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The purpose of this paper is to do a thorough literature review to assess the current status of corporate sustainability (CS) practices, issues and challenges in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and based on literature suggest a model that can improve and strategically manage their sustainability practices in the emerging market context of Asia.

After setting the theoretical background on why the corporations need to shoulder the responsibility of sustainable development, the authors did a high level literature review to estimate the gap area and based on the findings formulated some research questions on why the SMEs, more specifically those in Asian emerging market, are lagging behind in terms of CS practices. Next, using the “literature survey” as the methodology the authors did a thorough in-depth literature review to answer the above research questions and organised the findings in light of those research questions. Considering the research gap and the crucial role of SMEs in a country’s economic progress the authors restricted the literature search on CS in the case of SMEs only.

CS is a well-practiced area in big organisations. However, the literature suggests that in the case of SMEs the situation is different. Social and environmental practices are grossly neglected in SMEs more specifically in emerging markets. Existing literature mentions that collaborative mode of operation, government policy and facilitation, supporting organisation culture can positively influence SME’s sustainability performance, and hence, improve their financial performance.

The conceptual model has been developed based on suggestions and recommendations in western countries context. To establish the validity of the model in the Asian business scenario it needs to be tested with a sizable sample of SMEs in the Asian market.

The current paper has practical implications both for academic research on sustainable development and also in business development. The proposed model in the current form is based on the literature survey only. Once such a model is empirically established this can be proved beneficial for providing guidance to SMEs to enhance the sustainability of their business operations. Moreover, environmental and social best practices adopted by SMEs will also have a positive influence on society and the environment in the long run.

This paper had done a country-wise comparison of sustainable practices in SMEs and based on the recommendations and suggestions of different scholars as found in the detailed literature review, the authors developed few research propositions and also presented a conceptual model. Finally, to address the gap it mentions some future research possibilities to test and validate the proposed model in the context of SMEs in emerging markets of Asia.

The purpose of this paper is to do a thorough literature review to assess the current status of corporate sustainability practices, issues and challenges in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and, based on literature, suggest a model that can improve and strategically manage their sustainability practices in the emerging market context of Asia.

The authors did a meta-analysis of the reviewed literature taken from peer-reviewed scholarly journals in the time frame of 1985-2016. Methodology used by the authors is through preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis.

Corporate sustainability is a well-practiced area in big organisations. However, literature suggests that in case of SMEs, the situation is different. Social and environmental practices are grossly neglected in SMEs, more specifically in emerging markets. Existing literature mentions that collaborative mode of operation, government policy and facilitation and supporting organisation culture can positively influence SME’s sustainability performance and hence improve their financial performance.

Most of the papers in corporate sustainability literature are qualitative in nature and there is no empirical evidence of establishing this relationship in SME context. This paper tries to conceptualise the existence of a possible framework relating factors of sustainability and their role in improving business performance of the SMEs. However, the findings are purely literature-based and piloting of the questionnaire is also done on 20 SMEs in a specific geography. This is a very small and also a biased sample. Future research studies based on this paper are expected to verify the proposed relationship with larger data set catering to different industry clusters and countries.

The proposed model is only directional in nature. With the content analysis, the authors have tried to answer the research questions relating to factors of sustainability and its impact on business performance. To address the research questions in a more generalised way, an empirical research needs to be conducted to establish the research propositions. The proposed model needs to be validated and optimised with further research and data analysis. Once such a model is established, this can be proved beneficial for providing guidance to SMEs to enhance the sustainability of their business operations.

The SME sector has made a significant contribution to the economic development in countries, and this sector has huge potential for growth, and their geographic spread and penetration is much higher than large organisations. Sustainable growth of this industry sector can reasonably be expected to lead to stable and sustainable development of the nation. Moreover, environmental and social best practices adopted by SMEs will also have a positive influence on society and environment in the long run.

This paper had done a geography wise analysis of sustainable practices in SMEs, and based on the recommendations and suggestions of different analyses, the authors developed few research propositions and also presented a conceptual model. Finally, to address the gap, it mentions some future research possibilities to test and validate the proposed model in the context of SMEs in emerging markets of Asia.

Manufacturing excellence is critical to our nation’s economy. Indian Government’s National Manufacturing Policy, drafted in 2011, is being revamped to include the aspects of Industry 4.0. Initiatives, both led and assisted by government and industries, are being launched to catalyze and transform India’s manufacturing competencies. This paper aims to study the functional areas which can potentially leverage Industry 4.0 technologies and help India’s manufacturing establishments to transform. It does so in context of the aspirations of India’s small and medium discrete manufacturing establishments (SMME) towards adopting digital technologies for the identified functional areas. The study draws its context from the relevant literature review intended to examine the academic articles published until the end of September 2018, followed by a maturity assessment survey of Indian SMMEs to establish priority areas

The literature survey has been complemented with a maturity survey of more than 250 of Indian SMMEs to establish adoption gaps by comparing proficiency and sophistication of their present status and proposed adoption aspirations by 2020. The assessment of the organizational aspirations and gap areas identified is expected to indicate which of the Industry 4.0 elements can be adopted by them.

The maturity survey undertaken throws up several insights – Indian SMME community’s self-assessment indicates operational measurements followed by manufacturing and design interventions as the aspired transformation cycle. The survey indicates that manufacturers would like to make changes to their design and manufacturing strategies based on performance metrics; therefore, they need to first capture real-time machine data, analyze and then incorporate the resulting improvements in manufacturing and design decisions in that order.

The maturity assessment method itself is in evolution stage, and future correlations with benefits will strengthen observations. Industry 4.0 being relatively new initiative for India, availability of country-specific academic literature is limited. The maturity assessment survey undertaken across organizations of North, West and South India therefore carries the risk of not reflecting the views of a wider population. The current maturity, or the lack of it, of proficiency and readiness of India’s SMMEs with respect to digital technologies may also be a barrier to self-examine.

This research is expected to provide insight into priorities to be adopted for digital-centric transformation by Indian SMMEs. It is expected to facilitate policymakers and influencers from government and industry to help frame policies that facilitate the adoption of digital technologies by Indian SMMEs and facilitate India’s technical education community to adopt skill development programs to support industry. It is expected to provide guidance to India’s academic institutions to rejig their curriculums to help bridge the critical skills gap that exists between newly inducted engineering professionals and industry.

Digitalization is expected to foster lean and therefore support sustainability initiatives. Digitalization is expected to help create new, alternative sources of employment which are more relevant to emerging times and foster unlearning the past and relearning of new skills. This emerging diversity of engineering applications resulting from digitalization is expected to also support the larger and poorer agricultural community of India and help the sector to become more efficient and productive, which in turn will reduce economic alienation of a large section of Indian society.

Industry 4.0 has been identified as the transformational initiative for India’s manufacturing competitiveness. Indian manufacturing sector needs to urgently implement the digital technologies and improve their performance and remain relevant in this dynamic market. This research will help guide them to frame their respective digital strategies and be successful. This research will help government and industry influencers to plan and execute their interventions.

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between the real time requirements of guests and efforts made by hoteliers to optimize revenue and guest service excellence.

Prior studies have demonstrated the impact of room rates on profitability. The majority of these studies assumed an algebraic relationship between room rates and room demand to obtain the optimal solution by applying calculus to the revenue or profit function. This study adopts an alternative approach by seeking to better understanding the ever changing needs of hotel guests and how their behavior patterns have evolved over time together with innovative approaches that revenue managers need to adopt to optimize revenue. In today’s environment, revenue management has evolved into a more holistic approach and the study assimilates information from senior professionals from a range of hotels in India based on semi-structured interviews.

Revenue management is no longer about forecasting supply and demand based on historical data. This paper yields insights on emerging areas of importance for revenue management and advocates a systematic approach that hoteliers can adopt and apply to every department to secure a bigger impact on revenue management.

The findings can be used by hoteliers to fine-tune the room rates determined by conventional methods to arrive at a realistic and definitive value for optimal room rates.

This study highlights the issues that arise from viewing revenue management in isolation and it also considers innovative, customer-focused ways to optimize revenues.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the agricultural practices in a drought-prone region of India in an effort to find out how science, technology and innovation (STI) measures can address the existing problems and help achieve sustainable solutions. This study has been planned with two specific objectives: to study the agricultural practices of small and marginal-holding farmers in a drought-prone region and to examine the opportunities for suitable interventions to mitigate the impacts of droughts. The study is based on primary survey conducted in Banda district of Bundelkhand region, Uttar Pradesh, India.

Empirical survey was done in eight different blocks of a drought-prone region of India using structured questionnaire. The questionnaire was pre-tested with a group of 12 farmers during a workshop through a pilot survey conducted during April 2017. Stratified sampling based on land holdings (small farmers having 1–2 ha of land, medium farmers having 2.1–5 ha of land and large farmers having more than 5 ha of land) and irrigation types (canals and tube wells) were utilised in different blocks of the district for selecting farmers in the surveyed villages.

Findings suggest that due to various reasons like change in climatic conditions, frequent crop failure, crop diseases and high cost of production, farmers have adopted certain crops which are not suited to their agro-climatic conditions. The paper recommends that farmer’s school or “on-farm training school” have to be initiated to integrate farmers’ traditional knowledge with modern knowledge systems with amalgamation of STI tools.

Uttar Pradesh is divided into nine agro-climatic zones; however, this study is focused on Bundelkhand and may be region specific, though the findings are important for other drought-prone areas.

The paper links the existing agricultural practices and further linking them with farmers’ socio-economic, cultural and environmental settings. Only 17.5 per cent of respondents owned any agricultural equipment due to high cost of farm tools, difficulty in taking equipements on rental basis and lack of sharing tools among the farmers.

This paper targets small and marginal farmers in the drought-prone region of India who face the dual shock of climate impacts and poverty. Adoption of modern agricultural practices and use of technology is inadequate which is further hampered by ignorance of such practices, high costs and impracticality in the case of small land holdings.

This paper has advocated for well-organised, efficient and result-oriented STI system to mitigate the adverse impacts of drought-prone agriculture. Farming community in drough-prone areas needs adequate investment, local-specific technology, better quality inputs, real-time information on weather and most importantly latest know-how for sustaining commercial and cost effective sustainable agriculture.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the commercialisation mechanisms of the innovations that emerge from the informal sector of Indian economy. Also known as grassroots innovations, they are said to better fit with the local market demands and conditions in the developing nations of the world. The paper discusses the grassroots innovation ecosystem in India and the role that is played by the state in providing institutional support.

The paper is based on an exploratory study using both the primary and secondary sources of data. Primary data are taken from the interview of the innovators during the field work, whereas secondary data are acquired from research articles published in various journals indexed in Scopus and web of sciences, government publications and reports. The annual reports of National Innovation Foundation are analysed to gather information and to build the arguments for this paper. The secondary data are also collected and evaluated from the database of the grassroots innovators available on Grassroots Innovation Augmentation Network.

The paper provides insight into how the grassroots innovations are commercialised in India through different pathways such as social entrepreneurship, technology transfer and open source technology. It takes four case studies to discuss the institutional support to the grassroots innovator and the challenges in the diffusion of the grassroots innovations.

Due to the chosen research approach, the results cannot be generalised on all grassroots innovations. Researchers are encouraged to conduct a survey of more grassroots innovations in order to derive generalised outputs.

The paper includes implications for understanding the diffusion process of grassroots innovations that can be useful for all the emerging and developing nations.

The paper fulfils an identified need to study the diffusion modes of informal sector innovations and management of grassroots innovations.

This case deals with steps taken by NTPC in construction and project management in 500 MW power plant. The project have several innovative ways of managing challenges, in land acquisition, design, implementation, contract worker management, enforcement of safety rules, managing regulation iand in team building in leadership. A suitable case for site management, it shows in spite of being a public sector undertaking, how the project was constructed in record time of 42 months.

This paper aims to explore the concept of capabilities and where they come from as well as their impact on integration and performance.

The paper is presented in the form of a theoretical development and literature review.

This paper proposes a theory of capability development and discusses the conditions under which a capability is effective. In particular, for a capability to be effective both local and global coherence are required. But a capability effectiveness and coherence has an inverted U shape. It increases with coherence up to a certain threshold then decreases. As a result, the development of capability is a powerful integration mechanism that crosses levels and functions.

This is a theoretical paper; the propositions offered have still to be empirically tested.

Opening up the capability black box might help managers better grasp how to develop and shape organizational capabilities that are deemed to contribute to competitive advantage (e.g. the pricing capability). First, capabilities are not to be equated with competitive advantage. They may lead to a competitive advantage only where the context is favorable. Thus consistency with the environment challenges is an important factor to watch. This suggests that managers should give attention to the relationships between what they perceive to be their capabilities and the nature of the challenges faced by the organization. Further this research might promote the development of tools to measure coherence within a context and manage appropriate levels of dissent to trigger the re‐shaping of existing capabilities or the emergence of new one.

The paper bridges highly theoretical questions with practical considerations.

The study aims to carry out the production of a bulk heterojunction organic solar cell in a laboratory scale using a blend of poly (3-hexylthiopene) (P3HT) and [6, 6]-phenyl (C61) butyric acid methyl ether (PCBM).

Four inverted geometry organic solar cells were prepared based on 1:1 ratio of P3HT to PCBM and subjected to post annealing at different temperatures of 32, 120, 130 and 140°C. Solar cells were fabricated with structure glass/ITO/P3HT:PCBM/PEDOT:PSS/Au and characterized using Keithley 2400 series sourcemeter and a multimeter interfaced to a computer system with a LabVIEW software, which showed both dark and illumination current–voltage characteristic curves. Four reference cells were also fabricated with structure soda lime glass/P3HT:PCBM and annealed at different temperatures of 32, 120, 130 and 140°C.

The third organic solar cell prepared, Sample CITO, had the best performance with power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 2.0281 per cent, fill factor (FF) of 0.392, short circuit current of −0.0133 A and open circuit voltage of 0.389 V. Annealing of active layer was found to improve cell morphology, FF and PCE. Annealing of the active layer at 140°C resulted in a decrease of the PCE to 2.01 per cent.

These findings are in good agreement with previous investigation in literature which reported that best annealing temperature for a 1:1 ratio blend of active material is 130°C. Ultraviolet–visible spectra on reference cells showed that sample CITO had wider absorption spectra with peak absorbance at a wavelength of 508 nm.

This research is purely original.

Despite total quality management (TQM) playing an important role in the survival and growth of the Indian automobile sector, India is still a player of little consequence in the global automobile production market. The paper identifies various dynamic interactions among the sub systems of TQM. The implications of these interactions have been captured using system dynamics modeling, which is based on causal relationship among different variables that constitute enablers and results. The model results have been discussed and validated based on a case study.