Business Commons^™

Conceptual Issues Of Global Counterfeiting On Products And Services, D. Bosworth, Deli Yang

Deli Yang

Counterfeiting is a global problem of enormous magnitude. Despite its obvious importance, relatively little attention has been paid to the management of counterfeiting. This paper considers the difficulties of measuring counterfeiting and provides evidence of the magnitude of the problem worldwide. The focus is on counterfeiting of privately produced goods and services, rather than the issue of the counterfeiting of currency per se, which is a somewhat different though related issue. A conceptual framework of the private and social costs and benefits of anti-counterfeiting measures is also provided. The framework highlights a number of key driving forces of counterfeiting, including …

Leading From The Center Out: The Joint Library Services Leadership Team At James Madison University, K.T. L. Vaughan, Kristen S. Shuyler, Kelly N. Miller-Martin, Erika Peterson

Kristen S. Shuyler

In a system with multiple service points, how can leadership work together to keep the library as a whole relevant and central to students? James Madison University Libraries created the Joint Library Services Leadership Team, which works outside traditional departmental silos to provide coherent, consistent, and collaborative services regardless of location.

Three major service points of James Madison University Libraries, the two main library circulation/reference departments and the media resources center, have historically been both physically and philosophically separate from each other. Although the departments shared common goals of providing excellent student learning-focused services, they did not systematically work together …

The Opioid Epidemic In West Virginia, Nicholas Bowden, Rachel Merino, Sruthi Katamneni, Alberto Coustasse

Alberto Coustasse, DrPH, MD, MBA, MPH

The rate of overdose-related to the use of licit and illicit opioids has drastically increased over the last decade in the U.S. The epicenter being West Virginia the highest rates of overdoses accounting for 41.5 deaths for 100,000 people among the 33,091 deaths in 2015. The number of people injecting drugs has increased from 36% in 2005 to 54% in 2015. The total U.S cost of prescription opioid abuse in 2011 has been estimated at $25 billion, and criminal-justice-system costs to $5.1 billion. The reasons for this opioid epidemic incidence in WV have been a combination of sociocultural factors, a …

Learning Through International Strategic Alliances: Processes And Factors That Enhance Marketing Strategy Effectiveness, Gregory E. Osland, Attila Yaprak

Gregory E. Osland

Intensified competitive, technological, and market pressures have made organizational learning a critical imperative in global strategy effectiveness. Firms can learn through experience and from three processes that involve other firms: imitation, grafting, and synergism. Interpartner learning has become critical, since experiential learning is insufficient for most firms. Responds to calls for a broadened role of marketing and synthesizes and extends research from organization behaviour and strategic management to the field of marketing to fuel further academic inquiry. Based on an extension of Chandler′s strategy‐structure‐performance paradigm, develops propositions on how the environment, organizational culture, strategy, and structure can affect a company′s …

Can Strategic Management Techniques Be Applied To Small And Medium Enterprises, Anthony J. Jackson Prof

Anthony J Jackson Prof

This research focused on strategic management techniques and how these techniques are applicable to small and medium enterprises. The use of generic or specific strategic management tools and techniques among small and medium size businesses has had insignificant value because strategic application are thought in terms of for only larger companies. This paper examined the benefits of using strategic tools and techniques to companies seeking profits and growth. This research also supports how strategy can improve performance of small and medium businesses. Qualitative research was used for this study to determine if there was a correlation between strategic management, market …

Supply Chain Sustainability: The Bio-Fuels Market, Chris D. Bellamy

Dr. Chris D. Bellamy

Research into biofuel technology and innovative supply chain practices are helping to resolve sustainability problems in supply logistics and mass transportation. Biofuels provide a viable alternative to the use of fossil fuels and can be produced and replenished because the fuel is from plants and plant derived materials. Applications in aerospace, automotive, and electrical power production are the prime targets of biofuels development; the fuels have applications in many industries around the world. Global supply chain practices provide sustainable development of bio fuels storage, transportation, agriculture, and other industries. All of these industries require partnerships between unlikely stakeholders such as …

Leadership And Crisis Management In Modern Organizations, Chris D. Bellamy

Dr. Chris D. Bellamy

Leadership in modern organizations is complex. This research identifies how leaders in modern organizations can effectively deliver results through crisis management, while maintaining organizational culture. The author addresses leadership through organizational culture, the actions leaders must take, corporate policies and practices. In addition, this research directly contributes to leading organizations through crisis management and maintaining organizational culture today.

Possibilities, Purpose, Pitfalls: Insights From Introducing Mindfulness To, Amanda Sinclair

Amanda Sinclair

While mindfulness has been part of Buddhism and other religious and philosophical traditions for millennia, the last decades have seen adoption of mindfulness in clinical settings and more recently, in organisations and leadership. This article reports experiences introducing practices and concepts of mindfulness to managers and leaders across a wide range of sectors and organisational settings over the last ten years. I identify six particular insights that have emerged as important over that time: from how to define and explain mindfulness to leaders, through to ethical issues of the purposes to which mindfulness is put. Through discussion of these insights, …

Interpreting And Responding To Strategic Issues: The Impact Of National Culture, Susan C. Schneider, Arnoud De Meyer

Arnoud DE MEYER

Perceptions of environmental uncertainty and organizational control influence strategic behavior. As national culture influences these perceptions we expect to find cultural differences in interpretation and response to strategic issues. Given a case describing an issue concerning deregulation of the U.S. banking industry, managers completed questionnaires rating interpretations and responses to that issue. National culture was found to influence interpretation and responses. In particular, Latin European managers when compared with other managers were more likely to interpret the issue as a crisis and as a threat. Latin Europeans were also more likely to recommend proactive behavior. This study indicates that different …

Managing Expert Systems: A Framework And Case Study, Rob R. Weitz, Arnoud De Meyer

Arnoud DE MEYER

This paper addresses the problem of managing the development and implementation of a large expert system in an organization. A traditional systems analysis and design methodology is used as a framework to highlight similarities and differences in managing large scale traditional computer based projects and large expert systems. As a non-technical, prescriptive guide, this article focusses on defining at each stage in the project, the tasks to be accomplished, resources required, impact on the organization, likely benefits and potential problems. The case of a large expert system implemented by a multinational corporation across several European sites is used to clarify …

Facilitating Successful Failures, Michelle M. Harner, Jamie Marincic Griffin

Michelle M. Harner

Approximately 80,000 businesses fail each year in the United States. This article presents an original empirical study of over 400 business restructuring professionals focused on a critical, arguably contributing factor to these failures—the conduct of boards of directors and management. Anecdotal evidence suggests that management of distressed companies often bury their heads in the sand until it is too late to remedy the companies’ problems, a phenomenon commonly called “ostrich syndrome.” The data confirm this behavior, show a prevalent use of loss framing, and suggest trends consistent with prospect theory. The article draws on these data and behavioral economics to …

Management By Interruptions (Mbi): Mini Not Micro Management, Andrew Sikula Sr., John Sikula

Andrew Sikula, Sr.

Do you want to affirmatively continue your and Tom Peters's Search for Excellence? Then practice MBI. A corollary to Ken Blanchard's idea of the One Minute Manager is the concept of Management by Interruptions (MBI). Although we do not want to overly manage the details of work, usually called micro management, we are often called upon as leaders and managers to supply frequent small segments of data and information. Mini management is good; micro management is not.

Measures Of Perceived Credibility Of Blogs: Construct Validation By Lisrel, Uday S. Tate, Elizabeth Alexander, Suneel K. Maheshwari

Elizabeth Alexander

Predictions are that blogs will be the promotional tool of the future, if not now. The question remains: how credible are blogs as a source of consumer information? How do consumers perceive the credibility of blogs from different sources when making purchase decisions and product evaluations? The primary objective of the present study is to assess validity and reliability of a set of Semantic Differential scales purported to measure perceived credibility of different types of blogs. Confirmatory factor analysis via LISREL8.5 package was used to obtain appropriate statistics for convergent validity, discriminant validity, and composite reliability. In general, the scales …

Measures Of Perceived Credibility Of Blogs: Construct Validation By Lisrel, Uday S. Tate, Elizabeth Alexander, Suneel K. Maheshwari

Suneel K. Maheshwari

Predictions are that blogs will be the promotional tool of the future, if not now. The question remains: how credible are blogs as a source of consumer information? How do consumers perceive the credibility of blogs from different sources when making purchase decisions and product evaluations? The primary objective of the present study is to assess validity and reliability of a set of Semantic Differential scales purported to measure perceived credibility of different types of blogs. Confirmatory factor analysis via LISREL8.5 package was used to obtain appropriate statistics for convergent validity, discriminant validity, and composite reliability. In general, the scales …

Measures Of Perceived Credibility Of Blogs: Construct Validation By Lisrel, Uday S. Tate, Elizabeth Alexander, Suneel K. Maheshwari

Uday S. Tate

Predictions are that blogs will be the promotional tool of the future, if not now. The question remains: how credible are blogs as a source of consumer information? How do consumers perceive the credibility of blogs from different sources when making purchase decisions and product evaluations? The primary objective of the present study is to assess validity and reliability of a set of Semantic Differential scales purported to measure perceived credibility of different types of blogs. Confirmatory factor analysis via LISREL8.5 package was used to obtain appropriate statistics for convergent validity, discriminant validity, and composite reliability. In general, the scales …

Teaching With The Situation: Jersey Shore As A Popular Culture Example In Information Literacy Classes, Amy Springer

Amy Springer

No abstract provided.

Intellectual Capital Statement (Ics) As A Method Of Measurement And Management Of Knowledge Assets, Anna Ujwary-Gil

Anna Ujwary-Gil

The article describes empirical verification of an interesting model – Intellectual Capital Statement (ICS). ICS is an example of a method which emphasizes the European contribution into the developing trend of intellectual capital (IC) measure and evaluation, with particular attention paid to the SME sector (a strong presence of Scandinavian countries and the USA is noticeable here). ICS is presented here as a tool enabling us to manage and evaluate IC of a company and to demonstrate the dynamics of its changes. The article contains a case study of a company operating in the construction sector in Poland. It also …

Business And Non-Profit Organizations Facing Increased Competition And Growing Customers' Demands (Vol. 11), Anna Ujwary-Gil

Anna Ujwary-Gil

The monograph focuses attention on the description and analysis of new phenomena and processes for commercial and non-commercial organizations. Valid conditions are pointed out for the functioning of both commercial and non-commercial organizations and an attempt is made to explain their impact on these organizations. The analysis also examines the strategies used by organizations in the face of fierce competition and increasing consumer demands in their effort to gain and maintain a competitive edge. This case study below is segmented into four areas of interest: • commercial and non-commercial organizations as an object of research, • commercial and non-commercial organizations …

Future Trends In Strategic Management, Chris D. Bellamy

Dr. Chris D. Bellamy

In today’s business environment the top down approach to management has fundamentally disappeared. Baby boomers, gen x and gen y managers bring different management styles and thinking to global organizations. This paper identifies eight current research articles (published within the past five years) that synthesize and apply four trends in strategic management that are crucial for the field in the future. The four trends are ranked 1-4, with 1 being most important. The ranking are justified.

Wisdom From Warren Buffett, Todd A. Finkle

Todd A Finkle

The Impact Of Ehr On Professional Competence In Hrm: Implications For The Development Of Hr Professionals, Bradford S. Bell, Sae-Won Lee, Sarah K. Yeung

Bradford S Bell

[Excerpt] Information technology has been cited as a critical driver of HR’s transition from a focus on administrative tasks to a focus on serving as a strategic business partner. This strategic role not only adds a valuable dimension to the HR function but also changes the competencies that define the success of HR professionals. Interviews were conducted with HR representatives from 19 firms to examine the linkage between electronic human resources (eHR) and the reshaping of professional competence in HRM. Based on the findings, we draw implications for the development of HR competencies and identify learning strategies that HR professionals …

A Typology Of Virtual Teams: Implications For Effective Leadership, Bradford S. Bell, Steve W. J. Kozlowski

Bradford S Bell

As the nature of work in today's organizations becomes more complex, dynamic, and global, there has been an increasing emphasis on far-flung, distributed, virtual teams as organizing units of work. Despite their growing prevalence, relatively little is known about this new form of work unit. The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical framework to focus research toward understanding virtual teams and, in particular, to identify implications for effective leadership. Specifically, we focus on delineating the dimensions of a typology to characterize different types of virtual teams. First, we distinguish virtual teams from conventional teams to identify where …

Adaptive Guidance: Effects On Self-Regulated Learning In Technology-Based Training, Bradford S. Bell, Adam Kanar, Xiangmin Liu, Jane Forman, Mila Singh

Bradford S Bell

Guidance provides trainees with the information necessary to make effective use of the learner control inherent in technology-based training, but also allows them to retain a sense of control over their learning (Bell & Kozlowski, 2002). One challenge, however, is determining how much learner control, or autonomy, to build into the guidance strategy. We examined the effects of alternative forms of guidance (autonomy supportive vs. controlling) on trainees’ learning and performance, and examined trainees’ cognitive ability and motivation to learn as potential moderators of these effects. Consistent with our hypotheses, trainees receiving adaptive guidance had higher levels of knowledge and …

Tourist Experience: Contemporary Perspectives, Philip R. Stone

Dr Philip Stone

Apple Inc.: Product Portfolio Analysis, Michael Mallin, Todd A. Finkle

Todd A Finkle

Globalization And Management, Mike Lewis

Mike Lewis D.Mgt.

The reach of markets and business expanded across the globe more than half a millennium ago when Europeans conquered the seas. Since that time, communication and information technologies have reduced to span of the globe to the speed of electrons so that buyers and sellers can exchange in one second or less. Technology combined with favorable politics and exploding world populations ushered in the era of globalization. With production and commodity drivers, the globe transformed into a shopping cart for profits, power, and people (resources). Uncontrolled and unbalanced outcomes benefited some while harming others, leading to eventual backlashes and failed …

The Darker Side Of Travel: The Theory And Practice Of Dark Tourism, Philip R. Stone

Dr Philip Stone

Telecommunications 2004: Strategy, Hr Practices & Performance - Cornell-Rutgers Telecommunications Project, Rosemary Batt, Alex Colvin, Harry Katz, Jeffrey Keefe

Rosemary Batt

This national benchmarking report of the U.S. telecommunications services industry traces the tumultuous changes in management and workforce practices and performance in the sector over the last 5 years. This is a follow-up report to our 1998 study. At that time, when the industry was booming, we conducted a national survey of establishments in the industry. In 2003, we returned to do a second national survey of the industry, this time in a sector that was recovering from one of the worst recessions in its history.

Human Resource Management, Service Quality, And Economic Performance In Call Centers, Rosemary Batt, Lisa M. Moynihan

Rosemary Batt

This paper examines the relationship between human resource practices, operational outcomes, and economic performance in call centers. The study draws on a sample of 64 call centers serving the mass market in a large telecommunications services company. Surveys of 1,243 employees in the 64 centers were aggregated to the call center level and matched to archival data on service process quality, as measured by customer surveys; call handling time, revenues per call, and net revenues per call. Our path analysis shows that human resource practices emphasizing employee training, discretion, and rewards lead to higher service quality, higher revenues per call, …

The Indian Call Centre Industry: National Benchmarking Report Strategy, Hr Practices, & Performance, Rosemary Batt, Virginia Doellgast, Hyunji Kwon, Mudit Nopany, Priti Nopany, Anil Da Costa

Rosemary Batt

Report of the Global Call Centre Industry Project

The dramatic growth of the call center industry is a world-wide phenomenon, fueled by advances in information technologies and the precipitous decline in the costs of voice and data transmission over the last two decades. As part of this global industry, call centres in India have experienced spectacular growth in the last five years. They generate seventy percent of the revenues of the Indian Business Process Outourcing (BPO) industry, according to estimates by Mckinsey (www.nasscom.org).

This rapid growth has also brought managerial challenges in terms of recruitment,staffing, training, and retention of workers …