Organizations will need HR departments that take bold new approaches if they are to weather the uncertainty and changes on the horizon. This paper aims to discuss what makes an…
Abstract
Purpose
Organizations will need HR departments that take bold new approaches if they are to weather the uncertainty and changes on the horizon. This paper aims to discuss what makes an organization or a leader BRAVE, and examples of HR professionals and organizations leading the way are provided to help readers bravely shape their own organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper draws upon various real-life examples of organizations whose HR departments are leading the way.
Findings
Organizations need BRAVE HR professionals and leaders to create, implement and communicate key initiatives to ensure companies make decisions that support workplace cultures that people choose to join and remain a part of.
Originality/value
No amount of technology can replace the forward-thinking thought, communication and action that being BRAVE requires. This paper will help HR professionals gain a braver perspective.
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This paper aims to use a mixed method approach to understand the role of emotions and sensual delight in influencing satisfaction and intention. The setting for the study is…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to use a mixed method approach to understand the role of emotions and sensual delight in influencing satisfaction and intention. The setting for the study is restaurants. Three types of restaurants form the basis of investigation: fine dining, family dining and fast food restaurants. Using three categories of restaurants affords the opportunity to understand the differential impact of sensual delight and emotions in these settings. Furthermore the mixed method approach helps to validate the quantitative findings and also to offer additional insight in consumption emotions.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on a concurrent, two‐studies design where quantitative and qualitative data are both collected (concurrently or sequentially) and analyzed separately. Four independent investigations are reported in this paper. The first three investigations (fine dining, family dining and fast food dining) are based on quantitative modeling using LISREL. The last investigation provides a richer narrative using phenomenological approach.
Findings
The quantitative findings show a strong influence of sensual delight and emotions in affecting satisfaction and intentions. The qualitative findings show how managers may enhance the dining experience and customer satisfaction.
Research limitations/implications
Caution is advised in extrapolating the results beyond the issues investigated in the study.
Practical implications
The findings provide a framework for managers in creating a delightful dining experience.
Originality/value
There are several important contributions from this study. First the role of emotions in various dining aspects is new in this study. It has not been investigated in dining situations. Next, while the role of sensual delight in hedonic situations is understandable, it has not been systematically investigated using causal models. Third, this study uses a mixed method approach. The quantitative study is followed by a qualitative study to add further insights that will help understand drivers of satisfaction or dissatisfaction. Thus it is a very comprehensive study on sensual delight in the restaurant industry.
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Jonathan Marks and Karen Hidden
Entrepreneurship; Social entrepreneurship.
Abstract
Subject area
Entrepreneurship; Social entrepreneurship.
Study level/applicability
Graduate level.
Case overview
This paper, The Brownies & Downies case study, aims to examine a social enterprise that provides employment, training and job placements for people with intellectual disability within a trendy artisanal coffee shop in Cape Town, South Africa. The business is based on a similar establishment (same name) in The Netherlands and was brought to Cape Town by Wendy Vermeulen, a Dutch national who completed a social development internship in Cape Town. The case is located within the field of social enterprise with a particular focus on the tension between purpose and profit and the pressure and challenges of replication, growth and scale/expansion. The protagonist in the case is Wade Schultz, Wendy’s business partner, who is grappling with how to not only remain true to the social purpose of the business but also turn a profit in the pressured and competitive coffee industry. He is further challenged by deciding whether to expand the existing training business into other sectors or seek a replication model in other South African cities as a means of growing revenue and increasing the social impact.
Expected learning outcomes
The key learning from this case study are as follows: First, intellectual disability is a hidden form of disability, often misunderstood and subject to prejudice and discriminatory hiring practices. Intellectual disability exists on a scale – some individuals are able to work outside of pretexted or sheltered workspaces. Greater effort is required within open workplaces to sensitive staff to working with/alongside intellectually disabled people. This case illustrates a social enterprise model that seeks to bridge the gap between sheltered workspaces and open workspaces. Second, most social enterprises grapple with the tension between profit and purpose; this case presents a company that is living this dilemma. The importance of remaining true to purpose needs to be balanced carefully against becoming economically self-sufficient; however, the pursuit of profits should not happen at the cost of social mission. Alternate business models are a mechanism to building revenue to support the social objective.
Supplementary materials
Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.
Subject code
CSS: 3: Entrepreneurship.
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Stephen McCarthy, Wendy Rowan, Nina Kahma, Laura Lynch and Titiana Petra Ertiö
The dropout rates of open e-learning platforms are often cited as high as 97%, with many users discontinuing their use after initial acceptance. This study aims to explore this…
Abstract
Purpose
The dropout rates of open e-learning platforms are often cited as high as 97%, with many users discontinuing their use after initial acceptance. This study aims to explore this anomaly through the lens of affordances theory, revealing design–reality gaps between users' diverse goals and the possibilities for action provided by an open IT artefact.
Design/methodology/approach
A six-month case study was undertaken to investigate the design implications of user-perceived affordances in an EU sustainability project which developed an open e-learning platform for citizens to improve their household energy efficiency. Thematic analysis was used to reveal the challenges of user continuance behaviour based on how an open IT artefact supports users in achieving individual goals (e.g. reducing energy consumption in the home) and collective goals (lessening the carbon footprint of society).
Findings
Based on the findings, the authors inductively reveal seven affordances related to open e-learning platforms: informing, assessment, synthesis, emphasis, clarity, learning pathway and goal-planning. The findings centre on users' perception of these affordances, and the extent to which the open IT artefact catered to the goals and constraints of diverse user groups. Open IT platform development is further discussed from an iterative and collaborative perspective in order to explore different possibilities for action.
Originality/value
The study contributes towards research on open IT artefact design by presenting key learnings on how the designers of e-learning platforms can bridge design–reality gaps through exploring affordance personalisation for diverse user groups. This can inform the design of open IT artefacts to help ensure that system features match the expectations and contextual constraints of users through clear action-oriented possibilities.
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Wei Liu, Kaiying Guo and Bo Wendy Gao
The conventional customer lifecycle fails to acknowledge the “sleeping” stage between regular patronage and churn, particularly prevalent in the hospitality industry. This study…
Abstract
Purpose
The conventional customer lifecycle fails to acknowledge the “sleeping” stage between regular patronage and churn, particularly prevalent in the hospitality industry. This study constructs an awakening model to regain “sleeping” guests.
Design/methodology/approach
342 questionnaires from Macau using partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) were analyzed. The model was compared across different membership levels through multigroup analysis.
Findings
The results indicate that the point policy can awaken “sleeping” guests by influencing their perceived value, regret, and integrated satisfaction with a shorter “sleeping” period. Two path coefficients showed significant differences among basic and elite members.
Practical implications
Companies with loyalty programs should implement a transitional period before resetting points, leveraging altruistic point policies to awaken “sleeping” guests via direct communication. This strategy mitigates the negative impact of finite point expiration policies, enhancing customer re-engagement and point utilization.
Originality/value
Our study focuses on a crucial facet of hotel marketing—customer regain strategies. By identifying customer segments who have not revisited the hotel group for more than twelve months, we confirm the concept of “sleeping” guests. This term offers a nuanced perspective, distinguishing “sleeping” guests from generic lost customers. The “sleeping” guest segment provides valuable insights for enhancing targeted and effective marketing activities in the highly competitive hotel industry.
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Leela Damodaran, Wendy Olphert and Stephen Phipps
There is recognition that digital ICTs have the potential to support older people to live independently, to “age well”, to promote social inclusion and to facilitate access to…
Abstract
Purpose
There is recognition that digital ICTs have the potential to support older people to live independently, to “age well”, to promote social inclusion and to facilitate access to commercial and government services. Research conducted by the Sus‐IT project under the “New Dynamics of Ageing” Programme has focused on how to help older ICT users to remain digitally engaged given the barriers that they can face and which can quickly erode their confidence or capability. Access to appropriate learning and support resources is a key issue for sustaining older ICT users. The aim of this paper is to investigate older people's ICT learning and support needs.
Design/methodology/approach
Older people themselves have been central to the research; more than 1,000 older people have participated in this research through open workshops, established formal and informal panels and groups across the UK, and through contacts with a number of organisations working with older people. Key research users (e.g. organisations representing older people and those providing services and products to be used by older people) have also collaborated in the research in a variety of roles.
Findings
Findings show that older people value very highly the benefits and independence that computer use gives them, and they are often exceptionally tenacious in trying to remain digitally connected – persisting in the face of many obstacles, and often without awareness or use of existing aids to accessibility. If disengagement begins, it is usually a gradual process, rather than a single event, and likely to result from a combination of factors – changes in physical and cognitive abilities, in support, in technology and in personal circumstances. The availability of help and support emerges as a factor of paramount importance to sustaining digital connection.
Practical implications
The conceptual model of the risks of sustaining digital engagement of older people arising from the research has significant implications for both policy and practice – for instance, in relation to “digital by default”. A user‐generated strategy for provision of sustainable, community‐based ICT learning and support for older people is a key output from Sus‐IT.
Originality/value
The issues surrounding sustaining digital inclusion in older age are multi‐faceted and complex – and addressing these will have significant benefits not only for older people but also for the economy and society.
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This article describes the award‐winning online‐learning program developed to help British Airways cabin crew to use Barplus, an on‐board point‐of‐sale system that records…
Abstract
Purpose
This article describes the award‐winning online‐learning program developed to help British Airways cabin crew to use Barplus, an on‐board point‐of‐sale system that records in‐flight sales and acts as a stock‐control system.
Design/methodology/approach
Contains information from the airline's e‐learning manager and from the UK head of Tata Interactive Systems (TIS), which developed the training program.
Findings
Shows that the program took some seven months to develop, because the actual system and its screen design changed during the system's development, and the learning materials had to reflect these changes. Throughout these months, Tata Interactive Systems had a permanent computer link to Bristol Office Machinery, which was developing Barplus, in order to let the TIS developers see the most up‐to‐date version of the product on a daily basis.
Practical implications
Argues that the real benefit of the learning materials is that all British Airways cabin crew are more confident – and competent – at using the Barplus system, and this means that BA customers do not experience problems in making their in‐flight purchases.
Originality/value
Highlights the value of e‐learning to an international airline, since it enables employees to gain access to the training from remote locations.
Details
Keywords
Hokey Min and Hyesung Min
To help fast‐food restaurants enhance their competitiveness and then increase their market share, the purpose of this paper is to measure the service performances of fast‐food…
Abstract
Purpose
To help fast‐food restaurants enhance their competitiveness and then increase their market share, the purpose of this paper is to measure the service performances of fast‐food restaurant franchises in the USA and identify salient factors influencing the service performances of fast‐food restaurants over time.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper develops a set of benchmarks that helps fast‐food restaurants monitor their service‐delivery process, identify relative weaknesses, and take corrective actions for continuous service improvements using analytic hierarchy process and competitive gap analysis.
Findings
This study reveals that a service attribute considered most important to the fast‐food restaurant customers' impressions of service quality is taste of food. This preference has not been changed over time. Also, we found a pattern of the correlation between the overall level of customer satisfaction with the fast‐food restaurant and its word‐of‐mouth reputation. Furthermore, we discovered that the customers tended to be more favorable to easily accessible and national fast‐food restaurant franchises than less accessible, relatively new, and regional counterparts.
Research limitations/implications
The current study is limited to the evaluation of comparative service quality in the USA. Thus, this study may not capture the national differences in the restaurant customers' perceived service quality.
Practical implications
For the last four decades, Americans' obsession with fast serving, cheap meals has made the fast‐food restaurant a mainstay in their daily life. As the appetite for fast food grows, every corner of the American Society has been infiltrated by fast‐food restaurants. With the increasing number of fast‐food restaurants competing in the market, their survival often rests on their ability to sustain high‐quality services and meet changing needs/preferences of customers. This paper provides practical guidelines for enhancing the competitiveness of the fast‐food restaurant franchise.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the first to compare the service quality of fast‐food franchises in the USA and develop dynamic service quality standards for fast‐food restaurant franchises using a longitudinal study.