Search results
1 – 10 of 341Continues from the first part of the article (Structural Survey9.2) in describing the work undertaken in computer‐aided learning at theUniversity of Reading, UK. Describes, with…
Abstract
Continues from the first part of the article (Structural Survey 9.2) in describing the work undertaken in computer‐aided learning at the University of Reading, UK. Describes, with illustrations, a student‐created knowledge base using Hypercard software on an Apple Macintosh. Describes the uses of a self‐teaching expert system package, and a simulated building survey. Concludes that powerful computer‐based simulations are an effective teaching method for building surveyors.
Details
Keywords
Highlights some of the difficulties associated with the process ofacquiring essential building surveying skills, and proposes the use ofcomputer technology together with…
Abstract
Highlights some of the difficulties associated with the process of acquiring essential building surveying skills, and proposes the use of computer technology together with video‐disc technology, to improve and test knowledge acquisition. Outlines the current situation in surveying education, discussing class size, lecturer shortages, monitoring progress and the right teaching environment. Reviews communication media in the form of printed literature, videos, films and slides, concentrating on media interactivity, storage and quality. Explores computer‐aided learning and the state of education using these methods. Suggests that this form of education can provide the vehicle to test and improve the technical knowledge, competence and skill of a building surveyor.
Details
Keywords
Continues to examine the provision of damp proofing in ground floors. Shows that damp proof membranes only became mandatory in floors laid after the mid‐1960s. Examines the…
Abstract
Continues to examine the provision of damp proofing in ground floors. Shows that damp proof membranes only became mandatory in floors laid after the mid‐1960s. Examines the methods and location of damp proofing in ground floors. Considers the problems associated with dampness in, and damp proofing of, ground floors.
Admiral Munyaradzi Manganda, Jason Paul Mika, Tanya Jurado and Farah Rangikoepa Palmer
This paper aims to explore how Maori entrepreneurs in Aotearoa New Zealand negotiate cultural and commercial imperatives in their entrepreneurial practice. Culture is integral to…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how Maori entrepreneurs in Aotearoa New Zealand negotiate cultural and commercial imperatives in their entrepreneurial practice. Culture is integral to Indigenous entrepreneurship, an example being tikanga Maori (Maori cultural values) and Maori entrepreneurship. This study discusses the tensions and synergies inherent in the negotiation of seemingly conflicting imperatives both theoretically and practically.
Design/methodology/approach
This study reports on a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews involving ten Maori enterprises of the Ngati Porou tribe on the east coast of Aotearoa New Zealand.
Findings
This study finds that depending on their contextual and cultural orientation, Maori entrepreneurs use tikanga to help negotiate cultural and commercial imperatives. The contingency of entrepreneurial situations and the heterogeneity of Maori perspectives on whether (and in what way) tikanga influences entrepreneurial practice appear influential. The authors propose a typology of Maori entrepreneurs’ approaches to explain the negotiation of cultural and commercial imperatives comprising the “culturally engaged Maori entrepreneur”; the “culturally responsive Maori entrepreneur”; and the “culturally ambivalent Maori entrepreneur.”
Originality/value
This study proposes a typology to analyse entrepreneurial practices of Indigenous entrepreneurs’ negotiation of cultural and commercial imperatives.
Details
Keywords
Jason Paul Mika, Graham Hingangaroa Smith, Annemarie Gillies and Fiona Wiremu
This paper aims to examine indigenous governance and economies of iwi Maori (Maori tribes) in Aotearoa New Zealand. Research into persisting inequities amongst iwi that have…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine indigenous governance and economies of iwi Maori (Maori tribes) in Aotearoa New Zealand. Research into persisting inequities amongst iwi that have settled treaty claims and the potential for intervention through new governance models and indigenous entrepreneurship contextualise the paper.
Design/methodology/approach
Kaupapa Maori (Maori philosophy) is used as an indigenous methodology to facilitate and empower transformative change, underpinned by Maori knowledge, language and culture. A multi-level approach is used to collect data from international, national and local tribal organisations. Validity is established through stakeholder engagement.
Findings
A central challenge in the post-treaty settlement context is exponentialising tribal capabilities because of the multiple purposes ascribed to post-settled iwi. Four themes, characterised as “unfolding tensions”, offer a critique and basis for solving tribal development challenges: how do tribes create culturally grounded global citizens; how do tribes rebalance wealth creation and wealth distribution; how do tribes recalibrate tribal institutions; and how do tribes embed entrepreneurship and innovation within their economies?
Research limitations/implications
As data collection is still underway, the paper is conceptual.
Practical implications
Five strategies to address unfolding tensions are identified for tribes to consider.
Social implications
Tribal governors and tribal members are implicated in the analysis, as well as the architects of post-treaty settlement governance models.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to theorising about tribal governance, economies and entrepreneurship.
Details
Keywords
Jason Paul Mika, Nicolas Fahey and Joanne Bensemann
This paper aims to contribute to indigenous entrepreneurship theory by identifying what constitutes an indigenous enterprise, focussing on Aotearoa New Zealand as a case.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to contribute to indigenous entrepreneurship theory by identifying what constitutes an indigenous enterprise, focussing on Aotearoa New Zealand as a case.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper combines policy (quantitative survey) and academic research (qualitative interviews) to answer the same question, what is an indigenous enterprise in Aotearoa New Zealand?
Findings
The authors found a degree of consistency as to what counts as an indigenous enterprise in the literature (e.g., identity, ownership, values), yet a consensus on a definition of Maori business remains elusive. They also found that an understanding of the indigenous economy and indigenous entrepreneurial policy are impeded because of definitional uncertainties. The authors propose a definition of Maori business which accounts for indigenous ownership, identity, values and well-being.
Research limitations/implications
The main limitation is that the literature and research use different definitions of indigenous enterprise, constraining comparative analysis. The next step is to evaluate our definition as a basis for quantifying the population of indigenous enterprises in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Practical implications
The research assists indigenous entrepreneurs to identify, measure and account for their contribution to indigenous self-determination and sustainable development.
Social implications
This research has the potential to reconceptualise indigenous enterprise as a distinct and legitimate alternative institutional theory of the firm.
Originality/value
The research challenges assumptions and knowledge of entrepreneurship policy and practice generally and the understanding of what is the nature and extent of an indigenous firm.
Details
Keywords
Jan Sher Akmal, Mika Salmi, Roy Björkstrand, Jouni Partanen and Jan Holmström
Introducing additive manufacturing (AM) in a multinational corporation with a global spare parts operation requires tools for a dynamic supplier selection, considering both cost…
Abstract
Purpose
Introducing additive manufacturing (AM) in a multinational corporation with a global spare parts operation requires tools for a dynamic supplier selection, considering both cost and delivery performance. In the switchover to AM from conventional manufacturing, the objective of this study is to find situations and ways to improve the spare parts service to end customers.
Design/methodology/approach
In this explorative study, the authors develop a procedure – in collaboration with the spare parts operations managers of a case company – for dynamic operational decision-making for the selection of spare parts supply from multiple suppliers. The authors' design proposition is based on a field experiment for the procurement and delivery of 36 problematic spare parts.
Findings
The practice intervention verified the intended outcomes of increased cost and delivery performance, yielding improved customer service through a switchover to AM according to situational context. The successful operational integration of dynamic additive and static conventional supply was triggered by the generative mechanisms of highly interactive model-based supplier relationships and insignificant transaction costs.
Originality/value
The dynamic decision-making proposal extends the product-specific make-to-order practice to the general-purpose build-to-model that selects the mode of supply and supplier for individual spare parts at an operational level through model-based interactions with AM suppliers. The successful outcome of the experiment prompted the case company to begin the introduction of AM into the company's spare parts supply chain.
Details
Keywords
Elina Karttunen, Mika Matela, Jukka Hallikas and Mika Immonen
Buyer–supplier relationships in public procurement have garnered increasing attention in research, yet studies on the perspective of suppliers on public procurement have remained…
Abstract
Purpose
Buyer–supplier relationships in public procurement have garnered increasing attention in research, yet studies on the perspective of suppliers on public procurement have remained limited. This research takes the perspective of suppliers and aims to investigate the innovativeness of suppliers and the impact of supply chain ambidexterity strategies on their perceptions about public procurement in terms of innovation enablers and customer attractiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
This research draws from a survey of 137 suppliers to the public sector in Finland and applies PLS-path modeling to test its hypotheses.
Findings
The findings reveal that the ambidexterity strategy of suppliers in the supply chain influences how they perceive the innovation enablers and customer attractiveness of public organizations since processes of public procurement do not support these strategies fully. Supplier innovativeness has an influence on the perceived innovation enablers of public procurement, which, in turn, influences customer attractiveness.
Practical implications
The innovativeness and strategies of suppliers for the supply chain have an impact on how attractive they perceive public procurement. The findings of this research provide insights on why the customer attractiveness of public procurement may not be high enough to secure the competition in their bidding processes.
Originality/value
The study’s contribution adds to the field of buyer–supplier relationships and customer attractiveness in public procurement by showing the importance of innovation enablers and highlighting the impact of supplier's ambidexterity in the supply chain on their perceptions about public procurement.
Details
Keywords
This study aims to examine the association between board gender diversity (BGD) and workplace diversity and the relative importance of various board and firm characteristics in…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the association between board gender diversity (BGD) and workplace diversity and the relative importance of various board and firm characteristics in predicting diversity.
Design/methodology/approach
With a novel machine learning (ML) approach, this study models the association between three workplace diversity variables and BGD using a social media data set of approximately 250,000 employee reviews. Using the tools of explainable artificial intelligence, the authors interpret the results of the ML model.
Findings
The results show that BGD has a strong positive association with the gender equality and inclusiveness dimensions of corporate diversity culture. However, BGD is found to have a weak negative association with age diversity in a company. Furthermore, the authors find that workplace diversity is an important predictor of firm value, indicating a possible channel on how BGD affects firm performance.
Originality/value
The effects of BGD on workplace diversity below management levels are mainly omitted in the current corporate governance literature. Furthermore, existing research has not considered different dimensions of this diversity and has mainly focused on its gender aspects. In this study, the authors address this research problem and examine how BGD affects different dimensions of diversity at the overall company level. This study reveals important associations and identifies key variables that should be included as a part of theoretical causal models in future research.
Details
Keywords
Paavo Ritala, Aino Kianto, Mika Vanhala and Henri Hussinki
Firms need to constantly renew themselves to keep up with the pace of competition and proactively establish innovations to the markets. This requires capabilities in learning and…
Abstract
Purpose
Firms need to constantly renew themselves to keep up with the pace of competition and proactively establish innovations to the markets. This requires capabilities in learning and renewing of the firm’s knowledge base, conceptualized as renewal capital of the firm. On the other hand, firms that acquire high levels of competitiveness by renewing their knowledge base also need to protect that knowledge from unwanted spillovers. This study aims to examine how renewal capital affects incremental and radical innovation performance of the firm, moderated by the firm’s protection of its strategic knowledge.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on a multi-industry survey study with a time-lagged data set, with independent variables collected in the first wave, followed by a second wave four years later for the dependent variables. The authors test the hypotheses using partial least squares structural equation modeling.
Findings
The authors find that firms’ renewal capital is positively associated with the level of incremental and radical innovation. Furthermore, the authors find that knowledge protection negatively moderates the relationship between renewal capital and incremental innovation performance of the firm. In case of radical innovation performance, similar moderating effect is not statistically supported.
Originality/value
With a time-lagged research design, this study study reveals the interdependent roles of renewal capital and knowledge protection for firm’s innovation performance, and provides insights of when (and when not) it would be beneficial for a firm to seek renewal and protective oriented approaches.
Details