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This study aims to access, analyze and highlight opportunities and problems of the Indian pharmaceutical sector in the broader national health-care industry. The recent changes in the field, at the institutional and corporate levels, have placed India in the spotlight of the global pharmaceutical market, but several threats and weaknesses could limit this expansion.

Descriptive and inferential analyses have been based on empirical data extracted from authenticated data sources. Subsequently, a narrative strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats analysis was performed based on the results of prior investigations and on qualitative data that were retrieved from a marketing intelligence examination to generate an overall scenario analysis.

Indian pharmaceutical companies have faced several challenges on various fronts. In the home market, drug prices are controlled by the drug price control order; therefore, there is strong pressure on revenues and subsequently on costs. In the international market, threats derived from pharmaceutical multinational companies are emerging as tough obstacles to overcome.

More focus on patents for innovative drugs is required, instead of concentrating primarily on generic drugs. There is a need for policymakers to work on the sustainability and development of the industry, while the companies must redesign their orientation toward enhancing innovation capabilities. In addition, at the level of corporate strategy, firms should establish collaborations and alliances and expand their industrial marketing vision.

This study provides a global overview of the potential growth and development of the Indian pharmaceutical sector, comparing it with internal trends and external competition. The most relevant contribution of the research relies on the shift to innovative production that Indian companies must adopt (after years of focusing only on generic drugs), and in this vein, appropriate industrial marketing solutions are indispensable.

The Indian pharmaceutical industry has contributed significantly to global healthcare by securing superior-quality, inexpensive and reachable medicines worldwide. However, supply chain management (SCM) has been challenging due to constantly shifting requirements for short lifecycles of products, the convergence of industry and changeable realities on the ground. This study aims to identify, assess and prioritize the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of the pharmaceutical SCM environment in India.

The paper employs a Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat (SWOT) analysis and recognizes strategies to utilize the advantages of the strengths and opportunities, rectify weaknesses and resolve threats.

A variety of strategies that could have a positive effect on the Indian pharmaceutical business are presented. Findings and suggested strategies can significantly advance knowledge, enhance understanding and contribute to the growth of a successful SCM for the Indian pharmaceutical sector.

This paper would act as a roadmap to greater comprehension of the market leaders and market leaders' operating climate. The findings from this study will offer academic scholars and business practitioners deeper insights into the environment of SCM.

With the increasing acclaim of Wireless Sensor Networks and its diverse applications, research has been directed into optimising and prolonging the network lifetime. Energy efficiency has been a critical factor due to the energy resource impediment of batteries in sensor nodes. The proposed routing algorithm therefore aims at extending lifetime of sensors by enhancing load distribution in the network. The scheme is based on the chain-based routing technique of the PEGASIS (Power Energy GAthering in Sensor Information Systems) protocol and uses Ant Colony Optimisation to obtain the optimal chain. The contribution of the proposed work is the integration of the clustering method to PEGASIS with Ant Colony Optimisation to reduce redundancy of data, neighbour nodes distance and transmission delay associated with long links, and the employment an appropriate cluster head selection method. Simulation results indicates proposed method’s superiority in terms of residual energy along with considerable improvement regarding network lifetime, and significant reduction in delay when compared with existing PEGASIS protocol and optimised PEG-ACO chain respectively.

In manufacturing, dedicated machine tools and flexible machine tools are failing to satisfy the ever-changing manufacturing demands of short life cycles and dynamic nature of products. These machines are limited when new product designs are introduced. The solution lies in developing responsive machines that can be adjusted or be changed functionally when these change requirements arise. These machines are reconfigurable machines which are becoming the new focus, as they rapidly respond to product variety and volume changes. A sheet metal working machine known as a reconfigurable guillotine shear and bending press machine (RGS&BPM) has been developed. The purpose of this paper is to present a methodology, function-oriented design approach (FODA), which was developed for the design of the RGS&BPM.

The design of the machine is based on the six principles of reconfigurable manufacturing systems (RMSs), namely, modularity, scalability integrability, convertibility, diagnosability and customisability. The methodology seeks to optimise the design process of the RGS&BPM through a design of modules that make up the machine, enable its conversion and reconfiguration. The FODA is focussed on function identification to select the operational function required. Two main functions are recognised for the machine, these being cutting and bending; hence, the design revolves around these two and reconfigurability.

The developed design methodology was tested in the design of a prototype for the reconfigurable guillotine shear and bending press machine. The prototype is currently being manufactured and will be subjected to functional tests once completed. This paper is being presented not only to present the methodology by to show and highlight its practical applicability, as the prototype manufacturers have been enthusiastic about this new approach.

The research was limited to the design methodology for the RGS&BPM, the machine which has been designed to completion using this methodology, with prototype being manufactured.

This study presents critical steps and considerations in the development of reconfigurable machines. The main thrust being to explore the best possibility of developing the machines with dual functionality that will assist in availing the technology to manufacturer. As the machine has been development, the success of the design can be directly attributed to the FODA methodology, among other contributing factors. It also highlights the significance of the principles of RMS in reconfigurable machine design.

The RGS&BM machine is an answer for the small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs), as the machine replaces two machines with one, and the methodology ensures its affordable design. It contributes immensely to the machine availability by eliminating trial and error approaches.

This study presents a new approach to the design of reconfigurable dual machines using principles of RMS. As the targeted market is the SME, it is not limited to that as any entrepreneur may use the machine to their advantage. The design methodology presented contributes to the body of knowledge in dual reconfigurable machine tool design.

This study aims to understand the behavior of internal auditors towards quality and analyze if some organizational and individual factors influence internal audit quality.

The sample is constituted by Portuguese internal auditors, and the methodology includes the use of partial least squares – structuring equation model (PLS-SEM) to test the hypothesis under study.

The results show that there is a negative relationship between reduced audit quality practices (RAQP) and organizational commitment and independence. The results found that time pressure positively affect RAQP. There is no evidence that perceived organizational support (POS) and risk profile are determinants of RAQP.

This work contributes by extending the literature about the determinants of internal audit quality, but also to the practice by understanding the factors that influence the behavior of internal auditors and by making recommendations that allow an improvement of the quality of internal auditing.

本研究擬瞭解內部審計師就保持內部審計質量所作出的行為，並探討是否有些組織或個人因素、會影響內部審計的質量。

研究的樣本由葡萄牙內部審計師構成，而研究方法則包括偏最小平方法的結構方程模型 (PLS-SEM) 的使用，以測試正在研究中的假設。

研究結果顯示、降低審計質量的慣常做法與組織承諾及獨立性是成負相關的; 研究結果亦顯示、時間壓力會對降低審計質量的慣常做法產生正面影響，沒有證據證實、組織支持感和風險概況是降低審計質量慣常做法的決定因素。

本研究的貢獻為、就研究內部審計質量決定因素的文獻方面、擴展了有關的學術探討; 研究亦對內部審計作出實務方面的貢獻，因研究結果幫助我們更瞭解影響內部審計師行為的因素，而且，研究人員提出了提升內部審計質量的建議。

內部審計質量、降低審計質量的慣常做法、組織決定因素、個人決定因素.

Food and beverage (F&B) small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) must diversify their markets and obtain predictable sources of revenues to withstand difficult and volatile periods such as the post-pandemic geopolitical scenario, recently burdened by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. On the other hand, another strand of the literature suggests that public procurement could be considered a great source of income, enabling solid contracts, revenues and cash-flow stability. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the role of public procurement, the adoption of e-commerce platforms and their interactions in affecting the exporting performances of SMEs operating in the F&B sector.

The study retrieves data from 2,186 Italian F&B manufacturing SMEs relying on Margò by Cribis database. Therefore, it conducts a structured equational model (SEM) to test the developed hypotheses empirically.

The findings reveal that digital selling platforms positively affect exports, whereas public procurement negatively affects F&B SMEs exports. Nonetheless, findings underline that the interaction between public procurement and the adoption of digital selling platforms dampens public procurement's negative effects on exports.

This study brings an original contribution to the F&B literature by conducting empirical research on an extensive sample of firms from one of the most influential countries in the F&B vertical, Italy, with officially registered data. More importantly, to the best of the authors' knowledge, this study pioneers the investigation of the relationship between public procurement and e-commerce platforms in affecting F&B SMEs' export performances.

This paper is one of the first studies to examine specificities, including limits of mindfulness at work in an African organisational context, whilst dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It specifically addresses the role of organisational and managerial support systems in restoring employee wellbeing, social connectedness and attachment to their organisations, in order to overcome the exclusion caused by the ongoing pandemic.

The study uses a qualitative research methodology that includes interviews as the main data source. The sample comprises of 20 entrepreneurs (organisational leaders) from Ghana and Nigeria.

The authors found that COVID-19-induced worries restricted the practice of mindfulness, and this was prevalent at the peak of the pandemic, particularly due to very tough economic conditions caused by reduction in salaries, and intensified by pre-existing general economic and social insecurities, and institutional voids in Africa. This aspect further resulted in lack of engagement and lack of commitment, which affected overall team performance and restricted employees’ mindfulness at work. Hence, quietness by employees even though can be linked to mindfulness was linked to larger psychological stress that they were facing. The authors also found leaders/manager’s emotional intelligence, social skills and organisational support systems to be helpful in such circumstances. However, their effectiveness varied among the cases.

This paper is one of the first studies to establish a link between the COVID-19 pandemic and mindfulness limitations. Moreover, it is a pioneering study specifically highlighting the damaging impact of COVID-19-induced concerns on leader–member exchange (LMX) and team–member exchange (TMX) relationships, particularly in the African context. It further brings in a unique discussion on the mitigating mechanisms of such COVID-19-induced concerns in organisations and highlights the roles of manager’s/leader’s emotional intelligence, social skills and supportive intervention patterns. Finally, the authors offer an in-depth assessment of the effectiveness of organisational interventions and supportive relational systems in restoring social connectedness following a social exclusion caused by COVID-19-induced worries.

This paper aims to analyse how emerging technologies (ETs) impact on improving performance in disaster management (DM) processes and, concretely, their impact on the performance according to the different phases of the DM cycle (preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation).

The methodology is based on a systematic review of the literature. Scopus, ProQuest, EBSCO and Web of Science were used as data sources, and an initial sample of 373 scientific articles was collected. After abstracts and full texts were read and refinements to the search were made, a final corpus of 69 publications was analysed using VOSviewer software for text mining and cluster visualisation.

The results highlight how ETs foster the preparedness and resilience of specific systems when dealing with different phases of the DM cycle. Simulation and disaster risk reduction are the fields of major relevance in the application of ETs to DM.

This paper contributes to the literature by adding the lenses of performance measurement, management and accountability in analysing the impact of ETs on DM. It thus represents a starting point for scholars to develop future research on a rapidly and continuously developing topic.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze geographic heterogeneity of consumer preferences for intrinsic quality attributes of rice in South and Southeast Asia and the drivers of demand for these attributes, with a particular focus on rice fragrance and the role of gender.

Stated-preference surveys were conducted with 4,231 urban and rural consumers in 37 cities across seven countries (Bangladesh, India, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam) during 2013–2014 and analyzed through a rank-ordered logistic regression with incomplete ranking choice data.

Preferences for rice attributes are found to be significantly heterogeneous among consumers in South and Southeast Asia. Urban Thai consumers tend to prioritize appearance and cooking characteristics over taste and nutritional benefits, relative to all other surveyed consumers. In contrast with South Asian consumers, Southeast Asian consumers have largely adopted Thai preferences for rice texture and fragrance, a trend that was earlier coined “Jasminization.” We find that demand for rice fragrance is mainly driven by women, educated consumers, large families, families spending a lower share of their food expenditures on rice, and consumers in Southeast Asia (particularly the Philippines and Cambodia).

Little is known about geographic heterogeneity, drivers, and the role of gender in demand for rice fragrance. This paper fills these knowledge gaps. Our findings suggest that the more women are empowered in grocery decision-making, the more demand for aromatic rice is expected to rise. These insights can assist market-driven and gender-responsive rice breeding programs in simultaneously enhancing rice farmers' livelihoods and gender equity.

The purpose of this paper is to generalize the traditional risk evaluation methods and to specify a multi-level risk evaluation framework, in order to prepare customized risk evaluation and to enable effectively integrating the elements of risk evaluation.

A real case study of an electric motor manufacturing company is presented to illustrate the advantages of this new framework compared to the traditional and fuzzy failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) approaches.

The essence of the proposed total risk evaluation framework (TREF) is its flexible approach that enables the effective integration of firms’ individual requirements by developing tailor-made organizational risk evaluation.

Increasing product/service complexity has led to increasingly complex yet unique organizational operations; as a result, their risk evaluation is a very challenging task. Distinct structures, characteristics and processes within and between organizations require a flexible yet robust approach of evaluating risks efficiently. Most recent risk evaluation approaches are considered to be inadequate due to the lack of flexibility and an inappropriate structure for addressing the unique organizational demands and contextual factors. To address this challenge effectively, taking a crucial step toward customization of risk evaluation.