A new look at factors influencing total quality management failure: work process control or workforce control?

By drawing on multi-case data, there is some evidence to suggest that total quality management (TQM) effectiveness can be viewed as a direct function of the controlling mechanisms that senior managers created prior to TQM implementation. More importantly, control tools of TQM were not used by non-managerial employees, with which they could reduce variability or achieve uniformity; rather, they were regarded as a weapon used by their managers against them.     

The dynamics of university-industry-government relationships in Nanoscience: investigating the Triple-Helix differences between Iran and Switzerland

This study aims to find the differences between national and international relationships in Iran and Switzerland’s Nanoscience research between 2008–2015. The results show significant differences some of which are attributed to the general dichotomy of developed-developing countries like stronger University-Industry-Government relations in Switzerland; but others are not, especially those pertaining to bilateral relations. In summary, the Government-Industry relations in Switzerland are generally closer in this field because the emerging characteristics of Nanoscience call for more state intervention, even in the context of developed countries. Greater Government-University relations in Iran can be explained by referring to the structure of national innovation system of this country. However, the no significant differences between University-Industry relations result needs further research so that it may in turn lead to improvements of the triple-helix calculations. Lastly, some theoretical implications and further research directions are suggested at the end.     

Shopping online for goods vs. services: where do experiential features help more?

This study investigates how the type of offer sold online (goods vs. services) moderates the relationships between perceived experiential values and customers' attitudes towards the website. A sample of 107 e‐shoppers of services and 110 e‐shoppers of physical goods responded to a survey on their most recent e‐shopping experiences. Results support the majority of hypotheses. It was found that although offering experiential values on the site improves customers' attitudes for both physical goods and services websites, the impact is much stronger in the case of services. Theoretical and managerial contributions are discussed.     

Optimal reserve composition in the presence of sudden stops

We analytically derive optimal central bank portfolios in a minimum variance framework with two assets and transaction demands caused by sudden stops in capital inflows. In this model, transaction demands become less important relative to traditional portfolio objectives as debt to reserve ratios decrease. We empirically estimate optimal dollar and euro shares for 23 emerging market countries and find that optimal reserve portfolios are dominated by anchor currencies and, at current debt-to-reserve ratios, introducing transaction demand has a relatively modest effect for most countries. We find that, in general, the dollar acts as a safe haven currency during sudden stops for country specific and global sudden stops, increasing the optimal share of dollar bonds in central bank portfolios. Correspondingly, our model predicts that dollar shares should decline as debt-to-reserve ratios fall, as observed in recent data. We also find that the denomination of foreign currency debt has little importance for optimal reserve portfolios.     

The Razor's edge: Managing MNC affiliates in Iran

Much has been written on the nature of international assignees’ experiences of managing Multinational Corporation (MNC) affiliates in the context of Western economies. This study aims to broaden the debate and elucidate these issues in the largely overlooked region of Middle East with a particular focus on Iran. Data from six MNC affiliates across two high growth global industries reveals that the nature of international assignees’ experiences can be explained in terms of desirable, indifference, and undesirable effects of managing MNC affiliates. Specifically, it was found that the international assignees’ perceptions of managing MNC affiliates were formed prior to their appointments. Furthermore, while conformance to headquarter (HQ) managerial orientations was seen to serve as a proxy for earlier desirable experiences of these international assignees, their current performance was seen to deteriorate by the need to fully comply with the HQ's way of doing things. Together, these findings support the view that the degree of congruence or fit between, on the one hand, the HQ and international assignees’ orientations, and on the other hand, between the international assignees and the host country culture could have implications for the success or failure of the international assignees in the context of Iranian-based MNCs. Finally, the paper concludes with implications and lessons for policy makers, practitioners and academics.     

The overlooked variable in managing human resources of Iranian organizations: workforce diversity – some evidence

The primary aim of this paper is to examine the nature and extent of equality of opportunities and diversity policies in employment in the novel context of the Middle East – with a particular focus on Iran. HRM and diversity management specialists argue that equal opportunity practices help organizations capitalize on the benefits of a diverse workforce in terms of reducing turnover and absenteeism, attracting the best workers, increasing sales and marketing efforts, enhancing creativity and innovation, and improving decision making. While such benefits might be true in the context of developed countries, we are critical of their existence in the context of less developed nations. The findings, based on a qualitative study of six cases across two industries, indicate that, in contrast to existing theories, economic evaluations such as cost-minimization of the diverse work groups are the major driving forces behind adopting equal opportunity and diversity practices in employment. Specifically, mutuality of matching the needs of the worker with the needs of the manager is seen to be a major factor influencing the workers' impression towards equality of opportunities and diversity policies.     

The influence of culture,emotions, intangibility,and atmospheric cues on online behavior

This paper examines how emotions and website atmospheric cues influence service tangibility and consumer attitudes. The proposed model was compared across three cultures: North America (Canada and U.S.), China, and the Middle East. The findings support the overall model and demonstrate several non-invariant paths across the groups. Particularly, the results suggest how the influences of two emotional dimensions (pleasure and dominance) on consumer perceptions of site atmospherics vary across cultures. Moreover, the effects of service tangibility dimensions (physical tangibility, specificity, and mental tangibility) on consumers' attitudes toward the website and service vary significantly across the three cultures. Mental tangibility has the greatest influence on North American customers' attitudes, while physical tangibility and specificity have the greatest impact on Chinese and Middle Eastern customers' attitudes, respectively.