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1 – 10 of over 3000Rhian Silvestro and Stuart Cross
This paper reports the result of an exploratory study of the application of Heskett, Sasser and Schlesinger’s service profit chain to a single organisation, one of the UKs leading…
Abstract
This paper reports the result of an exploratory study of the application of Heskett, Sasser and Schlesinger’s service profit chain to a single organisation, one of the UKs leading grocery retailers. The results showed correlations between profit, customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, service value, internal service quality, output quality and productivity; however there was no support for the claim that these are driven by employee satisfaction and loyalty. In fact, to the contrary, there was a strong correlation between employee dissatisfaction and store profitability. This research raises questions about the robustness of a central premise of the service profit chain, which is that strong business performance is the result of a mirror‐effect between employee and customer satisfaction. The paper considers the implications for management and calls for the development of a contingency based understanding of the drivers of business success.
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Brian Balmforth, Bruce M. Burton, Stuart R. Cross and David M. Power
This study aims to examine the extent to which UK directors failed to report their share trading in the timeframe required by extant regulations in the run‐up to the changes in…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the extent to which UK directors failed to report their share trading in the timeframe required by extant regulations in the run‐up to the changes in insider trading law contained in the Financial Services and Markets Act.
Design/methodology/approach
The study investigates the extent of non‐compliance amongst the 7,461 trades reported to the London Stock Exchange by the directors of UK firms in the year 2000.
Findings
The results indicate that 1,055 (or 14 per cent) of directors' trades were reported late (or with the transaction date absent), with these being concentrated amongst “buy” transactions in both absolute and pro‐rata terms.
Practical implications
The evidence suggests that non‐compliance in the reporting of directors' transactions was common at the time when UK authorities chose to toughen the legal framework governing the conduct of trading based on private price‐sensitive information. Once sufficient time has elapsed, further studies should be able to provide evidence about the iterative impact of the new legal framework by comparing results with the findings of this study.
Originality/value
This is the first study to report a detailed examination of the extent of non‐compliance in the timing of directors' trades in their own equity.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine two specific circumstances where UK courts may stay the execution of a judgment to enforce a statutory adjudication decision; where a final…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine two specific circumstances where UK courts may stay the execution of a judgment to enforce a statutory adjudication decision; where a final decision is sought on a discrete point; and where the winning party is insolvent. In this context, there is consideration of what a “binding” decision means for the purposes of Part II of the Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act 1996.
Design/methodology/approach
A black letter, doctrinal approach is adopted, using two High Court decisions as a focus for wider critical reflection.
Findings
The cases where a final determination on part of an adjudication decision is successful are rare and will depend on the facts. Despite some unorthodox recent decisions, the likelihood remains that parties will struggle to challenge part only of an adjudication decision. The leading case authorities support the underlying principle of the Construction Act insofar as adjudication decisions are binding and should be enforced or else the Court will impose punitive statutory interest on the debt. This principle applies even in cases where the adjudication decision is successfully challenged in such cases.
Originality/value
This paper also addresses two decisions given by Edwards‐Stuart J. in the High Court, both of which adopt a novel approach to the relevant issues, and hence this discussion of those approaches demonstrates originality.
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The purpose of this paper is to report on a qualitative study of the views of a cross-section of managers and union officials engaged in joint learning projects on the impact more…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report on a qualitative study of the views of a cross-section of managers and union officials engaged in joint learning projects on the impact more generally on the employee relations climate in those organisations.
Design/methodology/approach
Findings are based on an analysis of interview data incorporating the views and experiences of 32 union representatives and managers engaged in promoting learning in a number of case study projects in North West England.
Findings
Findings suggest that union-led learning and development has a clear impact on pre-empting potential performance issues for individuals in terms of better equipping them with the skills to achieve expected performance levels, assisting individuals with managing work-related stress and also to prevent discrimination against workers. Collectively, the managing of downsizing in particular through union-led learning support to retrain in order to redeploy effected staff or better prepare them for new employment opportunities was also a significant finding.
Research limitations/implications
The research suggests that successful union-management learning partnerships can also have a positive impact on managing conflict in those organisations. However, further research is needed to test these assertions in other union organised sectors.
Practical implications
There are implications for management in recognising the “added value” that partnership working with their unions on learning can bring in terms of also both pre-empting and resolving individual and collective disputes in the workplace.
Originality/value
The research is one of few studies that focuses on the link between promoting learning through union-management partnerships and managing conflict in organisations and offers a clear insight into how this can be achieved in practice.
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Iris Stuart, Yong-Chul Shin, Donald P. Cram and Vijay Karan
The use of choice-based, matched, and other stratified sample designs is common in auditing research. However, it is not widely appreciated that the data analysis for these…
Abstract
The use of choice-based, matched, and other stratified sample designs is common in auditing research. However, it is not widely appreciated that the data analysis for these studies has to take into account the non-random nature of sample selection in these designs. A choice-based, matched or otherwise stratified sample is a nonrandom sample that must be analyzed using conditional analysis techniques. We review five research streams in the auditing area. These streams include work on determinants of audit litigation, audit fees, auditor reporting in financially distressed firms, audit quality and auditor switches. Cram, Karan, and Stuart (CKS) (2009) demonstrated the accuracy of conditional analysis, compared to unconditional analysis, of nonrandom samples through the use of simulations, replications, and mathematical proofs. Papers since published have continued to rely upon questionable research, however, and it is hard for researchers to identify what is the reliability of a given work. We complement and extend CKS (2009) by identifying audit papers in selected research streams whose results will likely differ if the data gathered are analyzed using conditional analysis techniques. Thus research can be advanced either by replication and reanalysis, or by refocus of new research upon issues that should no longer be viewed as settled.
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Saman Rashidi, Javad Abolfazli Esfahani, Mohammad Sadegh Valipour, Masoud Bovand and Ioan Pop
The analysis of the flow field and heat transfer around a tube row or tube banks wrapped with porous layer have many related engineering applications. Examples include the reactor…
Abstract
Purpose
The analysis of the flow field and heat transfer around a tube row or tube banks wrapped with porous layer have many related engineering applications. Examples include the reactor safety analysis, combustion, compact heat exchangers, solar power collectors, high-performance insulation for buildings and many another applications. The purpose of this paper is to perform a numerical study on flows passing through two circular cylinders in side-by-side arrangement wrapped with a porous layer under the influence of a magnetic field. The authors focus the attention to the effects of magnetic field, Darcy number and pitch ratio on the mechanism of convection heat transfer and flow structures.
Design/methodology/approach
The Darcy-Brinkman-Forchheimer model for simulating the flow in porous medium along with the Maxwell equations for providing the coupling between the flow field and the magnetic field have been used. Equations with the relevant boundary conditions are numerically solved using a finite volume approach. In this study, Stuart and Darcy numbers are varied within the range of 0 < N < 3 and 1e-6 < Da < 1e-2, respectively, and Reynolds and Prandtl numbers are equal to Re=100 and Pr=0.71, respectively.
Findings
The results show that the drag coefficient decreases for N < 0.6 and increases for N > 0.6. Also, the effect of magnetic field is negligible in the gap between two cylinders because the magnetic field for two cylinders counteracts each other in these regions.
Originality/value
To the authors knowledge, in the open literature, flow passing over two circular cylinders in side-by-side arrangement wrapped with a porous layer has been rarely investigated especially under the influence of a magnetic field.
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Yifei Zhang, Patrick Lo, Stuart So and Dickson K.W. Chiu
The paper aims to investigate current library instruction programs to help business students make better use of library resources and improve their information. However, students’…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to investigate current library instruction programs to help business students make better use of library resources and improve their information. However, students’ information acquisition ability, library usage and their perception toward library user education are inevitably changing along with the rapidly evolving information landscape as well as the socio-cultural environment driven by information technologies.
Design/methodology/approach
For this study, 90 business students from three different majors at the Faculty of Business and Economics, the University of Hong Kong were invited to participate in the online survey for comparison.
Findings
The findings of this study suggest that the subjects, in general, recognized the importance of library user instruction. However, when the subjects encountered difficulties in information searching, they preferred to use search engines (such as Google) and seek help from their classmates.
Practical implications
The results of this study show that there were distinctive differences in library usage and views toward library instruction among students of three different majors. This study sheds light on the feasible actions of academic libraries to enhance library user instruction services and improve the IL skills among business students.
Originality/value
Although there is much research about the library instruction of academic libraries, scant research focuses on library usage and views toward library instruction of business students, especially on the comparison among different business majors.
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Sandra Murray, Corey Peterson, Carmen Primo, Catherine Elliott, Margaret Otlowski, Stuart Auckland and Katherine Kent
Food insecurity and poor access to healthy food is known to compromise tertiary studies in university students, and food choices are linked to student perceptions of the campus…
Abstract
Purpose
Food insecurity and poor access to healthy food is known to compromise tertiary studies in university students, and food choices are linked to student perceptions of the campus food environment. The purpose of this study is to describe the prevalence, demographic and education characteristics associated with food insecurity in a sample of Australian university students and their satisfaction with on-campus food choices.
Design/methodology/approach
An online, cross-sectional survey conducted as part of the bi-annual sustainability themed survey was conducted at the University of Tasmania in March 2020. A single-item measure was used to assess food insecurity in addition to six demographic and education characteristics and four questions about the availability of food, affordable food, sustainable food and local food on campus.
Findings
Survey data (n = 1,858) were analysed using bivariate analyses and multivariate binary logistic regression. A total of 38% of respondents (70% female; 80% domestic student; 42% aged 18–24 years) were food insecure. Overall, 41% of students were satisfied with the food available on campus. Nearly, half (47%) of food insecure students were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the availability of affordable food on campus. A minority of students were satisfied with the availability of sustainable food (37%) and local food (33%) on campus.
Originality/value
These findings demonstrate a high prevalence of food insecurity and deficits in the university food environment, which can inform the development of strategies to improve the food available on campus, including affordable, sustainable and local options.
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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the costs/benefits of implementing the cross-docking strategy in a retail supply chain context using a cost model. In particular, the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the costs/benefits of implementing the cross-docking strategy in a retail supply chain context using a cost model. In particular, the effects of using different typologies of cross-docking compared to traditional warehousing are investigated, taking into consideration an actual case study of a fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company and a major French retailer.
Design/methodology/approach
The research is based on a case study of an FMCG company and a major French retailer. The case study is used to develop a cost model and to identify the main cost parameters impacted by implementing the cross-docking strategy. Based on the cost model, a comparison of the main cost factors characterizing four different configurations is made. The configurations studied are, the traditional warehousing strategy (AS-IS configuration, the reference configuration for comparison), where both retailers and suppliers keep inventory in their warehouses; the cross-docking pick-by-line strategy, where inventory is removed from the retailer warehouse and the allocation and sorting are performed at the retailer distribution centre (DC) level (TO-BE1 configuration); the cross-docking pick-by-store strategy, where the allocation and sorting are done at the supplier DC level (TO-BE2 configuration); and finally a combination of cross-docking pick-by-line strategy and traditional warehousing strategy (TO-BE3 configuration).
Findings
The case study provides three main observations. First, compared to traditional warehousing, cross-docking with sorting and allocation done at the supplier level increases the entire supply chain cost by 5.3 per cent. Second, cross-docking with allocation and sorting of the products done at the retailer level is more economical than traditional warehousing: a 1 per cent reduction of the cost. Third, combining cross-docking and traditional warehousing reduces the supply chain cost by 6.4 per cent.
Research limitations/implications
A quantitative case study may not be highly generalisable; however, the findings form a foundation for further understanding of the reconfiguration of a retail supply chain.
Originality/value
This paper fills a gap by proposing a cost analysis based on a real case study and by investigating the costs and benefits of implementing different configurations in the retail supply chain context. Furthermore, the cost model may be used to help managers choose the right distribution strategy for their supply chain.
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