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By incorporating I4.0 technologies, the agri-food supply chain (AFSC) can become leaner, faster, more robust and greener. However, many challenges must be overcome to fully realise I4.0 in this context. Therefore, this paper aims to identify the challenges that hinder the adoption of I4.0 technologies on the development of the Lean, Agile, Resilient and Green (LARG) AFSC.

The approach adopted was to identify challenges addressed in the literature with expert opinion and Total Interpretive Structural Modelling (TISM) for adaptation. In addition, a Weighted Influence Non-linear Gauge Systems (WINGS) methodology has been developed that uses expert opinion to generate a power and influence matrix.

The results show that lack of commitment and understanding of top management (X12), lack of long term vision (X17) and lack of incentives and government support (15) are the most important challenges.

This study does not explore the effectiveness of the concluded challenges of I4.0 and their strategy to overcome them. Also, the authors relied on a limited sample size for this study, which might not cover the detailed challenges within LARG AFSC. Finally, this study lacks in future advancement of I4.0, which may further affect the challenges.

By mentioning the key challenges, this study empowers LARG AFSC organisations to build a targeted strategy for smoother I4.0 implementation.

Industry 4.0 challenges remain unexplored in LARG AFSC. This improved awareness equips managers to navigate better the potential issues and complexity that may arise when adopting I4.0 in the LARG AFSC.

The learning outcomes are as follows: to comprehend the dynamics of crisis management in the airline industry and appreciate how sudden shifts in critical human resources, like a pilot exodus, can impact an airline’s operations and its market position and image; to explore the legal and ethical considerations involved in managing employee contracts and transitions, emphasizing the complexities and responsibilities in this process; and to evaluate human resource retention strategies in a competitive market highlighting the importance of these strategies in maintaining a stable and skilled workforce.

In August 2023, Akasa Air, an emerging Indian airline barely a year old, found itself entangled in a challenging predicament due to an abrupt pilot exodus to rival Air India Express. This development resulted in significant operational setbacks for Akasa Air, notably the cancellation of over 800 flights as 43 pilots departed within weeks. In reaction, Akasa Air initiated legal proceedings against the pilots, accusing them of contract violations for not adhering to the required six-month notice period. Represented by Nora Chambers, a leading company law firm, the airline navigated a complex legal landscape, contending with both the pilots and Air India Express. The defense from Air India Express hinged on the argument that the pilots had settled their early departure through substantial bond payments, alleged to cover training expenses. This legal conflict occurred against a backdrop of broader challenges within Akasa Air, particularly concerning the viability of their business model in a fiercely competitive aviation market. The airline’s strategy, involving a significant increase in pilot salaries, mirrored industry-wide efforts to secure and retain skilled aviation personnel. The crisis at Akasa Air underscored the turbulent dynamics of the Indian aviation sector, already shaken by similar issues in other airlines like Indigo. Confronted with this critical situation, the leadership at Akasa Air was compelled to make a pivotal decision: either to overhaul their recruitment and retention policies, engage in negotiations with Air India Express or aggressively pursue legal action against any entities hiring their pilots. This strategic choice was not only vital for Akasa Air’s immediate trajectory but also for shaping its influence in the competitive Indian airline industry.

This case is ideal for Masters-level courses in Strategic Management, Human Resource Management and Aviation Management. It also fits well into executive education and professional development programs, particularly for those focused on crisis management and legal aspects of employee relations in the aviation sector. Suitable for a 60–80-min class discussion, the case is beneficial for both management students and professionals, offering practical insights into managing complex industry-specific challenges.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 6: Human Resource Management.

The metaverse marks the beginning in a new era of digital interaction and innovation, having a significant impact on a variety of established sectors, including banking. This chapter exposes readers to the principles of data wrangling, laying the groundwork for comprehending its significance. It also looks at the specific issues presented by Metaverse Banking data, which includes a wide range of data kinds. To ensure consistency and practical relevance, these data must be processed in real time, whether for individuals or organizations. This chapter then transitions to unleash the power of data (which forms the lifeblood of Metaverse Banking), followed by a detailed explanation of advanced data-wrangling techniques and integration with Artificial Intelligence and machine learning. It showcases case studies illustrating how effective data wrangling has helped drive Metaverse Banking platforms by utilising real-world use cases that show the best practices of metaverse entities for a more customer-centric experience. This chapter also explores future trends, expecting the evolution of technologies for data wrangling and their possible repercussions. It further delves into regulatory considerations the nascent industry faces. This chapter underscores the need for a planned strategy in data management and provides suggestions along with best practices to guide stakeholders towards placing metaverse banks based on data. As the metaverse continues to expand and change, wrangling data will remain how banks can win on this digital frontier by keeping themselves nimble, safe and consumer-friendly in an ever more virtual world.

This chapter focuses on unearthing the metaverse technology impacts on banking services, both the underlying opportunities it brings and the challenges it imposes, along with its long-term effects on the industry. The tremendous strides made in the field of technology have impacted every industry, and banking is no different. Metaverse technology further catapults banking services into an unknown realm of possibilities and challenges since the advent of modern technology. Metaverse technology is an upcoming virtual interconnected universe where users can connect with each other and digital entities at the same time in real time. Banking will open up a lot of avenues to redefine customer experience, build new financial products and make the customers sticky. Deploying metaverse technology in a banking system comes with a whole host of challenges, including technical complexity, security, privacy and compliance. More insights on the dos and don'ts of this as well as what to measure in terms of success would be found by looking at cases from those banks that have successfully rolled out metaverse technology. So, for banks to come out of their shells and sustain themselves in a competitive world of financial services, understanding metaverse technology in banking is essential. This chapter attempts to uncover the subtlety of metaverse technology on banking services, their promise and perils and the consequences that may stick with this industry forever.

The rise of the metaverse and technology's disruptive visualisation spell a changing landscape for digital banking. As consumers increasingly conduct financial transactions in virtual worlds and immersive digital environments, it is imperative that advanced analysis tools are developed to measure and improve the virtual banking experience with this emerging metaverse. This chapter enriches the new notion of Metalytics and how it can be successfully employed as an approach to quantify and measure customer satisfaction and quality in digital banking services with today's changing scenarios. Now, it is a complex digital world of social engagement, entertainment and commerce. Traditional banking services, in that sense, have even started seeping into the metaverse and offering users a taste of virtual financial institutions (the meta bank), digital currencies as well as other financial products. The use of advanced analytics, tools and metrics designed for the unique features of a multiverse. This chapter goes on to discuss, through some of its key components and methodologies, how this could usher an epochal change in interstellar nodes for evaluating digital banking services. Financial institutions that embrace the peculiarities of the metaverse and leverage data-driven insights can offer comprehensive digital banking solutions. This is necessary for the digital frontier, and Metalytics propulsion fits this part perfectly, managing to keep their services up to date, safe, secure and, most importantly, customer-centred while navigating through the metaverse landscape.

The study aims to assess how e-agri supply chain coordination (SCC), supply chain integration (SCI) and competitive capabilities (COC) impact both market performance (MO) and operational performance (OP). It particularly emphasizes the critical role of information flow for the benefit of farmers, intermediaries and end-consumers, shedding light on the broader implications of these factors within the agricultural supply chain.

Data are collected online from farmers, intermediaries engaged in buying/supplying agri-products and consumers using a semi-structured questionnaire of 25 items adapted from the extant literature measuring SCC, SCI, COC, OP and MP. The survey instrument is validated for its reliability, convergent and discriminant validity tests. Purposive and convenient sampling is used for data collection. Finally, 280 responses were analyzed using SEM to conclude the study.

Findings underscore information flow’s significance in the e-agri supply chain, addressing various stakeholders’ needs. Technical excellence, featuring robust transaction capabilities and cost-effective maintenance is pivotal. Enhanced supply chain coordination fosters integration and efficient information sharing, enhancing agricultural market performance and sectoral efficiency.

The study explores technology adoption, understands information flow and coordination impact, enhances efficiencies, empowers farmers and promotes transparency, sustainability and consumer benefits.

The study promotes efficient information flow, digital adoption, collaborative planning, tech investment and enhanced responsiveness for agricultural sector managers.

The study bridges the rural-urban divide, empowering farmers, providing fair pricing, sustainable practices, transparency, informed consumers, responsible consumption and income distribution.

The novelty of this study lies in its comprehensive information flow study, new theoretical model and e-agri-specific sub-constructs that define coordination and integration, aiding efficiency and competitiveness.

The study aims to explore the dimensions of Quality 4.0 adoption, prioritization of these dimensions and the influential dimensions and their causal relationships that can guide the smooth adoption of Quality 4.0 to boost organizational performance.

The Quality 4.0 dimensions are explored from the extant literature. The qualitative data were captured from 12 highly experienced experts from diverse industries and academia through structured interview questions and group discussions in multiple phases. The inputs obtained from the experts were analyzed using Fuzzy-Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution for dimension priority, and Fuzzy-Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory was employed to reveal the influential relationship between them.

The analysis reveals that quality scalability, quality culture and quality conformance are investigated as primary drivers of Quality 4.0 adoption. Data-driven analytical thinking and customer centricity emerge as dynamic dimensions that act as quality deliverable ends. Integrating these methodologies provides a robust framework for understanding and managing Quality 4.0 complexities, offering actionable insights for prioritizing initiatives and addressing interdependencies to ensure successful adoption and implementation.

The practical implications guide industries in creating strategic action plans tailored to their needs and fostering a quality-focused culture. The study also offers valuable insights into government policies, promoting sustainability, efficiency and a circular economy.

The study’s novelty lies in its prioritization and examination of the most influential causes and effects within the Quality 4.0 dimensions. This approach highlights core drivers and critical factors, providing a comprehensive framework for successful implementation.

India has a serious poverty issue that needs to be addressed immediately. The elimination of poverty should be one of the primary goals of economic policy. The elimination of poverty is one of the greatest obstacles to economic development as it is now envisioned. It is difficult to provide a blanket recommendation for achieving economic growth and reducing poverty because each state's experience has been distinct. The states of Punjab and Haryana are two examples of how a strong emphasis on agricultural expansion can help alleviate poverty. Human resource development has been successful in Kerala; thus, it has been replicated in other states. While India's social safety programmes have helped to alleviate poverty, they aren't perfect. COVID-19 reversed the progress made and harmed migrant workers and others in the informal economy. There are now millions more people living in extreme poverty than before. To tackle unemployment, governments and underprivileged communities are appealing to programmes like MGNREGA.

The purpose of this article is to investigate the measures taken by the state to combat poverty.

This study aims to explore emerging trends in mental health and work performance research, identifying key themes and future research directions.

This study analyzed 743 relevant documents downloaded from Scopus database published between 2014 and 2024 using VOSviewer software for co-citation and co-occurrence analyses.

Findings reveal significant growth in research focusing mental health and work performance research. The western countries, such as USA, United Kingdom and Australia, emerge as leading contributors to the field, with medicine and psychology dominating the subject areas. The analysis highlights a complex interplay between employee mental health and work performance, underscoring the need for more interdisciplinary research. The results emphasize the necessity for customized interventions, long-term impact studies, cross-cultural research, technological innovations and policy advocacy to effectively address mental health issues in the workplace.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of current research trends on mental health and work performance for the first time in the literature and provides a foundation for future investigations. This comprehensive analysis offers valuable insights for researchers, practitioners and policymakers seeking to enhance employee well-being and optimize work performance in contemporary organizational settings.

The integration of blockchain technology (BT) in supply chain management (SCM) is at the forefront of technological advancements, yet it faces significant barriers that hinder its widespread adoption. This study aims to delve into these challenges, employing the diffusion of innovations (DOI) theory to systematically investigate and propose a strategic framework for overcoming the technological barriers to BT adoption within SCM.

Through a comprehensive systematic literature review (SLR) of 155 publications, complemented by rigorous content analysis and expert interviews, this research identifies and categorizes 16 primary technological barriers, including scalability and privacy issues, that impede BT integration.

The proposed framework, informed by DOI theory, outlines tailored strategies across three critical adoption stages: initiation, where the focus is on mitigating high energy consumption and scalability issues; adoption decision, emphasizing the formulating international standards for blockchain architecture, embedding abstraction layers within software projects; and implementation, concentrating on enhancing security, interoperability and system efficiency.

This research contributes significantly to both academic literature and practical applications. Academically, it extends the DOI theory within the SCM context and enriches the blockchain literature by providing a nuanced understanding of the specific barriers to BT adoption. Practically, it offers a roadmap for industry practitioners, delineating actionable strategies to navigate the adoption process effectively. This study not only bridges the gap between theoretical insights and practical implementations but also serves as a vital resource for policymakers and standard-setting bodies in facilitating and regulating BT adoption in SCM, thereby fostering innovation and competitive advantage in the marketplace.