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“Economics is a Serious Subject.” Edwin Cannan.

The purpose of this paper is to identify how organizations can evaluate the green product deletion decision within an environmentally sustainable consumption and production environment through a hybrid multistage multiple criteria evaluation approach.

This paper proposes a decision-making model by integrating “soft computation” using neighborhood rough set theory, fuzzy cluster means, and cumulative prospect theory. Literature is used to identify various factors for the decision environment. An illustrative problem provides insights into the methodology and application.

The results indicate that green products can be evaluated from both their relative environmental burdens and benefits. Sustainable consumption and production factors that play a role in this multifactor decision are identified. The results show that a comprehensive evaluation can capture an effective overall picture on which green product(s) to delete.

The opaqueness of the proposed methodology may cause less acceptance by management. The methodology made a number of assumptions related to the data. An actual application of the tool rather than just an illustrative example is needed.

The main contribution of this study is the novel integration of supply chain perspectives, both upstream (supply and production) and downstream (demand/usage), with green product deletion decision making. The hybrid multistage technique has advantages of being able to incorporate many factors that have a variety of quantitative and qualitative characteristics to help managers address green product deletion issues as well as its impact on greening of supply chains and organizational environmental sustainability. This paper adds value to product deletion, supply chain management, and sustainable production and consumption literatures.

This paper examines the competitive dimensions of quality for first tier suppliers in the automotive industry. A theoretically relevant set of quality variables is identified from the literature. The results of a factor analysis show that quality is a two dimensional construct in the automotive supply industry. The core dimensions of quality are: product quality, which is primarily focused on design superiority and performance of the physical product; and service quality, which comprises both pre‐ and post‐sale service. The study reveals that both product quality and service quality are related to overall firm performance, regardless of whether asset based, investment based, or market based measures are used.

The importance of innovation to the performance of firms has led to numerous studies conducted to identify the critical successful factors in new product development (NPD). However, most of these studies were conducted within the context of the developed economies or for large enterprises; relatively little is known about how firms, especially small and medium‐size enterprises (SMEs), develop new products in many of the emerging markets. This paper tries to bridge the gap by examining the key success factors of NPD in Chinese SMEs. Different from the traditional approach regarding the success factors in each stage of NPD as homogeneous, the key success factors in each stage of the NPD process are examined from a managerial perspective.

The data used in this study were collected through a multi‐stage procedure including in‐depth field interviews and surveys. Two rounds of pretests were used to refine the measurements, and the 74 questionnaires retuned in the third round were used to analyze the key success factors for NPD through score ranking and principal component analysis.

Chinese SMEs do not regard financial return as the primary criterion in the idea‐generation stage. Although the key success factors are relatively quite different in various stages, technological, marketing, commercial, and managerial factors are important across all stages.

The samples were from Beijing Incubator Alliances, which might not be representative.

The results will be interesting to both researchers and managers who want to know how the Chinese SMEs develop their new products.

Very few studies were conducted on how the Chinese SMEs develop new products, and this research contributed to this important topic. Various success factors were examined for each stage of the NPD process from a managerial perspective, rather than viewing the success factors in each stage of NPD as homogeneous, as most previous research has suggested.

The purpose of this study is to examine tolerance of channel partners’ opportunistic behaviors as a viable governance mechanism and to test contingent transaction benefit and cost factors to determine tolerance of opportunistic behaviors.

Through the theoretical lenses of governance value analysis and transaction cost economics, this study theorizes that a supplier’s tolerance of its reseller’s opportunistic behaviors should depend on transaction benefit factors (e.g. new product creativity and marketing program creativity) and transaction cost factors (e.g. performance ambiguity and opportunity cost). The author empirically tests the moderation model using data from a large-scale survey of 141 mobile phone suppliers in South Korea.

The empirical results largely support the predictions on the moderating effects. For transaction benefit factors, marketing program creativity increases the supplier’s tolerance, while new product creativity does not increase the supplier’s tolerance. For transaction cost factors, the supplier’s concerns about opportunity cost increase the level of tolerance, while performance ambiguity of a business partner decreases the tolerance level.

Theorizing opportunistic behaviors as a policy variable subject to benefit-cost assessment rather than an assumption provides new insights to interfirm governance research.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this study is the first kind to consider transaction benefit and cost factors together in a single contingency framework in tolerance research. Also, this research provides a new perspective on a microlevel marketing factor (i.e. creativity) as an influential factor in governance mechanisms.

Seeks to provide answers to two questions: is willingness to pay (WTP) for organic products influenced by the same set of factors that affect purchasing of conventional foods? Does WTP for organic products vary according to different food categories?

Purchasers were approached during their food shopping in retail chains in Athens in July 2003. Sample inclusion is based on real awareness of the term “organic”. The questionnaire included in its first part a number of criteria that influence consumers when buying food. In the second part respondents were asked to indicate if any food products they buy were organic and to state how much more they were willing to pay. Information from the first part was analysed with factor analysis. With the help of t‐value analysis, it was examined whether there is a statistically significant difference per product category between consumers who are willing to pay and consumers who are unwilling to pay in terms of the factors identified.

Consumers' stated WTP and the type and magnitude of factors that affect it differ according to the organic food category. These factors include food quality and security, trust in the certification, and, for some products, brand name. Organoleptic characteristics, prices and consumers' socio‐demographic profiles do not constitute determinants of organic WTP.

Organic types of some fresh as well as processed food products do not exist in the Greek market. Moreover, the large number of t‐tests conducted might result in Type I error.

Purchasing of organic food follows “basic‐highest frequency”, “basic‐average frequency”, and “non‐basic” discrimination. The most frequently consumed organic products are some basic components of the Greek diet. Only the factors “quality and security” and “trust” play an important role in defining WTP for most organic food categories. Consumers' attitudes towards both organic and PDO/PGI certifications converge towards a perception of high quality food. Approximately 26 percent of the sample exhibited a U‐shaped WTP trend for 14 out of 16 organic food categories in increments from 45 to 120 percent. All the above elements of originality are particularly valuable for organic food firms and policy/decision makers.

The purpose of this research is to propose a new model for the integration of concurrent function deployment (CFD) and parameter (P) diagram in order to prioritize innovation factors.

Each of the approaches of CFD and P diagram and their features has been demonstrated and according to their common features, an integrated model has been designed in two phases. It has been examined in Sepahan Industrial Group, of which the major product is API gas pipeline network demanded by Isfahan Province Gas Organization. A questionnaire has been designed and delivered to four major units of Isfahan Province Gas Organization.

“Hydrostatic test” and “number of close end branch pipes” with the average values of 4.78 and 3.31 have been found as the first and last priorities of importance to customers, respectively. The output of the first phase includes “equipments” as the first priority of control factors, and “changing market or customers wants” as the first priority of noise factors. The results of the second phase show that “fault‐free product” and “successful innovation outcomes” are, respectively, recognized as first priorities of response factors. Finally, “successful innovation outcomes” has been determined as the first priority of response factors.

The matrixes of the two phases could become larger if the number of factors in the P diagram increases, and therefore, filling and analyzing the matrixes might become time consuming and difficult.

The proposed integrated model can be effective for almost all organizations that aim to meet the dynamic needs of markets and customers and intend to incorporate innovation in their products and services. By the new approach, determination and prioritization of innovation factors can be done based on customers' viewpoint, while in the traditional approaches this was done only from the viewpoint of engineers and designers.

The objective of this paper is to develop a framework, based on existing literature, for factors influencing the formation and success of product development alliances, and relate this specifically to the food industry.

Case study of a product development alliance, with four partners and an interview survey, with 19 key informants in the Danish food industry.

The nature of the differences between the developed framework for product development alliances in the food industry and theory on alliances in general, indeed seem to rest in the chosen specific context. Companies in the food industry are not forced by external conditions to enter into product development alliances. Therefore, compared to other industries, motivations have to be stronger or risks smaller for them to form such interorganisational relationships. However, once formed, results indicate that success factors are rather universal across industries and types of alliances.

Further research should explore the findings further, both within the food industry context, as well as more broadly in terms of geography and industry.

Managers obtain a tool for planning and refining their innovation strategy and actions regarding product development alliances.

This research contributes to the presently limited literature on product development alliances, specifically in the food industry context.

Revolutionary changes are happening in retail, and the term “retail apocalypse” reflects these dramatic changes. As a growing number of traditional brick-and-motor retailers are closing, the aim of this study is to understand and test the dimensions of specific store and consumer factors that are driving this shift towards non-traditional retail marketplaces (e.g. pop-up stores, fashion trucks), factors that drive consumer loyalty (i.e. re-patronage intentions) and the mediating role of shopping enjoyment in this context.

This study used a consumer panel (n = 237) of previous shoppers of non-traditional retailers. Utilising exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), this study identifies possible store and consumer factors that are associated with consumers' patronage of non-traditional retailers. Based on results, we propose a model for non-traditional retail shopping behaviour.

EFA revealed that quality of personal experience and consumer curiosity were dominant factors explaining variance. Key findings revealed that in-store factors (in-store ambiance, quality and value of products) and consumer factors (consumer curiosity, quality consciousness) influence consumers' re-patronage intentions. This highlights the importance of maintaining quality elements in shopping experiences. Shopping enjoyment was found to mediate relationships, indicating that while not all factors directly impact loyalty, it can be enhanced through pleasurable shopping experiences.

Our findings help retailers understand which factors are driving this dramatic change in consumer behaviour so they may develop better strategies to attract and retain customers. Retailers need to highlight product quality and in-store atmosphere and spark consumers' quality consciousness and curiosity to enhance consumer loyalty.

Despite the rise in popularity, this is the first study to investigate non-traditional retailers comprehensively.

The essential investments in new product development (NPD) made by industrial companies entail effective management of NPD activities. In this context, performance measurement is one of the means that can be employed in the pursuit of effectiveness.