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1 – 10 of 110
Article
Publication date: 19 July 2024

Tao Jiang and Zitong Zhang

Customers will develop a stronger desire to purchase when more people are waiting in line for service due to the herding effect. However, this also leads to longer queue times…

Abstract

Purpose

Customers will develop a stronger desire to purchase when more people are waiting in line for service due to the herding effect. However, this also leads to longer queue times, causing customers to experience a waiting patience time. This study examines these two psychological aspects of delay-sensitive customers in service systems, considering both homogeneous and heterogeneous customer scenarios to explore the optimal pricing strategy for service providers.

Design/methodology/approach

Using queueing theory, we construct and optimally solve the customer's service utility function and the service provider's service revenue function. Further, the model is extended to account for heterogeneous customers, solving the utility and revenue functions accordingly.

Findings

Results show that service revenue increases with the intensity of herding behavior and the length of patience time. If customers have low herding intensity and short patience time, the service provider only needs to serve a portion of the customers. For heterogeneous customers, if a large proportion exhibits high herding intensity, the service provider should focus on serving them. Otherwise, the service provider should serve all high-intensity herding customers while striving to attract low-intensity herding customers.

Originality/value

This paper considers the combined utility of multiple customer psychology and examines homogeneous and heterogeneous customers. The findings provide valuable managerial insights for service providers' pricing and service strategies.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 September 2024

Hendrik Winzer, Tor Kristian Stevik, Kaspar Akilles Lilja, Therese Seljevold and Joachim Scholderer

Tactical capacity planning is crucial when hospitals must cope with substantial changes in patient requirements, as recently experienced during the Covid-19 pandemic. However…

Abstract

Purpose

Tactical capacity planning is crucial when hospitals must cope with substantial changes in patient requirements, as recently experienced during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, there is only little understanding of the nature of capacity limitations in a hospital, which is essential for effective tactical capacity planning.

Design/methodology/approach

We report a detailed analysis of capacity limitations at a Norwegian tertiary public hospital and conducted 22 in-depth interviews. The informants participated in capacity planning and decision-making during the Covid-19 pandemic. Data are clustered into categories of capacity limitations and a correspondence analysis provides additional insights.

Findings

Personnel and information were the most mentioned types of capacity limitations, and middle management and organizational functions providing specialized treatment felt most exposed to capacity limitations. Further analysis reveals that capacity limitations are dynamic and vary across hierarchical levels and organizational functions.

Research limitations/implications

Future research on tactical capacity planning should take interdisciplinary patient pathways better into account as capacity limitations are dynamic and systematically different for organizational functions and hierarchical levels.

Practical implications

We argue that our study possesses common characteristics of tertiary public hospitals, including professional silos and fragmentation of responsibilities along patient pathways. Therefore, we recommend operations managers in hospitals to focus more on intra-organizational information flows to increase the agility of their organization.

Originality/value

Our detailed capacity limitation analysis at a tertiary public hospital in Norway during the Covid-19 pandemic provides novel insights into the nature of capacity limitations, which may enhance tactical capacity planning.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 August 2024

Bingcheng Liu, Junyou Song and Wei Geng

This study aims to enhance an enterprise’s private cloud services by optimally determining the ownership of cloud computing resources and responsibility for maintenance and…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to enhance an enterprise’s private cloud services by optimally determining the ownership of cloud computing resources and responsibility for maintenance and operations. The core objective is to identify the most cost-effective private cloud deployment model at the intersection of technology and business considerations.

Design/methodology/approach

This study evaluates three ownership and responsibility models, each encompassing decisions related to candidate data center locations, resource provisioning, and demand placements. Drawing from the cloud computing literature, these models are referred to as deployment models. The research formulates a private cloud deployment model selection problem and introduces an established Lagrangian-relaxation-based optimization approach, combined with a novel greedy relieving-pooling heuristic, to facilitate model selection.

Findings

This study identifies the optimal deployment model for a representative instance using real test-bed data from the US, demonstrating the private cloud deployment model selection problem. Various numerical examples are analyzed to explore the influence of environmental parameters. Generally, the virtual PC model is optimal for low demand arrival rates and resource requirements, while the on-premises PC model is preferable for higher values of these parameters. Additionally, the virtual PC model is found to be optimal when enroute latency coefficients are large.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the literature by formulating an optimization problem that integrates performance, financial, and assurance metrics for enterprises. The introduction of a solution approach enables enterprises to make informed decisions regarding ownership and responsibility design. The study effectively bridges the gap between academic research and industry demands from a business perspective.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 July 2024

Tri Widianti, Anggini Dinaseviani, Meilinda Ayundyahrini, Sik Sumaedi, Tri Rakhmawati, Nidya Judhi Astrini, I Gede Mahatma Yuda Bakti, Sih Damayanti, Medi Yarmen, Rahmi Kartika Jati, Aris Yaman, Marlina Pandin, Mauludin Hidayat, Igif Gimin Prihanto, Hendy Gunawan and Mahmudi Mahmudi

This study assesses the current landscape of business continuity management (BCM) research while exploring research trends, structures and delineating potential future directions.

Abstract

Purpose

This study assesses the current landscape of business continuity management (BCM) research while exploring research trends, structures and delineating potential future directions.

Design/methodology/approach

A comprehensive bibliometric analysis was conducted on 360 articles from the Scopus and Web of Science databases using Biblioshiny software. A meta-synthesis was employed to aggregate and synthesize findings from the bibliometric results.

Findings

The results demonstrate a notable increase in publication numbers since the onset of the pandemic, reaching a peak in 2022 with a total of 342 articles. A collaborative bond among scholars transcends geographical boundaries and national affiliations. The analytical results propose avenues for future research, addressing crucial areas such as the integration of business continuity management systems (BCMS), the development of BCM frameworks and a comparative analysis of business impact analysis (BIA) frameworks through pertinent theories.

Research limitations/implications

The study contributes theoretical and practical implications, serving as a valuable resource for academics and practitioners seeking to deepen their understanding of BCM’s role in business recovery and preserving organizational continuity in the face of disruptions.

Originality/value

This study pioneers a comprehensive approach by integrating bibliometric analysis and qualitative meta-synthesis, providing a consolidated overview of BCM research. Additionally, it presents future research proposals in this area.

Details

Business Process Management Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-7154

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 June 2024

Shahrbanoo Yadollahi, Ali Kazemi and Bahram Ranjbarian

Customer-to-customer (C2C) interactions substantially affect the overall service experience. This study attempts to provide a better and deeper understanding of C2C interactions…

Abstract

Purpose

Customer-to-customer (C2C) interactions substantially affect the overall service experience. This study attempts to provide a better and deeper understanding of C2C interactions during the customer journey in the banking industry. The study aims to investigate the complexities of these interactions and to detect their outcomes and further implications in banking services.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used a sequential mixed-method approach. Firstly, semi-structured interviews were conducted to identify the components of C2C interactions during the customer journey. Subsequently, thematic analysis was performed to categorize the data and extract relevant components. Secondly, structural equation modeling was used to investigate the role of C2C interactions in behavioral outcomes.

Findings

The findings reveal that during the customer journey, C2C interactions plays a key role by providing information, managing queuing behavior, providing resources, and addressing issues related to other customers’ misbehavior. Additionally, C2C interactions have a positive direct effect on the customer experience, satisfaction, and loyalty. Customer experience, in turn, affects customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Originality/value

This study highlights the need for academic scholars to prioritize customers’ interaction during the customer journey in financial services, addressing a gap between industry directions and academic research in customer experience. Also, the findings help service providers develop effective strategies to enhance the customer experience by focusing on C2C interactions during the customer journey.

Details

International Journal of Bank Marketing, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-2323

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 August 2024

Selamat Walmanto Hia, Moses Laksono Singgih and Raja Oloan Saut Gurning

The purpose of this paper is to present a case study the application of lean six sigma combined with mining transportation overall vehicle effectiveness (MTOVE) to improve mining…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a case study the application of lean six sigma combined with mining transportation overall vehicle effectiveness (MTOVE) to improve mining transportation performance. MTOVE is a newly developed model to measure the overall effectiveness of mining transportation.

Design/methodology/approach

The method used is case study combines the MTOVE and LSS methodologies. Data were collected from the hauling operation during a three-month period. Various lean six-sigma tools, such as the Pareto chart, ANOVA, two sample t-tests, one sample t-test, cause-and-effect analysis and time study, have been used.

Findings

The case study resulted in improvement of vehicle overall effectiveness; a 35% increase in MTOVE value, a 17% improvement in productivity and a 9% increment in truck utilization. Statistical tests confirmed the significance of reducing the mean and variation in the hauling process cycle time, which led to productivity improvement.

Research limitations/implications

This study provides practitioners with additional quantitative evidence of the potential benefits of LSS methods in the coal mining industry.

Practical implications

This paper practically and unquestionably has contributed to the LSS body of knowledge focused on the mining sector, which is recently still far behind the manufacturing sector. The study has demonstrated that some challenges in the mining environment can be solved through the effective implementation of LSS tools. Hence, this paper could be used as a reference for both researchers and practitioners.

Social implications

The study contributes in the field of LSS spread in mining industries using a case study. This study shows practical evidence of improving overall vehicle effectiveness using LSS. Practitioners can refer to this study to understand the benefits of LSS in mining sector. Since the mining industry should also adopt the LSS principle into the mining business process due to its ability to improve business performance (Valente et al., 2020; Tupamahu et al., 2019; Zanon et al., 2021).

Originality/value

There has been little scientific study of the LSS implementation in the mining industry. This research provides detailed evidence of LSS implementation in the mining sector. The main contribution is the implementation framework, which shows the combination of newly developed indicators (MTOVE and LSS) to enhance hauling operation effectiveness. This paper demonstrates how LSS tools and methods can be applied in the mining transportation industry.

Details

International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-4166

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 August 2024

Aritra Ganti and Shubham Singhania

While being integrated together conceptually and practically, the literature on game theory in the context of financial markets lacks a cohesive understanding. This study aims to…

Abstract

Purpose

While being integrated together conceptually and practically, the literature on game theory in the context of financial markets lacks a cohesive understanding. This study aims to systematically scrutinize and analyse the literature of game theory in the context of financial markets, through a systematic literature review.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic literature-based approach, through the theories, context, characteristics and methodology (TCCM) framework has been applied to 97 articles, extracted and filtered from two databases, Scopus and Web of Science, for a comprehensive review and understanding of the intellectual development in the domain of game theory and financial markets.

Findings

The review highlighted the most utilitarian theories within the literature, the context of research in terms of countries and industries, four themes which characterize the literature, as well as the methodologies and research designs used in this research domain. The paper also uncovered certain essential areas that present scope for further research.

Research limitations/implications

While two of the largest indexation databases have been used, some relevant articles may have been excluded due to the restriction of databases and screening criteria, which may lead to the less exploration of several facets of the domain.

Practical implications

Practically, the paper has implications for multiple stakeholders including traders, businesses and governments. For traders, this paper acts as a guide to entering and understanding the dynamics of financial markets. The review also covers decision-making from the perspective of firms, including venture capitalists. This paper would allow firms to understand how game theory can help influence or analyze the strategic interactions between their stakeholders in terms of information disclosure, or consumers and their behavior to stimuli from the firm’s actions.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind that attempts to comprehensively provide an overview of the literature on game theory in financial markets. In doing so, this study shall help assess the current state of knowledge in the said field and locate gaps in the literature to propose new research directions.

Details

Journal of Modelling in Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5664

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 12 February 2024

Anna-Leena Kurki, Elina Weiste, Hanna Toiviainen, Sari Käpykangas and Hilkka Ylisassi

The involvement of clients in service encounters and service development has become a central principle for contemporary health and social care organizations. However, in…

Abstract

Purpose

The involvement of clients in service encounters and service development has become a central principle for contemporary health and social care organizations. However, in day-to-day work settings, the shift toward client involvement is still in progress. We examined how health and social care professionals, together with clients and managers, co-develop their conceptions of client involvement and search for practical ways in which to implement these in organizational service processes.

Design/methodology/approach

The empirical case of this study was a developmental intervention, the client involvement workshop, conducted in a Finnish municipal social and welfare center. The cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) framework was used to analyze the development of client involvement ideas and the modes of interaction during the intervention.

Findings

Analysis of the collective discussion revealed that the conceptions of client involvement developed through two interconnected object-orientations: Enabling client involvement in service encounters and promoting client involvement in the service system. The predominant mode of interaction in the collective discussion was that of “coordination.” The clients' perspective and contributions were central aspects in the turning points from coordination to cooperation; professionals crossed organizational boundaries, and together with clients, constructed a new client involvement-based object. This suggests that client participation plays an important role in the development of services.

Originality/value

The CHAT-based examination of the modes of interaction clarifies the potential of co-developing client-involvement-based services and highlights the importance of clients' participation in co-development.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 38 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 24 June 2024

Olayombo Elizabeth Akinwale, Olusegun Emmanuel Akinwale and Owolabi Lateef Kuye

Employability skills have transformed from the acquisition of university degrees to possessions of cognate skills other than only degrees that can help employees secure…

Abstract

Purpose

Employability skills have transformed from the acquisition of university degrees to possessions of cognate skills other than only degrees that can help employees secure employment in contemporary work environments. This study evaluates essential skills that will prepare millennia of youths and graduates for employment in the present job market. The study investigated four major hypotheses to underscore the employability opportunities of graduates in challenging 21st-century work environments.

Design/methodology/approach

To clearly gain an understanding of women’s disparity in society, the study employed a qualitative approach to evaluate the incidence of gender prejudice in a men’s dominant world. The study utilised two distinguished sampling strategies, purposive and snowballing sampling techniques, which were deemed suitable and useful due to the nature of the study. The study recruited 42 participants by conducting semi-structured interview sessions for the study. The study employed a deductive approach to analyse the data obtained from participants. A thematic content analysis was used to take away prejudice and establish an overarching impression of the interviewed data. Atlas.ti was used to analyse the transcribed interview data from the participants to establish common themes from the surveyed informants.

Findings

The results of this investigation indicated that there is a deep-rooted trend of institutionalised men’s dominance in politics and religious leadership. Women perceived less representation and men dominated the two domains of existence in their local environment. The study established that women are optimistic about a turnaround narrative on gender equality in politics and religious leadership. They expressed their concern about strengthened public debate and campaigns on women’s representation, and against gender discrimination. The study further shows that women are influencing the ethical and moral sense for change against women’s neglect in society. They expressed their concerns against the selection of people into political offices for elected political posts and observed the peculiarity of political godfathers fixing their favourite men into those offices.

Originality/value

The study discovered that women are leading campaigns for their representation in politics as well as church leadership today. The novelty of this study bothering around two domains of women’s lives – politics and religion, in particular, church leadership. These have not been evidence before in a study.

Details

IIMT Journal of Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2976-7261

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 September 2024

Thomas De Lombaert, Kris Braekers, René De Koster and Katrien Ramaekers

Warehouses are under pressure to operate as efficiently as possible. In pursuit of attaining high efficiency in the order picking process, the warehouse manager must take several…

Abstract

Purpose

Warehouses are under pressure to operate as efficiently as possible. In pursuit of attaining high efficiency in the order picking process, the warehouse manager must take several planning decisions, typically supported by a central planning system. However, highly centralised work erodes the autonomy of warehouse workers, interfering with worker well-being and productivity. This study holistically explores the impact of a work system with more decision autonomy for order pickers.

Design/methodology/approach

We conduct a unique field experiment in a real-world warehouse and use a within-subjects design to compare two work systems, one with worker autonomy and one without. 18 permanent employees participate in our study, in which we measure both psychosocial and physical well-being as well as productivity. Post-experimental interviews are conducted to delve deeper into the observed effects.

Findings

Our study illustrates that involving order pickers in operational decisions can benefit their job satisfaction and motivation without compromising productivity. Although we fail to find significance at the conventional level (α = 0.05), we do find marginally significant effects of our treatment on physical well-being aspects. Furthermore, our intervention invoked a highly positive user experience.

Practical implications

We show that slightly loosening tight process control results in organisational and individual benefits without endangering smooth operational flows. The warehouse in this paper acknowledged this and decided to permanently work according to this philosophy.

Originality/value

This study is the first to holistically explore the effects of a participatory work setting in a real-world warehouse.

Details

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

Keywords

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