The purpose of this paper is to argue that, despite the attention given to China's rising importance in the international marketplace, there has not been a corresponding attention…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to argue that, despite the attention given to China's rising importance in the international marketplace, there has not been a corresponding attention given to the sustainability dimensions i.e. social and environmental dimensions of this economic development trajectory. Specifically, what type of business strategy can and will best serve the economic, environmental and social needs of China, and what role if any can the private sector play facilitating the development of such a strategy?
Design/methodology/approach
The paper first examines the evolving relationship between business and sustainable development. Second, the sustainability challenge within the regional context in the Asia‐Pacific region is outlined. Third, the sustainability challenges posed by China's rise in the global economy are analyzed and the impacts of these challenges on current and future business strategies examined. Findings.– In order to fully understand the strategic convergence between China, business and sustainability concerns, it is important to understand the evolving relationship between business and sustainable development as well as the sustainability challenge within the regional context in the Asia‐Pacific region, and assess the impacts of these issues on current and future business strategies in China.
Research limitations/implications
The next step for research will be to explore if the new sustainable business models can be designed and implemented which are suitable to the market reality of China's economy.
Originality/value
The value of this paper is to seek new ideas for business strategy and new venture creation that incorporates a triple bottom line (economic, environment and social) perspective.
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Andrew Dudash and Jacob E. Gordon
The purpose of this case study was to complement existing weeding and retention criteria beyond the most used methods in academic libraries and to consider citation counts in the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this case study was to complement existing weeding and retention criteria beyond the most used methods in academic libraries and to consider citation counts in the identification of important scholarly works.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a small sample of items chosen for withdrawal from a small liberal arts college library, this case study looks at the use of Google Scholar citation counts as a metric for identification of notable monographs in the social sciences and mathematics.
Findings
Google Scholar citation counts are a quick indicator of classic, foundational or discursive monographs in a particular field and should be given more consideration in weeding and retention analysis decisions that impact scholarly collections. Higher citation counts can be an indicator of higher circulation counts.
Originality/value
The authors found little indication in the literature that Google Scholar citation counts are being used as a metric for identification of notable works or for retention of monographs in academic libraries.
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Many clean energy ventures, particularly those in the early stage and operating in the developing world, never get off the ground because traditional sources of capital like banks…
Abstract
Many clean energy ventures, particularly those in the early stage and operating in the developing world, never get off the ground because traditional sources of capital like banks tend to shy away from sectors that seem unfamiliar or too risky. As highlighted most recently in the COP21 Paris Climate Change summit in December 2015, there is a critical gap in market understanding of and limited scholarly research on the role clean energy entrepreneurship can play in addressing energy poverty and sustainable business model development in the developing world. To address these gaps, this chapter seeks to connect the theory and practice of clean energy entrepreneurship in sub-Saharan Africa. Three issues and questions will be explored in this chapter. First, what are the critical differences in terms of sustainability and entrepreneurship between industrialized OECD countries and emerging markets and developing countries? Second, what key issues and questions need to be addressed in order to design, build, and scale a clean energy entrepreneurial ecosystem in sub-Saharan Africa? Third, what is the future outlook for clean energy entrepreneurship in sub-Saharan Africa?
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The purpose of this paper is to propose a comprehensive approach to the valuation of an infrastructure concession right and quantitative risk management projects in the People's…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose a comprehensive approach to the valuation of an infrastructure concession right and quantitative risk management projects in the People's Republic of China.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper outlines a methodology, incorporating an economic model to appraise the dynamic value and risk of concession investment in the context of the design of concession contracts.
Findings
The framework of the study simulates the present value of net cash flow and identifies probability with different parameters in concession contracts as a way to establish a correlation between parameters and net present value distribution. Moreover, the paper uses the technique of value‐at‐risk to set up an economic model to appraise the dynamic value and risk of a concession investment and analyse the key issues in the concession contracts design phase.
Research limitations/implications
It is difficult to estimate precisely the distribution of parameters in the model. In particular, estimating shortfalls in the rate of return of the concession project, the appreciation rate of the future operating cash flow and the market rate of return all have significant impact on the results.
Practical implications
This study frames examines the concession rights mode in a traffic infrastructure construction project and provides potential developers and potential host governments with a reasoned approach to evaluating risk and capital investment in potential concession projects.
Originality/value
The paper offers insights into the risk management, financing and valuation of infrastructure concession rights concerning the Guangshen Freeway in China.
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Heiko Gebauer, Felix Pützr, Thomas Fischer, Chunzhi Wang and Jie Lin
The purpose of this paper is to explore maintenance strategies for manufacturing equipment in Chinese firms.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore maintenance strategies for manufacturing equipment in Chinese firms.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from Chinese companies using a questionnaire administered during face‐to‐face interviews and two established methodologies in strategic management research, exploratory factor analysis and cluster analysis, were used to analyze the data.
Findings
The results suggest that despite increasing competitive capabilities of Chinese firms, their maintenance strategies are often restricted to corrective maintenance. Only very few Chinese firms have already implemented predictive maintenance approach, total productive maintenance programs or the strategic outsourcing of maintenance activities.
Research limitations/implications
The research limitations stem from typical issues related to the use of exploratory factor analysis and cluster analysis (for example reliance on the subjective judgment of the researcher or the provision of clusters although no meaningful groups are embedded in the sample).
Practical implications
The findings highlight potential strategies for Chinese firms to improve their maintenance management.
Originality/value
This paper deals with a neglected area of operations management by exploring the maintenance approaches in fast growing Chinese manufacturing industries.
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The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the job creation policies being used to address the high unemployment rate and number of xiagang in Shanghai.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the job creation policies being used to address the high unemployment rate and number of xiagang in Shanghai.
Design/methodology/approach
Using primarily Chinese language sources, the context of employment issues are discussed. This is followed by a brief analysis of each issue.
Findings
Among the numerous setbacks caused by the ongoing reforms, xiagang and urban unemployment have become one of the most serious problems for the Chinese leadership. There are no panaceas on offer and just which combination of measures should be chosen is a matter for debate. Some combination of a less restrictive labour market, expansion of infrastructure investment and stimulation of re‐employment involving public and private partnership in areas where the market is unlikely to generate spontaneously appears as a suitable way forward. Recruitment subsidies are not favoured as a solution while a focus retraining on smaller, well‐targeted schemes for recognizable areas of skill shortages while simultaneously making counselling and job search advice more widely available is favoured. Finally, the Chinese government has recently shifted its development strategy from one of centring on economic growth to one aimed at the sustainable development of the society. Such a shift is appropriate and desirable for China as the move enables the nation to alleviate rather than aggravate the social problems arising from its high economic growth achieved during the past twenty years.
Practical implications
While China defines unemployment differently to other countries and has the unique phenomenon of xiagang, this paper provides a platform for considering future policy development in the employment area.
Originality/value
As much of the source material for this paper is only available in Chinese, the paper provides insights into one complex and challenging employment issue in the Chinese economy and presents opportunities for non‐Chinese speaking scholars to review the current debate.
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Junjie Wu, Jining Song and Catherine Zeng
The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical quantitative evidence concerning small business financing in China and highlight the financing problems faced by small to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical quantitative evidence concerning small business financing in China and highlight the financing problems faced by small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing their businesses.
Design/methodology/approach
A semi‐structured questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data from a sample of 60 small businesses in three cities in China. Descriptive methods and the SPSS statistical software package were used to analyse the data and interpret the results.
Findings
The data gathered covered current topic in research including the capital structure of SMEs at start‐up, the types and extent of funding shortage, the preference of financial resources as SMEs grow, the significant factors, which help SMEs secure bank loans and the influence of a firm's size, age and the like. The findings generally support financial theories and previous studies about SMEs but also offer the basis for new arguments about financing SMEs in China.
Research limitations/implications
The sample size is relatively small and statistical analysis is relatively straightforward.
Practical implication
The present study will be of interest to policy makers developing new strategies and policies to support the financing of SMEs in China.
Originality/value
The results from this study contribute to the understanding of current problems in financing Chinese small business enterprises. These include findings, which were not presented in other similar studies.
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Kechinyere C. Iheduru-Anderson and Monika M. Wahi
This chapter proposes a global agenda to eliminate racism in nursing by targeting reform at nursing education administration internationally. First, the history of racism in…
Abstract
This chapter proposes a global agenda to eliminate racism in nursing by targeting reform at nursing education administration internationally. First, the history of racism in nursing is reviewed, along with two models – the diversity model and the cultural competence model – that were applied unsuccessfully to counteract racism in nursing. Second, a description of how racism is entrenched in nursing leadership globally is presented. Third, the recalcitrant structures that serve to maintain institutionalized racism (IR) in the international nursing education system are carefully examined. Specifically, the components and constructs involved in IR in nursing education are delineated, and the way in which these negatively impact both ethnic minority (EM) students and faculty are explained. Based on this, a global agenda to eliminate racism in nursing education internationally is proposed. Eliminating racism in higher education in nursing is a mandatory social responsibility if global healthcare is ever to be equitable. Five actionable recommendations are made to eliminate racism in higher education are summarized as follows: (1) components of nursing programs which are designed to eliminate racism in nursing education should be governed at the country level, (2) to design and implement a system of surveillance of the global nursing community to enable standardized measurement to ensure nursing education programs in all countries are meeting anti-racism benchmark targets, (3) nursing education programs should be established worldwide to provide individual pipeline and mentorship programs to ensure the career success of EM nursing students and faculty, (4) nursing education programs should be conducted to reduce barriers to EM participation in these individual support programs, and (5) nursing education programs are required to teach their nursing faculty skills in developing anti-racist curricula that seeks to eliminate implicit bias.
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Xin Chuai, David Preece and Paul Iles
The purpose of this paper is to explore whether talent management (TM) practices are fundamentally different from traditional approaches to human resource management (HRM) and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore whether talent management (TM) practices are fundamentally different from traditional approaches to human resource management (HRM) and whether TM in China is an element of the struggle by those in the human resource (HR) profession to improve its credibility and status.
Design/methodology/approach
Case studies are the main method of collecting data. These are supplemented by documentary analysis. Four in‐depth case studies were undertaken in Beijing. The target organizations were chosen from the information technology, health care and education sectors. The interviews were semi‐structured and were conducted with a range of stakeholders in each organization, including at least one HR specialist (normally, the senior HR professional, senior and functional managers as well as non‐managerial staff. In addition, interviews were also conducted in three management consulting firms regarded as being at the cutting edge in order to explore the orientation of such firms to the TM phenomenon.
Findings
TM emerges as being different from traditional HRM, incorporating new knowledge rather than being a simple repackaging of old techniques and ideas with new labels. Therefore, TM should not be seen simply as “old wine in new bottles” with respect to the case of China. In addition, this study challenges the idea that TM is yet another struggle by HR professionals to enhance their legitimacy, status and credibility within their organizations.
Research limitations/implications
This study concerns itself with only well‐established and recognized multinational corporations in Beijing. There might be different conclusions for the other types of enterprises.
Originality/value
This paper offers new research on TM in China.
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Di Fan, Chris Nyland and Cherrie Jiuhua Zhu
Based on the review of extant international business and management literature, this paper aims to examine the global integration (GI) and local responsiveness (LR) paradigm and…
Abstract
Purpose
Based on the review of extant international business and management literature, this paper aims to examine the global integration (GI) and local responsiveness (LR) paradigm and its impact on the adoption of international business strategy (IBS) by multinational corporations (MNCs); second, discuss determinants that are critical in the process of forming IBS by MNCs; and third identify the lacuna in current research with respect to strategic implications of the framework for MNCs from emerging economies such as Chinese multinational corporations (CMNCs).
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the extant literature review, this paper identifies a research gap and proposes several research questions for future study. First, the paper reviews prior studies on the GI‐LR model and its impact on and strategic implications for IBS. Second, it examines how MNCs from developed countries adopt different types of IBS and what determinants drive their decision‐making. Third, it attempts to discuss why CMNCs should be studied in terms of their choice of IBS based on the GI‐LR mode. The paper concludes with research questions for future study.
Findings
This paper summarizes determinants of IBS in a three‐category table mainly based on prior studies on the GI‐LR model from developed countries. As a consequence, it identifies a future research area in the field of international management.
Originality/value
This paper is based on a comprehensive review of prior studies related to the GI‐LR framework. The aim of the study is to identify a new research area in international management, that is, how MNCs from emerging country contexts, such as China, to co‐ordinate GI and LR for their IBS.