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Project bundling is an innovative practice that groups or bundles several infrastructure projects into a single contract. While project bundling has various benefits, agencies are facing some challenges when bundling their projects, including properly assessing the feasibility (or infeasibility) of project delivery methods (PDMs) of interest. More specifically, project owners face the challenge of properly selecting between traditional and alternative PDMs for their bundled projects. Although some research efforts were devoted to providing guidelines in relation to different aspects related to project bundling, no previous study was conducted to help project owners performing PDMs-related feasibility analysis for bundled projects, which differ from normal, singly delivered projects. To fill this knowledge gap, this paper develops a decision-support tool that assists agencies in deciding whether they should select a traditional or alternative PDM (i.e. whether to go with the Design-Bid-Build (DBB) PDM or not) for their bundled projects.

An analytical methodology comprised of four main steps was followed in this paper. First, an expert survey was developed and distributed to industry experts to quantify the importance of 25 project bundling objectives. Second, principal component analysis was used to determine the weights for the different project bundling objectives. Third, a series of statistical tests was implemented to identify different feasibility tiers. Fourth, a user-friendly decision-support tool was developed, and its capabilities were demonstrated.

The results showed that six tiers exist to classify the feasibility (or infeasibility) of traditional PDMs (i.e. the DBB method) for bundled projects. The research outcomes have also reflected that the following five project bundling objectives contribute the most to making traditional PDMs (i.e. the DBB method) more feasible for bundled projects: (1) Having well-defined design features; (2) Requiring prior knowledge or experience with similar project size and scope; (3) Completing the overall project on schedule; (4) Keeping rate of expenditures within cash flow plan; and (5) Acquiring specific legislative, regulatory and jurisdictional requirements early on.

This research adds to the body of knowledge by equipping agencies and project owners with a decision-support system that helps them identify whether traditional or alternative PDMs are more appropriate for the specific objectives of their bundling program(s). By making the right PDM decision, project owners can enhance their bundling practices (especially in relation to the PDM proper selection) and ultimately the performance of their bundled projects.

The purpose of this study is to present a bibliometric and network analysis that uses the Scopus and Dimension databases to provide new insights into the progression toward the study of sustainable economic development.

This analysis has been drawn on 665 papers published between 2015 and 2023. Bibliometric analysis characterizes a research topic by identifying leading nations, the most significant authors and expressive publications. Network analysis revealed keyword evolution over time, co-citation patterns and study grouping. Content analysis was used to identify major topic in the discipline, with a focus on their interrelationships. Each publication in the data set is briefly described, along with its methodological approach.

The results of this study show that green finance plays a major role in long-term economic growth, having a significant influence on the preservation of environmental quality, economic efficacy and a more comprehensive economic system. Financial technology also accelerates the transition to a carbon-neutral economy by enhancing the beneficial effects of green finance on aspects of the economic system and environmental conservation.

The investigation is based only on Scopus and Dimensions-indexed journal articles. However, additional studies should incorporate publications from other reputable databases, such as Web of Science, PubMed and Science Direct, for the bibliometric analysis, so that the findings of the model analysis become more reliable and valid with examination of more documents. The visualization of similarity viewer was used for data analysis in the study, there is a scope for using other tools such as Biblioshiney and CitNet Explorer.

To support long-term economic growth, authorities should encourage Fintech companies to actively participate in various green finance initiatives and environmental conservation businesses. Financial managers should facilitate the integration of technology and green finance for financial services. It is important to encourage institutional and individual investors alike to look into more environmentally friendly ways to invest and save money. Policymakers should provide a platform for global awareness and government agencies should enhance their recommendations to state governments to increase the efficacy of green finance.

This study contributes to the literature by investigating the relationship between Fintech and green financing. This study holds significance for financial intermediaries, industrialists, investors and policymakers by providing insights into the integration of Fintech with green finance for sustainable development. These findings affirm the pivotal role of Fintech and green finance in fostering sustainable economic development. The novelty of the topic and the variety of publications in which it has been published demonstrate that sustainable economic development has piqued the interest of a wide range of areas.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the linkage between stock markets in Middle Eastern countries before and during the COVID-19 pandemic by using daily and monthly data sets for the period from 2011 to 2021.

The multivariate BEKK-GARCH model was computed to evaluate the existence of non-linear linkage among Middle Eastern stock markets. A correlation approach was used in this study to determine the type of linear connectivity between Middle Eastern stock markets. The study used monthly and daily data sets covering the years 2011 to 2021 to investigate the linkage between stock returns and the volatility spillover between the stock markets in Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, both before and during COVID-19. To understand the types of relationships between markets before and during COVID-19, the daily data set was split into two periods.

Results from the pre-COVID-19 suggest that the Syria stock market is not related to any stock market in the Middle East markets; the Palestine and Lebanon stock markets exhibit a weak relationship, but Jordan and Palestine stock markets are strongly linked. Conversely, results from COVID-19 evince a very strong bidirectional volatility spillover between Middle East stock markets. Overall, the results indicate the existence of increased linkage during the COVID-19.

The data collection on a daily and monthly basis, both before and during COVID-19, presents certain limitations for the paper. Another limitation is that the data cannot be generalized to all other Middle Eastern countries; rather, the conclusions drawn can only be applied to these four countries. This is especially true if the scholars collected most of the necessary data but were unable to obtain certain data for various reasons.

These findings have implications for risk management, market regulation and the growth of local stock markets. Facilitating the growth of smaller, more specialized markets to improve integration with other Middle Eastern markets is one of the goals of the domestic stock market development policy. To ensure financial stability, Middle Eastern stock market linking policies should consider spillover risk and take steps to minimize it. Enhancing the range of investment opportunities accessible to shareholders and functioning as confidential risk-sharing mechanisms to facilitate improved risk management in Middle Eastern stock markets will not only significantly influence the mobilization of private capital to promote investment and local economic growth but also lay groundwork for integrated market platforms.

This paper adds to the body of literature by demonstrating the nature of the connections between these small markets and the larger markets in the Middle East region. Information from the smaller markets provides institutional insights that enhance the body of existing research, guide the formulation of evidence-based policies and advance financial literacy in these markets. This study contributes by comparing data from different stock markets to better understand the type and strength of the link and relationship between Middle Eastern stock markets, as well as any underlying or reinforcing factors that might have contributed to the relationship and the specific types of links that these markets shared prior and during COVID-19.

The purpose of this study is to empirically evaluate the audit expectations gap among stakeholders in listed firms in Palestine. The purpose of the investigation is to determine whether or not there is a gap in audit expectations between auditors and investors, auditors and board directors, as well as among auditors and financial managers and also among auditors and shareholders.

To attain its ultimate objective, this study was created using an exploratory descriptive methodology grounded in the use of quantitative methods. A structured questionnaire was used to gather study data from 81 respondents, and a statistical package for the social sciences-26 was then used for analysis.

The results of this research showed that there is a sizable difference in audit expectations among shareholders, financial managers and board directors, as well as among auditors and investors. The findings also demonstrate that, in comparison to the difference between auditors and financial managers, the gap between auditors and board directors and auditors and shareholders is very narrow.

This investigation, which examines the audit expectations gap in great detail, has some significant limitations. This study was limited to the Palestinian market alone. Future research might compare or examine the variations in audit expectations in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran, among different countries. In addition, the demand for accurate and reliable financial reports has sparked a recent increase in interest in auditing, a long-standing sector that has expanded in recent years.

The study has several practical implications, for example, it underlines how crucial it is to make stakeholders aware of the limitations and difficulties related to the auditing process. By doing this, the situation that audit committees and listed firms find themselves in will be easier for investors, board directors, financial managers and shareholders to understand. The way that auditors and stakeholders communicate can help reduce this gap since it affects how much each party underestimates or understates the other’s obligations.

This paper contributes to the literature by analysing and identifying the causes of the audit expectations gap in companies listed on the Palestine Stock Exchange and providing useful insights and potential solutions to close or mitigate it. It also adds a new contribution to the literature related to the audit expectation gap. This investigation offers unambiguous evidence of a sizable discrepancy between audit expectations and actual performance in terms of formal auditor obligations as outlined by current law, as well as auditor reliability standards and practices, between auditors, board directors, investors, shareholders and financial managers in listed Palestinian firms.

This paper aims to address the challenge raised in the literature regarding whether and how digitalization supports a servitized new product development (NPD) process, considering the customer’s involvement from the early stage of the process.

Pragmatic constructivism (PC) has been adopted for conceptualizing the NPD process as the construction of a new reality. PC is the method theory used for interpreting the field evidence drawn from a qualitative case study carried out at a multinational company operating in the semiconductor industry.

This study shows how digitalization supports the alignment to the overarching topoi of the company servitization strategy by enabling the integration and merging of different organizational topoi during the NPD process.

This study is confined to a single-case study and context.

The results of this study are relevant for managers involved in the stage-gate product development of manufacturing companies, informing them on how the use of digital tools enables or hinders the progression of product development projects.

This paper contributes to the servitization literature by offering field evidence that demonstrates the importance for manufacturing firms of acquiring customer feedback from an early NPD phase. Another contribution is related to the literature on the role of digitalization in NPD processes, describing how digital tools give support during the different phases of the NPD process.

Social enterprises (SEs) are increasingly expected to rely on formal methodologies to assess their social impact. These structured methodologies, which produce objective and evidence-based measures of impact, are sometimes opposed to bricolage approaches that “make do” with what is at hand. This paper aims to question this distinction by identifying the conflicting considerations that arise in the process of implementing a formal methodology, which might lead SEs to rely on bricolage mechanisms. The authors propose a model of “formally-driven” bricolage with core principles to navigate between those considerations.

Adopting an inductive approach, the authors draw on the in-depth case study of a work integration SE engaged in a formal social impact assessment (SIA) through collaborative research.

First, the authors identify five types of considerations (feasibility, efficiency, ethics, legitimacy and aim) that come into tension with the primary considerations of formality in formal methodologies, leading SEs to still rely on bricolage mechanisms. Second, the authors identify five principles (multidimensional, participative, cultural, mixed-method and adaptive) that permit navigation between those conflicting considerations. Based on the findings, the authors develop a model of “formally-driven” bricolage.

The contribution is methodological, theoretical and practical. The authors bridge the gap between theory and practice through long-term immersion in an SE. The authors contribute to the understanding of the use of bricolage in SIA by investigating why and how bricolage is still at play in formal assessments. The proposed model of “formally-driven” bricolage can help researchers and practitioners to better grasp the ins and outs of the SIA process.

This paper reviews and analyses renewable energy options, namely underground thermal, solar, wind and marine wave energy, in seaport cargo terminal operations.

Four renewable energy options that are deployed or tested in different ports around the world are qualitatively examined for their overall implementation potential and characteristics, and their cost and benefits. An application to the port of Singapore is discussed.

Geophysical conditions are key criteria in assessing renewable energy options. In the case of Singapore, solar power is the only suitable renewable energy option.

Being a capital-intensive establishment with high intensities of cargo operations, seaports usually involve a high level of energy consumption. The study of renewable energy options contributes to seaport sustainability.

A key recommendation is to implement a smart energy management system that enables the mixed use of renewable energy to match energy demand and supply optimally and achieve higher energy efficiency.

The use of renewable energy as an eco-friendlier energy source is underway in various ports. However, there is almost no literature that analyses and compares various renewable energy options potentially suitable for cargo terminal operations in ports. This paper narrows the knowledge gaps.

Teaching wine tasting online is challenging, even given the curated digital tools of the Wine and Spirit Education Trust, a highly renowned online wine certification system is used. This paper aims to initially explore wine experts’ opinions about online wine education and subsequently examine the feasibility of customizing wine appreciation lexicons for Chinese learners.

A two-study multimethod approach was adopted. Study 1, a two-stage Delphi study, was conducted with 17 wine experts representing a number of countries, using a mix of closed/open-ended questions in an online survey. Data was collected in a market study in Study 2, conducted at agricultural markets in Thailand (pilot test) and China. Dialogues with market sellers were undertaken, evoking mental imagery of wine descriptors to explore the relevance of traditional versus local aromas and flavors in describing wine.

Findings concentrate on three main areas: general advantages/disadvantages of online wine education, reactions toward asynchronous/synchronous methods of wine tasting and, finally, the feasibility of customizing a wine appreciation lexicon for Chinese learners.

The study presents novel insights into the role of online wine education in China.

India has witnessed a significant surge in internet users in recent years, creating an ideal environment for E-entrepreneurship. With the rise of E-commerce and the growth of the digital economy, there is tremendous potential for online businesses in developing nations. Our study outlines the behavioral, cognitive, and environmental aspects shaping students' E-entrepreneurial intentions (EEI).

Our study incorporated structural equation modeling (SEM), social cognitive theory (SCT), and entrepreneurial event model (EEM) to evaluate the EEI of 460 students from India's top five engineering institutes. The direct and indirect linkages in the model were examined by employing mediation and moderation analysis.

Our findings reveal that behavioral, environmental, and cognitive factors facilitate evaluating feasibility, further igniting students' EEI. The cognitive factors and E-entrepreneurial feasibility (EEF) mediate the relationship between the underlying constructs. Furthermore, financial resource availability (FRA) strengthens, and loss aversion bias(LAB) weakens the linkage between EEF and EEM.

The study's findings may benefit online innovation communities, potential technopreneurs, financial institutions, and policymakers in improving the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The study integrates psychological and sociological perspectives to understand the key facilitators of EEF and EEI. The study combines SCT and the EEM by appending crucial constructs such as FRA and LAB to broaden the horizons of EEI.

Drawing on work from home (WFH), job demand-control and street-level bureaucracy literature streams, this paper specifically focuses on the emerging trend of WFH for public sector employees in a developing country context of Egypt.

The empirical sample comprises focus group discussions with a total of 40 public sector employees in Egypt. Thematic analysis was subsequently used on focus group discussion transcripts to bring out main themes linked to this topic.

Our findings show that employee (marginal discretion power, pharaonism, corruption), citizen (unfamiliarity with digital services) and country (lack of proper info-structure, overstaffing in the public sector)- level challenges hinder and/or slow down the potential for WFH in Egyptian public sector.

A major implication of our paper relates to highlighting the criticality of e-governance and WFH for public sector employees, as well as highlighting multilevel challenges associated with those. At the same time, socio-economic and political consequences of offering such options need to be considered in a country like Egypt where most public organisations are overstaffed, and those employees lack modern day employability skills. Hence, there needs to be an open debate in countries such as Egypt on the consequences of e-governance and WFH and whether it may facilitate delivering citizen services digitally. Also, high power distance culture plays a role in this context, and any change cannot be successful unless that specific aspect is confronted.

This study contributes to the emerging WFH literature by being one of the pioneering studies to offer a multilevel (micro, meso and macro) assessment of this phenomenon in the under-researched fragile developing country’s context.