Naba Kumar Das, Arup Roy and Saurabh Kumar Srivastava
The global organic market is expanding, and India is in an advantageous position with the highest number of organic producers worldwide. Although many articles have been published…
Abstract
Purpose
The global organic market is expanding, and India is in an advantageous position with the highest number of organic producers worldwide. Although many articles have been published on the value chain of organic products from India, no significant studies were found related to the value chain analysis of organic pineapple. This study aims to know the various aspects of the organic pineapple value chain, i.e. network structure, value addition at various stages of chain actors, value chain upgradation and governance structure.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is explorative in nature, and primary data from various actors involved in the chain is collected and analyzed. Primary data through a structured schedule and interviews are collected from farmers and traders. A multistage sampling plan has been adopted. A sample of 75 farmers was randomly selected from the study area. For traders, snowball sampling is used due to the nonavailability of the sampling frame. A total of 10 commission agents, 10 wholesalers and 20 retailers were thus selected for the study. For objectives 1 and 4, descriptive statistics are used. For objective 2, a modified formula described by (Murthy et al., 2007) is used to calculate farmer’s net price and marketing margin. For objective 3, Garrett’s ranking technique is used to identify various constraints in upgrading the organic pineapple value chain in Assam.
Findings
This study shows that the value chain of organic pineapple is in the initial stage and proper value addition is required to have a complete regulated value chain. Six marketing channel is identified, and products are sold through farmer producer company only in case of export and trade with distant buyers. The marketing efficiency for channels II and III is 1.69 and 0.99, respectively. The degree of value addition for channel II in the hands of the commission agent, wholesaler and retailer is 11.65%, 4.56% and 12.60%, respectively. In the various constraints in upgrading the value chain, farmers rank “policy support” as a major constraint. In the governance structure, trade with distant traders and exports is done formally and through written contracts.
Research limitations/implications
The study performs value chain analysis of organic pineapple in Cachar district of Assam, India for the year January 2022–January 2023. Future studies are encouraged related to various aspects of the supply chain and value chain of organic pineapple from various northeastern states of India and other states.
Practical implications
The study will help policymakers and key actors to know the existing chain and frame a well-coordinated and regulated value chain.
Originality/value
This study is one of the first study to explore the value chain of organic pineapple of Cachar district of Assam, India. Implementation of these findings can help various actors to strengthen the existing value chain.
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Saurabh Srivastava and Derrick E. D’Souza
The purpose of the study is to investigate whether the alignment between organizational capabilities is idiosyncratic to an organization or a predictable pattern of alignments can…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the study is to investigate whether the alignment between organizational capabilities is idiosyncratic to an organization or a predictable pattern of alignments can be identified across organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
Survey design is used to collect data from upper- and mid-level managers of organizations operating in the software industry. A total of 219 responses are used to test the study hypotheses. Partial least squares structural equation modeling and regression analysis are used for data analysis and hypotheses testing.
Findings
Results suggest that the alignment between strategic thinking and absorptive capacity is different for organizations with a prospector-type strategic orientation compared to organizations with other types (defenders and analyzers) of strategic orientations. The study also finds that the pattern of alignment holds for each dimension of absorptive capacity.
Originality/value
There is limited research on the alignment between the three types of organizational capabilities (metaphysical, dynamic and ordinary). This may have transcended from arguments that if organizational capabilities are truly idiosyncratic, they should not be expected to follow a predictable pattern of alignments across organizations. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to empirically investigate and provide evidence that the alignment between organizational capabilities is contingent on the strategic orientation of the organizations. The findings offer hope for the development of a generalizable theory of organizational capability alignment in organizations.
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Shaveta Kumari and Saurabh Srivastava
A stochastic technique for solving interval non-linear problems using generalized Hukuhara (GH)-difference is proposed. The non-linear programming problem in interval form is…
Abstract
Purpose
A stochastic technique for solving interval non-linear problems using generalized Hukuhara (GH)-difference is proposed. The non-linear programming problem in interval form is transformed into an equivalent non-linear programming problem with real coefficients by associating a Gaussian random variable to the interval and the six-sigma rule. The conceptualized idea eliminates the decision maker’s instinctive selection of weight functions and provides an alternative to the order relation method, max-min criteria-based methods and bi-level approaches for representing intervals as real numbers. To demonstrate a coherent understanding, numerical examples have been used.
Design/methodology/approach
A stochastic approach has been used to develop a solution technique for solving interval nonlinear programming problems which arise in the modeling of scientific and engineering problems under uncertain environments.
Findings
The proposed idea eliminates the decision maker’s instinctive selection of weight functions and provides an alternative to the order relation method, max-min criteria-based methods and bi-level approaches for representing intervals as real numbers. This method provides specific results rather than in the interval form, which are more practical and implementable by the decision maker.
Originality/value
This is to certify, that the research paper submitted is an outcome of original work. I have duly acknowledged all the sources from which the ideas and extracts have been taken. This article has not been submitted elsewhere for publication.
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Sangeetha Gunasekar, Sougata Ray, Saurabh Kumar Dixit and Manoj Raj PA
This study aims to identify the product attributes that influence customer satisfaction related to AI-enabled products with a strong forecast of growth. This study is very timely…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to identify the product attributes that influence customer satisfaction related to AI-enabled products with a strong forecast of growth. This study is very timely as the market for AI-based smart home products is still at a nascent stage in emerging economies (Vaishali Dar, 2021). Adding evidence to literature on the experience of customers, identifying the attributes that lead to customer satisfaction and those that lead to dissatisfaction are essential for products that were launched recently during the pandemic. This study makes valuable addition to the existing literature.
Design/methodology/approach
Online reviews (12,326 reviews) for EchoDot products launched by Amazon India during the pandemic were collected for the study. The attributes were identified based on the most frequently discussed attributes in the text reviews. Further review valence was determined to group the reviews under positive reviews indicating customer satisfaction and negative reviews indicating customer dissatisfaction. Logistic regression was used to identify the attributes that significantly impact customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction.
Findings
The results of the study indicate that while EchoDot is seen to add value to the smart home environment (home variable), video (video variable) and speaker (speaker variable) quality also contribute to customer satisfaction. Further, consumers found the product truly worth their money (value for money variable). Other attributes like a complaint about Bluetooth features are seen to increase the probability of customer dissatisfaction.
Originality/value
This study identifies the most important attributes that influence customer satisfaction in AI-enabled product sales on e-commerce platforms in pandemic times for India. Such studies are scarce in the emerging markets where the AI-based home appliance market is still in its nascent stage, and the customers are trying out their experiences with these products. What the customers expect and are these products fulfill these expectations is an important question that needs to be addressed by research. This study addresses this gap and adds to this literature.
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Saurabh Agrawal and Rajesh Kumar Singh
Forecasting product returns plays an important role in the operations of reverse logistics (RL). However, their contribution to sustainability performance is yet to be explored…
Abstract
Purpose
Forecasting product returns plays an important role in the operations of reverse logistics (RL). However, their contribution to sustainability performance is yet to be explored. The purpose of this paper is to explore the product returns in Indian electronics industry and examine the relationship of forecasting product returns with triple bottom line performance of RL.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, based on past literature review, four hypotheses, relating to forecasting of product returns and its association with performance, were developed. A questionnaire was sent to 700 respondents from the Indian electronics industry. Overall, 208 received responses were found suitable for the research. The necessary statistical analysis was carried out to ensure the reliability and validity of the questionnaire. In order to test different hypotheses, partial least square path modelling (PLSPM) technique of structural equation modeling was utilized.
Findings
Measurement model had shown sufficient data fit for the modeling. PLSPM results reveal that the accuracy in forecasting product returns is positively associated with operational performance of RL. It also plays an important role in the sustainability efforts of an organization.
Research limitations/implications
Managers can utilize results of study for exploring and emphasizing issues of product returns for improving RL performance. One of the limitations is that data are collected only from Indian electronics industry. Another limitation is that only product returns are considered for the operational and TBL performance of RL. In future, study may be carried out considering different factors in other sectors and countries.
Originality/value
The intent of forecasting product returns is considered to be operational efficiency. It can make significant contributions to the sustainability efforts of an organization. Review of the past literature indicates that research in the field of RL is in developing stage, and issues related to forecasting product returns are under-represented. The paper adds value to the few available articles on product returns.
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Saurabh Srivastava, Abid Sultan and Nasreen Chashti
The dynamics of the competitive performance of the small medium firms is an evolving field of research in the developing countries like India. The influence of the innovation on…
Abstract
Purpose
The dynamics of the competitive performance of the small medium firms is an evolving field of research in the developing countries like India. The influence of the innovation on the competitive performance of the firms is still an evolving area in India. This paper aims to explore the influence of the innovation on the competitive performance. The study is based upon the agro-food processing industry of the Jammu and Kashmir state of India.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based upon the exploratory design. It uses quantitative as well as qualitative method for the firm level analysis of competitiveness. The aggregate index method has been used to construct the innovation competence and total competitive performance index. The regression analysis is used for describing the model based upon the primary data.
Findings
The results of the study provide for a significant relationship between the innovation competence and firm level competitiveness. It describes the position of the agro-food processing firms under study with respect to the innovation competence index score and total competitiveness performance index.
Research limitations/implications
The paper provides for the managerial implications of strategically incubating the innovation-based competence for the firms in specific geographical areas. The policy implications in terms of developing specific clusters and incubators for incremental and radical innovations can be derived, in regional economies.
Originality/value
The paper discusses the issue of interaction of innovation competence and firm level competitiveness of the agro-food processing industry, which is dynamic, specifically in the developing states. The paper discussed unique methodology of using aggregate index method for defining the innovation competence and competitiveness for the firms where the consistency of data is a major issue for such a complex phenomenon.
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Saurabh Tiwari and Rajeev Srivastava
Organisations in the past aimed to use technology to improve their processes and services. However, nowadays, their primary focus is on using technology sustainably…
Abstract
Purpose
Organisations in the past aimed to use technology to improve their processes and services. However, nowadays, their primary focus is on using technology sustainably. Sustainability is crucial to ensure a better and safer future for our environment. One such technology is the Metaverse, which is considered the next step in the growth of the Internet. It combines the real world with the virtual world to create a multi-user environment, allowing users to experience a fully immersive, real-time existence with digital characters, objects, and locations that are often 3D. The Metaverse and sustainability share a strong relationship, as it is expected that the Metaverse will have a significant impact on the material, economic, and social realms, as well as sustainability worldwide. This paper uses bibliometric analysis to understand sustainable metaverse scholarship better and provide an up-to-date account of industry practices.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper used the PRISMA approach and bibliometric analysis to analyse and draw conclusions from 2,911 articles retrieved from the Scopus database from 1999 to July 2023. The methodology is divided into four steps: data collection, analysis, visualisation, and interpretation. The current study uses the Bibliometric R-package and VOS viewer software to comprehend sustainable metaverse scholarship.
Findings
The study provides fascinating insights that may assist scholars, industry professionals, and top management in understanding and conceptualising sustainable metaverse in their organisations. The results show that the number of publications has significantly increased from 2015 onwards, reaching a maximum of 601 manuscripts in 2022 with an increasing publication annual growth rate of 29.12%. The United Kingdom, India, China, the USA and Italy were the most productive countries regarding the total number of publications. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Journal of Cleaner Production, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Current Issues in Tourism, Benchmarking: An International Journal of Production Research and International Journal of Information Management emerged as the top outlets.
Research limitations/implications
The research in sustainable metaverse is underpinned by this study, which aims to understand the trends in this field over the last two decades regarding prolific authors, most influential journals, key themes, and the intellectual and social structure. The study on sustainable metaverse has grown significantly and attracted interest from academia and business since 2015, following its embryonic stage. Consequently, a more in-depth analysis is required to help develop a better understanding of this new field.
Originality/value
The paper focuses on sustainable metaverse through increased interest from 2015 onwards through the literature review. Although the metaverse has already received significant financial and labour investments from businesses and technology firms, various sustainability issues are still present in physical materials. There is a need to assess the achievement of numerous Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using the resources and time put into the metaverse. Furthermore, these findings can guide researchers who want to delve deeper into sustainable metaverse.
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Rajesh Kumar Singh and Saurabh Agrawal
The purpose of this paper is to explore the product disposition strategies in reverse supply chains and to develop a framework to prioritize these strategies for effective reverse…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the product disposition strategies in reverse supply chains and to develop a framework to prioritize these strategies for effective reverse supply chain implementation.
Design/methodology/approach
The disposition strategies, based on the literature review, were selected, and the fuzzy TOPSIS methodology had been applied for the prioritization of these disposition strategies. A case of cell phone manufacturing firm is discussed for the illustration and validation of the methodology. Three respondents from the firm helped in exploring the disposition strategies and data collection of the firm.
Findings
The results of the study show that dissemble and recycle is the most preferred disposition strategy for the firm. Redistribution of returned products after their refurbishing is second most prioritized disposition strategy. Landfill and incineration of cell phones is the last and least preferred option for the firm.
Research limitations/implications
The study will provide useful guidance to the firm for disposition decision making of cell phones returned to the firm. It will help academicians and practitioners for evaluating, improving, and benchmarking the disposition strategies for the disposition of returned cell phones. One of the limitations of the study is that it only considers the single case of manufacturing firm. In future, more case studies may be carried out for generalization of the results.
Originality/value
It is evident from the literature review that there are very few studies on disposition decisions in reverse supply chain. Also, disposition strategies for cell phones are first time being explored and prioritized. Hence, this study can be viewed as an attempt to increase the level of awareness on reverse supply chain issues.
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Senthilkumaran Piramanayagam, Saurabh Kumar Dixit and Partho Pratim Seal
The purpose of this paper is to examine the crisis faced, strategies adopted, barriers for recovery and the future outlook by the operators of family-owned small foodservice…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the crisis faced, strategies adopted, barriers for recovery and the future outlook by the operators of family-owned small foodservice business firms in responses to COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has unfolded unprecedented challenges, severely disrupted the family-run small foodservice business units and often put them on the brink of closure of business.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology adopted is a qualitative research approach. The data for the research is collected through a semi-structured interview. The data was collected from the 13 family-owned foodservice providers. The data is collected through a semi-structured telephone interview as there is a restriction of travel between different regions.
Findings
The finding reveals that small family-operated foodservice firms faced multiple challenges, including threat for existence, the pressure of fixed cost, feeling unethical, financial instability, uncertainty on future and feeling of loss of goodwill with lenders.
Originality/value
The current research work is the first to discuss the impact of Covid-19 on small family-owned food services businesses in an Indian context.
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Priyanka Vern, Naema Miftah and Anupama Panghal
The Agri-Food supply chain (AFSC) conventionally suffers from multifaceted transparency, integration, traceability, product quality, and many more. Recently, various digital…
Abstract
The Agri-Food supply chain (AFSC) conventionally suffers from multifaceted transparency, integration, traceability, product quality, and many more. Recently, various digital technologies have emerged, which reflect the potential to address the majority of such concerns. This chapter is an effort toward developing a vision for the future of the agri-food supply chain through digitalization. The technologies prominently covered in the chapter are the internet of things (IoT), blockchain, and artificial intelligence (AI). Different challenges the agri-food supply chain participants perceived in implementing digital technologies were identified through literature review and primary survey. The significant challenges are trained workforce, funds availability, and clarity on economic gains from digitalisation. In conclusion, few strategies toward the implementation of digital technologies in agri-food supply chains are discussed.