David F. Jorgensen, Catherine Hall, Ronei Leonel, Marina Nixon and Ryan Schill
This paper aims to draw its foundation from primary and secondary data sources. The primary data were derived through extensive interviews with the case protagonists and close…
Abstract
Research methodology
This paper aims to draw its foundation from primary and secondary data sources. The primary data were derived through extensive interviews with the case protagonists and close observations of the settings and situations described in the case. These were further supplemented by secondary data, collated to enhance the depth and context of the case, aiding in a more comprehensive understanding for the reader. ChatGPT was used in rewriting some sections of the case and in developing the instructor manual, particularly with ideation and ideal student answers. The research team very carefully scrutinized and heavily edited all sections to ensure correctness.
Case overview/synopsis
This case chronicles the journey of two close friends, Sean and Connor, from their time as finance students at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah to budding entrepreneurs within the community. Anchored in their passion for Indian cuisine, they envisioned Mumbai Express as an innovative culinary enterprise seeking to offer authentic Indian food through an affordable quick-service model. They aimed to address common pain points often associated with restaurant dining, particularly in the local community. Internal factors such as developing their signature dish, Chicken-Tikka-Masala (CTM) and external factors such as COVID-19 created barriers for Mumbai Express along the way, including opening the restaurant and keeping it afloat. Reflecting on why the restaurant closed, students will be challenged to step into the shoes of aspiring entrepreneurs to understand the dynamics of Mumbai Express’ ultimate failure.
Complexity academic level
This case is well-suited for use in sophomore or junior undergraduate courses in entrepreneurship, especially those emphasizing concepts like the minimum viable product (MVP) and differing emotional equity within partnerships.
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The real issues in Irish education are, in the words of Sean O'Connor (Assistant Secretary to the Department of Education): ‘Equality of educational opportunity for all and the…
Abstract
The real issues in Irish education are, in the words of Sean O'Connor (Assistant Secretary to the Department of Education): ‘Equality of educational opportunity for all and the fashioning of education so that it is responsive to the, aptitudes of the individual pupil’. Perfectly standard aims, shared in theory at least even by the Black Paper brigade. The problem in Ireland is to find any significant level on which they are being discussed. Two major factors continually militate against it. The first is the power struggle between the State and the various participant religious bodies, in which all sides busily avoid confrontation. The State because it lacks the power to make its aims effective through a rationalization of the largely privately run sectors, and cannot therefore afford a political clash with those who control them, the controlling forces because they cannot fully accept ideas that imply a reorganization which would diminish, probably eliminate, their power.
Anthony M. Grant, Ingrid Studholme, Raj Verma, Lea Kirkwood, Bronwyn Paton and Sean O’Connor
There is limited empirical literature on the effectiveness of leadership coaching in healthcare settings. The purpose of this paper is to explore the efficacy of leadership…
Abstract
Purpose
There is limited empirical literature on the effectiveness of leadership coaching in healthcare settings. The purpose of this paper is to explore the efficacy of leadership coaching for individuals implementing strategic change in the Australian public health system.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a within-subjects (pre-post) design, participants (n=31) undertook six one-hour coaching sessions. Coaching was conducted by professional leadership coaches. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected.
Findings
Participation was associated with significant improvements in goal attainment, solution-focused thinking, leadership self-efficacy, perspective-taking capacity, self-insight and resilience, and ambiguity tolerance. There were significant reductions in stress and anxiety. The benefits of coaching transferred from the workplace to the home. Many participants reported being able to use insights gained in coaching in their personal lives, and reported better work/life balance, less stress and better quality relationships at home.
Originality/value
Few studies have provided evaluation of leadership coaching in healthcare setting. Leadership coaching in the public health system may be an important methodology for facilitating goal attainment and fostering resilience in this vital social sector, benefiting workers in the health services, their families and ultimately their patients and the broader community.
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David Butler, Robert Butler, Justin Doran and Sean O’Connor
Growing evidence suggests regional economic factors impact on individual outcomes, such as life expectancy and well-being. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact…
Abstract
Purpose
Growing evidence suggests regional economic factors impact on individual outcomes, such as life expectancy and well-being. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact that player-specific and regional differences have on the number of senior international appearances football players accumulate over the course of their careers, for six UEFA member countries, from 1993 to 2014.
Design/methodology/approach
The research employs a Poisson regression model to analyse the impact of individual and regional factors on the number of senior international caps a footballer receives over the course of their career.
Findings
The results indicate that both individual and regional variables can explain the number of caps a player receives over the course of their career. The authors find that an individual’s career length positively influences the number of international caps accrued. Players born in wealthier and more populous regions accumulate a greater number of international appearances. Distance from the capital has no effect, however, the number of youth academies in the player’s region of birth has a significant positive effect.
Research limitations/implications
The analysis is limited to regional variations within economically developed states. It would be interesting to test whether the correlation between relative regional development and international success exists in less developed countries. The authors only address mens international football in this study and cannot comment on the generality of the findings across genders or sports.
Practical implications
The results can provide insights for local football authorities and policy makers concerned with regional characteristics and those interested in the development of elite talent.
Originality/value
This is the first study to analyse a pan-European data set, using an increasingly adopted econometric method to understanding regional economic development – Poisson modelling.
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In 2000 a consortium headed by David Richards acquired the commercial and promotional rights to the World Rally Championship (WRC) via International Sportsworld Communicators…
Abstract
In 2000 a consortium headed by David Richards acquired the commercial and promotional rights to the World Rally Championship (WRC) via International Sportsworld Communicators (ISC) Ltd. ISC planned to market the WRC with the stated objective of gaining a top five position as a global sports television brand. This case study was developed between 2000 and 2003 by the author, a marketing professional in the WRC, based on interviews with ISC management. The ISC marketing strategy was found to be divided into four phases: research, development and planning, execution, and evaluation and revised strategy.
Stephen Brosnan, Eleanor Doyle and Sean O’Connor
The purpose of this paper is to offer clarity on a central concept introduced in Porter’s The Competitive Advantage of Nations, i.e. the cluster. The authors situate the concept…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to offer clarity on a central concept introduced in Porter’s The Competitive Advantage of Nations, i.e. the cluster. The authors situate the concept introduced by Porter (1990) relative to two of its antecedents, the industrial district and industrial complex. Placing the cluster in a historical context permits consideration of the extent to which it, as a concept for analysis, may be differentiated from other geography-based approaches to economic phenomena. In this way, this paper examines the added value of the cluster concept derived from economic factors.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper provides a detailed literature review tracing the evolution of theories of location and agglomeration into which Porter’s cluster fits. The evolution of Porter’s own conceptualisation of the cluster and how this relates to theoretical clarity surrounding the concept is explored. Comparative analysis of theories of location, agglomeration and clustering is provided to identify similarities and differences across the approaches and identify the added value of the cluster concept in relation to other approaches.
Findings
Clustering represents a process associated with spatial organisational form which may offer advantages in efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility. Cluster benefits can be appreciated through the lens of Young’s (1928) identified sources of increasing returns. A key aspect in clustering is revealed in terms of its role in enabling four sources of increasing returns. The authors outline how these sources of increasing returns are related to “soft” processes of networking, interaction and individual and collective learning. Porter’s Diamond is a self-reinforcing system which can permit increasing returns and reinforce such tendencies of economic activity within agglomerations.
Originality/value
Added value from Porter’s cluster concept is identified in the context of both its locational anchoring and in terms of its potential for understanding the role of exploitation of increasing returns for development. This points to the importance of focusing on clustering as a process rather than on cluster within typologies of organisational form. This implies that the nature of relationships (and how they change) within and across markets, institutions and actors lies at the heart of clustering because of their roles in knowledge-generation, including innovation, knowledge sharing and upgrading.
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Marie Van Hout and Sean Connor
The research aimed to identify ‘(1) current volatile solvent use practices, (2) health beliefs and perceived effects of volatile solvent use, (3) social dynamics of volatile…
Abstract
The research aimed to identify ‘(1) current volatile solvent use practices, (2) health beliefs and perceived effects of volatile solvent use, (3) social dynamics of volatile solvent use, (4) significance of reputation, and (5) barriers to volatile solvent use intervention’ in a sample of Irish adolescents (Carroll et al, 1998, p1; Anderson & Loomis, 2003). Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 20 adolescents who reported inhaling volatile solvents, during the course of doctoral research (n=1,400) investigating substance misuse among adolescents aged 12 to 18 years in Ireland. Their average age was 13.2 years, and they used a range of substances. Solvent users were found to be most commonly congregated in small peer and sibling groups and one young male also reported using alone. These young people indicated their average age of initiation of inhalant use as 10.3 years and most did not use inhalants after the age of 13 years. This coincided with first‐time alcohol use, at an average age of 12.5 years and experimental use of cannabis in some. All reported some awareness of short‐term medical risks involved in solvent use, and most commented on negative effects, such as headaches, dizziness and vomiting. Teachers, probation and juvenile liaison officers, health promotion and drug education workers, youth workers, social workers, and parents should ‘familiarise themselves with the real world experiences of adolescent volatile solvent users’; in order to develop appropriate and timely drug education interventions (Carroll et al, 1998 p6).
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‘We think it will be a long time’, wrote the editor of the Irish Jesuit review Studies in the autumn of 1968, ‘before the teaching Orders and Congregations in Ireland withdraw…
Abstract
‘We think it will be a long time’, wrote the editor of the Irish Jesuit review Studies in the autumn of 1968, ‘before the teaching Orders and Congregations in Ireland withdraw from their historic teaching function here; we do not share the fear of one of our commentators that they will some day be required to do so.’
Anthony M. Grant and Sean A. O'Connor
The purpose of this paper is to explore the differential effects of problem‐focused and solution‐focused coaching questions by means of a literature overview and results of an…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the differential effects of problem‐focused and solution‐focused coaching questions by means of a literature overview and results of an exploratory pilot study.
Design/methodology/approach
In a problem‐focused coaching session 39 participants complete a range of measures assessing self‐efficacy, their understanding of a problem, positive and negative affect, and goal approach. They then respond to a number of problem‐focused coaching questions, and then complete a second set of measures. The 35 participants in a solution‐focused session complete a mirror image of the problem‐focused condition, responding to solution‐focused coaching questions, including the “Miracle Question”.
Findings
Both the problem‐focused and the solution‐focused conditions are effective at enhancing goal approach. However, the solution‐focused group experience significantly greater increases in goal approach compared with the problem‐focused group. Problem‐focused questions reduce negative affect and increase self‐efficacy but do not increase understanding of the nature of the problem or enhance positive affect. The solution‐focused approach increases positive affect, decreases negative affect, increases self‐efficacy as well as increasing participants' insight and understanding of the nature of the problem.
Practical implications
Solution‐focused coaching questions appear to be more effective than problem‐focused questions. Although real‐life coaching conversations are not solely solution‐focused or solely problem‐focused, coaches should aim for a solution‐focused theme in their coaching work, if they wish to conduct effective goal‐focused coaching sessions that develop a depth of understanding, build self‐efficacy, reduce negative affect, increase positive affect and support the process of goal attainment.
Originality/value
This is the first study to explore this issue.