Business Commons^™

Road Rescue Implements A Continuous Process Improvement Framework, John Olson, Paul Savory

John Olson

Continuous improvement programs traditionally focus on making small incremental improvements to a system. Unfortunately, their success can be limited due to the rapid changing environment within which most small companies operate. Improvement efforts should be flexible enough to capitalize on incremental and radical changes to a system. This paper presents a case analysis of how Road Rescue, an ambulance manufacturer, uses a continuous improvement framework to capitalize on both radical and incremental improvement opportunities. Results include a 10% increase in throughput, reduced cycle time of 44%, increased customer satisfaction, and higher quality.

Service Quality Of Mhealth: Development And Validation Of A Hierarchical Model Using Pls, Shahriar Akter, John D'Ambra, Pradeep Ray

Shahriar Akter

Advancing research on service quality requires clarifying the theoretical conceptualizations and validating an integrated service quality model. The purpose of this study is to facilitate and elucidate practical issues and decisions related to the development of a hierarchical service quality model in mobile health (mHealth) services research. Conceptually, it extends theory by reframing service quality as a reflective, hierarchical construct and modeling its impact on satisfaction, intention to continue using and quality of life. Empirically, it confirms that PLS path modeling can be used to estimate the parameters of a higher order construct and its association with subsequent consequential latent …

A Values-Based And Integral Perspective Of Strategic Management, Nancy Landrum, Carolyn Gardner, David Boje

Nancy E Landrum

Landrum, Gardner, and Boje apply a Model for Integral Strategy which uses internal, competitive, and external tiers of strategic planning to combine economic, social, and environmental organizational imperatives with values, social responsibility, and sustainability. Their approach seeks to balance short-term with long-term objectives and economic with non-economic concerns all while addressing the sustainability challenges facing organizations today.

Mobile Information Services Marketing: An Assessment Of Needs, Quality And Satisfaction, Shahriar Akter, Fumiyo Kondo

Shahriar Akter

While user needs, service quality and satisfaction regarding most services have been well explored in academic literature, there exists little research on these factors with respect to mobile information services. This study taps into these voids and examines the impact of these factors on mobile information services marketing through an empirical investigation in Japan. It pursues a conceptual model based on the basic parameters of information marketing, that is, information needs, information quality and user satisfaction. The findings indicate that user perceived information services quality is determined by the quality of information delivery platform (affordability, availability, reliability, security and ease …

User Perceived Service Quality Of Mhealth Services In Developing Countries, Shahriar Akter, John D'Ambra, Pradeep Ray

Shahriar Akter

Health challenges present arguably the most significant barrier to sustainable global development. The introduction of ICT in healthcare, especially the application of mobile communications, has created the potential to transform healthcare delivery by making it more accessible, affordable and effective across the developing world. However, there is growing concerns about the quality of such services with regard to the robustness of the service delivery platform, knowledge and competence of the provider, privacy and security of information and above all, their effects on satisfaction, future use intentions and quality of life. The aim of this paper is to explore, analyze and …

Development And Validation Of An Instrument To Measure User Perceived Service Quality Of Mhealth, Shahriar Akter, John D'Ambra, Pradeep Ray

Shahriar Akter

The role of service quality in fostering the growth of mHealth services has gained much attention in the academic and practitioner communities. However, empirical research in this area has been beset by inadequate conceptualization and the lack of a validated scale. This study addresses these limitations by theoretically conceptualizing and empirically validating a multidimensional service quality scale in the mHealth context. The findings show that mHealth service quality is a hierarchical, multidimensional, and reflective construct, which consists of three primary dimensions and eight subdimensions. The results also confirm that the mHealth service quality scale is more effective at predicting satisfaction …

Economics As A Cultural System, Raymond Benton

Raymond Benton Jr.

This article is an attempt to think about economic theory. The vehicle for thinking about it will be anthropology's concept of culture; the end result will be to suggest that economics is a cultural system, more specifically, that economics is a sacred cultural system. In order to give expression to this view it will be necessary to first sketch the concept of culture as created and historically transmitted systems of symbols and meanings. The argument has been brief and suggestive rather than long and decisive; more exploratory than conclusive. If it is correct, or at least correct in its orientation, …

Acute Effects Of Whole-Body Vibration On Lower Extremity Muscle Performance In Persons With Multiple Sclerosis, Kurt Jackson, Harold Merriman, Paul Vanderburgh, C. Brahler

C. Jayne Brahler

Background and Purpose: Whole-body vibration (WBV) is a relatively new form of exercise training that may influence muscle performance. This study investigated the acute effects of high (26 Hz) and low (2 Hz) frequency WBV on isometric muscle torque of the quadriceps and hamstrings in persons with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Participants and Method: Fifteen individuals (mean age = 54.6 years, SD = 9.6) with MS and Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores ranging from 0-6.5 (mean = 4.2, SD = 2.3) participated in this randomized cross-over study. Following baseline measures of isometric quadricep and hamstring torque, subjects were exposed to …

Review Of The Livelihood Of Man By Karl Polanyi, Raymond Benton

Raymond Benton Jr.

A review of The Livelihood of Man by Karl Polanyi is presented.

Modeling The Effects Of Quality In A Transformative Health Service, Shahriar Akter, Umme Hani

Shahriar Akter

Understanding the effects of service quality on economic (i.e., continuance intentions) and social (i.e., quality of life) outcomes is critical to extend the focus of transformative service research. This study specifies mHealth as a transformative service and models the impact of its overall quality on satisfaction, continuance intentions and quality of life. Based on cognition - affective - conation chain, the conceptual model explicitly identifies convenience, confidence, cooperation, care and concern as the primary dimensions of mHealth service quality. The study validates the higher-order quality model and its association with subsequent latent variables using PLS path modeling. The findings confirm …

The Impact Of Mobile Amusement Information On Use Behavior, Satisfaction, And Loyalty, Fumiyo Kondo, Jiro Hirata, Shahriar Akter

Shahriar Akter

The relationship between satisfaction and loyalty has been well explored in services marketing or customer relationship management. In this study, the authors studied the relationship of 7 types of service variables under “amusement” factor. Amusement is one of the three factors extracted from 21 mobile information services. Among many different frameworks of satisfaction-loyalty, we used the framework of “past use behavior” on “satisfaction”, and then of “satisfaction” on “continued use intention” (or loyalty), resulting in a strong support of the existing model with positive significant influence on the both paths. Further, our research reveals that, on the both paths, there …

Modelling The Impact Of Mhealth Service Quality On Satisfaction, Continuance And Quality Of Life, Shahriar Akter, John D'Ambra, Pradeep Ray, Umme Hani

Shahriar Akter

Understanding the impact of service quality on economic and social outcomes is critical to extend the focus of IT service research. This study evaluates the impact of quality on both these dimensions in mHealth using a cross disciplinary approach. The conceptual model is rooted in the traditional cognition-affective-conation chain but explicitly incorporates convenience, confidence, cooperation, care and concern as the primary dimensions of mHealth quality. The model is validated in the context of a business-to-consumer mHealth services using partial least squares path modelling. The results confirm that service quality has both direct and indirect impact on continuance intentions (i.e. economic …

On The Social Significance Of Large Law Firm Practice, Robert Kagan, Robert Rosen

Robert Kagan

No abstract provided.

Complex Modeling In Marketing Using Component Based Sem, Shahriar Akter, Umme Hani

Shahriar Akter

Structural equation modeling (SEM) is an important tool for marketing researchers to estimate a network of causal relationships linking two or more complex concepts. The PLS approach to SEM, also known as component based SEM, is becoming more prominent in estimating complex models due to its soft modeling assumptions. This study elucidates the use of component based SEM in estimating a complex higher order model with a small sample size. The utility of the approach is illustrated empirically by estimating a third-order, reflective, hierarchical service quality model in the context of mHealth. The findings of the study confirm the conceptual …

Planning Versus Doing: An Empirical Research On Cues That Matter For Financial Commitments And Venture Progress (Summary), Jan Brinckmann, Sung Min Kim

Sung Min Kim

A prominent stream of research on business planning has not taken into account the fact that business planning activities are not randomly occurring phenomenon, but choices of entrepreneurs who have specific cognitions shaped by past experiences. Strikingly, while substantial research is devoted to business planning and its outcomes, little is known about the consequences of customer interaction. In this research, we address this research gap by comparing and contrasting antecedents and consequence of customer interaction and business planning as well as their interrelations. We show how the founder’s cognition, education and experience shape their choice to engage in business planning …

Ftc Activity And Presidential Effects Revisited, Jane Cromartie, Joseph Stewart

Jane S. Cromartie

Economist and former FTC Executive Director Bruce Yandle uses research by Stewart and Cromartie published previously in Presidential Studies Quarterly as a springboard for further analysis of the political economy of the FTC. He provides new data and suggests that perhaps the "party in power" model's attempt to explain regulatory politics should yield to con- gressional and special interest models. Reconsiderations of both studies clarify the meanings of the findings and suggest paths for future research on this topic. It is also suggested that it is probably premature to dispose of Presidential partisanship as a variable for analysis in future …

Review Of Political Economy: Past And Present By Lord Robbins, Raymond Benton

Raymond Benton Jr.

A review of Political Economy: Past and Present by Lord Robbins is presented.

Trustworthiness In Mhealth Information Services: An Assessment Of A Hierarchical Model With Mediating And Moderating Effects Using Partial Least Squares (Pls), Shahriar Akter, John D'Ambra, Pradeep Ray

Shahriar Akter

The aim of this research is to advance both the theoretical conceptualization and the empirical validation of trustworthiness in mHealth (mobile health) information services research. Conceptually, it extends this line of research by reframing trustworthiness as a hierarchical, reflective construct, incorporating ability, benevolence, integrity, and predictability. Empirically, it confirms that partial least squares path modeling can be used to estimate the parameters of a hierarchical, reflective model with moderating and mediating effects in a nomological network. The model shows that trustworthiness is a second-order, reflective construct that has a significant direct and indirect impact on continuance intentions in the context …

Why Teach Environmental Ethics? Because We Already Do, Raymond Benton

Raymond Benton Jr.

In this paper we argue for the importance of the formal teaching of environmental ethics. This is, we argue, both because environmental ethics is needed to respond to the environmental issues generated by the neoliberal movement in politics and economics, and because a form of environmental ethics is implicit, but unexamined, in that which is currently taught. We maintain that students need to become aware of the latent ethical dimension in what they are taught. To help them, we think that they need to understand how models and metaphors structure and impact their worldviews. We describe how a simple in-class …

The Return On Trade Show Information (Rtsi): A Conceptual Analysis, Harriette Bettis-Outland, Jane Cromartie, Wesley Johnston, Aberdeen Borders

Jane S. Cromartie

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to analyze the need for developing a return on trade show information (RTSI) index; this index would be used to measure the impact of information gathered at trade shows on long-term decision making within the organization. Also, the paper aims to suggest differences in how exhibitors and visitors perceive tangible versus intangible benefits that accrue as a result of utilizing new information acquired at trade shows. Design/methodology/approach - The paper utilizes a conceptual approach, employing the market orientation framework to develop a model for the return on trade show information (RTSI). It …

Orientations For Marketing Systems: The Leisure Alternative, Raymond Benton

Raymond Benton Jr.

No abstract provided.

Partisan Presidential Change And Regulatory Policy: The Case Of The Ftc And Deceptive Practices Enforcement, 1938-1974, Jane Cromartie, Joseph Stewart

Jane S. Cromartie

No abstract provided.

Customer Satisfaction, Loyalty, And Repurchase: Meta-Analytical Review, And Theoretical And Empirical Evidence Of Loyalty And Repurchase Differences., Tamilla Curtis

Dr. Tamilla Curtis

Despite the large volume of research in the area of loyalty-repurchase-satisfaction, the findings on the relationship between these variables are conflicting. It seems that links between loyalty, repurchase, and satisfaction are not fully understood yet. The study provided the theoretical background on loyalty, repurchase, satisfaction, and their interrelationships. The Theory of Planned Behavior and the Expectation Confirmation Theory were discussed. The loyalty-repurchase differentiation with five contributing factors was addressed. From the literature review nine hypotheses were proposed. The study was conducted in three phases. The purpose of the first phase was to statistically identify the magnitude and the direction of …

Don't Waste Your Time, Doug Leigh, Ryan Watkins

Doug Leigh

Commentary.

The Relationships Among Generativity, Values, Individual Differences, And Commitment To An Ideal Vision, Doug Leigh

Doug Leigh

Kaufman (2006a, 2011) defines Ideal Visions as measurable statements of the kind of world an organization, as well as its associates and external stakeholders, commits to help create for the future. This study investigated the relationships among several research-supported variables regarding personality aspects and individual characteristics with indicators of individuals’ motivation to achieve goals aimed at adding value to external clients and society. Indicators of generative beliefs, values, individual differences, and commitment to an Ideal Vision were examined in this study. Generativity (the concern in establishing and guiding the next generation), membership and activity in a formal civic organization, and …

Costs-Consequences Analysis: A Primer, Doug Leigh, Ryan Watkins, Roger Kaufman, Mark Muir

Doug Leigh

No abstract provided.

Swot Analysis, Doug Leigh

Doug Leigh

Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats are organizational influences known collectively as ‘‘SWOTs.’’ At its best, SWOT analysis is a process by which a group of stakeholders (a) identify internal and external inhibitors and enhancers of performance, (b) analyze those factors based on estimates of their contributions to net value and approximations of their controllability, and (c) decide what future action to take with regard to those factors. Convention- ally, however, organizations carry out only the first of these three tasks. To address this shortcoming, this chapter outlines a six-step process not only for identifying SWOTs, but also for meaningfully analyzing …

Assessing Readiness For E-Learning, Doug Leigh, Don Triner, Ryan Watkins

Doug Leigh

Today, e-learning is a common delivery media for education and training within many organizations. Yet, while both the supply and demand for e-learning opportunities has risen in recent years, many professionals are beginning to question whether e-learners are prepared to be successful in an online learning environment (e.g., Guglielmino & Guglielmino, 2003; Watkins & Corry, 2005). After all, a learner's demonstrated success in a conventional education and training classroom may not be an adequate predictor of success in an e-learning classroom.

One way of gauging a potential online learner's readiness is through self-assessment. As a first step in defining an …

Kirkpatrick Plus: Evaluation And Continuous Improvement With A Community Focus, Doug Leigh, Ryan Watkins, Rob Foshay, Roger Kaufman

Doug Leigh

For almost 40 years, Donald Kirkpatrick's framework for evaluation has been used as a basic model for the identification and targeting of training-specific interventions in business, government, military, and industry alike. By approaching evaluation from four different perspectives—reaction, learning, behavior, and results—the model has provided a solid basis for the examination of training's impact on the organization. Despite the current practice of measuring one's success according to the success of one's clients, proposed changes in the model have not been frequently adopted. It is therefore likely time for professionals to reevaluate the utility and responsiveness of the Kirkpatrick framework to …

A Scientific Dialogue: A Performance Accomplishment Code Of Professional Conduct, Doug Leigh, Ryan Watkins, Roger Kaufman

Doug Leigh

No abstract provided.