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1 – 10 of over 1000
Open Access
Article
Publication date: 1 April 2021

Xinyi Hong, Chenguang Li, Junfei Bai, Zhifeng Gao and Liming Wang

Following the standard practice of using nutrition claims to denote food functionality, this study empirically explores Chinese consumers’ willingness-to-pay for functional

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Abstract

Purpose

Following the standard practice of using nutrition claims to denote food functionality, this study empirically explores Chinese consumers’ willingness-to-pay for functional processed meat products by using three nutrition claims (namely “increased calcium,” “containing omega-3”, and “reduced salt”) made on pork sausages. It also aims to outline the typical characteristics of Chinese consumer segments based on preferences.

Design/methodology/approach

A choice-based choice experiment is utilized to investigate Chinese consumers’ valuation on attributes of interest regarding functional sausage products. First-hand data was collected in the two cities of Xi'an and Beijing.

Findings

There are market potentials for domestic and/or imported functional processed meat products among Chinese consumers. Nutrition claims made on pork sausages are appealing to Chinese consumers, and therefore, monetarily rewarded by them. Being imported from a more developed country of origin could both positively and negatively impact consumers’ WTP for nutrition claims made on pork sausages. Furthermore, specific functional modification strategies should be taken into account when addressing different segments of the Chinese market. In addition, regional impacts between Xi'an and Beijing are implied in terms of consumers’ valuation for functional pork sausages.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations in the current study are mainly two folds. First, the WTP estimation magnitudes are subject to a hypothetical bias by using a stated preference approach. Second, this study only focuses on pork sausages to explore consumers’ perceptions and selects three nutrition claims among many other relevant options.

Practical implications

Implications are provided for meat marketers and for Chinese official food policymakers, such that promoting meat products with a nutrition claim is an attractive marketing strategy for foreign food manufacturers in China, and more reformulated meat products with better nutritional compositions should be allowed in the Chinese market.

Originality/value

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this research is the first to fill in the literature blank on investigating the consumers’ valuation for functional meat in the emerging market of China. Because when taking Chinese consumers as a target market and evaluating their perceptions of food quality-related labeling and certifications, the existing literature is mainly limited to topics of product safety, organic/green products, and geographical origins. However, nutrition claims, as marketable credence attributes that associate closely to the main characteristics of the functional food products, have been explored to a much lesser extent among Chinese consumers.

Details

China Agricultural Economic Review, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-137X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 October 2019

Rita Goyal, Nada Kakabadse and Andrew Kakabadse

Boards presently are considered the most critical component in improving corporate governance (CG). Board diversity is increasingly being recommended as a tool for enhancing firm…

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Abstract

Purpose

Boards presently are considered the most critical component in improving corporate governance (CG). Board diversity is increasingly being recommended as a tool for enhancing firm performance. Academic research and regulatory action regarding board diversity are focussed mainly on gender and ethnic composition of boards. However, the perspective of board members on board diversity and its impact is mostly missing. Moreover, while strategic leadership perspective suggests that a broader set of upper echelon’s characteristics may shape their actions, empirical evidence investigating the impact of less-explored attributes of diversity is almost non-existent. While the research on the input–output relationship between board diversity and firm performance remains equivocal, an intervening relationship between board diversity and board effectiveness needs to be understood. The purpose of this paper is to address all three limitations and explore the subject from board members’ perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents the findings of qualitative, exploratory research conducted by interviewing 42 board members of FTSE 350 companies. The data are analysed thematically.

Findings

The findings of the research suggest that board members of FTSE 350 companies consider the diversity of functional experience to be a critical requirement for boards’ role-effectiveness. Functionally diverse boards manage external dependencies more effectively and challenge assumptions of the executive more efficiently, thus improving CG. The findings significantly contribute to the literature on board diversity, as well as to strategic leadership theory and other applicable theories. The research is conducted with a relatively small but elite and difficult to approach set of 42 board members of FTSE 350 companies.

Practical implications

The paper makes a unique and significant contribution to praxis by presenting the perspective of practitioners of CG – board members. The findings may encourage board nomination committees to seek board diversity beyond the gender and ethnic characteristics of directors. The findings may also be relevant for policy formulation, as they indicate that functionally diverse boards have improved effectiveness in a range of board roles.

Social implications

Board diversity is about building a board that accurately reflects the make-up of the population and stakeholders of the society where the company operates. The aim of board diversity is to cultivate a broad range of attributes and perspectives that reflects real-world demographics as boards need to continue to earn their “licence to operate in society” as organisations have a responsibility to multiple constituents and stakeholders, including the community and the wider society within which they exist. Building social capital through diversity has value in the wider context of modern society and achieving social justice.

Originality/value

The paper makes an original and unique contribution to strategic leadership theory by strengthening the argument of the theory. The paper explores beyond widely researched attributes of gender and ethnicity on boards and explores the impact of a less-researched characteristic of directors – their functional experience. Moreover, the paper opens the “black box” of CG – boards, and presents the perspectives of board members. The findings indicate that board members in FTSE 350 boards define diversity more broadly than academics and regulatory agencies often do.

Details

Journal of Capital Markets Studies, vol. 3 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-4774

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 March 2023

Jyrki Isojärvi and Jaakko Aspara

While most marketing research on organic products refers to the premium price levels of organic products, little research exists on consumers’ behavioural responses to price…

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Abstract

Purpose

While most marketing research on organic products refers to the premium price levels of organic products, little research exists on consumers’ behavioural responses to price promotions or discounts of organic products. The present study aims to fill this research gap.

Design/methodology/approach

To develop alternative hypotheses about consumers’ behavioural responses to price promotions of organic fast-moving consumer good (FMCG) products, the authors used the researcher-introspection method in a pre-study. To test the hypotheses developed based on the pre-study, the authors conducted a field experiment on online advertising of an FMCG sold in drugstores. In the field experiment, the authors exposed consumers to an online ad featuring either a price promotion (−20%) or the regular price of the product. The ads also varied in terms of whether they contained explicit organic claims or not, and whether they included implicit organic cues or not.

Findings

The price promotion increased the clickthrough rate of the ad both when combined with an explicit organic claim and when combined with the implicit cue of green product pack. The results suggest that consumers do not have significant suspicions about price promotions of organic products, but rather presume that the price promotion of an organic FMCG product is a periodical promotional action, similar to the price promotions for conventional, non-organic products. Also, consumers seem to assume that the regular prices of organic FMCG products are so high that the retailer/manufacturer can well afford periodic price discounts.

Research limitations/implications

The present research shifts the focus of organic marketing research from the premium price levels to the effectiveness of price promotions and discounts. Further, the present results contrast with certain earlier studies that have questioned the effectiveness of price promotions for organic products.

Practical implications

The results have different implications for marketing managers of brands not yet providing organic product versions in the market, of brands producing non-organic products, which cannot easily be rendered organic, and of brands offering organic products in the market.

Originality/value

This is, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the first empirical study and field experiment on price promotions of organic products, including explicit organic claims.

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 11 February 2020

Hasliza Hassan, Abu Bakar Sade and Lohan Selva Subramaniam

Health fitness has become a major issue in Malaysia since the population of overweight and obesity is becoming critical. One of the ways to achieve optimum health fitness is by…

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Abstract

Purpose

Health fitness has become a major issue in Malaysia since the population of overweight and obesity is becoming critical. One of the ways to achieve optimum health fitness is by consistently consuming balanced diet meals. Hence, this paper aims to focus on the willingness of society to purchase functional foods as an alternative for their daily meals to stay fit.

Design/methodology/approach

The research framework was developed based on a combination of findings by other research scholars within a similar field. The willingness to purchase functional foods to stay fit is positioned as the dependent variable, while lifestyle adaptation, social media influence and food consumption awareness are placed as the independent variables. Quantitative research was conducted by collecting primary data from respondents in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The collected data were analysed using descriptive and regression analyses.

Findings

The willingness to purchase functional foods to stay fit is dependent on the lifestyle adaptation, social media influence and food consumption awareness.

Research limitations/implications

Although the current market for functional foods in Malaysia is still at a small scale, the market for this industry seems very promising. Nevertheless, greater awareness on functional food is still needed.

Practical implications

Functional food producers should make an effort to gain the untapped market by focussing on the lifestyle adaptation, social media influence and food consumption awareness.

Originality/value

This research is a breakthrough to discover the willingness of Malaysians to purchase functional food to stay fit, which is influenced by lifestyle adaptation, social media and food consumption awareness.

Details

Journal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2632-279X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 7 August 2017

Per Erik Eriksson

The purpose of this study is to investigate how procurement strategies may be designed to facilitate exploration and exploitation in construction projects.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate how procurement strategies may be designed to facilitate exploration and exploitation in construction projects.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is based on a literature review of organizational research and construction management literature together with a brief interview study of Swedish clients and contractors.

Findings

The theoretical and empirical findings propose that small and simple projects with low uncertainty and scarce resources may focus on exploitation to enhance short-term efficiency through traditional procurement strategies including delivery systems that separate the actors and their activities (i.e. pure design-build- or design-bid-build-contracts), fixed price payment and price focus in bid evaluation. Large complex projects with high uncertainty and customization benefit from combining exploration and exploitation to enhance sustainable performance. This requires collaborative procurement strategies including joint specification through early contractor involvement, cost reimbursement coupled with incentive-based payment, bid evaluation based on multiple criteria and collaborative tools and activities in partnering arrangements.

Research limitations/implications

This paper contributes to organizational learning literature by pinpointing the need for integrating procurement strategies that enhance combination of exploration and exploitation. The main contribution to the construction management literature involves the investigation of how procurement strategies may affect exploration and exploitation, as identified and articulated in the propositions developed in this paper.

Practical implications

From a practical perspective, the findings highlight the importance of tailoring procurement strategies to project characteristics to enhance a suitable balance between exploration and exploitation in construction projects.

Originality/value

The explicit focus on the operational project-level is uncommon but relevant in organizational learning literature.

Details

Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, vol. 22 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1366-4387

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 August 2022

Cathrine Linnes, Jeffrey Thomas Weinland, Giulio Ronzoni, Joseph Lema and Jerome Agrusa

The purpose of this study is to examine the trend toward purchasing locally grown food and evaluate if tourists visiting Hawai'i are willing to pay more for locally produced foods…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the trend toward purchasing locally grown food and evaluate if tourists visiting Hawai'i are willing to pay more for locally produced foods that are more ecologically sustainable.

Design/methodology/approach

A research questionnaire was developed in order to investigate the attitudes and behaviors of tourists from the continental United States visiting Hawai'i in purchasing locally grown food in Hawai'i. The final sample includes 454 valid survey responses collected via Momentive, a market research services company.

Findings

According to the findings of this study, there are economic prospects to expand the use of locally cultivated food into the tourists' experience, as well as a willingness for tourists to support these activities financially. The Contingent Valuation study revealed that tourists from the continental United States were ready to pay a higher price to purchase food that is locally grown, signifying that tourists to Hawai'i are willing to aid the local agriculture business by increasing their restaurant/hotel meal bill, which will help Hawai'i become a more sustainable tourist destination.

Research limitations/implications

While tourists from the United States mainland, which is the “an islands” top tourist market, have agreed with paying extra or an additional fee for locally grown food products, this study might not accurately represent the attitudes and behaviors of international tourists visiting Hawai'i. Future research should focus on the international tourist markets which may have different social norms or cultural differences thus could provide a broader spectrum of the current study's findings.

Originality/value

The results of this study provided quantitative evidence that tourists from the United States are interested in purchasing locally grown food items in Hawaii in addition to their willingness to pay an additional fee for these locally grown food products at a restaurant or a hotel dining room, thus addressing a gap in the tourism research.

Details

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights, vol. 6 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9792

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 11 December 2018

Juhi Raghuvanshi and Chandra Prakash Garg

The aim of this study is to identify and rank the factors of innovation capability (IC) in Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This study focuses on ascertaining…

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Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study is to identify and rank the factors of innovation capability (IC) in Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This study focuses on ascertaining the important factors that help in enhancing the IC with an emblematic focus on the MSME sector of India.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper proposes a multicriteria decision-making methodology, which is based on fuzzy analytic hierarchical process to prioritize the factors that enhance the IC of MSMEs. Finally, sensitivity analysis is conducted to examine the ranking stability.

Findings

Knowledge management is the most important enabler, followed by creativity and idea management and organizational culture.

Practical implications

Several organizations promote the strategic measures for enhancing the IC. To increase their capability to innovate, there is a need to identify, acknowledge and implement the drivers of IC into practice.

Originality/value

Prioritization done in the study facilitates the entrepreneurs to determine the most important factors that need crucial attention in dealing with sensitive issues of IC. Entrepreneurs can take several steps to implement the most important factors for enhancing the IC into practices for meeting the needs of the consumers, generating profits and enhancing the competitiveness.

Details

Asia Pacific Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, vol. 12 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-7812

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 February 2023

Krzysztof Borodako, Jadwiga Berbeka, Michał Rudnicki and Mariusz Łapczyński

This work aims to determine how innovation orientation (IO), built from six dimensions (strategic, structural-process, human resources, technological, organizational culture and…

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Abstract

Purpose

This work aims to determine how innovation orientation (IO), built from six dimensions (strategic, structural-process, human resources, technological, organizational culture and market) affects organizational performance (OP) with the inclusion of knowledge management (KM) as a mediator and technological readiness (TR) as a moderator in the model.

Design/methodology/approach

Questionnaires completed by business service companies were analyzed using multiple regression analysis (path analysis), including the mediating variable (KM) and moderating variable (TR). The construct was validated with positive outcomes.

Findings

Of the eight hypotheses, six were supported. The study results show that strategic, technological, organizational culture and market dimensions of IO positively influence KM. On the other hand, KM plays an important role as a mediator in supporting the relationship between the four dimensions of IO and performance. Moreover, TR, as a moderator, positively affects the relationship between KM and OP.

Originality/value

The study is the first to explore the relationship between six dimensions of IO and KM in business service sector. Furthermore, this study provides evidence that TR can be beneficial for companies with respect to effective KM, which leads to the better performance.

Details

European Journal of Innovation Management, vol. 26 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1460-1060

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 12 March 2024

Nanna Gillberg

The article aims to investigate how washing practices focused on appeasing sceptics of diversity work in for-profit organizations play out in corporate online communication of…

Abstract

Purpose

The article aims to investigate how washing practices focused on appeasing sceptics of diversity work in for-profit organizations play out in corporate online communication of diversity and inclusion efforts, and how these enable communication to a wide audience that includes social equity advocates.

Design/methodology/approach

Online corporate communication data of diversity and inclusion themes were compiled from the websites of eight Swedish-based multinational corporations. The data included content from the companies’ official websites and annual reports and sustainability reports as well as diversity and inclusion-themed blog posts. A thematic analysis was conducted on the website content.

Findings

The study showcases how tensions between conflicting external demands are navigated by keeping the communication open to several interpretations and thereby achieving multivocality. In the studied corporate texts on diversity and inclusion, this is achieved by alternating between elements catering to a business case audience and those that appeal to a social justice audience, with some procedures managing to appease both audiences at the same time.

Originality/value

The article complements previously described forms of washing by introducing an additional type of washing – business case washing – an articulation of the business case rhetoric that characterizes the diversity management discourse. While much has been written about washing to satisfy advocates of social change and equity, washing to appease shareholders and boardroom members, who are focused on profit and economic growth, has received less attention. The article suggests that online corporate communication on diversity and inclusion, by appeasing diverse audiences, can be seen as aspirational talk.

Details

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, vol. 43 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-7149

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 January 2023

Anil Engez and Leena Aarikka-Stenroos

Successful commercialization is crucial to innovative firms, but further investigation is needed on how diverse stakeholders can contribute to the commercialization of a radical…

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Abstract

Purpose

Successful commercialization is crucial to innovative firms, but further investigation is needed on how diverse stakeholders can contribute to the commercialization of a radical innovation that requires particular market creation support. This paper aims to, therefore, analyze the key stakeholders and their contributive activities in commercialization and market creation, particularly in the case of radical innovations.

Design/methodology/approach

This study relies on qualitative research design including interviews with key stakeholders, such as regulators, scientists, experts, licensing partners, core company representatives and extensive secondary data. This single-case study concerns a functional food product, which is a radical innovation requiring the development of a novel product category positioned between the food and medicine categories in global market settings. Since its market launch in 1995, the involvement of multiple stakeholders was needed for its successful commercialization in over 30 countries.

Findings

Results uncover the contributions of diverse stakeholders to commercialization and market creation, particularly of radical innovation. Stakeholders performed market creation activities such as regulating the marketing and labeling of food products, conducting safety assessments, revealing and validating the positive health effects of the novelty and raising awareness of healthy living and cardiovascular health. The commercialization activities included distributing the products overseas, applying the ingredient to different food products and making the products available for users.

Research limitations/implications

This single-case study provides an overview of the positive stakeholder activities with contributions to market creation and commercialization of functional food innovations. Although the user perspective was not included in the empirical part of this study because of our focus on B2B actors, users of the innovation can contribute to R&D activities to a great extent.

Originality/value

The developed framework of stakeholders’ contributive activities in radical innovation commercialization and market creation contributes to literature discussing market creation as well as commercialization within the marketing and innovation management research fields. This work also generates practical advice for managers who commercialize (radical) innovations.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 38 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 1000