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This study investigates how insurance intermediaries in Portugal and Ireland evaluate supply chain management (SCM) practices within the insurance industry, specifically focusing on potential regional variations in their assessments.

A comparative research design was employed, collecting data through surveys administered to insurance brokers in Portugal and Ireland. These countries were chosen due to their well-developed intermediary-based insurance markets.

The results show that some dimensions of supply chain management are significantly different between Portugal and Ireland. Nevertheless, the insurance brokers from the two countries also share similar views on key aspects of supply chain management.

This study offers valuable insights for insurance industry management, particularly regarding the dynamics of the insurer-intermediary relationship and the importance of catering to intermediary needs. The findings also highlight potential areas for European Union policy consideration, such as addressing potential asymmetries within the insurance sector across member states.

Improved relationships and collaboration within the insurance supply chain can lead to enhanced access to insurance products and more tailored services for consumers.

This research addresses two key gaps in the literature. Firstly, it examines the insurer-intermediary relationship from the intermediary perspective, a viewpoint often neglected in prior research. Secondly, the study investigates and confirms the existence of regional variations in insurance SCM practices across two European countries.

本研究擬探究在葡萄牙和愛爾蘭兩地的保險中介人於保險行業內,如何評價供應鏈管理方面的慣常做法,研究會特別專注探討這些評價所顯示的潛在地域差異。

研究人員以比較研究設計進行其探究;他們透過向葡萄牙和愛爾蘭兩國的保險經紀發出調查,繼而收集數據。這兩個國家被選中的原因是:它們擁有健全的、以中介為基礎的保險市場。

研究結果顯示,葡萄牙和愛爾蘭兩國的供應鏈管理在有些層面上存在著顯著的差異;但兩地的保險經紀在供應鏈管理的關鍵環節上則有頗類似的見解和看法。

本研究在保險業管理方面提供了寶貴的啟示,特別是它使我們更了解承保人與中介人之間的關係的變革動力,以及滿足中介人需要的重要性。研究結果亦強調了歐洲聯盟在制訂政策時必須考慮的潛在領域,如處理各成員國之間於保險業內的潛在不對稱。

若保險供應鏈內各方的關係和合作得到改善,則消費者會更容易取得各種保險產品;同時,他們亦可獲得更合適的訂製服務。

本研究嘗試處理相關文獻內兩個主要的研究缺口。首先,研究人員以中介人的觀點,去探討承保人與中介人之間的關係,而過去的研究,通常忽視了這個觀點;其次,本研究探究並確認有關的兩個歐洲國家,在其保險供應鏈管理方面的慣常做法上,確實存在著地域差異。

Environmentally-friendly certifications have increased over the past decade within food supply chains. Although a large body of literature has explored the drivers leading firms to adopt such certifications, it has not closely examined the strategic motivations associated with their adoption. This paper aims to investigate an environmentally-friendly certification, VIVA, examining its role as an alternative form of supply chain governance. The aim is to investigate the drivers affecting the adoption of VIVA and to assess managerial perceptions related to transaction-related characteristics and the firm’s internal resources and capabilities.

This study draws upon both an extended transaction cost economics perspective, which is based on transaction risks and the resource-based view, which examines a firm’s internal resources. A survey was conducted via a structured questionnaire sent to all of the wine producers in charge of the decision regarding whether to adopt VIVA certification. A Hierarchal Bayesian Model was applied to analyse questionnaire responses. Such a model allows us to specify the probabilistic relationship between questions and latent constructs and to carry over uncertainty across modelling levels.

The adoption of this environmentally-friendly certification is envisioned as a tool to curb internal risks, and thus to manage behavioural uncertainty within the supply chain. A high level of exposure to exogenous transaction risks discourages firms from adopting VIVA certification. The certification system is not perceived as a promoter of operational capabilities. Managers are more likely to implement the certification when they expect that its adoption will leverage their potential knowledge of the supply chain or prompt new and better collaborations with the suppliers. Therefore, the certification can become a resource that interacts with the capabilities of the firm, expressing complementarities that stimulate the formation of dynamic capabilities.

The identification of drivers from the two theoretical perspectives offers insights into the attributes that are perceived as important by managers and which, therefore, could be leveraged to foster the adoption of the environmental certification. The external validity of the study could be improved by extending the sample to other certifications and supply chains.

The study offers a different perspective on environmental certification. It demonstrates that considering the certification as an alternative form of supply chain governance opens up a set of efficiency and strategic considerations that could be addressed to promote the effectiveness of an environmental strategy within a supply chain

This article examines the direct influence of employee’s perceived organisational support (POS) on student loyalty (LOY), exploring the indirect roles of total quality management (TQM) and information communication technology adoption (ADT) and moderating roles of government support (GOS) and co-worker support (COS).

The article constructs a research model along with postulations by combining both empirical and theoretical literature in multidisciplinary fields.

This paper proposes that POS will be positively related to LOY, and this positive relationship will be positively mediated by TQM and ADT jointly and independently. Additionally, GOS and COS will positively moderate between POS and LOY.

This article offers suggestions for both academics and specialists in higher educational institutions for achieving LOY by applying POS, TQM and ADT as strategic tools. It also highpoints the crucial role of GOS and support from co-workers in achieving LOY. This paper lays the foundation for upcoming scholars to test this research model, empirically, in different higher educational institutions contexts worldwide.

By valuing contributions, caring about well-being and fulfilling the socio-emotional needs of employees, higher educational institutions stand the chance of achieving LOY via TQM and ADT. Additionally, POS can foster LOY under massive GOS and COS.

The article provides unique understandings into how TQM and ADT connect POS to LOY and how POS relates to LOY under varied levels of GOS and COS. It also highlights the theoretical contributions of the underpinning theories.

Despite the wide availability of internet banking, levels of intention to use such facilities remain variable between countries. The purpose of this paper is to focus on e-banking in a country with low intention to use e-banking – Jordan – and to explain the slow uptake.

A quantitative method employing a cross-sectional survey was used as an appropriate way of meeting the research objectives. The survey was distributed to bank customers in Amman, Jordan, collecting a total of 328 completed questionnaires. SPSS and AMOS software were used, and multiple regression and artificial neural networks were applied to determine the relative impact and importance of e-banking predictors.

The statistical techniques revealed that several major factors, including perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, security and reasonable price, stand out as the barriers to intention to use e-banking services in Jordan.

This study theorizes a series of implications on intention to use e-banking. It draws the attention of Jordanian banks to the full functionality of their e-banking systems, emphasizing positive safety features, which could contribute to changing negative customer perceptions. It also contributes to eliciting the theory of customer value among banks by focusing on how they should properly enhance their use of shared value. Moreover, it will present to managers how e-banking predictors can send meaningful and timely information to customers.

The purpose of this study is to explore green innovation and its role in driving competitiveness in Ecuadorian manufacturing firms, focusing on structural equation modelings, which account for more than 90% of the productive units and aggregate national income. The manufacturing sector in Ecuador reports variable growth since the start of the COVID pandemic, drawing more attention from practitioners, regulators and scholars alike, due to its distinctive footprint on people, profit and planet, particularly in the context of developing economies.

A model with two second-order constructs is developed and tested in a sample of 325 managers from manufacturing firms in Ecuador, using quantitative and cross-section methods.

After obtaining adjusted and validated metrics, a structural equation model is presented, where the main hypothesis is confirmed, supporting the positive impact of green innovation on competitiveness.

The research provides evidence on how manufacturing firms favoring green innovation in their long-term planning can unlock and sustain competitiveness. Policymakers could then offer incentives for firms to embed sustainable practices, with potential ripple effects along the supply chain, aggregating up competitiveness to industry and national levels.

The study aims to bridge the existing knowledge gap on the interplay of green innovation and competitiveness, claiming that the former significantly influences the latter, in an emerging market context, with incremental gains for all stakeholders, as posited by stakeholder theory.

El propósito de esta investigación es explorar la innovación verde y su rol en la generación de competitividad en las empresas manufactureras ecuatorianas, centrándose en las PYMES, que representan más del 90 por ciento de las unidades productivas y del ingreso nacional agregado. El sector manufacturero en Ecuador reporta un crecimiento variable desde el inicio de la pandemia de COVID, lo cual atrae la atención de profesionales, reguladores y académicos por igual, debido a su huella distintiva en la sociedad, la rentabilidad y el planeta, particularmente en el contexto de las economías en desarrollo.

Se desarrolla y estima un modelo con dos constructos de segundo orden, en una muestra de 325 gerentes de empresas manufactureras del Ecuador, utilizando métodos cuantitativos y transversales.

Tras obtener métricas ajustadas y validadas, se presenta un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales, donde se confirma la hipótesis principal, sustentando el impacto positivo de la innovación verde en la competitividad.

Aportamos evidencia empírica sobre cómo las empresas manufactureras que favorecen iniciativas ecológicamente innovadoras en su planificación a largo plazo, pueden generar y sostener competitividad. Los reguladores podrían eventualmente diseñar incentivos para que las empresas incorporen prácticas sustentables, acumulando beneficios en la cadena de suministro, e incrementando así la competitividad a nivel de la industria y de la economía en su conjunto.

Nuestro estudio aspira contribuir a cerrar la brecha en la literatura en la convergencia entre la innovación verde y la competitividad, argumentando que la primera influye significativamente en la segunda, en un contexto de mercado emergente, con beneficios incrementales para todas las partes interesadas, como lo postula la teoría de stakeholders.

O objetivo desta pesquisa é explorar a inovação verde e seu papel na promoção da competitividade nas empresas manufatureiras equatorianas, com foco nas PMEs, que representam mais de 90% das unidades produtivas e da renda nacional. O sector manufatureiro no Equador regista um crescimento variável desde o início da pandemia da COVID, atraindo mais atenção tanto de profissionais, reguladores como académicos, devido à sua pegada distinta nas pessoas, nos lucros e no planeta, particularmente no contexto das economias em desenvolvimento.

Um modelo com dois construtos de segunda ordem é desenvolvido e testado em uma amostra de 325 gestores de empresas industriais no Equador, utilizando métodos quantitativos e transversais.

Após a obtenção de métricas ajustadas e validadas, é apresentado um modelo de equações estruturais, onde é confirmada a hipótese principal, apoiando o impacto positivo da inovação verde na competitividade.

A nossa investigação fornece evidências sobre como as empresas industriais que favorecem iniciativas ecologicamente inovadoras no seu planeamento a longo prazo, podem aumentar e sustentar a competitividade. Os decisores políticos poderiam então oferecer incentivos às empresas para incorporar práticas sustentáveis, com potenciais efeitos em cascata ao longo da cadeia de abastecimento, agregando competitividade aos níveis industrial e nacional.

O nosso estudo visa colmatar a lacuna de conhecimento existente sobre a interação entre inovação verde e competitividade, alegando que a primeira influencia significativamente a última, num contexto de mercado emergente, com ganhos incrementais para todas as partes interessadas, conforme postulado pela teoria dos stakeholders.