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As part of a national plan to govern professional and organizational development in Norwegian specialist healthcare, the country’s hospital clinics are tasked with constructing development plans. Using the development plan as a case, the paper analyzes how managers navigate and legitimize the planning process among central actors and deals with the contingency of decisions in such strategy work.

This study applies a qualitative research design using a case study method. The material consists of public documents, observations and single interviews, covering the process of constructing a development plan at the clinical level.

The findings suggest that the development plan was shaped through a multilevel translation process consisting of different contending rationalities. At the clinical level, the management had difficulties in legitimizing the process. The underlying tension between top-down and bottom-up steering challenged involvement and made it difficult to manage the contingency of decisions.

The findings are relevant to public sector managers working on strategy documents and policymakers identifying challenges that might hinder the fulfillment of political intentions.

This paper draws on a case from Norway; however, the findings are of general interest. The study contributes to the academic discussion on how to consider both the health authorities’ perspective and the organizational perspective to understand the manager’s role in handling the contingency of decisions and managing paradoxes in the decision-making process.

The main goal of this research work is the optimization of the purchasing business process in the Moroccan public sector in terms of transparency and budgetary optimization. The authors have worked on the public university as an implementation field.

The design of the research work followed the design science research (DSR) methodology for information systems. DSR is a research paradigm wherein a designer answers questions relevant to human problems through the creation of innovative artifacts, thereby contributing new knowledge to the body of scientific evidence. The authors have adopted a techno-functional approach. The technical part consists of the development of an intelligent recommendation system that supports the choice of optimal information technology (IT) equipment for decision-makers. This intelligent recommendation system relies on a set of functional and business concepts, namely the Moroccan normative laws and Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology's (COBIT) guidelines in information system governance.

The modeling of business processes in public universities is established using business process model and notation (BPMN) in accordance with official regulations. The set of BPMN models constitute a powerful repository not only for business process execution but also for further optimization. Governance generally aims to reduce budgetary wastes, and the authors' recommendation system demonstrates a technical and methodological approach enabling this feature. Implementation of artificial intelligence techniques can bring great value in terms of transparency and fluidity in purchasing business process execution.

Business limitations: First, the proposed system was modeled to handle one type products, which are computer-related equipment. Hence, the authors intend to extend the model to other types of products in future works. Conversely, the system proposes optimal purchasing order and assumes that decision makers will rely on this optimal purchasing order to choose between offers. In fact, as a perspective, the authors plan to work on a complete automation of the workflow to also include vendor selection and offer validation. Technical limitations: Natural language processing (NLP) is a widely used sentiment analysis (SA) technique that enabled the authors to validate the proposed system. Even working on samples of datasets, the authors noticed NLP dependency on huge computing power. The authors intend to experiment with learning and knowledge-based SA and assess the' computing power consumption and accuracy of the analysis compared to NLP. Another technical limitation is related to the web scraping technique; in fact, the users' reviews are crucial for the authors' system. To guarantee timeliness and reliable reviews, the system has to look automatically in websites, which confront the authors with the limitations of the web scraping like the permanent changing of website structure and scraping restrictions.

The modeling of business processes in public universities is established using BPMN in accordance with official regulations. The set of BPMN models constitute a powerful repository not only for business process execution but also for further optimization. Governance generally aims to reduce budgetary wastes, and the authors' recommendation system demonstrates a technical and methodological approach enabling this feature.

The adopted techno-functional approach enabled the authors to bring information system governance from a highly abstract level to a practical implementation where the theoretical best practices and guidelines are transformed to a tangible application.

The primary objective of the current study is to unveil this relatively new phenomenon in the context of travel and tourism. In line with this purpose, the study provides a comprehensive overview of the concept of digital nomadism through a tourism perspective, discusses the relationship between digital nomadism, travel and tourism, examines the opportunities and threats of digital nomadism, and finally uncovers its transformative impact.

This conceptual study examined secondary data, i.e. existing literature. In this data, the focus has been on the tourism aspect of the digital nomad phenomenon.

The results suggest that digital nomadism introduces a novel perspective on the nature of travel and tourism mobility, along with a distinct tourist typology characterized by unique traits. Moreover, the results indicate that, while digital nomadism contributes to the local economy and cultural change on the one hand, it poses challenges in terms of regulations and taxation on the other. In this context, one can conclude that legislators should establish regulations for the employment of digital nomads, while managers should engage in activities that attract potential digital nomads on an international scale.

The study comprehensively reviews relevant literature in various ways, conducts a conceptualization of digital nomad tourists and makes a noteworthy theoretical contribution within the context of tourism. It addresses the gaps in the existing literature, particularly in specific contexts such as the legal status of digital nomads, taxation, prevention of gentrification, cultural exchanges, identity transformation and the impact on travel and tourism.

The purpose of this paper is to define the local integration rate and how it is calculated to assess its relevance as a national performance indicator for the Moroccan automotive industry.

The research methodology first followed a systematic review approach through the analysis of published research articles and academic works. This study then followed a qualitative approach based on semi-structured interviews with various actors in the Moroccan automotive industry. Finally, the findings of this work were reinforced by a case study to analyze the supply chain of a locally produced vehicle.

The results indicate that the local integration rate as calculated today overestimates the performance of the automotive industry and does not systematically guarantee a significant creation of value added.

Due to the confidentiality of the data in terms of turnover, payroll and purchase prices as well as the large number of suppliers in the different supply chains of the car manufacturer, the case study focused on only one of the six existing ecosystems.

On the basis of research work on the Moroccan automotive industry as well as interviews with various actors, the local integration rate is unanimously considered as a viable performance indicator. This study has not only led us to the method of calculating this rate by the Ministry of Industry but also demonstrated its limitations while proposing a new method of calculation to increase the value added.

This study aims to investigate the adoption of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as the new performance perspective in cities. It also aims to understand how accounting for SDGs begins in city administrations by following Power’s (2015) fourfold development schema composed of policy object formation, object elaboration, activity orchestration and practice stabilization.

Focusing on a network of cities coordinated by the Finnish local government association, we analyzed the six largest cities in Finland employing a holistic multiple case study strategy. Our data consisted of Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs), city strategies, budget plans, financial statements, as well as results of participant observations and semi-structured interviews with key individuals involved in accounting for SDGs.

We unveiled the SDG framework as an interpretive scheme through which cities glocalized sustainable development as a novel, simultaneously global and local, performance object. Integration of the new accounts in city management is necessary for these accounts to take life in steering the actions. By creating meaningful alignment and the ability to impact managerial practices, SDGs and VLRs have the potential to influence local actions. Our results indicate further institutionalization progress of sustainability as a performance object through SDG-focused work.

While prior research has focused mainly on general factors influencing the integration of the sustainability agenda, this study provides a novel perspective by capturing the process and demonstrating empirically how new accounts on SDGs are introduced and deployed in the strategic planning and management of local governments.

This paper proposes an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) platform to increase the sustainability and resilience of smallholders to face supply chain disruptions in the event of COVID-like crises. The platform facilitates interactions between smallholders and buyers, workers and freight transport companies in agri-food ecosystems. Furthermore, this research work presents the implementation of the freight transport companies’ platform module.

The research work begins with a literature review aiming at analyzing current available ICT solutions supporting smallholders and other actors in the agri-food supply chain. This analysis identifies the research gaps which have to be filled by the platform. Then, the authors proceed with the analysis of the operational scenarios of each platform actor by interacting with experts and operators working in the agri-food sector. The results of such analysis resulted in a comprehensive, unambiguous and consistent set of specification being used to define the platform structure and modules architecture. The platform modules have been developed by using the web-application framework Laravel.

Preliminary tests show that the proposed platform is usable and promises to improve the resilience and economic, social and environmental sustainability of agri-food supply chains, with a focus on smallholders.

The research work allows players in the agri-food supply chain and in particular small local producers to react and mitigate the impact of COVID-like crises through development of a platform in which smallholders, citizens (buyers and workers) and freight transport companies are simultaneously present.

Output from the Irish Dairy Industry has grown rapidly since the abolition of quotas in 2015, with processors investing heavily in capacity expansion to deal with the extra milk volumes. Further capacity gains may be achieved by extending the processing season into the winter, a key enabler for which being the reduction of duration of the winter maintenance overhaul period. This paper aims to investigate if Lean Six Sigma tools and techniques can be used to enhance operational maintenance performance, thereby releasing additional processing capacity.

Combining the Six-Sigma Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, Control (DMAIC) methodology and the structured approach of Turnaround Maintenance (TAM) widely used in process industries creates a novel hybrid model that promises substantial improvement in maintenance overhaul execution. This paper presents a case study applying the DMAIC/TAM model to Ireland’s largest dairy processing site to optimise the annual maintenance shutdown. The objective was to deliver a 30% reduction in the duration of the overhaul, enabling an extension of the processing season.

Application of the DMAIC/TAM hybrid resulted in process enhancements, employee engagement and a clear roadmap for the operations team. Project goals were delivered, and original objectives exceeded, resulting in €8.9m additional value to the business and a reduction of 36% in the duration of the overhaul.

The results demonstrate that the model provides a structure that promotes systematic working and a continuous improvement focus that can have substantial benefits for wider industry. Opportunities for further model refinement were identified and will enhance performance in subsequent overhauls.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first time that the structure and tools of DMAIC and TAM have been combined into a hybrid methodology and applied in an Irish industrial setting.

Education to an international standard that can provide successful careers has arguably been the main drive of many parents to allocate scarce financial resources to the education of their progenies. Competition for high-calibre degrees has seen an explosion of opportunity in the private education sector. As many Global South countries do not have the equivalent control of standards provided in the United Kingdom (UK) by the Quality Assurance Agency, this can lead to dissatisfaction with the qualifications received in the Global South. This chapter aims to explore the factors influencing participation in higher education in the Global North versus the Global South, particularly where these relate to or vary by locality, and the relative influence these have on the propensity of the learners living in these areas to progress into higher education in local universities. The conceptual framework and methodology provided in this chapter show the differences between transnational education (TNE) as primarily a standalone or independent activity supported by a UK higher education institution (HEI)/provider versus being a collaborative effort between a UK host university and a South/Southeast Asian HEI university partner. The methodology provides a strategy for UK host institutions to best provide carefully aligned independent or collaborative partnerships with the partner country regulatory bodies. The chapter concludes with the author’s personal reflections and recommendations based on decades of collaborative and independent university provision of TNE. These reflections are focused on design-based courses in selected South/Southeast Asian HEI partnerships with the College of Architecture and Design at Birmingham City University.

The present study integrates inclusive leadership and protection motivation theory to propose a new model predicting employees' intention to work from home during an emergency situation such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

A questionnaire was developed to collect data from 939 Taiwanese and Vietnamese office employees using a non-probability convenience sampling method. A total of 887 valid questionnaires were used for further analysis. The data were analysed following a two-stage structural equation modelling using SPSS 22 and AMOS 20 software. The validity and reliability of the instrument were tested and ensured.

The results revealed that inclusive leadership and factors related to protection motivation theory– including perceived severity and perceived vulnerability – have positive direct and indirect effects on employees' work-from-home intentions through the mediating role of employees' work-from-home-related attitudes. Protection motivation theory factors were found to have a stronger effect on employees' work-from-home intention than inclusive leadership. Differences in the relationship between perceived vulnerability, perceived severity and employees' intentions towards working from home were also discovered among participants from the two studied countries.

The integration of inclusive leadership and protection motivation theory brings into light what will drive employees' intention to work from home during an emergency situation. The present study has several theoretical and practical implications for scholars, governments, managers and policymakers that can help them improve management policies for working from home in the future.

Based on integrating inclusive leadership and protection motivation theory to explore employees' intention to work from home during an emergency situation, the present study demonstrated that inclusive leadership and protection motivation theory should be considered for studies on working from home in a pandemic setting.

Prior institutional duality research asserts that ceremonial implementation of organisational practice protects multinational corporations’ subsidiaries. However, the temporal dynamics of the safeguarding function has been under researched. Public sector organisations have also been ignored. This research aims to explore how the safeguarding function is created, maintained and disrupted using the overseas offices (OOs) of a bilateral development agency (BDA) as a case.

A multi-case study, underpinned by neo-institutionalism, was conducted. Data obtained from in-depth remote interviews with 39 informants from the BDA OOs were analysed using the “asking small and large questions” technique, four analytical techniques, cross-case synthesis and theoretical propositions.

A three-phase process was identified. The first phase is the appearance of discrepancies due to institutional duality. The second is the emergence of ceremonial implementation as a solution. In the third phase, “the creation, maintenance and disruption of a safeguarding function” begins. When ceremonial implementation successfully protects the OOs, the safeguarding function is created. The OOs are likely to repeat ceremonial implementation, thus sustaining the function. Meanwhile, when conditions such as management staff change, ceremonial implementation may not take place, and the safeguarding function disappears.

The BDA OOs may not face strong host country regulative pressures because they are donors to aid-recipient countries. Hence, the findings may not directly apply to other public sector organisations.

Development cooperation practitioners should understand that ceremonial implementation is not exclusively harmful.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first institutional duality research that explores the temporal dynamics of safeguarding functions targeting public sector organisations.