Novel measures for emission reduction in supply chains

2014 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 406-420 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerry Frizelle ◽  
Ivian Casali
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Capital Expenditure ◽  
General Concept ◽  
Supply Networks ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Delivery Times ◽  
Early Results ◽  
Research Implication ◽  
The One

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to look at how novel measures of supply chain performance can be used to identify unnecessary waste in terms of under-loaded vehicles and extended delivery times, along with their causes. In particular it focuses on problems that can be tackled without the need for capital expenditure. The measures go under the collective name of “turbulence”. This represents the chain deviating from its goals. Quantifying unnecessary waste then allows unnecessary carbon emissions to be estimated while pointing to what changes will have the biggest impact. The measures have been used by three companies and some early results are provided. Design/methodology/approach – The approach was first to use evidence from the literature to show the value of having a new measure. Next the creation of one specific new measure, called relative turbulence, a relative measure for the more general concept of turbulence. Third testing it in the field with data from companies. Then showing how carbon emissions can be derived. Findings – The first finding is that the analysis can pinpoint sources of unnecessary emissions. Second the results suggest excessive emissions arise both though poor planning and poor practice. Third that there is a need for two models – from the users’ viewpoint and the carriers’ viewpoint. Finally the approach can be used with field data that is currently available, thus avoiding expensive one-off studies. Research limitations/implications – The main research implication is that entropic measures are useful and can provide fresh insights. Being generic they may be applicable in other contexts. However, they can be mathematically tricky to use. Practical implications – The analysis has been tested in companies and findings are included in the paper. They provide an insight that is not available solely from current measures. Businesses cannot only measure emissions but start to pinpoint causes. Originality/value – The main areas of original contributions are in the introduction of a new measure, based on entropic principles, particularly the one called relative turbulence. The second is juxtaposing this measure with standard measures to gain new insights. Finally the idea that supply networks can be built from, what is called the irreducible chain.

The Chinese philosophy of information by Kun Wu

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tianqi Wu ◽  
Kaiyan Da
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Philosophy ◽  
Information Age ◽  
Philosophy Of Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Theoretical System ◽  
The One ◽  
The Comparative Study ◽  
International Exchanges

PurposeBy introducing the basic concepts and theories of the philosophy of information created by Kun Wu, and making some comparisons of the philosophy of information and related information theories between Wu and other scholars, this paper aims to have Chinese philosophy of information widely known and understood by more people in the world, thus promoting the international exchanges between Chinese and Western scholars on the topic of philosophy of information.Design/methodology/approachThe main research methods used in this paper are the literature review and the comparative study. On the one hand, it reviews some related concepts and theories in Kun Wu's academic works of philosophy of information. On the other hand, it compares the thoughts and viewpoints of Kun Wu with those of other scholars.FindingsFirst, Kun Wu is the first person who has established a complete and comprehensive theoretical system of philosophy of information in China; second, Kun Wu's philosophy of information is significant in originality and value, which could be thought as the intellectual quintessence of information age, thus worth learning. Third, with more international exchanges, Chinese philosophy of information created by Wu will surely be more and more influential in philosophical circles at home and abroad.Originality/valueIt is a very valuable first-hand material for Western scholars to know and understand Chinese philosophy of information.

Ontological study of information: identity and state

Kybernetes ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 882-894 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcin J. Schroeder
Keyword(s):  
General Concept ◽  
Philosophical Tradition ◽  
Object Identity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Scientific Disciplines ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Mathematical Formalization ◽  
One And Many ◽  
The One ◽  
Concept Of Information

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that sufficiently general concept of information encompassing multi-disciplinary scientific conceptualizations of this term can be useful for a discussion of the long standing philosophical problems. Design/methodology/approach – The author is using his concepts of information and its integration along with their mathematical formalization introduced in earlier publications to describe what constitutes an object, its identity and state. The concept of information used here is defined in terms of the categorical opposition of the one-and-many which plays a central role in philosophical tradition. Its formalization is closely related to formalisms of many theories involved in scientific disciplines. These features produce a common stage for philosophical discourse and scientific analysis. Findings – The formalism based on author's concept of information opens philosophical concepts such as object, identity and state to analysis consistent with scientific methodology. The analysis, consistent with modern physical theories, such as quantum mechanics, permits resolution paradoxal aspects of object's identity for long time puzzling philosophers. Originality/value – The approach to information applied here was introduced in earlier publications, but the analysis of the problems of identity in this context is novel and unprecedented. The author hopes, that even those who prefer different conceptualizations of information can benefit from the present exposition of author's analysis by considering it an example of bridging philosophical and scientific discourse.

The standardization/adaptation dilemma in agri-food exporters marketing strategies

2015 ◽  
Vol 117 (11) ◽  
pp. 2739-2756 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomislav Sudarevic ◽  
Predrag Radojevic ◽  
Jasmina Lekovic
Keyword(s):  
Small Businesses ◽  
Product Distribution ◽  
Adaptation Strategy ◽  
Marketing Strategies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Original Insight ◽  
The One ◽  
Capital Ownership ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical insight into types of marketing strategies and the implementation difficulties of agri-food exporters, with the purpose to get information about them related to firm size, export experience and capital ownership. Design/methodology/approach – Focussing on Serbian agri-food exporters, this study employed quantitative design and descriptives-causal approach. An e-mail questionnaire is used to collect data, with aim to determine the influence of firm characteristics on marketing strategy selection and implementation. Descriptive statistics, difference between group tests, and correlation are used in data analysis. Findings – Results indicate that large and foreign-owned firms opt for standardization of the product, distribution and promotion, while they prefer an adaptation strategy for price. These firms have fewer difficulties implementing selected strategies compared to small businesses and domestically owned firms. The impact of export experience is mixed and less influential. Research limitations/implications – The main research limitations relate to the one country case, but results offer several implications for researchers, management of agri-food exporters, policy makers and society. Originality/value – This paper presents the original insight from agri-food exporters originated from one small, emerging economy for all marketing mix elements. Due Serbian case uniqueness it challenges previous findings and provide a “laboratory” for testing export marketing strategies. Research is easy for replication in the other countries and its results might be used for comparisons in further studies of agri-food exporters’ marketing strategies in other small, developing countries.

ERP system environments in IS education: design and evaluation of a new course concept

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christoph Klima ◽  
Florian Pfarr ◽  
Axel Winkelmann
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Design Science ◽  
Business Practice ◽  
Topic Area ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Erp System ◽  
Learner Centered ◽  
Education Design ◽  
The One

Purpose – New teaching concepts in IS are highly relevant to deliver practical skills to IS students, as demanded by business practice. There are different approaches for providing knowledge. The authors differentiate between teacher-centered and learner-centered approaches when designing new IS courses. The latter is characterized by creating learning environments, where students work on a solution for a given problem. Since nearly every company integrates its processes in enterprise systems, the authors consider the teaching of ERP as particularly relevant for business practice. Hence, the authors present the design of an ERP laboratory-based master IS courses to deliver practical and technical system knowledge. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The main research methods to achieve the research goals are aligned with a design science approach. For evaluation, data were gathered by a questionnaire-based survey. Findings – The authors benchmarked different issues in both classes and finally came to the conclusion that learner-centered approaches on the one hand are characterized by a lot more effort for students but on the other hand lead to a deeper understanding of a topic area and additionally boost class attendance. Originality/value – Thus, this paper presents new possibilities for delivering practical and technical skills to IS master students, which is important to IS teachers, faculties and also practitioners.

El Prestige: comparativa de los regímenes internacionales de responsabilidad civil

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 31
Author(s):  
Raquel Fernández González ◽  
Marcos Íñigo Pérez Pérez
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Economics ◽  
Geographical Area ◽  
New Institutional Economics ◽  
Rigorous Analysis ◽  
Judicial Process ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Civil Responsibility ◽  
The One ◽  
High Degree ◽  
The Prestige

The return of institutions to the main research agenda has highlighted the importance of rules in economic analysis. The New Institutional Economics has allowed a better understanding of the case studies that concern different areas of knowledge, also the one concerning the management of natural resources. In this article, the institutional analysis focuses on the maritime domain, where two large civil liability regimes for pollution coexist (OPA 90-IMO), each in a different geographical area (United States - Europe). Therefore, a comparative analysis is made between the two large regimes of civil responsibility assignment applying them to the Prestige catastrophe. In this way, the allocation and distribution of responsibilities in the investigation and subsequent judicial process of the Prestige is compared with an alternative scenario in which the applicable compensation instruments are governed by the provisions of the Oil Polution Act of 1990 (OPA 90), in order to establish a rigorous analysis on the effects that the different norms can have in the same scenario. In the comparative established in the case of the Prestige, where the responsibilities were solved very slowly in a judicial process with high transaction costs, the application of rules governed by the OPA 90 would not count with such a high degree of imperfection. This is so, since by applying the preponderance of the evidence existing in OPA 90 there would be no mitigation for the presumed culprits. On the other hand, the agents involved in the sinking would not be limited only to the owner, but also that operators or shipowners would be responsible as well. In addition, the amount of compensation would increase when counting in the damage count the personal damages, the taxes without perceiving and the ecological damage caused in a broad sense, damages not computable in the IMO.

How Phillips saw the light

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (8) ◽  
pp. 29-31
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Daily Basis ◽  
Business World ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Freak Show ◽  
The World ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
The One ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Reviews the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings The problem with developing a reputation of being something of an oracle in the business world is that all of a sudden, everyone expects you to pull off the trick of interpreting the future on a daily basis. Like a freak show circus act or one-hit wonder pop singer, people expect you to perform when they see you, and they expect you to perform the thing that made you famous, even if it is the one thing in the world you don’t want to do. And when you fail to deliver on these heightened expectations, you are dismissed as a one trick pony, however good that trick is in the first place. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

PROMETHEE-based ranking of project managers based on the five personality traits

Kybernetes ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 1083-1102
Author(s):  
Georgios N. Aretoulis ◽  
Jason Papathanasiou ◽  
Fani Antoniou
Keyword(s):  
Personality Traits ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
Multicriteria Decision Making ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Preference Ranking ◽  
Infrastructure Projects ◽  
Public Infrastructure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The One ◽  
Selection Of

Purpose This paper aims to rank and identify the most efficient project managers (PMs) based on personality traits, using Preference Ranking Organization METHod for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE) methodology. Design/methodology/approach The proposed methodology relies on the five personality traits. These were used as the selection criteria. A questionnaire survey among 82 experienced engineers was used to estimate the required weights per personality trait. A second two-part questionnaire survey aimed at recording the PMs profile and assess the performance of personality traits per PM. PMs with the most years of experience are selected to be ranked through Visual PROMETHEE. Findings The findings suggest that a competent PM is the one that scores low on the “Neuroticism” trait and high especially on the “Conscientiousness” trait. Research limitations/implications The research applied a psychometric test specifically designed for Greek people. Furthermore, the proposed methodology is based on the personality characteristics to rank the PMs and does not consider the technical skills. Furthermore, the type of project is not considered in the process of ranking PMs. Practical implications The findings could contribute in the selection of the best PM that maximizes the project team’s performance. Social implications Improved project team communication and collaboration leading to improved project performance through better communication and collaboration. This is an additional benefit for the society, especially in the delivery of public infrastructure projects. A lot of public infrastructure projects deviate largely as far as cost and schedule is concerned and this is an additional burden for public and society. Proper project management through efficient PMs would save people’s money and time. Originality/value Identification of the best PMbased on a combination of multicriteria decision-making and psychometric tests, which focus on personality traits.

Family entrepreneurship and internationalization strategies

2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 150-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa Ratten ◽  
Veland Ramadani ◽  
Leo-Paul Dana ◽  
Frank Hoy ◽  
Joao Ferreira
Keyword(s):  
Family Businesses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
Inclusive Approach ◽  
Internationalization Strategies ◽  
Entrepreneurial Knowledge ◽  
Emerging Themes ◽  
Family Entrepreneurship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of family entrepreneurship and internationalization strategies by discussing the papers in this special journal issue. Design/methodology/approach The main research areas related to family business are discussed in terms of socioemotional wealth and societal trends. A review of the literature is conducted to highlight the emerging themes affecting the decision of family businesses to internationalize. Findings The paper stresses how it is important to have an entrepreneurial approach to internationalization of family businesses. Research limitations/implications As more family businesses are born globals, it is important to focus on the positive aspects of internationalization, including emerging markets and gaining important entrepreneurial knowledge. Practical implications Family businesses need to be more innovative and risk-taking in their approach to internationalization as it helps them build their reputation and increase performance. Originality/value As there are limited studies about family entrepreneurship and internationalization in terms of a broad view of family, this paper takes an inclusive approach to the changing nature of how a family is defined in today’s global society.

scholarly journals Beyond agency and stewardship theory: shareholder–manager relationships and governance structures in family firms

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Sophie K. Löhde ◽  
Giovanna Campopiano ◽  
Andrea Calabrò
Keyword(s):  
Social Exchange ◽  
Family Business ◽  
Social Exchange Theory ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Governance Structure ◽  
Managerial Behavior ◽  
Exchange System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The One ◽  
Over Time

PurposeChallenging the static view of family business governance, we propose a model of owner–manager relationships derived from the configurational analysis of managerial behavior and change in governance structure.Design/methodology/approachStemming from social exchange theory and building on the 4C model proposed by Miller and Le Breton-Miller (2005), we consider the evolving owner–manager relationship in four main configurations. On the one hand, we account for family businesses shifting from a generalized to a restricted exchange system, and vice versa, according to whether a family manager misbehaves in a stewardship-oriented governance structure or a nonfamily manager succeeds in building a trusting relationship in an agency-oriented governance structure. On the other hand, we consider that family firms will strengthen a generalized exchange system, rather than a restricted one, according to whether a family manager contributes to the stewardship-oriented culture in the business or a nonfamily manager proves to be driven by extrinsic rewards. Four scenarios are analyzed in terms of the managerial behavior and governance structure that characterize the phases of the relationship between owners and managers.FindingsVarious factors trigger managerial behavior, making the firm deviate from or further build on what is assumed by stewardship and agency theories (i.e. proorganizational versus opportunistic behavior, respectively), which determine the governance structure over time. Workplace deviance, asymmetric altruism and patriarchy on the one hand, and proorganizational behavior, relationship building and long-term commitment on the other, are found to determine how the manager behaves and thus characterize the owner's reactions in terms of governance mechanisms. This enables us to present a dynamic view of governance structures, which adapt to the actual attitudes and behaviors of employed managers.Research limitations/implicationsAs time is a relevant dimension affecting individual behavior and triggering change in an organization, one must consider family business governance as being dynamic in nature. Moreover, it is not family membership that determines the most appropriate governance structure but the owner–manager relationship that evolves over time, thus contributing to the 4C model.Originality/valueThe proposed model integrates social exchange theory and the 4C model to predict changes in governance structure, as summarized in the final framework we propose.

Subaltern mediators in the digital landscape

Target ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 319-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa Iribarren
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Capital ◽  
Web 2.0 ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Content Type ◽  
For Profit ◽  
Long Run ◽  
The One ◽  
Digital Landscape

This article explores translational literary Web 2.0 practices and user-generated cultural creations on the Internet, focusing on video poetry that re-creates canonical poets’ bodies of work. It will be argued that the use of for-profit platforms like YouTube and Vimeo by indie creators and translators of video poetry favours the emergence of new translational attitudes, practices and objects that have positive but also contentious effects. One the one hand, these online mediators explore new poetic expressions and tend to make the most of the potential for dissemination of poetic heritage, providing visibility to non-hegemonic literatures. On the other hand, however, these translational digitally-born practices and creations by voluntary and subaltern mediators might reinforce the hegemonic position of large American Internet corporations at the risk of commodifying cultural capital, consolidating English as a lingua franca and perhaps, in the long run, even fostering a potentially monocultural and internationally homogeneous aesthetics.

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