Search results

1 – 10 of 11
Article
Publication date: 27 September 2023

Honghui Zou, En Xie and Nan Mei

Trade credit is an important business-to-business marketing tool for building firms’ competitive advantage. Many studies explore the determinants of trade credits from a…

Abstract

Purpose

Trade credit is an important business-to-business marketing tool for building firms’ competitive advantage. Many studies explore the determinants of trade credits from a trust-based view, but the role of political connections is largely overlooked, despite their potential influence in assessing firms’ trustworthiness in the context of emerging economies. This study aims to fill this gap by examining how political connections affect the capacity of emerging economy firms (EEFs) to grant and receive trade credit.

Design/methodology/approach

This study tests a conceptual model using secondary data collected from 1,149 Chinese privately owned listed manufacturing firms between 2008 and 2016.

Findings

This study finds that political connections reduce EEFs’ accounts receivable and payable; their philanthropic activities alleviate this negative effect for accounts payable, while patent applications reduce it for accounts receivable. These findings suggest the effect of political connections can spillover to EEFs’ relationship with their up- and down-stream partners.

Practical implications

This study has implications EEF managers, particularly in pointing to the detrimental effect of political connections on relationships with buyers and suppliers, and highlights the need to adopt suitable approaches to offset this effect.

Originality/value

This study sheds new light on the negative effect of political connections on EEFs’ capacity to grant and receive trade credit in their exchanges with up-stream and down-stream partners. It enriches the trust-based view of trade credit by revealing the significant influence of EEFs’ political connections, while also advancing a contingency view by testing the moderating role of corporate philanthropic activities and patent applications.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 February 2022

I-Fan Yen, Hsin Mei Lin and Yi-Tien Shih

The literature on foreignness has, to date, stressed the liability of foreignness (LOF) and the advantage of foreignness (AOF). Drawing on industrial organisation theory…

Abstract

Purpose

The literature on foreignness has, to date, stressed the liability of foreignness (LOF) and the advantage of foreignness (AOF). Drawing on industrial organisation theory, institutional theory, the resource-based view of the firm and the literature on networking, the authors’ research develops an integrated framework to explore the impact of foreignness on internationalisation depth from the perspective of the duality of foreignness (LOF versus AOF) within multiple dimensions. These dimensions are isomorphism, home country of origin, institutional distance and dual embeddedness of multinational enterprises (MNEs).

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, the authors empirically test hypotheses arising from this new theoretical framework by examining the characteristics of a sample of 324 Chinese MNEs (CMNEs) that were operating in 63 countries from 1999 to 2018. Employing regression analysis on a panel of 9,410 observations, the results show that foreignness does exhibit multilevel complexity and duality.

Findings

The authors’ empirical results show that isomorphism pressures, country of origin and institutional distance have a negative effect on internationalisation depth (as an outcome of LOF) but that dual embeddedness, on the part of MNEs, exerts a positive impact on internationalisation depth (as an outcome of AOF). The implications for research on multilevel complexity and the duality of foreignness are discussed, and managerial implications are outlined.

Research limitations/implications

The implications of the authors’ findings for MNEs should not be generalised to developed countries without examining the characteristics of both China as an emerging country and its MNEs. The second limit is regarding ownership; this framework has limitations due to choosing China and its OFDIs for testing internationalisation depth. Finally, for subsequent research, examining the dynamics of foreignness completes the nature of multicomplexity, defined by external and internal factors of foreignness changing over time and space.

Practical implications

CMNE managers are advised to actively scrutinise their behaviours in the local country to overcome the differences in routines, values and practices inherent in local institutions (Chen et al., 2019). The results imply that CMNEs should be careful not to overuse their home country image when penetrating a new market. Thus, a strategy to reduce a home government's hegemonic or otherwise negative image may be wise when operating abroad. Finally, the authors’ model suggests that CMNEs equipped with great RCN CIPs for identifying, scanning and interpreting local institutions can enhance internationalisation depth.

Originality/value

The authors’ research contributes to research on foreignness by emphasising foreignness as a construct of multilevel complexity. The authors argue that foreignness arises due to varying factors at the host, home, host-home levels and at the level of the organisational entity. The authors’ definition of foreignness and empirical results supports the notion that isomorphism pressures (host country-level factors), country-of-origin of home country (home country-level factors) and institutional distance (host-home country-level factors) are inextricably negatively linked with internationalisation depth (as effects of LOF). By contrast, the dual embeddedness of MNEs (the factor of organisational level) represents a positive relationship with internationalisation depth (as effects of AOF).

Details

International Journal of Emerging Markets, vol. 18 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-8809

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 January 2024

Marco Fabio Benaglia, Mei-Hui Chen, Shih-Hao Lu, Kune-Muh Tsai and Shih-Han Hung

This research investigates how to optimize storage location assignment to decrease the order picking time and the waiting time of orders in the staging area of low-temperature…

124

Abstract

Purpose

This research investigates how to optimize storage location assignment to decrease the order picking time and the waiting time of orders in the staging area of low-temperature logistics centers, with the goal of reducing food loss caused by temperature abuse.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors applied ABC clustering to the products in a simulated database of historical orders modeled after the actual order pattern of a large cold logistics company; then, the authors mined the association rules and calculated the sales volume correlation indices of the ordered products. Finally, the authors generated three different simulated order databases to compare order picking time and waiting time of orders in the staging area under eight different storage location assignment strategies.

Findings

All the eight proposed storage location assignment strategies significantly improve the order picking time (by up to 8%) and the waiting time of orders in the staging area (by up to 22%) compared with random placement.

Research limitations/implications

The results of this research are based on a case study and simulated data, which implies that, if the best performing strategies are applied to different environments, the extent of the improvements may vary. Additionally, the authors only considered specific settings in terms of order picker routing, zoning and batching: other settings may lead to different results.

Practical implications

A storage location assignment strategy that adopts dispersion and takes into consideration ABC clustering and shipping frequency provides the best performance in minimizing order picker's travel distance, order picking time, and waiting time of orders in the staging area. Other strategies may be a better fit if the company's objectives differ.

Originality/value

Previous research on optimal storage location assignment rarely considered item association rules based on sales volume correlation. This study combines such rules with several storage planning strategies, ABC clustering, and two warehouse layouts; then, it evaluates their performance compared to the random placement, to find which one minimizes the order picking time and the order waiting time in the staging area, with a 30-min time limit to preserve the integrity of the cold chain. Order picking under these conditions was rarely studied before, because they may be irrelevant when dealing with temperature-insensitive items but become critical in cold warehouses to prevent temperature abuse.

Details

The International Journal of Logistics Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-4093

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 May 2022

Nan Liu, Rui Zhou, Ruoyu Jin, Qing Xiao and Zhipeng Hu

The purpose of this paper is to summarize the research of construction conflict from 1991 to 2020 and propose research directions for future scholarly work. During the recent…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to summarize the research of construction conflict from 1991 to 2020 and propose research directions for future scholarly work. During the recent decades, it is widely accepted that construction conflict is inevitable, and conflict management has become an important component of project management. However, few works were done to map the global study in this field, there is limited review that evaluates the current stage of construction conflict research.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted a holistic literature review approach that incorporates bibliometric search and scientometric analysis. A total of 698 bibliographic records from the Web of Science core collection database were collected for the scientometric analysis. CiteSpace5.7 was adopted for the science mapping purpose in this study.

Findings

Through co-authorship analysis, co-word analysis and co-citation analysis, influential scholars and journals are identified. Several research trends are highlighted according to the scientometric analyses of the construction conflict topics. For example, the application of simulation and algorithms to the study of construction conflict management systems.

Practical implications

Construction is a resource-intensive, multi-participant and multi-targeted industry. Conflicts always exist in the whole life cycle of construction projects, it is important for industry practitioners to be updated of the latest movement and progress of the academic research.

Originality/value

This study contributed to the body of knowledge in construction conflict and bridge the research gap in the thorough review of previous research work.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 30 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 December 2022

Nan Li, M. Prabhu and Atul Kumar Sahu

The main purpose of present study is to model the replacement policy under uncertainty for managerial application based on grey-reliability approach by considering the subjective…

Abstract

Purpose

The main purpose of present study is to model the replacement policy under uncertainty for managerial application based on grey-reliability approach by considering the subjective views of quality control circle (QCC). The study objectively links the optimality between individual replacement and group replacement policies for determining the minimum operational costs. The integrated framework between QCC, replacement theory, grey set theory and supply chain management is presented to plan replacement actions under uncertainty.

Design/methodology/approach

The study proposes the concept of grey-reliability index and built a decision support model, which can deal with the imprecise information for determining the minimum operational costs to plan subsequent maintenance efforts.

Findings

The findings of the study establish the synergy between individual replacement and group replacement policies. The computations related to the numbers of failures, operational costs, reliability index and failure probabilities are presented under developed framework. An integrated framework to facilitate the managers in deciding the replacement policy based on operational time towards concerning replacement of assets that do not deteriorate, but fails suddenly over time is presented. The conceptual model is explained with a numerical procedure to illustrate the significance of the proposed approach.

Originality/value

A conceptual model under the framework of such items, whose failures cannot be corrected by repair actions, but can only be set by replacement is presented. The study provides an important knowledge based decision support framework for crafting a replacement model using grey set theory. The study captured subjective information to build decision model in the ambit of replacement.

Details

Grey Systems: Theory and Application, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2043-9377

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 18 October 2023

Omer Faruk Cingir and Thirunaukarasu Subramaniam

Local cultures under the nation-states have evolved and produced new concepts. Migrations and cultural interactions have also influenced the language. Thus, different…

Abstract

Purpose

Local cultures under the nation-states have evolved and produced new concepts. Migrations and cultural interactions have also influenced the language. Thus, different conceptualisations of migration have developed in the “Malay World.” Language is not only a product of ecological and geographical environment, but it is also a result of human mobilisations and cultural intercourses. The differences caused by various Malay World conceptualisations are also related to different interactions, histories and social realities. In the “Malay World,” Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia are threatened by English hegemony. At this juncture, demonstrating these interrelationships helps one to understand local cultural intercourses between culture and social reality.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper implements the critical discourse analysis, notably, the dialectical–relational approach to different conceptualisations in the “Malay World.” Thus, it aims to discuss the reasons behind the usage of migration-related terms in Indonesia and Malaysia. How migration terms mainly shape social forms, process and circulate in the social world is argued in this paper. The authors target to investigate the local meaning sets for migration concepts and explore self-reflectivity in and critique of the usage of established images between Bahasa Indonesia and Malay concepts, using a Critical Discourse Analysis framework. The discussion section attempts to analyse and explain dialectical relations between social norms and social elements.

Findings

Trade diasporas, culture and identities of immigrants, cultural richness and multi-ethnicity have continuously diversified the conceptualisations. These concepts also indicate cultural dominations and exclusions. Thus, the migration dynamics in Southeast Asia might be understood by scrutinising these boundaries and patterns. This study showed that migration conceptualisations in the Malay world are substantially locally determined. Local wisdom and cultural codifications prevail in the migration context. A deeper understanding of the local context is essential in evaluating the international refugee protection mechanisms in these countries as neither Indonesia nor Malaysia are parties to the Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

Research limitations/implications

Definitions of various types of migration are referred to in multiple terminologies throughout the Nusantara. While in Bahasa Melayu, migrant refers to pendatang, nomadic refers to nomad; refugee refers to pelarian, to migrate refers to berhijrah; in Bahasa Indonesia, migrant refers to migran, nomadic or nomad refers pengembara, refugee refers to pengungsi and migrate, or migration refers migrasi. At the same time, in the Nusantara, many communities define themselves according to their geographical features, such as Orang Sungai, Orang Laut or Orang Kuala. In this context, defining leads to a significant impact on shaping the discourses and approaches.

Practical implications

Definitions determine the borders, flexibilities, plausibility and flows of terms. Critical Discourse Analysis especially placed emphasis on languages and their impacts on social reality. According to Critical Discourse Analysis, terms and their genealogies, transformations and limits are vital in order to comprehend social facts and truth. To understand the change and continuity of migration flow in Southeast Asia, scrutinising the migration-related terms is crucial. This study aims to examine those main terms, their connection with other words, and their transformation in the Malay world sociologically. This as such will shed more light on the social changes regarding genealogical relationships and their usage in daily life within the Critical Discourse Analysis.

Originality/value

This study aims to fulfil the gap between authentic concepts of migration literature in Nusantara. Although Bahasa Melayu and Bahasa Indonesia have a strong connection and interaction, migration definitions in these languages are separated from each other. Cultural and social elements greatly influence migration-connected terms in Bahasa Melayu and Bahasa Indonesia. Without this understanding and the absence of local context, any assessment of their refugee protection systems may be incomplete. This study deals with different cultural nuances and refinements and their migration conceptualisations and histories are based on the ground of their social realities.

Details

Southeast Asia: A Multidisciplinary Journal, vol. 23 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1819-5091

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 March 2023

Wanhong Li, Fan Wang, Tiansen Liu, Qinglian Xue and Nan Liu

The use of digital technology in firms has drawn attention of innovation management scholars and policy-makers, especially the imitation of digital technology and competition…

Abstract

Purpose

The use of digital technology in firms has drawn attention of innovation management scholars and policy-makers, especially the imitation of digital technology and competition among peer firms. Drawing on dynamic competition theory, this paper examines how firms react to their peers' digital innovation behavior and the effect of external environment mechanisms on the magnitude of peer effects.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper utilizes a text mining method to construct a baseline model with a Tobit estimator using data obtained for Chinese listed firms.

Findings

The findings suggest that peer effects on digital innovation behavior are robust and significant positive in China. Moreover, peer effects on digital innovation participation are positively magnified by firms' strong social network and high Fintech development. However, peer effects are relatively higher in non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs), low-profitability and high R&D firms.

Research limitations/implications

The authors' findings contribute to the digital management literature by showing that firms need digital technological imitation and diffusion of innovations in the digital era.

Practical implications

Managers should provide insights into firms' imitation of their peers' acts to preserve competitive parity. Besides, firms should integrate employees within the organization and communicate digital innovation concepts and behaviors to external peer firms.

Originality/value

First, this paper contributes to explaining how firms change their digital innovation strategy through the influence of peers' digital innovation behavior. Second, this paper fills the literature gaps related to the moderating effects of external environment factors in peer effects of digital innovation behavior.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 61 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 12 July 2023

Nicola Cobelli and Emanuele Blasioli

The purpose of this study is to introduce new tools to develop a more precise and focused bibliometric analysis on the field of digitalization in healthcare management…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to introduce new tools to develop a more precise and focused bibliometric analysis on the field of digitalization in healthcare management. Furthermore, this study aims to provide an overview of the existing resources in healthcare management and education and other developing interdisciplinary fields.

Design/methodology/approach

This work uses bibliometric analysis to conduct a comprehensive review to map the use of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology 2 (UTAUT2) research models in healthcare academic studies. Bibliometric studies are considered an important tool to evaluate research studies and to gain a comprehensive view of the state of the art.

Findings

Although UTAUT dates to 2003, our bibliometric analysis reveals that only since 2016 has the model, together with UTAUT2 (2012), had relevant application in the literature. Nonetheless, studies have shown that UTAUT and UTAUT2 are particularly suitable for understanding the reasons that underlie the adoption and non-adoption choices of eHealth services. Further, this study highlights the lack of a multidisciplinary approach in the implementation of eHealth services. Equally significant is the fact that many studies have focused on the acceptance and the adoption of eHealth services by end users, whereas very few have focused on the level of acceptance of healthcare professionals.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to conduct a bibliometric analysis of technology acceptance and adoption by using advanced tools that were conceived specifically for this purpose. In addition, the examination was not limited to a certain era and aimed to give a worldwide overview of eHealth service acceptance and adoption.

Details

The TQM Journal, vol. 35 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1754-2731

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 April 2023

Kawaljit Singh Randhawa

The purpose of this study is to prepare a state-of-the-art review on advanced ceramic materials including their fabrication techniques, characteristics, applications and…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to prepare a state-of-the-art review on advanced ceramic materials including their fabrication techniques, characteristics, applications and wettability.

Design/methodology/approach

This review paper presents the various types of advanced ceramic materials according to their compounding elements, fabrication techniques of advanced ceramic powders as well as their consolidation, their characteristics, applications and wetting properties. Hydrophobic/hydrophilic properties of advanced ceramic materials are described in the paper with their state-of-the-art application areas. Optical properties of fine ceramics with their intrinsic characteristics are also presented within. Special focus is given to the brief description of application-based manipulation of wetting properties of advanced ceramics in the paper.

Findings

The study of wetting/hydrophobicity/hydrophilicity of ceramic materials is important by which it can be further modified to achieve the required applications. It also makes some sense that the material should be tested for its wetting properties when it is going to be used in some important applications like biomedical and dental. Also, these advanced ceramics are now often used in the fabrication of filters and membranes to purify liquid/water so the study of wetting characteristics of these materials becomes essential. The optical properties of advanced ceramics are equally making them suitable for many state-of-the-art applications. Dental, medical, imaging and electronics are the few sectors that use advanced ceramics for their optical properties.

Originality/value

This review paper includes various advanced ceramic materials according to their compounding elements, different fabrication techniques of powders and their consolidation, their characteristics, various application area and hydrophobic/hydrophilic properties.

Details

Pigment & Resin Technology, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0369-9420

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 February 2024

Mohammad Esmaeil Nazari and Zahra Assari

This study aims to solve optimal pricing and power bidding strategy problem for integrated combined heat and power (CHP) system by using a modified heuristic optimization…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to solve optimal pricing and power bidding strategy problem for integrated combined heat and power (CHP) system by using a modified heuristic optimization algorithm.

Design/methodology/approach

In electricity markets, generation companies compete according to their bidding parameters; therefore, optimal pricing and bidding strategy are solved. Recently, CHP units are significantly operated by generation companies to meet power and heat, simultaneously.

Findings

For validation, it is shown that profit is improved by 0.04%–48.02% for single and 0.02%–31.30% for double-sided auctions. As heat price curve is extracted, the simulation results show that when CHP system is integrated with other units results in profit increase and emission decrease by 3.04%–3.18% and 2.23%–4.13%, respectively. Also, CHP units significantly affect bidding parameters.

Originality/value

The novelties are pricing and bidding strategy of integrated CHP system is solved; local heat selling is considered in pricing and bidding strategy problem and heat price curve is extracted; the effects of CHP utilization on bidding parameters are investigated; a modified heuristic and deterministic optimization algorithm is presented.

Details

International Journal of Energy Sector Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6220

Keywords

1 – 10 of 11