Toby Harfield, Phil Driver and C.P. Beukman
Decision making is a vital part of the adoption process of new technologies by VSEs; however, to date, little has been written on this subject. This paper outlines a number of…
Abstract
Decision making is a vital part of the adoption process of new technologies by VSEs; however, to date, little has been written on this subject. This paper outlines a number of approaches to decision making currently in the literature and argues that most of them are inappropriate to VSEs. A decision‐making tool most appropriate for VSEs in a technology adoption process is suggested. Sets of conflicting issues are conceptualised as a decision‐dilemma which have the ability to impede the adoption of new technology. Thus, the tool is designed to allow owners/managers of VSEs to manage these decision‐dilemmas at any time during the process of new technology adoption.
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Mehmet Ali Koseoglu, Issaka Lawerh Tetteh and Brian King
The purpose of this paper is to provide an extensive analysis of contributions to scholarly research on decision tools.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide an extensive analysis of contributions to scholarly research on decision tools.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic literature review was used to collect data from 47 articles published in peer-reviewed academic journals between 1980 and 2017. Co-citation analysis was adopted to analyse recent trends in research on decision tools and recommend a framework that places such research into three categories: mature, intermediate and nascent.
Findings
The research revealed that a majority of the studies on decision tools describe decision tool implementation in a single company or setting. It also provided a clear presentation of recent trends in the decision tools literature by categorising and comparing papers according to various salient features. The study of decision tools is classified into four macro clusters: conceptualising and defining decision tools; exploring the implementation of decision tools; understanding the relationship between decision tools and other disciplines/approaches/initiatives; and discovering the outcomes of decision tools. Furthermore, the framework proposed in this paper will help scholars identify issues that merit additional theory-building and/or theory-testing research.
Originality/value
To the authors’ awareness, this is the first paper to have adopted both a systematic literature review and co-citation analysis to identify the dominant trends and significant gaps in the field of decision tools research.
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Kemi Ogunyemi and Adaora I. Onaga
Epidemics and pandemics tend to jolt people out of their ordinary living to a special state of crisis and suffering. The COVID-19 pandemic has not proven different, and this…
Abstract
Epidemics and pandemics tend to jolt people out of their ordinary living to a special state of crisis and suffering. The COVID-19 pandemic has not proven different, and this chapter and indeed the whole volume is a call to reflect on an ongoing state of volatility, uncertainty, complexities and ambiguity (VUCA). Where it is difficult to project an end to a pandemic as occurs presently, VUCA is even more significant, and the outcomes of these reflections can only augur well for present and future confrontations of a crisis. In this chapter, we have described our premises for understanding work values in a normative sense. Understanding the principles behind the stability and sustainability of these values will serve as a guide for the responsible management of changing workforce dynamics. While respecting the personal choices involved in work values, we outline some social and organisational factors that influence said dynamics.
Ethical principles play a key role in the attendant changes in the workforce ranging from rapid digitisation to remote working, to flexible work hours, and changing workspaces. New problems have arisen relating to the rising costs of working virtually, unequal opportunities in different economies, genders, and fields, and the rapid changes that are still ongoing. Some issues we have tackled include the challenge with employer–employee trust when supervision and workspaces are rapidly shifting, and the responsibility for well-ness and flourishing when the lines between work and the rest of life become blurred. We have recommended some attitudes that will promote integrity in all the stakeholders of a given workforce so that there is effective collaboration and individual growth.
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Kirsi Pyhältö, Jouni Peltonen, Henrika Anttila, Liezel Liezel Frick and Phillip de Jager
Doctoral students’ ill-being in terms of stress, exhaustion and high levels of mental health problems has been well documented. Yet, the well-being of doctoral students is more…
Abstract
Purpose
Doctoral students’ ill-being in terms of stress, exhaustion and high levels of mental health problems has been well documented. Yet, the well-being of doctoral students is more than the absence of these negative symptoms. The number of studies exploring the combination of positive and negative attributes of doctoral students’ well-being is limited. Therefore, this study aims to focus on exploring individual variation in doctoral students’ experienced engagement and burnout across two distinct socio-cultural contexts in Finland and in South Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 884 doctoral students from Finland (n = 391) and South Africa (n = 493) responded to the cross-cultural Doctoral Experience Survey. The data were quantitatively analyzed.
Findings
Altogether four distinctive engagement–burnout profiles were detected, including engaged, engaged–exhausted, moderately engaged–burnout and burnout profiles. Differences between the Finnish and South African students were identified in profile emphasis. The profiles were also related to several study progress attributes such as drop-out intentions, time-to-candidacy and satisfaction with study.
Originality/value
This study provides new understanding on doctoral students’ well-being by focusing on both positive and negative attributes and exploring doctoral students’ discrepant profiles with a cross-country design.
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Miao Liu, Eric Scheepbouwer and Sonia Giovinazzi
The purpose of this paper is to synthesise critical success factors (CSFs) for advancing post-disaster infrastructure recovery and underpinning recovery authorities in decision…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to synthesise critical success factors (CSFs) for advancing post-disaster infrastructure recovery and underpinning recovery authorities in decision making when facing future disasters.
Design/methodology/approach
The seismic recovery after the Canterbury (NZ) earthquake sequence in 2010-2011 was selected as a case study for identifying CSFs for an efficient recovery of infrastructure post-disaster. A combination of research approaches, including archival study, observations and semi-structured interviews were conducted for collecting data and evidences by engaging with participants involved at various tiers in the post-disaster recovery and reconstruction. The CSFs are evaluated and analysed by tracking the decision-making process, examining resultant consequences and foreseeing onwards challenges.
Findings
Six salient CSFs for strengthening infrastructure recovery management after disasters are identified. Furthermore, the study shows how each of these CSFs have been incorporated into the decision-making process in support of the post-disaster recovery and what difficulties encountered in the recovery process when implementing.
Practical implications
The proposed CSFs provide a future reference and guidance to be drawn on by decision makers when project-managing post-disaster recovery operations.
Originality/value
The value of the paper is that it bridges the gap between managerial contexts and technical aspects of post-disaster recovery process in an effort to rapidly and efficiently rebuild municipal infrastructure.