40,479 research outputs found
Contextual factors, knowledge processes and performance in global sourcing of IT services: An investigation in China
Copyright @ 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global
is prohibited. Reuse of this article has been approved by the publisher.In this paper, the authors explore the influences of two major contextual factors—supplier team members’ cultural understanding and trust relationship—on knowledge processes and performance in global sourcing of IT services. The authors discuss a joint investigation conducted by a cross-cultural research team in China. Cultural understanding is measured by individualism with guanxi and mianzi, two Chinese cultural concepts, and trust relationship is measured by adjusting trust, a notion reflecting the uniqueness of the Chinese people. Knowledge processes are characterized by knowledge sharing. Performance is measured by the outcomes of global sourcing, which is represented by product success and personal satisfaction. Data are collected in 13 companies in Xi’an Software Park, with 200 structured questionnaires distributed to knowledge workers. The results of quantitative data analysis indicate that cultural understanding influences trust relationship greatly, as well as knowledge sharing and performance in global sourcing of IT services. Trust relationship significantly impacts knowledge sharing, whereas trust relationship and knowledge sharing have no impact on performance. This study suggests that special aspects of the Chinese context have significant direct impacts on knowledge processes while no direct and immediate impacts on performance in global sourcing of IT services.National Natural Science Foundation of China, Program for Humanity
and Social Science Research, Program for New Century Excellent Talents in University in China and Brunel University's Research Development Fund
Internal and contextual factors, knowledge processes and performance: From the Chinese provider's perspective
This is the post-print version of the final paper published in Expert Systems with Applications. The published article is available from the link below. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. Copyright @ 2011 Elsevier B.V.This paper explores the influences of two internal factors, i.e. supplier team’s IT-based skills and communication with client’s team, and two contextual factors, i.e. supplier team’s understanding of client’s culture and collaboration with client’s team, on knowledge processes and performance in global sourcing of IT services from the Chinese provider’s perspective. Knowledge processes are characterized by knowledge sharing, knowledge-based coordination and expertise management, and performance is measured by product success and personal satisfaction. Data have been collected in 13 companies in Xi’an Software Park, with 26 in-depth, semi-structured interviews held with top and middle managers, and 200 structured questionnaires distributed to knowledge workers who are involved in global sourcing projects. The results indicate that supplier team’s IT-based skills, communication with client’s team, cultural understanding of client’s culture and collaboration with client’s team are positively associated with knowledge process and performance. Also, knowledge sharing, knowledge-based coordination and expertise management are found to be crucial for those influential factors to function positively and contribute to the performance. The findings of this study suggest that the effects of key factors on knowledge processes and performance in global sourcing of IT services appear to transcend the social and cultural differences; however, contextual factors seem to have more significant influences on knowledge processes and performance in global sourcing of IT services.National Natural Science Foundation of Chin
Regional resilience in recessionary times: a case study of the East Midlands
Purpose: Since the 1990's the fashion industry has reflected the issues generally arising in the manufacturing sector, namely rapid and deep structural changes, the development of new supply chain relationships, ICT impacts and increasing globalisation with the attendant issues of ethical sourcing, off-shoring, new emerging markets and recessionary ripples. This paper focuses on one particular aspect of the fashion industry, namely the apparel sector and in particular 'fast fashion' to explore the issues arising for the SMEs in the supply chain. Approach: The research adopts a qualitative methodology and is longitudinal in nature, spanning 5 years from August 2006. The first stage of the research is reported here, where a series of focussed interview scenarios were conducted over an eighteenth month period. The sample of 12 SMEs was a convenience one, drawn from the 30 participants who took part in a business to business event in Leicester, a geographical location which acts as a microcosm of the apparel industry. Interviews were used to elicit narrative data about was what was actually happening in these apparel supply chains. Findings: The apparel supply chain has changed significantly due to recessionary ripples and structural changes. The SMEs have had more success in managing the upstream rather than the downstream relationships and relationships between buyer and suppliers continue to be fractious. Innovation has occurred but is hampered by the relationships that persist. Culture has proved to be a key dimension
Transmission losses cost allocation in restructed electricity market environment
During these recent decades, the restructuring system of electricity market
has been taken places around the whole world. Due to the restructuring
(deregulation), the electrical power system has been divided into three separates
categories according to the function. First stage of power system is the generation
companies (GENCOs), followed by transmission companies (TRANSCOs) and
distribution companies (DISCOs). The competitive environment will be handling by
a non-profit entity, independent system operator (ISO) that functioning as the system
securities that have to make sure that the power system continues to operate in a
stable and economical manner. However, restructuring system can give effect during
the energy transmission. One of the transmission issues is regarding the power
losses. To overcome the losses, generators must generate more power. The issue
regarding the transmission losses in deregulated system is how to allocate it to the
user and charge them in fair ways as in for instance the pool trading model, it is hard
to trace the power contribution and losses of each user in transmission line. In
addition, the users didn’t want to pay the losses, it means that the ISO have to
responsible for the losses and it will be unfair to put the responsible to ISO alone.
Therefore, in this project, the allocation of transmission losses and loss cost methods
which are the pro-rata and proportional sharing method will be investigated.
Comparison between those methods will be done in order to identify which types of
method that reflect an efficient and fair way to distribute the cost of the transmission
losses to the user. These chosen methods will be tested on IEEE bus system
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Factors impacting knowledge transfer success in information systems outsourcing
Despite increased research interest on knowledge transfer in information systems (IS) outsourcing, the field still lacks sound and holistic understanding of the key factors influencing knowledge transfer success. The present paper attempts to provide a synthesis of existing theoretical perspectives and empirical findings related to the factors that facilitate or hamper knowledge transfer success in IS outsourcing. The data collection method is discussed and the key findings are presented. Conclusion is drawn and further research is suggested
THE MEASURING FRAMEWORK OF OUTSOURCING SUCCESS: A SOCIAL EXCHANGE PERSPECTIVE
Outsourcing has become a buzz word in strategic management as the competition of modern business is the competition among business networks. The reviews on the measure of outsourcing success are conceptually fragmented due to different theories that have been applied in different studies. The overall aim of this paper is to develop an integrated framework in measuring the performance of services outsourcing. The framework is derived from Social Exchange Theory. Each party responsibility in dyadic relationship over outsourcing success is examined. This is followed by the identification of the mediating effect of compatibility between partners, and moderating effect of partnership quality to the aforementioned relationship. Outsourcing performance is proposed to be evaluated from the perspectives of tactical, strategic and behavioral dimensionsBuyer related factors, Compatibility, Outsourcing, and Partnership quality, Services ,Supplier related factors
A Conceptual Framework of Reverse Logistics Impact on Firm Performance
This study aims to examine the reverse logistics factors that impact upon firm performance. We review reverse logistics factors under three research streams: (a) resource-based view of the firm, including: Firm strategy, Operations management, and Customer loyalty (b) relational theory, including: Supply chain efficiency, Supply chain collaboration, and institutional theory, including: Government support and Cultural alignment. We measured firm performance with 5 measures: profitability, cost, innovativeness, perceived competitive advantage, and perceived customer satisfaction. We discuss implications for research, policy and practice
Examining client perceptions of partnership quality and its dimensions in an IT outsourcing relationship
This paper reports on an empirical study of the multidimensionality of partnership quality in IT outsourcing arrangements and the relationships between these dimensions of partnership quality. A two-phase national survey was conducted to collect empirical data to confirm the dimensions of partnership quality in an IT outsourcing arrangement from the client organisation perspective and to identify the significant relationships between these dimensions using a second generation multivariate analysis technique—partial least squares
(PLS). The findings from results of the data analyses show that inter-organisational trust, shared business understanding and to a lesser extent, functional and dysfunctional conflict between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor in an IT outsourcing relationship
are the key determinants of partnership quality. The key outcome variable for high partnership quality between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor in an IT
outsourcing relationship is mutual beneficial sharing of risks and benefits. Commitment in an IT outsourcing relationship is confirmed as a multidimensional construct of behaviour commitment and temporal/continuance commitment and was found to be influenced by the other dimensions of partnership quality. The key findings of this study provide support for the notion that trust and shared business understanding are key drivers in the IT outsourcing
partnership style relationship ensuring that the sharing of risks and benefits are realised and conflict is minimised leading to a high quality and ultimately successful partnership between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor. Furthermore our findings indicate that
behavioural commitment to the contractual obligations of an IT outsourcing relationship sustains an ongoing temporal commitment to the partnership between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor
IT Project Management from a Systems Thinking Perspective: A Position Paper
We proposes a Systems Thinking approach to the study of IT project management and show how this approach helps project managers in controlling their projects. To illustrate our proposal, we present an example model of the dynamics of IT out-sourcing projects. The example model explains these dynamics in terms of feedback loops consisting of causal relations re-ported in the literature. The model provides insight in how coordination, trust, information exchange and possibilities for op-portunistic behaviour influence each other and together influence delivery quality, which in turn influences trust. The integra-tion of these insights provided by applying the Systems Thinking perspective helps project managers to reason about how their choices influence project outcome. The Systems Thinking perspective can serve as an additional tool in the academic study of IT project management. Applying the Systems Thinking perspective also calls for additional research in which this perspective is itself the object of study
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