The impact of smart specialization strategies on sub-cluster efficiency: simulation exercise for the case of Mexico

Author(s):  
Viviana Elizabeth Zárate-Mirón ◽  
Rosina Moreno Serrano

Purpose This paper aims to evaluate whether the integration of smart specialization strategies (S3) into clusters significantly impacts their efficiency for countries that still do not implement this policy. This study tests three effects: whether the kind of policies envisaged through an S3 strategy impacts cluster’s efficiency; whether this impact changes with the technological intensity of the clusters; to determine which S3 is more suitable for sub-clusters at different levels of technological intensity. Design/methodology/approach The Mexican economy is taken as case of study because it has a proper classification of its industries intro Porter’s cluster’s definition but still does not adopt the S3 policy. Through data envelopment analysis (DEA), this study evaluates the cluster’s efficiency increment when variables representing the S3 elements are included. Findings The results show that strategies following the S3 had a significant impact in all clusters, but when clusters were classified by technological intensity, the impact on efficiency is higher in clusters in the medium low-tech group. Practical implications According to the results in the DEA, it can be concluded that these S3 strategies have the potential to increase the clusters’ productivity significantly. These results make convenient the adoption of the S3 policy by countries that already count with a properly cluster definition. Originality/value These findings contribute to the lack of studies that analyze the join implementation of S3 on clusters.

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-136
Author(s):  
Ferid Azemi

Purpose This study aims to focus on understanding the prison environment, inmates’ behavior and perceptions of the prison environment, analyzing the degree of awareness, rehabilitation and the programs that apply to prisons in both countries. It is assumed that the data that emerge from this research will contribute to a better understanding of the prisoner’s world of their perception about the prison environment in Kosovo and Finland. The study focused on inmates’ perception about the prison environment and their attitudes toward their sentences. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative study through in-depth interviews. Findings The results of this study indicated that inmates in Kosovo perceived the prison environment in a very negative light. The main reasons for this were the dissatisfaction with their status of being inmates and also lack of an appropriate classification of inmates. However, even though inmates in Finland perceived prison environment in a positive light, they still think that more educative programs are needed. Practical implications The results of this study indicated that Kosovo Correctional Service should implement more rehabilitative programs and improve its classification system. Criminal Sanction Agency in Finland as per results should increase efforts for implementation of new programs and aftercare action plans. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, it is the first research on inmates in two countries Kosovo and Finland, and this added new knowledge to the existing information about the prison environment in Kosovo and Finland. The results of this research gave an idea to respective institutions to add new rehabilitative and aftercare programs.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 334-344
Author(s):  
Ivan C. Roten ◽  
Jarrod G. Johnston

Purpose US taxing authorities allow property investment to be separated into components. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how the classification of property affects the amount and timing of depreciation. Increased and accelerated depreciation increases after-tax cash flows and investor returns. Design/methodology/approach This paper explains traditional methods to analyze real estate investments and introduces modified methods that include the effect of taxes to improve the estimate of the potential return to the investor. Commonly used property classification methods are evaluated and projections are used to demonstrate the impact on investor returns. Findings Modified methods may improve return estimates and appropriately classifying property improves investor returns. Practical implications After-tax cash flows should be used to analyze potential real estate investments and properties should be accurately classified to maximize returns. Originality/value This paper demonstrates how to analyze real estate investments and maximize returns.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor Ward

Purpose Hotel development in Africa is at an all-time high, as entrepreneurs and institutional investors recognise and understand the opportunities, and as the international brands identify the gaps in their system coverage. The purpose of this paper is to quantify the chains’ future development pipelines and the requirement for human capital in those hotels. Design/methodology/approach Information was obtained from the international and regional (African) hotel chains that are signing deals to manage and brand new hotels in Africa, including location, number of rooms, brand and expected opening date. From this, a calculation was made regarding the number of jobs that will be created at different levels. Findings The findings show the number of hotels in the chains’ development pipeline in Nigeria and the human capital requirement in those hotels. Practical implications Governments, investors, operators and educators can benefit from the findings presented and develop relevant policies that will impact positively on human capital in Africa. Originality/value This paper outlines the impact of hotel growth on human capital needs in Africa.


2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (6) ◽  
pp. 729-746
Author(s):  
Osama Meqdadi ◽  
Thomas E. Johnsen ◽  
Rhona E. Johnsen ◽  
Asta Salmi

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the impact of monitoring and mentoring strategies on sustainability diffusion within supply networks through focal companies and how suppliers engage in implementing these strategies. Design/methodology/approach The paper reports on three in-depth case studies conducted with focal companies and their suppliers. An interaction approach was adopted to guide the analysis of focal companies’ strategies for implementing and diffusing sustainability in supply networks. Findings The monitoring strategy impacts sustainability diffusion at the dyadic level, while the mentoring strategy is a prerequisite for the diffusion of sustainability at the supply network level. The findings suggest that coupling monitoring with mentoring can lead to diffusion beyond first-tier suppliers. Interaction intensity, supplier proactiveness and mindset change facilitate sustainability diffusion in supply networks. Research limitations/implications The authors suggest more research be conducted on specific practices within monitoring and mentoring, as some of these imply very different levels of commitment and interaction. Practical implications The paper suggests that in the future, companies will be increasingly called upon to adopt cooperative initiatives to enable the diffusion of sustainability in supply networks. Originality/value The contribution of the paper lies in its identification of the impacts of monitoring and mentoring strategies on the diffusion of sustainability in networks, revealing different supplier engagement in these strategies, which may foster or hinder sustainability diffusion.


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 138-141
Author(s):  
Walter Leal Filho

Purpose This paper aims to outline the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to universities and how they may react. Design/methodology/approach A description of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to higher education institutions is presented at different levels. Findings Even though the COVID-19 pandemic affects higher education institutions in many ways, there are some measures which may be undertaken to mitigate its impacts. Practical implications The measures suggested may assist universities at present, and in future recovery efforts. Originality/value The value of the paper resides on a multi-perspective analysis of higher education institutions can do, as part of the recovery efforts in face of the pandemic.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 232-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khar Mang Tan ◽  
A.N. Bany-Ariffin ◽  
Fakarudin Kamarudin ◽  
Norhuda Abdul Rahim

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of board busyness on firm efficiency in the context of directors’ experience, specifically on directors’ experience that moderates the impact of board busyness on firm efficiency. Directors’ experience is examined by exploring both depth (board tenure) and breadth (number of former listed directorship) of experience. Design/methodology/approach This paper employs data envelopment analysis (DEA) to examine firm efficiency. Then, fixed effect panel regression analysis is applied to test the direct and moderating effect based on a sample of firms in the selected Asia-Pacific countries. Findings Significant positive evidence for the moderating effect of directors’ experience on the impact of board busyness on firm efficiency is documented. Practical implications Findings are essential for managers, country policymakers and potential investors as inputs to improve the current company practices, laws and policies through the notion that directors’ experience does enable the busy board to contribute to improved firm efficiency. Originality/value This paper contributes to the debated perspectives on board busyness by providing initial evidence that directors’ experience positively moderates the impact of board busyness on firm efficiency.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-328
Author(s):  
Ian Pepper ◽  
Ruth McGrath

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of an employability module, the College of Policing Certificate in Knowledge of Policing (CKP), on students’ career aspirations, their confidence and wish to join the police along with the appropriateness of the module. This will inform the implementation of employability as part of the College of Policing-managed Police Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF). Design/methodology/approach A three-year longitudinal research study used mixed methods across four points in time to evaluate the impact on students studying the employability module. Findings The research suggests that the employability-focussed CKP was useful as an introduction to policing, it developed interest in the police and enhanced the confidence of learners applying to join. Lessons learnt from the CKP should be considered during the implementation of the PEQF. Research limitations/implications The ability to generalise findings across different groups is limited as other influences may impact on a learner’s confidence and employability. However, the implications for the PEQF curriculum are worthy of consideration. Practical implications As the police service moves towards standardised higher educational provision and evolution of policing as a profession, lessons can be learnt from the CKP with regards to the future employability of graduates. Originality/value Enhancing the employability evidence base, focussing on policing, the research identified aspects which may impact on graduates completing a degree mapped to the PEQF. The research is therefore of value to higher education and the professional body for policing.


2014 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amira Galin

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to obtain insight into court-referred mediation in the Israeli Labor Courts, by analyzing its processes and outcomes, as a function of tactics used by both the disputants and the mediator. Design/methodology/approach – Observation of 103 court-referred mediations, for each of which a detailed process and outcome were documented. Data on disputants' refusal to participate in the mediation was also collected. At the end of each mediation case, disputants were given a questionnaire in which they expressed their satisfaction with the outcome and their evaluation of the mediator's contribution. Findings – A low rate of refusal to participate in court-referred mediation was found. Also, the higher the ratio of soft tactics to pressure tactics employed (by all parties involved) during the process, the higher the rate of agreements. Mediators use significantly more soft tactics than disputants, and are more active in using tactics. The two significant variables that predict the mediation's agreement are the ratio between soft tactics to pressure tactics used by all parties, and mediator contribution to the process. Practical implications – The significant role of soft tactics in the process, outcome, and satisfaction of court-referred mediation may serve as a guideline for disputants and mediators. Originality/value – This unique research, which examines the impact of tactics on court-referred mediation, may provide added and significant theoretical insight into its process and outcome, as well as a better understanding of other “hybrid” (compulsory at the beginning, voluntary at the end) mediations.


2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 66-74
Author(s):  
Yufeng Ma ◽  
Long Xia ◽  
Wenqi Shen ◽  
Mi Zhou ◽  
Weiguo Fan

Purpose The purpose of this paper is automatic classification of TV series reviews based on generic categories. Design/methodology/approach What the authors mainly applied is using surrogate instead of specific roles or actors’ name in reviews to make reviews more generic. Besides, feature selection techniques and different kinds of classifiers are incorporated. Findings With roles’ and actors’ names replaced by generic tags, the experimental result showed that it can generalize well to agnostic TV series as compared with reviews keeping the original names. Research limitations/implications The model presented in this paper must be built on top of an already existed knowledge base like Baidu Encyclopedia. Such database takes lots of work. Practical implications Like in digital information supply chain, if reviews are part of the information to be transported or exchanged, then the model presented in this paper can help automatically identify individual review according to different requirements and help the information sharing. Originality/value One originality is that the authors proposed the surrogate-based approach to make reviews more generic. Besides, they also built a review data set of hot Chinese TV series, which includes eight generic category labels for each review.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Jonsson ◽  
Jan Pettersson ◽  
Christian Nils Larson ◽  
Nir Artzi

Purpose This study aims to measure the impact of the Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and US PATRIOT Act Section 311 blacklists on external deposits from blacklisted jurisdictions into BIS reporting countries in 1996–2008, a period when anti-money laundering-related actions were consistently less stringent than post-2010, to see whether they had an effect even absent the threat of sizable financial fines. Design/methodology/approach The study uses descriptive statistics and bivariate and multivariate regressions to analyze the probable impact from blacklists on non-bank external deposits. The country sample is divided into offshore financial centers (OFCs) and non-OFCs and includes 158 non-listed countries. The impact of the blacklists is tested both jointly and individually for the respective blacklists. Findings The authors find mixed impact from jurisdictions being blacklisted on the growth rate of stocks of deposits into BIS reporting countries. Effects are often zero, negative in several cases and positive in some cases. This is consistent with the “stigma effect” and the “stigma paradox” in the literature. An overall impact from blacklisting is difficult to discern. Different blacklists had different effects, and the same blacklist impacted countries differently, illustrating the importance of disaggregating the analysis by individual countries. Research limitations/implications Interpretation of these data is limited by the absence of comparable data on non-resident deposits in blacklisted jurisdictions. Practical implications The impact of a blacklist depends in part on the structure of the listed jurisdictions’ economies, implying that country-specific sanctions may be more effective than blacklists. Originality/value This is one of the very few papers to date to rigorously test the impact of blacklists on external deposits.


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