Shared Value Creation in Australian Insurance Industry: The Qualitative Case Studies of IAG and AIA

This study explores the societal and economic value creation by large Australian insurance organisations, which integrate ‘shared value’ business model into their core business. The research objective of this paper is to explore the adoption of three value-enhancing thematic components of the applied shared value model, which are reconceiving products and markets, redefining productivity in the value chain and enabling local cluster development, by two Australian insurance organisations. Using case study design, the thematic analysis of primary interview data reflects how Insurance Australia Group (IAG) and American International Assurance (AIA Australia) have utilised the shared value model to create social value while generating economic value. The secondary findings also identify a fundamental shift in the customer value propositions within the conventional insurance industry, demonstrating successful utilisation of shared value model. The findings will help future academic researchers and practice managers to understand the evolving thematic components of value creation operating within the Australian insurance industry. Keywords: Shared Value, Australian Insurance Industry, Qualitative Case Study DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/11-30-09 Publication date:October 31st 201

Research Support Services: An Analysis of top Science and Technology Institutions

Purpose – This research article aims to find out the different types of research support services provided by the top fifty libraries listed under science and technology institutions category in the QS ranking 2022. The analysis results will provide an in-depth view of the research support services offered by these institutions and will be helpful to libraries everywhere in designing their research support service. Design/methodology/approach – The top 50 institutions listed in the 2022 QS World University Rankings in the category of science and technology were taken. Out of them, 44 libraries were selected on the basis of research support services provided by them. The available research support services were investigated using the website analysis of these institutions. The data so obtained are filtered, categorised, analysed and visualised to get results. Findings – With regard to research and data-intensive research, research support service has emerged as one of the most important services offered by academic institutions in the sciences and technologies category. Research data management (39, 88.63%), research guides (40, 90.90%), research consultation (42, 95.45%), research tools recommendation (36, 81.81%), scholarly publishing/communication (39, 88.63%), open access (37, 84.09%) and training and workshop (36, 81.81%) are the most common types of research support services. The leading three countries are the USA (29.54 per cent), the UK (11.36 per cent) and Australia (9.09 per cent). Most of the institutions under the QS top 50 ranking are from the USA. Originality/value – This report conducts a thorough study of research support services offered by academic libraries at world-class science and technology institutions. The results will aid science and technology academic libraries in enhancing their research support services, which will, in turn, aid researchers in their efforts and advance scientific discovery. Also, the article will assist other institutions in planning their research support services

The impact of Porter\u27s strategy types on the role of market research and customer relationship management

Purpose &ndash; This paper seeks to investigate the influence of Porter&rsquo;s strategy types on the use of customer relationship management (CRM) techniques and traditional market research, against theoretical and empirical evidence that differences in strategy types may result in variation in favoured marketing information sources and procedure.Design/methodology/approach &ndash; Depth interviews generated a series of scale items, which were combined with others derived from the literature in a questionnaire measuring strategy types, the roles of market research, and the characteristics of CRM systems. Responses were obtained from 240 senior marketing managers in Australia, and applied to the testing of five research propositions.Findings &ndash; ANOVA found no differences in CRM usage among the strategy types. Variation was widespread, however, in four roles of traditional market research: enhancing strategic decision making, increasing usability of existing data, presenting plans to senior management, and achieving productivity and political outcomes.Research limitations/implications &ndash; Future researchers using the Porter strategic types should separate &ldquo;marketing differentiators&rdquo; from &ldquo;product differentiators&rdquo; because they function and compete differently.Practical implications &ndash; All organisations can benefit from CRM systems, but &ldquo;marketing differentiators&rdquo; exhibit a relatively higher usage of traditional market research. This is likely to be because they compete by creating softer product differences, while others do so on harder characteristics such as price or product functionality.Originality/value &ndash; This is the first study to use the Porter types to explain differences between the roles and uses of market research and CRM within organisations.<br /

Prosper. An evaluation of tourism's contribution to regional economies

Prosper has delivered a three part model for assessing and enhancing the value of tourism in regional areas. The first part of the model uses simple indicators to provide an assessment of the economic, social, and environmental value attached to tourism. An indicators approach was adopted following extensive review of the application of more complex approaches to regional economic analysis. The review found that complex approaches are unlikely to produce results of sufficient validity and applicability to warrant their high resource costs (time, money, and skills). Complex models are also more difficult to maintain. The economic value is represented through quantitative indicators relating to employment and the number of businesses in tourism related sectors. These are all relative indicators (for example, proportion of all businesses which are businesses in the tourism sector or proportion of change in employment that can be attributed to change in tourism related employment). These indicators are drawn from national data sets which provide information for statistical local areas and/or postcode areas. This offers the opportunity to develop and deliver consistent national profiles through a vehicle such as Decipher. National standard data sets are supplemented in the model by more qualitative assessments of tourism’s contribution to the local economy made by business operators through interviews or surveys. Again, tracking the change in these assessments over time is the key to the model. Social and environmental values are substantially more difficult to assess. The Prosper case studies have included qualitative assessments derived from business and community meetings, local government and other administrative documents, media and a simplified network analysis identifying the extent to which community based organisations interact with the delivery of tourism services. Data sets have been identified which would allow a quantitative analysis of the extent to which tourism activity (visitor movements, business activity, business construction) encroaches on environmentally sensitive areas or is responsible for redevelopment or preservation of built environments. The case studies have not been able to implement this quantitative analysis. The second part of the model conducts a ‘diagnostic’ assessment of the capacity in the region to harness the value of tourism through innovation. Innovation is seen as a very important mechanism for both identifying regional issues and developing responses to those issues. Innovation is widely accepted in the literature as a driver of economic growth, and concepts such as ‘systems of innovation’ and ‘regional systems of innovation’ have become common in understanding how that innovation can be encouraged and placed within technical or geographical contexts. The diagnostic element of the Prosper model uses a series of techniques (including historical document analysis, interviews, and network analysis) to investigate the characteristics of region’s human tourism resources in relation to their ‘innovation potential’. Innovation potential is influenced by: • Economic competence – the extent to which those resources include capacity to manage projects and implement new ideas; • Clustering of resources – the spatial relationships between tourism attractions and amenities and nontourism amenities and resources which may be critical in the delivery of tourism product; • Networks – the social and professional relationships between tourism attractions and amenities and nontourism amenities and resources which may be critical in the delivery of tourism product; • Development blocks – the existence of sufficient new resources or new ways of looking at existing resources to provide opportunities for innovation. Development blocks need also to be a source of tension or disequilibrium so that their use is contested and therefore options more likely to be scrutinized as to their viability; • Entrepreneurship – the capacity for human resources to engage in new tasks and drive activity; • Critical mass – the relationship between the capacity to supply tourism product, and the capacity to access sufficient and appropriate markets (including resident markets) to support ongoing supply; • Local government – the extent to which local government considers tourism an important issue and is willing to engage in the innovation process • Production and distribution of knowledge – the extent to which the history and current status of tourism is understood and communicated, and the degree to which stakeholders can access and apply new information for identifying the potential or need for change, assessing the viability of projects, and evaluating activities; • Social, political and cultural capital – the strength of the social, political and cultural environments, and the degree to which those environments can be effectively harnessed to support tourism innovation. The third part of the model uses ‘visioning’ techniques (drawing in part on experiences from Sustainable Tourism CRC projects on ‘Gold Coast Visioning’ led by Professor Bill Faulkner at Griffith University, and research by Walker, Lee, Goddard, Kelly & Pedersen, 2005) to engage stakeholders in developing strategies for identifying tourism value issues (based on the community awareness of the value of tourism, aspirations for enhancing value, and strategies for addressing deficiencies in innovation potential). A number of processes are available for applying visioning techniques. Our case studies typically involved community leaders accepting ownership of the results of the application of the first components of the model and, in a facilitated or nonfacilitated way, delivering these results broadly through the community. In some cases, strategies emerged entirely from within the region, while in others, the research team was further engaged to collate strategy suggestions and summarise the arguments attached to these suggestions. In most cases, the final case study write-up included reference to suggestions which appeared likely to be carried forward. The Prosper model was tested in thirteen case studies, not simply to establish whether the relationships hypothesized between innovation potential and harnessing the value of tourism could be observed, but also to establish to extent to which participating regions viewed the application of the model as important and worthwhile in their attempts to move forward. The case studies were a mix of five new studies conducted using the Prosper model in a direct way and meta-analysis of eight previous case studies. The short time frame for the research (2 and ½ years) and the relatively long term nature of change made it impossible to design the research to evaluate the success of the strategies developed or any specific innovations in new case studies, so the metaanalysis studies were significant in this respect. The case studies strongly supported the second part of the model in particular, and the research served as an influential tool for many of the case study communities who were able to implement programs of value monitoring (through quantitative or qualitative means), identify ways in which their systems of innovation could be strengthened, and develop context specific mechanisms for identifying and assessing the feasibility of tourism development proposals. The research has delivered a number of outputs which may be used in dissemination and commercialisation of the intellectual property. A stand-alone publication reviewing the applicability of various economic value assessment techniques to regional tourism has been produced. A quick guide to the Prosper model and assessing whether application of the model would assist a particular region has been drafted, and is slated for development in collaboration with Sustainable Tourism CRC. A detailed methodology specification has been prepared, and may be used as the basis of consulting services or the conduct of further case studies. The quantitative data sets (Census, Sensis, TTF employment analysis, labour force statistics etc.) may be made available through Decipher and included in a structured Decipher product which facilitates analysis and interpretation. A book containing research results of the thirteen case studies and an overview of the relationship between those case studies and the Prosper model has been edited by Dean Carson and Dr Jim Macbeth and has been submitted to the Sustainable Tourism CRC editorial team led by Professor Chris Cooper at the University of Queensland

Retrospective evaluation and prospective value-add: a review of R&D investment in Australia

This paper describes a lead project currently underway through Australia’s Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre evaluating diffusion mechanisms and impacts of R&amp;D investment in the Australian built environment. Through a retrospective analysis of R&amp;D investment trends and industry outcomes, and a prospective assessment of industry futures using strategic foresighting, a future-focussed industry R&amp;D roadmap and pursuant policy guidelines will be developed. This research aims to build new understandings and knowledge relevant to R&amp;D funding strategies, research team formation and management, dissemination of outcomes and industry uptake. Each of these issues are critical due to: the disaggregated nature of the built environment industry; intense competition; limited R&amp;D investment; and new challenges (e.g. IT, increased environmental expectations). This paper details the context within which this project is being undertaken and the research design. Findings of the retrospective analysis of past R&amp;D investment in Australia will be presented at this conference

Riding On The Success Of Brand Australia: A Preliminary Analysis of Queensland Wines And Wine Regions

The Australian wine industry has achieved remarkable success during the last three decades. A key to this success has been the establishment of "Wine Brand Australia". While the majority of this success has been achieved by wineries located in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia, over the last decade the Queensland wine industry has experienced greater percentage of growth than the national average in terms of the number of producers, tonnage crushed and the value of exports – admittedly from a very low base (0.2% of wine grape production in 2000). The aim of the paper is to gain a better understanding of the marketing strategies and regional factors that have aided the Queensland wineries and wine regions in achieving success. The results are based on a survey of the industry and an analysis of published data. In addition, a number of targeted interviews were undertaken with industry leaders in Queensland. The finding of the study highlight the importance of destination branding in sustaining the growth and vitality of the Queensland wine industry and the need to focus on promoting wineries in Queensland as being in the tourism/service industry rather than in wine making

Identifying Chinese Secondary Teachers' Needs for Professional Development Abroad

China is at a crucial point for reforming its education system and seeks professional development abroad for selective secondary teachers. In this study, 13 experienced Chinese physics teachers undertook an intensive four-week professional development program in Australia. Early discussion with the participants and two surveys (i.e., mid-evaluation and end-evaluation surveys) aimed to gather qualitative responses for determining their needs for professional development. Data highlighted the essential nature of school visits for observing teaching practices, accurate translations, and the inclusion of physics-based excursions. Yet, apart from addressing personal and social needs, it was concluded future professional development must focus on delivering advanced content knowledge related specifically to the Chinese Curriculum Standards, and current pedagogical approaches and theories that branch beyond the transmission approach employed in China. The information in this study aims to assist other tertiary institutions conducting professional development programs for Chinese teachers

Driving safety: enhancing communication between clients, constructors and designers

This paper, which stems from qualitative research undertaken by the CRC for Construction Innovation in the context of the development of a Guide to Best Practice for Safer Construction in the Australian construction industry, investigates the communication relationship between the client, designer and constructor, and identifies the conditions under which effective communication takes place. Previous research has made little headway with respect to putting into practice strategies that have the potential to improve communication between the client, designer and constructor. This paper seeks to address this ongoing problem. From analysis of client, designer and constructor interviews that form part of industry-selected case studies reflecting excellence in OHS, best-practice tools that have the potential to enhance multi-party communication between the client, designer and constructor are presented. This research also informs the development of workable implementation strategies

Growth, distance to frontier and composition of human capital

We examine the contribution of human capital to economy-wide technological improvements through the two channels of innovation and imitation. We develop a theoretical model showing that skilled labor has a higher growth-enhancing effect closer to the technological frontier under the reasonable assumption that innovation is a relatively more skill intensive activity than imitation. Also, we provide evidence in favor of this prediction using a panel dataset covering 19 OECD countries between 1960 and 2000 and explain why previous empirical research had found no positive relationship between initial schooling level and subsequent growth in rich countries. In particular, we show that in OECD economies it is crucial to isolate the two separate margins of primary/secondary and tertiary education. Interestingly, the latter type of schooling proves to be a factor of economic divergence