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Article
Publication date: 30 January 2025

Siva Kumar Ramasamy and Subramaniam Sri Ramalu

This study is the maiden attempt to understand the influence of four specific sources of employee support (SES), on the life insurance agents’ retention (AR) with the mediation of…

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Abstract

Purpose

This study is the maiden attempt to understand the influence of four specific sources of employee support (SES), on the life insurance agents’ retention (AR) with the mediation of felt obligation (FO) in the context of the life insurance industry.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted a quantitative methodology and used the partial least squares-structural equation modelling to test the hypotheses of the study. Using convenience sampling method and a web-based questionnaire, this study gathered data from agents (n 265) of life insurance companies located in the central region of Malaysia.

Findings

The results reveal a positive relationship between all SES and AR. This means when agents perceive higher levels of support from their supervisors, peers, technology and mentors, they are more likely to remain in the industry. Contrary to the expectations, FO does not mediate the relationship between SES and AR, indicating that SES directly influences AR without the involvement of FO.

Originality/value

This study is the first to explore how an integrated model of SES influences AR within the Malaysian life insurance industry. The model takes a comprehensive approach, incorporating various SES including the less studied perceived technological support in influencing AR through the framework of social exchange theory.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

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Article
Publication date: 3 October 2019

Siva Kumar and Ramesh Anbanandam

Growth in a number of the supply chain (SC) disruptions threatens the enterprises globally. Earlier studies and reports say that many organizations go out of businesses within two…

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Abstract

Purpose

Growth in a number of the supply chain (SC) disruptions threatens the enterprises globally. Earlier studies and reports say that many organizations go out of businesses within two or three years after they experience a major disruption. Therefore, companies in today’s volatile business arena need to possess the necessary resilience level to combat supply china disruptions. This is even more important for organizations of developing nations, which are constantly struggling to gain the advantages of globalization and to grab the new opportunities. Thus, this paper aims to help organizations understand their SC resilience level through a framework.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology comprises integrated Delphi – fuzzy logic approach in identifying formative elements of SC resilience from a diverse resilience related body of knowledge and distinguish key obstacles of SC resilience based on their performance level.

Findings

Findings reveal that SC flexibility components such as sourcing, manufacturing and logistic flexibility are the major contributors of SC resilience index of case organization. Similarly, lack of risk management culture, inter-organizational relationships, information sharing and integration of SC stakeholders are the major inhibitors of resilience. Thus, the organization needs to overcome these identified obstacles to enhance their SC resilience level.

Practical implications

Present study offers a novel focus of research on SC resilience measurement that is significant for understanding the level of immunity enterprises possess to unanticipated SC interruptions, and the ability to bounce back after an unforeseen event.

Originality/value

This paper proposes an integrated Delphi – fuzzy logic framework for measuring SC resilience. In doing so, the study identifies key potential inhibitors of SC resilience of the case company under study.

Details

Measuring Business Excellence, vol. 23 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1368-3047

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Article
Publication date: 13 September 2021

Vijaya Prasad B., Arumairaj Paul Daniel, Anand N. and Siva Kumar Yadav

Concrete is a building material widely used for the infrastructural development. Cement is the binding material used for the development of concrete. It is the primary cause of CO2

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Abstract

Purpose

Concrete is a building material widely used for the infrastructural development. Cement is the binding material used for the development of concrete. It is the primary cause of CO2 emission globally. The purpose of this study is to develop sustainable concrete material to satisfy the present need of construction sector. Geopolymer concrete (GPC) is a sustainable concrete developed without the use of cement. Therefore, investigations are being conducted to replace the cement by 100% with high calcium fly ash (FA) as binding material.

Design/methodology/approach

High calcium FA is used as cementitious binder, sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and sodium silicates (Na2SiO3) are used as alkaline liquids for developing the GPC. Mix proportions with different NaOH molarities of 4, 6, 8 and 10 M are considered to attain the appropriate mix. The method of curing adopted is ambient and oven curing. Workability, compressive strength and microstructure characteristics of GPC are analysed and presented.

Findings

An increase of NaOH in the mix decreases the workability. Compressive strength of 29 MPa is obtained for Mix-I with 8 M under ambient curing. A polynomial relationship is obtained to predict the compressive strength of GPC. Scanning electron microscope analysis is used to confirm the geo-polymerisation process in the microstructure of concrete.

Originality/value

This research work focuses on finding some alternative cementitious material for concrete that can replace ordinary portland cement (OPC) to overcome the CO2 emission owing to the utilisation of cement in the construction industry. An attempt has been made to use the waste material (high calcium FA) from thermal power plant for the production of GPC. GPC concrete is the novel building material and alternative to conventional concrete. It is the ecofriendly product contributing towards the improvement of the circular economy in the construction industry. There are several factors that affect the property of GPC such as type of binder material, molarity of activator solution and curing condition. The novelty of this work lies in the approach of using locally available high calcium FA along with manufactured sand for the development of GPC. As this approach is rarely investigated, to prove the attainment of compressive strength of GPC with high calcium FA, an attempt has been made during the present investigation. Other influencing parameter which affects the strength gain has also been analysed in this paper.

Details

Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology , vol. 20 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1726-0531

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Case study
Publication date: 10 November 2023

Navinraj Naidu and Anusuiya Subramaniam

At the end of the session, learners are expected to be able to evaluate the detrimental impact of stress on blue-collar workers’ well-being in Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd;…

Abstract

Learning outcomes

At the end of the session, learners are expected to be able to evaluate the detrimental impact of stress on blue-collar workers’ well-being in Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; develop effective strategies to improve stressful conditions experienced by blue-collar workers in Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; analyse and select appropriate approaches that can help maintain the motivation levels of blue-collar workers in Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; analyse the impact of Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd’s extensive investment in training new blue-collar workers, alongside the subsequent high turnover rate, on the decline in sales and profit; identify the critical changes that the managing director should have implemented to prioritize employee retention among blue-collar workers at Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; discuss the strategic implementation of mechanization, specifically in the context of automating repetitive processes, as an innovative solution to address the challenges faced by the ship repair and maintenance service industry heavily reliant on blue-collar workers in emerging markets; cultivate thoughtful debates on ways to keep blue-collar workers in the shipping repair and maintenance industry, as well as active learner participation and group interaction; develop learners’ analytical and critical thinking skills by guiding them through the analysis of a real-world case study in the shipping repair and maintenance industry, concentrating on the difficulties and potential solutions for blue-collar worker retention; and equip learners with practical knowledge and insights on implementing effective human resources strategies for retaining blue-collar workers in the shipping repair and maintenance industry, emphasizing the conversion of theoretical concepts into workable solutions.

Case overview/synopsis

This teaching case study centres on Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian conglomerate that bestows ship repair and maintenance services. Regrettably, the corporation has been subjected to a decrease in profitability and productivity owing to its high turnover rate of blue-collar workers. The ship repair and maintenance service industry is accountable for delivering comprehensive repair and maintenance services to ships, including their engines, hulls, machinery and other related components. The fundamental aim of this case study is to ascertain the rudimentary factors that contribute to this issue and foster effective strategies to enhance the motivation and retention rate of blue-collar workers in the ship repair and maintenance service corporation, using appropriate management theories, models and concepts. The case study brings to light the importance of discovering the most suitable approaches to retain blue-collar workers in the corporation to improve its profitability and productivity in a highly competitive market. This teaching case study will be beneficial for students and practitioners who want to grasp the disputes associated with retaining blue-collar workers in the ship repair and maintenance service industry and learn how to apply management theories, models and concepts to address these disputes effectively.

Complexity academic level

This case discussion would be highly suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate university students who are pursuing their studies in management or related fields and are eager to delve into the nuances of the ship repair and maintenance service industry. Furthermore, trainers from both private and public agencies who are keen on gaining a deeper understanding of the issues pertaining to retaining blue-collar workers in this particular industry and devising result-oriented strategies to tackle these concerns would also find this case discussion immensely helpful.

Supplementary materials

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

Subject code

CSS 6: Human resource management.

Details

Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, vol. 13 no. 3
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2045-0621

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Article
Publication date: 31 December 2018

Rajyalakshmi K. and Nageswara Rao Boggarapu

Scatter in the outcome of repeated experiments is unavoidable due to measurement errors in addition to the non-linear nature of the output responses with unknown influential input…

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Abstract

Purpose

Scatter in the outcome of repeated experiments is unavoidable due to measurement errors in addition to the non-linear nature of the output responses with unknown influential input parameters. It is a standard practice to select an orthogonal array in the Taguchi approach for tracing optimum input parameters by conducting a few number of experiments and confirm them through additional experimentation (if necessary). The purpose of this paper is to present a simple methodology and its validation with existing test results in finding the expected range of the output response by suggesting modifications in the Taguchi method.

Design/methodology/approach

The modified Taguchi approach is proposed to find the optimum process parameters and the expected range of the output response.

Findings

This paper presents a simple methodology and its validation with existing test results in finding the expected range of the output response by suggesting modifications in the Taguchi method.

Research limitations/implications

Adequacy of this methodology should be examined by considering the test data on different materials and structures.

Originality/value

The introduction of Chauvenet’s criterion and opposing the signal-to-noise ratio transformation on repeated experiments of each test run will provide fruitful results and less computation burden.

Details

Multidiscipline Modeling in Materials and Structures, vol. 15 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1573-6105

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Article
Publication date: 22 February 2022

U. Siva Rama Krishna and Naga Satish Kumar Ch

The ultra-thin white topping (UTW) is a cement concrete overlay of the thickness of 50–100 mm on bituminous concrete pavements with surface failures. This is a long-lasting…

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Abstract

Purpose

The ultra-thin white topping (UTW) is a cement concrete overlay of the thickness of 50–100 mm on bituminous concrete pavements with surface failures. This is a long-lasting solution without having short-term failures. This paper aims to design an ultra-thin cement concrete overlay using a developed critical stress model with sustainable concrete materials for low-volume roads.

Design/methodology/approach

In this research paper, a parametric study was conducted using the ultra-thin concrete overlay finite element model developed with ANSYS software, considering the significant parameters affecting the performance and development. The non-linear regression equation was formed using a damped least-squares method to predict critical stress due to the corner load of 51 kN.

Findings

The parametric study results indicate that with a greater elastic modulus of bituminous concrete, granular layer along with 100 mm thickness of concrete layer reduces the critical corner stress, interface shear stress in a significant way responsible for debonding of concrete overlay, elastic strains in the pavement further the concrete overlay can bear infinite load repetitions. From validation, it is understood that the non-linear regression equation developed is acceptable with similar research work done.

Originality/value

From the semi-scale experimental study, it is observed that the quaternary blended sustainable concrete overlay having a high modulus of rupture of 6.34 MPa is competent with conventional cement concrete overlay in terms of failure load. So, concrete overlay with sustainable materials of 100 mm thickness and higher elastic modulus of the layers can perform in a sustainable way meeting the environmental and long-term performance requirements.

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Article
Publication date: 7 October 2022

Shweta Shweta, Dinesh Kumar and Dheeraj Chandra

One of the most important components of healthcare is the timely delivery of pharmaceutical products, such as life-saving medicines. However, disruptions like COVID-19 bring new…

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Abstract

Purpose

One of the most important components of healthcare is the timely delivery of pharmaceutical products, such as life-saving medicines. However, disruptions like COVID-19 bring new challenges and risks to the pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC) and healthcare organizations that impact their operational performance. This study focuses on mitigating risks in India's generic medicine supply chain (GMSC) as a result of various disruptions, which can assist policymakers develop appropriate plans and strategies to build resilience in the Jan Aushadhi Scheme (JAS) of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in order to improve their overall performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Risk-causing vulnerabilities and resilience capabilities are identified from the literature review and expert's opinions. Following that, the vulnerabilities are classified into cause-and-effect vulnerabilities, and supply chain resilient capabilities (SCRCs) are measured using a hybrid fuzzy DEMATEL and best worst method (FDEMATEL-BMW) framework.

Findings

The outcome of the study reveals that transportation breakdown, loss of human resources and loss of suppliers are the potential risk-causing vulnerabilities that lead to vulnerabilities like shortages of medicines, loss of in-hand stock qualities and loss of sales/revenue. In addition, the analysis suggests that the sustainability of an organization with maximum weightage is the critical factor for building resilience in GMSC followed by flexibility, agility and visibility.

Practical implications

The integration of resilience into Jan Aushadhi GMSC can help in managing disruptions efficiently and effectively to mitigate risk and optimize MSMEs overall performance.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this work will be the first of its kind to model resilience in GMSC of MSMEs using a hybrid framework.

Details

Benchmarking: An International Journal, vol. 30 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-5771

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Article
Publication date: 19 December 2024

Naveen Joshi, Vijaya Lakshmi R. and Jitendra Kumar Singh

This study aims to explore the collective influence of several factors, namely, thermal radiation, Brownian motion, magnetic field and variable viscosity parameter, on the…

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore the collective influence of several factors, namely, thermal radiation, Brownian motion, magnetic field and variable viscosity parameter, on the boundary layer flow, heat and mass transfer of an electrically steering nanofluid over a radially stretching exterior subjected to convective heating. In addition, the impacts of thermal and solutal buoyancy forces and activation energy are taken into account. The enlarging velocity is assumed to vary linearly with radial distance.

Design/methodology/approach

Through the similarity transformation technique, the governing highly nonlinear partial differential equations are transformed into a set of nonlinear ordinary differential equations, which are then numerically solved using the Runge–Kutta–Fehlberg method with a shooting technique.

Findings

Graphical depictions are provided to analyze the velocity, temperature and nanoparticle concentration fields under the influence of various pertinent parameters. Furthermore, local skin friction, local Nusselt and Sherwood numbers are quantitatively presented and discussed. A comparison with previous results demonstrates good agreement.

Originality/value

This study uniquely integrates multiple factors influencing boundary layer flow in electrically conducting nanofluids, offering a nuanced understanding of heat and mass transfer over radially stretching surfaces. By using advanced numerical methods, it provides valuable insights and quantitative data that can inform practical applications in engineering and materials science.

Details

World Journal of Engineering, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1708-5284

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Article
Publication date: 5 December 2024

Laxmi Gupta

The transition from centralized thermal power plants to distributed renewable energy sources complicates the balance between power supply and load demand in electrical networks…

13

Abstract

Purpose

The transition from centralized thermal power plants to distributed renewable energy sources complicates the balance between power supply and load demand in electrical networks. Energy storage systems (ESS) offer a viable solution to this challenge. This research aims to analyze the factors influencing the implementation of ESS in the Indian smart grid.

Design/methodology/approach

To analyze the factors affecting ESS deployment in the grid, the SAP-LAP framework (situation-actor-process and learning-action-performance) integrated with e-IRP (efficient-interpretive ranking process) was used. The variables of SAP-LAP elements were selected from expert opinion and a literature review. Here, e-IRP was utilized to prioritize elements of SAP-LAP (actors in terms of processes and actions in terms of performance).

Findings

This analysis prioritized five stakeholders in the Indian power industry for energy storage implementation: government agencies/policymakers, ESS technology developers/manufacturers, private players, research and development/academic institutions, and contractors. Furthermore, the study prioritized the necessary actions that these stakeholders must take.

Research limitations/implications

The study’s findings help identify actors and manage different actions in implementing grid energy storage integration. Ranking these variables would help develop a strategic roadmap for ESS deployment and decisions about adopting new concepts.

Originality/value

It is one of the first attempts to analyze factors influencing ESS implementation in the power grid. Here, qualitative and quantitative methodologies are used to identify and prioritize various aspects of ESS implementation. As a result, the stakeholder can grasp the concept much more quickly.

Details

Journal of Advances in Management Research, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0972-7981

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Available. Content available
Book part
Publication date: 13 November 2018

Katarzyna Cichos and Amanda Lange Salvia

Abstract

Details

SDG1 – No Poverty
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-628-0

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