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The purpose of this paper is to provide evidence-based policy recommendations for improving the implementation of universal service funds (USF) with a view to closing the digital divide in Africa.

The paper adopts a qualitative approach that draws examples from various African countries supported by 25 interviews from key stakeholders with hands-on experience and roles that shape telecommunications policy in Africa and other developing countries.

The study's findings point out that institutional voids which characterize several African countries inhibit the effectiveness of USF in African countries. The authors identify several institutional and organisational factors and explain how they negatively affect the performance of USF. The authors find that in order to overcome these obstacles, there is a need for a clear redefinition of Universal Access and Service (UAS) policies, restructuring the governance of USF, encouraging cross-sectoral collaborations, and bottom-up initiatives to bridge the digital divide in African countries.

The paper contributes to the underexplored USF literature by shedding light on the role of institutional factors in determining the success of USF. The paper thus complements and provides a different perspective on promoting digital inclusion in Africa from the viewpoint of institutional voids, bringing new insights into the existing literature on how to deal with an intractable area of UAS policy and the wider digital divide debate in developing countries.

Within the ongoing digitalization of society and dimensions of integration, equality, citizen needs, sustainability and quality of life are of increasing importance as driving forces for cities to become smart. The purpose of this paper is to examine participatory management challenges in becoming a smart old town in the context of cultural heritage.

An explorative approach was applied on a qualitative single case study including in-depth interviews with 21 stakeholders representing local entrepreneurs, nonprofit organizations, the municipality, politicians, tourism organization and residents of an old town district in a Norwegian city. Additionally, participatory observations and document studies were performed. Findings were continuously validated with the respondents.

The present study contributes with stakeholder views on challenges arising from the development of a smart old town and suggests possible innovative solutions for participatory management. The transformation of a city with cultural heritage into a smart city require efforts that go beyond smart ICT implementations into issues of social sustainability.

The study brings forward the opportunities that lie in the dynamics of interaction between the spirit of cultural heritage and the body of participatory management. It con-tributes by responding to calls for further research to deepen the insights into stakeholder inclusion in cultural heritage-based city transformation. This explorative study has its limitations as it is based on one qualitative single case.

Participatory management insights and recommendations for smart city transformation are provided.

The study addresses socially sustainable outcomes to create democratic conditions that promote inclusion and community building by understanding what people need and expect from the place where they live and work.

This study is positioned as unique in terms of its complex nature of transforming an old town to become a smart old town based on cultural heritage and an open and coordinated inclusion of stakeholders. Smartness in context of city transformation is revealed in many dimensions ranging from technology-driven to more participant-driven.

This research investigates the perceived collaboration between public, private, and volunteer organisations during maritime crisis work, with an emphasis on learning and collaboration. The purpose of this paper is to investigate participants’ perceived collaboration training in relation to learning and usefulness.

The exercise studied in this research was run in the far North in Norway. It was estimated by the participants to be Europe’s most extensive exercise in 2016. Mixed methods research approach was applied, i.e. on-site observations, photos and interviews were conducted during the exercise. After the exercise, an online survey was distributed to emergency personnel holding different positions in conjunction with this exercise.

As reported, the exercise contributed to new insights on the relationship between collaboration and learning. The study showed that collaborative elements in exercises contribute to perceived learning (R=0.86, R²=0.74), and that learning in turn had a perceived beneficial effect on actual emergency work (R=0.79, R²=0.62).

The possible research implications from this study include more focus on collaboration and new training schemes that could increase learning and usefulness.

Collaboration between actors seemed to suffer from the size of the exercise. A smaller exercise, less dependency on predetermined scripts, and more receptivity towards improvisation could improve collaboration.

Increased awareness on the outcomes of collaboration exercise might increase their learning and usefulness, providing societies with improved rescue services.

This research implies that increased perceived collaboration has an effect on learning and usefulness in maritime exercises.

The nature of the collaborations that exists among the organizations in the climate change and agriculture sectors can influence the tailoring of climate forecasts into information useable for adapting agricultural practices to the risks posed by climate change. Also, the extent to which farmers are integrated into this organizational collaboration network can influence their access to climate information. This paper aims to examine how organizational collaborations in the process of climate information generation and dissemination acts as either barriers or enablers of farmers’ access to and use of climate information in Ghana.

This study used key informant interview and questionnaire survey to interview the organizations in the climate change and agriculture sectors. Using network analysis as an analytical framework, the authors estimated the networks’ core-periphery, density, reciprocity and degree centrality.

The authors observed that communication of climate information to farmers is mostly influenced by the collaborations between governmental organizations and nongovernmental organizations. Nevertheless, information flow and exchange through organizational collaboration network is having limited effect on improving farmers’ knowledge about climate risks, impacts and available risk response options. This is mostly because the feedback flow of information from farmers to national level organizations has not been effective in addressing localized climate/agro challenges.

This paper provides a critical overview of key issues in influencing the relevancy and usefulness of climate information in the Ghanaian agriculture sector. Insights gained and recommendations made are essential for deploying effective climate services in Ghana and can be relevant for many African countries because of similar socioeconomic contexts.

The emergence of networks within education has been driven by a number of factors, including: the complex nature of the issues facing education, which are typically too great for single schools to tackle by themselves; changes to educational governance structures, which involve the hollowing out of the middle tier and the introduction of new approaches with an individualized focus; in addition is the increased emphasis on education systems that are “self-improving and school-led”. Within this context, the realization of teacher and school improvement actively emerges from establishing cultures of enquiry and learning, both within and across schools. Since not every teacher in a school can collaboratively learn with every other teacher in a network, the most efficient formation of networks will comprise small numbers of teachers learning on behalf of others.

Within this context, Professional Learning Networks (PLNs) are defined as any group who engage in collaborative learning with others outside of their everyday community of practice; with the ultimate aim of PLN activity being to improve outcomes for children. Research suggests that the use of PLNs can be effective in supporting school improvement. In addition, PLNs are an effective way to enable schools to collaborate to improve educational provision in disadvantaged areas. Nonetheless harnessing the benefits of PLNs is not without challenge. In response, this paper explores the notion of PLNs in detail; it also sheds light on the key factors and conditions that need to be present if PLNs are to lead to sustained improvements in teaching and learning. In particular, the paper explores the role of school leaders in creating meaningful two-way links between PLNs and their schools, in order to ensure that both teachers and students benefit from the collaborative learning activity that PLNs foster. The paper concludes by suggesting possible future research in this area.

The rapid advancement of digital technologies has fundamentally changed the competitive dynamics of the logistics service industry and forced incumbent logistics service providers (LSPs) to digitalize. As many LSPs still struggle in advancing their digital transformation (DT), the purpose of this study is to discover barriers and identify organizational elements and associated leading practices for DT success at LSPs.

This study utilizes a two-stage approach. Stage 1 is devoted to a literature review. Stage 2, based on multiple case studies, analyzes information collected across nine international and global LSPs.

This research derives a practice-based definition of DT in the logistics service industry, and it has identified five barriers, eight success factors and associated leading practices for DT. The main obstacles LSPs struggle with, are the complexity of the logistics network and lack of resources, while the main success factor is a leader having and executing a DT vision, and creating a supportive organizational culture.

The results contribute to the emerging field of DT within the logistics and supply chain management literature and provide insights for practitioners regarding how to effectively implement it in a complex industry.

The authors analyze DT from the perspective of LSPs, traditionally not viewed as innovative companies. This study compares their DT with that of other companies.

This impact pathways paper proposes that operations and supply chain management (OSCM) can help to ensure that the transition from a high-carbon to low-carbon fashion industry takes place in a just, inclusive and fair way. By immersion in fashion brands, suppliers and workers' realities across multiple supply chains, the authors identify challenges and issues related to just transitions, whilst proposing research pathways to inspire future OSCM research and collaboration using innovative and creative methods to answer complex questions related to just transition.

The research the authors introduce used a multi-level field research approach to investigate multiple fashion supply chains in transition.

The authors uncovered that in the pursuit of lowering carbon emissions, fast-fashion giants work with industrial associations to create top-down governance tools, leading to severe problems in supply chain data and paradoxical demands. These demands are cascaded onto the workers in these supply chains. The goals and tools dictated by the fashion giants exclude workers, whilst the physiological and psychological effects on the workers are routinely ignored. These issues impede a just transition to a low-carbon fashion industry.

The authors introduce concepts largely missing from OSCM literature and ensure representation of the most marginalised group, supply chain workers, in a novel setting in a call for research in this emerging area.

The purpose of this paper is to review the roles of human resource management (HRM) specialists in the contemplation and implementation of innovation in employing organisations and workplaces.

The authors review some of the literature and practice in this field as well as 11 other articles that are included in this special issue.

The authors propose six research questions. First, are HRM specialists analysing relevant trends and their implications for the future of work and the workforce? Second, are HRM specialists enabling employing organisations to identify and enable innovative ideas? Third, to what extent are HRM specialists leading partnership arrangements with organised labour? Fourth, what is the role of HRM specialists in creating inclusive work environments? Fifth, how should HRM specialists change to foster enterprise performance, intrapreneurship, agility, creativity and innovation? Sixth, to what extent is there an HRM function for line managers in coordination with HRM specialists in engendering innovation around “change agent” roles?

The authors argue that HRM specialists should embrace and enable innovation. The authors challenge HRM specialists to consider how they can contribute to facilitating innovation. The paper proposes further research on HRM and range of associated stakeholders who, together, have responsibility for innovating in the design and delivery of HRM to enrich our knowledge of HRM and workplace innovations.