In a feast of differentiation, Tyson Foods slices up more than 57 varieties of chicken products for four different major markets. Instead of selling broilers at 69 cents a pound…
Abstract
In a feast of differentiation, Tyson Foods slices up more than 57 varieties of chicken products for four different major markets. Instead of selling broilers at 69 cents a pound, Tyson is a Fortune star selling marinated fillets at more than six times as much.
Rogelio Oliva and Michael Bean
The purpose of this paper is to articulate the challenges of learning and improving in service delivery systems – that present managers with imperfect information, confounded…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to articulate the challenges of learning and improving in service delivery systems – that present managers with imperfect information, confounded variables, and tightly coupled interactions between operational and psychological factors – and present a simulator to assist managers to overcome these challenges.
Design/methodology/approach
After reviewing the literature on “learning from simulations” and the main challenges of learning in a service environment, the paper presents the assumptions underlying the service quality management simulator, its interface, and protocols to use it that have proven effective.
Findings
It is possible to assist managers to develop operational understanding – what to do, when and how much of it to do – about the drivers of service quality using a simulation environment.
Research limitations/implications
In its present form, the simulator only takes a functional definition of service quality and captures the relationships in a business‐to‐consumer service environment. These shortcomings suggest future expansions to the theory. Also, while anecdotal evidence is reported of the benefits using the simulator, quantifying these benefits remains a challenge for future research.
Practical implications
The ability to customize the simulator's parameters to represent specific service settings makes it a powerful tool for operating managers facing some of the challenges described by the theory.
Originality/value
This paper documents, in a non‐technical way, the elements a set of relationships that has been shown to confuse managers and cause erosion of service quality and describes the simulator's uses and benefits in a pedagogical environment.
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Keywords
Do's and Don'ts for managing strategic alliances—cooperative agreements that don't create a new corporate entity.
Paul Michael Young, Alan St Clair Gibson, Elizabeth Partington, Sarah Partington and Mark Wetherell
Incidents requiring command and control require all personnel from firefighters (FFs) to the incident commander (IC) to make continuous decisions often with limited information…
Abstract
Purpose
Incidents requiring command and control require all personnel from firefighters (FFs) to the incident commander (IC) to make continuous decisions often with limited information and under acute time-pressure. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore the stress reactivity of specific roles during the command and control of an immersive, computer-based incident.
Design/methodology/approach
Experienced firefighting personnel undergoing incident command training participated in this study. Participants completed measures of state anxiety and stress immediately before and after taking part in a computer-based simulation of a large-scale incident run in real time. During the simulation personnel assumed one of four roles: IC, sector commander, entry control officer (ECO), and command support officer. Following the simulation personnel then completed measures of perceived workload.
Findings
No significant changes in state anxiety were observed, but levels of stress and perceived workload were related to task roles. Specifically, ICs reported the greatest levels of mental and temporal demands and stress when compared with ECOs.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations include the lack of environmental factors (such as rain, darkness, and noise), a relatively small sample size, and the use of self-reported questionnaires.
Practical implications
The application of immersive training environments as a method of developing FFs experience of incident command roles and skills pertinent to high-acuity, low-frequency events.
Originality/value
The paper represents one of the first attempts to identify the self-reported anxiety, stress, and perceived workload of specific role demands during the command and control of simulated incidents.
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“Plus Corporation, partnering with a leading edge Japanese manufacturer, is rushing a unique computer hard drive to market. This startup subsidiary must manage the cross‐cultural…
Abstract
“Plus Corporation, partnering with a leading edge Japanese manufacturer, is rushing a unique computer hard drive to market. This startup subsidiary must manage the cross‐cultural joint venture, survive a competitive crisis, and keep the parent corporation happy.” The product development project was so successful, top management at Plus was given the opportunity to run its parent company.
Mustapha Mouloua, Janan Al-Awar Smither, Dennis A Vincenzi and Laura Smith
This paper synthesizes existing experimental research in the area of investor perceptions and offers directions for future research. Investor-related experimental research has…
Abstract
This paper synthesizes existing experimental research in the area of investor perceptions and offers directions for future research. Investor-related experimental research has grown substantially, especially in the last decade, as it has made valuable contributions in establishing causal links, examining underlying process measures, and examining areas with little available data. Within this review, I examine 121 papers and identify three broad categories that affect investor perceptions: information format, investor features, and disclosure credibility. Information format describes how investors are influenced by information salience, information labeling, reporting and accounting complexity, financial statement recognition, explanatory disclosures, and proposed disclosure changes. Investor features describes investors’ use of heuristics, investor preferences, and the effect of investor experience. Disclosure credibility is influenced by external and internal assurance, management credibility, disclosure characteristics, and management incentives. Using this framework, I summarize the existing research and identify areas that would benefit from additional research.
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Researchers have long been interested in understanding why and how corporate managers issue earnings guidance and the effect of such guidance on stakeholders’ (investors’ and…
Abstract
Researchers have long been interested in understanding why and how corporate managers issue earnings guidance and the effect of such guidance on stakeholders’ (investors’ and managers’) behavior. Several recent studies have employed the experimental approach to address these issues. The purpose of this paper is to analyze and synthesize the literature on experimental studies of management earnings guidance. Consistent with the literature, I organize the synthesis to reflect (a) whether, why and how management issues guidance; (b) investors’ reactions to guidance; (c) the effect of guidance on management behavior. In addition, I provide institutional information (e.g., nature and timing of guidance) about guidance as well as provide several directions for future research. The synthesis reveals that the experimental studies have made a unique contribution to this literature by (i) providing evidence on process variables that underlie some empirical associations, (ii) directly measuring managers’ personal attributes and, (iii) closing the causality gap in the guidance literature.