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Serving the public sector, emergency response organizations operate in uncertain environments. This study aims to understand the impact of effective coordination and collaboration of volunteers and career responders on response time performance considering the complexity of their task environments measured as population density. The operations strategy models designed for manufacturing and services in the private sector provide overarching theoretical insights to explore the role of organizational design characterized by the mix of volunteers and career responders in the public sector emergency services.

This study uses hierarchical regression analysis to substantiate the theoretical model using publicly available data extracted from the US National Fire Incident Reporting System. The data is analyzed using the US National Fire Protection Association’s standard to define fire department organizational types working in differing task environments categorized as rural, suburban and urban, using population density from the US Census Bureau.

This study upholds the framework of operations strategy model for public services and finds that fire department organizational design and task environment significantly influence operational performance measured by incident response time. While increasing the percentage of career firefighters can improve response time for volunteer fire departments, once a threshold is achieved, such an increase does not help to improve incident response time for combination and career fire departments.

This study takes a fresh look at public emergency services using operations strategy models and explores the operational impact of fire department organizational design using the mix of volunteer and career firefighters under varying environmental conditions. While the findings are specific to one public emergency service domain, they open avenues for future research to extend these models to other emergency service types and public services.

This study aims to investigate suspects underlying motivations to resist cooperation during investigative interviews. The authors propose a tripartite framework (i.e. concerns for identity, relational and instrumental reasons) for understanding motivations to resist, tested through three qualitative studies.

The authors coded semi-structured debriefs about investigators’ experiences with communicative resistance throughout their careers (n = 40; Study 1), with particularly resistant suspects (n = 18; Study 2) and with both investigators and their suspects (n = 11; Study 3). Coders identified examples illustrative of subcategories within the framework.

The authors found that both investigators and suspects cite various motivations to resist. The participants also highlighted the importance of considering these motivations when devising how to mitigate resistance within an investigative interview.

This research examines the understudied topic of communicative resistance and begins to examine motivations that might underlie the phenomenon. Eliciting and understanding suspects’ resistance motivations should be an important component of mitigating resistance using a rapport-based model.

This study aims to improve the market competitiveness of iron and steel manufacturers in developing countries by reducing their production costs.

The research methodology relies on a case study-based approach. The study relies on six steps. The first is the preparation, then the five steps of the six-sigma – define, measure, analyze, improve, control. The qualitative and quantitative data were considered. The qualitative analysis relies on the experts’ judgment of internal status. The quantitative analysis uses the job floor data from three iron and steel manufacturers. After collecting, screening and analyzing the data, the root causes of the different wastes were identified that increase production costs. Consequently, lean manufacturing principles and tools are identified and prioritized using the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory method, and then implemented to reduce the different types of waste.

The main wastes are related to inventory, time, quality and workforce. The lean tools were proposed with the implementation plan for the discovered root causes. The performance was monitored during and after the implementation of the lean initiatives in one of the three companies. The obtained results showed an increase in some performance indicators such as throughput (70.6%), revenue from by-products (459%), inventory turnover (54%), operation availability (45%), and plant availability (41%). On the other hand, results showed a decrease of time delay (78%), man-hour/ton (52.4%) and downgraded products (63.3%).

The current case study findings can be utilized by Iron and Steel factories at the developing countries. In addition, the proposed lean implementation methodology can be adopted for any other industries.

The current work introduces an original and practical road map to implement the lean six-sigma body of knowledge in the iron and steel manufacturers.

This work introduces an effective and practical case study-based approach to implementing the lean six-sigma body of knowledge in the iron and steel manufacturers in one of the underdevelopment countries. The consideration of the opinion of the different engineers from different sectors shows significant identification of the major problems in the manufacturing and utility sectors that lead to significant performance improvement after solving them.

The main data used to develop this case were remote, synchronous interviews with the three characters in the case. The authors conducted two interviews with the main character in the case, Geoff Brown, specifically: (1) an initial 30 min interview to determine the fit and focus of the case and to help create the interview protocol for the full case interview (this initial interview was conducted on March 12, 2024); and (2) an hour-long interview to ask targeted questions to fully develop the case narrative (this interview was conducted on March 28, 2024). Geoff Brown was also involved in reviewing drafts of the case, approving the final version of the case and reviewing the assignment questions in this instructors’ manual (IM).

This case focuses on Geoff Brown, Executive Director at Alberta Chicken Producers (ACP), which is a not-for-profit organization in Alberta, Canada, that is responsible for representing 250 regulated chicken producers. Brown is grappling with what to do with the remote/hybrid work policy at ACP. Part of the impetus for reconsidering this policy was the comments from ACP’s long-tenured Office Manager and Executive Assistant, who had been asking Brown to bring this policy forward to a staff meeting for discussion throughout the past year. Brown now feels ready to move these discussions forward but is unsure of how to proceed and what the best practices would be to ensure that the policy in place for remote work is beneficial for work engagement, individual and organizational work performance, work–life balance, employee relationships and fairness perceptions.

The target audience for this case is undergraduate and graduate students taking a course in the disciplines of human resources management or organizational behavior. This case will be especially relevant for a human resources management course when studying the topics of employee benefits (e.g. work–life balance), health and safety (e.g. stress) and work design (e.g. telecommuting), and this case will be especially relevant for an organizational behavior course when studying the topics of motivation (e.g. fairness), communication, organizational culture and decision-making.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate network mobilization for collective market shaping. The authors focus on sustainable innovations that require broad cross-sectoral mobilization to create collective action among network actors. By drawing on insights from mobilization in innovation and issue networks, the authors shed light on the role of these two different networks in mobilizing collective action and triggering collective market shaping for sustainable innovations.

This paper presents a qualitative case study on the commercialization of a new low-carbon eco-concrete. The eco-concrete faces significant challenges in entering the market, due to the construction industry’s entrenched practices and institutional arrangements. These challenges emphasize the critical need for mobilizing collective action to generate the momentum for market change.

The findings reveal four types of interplay between mobilization in innovation and issue networks: synergistic and complementary mobilization that can reinforce collective market shaping and conflicting and diluting mobilization that can impede collective action and hinder the market shaping for sustainable innovations.

This paper contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the role of mobilization in triggering collective market shaping. In particular, this research sheds light on the early stages of market shaping for sustainable innovations where broad mobilization for collective action is critical.

Climate risk assessments (CRAs) become more and more necessary to prepare and prioritise adaptation action. On a policy level, the results of CRAs offer the foundation for national adaptation strategies. However, existing CRAs oftentimes do not exploit their full potential by means of an integrated assessment, i.e. to illustrate the complexity of cascading risks, provide cross-sectoral results, integrate adaptive capacity and demonstrate spatial patterns. This paper seeks to fill this gap by dissecting integrated assessment approaches of national CRAs.

The paper focuses on the integrated analyses of the results of CRAs. Based on a review of selected national, multi-sectoral CRAs, the authors explore the application of such analyses. Additionally, drawing on the latest climate impact and risk assessment for Germany, the authors highlight latest approaches and their implications.

The authors show that even though progress in establishing integrated assessment methods has been made, no common framework exists so far and only few national CRAs include extensive integrated analyses. Nevertheless, the German example demonstrates that integrated analyses can provide a comprehensive overview over risk dynamics, (spatial) patterns and needs for action thus providing practical advice for decision-making on a national adaptation policy level.

While it is common knowledge that CRAs in general provide better results, if the models applied are integrated (i.e. combining climate, geo-physical, economic, etc. factors), little attention has been given to the integrated analyses of their results. This paper provides valuable new insight on this aspect which will become far more important in the future.

The purpose of this study is to ascertain which competences are seen by employers as important for accounting students in an emerging economy, to triangulate this list with the experiences of working students and compare with those work competencies acquired during the period of study.

This study employs a novel mixed-method approach, with interviews of employers (n = 11) to identify key work competencies, and then with a quantitative study of working students (n = 184) to examine the work competency gap, using paired T-tests and mean weight discrepancy scores. The study was undertaken between September and December 2022.

The paper provides empirical insights into key work competencies in an emerging economy. There is a focus on technical skills at the university, whilst soft skills are preferred by employers. New key work competencies were uncovered relating to intuition, innovation and communicating in a foreign language. The key personal characteristics required for the job relate to change and uncertainty.

A qualitative assessment of key work competencies of employers and the use of mean weighted discrepancy scores is recommended in further studies in this field.

Practical approaches for educators, government and employers are offered to address the increasing demand for soft skills and other work competencies specific to an emerging economy.

The study is set in an emerging economy, which is underdeveloped in this field. The findings inform key stakeholders with a vested interest in reducing the work competency gap.