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To present a simple yet comprehensive customer complaint management system (CCMS) which includes tools and concepts from total quality management (TQM) and quality function deployment (QFD) proposed by the authors.

A comprehensive CCMS model based on the Deming cycle that integrates practice‐tested methodologies such as QFD, problem solving and failure mode effect analysis (FMEA) was developed. In order to provide an example of the application, possibilities and limitations of our proposed CCMS model, a project developed for a major Latin American transportation company is presented.

Excellent service can only be achieved with a profound knowledge of evolving customer needs. Functional CCMS should be implemented in every company, regardless of its size, structure or products. QFD, FMEA and problem‐solving tools are very useful but, rather than the tools themselves, the fundamental element to develop a successful CCMS is the spirit of improvement towards total customer satisfaction energized by top management's leadership and commitment. A successfully implemented CCMS can change the perspective of complaint management and transform the process of answering complaints from a trivial activity to a more exciting process‐design and learning experience, renovating the spirit of continuous improvement towards service excellence.

The model may not be useful to some major companies that already have their own database systems for storing and analyzing customer complaints in real time. The results were only validated in a single project with its particular characteristics.

In a service economy, comprehensive systems for capturing, analyzing and translating customer complaints into adequate actions for focused improvement are required for competitiveness. Simple CCMS can be implemented without significant investment, in order to exploit customer complaints.

This paper presents a simple, yet comprehensive CCMS based on practice‐tested methodologies successfully implemented in an improvement project. Companies that do not have formal CCMS can find efficiency in the model because of its simplicity.

To present a method for prioritising customer needs that was devised for a quality function deployment (QFD) project at a mass spectator event, due to the particular characteristics and constraints of this project. Standard methods for prioritising customer needs documented by several authors are reviewed, as well as their principal features and why they were not suitable for this particular QFD project. The devised method is presented together with an example extracted from this project. With the data available from the project, this method is briefly contrasted to a standard similar method. Presents the devised method as an effective solution for this particular QFD project. The method was useful for this particular QFD project due to the time and physical location constraints, but more research is needed in order to assess the real accuracy of this method compared to other documented practices. Sometimes standard practices may not be suitable for particular QFD applications, so methods should be adapted to the unique characteristics of specific QFD projects. This paper presents a review of documented practices for prioritising customer needs that was done for a particular QFD application, as well as a method that was devised because these standard practices were not effective enough for handling the constraints in the project. The process followed and results obtained may serve as a reference for QFD practitioners in the selection of a convenient method for prioritising customer needs.

This study explores the relationship between leverage and earnings management in the context of Palestinian-listed companies, while also investigating whether audit industry specialization influences this relationship.

The data used in this study are extracted from public financial reports of 39 firms listed on Palestine Stock Exchange (PEX), spread across the service, insurance, industry and investment sectors, for the time period 2011–2022. A model is developed to test 4 hypotheses about the relationships between long-term and short-term debts, and earnings management, and then to examine the influence of audit industry specialization on these relationships.

The results depict a significant, negative relationship between long-term debt and earnings management. Whereas the association between short-term debt and earnings management is insignificant. Audit industry specialization is proven to have no influence on the relationships between the independent and the dependent variables. Results are robust for firms that changed their accounting policies and using different audit industry specialization proxies.

The association between leverage and earnings management is a significant research topic, given that previous research identifies credit ratings and debt covenant violations as key factors which motivate earnings management. This paper fills a substantial research gap by examining the relationship between the two variables in the context of Palestinian-listed firms, while emphasizing the distinction between long-term and short-term debts. It also highlights key relationships that have been neglected in this particular context, which adds to the body of literature. Furthermore, the research's findings provide a solid information base that is of great interest to accounting and auditing experts and that may be seriously evaluated to support and advance the PEX sector.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new perspective on ambidextrous innovation orientation looking at how the current digital transformation is accepted in the fashion industry in Italy. Precisely, the objective of the paper is to test whether the use of social media platforms positively influences ambidextrous innovation orientation in fashion companies.

Empirical quantitative research was carried out on a sample of 853 small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in the fashion industry in Italy. Using a logistic regression methodology, four hypotheses were tested to verify the correlation of four dimensions of social media platforms with an ambidextrous innovation orientation among fashion firms.

The four hypotheses were validated: the structural dimension, the relational behaviour dimension, the cognitive dimension and knowledge transfer practices of social media platforms were proven to positively influence ambidextrous innovation orientation in fashion firms.

Though this is one of the few research studies that offers a quantitative analysis in this field, it could be further developed, for instance by extending the sample of firms to SMEs operating in other countries or by comparing multinationals with SMEs.

This paper provides an original contribution to studies on the use of social media to promote ambidexterity in firms, which has only been studied to a limited extent in the extant literature. From this perspective, the originality of the study is further strengthened by the unique context of analysis, namely, the fashion industry in Italy.