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This study aims to focus on a specific project marketing concept, i.e. “discontinuity,” and analyzes how this concept emerged in project marketing, becoming its key scholarly embodiment, how it became decoupled from the increasingly service-intensive project business practice and what the relevance of discontinuity is for project marketers moving forward.

This study is built on a systematic literature review of 31 years (1993–2023) of publishing data from major marketing and management journals.

This study provides three findings. First, the author reveals the risks related to marketing scholars and practitioners losing sight of each other as business practices evolve much faster than scholarly research can keep up. Second, the author highlights the role of interdisciplinary collaboration in advancing conceptual innovations. Finally, the research elucidates the need for broader metatheoretical reflection to keep this research tradition on an upward trajectory.

The aim of this study is not to criticize project marketing, as many strands of business-to-business (B2B) marketing face the same challenge, but to elucidate a need for conceptual innovations, collaboration with practitioners and other disciplines and broader metatheoretical reflection to keep this research tradition on an upward trajectory.

This study makes several contributions to the project marketing research tradition. First, it reviews the emergence and dissipation of the concept of discontinuity, drawing on semantical, etymological and epistemological insights. It also reflects on recent disruptions in the marketplace and envisions future research trajectories for this elusive concept. In addition, the author develops a conceptual framework that combines project types with exchange elements in project and service businesses. This conceptual framework helps elucidate what part of the exchange is continuing and what is discontinuing in the resulting business relationships. Furthermore, the research contributes to B2B marketing more broadly by highlighting the fleeting correspondence between theory and the real world. It underscores the need for constant updates to maintain relevance.

This chapter reviews recent developments in the density discontinuity approach. It is well known that agents having perfect control of the forcing variable will invalidate the popular regression discontinuity designs (RDDs). To detect the manipulation of the forcing variable, McCrary (2008) developed a test based on the discontinuity in the density around the threshold. Recent papers have noted that the sorting patterns around the threshold are often either the researcher’s object of interest or may relate to structural parameters such as tax elasticities through known functions. This, in turn, implies that the behavior of the distribution around the threshold is not only informative of the validity of a standard RDD; it can also be used to recover policy-relevant parameters and perform counterfactual exercises.

The authors propose an alternative robust technique to test for discontinuities in distributions and provide consistent evidence of discontinuities around zero for both scaled and unscaled earnings levels and changes. The advantage of the proposed test is that it does not rely on arbitrary choice of bin width choices.

To evaluate the power of the test, the authors examine the density function of non-discretionary earnings and detect no evidence of discontinuities around zero in levels and changes of these non-discretionary earnings. As robustness, the authors use pre-managed earnings excluding accrual and real manipulation and find similar evidence.

The finding using our technique support the Burgstahler and Dichev (1997) interpretation on earnings management, even for smaller sample sizes and reject the theory that discontinuities arise from scaling and sampling methods.

The study provides an overview of those studies that support and those that oppose using “testing for discontinuities” as a way to examine earnings management. The authors advance the literature by providing an alternative methodology supporting the view that the kink in the distribution represents earnings management.

The formulation of finite elements with incompatible discontinuous modes is examined rigorously. Both weak and strong discontinuities are considered. Starting from a careful elaboration of the kinematics for both types of discontinuities a comprehensive finite element formulation is derived based on a three‐field variational statement. Similarities and differences are highlighted between the various formulations which ensue.

This paper aims to present some aspects associated with the life prediction of structures with fatigue cracks growing from small natural discontinuities in aluminium alloy (AA)7050‐T7451 for a surface condition that is present in F/A‐18 A/B aircraft critical structure.

Fatigue results are presented for thick section AA7050 plate coupons loaded with a representative fighter aircraft wing root bending moment loading spectrum. Detailed quantitative fractography (QF) was used to gain a deeper understanding of issues relevant to an improved fatigue life predictive capacity for this material by using the QF results to investigate the “effectiveness” of the fatigue initiating discontinuities.

Estimates of the “effectiveness” of the fatigue initiating discontinuities as quasi pre‐existing fatigue cracks (“equivalent pre‐crack size” (EPS) here) were made with the aid of a simple crack growth model. This model, based on experience, was found to be valid for the applied spectrum and stress levels used. These stress levels were chosen to represent those that may be found in highly stressed locations of fighter aircraft; and as such would usually lead to the limiting fatigue life of such a structure.

The method has been extended to other crack growth situations and is being used to build a database large enough to determine the best probability distribution of the “effectiveness” of the fatigue initiating discontinuities for not only the surface condition reported here but several other surface conditions typical of aircraft metallic structure.

The EPS of the discontinuities from which the cracks grew were used to investigate distributions that may be used in a risk‐based assessment using deterministic crack growth measurements from such discontinuities. Some of the problems that remain to be resolved in such an analysis, prior to its use in a risk‐based assessment are discussed.

This work improves the understanding of the interaction of small fatigue cracks generated by representative loading spectra with the small discontinuities from which they grow and shows that the fatigue process is remarkably consistent down to very small sizes.

Determining fiber orientations around geometric discontinuities is challenging and simultaneously crucial when designing laminates against failure. The purpose of this paper is to present an approach for selecting the fiber orientations in the vicinity of a geometric discontinuity; more specifically round holes with edge cracks. Maximum stresses in the discontinuity region are calculated using Classical Lamination Theory (CLT) and the stress concentration factor for the aforementioned condition. The minimum moment to cause failure in a lamina is estimated using the Tsai–Hill and Tsai–Wu failure theories for a symmetric general stacking laminate. Fiber orientations around the discontinuity are obtained using the Tsai–Hill failure theory.

The current research focuses on a general stacking sequence laminate under three-point bending conditions. The laminate material is S2 fiber glass/epoxy. The concepts of mode I stress intensity factor and plastic zone radius are applied to decide the radius of the plastic zone, and stress concentration factor that multiplies the CLT stress distribution in the vicinity of the discontinuity. The magnitude of the minimum moment to cause failure in each ply is then estimated using the Tsai–Hill and Tsai–Wu failure theories, under the aforementioned stress concentration.

The findings of the study are as follows: it confirms the conclusions of previous research that the size and shape of the discontinuity have a significant effect on determining such orientations; the dimensions of the laminate and laminae not only affect the CLT results, but also the effect of the discontinuity in these results; and each lamina depending on its position in the laminate will have a different minimum load to cause failure and consequently, a different fiber orientation around the geometric discontinuity.

This paper discusses an important topic for the manufacturing and design against failure of Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastic (GFRP) laminated structures. The topic of introducing geometric discontinuities in unidirectional GFRP laminates is still a challenging one. This paper addresses these issues under 3pt bending conditions, a load condition rarely approached in literature. Therefore, it presents a fairly simple approach to strengthen geometric discontinuity regions without discontinuing fibers.

In this paper I begin to answer the neglected question of “When to downsize?” Specifically, is downsizing and the associated reskilling of workforces an appropriate response to technological discontinuity? Based on past organizational literature written about technological discontinuity, downsizing, and reskilling, I develop a theoretical framework that indicates when downsizing following a technological discontinuity will increase organizational effectiveness. Propositions are developed based on this framework. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications for managers and future researchers.

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the non-destructive methods for detection and localization of interconnection structure discontinuities based on the signal analysis in the frequency and time domain.

The paper deals with the discontinuity characterization of interconnection structures created on substrates used for electronics, and methods for their detection and localization, based on the frequency analysis of transmitted signals. Used analyses are based on the theoretical approach for the solution of discontinuity electrical parameters and are the base for diagnostic methods of discontinuity identification.

The measurement results of reflection parameters, frequency spectrums of transmitted signals and characteristic impedance values are presented on test samples containing multiple line cracks and their width reduction.

Obtained results can be used practically, not only for the detection of transmission lines discontinuities on printed circuit boards but also in other applications, such as the quality assessment of bonded joints.

Developed methods allow the quick identification and localization of particular discontinuities without the destruction of tested devices.

Business strategy and its quest for sustainable competitive advantage and success is challenged by external and internal change, which increasingly takes the form of radical discontinuity. However, emergent strategy models are rising as concepts and constructs, possibly impacting on the advancement of strategic management theory and practices: these tools are the business model (BM), the value network (VN) and resource management (RM). The purpose of this paper is to propose a revisited role for BM design, VN configuration and RM, with specific reference to strategy execution and monitoring under discontinuity.

The study builds its contribution on a theoretical framework (constituted by a literature review on discontinuity, BM, VN and RM), supplemented by two longitudinal case studies on companies which went through several discontinuities affecting their business strategy.

BM, VN and RM are the strategic tools through which a company executes its planned strategy. In addition, radical variations in: BM parameters performance; VN configuration and firms relationships; RM consistency with resources core status, resulting from an external or internal discontinuity, constitute a signalling “vector” of inputs to identify the discontinuity and activate a new strategic re-planning process.

By revisiting the role of BM, VN and RM, the study revives the theoretical debate on business strategy under discontinuity, and provides managers with a comprehensive model to concretely employ these three tools for strategy analysis.

“Virtual” is a potent buzzword, freely applied to many situations, with many meanings. In this exploratory study, we develop a more precise understanding of “virtual” to describe changing work environments. Specifically, we propose a framework to classify work environments based on the type of discontinuities involved. Discontinuities are gaps or a lack of coherence in aspects of work. The framework allows us to compare research across different topics and work settings. We use the framework to classify 75 published articles on virtual work environments or earlier, related research streams. We observed that many studies were simultaneously addressing existing or emerging continuities, factors or strategies for overcoming discontinuities. The focus of “virtual” is on changes in the work environment; however, our analysis suggests the need to be equally aware of factors that have not changed and which may become more critical with the introduction of discontinuities.