Local firms’ strategies and cluster coopetition in Tuscany: the case of “Toscana Promozione” Agency

This study examines a new paradigm of coopetition strategy emerged in Tuscany, one of the most famous Italian area in the world for cultural and economic heritage. Nowadays, global success in business requires that firms implement both competitive and cooperative strategies (i.e. coopetition). This strategy, according to Ray Noorda (the founder of Novell – an American multinational software and services company headquartered in Provo, Utah), considers the advantages arising when both cooperation and competition coexist in the same domains. In the last twenty years, articles related to coopetition investigated several aspect of this strategy; in contrast, industry level coopetition has been investigated less than the other features (Rusko, 2011). Giving the literature review, there is a lack in knowledge regarding the benefits of coopetition fostered by local governments with foreign governments. This study presents a new approach of industry-level coopetition through the qualitative case study of the economic promotion agency in Tuscany, Toscana Promozione. The paper presents a new paradigm of coopetition strategy in where firms are in a coopetition relationship with foreign competitors (and governments) thanks to the support of local authorities. The main result of the research is that the boundary between institution and entrepreneur must be clear, government and local authorities must enforce competitiveness to improve the environment in which firms cooperate with the institution and compete each other with their own strategy. However during economic downturn periods, government and local authorities should, also, consider the possibility to become promoter, and supporter, of emerging entrepreneurship

Exploring the determinants of mobile health adoption by hospitals in China: Empirical study

Background:Although mobile health (mHealth) has the potential to transform health care by delivering better outcomes at a much lower cost than traditional health care services, little is known about mHealth adoption by hospitals.Objective:This study aims to explore the determinants of mHealth adoption by hospitals using the technology-organization-environment (TOE) framework.Methods:We conducted an interviewer-administered survey with 87 managers in Chinese public hospitals and analyzed the data using logistic regression.Results:The results of our survey indicate that perceived ease of use (β=.692; P< .002), system security (β=.473; P< .05), top management support (β=1.466; P< .002), hospital size (β=1.069; P< .004), and external pressure (β=.703; P< .005) are significantly related to hospitals’ adoption of mHealth. However, information technology infrastructure (β=.574; P< .02), system reliability (β=−1.291; P< .01), and government policy (β=2.010; P< .04) are significant but negatively related to hospitals’ adoption of mHealth.Conclusions:We found that TOE model works in the context of mHealth adoption by hospitals. In addition to technological predictors, organizational and environmental predictors are critical for explaining mHealth adoption by Chinese hospitals

Local firms’ strategies and cluster coopetition in Tuscany: the case of “Toscana Promozione” Agency

This study examines a new paradigm of coopetition strategy emerged in Tuscany, one of the most famous Italian area in the world for cultural and economic heritage. Nowadays, global success in business requires that firms implement both competitive and cooperative strategies (i.e. coopetition). This strategy, according to Ray Noorda (the founder of Novell – an American multinational software and services company headquartered in Provo, Utah), considers the advantages arising when both cooperation and competition coexist in the same domains. In the last twenty years, articles related to coopetition investigated several aspect of this strategy; in contrast, industry level coopetition has been investigated less than the other features (Rusko, 2011). Giving the literature review, there is a lack in knowledge regarding the benefits of coopetition fostered by local governments with foreign governments. This study presents a new approach of industry-level coopetition through the qualitative case study of the economic promotion agency in Tuscany, Toscana Promozione. The paper presents a new paradigm of coopetition strategy in where firms are in a coopetition relationship with foreign competitors (and governments) thanks to the support of local authorities. The main result of the research is that the boundary between institution and entrepreneur must be clear, government and local authorities must enforce competitiveness to improve the environment in which firms cooperate with the institution and compete each other with their own strategy. However during economic downturn periods, government and local authorities should, also, consider the possibility to become promoter, and supporter, of emerging entrepreneurship

Ethical Marketing Model for Luxury Hotel Chains: Development and Validation of a Performance Evaluation Tool

The aim of this study is to develop a new performance evaluation tool that is stringently applied to the hotel chains, considering the associated ethical marketing dimensions to measure its proper strategic, tactical, and operational role and impact within hospitality marketing management plans, campaigns, and strategies implemented. A Delphi technique was conducted as the selected research qualitative method, comprising three rounds. A total of 23 panel participants, such as directors and managers of marketing, e-commerce, sales, and branding, completed all three rounds. Two major areas of ethical marketing, internal and external, both divided into five dimensions, each with underlying items, were found to comprise the ethical marketing model for luxury hotel chains: (1) internal area of marketing (with five dimensions: integration, training, equal opportunities, performance evaluation, and smart policies) and (2) external area of marketing (with five dimensions: stakeholders, booking platforms and CRM, marketing plan, digital marketing campaigns, and social media platforms). The study concludes with useful insights and remarks. The generalisability of the results may be limited owning to the partial or not full applicability across all luxury hotel chains. The model still needs to be empirically applied in luxury hotel chains to enrich its robustness, covering a wider spread of four- and five-star luxury hotels. There is a growing potential for researchers, hotel decision makers, and marketing and sales managers and directors to achieve many advantages and benefits from the proposed model, supporting the efforts for ethical marketing theory and practice, such as hotel brand positioning strategies and formulation of more targeted and finely tuned ethical marketing strategies, tactics, and plans. This is the first study to develop and validate a performance evaluation tool of ethical marketing for luxury hotel chains. This pioneering approach extends the scope into ethical marketing because this model has never been used in this area.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The elements of innovation capabilities in service organizations

The literature on innovation have been trying to answer the question of how to identify firms’ innovative behavior using an evolutionary economics approach (Nelson & Winter, 1982; Dosi & Nelson, 1994), and has developed the concept of “innovation capability” as an analysis model, particularly for manufacturing firms. Zawislak et al. (2012) propose and operationalize a model that is simple and addresses either technological and business aspects of firm innovation. However, the case of service organizations demand a slightly different approach on innovation because of their particular characteristics. Production and consumption simultaneity, strong relational character, and a process-oriented value generation are all features that influence how service firms organize their innovation capabilities. Therefore, the objective of this study is to uncover the elements that comprise innovation capabilities in services and that manifest the innovative behavior of these firms. We conducted an explorative qualitative study, in which we interviewed top management executives of six service firms of multiple sizes and operating in varied industries. We have also gathered additional secondary data from multiple sources. The result is the four innovation capabilities (i.e. Development, Operations, Management, Transaction) proposed in Zawislak’s et al. (2012) model adjusted to service organizations and depicted into 32 defining elements distributed through the innovation capabilities. The analysis also sheds light into the multiple overlaps between elements, exposing diffuse frontiers of those innovation capabilities, and emphasizes the relational character of services as it shapes how innovation is organized.A literatura sobre inovação tem tentado responder à questão de como identificar o comportamento inovador das empresas usando a abordagem da economia evolucionária (Nelson & Winter, 1982; Dosi & Nelson, 1994), e desenvolveu o conceito de “capacidade de inovação” como um modelo de análise, particularmente para empresas de manufatura. Zawislak et al. (2012) propõem e operacionalizam um modelo simples e que aborda aspectos tecnológicos e de negócios da inovação nas empresas. No entanto, o caso das organizações de serviços exige uma abordagem ligeiramente diferente da inovação devido às suas características particulares. Simultaneidade de produção e consumo, forte caráter relacional e uma geração de valor orientada a processos são características que influenciam a maneira como as empresas de serviços organizam suas capacidades de inovação. Portanto, o objetivo deste estudo é descobrir os elementos que compõem as capacidades de inovação em serviços e que manifestam o comportamento inovador dessas firmas. Realizamos um estudo qualitativo exploratório, no qual entrevistamos executivos da alta administração de seis empresas de serviços de vários tamanhos e operando em diversos setores. Também coletamos dados secundários adicionais de várias fontes. O resultado são as quatro capacidades de inovação (ou seja, Desenvolvimento, Operações, Gestão, Transação) propostos em Zawislak et al. (2012) ajustadas às organizações de serviço e representadas em 32 elementos definidores distribuídos entre as capacidades de inovação. A análise também mostra múltiplas sobreposições entre elementos, expondo fronteiras difusas das capacidades de inovação e acentua o caráter relacional dos serviços como forma de moldar como a inovação é organizada

The drivers of Corporate Social Responsibility in the supply chain. A case study.

Purpose: The paper studies the way in which a SME integrates CSR into its corporate strategy, the practices it puts in place and how its CSR strategies reflect on its suppliers and customers relations. Methodology/Research limitations: A qualitative case study methodology is used. The use of a single case study limits the generalizing capacity of these findings. Findings: The entrepreneur’s ethical beliefs and value system play a fundamental role in shaping sustainable corporate strategy. Furthermore, the type of competitive strategy selected based on innovation, quality and responsibility clearly emerges both in terms of well defined management procedures and supply chain relations as a whole aimed at involving partners in the process of sustainable innovation. Originality/value: The paper presents a SME that has devised an original innovative business model. The study pivots on the issues of innovation and eco-sustainability in a context of drivers for CRS and business ethics. These values are considered fundamental at International level; the United Nations has declared 2011 the “International Year of Forestry”