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Subcontracting is a crucial cause behind the simultaneous existence of formal and informal entrepreneurship in India. This article aims to provide an over-time comparative analysis between the subcontracted and the non-subcontracted enterprises within the informal sector. Further, it also brings to fore the contribution of subcontracting towards ensuring sustainability of the informal enterprises.

By constructing a panel data from two rounds of NSS Unincorporated Enterprise Survey Data (2010 and 2015), and employing a PSM-DID method, considering labour productivity and net retained earnings as two critical indicators of growth and development of the informal sector firms, this study has made some broad claims regarding the differences in immediate and long run performances between the subcontracted and non-subcontracted informal sector enterprises in India.

This study finds that subcontracted enterprises have not only been performing at a much lower level than the non-subcontracted enterprises, they are also growing much slowly than their counterparts. However, it has been observed that for the establishments, who are capital abundant and also have a larger production capacity, subcontracting is showing the prospect for deriving sustainable gains.

This article contributes to the existing literature in the following two ways. Firstly, it provides an over-time comparative analysis between the subcontracted and the non-subcontracted enterprises within the informal sector. Secondly, it brings to fore the contribution of subcontracting towards ensuring sustainability of the informal enterprises.

Disadvantaged regions in India suffer from various forms of problems aggravated by constraints of accessibility. This paper aims to conceptualize innovations as solutions to the problem at grassroots.

This paper tries to bridge empirical gaps in conceptualization of innovations at grassroots with the application of both empirical and theoretical methods.

Grassroots innovation is an important instrument to solve such problems in these regions, where appropriate solution is not developed by the government instrument or private agencies (market) in general with various forms of value creation.

This paper tries to bridge empirical gaps in conceptualization of innovations at grassroots.

The need for context-specific adoption models led to the development of the firm technology adoption model (F-TAM) model. Among small to medium-scale enterprises (SMEs); however, firm-level factors were rather insignificant in engendering SME level adoption of technological innovation. This study aims to examine the effect of firm size and other moderating and mediating factors on the relationships between personal, firm, societal and technological factors proposed in the stakeholder-oriented F-TAM among SMEs.

A research instrument was developed, reviewed by experts, and pilot tested with a sample of 25 respondents. Data were purposively collected from four hundred (400) SMEs and analyzed with partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

The study discovered that employees, societal and technological factors moderate the relationship between firm factors of adoption and firm adoption. Without these moderating effects, firm factors of adoption would have been insignificant at the SMEs’ level of organizational technology adoption. The study further discovered that firm size, as well as risk propensity, also affect the relationships proposed in the model.

Data was collected on voluntary adoption from the most cosmopolitan area of a developing country. It, therefore, needs further contextual validation across the country and different countries.

The engagement of innovations in firms must be planned with employees and society as major stakeholders.

The significance of this finding is the study’s emphasis on an eco-system approach for examining the phenomenon of innovation adoption. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to examine the effect of firm characteristics on is proposed eco-system of stakeholders.

Sustainability is increasingly becoming an essential aspect of technological innovations. In addition, the diffusion of sustainable new technology-based products appears to be uneven across the globe. The authors examine the effect of three country-level Hofstede measures of culture and two national-level innovation characteristics on the diffusion of Sustainable New Technology-based Products (SNTP).

Regression and Necessary Conditions Analysis were used to analyze a panel dataset of electric and hybrid vehicles sales from 2008 to 2017 across 89 countries.

Results suggest Long-Term Orientation (LTO) was correlated with SNTP diffusion, Indulgence (IVR) was partially correlated with SNTP diffusion and was also a necessary condition. Surprisingly, Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI) was not correlated with SNTP diffusion. In addition, a national proclivity for developing innovations and a history of utilizing prior generic innovations were both correlated and necessary for SNTP diffusion.

This paper measures the impact of several macro-level variables (culture and other innovation related characteristics of countries) on SNTP diffusion. In addition to regression analyses to measure the average effect size, the authors conduct Necessary Conditions Analysis, which assesses the necessity of a variable for the outcome. These insights may help multinational companies better strategize entry decisions for international markets and aid governments in formulating more effective policies by recognizing and accommodating the influences of national culture and innovation attitudes.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the bioconvection flow in a porous square cavity saturated with both oxytactic microorganism and nanofluids.

The impacts of the effective parameters such as Rayleigh number, bioconvection number, Peclet number and thermophoretic force, Brownan motion and Lewis number reduces the flow strength in the cavity on the flow strength, oxygen density distribution, motile isoconcentrations and heat transfer performance are investigated using a finite volume approach.

The results obtained showed that the average Nusselt number is increased with Peclet number, Lewis number, Brownian motion and thermophoretic force. Also, the average Sherwood number increased with Brownian motion and Peclet number and decreased with thermophoretic force. It is concluded that the flow strength is pronounced with Rayleigh number, bioconvection number, Peclet number and thermophoretic force. Brownan motion and Lewis number reduce the flow strength in the cavity.

There is no published study in the literature about sensitivity analysis of Brownian motion and thermophoresis force effects on the bioconvection heat transfer in a square cavity filled by both nanofluid and oxytactic microorganisms.

This study aims to understand the current production scenario emphasizing the significance of green manufacturing in achieving economic and environmental sustainability goals to fulfil future needs; to determine the viability of particular strategies and actions performed to increase the process efficiency of electrical discharge machining; and to uphold the values of sustainability in the nonconventional manufacturing sector and to identify future works in this regard.

A thorough analysis of numerous experimental studies and findings is conducted. This prominent nontraditional machining process’s potential machinability and sustainability challenges are discussed, along with the current research to alleviate them. The focus is placed on modifications to the dielectric fluid, choosing affordable substitutes and treating consumable tool electrodes.

Trans-esterified vegetable oils, which are biodegradable and can be used as a substitute for conventional dielectric fluids, provide pollution-free machining with enhanced surface finish and material removal rates. Modifying the dielectric fluid with specific nanomaterials could increase the machining rate and demonstrate a decrease in machining flaws such as micropores, globules and microcracks. Tool electrodes subjected to cryogenic treatment have shown reduced tool metal consumption and downtime for the setup.

The findings suggested eco-friendly machining techniques and optimized control settings that reduce energy consumption, lowering operating expenses and carbon footprints. Using eco-friendly dielectrics, including vegetable oils or biodegradable dielectric fluids, might lessen the adverse effects of the electrical discharge machine operations on the environment. Adopting sustainable practices might enhance a business’s reputation with the public, shareholders and clients because sustainability is becoming increasingly significant across various industries.

A detailed general review of green nontraditional electrical discharge machining process is provided, from high-quality indexed journals. The findings and results contemplated in this review paper can lead the research community to collectively apply it in sustainable techniques to enhance machinability and reduce environmental effects.

The purpose of this paper is to elaborate the significance of safeguards in digital ecosystems and their role in generating trust among participants. This paper argues that the right mix and number of safeguards are crucial for an ecosystem’s growth and success. It offers ecosystem orchestrators concrete guidelines for how to implement and monitor safeguards.

This research is based on both consulting experience and publicly available information on several digital ecosystems.

This research conceptualizes safeguards as precautionary mechanisms that mandate or promote desirable behavior in an effort to engender trust among ecosystem participants. Safeguards can take various forms, including passwords, escrow, user privacy controls, ratings and reviews and policies and contracts. Striking the right balance of safeguards – neither too few nor too many – is crucial for ecosystem orchestrators. This paper identifies the factors that determine the optimal mix of safeguards, including the power asymmetry between sellers and buyers, the sophistication of participants, the nature of transactions, the cost of negative outcomes and the cost-benefit tradeoff.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is one of the first to illuminate the relationship between safeguards and trust in the context of digital ecosystem. It is also one of the few attempts to provide managerial guidance for ecosystem designers trying to structure their platform for trust.

The learning outcomes of this case study are to develop an understanding of informal business practices (IBP) from an economic and a behavioural perspective, identify the pros and cons of IBP and how they can hinder the realization of entrepreneurial aspirations, use the effectuation perspective to understand the entrepreneurial journey of the protagonist and apply the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis and effectuation theory to understand the need for transition from informal to formal business practices.

KSN Iyengar Catering Services (KSNICS) had gained popularity for cooking and serving traditional “Iyengar” cuisine during festivals, ceremonies and other auspicious occasions. With the passage of time, KSNICS slowly diversified into offering food carrier services, corporate catering and preparation of sweets/savouries during the Diwali festival. The enterprise managed to sustain itself without additional investments from external sources. KSNICS was managed in an informal manner by the protagonist, Krishna Kumar. After almost 30 years of KSNICS’s existence, in 2021, Kumar felt that they should diversify into the restaurant business by establishing an authentic “Iyengar” restaurant. In spite of the unpredictable market and the challenging times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he had somehow managed to sustain his catering business. However, given the informal methods through which he operated his catering services and in the post-COVID-19 pandemic scenario, would it be prudent on his part to establish a restaurant?

This case study is suitable for post-graduate- and executive-level instruction in courses such as managerial skills, entrepreneurship and human resource management. In managerial skills course, it can be used for applying SWOT analysis from a particular perspective for effective decision-making. In entrepreneurship-related courses, it can be used to introduce aspects such as entrepreneurship orientation, effectuation and decision-making. In organizational behaviour and HR-related courses, it can be used to highlight how employees can be trained and motivated and how businesses can be sustained within the scale, especially during challenging times. Irrespective of the course, the IBP discussion would remain a constant point of reference because that was the context under which the current business was operating.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

To study the steady mixed convection boundary‐layer flow of a micropolar fluid near the region of the stagnation point on a double‐infinite vertical flat plate is studied. The results of this paper are important for the researchers in the area of micropolar fluids.

For the case considered the problem reduces to a system of ordinary differential equations, which is solved numerically using the Keller‐box method. This method is very efficient for solving boundary‐layer problems and it can easily be applied to other general situations than that presented in this paper. Any PhD student can learn and apply it very easily.

Representative results for the velocity, microrotation and temperature profiles, as well as for the reduced skin friction coefficient and the local Nusselt number have been obtained for the case of strong concentration, Prandtl number of 0.7, some values of the material parameter K and the mixed convection parameter λ(≥0). Both assisting and opposing flow cases are considered. Results for the reduced skin friction coefficient and reduced local Nusselt number as well as for the reduced velocity, temperature and microrotation profiles are given in tables and figures. The obtained results are compared with ones from the open literature and it is found that they are in excellent agreement. The important conclusion is, we have been able to show that for opposing flow solutions are possible are possible only for a limited range of values of the mixed convection parameter λ.

The results of this paper are valid only in the small region around the stagnation point on a vertical surface and they are not applicable outside this region.

The theory of micropolar fluids and also the results of the present paper can be used to explain the characteristics in certain fluids such as exotic lubricants, colloidal suspensions or polymeric fluids, liquid crystals, and animal blood.

The paper is very well prepared, presented and readable. We believe that the results are original and important from both theoretical and application point of views.

This paper aims to focus on the mathematical modeling of magnetohydrodynamic natural convective boundary layer flow of nanofluids past a stationary and moving inclined porous plate considering temperature and concentration gradients with suction effects.

The transformed non-dimensional and coupled governing partial differential equations are solved numerically using the finite element method.

The obtained numerical results for physical governing parameters on the velocity, temperature and concentration distributions are exemplified graphically and presented quantitatively. The boundary layer thickness increased with the increasing values of Soret, Dufour and Grashof numbers, while the thickness of boundary layer decreased with increasing values of suction for both stationary and moving plate cases. The primary and secondary velocity profiles are decreasing with an angle of inclination for moving plate and inclination has no significant effect for the stationary plate. An increase of the Soret number and Dufour number tend to increase the heat and mass transfer, while an increase of suction reduces the heat and mass transfer.

The problem is an important contribution to the field of nanofluid science and technology and is relevant to high temperature rotating chemical engineering systems exploiting magnetized nanofluids. This study is relatively original in nanofluids.