Patterns-based Evaluation of Open Source BPM Systems: The Cases of jBPM, OpenWFE, and Enhydra Shark

In keeping with the proliferation of free software development initiatives and the increased interest in the business process management domain, many open source workflow and business process management systems have appeared during the last few years and are now under active development. This upsurge gives rise to two important questions: what are the capabilities of these systems? and how do they compare to each other and to their closed source counterparts? i.e. in other words what is the state-of-the-art in the area?. To gain an insight into the area, we have conducted an in-depth analysis of three of the major open source workflow management systems - jBPM, OpenWFE and Enhydra Shark, the results of which are reported here. This analysis is based on the workflow patterns framework and provides a continuation of the series of evaluations performed using the same framework on closed source systems, business process modeling languages and web-service composition standards. The results from evaluations of the three open source systems are compared with each other and also with the results from evaluations of three representative closed source systems - Staffware, WebSphere MQ and Oracle BPEL PM, documented in earlier works. The overall conclusion is that open source systems are targeted more toward developers rather than business analysts. They generally provide less support for the patterns than closed source systems, particularly with respect to the resource perspective which describes the various ways in which work is distributed amongst business users and managed through to completion

International business cycles under fixed and flexible exchange rate regimes

This paper studies the changing characteristics of post-war international comovement under fixed and flexible exchange regimes. I find that business cycle comovement among all the G7 economies was highest in the universally flexible exchange rate era following the collapse of Bretton Woods (BW) and before the Basle-Nyborg agreement tightened the bands governing the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM). With the exception of a few examples (Canada/US and Germany/France) G7 business cycles were far less synchronized in the universally fixed exchange rate BW era. More recently the ERM period in which continental Europe maintained fixed exchange rates, is characterized by a high degree of comovement among continental Europe and the English-speaking G7 countries, with little synchronization across these groups. I find that these changing patterns of comovement were driven by changes in the propagation of shocks rather changes in the relative volatility of shocks themselves across these time periods.Business cycles ; Foreign exchange rates

Capability approach for realising the sustainable development goals through responsible management education: the case of UK business school academics.

This paper assesses whether RME can help UK business schools that are signatories to the PRME contribute to the realisation of any of the 17 SDGs through the lens of 15 UK business school academics. We found that RME (in the context of this study) can help business schools contribute directly to SDG4 and indirectly to the other goals, except for SDG3. The latter got little or no attention in this study, even though it appears that some business schools claim to be contributing to the realisation of this goal. Sen’s Capability Approach is the theoretical framework underpinning the paper. We recommend that business schools (worldwide) and other HEIs ground their educational offerings in the capability approach. It has the potential to empower individuals that will freely choose to live a quality life that they can value and progressively choose sustainable patterns towards sustainable development. We also present a few conceptual frameworks that can serve as a basis for the development of more robust frameworks. Those that can support business schools and universities in their endeavours to promote the SDGs through RME. The paper concludes by providing a few recommendations for further studies and practical implications for diverse stakeholders

How Do Organizational Capabilities Shape Industry Dynamics ?

This paper aims to reconcile the logic behind stochastic models of firm growth and the notion of organizational capabilities as drivers of economic performance. In the proposed behavioral model of bounded rational firms, two mechanisms drive growth: independent stochastic growth of individual opportunities and the process by which firms capture new opportunities. To extend the stochastic framework, this research incorporates behavioral assumptions about the interactions between the firm and the business environment and the mechanism by which firms sense and seize business opportunities. The model generates statistical regularities in firm size, growth rates, and profit differentials between firms that are consistent with observed patterns in real-world settings. The greater the selective power of organizational capabilities, the more the steady-state distribution of firm size appears to deviate from log normality, which provides a potential explanation of various observed departures from the Law of Proportionate Effect. With regard to firm diversity, the distribution of opportunities per firm is skewed; just a few entities account for most of the business opportunities that arise during the simulation period. Moreover, the interaction between the external environment and the internal structure of firms influences heterogeneity in the value of the opportunities that they capture, as well as the persistence of long-run profits.Organizational Capabilities; Firm Size Distribution; Growth Rates; Profitability

Emerging business ventures under market socialism: entrepreneurship in China

There are few empirical case studies of management practices in China. The rapidly changing Chinese market economy requires a more informed understanding of management practices and business landscape in which they operate based upon the empirical study of business practices This book adopts a holistic perspective to assess the impact of state-sponsored market socialism upon evolving economic enterprises and their ownership forms. Its emphasis is upon the outcomes of market socialist policies in shaping contrasting management patterns and behaviours longitudinally in China between 2005-2012. The book provides a comparative perspective on organizational development and management systems by focusing on three key emerging issues associated with the development of economic enterprise and market socialism in China: the emergence of different types of business venture; their contrasting management processes and patterns; and the shaping and the impact upon these of the political and institutional environment. Based on longitudinal empirical research on selected case studies between 2005 and 2012, the book explores the distinctive characteristics of emerging forms of economic enterprise under market socialism in China and identifies how rapid environmental and institutional changes in economic reforms are impacting upon their practice; particularly the role of Communist Party policies in shaping their ownership and management processes. General patterns in the development of business ventures are identified to outline the dynamics of industrial and organizational change under this dynamic transitional phase in Chinese market socialism

Green growth, technology and innovation

The paper explores existing patterns of green innovation and presents an overview of green innovation policies for developing countries. The key findings from the empirical analysis are: (1) frontier green innovations are concentrated in high-income countries, few in developing countries but growing; (2) the most technologically-sophisticated developing countries are emerging as significant innovators but limited to a few technology fields; (3) there is very little South-South collaboration; (4) there is potential for expanding green production and trade; and (5) there has been little base-of-pyramid green innovation to meet the needs of poor consumers, and it is too early to draw conclusions about its scalability. To promote green innovation, technology and environmental policies work best in tandem, focusing on three complementary areas: (1) to promote frontier innovation, it is advisable to limit local technology-push support to countries with sufficient technological capabilities -- but there is also a need to provide global technology-push support for base-of-pyramid and neglected technologies including through a pool of long-term, stable funds supported by demand-pull mechanisms such as prizes; (2) to promote catch-up innovation, it is essential both to facilitate technology access and to stimulate technology absorption by firms -- with critical roles played by international trade and foreign direct investment, with firm demand spurred by public procurement, regulations and standards; and (3) to develop absorptive capacity, there is a need to strengthen skills and to improve the prevailing business environment for innovation -- to foster increased experimentation, global learning, and talent attraction and retention. There is still considerable progress to be made in ranking green innovation policies as most appropriate for different developing country contexts -- based on more impact evaluation studies of innovation policies targeted at green technologies.Environmental Economics&Policies,E-Business,ICT Policy and Strategies,Technology Industry,Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases

Business Models for Sustainable Consumption : Identifying and Overcoming Barriers to Rental and Reuse of Home Furnishings

It is widely recognised that society is consuming at levels and in ways that are unsustainable. Sustainable business models, broadly defined as those that consider economic, ecological and social value, hold promise for shifting consumption patterns. By facilitating activities such as rental and reuse, including second-hand, repair, refurbishment, and upcycling, they can help to provide more sustainable options for consumers to acquire, utilise and dispose of products. This, in turn, can extend product lifetimes, keep products from going to waste, and reduce the need for new production. Yet despite the potential of these business models, there are still relatively few of them in the business-to-consumer market.This thesis aims to understand why we do not see more rental and reuse business models in practice, and how these models can become more prevalent. It does so by addressing two research questions: what barriers rental and reuse business models encounter, and how these barriers can be overcome. It focuses on the home furnishings sector, while also bringing in lessons from and for other consumer goods.Through interviews with consumer goods rental companies, document analysis of company marketing materials, and a case study of Sweden’s pioneering reuse-based shopping mall, ReTuna, the thesis finds that rental and reuse business models encounter a number of barriers regarding finance and economics, product design, capabilities, relationships, consumers, and policy. Home furnishings pose particular challenges due to their bulky nature, wide range of products, and uncertainties regarding consumer use patterns. The thesis also finds strategies through which the barriers can be addressed, including reducing or eliminating the barriers directly through the design of the business models, involving other actors, associating new offerings with concepts that are already familiar to consumers, and outweighing or offsetting the barriers by emphasising added benefits. In addition, it suggests that consumer-related barriers regarding desire for ownership and hygiene concerns about not-new goods may not be as substantial as previous research would imply.The findings in this thesis are relevant for researchers interested in understanding how business models that can facilitate sustainable consumption can become more prevalent, as well as for companies and other societal actors seeking or struggling to offer opportunities for rental and reuse of home furnishings and other consumer goods