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Recent research suggests that the interest in process-based single-case studies is increasing in business-to-business (B2B) marketing. This paper aims to discuss research validity issues and dilemmas encountered by process-based single-case researchers in B2B marketing.

This is a methodology paper that builds on an integration of experiences, ideas and literature.

In the paper, three dilemmas are suggested that researchers need to deal with in process-based single-case research. These relate to the casing process: crafting the case, communicating the case and describing the process of the study. Furthermore, process validation is suggested as a research quality concept concerned with how these dilemmas are handled.

Based on the notion of process validation, the authors provide suggestions for how casing, as a process-based single-case approach, can be conveyed and advanced in its own right.

This study can be used to convey insights that can help new and experienced researchers in conducting single-case studies in B2B.

Coping with issues of research quality in B2B marketing is of relevance to researchers dealing with process-based single-case research and process validation issues, as well as to journal reviewers evaluating the qualities of process-based single-case research.

Although there are several often-used case research methods for teaching purposes, these cannot be used to conduct scientific research into business ethics, perhaps owing to criticism levelled against it. The precise aim of this work is to expound and argue for its use within the framework of scientific hypothetical-deductive methodology.

The opportunities offered by this methodological approach, both from an inductive (Eisenhardt, 1989; Dyer and Wilkins, 1991) and a deductive perspective (Yin, 1993; Carson et al., 2000), have been wasted, creating a need for scientific contributions within this area; hence, this study. It was carried on a theoretical approach of the use of single case applied to corporate management based on religion and spirituality inclusion.

The results obtained indicate that the single-case research method makes it possible to put forward alternative hypotheses to the dominant hypothesis, making contributions to the theory. Concretely, the scientific legitimacy of its use is justified by what it has been called “possibilistic hypothesis” for what it is not necessary to collect a large data or make an empiric research.

In the field of business ethics, these hypotheses (possibilistics) make alternatives stand out that widen the moral responsibility of decision-makers. It implies an open mind for decision-makers and rigorous arguments using just a single case. Reinforce and make them easier based on moral imagination improvement.

The decision process is complex, but in this rich method, the single-case study could permit establishing rigorous and robust decisions easily. The case study is not used widely for management, but this perspective could enrich and increase its use.

The purpose of this paper is to review the existing literature on empirical research in lean manufacturing (LM). It provides a critical assessment of empirical research methodology of 178 research articles published from 1990 to 2009.

The article reviewed a set of 178 empirical research articles in LM research with respect to empirical research design and its related facets. The 236 empirical research articles which are published in 70 journals during 1990-2009 are collected from four major management science publishers, namely, Emerald Online, Science Direct, Springer Link and Taylor & Francis. In total 178 research articles published in 24 journals are selected for critical review of empirical research methodology in LM. The approach for the critical review of 178 empirical research articles in LM is based on empirical research approach given by Flynn et al. (1990). The critical review discusses the current status of empirical research in LM and future directions.

It is concluded from the analysis of the results that: the number of empirical research articles in LM is increasing at a faster pace than ever before; theory building and theory verification articles are equally advanced; the researchers have also unexplored various aspects of empirical research such as importance of triangulation of data, alternate research designs other than survey and case studies; contextual focus is mostly on the manufacturing industry; more focus required on other aspects of empirical research such as collecting the samples from developing and undeveloped countries, larger sample size, longitudinal data collection methods. Finally, it concludes that there is a need of LM frameworks, which gives the stepwise process to remove all kinds of wastes from any organization.

To the knowledge of the authors, it is the first of its kind attempt to critically review the empirical research articles in LM. The review analysis entirely focussed on descriptive statistics of empirical research in LM. The sample size is one of the unique features of this research as the number of shortlisted articles is 178 in 24 journals published over a time span of 20 years (1990-2009).

The purpose of this purpose is to understand the territorial management process behind the implementation and anchoring of a foreign direct investment (FDI) project in an emerging country during its project life cycle. This research contributes to the “strategy as practice” and “triple helix” research fields.

The authors use qualitative and single-case research with secondary public sources and confirmatory interviews. The case is related to the process of implementing and anchoring a joint venture in the semiconductor industry between a South Korean company and a Brazilian company. The relations between the university, the companies and the government are analyzed in terms of supporting territorial attractiveness.

Viewing the attraction of FDI in collaborative terms provides new empirical evidence and explanations of the phenomenon. From this single-case study, the authors can offer the following research propositions, which can be further developed and tested: P1 – the use of a triple helix strategy is an attractive factor when applying an exogenous investment; P2: the entrepreneurial university is an attractive factor when applying an exogenous investment; and P3: contemporary public policies must be involved in complex networks with the community to achieve success when locating and anchoring an exogenous investment.

One of the main limitations is linked to the secondary data sources for the reconstruction of the case narrative. Secondary data sources omit important details when reporting events. The authors tried to overcome this limitation by using multiple sources and providing different types and breadth of details; for the triangulation stage, the authors held interviews to confirm the data collected in the newspapers and to look for details that could have passed unnoticed. Additionally, it should be noted that the confirmatory interviews were retrospective. An intensive interview promotes the clarification of each participant’s interpretation of his or her own experience and therefore represents a very useful method for interpretative research. However, the limitation is that between the experience and the date of the interviews, the interviewee undergoes many other experiences, learning and contexts that modify his or her point of view and way of interpreting what happened in the past. Finally, in this study, the authors have chosen a “Gioia method” template rather than an “Eisenhardt” template (Langley and Abdallah, 2011) and one impression may be the result of a limitation of this template, as pointed out by Langley and Abdallah (2011) “This template has limitations too. One potential limitation that seems, however, not to have hindered these researchers concerns the challenge of convincing readers about the transferability and relevance of the findings given the propensity to study single cases.” In an interpretive research, it is argued that it is the depth of contextual detail in a case study that provides the understanding necessary for a reader to judge whether the theoretical implication is pertinent.

This paper presents a case of success in attracting FDI in emerging countries. The authors emphasize the mechanisms, agreements and difficulties experienced by the government and the local community involved in the management process for the implementation and anchoring of an FDI project. This study offers a valuable resource for FDI attraction for public sector managers and society members. The management of the implementation process of an FDI project life cycle leads to a “territorial triple helix” model that can be used by emerging countries to promote sustainable economic development in high-tech industries. By choosing the theoretical choice of narrative, the authors have a better understanding of the process for anchoring FDI because the authors can identify key events and present information on how territories develop their policies.

The example of the Brazilian experience in the management of the FDI anchor of the semiconductor industry implies a series of learning for the emerging economies, particularly in terms of the possibility to discover new features to increase the attractiveness of their FDIs. Usually when the authors think about or consult the literature on attracting and anchoring FDI projects, the authors find that countries are concerned about market size, trade openness or interest rate data. However, in the case of HT Micron, an unknown or untouched criterion can be added: the collaboration between the agents of society.

The present research challenges the linear views of project life and displays a successful project that follows a quite different path. This study is original because it provides public sector managers and society members with a valuable resource for FDI implementation and anchoring. Usually when the authors think about or consult the literature on attracting and anchoring FDI projects, the authors find that countries are concerned about market size, trade openness or interest rate data. However, in the HT Micron case, it is possible to add an unknown or untouched criterion: the collaboration between agents of society.

The purpose of this paper is to explore how knowledge management systems can support the adoption of the servitization strategy in a manufacturing firm.

In order to reach the paper aim, an inductive single-case study has been adopted. The analysis focuses on the IBM Corporation.

In spite of the paucity of studies that simultaneously address both servitization and knowledge management topics, the case study findings show five connections points between the two streams of research, proving not only that they are closely connected to each other, but also how the adoption of a good knowledge management system can facilitate the implementation of a servitization strategy.

As far as the adoption of a single-case study is concerned, this could create biases that can affect the final product in terms of reliability, validity, and generalizability. However, as stated by Erickson (1986), the general lies in the particular and, as argued by Flyvbjerg (2006), the strength of a single example is underestimated in its contribution to scientific progress. Thus, even though this paper is based on a single-case study, it is reasonable to believe that it could be considered as a representative case of companies of the time and its findings sufficiently generalizable.

Case study findings could guide managers towards understanding if their knowledge management tools and practices are appropriate, or if they need to be modified in order to successfully implement the servitization strategy adopted.

This study represents the first attempt to fill the paucity of studies contemporaneously addressing both servitization and knowledge management topics, and could be used as a pilot case for future research works.

This study aims to focus on implementing frugal innovation and its principles by social entrepreneurs to face the challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research paper discusses the case of an Indian social entrepreneur who works for menstrual health and hygiene of unprivileged and rural women in India. The social entrepreneur’s constant endeavor is to create an ecosystem to ensure rural women’s economic and social upliftment through financial inclusion and livelihood training. When faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, the social entrepreneur re-purposed the manufacturing process to produce masks that were the need of the hour.

The research paper is qualitative and follows an inductive case study approach. The underlying principles of frugal innovation are established through content analysis of the social entrepreneur’s interviews and her team members.

The study discusses how adversity can be an opportunity for social entrepreneurs by implementing frugal innovation principles, i.e. re-use, re-purpose, re-combine and rapidity, in times of crisis.

One of the major limitations of this study is that it is based on a single case study, as, in the current scenario, this case appeared to be the most suitable one. There is no way to generalize the assumptions of this model. Researchers will have to study the phenomena of frugal innovation in adversity across multiple cases in the future. Also, the study is based on a single emerging economy, i.e. India. Further research may be carried out with such cases from other countries.

The proposition of this research paper will help new and established social entrepreneurs understand that the four principles of frugal innovation and their practical application by a social entrepreneur. This will act as a guiding light for the present and future entrepreneurs regarding how one can respond to a crisis. This will also help advance our understanding of the distinct ways in which social entrepreneurs’ activities can help society in times of crisis. The findings of this research paper provide timely implications for social entrepreneurs. To respond efficiently to various crises, it is important to consider its effect on social entrepreneurship.

The research paper shows that the social enterprise has implemented frugal innovation principles to manufacture the COVID-19 protection items supplied through existing supply chain networks. Also, a social entrepreneur is not intimidated by the sudden changes in the business environment; instead, they look at the situation as an opportunity to do something new. They are always willing to take the risk to innovate a solution that will address people’s problems. frugal innovation, due to its highly collaborative nature and its ability to make the most from limited resources, is the only way social entrepreneurs can create an inclusive, secure and sustainable future.

There are several challenges in social entrepreneurship, especially in emerging economies like India. During the pandemic, availability of resources was the major challenge, due to which social entrepreneurs had to find solutions through frugal innovation. This paper provides the practical application of the four principles of frugal innovation implemented by a social enterprise to manufacture and supply Covid protection items. It also presents the practical and managerial implications of the principles of frugal innovation by social entrepreneurs in low resource settings.

The social exclusion of people with dementia is a problem. Older men with dementia in nursing homes are at considerable risk of social exclusion due to factors associated with age, gender, mental health status and this setting. It is not known whether older men in this situation experience it as social exclusion or not. Drawing on a detailed case study from a male participant involved in a larger study on social exclusion, this paper highlights and explores masculine experiences of, and responses to, nursing home life. In this single case study it was found that social exclusion was experienced in an economic, spatial and emotional sense, and the participant aligned himself with other men in the home and masculine behaviours, perhaps to deal with that. Implications for care home practice and research are discussed. The paper concludes that more attention needs to be paid to the influence of gender and, in particular, to the different needs and experiences of older men with dementia in receipt of care generally.

This study aims to examine how case study research has been applied in the field of human resource development (HRD).

The authors examined HRD case study research by analyzing 118 refereed, empirical case study articles published between 2000 and 2020 in three Academy of HRD-sponsored journals.

Findings suggest that case studies have an established place in HRD research. The disciplinary convention has been exploratory case studies, which, to a greater extent, draw on single-case research designs. When examining the proportion of case study articles in relation to all empirical, peer-refereed publications in the journals, the authors found a slight decline in case study research publications in recent years. The results of our post hoc exploratory analysis indicate that HRD case study research that contributes to theory development by eliciting concepts and their relationships is likely to receive more scholarly attention than case studies that provide rich descriptions of the phenomenon. The results also suggest that it is rather case study’s contribution to theory than selected features of case study that attracts scholars’ attention.

The study identified several approaches to conducting case study research that have received less attention by HRD researchers. The authors encourage HRD researchers to expand their repertoire of case study approaches. The authors also provide recommendations addressing the issues of methodological self-awareness, rigor and transparency in case study research.

The meaning of Industry 4.0 has started to be outlined for the construction industry, but there is still limited knowledge on the implications for the single-family wooden house building industry. The purpose of this paper is to expand the understanding of what the fourth industrial revolution implies for the single-family wooden house industry. The paper contributes with practitioners’ view of the content and meaning of a smart single-family wooden house factory.

An exploratory multiple case study was carried out at two Swedish single-family wooden house builders, combined with a traditional literature review.

As a result of a multiple case studies, the content and meaning of a smart single-family wooden house factory was elaborated on. In total, 15 components of a smart single-family wooden house factory were identified, of which 8 corresponded to the components of Industry 4.0 as described in other sectors.

The study can be expanded to also include multi-family wooden house builders and other branches of the offsite wooden building industry.

Managers in the house-building industry who want to improve and strive for a smart single-family wooden house factory can learn from this study, get an insight of what other companies consider as important and how it relates to Industry 4.0.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is a first attempt to understand what Industry 4.0 mean and how it can be accomplished for the single-family wooden house offsite manufacturing industry.

The focus of this research is to present a case study of a small Latvian-based non-profit organization (NPO), O fonds (Oncology Foundation), and how they are an exemplar of the challenges facing NPOs in countries that do not have a strong history of NPO success. The research is supported through primary data collection of multiple interviews and correspondence with the key informant of O fonds, the CEO. These insights were supported with secondary data analysis of the history of NPOs in emerging markets, as well as the history of cancer screening in Latvia.

In order to address the gap in the existing research literature, a single firm case analysis was selected to provide the context of the study. A series of semi-structured questions focused on O fonds branding and rebranding activities were posed to the CEO of the firm. Subsequent personal interviews were conducted to analyze and interpret the original results. This primary data were linked to secondary data about the practices of O fonds, NPOs in Latvia and the roles and challenges of NPOs in emerging markets.

The analysis of the findings from the primary data collection found that O fonds' rebranding effort helped to achieve a more stable and significant place for NPOs in the healthcare sector in Latvia and of equal importance with the Latvian general public. Tangible results included more financial support from donors, with an added benefit of increased joint marketing activities with corporate donors. Furthermore, active involvement with O fonds and medical professionals resulted from the rebrand. Also, there was an increase in referral patients to O fonds so they could attempt to get these people support for cancer screening.

Questions as to issues of validity from the use of a single case study, and greater issues with a single case, single interview method are acknowledged. This potential limitation, with respect to this study, was deemed to be lessened based on the use of multiple interviews and sourcing of secondary company material with the CEO of O fonds. Further support by way of sharing of a secondary data, and organizational insights helped to address any major limitations in the research methodology, as helpful information and materials that might not have been readily available, or unavailable without this level of trust, could be obtained.

Exploring how NPOs can rebrand their firm to better meet the needs of society and be most impactful will contribute to both managerial practice and academic literature. By examining how a non-profit rebranding process occurs, in an emerging economy, and determining how effective rebranding can be utilized as a turnaround strategy, is a contribution of this research. Given the limited non-profit rebranding literature, particularly in emerging markets, this study provides exploratory insights within a new context to help propel the field of knowledge.

NPOs have been shown to play a valuable role in communities across many regions of the world as NPOs enable citizens to come together to collectively work toward a common goal with the purpose of bettering society. With respect to the focus on O fonds their aim of increasing early detection of cancer continues to rise, but more positively, the incidents of treatable cancer are also rising as the result of the former. Regrettably, this positive trend in increased cancer screening does not equate to lower mortality rates across all countries, particularly countries in emerging markets such as Latvia.

This is one of the first known studies of an NPO in the emerging market of Latvia, in general, and in the Latvian healthcare sector specifically. As there is a dearth of research in this field of study, and the fact that NPO growth is a critical component of society growth in emerging markets, there is an important contribution to be made to both practice, and society, from the findings from this research.