Factors Influencing Consumer Brand Choice Service Tailoring Shop in Thailand, Focusing on Ermenegildo Zegna, Brioni and Local Brand

The study compares foreign and local brands, focusing on Ermenegildo Zegna, Brioni, and local brands, in order to uncover the elements that impact customers' brand choice decisions in Thailand. The study looked at the elements that influence a customer's decision to buy a custom-made suit, in order to figure out what the most important component is. Understanding how Marketing Mixed affects customer happiness and purchase decisions is especially important. The second goal is to investigate how brand equity affects sales, with a particular focus on customer brand preferences and market expansion. The author chose the survey approach for this study, which is a quantitative research. Data was collected at random online through 346 legitimate questionnaires, and data was analyzed using cross tabulation and multinomial logistic regression. The study's findings show that all of the investigated factors, including product, price, location, promotion, brand equity, and customer purchase behavior determinants, have a positive impact on tailoring's customer brand choice decision in Thailand, with some specifications of each factor being found to be significant. Finally, when comparing these three brands, certain results are noteworthy.

ASSESSMENT OF THE QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN WOODWORKING COMPANIES

The woodworking industry, with its universal and wide use of products and the level of employment of people, has existed for centuries and will continue to do so, as forest management and the processing of harvested timber is a long process. Customizing consumer orders ranging from cheap everyday things to exclusive, individual projects is about quality. And for quality assurance, companies in various industries have developed and use a general quality management system standard – ISO 9001. The topicality of the research relatesto the companies' doubts about the implementation and maintenance of the quality management system (ISO 9001) as a valuable long-term investment in the company's development and market expansion. The aim of the research is to study the quality management system of three wood processing companies and to evaluate them. In the research, the authors gave insight into the development of the concept of quality and the formation of the quality management system, the ISO 9001 quality standard. The assessment of the quality management system of three wood processing companies is based on the main financial performance indicators of the companies.

The Effect of Learning Orientation and Business Model Innovation on Entrepreneurial Performance: Focused on South Korean Start-Up Companies

The purpose of this study is to empirically confirm the importance of learning orientation in the operation of start-up companies. In the literature, it is well known that this learning orientation plays a big role in improving the performance of start-ups by cultivating organizational members’ capabilities in detail, encouraging active learning, and creating new knowledge. To this end, a business model innovation framework for start-ups was established by empirically validating the theoretical research model. For the analysis, 139 questionnaires from start-ups with less than 7 years of business history in the incubation center were used. For the novelty of this work, it investigates the causal relationship between the learning orientation of start-ups, business model innovation, and start-up performance (technology acquisition and market expansion). Our research has contributed to the literature on entrepreneurship, innovation and strategy as follows. First, it contributed to the literature on entrepreneurship by redefining the performance of start-up companies as technology acquisition and market expansion through a review of previous studies and providing insight into the importance of learning orientation for start-ups through empirical studies. Second, it contributed to the innovation literature by confirming the importance of business model innovation for start-ups to achieve start-up performance through empirical research. Third, it contributed to the strategic literature by presenting and empirically confirming business model innovation through learning-orientation improvement as a way to achieve the performance of start-up companies.

Conclusion: A Turning Point for Liberal Democracy

Digital networks have unified contemporary geoculture around market expansion and the spectacle. The society of the selfie, as a sociotechnical complex that has emerged from the capitalist transformations since the 1980s, is the quintessence of a new structure for human relatedness. The introduction of new communication technologies always works in two directions at once—we become more connected in some ways, more alienated in others. The story of Web 2.0 and the discontents of the society of the selfie are, in this sense, a different genre of the same basic tendency. The society of the selfie is not the cause of this widespread immiseration, but it is historically inseparable from it, and in some significant ways contributes to the social changes and dislocations that authoritarian movements react against with their militant retrotopic visions. Yet the desire for progressive change to a more inclusive, egalitarian form of society is influenced by the same dislocations and crises that impact the authoritarians, in this case the cosmopolitans and anti-capitalists reacting not just against economic deprivation but also against a competitive, reified social world that has imposed rigid norms about work, strength, and individualism, while depriving them of belonging, cooperation, and ‘the good life’. If the society of the selfie favours threats that reify contemporary sociality and warp communication dynamics, it also feeds mechanisms of engagement and the production of new social ties, as well as new expectations for participation and empowerment in society.

Impact of Digital Technologies on Business Performance in Serbia

Research Question: The main goal of the study was to investigate the degree to which Serbian businesses accept and use digital technologies as part of the digital business transformation process. Motivation: The main aim was to research the specific determinants of the digital economy, digital technology and digital business transformation. Through an empirical analysis, digital technologies were classified as primary and secondary and the motive was to examine whether digital technologies affect revenue growth, productivity improvement, increase in market share, customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction, reduction in operating costs, development and use of digital products, digital market expansion and digital platform development. Idea: The main idea behind the study was to determine to what extent the said technologies are employed in Serbian businesses, as well as to develop a model of the impact of digital technologies on business performance, which may serve as a basis for further research. Data: The research was conducted from October 2020 to March 2021. A questionnaire was sent to over 500 email addresses of Serbian companies, and 98 questionnaires were filled in and duly returned. We displayed the most important characteristics of our sample and that way pointed out its randomness and representativeness and explained the choice of data analytics methods we use. Tools: The research instrument was a questionnaire including the general information (Part I). Part II included the question regarding the primary and secondary digital technologies used in their daily business activities. In Part III, the participants were required to state the specific outcomes their company expects to obtain as a result of digital business transformation. Findings: Mobile technologies, social networks and cloud computing were found to be dominantly employed technologies by the Serbian businesses from the sample. In percentage terms, the second class of disruptive technologies was shown to be insignificantly present in the Serbian companies. Finally, it appears that the role and importance of robotics and artificial intelligence have started to be recognised on the business scene. There is a significant impact of digital technologies on business performances, and we also give correlations between specific digital technologies and business performances, and intensity and statistical significance of impact in each case. We have also determined that some significant technologies make a latent, indirect impact on performances and shown the way that occurs. The analysis is performed after standardizing the ordinal scale values of variables making the results more accurate. Contribution: The paper provides the state of affairs regarding digital technologies use by Serbian businesses, as well as that of digital business transformation.

A Postmodern Cultural Study of Media Manipulation and Capital Market Expansion

Media manipulation is rampant in the present postmodern culture since people are constantly monitored by screens due to the advancement of technology. In the postmodern world, the media have become an inseparable part of everyday life, where there is hardly any scope to spend a single moment without the screen and media. Thus, the current researcher got the impetus to unravel the media's simulated world, which uses images, advertisements, and signs to expand global capitalism. The objective of the study is to explore inquisitively the power and influence of the media and the way these are used to manipulate people. This is a qualitative study that delves into media politics and media economy in an investigative way to uncover the covert targets of the media. The study's major finding is that the media play a vital role in attracting consumers and expanding world commercialism in today’s globalized world. Several modern and postmodern writings were extensively studied to scrutinize the manifold facets of media manipulation through different presentations of print and visual formats.

Sleep Disorders Among Commercial Airline Pilots

BACKGROUND: Over the next 20 yr, international market expansion will necessitate the production of new commercial airplanes and the recruitment of additional crewmembers and technicians. Research has proven that fatigue and lack of sleep are risk factors for impaired cognitive performance and human error. Pilots frequently report fatigue to their employers, which may be related to sleep disturbance. Airline pilots, in particular, often experience circadian desynchronization and other types of sleep disorders. Shift workers have been observed to be at higher risk of fatigue that affects their performance and alertness. In Saudi Arabia, sleep disorders among airline pilots are understudied and underreported. The primary objective of this study was to screen for and determine the risk of sleep disorders, fatigue, and depression among pilots.METHODS: A cross-sectional epidemiological study with national commercial pilots was conducted from March 2019 to March 2020 using validated questionnaires to screen for the risk of sleep disorders, fatigue, and depression.RESULTS: In total, 344 pilots participated in the study. Half the sample was at risk for insomnia and fatigue. Older and more experienced pilots were less likely to suffer impaired sleep quality, insomnia, sleepiness, fatigue, and depression. In total, 59 (17.2%) pilots were at high risk for sleep apnea.CONCLUSION: The current study found that pilots were at risk of developing sleep disorders. A more robust and objective assessment is warranted for screening.Alzehairi A, Alhejaili F, Wali S, Al Qassas I, Balkhyour M, Pandi-Perumal SR. Sleep disorders among commercial airline pilots. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2021; 92(12):937–944.

Growing-Service Systems: New Business Models for Modular Urban-Vertical Farming

To secure sustainable and resilient food systems, new approaches, innovations, techniques, and processes are needed. In recent years, urban farming firms have been developing and experimenting with innovative approaches to expand their offerings and connect with consumers in new ways. New business models are being developed to provide functions and services instead of traditional products to meet demands from consumers, retailers, and users. As such, modular growing systems are increasing in popularity to provide fresh produce, visual appeal, transparency, and other tailor-made functions and services in so-called “growing-service systems” (GSS). Using GSS approaches, firms are developing and providing modular and small-scale farms in restaurants, residential spaces, supermarkets, and other commercial spaces, often including a large degree of automation and optimization of digital solutions to remotely control their operation. Using qualitative methods, the aim of this study is to explore and analyze the development of these novel GSS systems, highlighting different strategies, business models, motivations, and challenges. The results illustrate the divergence in approaches to GSSs for vertical farming. This includes different scales of modular units and varying business models for capturing value from the combination of products and services. All of the systems include varying degrees of automation and digitalized solutions to ensure the services are monitored, which is done to improve growing conditions and improve the experience for the users. Business-to-business systems are being developed as both market expansion and awareness-building strategies, where modular units are provided as a rental or subscription model that includes a number of services. Business-to-consumer systems are being introduced as an alternative for consumers, particularly in urban areas, to have greater control and access over growing their own fresh produce. The modules are purchased by consumers, which includes a number of ongoing services from the GSS firms. By categorizing and exploring these systems, this article offers novel insights and a first endeavor to distinguish these new GSS systems in the growing segment of urban agriculture, controlled-environment agriculture, and product-service system literature.

Enabling Intelligent Recovery of Critical Materials from Li-ion Battery through Direct Recycling Process with Internet-of-Things

The rapid market expansion of Li-ion batteries (LIBs) leads to concerns over the appropriate disposal of hazardous battery waste and the sustainability in the supply of critical materials for LIB production. Technologies and strategies to extend the life of LIBs and reuse the materials have long been sought. Direct recycling is a more effective recycling approach than existing ones with respect to cost, energy consumption, and emissions. This approach has become increasingly more feasible due to digitalization and the adoption of the Internet-of-Things (IoT). To address the question of how IoT could enhance direct recycling of LIBs, we first highlight the importance of direct recycling in tackling the challenges in the supply chain of LIB and discuss the characteristics and application of IoT technologies, which could enhance direct recycling. Finally, we share our perspective on a paradigm where IoT could be integrated into the direct recycling process of LIBs to enhance the efficiency, intelligence, and effectiveness of the recycling process.