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This paper aims to establish how strategic target-market selection decisions are shaped, challenged and driven in response to the rapidly evolving technological landscape. The authors critically evaluate the implications of these changes for the role of marketers and the organizational function of marketing.

The research uses qualitative methods. Key-informant interviews are conducted among senior organizational practitioners within client-side organizations, digital agencies and strategic marketing consultancies, seeking to contrast their views.

The findings reveal an erosion of responsibility for the integrated strategic role of marketing decision-making. In particular, the authors reveal that the evolving digital landscape has precipitated a sense of crisis for marketers and the role of marketing within the firm. This extends beyond simply remedying a skills-gap and is triggering a transformation that has repercussions for the future of marketing and its practice, thus diminishing functional accountability.

The findings have long-term implications for marketing as a strategic organizational function of the firm and for marketing as a practice.

The study considers an increasingly digitalized marketplace and the associated impact of big data for the function of marketing. It reveals the changing scope of strategic marketing practice and functional accountability.

Previous research has shown that self-employed workers are more likely than employees to retire late or to be uncertain about retirement timing. However, little is known about the underlying mechanisms. This study aims to fill this gap, by focusing on the explanatory role of various job characteristics – flexibility, autonomy, skills-job match and job security – for explaining differences in retirement preferences between the solo self-employed and employees.

Data were used of 8,325 employees and 663 solo self-employed respondents (age 45–64) in the Netherlands, who participated in 2016 in the Study on Transitions in Employment, Ability, and Motivation (STREAM). The outcome variable distinguished between early, on-time, late and uncertain retirement preferences. Multinomial logistic regression models were estimated, and mediation was tested using the Karlson-Holm-Breen (KHB) method.

The solo self-employed are more likely than employees to prefer late retirement (vs “on-time”) and to be uncertain about their preferred retirement age. Job characteristics mediate 21% of the relationship between solo self-employment and late retirement preferences: the self-employed experience more possibilities than employees to work from home and to choose their own working times, which partly explains why they prefer to retire late.

In discussions about retirement, often reference is made to differences in retirement savings and retirement regulations between the solo self-employed and employees. The current study shows that differences in job characteristics also partly explain the relatively late preferred retirement timing of solo self-employed workers.

This study aims to develop a theoretical framework of the impact of clan and hierarchy cultures and knowledge technological capabilities on organizational learning.

A questionnaire survey was used to collect data from 693 employees working in knowledge management centers in various law and enforcement units in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Structural equation modeling was used to test the relationships between the variables.

The findings show that the clan culture had a significant negative effect on organizational learning. However, hierarchy culture and knowledge technological capabilities had a significant positive impact in predicting organizational learning behavior.

The study focuses on a specific type of public organization only, which somewhat limits the generalizability of the research results. Second, as the study was cross-sectional, the causal relationships could not be inferred directly. The study results will help policymakers create a learning organization by examining the impact of organizational culture and knowledge of technological capabilities.

This paper has added knowledge about the relationship between culture types, knowledge technological capabilities and organizational learning, particularly in the UAE. This study helps to bridge the gap in research on culture and knowledge technological capabilities and organizational learning.

The purpose is: first to review the marketing segmentation literature and its antecedents; second, to evaluate the organizational practice of marketing segmentation in a specific commercial context noted for its dynamism and complexity, fashion retailing; third, to assess theoretical and practical implications; and finally to identify an agenda for future research.

Through the analysis of an instrumental case study examining practice in fashion retailing this paper makes a contribution to current market segmentation debates. Sensemaking properties are used as a disciplined structure in which to report the case and make sense of segmentation.

This research demonstrates that the definition and scope of market segmentation is broader than the current marketing literature suggests. In practice, based on evidence from this research, contemporary segmentation solutions include implicit assumptions, judgement and compressed experience, which are latent within the modelling processes.

Further research needs to be extended to different organizational settings in order to develop further our understanding of the tacit and intuitive aspects of segmentation decisions.

Intuitive decision‐making processes and tacit knowledge employed in them are difficult to replicate and make explicit. However, a better understanding of these intuitive processes would offer practitioners an opportunity to systematically improve the quality of decision‐making.

This research broadens normative theoretical perspectives on market segmentation by highlighting intuitive and tacit dimensions. Combining sensemaking within the case study analysis has helped structure thought trials to provide a rare qualitative insight into the managerial construction of segmentation.

Using the systematic search and coding procedures of a meta-synthesis, this paper reviews the extant literature on English language learners (ELLs) in the social studies classroom. The 15 studies making up the corpus adhere to both topical and methodological criteria. The Language-Content-Task (LCT) Framework informed the coding and analysis of the results. Discussion of the findings provides three primary implications: (1) the need for linguistically and culturally responsive instruction for ELLs in social studies classes, (2) the need for increased training for inservice and preservice social studies teachers in preparation for teaching ELLs, and (3) the need for future research among ELLs in the social studies context.

As e‐business strategies have received growing attention from entrepreneurs, executives, investors and industry, information systems (IS)/information technology (IT) strategic planning has progressively come to be considered a critical method for developing a successful e‐strategy. However, despite the growing number of theoretical frameworks for IS/IT strategic planning, practical implementation faces several problems. Most importantly, numerous IS/IT strategic planning frameworks do not seem to realize that IS‐related problems are not merely technological, but are also caused by neglecting the interrelationship between IS/IT and organizational context. This study aims to identify and explore the key organizational mechanisms related to IS/IT strategic planning, and thus improve planning effectiveness. The proposed mechanisms provide a valuable reference for business managers or strategic planners who are initiating or conducting IS/IT strategic planning exercises in the digital era, and for researchers interested in information systems management.

Drawing on scholarships of workplace romance, LGBT at work and sexual fluidity, this present research aims to investigate the effect of female sexually fluid romantic relationships at work on their work and life.

The authors used qualitative approach and interviewed 30 female workers who experienced sexual fluidity at work.

From interviews with 30 female employees in Vietnam who experience fluidity in their romance, the authors find out positive and negatives effects on their psychology at work (affective/behavioral/cognitive change and mental health), work outcome (job attitudes and performance/productivity) and relations with coworkers.

This research discovers common and distinct features in the workplace romance of female sexually fluid employees. The research finding supports queer perspective which is exerting more salient impacts on our contemporary society and workplace.

British empirical research suggests culture and change have contributed to every lean failure. Whilst prevailing research implies that successful lean implementations lead to a profitable organisation, it focuses upon the low numbers of successful lean conversions. The purpose of this paper is to explore the importance of a suitable change strategy resulting in the likelihood of a triumphant lean implementation.

Predominantly, results from 68 survey questionnaires and seven case studies consisting of both questionnaires and interview schedules were utilised. Subsequently, extensive lean audits were carried out in 20 companies as a comprehensive validating exercise.

The significance of change was evident; a high correlation was found within the audits with successful organizations, suggesting that a triumphant implementation requires a systematic and controlled change strategy.

Whilst lean failures are attributable to different causes, the fundamental issues of corporate culture and change are evident. Every company needs to find its own way to implement lean and it should be viewed as a never‐ending journey.

The implementation of lean cannot be taken nonchalantly, owing to the investment in terms of time and money. Consequently, if an organization pursues the change strategy suggested, the probability of success implementation is improved.

This research, undertaken in British manufacturing organisations, focused on a bespoke change strategy for lean, as there exists a plethora of research focusing at the generic change process.

This paper seeks some answers to the question “What should leaders actually do in their units if they want to support learning which contributes to the capability of the organization”. This study represents one step in conceptualising and empirically examining knowledge leadership. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used. As a result of a qualitative study hypothetical ideal model emerged, on the basis of which an instrument of evaluation was created. By means of this it was possible to verify the ideal model with respect to the empirical material and study the implementation of the phenomenon in practice. Factor analysis showed that the most central dimensions of knowledge management are orienteering learning, creating climate that supports learning, supporting learning process at group and individual level, and being a role model. Furthermore, it is explained how knowledge management is manifested in the activity of the leaders.