Customer orientation of frontline employees and organizational commitment

This study investigates the effect of alignment between employee and firm customer orientation on the organizational commitment of frontline service employees. Furthermore, the study examines how the size and nature of the discrepancy between employee customer orientation and firm customer orientation affects organizational commitment. The results suggest that organizational commitment is stronger when employee and firm customer orientation are matched than when they are not. Furthermore, organizational commitment is slightly stronger when employee customer orientation exceeds firm customer orientation than when the reverse is the case. The results suggest that efforts expended by firms in hiring and retaining customer-oriented service workers will be unlikely to yield optimal commitment benefits without simultaneous investments to improve firm-level customer orientation

An Investigation of Coxsackie and Adenovirus Receptor in the Human Pancreatic Beta Cells

Human pancreatic beta cells are susceptible to infection by enteroviruses, especially Coxsackie B viruses, and such infections could contribute to the development of Type 1 diabetes. Enteroviruses gain entry via cell surface receptors, one of which, the Coxsackie and Adenovirus receptor (CAR), is a transmembrane cell adhesion protein which serves as a key entry receptor for Coxsackie B viruses and is thought to be localised mainly within regions where contacts are formed between adjacent cells. CAR exists as at least 5 isoforms and this study has examined their expression profile and distribution in the human pancreas utilising; formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded pancreatic sections from non-diabetic individuals, type 1 diabetes patients and a human tissue microarray. Isolated human islets, human pancreatic beta and ductal cell lines were also studied. Immunological and molecular approaches were employed to examine the expression and cellular localisation of the known CAR isoforms in human pancreas. One specific isoform of CAR (CAR-SIV) with a unique C terminal PDZ binding domain, was highly expressed in human beta cells at the protein level. Surprisingly, it was distributed in a punctate manner mainly within the cytoplasm of the cells, rather than at the cell surface. In human beta cells, within the cytoplasm CAR-SIV co-localised with ZnT8, PC1/3 and insulin but less so with proinsulin suggesting that CAR-SIV is associated with insulin secretory granules. Immunogold labelling and electron microscopic analysis revealed that CAR-SIV is localised both to maturing insulin secretory granules and to fully mature, dense-core (insulin) secretory granules. Intriguingly, CAR-SIV colocalises and interacts with a cytosolic protein, PICK1, which plays a role in the budding, maturation and trafficking of insulin secretory granules. On this basis, a model is proposed whereby CAR-SIV and PICK1 interact to regulate the maturation and trafficking of insulin secretory granules. Overall, this study suggests that the specialised role and subcellular localisation of CAR-SIV in human beta cells may contribute to their sensitivity to enteroviral infection following externalisation of the protein at the cell surface, during insulin exocytosis.FFWGJDRFPEVNETJDRFMR

An investigation of the antecedents of service delivery and organisational performance: a service culture perspective

Service quality has been shown to be critical for the success of service organisations. However, the quality of service delivered by an organisation is dependent on the behaviours of organisational members. Therefore, understanding the various processes that foster desirable service behaviour is important. While there have been many studies which deal with antecedents of service delivery, research adopting a cultural perspective and focusing on elements such as shared values and norms have been somewhat sparse. This is quite surprising given the amount of reference to the importance of a service culture. Recently, there have been calls for research into the cultural determinants of service quality and in particular service culture. This study answers the call by testing a multi-layer model of service culture and performance. The key objectives of the study relate to understanding how service culture leads to both customer-based and financial performance, as well as investigating the process of culture transmission from managers to employees. On the basis of data collected from management and employees, the study assesses service culture at the management and the employee levels, focusing simultaneously on assumptions, value, norms and behaviours. Two routes for culture transmission: the social contagion and behavioural routes are hypothesised and tested. The key findings are that shared service norms are the key impact point of culture transmission from management to employees as well as the key determinant of employee service delivery behaviour. The findings also show that proximity among managers and employees is crucial in the diffusion of service culture and hence in the leadership influencing process. Based on the findings, managerial implications for managing service employees are discussed as well as limitations and suggestions for future research

The Effect of Processing Conditions on the Bioactive Compounds, Aroma Profile and Sensory Attributes of Wine from Hibiscus sabdariffa

Hibiscus sabdariffa (H. sabdariffa) is a rich source of bioactive phytochemicals with potential health benefits. Based on its reported use in folk medicine for the treatment of hypertension and recently type 2 diabetes, the plant has gained considerable commercial importance as a functional food. Three varieties of H. sabdariffa were analyzed for their phytochemical content and inhibitory potential on carbohydrate-digesting enzymes as a basis for selecting a variety for wine production. The dark red variety was chosen as it was highest in phenolic content and partially inhibited α–glucosidase (maltase), with delphinidin 3-O-sambubioside, cyanidin 3-O-sambubioside and 3-O-caffeoylquinic acid accounting for 65 % of this activity. None of the varieties significantly inhibited α–amylase. Regarding H. sabdarifa wine, the effect of fermentation (20 and 30 ˚C) and ageing (6, 15 and 30 °C) temperatures on the phytochemical composition and bioactivity of Roselle wine was investigated for a period of 40 days and 12 months respectively. The main change in phytochemical composition observed during fermentation was the hydrolysis of 3-O-caffeolquinic acid and the concomitant increase of caffeic acid irrespective of fermentation temperature. Wine fermented at 20 ˚C was slightly more active for α–glucosidase inhibition with more fruity aromas, but there were more flowery notes at 30 ˚C. Although ageing temperature did not produce an obvious trend in concentrations of most of the volatiles analysed, its impact was clearly demonstrated in the final concentrations of diethyl succinate which increased with higher ageing temperature. The data on the overall quality rating of roselle wine by a sensory panel showed that neither fermentation nor ageing temperatures produced any significant difference (p ≥ 0.05) in the wine samples. This study demonstrates that processing of H. sabdariffa into wine represents a promising alternative to expanding the functional properties of this crop

The radio-protective effects of n-Hexane extracts of Telfairia occidentalis Hook. f. and Cucumeropsis mannii Naud. seed oils on the liver of irradiated male Wistar rats

The human population is predisposed to some considerable amounts of radiation especially ionizing radiation which may negatively impact their metabolic processes. Herbal extracts can mitigate these harmful effects. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the protective effect of n-Hexane extracts of Telfairia occidentalis and Cucumeropsis mannii seeds oils against radiation-mediated oxidative stress in Wistar rats. Sixty male rats were randomly distributed into six groups of six animals each and n-hexane extracts of T. occidentalis and C. mannii were administered at a dose of 2.4 or 4.8 mg/kg b. wt., orally for 7 days before irradiation and 10 days after irradiation, when they were sacrificed. Lipid peroxidation was measured, hepatic antioxidant status; SOD, CAT, GSH, Gpx and GST were estimated. The activities of liver enzymes: ALT, AST and ALP were measured and histological examination of sections of the liver was carried out. Radiation significantly increased MDA levels, SOD, GPx, AST, ALT and ALP activities but reduced body weights, total proteins, CAT, GSH and GST activities. Administration of the extracts significantly reduces the levels of MDA, SOD, GPx, ALT, AST and ALP activities while they increase the activities of CAT, GSH and GST at a dosage of 4.8 mg/kg. Histological examination showed increased levels of toxicity in radiated and groups administered 2.4 mg/kg extracts. From these findings, extracts of T. occidentalis and C. mannii at 4.8 mg/kg b. wt are effective herbal remedies in the prevention and amelioration of the consequences of oxidative stress due to exposure to ionizing radiation

Antecedents of adaptive selling among retail salespeople: a multilevel analysis

The literature on adaptive selling behavior has grown rapidly over the years, with heavier emphasis placed on industrial/professional salespeople and less attention given to retail salespeople. This study contributes to addressing this imbalance by examining the effects of two salesperson factors (selling skills and affective commitment) and two company-level variables (empowerment and behavior-based control) on the adaptive selling behavior of retail salespeople. Using data obtained from a two staged sampling procedure (105 companies and 419 salespeople), we employ a multilevel analytical procedure to model the effects of the salesperson and organizational factors on adaptive selling behavior of retail salespeople. The results indicate that selling skills and affective commitment directly influence adaptive selling while empowerment and behavior based control only indirectly influence adaptive selling behavior. Based on the findings of this study, implications for managing retail salespeople as well as limitations and suggestions for future research are presented

Attitude of Youth to Agricultural Development Programmes In Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria

The problems associated with youth behaviours in the Niger Delta region necessitated the study. The specific objectives were to collate the current agricultural development intervention programmes; compare the attitude of youth leaders and non-leaders to agricultural development intervention programmes, and examine the factors militating against youth involvement in agriculture. Questionnaires were used to elicit information from respondents. Simple random sampling was used to select respondents. The sample was made up of 71 youths comprising 18 leaders and 53 non-leaders. Data were analysed by the use of mean and t-test. It was found that 5 agricultural development programmes currently existed in the study area. The non-youth leaders disagreed with the 5 positive attitude statements and agreed with 4 out of the 5 negative statements. The youth leaders disagreed with 5 positive attitude statements and agreed with the 5 negative attitude statements. There was no significant difference in the mean attitude scores between youth leaders and non-leaders (t=0.05; p>0.05). The factors militating against youth involvement in agriculture were lack of basic infrastructure ( x=2.62), lack of modern agricultural equipment ( land/land tenure system ( incentives/ incomes( x=3.34), lack of credit facilities ( x=3.46), lack of x=2.99), and poor x=3.00). Youths should be motivated to take up agriculture through extension campaigns, and provision of inputs and land for large scale farmin

How service quality and outcome confidence drive pre-outcome word-of-mouth

Existing research on word-of-mouth (WOM) referrals has rarely considered what drives consumers to engage in pre-outcome WOM (i.e., referrals before they have experienced the final service outcome). This study argues that WOM behavior that predates the service outcome is driven by the interplay between present experience (perceived quality of the service process) and anticipations of the future outcome (outcome confidence). Drawing upon perceived risk theory, the study explores how outcome confidence and service process quality independently predict WOM behavior and how outcome confidence moderates the impact of process quality on WOM behavior. We investigate these issues with customers of a driving school and use a multilevel modelling approach to test the hypotheses. The results show that consumers with higher levels of outcome confidence are more willing than low-confidence consumers to transmit pre-outcome WOM. However, the study also finds that outcome confidence compensates for process quality such that the effect of process quality diminishes when outcome confidence is high. The key managerial implication of the study’s finding is that managers can tactically use outcome confidence to compensate for low levels of process or employee service quality

Attitude of Youth to Agricultural Development Programmes In Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria

The problems associated with youth behaviours in the Niger Delta region necessitated the study. The specific objectives were to collate the current agricultural development intervention programmes; compare the attitude of youth leaders and non-leaders to agricultural development intervention programmes, and examine the factors militating against youth involvement in agriculture. Questionnaires were used to elicit information from respondents. Simple random sampling was used to select respondents. The sample was made up of 71 youths comprising 18 leaders and 53 non-leaders. Data were analysed by the use of mean and t-test. It was found that 5 agricultural development programmes currently existed in the study area. The non-youth leaders disagreed with the 5 positive attitude statements and agreed with 4 out of the 5 negative statements. The youth leaders disagreed with 5 positive attitude statements and agreed with the 5 negative attitude statements. There was no significant difference in the mean attitude scores between youth leaders and non-leaders (t=0.05; p>0.05). The factors militating against youth involvement in agriculture were lack of basic infrastructure ( x=2.62), lack of modern agricultural equipment ( land/land tenure system ( incentives/ incomes( x=3.34), lack of credit facilities ( x=3.46), lack of x=2.99), and poor x=3.00). Youths should be motivated to take up agriculture through extension campaigns, and provision of inputs and land for large scale farmin

Emotional intelligence in front-line/back-office employee relationships

Purpose—This research undertakes a simultaneous assessment of interdependence in the behaviours of front-line and back-office employees and their joint effect on customer-related organizational performance. It also tests for a moderating influence of the emotional intelligence of front-line salespeople and back-office employees. Design/methodology/approach—The sample comprises 105 front-line sales employees and 77 back-office employees. The customer-related organizational performance data come from a U.K. business-to-business (B2B) electronics company. With these triadic data, this study uses partial least squares to estimate the measurement and structural models. Findings—Salespeople’s customer orientation directly affects customer-related organizational performance; the relationship is moderated by salespeople’s emotional intelligence. The emotional intelligence of salespeople also directly affects the customer directed citizenship behaviour of back-office employees. Furthermore, the emotional intelligence of back-office staff moderates the link between the emotional intelligence of salespeople and back-office staff citizenship behaviour. Back-office staff citizenship behaviour in turn affects customer-related organizational performance. Originality/value—The emotions deployed by employees in interactions with customers clearly shape customers’ perceptions of service quality, as well as employee-level performance outcomes. But prior literature lacks insights into the simultaneous effects of front-line and back-office employee behaviour, especially in B2B settings. This article addresses these research gaps by investigating triadic relationships—among back-office employees, front-line employees and customer outcomes—in a B2B setting, where they are of particular managerial interest