The Effects of Dependence on Brazilian Third-Party Logistics Satisfaction

ABSTRACT Context: studies argue that similar levels of dependence are essential for supplier satisfaction in buyer-supplier relationships. However, asymmetric relationships can also lead to supplier satisfaction. Objective: this paper investigates the effects of benefit-based dependence (positive motivations for maintaining relationships) between buyer and supplier and supplier satisfaction. Methods: response surface analysis (RSA) was used to test the relationship between third-party logistics (3PL) dependence and satisfaction dimensions in 174 dyads. Results: the results demonstrated that about supplier satisfaction, instead of dependence asymmetry what really matters is the degree of dependence between the parties. The more dependent one part is on the other, usually, the greater the supplier’s satisfaction. In many circumstances, a degree of dependence is acceptable and necessary to access resources and opportunities. Conclusions: the interaction between buyer and supplier dependence and supplier satisfaction is complex. Situations of dependence asymmetry in which the supplier is highly dependent on the buyer may still be satisfactory.

Os Efeitos da Dependência na Satisfação dos Operadores Logísticos Brasileiros

ABSTRACT Context: studies argue that similar levels of dependence are essential for supplier satisfaction in buyer-supplier relationships. However, asymmetric relationships can also lead to supplier satisfaction. Objective: this paper investigates the effects of benefit-based dependence (positive motivations for maintaining relationships) between buyer and supplier and supplier satisfaction. Methods: response surface analysis (RSA) was used to test the relationship between third-party logistics (3PL) dependence and satisfaction dimensions in 174 dyads. Results: the results demonstrated that about supplier satisfaction, instead of dependence asymmetry what really matters is the degree of dependence between the parties. The more dependent one part is on the other, usually, the greater the supplier’s satisfaction. In many circumstances, a degree of dependence is acceptable and necessary to access resources and opportunities. Conclusions: the interaction between buyer and supplier dependence and supplier satisfaction is complex. Situations of dependence asymmetry in which the supplier is highly dependent on the buyer may still be satisfactory.

Asymmetric and threshold effects of public debt on economic growth in SADC: a panel smooth transition regression analysis

PurposeThis study aims to interrogate dynamic asymmetric relationships between public debt and economic growth in Southern African Developing Communities (SADC), over the period 2000–2018.Design/methodology/approachThe study employed a panel smooth transition regression (PSTR) technique to analyse dynamic asymmetric relationships between public debt and economic growth, and the threshold effect at which public debt hampers economic growth.FindingsThe findings indicate that there is a significant nonlinear effect of debt on economic growth in SADC. The study discovered a debt threshold of 60% to GDP at which debt beyond this threshold deteriorates long-term growth. The low-debt regime was found to be positive and statistically significant, while the high-debt regime is detrimental for long-term growth. Fiscal policymakers ought to consider the adoption of well-coordinated debt policies that aims to strike a balance between sustainable public debt and economic growth, within a reasonable threshold target.Originality/valueThe study focusses on asymmetric and threshold analysis of public debt on economic growth in SADC using sophisticated panel smooth transition regression (STAR). This study provides rigorous empirical evidence within the SADC perspective in which previous studies have predominantly been confined in advanced economies.

Asymmetric Relationships Between Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Globalization, and Human Development in India: Evidence From Non-Linear ARDL Analysis

The objective of the paper is to examine the asymmetric relationships between ICT, globalization, and human development in India by analyzing the annual data from 1991 to 2019 through the non-linear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) model. The result shows that positive and negative changes in globalization lead to a decline in human development in the long run, consistent with the literature. Further, a positive change in mobile density increases human development in the long run. A decline in internet density has a positive impact on human development in the long run, and it needs further investigation. In the short run, a positive shock in globalization with one lag has a positive impact on human development. Moreover, a previous year positive and negative shocks in internet density have a positive effect on human development while the previous two years positive and negative shocks in internet density have a negative effect on human development in the short run. It is also found that the global financial crisis 2008 has a negative impact on human development. Thus, it is suggested that India has to promote both globalization and ICT judiciously and consciously in order to improve the human development. JEL Classification: O47, F00, I32, C51

Symmetric and asymmetric modeling of knowledge management enablers to knowledge management processes and knowledge worker productivity in higher education institutes

PurposeThis research examines how knowledge management (KM) enablers, i.e. trust, knowledge-oriented leadership, environmental uncertainty and KM processes will impact knowledge worker productivity (KWP). Various formations of the KM enablers and KM processes are also examined within terms of their abilities to enhance KWP.Design/methodology/approachThe research sample is taken from 248 faculty and administrators of Pakistan Higher Educational Institutes (HEIs). The relationships are tested via SmartPLS and fsQCA 3.0.FindingsThe results show that there are significant impacts of the KM enablers on KM processes and KWP. Constructed upon fuzzy qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), the outcomes exposed various combinations, which can be identified to enhance KWP.Originality/valueThe research supports to methodology by merging two methods to advance the understanding of institutional concerns about workers' productivity. The asymmetric method assists to distinguish the connections that might not be directly clear via traditional symmetric approaches. By uncovering asymmetric relationships, the study identifies a variety of approaches that can be used by HEIs to improve their KWP.

De-stereotyping informal sector gendered division of work: a case of Magaba Home Industry, Harare, Zimbabwe

The informal sector is gradually becoming the sole source of income for millions of people around the world. Yet, there exists grossly asymmetric relationships between men and women in accessing functional prerequisites to operate and survive in the industry. Cultural and socially constructed consciousness within the industry, has created gendered division of work. Therefore, this study explored how to de-stereotype gendered division of work in the informal sector, focusing on Magaba Home Industries in Harare, Zimbabwe. This qualitative study concludes that human capital development accompanied with social and financial capital is significant in improving capacities of both women and men in productive informal work. The study recommends an ideological shift from perceived oriented line of work based on gender to mainstreaming equality of achievement based on mobile societies that foster upward social mobility thus bridging the gendered skills gap.

On formal ethics versus inclusive moral deliberation

In this article, I will advocate caution against a formalization of ethics by showing that it may produce and perpetuate unjustified power imbalances, disadvantaging those without a proper command of the formalisms, and those not in a position to decide on the formalisms’ use. My focus rests mostly on ethics formalized for the purpose of implementing ethical evaluations in computer science–artificial intelligence, in particular—but partly also extends to the project of applying mathematical rigor to moral argumentation with no direct intention to automate moral deliberation. Formal ethics of the latter kind can, however, also be seen as a facilitator of automated ethical evaluation. I will argue that either form of formal ethics presents an obstacle to inclusive and fair processes for arriving at a society-wide moral consensus. This impediment to inclusive moral deliberation may prevent a significant portion of society from acquiring a deeper understanding of moral issues. However, I will defend the view that such understanding supports genuine and sustained moral progress. From this, it follows that formal ethics is not per se supportive of moral progress. I will illustrate these arguments by practical examples of manifest asymmetric relationships of power primarily from the domain of autonomous vehicles as well as on more visionary concepts, such as artificial moral advisors. As a result, I will show that in these particular proposed use-cases of formal ethics, machine ethics risks to run contrary to their proponents’ proclaimed promises of increasing the rigor of moral deliberation and even improving human morality on the whole. Instead, I will propose that inclusive discourse about automating ethical evaluations, e.g., in autonomous vehicles, should be conducted with unrelenting transparency about the limitations of implementations of ethics. As an outlook, I will briefly discuss uses formal ethics that are more likely to avoid discrepancies between the ideal of inclusion and the challenge from power asymmetries.Please check and confirm that the authors and their respective affiliations have been correctly identified and amend if necessary.I confirm.Author names: Please confirm if the author names are presented accurately and in the correct sequence (given name, middle name/initial, family name). I confirm. Kindly check and confirm the country name for the affiliation [1] is correct.I confirm.

Power Asymmetry, Negotiations and Conflict Management in Organizations

Relationships are seldom equal. In fact, social interactions involve most of the times power asymmetric relationships. Especially in organizations people are daily faced with situations where they are either in a powerful or in a powerless position compared to others. Power stems from various sources and takes several forms. For instance, people are powerful when they can administer punishments or rewards, when they are in a hierarchically higher position than others, when they have knowledge and expertise, when they are admired and respected, and when they have alternative options which enable them to make choices. Importantly, power determines the way people interact with each other and subsequently, the way they engage in conflicts and conflict resolution. Power-holders are best able to asymmetrically enforce their will and therefore, they have the capability to determine the process and the outcome of a conflict. In this chapter, I present the major sources of power and the main differences between them. Consequently, I elaborate on the impact of power on conflict management based on the negotiation literature. I conclude by touching on the necessity to distinguish between two contradictory faces of power: power as opportunity and power as responsibility.

Dancing with Giants: How Small Women- and Minority-Owned Firms Use Soft Power to Manage Asymmetric Relationships with Larger Partners

We explore how minority- and women-owned suppliers lacking hard power manage asymmetric relationships with larger, more powerful buyers in the context of supplier diversity relationships. We examine how these suppliers create and use soft power to manage the opportunities and challenges they encounter trying to maintain their positions in large buyers’ supply chains. We find that these easily substitutable firms use a variety of information sources to identify and make themselves cognitively central to individuals inside and outside the buyer organizations who can serve as functional and political influencers. They then employ these influencers to affect the buyer’s decisions when their position in the supply chain is threatened, largely without the buyer noticing. Our study contributes to the literatures on the use of soft power buyer-supplier power relationships and supplier diversity.