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Literacy represents one’s ability to process and produce materials related to a domain. One type of this higher-order, global individual difference variable is consumer financial literacy. It stems from one’s financial information processing capacity, prior financial knowledge, and proficiency in optimizing financial decisions and managing financial resources. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

The research matching perspective theoretically explains findings related to literacy, including those in this special issue. Optimal processing arises as available and required processing resources correspond. Thus, cognitive comprehension and behavioral application/decision-making outcomes following financial marketing communication exposure are optimized when consumer financial literacy matches the level needed for successful processing. Insufficient or excess available resources harm outcomes.

The resource-matching perspective clarifies consumers’ increasing financial difficulties. Consumers limit personal finance efforts because required resources overwhelm limited financial literacy. However, education or experience can expand consumer financial literacy. Alternatively, financial service marketers may accommodate low consumer financial literacy by simplifying financial information presentation. Consumers reward firms that show sensitivity to their domain-specific literacy limitations with stronger loyalty.

Construct definition is vital to advance research. Yet, financial literacy has no generally accepted definition. This paper’s definitions should aid understanding of the psychological underpinnings of financial literacy’s components.

Much has been written about consumers’ inability to manage personal finances. This paper provides a unified, theoretical explanation for consumers increasing financial literacy difficulties and suggests ways that consumers, financial service providers, and public policy makers can overcome these difficulties.

This research aims to investigate the relationship between employer branding and its antecedent organisational culture within the context of the private banking sector. The study also investigates the relationship between employer branding and employee brand equity as a consequential construct. Additionally, the mediating role of trust and the moderating role of gender in the relationship between employer branding and employee brand equity has been examined.

The present study’s findings result from data analysis collected from a sample of 454 employees working in private banks in India. The data analysis was conducted utilising the structural equation modelling technique with the assistance of analysis of moment structures (AMOS) software.

The study’s findings indicate that supportive and bureaucratic (formal) culture in private banks exhibit a significant relationship with employer branding. However, the relationship between innovative culture and employer branding was found to be insignificant. The research also reveals a significant positive association between employer branding and employee brand equity variables: brand consistent behaviour, brand endorsement and brand allegiance. Further, the study highlights the mediating role of employee trust in management in the relationship between employer branding and employee brand equity. Examining demographic variables suggests that gender moderates the relationship between employer branding and employee brand equity.

The originality of this study lies in its exploration of the critical role of organisational culture variables in shaping employer branding within the context of private banks. The findings highlight that cultivating supportive and bureaucratic cultures can effectively enhance the employer branding of private banks. The study emphasises the outcomes of employer branding initiatives, signifying that they contribute to developing brand equity among employees. This leads to long-term employee commitment and advocacy towards the organisation, as employees become brand advocates for the bank with which they are affiliated. The study contributes to a better understanding of the relationship between organisational culture, employer branding and employee brand equity, providing valuable implications for the private banking sector aiming to reinforce their employer brand and increase employee engagement.

We discuss recent developments in real options theory and its applications to strategic management research, examine the potential difficulties in implementing real options in theory and practice, and propose several areas for future research. Our review shows that real options theory has provided substantial insights into investment and exit decisions as well as into the choice of investment modes. In addition, extant research studies have contributed significantly to our understanding of whether and how organizations can benefit from real options. Future research that addresses difficulties in applications will further advance both real options theory and practice in strategic management. We call for future generations of research to enhance the impact of real options as an emerging dominant conceptual lens in strategic management.

The purpose of the study is to examine the factors that influence people's intention to adopt electric vehicles (EVs). The study used an expanded theory of planned behaviour (TPB) along with the addition of perceived trust and consideration of future consequences (CFC).

The study is based on primary data collected from 282 respondents in Punjab through a questionnaire. The collected data were analysed using SPSS 26 and AMOS 24 to perform confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.

The empirical analysis indicates that attitude, subjective norms and perceived trust have a significant influence on the adoption intention (AI) of EVs.

The implications provide policymakers and marketers with better insights into marketing EVs in the trajectory of sustainable mobility. Marketers should create focussed marketing materials that highlight the environmental ease of use, lower running costs and sophisticated technology of electric automobiles. The limitations of the study provide valuable insights for future researchers.

This is the first study that uses CFC with the TPB model in the context of AI of EVs specifically for the Punjab region.

The purpose of this paper is to present a road map to implement Lean-Kaizen concept using value stream mapping (VSM) to identify hidden continuous improvement opportunities in a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) located at the non-capital region of India.

From the collected data, a current state map was prepared that indicated the current operating situation of selected SME. The takt time was calculated and those processes which attained higher cycle time (C/T) than takt time were identified. The continuous flow processing was achieved by adjusting C/T of each process and supermarket pull system was developed to control the production at the workstations. Finally, a future state map was developed that served as a guide for future lean activities. Few problems were identified to realize the future state. The “5-why” analysis was used for identifying root causes of these problems and Kaizen events were proposed as solutions. In this case study, one Kaizen event was identified in which brainstorming technique was used to control the variation caused by unorthodox fixture design for clamping and de-clamping of case product and thus eliminated non-value-added activities performed by the operator on a milling machine.

Before and after implementation of value stream map, the data obtained were analyzed and eliminated rework time, reduced inventory level, reduced lead time and C/T, improved productivity and product quality are presented as finding. Lean-Kaizen provides a better chance for every individual of the industry to have a hand in achieving organization’s goals to attain continuous progress in productivity and quality of the product. Even good understanding of the concept of lean tools and techniques by SMEs, the employee willingness and motivation to identify and eliminate wastes are found feeble.

This study is among best practices to identify hidden improvement opportunities in the regular production of the product to increase productivity and improve quality using value stream map. The research paper gives useful understandings to the lean implementers, Kaizen identifiers, consultants and researchers.

The purpose of this paper is to test the moderated-mediated model using a dataset drawn from 204 manufacturing firms in Australia, and Hayes' PROCESS macro software was used for analyzing the research model.

This study examines how firms can leverage the strategic value of their key supplier for improving their product performance by developing strategic collaborations with the key supplier as a mediating factor. Furthermore, it also seeks to understand the role that commitment plays in strategic relationships by testing how the mediating role of strategic collaboration is moderated by the level of buyer-suppliers relational capital.

The findings show that strategic collaborations mediate the relationship between the strategic value of key supplier and buyer's product performance, and the mediating effect is moderated by the relational capital between the buyer and the key supplier in such a way that the stronger the relational capital the stronger the indirect effect of strategic value of key supplier on buyer's product performance.

The findings show that firms could derive significant benefits from the strategic value of their key supplier in improving their product performance. However, the benefits can only be realized if firms can build successful strategic collaborations in the first place. At the same time, this study also demonstrates the importance of relational capital in terms of commitment and trust with the key supplier that influences the effectiveness of strategic collaborations in realizing the outcome of the collaborations.

This study addresses the gap in the literature by disentangling the complex relationship between a key supplier's strategic value and a buyer's product performance and the role that both collaboration and relational capital play in this relationship. By integrating strategic collaborations and relational capital of buyer-supplier relationships, this study not only confirms the links by testing key supplier's strategic value, strategic collaboration and product performance, but also extends the previous studies by incorporating the moderating role of relational capital as a contingent factor.

The purpose of this paper is to identify factors relevant for financial inclusion (FI) and establish a model that shows how these factors lead to economic development (ED) through FI.

Primary data were collected through structured questionnaire. Out of 350, 311 respondents accurately filled the questionnaire. The data were collected from rural areas of Tamil Nadu. Exploratory factor analysis has been applied to evaluate drivers/factors relevant for FI. Confirmatory factor analysis has been applied to establish reliability and validity of the identified factors. A structural model has been proposed and empirically tested for ED through FI.

The main findings of the current paper are as follows: online banking (OB), understanding banking services (UBS) and financial literacy (FL) are the drivers of FI; FI can lead to ED, as the proposed model of ED, through FI, is supported in the paper (χ²/degree of freedom and CMIN/degree of freedom are less than 3; GFI and AGFI are more than 0.90 and 0.85, respectively). Behavior of the people, with respect to mode of financial transactions, has changed due to demonetization. (The χ² test for mode of financial transaction is significant).

The geographical reach of the sample should cover the whole India. The sample should also have equal representation from rural and urban areas.

The identified factors for FI (OB, UBS and FL) should be more focused to bring about better results for FI in India. These factors can lead to a more effective execution of FI initiatives. In addition to this, policy makers can be confident of relying upon FI as a tool for ED.

The identified three drivers for FI have not been explored earlier. In addition to this, ED (through FI) in the form of structural model has also not been tested earlier. Government of India can realign their policies toward FI by using findings of this paper. In addition to increasing the access of formal financial system to masses, more thrust can be given to OB and FL for better results of FI in India.

International Journal of Lean Six Sigma (IJLSS) has completed a decade. To celebrate the same, this study aims to review the articles published in IJLSS from its inception to the year 2020. The journal’s trends and professional impact over the years are investigated and potential future research directions are proposed.

A bibliometric analysis comprising of citation, co-citation and keyword co-occurrence methods is used on all the articles published in IJLSS till the year 2020. Content analysis is further done to analyse the type of research, type of industry studied and the articles’ target audience.

The journal has improved its reputation, productivity and impact over the years. Currently, studies published in IJLSS have been cited more than 5,000 times, with the most prominent themes being Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma (LSS) and Lean in manufacturing and services. Researchers from India, the USA and the UK have contributed a significant number of publications. Most of the work published is case-based. There is a need for more empirical or survey-based research having high generalizability. Future studies should also focus on integrating LSS with emerging topics such as sustainability, Industry 4.0 and the like.

The study provides evidence of the impact of IJLSS and highlights the trend in the domain of LSS. It can be of use for the editorial board members to identify potential areas to focus on in the future. Researchers can use it to further their research by working on the research gaps identified.

This paper is the first to trace the progress of IJLSS from its inception till the year 2020.

Using the assumptions of the resource-based view, relational view and swift, even flow theories and the overarching principles of supply chain management, the study aims to test the role of information technology (IT) capability (cross-functional application, supply chain application and data consistency) in enabling supply chain integration (SCI; internal, customer and supplier integration) and the impact of SCI on firm's operational performance in terms of quality, delivery, production cost, inventory level, customer service and product-mix flexibility.

The structural equation modeling approach is used to test theoretical predictions underlying the relationship among dimensions of IT capability, SCI and operational performance based on data obtained from senior executives of 108 large manufacturing firms listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The results suggest that IT capability has positive impact on SCI, except for data consistency, which is found to have negative impact on internal integration. The results further indicate that SCI, especially customer integration, has positive and significant impact on all operational performance indicators.

The findings inform future initiatives associated with the SCI improvement via specific IT capabilities. When undertaking such initiatives, managers are advised to consider the differential impact of the following IT capabilities on SCI: cross-functional applications, supply chain applications, and data consistency capability.

The study makes an empirical contribution to the body of knowledge by demonstrating the value of the multidimensional representation and analysis of IT capability, SCI, and operational performance given a differential and even opposed influence by some of the dimensions in specific business contexts.

Corporate governance (CG) is an ongoing interesting topic getting the attention of market participant, business regulators and researchers in today’s business environment. The purpose of this study is to analyze the moderating role of earnings management on CG-value and CG-risk relationship in the emerging economy of Pakistan.

A panel data analysis is used in this study. A panel data of 71 non-financial listed companies of Pakistan for the 2008-2017 period is considered for this study. Secondary data is collected from the annual reports of non-financial firms listed on PSX. Seven econometric equations are developed to test the research hypothesis.

The results reveal that CG significantly enhances the firm value and performance measures. Moreover, CG mitigates the practices of earning management and eliminates the risk that develops opportunistic behavior among managers to commit frauds.

The results of this study suggest that the board of directors (BODs) should intensify their governance role and ensure that the executives perform their duties to maximize the wealth of the shareholders and not engage in any misrepresentation of accounts that may lower the company position and decrease the firm value. Moreover, the managers should be informed about their accountability and acknowledged that at the end of the year, they would be audited by an expert’s auditors for their responsibilities. Concerning regulatory bodies, regulatory authorities should ensure that there must be at least one independent member on the board. The better-governed system reduces both agency conflicts and enhances firm value.

A number of studies have already been undertaken by multiple investigators to build connection among CG with firm performance, but there is not even a single study in the literature that considers CG, firm value, firm Risk and discretionary earning management as a whole in one model to generalize its results in the emerging economy of Pakistan. A fundamental element of current analyzation process addresses that this is the very first graft of study conducted in Pakistan having combination of four variables together in one revision. There is minimal work that focuses on moderating effects of earning management on the CG-value and CG-risk relationships. This study uses two standard measures of firm performance (i.e. ROA and Tobin’s Q), one proxy of earning management (DEM) and three attributes of CG (board size, audit quality and ownership structure). Previously, researchers have not investigated a model that combines variables (CG as independent and Firm performance and Firm Risk as dependent along with DEM as moderator) in a single study.