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This paper aims to propose a direction for rejuvenating the declining Ipoh Old Town through a conservation-based approach.

Recommendations for revitalisation are based on comparison between the local government's development proposals and historical study of revitalisation initiatives undertaken in neighbouring countries.

The review has found that the revitalisation of Ipoh should be more towards servicing the needs of its residents than to gain from tourism development.

Findings of the review have blurred the distinction between purist and ameliorist stances of conservation and suggest that the policy development should be a partnership of all stakeholders, vested with powers to implement.

This paper provides an insight into urban regeneration for smaller, more local-dependent historic towns.

This profile is somewhat more exotic than the usual ones found in this, hopefully, august journal and your reporter would like to dwell on the background more than is usual. If you take your world atlas, you may find Ipoh as an isolated dot in the middle of the Malaysian peninsula, a little to the north‐west of Kuala Lumpur. Viewed thus, why would Multicore Solders choose such an isolated outpost to establish a subsidiary factory? Arriving at the international airport at Kuala Lumpur starts to give one a clue: there are enormous bare scars in the plain. Flying from Kuala Lumpur to Ipoh, these scars multiply. They are the remains of the open‐cast tin mines in the alluvial deposits. Viewed from the air, they are a terrible blot on the landscape. The amazing thing is that they juxtapose oil palm, fruit and rubber plantations and even untouched jungle, but they remain bare and desert for decades. It is evident that no effort has been made to conserve the vegetable soil and replace it after the mining operations are finished, but this may be because the humus layer is so thin that it would be impossible to do so. To the ignorant European that this writer is, I imagined that the jungle was an all‐invading vegetation ready to swallow‐up every square metre of land: not so, it is a very precarious ecosystem where the humus formed by the rotting vegetation is swallowed up by the new growth faster than it can form. The jungle soil is very thin, bare rock being common and such a humus layer may take decades or even centuries to form. Most of the disused tin‐mines are therefore as devoid of life as the starkest desert. It would seem that, after fifty years or so, the first signs of vegetation start to reappear, a very meagre growth which, in time, may develop into scrub or secondary jungle without high trees.

This study seeks to investigate the effects of soft total quality management (TQM) on employees’ attitudes within a large Malaysian semiconductor organization. Despite extensive research on “soft” TQM practices, there has not been much research this area. Therefore, the proposed model was developed with the intention of examining this relationship.

Original research using self‐completed questionnaires, distributed to all staff within this organization, is thoroughly reported. The study sample consisted of 230 employees, resulting in a response rate of 76.6 percent. Data were analyzed by the latest version of SPSS, employing correlation and multiple regression analysis.

The results revealed that employees' perceptions of soft TQM significantly relate to employees’ attitudes with those perceiving a greater degree of awareness of soft TQM exhibiting more positive reactions towards job involvement, career satisfaction and organizational commitment. It is also found that, where teamwork was a dominant soft TQM practice, strong associations with employees’ attitudes existed. This analysis gives new insight into “soft” TQM concepts and, furthermore, the results of the multiple regression analysis confirmed that all variables were significantly related to perceptions of soft TQM practices and thus implementing TQM does pay off. The results also support the proposed model based on the empirically validated soft TQM instruments, which are reliable and valid.

The significance of this study would enable top management to strategize their goal alignments, which would eventually help promote mutual understanding between the management and employees and thus yielding significant results on employees’ attitudes. The conclusions, limitations and implications of the study are also extensively discussed.

The main purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between total quality management (TQM) practices and employees' propensity to remain within a large Malaysian semiconductor packaging organization. Despite extensive research on TQM practices, none examines this scope of investigative study. Therefore, the proposed model was developed with the intention of examining this relationship.

Original research using self‐completed questionnaires, distributed to all staff within this organization is thoroughly reported. The study sample consisted of 230 employees, resulting in a response rate of 76.6 percent. A questionnaire developed by Udo, Guimaraes and Igbaria was adapted for ascertaining the level of employees' propensity to remain. Data were analyzed by employing correlation and simple linear regression analysis.

The results revealed that customer focus, organizational trust, organizational communication, employee involvement and empowerment are positively associated with employees' propensity to remain. It is also found that where organizational trust was perceived as a dominant TQM practice; improvements in employees' propensity to remain levels were significant. Further, the result of the simple linear regression analysis supports the proposed model based on the empirically validated soft TQM instruments, which are reliable and valid.

The study contributes in advancing the TQM literature to a better understanding of the influence of TQM on the propensity to remain among employees within a major semiconductor sector.

Neighbourhood environmental factors are associated with active lifestyle. Despite the considerable research that examined their relationship with elderly active lifestyle, the measures' reliability and validity attracted less attention. This pilot study aimed at examining the reliability and validity of eleven neighbourhood environmental factors hypothesized to promote active lifestyle among the elderly. The neighbourhood environmental factors ratings were compared from previous studies scale and the NEWS scale among young elderly residing in two cities in Malaysia. The identified items were further examined to identify their potential association with elderly active lifestyle. All the measures showed valid values except for convenience in both neighbourhoods and accessibility in Taman Meru. All items showed good-excellent reliability except for convenience in Taman Meru. All factors showed moderate-good correlations with active lifestyle except for walkability and convenience in Taman Meru, maintenance and safety in TTDI. The neighbourhood environmental factors can be used in neighbourhood and relevant surveys.

ALMOST TWO YEARS AGO we acquired Grafton & Co. and THE LIBRARY WORLD. For me it has been an interesting experience to be involved in the production of a magazine, and it has been gratifying to carry on the tradition of such a respected and long established journal.

The purpose of this paper is to answer the research question: “Do different pedagogies used in teaching entrepreneurship education influence individual skill development, which then in turn translates into a likelihood of entrepreneurial implementation intention?”

The number of total participants for the quasi-experiment was 308 undergraduate students in Malaysia, in which pre- and post-test (n=203) and control (n=105) groups are included. Students who enroled in the entrepreneurship course were randomly allocated into a class employing teacher-centred pedagogy or student-centred pedagogy. Learning outcomes are measured by objective and subjective measures.

Both pedagogical approaches had a positive effect on the development of the learning outcomes. However, the students who learned using the teacher-centred approach statistically developed a higher level of objective and subjective learning outcomes compared to the students who learned using the student-centred approach. The findings also suggest that the relationship between entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial intention mediates by learned skills.

The quasi-experimental design greatly improves the ability to make accurate claims about the impact of entrepreneurial education on entrepreneurship-related outcomes. Further, the study uses the implementation intention strategy in measuring the entrepreneurial intention. Thus, the study strongly supports for the view that implementation intention improves predictive validity of the behavioural intention within the framework of theory of planned behaviour by setting out in advance when, where, and how the goal will be achieved.

This case can be used in marketing management as well as consumer behaviour courses.

This case is suitable to use in advanced undergraduate levels, MBA and MSc in marketing courses that cover topics related to market segmentation and marketing mix strategies.

This case highlights the dilemma of an entrepreneur and a manager of a restaurant who were to take a decision about the sustainability of their restaurant business. Balqis Restaurant was owned by Danny who was a retiree from Telekom Malaysia. He wanted to open a restaurant business after he came back from his long holiday trip. He conducted market research to find a suitable place to open his Arabic restaurant. He assigned Waleed Masood Abdullah as the manager of Balqis Restaurant. Finally, in June 2010, he opened his long awaited restaurant at Gombak, Kuala Lumpur. The restaurant was known as Qasar before the name was changed to Balqis in 2015 because of copyright issues related to Saba’ restaurant at Cyberjaya. The restaurant was well managed under Danny’s supervision for 4 years and successfully won customers’ hearts and loyalty before he decided to give full responsibility to Waleed in March 2014. Danny trusted Waleed because he taught and trained him. However, under Waleed’s management, Balqis started to lose its customers. Waleed also started to branch out the restaurant to different places in different states; one in Ipoh, and the other in Perak. He invested much money on renovation for all three branches, but one of the restaurants closed down in September 2014. This is because of the fact that they could no longer bear the cost of operations for the restaurant. However, he failed to learn from the mistake; they set up another restaurant, which was in Kuantan, in the same month. The sales were not that encouraging but it did show gradual improvement; yet, they once again sold it to another Arab businessman. Waleed realized his failure in managing the restaurant business in August 2015. He again opted to open another new branch which was questioned by Danny. He was in a rush to open it by the end of December 2015 to ensure that the additional profits from the current restaurants could cover the variables costs if the new restaurants were launched. Based on that, the owner had to make a decision about whether a new branch should be opened or whether they should just retain their restaurant in Gombak.

The learning objectives of using this case are as follows. 1. Knowledge enhancement: to help students in understanding the problems faced by a restaurant in expanding its market; to make students aware that a properly blended marketing mix is the key to business success and to broaden students’ views and understanding in targeting the proper market segment in formulating an effective marketing strategy. 2. Skills building: to be able to identify the best marketing strategic decisions to manage the restaurant business for its survival and to develop students’ ability to analyse the existing situation to come up with a viable and effective solution. 3. Attitudinal: to help the students to have intellectual openness in accepting different ways of finding solutions for a particular problem and to assist students in making the right move at the right time.

Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

CSS 8: Marketing.

The concept of “buy now pay later” leads Malaysian Generation Y (Gen Y) to excessively use their credit cards for spending. To gauge the extent of this worrisome scenario, the purpose of this paper is to attempt to investigate the factors, including credit attitudes, knowledge on credit card, materialism, social norm and self-efficacy, that influence credit card misuse amongst Gen Y in Malaysia.

The authors have collected responses from a total of 501 respondents in two urban areas in Malaysia and estimated six multiple regression models to test five hypotheses.

The results suggest that credit card knowledge and self-efficacy are negatively related to credit card misuse amongst Gen Y in Malaysia. In contrast, positive relationships were found to exist between credit card attitudes, materialism and social norm and the dependent variable.

In this study, the authors limit the data collection to the two biggest urban areas in Malaysia, namely, Klang Valley and Ipoh.

For the regulator’s perspective, the results can be used to understand the alarming indebtedness behaviour amongst working members of Gen Y and outline appropriate and effective policies to reduce their serious indebtedness. Financial service providers, however, can collaborate with regulators to curb credit card misuse amongst Gen Y, so that the latter can avoid high bad debt from line of credit facilities and bankruptcy.

The study’s findings will further enrich the existing literature on the factors affecting the credit card misuse, especially for the unique Gen Y cohort in Malaysia.

The purpose of this paper is to produce dimple structure on a cylindrical surface for Aluminium-Silicon (Al-Si) alloy piston (A390) using turning process. The process selection is based on factors such as the capability of machining process, low cost process, minimum set up time and green working environment.

Three main machining parameters that greatly influenced the dimple structure fabrication were identified from previous researches (cutting parameters, vibration and cutting tool geometry). To facilitate dimple structure fabrication using turning process, a dynamic assisted tooling (DATT) was developed. Experiments were conducted on Al-Si A390 material for future application of automotive piston. A three-dimensional surface profiler (Alicona) was used for geometry measurement and analysis of dimple structure. The Taguchi method, with an L8 orthogonal array, was used to accommodate seven parameters used in the fabrication of dimpled structures using turning process. Signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio and observation on the shape of dimple structure array were used to determine the optimum machining condition.

Optimum parameters obtained using S/N ratio analysis were cutting speed of 9 m/min, depth of cut of 0.01 mm, amplitude displacement of 1 mm, nose radius of 0.4 mm and frequency of (25 Hertz). Whereas feed rate, rake and relief angles were not significant to the size, shape and dimple array; therefore, their selected values depend on requirement of the application. Based on the S/N ratio and uniformity of the array of dimple structure as the main reference, the sixth and eighth experiment conditions almost achieved the optimum condition which are able to produce the width of dimple structure of 396.82 and 560.43 μm, respectively, dimple length of 3,261.6 and 2,422.7 μm, respectively, dimple depth of 63.43 and 65.97 μm, respectively, area ratio of 10 and 10.39 per cent, respectively, and surface roughness of 3.0023 and 3.0054 μm, respectively. These results are within the range of dimple structure obtained by the previous researchers for sliding mechanical components application.

The optimum condition of machining parameters in producing uniform dimple structure led to the compilation of data base in dimple structure research via turning process. Dimple structure produced is similarly obtained with other processes like laser, burnishing, photochemical, etc. DATT developed has the ability to produce repeatable vibration frequency, stable and consistent amplitude displacement using a simple crank concept and structure that can be mounted on all types of lathe machine either conventional or computer numerical control.