The purpose of this paper is: to report on an experiment in building up inter-organizational collaboration between healthcare organizations; and to identify how structure and some…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is: to report on an experiment in building up inter-organizational collaboration between healthcare organizations; and to identify how structure and some of the components of the strategic community (SC) approach to organizational change can have a long-term impact on inter-organizational collaboration.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper resulted from participative action-research held from 2007 to 2013. A systematic collection of data (field notes, 746 hours of observations, proceedings, 186 interviews, journals, focus groups, discussion forums) was conducted in the various cycles of the action-research.
Findings
Adapted to the healthcare sector, the SC has taken the form of a temporary inter-organizational collaboration structure composed of health professionals, first-level managers, general practitioners, specialized doctors, and non-profit organization representatives. The SC approach appeared to be an efficient strategy for taking action.
Practical implications
The SC approach appeared to be appropriate for cases where the inter-organizational collaboration had clearly declined, where several other attempts had failed, and where the care trajectory involved vulnerable clients who had to travel between different service points for the required care.
Originality/value
This study illustrates how SC helps to significantly improve inter-organizational collaboration in the healthcare sector. It likewise acknowledges the relevance of Thomson and Perry’s (2006) work in analyzing and emphasizing the dimensions required to ensure successful inter-organizational collaboration.
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Robert Parent, Mario Roy and Denis St‐Jacques
The purpose of this paper is twofold: to understand how recent developments in systems thinking and social construction can influence understanding of knowledge transfer (KT); and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is twofold: to understand how recent developments in systems thinking and social construction can influence understanding of knowledge transfer (KT); and to propose a new systems‐based knowledge transfer model.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is a review of the literature on knowledge transfer, systems thinking and social construction leads to the proposal of a new KT paradigm.
Findings
The Dynamic Knowledge Transfer Capacity model (DKTC) found in this paper identifies the components required for social systems to generate, disseminate and use new knowledge to meet their needs. The model includes pre‐existing conditions, (need and prior knowledge) and four categories of capacities (generative, disseminative, absorptive and adaptive/responsive) that social systems must possess for KT to take place.
Research limitations/implications
The paper shows that the DKTC model is particularly well suited to analyzing complex systems with multiple stakeholders as opposed to small‐scale knowledge transfer systems. Empirical analysis in complex systems environments will help verify, enrich and generalize the model.
Practical implications
The paper sees that in an increasingly knowledge‐based economy, the ability to base decisions on the latest knowledge is vital for the success of organizations. The capacity for effective and sustained exchange between a system's stakeholders (researchers, government, practitioners, etc.); exchanges characterized by significant interactions reflected within the DKTC model, results in the appropriate use of the most recent discoveries in the decision making process.
Originality/value
The paper proposes a new knowledge transfer paradigm that views knowledge as a systemic, socially constructed, context‐specific representation of reality. The proposed knowledge transfer model is in sharp contrast to past attempts, focusing attention on the capacities that must be present in organizations and social systems as a precondition for knowledge transfer to occur.
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NEOCON 23, held in Chicago in June, appears to have featured veryfew exciting design offerings, the rest comprising mostly minormodifications and new combinations of exhibits…
Abstract
NEOCON 23, held in Chicago in June, appears to have featured very few exciting design offerings, the rest comprising mostly minor modifications and new combinations of exhibits previously shown.
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Andreas Langegger, Jürgen Palkoska and Roland Wagner
The World Wide Web has undergone a rapid transition from the originally static hypertext to an ubiquitous hypermedia system. Today, the Web is not only used as a basis for…
Abstract
The World Wide Web has undergone a rapid transition from the originally static hypertext to an ubiquitous hypermedia system. Today, the Web is not only used as a basis for distributed applications (Web applications), moreover it serves as a generic architecture for autonomous applications and services. Many research work has been done regarding the modeling and engineering process of Web applications and various platforms, frameworks and development kits exist for the efficient implementation of such systems. Concerning the modeling process, many of the published concepts try to merge traditional hypermedia modeling with techniques from the software engineering domain. Unfortunately, those concepts which capture all facets of the Web’s architecture become rather bulky and are eventually not applicable for a model‐driven Web application development. Moreover, there is a need for frameworks which address both, the modeling process and the implementation task and allow a model driven, semi‐automatic engineering process using CASE tools. This paper outlines the DaVinci Web Engineering Framework which supports the modeling as well as the semi‐automated implementation of Web applications. The DaVinci Architectural Layer specifies a persistent, hierarchical GUI model and a generic interaction scheme. This allows the elimination of the hypermedia paradigm, which turned out to be rather practical when building Web applications.
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Lise Desmarais, Robert Parent, Louise Leclerc, Lysanne Raymond, Scott MacKinnon and Nicole Vézina
The objective of this study is to observe and document the transfer of a train the trainers program in knife sharpening and steeling. This knowledge transfer involved two groups…
Abstract
Purpose
The objective of this study is to observe and document the transfer of a train the trainers program in knife sharpening and steeling. This knowledge transfer involved two groups of researchers: the experts and the learners. These groups are from geographically dispersed regions and evolve in distinct contexts by their language and culture.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper favors the learning history (LH) technique, a methodology that enabled the different participants to share their experience through reiterate interviews.
Findings
Based on the dynamic knowledge transfer capacity model, the absorptive capacity of the train the trainers process appears to have been mobilized. Although there were a number of hitches, people are confident that the project will be successful and that they will put what they have learned to good use in upcoming phases to transfer this program to other organizations.
Research limitations/implications
The conclusions apply solely to a context of interprovincial transfer of a train the trainers program. It is believed that it is important to complete the first‐phase interviews “before” project start‐up. Being unilingual may have prevented some individuals from participating fully when asked to react to the summary documents.
Originality/value
The model is explicit enough to encompass the overall dimensions required to understand the dynamics of knowledge transfer. In a short and geographically dispersed context it was found that adjustments to the methodology were necessary, there was a wealth of data and that LH has fostered necessary adjustments that in turn have mobilized the actors.
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Allan Discua Cruz, Jose Mario Reyes Hernandez and Carlos Roberto Arias Arévalo
This study aims to focus on understanding the tensions experienced by government officials in introducing electronic government (e-government) policies to support entrepreneurs in…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to focus on understanding the tensions experienced by government officials in introducing electronic government (e-government) policies to support entrepreneurs in a developing Latin American country.
Design/methodology/approach
This study relies on an in-depth qualitative approach based on collaborative and analytic auto-ethnography. The authors concentrate on tensions experienced by a government official and how they were addressed when introducing e-government policies to support entrepreneurs during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Findings
The findings reveal that paradoxical tensions occur as changes are demanded, multiple concerns are expressed and decisions about resources have to be made. The findings reveal sources of tensions from government, business and external sources. Addressing such tensions revolves around a diverse form of paradoxes dealing with contradictions in terms of speed vs thoroughness and short- vs long-term implications.
Research limitations/implications
The authors’ study provides several contributions. It advances understanding on the source and management of tensions experienced by government officials introducing e-government policies to support entrepreneurs during the Covid-19 pandemic. It also delineates multiple paradoxes experienced by government officials as new policies and systems were introduced. Finally, it offers a conceptual model explaining how government officials deal with multiple tensions emerging from the introduction of e-government policies in a developing country.
Originality/value
The prior literature has suggested that e-government initiatives would be guided by a prescriptive and tension-free process, driven by the interest to enhance governmental efficiency. This study reveals that developing e-government initiatives for entrepreneurs and existing businesses during the Covid-19 crisis was not immune to contradictions between government officials and the public. A conceptual model, based on multiple sources of tensions (government-related, business-related and external sources) and their management, is proposed. Implications and opportunities for further research are presented.
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Mário Augusto, José Figueira, João Lisboa and Mahmoud Yasin
To propose a multi‐criteria approach for ranking the performance of the economic sectors of the Portuguese economy and to identify the most attractive sectors.
Abstract
Purpose
To propose a multi‐criteria approach for ranking the performance of the economic sectors of the Portuguese economy and to identify the most attractive sectors.
Design/methodology/approach
A multi‐criteria approach using ELECTRE III and SRF software for eliciting the weights of criteria is used to solve the ranking problem statement.
Findings
The sector non‐metallic mineral products was ranked in first place in relation to all the rankings; the wholesale trade and retailing trade sectors were ranked in second place in relation to all the rankings; the sector wood, cork and furniture was ranked often in second place; the electronic and electrical industry sectors was ranked in third place; the agriculture and fishing sector was ranked in the tail‐end of the ranking; the agro‐industry sector and the transportation and distribution sector consistently were ranked in the lowest positions, just before the agriculture and fishing sector.
Research limitations/implications
Other evaluation criteria can be used to improve the relative ranking classification, namely strategic and operational performance measures.
Practical implications
The results of this application are useful for investors, business leaders, and policy makers. From the perspective of potential investors, investment opportunities can be evaluated based on the attractiveness of the economic sectors studied. From the perspective of Portuguese policy makers and business leaders, sectors of the Portuguese economy that are in need of fundamental restructuring are easily identified. For these sectors, business strategies and policy initiatives that are based on benchmarking effective innovations are in order. Therefore, joint partnership between business leaders, policy makers and higher education to lay the ground for innovative practices in these sectors may prove very useful.
Originality/value
The proposed multi‐criteria approach utilized in this study is simple; furthermore it has the capacity to deal well with uncertainty. This study also contributes to an important, yet relatively new body of application‐based literature, dealing with a multi‐criteria approach to decision making with the aid of fuzzy theory methodologies.
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Mario Rese, Wolf‐Christian Strotmann and Markus Karger
Industrial product service systems (IPS2) are required to meet current customer needs in order to provide solutions to current customer problems. Furthermore, adaptability to…
Abstract
Purpose
Industrial product service systems (IPS2) are required to meet current customer needs in order to provide solutions to current customer problems. Furthermore, adaptability to changing customer decision drivers is required in order to account for customers' preference changes over time. The purpose of this paper is to present an approach where customer preference drivers for different IPS2 are identified and their directions analyzed.
Design/methodology/approach
A theoretical, literature‐based analysis, drawing on different fields of economic research, is made use of. A tool to anticipate customer decisions based on the identified preference drivers is devised.
Findings
Nine main preference drivers are identified. These are customer resources, know‐how, number of employees, core competences, value‐based figures, process intricacy, process standardization, process frequency and process significance.
Research limitations/implications
The drivers identified on a theoretical basis should be investigated empirically. Special consideration should be given not only to the direction of their effect, but also their strength and interdependency.
Practical implications
The paper helps IPS2 suppliers to analyze customers' preferences and helps decide about the design and the business model for the IPS2.
Originality/value
The paper is the first paper that focuses on the relevant influence factors of a customer's decision about the IPS2‐design.
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Sonja Christ-Brendemühl and Mario Schaarschmidt
The purpose of this study is to investigate how the implementation of digital interfaces into service encounters is transforming demands toward frontline service employees. In…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate how the implementation of digital interfaces into service encounters is transforming demands toward frontline service employees. In addition to having the potential to enhance employee–customer interactions, changes related to new technologies can be perceived as stressful by employees and might foster deviation from prescribed processes.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the transactional theory of stress and coping as a theoretical framework, this paper aims to develop and test a research model to investigate the influence of technology-induced role ambiguity on constructive and destructive process deviance. Data were collected via an online survey of 123 frontline service employees in restaurants that have online reservation systems in use.
Findings
The results confirm that employee resistance to change fosters role ambiguity, while self-efficacy reduces the latter. Technology-induced role ambiguity leads to both constructive and destructive process deviance.
Originality/value
By revealing the above relationships, this study contributes to research in services marketing by examining two types of employees’ deviance from customer-facing processes.