Wolfgang Franz and Volker Zimmermann
This econometric study deals with the question as to what extent apprentices, after successfully completing their training, stay with the firm that supplied their training and, if…
Abstract
This econometric study deals with the question as to what extent apprentices, after successfully completing their training, stay with the firm that supplied their training and, if so, how long that job tenure holds. Determinants of both decisions can be seen from both the employer’s and the employee’s viewpoint. These firms are interested in employing apprentices in order to collect the returns from their investment in their training, which frequently is associated with net costs. On the other hand, the firms dismiss apprentices if training is viewed by themselves as a screening device or if apprentices are engaged in work for which, in terms of wages, they are too expensive afterwards. The young trained worker bases his or her decision to stay or to leave on considerations such as experimenting with several jobs.
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Volker Stocker, Jason Whalley and William Lehr
Besides the widespread harm and dreadful impact COVID-19 has caused, it brought about change. Interpreting the pandemic as a ‘change agent’, it is possible to observe how it…
Abstract
Besides the widespread harm and dreadful impact COVID-19 has caused, it brought about change. Interpreting the pandemic as a ‘change agent’, it is possible to observe how it accelerated the use of digital technologies, facilitating the migration of many activities to the virtual sphere and thus changing the interaction between the physical and virtual worlds. Although the pandemic accelerated the diffusion and adoption of digital technologies, allowing many to avoid or reduce the harms caused by the pandemic, not everyone benefitted to the same extent. The pandemic exacerbated existing digital divides while creating new ones, simultaneously elevating important policy debates regarding digital infrastructure and inclusion policies.
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Daryoush Daniel Vaziri, David Unbehaun, Konstantin Aal, Irina Shklovski, Rainer Wieching, Dirk Schreiber and Volker Wulf
Designing technologies for active and healthy ageing (AHA) requires a subtle understanding of end users (primary stakeholders) and healthcare professionals (secondary…
Abstract
Purpose
Designing technologies for active and healthy ageing (AHA) requires a subtle understanding of end users (primary stakeholders) and healthcare professionals (secondary stakeholders). Often, their perspectives can be heterogeneous and contradictory. Identifying and negotiating them may be a challenge for designers. The purpose of this paper is to present our approach to understanding and negotiating contradictory stakeholder perspectives when designing AHA technologies for older adults.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted an exploratory interview study with 15 community-dwelling older adults and 11 healthcare stakeholders, including doctors, health insurance agencies, policymakers and caregivers. The authors analyzed the interview material and negotiated contradictory perspectives.
Findings
Three major issues among stakeholders emerged: perspectives on AHA; perceived benefits and drawbacks of AHA technologies; and concerns about data privacy, control and trust.
Research limitations/implications
The results show the heterogeneity and contradictions in stakeholder perspectives on AHA technologies and how these perspectives may be negotiated. This could help understand and facilitate long-term use of AHA technologies among older adults.
Originality/value
This study alerts researchers to contradictory perspectives among older people and healthcare stakeholders and the importance of involving them in the design of AHA technologies.
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Triana Navarro de Chollet, Bettina von Stamm and Meltem Etcheberry
Joe F. Hair Jr, Marko Sarstedt, Lucas Hopkins and Volker G. Kuppelwieser
The authors aim to present partial least squares (PLS) as an evolving approach to structural equation modeling (SEM), highlight its advantages and limitations and provide an…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors aim to present partial least squares (PLS) as an evolving approach to structural equation modeling (SEM), highlight its advantages and limitations and provide an overview of recent research on the method across various fields.
Design/methodology/approach
In this review article, the authors merge literatures from the marketing, management, and management information systems fields to present the state-of-the art of PLS-SEM research. Furthermore, the authors meta-analyze recent review studies to shed light on popular reasons for PLS-SEM usage.
Findings
PLS-SEM has experienced increasing dissemination in a variety of fields in recent years with nonnormal data, small sample sizes and the use of formative indicators being the most prominent reasons for its application. Recent methodological research has extended PLS-SEM's methodological toolbox to accommodate more complex model structures or handle data inadequacies such as heterogeneity.
Research limitations/implications
While research on the PLS-SEM method has gained momentum during the last decade, there are ample research opportunities on subjects such as mediation or multigroup analysis, which warrant further attention.
Originality/value
This article provides an introduction to PLS-SEM for researchers that have not yet been exposed to the method. The article is the first to meta-analyze reasons for PLS-SEM usage across the marketing, management, and management information systems fields. The cross-disciplinary review of recent research on the PLS-SEM method also makes this article useful for researchers interested in advanced concepts.
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Kofi Asabere Bediako Asare, Rui Liu and Chimay J. Anumba
This paper aims to present a review of research developments relating to the application of building information modeling (BIM) to facilities management (FM). It sheds light on…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present a review of research developments relating to the application of building information modeling (BIM) to facilities management (FM). It sheds light on major technical and organizational issues with the view of identifying how existing BIM for FM knowledge applies to large capital projects.
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopted a literature search approach to retrieve relevant articles which were subjected to keyword analysis to enable categorization of extant BIM for FM research into appropriate sub-domains. A qualitative analysis of 94 BIM for FM-related literature was carried out in addition to a review of 9 capital project-related articles, leading to the establishment of research trends, gaps and future directions.
Findings
The review found that research in the BIM-FM integration field is predominantly technology and process-oriented, with less attention paid to people or organizational aspects. Therefore, there is a need for expanding the knowledge base in this direction. Several future research directions were identified to lay the foundations for research on BIM application to FM in large capital projects and other application areas for interested researchers. These future directions were categorized under the identified sub-domains of the field and mapped onto two generic activities, i.e. technical integration and business integration, involved in technology adoption by organizations.
Originality/value
The main contribution of this study is the categorization of existing research on BIM for FM, leading to the identification of research gaps concerning the initiation and implementation of BIM for FM in large capital projects. As a secondary benefit, this study has validated some sub-domains of the BIM for the FM research field identified in previous review papers using an empirical approach. This validation of defined sub-domains is useful for an emerging research field as it provides a common understanding of trends and specific application areas.
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To report how an SME developed strategic and operational balanced scorecards (BSCs) as well as benchmarks for use in e‐commerce.
Abstract
Purpose
To report how an SME developed strategic and operational balanced scorecards (BSCs) as well as benchmarks for use in e‐commerce.
Design/methodology/approach
The report begins with the initial management meeting, in which participants set goals for the firm, specified causal linkages among those goals, and identified appropriate strategies for attaining them. It then explains the perspectives chosen to structure the BSCs. Next, it summarizes results from analyzing proposed operational goals, concrete action plans, and key performance indicators to ensure inclusion of all potentials for growth. The report gives concrete examples of how management bundled proposed goals and actions into projects, budgeted them, and committed responsible actors. In addition, it describes how the firm used BSC development to institute a continuous learning process, while providing feedback to various stakeholders both within the firm and across its parent holding company.
Findings
For many small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises, the development, introduction, and use of BSCs and benchmarks certainly seem feasible. Although relatively few have done so thus far, the managers of these firms likely would find it worthwhile to analyze their businesses on the basis of BSC‐perspectives.
Originality/value
This report covers step by step the successful implementation of BSC and benchmarking methodologies in an e‐commerce firm, while overcoming many of the handicaps associated with doing so in SMEs.
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How can we understand the colonial state? Specifically, what explains variation in “native policy,” the cornerstone of colonial rule? This article examines the development of…
Abstract
How can we understand the colonial state? Specifically, what explains variation in “native policy,” the cornerstone of colonial rule? This article examines the development of German colonialism in Southwest Africa (with respect to the Hereros, Witboois, and Rehoboth Basters), Samoa, and Qingdao, China. I emphasize five main determinants of policy: (1) precolonial ethnographic representations; (2) colonial officials' competitive jockeying with one another for cultural distinction; (3) colonial officials' psychic processes of imaginary identification with the colonized; (4) practices of collaboration and resistance by the colonized; and (5) the structure of the colonial state as a determinant of its own policies.