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Article
Publication date: 30 July 2019

Elsa Vieira, João J. Ferreira and Ricardo São João

The blue ocean strategy refers to how rebuilding the inputs that customers value in the designing of a new value curve fundamentally requires a four field of action structure…

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Abstract

Purpose

The blue ocean strategy refers to how rebuilding the inputs that customers value in the designing of a new value curve fundamentally requires a four field of action structure: reduce, eliminate, create and raise. However, this does not propose a methodology to identify these fields of action. Hence, the purpose of this study is to present importance-performance analysis (IPA), as a support tool to identify these fields of action given their relevance and utility to managers.

Design/methodology/approach

The 101 ex-customers of health club answered a survey to determine the cut-off boundaries for IPA, and therefore, maximising the discriminatory power of the logistical regression model. This correspondingly incorporated the evaluation of both the area below the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and the adoption of coefficients for concordance and correlation.

Findings

The research results demonstrate the need to concentrate efforts on the attributes of: price, responses to complaints, emergency procedures, innovative services, changing rooms, support for selecting the activities members choose to undertake and an appropriate number of members per activity. With low levels of performance and importance, are candidates for elimination, specifically, the availability of specialist appointments, member socialisation activities, maintaining memories of members, bar services and services for children.

Originality/value

The contribution: presenting an IPA methodology applicable to identify the fields of action recognised by the blue ocean strategy as the literature currently only covers concrete situations in which organisations achieve success through reducing, eliminating, creating and elevating and does not set out any methodology to identify those same fields of action; the definition of the cut-off points in IPA based on the ROC curve, which is a more rigorous and exact statistical method than that applied in other studies; the study population, the ex-customers, who not only represent a very important source of latent demand but also because ex-customers are likely to return more impartial.

Details

Measuring Business Excellence, vol. 23 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1368-3047

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Article
Publication date: 14 May 2020

Elsa Vieira and João Ferreira

The purpose of this paper is to identify the strategies that private fitness centres implement and to evaluate their impact on financial performance.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify the strategies that private fitness centres implement and to evaluate their impact on financial performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Based upon a sample of 151 private fitness centres in Portugal, multivariate statistics report the implemented strategies and their effect on financial performance. We applied exploratory factorial analysis as our methodology to identify the types of strategy and the ANOVA in order to verify if there are differences of financial performance in the strategies.

Findings

The results obtained demonstrate how private fitness centres implement different strategies, including: cost leadership, differentiation, focus, quality of service, combined and stuck in the middle approaches. The relationship between strategies and financial performance, private fitness centres adopting a cost leadership strategy obtain the best financial performance levels in terms of the sales variable relative to any other strategy but with the combined strategy returning a better performance in terms of the return on assets when compared with the cost leadership strategy.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper stems from its identification of the strategies implemented by private fitness centres, thus, just what type of strategies are in effect across the fitness industry: leadership through cost, differentiation or a focused strategy. However, in addition to ascertaining just which strategies undergo implementation, it is also pertinent in determining just which strategy drives the best financial performance for private fitness centres given that private centres may only remain in the market when achieving financial sustainability. Therefore, this paper seeks to provide information for managers as regards the strategies implemented and their impacts on the financial performance of private fitness centres.

Details

Sport, Business and Management: An International Journal, vol. 10 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-678X

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Available. Content available
Book part
Publication date: 6 December 2017

Free Access. Free Access

Abstract

Details

The Emerald Handbook of Public–Private Partnerships in Developing and Emerging Economies
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78714-494-1

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Book part
Publication date: 6 December 2017

Fernando T. Camacho, Bruno C. L. Rodrigues and Heldo M. M. Vieira

The purpose of this chapter is to analyse the procurement of public–private partnerships (PPPs) through unsolicited proposals (USPs). This chapter compares the policy framework…

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to analyse the procurement of public–private partnerships (PPPs) through unsolicited proposals (USPs). This chapter compares the policy framework and economic data of USPs in Brazil and Chile and provides some economic insights based on this analysis. In line with the existing literature, empirical evidence shows that non-proponents rarely win the tender for a project based on a USP. Differently from the existing literature, data analysis suggests that USPs may result on successful projects only in very specific conditions. USPs may work better in sectors where the government has developed higher in-house expertise to manage infrastructure projects. Also, USPs are more fit to projects that are clearly economically viable ex ante. However, even in these cases, USPs might generate a higher transaction cost to the government and less competitive tenders in comparison to solicited proposals. The analysis focuses on countries that have a very rich experience in USPs. Nonetheless, given the different legal and regulatory environments around the globe, it is difficult to provide a one-size fits-all USP policy. This chapter aims to provide some insights into how to manage a USP in order to improve the public policy framework of this procurement tool. This chapter contributes to the literature as it provides an economic analysis of the conditions in which the USP mechanism could result in a successful project.

Details

The Emerald Handbook of Public–Private Partnerships in Developing and Emerging Economies
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78714-494-1

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Article
Publication date: 26 October 2021

Patricia Bazan and Elsa Estevez

The objective of the work is to analyze the impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) concepts and associated technologies in the framework of organizations and the management of…

2001

Abstract

Purpose

The objective of the work is to analyze the impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) concepts and associated technologies in the framework of organizations and the management of their processes and how event orientation, as well as the structure of said business processes, can play an important role in this new organizational model. The main contribution of this work is to present a conceptualization of the research, identify approaches and challenges that require further study, and as a result, a proposal for future research.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology comprises a qualitative analysis using secondary data. The approach relies on searches of scientific papers conducted in well-known databases, identifying research work around the IoT and Industry 4.0 applied to business process management. Based on the identified papers, the authors selected the most relevant and the latest publications, and categorized their contributions and findings based on open and selective coding. In total, the analysis is based on 95 papers that were selected and analyzed in depth.

Findings

The results of this research allow analyzing and ordering the existing contributions around Industry 4.0 and its impact on current organizations. The proposed conceptualization was derived from the analysis of the state of the research and identifies four categories: (1) improvements caused by Industry 4.0 and its impact on inter-organizational relations, (2) new architectural models and infrastructure of remote resources, their movement from the cloud to the edge and its effect on business processes, (3) context-aware concepts brought to business process management (BPM) linked to unstructured business processes and (4) complex event processing as a possible means for business processes sensitive to IoT signals.

Practical implications

The construction of current software ecosystems is strongly affected by the variety of information sources that feed them, as well as their volume. In addition, business processes represent organizations internally and are challenged to transcend the limits of companies due to the mentioned changes in software ecosystems. Industry 4.0 in conjunction with BPM re-defines the business process management paradigm and leads them to acquire the dynamism and sensitivity to the context that they usually did not have, as well as force them to move toward distributed platforms.

Originality/value

This paper assesses the state of the art in Industry 4.0 and business process management. The area can be defined as the intersection of two bigger areas highly relevant for organizations; on the one hand, the management and execution of business processes; and on the other hand, new conceptual, technological and methodological challenges to information systems that have to become more sensitive to event processing and also have to consume a large volume of data permanently and ubiquitously.

Details

Business Process Management Journal, vol. 28 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-7154

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Article
Publication date: 18 July 2024

Paulo M. Gama and Elisabete F. Vieira

This paper studies the impact of societal trust on the conservative financing policy puzzle, aiming to cover a gap in the relationship between cultural values and the conservative…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper studies the impact of societal trust on the conservative financing policy puzzle, aiming to cover a gap in the relationship between cultural values and the conservative financing policy.

Design/methodology/approach

We use a sample of 14,509 privately held medium-sized manufacturing firms from 26 European countries between 2015 and 2020 and rely on logistic regression methods controlling for firm-specific and macroeconomic factors.

Findings

We show that societal trust decreases the odds of being a zero-leverage or almost zero-leverage firm. Also, the probability of being a conservatively financed firm increases for older and more profitable firms and decreases with tangibility. In more trustworthy national environments, firms are less averse to debt as a source of financing. Our results are robust to the specific measure of trust, estimation methods, sampling procedures, and annual financial constraint status. Moreover, we show that the effect is noticed both in the long-term debt and the short-term debt with a lower economic impact in the latter situation and that increased societal trust attenuates (reinforces) the effect of being a financially constrained (unconstrained) firm on the odds of adopting a conservative financing policy.

Research limitations/implications

Societal trust strategically impacts debt financing policy and could help foster firms’ growth, particularly for those facing heavier financial constraints.

Originality/value

Novel evidence on the impact of societal trust on the conservative financing policy, for privately held medium-sized European firms.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 50 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

Available. Open Access. Open Access
Article
Publication date: 25 May 2021

Peter Nderitu Githaiga

This paper aims to investigate whether revenue diversification affects the financial sustainability of microfinance institutions (MFIs).

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate whether revenue diversification affects the financial sustainability of microfinance institutions (MFIs).

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a worldwide panel data set of 443 MFIs in 108 countries for the period 2013–2018 and two-step system Generalized Method of Moments estimation model.

Findings

The study finds that revenue diversification has a significant and positive effect on the financial sustainability of MFIs.

Practical implications

The findings of this study actually offer important managerial and policy lessons on MFIs’ financial sustainability. Microfinance managers and policymakers should consider revenue diversification as a strategy through which MFIs can attain financial sustainability instead of overreliance on donations and government subsidies

Originality/value

Unlike previous studies that examined revenue diversification in the context of banking firms, this study contributes to literature by examining the impact of revenue diversification of the financial sustainability of MFIs.

Details

Asian Journal of Accounting Research, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2443-4175

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Article
Publication date: 17 September 2019

Brenda Kelly Souza Silveira, Juliana Farias de Novaes, Sarah Aparecida Vieira, Daniela Mayumi Usuda Prado Rocha, Arieta Carla Gualandi Leal and Helen Hermana Miranda Hermsdorff

The purpose of this paper is to examine the associations of dietary patterns with sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics in a cardiometabolic risk population.

176

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the associations of dietary patterns with sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics in a cardiometabolic risk population.

Design/methodology/approach

In this cross-sectional study data from 295 (n=123 men/172 women, 42±16 years) participants in a Cardiovascular Health Care Program were included. After a 24-hour recall interview the dietary patterns were determined using principal component analysis. Sociodemographic, clinical and lifestyle data were collected by medical records.

Findings

Subjects with diabetes and hypertension had a higher adherence in the “traditional” pattern (rice, beans, tubers, oils and meats). Poisson regression models showed that male subjects with low schooling and smokers had greater adherence to the “traditional” pattern. Also, students, women, and those with higher schooling and sleeping =7 h/night showed higher adherence to healthy patterns (whole grains, nuts, fruits and dairy). Women, young adults and those with higher schooling and fewer sleep hours had greater adherence to healthy dietary patterns. Those with low schooling and unhealthy lifestyle showed more adherence to the “traditional” pattern.

Social implications

The results indicate the importance to personalized nutritional therapy and education against cardiometabolic risk, considering the dietary patterns specific to each population.

Originality/value

Socioeconomic and lifestyle characteristics can influence dietary patterns and this is one of the few studies that investigated this relationship performing principal component analysis.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 121 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

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Article
Publication date: 14 October 2013

Elsa Andrea Kirchner and Rolf Drechsler

The presented work contributes to research in the field of advanced man-machine interaction and to research in the field of formalisation and verification of complex systems. This…

236

Abstract

Purpose

The presented work contributes to research in the field of advanced man-machine interaction and to research in the field of formalisation and verification of complex systems. This work was motivated by the need to provide a detailed and well understandable formal description of embedded brain reading (eBR). The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper first introduces eBR and points out its main features. Next, a general model for eBR is developed to describe the overall architecture, integral parts and dependencies between those parts. The model is developed and presented in a formal structured form that allows for application of optimisation as well as verification techniques.

Findings

The paper demonstrates using implementations that the application of the formal model allows to check for completeness and correctness to detect errors in implementation, which were invisible without formalising eBR. In summary, the presented work contributes a formal model for a complex system and shows that such a formal model can improve the overall system's functionality.

Research limitations/implications

For future work, the results support the application of formal modelling and verification techniques at the system level and the development of methods to prove for correctness and completeness of complex systems during their development.

Originality/value

The paper describes for the first time eBR and presents a formal model for it. It illustrates how an error-prone approach like BR can be applied safely by embedding it into the control of a real system and by applying mechanisms that control for its correct function.

Details

Industrial Robot: An International Journal, vol. 40 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-991X

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Article
Publication date: 10 January 2024

António Carvalho, Luís Miguel Pacheco, Filipe Sardo and Zelia Serrasqueiro

The behavioural theory adds a new paradigm of analysis with the assumptions of the decision maker’s cognitive biases and their repercussions on financing decisions. The aim of the…

310

Abstract

Purpose

The behavioural theory adds a new paradigm of analysis with the assumptions of the decision maker’s cognitive biases and their repercussions on financing decisions. The aim of the study is to analyse the repercussions of these biases on the adjustment speed of firm’s capital structure toward the optimal level.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a partial adjustment model, the study uses the Dynamic Panel Fractional estimator to analyse panel data from 4,990 Portuguese entrepreneurial firms.

Findings

The results show that the cognitive overconfidence bias impacts the entrepreneurial firm’s capital structure. In fact, the firms run by overconfident managers adjust more slowly than their counterparts. Furthermore, the findings suggest that entrepreneurial firms make relatively fast adjustments toward the optimal debt level and follow a hierarchical financing order in the funding process.

Practical implications

The results of this paper are not only interesting to the academia, but also contain practical implications for corporate, institutional and business policy and governance. First, the paper introduces a new measure of cognitive bias in optimistic managers, which is useful for current and future academic research. Also, in practical terms, the findings of the paper reveal that when a company is contemplating hiring a manager, it should consider whether they need an optimistic or non-optimistic manager based on the company's present life cycle or situation.

Originality/value

The current analysis extends the existing literature. The study suggests that financial classical and behavioural paradigms should not be separated, which can provide evidence to help narrow the gap between these two major perspectives.

Details

Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, vol. 31 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1462-6004

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