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Based on the perspective of technology supply chain, this study explores the effect of macroeconomic uncertainty regarding the spatiotemporal evolution of urban innovation networks to establish causality.

It collects patent trading data for 283 cities in China (2005–2017) and employs the spatial econometric model to investigate the causal relationship.

The regional transfer of advanced technology in China is rising sharply, and the innovation network based on patent trading is typically high-density, multi-direction and wide-spreading. Further, macroeconomic uncertainty has a negative effect on the scale of innovation flows and the absorptive capacity in eastern cities. However, it has no significant impact on the innovation network characteristics in developed cities. In contrast, macroeconomic uncertainty is detrimental for the absorptive capacity and node importance in inland and undeveloped cities.

As macroeconomic uncertainty increases, it is important to improve the quality of the urban innovation network with a better understanding of heterogeneity to promote further suitability innovation at the region-level.

This study highlights a clear and distinctive view that macroeconomic uncertainty not only directly affects the evolution of the urban innovation network but also indirectly affects the characteristics of other city nodes via the spatial spillover mechanism.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a novel link assessment scheme where the link assessment packets are transmitted efficiently according to a set of non‐constant weight codes, which achieves low collision probability within a short link assessment period.

Each node considers the actual nodal degree while choosing the codeword for its link assessment. A link assessment procedure is designed and a set of theorems established that provide the necessary condition for successful link assessment.

The wireless mesh network (WMN) is experiencing tremendous growth with the standardization of IEEE 802.11 and IEEE 802.16 technologies. Compared to its wired counterpart, the resource of the WMN is limited. Worst yet, the wireless link quality is time and space varying, depending on the environment and interference. In order to make efficient use of the scarce channel resource during topology formation, scheduling and routing, it is vital to understand the quality of the links in the WMN (in terms of, e.g. probability of successful transmission or signal to noise ratio (SNR)). The existing approaches for link assessment consume substantial amount of time and thus introduce significant delay and overhead. Extensive simulations show that the proposed approach reduces link assessment delay by over 70 percent compared to the OOC‐based approach.

This scheme can help in faster link assessment and can lead to better routing, scheduling which contributes to higher throughput and better bandwidth utilization in any WMN.

The scheme defined in this paper can help in faster link assessment in WMN.

Although entrepreneurial learning is widely believed as an important factor in shaping one’s entrepreneurial intention, research finds little consistent results on the direct effect of entrepreneurial learning on one’s entrepreneurial intention. To solve the conflicted effects of entrepreneurial learning, the purpose of this paper is to explore how entrepreneurial learning may impact individual entrepreneurial intention.

Drawing on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), the authors proposed and tested on a three mediating effect model, in which entrepreneurial learning is associated with entrepreneurial intention through attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioral control toward entrepreneurship. Moreover, the moderating role of prior exposure to entrepreneurship was proposed and tested. Based on a sample of 200 university students who have taken entrepreneurial courses in Hong Kong, the hierarchical regressions and moderated mediation tests were used to test the hypotheses.

The authors find that the positive relationship between entrepreneurial learning and entrepreneurial intention is significantly mediated by attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioral control toward entrepreneurship; and the mediating effects of entrepreneurial learning on entrepreneurial intention via attitudes and perceived behavioral control respectively, is moderated by exposure to entrepreneurship.

Contributing to the literature of entrepreneurship education, this study identifies individuals who exposed to the same entrepreneurship education may perform differently in entrepreneurial learning. The findings also help us to better understand the mechanism through which and under which context one’s entrepreneurial learning may enhance his/her entrepreneurial intention.

Analyses the evolution of China’s telephone and cable systems, in terms of the public interest, discussing current bureaucratic conflicts and policy debates over convergence, and construction of an independent broadband cable network. Looks in depth at China’s problems and the different problems for its citizens with regard to poverty levels and access to the Web.

To achieve digital transformation, organizations have continued to rely on integrating the capabilities of information technology (IT) to facilitate decision-making and developing their reconfiguration capability to enhance agile operations. The pressure imposed by digital transformation necessitates investigations on leveraging different IT capabilities to attain substantial organizational agility in an optimal configuration. This study aims to provide a new perspective on balancing IT structural capabilities and proposes a framework for evaluating their coalignment and complementary returns based on resource orchestration theory.

A multi-method approach is used to evaluate the research model. This study tests hypotheses and explores the potential coalignment and complementary returns of balance in structural models and response surface analysis. Then, it analyzes the qualitative data and provides complementary findings to corroborate and confirm complex relationships.

Balanced structural IT capabilities facilitate organizational agility but cooperate differently with internal (e.g. IT proactive stance) and external (e.g. environmental volatility) environmental factors. Balance between IT integration and reconfiguration must be maintained from several approaches during search/selection and configuration/deployment.

This study theorizes and empirically investigates the interactive mechanisms of two IT capabilities in influencing organizational agility under different boundary conditions. It enriches the understanding of balancing capabilities for organizational agility in digital transformation.

Scholars have examined the possible relationship between information technology (IT) and organizational agility. Although the general-level effect of IT is undisputed, empirical research on how different types of IT contribute to various aspects of organizational agility remains scarce. Therefore, this study aims to propose an integrated framework of internal capability and external environment to address this research gap.

This study investigates the potential mediating effects of absorptive capacity and the moderating effects of information intensity in the IT‒agility relationship. With a dataset comprising 165 organizations in China, this work provides empirical evidence that the effects of absorptive capacity and information intensity are multifaceted and nuanced, thereby revealing the latent mechanisms of IT competency and organizational agility.

Absorptive capacity partially mediates the effects of IT knowledge and IT operations on market capitalizing agility and fully mediates their effects on operational adjustment agility. However, no direct or indirect effects of IT objects are found on both types of organizational agility. Information intensity also positively moderates the effects of IT operations and IT objects on absorptive capacity. However, no significant moderation is found with regard to IT operations.

This study provides novel insights by demonstrating clearly the different mediating roles of absorptive capacity in the relationship among various types of IT competency and diverse aspects of organizational agility. This work also underscores the moderating role of information intensity in shaping absorptive capacity through IT competency.

Literature proposes that implementing supplier assessment and supplier collaboration simultaneously may lead to better sustainable performance. The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the proposition by considering the contingent effects of two contextual factors, the environmental dynamism and the stakeholder pressure on sustainability.

Four configurations of governance mechanisms are identified according to the different levels of implementing supplier assessment and supplier collaboration. The performances of the four configurations are compared against the levels of environmental dynamism and stakeholder pressure. The empirical data from the sixth round of International Manufacturing Strategy Survey (IMSS) are used.

This paper found that the governance configuration with the highest level of implementing both governance mechanisms leads to the best performance. The synergistic effect that supplier assessment and collaboration complement each other to achieve better performance is verified. However, the synergistic effect holds robust only when the environmental dynamism and stakeholder pressure are high. The synergistic effect vanishes in the social and environmental performance when the environmental dynamism is low. The effect also vanishes in the environmental performance when the stakeholder pressure is low. No synergistic effect was found in business performance.

This paper reveals the complementarity between supplier assessment and supplier collaboration when they are implemented at a reasonably high level. It also reveals the importance of the fit of governance mechanisms under different external contexts. The results contribute to reconciling the disputes about the effectiveness of governing supplier relationship to achieve the sustainability along a supply chain.

This study aims to examine the trustworthiness of internet-based quality signals (specifically webpages and before-sale services) from the perspective of interactivity by evaluating the associations between on-line signals of product quality and the off-line perceived quality of actual products.

Empirical data are collected from 261 Chinese female university students. Partial least squares structural equation modelling is used to test the conceptual model.

Both webpages and before-sale services are positively associated with off-line perceived quality, but only the quality of before-sale service has a direct association with customer satisfaction. Webpages and before-sale services are both trustworthy signals for indicating the quality of physical products; however, these signals provide different levels of trustworthiness.

The interactivity perspective supplements information-economics theory in examining the trustworthiness of internet-based signals. A signal is a trustworthy indicator only if customers perceive a close relationship between the quality of the signal and the actual product quality.

On-line sellers should improve the reciprocity and controllability of communications from a buyer’s perspective and should pay more attention to the strategic role of on-line communication for improving customer service.

Researchers have evaluated the trustworthiness of on-line quality signals from an information-economics perspective. This study extends these previous studies by addressing the perspective of interactivity. Two types of product-quality signals, including webpages and before-sale services, are assessed in terms of their trustworthiness by examining how these signals relate to off-line perceived quality and customer satisfaction.

Selective laser melting (SLM) is an additive manufacturing technology that is gaining industrial and research interest as it can directly fabricate near full density metallic components. The paper aims to identify suitable process parameters for SLM of processing of pure nickel powder and to study the microstructure of such products. The study also aims to characterize the microhardness and tensile properties of pure nickel produced by SLM.

A 2⁴ factorial design experiment was carried out to identify the most significant factors on the resultant porosity of nickel parts. A subsequent experiment was carried out with a laser power of 350 W. The scanning speeds and hatch spacings were varied.

Scanning speed and hatch spacing have significant effects on the porosity of SLM components. A high relative density of 98.9 per cent was achieved, and microhardness of 140 to 160 Hv was obtained from these samples. A tensile strength 452 MPa was obtained.

As the energy input levels were made in steps of 20 J/mm³ for the optimization study, the true optimal combination of parameters may have been missed. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the parameters with smaller variations in energy levels.

The paper provides a set of optimized parameters for the SLM of pure nickel. This study enables the three-dimensional (3D) printing of objects with nickel, which has applications in chemical catalyses and in microelectromechanical systems with its magnetostrictive properties.

This research is the first in direct processing of pure nickel using SLM, with the identification of suitable process parameters. The study also provides an understanding of the porosity, microhardness, strength and microstructure of SLM produced nickel parts. This work paves the way for standardization of 3D printed nickel components and enables the applications of pure nickel via SLM.