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The purpose of this paper is to examine how Chinese immigrant businesses in Australia were able to shift from low return start-up businesses and move to more competitive business models targeting mainstream clientele. The research aims to identify the factors enabling a break-out strategy for these entrepreneurs and whether a horizontal or vertical break-out was achieved.

A qualitative research method with in-depth interviews is employed. Interviews were conducted with 55 Chinese immigrant business owners in Sydney and Canberra.

The analysis found that a break-out strategy depended on a range of business activities, including innovation, marketing, networking and personnel strategies. Importantly, the current research found that these resources have varying degrees of importance in the different stages of the transition to the new business model. Accumulating sufficient financial capital was a fundamental enabler for a break-out strategy, followed by the capacity to learn and benefit from the experience of social networks.

The current research highlights the importance of financial capital and capacity to benefit from social networks as fundamental factors in enabling a break-out strategy. The benefit of the qualitative approach in obtaining rich data needs to be offset by potential limitations on generalisability. Future research could incorporate comparison between different size businesses as well as analysing factors underpinning a failure to successfully implement a break-out.

The findings indicate that business support groups and policymakers could review access to financial capital for entrepreneurs seeking break-outs, consider improving opportunities for developing capacity to utilise heterogeneous social networks, and consider pathways for improving skills acquisition amongst immigrant entrepreneurs.

This paper contributes to the research literature on break-out strategies used by immigrant entrepreneurs by analysing, in detail, the transition steps undertaken by ethnic Chinese entrepreneurs in the shift to more competitive business models.

By investigating trust in the organization as a mediator and traditionality as a moderator, this study aims to examine the effect perceived organizational exploitation poses on frontline hotel employees’ service performance.

A three-wave survey that targets 219 supervisor–subordinate dyads from four Chinese hotels was conducted to test the hypotheses. The authors used SPSS 20.0 and AMOS 21.0 to analyze the data and verify the theoretical model.

This study found that perceived organizational exploitation exerts a destructive impact on frontline hotel employees’ service performance. Trust in the organization is a full mediator of the link connecting perceived organizational exploitation to service performance. Furthermore, traditionality weakens perceived organizational exploitation’s impact on trust in the organization and subsequent service performance.

The authors’ findings remind hotels to cease exploiting their employees to avoid compromising service performance. Hotels should also endeavor to instill trust among employees toward the hotel and allocate more attention to employees with lower levels of traditionality.

First, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is among the first to explore the impact of perceived organizational exploitation on frontline hotel employees’ service performance. Second, this study reveals a novel mechanism underlying the connection between perceived organizational exploitation and service performance. Finally, this study identifies frontline hotel employees’ traditionality as a vital moderator that mitigates the negative relationships among perceived organizational exploitation, trust in the organization and service performance.

This study focuses on understanding how channel features can affect people's intention to continue to use an electronic channel in public affairs and their recommendation behaviors. Specifically, three different channels are focused on: email, microblogs and online meetings.

A research model on an e-participation channel based on the channel-disposition framework was developed and an online survey was conducted to collect data from 397 individuals who used three e-participation channels to validate seven hypotheses.

The study found that information quality, channel interaction quality and the social appearance of other citizens all had a significant impact on users' intention to continue to use an electronic channel, which, in turn, affected their recommendation behaviors. However, the impact differed across the three e-participation channels. Information quality had a stronger impact on microblog and online meeting users' intention to continue to use these channels than on email users' intention to continue using email to participate in public affairs. Channel interaction quality had a stronger impact on email users' intention to continue to use email than on microblog and online meeting users' intention to continue to use these channels in public affairs.

This study helps better explain how various channels and their features can affect participants' use intentions and behaviors in e-participation. It also provides practical guidance for government to better manage e-participation channels and effectively engage citizens in public affairs.

This paper aims to present a novel particle swarm optimization (PSO) based on a non-homogeneous Markov chain and differential evolution (DE) for path planning of intelligent robot when having obstacles in the environment.

The three-dimensional path surface of the intelligent robot is decomposed into a two-dimensional plane and the height information in z axis. Then, the grid method is exploited for the environment modeling problem. After that, a recently proposed switching local evolutionary PSO (SLEPSO) based on non-homogeneous Markov chain and DE is analyzed for the path planning problem. The velocity updating equation of the presented SLEPSO algorithm jumps from one mode to another based on the non-homogeneous Markov chain, which can overcome the contradiction between local and global search. In addition, DE mutation and crossover operations can enhance the capability of finding a better global best particle in the PSO method.

Finally, the SLEPSO algorithm is successfully applied to the path planning in two different environments. Comparing with some well-known PSO algorithms, the experiment results show the feasibility and effectiveness of the presented method.

Therefore, this can provide a new method for the area of path planning of intelligent robot.

This paper aims to design a multi-layer convolutional neural network (CNN) to solve biomimetic robot path planning problem.

At first, the convolution kernel with different scales can be obtained by using the sparse auto encoder training algorithm; the parameter of the hidden layer is a series of convolutional kernel, and the authors use these kernels to extract first-layer features. Then, the authors get the second-layer features through the max-pooling operators, which improve the invariance of the features. Finally, the authors use fully connected layers of neural networks to accomplish the path planning task.

The NAO biomimetic robot respond quickly and correctly to the dynamic environment. The simulation experiments show that the deep neural network outperforms in dynamic and static environment than the conventional method.

A new method of deep learning based biomimetic robot path planning is proposed. The authors designed a multi-layer CNN which includes max-pooling layer and convolutional kernel. Then, the first and second layers features can be extracted by these kernels. Finally, the authors use the sparse auto encoder training algorithm to train the CNN so as to accomplish the path planning task of NAO robot.

The purpose of this paper is to improve the performance of the genetic algorithm-based compliant robot path planning (GACRPP) in complex dynamic environment by proposing an improved bidirectional rapidly exploring random tree (Bi-RRT)-based population initialization method.

To achieve GACRPP in complex dynamic environment with high performance, an improved Bi-RRT-based population initialization method is proposed. First, the grid model is adopted to preprocess the working space of mobile robot. Second, an improved Bi-RRT is proposed to create multi-cluster connections between the starting point and the goal point. Third, the backtracking method is used to generate the initial population based on the multi-cluster connections generated by the improved Bi-RRT. Subsequently, some comparative experiments are implemented where the performances of the improved Bi-RRT-based population initialization method are compared with other population initialization methods, and the comparison results of the improved genetic algorithm (IGA) combining with the different population initialization methods are shown. Finally, the optimal path is further smoothed with the help of the technique of quadratic B-spline curves.

It is shown in the experiment results that the improved Bi-RRT-based population initialization method is capable of deriving a more diversified initial population with less execution time and the IGA combining with the proposed population initialization method outperforms the one with other population initialization methods in terms of the length of optimal path and the execution time.

In this paper, the Bi-RRT is introduced as a population initialization method into the GACRPP problem. An improved Bi-RRT is proposed for the purpose of increasing the diversity of initial population. To characterize the diversity of initial population, a new notion of breadth is defined in terms of Hausdorff distance between different paths.

Drawing on the resource-based view and resource complementarity theory, the purpose of this paper is to investigate two research questions: To what extent are logistics information system (IS) resources associated with improved operational performance? And to what extent are these relationships contingent on organizational factors?

A conceptual model with a nested structure is presented to link logistics IS resources and organizational factors with operational performance. The findings are validated using a cross-sectional sample of secondary data from domestic logistics firms in China.

This paper extends existing operational-level measures for logistics IS resources into a three-tier tactical-level typology: inside-out resources (operation-focused IS, decision-focused IS and IS development capability); outside-in resources (relation-focused IS and market-focused IS); and spanning resources (IS integration capability and IS management capability). Though logistics IS resources, in general, are positively related to operational performance, inside-out IS resources have the most significant impact. Organizational factors, such as firm size, firm age and firm ownership, may enhance or suppress the effects of logistics IS resources on performance.

The findings are valuable to both logistics firms and buyer firms in an emerging market, as logistics IS resources may affect costs and quality of logistics service. The tactical-level typology allows logistics firms to better plan for and manage emerging IS resources in a competitive environment.

This paper extends prior work regarding the complementary effects of logistics IS resources and organizational factors on operational performance. Logistics firms should carefully manage the three types of tactical-level IS resources according to their organizational environment to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.

Infrastructure projects play a significant role in community development. Infrastructure consists of many subcategories such as roads, bridges, railways, airports, communication infrastructure and harbors. The expressway is an essential part of modern transportation infrastructure. Due to its span and complexity, expressway construction results in several environmental impacts comparatively higher than typical road construction. In that event, environmental sustainability assessment in expressway construction and determining environmental measures to address those impacts is essential. Therefore, this research intends to investigate the environmental measures applicable to expressway projects in Sri Lanka.

This study involves a comparative analysis of different environmental impacts validated through expert interviews. The data required to perform the analysis were extracted through expert interviews and the Battelle method.

The findings revealed the importance of environmental indicators for expressway projects in Sri Lanka by assigning weightages. The Construction Phase received the highest weightage among three themes indicating that the construction phase causes greater environmental impact in expressway construction. Furthermore, the Site Maintenance Plan and Tree Compensating received the highest weightages under indicators.

The study makes an original contribution through the identification of indicators that lead to the improvement of environmental sustainability in expressway projects in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, the use of the Battelle method within the context of measuring environmental sustainability of expressways projects in general — and within the context of Sri Lanka — is a novel research approach.

The purpose of this paper is to survey and express the advantages and disadvantages of the existing approaches for solving grey linear programming in decision-making problems.

After presenting the concepts of grey systems and grey numbers, this paper surveys existing approaches for solving grey linear programming problems and applications. Also, methods and approaches for solving grey linear programming are classified, and its advantages and disadvantages are expressed.

The progress of grey programming has been expressed from past to present. The main methods for solving the grey linear programming problem can be categorized as Best-Worst model, Confidence degree, Whitening parameters, Prediction model, Positioned solution, Genetic algorithm, Covered solution, Multi-objective, Simplex and dual theory methods. This survey investigates the developments of various solving grey programming methods and its applications.

Different methods for solving grey linear programming problems are presented, where each of them has disadvantages and advantages in providing results of grey linear programming problems. This study attempted to review papers published during 35 years (1985–2020) about grey linear programming solving and applications. The review also helps clarify the important advantages, disadvantages and distinctions between different approaches and algorithms such as weakness of solving linear programming with grey numbers in constraints, inappropriate results with the lower bound is greater than upper bound, out of feasible region solutions and so on.

The purpose of this paper is to explore in depth the impact and transmission mechanism of different international capital flows on domestic employment and wages in China within a systematic framework; also to reveal whether the empirical results can confirm the basic model inferences.

Using dynamic economic model and empirical experiment, this study designs and conducts the analysis within a systematic framework. The authors acquire the needed and credible empirical data.

The international capital inflows will increase the average wage level, and the international capital outflows will significantly reduce the level of domestic wages. The unofficially recorded capital flows would appear negatively related to the domestic wages. Due to the complexities of relevant elements, the impact of different international capital flows on domestic employment is of insignificance. It is noteworthy that the impact of international capital flows on the average wage changes of different provinces will tend to converge to a certain extent.

The results have reflected that the capital flows between the different provinces have no obvious frictions and barriers.

The paper explores in depth the impact and transmission mechanism of different international capital flows on domestic employment and wages within a systematic framework. The empirical analysis related to the China different provinces is an exploratory experiment.