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Whether used for in‐plant training or for college‐based education, the case study has become a fashionable and effective means of development. It is one of the several modern ways of moving away from formal classroom instruction, of making the learning situation more active and of placing responsibility for learning on the learner. It represents a move towards more realism in management and business training, and it demonstrates the participative element in training.

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.

AI-driven product recommendation chatbots have markedly reduced operating costs and increased sales for marketers. However, previous literature has paid little attention to the effects of the personality of e-commerce chatbots. This study aimed to examine the ways that the interplay between the chatbot's and the user's personality can increase favorable product attitudes and future intentions to use the chatbot. Based on prior literature, we specifically focused on the degree of extroversion of both chatbot and user.

A total of 291 individuals participated in this study. Two different versions of chatbot were created for this study (i.e. extroversion: high vs. low). Participants self-reported their degree of extroversion. The PROCESS macro Model 1 and Model 7 with the Johnson–Neyman technique were employed to test the hypotheses.

The results showed that the high extroversion chatbot elicited greater user satisfactions and perceptions of chatbot friendliness among users with a high level of extroversion. On the contrary, the low extroversion chatbot resulted in greater user satisfactions and perceived chatbot friendliness among users with a low level of extroversion. This study further found that user satisfactions and perceived chatbot friendliness mediated the effects of the chatbot on greater intentions to use the chatbot and more favorable product attitudes.

By showing the effects of matching the personality of the chatbot and user, this study revealed that similarity-attraction effects also apply to human–chatbot interaction in e-commerce. Future studies would benefit by investigating the similarity-attraction effects in different characteristics, such as appearance, opinion and preference. This study also provides useful information for e-commerce marketers and chatbot UX/UI designers.

Alison Curtis, Joseph Matthews, Dan Haverkamp, Charles Farley, and James Michael offer their comments on the future of library automation from their perspective as vendors. This forum updates a similar symposium published four years earlier. When read in tandem, the 1985 forum and the 1989 version cover most of the same technologies (CD‐ROM, OPACs, gateways, but not expert systems and FAX) and issues (standards, co‐operation, money) but there is a difference. It is one of emphasis. In 1985 the emphasis seemed to be on the potential of new technologies to solve problems. Today the emphasis is more on the problems to be encountered and conquered if these technologies are to reach their real potential.

Before attempting to forecast the future trends and possibilities in the provision of information services for industry it is necessary first of all to consider the characteristics of present‐day industrial society and, secondly, the information needs of the industrial units upon which our present economy is based.

Representatives of five prominent library integrated system vendors—M.E.L. Jacob (OCLC), Joe Matthews (Inlex), Mike Monahan (Geac), Gene Robinson (CLSI), and Steve Salmon (Carlyle)—express their views on ethics and the marketplace. The need for ethical behavior by all sectors of the marketplace—librarians, consultants, and vendors—is emphasized and illustrated. Four sidebars are included: one addresses the need for customer data rights standards; others contain the code of ethics/practice issued by three professional organizations for consultants.

The cotton industry has seen many technological advances throughout history that have greatly decreased the number of labor hours required to produce a bale of cotton. The latest advancement is a harvesting system that replaces the harvester, boll buggy, and module builder with a single machine. This is an asset replacement decision where there are multiple assets being replaced but the old technology (the defender assets) may all have different remaining lives and optimal lifespans. The purpose of this paper is to find the optimal time to replace the multiple defender assets with a single challenger asset (the improved technology). The goal is to determine if the ages of the boll buggy and the module builder affect the replacement age of the conventional picker.

The paper extends the Perrin model to allow for multiple defender assets.

The paper finds that the supporting assets do sometimes affect the decision to replace a conventional cotton picker. If the supporting assets are newer, then the replacement decision may be delayed and if the supporting assets are older then the replacement decision may be accelerated. Field efficiency can affect the decision as well.

While the Perrin model has been used extensively, the authors believe the application to a multiple asset defender is unique. Although this type of replacement decision is not common, there could be other applications as new technology is introduced on the farm.

Public perceptions of the authenticity of social media influencers (SMIs) are a key driver of the latter's persuasiveness as brand endorsers. Despite its importance, no measurement scale currently exists for perceived authenticity of social media influencers (PASMIs). This prevents practitioners from effectively assessing consumers' perceptions of an influencer's authenticity prior to a potential partnership. To provide better guidance, this research develops and validates a scale of PASMI as well as examines the relationships between the underlying dimensions of the scale and key consumer behavior variables.

The current research consists of two studies: the first study constructs a scale; the second validates it. In Study 1, items were generated from existing scales as well as from qualitative responses. These items were revised based on feedback provided by an independent group of reviewers. Furthermore, an online survey was conducted to purify the items. In Study 2, the scale was validated with a new sample.

Results suggest that perceived SMI authenticity is a multidimensional construct consisting of sincerity, truthful endorsements, visibility, expertise and uniqueness. Each of the five dimensions has varying effects on consumers' evaluation of an SMI, willingness to follow an SMI, and intention to purchase products that SMIs recommend.

This research extends theoretical work on authenticity by developing and validating a scale as well as delving into the construct of perceived SMI authenticity. Practical implications are provided for marketers and SMIs.

The Howard Shuttering Contractors case throws considerable light on the importance which the tribunals attach to warnings before dismissing an employee. In this case the tribunal took great pains to interpret the intention of the parties to the different site agreements, and it came to the conclusion that the agreed procedure was not followed. One other matter, which must be particularly noted by employers, is that where a final warning is required, this final warning must be “a warning”, and not the actual dismissal. So that where, for example, three warnings are to be given, the third must be a “warning”. It is after the employee has misconducted himself thereafter that the employer may dismiss.

The philosophy that underpins this paper is that partnering needs the partners to set mutual objectives — these objectives are agreed upon and stipulated within a project charter. Objectives within the charter should be regularly reviewed and performance assessed. The question addressed is — can this mechanism, which has proved successful in a commercial context, assist in applying safety legislation, rules and management systems to a construction project? Also, partnering advocates an open and trusting relationship between all parties — can this ‘philosophy’ be used to assist the management of site safety? Implementing the partnering concept in the construction project environment provides an opportunity for the continuous improvement of safety performance. This paper addresses partnering as a concept and draws from examples of partnering in the UK and Hong Kong. A number of characteristics of partnering agreements have been identified that can all assist in promoting safety. These characteristics are: continuous evaluation, the project charter, mutual objectives and team building. The context in which partnering in safety can be undertaken is reviewed and a discussion takes place of how the global trend to move away from prescriptive legislation towards performance‐based legislation in the regulation of safety provides an ideal opportunity to adopt partnering as a methodology for safety improvement.