Online business development services for entrepreneurs: an exploratory study

This paper addresses the use of the Internet to provide business development services such as training, consulting, counselling and networking. Using a Delphi study of experts from around the world, the possible uses of the Internet as well as criteria for successful implementation are presented. Three critical success factors for providing online services are identified. First, an effective use of online resources requires that the inherent strengths of the Internet be exploited. Using online tools when they are perceived to be a ‘second-best’ mode of communication is inefficient and can be counterproductive. Second, personal contact is still very important and can complement online services. Third, successful online services require an effective Internet site and program management. The study also shows that the specific nature of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurs must be carefully considered when developing online services. The entrepreneur is more concerned about his/her problems and is less concerned with the problems of others. However, he or she is willing to participate in a small learning network if the benefits go beyond that of just learning together. Similarly, online training for entrepreneurs should be complemented by a face-to-face component. An efficient/effective pure online training program for entrepreneurs would be very difficult if not impossible to develop and implement.     

HRM systems of Indian call centres: an exploratory study

This paper initially highlights the rapid growth in the call centre (CC) sector in developing countries like India. It then makes a case for the investigation of human resource management (HRM) systems of call centres in India. The analysis is based on a two-phase empirical study. Phase one examines the nature and pattern of HRM systems and phase two the emerging issue of attrition in Indian call centres. A mixed research approach comprising in-depth interviews and questionnaire survey was adopted to conduct the investigation. Against the established norms of Indian organizations, the findings highlight the existence of formal, structured and rationalized HRM systems. Core reasons for the increasing levels of attrition are highlighted. The analysis further provides useful information both for academics and practitioners and opens avenues for future research.     

Evaluating human capital: an exploratory study of management practice

The article explores the development of systems of human capital evaluation in a number of large UK firms. Human capital is a much used term in business literature, and it is widely recognised that firms need to develop mechanisms to determine the value of their employee base. An extensive human capital literature has developed in which the authors propose elaborate systems for measuring a firm's human assets. This article does not seek to offer yet another human capital model. Rather, the aim is to examine the management practices through which human capital evaluation is undertaken. The article is based on an exploratory study of such practices in 11 major firms in the UK. The findings are highlighted as follows. First, we note the preference for internal over external (static accountancy‐based) reporting. Secondly, we highlight the diverse nature of human capital evaluation systems that exist across UK business. Thirdly, we explore the relationship between practices of evaluation and the role and position of the HR function within the firm. Finally, in conclusion, we address the implications of the human capital perspective for practitioners, arguing that there is no single formula that can be applied to its evaluation. We go on to suggest that the importance of the human capital concept and its measurement may lie in its ability to re‐frame perceptions of the relationship between the contribution of employees and the competitive performance of the business.     

Tourism satisfaction and perspectives: an exploratory study in Italy

Quality & Quantity - The aim of the paper is to analyze the specific features of tourism in Italy through tourists’ behaviour and satisfaction level and to individuate future...     

Sex worker unionisation: an exploratory study of emerging collective organisation

In a number of Western economies in the last two decades, sex workers have begun to organise themselves in, and be organised by, trade unions for the first time. This article examines the salient processes and outcomes of this phenomenon. It firstly explores the influence of the prostitutes’ rights movements and the emergence of the ‘sex work’ discourse where the selling of sex and sexual services are regarded as a form of ‘emotional’ or ‘erotic’ labour. The advances in sex worker union organisation are recounted before assessing the forces leading to unionisation and those forces that act as impediments to unionisation. The conclusion of the article is that extant sex worker unionisation is a fragile and embryonic phenomenon.     

Corporate governance practices that address climate change: an exploratory study

This exploratory study sought to investigate how well 98 firms in three industries, across 10 countries, are addressing climate change through five specific governance practices. The findings suggest that non‐US firms demonstrate higher performance on the governance dimensions than their US counterparts. Further, by separating firms into low versus high performers on the governance dimensions, some board structure variables, such as number of directors and an independent board chair, were associated with higher performing firms. The study contributes both to institutional and agency theory. For example, coercive isomorphisms in regions of the world, such as Europe, might be driving firms to demonstrate that they are addressing climate change at the governance level in order to gain legitimacy. As for agency theory, this study offers both confirmatory and contradictory results regarding board independence. For example, firms who separated the CEO–board chair role achieved better governance on climate change, while at the same time firms who demonstrated lack of independence with respect to the inside versus outside director ratio also achieved better governance on climate change. This paves the way for additional research in understanding how board structure influences organizational phenomena. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.     

Attitudes to pay systems:an exploratory study within and across cultures

The present study investigates employees’preferences for criteria that are used in pay systems, namely, performance, cost of living, tenure, educational qualification, collective bargaining, skill, market rate, responsibility and special demands. The study also explored variation and similarities of employees’preferences for the criteria across four countries, namely Australia (N = 162), Indonesia (N = 100), Malaysia (N = 129) and Hong Kong (N = 39). The results indicate that the respondents prefer multiple criteria to determine their pay. Preferences for length of service and educational attainment were found to be significantly different across countries, particularly between Australian and Asian samples (Indonesian and Malaysia). This variation is, in part, attributed to cultural differences. Other variables, such as age, educational qualification, position, and industry sector, have been found to be significant correlates of preference for pay systems. Implications for reward management have been discussed.     

Inclusion and inclusion management in the Chinese context: an exploratory study

This study explored the concept of inclusion at both the individual and the organizational levels in the Chinese context. Using interview data from managers and employees of 12 companies located in China with various ownership structures, we conducted content analysis and found similarities between Chinese and Western conceptions of inclusion, as well as some unique characteristics of China. In addition, we identified seven inclusion management practices and three challenges for implementing inclusion management. Finally, the conceptions of inclusion were different across organizational positions and firm ownerships. Overall, this study sheds light on the understanding and management of inclusion for both Chinese companies and multinational companies in China and lays the foundation for future research.     

Data protection in the outsourced call centre: an exploratory case study

Against a backdrop of growing concern about the protection of consumer data as it is transferred to call centres in offshore locations, this article examines data protection (DP) compliance in the multi-client outsourced call centre. Using an in-depth single case study of a South African outsourcer and drawing on the now extensive body of call centre research, it argues that routine DP compliance is predominantly driven by the employment relationship and the client contract. With no research of this nature ever having been undertaken previously, it is argued that compliance is affected by the manner in which employees are paid, contracted and performance managed. This study also confirms that the employment relationship is an information security measure for organisations.     

Tourism donations in sacred settings: an exploratory study of visitor donations in an English cathedral

• This paper explores visitor behaviour in relation to making donations for Chichester Cathedral upkeep. It found that 94% of respondents were aware of the donation appeals and that 71% of them went on to make a donation, with the visitors aged 50 to 69 years and living within 25 mi of the Cathedral being the most frequent and generous donors. When asked to suggest what they would consider an appropriate donation, 44% of respondents gave a figure between £1 and £2. This paper argues that the present donation management measures at Chichester Cathedral are insufficient to bring the desired income and makes recommendations on the measures that Cathedral managers can implement to increase visitor donations. Among these recommendations, the most significant are the profiling of visitors, the identification and targeting of donors' personal meanings to give a donation and, in the case of Chichester Cathedral, to specifically target these meanings on their local, middle‐aged visitors.

Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investments in R&D and innovative behavior: an exploratory cross-country study

The relationship between investments in research and development (R&D) and innovative behavior, measured in terms of new products or services being delivered to the market, is well documented in the literature. This paper departs from the extant literature in that the unit of observation is a country rather than a firm. Using World Bank aggregate data, this level of analysis thus allows for a systematic study of cross-country observations on an R&D ? Innovation relationship.

     

The inpatriate experience in multinational corporations: an exploratory case study in Germany

Despite inpatriates' growing importance for the scope of international business, research on this specific group of international assignees transferred to the corporate headquarters (HQ) of multinational corporations (MNCs) still remains in its infancy. Due to this research gap, a qualitative approach to the analysis of inpatriates' experiences was selected to uncover directions for subsequent research and derive factors that are relevant in the context of these cross-cultural assignments. This paper reports the results of exploratory interviews with 13 inpatriates assigned to the HQ of three German MNCs. The interviews explored the purpose of inpatriate assignments in MNCs and focused on identifying critical dimensions to assess their success. In addition, the relevance of individuals' cultural background and other factors that may impact on assignment outcomes were examined. The empirical results are instrumental in deriving two major research questions that may guide future research in the field of inpatriate assignments.     

Plant level performance measurement: an exploratory case study of a pharmaceutical encapsulation company

Over the last few decades, hundreds of books and articles have been written on performance measures in manufacturing companies. A good number of those works has focused on overall organizational performance at the corporate level, business unit performance, and individual performance. Barring a few studies, there has been very little work reported on what specific performance measures are used at the plant and department level at a manufacturing facility. This exploratory research, through a case study of a pharmaceutical encapsulation company addresses those issues. Results show that the managers use a wide variety of measures primarily for meeting corporate targets and implementing a gain-sharing plan. There are not many common measures of performance used by managers for decision-making. None of the managers specifically linked the performance measures to the competitive priorities of the products made at the plant. A few propositions and suggestions for future research are made in the paper.     

Staff transfers as a control strategy: an exploratory study of two Australian organizations

This paper explores the use of organization culture, through socialization, as a control mechanism. Through the examination of two disparate Australian organizations operating in the global environment, the paper explores suggested linkages between strategy, organizational culture and staffing. It concludes that, while these two case companies have different cultures, they both rely heavily on transferring staff in order to facilitate co-ordination and control and to implement strategies that will achieve their global objectives.     

Determinants of knowledge-based entrepreneurship: an exploratory approach

We intend to further the research related to the factors that determine successful entrepreneurial endeavours by academic researchers, and thus put forth an exploratory model of Knowledge-Based Entrepreneurship (KBE). Given the lack of extant adequate indicators, a new scale was developed based on the most frequently cited constructs in the literature. A sample of 1,401 researchers from Portuguese universities was administered a questionnaire and the data collected permitted a validation with regards to the psychometric properties of the questionnaire, to see its applicability to the study. The findings suggest that the absence of a patenting history or start-up portfolio act as significant barriers to academic entrepreneurship. However, when the institutional strategy is to increase patenting and spin-off activities, the university should begin investing in creating a networking environment capable of reinforcing the researchers’ Social Capital. Observing the example of successful entrepreneurs motivates other researchers to consider the possibility of developing their own ventures. The Structural Equations Modelling (SEM) approach allowed for us to identify and measure the non-linear relationships that shape the core of KBE and influence the attainment of measurable outcomes aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship. A relatively high share of the variance of the dependent variables is explained by the model, ensuring their representativeness and contributing to the state-of-art of the knowledge in this research field.     

Integrative retail logistics: An exploratory study

Grocery retail companies have gone through a transformational change in the past by heavily investing in distribution centers of their own and by expanding their logistics activities. As a result, many retailers are now in the process of better adjusting their logistics operations to their specific requirements against the backdrop of raising pressure in a highly competitive environment. In this light, we provide an exploratory study based on semi-structured face-to-face interviews with 28 leading European grocery retailers. First we examine the current strategic designs of grocery retailers’ internal logistics networks. Next, we shift our focus to the resulting interdependencies in tactical supply chain planning between instore operations and upstream logistics processes. We have identified five interdependent planning issues: order packaging unit, store delivery pattern, store replenishment lead time, store delivery arrival times and arrival time windows, as well as roll-cage sequencing and loading carriers. Each of these mid-term planning interdependencies is evaluated with regard to implications in the stores, in transportation and in the distribution centers. The mid-term operations planning issues in the grocery retail industry considered in this paper have remained practically unexplored up to now. The outcome of this empirical research study therefore has substantial relevance for future retail research and practice.     

Understanding the adoption of project management in Serbian organizations: Insights from an exploratory study

The article contributes to our understanding of the drivers behind, and the nature of, project management implementation in the complex context of a transitional economy. Relevant insights are generated through an integrated and dynamic analysis of interviews and secondary data from a sample of local organizations, based on a conceptual model of strategic transformation. The analysis concludes with propositions about how both adoption of and resistance to project management implementation in the region could be understood from a strategic point of view, taking into account complex and dissonant circumstances of transition, history, cultural tradition, embedded social values, and identities of individual organizational members.     

The strategic value of e-HRM: results from an exploratory study in a governmental organization

This paper presents results from an exploratory study in a governmental organization on the strategic value of electronic human resource management (e-HRM). By applying the organizational capabilities approach, and by means of mixed research methods, data were collected on two generally acclaimed strategic advantages of e-HRM: changing the role of the human resource (HR) function towards becoming a business partner; and increasing the time available for strategic HR issues. The findings show that these strategic advantages are not convincingly realized. While HR professionals perceived role changes, line managers and non-managerial employees in general did not. The frequency of e-HRM practise was low, although it was satisfactorily used as intended. Interviewees stated that strategic advantages might arise if certain conditions are met. E-HRM does however provide some unintended benefits. The findings suggest that e-HRM alone is not sufficient to enable the HR function to create dynamic and operational capabilities. Suggestions for further research are provided.     

Donor retention: an exploratory study of door‐to‐door recruits

• Door‐to‐door fundraising, where recruiters knock on the door of domestic dwellings to solicit a regular donation, is an increasingly popular recruitment technique. However, reported levels of attrition remain unacceptably high and in some cases charities may lose up to 50% of their new recruits in their first year of giving. In this exploratory study of 5000 active and 5000 lapsed recruits the demographic and attitudinal profiles of each group are compared. The paper concludes that lapsed donors are significantly younger than active recruits and experienced some form of pressure at the point of recruitment. Lapsed supporters were also significantly less happy with the quality of ongoing communication.

Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.