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The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the main advantages of integrating bottleneck theory, action learning and transformation capabilities to phenomenon and process analysis systems.

This paper selects three typical cases, using grounded theory standardized coding procedures, and selects exploratory case study approach.

Inward small and medium manufacturing enterprises use the bottleneck breakthrough program and provide a correct knowledge input for action learning. Action learning provides a strong guarantee that for the implementation of bottleneck breakthrough program, programming and action learning are required to continually solve problems and achieve goals in the process.

The authors used inward manufacturing small- and medium-sized enterprises as research subjects The authors did not analysis the role of knowledge services; the future studies could explore how to improve the performance through the transformation value co-creation.

Because of the lack of resources and capacity, small- and medium-sized enterprise adopt appropriate micro-innovation and continuous micro-transformation to break the bottleneck stage and achieve small victories.

Learning and development enterprises are not only through multinational clients which restructuring enhance the learning capacity of the international M & A path. It does not conduct thorough and comprehensive change, and also not related to the structural of readjustment organization. In fact, the radical change and transformation strategy is different than other strategies.

This study aims to explore the impact of applying a blockchain-based information system in the international students’ administrative workflow in the context of a public research university in the USA.

Specifically, a prototype of the blockchain-based information system was developed and tested. The system has the potential advantages of being more efficient, more transparent, faster and safer.

The results show that digital registration could increase student registration efficiency with a blockchain-based application.

There are also some limitations of this study. As an early exploration of the use of blockchain technology in higher education, this study could be further extended in several aspects: different institutions (e.g. private vs public school) may have different operational strategies towards international student affairs. The different administrative processes should be discussed in the context of different institutions, and thus the proposed system should be tested and evaluated based on the requirements of different institutions. Use experience and feedback from different users such as university administrators and students should be considered and investigated with respect to the necessary improvement of the proposed system. The extensibility and scalability of the system should be assessed to accommodate any potential modifications of the administrative process.

The findings show that a blockchain-based information management system has the potential to improve data transmission efficiency and protect information privacy.

As an advanced manufacturing method, additive manufacturing (AM) technology provides new possibilities for efficient production and design of parts. However, with the continuous expansion of the application of AM materials, subtractive processing has become one of the necessary steps to improve the accuracy and performance of parts. In this paper, the processing process of AM materials is discussed in depth, and the surface integrity problem caused by it is discussed.

Firstly, we listed and analyzed the characterization parameters of metal surface integrity and its influence on the performance of parts and then introduced the application of integrated processing of metal adding and subtracting materials and the influence of different processing forms on the surface integrity of parts. The surface of the trial-cut material is detected and analyzed, and the surface of the integrated processing of adding and subtracting materials is compared with that of the pure processing of reducing materials, so that the corresponding conclusions are obtained.

In this process, we also found some surface integrity problems, such as knife marks, residual stress and thermal effects. These problems may have a potential negative impact on the performance of the final parts. In processing, we can try to use other integrated processing technologies of adding and subtracting materials, try to combine various integrated processing technologies of adding and subtracting materials, or consider exploring more efficient AM technology to improve processing efficiency. We can also consider adopting production process optimization measures to reduce the processing cost of adding and subtracting materials.

With the gradual improvement of the requirements for the surface quality of parts in the production process and the in-depth implementation of sustainable manufacturing, the demand for integrated processing of metal addition and subtraction materials is likely to continue to grow in the future. By deeply understanding and studying the problems of material reduction and surface integrity of AM materials, we can better meet the challenges in the manufacturing process and improve the quality and performance of parts. This research is very important for promoting the development of manufacturing technology and achieving success in practical application.

To maintain auditor independence, Section 201 of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) imposes restrictions on audit firms in rendering management advisory services (MASs) to audit clients. Responding to the requirement, audit firms establish a strategic alliance with consulting companies to expand their scope of services to alleviate the impairment of auditor independence. Taiwan follows the spirit of SOX in related laws and regulations. To investigate the effects of SOX on Taiwanese auditing industry, this study aims to examine the relationship between MASs and operating performance of audit firms.

This study obtains empirical data from the 1989–2017 Survey Report of Audit Firms in Taiwan, published by the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC). FSC administers the survey across all registered audit firms annually to collect business information on the auditing industry for macro-economic analysis and industrial policy development. The authors group audit firms into three categories: national, regional and local firms. Based on the structure-conduct-performance (S-C-P) theoretical framework, this study establishes the following cross-sectional regression equation to test the authors’ hypotheses.

Main results indicate that national firms have better post-SOX firm and alliance performance. Both firm and alliance MASs contribute more to the performance of national firms after SOX.

This study claims that national firms establish alliance with consulting companies for resource sharing but regional and local firms for tax-saving.

Consistent with the economic theory of regulation and resource-based theory, SOX matters in Taiwan.

This paper aims to explore the use of the knowledge management (KM) perspective for configuration projects. Configuration projects implement configurators as information technology systems that help companies manage the specification process of customised products. An effective method of retrieving and formalising knowledge for configurators is essential, because it can reduce the risk of unsuccessful implementation and the time and effort required for development. Unfortunately, no standard KM frameworks are available specifically for configuration projects. This study identifies the knowledge necessary for different phases of a configuration project (which knowledge, for what purpose and from what sources), examines how it is transformed during a configuration project (what KM activities and tools are used) and establishes how the knowledge can be documented for future maintenance and updates.

This paper proposes a four-step framework for making the KM process more efficient in configuration projects. The framework is based on the literature, developed in collaboration with industrial partners and tested on four configuration projects in two engineering companies. The framework is a structured KM approach designed to save time for both domain experts and the configuration team. The authors have used a qualitative exploratory design based on multiple data sources: documentation, workshops and participant observation.

The proposed framework comprises four steps: determination of the system’s scope, to establish the project’s goal based on stakeholders’ requirements and prioritise the required products and processes; knowledge acquisition, to classify the knowledge according to the desired output and identify different knowledge sources; modelling and knowledge validation; and documentation and maintenance, to ensure that the KM system can be maintained and updated in the future.

Because the framework is tested on a limited number of cases, its generalisability may be limited. However, focusing on a few case applications allows us to assess the effectiveness of the framework in detail and in depth to identify the practical challenges of applying it. The results of the tests support the framework’s validity. Although the framework is designed mainly for engineering companies, other industries could benefit from using it as well.

The individual steps of the framework create a structured approach for the KM process. Thus, the approach can save both time and resources for companies, without the need for additional investment.

A standard framework is lacking in the literature on KM for configuration projects. This study fills that gap by developing a KM framework for configuration projects, based on KM frameworks developed for IT projects, and KM tools.