Anita Ranjan Singh and Nitin Pangarkar
This paper aimed to study business model innovation by a work-integration social enterprise (WISE). Specifically, the study investigated how the organization developed novel value…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aimed to study business model innovation by a work-integration social enterprise (WISE). Specifically, the study investigated how the organization developed novel value propositions and created and delivered value for multiple stakeholders.
Design/methodology/approach
An in-depth qualitative study was conducted at Foreword, a for-profit organization that uses persons with disabilities, mental health conditions and special needs. Data was drawn from semi-structured interviews with stakeholders of the organization and several secondary information sources.
Findings
The authors’ inductive analysis revealed the existence of an innovative and powerful business model that is integrated by the organization’s overarching social mission and anchors its ability to deal with multiple conflicting logics such as economic, social, ecological sustainability and community development, to co-create value with and for multiple stakeholders.
Research limitations/implications
The study underscores the need for business model innovation through enhancing value creation for multiple stakeholders for for-profit WISEs. Since the analysis and resulting model in the study are based on a single organization in a geographically small, affluent country with a hands-on government, they may need to be modified before applying in other contexts.
Practical implications
The study identifies several pointers for other social enterprises – specifically the need for managers to build business models appropriate for their organizational and environmental contexts.
Originality/value
The study’s originality stems from the adoption of a stakeholder lens to examine business model innovation. It also proposes an integrative conceptual model of the antecedents and outcomes of business model innovation.
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This study investigates the direct influence of ambidextrous leadership on employees’ innovation behaviour, the mediating role of innovative self-efficacy and harmonious work…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the direct influence of ambidextrous leadership on employees’ innovation behaviour, the mediating role of innovative self-efficacy and harmonious work passion, and the moderating role of Zhong-Yong thinking.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a series of questionnaire surveys to collect data in three time periods and from multiple sources; 332 supervisor–subordinate matched samples were obtained. The hypothesised relationships were tested using structural equation modelling and ProClin.
Findings
Ambidextrous leadership is positively associated with employees’ innovation behaviour, while innovative self-efficacy and harmonious work passion play mediating roles. The analysis further confirms that innovative self-efficacy and harmonious work passion play a chained double-mediating role between ambidextrous leadership and employees’ innovation behaviour, while Zhong-Yong thinking plays moderating roles between ambidextrous leadership and innovative self-efficacy and between ambidextrous leadership and harmonious work passion.
Originality/value
This study demonstrates the influence of ambidextrous leadership on employees’ innovation behaviour, specifically the role of ambidextrous leadership, and extends the relationship’s theoretical foundation. It is also expected to provide inspiration and serve as a reference for local Chinese management.
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Bee-Lia Chua, Seongseop (Sam) Kim, Frank Badu-Baiden, Rachel Yuen May Yong, Bona Kim, Ermias Kifle Gedecho and Heesup Han
This study elucidated the connections among the influence of Singaporean hawkers, local gastronomy involvement, and the three dimensions of authenticity (objective, constructive…
Abstract
Purpose
This study elucidated the connections among the influence of Singaporean hawkers, local gastronomy involvement, and the three dimensions of authenticity (objective, constructive, and existential). Furthermore, it investigates how personal nostalgia affects the cultural identity of hawkers.
Design/methodology/approach
A self-administered questionnaire was created to assess hawker influence, gastronomy involvement, authenticity, personal nostalgia, and hawker cultural identity. Survey data was gathered from 401 Singapore residents aged 18 and older.
Findings
Results of the structural equation modeling revealed various significant aspects of hawker influence, including physical and social environments, uniqueness and cultural significance, and hygiene and food safety. Hawker influence and local gastronomy contributed to objective authenticity, which, in turn, affected constructive and existential authenticity, ultimately shaping personal nostalgia and hawker cultural identity.
Practical implications
The study offers guidance for stakeholders in sustaining hawker culture, emphasizing authenticity’s role and the importance of nostalgia in identity formation. By aligning with the progressive nature of Singapore, these implications aim to ensure the continued thriving of this invaluable legacy for generations to come.
Originality/value
The study affirms relationships between hawker influence, local gastronomy involvement, and authenticity constructs. It emphasizes the hawker’s role and gastronomy involvement in influencing individuals’ perceived authenticity and accentuates the potential for authenticity in strengthening national branding.
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Gehan Wishwajith Premathilake, Hongxiu Li, Chenglong Li, Yong Liu and Shengnan Han
Humanoid social robots (HSRs) are an innovative technology revitalizing various service sectors, such as the hospitality industry. However, limited research has explored how…
Abstract
Purpose
Humanoid social robots (HSRs) are an innovative technology revitalizing various service sectors, such as the hospitality industry. However, limited research has explored how anthropomorphic features of HSRs influence user satisfaction with the services delivered by HSRs. To address this, a research model was proposed to evaluate how three distinct anthropomorphic features: appearance, voice and response, impact the perceived values (i.e. utilitarian, social and hedonic values) of HSRs, which, in turn, influence user satisfaction.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from an online survey of hotel customers was utilized to test the research model (N = 509).
Findings
The results indicated that appearance, voice, and response affect perceived utilitarian, hedonic and social values differently. The response feature of HSRs demonstrated the strongest impact on perceived utilitarian, social and hedonic values. In addition, voice affected all three perceived values, while appearance only affected perceived utilitarian and social values. Furthermore, perceived utilitarian, hedonic and social values showed positive impacts on user satisfaction, with hedonic value being the most influential factor.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature on HSRs and anthropomorphism by explaining how different anthropomorphic features affect users’ value perceptions and user satisfaction with HSR services by utilizing the stimulus-organism-response (SOR) framework.
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Heesup Han, Nancy Grace Baah, Seongseop (Sam) Kim, Xiaoting Chi and Inyoung Jung
Hospitality and tourism businesses often face environmental criticism as they rely heavily on natural resources to operate. Therefore, as a recent trend, hospitality companies are…
Abstract
Purpose
Hospitality and tourism businesses often face environmental criticism as they rely heavily on natural resources to operate. Therefore, as a recent trend, hospitality companies are trying to adopt an environmentally friendly approach. Thus, this study sought to investigate the determinants of employee intention to engage in environmentally responsible actions in the workplace, drawing on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the value-belief norm (VBN) theory.
Design/methodology/approach
This study employed the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to discover sufficient configurations for predicting employees’ intentions.
Findings
The result has provided recipes with an efficient combination of factors that can influence employees’ intention to undertake environmentally responsible behaviors.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the body of knowledge regarding sustainable behavior among employees and sustainability in the travel and hospitality sector. The findings of this research also provide managers and operators of sustainable hospitality businesses with guidance on how to enhance their staff members' environmentally friendly behaviors at work.
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Yong H. Kim, Bochen Li, Hyun-Han Shin and Wenfeng Wu
It is documented that companies and government agencies in the USA invest more in the fourth fiscal quarter without having higher investment opportunities. While previous studies…
Abstract
Purpose
It is documented that companies and government agencies in the USA invest more in the fourth fiscal quarter without having higher investment opportunities. While previous studies focus on the agency conflicts and information asymmetry within organizations, this study is motivated by Scharfstein and Stein's (2000) two-tiered agency model and aims to examine how firms' external business environment affects the “fourth quarter effect.”
Design/methodology/approach
The authors implement this study in a sample of 41 countries and observe similar seasonality in firm investment as documented in the US market.
Findings
More importantly, using country characteristics, this study finds that firms from countries with better investor rights and protection, and more developed financial markets show less severe over-investment in the fourth fiscal quarter.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the literature of law and finance, and the internal capital market, by investigating the quarterly investment patterns of firms from 41 countries. The authors find that similar to the results in earlier studies on the US market, firms in the global market increase their capital expenditure in the fourth fiscal quarter, indicating that the internal agency conflicts between the headquarters and divisional managers are widespread across the world. The authors also find that firms that operate in countries with higher investor rights and protection, and more developed financial markets, tend to show less severe “fourth quarter effect”.
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This paper aims to investigate how institutional entrepreneurs in a mature field acquire different forms of legitimacy through various narrative strategies, as revealed by a…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate how institutional entrepreneurs in a mature field acquire different forms of legitimacy through various narrative strategies, as revealed by a historical analysis of the Late Qing Dynasty of China. Specifically, the study seeks to illuminate the narrative techniques employed by these entrepreneurs to build multi-level legitimacies for their new systems during the national crises of the late 19th century.
Design/methodology/approach
This study employs a qualitative approach based on three historical case studies of Westernization, namely advocates, reformists and revolutionaries during the Late Qing Dynasty of China. It delves into the institutional entrepreneurial activities of these groups, investigating how they navigated and influenced their sociopolitical context through narrative strategies.
Findings
The findings reveal that institutional entrepreneurs utilize various narrative techniques to build legitimacy. These include (1) modifying and disseminating narratives at the proper time, (2) ascribing their proposed system to cultural tradition by reinterpreting classical works and (3) offering understandable and concrete promises to stakeholders. The study also identifies an evolving pattern of narratives underpinned by mutual learning and continuous iteration among different factions of institutional entrepreneurs.
Originality/value
This paper adds new insights to the literature on institutional entrepreneurs and, more broadly, to institutional research literature by advancing our understanding of the discursive dynamics underlying institutional changes. It unveils the complex interplay of narrative techniques and legitimacy building in the context of societal and institutional upheaval, providing a nuanced understanding of the role of narratives in institutional entrepreneurship.
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Richard C. Hoffman and Frank Shipper
The purpose of this teaching case is to introduce students to an alternative business model as practiced by the Haier Group, a Chinese company, and how that model was used to turn…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this teaching case is to introduce students to an alternative business model as practiced by the Haier Group, a Chinese company, and how that model was used to turn around an acquired company in the United States of America (USA). The explicit teaching objectives are threefold. First, the case provides insights into Haier’s unique employee-centered culture. Second, Haier’s efforts to transfer parts of its culture to the newly acquired General Electric (GE) Appliance Division are discussed. Third, to improve the performance of the acquired division, Haier had to invest in people, equipment and new product technology.
Design/methodology/approach
This case is based on both primary and secondary research. The authors interviewed the chief executive officer. In addition, one of the authors spent a week in China observing and participating in meetings at the Haier Group. Both before and after the interviews, the authors searched both print and electronic media for additional information.
Findings
The case describes how Haier, a large Chinese appliance manufacturer, learned from its own difficult growth in building an employee- and client-driven organization. Haier was able to transfer key aspects of its culture, management practices and technology to help turnaround the well-known American appliance brand GE. The results of the first five years have been financially successful and investment in new product technology (Smart Home) bodes well for the future.
Research limitations/implications
This case represents only one successful turnaround of one acquisition, GE Appliances, by the Haier Group in the USA. Whether the changes introduced would work with other acquisitions in other countries is unknown. Thus, additional follow-up research needs to be done.
Practical implications
This case brings into question the traditional, hierarchical, bureaucratic, spreadsheet-driven model of management that is the predominant model taught and practiced in the USA. Others, such as Gary Hamel and Michele Zanini, have also raised the same question. This case introduces readers to another way and is just one more example of how managers who practice a high engagement style and share financial success with workers can outperform those who do not.
Social implications
This case documents the introduction of nontraditional management and human resource management practices by a foreign, Chinese company, into what at one time had been a highly regarded division of a traditional major American corporation. GE had become known for strident labor-management relationships. The employees’ acceptance of the alternative approach to management was in doubt prior to the acquisition, but over the past five years, the labor–management relationship appears to have improved as well as the profitability of the division.
Originality/value
Although the acquisition of the GE Appliance Division by the Haier Group has been widely reported in the press, knowledge of how the acquisition was successfully turned around from a money-losing GE Division to a profitable and growing portion of the Haier Group has been largely ignored in both the popular press and in instructional material for the classroom. This case study seeks to ameliorate the latter deficiency.
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It is generally agreed that sport development in South Korea has shown a stepwise process of its policy sector formation from elite sport, sport for all, sport industry, and…
Abstract
It is generally agreed that sport development in South Korea has shown a stepwise process of its policy sector formation from elite sport, sport for all, sport industry, and school sport since the 1960s. This chapter aims to examine the historical and institutional features of sport development in South Korea. The primary focus is given to developing conceptual understandings of the identified features of sport development since the governmental involvement in sport development was initiated in the early 1960s. The organizing aspects of national sport policy are strategically investigated to provide analytical resources for mapping the historical and institutional features of sport development. The notion of policy paradigm is utilized to articulate a series of stepwise formation of sport policy subfields. Finally, paradigm shifts in sport policy are discussed for their congruence with the nation's broader political and economic contexts: industrialization, democratization, and globalization.
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Jiawei Liu, Zi Xiong, Yi Jiang, Yongqiang Ma, Wei Lu, Yong Huang and Qikai Cheng
Fine-tuning pre-trained language models (PLMs), e.g. SciBERT, generally require large numbers of annotated data to achieve state-of-the-art performance on a range of NLP tasks in…
Abstract
Purpose
Fine-tuning pre-trained language models (PLMs), e.g. SciBERT, generally require large numbers of annotated data to achieve state-of-the-art performance on a range of NLP tasks in the scientific domain. However, obtaining fine-tuning data for scientific NLP tasks is still challenging and expensive. In this paper, the authors propose the mix prompt tuning (MPT), which is a semi-supervised method aiming to alleviate the dependence on annotated data and improve the performance of multi-granularity academic function recognition tasks.
Design/methodology/approach
Specifically, the proposed method provides multi-perspective representations by combining manually designed prompt templates with automatically learned continuous prompt templates to help the given academic function recognition task take full advantage of knowledge in PLMs. Based on these prompt templates and the fine-tuned PLM, a large number of pseudo labels are assigned to the unlabelled examples. Finally, the authors further fine-tune the PLM using the pseudo training set. The authors evaluate the method on three academic function recognition tasks of different granularity including the citation function, the abstract sentence function and the keyword function, with data sets from the computer science domain and the biomedical domain.
Findings
Extensive experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the method and statistically significant improvements against strong baselines. In particular, it achieves an average increase of 5% in Macro-F1 score compared with fine-tuning, and 6% in Macro-F1 score compared with other semi-supervised methods under low-resource settings.
Originality/value
In addition, MPT is a general method that can be easily applied to other low-resource scientific classification tasks.