scholarly journals Using data to advance service: managerial issues and theoretical implications from action research

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 99-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiehyeon Lim ◽  
Min-Jun Kim ◽  
Ki-Hun Kim ◽  
Kwang-Jae Kim ◽  
Paul P. Maglio
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Data Use ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Using Data

Purpose The proliferation of (big) data provides numerous opportunities for service advances in practice, yet research on using data to advance service is at a nascent stage in the literature. Many studies have discussed phenomenological benefits of data to service. However, limited research describes managerial issues behind such benefits, although a holistic understanding of the issues is essential in using data to advance service in practice and provides a basis for future research. The purpose of this paper is to address this research gap. Design/methodology/approach “Using data to advance service” is about change in organizations. Thus, this study uses action research methods of creating real change in organizations together with practitioners, thereby adding to scientific knowledge about practice. The authors participated in five service design projects with industry and government that used different data sets to design new services. Findings Drawing on lessons learned from the five projects, this study empirically identifies 11 managerial issues that should be considered in data-use for advancing service. In addition, by integrating the issues and relevant literature, this study offers theoretical implications for future research. Originality/value “Using data to advance service” is a research topic that emerged originally from practice. Action research or case studies on this topic are valuable in understanding practice and in identifying research priorities by discovering the gap between theory and practice. This study used action research over many years to observe real-world challenges and to make academic research relevant to the challenges. The authors believe that the empirical findings will help improve service practices of data-use and stimulate future research.

Wellness tourism: a perspective article

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergey Kazakov ◽  
Olga Oyner
Keyword(s):  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Tourism Studies ◽  
Wellness Tourism ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Research Stream ◽  
Economic Well Being

Purpose This paper aims to examine the development and significant contributions in a growing array of relevant publications spanning from 1946 to date and discuss future developments of the wellness tourism topic until the year 2095. Design/methodology/approach This perspective study traces down the wellness tourism evolution research by re-viewing and analysing an extant body of the relevant literature over the last 75 years. This paper builds a rigorous perspective review by examination of publications derived from several scientific domains, including tourism, medicine, economics and social sciences. Findings As a result of this study, wellness tourism can be attributed as a profuse and proliferating research stream in the recent 75 years. Its relevance to significant aspects of life, such as health and also due to effects on human, social, and economic well-being, drives its proliferation. The paper anticipates the relevance and topicality of wellness tourism studies for academic research in the next 75 years. Originality/value This paper contributes to the theory by addressing the ambiguous nature of wellness tourism, recapping the debate on the most debated research questions, and revealing the perspectives for future research in this area.

The effect of gamification on motivation and engagement

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raed S. Alsawaier
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Empirical Study ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Future Research ◽  
College Courses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Motivation And Engagement ◽  
Implementation Guidelines

Purpose Gamification is the application of game features, mainly video game elements, into non-game context for the purpose of promoting motivation and engagement in learning. The application of gamification in a pedagogical context provides some remedy for many students who find themselves alienated by traditional methods of instruction. The use of gamification could provide a partial solution to the decline in learners’ motivation and engagement the schooling system is facing today. Specifically, the college environment could benefit a lot from gamifying not only their graduate recruitment strategies, but also the college course content and curricula. This critical analysis of literature on gamification is intended to be part of a sequence on the effect of gamification on motivation and engagement. A proposed methodology in the study of gamification effect on motivation and engagement in addition to an empirical study on three college courses are being finalized to complete this trilogy. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach Themes covered in the literature review include: conceptualizing gamification, advantages of gamification over game-based learning, theoretical connections to gamification, motivation and engagement, connecting gamification to motivation and engagement, emotions and fun in gamification, player types and gamification features, gamification in action, and implementation guidelines. Findings The literature on the effect of gamification on motivation and gamification is still limited on multiple levels. There is a gap between theory and practice in the study of gamification. There is limited literature on the implementation guidelines of the gamified designs. Practical implications This critical analysis of literature is followed by connecting it to future research by the same author as part of a sequence on the effect of gamification on motivation and engagement. The second project, will be proposing a methodology for any successful design to provide a holistic understanding of the topic of gamification. Finally, an empirical study on the effect of gamification on students’ motivation and engagement in three college courses will be submitted to complete the trilogy. Originality/value This paper is a literature review, so there is a strong connection to literature on this topic. However, the synthesis of the themes and ideas are original. The literature review is extensive and covers the different aspects of the topic of gamification and its relationship to motivation and engagement.

Three conceptualizations of hybrid management in hospitals

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 441-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haldor Byrkjeflot ◽  
Peter Kragh Jespersen
Keyword(s):  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Healthcare Management ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sociology Of Professions ◽  
General Management ◽  
Professional Self ◽  
Hybrid Leadership ◽  
Hybrid Management

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to bring the discussion on the relationship between management and medicine a step forward by focussing on: first, how the notion of hybrid and hybridity has been used in the literature on healthcare management. Second, the authors have mapped the alternative ways that the concept have been used in order to conceptualize a more specific set of possible combinations of managerial and professional roles in healthcare management. Hybrid management is a topic that ought to be important for training, communication among researchers and for identifying areas of future research: in management, in healthcare reforms, in sociology of professions and in theory of organizations. Design/methodology/approach – The authors provide a systematic literature review in order to map the various conceptualizations of hybrid management. The authors have searched for “hybrid leadership,” “hybrid management” combined with hospitals and health care in a whole range of journals, identified in Google scholar, Academic Search Premier, Academic Research Library and Sage Publication. The authors have also used already existing literature reviews. The search has resulted in more than 60 articles and book titles that have been classified according to whether they make a fit with three alternative ways of conceptualizing hybrid management. The authors are aware that they might have missed some relevant literature but the literature included is quite comprehensive. Findings – In the literature the authors have found three conceptualizations of management. The clinical manager who combines professional self-governance with a general management logic. The commercialized manager who combines professional self-governance with an enterprise logic. The neo-bureaucratic manager who combines self-governance with a neo-bureaucratic logic. Originality/value – In most analyses of hybridity in management and organization the notion of hybrid has been used in a rather superficial way. By mapping the various uses of hybrid in the literature and suggest how a professional logic may be combined with a set of alternative logics of management the authors provide a platform for developing the concept of hybrid management into a more useful tool for analyses of changes in healthcare management.

Maintenance management models: a study of the published literature to identify empirical evidence

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 635-664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kym Fraser ◽  
Hans-Henrik Hvolby ◽  
Tzu-Liang (Bill) Tseng
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Real World ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Maintenance Management ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Management Models ◽  
Real World Applications

Purpose – Maintenance and its management has moved from being considered a “necessary evil” to being of strategic importance for most competitive organisations around the world. In terms of the identification and use of organisational-wide maintenance management models the picture is not clears from both a literature and practical perspective. The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the various models and their use in real-world applications, and in doing so, explores the gap between academic research and practice. Design/methodology/approach – For this paper two comprehensive reviews of the literature were undertaken, first, to identify and categorise the various maintenance management models, and second, to determine the depth of empirical evidence for the popular models in real-world applications. Descriptive analysis of both the practical examples and empirical evidence rates (EER) for maintenance related journals is provided. Findings – Within the literature 37 maintenance management models were identified and categorised. From these, three models were found to be popular: total productive maintenance (TPM), condition based maintenance, and reliability centred maintenance. While several thousand papers discussed these three models, only 82 articles were found to provide empirical evidence. Research limitations/implications – While providing a sound foundation for future research the outcomes are based solely on academic literature. Analysis of EER outside the field of maintenance is needed to make comparisons. Practical implications – The paper offers practitioners a detailed contemporary overview of maintenance management models along with tabulated results of practical examples to present day organisations. Such practical-focused papers are very limited within academic literature. Social implications – With EER as low as 1.5 per cent for some journals this paper acts as a reminder to researchers that they have an obligation to society to spend taxpayer funded research on addressing social needs and real-world problems. Originality/value – This paper makes a concerted attempt to link academic research with management and operational practitioners. While the paper is critical of the current academic imbalance between theory and practice, a number of suggestions to improve EER are offered in the conclusions.

Executive coaching explained: the beginnings of a contingency approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (9/10) ◽  
pp. 1041-1056
Author(s):  
Evan H. Offstein ◽  
Ronald L. Dufresne ◽  
John S. Childers Jr
Keyword(s):  
Executive Coaching ◽  
High Reliability ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Executive Coaches ◽  
Time Investment ◽  
Coaching Relationship ◽  
Effective Coaching

PurposeIn this paper, we problematize the prevailing assumptions in the executive coaching literature that effective coaching is deliberative, trust-based and relational in nature, thereby requiring significant time investment before the focal leader might realize enacted benefits from the coaching. Contrary to these prevailing assumptions, we propose five contingencies wherein a more direct, performance-first approach to coaching may be more effective.Design/methodology/approachThis conceptual paper reviews relevant literature to develop testable propositions regarding directive coaching contingencies.FindingsWe develop propositions that argue executive coaches will need to employ a more directive, urgent and accountable coaching relationship when the executive's career is in jeopardy, the organization is in distress, if the leader needs to signal legitimacy, if the coaching occurs within the boundaries of a high reliability organization or if the coach is working with an executive who has interim status.Originality/valueThis paper intends to advance the theory and practice of executive coaching by challenging executive coaching orthodoxy regarding the need for a deliberative, relational approach to coaching. Future research should broaden this theorizing and empirically test our propositions.

scholarly journals Customer process management

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiehyeon Lim ◽  
Min-Jun Kim ◽  
Ki-Hun Kim ◽  
Kwang-Jae Kim ◽  
Paul Maglio
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Operations Management ◽  
Customer Value ◽  
Process Management ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Real Data ◽  
Research Projects ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Related Data ◽  
Using Data

PurposeThe proliferation of customer-related data provides companies with numerous service opportunities to create customer value. The purpose of this study is to develop a framework to use this data to provide services.Design/methodology/approachThis study conducted four action research projects on the use of customer-related data for service design with industry and government. Based on these projects, a practical framework was designed, applied, and validated, and was further refined by analyzing relevant service cases and incorporating the service and operations management literature.FindingsThe proposed customer process management (CPM) framework suggests steps a service provider can take when providing information to its customers to improve their processes and create more value-in-use by using data related to their processes. The applicability of this framework is illustrated using real examples from the action research projects and relevant literature.Originality/value“Using data to advance service” is a critical and timely research topic in the service literature. This study develops an original, specific framework for a company’s use of customer-related data to advance its services and create customer value. Moreover, the four projects with industry and government are early CPM case studies with real data.

Action Research for community business development

Humanomics ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-21
Author(s):  
Greg MacLeod
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Job Creation ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Local Society ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Activists ◽  
Academic Professionals

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce the idea of Action Research as a way of making academic research more relevant for social economic change. Design/methodology/approach – This paper seeks a middle path by presenting a method for Action Research that is both scientific and that results in practical social-economic impact on a local society. The method is divided into 11 systematic steps. Findings – The author has found that the method results in job creation and place-based economic development. Originality/value – Usually social activists and academic professionals do not mix. This approach combines both theory and practice, which is unusual in university circles.

Efficiency of Australian superannuation funds: a comparative assessment

2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 1022-1038
Author(s):  
Yen Hoang Bui ◽  
Delpachitra Sarath ◽  
Abdullahi D. Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Measurement Errors ◽  
Economies Of Scale ◽  
Global Financial Crisis ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Economic Sectors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Low Efficiency ◽  
Using Data

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to measure efficiency of superannuation funds using data envelopment analysis (DEA), using data related to financial performance of superannuation funds. The sample comprises 183 superannuation funds covering approximately 79 per cent of the 231 largest Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA)-regulated funds in 2012. The research covers a period of seven years from 2005 to 2012. The results indicate that most Australian superannuation funds are inefficient relative to the benchmark efficiency frontier based on efficient funds. The findings emphasise the importance of improving the efficiency of Australian superannuation funds by reducing overall fund expenses to narrow the gap in performance between efficient and inefficient funds. Design/methodology/approach This study aims to contribute to policy, theory and practice in several dimensions. Member protection and the efficiency of the superannuation system are topical issues (Donald, 2009). Despite its importance from a regulatory point of view, efficiency has only been discussed in relation to operational issues such as managing agency relationships, fees and charges, investment return or economies of scale. The relative efficiency of the Australian superannuation system from an economic productivity perspective has rarely been examined, except for a study by Njie (2006), where the Malmquist productivity DEA technique was used to measure the efficiency of Australia’s retirement income system. Findings Most inefficient funds had very low efficiency scores and were fell into the lower quintiles such as Quintiles 4 (scored 0.200-0.399) and 5 (scored 0.001-0.199). Consequently, input reduction targets were significantly higher for these two quintiles. Similarly, input reduction targets were high under the period DEA estimates. In order to be comparatively efficient, Quintile 4 funds were required to reduce total expenses by 75 per cent (−0.754) and volatility of return by 80 per cent (−0.801). Similarly, Quintile 5 funds needed to reduce total expenses by, on average, 83 per cent (−0.824) and volatility of return by 89 per cent (−0.894). Research limitations/implications As in other empirical research, this study also depended heavily on the data collected from the secondary sources such as APRA database and other financial reports. The issues of measurement errors in data sources such as APRA database are well documented (see, e.g. Cummins, 2012). This issue needs the attention of future research on the efficiency of superannuation funds. Practical implications The findings on individual year DEA estimates indicate that most funds were inefficient due to high expenses. Therefore, mandatory disclosure of fees and charges in a comparable manner may be necessary to justify fee payments and to address transparency and accountability issues, which are critical issues identified by the Cooper Review and the academic literature (Australian Government, 2014; Cooper et al., 2010; Gallery and Gallery, 2006). Social implications The issue of Australian superannuation funds concentrating the majority of fund assets in highly volatile investment vehicles such as the share markets has been in the spotlight in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. There have been proposals to better diversify superannuation assets in other asset classes (Cooper et al., 2010). Originality/value This study contributes to the current literature on superannuation funds by investigating efficiency. As efficiency studies using DEA have not been conducted on the Australian superannuation industry, this study also contributes to the academic literature on DEA and its extensive applications to various economic sectors. Efficiency scores using DEA, ranking, trends and shifts in the efficiency frontiers could be obtained for Australian superannuation funds on an on-going or annual basis.

Recent developments in China’s biopharmaceutical industry (2012-2017)

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 686-707
Author(s):  
Marcus Conlé
Keyword(s):  
Product Innovation ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Domestic Market ◽  
Growth Strategy ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Biopharmaceutical Industry ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Drug Regulator ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Product Portfolios

Purpose The paper aims to take stock of China’s recent biopharmaceutical industry development by analyzing product innovation and changes in the firms’ product portfolios during the five-year period between 2012 and 2017. Design/methodology/approach The paper introduces a classification of biopharmaceutical products. By applying the classification to the product data of China’s drug regulator, the CFDA, it becomes possible to trace the developments within the sector by looking at changes in the number of firms within each subgroup and changes in the number of subgroups in which each firm is involved. The classification allows an evaluation of the latest product innovation achievements. Findings The paper demonstrates a mild shakeout of firms in the relatively long-existing domestic market segments, a trend toward more specialized product portfolios and an enduring prevalence of innovation strategies aimed at exploiting relatively unpopulated domestic market niches instead of pioneering entirely new products. Especially the capability of upgrading to second-generation protein therapeutics has become a key criterion for separating the wheat and the chaff in China’s domestic sector. The paper moreover points out the relevance of acquisitions as a corporate growth strategy. Research limitations/implications The research does not consider complementary indicators, product pipelines in particular. Future research should compare patterns across emerging economies. Originality/value The paper is unique in using the CFDA database for systematic academic research on (bio)pharmaceutical innovation and in introducing a biopharmaceutical product classification to trace innovative activities and changes in corporate product portfolios over time.

Information processing by elderly consumers: a five-decade review

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gianluigi Guido ◽  
Marco Pichierri ◽  
Cristian Rizzo ◽  
Verdiana Chieffi ◽  
George Moschis
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Marketing Strategies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Processing Activity ◽  
Elderly Consumers

Purpose The purpose of this study is to review scholarly research on elderly consumers’ information processing and suggest implications for services marketing. Design/methodology/approach The review encompasses a five-decade period (1970–2018) of academic research and presents relevant literature in four main areas related to information processing: sensation, attention, interpretation and memory. Findings The study illustrates how each of the aforementioned phases of the information processing activity may affect how elderly individuals buy and consume products and services, emphasizing the need for a better comprehension of the elderly to develop effectual marketing strategies. Originality/value The study provides readers with detailed state-of-the-art knowledge about older consumers’ information processing, offering a comprehensive review of academic research that companies can use to improve the effectiveness of their marketing efforts that target the elderly market.

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