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1 – 10 of 230
Open Access
Article
Publication date: 16 August 2022

Juri Matinheikki, Katri Kauppi, Alistair Brandon–Jones and Erik M. van Raaij

Contemporary supply chain relationships inherently rely on delegation of work between organizations and, thus, are subject to agency problems for which a wide range of governance…

5182

Abstract

Purpose

Contemporary supply chain relationships inherently rely on delegation of work between organizations and, thus, are subject to agency problems for which a wide range of governance mechanisms exist. This review of agency theory (AT), across four distinct fields, explains the connection between governance mechanisms and supply chain relationship types.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a systematic literature review (SLR) of articles using AT in a supply chain context from the operations and supply chain management, general management, marketing, and economics fields.

Findings

The authors categorize the governance mechanisms identified to create a typology of agency relationships in supply chains.

Research limitations/implications

The developed typology provides parsimonious theory on different forms of supply chain agency relationships and takes a step towards a “supply chain-oriented agency theory” explaining and predicting relationship types and governance in supply chains. Furthermore, a future research agenda calls for more accurate measuring of agency costs, to examine residual gains alongside residual losses, to take a dual-sided perspective of agency relations and to adopt AT to examine more complex supply networks.

Practical implications

The review provides a menu of governance mechanisms and describes situations under which these mechanisms could be deployed to guide managers when developing their supply chain relationships.

Originality/value

The first review to combine and elaborate views from four major disciplines using AT as a lens to supply chain relationships. Expanding the traditional set of governance mechanisms provides academics and practitioners with a bigger “menu” of options to consider.

Details

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 42 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 1 December 2022

Tafadzwa Matiza and Elmarie Slabbert

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic highlights the importance of destination marketing and media profiling to re-engage international tourists. However, potential crisis-induced nation…

1943

Abstract

Purpose

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic highlights the importance of destination marketing and media profiling to re-engage international tourists. However, potential crisis-induced nation brand (NB) deficits must be addressed to re-ignite tourism demand. The study examines the possible intervening effect of the contemporary NB in the international destination marketing and media-travel motives nexus.

Design/methodology/approach

A deductive quantitative study was undertaken with an online Amazon Mechanical Turk sample of n = 454 respondents. Hypotheses were tested using PROCESS Macro, Model 4.

Findings

The results show that the NB [people and negative events] had a practically significant partial mediating effect in the destination marketing – nature-cultural oriented travel motivation nexus.

Practical implications

New insights are provided via a practical model which facilitates the measurement of potential nuances in the influence of destination marketing and media profiling on leisure tourists' travel motives amid crises. The intervening effect implies that a better understanding of the NB as an indirect antecedent to travel motivation may result in more effective crisis communications and tourism recovery-oriented marketing.

Originality/value

The study is amongst the first to extend marketing and behavioural theory to explore the interplay between the marketing and media profile, a nation's brand and tourists' travel behaviour amid a crisis. The study addresses a discernible dearth of knowledge related to the influence of the NB on tourist behaviour from an emerging market perspective.

Details

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9792

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 20 November 2020

Sangeetha K. Prathap and Sreelaksmi C.C.

Consumers often face a dilemma regarding the purchase decisions of traditional handloom apparel because of the non-availability of information cues that would enable them to…

4973

Abstract

Purpose

Consumers often face a dilemma regarding the purchase decisions of traditional handloom apparel because of the non-availability of information cues that would enable them to assess the quality of the product. The spread of counterfeit products in the market adds to information asymmetry. The study aims to examine factors influencing purchase intention of traditional handloom apparel that have Geographical Indication (GI) certification, which follows the certification procedure specified by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).

Design/methodology/approach

A survey was conducted among 202 traditional handloom apparel consumers in India and the data was analysed using structural equation modelling. The purchase intention of GI certified handloom apparels was examined as the dependent variable, whereas quality consciousness, product diagnosticity, perceived information asymmetry were placed as independent variables. The mediating role of perceived quality and product trust in the relation between perceived information asymmetry and purchase intention was also looked into.

Findings

Results reveal that quality consciousness positively influences product diagnosticity (facilitated by the GI label certification) which in turn reduces perceived information asymmetry. Further, a reduction in perceived information asymmetry was found to increase the purchase intention of traditional handloom apparel, fully mediated by the perceived quality and product trust.

Research limitations/implications

The customers who are facing a dearth of information while making purchase of traditional handlooms will be benefitted from the GI certification label which provides authenticity regarding product attributes confirming quality. Further, the study adds to the theory by establishing the relation between quality consciousness and perceived information asymmetry.

Practical implications

The findings imply that GI handloom apparel sellers should design marketing strategies that would project GI certification labels for traditional handloom apparel to effectively communicate product quality attributes, thus enhance product diagnosticity reducing information asymmetry. While organic certification for agricultural products is done at the individual producer’s level, GI certification is done under the producer’s collective label. Further, studies may be extended to agricultural products (Darjeeling tea, Alphonso mangoes, etc.), food items (rasgulla, Thirupathi laddoo, etc.) and handicrafts (Aranmula Mirror, Payyannur pavithra ring) that have acquired GI label in India. GI certification is adopted worldwide and studies may be extended to such products also [example Parma ham (Italy), Hessian wine (Germany)].

Originality/value

Empirical research on determinants of consumer purchase intentions of GI certified traditional handloom apparel is a novel attempt done in the context of a developing country such as India. The study brings out the importance of the GI certification label envisaged by the WIPO, which can serve as a tool for reducing uncertainties faced by consumer in framing purchasing intentions. This can be extended to any product type such as agricultural, food products and handicrafts that has acquired GI certifications in different countries. The study revealed that product diagnosticity (through GI certification) could reduce perceived information asymmetry that leads the consumer to the perception of quality and product trust which results in the purchase intention of traditional handloom apparel. The outcomes of the study can be instrumental in designing marketing strategies for capturing market share.

Details

Journal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences, vol. 4 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN:

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 17 May 2021

Helena Forslund, Maria Björklund and Veronica Svensson Ülgen

Sustainability approaches across product supply chains are well-known, while similar knowledge on transport supply chains (TSC) is limited. The purpose of this paper is to explore…

5881

Abstract

Purpose

Sustainability approaches across product supply chains are well-known, while similar knowledge on transport supply chains (TSC) is limited. The purpose of this paper is to explore sustainability approaches and managerial challenges in extending sustainability across a TSC.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper presents a case study of a TSC with a shipper, a third-party logistics firm and a hauler. Each actor’s views on sustainability-related communication and relations with other TSC actors are analyzed through the lens of agency theory.

Findings

Each dyad in the TSC reveals different, more or less collaboration-based approaches. Challenges are revealed, including the lack of shipper understanding for the TSC context and the use of immature contracts, which disincentivizes sustainability compliance. The multi-tier study object reveals the silencing of distant actors and the need for actors to take on mediating roles to bridge information asymmetries.

Research limitations/implications

Combining literature perspectives (relations, communication and agency theory) provides a deeper understanding of the approaches applied and identifies different challenges. The inclusion of agency theory reveals principal problems such as information asymmetries between agents and less-informed principals and suggests complementary labels of supply chain actors.

Practical implications

Practical contributions include the highlighting of managerial challenges, which can aid managers in extending sustainability across TCSs.

Social implications

The case study method offers insights into collaboratively improving sustainability in supply chains (such as using contracts), thus having social and environmental implications.

Originality/value

The paper narrows knowledge gaps about managing sustainability among logistics service providers and analyzes data from multi-tier actors.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 27 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 18 August 2022

Jonna Pauliina Koponen and Saara Maria Julkunen

This paper aims to explore how and why salespeople enhance or hinder long-term business-to-business (B2B) customer relationships at the interpersonal level by considering…

3615

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore how and why salespeople enhance or hinder long-term business-to-business (B2B) customer relationships at the interpersonal level by considering self-disclosure and relational cost and reward evaluations.

Design/methodology/approach

Data from interviews (N = 47) with B2B sales professionals were analyzed, focusing on the shift of the phases in long-term B2B customer relationships.

Findings

Long-term B2B customer relationships evolve at the interpersonal level through a process of continuous relational cost and reward evaluation, self-disclosure and business disclosure in three phases: becoming business partners, collaborative partners and collaborative and personal partners. The reward evaluations progress from being business related to including even more relational benefits. Disclosure progresses through general business disclosure and general self-disclosure; strategic business disclosure and personal life self-disclosure; and synergistic business disclosure and private self-disclosure.

Research limitations/implications

The long-term B2B customer relationships could be studied at the interpersonal level from the customer’s perspective. Self-disclosure could be studied in cross-cultural settings as well as gender differences should be considered in future studies. Business and social penetration theory could be applied to investigate different types of relationships and other professional relationships, such as those between employers and employees. It would be important to test whether the business-related and self-disclosure subtypes apply to the development of other types of professional relationships or whether other disclosure subtypes exist. The authors recommend exploring salespeople’s and customers’ privacy management strategies in multiple communication channels.

Practical implications

Managers may apply the results of this study in their customer relationship management and sales training.

Originality/value

The findings outline a contextual extension of social penetration theory.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. 56 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 March 2023

Rebecca McPherson and Lucas Wayne Loafman

This study aims to fill a distinct gap in the literature on disability-assistance animals (disability-AAs) and inclusive employment by investigating human resource (HR…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to fill a distinct gap in the literature on disability-assistance animals (disability-AAs) and inclusive employment by investigating human resource (HR) practitioners’ perceptions of disability-AAs in the staffing process and workplace. HR practitioners play a critical role in accommodation and inclusion, yet their experiences and insights have been largely ignored in prior research.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used a phenomenological approach, drawing on signaling theory and employability constructs, to explore insights from 17 HR practitioners’ experiences with assistance animals in the workplace.

Findings

The potential for unconscious bias in employment practices was found, as well as a significant percentage of practitioners who were unprepared to handle animal accommodations. First, the potential development of a positive stereotype bias suggests all genuine assistance animals are high functioning. Second, the assumption that employees’ assistance animal requests for invisible disabilities without previous disclosure are presumed fraudulent until proven valid.

Research limitations/implications

As a qualitative study, findings from this study are not generalizable to a larger population but may be transferable to similar employment contexts.

Originality/value

This study extends knowledge from previous studies, which focused predominately on insights from disabled individuals, animal trainers and therapists, to the HR practitioner domain in creating a more inclusive work environment. Findings from this study suggest the need to improve education about disability-AAs and the potential for unconscious bias for HR practitioners and hiring managers when accommodating requests, particularly when those assistance animals are not described as high functioning.

Details

Organization Management Journal, vol. 20 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2753-8567

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 16 October 2017

Yingfeng Zhang, Lin Zhao and Cheng Qian

The huge demand for fresh goods has stimulated lots of research on the perishable food supply chain. The characteristics of perishable food and the cross-regional transportation…

12476

Abstract

Purpose

The huge demand for fresh goods has stimulated lots of research on the perishable food supply chain. The characteristics of perishable food and the cross-regional transportation have brought many challenges to the operation models of perishable food supply chain. The purpose of this paper is to address these challenges based on the real-time data acquired by the Internet of Things (IoT) devices.

Design/methodology/approach

IoT and the modeling of the Supply Hub in Industrial Parks were adopted in the perishable food supply chain.

Findings

A conceptual model was established for the IoT-enabled perishable food supply chain with two-echelon supply hubs. The performance of supply chain has improved when implementing the proposed model, as is demonstrated by a case study.

Originality/value

By our model, the supply hubs which act as the dominators of the supply chain can respond to the real-time information captured from the operation processes of an IoT-enabled supply chain, thus to provide public warehousing and logistic services.

Details

Industrial Management & Data Systems, vol. 117 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-5577

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 September 2023

Juan Chen, Nannan Xi, Vilma Pohjonen and Juho Hamari

Metaverse, that is extended reality (XR)-based technologies such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), are increasingly believed to facilitate fundamental human…

1524

Abstract

Purpose

Metaverse, that is extended reality (XR)-based technologies such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), are increasingly believed to facilitate fundamental human practice in the future. One of the vanguards of this development has been the consumption domain, where the multi-modal and multi-sensory technology-mediated immersion is expected to enrich consumers' experience. However, it remains unclear whether these expectations have been warranted in reality and whether, rather than enhancing the experience, metaverse technologies inhibit the functioning and experience, such as cognitive functioning and experience.

Design/methodology/approach

This study utilizes a 2 (VR: yes vs no) × 2 (AR: yes vs no) between-subjects laboratory experiment. A total of 159 student participants are randomly assigned to one condition — a brick-and-mortar store, a VR store, an AR store and an augmented virtuality (AV) store — to complete a typical shopping task. Four spatial attention indicators — visit shift, duration shift, visit variation and duration variation — are compared based on attention allocation data converted from head movements extracted from recorded videos during the experiments.

Findings

This study identifies three essential effects of XR technologies on consumers' spatial attention allocation: the inattention effect, acceleration effect and imbalance effect. Specifically, the inattention effect (the attentional visit shift from showcased products to the environmental periphery) appears when VR or AR technology is applied to virtualize the store and disappears when AR and VR are used together. The acceleration effect (the attentional duration shift from showcased products to the environmental periphery) exists in the VR store. Additionally, AR causes an imbalance effect (the attentional duration variation increases horizontally among the showcased products).

Originality/value

This study provides valuable empirical evidence of how VR and AR influence consumers' spatial bias in attention allocation, filling the research gap on cognitive function in the metaverse. This study also provides practical guidelines for retailers and XR designers and developers.

Details

Information Technology & People, vol. 36 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-3845

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 16 August 2019

Agneta Ranerup and Helle Zinner Henriksen

Many countries today, especially in Europe, provide publicly funded public services in quasi-markets. As these markets commercialize, agencies of various types are providing…

1436

Abstract

Purpose

Many countries today, especially in Europe, provide publicly funded public services in quasi-markets. As these markets commercialize, agencies of various types are providing technologies that support citizens’ choice of services. Citizens’ use of technologies for service provision is studied as e-government under labels of channel management, e-service uptake or adoption. In contrast, by using actor–network theory (ANT), the purpose of this paper is to focus on the marketing devices that are used to enroll citizens to choose technologies in a context with large penetration of quasi-market arrangements.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a Swedish case study, this paper uses qualitative data from 11 occurrences of technologies to support citizens’ choice (“market devices”) in education, healthcare and public pension in an analysis of the means taken (“marketing devices”) to increase their use. The study formulates a tentative typology of these devices.

Findings

The marketing devices are intended to attract citizens’ attention to the possibility of choice (e.g. catalogs, postcards and commercials), invite interaction (e.g. various social media platforms), improve the technological support in line with user needs (e.g. user participation in development), increase visibility of technological support (e.g. search optimization) or directly connect citizens to technological support (e.g. via links).

Originality/value

The paper contributes to e-government research through a typology of means taken to increase citizens’ technology use based on selected concepts from ANT, and to a discussion of technologies and humans.

Details

Information Technology & People, vol. 32 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-3845

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 25 September 2020

Tafadzwa Matiza

The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the on-going COVID-19 pandemic and its potential influence on tourist behaviour in the short- to medium-term. While the…

35388

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the on-going COVID-19 pandemic and its potential influence on tourist behaviour in the short- to medium-term. While the influence of the pandemic on tourist’s perceived risk and its impact on their future travel behaviour is understandably yet to be established, the present paper discusses the potential nexus. Additionally, this paper provides tourism practitioners with some recommendations for mitigating the effect of potential heightened perceived risk on travel and tourism decision-making post the COVID-19 crisis.

Design/methodology/approach

The present paper synthesises contemporary academic literature on perceived risk and post-crisis tourism with emerging information associated with the unfolding COVID-19 crisis.

Findings

This paper draws empirical evidence from studies related to previous health crises and their impact on tourism, as well as tourist behaviour. By discussing previous studies within the context of the on-going COVID-19, it is possible to anticipate the influence that perceived risk associated with the pandemic may have on the post-crisis behaviour of tourists. Also, short-term measures to mitigate the effects of risk on tourism are posited to guide practitioners in the future recovery of the sector.

Research limitations/implications

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented and on-going crisis for the global tourism industry. Hence, the present paper serves as a primer to a broader discussion within the tourism discourse and provides theoretical direction for future tourism research.

Practical implications

Key to the recovery of the global tourism industry will be encouraging both domestic and international tourism activity. However, while the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on tourist behaviour is yet to be substantiated, previous research predicts a situation of heightened perceived risk and the potential cognitive dissonance that may negatively influence tourist decision-making. To mitigate this potential effect, governance, augmented immigration policy, destination media profiling, recovery marketing and domestic tourism will be critical interventions.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the first to discuss the potential influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the post-crisis decision-making process of tourists and their conative behaviour. As a primer to further empirical research, this paper sets a pertinent research agenda for academic inquiry within an evolving and increasingly uncertain global tourism market.

Details

Journal of Tourism Futures, vol. 8 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2055-5911

Keywords

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