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1 – 10 of over 212000Xinya Yang, Qunyi Wei and Xiaodong Peng
The purpose of this article is to present a subsection circulatory management (SCM) model of Library 2.0. The design idea of Library 2.0 system architecture is to be…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to present a subsection circulatory management (SCM) model of Library 2.0. The design idea of Library 2.0 system architecture is to be illustrated and a five‐tier model of service‐oriented architecture (SOA) is to be put forward and analyzed.
Design/methodology/approach
The SOA model conforms to the desires of Library 2.0. Libraries require integration of literature resources, knowledge services and operations management and together all these integrations must be based on the user service. The realization of the concept and technology of Library 2.0 is similar with the SOA model.
Findings
Current library management systems (LMS) remain at the era of Library 1.0, which focused on literature management. The new design principles are aiming to manage library resources much better. Library 2.0 must break through the current framework, and adopt a multilayer structure, user‐centered and service‐oriented system architecture to integrate the resources, the services and managements. Amongst other things, Library 2.0 should utilize the multilayer architecture based on the module mode, improve the flexibility and adaptability of modern management systems, both in system configuration and operational management.
Originality/value
The SOA model is applied in Library 2.0 for the first time and is divided into five tiers – hardware tier, system tier, data tier, operation management tier and knowledge service tier. According to the architecture, three application systems – LMS based on librarians, knowledge service system based on patrons, and knowledge search engine, are designed.
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Lijun Zeng, Xiaoxia Yao, Juanjuan Liu and Qiang Zhu
The purpose of this paper is to provide a detailed overview of the China Academic Library and Information system (CALIS) document supply service platform (CDSSP) – its…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide a detailed overview of the China Academic Library and Information system (CALIS) document supply service platform (CDSSP) – its historical development, network structure and future development plans – and discuss how its members make use of and benefit from its various components.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors provide a first-person account based on their professional positions at the CALIS Administrative Center.
Findings
CDSSP comprises five application systems including a unified authentication system, Saas-based interlibrary loan (ILL) and document delivery (DD) service system, ILL central scheduling and settlement system, File Transfer Protocol (FTP) service system and a service integration interface system. These systems work together to meet the needs of member libraries, other information service institutions, and their end users. CDSSP is widely used by more than 1,100 libraries based on a cloud service strategy. Each year more than 100,000 ILL and DD transactions are processed by this platform.
Originality/value
The development of CDSSP makes it becomes true for CALIS to provide one stop information retrieval and supply service. At the same time, it promotes the resource sharing among member libraries to a great degree.
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The purpose of this paper is to find if there is an existing trade‐off between service quality and cost when strategies of low‐cost accommodation and uncompromised…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to find if there is an existing trade‐off between service quality and cost when strategies of low‐cost accommodation and uncompromised reduction are implemented.
Design/methodology/approach
The model is designed on hand system dynamics, using Vensim™ software. It consists of a situation where no side effects are interrupting the result. The modeled service system is designed as two parts: a situation where five sorts of customer variables are introduced, continued by a situation where low‐cost accommodation and uncompromised reduction change the system.
Findings
There is no typical trade‐off pattern between service quality and cost when implementing Frei's two solutions. Rather, the findings resulted in an almost conform line of quality curve so that the promotion of Frei's solutions can be interpreted as the result of cost reduction.
Research limitations/implications
Owing to the use of simulation tools, it is still critical whether the result holds in the real world where various influences to the service system can exist.
Originality/value
There are various papers regarding service quality and cost but not that much about managerial tools used in a service system. Aside from many statistically proofed papers, this paper uses system dynamics to simulate certain managerial tools for service when implemented into a system.
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Abstract
Service industry is recognized as being an important industry in Hong Kong and continues to support manufacturing bases in China and other low cost manufacturing countries. However, there is a lack of research on the modelling and analysis of service industry appropriate to Hong Kong’s environment. In this paper, the workflow of a service support department is illustrated using system dynamics modelling approach. The fundamental purpose of system dynamics (SD) is to analyze the information‐feedback of system behaviour as well as to develop mathematical models of dynamic interrelationships. A computer simulation system is used to explore the interactions making experimental system design possible. A model is proposed to simulate the behaviour of this department and to increase the efficiency. The analysis indicates that in order to decrease the turnover time of providing engineering service, it is necessary to make a strategic change to develop new culture and operation structure. The experience demonstrates that system dynamics is a practical approach to identify the relationship between the different service processes and improve the operation efficiency.
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Matt Eppinette, R. Anthony Inman and Roger Alan Pick
Argues that expert systems are a useful tool in implementing quality customer service. Examines seven steps of customer service and illustrates how expert systems can…
Abstract
Argues that expert systems are a useful tool in implementing quality customer service. Examines seven steps of customer service and illustrates how expert systems can support each step. Draws on the literature in the field to cite commercial installations of expert systems to support quality customer service.
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Orlando Troisi, Anna Visvizi and Mara Grimaldi
The purpose of this paper is to explore the emergence of innovation in smart service systems to conceptualize how actor’s relationships through technology-enabled…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the emergence of innovation in smart service systems to conceptualize how actor’s relationships through technology-enabled interactions can give birth to novel technologies, processes, strategies and value. The objectives of the study are: to detect the different enablers that activate innovation in smart service systems; and to explore how these can lead dynamically to the emergence of different innovation patterns.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical research adopts an approach based on constructivist grounded theory, performed through observation and semi-structured interviews to investigate the development of innovation in the Italian CTNA (Italian acronym of National Cluster for Aerospace Technology).
Findings
The identification and re-elaboration of the novelties that emerged from the analysis of the Cluster allow the elaboration of a diagram that classifies five different shades of innovation, introduced through some related theoretical propositions: technological; process; business model and data-driven; social and eco-sustainable; and practice-based.
Originality/value
The paper embraces a synthesis view that detects the enabling structural and systems dimensions for innovation (the “what”) and the way in which these can be combined to create new technologies, resources, values and social rules (the “how” dimension). The classification of five different kinds of innovation can contribute to enrich extant research on value co-creation and innovation and can shed light on how given technologies and relational strategies can produce varied innovation outcomes according to the diverse stakeholders engaged.
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Roderick J. Brodie, Kumar Rakesh Ranjan, Martie-louise Verreynne, Yawei Jiang and Josephine Previte
The COVID-19 pandemic has created a crisis for healthcare systems worldwide. There have been significant challenges to managing public and private health care and related…
Abstract
Purpose
The COVID-19 pandemic has created a crisis for healthcare systems worldwide. There have been significant challenges to managing public and private health care and related services systems’ capacity to cope with testing, treatment and containment of the virus. Drawing on the foundational research by Frow et al. (2019), the paper explores how adopting a service ecosystem perspective provides insight into the complexity of healthcare systems during times of extreme stress and uncertainty.
Design/methodology/approach
A healthcare framework based on a review of the service ecosystem literature is developed, and the COVID-19 crisis in Australia provides an illustrative case.
Findings
The study demonstrates how the service ecosystem perspective provides new insight into the dynamics and multilayered nature of a healthcare system during a pandemic. Three propositions are developed that offer directions for future research and managerial applications.
Practical implications
The research provides an understanding of the relevance of managerial flexibility, innovation, learning and knowledge sharing, which offers opportunities leading to greater resilience in the healthcare system. In particular, the research addresses how service providers in the service ecosystem learn from this pandemic to inform future practices.
Originality/value
The service ecosystem perspective for health care offers fresh thinking and an understanding of how a shared worldview, institutional practices and supportive and disruptive factors influence the systems’ overall well-being during a crisis such as COVID-19.
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Immanuel Ovemeso Umukoro and Mutawakilu Adisa Tiamiyu
This paper sought to validate a proposed e-service use model that takes into account system's environment and user factors as plausible determinants of an information…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper sought to validate a proposed e-service use model that takes into account system's environment and user factors as plausible determinants of an information system's (IS) use that are not accounted for by previous IS use models. The aim is to establish the applicability of the model for e-services and IS design, implementation and use.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopts a quantitative approach to data collection and analysis. Using a systematic multi-stage random sampling, data were collected from 400 university e-library users and analysed using regression analysis to test the hypothesised relationships.
Findings
Internal system factors (particularly service quality), user satisfaction, e-service environment factors and user factors (gender, programme of study, level of study and computer/IT self-efficacy) predicted the use of e-services. These findings are partly similar to and partly different from those of the earlier studies, suggesting that more studies are needed to test the comprehensive model of e-services’ use.
Research limitations/implications
This is a replicated study and as such made use of a similar population. These findings, therefore, cannot be generalised to other organisations with users of different demographic profiles.
Practical implications
First, the use of the services provided through an IS is predicted by factors other than user satisfaction, system, service and information qualities. Second, system administrators, designers, library administrators and managers must ensure that these factors are considered during the design, implementation and use of ISs.
Social implications
The paper argues for the need to design e-services and ISs with consideration for user attributes that may lead to social exclusion if not considered. This is because the environment where an IS is hosted can be a driver of e-services use, especially if management provides the enabling environment in terms of optimal staffing, training, user support and periodic e-service evaluation.
Originality/value
This paper extends research effort in understanding the predictors of use of ISs beyond the traditional system's attributes (information, service and system qualities) to include system environment and user factors.
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Ismail Karabas and Jeff Joireman
Non-voluntary tipping (e.g. automatic gratuity) has received growing attention in the service industry. Existing research suggests customers respond unfavorably to…
Abstract
Purpose
Non-voluntary tipping (e.g. automatic gratuity) has received growing attention in the service industry. Existing research suggests customers respond unfavorably to non-voluntary tipping, yet little research has examined why. The current study aims to address this question, with particular interest in response to non-voluntary tipping under high-quality service.
Design/methodology/approach
Two scenario-based experiments tested the proposed hypotheses in between-participants design using ANOVA, hierarchical regression and PROCESS.
Findings
Study 1 showed that non-voluntary tipping resulted in higher negative emotions, which led to lower return intentions. Surprisingly, the negative effect of non-voluntary tipping was as strong (or stronger) under high (vs low) quality service. To understand this counterintuitive effect, Study 2 developed and tested two competing process models (i.e. blocked vengeance vs blocked gratitude). Supporting the blocked gratitude model, results revealed that non-voluntary tipping hinders customers’ ability to reward service employees, undermining positive emotions and lowering return intentions.
Research limitations/implications
Current work was conducted in two settings using two scenario-based experiments. Hence, additional settings with non-scenario-based studies are encouraged.
Practical implications
The present work cautions managers considering a move to non-voluntary tipping to be aware of its negative effects, especially when the service quality is high. The blocked gratitude model suggests that managers should clarify methods available for customers who wish to reward good service.
Originality/value
This paper is the first to examine customer response to non-voluntary tipping under different levels of service quality and the underlying emotional mechanisms.
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