Online job search discouragement: How employment platforms and digital exclusion shape the experience of low-qualified job seekers?

How do people experience the platform-mediated job search process? We explore this question based on a sample of in-depth interviews (n = 20) with low-qualified, unemployed Spanish job seekers. Our main finding shows that the ways they use Information and Communication Technologies negatively impact their engagement in online job search activities. Based on our findings, we develop a framework of online job search discouragement revolving around crafting online profiles, applying for jobs, reviewing application statuses and integrating the tensions these activities carry for the experience and the outcome of the platform-mediated job search.     

Linking of immigrant flow and stock data in the Netherlands; present and future possibilities

The authors examine ways currently under consideration to link data on the resident population and on immigrants in the Netherlands. "An important development is the introduction of a new computerized population registration system in the near future. One of the features in the new system is that each inhabitant will be identified by a unique identification number. This promises well for opportunities in matching data at the individual level. It is therefore expected that in the new situation it will be possible to better link immigrant stock and flow data."     

Critical issues facing R&D managers in China

R&D managers in China experienced significant changes in the past decade, in particular because of Government policies of economic reform and opening to the outside world. These developments have brought about a number of rather specific R&D management issues and problems. The paper addresses the main problems faced by R&D managers in China. First, the current situation of R&D management in China is discussed, as well as the future developments. The paper then presents a case study of the CISRI (Central Iron & Steel Research Institute), a large comprehensive R&D organisation in Beijing. The analysis leads to the critical issues in CISRI's R&D management. After that, a further investigation is described into the trends of Chinese R&D management. The outcomes described focus on the future of R&D management in China as well as on the integration of Western R&D management theory in China. The paper concludes with the major issues and recommendations for the further development of R&D management in China.     

Strategy formulation processes: Differences in perceptions of strength and weaknesses indicators and environmental uncertainty by managerial level

Some literature suggests that managers' perceptions of strengths and weaknesses indicators vary by management level. Differences likely result because of individuals' cognitive schemes, which include their cognitive biases. In turn, systematic errors may occur in managerial decisions. Results from the research reported herein support the notion that managers' perceptions of the indicators of a firm's strengths and weaknesses, and of environmental uncertainty, vary by managerial level. Differences in these perceptions were discovered to be more significant within each firm. Implications of these results are examined, including the impact on the deployment of firms' strategy formulation processes.     

Drivers,adoption, and evaluation of sustainability practices in Italian wine SMEs

Based on a survey with 64 small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in two Italian wine regions, this study aims to (a) identify key drivers and barriers of the adoption of sustainability and (b) compare the adoption and evaluation (use, financial/labor investments, and satisfaction) of sustainability practices in four management domains (marketing, chain, operational, and innovation). Results show that internal drivers were considered to be more important than external drivers. Economic sustainability‐oriented drivers scored significantly lower than drivers related to other dimensions, such as environmental sustainability and heritage. Key barriers refer to labor and investments costs, as well as concerns about greenwashing. Although there are substantial differences in adoption and evaluation of sustainability practices within and between management domains, this study confirms their widespread adoption in wineries. Among users, satisfaction levels outweigh the perceived investments. Except for innovation management practices, financial investments are considered to be lower than labor investments. Positive correlations between use‐satisfaction (within each management domain) and between investments or satisfaction levels (between management domains) further lend support for producers' adoption of multiple practices. At sustainability dimension level, heritage is negatively correlated with the evaluation indicators, indicating that it may act as a potential barrier to some sustainability practices. Segmentation analysis identified a low (30%) and high sustainability clusters (70%), which differ significantly in terms of sustainability perceptions and drivers, adoption, and evaluation of practices, as well as company characteristics. Future research needs to validate the findings on SMEs, compare our measures with more objective evaluation indicators, future adoption rates, and multidimensional sustainability practices.