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1 – 10 of 20Andrew S. Gallan, Diogo Hildebrand, Yuliya Komarova, Dan Rubin and Ronen Shay
Designing and developing responsible business practices can create various tensions for service organizations. The purpose of this research is to develop a deeper understanding of…
Abstract
Purpose
Designing and developing responsible business practices can create various tensions for service organizations. The purpose of this research is to develop a deeper understanding of the relationship between customer engagement (CE) and responsible business practices (e.g. environmental, social and/or governance [ESG], corporate social responsibility [CSR] and diversity, equity, and inclusion [DEI]) and explore customer engagement tensions that service organizations may face.
Design/methodology/approach
This research develops a list of CE-related responsible business practice tensions and empirically explores their relevance through in-depth interviews with nine ESG professionals.
Findings
This paper makes three important contributions. First, we find support for nine distinct but related tensions with implications for CE that organizations must navigate when pursuing responsible business practices. Second, interview participants provide some suggestions for tackling these tensions, which we support with relevant theories. Finally, we develop a conceptual framework that may stimulate future service research and inform the implementation of ESG strategies.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is the first to conceptualize and empirically explore the tensions that emerge between responsible business practices and CE. The authors develop a novel analysis of the CE-related tensions that emerge when pursuing an ESG strategy.
Research limitations/implications
The findings are based on a small sample of ESG professionals. Future research may take a quantitative approach to further evaluate the role that these tensions play in engaging customers.
Practical implications
This research provides a conceptual framework that may guide ESG professionals in understanding, framing and navigating CE-related tensions when pursuing responsible business practices.
Social implications
A social benefit may be found when service organizations are better able to successfully navigate CE-related tensions when pursuing responsible business practices.
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Ivo Hristov, Matteo Cristofaro and Riccardo Cimini
This study aims to investigate the impact of stakeholders’ nonfinancial resources (NFRs) on companies’ profitability, filling a significant gap in the literature regarding the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the impact of stakeholders’ nonfinancial resources (NFRs) on companies’ profitability, filling a significant gap in the literature regarding the role of NFRs in value creation.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from 76 organizations from 2017 to 2019 were collected and analyzed. Four primary NFRs and their key value drivers were identified, representing core elements that support different dimensions of a company’s performance. Statistical tests examined the relationship between stakeholders’ NFRs and financial performance measures.
Findings
When analyzed collectively and individually, the results reveal a significant positive influence of stakeholders’ NFRs on a firm’s profitability. Higher importance assigned to NFRs correlates with a higher return on sales.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by empirically bridging the gap between stakeholder theory and the resource-based view, addressing the intersection of these perspectives. It also provides novel insights into how stakeholders’ NFRs impact profitability, offering valuable implications for research and managerial practice. It suggests that managers should integrate nonfinancial measures of NFRs within their performance measurement system to manage better and sustain companies’ value-creation process.
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Divya Surendran Nair and Seema Bhandare
The purpose of this study was to examine how well a strength-based program grounded in positive psychology principles can advance the practical critical thinking skills of those…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to examine how well a strength-based program grounded in positive psychology principles can advance the practical critical thinking skills of those pursuing the teacher training course.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used a single-group pre-test post-test design with 35 teacher-trainees from the Bachelor of Education course. The two-and-a-half-week strength-based program used the values in action survey to identify strengths. Pre- and post-test scores, measured with the Cornell Critical Thinking Test – Level Z, underwent Statistical Package for Social Sciences analysis including paired samples t-test for subcomponent and overall composite analysis.
Findings
Analysis of the pre- and post-test scores demonstrated a statistical significance in the critical thinking scores obtained by the teacher-trainees. Post-test scores were consistently significant. Out of the elements of critical thinking, induction, meaning, observation and credibility were more prominent. Deduction and assumption identification were also having a significant effect.
Originality/value
Most critical thinking programs focus on evaluating specific teaching methods for improving critical thinking skills. In education, positive psychology studies often center on students’ well-being, attention spans and academic success, aligning with wellness programs. Despite the importance of strengths in positive psychology, there is a lack of research on using a strength-based approach to boost critical thinking skills. This study aims to enhance teacher-trainees’ critical thinking by leveraging their individual strengths, moving away from traditional instructional strategies.
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Jamison V. Kovach, Teresa Cardoso-Grilo, Madalena Cardoso, Sofia Kalakou and Ana Lúcia Martins
This research proposes how Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) provides a complementary approach for business process management (BPM) lifecycle implementation in order to address gaps…
Abstract
Purpose
This research proposes how Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) provides a complementary approach for business process management (BPM) lifecycle implementation in order to address gaps identified in the current literature.
Design/methodology/approach
The mandatory elements of a method (MEM) framework is used to illustrate DFSS's maturity as a process redesign method. The use of DFSS in a BPM context is described through several action research case examples.
Findings
This research specifies the procedure model (order of development activities), techniques, results, roles and information/meta model (conceptual data model of results) associated with using DFSS to address BPM-related challenges. The action research case examples provided discuss the details of implementing BPM using DFSS to design, implement and test redesigned processes to ensure they fulfill the needs of process participants.
Research limitations/implications
While the case examples discussed were performed in only a few settings, which limits the generalizability of their results, they provide evidence regarding the wide range of domains in which the proposed DFSS-BPM approach can be applied and how the tools are used in different contexts.
Practical implications
This research offers a road map for addressing the challenges practitioners often face with BPM lifecycle implementation.
Originality/value
This research provides the first attempt to integrate DFSS as a complementary method for BPM lifecycle implementation.
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John Hyland, Maeve Mary Henchion, Oluwayemisi Olomo, Jennifer Attard and James Gaffey
The aim of this paper is to better understand European consumers' behaviour in relation to Short Food Supply Chains (SFSCs), so as to provide insights to support their development…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to better understand European consumers' behaviour in relation to Short Food Supply Chains (SFSCs), so as to provide insights to support their development as part of a sustainable food system. Specifically, it aims to analyse consumer purchase patterns, motivations and perceived barriers and to identify patterns of behaviour amongst different consumer groups.
Design/methodology/approach
An online consumer survey was conducted in 12 European countries (n = 2,419). Quantitative data analysis, including principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis, was undertaken using SPSS.
Findings
Four consumer clusters are named according to their behavioural stage in terms of SFSC engagement: Unaware Unengaged, Aware Unengaged, Motivationally Engaged and Executively Engaged. Unaware Unengaged and Aware Unengaged are in the non-engagement phase of behaviour. Motivationally Engaged are motivationally activated to engage in the behaviour but fail to do so consistently. Executively Engaged is the fully engaged cluster, being motivated to act and purchasing local food on a frequent basis. The results show an interesting interplay between motivations and barriers, i.e. higher scores for motivations and lower scores for barriers do not necessarily translate into higher purchase frequency.
Originality/value
The research gleans insights into the contextual factors that may inhibit SFSC purchases in different consumer segments. It offers practical implications for policymakers and others seeking to develop SFSCs as part of a sustainable food system.
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Tamsin Crook and Almuth McDowall
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neuro-developmental condition that has frequently been pathologised in career research and broader society to date. The study…
Abstract
Purpose
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neuro-developmental condition that has frequently been pathologised in career research and broader society to date. The study seeks to reframe such assumptions through a qualitative positive-focused exploration of career stories of ADHD adults, elicited through a strength-focused technique with wide applicability for coaching and other career-based development activities.
Design/methodology/approach
Situated in a strength-focused coaching psychology paradigm, the authors undertook semi-structured interviews with 17 participants, using an adapted feedforward interview technique (FFI) rooted in positive psychology (PP), to investigate individuals' strengths and successful career experiences.
Findings
Narrative thematic analysis of the transcripts identified two core themes: “the paradoxical nature of strengths” and “career success as an evolving narrative”. The participants described how they have achieved career success both “in spite of” and “because of” ADHD. The use of the FFI demonstrated a helpful and easily taught method for eliciting personal narratives of success and strengths, an essential foundation to any coaching process.
Originality/value
This research provides a nuanced overview, and an associated conceptual model, of how adults with ADHD perceive their career-based strengths and experiences of success. Further, the research shows the value of using a positive psychological coaching approach when working with neurominority individuals, using a successful adaptation of the FFI. The authors hope that the documentation of this technique and the resulting insights will offer important guidance for managers as coaches and internal and external career coaches, as well as providing positive and relatable narrative resources for ADHD adults.
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Mohammed Basendwah, Suraiyati Rahman and Mohammed Alawi Al-Sakkaf
In the last decade, the concept of Islamic attributes of destination (IAD) has emerged due to Muslim tourists’ need to visit a destination that complies with Sharia law. Since…
Abstract
Purpose
In the last decade, the concept of Islamic attributes of destination (IAD) has emerged due to Muslim tourists’ need to visit a destination that complies with Sharia law. Since then, the IAD concept has been popular to increase the destination’s attractiveness and travel satisfaction for Muslim tourists. This concept evolved from evaluating the Muslim tourists’ perception of IAD to non-Muslim tourists and from assessing the Islamic attributes in Muslim-majority destinations to non-Muslim majority destinations. Furthermore, the literature showed several measurement scales to assess tourists’ satisfaction with IAD, and scholars were varied in the methods of analysis used to assess tourists’ satisfaction with IAD. The purpose of this study is to perform a systematic mapping study on satisfaction with IAD by answering five research questions.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses framework to guide the search process and search for relevant studies between 2012 and 2022 from two scientific databases, Scopus and Web of Science.
Findings
The search revealed 387 studies. In total, 31 articles met the eligibility criteria. This study indicates the journal considered research studies on tourists’ satisfaction with IAD the most, the method of analysis used in the previous studies, the Islamic destination attributes considered in the previous studies, the research distribution by counties, the research trend and the future direction.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first systematic mapping study that delivers a summary of empirical research studies on tourists’ satisfaction with IAD.
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Wunhong Su and Chen Yin
This study aims to investigate the association between executives with foreign backgrounds and the audit fees paid by the Chinese-listed firms over the period from 2010 to 2020.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the association between executives with foreign backgrounds and the audit fees paid by the Chinese-listed firms over the period from 2010 to 2020.
Design/methodology/approach
To examine the association between executives’ foreign experience and audit fees, this study constructs the following empirical model: Lnfeei,t = β0 + β1Foreign backgroundi,t + ∑βj Controli,t + YearFE + IndFE + εi,t (1).
Findings
This study finds that auditors charge higher fees for firms hiring more executives with foreign backgrounds. The results are robust to a battery of robustness checks, including fixed effects, alternative measures of independent variable, controlling for other characteristics of executives and auditors and entropy balancing method.
Originality/value
This study sheds light on how executives’ foreign backgrounds affect audit fees, enriching the literature on executive heterogeneity and audit fees and providing important implications for audit practitioners.
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