Designing the customer journey in a service delivery network: evidence from cancer patient treatments

Customer experiences - not in the least for customers with chronic diseases - depend on a series of exchanges over a considerable amount of time with a variety of service providers and thus a service delivery network (SDN). The impact of SDNs on the customer experience, however, is unclear. This research provides insight into (1) the service delivery system characteristics in SDNs, and (2) their impact on the relationship between customer journey duration and value for time as an important customer experience indicator. The service delivery system characteristics were explored by process travel sheets of patients undergoing cancer treatment in a hospital (n=412). These data were linked to time measurement data (n=262) and survey data (n=312) to explain customer journey duration and value for time, thereby showing the importance of the number of service events and the type of service providers. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed

Measuring performance in healthcare

Hospitals invest in process management and process optimization from an organizational and patient perspective to increase efficiency and simultaneously the quality of their operations. Consequently, the use of process-oriented performance measurement systems gains importance. This study contributes to the development of a dashboard for the process of hip surgery using a case study design. We integrate strategic goals of hospital management and different stakeholders with the analysis of Business Process Management and Hospital Information Systems’ data. Process-oriented KPIs were integrated into the dashboard using a three-step approach. Dashboards enable healthcare organizations to put process-oriented performance measurement into practice

Implications of customer participation in outsourcing noncore services to third parties

Purpose Focal service providers increasingly involve customers in the decision-making about outsourcing parts of the service delivery process to third parties. The present study investigates how customers' outsourcing decisions affect the formation of the waiting experience with the focal service provider, by which the objective waiting time, environmental quality and interactional quality act as focal drivers. Design/methodology/approach To test our hypotheses in the context of cancer care, we gathered process data and experience data by means of a patient observation template (n = 640) and a patient survey (n = 487). The combined data (n = 377) were analyzed using Bayesian models. Findings This study shows that opting for a service triad (i.e. outsourcing non-core services to a third party) deduces customers' attention away from the objective waiting time with the focal service provider but not from the environmental and interactional quality offered by the focal service provider. When the type of service triad coordination is considered, we observe similar effects for a focal service provider-coordinated service triad while in a customer-coordinated service triad the interactional quality is the sole experience driver of waiting experiences that remains significant. Originality/value By investigating the implications of customer participation in the decision-making about outsourcing parts of the service delivery process to third parties, this research contributes to the service design, service triad and service operations literature. Specifically, this study shows that customer outsourcing decisions impact waiting experience formation with the focal service provider.Purpose Focal service providers increasingly involve customers in the decision-making about outsourcing parts of the service delivery process to third parties. The present study investigates how customers' outsourcing decisions affect the formation of the waiting experience with the focal service provider, by which the objective waiting time, environmental quality and interactional quality act as focal drivers. Design/methodology/approach To test our hypotheses in the context of cancer care, we gathered process data and experience data by means of a patient observation template (n = 640) and a patient survey (n = 487). The combined data (n = 377) were analyzed using Bayesian models. Findings This study shows that opting for a service triad (i.e. outsourcing non-core services to a third party) deduces customers' attention away from the objective waiting time with the focal service provider but not from the environmental and interactional quality offered by the focal service provider. When the type of service triad coordination is considered, we observe similar effects for a focal service provider-coordinated service triad while in a customer-coordinated service triad the interactional quality is the sole experience driver of waiting experiences that remains significant. Originality/value By investigating the implications of customer participation in the decision-making about outsourcing parts of the service delivery process to third parties, this research contributes to the service design, service triad and service operations literature. Specifically, this study shows that customer outsourcing decisions impact waiting experience formation with the focal service provider.A

How & why governance dynamics emerge in inter-organizational networks : a meta-ethnographic analysis

Over the past few decades, governance was a pervasive theme in discussions of strategy and management in the context of inter-organizational networks. To date, network researchers call for a dynamic theory of governance in inter-organizational networks to deal with increased uncertainty in the network environment and unpredictable network changes. In response to this call, the present research aims to generate a better understanding of how and why governance mechanisms in inter-organizational networks change over time and the implications of such governance evolutions for the network actors. Based upon a meta-ethnographic analysis of 19 longitudinal case studies, a multitude of governance mechanisms ranging from relational to formal governance are identified at the single dyad, multiple dyad and network level. These governance mechanisms constitute five network governance dynamics over time: purely relational, relational-formal, combinations of relational and formal, formal-relational, and purely formal governance patterns. These governance dynamics empirically demonstrate that governance in inter-organizational networks is always possible in other, although not infinite, ways. By detailing the conditions under which path dependencies occur, the present research advances the literature on network governance

New insights into carotenoid accumulation in tomato fruit = Nuevos aspectos sobre acumulación de carotenoides en el fruto del tomate

[spa] El licopeno es un carotenoide antioxidante presente en altas cantidades en el interior del fruto de tomate maduro y algunos frutos rojos. Sus beneficios para la salud a nivel de prevención de cáncer de próstata y enfermedades cardiovasculares, han puesto de manifiesto el interés de la investigación sobre esta molécula. Los enfoques biotecnológicos destinados a aumentar el contenido de licopeno en modelos vegetales por lo general han tenido pocos resultados. Aparentemente, el desconocimiento mecanístico de cómo y dónde se acumula el licopeno podría estar limitando el éxito de investigaciones centradas a nivel enzimático o biosintético. En la presente tesis, se trata de confirmar y aclarar específicamente qué estructuras son las reponsables de la acumulación de licopeno en la maduración del fruto. Se ha desarrollado un método válido para aislar estructuras sumidero, y otras fracciones membranosas pertenecientes al cromoplasto. La caracterización de dichas fracciones ha permitido la asignación de una identidad conocida total o parcialmente, y ha permitido obtener conclusiones referidas a las estructuras sumidero estudiadas. Se ha determinado que la mayoría del licopeno encontrado estaba en fracciones que contienen cristales. Se ha determinado también que otra estructura, los plastoglobules está en fruto de tomate maduro muy enriquecida en precursores de la síntesis de carotenoides. En el transcurso de este trabajo, se hallaron determinadas proteínas implicadas en la acumulación de carotenoides en los sumideros, así como relacionadas con la resistencia al estrés. Esta familia, las fibrillinas, ha sido caracterizada bioinformatica y biotecnológicamente, llenando un vacío existente en su campo. Se ha elucidad con éxito un modelo que describe de forma general esta familia, que hasta hace poco era conocida de forma muy limitada. Se considera que en este trabajo se han realizado aportaciones valiosas, respondiendo preguntas científicas que pueden potenciar nuevas labores de investigación en el campo de los carotenoides, y en la resistencia de la planta al estrés.[eng] Lycopene is an antioxidant carotenoid present in high amounts inside the ripe tomato fruit, in watermelon, red bell pepper and a few other red-pigmented fruits. Its health benefits, notably the prevention of prostate cancer and cardiovascular diseas, have cast attention on this molecule, justifying the study of its biosynthesis, regulation and accumulation. Biotechnological approaches aimed at increasing the lycopene content in tomato fruits or other plant leves have usually had limited results, which reflect to some extent the lack of knowledge regarding on how the accumulation occurs in vivo. It has been long hypothesized that a number of “sink” structures must be formed during the ripening of the tomato fruit, as the green chloroplast differentiates into the red-coloured chromoplast. In the present thesis, the elucidation of which are these sink structures is addressed. The subfractionation of the tomato fruit chromoplast has been addressed, in the hope of disambiguating the location of lycopene. Initially, a method for isolating tomato chromoplasts was pursued, but eventually a more general method has been set up with the aim of de-composing the whole chromoplast. So, a method was developed which allowed for the isolatiofng of the different membranous sub-fractions that are found inside the mature tomato fruit chromoplast. The resulting fractions have been profiled at the level of carotenoids, tocopherols, galacto- and phopholipids, and protein. As well, a characterization of the fractions has been performed by electron microscopy. This has allowed for the identification of fractions containing pure plastoglobules, fractions containing a mixture of plastoglobules and lycopene crystals, and other membranous fractions with a more complex identity. It has determined that the majority of the lycopene was found in the crystal-containing fractions. It was as well found that plastoglobules contain a very high proportion of the carotenoid precursors phytoene and phytofluene. During the proteomics works, the concept “outlier proteome” is suggested, in complementareity to the concept of “core proteome”, and hypotheses are given regarding the finding of proteins in unexpected locations. During the decourse of this work, a number of proteins involved in the accumulation of carotenoids inside the tomato chromoplast, as well as more generally related to plant stress resistance were identified. Those are the fibrillins, which had been reported to be a family of proteins which precisely bound to the possible sink structures that had been considered in this work. The lack of further structural, mechanistical and functional information on this family of proteins, has led to the bioinformatic, and biotechnological study of fibrillins. The quantitative and qualitative importance of some of them is strongly suggested during tomato fruit ripening. As well, the information vacuum regarding most of the family has been notably filled. Consensus sequences of al this family have been elaborated, and their characteristics elucidated. A general model describing the defining characteristic of the whole family has been elaborated, and a tentative structure is strongly suggested, even if only by bioinformatics means, supported by previous literature. This model casts new light into the study of these proteins, whose research evolved with slowness over recent years. The knowledge of their organization in regard to their function will lend a firm hand to boost further research in this field. In summary, it is believed that this work offers a number of novel apportations and hypothesis confirmations which give it value to empower further research

Elements for a methodology to interpret hydrochemichal data

The EWFD(European Water Framework Directive) mandates reaching a good status for water bodies. So, monitoring of our water sources in order to administer, protect and plan water use in associated areas is mandatory. In order to accomplish the EWFD objectives the Ag`encia Catalana de l’Aigua has a large ground water quality network monitoring points all over the territory. This network consists of a series of wells that measures a large number of parameters which lead to a huge amount of data to be interpreted. The size of the database poses a tremendous challenge for interpreting, and thus, there is a need to explore the possibility of improving data representation and initial data analysis. The aim of this thesis is to identify a series of techniques, tools or methods to ease a systematic interpretation of generic groundwater chemical data sets, assuming that the user might not be an expert in managing such kind of data. So, the following tasks have been performed: target area definition and study; techniques and tools decision; data acquisition, conversion and filtering and, finally, technique application. As a result of these process, an appropriate data format has shown to be be mandatory in order to correctly export the data set to the needed codes. When applied, the most easily understood techniques have usually been graphic methods. In some cases their interpretability has been conditioned by data quality or code lacks so both fields are intended to be improved in future work lines. These includes taking advantage of Aquachem’s modelling techniques and ArcGIS plotting advantages. On the other hand, the most interesting multivariate technique has been factor analysis, which has no unique interpretations and might have to be more studied in. So, on the whole, to validate the conclusions of this work it might be interesting to apply this same methodology on different data sets