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This study aims to further develop the CLC stage/path’s identification model that distinguishes between path’s emergence (emergence stage), path’s development (growth stage), path’s sustainment (maturity stage), path’s decline (decline stage) and path’s transformation (renewal stage), and by applying it, define the current stage/path of the Demarcated Douro Region (DDR) cluster. The Port wine industry, which is the dominant industry of the DDR cluster, is at the maturity/decline stage – is the same for the cluster itself?

It is a case study with a longitudinal perspective based on the analysis of the dynamics of the parameters of cluster evolution using available secondary sources (cluster identity/brand; number of firms; number of employees; network; innovation; policies and regulations; and external markets – exports), especially addressing the past decade, that represent the stage of maturity/decline of the cluster’s dominant Port wine industry.

The conclusion is that since the 1990s the Demarcated Douro Region has gone through a “path transformation” where during the following 20 years new “anchors” for the cluster were gradually introduced, such as Doc Douro Wines, new forms of consumption of Port wine, tourism and olive oil. Since 2010 the cluster has entered a growth stage/(new) path’s development, where these “anchors” are in steady growth. The Douro brand is becoming more internationally recognized and established, the number of firms and employees is increasing, the network is restructuring with the creation of cluster-specific official institutions, innovation is especially reflected with increasing heterogeneity through diversification of the clusters into new activities and regulations and policies are supportive for expansion – all these parameters are indicating the rise of the new cycle for the cluster. Thus, the DDR cluster represents an attractive business environment and requires attention from regional policymakers to support the cluster’s development. Especially institutions have been highlighted as internal factors driving clusters growth, European integration as an external factor and firms’ strategies of diversification and internationalization as an appropriate de-locking mechanism for new path’s development.

This research contributes to the CLC theory by further developing and applying a CLC stage/path identification model. It provides a better understanding of the dynamics of the DDR cluster that diverge from its dominant industry life cycle, which is relevant for regional policies and firms’ strategies. This study has its limitations. It provides an exploratory application of the theoretical framework proposed, and consequently, no general conclusions are possible yet. More empirical studies with different clusters in different stages are necessary to test the framework.

These findings are useful to policymakers when designing their policies for cluster development but also for clusters’ entities and actors when making their strategic decisions as it allows based on the verification of the established parameter of CLC to identify its current stage/path of development.

The paper presents a theoretically grounded model for CLC identification and for the first time to the best of the authors’ knowledge applies it to a cluster case – the DDR cluster. This case applies the proposed model and illustrates its usefulness. The model provides the tools for a better understanding of cluster dynamics.

This study aims to build an integrated model for information technology (IT)/information system (IS) team exploration and exploitation innovation in the business-to-business (B2B) enterprise context by empirically investigating the mediating role of tacit-explicit knowledge co-creation and exploring the behavior approach of servant leaders for IT/IS team exploration-exploitation innovation.

The authors' analysis was supported by 182 enterprise-IT/IS teams (403 participants) in Taiwan. The authors used a questionnaire and Structural Equation Model (SEM)-SmartPLS to validate the development model. This study examines IT/IS exploration-exploitation innovation using a combination of quantitative survey research and qualitative case studies.

The specific roles of direct and mediating effects for two innovations of IT/IS team exploration and exploitation were investigated. The findings show a direct effect of knowledge creation (tacit and explicit) on IT/IS team exploration-exploitation innovation. Servant leader behavior positively influences tacit-explicit knowledge co-creation practices, IT/IS team exploration and exploitation. Moreover, knowledge creation (tacit and explicit) successfully mediates the correlation between servant leaders and IT/IS team innovations (for exploration and exploitation).

Managers, IT/IS consultants and enterprises at the executive level are suggested to encourage knowledge co-creation practices, both tacit and explicit to support their IT/IS team innovation. The greater the degree of explicit knowledge (i.e. socialization and internalization) and tacit knowledge creation (i.e. externalization and combination), the greater will be the opportunities for meeting the enterprise-IT/IS team exploration and exploitation innovation goals. The project manager may follow servant leadership behavior to promote effective knowledge co-creation process on the IT/IS team.

This effort contributes to greater and new understanding of how ambidexterity capability, tacit-explicit knowledge co-creation (mediators) and servant leaders for IT/IS team exploration-exploitation innovation in the B2B enterprise context and new foundations for future studies on a cross-enterprise IT/IS team. This research is also the first empirical effort to understand how a servant perspective leadership contributes through the knowledge co-creation process for IT/IS exploration-exploitation innovation.

This research is located at the intersection of communication, memetics, and the study of the imaginary. As a presupposition, we put forward the existence of a communicational imaginary, in which the contemporary person functions through their competencies in social networks, by meeting the demands of the public and the private, managing the obsessiveness of the sharing of intimacy and the exorbitant number of images. Considering memes as a significant aspect of this communicational imaginary, we seek to understand the dynamics and path of memes in the midst of this plethora of images. From the concept of iconophagy, we deal with the exacerbated multiplication of the images and the path of memes starting from a marginalized environment until it is integrated into social roles and a rational level of thought. Thus, it is the general objective of this research to understand the dynamics and the path of memes amidst the plethora of images in the context of communicational imagery and to investigate the multiplication of memes as representative of the myriad images in contemporary imagery.

Applying the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) theory in a wine museum context, this paper aims to examine how and why experience design characteristics influence visitor satisfaction, particularly investigating the role of epistemic (learning) and hedonic (having fun) values as the underlying mechanisms of this relationship.

The authors collected field survey data from 652 visitors at a world-leading wine museum. The authors tested the research model on ten modules of the museum using path analysis and a bootstrap approach; the authors further conducted mediation analyses to test how the design of the museum’s modules influenced perceived value and satisfaction.

Content comprehensibility and surprise, as well as interactivity and ease of use, are core design characteristics that drive visitor satisfaction. More significantly, hedonic and epistemic values play a significant mediating role in influencing the relationship between design characteristics and visitor satisfaction.

The authors provide clear and actionable recommendations to help managers design museums that provide educational, entertaining and satisfying visitor experiences.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to apply the S-O-R theory in a wine museum context. The significance of this study lies in demonstrating how and why experience design characteristics support the creation of an edutainment visitor experience that drives visitor satisfaction.

The aim of this conceptual paper, predicated on a hermeneutic literature review, is to improve understanding of the nature of value continues to be extensively studied with its ability to create competitive advantage. Understanding what constitutes value improves corporate social responsibility (CSR) comprehension, including managerial CSR values. This paper aligns with studies into value and/or CSR, whether hermeneutic or otherwise.

This study provides a reflexively critical understanding of the value literature. It focuses on the “identifying” stage of a hermeneutic circle (identifying central terms, core journals and seminal authors). A hermeneutic helix is proposed to better reflect the need of constant re-interpretation of the relevant literature.

Themes include value location (value in exchange, value in use, value in meaning and value in context); architecture (pathways, constellations and networks); creation versus determination; and value types.

This paper neither seeks to define value nor delve into the overarching value discourses. It does, however, refer to the antecedents for these areas. As a hermeneutic literature review, it lacks empirical testing.

CSR practices are strongly influenced by personal values. Hence, CSR practitioners must identify the processes involved and differentiate between the sought value and value types.

The paper could engender better understanding gaps between stakeholder attitudes and practices, i.e. consumers self-identifying as “green” may not engage in ecologically sound practices. As discussed herein, the value sought by university students influences where (and what) to study.

Outdated notions such as value propositions are widely used; value may be proposed; however, only stakeholders can take value. What constitutes value is under-represented in the CSR literature. Hence, terms such as value and values (i.e. value types) are incorrectly used interchangeably.

Under the influence of the digital economy, the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises has attracted widespread attention from scholars at home and abroad due to its uniqueness and importance. However, the existing literature is still deficient in the inner mechanism of digital transformation and lacks research on the digital transformation process. Through in-depth interviews and rooted theory, this paper focuses on the key factors of digital development of manufacturing enterprises and constructs a model of the digital transformation process.

This paper takes China's manufacturing enterprises as research projects. First, through a literature search, the authors proposed three key factors for constructing sustainable competitiveness from digital transformation, that is, core technology innovation, business model re-engineering and organizational structure optimization. Second, the authors adopted the grounded theory approach to identify three sustainable competitive factors of manufacturing enterprises resulting from digital transformation and constructed a theoretical model. Third, based on Chinese manufacturing enterprises data, the authors used an empirical study to validate the three influencing factors. Finally, the authors identified the inner mechanism of the digital transformation of enterprises and put forward suggestions for enterprises to maintain sustainable competitiveness.

First, based on the existing literature, this paper identified the importance of digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises, and the essence of digital transformation of manufacturing companies was found to lie in the change in the combined effect of technological, market and organizational innovation. Second, based on the grounded theory, through in-depth interviews with manufacturing enterprises on digital transformation and open coding of interview transcripts, it was concluded that the key factors for the digital transformation manufacturing companies are core technology change, business model re-engineering and organizational structure optimization. Third, based on a dynamic perspective, the authors evaluated and validated digital transformation. The study found that manufacturing enterprises can improve their digital transformation capabilities through the trajectory of “core technology change – business model re-engineering – organizational structure optimization” to improve their sustainable competitive advantage.

Firstly, this study proposed three key factors for constructing sustainable competitiveness from digital transformation, that is, core technology innovation, business model re-engineering and organizational structure optimization, which enriched the theory of transformation and upgrading. Secondly, this study constructs the structural equation model of digital transformation and discovers the key factors pf digital transformation.

The purpose of this study is to define and develop a new technological development path for latecomer firms in developing countries.

An analytical framework for development based on the technological capability (TC) dimensions is developed and examined in the drilling sector. Since the process of TC accumulation is dynamic, the case study approach is the best method for an exploratory theory-building study. Through a comparative case study of two Iranian drilling contractors, a new path for the technological development of latecomer oil service companies is proposed.

The study of two cases indicates that despite having similar scope and levels of TC, one of them demonstrated superior technical performance. To address this difference, the concept of operational efficiency is introduced which is considered the outcome of increasing the depth of TC.

Although upgrading the level of technological and innovation capability is an important path for technological development, latecomers that suffer from various disadvantages can perform their routine activities with superior performance and develop through their basic operational/production capabilities. Also, specialized indicators designed for assessing the level and depth of TC in the drilling industry have important insights for evaluating the technological and competitive position of oil service companies.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this study takes the first step in defining and elaborating on the concept of depth of TC as a development path for latecomers. It also introduced a novel approach to the global operational/production efficiency frontier as a target for their catch-up.

Cluster management organizations (CMOs) have emerged over the past few decades as intermediaries that support the competitiveness of place-based clusters of economic activity. Despite their economic origins, policymakers are now starting to experiment with a broader use for cluster policies that seeks to leverage CMOs to tackle societal challenges in approaches aligned with the concept of creating shared value (CSV). However, there remains a void in conceptual understanding around the specific roles that CMOs might play in overcoming the barriers faced by their members for CSV, which this paper aims to address. Bridging this gap presents an opportunity for cluster practitioners and policymakers in a context in which environmental and social sustainability are at the top of policy agendas.

Based on analysis of literature around collaborative approaches to CSV for mitigating transaction costs, the authors define the contours of a new conceptual framework for the roles that CMOs can play in fostering collective CSV. The authors illustrate how the different components of the framework are reflected in emerging cluster practice in the context of a new wave of European cluster-based projects tackling CSV elements.

The resulting framework reconciles the concepts of clusters and CSV by explicitly positioning CMOs as intermediaries for facilitating the CSV strategies of their members. CMOs embrace emergent strategy making that targets (tangible and intangible) collective CSV capabilities and addresses collective CSV challenges. Collective CSV can provide a theoretical anchor guiding future cluster policies to fully leverage the transformative potential of CMOs. This conceptual framework opens a promising empirical research agenda, particularly around evaluating the plurality of impacts of CMOs.

By stressing the social impact of CMOs alongside their well-understood economic impacts, and by enabling a categorization of functions that can support the monitoring of CMO activities toward collective CSV strategies, the framework provides a novel basis for inspiring further empirical research into the evidencing of these roles.

The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) effectiveness on job seekers’ organizational attractiveness (JSA). Deriving inspiration from Carroll’s theory, the study specifically tries to measure the impact of CSR on JSA with the four dimensions pertaining to economics (PECO), pertaining to legal compliance (PLCO), pertaining to ethics (PETH) and pertaining to philanthropic (PPH). Furthermore, the paper also tries to examine the moderating role of company selection (COM SEL) done based on high or low CSR reputation and JSA.

Management and engineering students enrolled in premier institutions and universities of Western Odisha in India are surveyed for their perceptions of CSR and JSA. Purposive and convenience sampling are applied to collect data from 456 job seekers. Based on the analysis, the study proposes two main models (Models 1 and 2) wherein Model 1 tries to measure the effect of CSR on JSA and Model 2 checks the moderating effect of COM SEL on CSR and JSA. In addition, robustness of the study is tested using control variables (Models 3 and 4). Data is treated through SmartPLS 3.3 software. The structural equation modelling (partial least squares-SEM) method is applied to test the hypotheses and for further analysis.

The result reveals an interesting insight. There is a positive and significant effect of PECO, PLCO and PPH on JSA. Moreover, no such significant effect is observed between PETH and JSA. Further, the findings are contrary with respect to COM SEL, that partially moderates the effect of CSR on JSA. However, the results reveal that COM SEL has a substantial moderating effect on the PPH dimension of CSR and JSA.

The results highlight that CSR positively and significantly affects JSA in terms of PECO, PLCO and PPH, thereby emphasizing that organizations must be more focused on these perspectives of CSR. Further, though the results did not exhibit any significance with PETH, it is essential that organizations should strengthen the ethical aspects of CSR as well and align them with the CSR strategic actions. The study also confirms the moderating effect of COM SEL on PPH dimension of CSR and JSA, thereby supporting the philanthropic approach in this domain. Further, the organizations should foresee the philanthropic factor of CSR as a competitive advantage to attract potential job seekers.

This research attempts to contribute to CSR and HR literature in two ways. First, it is the first attempt to use PLS-SEM with an attempt to understand job seekers’ perception of CSR and JSA with Indian data consisting of students belonging to premier business management and engineering institutes. Second, the study is an attempt to empirically measure the moderating effect of COM SEL on JSA. To sum up, the study will provide insights to organizations to help craft CSR strategies for attracting more job seekers.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting has been widely accepted as a vital tool for communicating with stakeholders on a range of social, environmental, and governance issues, but how companies define, interpret, apply, integrate, and communicate their CSR efforts and impacts in corporate reporting is anything but a straightforward task. The purpose of this chapter is to explore the concept of materiality in CSR reporting and demonstrate practical examples of good CSR and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) reporting practices. We chose the aviation industry because of its economic relevance, constant growth, and future expected changes in the aftermath of COVID-19. In addition, airlines affect many of the SDGs directly and indirectly with contending results. This chapter is timely because of the growing willingness by companies to integrate CSR and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) thinking into the corporate strategy and business operations using materiality assessment and enhancing their competitive advantage and ability to maintain long-term value and because ESG and ethical investing have become part of the mainstream investing. Thus, this chapter contributes to an understanding of the wide range of existing and new reporting frameworks and regulations and reinforces the importance of discussing how this diversity of approaches can affect the work toward worldwide comparability of CSR and sustainability reporting.