Anabel Corral Granados and Fredrik Kruse
During the last 20 years inclusive practices in primary schools have been promoted by policies and worldwide organisations. Scholars confirm that school leaders have an essential…
Abstract
Purpose
During the last 20 years inclusive practices in primary schools have been promoted by policies and worldwide organisations. Scholars confirm that school leaders have an essential role to play with direct impact on meeting children's needs and that there is a chronic deficiency of research on this issue. The purpose of this paper is to describe how strategic leadership roles implemented by head‐teachers can facilitate the implementation of inclusive policies in the school setting and present possible suggestions through the analysis of leadership theories and literature related to inclusion in primary schools.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology this research employs includes a literature review that conceptualises the roles of leadership positions in inclusive settings. This is structured as an explanatory discourse, drawing on the notion of transformational and visionary leadership as the basis of strategic leadership, in order to identify the important role and strategies of leaders in a primary school setting.
Findings
The paper highlights the benefits of exploring the role of leaders in these schools. The paper assumes that organisations are complex structures and the analysis indicates that there is not one single exclusive way of implementing an effective role and that alternatives can be created by adapting a flexible framework. This framework is conceptualised by examples from institutions in which leaders have motivated the improvement of school quality by following the described strategic tools. The implications of this for leadership are that Strategic Intent seems to address the directions of the aims of inclusive leaders: it uses unique strategies and relies on the capability of leaders to encourage further dedication and involvement in the organisation's culture. It is suggested that the key components of this framework which will result in the school setting becoming more inclusive consist of: resource allocation, consistency, strategic planning and cultural considerations.
Practical implications
This paper introduces different strategies that can be explored by school leaders with the aim of being implemented in schools.
Originality/value
This paper has developed a framework to which leaders could adapt their own needs and it assists them in their decision‐making process.
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Elena Delgado‐Ballester, Angeles Navarro and María Sicilia
From an integrated marketing communications perspective, this study aims to analyse what level of consistency among brand messages is more effective in terms of customer‐based…
Abstract
Purpose
From an integrated marketing communications perspective, this study aims to analyse what level of consistency among brand messages is more effective in terms of customer‐based brand equity. In particular it aims to evaluate its impact on brand knowledge structure, and how brand familiarity moderates this influence.
Design/methodology/approach
A sample of 194 subjects participated in a between subjects experiment. An integrated communication campaign composed of two different tools (advertising and nonmonetary promotion) was assessed by individuals. Brand familiarity (familiar brand vs unfamiliar brand) and consistency among messages (high vs moderate) were manipulated to test a set of hypotheses.
Findings
Results show that the effectiveness of consistency among messages depends on brand familiarity. For familiar brands moderately consistent messages improve their awareness (recall), enrich their network of associations, and generate more favourable responses and brand attitudes. However, for unfamiliar brands, no significant differences are found between high and moderate levels of consistency, except for brand recall, being higher when highly consistent messages are used.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations of the study are those typically associated with the experimental methodology. Specifically, a single product category and only two communication tools were used in the experiment which may limit the generalisability of the results.
Practical implications
For unfamiliar brands, brand managers should focus on consistent brand messages to build awareness for these unknown brands. By contrast, for familiar brands the goal of the communication strategy must be to revive the interest in them through moderate consistent messages that can excite consumers and make them think again about these brands.
Originality/value
The originality of this study resides in incorporating the newest approach of communication management (integrated marketing communication or IMC) to illustrate how consistency among messages could be used to build the type of brand knowledge structure that nurtures brand equity. Furthermore, compared to previous studies of IMC, which have addressed this issue under a merely conceptual perspective, this paper offers empirical evidences using a more practical perspective and focusing on managing brand knowledge structures as a way for improving brand image.
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Koen Vandenbempt and Paul Matthyssens
This report examines strategic innovation efforts of companies in an industry displaying traits of maturity. Strategic innovation efforts intend to create superior customer value…
Abstract
This report examines strategic innovation efforts of companies in an industry displaying traits of maturity. Strategic innovation efforts intend to create superior customer value and competitive advantage. Realizing the full benefits of these efforts necessitates that companies change their view on existing relationships in the supply chain of the industry under consideration. Based on case study research in nine installation companies in the Dutch electro technical industry, we conclude that a mismatch between intended strategies and the dominant logic of these companies (and their business partners) impedes strategic innovation efforts. We thus identify barriers to strategic innovation. This report suggests strategy options that have the potential to overcome these barriers and relate these options to managerial mindsets and cognitions with respect to competitive strategy, organization and network relationships.
Miftachul Huda and Sultan Salem
The family time is being an important element in assisting to empower the mutual feeling in connecting both love and compassion among the family members. The copying initiative to…
Abstract
The family time is being an important element in assisting to empower the mutual feeling in connecting both love and compassion among the family members. The copying initiative to spend the quality time with family is supposed to embed the feeling of security, the family values with confidence, in order to strengthen the social intelligence. However, due to the pandemic age with its outstanding challenges on being less socially connected, the more affection as the real impact toward the reduction on social interaction requires the attempts to restore the process with the sufficient link between emotional and social intelligence. The aim of this chapter attempts to examine the family quality time maintenance for children’s social intelligence in order to fully comprehend the strategic way of particular issue identification in affecting the children, by the suggested proper solution amidst the pandemic age. The empirical data from the qualitative interview among 12 public educators were employed by exploring their beliefs and practices in maintaining the family time quality for their children social intelligence support. The finding of this chapter reveals that there are three aspects of maintaining the family time for children’s social intelligence support, consisting of the technical skills to improve the family relationships, the communication on the feelings to care for being close relationships and emotional intimacy to advance the family contact in broadening the comfortable spend of time with emotional integrity and openness. The value of this chapter is to give an insightful value on the knowledge enrichment about the strategic maintenance of family time quality for children’s social intelligence. Offering the understandable suggestion together with an effective method to bring the family time into being closer is supposed to lead to the emotional intelligence among the peer-family members, mainly parent–children relationship amidst the pandemic age.
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Organizations take strategic direction decisions in four key areas:culture, policy, strategic plans and in the way they select and approachtheir markets. Presents an approach…
Abstract
Organizations take strategic direction decisions in four key areas: culture, policy, strategic plans and in the way they select and approach their markets. Presents an approach which allows managers to look simply and graphically at the complex interactions to guide them through the maze of options and decisions open to them towards an integrated solution.
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Loukas K. Tsironis and Panagiotis Petros Matthopoulos
Supply chain (SC) is a homogeneous and interconnected network of firms which manages supplies, storages and handles material, information, personnel, equipment and final products…
Abstract
Purpose
Supply chain (SC) is a homogeneous and interconnected network of firms which manages supplies, storages and handles material, information, personnel, equipment and final products throughout its length. The SC can be the means by which businesses add value to customers and therefore competitive advantage in the international market. Competitiveness no longer exists among individual members of a SC but between SCs. International literature pointed out, that strategy and competitiveness associated with specific strategic priorities. In this paper will be documented that the priorities as objectives of strategic importance comprise the key areas for the performance of the SC network. To support this, a systematic framework of strategic priorities, will be developed, which will visualize the major SC assessment areas that the SC network should turn its improvement efforts. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 200 high level managers from 71 Greek manufacturing companies covering the whole country using their own SC networks took part in the study. Data analysis were conducted to create a model that describes the strategic priorities which are important, for the competitive advantage of their SC network.
Findings
The results revealed seven critical strategic priorities: internal flexibility, production quality, waste reduction, customer focus, sustainability, reduction of production cost and efficiency. This paper analytically explores the strategic practices that seem to influence SC network performance and generates a systematic framework of the critical strategic priorities of the SC network performance.
Practical implications
The proposed framework has six major advantages. First the research outcome enables managers to design their SC strategy. Second, proved the great importance of the strategic priorities institutionalization. Third, makes clear to stakeholders which are the SC network performance issues to consider. Fourth, the proposed framework could serve as a suitable formula for assessing the effectiveness and readiness of SC to face the competition. Fifth, it is an effective way of prioritizing the strategic practices as it provides the most important areas on which the firm can base tasks like evaluation, benchmarking and comparison of its SC both as a network and as individual firms. Finally, the proposed framework is an effective way to evaluate the consistency of strategic objectives and actions adopted for the SC.
Originality/value
Literature review revealed a very important conclusion. It has been developed a broad discussion concerning issues on strategic practices which are responsible for the competitive advantage of the SC network. However, there has not been a significant effort on integrating all the practices under the spectrum of the SC in order to distinguish the most important of these practices that can lead to competitive advantages.
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Rodney McAdam and Brian Bailie
The aim of this paper is to explore the longitudinal alignment between performance measures and business strategy. Moreover, the paper will probe the role of business improvement…
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to explore the longitudinal alignment between performance measures and business strategy. Moreover, the paper will probe the role of business improvement models as a key catalyst in this alignment process. Since the late 1980s performance measurement has become topical with ever‐increasing interest in the subject. The increasing interest has been driven by the rapidly changing business environment and strategy, in both the private and public sectors. A literature review covering the current issues concerning performance measurement was undertaken, emphasising the development of performance measurement in relation to business strategy. The continual alignment of performance measures and frameworks with business strategy is stressed. Also, business improvement models are reviewed as possible mechanisms for enabling this alignment. Following this review, a longitudinal case study approach, based on a five‐year university/industry learning partnership with an international aerospace organisation, was used to investigate alignment between performance measures and business strategy. The findings of the study confirm that performance measures linked to strategy are more effective. Moreover, the alignment between the measures, measurement framework and the strategy must be continually reviewed and treated as a dynamic and complex issue, rather than a linear mechanistic relationship.
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Thiago Rodrigues Timóteo, Gustavo Tietz Cazeri, Gustavo Hermínio Salati Marcondes de Moraes, Tiago F.A.C. Sigahi, Lucas Gabriel Zanon, Izabela Simon Rampasso and Rosley Anholon
The aim of this research was to evaluate the maturity level of strategic communication management implemented by Brazilian startups.
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this research was to evaluate the maturity level of strategic communication management implemented by Brazilian startups.
Design/methodology/approach
This study employed the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), survey and Grey Fixed Weight Clustering modeling techniques. Three experts with extensive academic and practical experience in the subject participated in the AHP process, providing their opinions on the relative importance of eight variables associated with the topic under investigation, thus enabling their prioritization. Concurrently, data were collected through a survey from 23 respondents who have extensive knowledge about the realities of Brazilian startups. The weights derived from the AHP and the survey data were utilized in the Grey Fixed Weight Clustering modeling.
Findings
Based on the opinions of the 23 respondents, the level of implementation of practices related to strategic management, brand management, external image management and internal communication management is superficial. In addition, according to the majority of experts, Brazilian startups exhibited a medium level of maturity to address the key challenges related to communication management. Furthermore, this study reveals that the variables “financial resources allocation,” “stakeholder relationship” and “brand management” were deemed the most significant for the model.
Originality/value
The contributions presented herein can be beneficial for both researchers and startup managers seeking to enhance communication strategies in their organizations. This research also contributes by highlighting how grey systems theory can be extremely useful for conducting decision-making analyses in the context of startups, which is characterized by uncertainty and imprecise information.
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This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.
Design/methodology/approach
This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.
Findings
Consistency between performance measures (PM), strategic orientation and competitive methods can help service organizations to attain greater strategic performance consistency. Alignment and overall competitiveness become more attainable if PM framework design considers a wider array of both internal and external factors than is currently the norm.
Originality/value
The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.
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This paper focuses on the concept of fit as a topic of research. The concept of fit has been viewed as an internal consistency among key strategic decisions or the alignment…
Abstract
This paper focuses on the concept of fit as a topic of research. The concept of fit has been viewed as an internal consistency among key strategic decisions or the alignment between strategic choices and critical contingencies with the environment (external), organization (internal), or both (external and internal). A number of research perspectives or approaches related to fit are presented.Research design problems are discussed: definition of terms, theoretical issues, and empirical issues. Emphasis is on how key variables or dimensions of fit are defined and measured in research.
A six-celled matrix is proposed as a conceptual scheme to distinguish different perspectives of fit and to portray congruence relationships more accurately. The matrix includes three common dimensions: strategy, organization, and environment. The matrix also suggests two levels of strategy—corporate or business—and three domains of fit—external, internal, or integrated. These suggest different research perspectives for the study of fit. Examples from the literature are provided to illustrate and support this conceptual scheme. Finally, implications for management and furtherstudy are outlined.