Citizen engagement in co-creation of e-government services: a process theory view from a meta-synthesis approach

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anupriya Khan ◽  
Satish Krishnan
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Process Theory ◽  
Citizen Engagement ◽  
Theoretical Understanding ◽  
Specific Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies ◽  
Government Services ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Theory View

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to develop an in-depth understanding of the overall process of facilitating co-creation of e-government services, focusing on the government's role in fostering citizen engagement.Design/methodology/approachThis study conducted a meta-synthesis of qualitative case studies encompassing analyses on a case-specific level followed by syntheses on a cross-study level.FindingsThrough meta-synthesis, the study developed an integrated framework, the process theory view of enabling co-creation of e-government services, illustrating how co-creation could be initiated and facilitated by the government.Research limitations/implicationsBy providing critical insights into co-creation steps, the process theory view offers a holistic theoretical understanding of enabling co-creation by identifying factors driving and motivating governments to initiate co-creation activities, interpreting the prerequisites for co-creation and the importance of impact assessment.Practical implicationsThis study offers important implications for public authorities, administrators and policymakers by helping them enhance their knowledge base on the co-creation process to facilitate a higher level of collaboration between citizens and government for effective and efficient public service delivery through e-government.Originality/valueWhile it is widely acknowledged that citizen engagement is crucial for improving and transforming the development and delivery of e-government services, it is equally recognized as a challenging and complex task. Through a meta-synthesis of qualitative case studies, this study is one of the first to develop a process theory view for offering a holistic understanding and crucial insights for addressing the concerns over the co-creation of e-government services.

Supply chain MFCA implementation: emphasizing evidence on coordination

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Akira Higashida
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chain Management ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Coordination Mechanisms ◽  
Green Supply Chain ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Material Flows ◽  
Chain Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies

Purpose This study aims to clarify systematically the contribution of material flow cost accounting (MFCA) to green supply chain management (GSCM) by examining the coordination mechanisms. Design/methodology/approach Two qualitative case studies are conducted in a major Japanese manufacturing company, which introduced MFCA in two different supply chains. The concept of coordination mechanisms in supply chain management is used to consolidate the understanding on the usefulness of MFCA in GSCM. Findings The study’s findings reveal the significant role played by MFCA in coordinating material flows and eliminating sub-optimization in the supply chain from both economic and environmental perspectives. Furthermore, the focal company in the chain has an important role as the MFCA leader in implementing MFCA in the chain. In particular, the environmental department can eliminate suppliers’ concerns regarding opportunistic buyer behaviors and focus on material flows across the supply chain. Research limitations/implications The study highlights the possibility of reviewing existing transactions by coordinating material flows. This is a new direction for the adoption of MFCA in GSCM. In addition, although the study highlights the importance of the environmental department as an MFCA leader, future research is necessary to establish this aspect with greater precision. Practical implications The two case studies discussed in this paper demonstrate the usefulness of MFCA expansion into the supply chain, as well as information sharing and progression, in the development of GSCM. Social implications This study will contribute to enhance the green supply chain by implementing MFCA. Originality/value This study indicates that MFCA can potentially reveal the material losses caused by sub-optimization and provide information to avoid sub-optimization in decision-making. Moreover, it highlights the importance of the environmental department as an MFCA leader.

Design and management of recycling facilities for household and community recycling participation

Facilities ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 350-374 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kin Wai Michael Siu ◽  
Jia Xin Xiao
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Economic Incentives ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Facilities ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Recycling Facilities

Purpose This paper aims to address convenience as a prominent feature of a scheduled society and examines the nature of convenience, identifies the waste collection system and recycling programmes in some densely populated areas in Asia and discusses the existing barriers to enhancing the convenience of the recycling facilities in Hong Kong. The paper further identifies some recommendations for the policy and design of recycling practices and facilities. Design/methodology/approach In this qualitative study, two districts in Hong Kong from 2013 to 2014 were used as case studies. The research methods included field observations, semi-structured interviews and ethnographic research. The locations for field observation included lobbies, corridors, lifts, ground floors and streets. Direct interviews were conducted with residents, cleaners, government officials and expert planners and environmentalists. In-depth interviews and observations were conducted with six families following the interviews to identify important issues that might have been ignored in the semi-structured interviews and field observations. Findings A holistic understanding of convenience in a scheduled society is effective in the design of high-quality recycling facilities. In terms of convenience, the gap between recycling and not recycling is rather obvious in Hong Kong. Therefore, it is necessary and important to adjust the difference in the degree of convenience regarding refuse disposal and recyclable collection. In addition, the enhancement of economic incentives could shift the degree of convenience and encourage public participation in recycling. The challenges of specific living conditions and social contexts should also be taken into account to enhance the convenience of recycling. Research limitations/implications Further case studies are expected in other countries and cities with the purpose of gaining an in-depth understanding of the means by which to approach the convenience of recycling programmes within various social contexts. Comprehensive and continuous studies on these factors are recommended throughout the design and implementation processes to account for constantly changing situations. A clear understanding of convenience from the perspective of the users is important. Practical implications The findings provide reference and direction for a holistic approach to the design and management of recycling facilities in Hong Kong. The findings also advocate the consideration of convenience from the perspective of the users. Social implications The findings illustrate how to design and manage public facilities for waste recycling in ways that encourage household and community participation in terms of convenience. Originality/value The paper identifies the manner by which the culture of convenience and an institutionalised rhythm influence recycling practices. Although substantial studies on recycling indicate that convenience is a necessary characteristic of designs and services, the nature of convenience and the means by which to approach convenience in terms of public facilities are seldom discussed. The paper proposes several recommendations on the basis of the studies of the refuse collection programmes in other areas of Asia and case studies in Hong Kong. The findings provide insights for policymakers, researchers and designers to improve the design of public facilities.

Preventing supplier non-conformance: extending the agency theory perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 315-340
Author(s):  
Anton Shevchenko ◽  
Mark Pagell ◽  
Moren Lévesque ◽  
David Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Agency Theory ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Third Party ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies ◽  
Effective Path

PurposeThe supply chain management literature and agency theory suggest that preventing supplier non-conformance—a supplier's failure to conform to the requirements of the buyer—requires monitoring supplier behavior. However, case studies collected to explore how buyers monitored suppliers revealed an unexpected empirical phenomenon. Some buyers believed they could prevent non-conformance by either trusting their suppliers or relying on a third party, without monitoring their behavior. The purpose of this article is to examine conditions when buyers should monitor supplier behavior to prevent non-conformance.Design/methodology/approachThis article employs a mixed-method design by formulating an agent-based simulation grounded in the case-study findings and agency theory to reconcile observed unexpected behaviors with scholarly suggestions.FindingsThe simulation results indicate that buyers facing severe consequences from non-conformance should opt to monitor supplier behavior. Sourcing from trusted suppliers should only be reserved for buyers that lack competence and have a small number of carefully selected suppliers. Moreover, buyers facing minor consequences from non-conformance should generally favor sourcing from trusted suppliers over monitoring their behavior. The results also suggest that having a third-party involved in monitoring suppliers is an effective path to preventing non-conformance.Originality/valueBy combining a simulation with qualitative case studies, this article examines whether buyers were making appropriate decisions, thereby offering contributions to theory and practice that would not have been possible using either methodological approach alone.

Unravelling heritage challenges: three case studies

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 330-344 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miljenka Perovic ◽  
Vaughan Coffey ◽  
Stephen Kajewski ◽  
Ashok Madan
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Time Budget ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Project Delivery ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies ◽  
Project Failures ◽  
Critical Heritage ◽  
Cross Case Analysis

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the diverse issues that affect heritage projects during their lifecycle and in particular, why heritage-listed projects often fail to meet the delivery goals of time, budget, quality and scope. Design/methodology/approach This research was undertaken on a qualitative basis by conducting series of semi-structured interviews drawn from three case studies in SE Queensland. Qualitative research involves the evaluation of people’s experiences, feelings, social interactions, and the data gathered from this type of methodology is often varied and rich. A case study allows a researcher to test and generate theories based on real-world practice. Findings This paper presents the findings from a data collection exercise accomplished by conducting a series of qualitative case studies. Using a cross-case analysis approach, this paper highlights critical heritage project delivery issues and their causes. Practical implications The lessons learned from the study cases could be used in helping to prevent potential heritage project failures in the future. Originality/value The paper aims to bring greater awareness to practitioners and academics of the repeating issues that every heritage project is likely to face and offers some insight in how these may be mitigated.

Innovation ecosystems: a meta-synthesis

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 495-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcos Ferasso ◽  
Adriana R. Wunsch Takahashi ◽  
Fernando A. Prado Gimenez
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Innovation Ecosystem ◽  
Data Synthesis ◽  
Schematic Representation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies ◽  
Innovation Ecosystems ◽  
Innovative Products ◽  
Local Actors

Purpose This metasynthesis aims to build a theory on the concept of innovation ecosystem from the state of the art of qualitative case studies available in indexed scientific production using interpretive synthesis (Hoon, 2013). Design/methodology/approach This research was conducted by the postulates of the metasynthesis method (Hoon, 2013) to generate theory from qualitative case studies. The authors retrieved 77 research papers from databases, of which 6 were used for synthesis purposes. Each selected research paper reported one or more cases, which were analyzed separately. At the final stage, a data synthesis was structured and the cases were crossed, which allowed the development of a schematic representation and a theoretical construction of the innovation ecosystem concept. The approach used in this research is a metatheoretical assumption from economics and management and ecology to explore the theoretical gap in the concept of innovation ecosystems. Findings There is not yet a conceptual consensus on the term, which sometimes leads researchers to address partial or complementary concepts. The analysis identified constitutive elements of an innovation ecosystem that lead to structuring a framework of organic and dynamic interrelationships that a given organization has with various external organizations, allowing the creation of innovative products in a faster way. Research limitations/implications This paper helps scholars and researchers consider a new metatheoretical perspective to analyze dynamics, constitutive elements and multilevels of an innovation ecosystem. Practical implications For practitioners, this paper sheds lights on the importance of recognizing a systemic consideration of innovation ecosystems that falls in global relationships, industry dynamics and identification of main global–local actors/enablers to produce innovations internally at a given organization. Originality/value The novelty of this paper lies in a more delineated definition and a schematic representation of an innovation ecosystem based on a global–local perspective of product creation and manufacturing and interactions that a given company has, regardless of the geographical location of its dispersed strategic partners.

To couple or not to couple

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 1149-1173
Author(s):  
Ulf Melin ◽  
Pradip K. Sarkar ◽  
Leslie W. Young
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Theory ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Institutional Legitimacy ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies ◽  
Early Adoption ◽  
Patterns And Processes ◽  
Cloud Applications

Purpose The predominant narrative is that contemporary organisations, motivated by economic-rationalist aspirations, adopt cloud applications on the premise of achieving cost-savings and efficiency gains. However, how they actually adopt and rollover such new or emerging technologies may be influenced by acts, patterns and processes of institutional legitimacy. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore the dynamics surrounding decisions on how specific cloud applications are adopted from the context of institutional theory, with a particular focus on the concepts of coupling and decoupling. Design/methodology/approach To examine this phenomenon, two qualitative case studies, using a reflexive research approach, of an Australian and a Swedish university have been undertaken, both of which adopted commercial cloud applications for e.g. e-mail, collaboration and storage (as examples of software as a service) at different points in time. One of the universities was known for its early adoption of cloud applications, but had decelerated further deployment of such services, while the other, despite its conservative reputation, has made rapid strides in this regard. Findings The findings of the dual case studies reveal that organisations, contrary to economic-rationalist claims, may or may not decide to adopt particular commercial cloud-based offerings for the support of core operations, on the basis of how they perceive their institutional legitimacy being affected by a complex network of influential actors, both internally and in the external spaces. Therefore, this paper offers an institutional theory-based discourse and rich illustrations on how the role of technology is played out in enhancing relationships between an organisation and such actors in terms of legitimacy focusing acts of coupling and decoupling. Originality/value In the analysis and findings the authors, in a novel way, illustrate how organisations strive for: institutional legitimacy through acts of coupling, and the revelations of consequential decoupling. The value is based on a rich case description, analysis and application of institutional theory.

scholarly journals Waste pickers in the informal economy of the Global South: included or excluded?

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 280-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Coletto ◽  
Lieselot Bisschop
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Global South ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Management Policy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Informal Workers ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies ◽  
Waste Pickers

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into the role and practices of informal waste pickers and the implications for waste management policy in urban contexts of the Global South. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative case studies were used, including interviews, observations and document analyses. The authors compared informal waste management in two cities of the Global South: Accra (Ghana) and Porto Alegre (Brazil). Findings The analysis points out that informal waste pickers play a crucial role in the implementation of waste policies in both cities, despite differing economic, social and institutional contexts. The study of the waste management system also points to multiple connections between informal and formal parts of the economy. Although the informal waste pickers are integral to the waste management systems, their economically disadvantaged position excludes them from the formal labour market. Faced with these challenges, they develop creative solutions to guarantee their livelihood and gain more effective collective voice. Research limitations/implications The comparison of two case studies, conducted about the same social phenomenon in two different economic, institutional and social contexts, has limited generalisability but is theoretically and practically important. Practical implications The findings are relevant to policy-makers who deal with urban waste management and for organisations who develop support actions for informal workers. Originality/value The authors draw on a comparison of qualitative case studies to explore the multidimensionality of the waste picker’s phenomenon. This paper sparks discussion among scholars and experts who study the informal economy from different perspectives, in this case bridging insights from sociology and victimology.

Using the critical process targeting method to improve SMEs’ process understanding

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 425-447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristy de Salas ◽  
Ian J. Lewis ◽  
Craig Huxley
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Business Context ◽  
Qualitative Case Studies ◽  
Process Understanding ◽  
Study Experience ◽  
Strategic Goals ◽  
Critical Process

Purpose Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) exhibit limited understanding of their business processes. This lack of understanding limits the potential of these businesses and is a direct contributor to the high failure rates of this sector of the economy. Research has suggested that existing BP methods to not support SMEs in gaining an improved understanding of their processes due to the high complexity and resource intensity of these tools, more suitable for deployment within a large business context. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach This paper reports on two qualitative case studies of medium-sized financial entities that employ a new approach, the critical process targeting method (CPTM), to improve their understanding of their processes. Findings In reviewing these two case studies, the authors find that the CPTM can be considered a useful tool in improving process understanding in SMEs, and can lead to the achievement of strategic goals. This paper, however, also describes a number of practical limitations that were encountered when employing the CPTM within the SME context. Originality/value This new contribution to theory adds significant and critical support to academia and practice in business process understanding where current methods are found to be too resource heavy for even some large organisations. These two case studies have also provided support for struggling management teams being overwhelmed by the need to understand business processes within their organisations. Published literature and the case study experience both suggest that medium-sized entities have difficulty understanding their business processes.

The three dimensions of strategic flexibility

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabian Hoeft
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Model ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Firm Strategy ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Strategic Flexibility ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Product And Process ◽  
High Level

Purpose Strategic flexibility is a widely discussed concept. Yet discussions remained of qualitative nature or addressed only specific aspects quantitatively underlying the concept. The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual model identifying key factors determining strategic flexibility. Once quantified, the model provides firms a profile of each strategic option towards the company vision. Design/methodology/approach The paper reviews existing and synthesises prior contributions into a conceptual model of strategic flexibility. Based on semi-structured interviews and value mapping, the model is applied using three case studies from the automotive industry. Findings A total of three main findings were made. First, the concept of strategic flexibility has a simple logic that aligns itself to a variety of automotive companies and visions. However, underlying this remit is an interplay of variables. Previous studies remain fragmented and have only addressed a subset of variables. Second, these variables can be grouped into three dimensions of strategic flexibility – product, process and customer – to convey a holistic understanding of strategic flexibility and its key determinants. Third, due to the uncertainty and complexity involved, depending on the firm and industry characteristics, there cannot be a one-fits-all configuration of the strategic flexibility conceptualisation. Research limitations/implications A variety of variables requires consideration to offer a balanced view of all three dimensions of strategic flexibility. Hence, the case studies remain at a necessarily high level. Practical implications The paper offers guidance for management on how to align their firm strategy to product and process contingency factors to satisfy customer needs in line with their company vision. Originality/value The paper aims to elevate a discussion that previously remained fragmented and mainly descriptive.

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