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1 – 10 of 993This chapter focuses on governance as a key element of the safeguarding system of the family enterprise. The management is in charge of the company’s performance in terms of…
Abstract
This chapter focuses on governance as a key element of the safeguarding system of the family enterprise. The management is in charge of the company’s performance in terms of profit and growth. The governance system is designed to secure value protection by designing a robust leadership system, monitoring and advising management, reviewing critical decisions, and providing fail-safe solutions in case of serious malfunctions of the management system. This chapter develops a typology of critical elements which could endanger the development of the company, including conflicts and disruptions among the owner group. Results of recent research on the root causes of the downfall of family enterprises are presented. Finally, a concept of a three-layer protection system is developed with the aim of providing stability for longevity.
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Rishikesan Parthiban, Saravana Jaikumar, Jayanta Basak and Somprakash Bandyopadhyay
The authors study the effect of access to smartphones on the socio-economic well-being in the case of rural base of the pyramid (BoP) women. While smartphone access may have its…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors study the effect of access to smartphones on the socio-economic well-being in the case of rural base of the pyramid (BoP) women. While smartphone access may have its benefits, the paper suggests augmenting access with a sociotechnical intermediary (STI) that facilitates training and online community building to enhance the well-being outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a survey from three groups of women from rural West Bengal (India) – (1) who do not own smartphones, (2) who have their own smartphones and (3) who receive smartphones and STI support (over two years). The authors evaluate the effect of access to smartphones and STI support on social well-being (including structural social capital and empowerment) and economic well-being (including entrepreneurial intent and subjective economic well-being).
Findings
The analysis results suggest a high relationship between smartphone ownership and higher structural social capital, empowerment (in terms of freedom of movement) and entrepreneurial intent. The authors further find these effects to be enhanced amongst women who received smartphones and support from STI.
Originality/value
The authors attribute this enhanced well-being amongst women with smartphones and STI support to peer-learning and cultivation of virtual role models facilitated by the STI through creation of intra-community online groups. The results have significant policy implications for socio-economic well-being of rural BoP women.
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Yasuyuki Motoyama and Christina Henderson
Much of extant literature on entrepreneurship ecosystems is geared toward mid- and large-size metropolitan areas, and small cities are considered disadvantageous without essential…
Abstract
Purpose
Much of extant literature on entrepreneurship ecosystems is geared toward mid- and large-size metropolitan areas, and small cities are considered disadvantageous without essential elements for the ecosystem. The purpose of this paper is to shed light on understanding how small cities can have vibrant entrepreneurship ecosystems.
Design/methodology/approach
This study conducted 42 semistructured interviews of entrepreneurs and supporters in small towns of Montana, USA. This study also supplemented with a survey of 178 firms.
Findings
Entrepreneurs in small cities enjoy dense support networks including experienced entrepreneurs, key business and civic leaders and elected officials. They also attend entrepreneurial events and establish connections with support organizations with a distance of 200 miles.
Originality/value
The cases in this paper demonstrate that small cities can have vibrant entrepreneurship ecosystems without urban diversity and agglomeration. That additionally means that we should not apply the theoretical framework developed with large urban areas to small cities and consider different models of development for small cities.
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Ting‐Peng Liang, Cheng‐Yi Lin and Deng‐Neng Chen
The rapid proliferation of the Internet has allowed many firms to use this new technology to run Web‐based electronic stores to expand their markets and to enhance the operational…
Abstract
The rapid proliferation of the Internet has allowed many firms to use this new technology to run Web‐based electronic stores to expand their markets and to enhance the operational performance. Therefore, it is interesting to investigate why electronic commerce benefits some industries more than others, and what factors affect the impact of using e‐Stores on performance in different industries. This paper reports findings on the effect of industrial characteristics, as portrayed by product information content and information intensity of the value chain, and e‐commerce models on firm performance. The results indicate that both industrial characteristics and e‐commerce models have significant effects on firm performance. Among the industrial characteristics, information content of the product and information intensity of the value chain have been found to have a significant impact on firm performances.
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Divestitures and other forms of organizational separation are not commonly associated with continuity and ongoing collaboration in inter-organizational relationships. Instead…
Abstract
Divestitures and other forms of organizational separation are not commonly associated with continuity and ongoing collaboration in inter-organizational relationships. Instead, separation is often equated with terminating relationships and gaining independence. Here, the authors argue that achieving separation does not require terminating relationships and that ongoing collaboration between separating entities may actually contribute to successful separation. The authors base this argument on the assertion that the objective of organizational separation is to achieve organizational autonomy for all entities involved and that separating entities can enable each other’s development of autonomy while remaining interdependent. The authors also discuss how collaborative separation may contribute to a range of benefits, as well as why it may nevertheless fail to emerge in practice. In this respect, the authors consider the relevance of ethical perspectives and emotional dynamics related to feelings of (dis)respect, (dis)trust, pride and shame. The authors conclude by discussing activities that may contribute to, and undermine, effective collaborative separation.
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Gagan Jyot Kaur, Valerie Orsat and Ashutosh Singh
Of the global carrot production, 20–30% is outgraded as carrot rejects and waste (CRW) at the primary processing level, which is partially used toward animal feed and the…
Abstract
Purpose
Of the global carrot production, 20–30% is outgraded as carrot rejects and waste (CRW) at the primary processing level, which is partially used toward animal feed and the remaining ends in the landfills. This study was undertaken to identify the hurdles and seek potential solutions for using CRW in food processing.
Design/methodology/approach
CRW were procured from the processing unit in Ontario, Canada, as (1) outgraded carrots (OGCs) and (2) processed discards (PDs). The physical parameters of CRW, imperfections responsible for their separation from the graded carrots and shelf-life studies were recorded.
Findings
A significant difference with p ≤ 0.05 was recorded for both the physical parameters and the nature of imperfections in CRW. Discolored carrots (42.37 ± 3.59%) and the presence of vertical splits (52.71 ± 3.18%) were among the top defects in the OGCs. In contrast, the presence of broken tips (54.83 ± 2.52%) and vertical splits (40.56 ± 2.65%) were among the primary cause for the generation of PDs. In total, five percent of CRW were initially infected, which later increased to 30% during the seven days storage period.
Research limitations/implications
The limitation of the study was that only two varieties of carrots were considered and these were procured from one processor (the authors’ industry partner) at different time intervals of the year. Microbiological analysis could not be completed and reported due to prevailing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation but is included for future studies.
Practical implications
Development of specialized post-harvest packaging and handling protocols and separation of infected fragments are essential before suggesting the use of CRW in food processing.
Originality/value
Numerous studies report on the post-harvest management and processing of graded carrots, but limited to no studies are published on the usage of CRW in food processing.
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The separation of powers constitutes a vital feature of western democracies, enshrined in myriad federal and state constitutions. Yet, as a broad principle, theorists struggle to…
Abstract
The separation of powers constitutes a vital feature of western democracies, enshrined in myriad federal and state constitutions. Yet, as a broad principle, theorists struggle to pin down its precise nature, and many contend that the tripartite separation of state powers into legislative, executive and judicial branches proves simplistic and infeasible. I argue we should understand the separation of powers as a strategy used to structure relations between the separated institutions. This process of structuring empowers the creation of novel inter-relations among institutions (relations of balancing, checking, dividing, coordinating and so on), with the goal of improving their institutional integrity. In short, we separate only to reconnect.
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Siwaporn Tangwanichagapong, Vilas Nitivattananon, Brahmanand Mohanty and Chettiyappan Visvanathan
This paper aims to describe the effects of 3R (reduce, reuse and recycle) waste management initiatives on a campus community. It ascertains the environmental attitudes and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to describe the effects of 3R (reduce, reuse and recycle) waste management initiatives on a campus community. It ascertains the environmental attitudes and opinions of the residents and investigates their behavioral responses to waste management initiatives. Practical implications for enhancing sustainable waste management are discussed in this paper.
Design/methodology/approach
Demonstration projects on waste segregation and recycling, as well as waste a reduction campaign, were set up on the campus to ascertain people’s attitudes and investigate their behavioral responses toward 3R practices. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey, observations, interviews and the project’s document review. A waste audit and waste composition analysis was carried out to assess waste flows and actual waste management behaviors and measure the change in the recycling rate.
Findings
3R waste management initiatives had positive effects on people’s attitudes about resources, waste management and consciousness of the need to avoid waste, but these initiatives did not affect recycling and waste management behavior. A voluntary approach-only cannot bring about behavioral change. Incentive measures showed a greater positive effect on waste reduction to landfills. Nevertheless, the demonstration projects helped to increase the overall campus recycling from 10 to 12 per cent.
Originality/value
This paper addresses a literature gap about the 3R attitudes and resulting behavior as part of campus sustainability of higher education institutions in a developing country. The authors’ results revealed hurdles to be overcome and presents results that can be compared to behavioral responses of people from other developed countries. These findings can be used as a guide for higher education institution’s policy-makers, as they indicate that voluntary instruments alone will not yield effective results, and other mechanisms that have an impact on people's behavior are required.
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T.V.S. Sekhar, R. Sivakumar and T.V.R. Ravi Kumar
To study the steady viscous incompressible electrically conducting fluid flow past a circular cylinder under the influence of an external magnetic field at high Reynolds numbers …
Abstract
Purpose
To study the steady viscous incompressible electrically conducting fluid flow past a circular cylinder under the influence of an external magnetic field at high Reynolds numbers (Re).
Design/methodology/approach
The finite difference method is applied to solve the governing non‐linear Navier‐Stokes equations. First order upwind difference scheme is applied to the convective terms. The multigrid method with coarse grid correction is used to enhance the convergence rate. The defect correction technique is employed to achieve the second order accuracy.
Findings
A non‐monotonic behavior in separation angle when N≥5 and separation length when N≥3 is found with the increase of external magnetic field. The drag coefficient is found to increase with increase of N. The pressure drag coefficient, total drag coefficient and rear pressure are found to exhibit a linear dependence with N0.5. The pressure Poisson equation is solved to find pressure fields in the flow region. It is found that the upstream base pressure increases with increase of external magnetic field while the downstream base pressure decreases with the increase of the external magnetic field.
Originality/value
The non‐monotonic behaviors in the separation angle and separation length at high Re are explained through pressure fields which are found first time for this problem. The linear dependence of the pressure drag coefficient, total drag coefficient and the pressure at rear stagnation point with N0.5 is in agreement with experimental findings.
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