My How Things Have Changed! Strategic Organization Development and the Transformation of Human Resource Management

The purpose of this book Strategic Organization Development is to report a metasynthesis research study focusing on a human resources management approach - Strategic Organizational Development. The book is written by Sharadindu Pandey who conducted a meta synthesis research study that is the focus of the book. The book is organized by chapters in which each is devoted to a step in the metasynthesis process. Pandey details the many decisions that must be made by the researcher employing this method as well as discussing the importance of the use of strategic organization development to build actionable knowledge. Valuable feature s of this book include the provision of a unique view of evolving metasynthesis research and the perspective of understanding the e merging use of the ‘Strategic Business Model’ of an organization being aligned with the Organizational Development of a company. This is not a book for light reading; rather this book would be most meaningful for those readers that are informed on the subjects of metasynthesis, qualitative research, business management, and strategic organization development

Utilizing e-business technologies in supply chains: The impact of firm characteristics and teams

This paper presents findings from an exploratory study that analyzes the drivers and outcomes of e-business technology use in the supply chain. Using a combination of case studies and survey data from a diverse sample of industries, the research examines how industry context, firm characteristics and firm-level strategic resources, such as purchasing teams, influence the exploitation of e-business technologies and the relationship between e-business technology use and firm performance. Based on a synthesis of related literatures from transaction cost economics and the relational view of the supply chain, a two-dimensional framework for e-business technology is proposed with transactional and relational dimensions. However, empirical analysis indicated that transactional technologies can be further subdivided into two factors: dyadic cooperation and price determination. Significant differences were found between the two dimensions in terms of their overall levels of adoption, with dyadic coordination being the most widely adopted. In addition, the development of strategic resources expanded, in particular internal and customer teams, the use of e-business technologies expanded. Purchasing organizational structure and firm size also were positively related to the adoption of transactional e-business technologies. Finally, of particular importance to practitioners, e-business technologies targeted at reducing dyadic coordination costs lead to improved financial performance

An empirical research of the effect of internet-based innovation on business value.

In recent years, much debate about the value of information technology (IT) in general and e-business in particular and has been raised. Aiming to contribute to the investigation of whether and how Internet/WWW technologies create business value, this paper develops a conceptual model, grounded on a well established theoretical foundation from the strategic management domain, the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, which analyzes web infrastructure and internet-based innovation as sources of business value. The methodology involved a large data source collected by the European e-Business Market Watch, an established e-business observatory organization sponsored by the European Commission. Results show that web infrastructure is not significantly related to business value, while on the contrary Internet-based innovation has a positive significant impact on business value. In addition, results show no significant complementarities between web infrastructure and internet-based innovation. These findings indicate that firms should be very careful when they decide to make this kind of investments, since they have to combine ‘hard’ investments in web infrastructure with ‘soft’ investments for the development of new products, services and processes exploiting the capabilities of this infrastructure.We would like to thank e-Business Watch for the support provided. We also thank Fundación Cajamurcia for the financial support.Publicad

E-Procurement – Process Based Conceptual Model

This paper aims to contribute to the development of a process based conceptual model of electronic procurement. Model is based on three basic eprocurement processes – strategic, tactical and operational eprocurement. Processes are divided into phases which are supported by applications (i.e. software programmes). Apart from applications supporting basic procurement activities there is a currently fast growing group of ADM (Analytical - Decision support - Management) applications, which brings business benefits especially in complex procurement environments. The basic view is that of ICT’s (Information and Communication Technologies - namely Internet, Internet technologies, Internet standards, Internet applications) support of procurement activities. Paper presents integrated e-procurement applications and also various integration requirements of e-procurement applications. Model may perhaps help enterprises, which are new to e-procurement, e.g. SMEs, to gain basic understanding of which applications may be used for implementation of eprocurement processes

Industry 4.0 and Business Policy Development: Strategic Imperatives for SME Performance

Industry 4.0 presents companies with new prospects to renovate industrial manufacturing processes and increase value creation, has promised several optimizing strategies for improved business performance. The purpose of this research is to examine the relationship between innovation capability and employee capability on organizational performance among Small and Medium Scale industries entrepreneurs. Following a positivist research philosophy with a quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive study design, the study addressed three direct and two indirect relationships in the model. The research followed the expectation Resource-Based View Theory to test the theoretical model. Following stratified random sampling, this research using 384 SME entrepreneurs from the Selangor state of Malaysia. The study applied Smart PLS-SEM to analyze the data. The results show that SME firms' innovation capability and employee capability positively correlate with business performance. The study also shows the partial mediation effect of technology change on innovation capability and business performance and employee capability and business performance. Research extends practical and theoretical implications to the stakeholders of SMEs and businesses.JEL Classification: L25, L26, L29How to Cite:Govindarajo, N. S., Kumar M, D., Shaikh, E., Kumar, M., & Kumar, P. (2021). Industry 4.0 and Business Policy Development: Strategic Imperatives for SME Performance. Etikonomi, 20(2), 213 – xx. https://doi.org/10.15408/etk.v20i2.20143

Lion of Porches : Portugal is going abroad development strategy of a fashion business

The thesis here presented, in the form of a case study, has as a purpose explaining the growth path of the Portuguese clothing brand Lion of Porches through its strategic development options. The case study can be used as a teaching tool, as it provides students with a base to apply the strategic frameworks taught in class. Lion of Porches is a brand owned by company “Têxteis Cães de Pedra”, which initially was a knitted clothing producer, that specializes in the distribution of clothing articles for men, women and children in the Portuguese market and other locations across the world using a franchising strategy. In its growth strategy, the brand takes different strategic decisions as to improve its business focus, concentrating its efforts only in distribution and outsourcing support activities; and increasing its market coverage, either by expanding its segment reach or, as mentioned, its retail presence. With this development, alteration to the way the brand business was conduct had to be made in order to support its strategic intentions; this view provides the reader with a chance to understand the resources that allow a company in the fashion industry to conduct its business. The topics here mentioned, based on a real life example, revolve around the different types of business strategies used by the brand, the importance of its resources to give it a sustainable competitive advantage and the reasons that lead it to choose the franchise model as an entry model for internationalization.A tese aqui apresentada, usando o formato de um caso de estudo, tem como propósito explicar o caminho de crescimento da marca Portuguesa Lion of Porches através das suas opções de desenvolvimento estratégico. O caso de estudo poderá ser usado como uma ferramenta de ensino, sendo que providencia aos alunos uma base para aplicar as teorias estratégicas lecionadas em aula. A marca Lion of Porches é detida pela empresa “Têxteis Cães de Pedra”, que era inicialmente uma produtora de roupa de malha, que se especializa na distribuição de roupa para homens, mulheres e crianças no mercado português e em outras localizações pelo mundo usando uma estratégia de franchising. Na sua estratégia de crescimento a marca tomou diferentes decisões estratégicas de modo a melhorar o foco do seu negocio, concentrando os seus esforços apenas na distribuição e delegados a terceiros as atividades de suporte; e aumentando a sua cobertura de mercado, quer aumentando o numero de segmentos servidos ou, tal como mencionado, aumentando a sua cobertura de retalho. Com este desenvolvimento, alterações ao modo como o negocio da marca era conduzido foram efetuadas de modo a suportar as suas intenções estratégicas; esta perspetiva providencia ao leitor uma oportunidade para perceber que tipo de recurso permitem a uma empresa na industria da moda conduzir a sua atividade. Os tópicos aqui mencionados, baseados num exemplo da vida real, revolvem em torno de diferentes estratégias de negocio usadas pela marca, a importância dos seus recursos em providenciar vantagem competitiva sustentada e as razões que levaram a marca a escolher o modelo de franchise como modelo de entrada para a internacionalização

Investors in People : research on the New Choices approach

"Investors in People (IIP) is a business development tool that was first launched in 1991. The IIP Standard enables organisations to assess how they are managing people, and where improvements can be made. There are 39 evidence requirements which must be met for an organisation to be recognised as meeting the IIP Standard. The New Choices approach to IIP was introduced in May 2009 to provide greater flexibility and customisation of IIP to an employer’s priorities and goals. It also allows progress beyond the IIP Standard and incorporates additional recognition in the form of Bronze, Silver and Gold award levels (for which organisations must provide evidence that they meet at least 65, 115 or 165 evidence requirements respectively). In April 2010, the UK Commission for Employment and Skills took over strategic ownership of IIP and was keen to understand the differences made by New Choices. The overall aim of this research is to identify the impact that the New Choices approach has had on perceptions and take up of IIP, with a view to informing future strategy for IIP and contributing to meeting longer-term objectives for IIP. The project methodology included: preliminary research (familiarisation with the IIP literature review, a review of management information, and discussions with key stakeholders); an e-survey of employers engaged with the New Choices approach; and 15 employer case studies to add depth to the understanding of how New Choices was working in practice. The New Choices approach was introduced across the UK in May 2009 (after being piloted in Scotland and some parts of England), so at the time of writing has been operational for less than two years. This is a relatively short period of time in which to judge the impact of the New Choices approach, as further benefits are likely to accrue over the long term. As such, this review has not identified significant direct benefits experienced by employers who have followed the extended framework and achieved a Bronze, Silver or Gold award level, though it has identified some changes that may contribute to increased business efficiency" - page i