Toward a theory on workplaces for smart workers

Facilities ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 298-315
Author(s):  
Luisa Errichiello ◽  
Tommasina Pianese
Keyword(s):  
Web Sites ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Innovative Design ◽  
Content Type ◽  
New Type ◽  
Smart Working ◽  
Research Propositions

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the main features of smart work centers (SWCs) and show how these innovative offices would support the implementation of smart working and related changes in workspaces (“bricks”), technologies (“bytes”) and organizational practices (“behaviors”). Design/methodology/approach In this study, scientific literature is combined with white papers and business reports and visits to 14 workplaces, including offices designed as SWCs, co-working spaces, one telecenter, one accelerator and one fab lab. Primary data were collected through interviews with managers and users and non-participant observation, whereas secondary data included web-sites, brochures, presentations, press releases and official documents. Findings The authors developed research propositions about how the design of spaces and the availability of technology within SWCs would support the “bricks” and “bytes” levers of smart working. More importantly, the authors assumed that this new type of workplace would sustain changes in employees’ behaviors and managers’ practices, thus helping to overcome several challenges traditionally associated with remote working. Research limitations/implications The exploratory nature of the research only provides preliminary information about the role of SWCs within smart working programs. Additional qualitative and quantitative empirical investigation is required. Practical implications This study provides valuable knowledge about how the design of corporate offices can be leveraged to sustain the implementation of smart working. Originality/value This study advances knowledge on workplaces by focusing on an innovative design of traditional offices (SWC). It also lays the foundations for future investigation aimed at testing the developed propositions.

Technology forecast: a case study in Daiken company

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-217
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Vinicius Sartori ◽  
Dalcio Roberto dos Reis ◽  
Marcia Bronzeri ◽  
Adriana Queiroz Silva
Keyword(s):  
New Technologies ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Descriptive Approach ◽  
Technology Forecast

Purpose This paper aims to describe how the technology forecast process occurs at a technology-based company named Daiken, a Brazilian electronics industry, located in the state of Parana. The study helps to clarify the context that tech-companies in Brazil face when trying to forecast new technologies. Design/methodology/approach The paper opted for a case study, in a qualitative and descriptive approach. Primary data were collected through a semi-structured interview and non-participant observation. Secondary data were generated through documentary research. Findings Outcomes indicate that, for the studied case, technology forecast practices are adopted in an informal and unsystematic way, best aligned to the nature of competitive intelligence. Research limitations/implications Because of the chosen research approach, the results may lack generalizability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the propositions further. Practical implications The paper includes implications for the adjustment of technology forecast tools to the reality seen in emergent nations like Brazil. Originality/value This paper fulfills an identified need to study how to conduct the technology forecast processes in small and mid-tech-companies in Brazil.

scholarly journals The governance of collaboration in complex projects

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 997-1019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mehmet Chakkol ◽  
Kostas Selviaridis ◽  
Max Finne
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Relational Governance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Collaborative Practices ◽  
Complex Projects ◽  
Standard Sets

Purpose Inter-organisational collaboration is becoming increasingly important in complex projects; some project customers even formally require evidence of collaborative competence from potential providers. The purpose of this paper is to explore the governance of collaboration and the ways in which it is enacted in practice for complex projects. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on a qualitative analysis of 29 semi-structured interviews, primary data from meetings and events supported by secondary data, including standards and industry-specific contract templates. Findings The paper identifies how collaboration can be effectively governed in complex projects through the emerging role of the collaboration standard and its impact on contractual and relational governance mechanisms. The standard sets higher-level institutional guidelines that affect the way in which collaboration is governed in complex projects. It helps formalise informal relational practices whilst also providing guidelines for building flexibility in contracts by including coordination- and adaptation-oriented provisions conducive to collaboration. Originality/value The paper demonstrates the emerging role of the collaboration standard and its influence on contractual and relational mechanisms deployed in complex projects. It shows how the standard can formalise and codify informal collaborative practices and help transfer related learning across projects, thereby contributing towards the dual requirement for standardisation and flexibility in project settings.

Family identity construction: an interpretation of the Lunar New Year's Eve dinner consumption ritual

2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Haibo Xue ◽  
Xin Zhao ◽  
Pokachev Nikolay ◽  
Jiayi Qin
Keyword(s):  
Consumer Culture ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Chinese Consumers ◽  
Entire Family ◽  
Family Identity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Family Dinner ◽  
New Year’S Eve

PurposeFamily dinner on Lunar New Year's Eve is the most important and most ritualized feast for families in China. It is the time for the entire family to reunite. Families gather together to reflect their past and talk about the future. Through the lens of consumer culture theories, this study explores how Chinese consumers construct family identity.Design/methodology/approachBased on constant comparative analysis of primary data including in-depth interviews and participant observation, and secondary data including historical archives, cultural tracing, documentary reports and essays, the authors deconstruct the consumption rituals of family dinner on Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve. The authors focus on four aspects, including participants, place, time and related activities, and analyze Chinese consumers' ritual experiences.FindingsThe authors’ findings show how young consumers construct and strengthen individual self-identity, relational identity and family identity in various ways through consumption and ritual practices during Chinese Lunar New Year celebration.Originality/valueThe study of family dinner on Lunar New Year's Eve helps the authors understand contemporary consumer culture in three aspects. First, it helps the authors understand the relationship between consumption and culture. Second, the study shows the changes and continuities of consumption rituals. Third, the research highlights the experience of “home” among contemporary Chinese consumers.

Customer due diligence (CDD) mandate and the propensity of its application as a global AML paradigm

2014 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norman Mugarura
Keyword(s):  
Money Laundering ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Regulatory Domains ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Secondary Data Sources ◽  
The Uk

Purpose – It has become customary for states or regulatory domains to come together and evolve normative regimes to deal with overlapping exigencies such as money laundering. Over the past two decades, there has been a proliferation of global AML laws designed to foster international cooperation against money laundering and its predicate crimes. In this same vein, some states have adopted domestic AML laws designed with an ethos of extra-territorial dimension as a caution against the threats posed by money laundering crimes. The paper aims to critically examine CDD to tease out the possibility of harnessing it as a global AML paradigm. Design/methodology/approach – The paper was written by critically examining primary and secondary data sources. In terms of primary data, the author has studied the relevant provision of different AML legislation such as BSA (1970), MLCA (1986), and PATRIOT (2001) Act in the USA; and FSMA (2000) and POCA (2002) in the UK. The author then evaluated these data in the context of the challenges of harnessing CDD across countries. In terms of secondary data sources, the author utilised data in academic text books, journal papers, electronic sources (web sites of AML agencies), and policy and research papers from specialist institutions such as FATF. Findings – The findings corroborate the thesis that much as CDD is an important AML measure, it needs to be streamlined and implemented with care to apply across the board. Research limitations/implications – The paper was written largely by way of library-based research. The author did not carry out interviews to corroborate some of the secondary data sources used in writing it. Carrying out interviews would have helped to minimise the potential for bias secondary data sources used was generated. Practical implications – It is anticipated that this paper can be utilised to foster desired strategic and policy changes at a multiple institutional levels. Originality/value – The paper is one of its kind to be written in its context. It will therefore make a viable contribution to the study of money counter-measures and how they are harnessed globally. It is therefore a must read!

What determines customers’ engagement in the digital service process?

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (8) ◽  
pp. 1216-1229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Minna Saunila ◽  
Juhani Ukko ◽  
Tero Rantala
Keyword(s):  
Single Case ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Customer Engagement ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Service Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Service ◽  
Digital Environments

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine customer engagement behavior (CEB) in digital environments. Specifically, the paper seeks to determine the factors that affect CEB in the different parts of the digital service process. Design/methodology/approach A longitudinal, qualitative, single-case study is used to examine CEB in digital environments. The selected case company is a provider of streaming TV services. Both primary data, gathered from interviews, focus groups and participant observations in meetings with a selected focus group, and secondary data, gathered from company websites sources, were used. Findings This study shows that CEB is determined by different factors in different phases of the digital service process. Moreover, the results show that engagement is highlighted during the front-end phase of the process. During the back-end phase, the role of engagement is realized by maintaining and updating solutions. Originality/value The originality of the research is based on the study of CEB in the context of the digital service process. The factors that affect CEB are classified as customer-based, firm-based and context-based factors.

Empowering the next generation of leaders

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Linda Appiea ◽  
Dorothy Ndletyana ◽  
Anthony Wilson-Prangley
Keyword(s):  
Women Leaders ◽  
Leadership Style ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Level ◽  
Workplace Experiences

Learning outcomes The main teaching objective for the case is for students to build a better understanding of how to advance women (and other minorities) in the workplace through mentorship. This is achieved through recognizing the wide variety of issues that enable and constrains women’s advancement in the workplace; defining mentoring, sponsorship, coaching and networking; and highlighting how mentoring, sponsorship, coaching and networking can overcome the challenges of facing women’s advancement in the workplace? Case overview/synopsis The case study explores the role of senior women leaders in the career advancement of other women in the workplace. It helps us understand how mentoring can address the low prevalence of women at senior levels despite companies’ efforts to advance women. The case profiles the career and leadership journey of a senior female executive, Maserame Mouyeme. It documents her rise from the dusty streets of Soweto, South Africa to become one of the first black female executives in several corporate contexts across Africa and especially at Coca-Cola. The case illustrates her practice of mentoring and its impact on her and others’ careers. Also illustrated is Mouyeme’s leadership style, mentoring approach and workplace experiences. Students deliberate Mouyeme’s dilemma: whether to continue to advance a new generation of women leaders or whether to focus on her core role of building the business she is responsible for. The selected research method is a teaching case study, grounded in an exploratory approach. Primary data was collected via semi-structured interviews with the protagonist and four of her mentees. Secondary data was collected via studies about the protagonist and the companies she has worked for in her career. The case provides empirical insights about the role of leaders and especially women, in advancing women. The case shows the approaches in which organizations can advance women. It also shows how emerging leaders can better manage their own careers. The case deepens knowledge of women advancement and career development. Complexity academic level The case is appropriate for post-graduate level study, including MBA-level. It is also appropriate for use on executive development programs. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 6: Human Resource Management.

Strategizing and organizing in the innovation process

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 281-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Romain Gandia ◽  
Florence Tourancheau
Keyword(s):  
Web Sites ◽  
Qualitative Methodology ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Innovation Process ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Administrative Practices ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategy As Practice

Purpose – This paper aims to analyze the strategizing and organizing practices in the innovation process by using a processual approach. Three types of practices are examined: discursive, episodic and administrative. Their arrangement and their influence are also studied in the innovation process. The final objective is to understand the making process of the strategizing/organizing (S/O) duality, which remains today one of the major challenges of the strategy-as-practice. Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses a longitudinal and qualitative methodology applied to a single case study. Primary data are based on 18 semi-directive interviews during a three-year period. Secondary data came from various meeting and reports, Web sites, newspapers and newsletters. Findings – The results show that strategizing and organizing practices are preconditioned by the phases of the innovation process. In the idea generation, commercialization and diffusion phases, strategizing takes precedence over the organizing, whereas in the R & D phase, it is the opposite. In the industrialization phase, strategizing and organizing are carried out simultaneously. Other results highlight the influence between discursive, episodic and administrative practices in the innovation process. Practical implications – This research offers guidance to practitioners of innovation who want to attain a deeper understanding of the innovation-making process and its close ties with strategizing and organizing. Originality/value – The authors empirically validate the making process of the S/O duality and examine the theoretical and empirical relevance of an innovizing concept, when the innovation-making process implicitly generates the production of a new inseparable S/O duality.

scholarly journals Dialogue as a source of positive emotions during cross-border post-acquisition socio-cultural integration

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 183-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Riikka Harikkala-Laihinen ◽  
Mélanie Hassett ◽  
Johanna Raitis ◽  
Niina Nummela
Keyword(s):  
Participant Observation ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Cultural Conflict ◽  
Cultural Integration ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cross Border

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse how dialogue can be used to promote post-acquisition socio-cultural integration. Specifically, it addresses questions regarding when and how companies can utilise dialogue to generate positivity regarding socio-cultural integration. Design/methodology/approach A single case study approach was adopted owing to its suitability for creating in-depth understanding in the context of socio-cultural integration. Primary data were collected via interviews, an employee satisfaction survey, and participant observation. Secondary data were obtained from the case company’s internal materials, such as strategies, integration workflows, and employee magazines. Analysis methods included descriptive statistics and thematic qualitative analysis. Findings The findings suggest that dialogue can be used to create positivity regarding socio-cultural integration throughout the stages of unfreezing, moving, and refreezing by actively engaging employees in voicing, listening, respecting, and suspending. It is proposed that cultural conflict during post-acquisition socio-cultural integration can be overcome through the generation of positivity; dialogue enables the collective management of emotions during post-acquisition integration by offering a platform for creating positivity and social cohesion; and due to its collaborative and engaging nature, dialogue provides an especially effective means of communication for overcoming cross-cultural conflict. Originality/value To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first attempt to showcase dialogue as a specific means of communication for creating positivity during cross-border socio-cultural integration. This study reached beyond comparative cultural research to offer views on positivity, emotion during socio-cultural integration, and dialogue as means for overcoming cross-cultural conflict.

scholarly journals Critical evaluation of the compliance of online Islamic FOREX trading with Islamic principles

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafik Fakhry Omar ◽  
Eleri Jones
Keyword(s):  
Web Sites ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Financial Products ◽  
Bank Regulations ◽  
Islamic Jurisprudence ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Online Sources

Purpose – This study aims to evaluate the compliance of online Islamic FOREX products with Islamic jurisprudence principles and determines the degree of similarity or difference between Islamic and conventional FOREX products. Design/methodology/approach – This study involves the collection and analysis of secondary data from online sources (i.e. four Islamic FOREX Web sites selected on the basis that they appeared on two Islamic FOREX Web site lists) It also undertakes content analysis of the rulings of jurisprudence scholars on one of the Web sites. Findings – There is no evidence to suggest that the technical processes underpinning current Islamic FOREX products are any different to those underpinning conventional FOREX products. Also there are major contradiction and ambiguities in the rulings offered by the jurisprudence scholars about the permissibility of the products. Research limitations/implications – The study relies on the analysis of secondary data. Further research that will involve interviews with banking industry employees in both conventional and Islamic banking sectors would provide a better understanding of: how financial products are created and managed and the role of bank regulations in creating and managing different financial products. Practical implications – It would seem that Islamic FOREX is simply rebranding of conventional FOREX. The paper calls for a modern-day definition of usury (riba). Social implications – The way Islamic FOREX is marketed today to online users as synonymous with gambling, and, although branded as Islamic, the actual technical processes that underpin Islamic FOREX products are the same as conventional FOREX products and therefore not compliant with Islamic principles. Originality/value – This research explores the marketing of Islamic FOREX products.

Gentrification in (re)construction: Talca’s neighbourhoods post 2010 earthquake

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 170-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Inzulza Contardo ◽  
Camillo Boano ◽  
Camila Wirsching
Keyword(s):  
Critical Role ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Urban Structure ◽  
Land Value ◽  
Spatial Effects ◽  
Reconstruction Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Recovery Strategies

Purpose This study aims to explore the complex relationship between post-earthquake reconstruction processes and gentrification in neighbourhoods of intermediate cities, calling on the critical role of recovery strategies in altering neighbourhoods physical and social urban structure identities. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses a case study; the reconstruction process of the neighbourhoods post-2010 earthquake in Talca, Chile, and analyses in a six-year timeline its socio-spatial changes. The latter based on mixed methods, primary data from strategic interviews with key stakeholders, cadastres of land value and real estate housing projects and neighbourhood polls, and secondary data from official documents such as plans and policies. Findings The findings suggest that patterns of incipient gentrification are an outcome of the reconstruction strategies. Acknowledging the intricate interplay amongst urban neoliberal conditions, historical heritage and identities and post-disaster recovery, inadequate housing subsidies and normative plans are causing the displacement of hundreds of historical residents and resistance, arrival of newcomers with higher debt capacity in new housing typologies and increasing land value. Process related to neoliberal politics of state led to new-build gentrification. Originality/value Gentrification and reconstruction are both processes that modify urban structures, society and perceptions, and yet their socio spatial effects have never been studied in a cumulative and integrated manner, even more, in intermediate cities. The value is to rethink the critical role of recovery strategies in halting and containing gentrification in fast transforming secondary cities.

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