Doreen Nyarko Anyamesem Odame and Robert E. Hinson
Despite the potential benefits of family businesses, their dynamics present peculiar challenges that hinder the realisation of their full potential. This paper sought to assess…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite the potential benefits of family businesses, their dynamics present peculiar challenges that hinder the realisation of their full potential. This paper sought to assess the relationship between family dynamics and business development in Africa. The authors explored the dynamics of African family structures and how these structures impact family businesses.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper adopted an analytical and interpretative approach to existing literature and contemporary practices in family business operations. The approach helped to synthesise emerging trends in family business operations and offered novel insights into family-owned businesses.
Findings
The findings revealed that, though family businesses have a lot to contribute to development, family dynamics can threaten their sustainability if not well moderated. Based on the findings, the authors recommend trust and transparency as critical pillars for sustained family-owned business growth. They recommend further that communication channels, documented policies and procedures and well-established feedback channels are strategies that can guide stakeholders in family businesses to build trust and transparency in the business.
Originality/value
The paper throws light on the unique contributions of family businesses to communities and individuals and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). It is also an eye-opener to this relatively grey area and opens deeper discussions about sustaining family businesses.
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Christo Boshoff, Ogechi Adeola, Robert E. Hinson and Kristina Heinonen
This study aims to critically evaluate and reflect on the current state of service research in Africa. The purpose is to develop a roadmap to guide future service research in and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to critically evaluate and reflect on the current state of service research in Africa. The purpose is to develop a roadmap to guide future service research in and out of Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is a conceptual reflection and in situ observation of service research and practice in Africa.
Findings
This study delineates scholarly, policy and managerial pathways for further service research in the African context. Service research in Africa is often experience-based rather than concept-based, and such research is often conducted in close collaboration with the local business community. Theoretical development and empirical exploration through collaboration initiatives among institutions with mutual research interests are encouraged.
Research limitations/implications
This study is a theoretical analysis of service research in Africa. Further empirical exploration is needed to delineate service research priorities and methodological directions so as to balance local needs and global relevance.
Practical implications
Africa represents fertile terrain for experience-based insights regarding financial behavior, ecosystem services and nation branding. Grassroots-level involvement in research represents a key component of managerial relevance.
Social implications
This study highlights the role of service research in and about Africa. The discussion demonstrates that the African Ubuntu values of community involvement and a collectivist orientation can expand the relevance of research from the academic business field to broader society.
Originality/value
This study represents a unique perspective on service research in the African context. In doing so, this paper lays the groundwork for more meaningful participation on the part of African-based researchers in the global service research domain. Experience-based research projects focusing on the empirical starting point complement theory development and serve as useful anchors for theory implementation in practice.
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Joshua Kofi Doe and Robert E. Hinson
Artificial intelligence (AI) and sustainable business represent the irrefutable future of all forward looking businesses in the world today. In this perspective article, the…
Abstract
Purpose
Artificial intelligence (AI) and sustainable business represent the irrefutable future of all forward looking businesses in the world today. In this perspective article, the authors explore the confluence of these important topics by highlighting the role of family businesses in advancing sustainable brand activism aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs), like SDG 1, which emphasises poverty eradication. The authors fall on the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and online brand communities in family businesses as an anchor for promoting sustainability practices that align with UNSDGs.
Design/methodology/approach
Using literature review, the authors fall on the transformative potential of AI and online brand communities in family businesses as an anchor for promoting sustainability practices that align with UNSDGs.
Findings
Scholarly research on AI-driven sustainability brand activism in family businesses is either limited or nonexistent. Family businesses have a unique opportunity to use AI for eco-friendly operations, personalised brand engagement, eco-friendly product development, global collaborations and education and advocacy in support of the UNSDGs. Future research could look at how family businesses align their values, their long-term effects, how they work across generations, how resilient and flexible they are and how they compare to non-family businesses when it comes to using AI and brand activism as long-term strategies for sustainability and survival.
Originality/value
The authors call for family businesses, governments and stakeholders to take theoretical and practical actions in promoting AI-driven sustainability brand activism aligned with the UNSDGs. It underscores the distinctive role of family businesses in driving sustainability and fostering brand activism through AI in a digital age.
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Robert E. Hinson, John Paul Basewe Kosiba, Henry Boateng, Raphael Odoom and Ransford Edward Gyampo
Despite the recognisable importance of nation brand websites, they have seemingly not been the focus of dialogic communication interrogations of marketing and communications…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite the recognisable importance of nation brand websites, they have seemingly not been the focus of dialogic communication interrogations of marketing and communications scholars. This paper is one of the initial attempts to address such research lacuna. The paper aims to examine the dialogic potential of the Brand South Africa website and its effect on the country’s image, as well as the impact of this image on consumers’ (tourists) visiting intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing from the dialogic communication and impression management theories, the authors applied partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) to analyse data solicited from 672 participants via an electronic survey.
Findings
This paper demonstrates that the dialogic communication principles of the Brand South Africa website have positive influences on the image impression of South Africa. Country image impression was also found to have a significant effect on intentions to visit.
Practical implications
This study is of potential benefit to researchers, government agencies and those responsible for nation branding.
Originality/value
This study contributes to marketing and tourism literatures, by drawing on theories of dialogic communication principles and impression management, to fill the gap regarding the effect of nation brand websites on country image impression and visiting intention of consumers (tourists).
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Raphael Odoom, George Cudjoe Agbemabiese and Robert E. Hinson
Given that the peculiar nature of the internet has introduced new dimensions of service delivery as well as new dimensions of service failures and recovery, the purpose of this…
Abstract
Purpose
Given that the peculiar nature of the internet has introduced new dimensions of service delivery as well as new dimensions of service failures and recovery, the purpose of this paper is to investigate and compare the relationships between recovery strategies and recovery satisfaction within offline and online settings.
Design/methodology/approach
Data for the empirical tests of our hypotheses were collected via offline and online (specifically Facebook and Twitter) samples of customers who have experienced some form of service failure and recovery measures from service providers within the past year.
Findings
The results indicate that recovery strategies largely influence recovery satisfaction among aggrieved customers. However, these are conditional and not invariant across the two settings. In the authors’ offline setting, in particular, apology did not show a statistically significant impact on recovery satisfaction, even though, along with compensation and explanation, this relationship was significant among the online sample.
Originality/value
The study offers practical implications for service managers within emerging economies on the various conditions where they can maximise their service recovery efforts (both offline and online) to generate optimum recovery satisfaction.
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Mahmoud Abdulai Mahmoud, Robert E. Hinson and Patrick Amfo Anim
The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships between service innovation, customer value creation (CVC) and customer satisfaction (CS) with specific emphasis to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships between service innovation, customer value creation (CVC) and customer satisfaction (CS) with specific emphasis to Ghanaian telecommunication operators.
Design/methodology/approach
Assuming a positivist philosophical approach with a quantitative data analysis technique, the study samples 510 registered adult customers of at least one telecommunication network in Ghana. An exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used to assess and confirm the proposed scales validity and the relationships of the research model.
Findings
The study unveiled that a service firm’s ability to achieve CS is dependent on how telecommunication operators harness and deploy their service innovation activities. In addition, the study showed that CVC mediates the relationship between service innovation and CS. Thus, service innovation must create value for customers in order to enhance CS.
Practical implications
By relating the study findings to firms’ innovation strategies, managers can improve the strength of their service offerings to achieve CS by spending more on consumer research, market research and increased customer interactions.
Originality/value
Considering the uniqueness of this study in a Ghanaian context, the research draws on two influential theories, which are signaling theory and expectation disconfirmation theory to examine the differential role played by service innovation in enabling telecommunication operators in Ghana, to create customer value in order to achieve CS amidst the constraints in the business environment.
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Robert E. Hinson, Ellis Osabutey, John Paul Kosiba and Frederick O. Asiedu
The purpose of this study is to analyse how professional football clubs have attained success with internationalisation and branding strategies in foreign markets.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to analyse how professional football clubs have attained success with internationalisation and branding strategies in foreign markets.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on an inductive approach, 27 semi-structured interviews were conducted to analyse the perceptions of Ghanaian fans of four English Premier League teams.
Findings
The findings of this study highlight that the strength of professional football brand equity is jointly determined by the level of brand awareness, brand loyalty and perceived quality. However, increasing competition in international markets require professional football clubs to clearly define their marketing strategies to improve how fans perceive them.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the few studies to use country-of-origin paradigm and signalling theory to explain football brand equity building, thereby extending the earlier work of Chanavat and Bodet (2009). Its empirical focus on Africa is also unique and provides evidence to suggest that global marketers have the opportunity to capitalise on market expansion opportunities in developing economies.
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Henry Boateng, Fortune Edem Amenuvor, Diyawu Rahman Adam, George Cudjoe Agbemabiese and Robert E. Hinson
The existing literature has emphasized the importance of frontline service employees developing a sense of ownership for the overall well-being of customers. However, studies into…
Abstract
Purpose
The existing literature has emphasized the importance of frontline service employees developing a sense of ownership for the overall well-being of customers. However, studies into why frontline service employees develop ownership and responsibility for customers are still lacking. The purpose of this paper is to address the question, “Why do frontline service employees engage in responsible customer service behaviors and protect the interests of customers in Ghana?"
Design/methodology/approach
A semistructured interview with 61 frontline service employees was used in the study. This study used a thematic analysis technique to analyze the data.
Findings
The findings show that frontline service employees develop a sense of customer stewardship because of organizational values, human resource management initiatives (rewards and in-service training) and ownership and accountability.
Originality/value
Studies on why frontline service employees engage in responsible customer service behaviors and protect the interests of customers is limited. This study addresses this gap in the literature.
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Robert E. Hinson, Nnamdi O. Madichie and Masud Ibrahim
The purpose of this paper is to examine the dialogic communications potential of bank web sites in Ghana.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the dialogic communications potential of bank web sites in Ghana.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors undertook a qualitative content analysis of bank web sites in Ghana, drawing upon Kent and Taylor's dialogic communications framework.
Findings
Banks in Ghana have been fairly successful in creating web sites with high dialogic value, with over half the banks sampled scoring on more than half of all the dialogic principles (dialogic loop, ease of use, usefulness and conservation of visitors). Most banks, however, scored rather poorly on the principle of return visit.
Practical implications
The revelation that the communication content of banks’ web sites in Ghana does not encourage visitors to return poses a serious challenge for banks in their bid to leverage favourable brand dispositions associated with strong customer relationships.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the scarce literature on dialogic communications potential of bank web sites in an emerging market context.
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Robert E. Hinson and Tidings P. Ndhlovu
With globalisation pressures and increasing burdens on governments to provide comprehensive social services, there is now a need to better understand how firms play their part in…
Abstract
Purpose
With globalisation pressures and increasing burdens on governments to provide comprehensive social services, there is now a need to better understand how firms play their part in sharing these burdens. Views vary from those who believe that CSR and CSI are distractions from profit maximisation to those who argue that participation in such activities contributes to positive social transformation and also benefits participating firms themselves. This paper seeks to conceptualise these debates.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper largely utilises a literature review to derive the research conclusions. Specifically, it examines how CSR, CSI and the socially responsible investment (SRI) index has been used to evaluate corporate behaviour in South Africa, as a novel way of addressing pressing development problems.
Findings
CSI has emerged from the specificities of South African historical development, and it has arguably been driven primarily by legislation and industry charters. It is in this context that CSI, with its paraphernalia of the SRI Index and social capital market, promises to present a new and radical way of addressing developmental problems.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the few studies examining the phenomenon of corporate social investment from a developing economy context.