The mediating effect of soft TQM on the relationship between lean practices and innovation skills in Lebanese hospitals

The main objective of this research is to study the mediating effect of soft total quality management on the relationship between lean practices and innovation skills among the staff of Lebanese hospitals. Lean practices are essential to eliminate wastes and advance the quality of healthcare services through the standardization and continuous improvement strategies of Total Quality Management (TQM). However, there is a need to sustain the effectiveness of such strategies by developing the innovation skills of employees and placing greater emphasis on the soft side of TQM. Thus, a theoretical framework was developed based on the theory of constraints and the resource based view theory. After identifying the gaps of previous literature, a quantitative methodology was applied by surveying 352 employees from public and private hospitals in Lebanon. Primary data collected by self-administered questionnaires was found to be valid and reliable when analyzed through SPSS and AMOS software. Based on the SEM analysis, six hypotheses were accepted while four were rejected. Lean practices through its two dimensions; lean strategies and standardization have shown a significant and positive influence on innovation skills. However, soft TQM has a non-significant influence on innovation skills. On the other hand, lean practices have a significant and positive influence on soft TQM through standardization but not through lean strategies. As for the mediating effect, it was proven that soft TQM mediates the relationship between lean practices and innovation skills at the level of standardization but not of lean strategies. This study contributes by offering good implications for healthcare practitioners at the Lebanese hospitals and healthcare organizations in general, to invest more efforts in implementing lean tools and soft TQM. Finally, future researches are suggested to extend this study at geographical factors and different methodological procedur

The Role of Perceived University Support in the Formation of Students' Entrepreneurial Intention

Entrepreneurship education is central to student entrepreneurship. Previous research has attempted to understand the role of entrepreneurship education in the formation of students' entrepreneurial intention and behavior, albeit in an isolated manner. Universities can support entrepreneurship in many ways, but it is important to measure students' perception of the support that they receive in order to understand the extent of such support and its impact on students. The current study proposed and tested an integrative, multiperspective framework. We have hypothesized that the three dimensions of university support, that is, perceived educational support, concept development support, and business development support, together with institutional support, shape students' entrepreneurial self-efficacy. In turn, entrepreneurial self-efficacy and individual motivations constitute the fundamental elements of the intention to start a business. A sample of 805 university students took part in the study and data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Our findings showed that perceived educational support exerted the highest influence on entrepreneurial self-efficacy, followed by concept development support, business development support, and institutional support. Self-efficacy in turn had a significant effect on entrepreneurial intention. Individual motivations such as self-realization, recognition, and role had an additional impact on intention. However, intention was not related to financial success, innovation, and independence. The findings suggest that a holistic perspective provides a more meaningful understanding of the role of perceived university support in the formation of students' entrepreneurial intention. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed

Pedagogy After a Pandemic: Prediction Continued Elementary Teacher Usage of EDTECH After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Elementary teachers around the world were recently faced with transitioning to hybrid or virtual teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a situation that teachers had never been in before and one in which they had not been trained. Due to the availability of educational technology, teachers were able to adopt new programs, often having to seek out training on their own, in order to successfully deliver instruction. This study aims to determine how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected teacher use of educational technology, what factors predict the continued use and frequency of use of educational technology once the pandemic has ended, and how teachers feel educational technology affects student motivation, achievement, and behavior. To test these hypotheses, an online survey was distributed to elementary teachers around the United States, with the majority in a large Alabama school district. Participants answered questions regarding their use of educational technology before, during, and intended use after the COVID-19 pandemic. Upon completion of the survey, participants were invited to participate in a follow-up semi-structured interview to collect qualitative data. Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics, paired t-tests, and linear regression tests. Results showed large effect sizes regarding a decrease in the number of educational technology programs used during the pandemic, and an increase in the frequency of use of educational technology programs during the pandemic. Individual x innovativeness, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness were all found to be statistically significant predictors of nearly all dependent variables, and educational technology use was found to be a statistically significant predictor of teacher beliefs regarding student motivation, behavior, and achievement. These results indicate the importance of educational technology in the classroom and how strongly its use is predicted and affected by perceptions of usefulness, ease of use, and innovativeness. On this basis, the use of educational technology during the COVID-19 pandemic should be taken into account for future school or district technology initiatives

Market orientation and order of entry strategies: An empirical analysis

While the relationship between market orientation and business performance has been extensively investigated, the mechanisms by which market orientation contributes to performance are still not well understood. To fill this gap in knowledge of how order of entry would affect the relationship between market orientation and performance, this research provides a conceptual framework to link two disparate concepts, or research streams in the marketing/business strategy literature, market orientation and order of entry. Timing of entry has generated great attention (Green, Barclay, and Ryans 1995). Pioneering new markets is expensive and risky, but also potentially very rewarding. If pioneers have advantages in supplies, costs, information, product quality, product line breadth, distribution, and long-term market share (Robinson and Fornell 1985), firms may benefit from early entry. And if later entrants can leapfrog pioneers with superior technology, positioning, or brand names, firms could be better off entering late (Lieberman and Montgomery 1988). We posit that order of entry has an effect on the relationship between market orientation and performance. Positional advantage refers to a low cost and/or differentiation advantage vis-à-vis competitors (Porter 1985), and an overall cost edge is obtained by performing activities in the value chain at a lower cost than competitors while offering a parity product (Porter 1985). Competitive positional advantages can be broadly construed as cost leadership and differentiation advantages (Porter 1985). The research studies the mediating and moderating roles of order of entry and positional advantage in the relationship between market orientation and performance. The roles are important but could be dependent upon the size and level of development of the market or the economy. It is important to keep the market in mind when deciding the role of positional advantage and order of entry in a marketing plan

Facilitating change : towards resident-oriented housing modernisation with collaborative design

Collaborative design can deal with open-ended and complex systems. Its aim is to collectively create proposals for alternative futures, and bring value for people, organisations and society alike. So far the research on collaborative design has primarily focused on methodical development. Less attention has been focused on long-term examination of connections between design and appropriation. The present dissertation focuses on this research gap by providing an empirical view on the contribution of collaborative design in systemic change. This dissertation is a longitudinal case study. It addresses Finnish repair construction as a complex system, its systemic change, and he contribution of a collaborative design project in the change. The research material consists of project documents, follow-up interviews, documents on following developments, and the author’s personal experience in the project. The multi-method analysis builds an in-depth narrative of the systemic change and the contribution of design within a timespan of seven years between 2004 and 2011. The analysis shows that the systemic change of repair construction refers to a paradigmatic transformation from technical orientation towards an ideal vision of resident-oriented housing modernisation in several levels of the system. The vision was created in the IKE project in 2004 and 2005. IKE was a preliminary study commissioned by the Finnish Ministry of the Environment to define the development requirements for repair construction. The project applied collaborative design to explore and envision repair construction. Empathic and participatory approach joined multi-disciplinary project participants including residents, repair construction professionals and design researchers. The research shows that the vision built commitment to long-term change in repair construction. By 2011, the vision was adopted as an idea innovation by nearly seventy percent of the project participants. The field had started to shift its focus on residents in addition to the housing company board. Replumbing was becoming reinterpreted as a service business. Additionally, a need for long-term maintenance culture of the built environment was arising. The vision was applied in fifty development projects and solutions in private and public sectors. The research illustrates commitment to change in individual, organisational and governmental levels. The three main streams of development following the ideal vision involve resident-orientation as a novel criterion for repair construction, investment in developing repair service offering, and resident-oriented housing modernisation in building policy. The contribution of collaborative design in the systemic change of Finnish repair construction resides in facilitation. Facilitation with collaborative design in the IKE project involved 1) producing various occasions for stakeholders to participate exploration and envisioning, 2) establishing reciprocal empathic encounters between residents and repair construction professionals, 3) producing experiential material for reflection between the everyday and society, and 4)reifying the ideal vision with visualisations and storytelling for later use. The term facilitation represents the contribution and position of collaborative design. Facilitation positions collaborative design in change: design did not initiate or implement the change, but rather responded to the professional practitioners’ need for establishing a shared starting point for change. The contribution of design was to enable consistent transformation in the field by providing means to simultaneous innovation creation and adoption. The research provides insights on facilitating systemic change to scholars and practitioners of collaborative design and repair construction alike. The book presents an account of the recent history of repair construction in Finland.Yhteissuunnittelulla voidaan kehittää avoimia ja monimutkaisia järjestelmiä. Sen tavoitteena on luoda vaihtoehtoisia tulevaisuuskuvia, jotka tuovat arvoa yhtälailla yksilöille, organisaatioille kuin yhteiskunnalle. Yhteissuunnittelun tutkimus on tähän mennessä keskittynyt lähinnä menetelmien kehittämiseen. Vähemmälle huomiolle on jäänyt sen hyödyntämisen yksityiskohtainen ja pitkäaikainen arviointi. Tämä väitöstyö esittää empiirisen näkökulman yhteissuunnittelun panoksesta systeemiseen muutokseen. Väitöstyö on pitkittäinen tapaustutkimus. Työssä tutkitaan empiirisesti suomalaista korjausrakentamista monimutkaisena järjestelmänä ja sen systeemistä muutosta sekä erään yhteissuunnitteluhankkeen roolia muutoksessa. Tutkimusaineisto koostuu projektidokumenteista, seurantahaastatteluista ja muutoksiin liittyvistä dokumenteista sekä tekijän henkilökohtaisesta kokemuksesta projektityössä. Monivaiheisen analyysin tuloksena väitöskirja kuvaa systeemistä muutosta ja muotoilun panosta seitsemän vuoden ajalta vuosina 2007 — 2011. Analyysi osoittaa, että korjausrakentamisen systeeminen muutos tarkoittaa alan käännettä teknisestä painotuksesta kohti yhteistä tavoitetta — asukaslähtöistä perusparantamista — järjestelmän useilla tasoilla. Yhteinen tavoite luotiin IKE-projektissa vuosina 2004 — 2005. Projekti oli Ympäristöministeriön rahoittama esiselvityshanke, jonka tavoitteena oli määritellä suomalaisen korjausrakentamisen kehitystarpeet. Projektissa sovellettiin yhteissuunnittelua korjausrakentamisen tarkasteluun ja visiointiin. Empaattinen ja osallistuva ote edesauttoi monialaisten projektijäsenten kuten korjausrakentamisen ammattilaisten, asukkaiden ja muotoilututkijoiden yhteistyötä. Yhteinen tavoite edisti sitoutumista korjausrakentamisen muutokseen pitkäaikaisesti. Vuoteen 2011 mennessä miltei seitsemänkymmentä prosenttia projektiin osallistuneista oli omaksunut tavoitteen. Ala oli alkanut huomioida asukkaat asunto-osakeyhtiöiden hallituksen lisäksi. Putkiremontti alettiin nähdä palveluliiketoimintana. Lisäksi asuntokannan pitkän aikavälin ylläpitokulttuuri oli syntymässä. Tavoitetta sovellettiin viidessäkymmenessä kehittämishankkeessa ja ratkaisussa yksityisellä ja julkisella sektorilla. Tutkimus kuvaa muutokseen sitoutumista yksilöiden, organisaatioiden ja valtion hallinnon tasoilla. Kolme yhteistä tavoitetta seuraavaa pääkehityskulkua ovat: asukaslähtöisyys korjausrakentamisen uutena kriteerinä, investointi palvelutarjonnan kehittämiseen, ja asukaslähtöinen perusparantaminen valtion hallinnossa. Yhteissuunnittelun panos suomalaisen korjausrakentamisen systeemiseen muutokseen on fasilitointi. IKE-projektissa fasilitointi tuotti 1) tilaisuuksia, joissa osallistujat saivat osallistua korjausrakentamisen tarkasteluun ja visiointiin, 2) kohtaamisia asukkaiden ja korjausrakentamisen ammattilaisten kesken, mikä synnytti vastavuoroista empatiaa, 3) kokemusperäistä aineistoa, joka tuki pohdiskelua arjen ja yhteiskunnan kysymysten välillä, ja 4) kuvallisen ja tarinallisen kuvauksen yhteisestä tavoitteesta. Fasilitointi terminä kuvaa yhteissuunnittelun panosta ja asemaa muutoksessa. Fasilitointi sijoittaa yhteissuunnittelun muutosta tukevaksi toiminnaksi, korjausrakentamisen ammattilaisten vastatessa muutoksen aloitteesta ja toteuttamisesta. Yhteissuunnittelu mahdollisti johdonmukaisen muutoksen korjausrakentamisessa. Se edisti erityisesti hankkeen aikaista rinnakkaista innovaation luomista ja omaksumista. Väitöstyö tarjoaa näkökulmia systeemisen muutoksen fasilitointiin tutkijoille sekä muotoilun ja rakentamisen ammattilaisille. Samalla kirja luo katsauksen suomalaisen korjausrakentamisen lähihistoriaan

The impact of regional supply network structure and governance on the resilience of resource extractive regions: the case of South Australia

This thesis examines the adaptation processes among mining equipment and technology services (METS) firms’ in the South Australian resource sector from 2014 till 2016 during a global downturn in resource commodity prices. Of special interest was the effect on the METS firms of the structure and governance of the resource industry regional supply network in terms of their ability to adapt to the downturn and the implications for regional resilience. The research was driven by the common problem faced by METS suppliers operating in resource extractive economies of how to prosper in spite of fluctuating mineral commodity prices. Downturns in commodity prices usually result in significant job losses, reduction in GDP growth and economic decline. It requires resilience at the firm and regional level to not only cope and recover from external shocks, but also to create new technological paths. Previous research into the regional development of resource-extractive regions has proved that the development of technology and knowledge intensive, value-adding industries around resource extractive activity enhances the resilience of resource economies. A diverse and technology intensive METS sector emerging naturally in proximity to resource extraction sites is potentially able to use its accumulated knowledge and capabilities to overcome the consequences of a decline. In the right environment, METS firms can develop high value-added products and services that can have other industrial applications and find new niches in domestic and overseas markets. The ability of local METS companies to diversify and innovate results in the lateral transfer of technologies developed initially to serve the resource sector, encouraging regional economic diversification and the development of alternative growth paths during a decline in the resource sector. Supply chain relationships are critical to the strategic diversification and innovation of regional METS experiencing resource constraints. Their ability to innovate and diversify depends not only on their own internal research and development efforts, but mostly on their collaboration with customers and supply chain partners around customer problems and solutions. Since there are multiple shared suppliers and clients, a regional supply network serves as a conduit for information and knowledge transfer. Our knowledge of the impact of the structure and governance in a regional supply network and firm diversification and innovativeness is still limited, however. There is a lack of conceptual explanation specific to how network governance in a regional supply network influences METS firms’ ability to respond during those periods when the whole network is experiencing constrained resources. To address this problem in the current research, a multilevel conceptual framework was developed, and a mixed-method research design adopted. The findings demonstrated that formal and informal instruments of regional supply network governance impact firms’ strategies and facilitates both short- term adaptation and the long-term adaptability of regional METS. The research contributes to the economic resilience literature by providing empirical evidence of the role of regional supply network structure and governance as factors influencing regional firms’ strategies at the micro-level. In turn, the strategies and behaviour of regional METS firms at the micro level impact adaptability and regional resilience at the meso-level. Therefore, a coordinated effort by governing bodies through policies and resource allocation is required to ensure the formation of well-connected, integrated regional supply networks that can foster long term adaptability and resilience in resource extractive regions.Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, Entrepreneurship, Commercialisation & Innovation Centre, 201

Investigating the double-edged sword: Two forms of cultural diversity and their effects on team processes and effectiveness

Firms’ international scope of activities and growing workforce mobility foster the development of teams which are composed of members with different cultural backgrounds. Research on cultural diversity has found large inconsistencies concerning the effects of multicultural team compositions. This led to seeing cultural diversity as a double-edged sword with a potential to yield positive and negative effects in organizations. In contrast to much previous cultural diversity research, this work has conceptualized and measured cultural diversity as deep-level diversity across multiple cultural value dimensions. With a sample of 97 international and multicultural entrepreneurship teams, this research empirically tested effects of two forms of cultural diversity (separation and variety) on team processes and effectiveness. Findings show that cultural diversity in the form of variety has the positive effect of higher creativity in teams, while cultural diversity as separation has negative effects of lower communication quality and lower creativity. The effects of diversity on creativity, however, do not further influence team innovativeness. In addition to the main effects, the results include mediating effects with team processes of communication, task conflict, and task reflexivity. The thesis discusses theoretical implications for diversity research and provides suggestions for practitioners in global team management

Forced Adoption: Diffusion And Perception Of Online Education By Postsecondary Faculty Members Before And During The Coronavirus Pandemic

Once considered a fringe and unreliable pedagogical approach for higher education, online learning has entered the mainstream. While the adoption of online learning has been on the rise for the past decade, higher education’s forced adoption of online learning in response to COVID-19 has accelerated the curve. It has raised questions on the viability, sustainability, and interest in online learning for teachers, students, and administrative leadership. The most important question is: has forced adoption forever changed pedagogical approaches for higher education? This research attempts to answer this question from the perspectives of the teachers and faculty forced to adopt online teaching in response to the pandemic. Working from Roger’s innovative-decision process and using a mixed- methods research design consisting of surveys and interviews of faculty, a new theory of diffusion was produced that includes forced adoption as a primary stage. The research focused on three crucial sub questions: (1) Will faculty choose to continue online teaching; (2) how has forced adoption shaped the innovation-decision process; and (3) what opportunities for professional transition does forced-adoption present. A new way of thinking about the diffusion of innovation has been produced, and offers what this might mean for the pedagogical future of higher education