Value Creation Through Collective Intelligence: Managing Intellectual Capital

The contribution of intellectual capital to value creation beyond individual companies into wider society, as described in the fourth stage of intellectual capital research, is of particular relevance for the public sector where organizations have a stewardship responsibility. They should engage stakeholders into value co-creation by developing organizational and ecosystem collective intelligence through traditional as well as innovative tools such as online technologies. Yet, the relationship between intellectual capital and value creation often remains a relatively unexplored process within public administration. This paper focuses on the case study of a regional agency in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy, which is not only responsible for assistance, regulation and service delivery, but also for engaging its stakeholders and the public at large to disseminate knowledge to promote values and appropriate behaviour in the policy areas it is responsible for. The research looks at the role played by intellectual capital in the agency’s value creation strategies and how the agency’s structure and processes influence the development and management of intellectual capital in an effort to create value for its ecosystem. The research not only validates the existence of ecosystem frameworks in public administration and the key role played by intellectual capital in their design, creation and implementation, but it also highlights the need in the public sector for a defined role for intellectual capital, stakeholder engagement and collective intelligence in governance models. In particular, findings underline the need for new intellectual capital management systems based on a collective intelligence approach within multi-stakeholder co-creation frameworks in a public service ecosystem logic, reflecting the public sector’s evolving role and the new tools developed with the advent of new technologie

Smart mobility in Venice: An ecosystem perspective

In the last twenty years, organizations have been increasingly asked to contribute to global challenges. Some of the numerous requests are to combat climate change, the pollution decrease, and energy issues. In this field, the strategic challenge to be overcome is changing the business concept from a mere creator of economic value to a producer of shared value. In this sense, the context of Smart Mobility (SM). Through a case study with five purposive samples of Smart Mobility start-ups, an expert in strategic innovation, sustainability management, and business model innovation, and an innovative project evaluator, the research analyzes the values generated at an ecosystem level, with a reflection on Venice (Italy), the world capital of sustainability. Specifically, flexibility, efficiency, sustainability, safety, satisfaction, and image are explored in depth. Furthermore, the problems that operators and users have to face are discussed. The results of our study confirm what is present in the literature: SM increases mobility, offers flexibility, and guarantees greater capillarity and customization of the service, broadening the field of analysis and suggesting proactive actions. The article contributes to understanding how some obstacles/problems slow down the development of Smart Mobility and its widespread diffusion. Finally, the paper reflects on how Venice can be an example and cradle of innovative solutions, also in the SM fiel

Business models for accelerators: A structured literature review

Purpose:This paper aims to provide a better understanding of accelerators’ phenomenon, developing a business model framework for these organizations. The proposed framework aims to offer helpful guidance for practitioners and policymakers, together with various research opportunities for scholars. Design/Methodology/Approach:The study employs a structured literature review methodology, which guarantees the repeatability of the research and the validity of the outcomes. Additionally, to further test the results of our analysis, we interviewed ten practitioners from some accelerators located in Italy and Slovenia. Findings:Findings show that the literature on accelerators is still fragmented and under-investigated. The presented framework for an accelerator business model provides insights about the activity and the role of such organizations. The study offers fruitful avenues for future research on accelerators’ business models. Research limitations/implications:Given the fragmented nature and the novelty of the literature on the topic, there may be relevant papers and reports missing in our analysis. Further research should investigate the role of accelerators in the ecosystem they operate in and provide a clear and shared definition in collaboration with all stakeholders. Practical implications:The presented framework provides practitioners with useful insights for understanding an accelerator activity and valuable recommendations for managing these organizations in the future. Social implications:Since we consider society among the key stakeholders of an accelerator’s business model, this study provides significant insights about the social impact of accelerators in the ecosystem they operate in. Relevant implications may be useful especially for policymakers. Originality/Value:The main contribution of this study is the extent analysis of a novel topic in the entrepreneurial literature, providing a clear and broad perspective of the phenomenon. Furthermore, this study provides relevant insights on the role of accelerators in academic research as well as for practitioners and policymakers

Knowledge Sharing, Control Mechanisms and Intellectual Liabilities in knowledge-intensive firms

Intellectual capital (IC) and knowledge sharing (KS) are key elements for fostering firm value, especially in knowledge-intensive firms. Management Control Systems (MCSs) have been recognized as key knowledge integrators. Recently, this assumption has been called into question as there may exist negative and destructive effects in both IC and KS fostered by a misuse of MCSs. Through a case study of 'Engineering Ltd.", this paper examines the 'dark side' issues associated by improperly implementing knowledge sharing and by imposing rules and constraints on behavior. The subject of our study, \u201cEngineering Ltd.\u201d , is a consultancy company with 10,000 employees. The case study is used to scrutinize the major risks of knowledge sharing and to introduce possible solutions

Linear stability of Poiseuille flow over a steady spanwise Stokes layer

The temporal linear stability of plane Poiseuille flow modified by spanwise forcing applied at the walls is considered. The forcing consists of a stationary streamwise distribution of spanwise velocity that generates a steady transversal Stokes layer, known to reduce skin-friction drag in a turbulent flow with little energetic cost. A large numerical study is carried out, where the effects of both the physical and the discretization parameters are thoroughly explored, for three representative subcritical values of the Reynolds number Re. Results show that the spanwise Stokes layer significantly affects the linear stability of the system. For example, at Re=2000 the wall forcing is found to more than double the negative real part of the least-stable eigenvalue, and to decrease by nearly a factor of 4 the maximum transient growth of perturbation energy. These observations are Re dependent and further improve at higher Re. Comments on the physical implications of the obtained results are provided, suggesting that spanwise forcing might be effective to obtain at the same time a delayed transition to turbulence and a reduced turbulent friction

Business models beyond Covid-19. A paradoxes approach

The Covid-19 crisis has undermined and disrupted several business fields. Organizations are called to address the new challenges by rethinking their business models. Employing an EFTE approach, the paper highlights 50 paradoxes to be taken into consideration in the strategic transformation process

Ethically Driven Stakeholder Management: A Structured Literature Review and Future Research Agenda

The discipline of business ethics is moving fast to the forefront of stakeholder management research. On the one hand, scholars are studying management's behaviour and the promotion of ethical behaviour in stakeholders. On the other hand, a complex interplay exists among ethics, the maximization of shareholder value, and meeting stakeholder claims. The aim is to build on and update in a systematic fashion a previous literature review on stakeholder management theory (SMT) which did not bring ethics to the forefront. Following a strict protocol, this structured literature review examines 108 articles, covering 61 journals from 1989 to 2021. It highlights citation classics and their research impact through total citation and citation-per-year analysis. Content analysis focuses on the findings of quantitative, qualitative, and conceptual articles. Coder triangulation ensures the reliability of the findings, which analyse location and sector, stakeholder type, research methods, research question, conceptual lenses, and foci of articles under review. A specific section outlines directions for future research and provides suggestions for the development of a future research agenda on a topical issue

Linear stability of Poiseuille flow over a steady spanwise Stokes layer

The temporal linear stability of plane Poiseuille flow modified by spanwise forcing applied at the walls is considered. The forcing consists of a stationary streamwise distribution of spanwise velocity that generates a steady transversal Stokes layer, known to reduce skin-friction drag in a turbulent flow with little energetic cost. A large numerical study is carried out, where the effects of both the physical and the discretization parameters are thoroughly explored, for three representative subcritical values of the Reynolds number Re. Results show that the spanwise Stokes layer significantly affects the linear stability of the system. For example, at Re=2000 the wall forcing is found to more than double the negative real part of the least-stable eigenvalue, and to decrease by nearly a factor of four the maximum transient growth of perturbation energy. These observations are Re-dependent and further improve at higher $Re$. Comments on the physical implications of the obtained results are provided, suggesting that spanwise forcing might be effective to obtain at the same time a delayed transition to turbulence and a reduced turbulent friction.Comment: Under consideration by PR

Can the Blockchain lead to new sustainable business models?

New technologies can foster the development of new sustainable business models (SBMs). Our paper wants to investigate how the blockchain can facilitate the development of new SBMs, by analyzing some real-world case studies. Findings highlight how the characteristics of the blockchain can extend existing theories in leading to new SBMs

The link between sustainable business models and Blockchain: A multiple case study approach

The paper investigates the relationship between Blockchain technology and new sustainable business models (SBMs). The literature notes a lack of empirical classifications and successful case studies. Using a multiple case studies methodology, our research article aims to answer the research question (RQ): How can Blockchain enable new SBMs and support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? We present 20 business stories extracted from a combined analysis of the databases coinmarketcap.com and icobench.com, demonstrating how Blockchain can be used for environmental management. Notably, our analysis finds out four broad research clusters related to (i) smart energy management, (ii) climate change, (iii) waste management, and (iv) sustainable production. Mainly, an actual application of Blockchain toward SBMs is related to supply chain cost reduction. Finally, the research includes investments and their social scalability with Blockchain. Then, the final research cluster discovers social and proof sustainability. This study adds to the empirical literature evidence of SBMs offering a connection with the SDGs