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Quality function deployment (QFD) has been widely applied in new product development, but existing research on QFD has some limitations. Primarily, QFD lacks the capability to provide feedback on the satisfaction degree of customer requirements (CRs) according to the actual values of engineering characteristics (ECs). In addition, QFD does not quantitatively consider the interrelationships among ECs. Reverse QFD (R-QFD) was introduced to implement the feedback process. On this basis, this paper quantitatively considers the interrelationships among ECs in the R-QFD model and extends these relationships to encompass combinations of multiple ECs, aiming to improve the inference accuracy of the model.

A nonlinear regression model was established between CRs and ECs, aiming to infer the satisfaction degree of CRs based on the implementation status of ECs. This model considers the interdependencies among ECs and extends the consideration of pairwise EC correlations from every two to every fifteen. Lingo Software is utilized to seek solutions for this program. To facilitate the implementation of the program, a directive to simplify the solution has been proposed.

The experimental results indicate that the interrelationships among ECs significantly affect the inference accuracy of the R-QFD model, thereby verifying the necessity of considering higher-order interrelationships among ECs within the R-QFD framework. Based on the results from data experiments, this paper also proposes research recommendations pertaining to ECs hierarchy for varying quantities of ECs.

The outcomes of this study have further refined the R-QFD model, addressing its limitations of ignoring the interrelationships among ECs. This transformation elevates the R-QFD model from a relatively simple linear model to a nonlinear model formed through modeling, thereby enhancing its accuracy and applicability. In practical terms, this study provides case support for the application of the R-QFD model in manufacturing industry.

Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0) has caused revolutionary changes in various industries of South Asia, including financial services. Financial inclusion has been recognized as an important driver of economic growth. The combination of financial inclusion and the industrial revolution offers exceptional opportunities for business. The present chapter delves into the significance of financial inclusion within the framework of IR 4.0 in Asia and its potential to stimulate growth, innovation, and societal influence. It includes the discourse regarding challenges and opportunities for business in a new era of financial inclusion and the industrial revolution. Based on a thorough discussion, we give practical insights and best practices for businesses aiming to maximize the opportunities offered by financial inclusion in the era of IR 4.0. This chapter provides an in-depth understanding of Asia’s expanding financial inclusion landscape and empowers companies with the information and tools needed to prosper in this dynamic market.

Service providers and tourism players have introduced the green hotels concept to mitigate detrimental environmental impact. This study aimed to review the literature on green hotels based on bibliometric analysis.

In analyzing the potential and significant subject of the tourism industry and concern on environmental issues, this study evaluates the themes based on the past, present and future trends in green hotels from a bibliographic database retrieved from the Web of Science (WoS).

Several themes were identified from the role of the theory of planned behavior and predictors of consumers' intention to visit green hotels.

Implications were discussed mainly related to green hotels contribution towards sustainable tourism and its role in shaping the tourism sector's landscape. Among the practical implications include rewards by the authorities in the form of incentives or tax relief to green hotel operators, which will encourage conventional hotel transformation into green hotels. Furthermore, green hotels will be at the forefront of tourism and hospitality brands, requiring substantial green marketing initiatives. Sooner or later, opting for green hotels while traveling will be the norm among travelers.

The green hotels have emerged as a way to tackle the environmental issues related to tourism and hospitality while at the same time, allowing the industry to flourish. This research is one of the scant studies that provide a comprehensive overview about green hotel studies and offer future research agendas.

Managers engage in marketing efforts to boost sales and in setting marketing budgets based on current or historical sales. Past studies have overlooked the reciprocal relationship between marketing spending and sales. This study aims to examine the nature of the relationship between sales and marketing expenses in the B2B market.

Five hypotheses on the relationship between sales and marketing expenditures were framed. A total of 30 of India’s dyeing firms provided data on revenues, sales (in units) and marketing expenditures over time. The structural vector auto-regressive model and the vector error correction model were fitted to the data.

The results show that marketing expenses and sales are related bidirectionally in a sequential way. Furthermore, sales drive the long-term equilibrium relationship to a greater extent than marketing expenditures.

The findings of this study should assist managers in predicting sales and marketing budgets simultaneously and devising precise marketing strategies and tactics.

Using econometric models in data-driven research is not a frequent practice in marketing. This study adds value to the body of marketing literature by advancing the theory of the relationship between sales and marketing spending using real-world data and econometric models in the B2B sector.

This study aims to examine the effects of green marketing tools on tourists’ behavioural intention to buy green products by measuring individuals’ subjective norms, attitudes and perceived behavioural control.

A total of 421 international tourists from several tourist attractions in Malaysia, selected through convenience sampling, participated in a survey.

The analysis results using partial least squares structural equation modelling suggest that behavioural intention of international tourists is firmly influenced by attitude, perceived behavioural control, subjective norms and green marketing tools. However, the subjective norm does not work as a mediator.

The relationships established in this study provide insight into hoteliers’ knowledge for further implementation of green marketing strategies (eco-label, eco-brand, environmental advertising), which can enhance green attitudes and behavioural intention of purchasing green products in the hospitality industry.

This study expands the theory of planned behaviour by including green marketing tools to measure international tourists’ green buying tendency in Malaysia.

The development of digital inclusive finance (DIF) has increased households' financial investments and consumption. However, few studies have considered whether DIF strengthens the substitution of household financial investment for consumption behavior. To clarify the relationship between DIF, household financial investment and household consumption behavior, the authors combine matched data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) and Peking University Digital Inclusive Finance Index (2011–2018) to explore the impact of DIF on household financial substitution. This study aims to discuss the aforementioned objectives.

This study's empirical analysis applies ordinary least squares (OLS) to answer how DIF affects household financial investment substitution for consumption. This study uses three approaches to examine the robustness of the benchmark regression model. These three approaches are replacing the core explanatory variables, using the lagged Digital Inclusive Finance Index and using the data of additional years. This article also assesses endogeneity by applying the instrumental variable method.

The results indicate that DIF significantly enhances household financial substitution. This article also assesses endogeneity by applying the instrumental variable method and robustness test methods. The impact mechanism test shows that DIF positively affects household financial substitution, by improving information dissemination efficiency and enhancing financial participation. Further research finds that the impact of DIF on household financial substitution is more pronounced in households with low to moderate savings rates, low to average income households and homes without family members who start their businesses.

This study analyzed the effect and mediating mechanisms of digital financial inclusion on household financial substitution. Like all studies, the research had some limitations. First, due to differences in culture and infrastructure development, people do not understand and judge economic behaviors, such as household financial investment and consumption, in the same way. It can lead to certain biases in their understanding and study responses. Second, the study is mainly based on data from China. Future studies should be extended to foreign countries for comparative analysis. Third, the development of DIF has not yet completed a full cycle, and many problems have not been fully identified.

This study provides some practical implication. First, the public sectors should effectively weigh the spending relationship between household financial investment and consumption. Second, the public sector should focus on the policy optimization and consistency of DIF. The public sector should both enhance the breadth of coverage and depth of impact of DIF and focus on long-tail groups to fully reflect the equity and inclusiveness of DIF.

This study responds to the discussion on the relationship between financial investment, saving and consumption games in household expenditures and enhances our understanding of how DIF affects households' complex economic behavior. The most revealing finding is that DIF reinforces the substitution of household financial investment for household consumption. DIF positively affects household financial substitution by improving the efficiency of information dissemination and increasing financial participation, which is a valid extension of the study on the mechanisms of information dissemination and financial participation in financial investment and consumption proposed.

More hotels are beginning to embrace green practices given increasing awareness of sustainable development. The purpose of this study is to examine factors contributing to hotels’ participation in TripAdvisor’s GreenLeaders program.

Based on a sample of 48,064 hotels from 328 destinations in 29 countries, the authors leverage a multi-level logit model to examine antecedents of GreenLeaders participation. A multi-level ordered logit model is then estimated to uncover factors influencing the ranking of this participation.

Empirical results indicate that hotels with a larger size, a higher class, a better online reputation, greater reliance on business travelers, fewer neighboring hotels and a more long-term-oriented culture are more apt to join the program. Online reputation factors, hotel size and the number of neighboring hotels explain GreenLeaders hotels’ rankings. A series of robustness checks reinforces the results.

The results shed light on green program design and promotion. These findings can help hotel practitioners identify ideal target markets and better use their organizational resources to establish green programs. Several strategies can be implemented to promote hotels’ commitment to sustainability and to encourage guests’ awareness of and involvement in green practices.

This study enriches knowledge of sustainable hospitality and tourism. The findings of this study also address corporate social responsibility by analyzing factors that can promote and inhibit GreenLeaders program participation. Further, as a complement to hotel- and location-specific factors, the authors scrutinize the effects of cultural features in shaping green strategies.

This study aims to examine millennial consumers’ intentions towards purchasing eco-friendly products in the emerging Arab nation of Oman, focusing on the moderating role of eco-labelling (EL).

Environmental knowledge (EK) and environmental concern (EC) are integrated into the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) framework as independent variables, along with EL as a moderating variable. The data was collected through a self-administered survey and consisted of 705 random responses that was tabulated and analysed through the structural equation modelling technique.

ECs, subjective norms (SNs) and perceived behavioural control (PBC) significantly influence consumer attitudes towards green eco-friendly products. Consumers’ EK and attitudes positively influence the purchase intention (PI) to make green purchases. SNs and PBC substantially influence consumer attitudes towards adopting green products. However, the findings reveal a non-significant moderating influence of EL on the relationship between EC and PI for millennial Omani consumers.

The findings are limited to only one Arab country, Oman, which limits the scope of the study. This study contributes to the TPB by using additional dimensions to examine the green purchasing behaviour of millennials.

Marketers can use these insights to develop strategies that emphasise the environmental benefits of products, leverage social influences and empower consumers to make environmentally conscious choices. Incorporating EL and green packaging can enhance the visibility and attractiveness of green products.

Promoting environmental education, awareness campaigns and policy interventions that highlight the importance of eco-friendly product choices can foster more sustainable consumption patterns among Arab consumers.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine the green PIs of millennials in an Arab context, specifically focusing on the moderating role of EL.

This study aims to address the critical challenge of implementing lean manufacturing (LM) in emerging economies, where sustainability complexities on the production floor hinder production efficiency and the transition towards a circular economy (CE). Addressing a gap in existing research, the paper introduces a path analysis model to systematically identify, prioritize and overcome LM implementation barriers, aiming to enhance performance through strategic removal.

The authors used a mixed-method approach, combining empirical survey data with literature reviews to pinpoint key LM barriers. Using the grey-based Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) along with the Network Knowledge (NK) method, they mapped causal relationships and barrier intensities. This formed the basis for developing a path simulation algorithm, integrating heuristic considerations for practical decision-making.

This analysis reveals that the primary barriers to LM adoption is the negative perception and inadequate understanding of lean tools and CE principles. The study provides a strategic framework for managers, offering new insights into barrier prioritization and overcoming strategies to facilitate successful LM adoption.

This research provides a strategic pathway for overcoming LM implementation barriers, empowering managers in emerging economies to enhance sustainability and competitive advantage through LM and CE integration. It emphasizes the significance of structured barrier management in the manufacturing sector.

This research pioneers a systematic exploration of LM implementation barriers in the CE context, making a significant contribution to the literature. It identifies, evaluates barriers and proposes a practical model for overcoming them, enriching sustainable manufacturing practices in emerging markets.