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The purpose of this paper is to provide guidance to SMEs to sense and seize digitally enabled growth opportunities as well as start a project-based learning process to transform the organization in order to remain competitive in turbulent environments.

The proposed framework is nurtured from a dynamic capabilities approach as well as from digital transformation studies and mitigates shortcomings of existing frameworks on IT-enabled business transformation. A pilot study has also been carried out for testing the proposed framework.

The results of the pilot study show that the framework is well understood by SME owners or managers and contributes to a comprehensive perception of digitalization challenges and potentials. The overall maturity level of the 52 companies analyzed is moderate. Firms are better at “sensing” than “seizing”, that is, at identifying digitally based growth opportunities than in profiting from them. The test of the proposed framework also contributes to its further adjustment and refinement.

The developed framework is useful for owners and managers of SMEs as a self-assessment of digital maturity. It sets a baseline regarding the current position and supports coordinated initiatives for digitally enabled growth.

Few frameworks regarding digital maturity have been developed. Most of them lack a sound theoretical foundation and are less suited to the needs of SMEs. There are few studies on digitalization in SMEs and they are not focussed on capabilities development but mostly on processes (Trung Pham 2010; Blatz et al., 2018; Mittal et al., 2018). Therefore, the originality of this paper is to propose a framework that allows SMEs to assess their digital maturity level and the capabilities associated with each level to enhance digitally enabled growth, contributing to expand the research on the relationship between dynamic capabilities and digitalization (Teece, 2017).

From time immemorial until about a generation ago, the UAE desert-roaming Bedouins were living in tents (hair houses) which they themselves had innovated, constructed and elaborated. They had done this in such a way as to ensure that their practical need for accommodation was met, that the constraints of their physical environment were taken into account, and that their own social and religious obligations could be discharged. Then almost overnight the tents disappeared and with them the way of life they represented.

As a consequence of the UAE government's policy in the early urbanization and resettlement of the country's nomadic population, the previous occupants of the hair houses found themselves residents of the so-called “housing areas” on the outskirts of the UAE cities and towns. The problems arising from this sudden transformation are the focus of this study which aims to demonstrate that while the resettled Bedouins turned to embrace the modern life in their new homes, they were mentally and emotionally drawn to their past lifestyle in which the hair house, more than merely providing accommodation, was an expression of personality and culture.

To this end, this study documents and analyzes the southern version of the hair house (otherwise known as the “winter house”), previously the most common in the UAE desert. The study will consider not only that the hair house was a masterpiece of innovative construction suited to the Bedouin's environment and culture but also, as comparison at different levels shows, the inadequacy of the urban cement house as the Bedouin's current-day accommodation. Consequently, the study recommends that future housing projects targeted at the resettled Bedouins should be designed with a view to harmonizing the needs and requirements of contemporary life with the rich heritage of the Bedouins.

In carrying out this study, the researcher has utilized a combination of research tools, primarily theoretical, descriptive and analytical together with field visits and personal interviews with former residents of the hair houses and the curators of the Heritage Village in Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital. In contrast, as the “housing areas” are still in existence, the scope of the study is limited to the hair house which it tries to recover and reconstruct as a point of reference for the thesis of the study.

The purpose of this article is to discuss issues raised at The 1st World Conference on Intellectual Capital for Communities in the Knowledge Economy: Nations, Regions and Cities, which took place in Paris, June 20, 2005.

The conference was structured into four sessions: intellectual capital and the knowledge economy; intellectual capital for nations; intellectual capital for regions; and looking at the future.

Finds that there is a gap that must be addressed. There are very few actual case studies that articulate how a knowledge economy is nurtured and operates on a regional and local basis.

This article is based on the first conference, which was a remarkable convocation and springboard event and will be of interest to those in the field of intellectual capital.

The purpose of this paper is to link Peter F. Drucker's seminal theoretical conceptions with empirical insights on what constitutes perception of effective knowledge worker leadership in an intercultural environment. Both a fundamental shift of mind in theorizing and much more empirical research is needed, to fully understand the underlying view of leadership as a socially distributed activity. However, in a true Druckerian spirit, to take this new lens on leadership is neither magic nor rocket science – but it constitutes a road visible but not yet seen.

The authors link key recommendations on expert leadership from the timeless 1999 Drucker paper on knowledge worker productivity to the results of qualitative in‐depth interviews with over 100 top‐level leaders and their direct reports in China, Indonesia, and Singapore. Because leadership is all about influencing other people, the authors are especially interested on what constitutes good leadership from the followers' point of view.

One of the key findings is that perceived leadership effectiveness heavily depends upon fit to followers' expectations. As a result, a leadership style, which is effective in one country can wreak havoc when unreflectively transferred into another cultural environment. Hence being able to step back and to reflect on the appropriateness of one's leadership behavior is the key element of a globally successful leader.

Too many experts are currently sent to foreign assignments without proper preparation for good adaptation of their leadership behavior. A new leadership conception informed by psychological consideration provides expert leaders with recommended action on how to best deal with the group dynamics resulting from dealing with the twenty‐first century's most valuable asset entrusted to their care. This mind‐shift will overcome leadership barriers to international business, and optimize knowledge work results.

This contribution is one of the first studies about perceived knowledge worker leadership effectiveness in Asia. Integration of the paper's findings with recent Western leadership conceptualizations focusing on sharing and distributing leadership responsibilities will help build a richer understanding.

This article reports on the background, the conceptual ideas and the lessons learned from over more than 20 years of IC Statements and Management with a country focus on Germany and some international developments. It calls for an integrated management approach for IC and offers case study evidence on how to accomplish this quest.

Report on the German initiative “Intellectual Capital Statement made in Germany” (ICS m.i.G.). A brief review of the literature describes the background and theoretical foundation of the German IC method. A short description of the method is followed by four detailed case studies to illustrate long-term impact of IC management in very different organizations. A discussion of Lessons Learned from more than 200 implementations and an outlook on current and future developments finalizes the article.

IC Statements made in Germany (ICS m.i.G.) was successful in providing a framework to systematically identify IC, evaluate the status quo of IC relative to the strategic requirements, visualize interdependencies of IC, business processes and business results as well as to connect IC reporting with internal management routines and external communication. However, ICS is not an insulated method but delivers the maximum benefit when integrated with strategy development, strategy implementation, business process optimization accompanied by change management routines. Strong ties to human resource management, information technology departments, quality management, research and development teams as well as business operations as the core of an organization help to yield the most for ICS m.i.G. Over time, the focus of managing IC changes and maturity leads to deutero learning.

ICS m.i.G. proved easy to apply, cost efficient for SMEs, larger corporations and networks. It helps to better accomplish their objectives and to adjust their business models. The guidelines in German and English as well as a software application released were downloaded more than 100,000 times. A certification process based on a three-tier training module is available and was successfully completed by more than 400 practitioners. ICS m.i.G. is supporting current standards of knowledge management, such as ISO 9001, ISO 30401 or DIN SPEC PAS 91443 and therefore will most likely have a continuing impact on knowledge-based value creation.

This paper reports lessons learned from the country-wide IC initiative in Germany over the last 20 years initiated and supported by the authors. Several elements of the method have been published over time, but so far no comprehensive view on Lessons Learned had been published.

Despite efforts by researchers and managers to better link marketing activities with business financial outcomes, there is general agreement that by and large chief marketing officers (CMOs) (and marketing in general) have lost strategic decision-making influence within organizations. The purpose of this paper is to understand the causes of this decline and offer recommended solutions to counteract this trend.

In-depth interviews lasting between 40 and 55 minutes were conducted with 25 chief executive officers (CEOs) of service companies located in Western Europe, North America, and Australia. In total, 13 difference countries were represented. Using Emerging Consensus Technique, we identified four main themes, which cause the goals of CEOs and those of CMOs/marketing to diverge.

The primary cause of the decline of strategic influence of CMOs and marketing overall with CEOs is a function of four key issues: first, the role of the CMO (e.g. task overload, focus on tactical issues, “outdated” skill set); second, lack of financial accountability (e.g. the inability to connect marketing efforts to financial returns); third, digital and social media (e.g. a perceived obsession with new technology); and forth, lack of strategic vision and impact (e.g. lost sight of “core” job, use of irrelevant metrics).

The findings indicate that CMOs must address the four key issues uncovered for marketing to attain/regain a role in strategic decision making. A proposed roadmap for putting marketing back on the CEOs agenda is presented to guide CMOs.

This research provides marketers with a CEO eye view of their role within organizations.

Sustainable development seems to be something like motherhood and apple pie — everyone finds it a good thing, there is almost universal appreciation. At first sight, this is highly positive, as this could signal the entering of a holistic and responsible thinking into the world of politics and society. But as it often happens with other catch phrases that suddenly come into vogue, like “empowerment” and “participation”, it might not be more than a rhetoric which fails to translate into practice, this all the more so because sustainable development can be given several different interpretations.