Performance Information and Managerial Knowledge Needs

Performance management raises managerial information needs. This paper elaborates various knowledge processes that are used for gathering, analysing and communicating performance information. Thus, the paper explores the potential contribution of knowledgebased management disciplines on performance management. Although the literature on performance measurement provides guidance on building performance measurement systems, there remains many open questions relating to how the data is obtained, analyzed and utilized. To address these phenomena knowledge-based management literature focuses on knowledge assets as performance drivers and the role of knowledge management as a lever of performance. There are also approaches that aim to streamline knowledge flows in order to improve operational performance. However, between these strategic and operative approaches is a research gap concerning thIe question, how can knowledge-based management support performance management. To address this gap in practice, the paper studies managerial information needs in 9 case environments in Finland

Managing positional innovation in small food enterprises. The bakery industry

Purpose The concept of positional innovation - as one of the four innovation types of the Francis and Bessant's "4P's" model - is an effective product innovation strategy for producers of mature and credence goods as food products are. Despite the acknowledgement as one of the major industries worldwide, positional innovations about the food products are underexplored in the managerial literature. To fill this gap, this paper first develops a theoretical analysis of the concepts. Then, by adopting a case-study research methodology, it discloses the way a bakery small enterprise manages positional innovation. Theoretical and practical implications are finally introduced and discussed. Design/methodology/approach After a literature review about the role and the characteristics of the positional innovation, the paper presents a case study of definition and implementation of managerial actions and initiatives driven by positional innovation. The aim is not to report on an inductive study, but to use this example as a picture to clarify theory and show how the various conceptual issues may be operatively applied and provide more contextual insights. Findings It emerges how a small food enterprise manages positional innovation to survive and compete in the national and international markets; the positional innovation sources are tapped into culture, social responsibility, tradition and other territorial assets of tangible and intangible nature, effectively combined to innovate the product perception and/or the utility in a use context. Originality/value "Non-technological", simple products, like food, are underexplored and rarely seen as relevant context to investigate along the strategic and innovation management literature. Nonetheless, positional innovation is a perspective that values and credits the innovation efforts of small food products, revealing interesting managerial concepts and inspiring entrepreneurs and managers for activating and sustaining new strategies of innovation for their businesses

Digital business models in cultural tourism

Purpose: Digitalization had a relevant impact on the cultural tourism sector, both demand and supply. If, on the one hand, advances in digital technologies provided tourists with new mobile services able to amplify the cultural experience, on the other hand, they catalyzed the development of new business models by digital enterprises. This paper has a twofold purpose: to detect business models and key characteristics of mobile apps for cultural tourism and to analyze the offering of app-based services in this sector. Design/methodology/approach: The authors defined a methodology to identify, characterize and analyze a particular category of digital products for cultural tourism: app-based services. They are studied in terms of value creation, proposition and capture with the aim to identify the distinctive features of business models. As a result, the authors identified a classification framework on three main dimensions, namely “how to exploit mobile app features to create value for cultural tourists” (value creation), “which valuable services are delivered to cultural tourists” (value proposition) and “how companies are rewarded for the value they offered” (value capture). The authors apply the framework to perform a situation analysis of app-based services in the cultural tourism market. Findings: The analysis highlights that digital enterprises offering app-based services do not fully exploit advances in technologies about users' value requirements. Hence, the results of our work suggest some directions that digital enterprises may follow to better exploit mobile app technology. Originality/value: To date, little research has been devoted to investigating cultural tourism business models involving the exploitation of mobile app-based services. This research provides a useful framework to analyze fundamental aspects of business models in this sector. Such a framework represents a practical tool that provides fruitful insights for the design of a new generation of app-based services within the so-called “Internet of things” domain

Fluconazole for primary prophylaxis of AIDS-associated cryptococcosis : a case-control study

In order to verify whether fluconazole has a prophylactive effect against the occurrence of cryptococcosis in HIV-infected patients and to identify other factors capable of increasing or reducing the risk of this infection, we arranged a case-control study of 17 patients with cryptococcal infection. 34 controls were selected, matched by presence of an AIDS-defining event, CD4 cell count, and date of T-cell phenotyping. No significant difference in exposure to fluconazole, in total days of treatment, or in total dose administered was observed between cases and controls. However, control patients took a significantly higher average daily dosage of fluconazole and a linear tendency in risk reduction (p = 0.04) in relation to increasing dosage was observed. Antiretroviral therapy and an average daily fluconazole dose exceeding 150 mg both each reduced the risk of a cryptococcal infection