative practice (IPC) have been growing in momentum for some time. Despite many statements that there is a link between interprofessional practice and improved health service equity and health outcomes, evidence for this is yet to be fully realised. This review highlights the urgent need to review the link between education and practice, and innovative health models of care that enable heath care professionals and social care providers to work together towards achieving health equity for ageing populations. It is clear that more evidence is required to establish evidence for best practice in interprofessional care that has the mitigation of health care inequity as a central objective.
The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of knowledge creation (KC) process on customer relations management (CRM) in Palestinian commercial banks, taking into…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of knowledge creation (KC) process on customer relations management (CRM) in Palestinian commercial banks, taking into consideration which factors of KC process support the CRM system.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a quantitative research design wherein questionnaires have been used to collect data from 345 respondents in the Palestinian banking sector. Research hypotheses have been tested using multiple regression analysis.
Findings
The findings unveil that socialisation and combination processes have a positive impact on CRM. In contrast, internalisation process negatively affects CRM system, but outsourcing knowledge does not significantly affect CRM.
Research limitations/implications
Past studies empirically validated the success of CRM adaptation in the context of different industries. This study provides a new conceptual model which validates the influence of KC on CRM in the banking sector. It also affirms the integral role of KC in supporting CRM from an emerging country perspective like Palestine.
Practical implications
This study offers new insights into creating of knowledge by employees in supporting CRM. It will encourage future scholars to further explore the key dimensions of the KC process for a more detailed investigation at a workplace. This study suggests that banks’ directors and employees should behave in a social manner to support relationship with customers. This study also suggests facilitating knowledge from different resources in innovative ways, through encouraging creative thinking from experiences, using technology in sharing knowledge, focussing on appropriate training to resolve customers' problems and disseminating new knowledge among employees.
Originality/value
This study expands the body of knowledge on KC process in supporting CRM from an emerging country perspective. This study validates the influence of KC on CRM in the Palestinian banking sector. This sheds light on the integration of these two concepts.
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Prem Chhetri, Thomas Ombati, Melissa Shahrom, Kan Tsui and Naima Saeed
Melissa Evans, Leanne Lester, Richard Midford, Helen Walker Cahill, David Foxcroft, Robyn Waghorne and Lynne Venning
The consequences of problematic alcohol consumption fall heavily on Australian adolescents, with this population at increased risk of death, serious injury and other harm…
Abstract
Purpose
The consequences of problematic alcohol consumption fall heavily on Australian adolescents, with this population at increased risk of death, serious injury and other harm. Research regarding whether gender, socioeconomic status (SES) or locality play a role in young people’s alcohol consumption and related harm is limited in Australia. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether Victorian students’ patterns of alcohol uptake, consumption and related harm differed between gender, SES and locality.
Design/methodology/approach
The study involved secondary analysis of student data from the Drug Education in Victorian Schools harm minimisation drug education programme, undertaken in 21 Victorian government schools over three years The initial cohort of 1,752 students was followed during Years 8, 9 and 10, when their average age would have, respectively, been 13, 14 and 15 years.
Findings
There were no gender differences in drinking uptake, consumption or harm. Students with low SES were more likely to have consumed a full drink of alcohol and also experienced more alcohol-related harm. Students living in a regional/rural area were more likely to have engaged in high alcohol consumption.
Originality/value
The findings of this study highlighted that different student demographics have an impact on patterns of alcohol consumption, vulnerability and harm. Students with low SES, living in a regional/rural area, are more at risk than students with higher SES living in a fringe metro/major regional or metro area. Future school harm minimisation drug education programmes should consider the needs of students with demographics that make them more susceptible to higher consumption and harm.
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The paper aims to propose a novel strategic approach, named a Scorecard‐Markov model, combining an evaluation scorecard and a hidden Markov model (HMM) for new product idea…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to propose a novel strategic approach, named a Scorecard‐Markov model, combining an evaluation scorecard and a hidden Markov model (HMM) for new product idea screening (NPIS) decisions.
Design/methodology/approach
A scorecard is constructed to evaluate new product ideas on several criteria, including customer needs, marketing strength, competency, manufacturing compatibility, and distribution channels, involving a consideration of risk buy. A HMM is then developed accordingly to predict the overall performance of new ideas in terms of success probability. To implement the model, it is trained and tested by the historical dataset of a world‐class, leading company in the power tools industry through a case study.
Findings
The approach is proven to be encouraging and meaningful. The scorecard can serve as a guide for new product idea evaluation to convert experts' linguistic judgments to quantifiable and comparable data, whereas the HMM can determine the success probability of new product ideas to support NPIS decision making based on their computed evaluation performance. The optimal cut‐off value for making either a go or kill decision on each idea can thus be determined. Concerning the case company, a go decision should be made when the probability lies in the interval [0.53, 1].
Practical implications
The model can prevent companies from undertaking risky and failed new product development projects. Further, it is believed that this study can assist decision makers in choosing winning new product ideas towards commercialization in an effective and certain manner, thus enhancing the new product success rate in the innovation industry.
Originality/value
The approach incorporating the scorecard method and HMM is novel. Illustrated by the case study, the application of this approach to NPIS decisions is confirmed to be effective.
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