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Grounded on the resource-based and dynamic capability views and the contingency theories, this study examines the direct and indirect effects of web technology training (WTT) and web-enabled transaction use (WTU) on business performance (BPE) through internal supply chain integration (ISCI) and supplier supply chain integration (SSCI).

Based on survey data collected from a sample of 175 respondents in the USA, the authors used structural equation modeling with AMOS 24.0 to test the measurement model for validity, reliability and the conceptual model for hypothesized structural relationships.

The results reveal that WTT significantly impacts WTU, which, in turn, has a significant direct relationship with BPE. Further, WTU indirectly affects BPE through SSCI. Additionally, ISCI has a significant direct effect on SSCI.

The findings support the relationship between WTT and BPE via WTU SCI. Managers are advised to develop ongoing capabilities in WTT to maximize the value of WTU to enhance the ISCI and SSCI operations, thus leading to improvements in BPE.

The research contributes to the supply chain literature by empirically demonstrating the usefulness of WTT in improving WTU use and BPE through effective ISCI and SSCI.

Uncertainty management (UM) in projects has been a point of attention for researchers for many years. Research on UM has mainly been aimed at uncertainty analyses in the front-end and managing uncertainty in the construction phase. In contrast, UM components in the design phase have received less attention. This research aims to improve knowledge about the key components of UM in the design phase of large road projects.

This study adopted a literature review and case study. The literature review was used to identify relevant criteria for UM. These criteria helped to design the interview guide. Multiple case study research was conducted, and data were collected through document study and interviews with project stakeholders in two road projects. Each case's owners, contractors and consultants were interviewed individually.

The data analysis obtained helpful information on the involved parties, process and exploit tools and techniques during the design phase. Johansen's (2015) framework [(a) human and organisation, (b) process and (c) tools and techniques)] was completed and developed by identifying relevant criteria (such as risk averse or risk-taker, culture and documentation level) for each component. These criteria help to measure UM performance. The authors found that owners and contractors are major formal UM actors, not consultants. Empirical data showed the effectiveness of Web-based tools in UM.

The studied cases were Norwegian, and this study focussed on uncertainties in the project's design phase. Relevant criteria did not cover all the criteria for evaluating the performance of UM. Qualitative evaluation of criteria allows further quantitative analysis in the future.

This paper gave project owners and managers a better understanding of relevant criteria for measuring UM in the owners and managers' projects. The paper provides policy-makers with a deeper understanding of creating rigorous project criteria for UM during the design phase. This paper also provides a guideline for UM in road projects.

This research gives a holistic evaluation of UM by noticing relevant criteria and criteria's interconnection in the design phase.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the level of digital information literacy (DIL) skill and use of electronic resources by humanities graduate students at Kenneth Dike Library, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.

This paper uses the survey research design and 200 graduate students from the 12 departments that made up the Faculty of Arts in the University of Ibadan participated in the study. A self-devised structured questionnaire was used as instrument for data collection. A pilot questionnaire was first sent to a small random sample of the respondents, with feedback used to fine-tune the final questionnaire. Respondents were requested to rate their level of proficiency in the use of digital devices, web-based tasks, information finding, evaluation and utilisation of available e-resources and challenges encountered. Ethical consideration of informed consent, institutional permission, confidentiality and anonymity of participants was strictly followed. Data collected were analysed and result presented using descriptive statistics including frequencies, percentage, mean and inferential statistics such as regression analysis and Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient were used to test the research question and hypothesis, respectively.

Humanities graduate students at the University of Ibadan possessed high level of DIL skills in respect of digital devices usage, web-based tasks, information finding and evaluation, but low in e-resources utilisation. This study identified inadequate knowledge of e-resources availability, irregular internet access, inadequate training on e-resources utilisation, inadequate staff assistance, lack of continuity in e-resources subscription and paucity of local contents in the e-resources as main challenges encountered by graduate students in the use of e-resources. To ensure that those who can most benefit from e-resources utilisation are not further marginalised, this study recommends that active steps should be taken to increase e-resources awareness, regular internet access, training/support, continuity of e-resources subscription and increased local content so that all may benefit from the opportunities of the information age.

This paper has demonstrated that DIL skills can enhance effective utilisation of e-resources if users have adequate knowledge of e-resources availability, regular internet access, adequate training and assistance on e-resources utilisation, continuity in database subscription and adequate local contents e-resources.

This study aims to explore how an accessibility database (AD) has been developed and implemented as a tool for facility managers to evaluate and increase the accessibility of public facilities.

Eight participants were strategically sampled for semi-structured interviews, and documents on the AD were gathered. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) was used for a directed content analysis of the data. The CFIR domains used for the analysis were: intervention characteristics, outer setting, inner setting, characteristics of individuals and process.

The development and implementation of the AD demonstrated the complexity in assessing and planning for increased accessibility. The communication and iterative processes within the inner as well as with the outer setting was an important part of the development and implementation, as well as anchoring each step locally, regionally and nationally, within public authorities and disability organizations.

The assessments of environmental barriers and the results reported in the AD can serve as a guide for identification of accessibility issues. However, singular identified barriers were reported as a fragmentation of the building regulations, and thereby when retrofitting is carried out, experts who have the competence to suggest solutions based on the entirety need to be involved to reach the goals of increased accessibility and countering of exclusion and discrimination.

By structuring the implementation process by means of the CFIR, facilitators and barriers of using an AD as a basis for retrofitting were revealed. The practical challenges outlined in assessing and increasing accessibility can guide facility managers when considering actions to increase accessibility.

There is a growing mismatch between the skill demands of the industry and the offerings of academia. One way of reducing this mismatch is by improving collaborations between practitioners and instructors using web-networking platforms. However, it is important to understand practitioners’ considerations while collaborating with instructors. Therefore, this study identified these considerations in order to infer inputs for the design of the graphical user interface (GUI) of a web-based platform for connecting instructors and practitioners.

A mixed method was adopted through a survey and focus group. A survey was used to capture practitioners’ considerations while collaborating with instructors for student development, and a focus group helped uncover an in-depth understanding of the study phenomena. The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and thematic analysis.

The results show the willingness of practitioners to collaborate with instructors for student development, the ways by which practitioners are willing to meet instructors' course-support needs and their considerations in deciding to do so. Slight differences were observed between the results of the survey and the focus group regarding the ranking of the practitioners’ considerations. The study highlighted demographic differences in practitioners’ considerations when deciding on meeting instructors' course-support needs. The results provide a basis to deduce the GUI inputs of web-networking platforms for connecting instructors and practitioners.

This study revealed practitioners’ design needs and GUI inputs to facilitate the design of web-networking platforms for connecting instructors and practitioners. This study also contributes to user interface design principles, theories on individual differences and practitioners’ involvement in student professional development.

This paper aims to provide an easy-to-use yet powerful tool to assess the organizational readiness to adopt effective Smart Working (SW). In light of this main objective, based on the current state of research, the study develops a maturity model to assess the SW organizational readiness (SWOR). The SWOR maturity model consists of three dimensions, each of them further detailed into two sub-dimensions. A tool was developed to make use of the model.

The SWOR maturity model was converted into a Web-based questionnaire that includes 54 questions based on 44 items to operationalize the model sub-dimensions. The questionnaire was used in a survey conducted at the Local Health Authority (ASL) of the province of Bari (Italy).

Several implications derive from the present study. From a managerial perspective, the SWOR maturity model supports companies in the as-is analysis of processes, technologies and human resources, which are the enablers of an effective SW, and in the development of a roadmap to achieve a desired “to-be” situation.

Despite recent studies on SW have identified the key drivers that affect the success of SW implementation, there is a lack of models and tools that help companies become aware of the actions and investments to be taken to move towards an effective SW adoption. Even the analysis of the literature on maturity models reveals a gap in the research related to the assessment of SW organizational readiness. The present paper tries to overcome these limitations.

The purpose is to increase knowledge of rent negotiations by investigating differences in beliefs held by property landlords and retailers on factors that they deem important in rent negotiation.

This study investigates differences in subjective beliefs held by landlords and retail trade tenants on factors that affect rent levels during the rent negotiation process using a factor analysis approach. Semi-structured interviews were made with seven large real estate owners/landlords and retailers and eight experts in negotiating retail rent to elicit variables that have an impact on retail rent. Thereafter, a web-based survey was sent to 421 respondents who had experience in rent negotiation. Several factors were extracted using factor analysis. The data collection was made in Sweden during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in late spring 2021

Significant differences are found in beliefs held by landlords and retail trade tenants in four out of seven-factor: regional growth, e-commerce, customer focus and trust. Landlords rate these factors higher than retailers do. There are also systematic differences between landlords and retailers depending on their education levels on the following factors: rent and vacancies, e-commerce and customer focus. The number of years of experience did not prove to be significant instead differences are found to exist in factors

Not only do traditional factors of importance, such as lease structure, the effect of location, size and anchor or non-anchor tenants, have an effect on negotiated rent levels. Differences in other factors also exist, such as regional growth, e-commerce, customer focus and trust factors that may play an important role in the negation of retail rent.

The findings provide new insights into the different views on factors that affect rent negotiations between landlords and retail tenants. Knowledge of such differences may increase the overall transparency in the negotiation process. Transparency may be increased by putting forward information on these factors before a negotiation takes place, in order to smooth differences in their beliefs.

If transparency in the negotiation process of retail rent increases, time to reach an agreement, stress and anxiety can be reduced by putting forward information on factors where differences exist between landlords and retailers

New insights on retail rent negotiation have been put forward in this research paper. Not only do traditional factors such as lease structure matters, but subjective beliefs on factors such as regional growth and the level of education are also important, as this study has shown using a factors analysis approach.

This paper investigates how individuals' decision-making approach and perceptions of a game's cognitive realism affect the performance of virtual businesses in a web-based simulation game.

Survey data are collected from 274 business simulation game users and is analysed using the fsQCA technique.

The study identifies three alternative pathways to high and low performance in a business simulation game. Results indicate that a flexible decision-making approach exists in all high performance pathway solutions. Where a game is perceived to be realistic, a more focused decision-making approach is associated with high performance. However, where perceived cognitive realism is absent, a less focused experimental decision-making approach is employed, which increases the chances to achieve low performance. Finally, perceived cognitive realism and an experimental decision-making approach are found to be mutually exclusive for achieving high performance.

Whilst the learning benefits of web-based simulation games are widely acknowledged, the complex interplay amongst factors affecting performance in games is under-researched. Limited research exists on how perceptions of a game's cognitive realism interact with user decision-making approaches to affect performance.

This research examines Indian women entrepreneurs’ endeavours to keep their undertakings above water amid the COVID-19 emergency in 2021–2022. This study centers around female-possessed endeavours in Rajasthan, with a particular spotlight on how artificial intelligence (AI) assists them in getting by. It examines how Indian women entrepreneurs used social media to stay in business during the pandemic and adds to information collection by inspecting women-claimed micro and small enterprises (MSEs) and their use of AI through social media during COVID-19. We administered a questionnaire to a sample of 100 female entrepreneurs who use social media platforms to manage their businesses. The researchers found that the pandemic fundamentally affects women entrepreneurs, especially those who run MSEs, using an anti-tactical approach to deal with survey information from 100 respondents. Women have seen a drop in pay because of lower deals, hindered supply chains, and the inconvenience of paying credit portions. Regardless of how women entrepreneurs are especially delicate to monetary shocks, most need to approach government or private-area help. The significance of virtual entertainment through AI in saving women’s ventures is featured in this review. Web-based entertainment has become famous for helping women sell their businesses, contact new clients, and keep current clients. Women entrepreneurs have reduced their losses as a result of forceful advancements supplemented by appealing offers like limits, various administrations, and advertising. We infer that during an emergency, women entrepreneurs embraced innovative methods to keep their businesses reasonable.

Building upon uses and gratifications (UG) theory and social exchange theory, the current study establishes a theoretical model to examine the underlying relationship between customer motivations, active participation and electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) and purchase intentions on WeChat.

The data were gathered in a web-based survey of 301 WeChat users in mainland China. To empirically verify the proposed hypotheses, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) were employed using online data.

Path analysis outcomes demonstrate that functional, hedonic and social motivations positively affect WeChat users' active participation. In addition, active participation significantly influences e-WOM intention while showing no correlation with purchase intention.

Theoretically, this article can enrich the extant system of relevant theories and offer a fresh perspective for further research on the generation of consumers' e-WOM intention and purchase intention in the WeChat context. Practically, the research outcomes provide insight for companies on how to motivate customers to participate in online activities, which subsequently improve WeChat users' willingness in conducting e-WOM communication and making purchase decisions.

Although mobile social media could serve as an influential marketing vehicle for individuals' engagement in social and commercial activities in today's mobile-matured environment, the substantial impact of active engagement on the relationship between customer motivation and purchase intention remains insufficiently explored. The outcomes not only contribute to the current body of knowledge, but also offer several managerial guidance for companies that pay attention to mobile social media marketing in a contemporary mobile media-saturated society.