Examining Relations Between Public Participation and Public Expenditure: Opinions from English and French Users on Environmental Issues in the English Channel

[Abstract] Governments need to decide how to allocate their public expenditure, which is commonly misconstrued as simply targeting social issues. Most scientific literature highlights that the role of public spending is to enhance social welfare and fight poverty and inequality. Nonetheless, public expenditure also includes spending on environmental issues. This paper analyses relations between public participation, support for public expenditure, and pro-environmental behaviour (PEB) intentions in the English Channel region. An online public survey was developed to investigate public use of the English and French sides and the public’s willingness to change their behaviour to better protect the Channel region. The survey was undertaken in the summer of 2014 and was answered by 2000 respondents. The Channel region public is willing to participate more in behaviour that involves direct changes or switches between buying/purchasing choices. In contrast, there is less willingness to engage in pro-environmental behaviour intentions that involve more active engagement activities. French respondents were slightly less inclined to change their consumer behaviour intentions, while women and older people were slightly more likely to do so. This research shows that pro-environmental behaviour could positively affect support for proposed public expenditure on environmental issues

Examining Relations Between Public Participation and Public Expenditure: Opinions from English and French Users on Environmental Issues in the English Channel

Governments need to decide how to allocate their public expenditure, which is commonly misconstrued as simply targeting social issues. Most scientific literature highlights that the role of public spending is to enhance social welfare and fight poverty and inequality. Nonetheless, public expenditure also includes spending on environmental issues. This paper analyses relations between public participation, support for public expenditure, and pro-environmental behaviour (PEB) intentions in the English Channel region. An online public survey was developed to investigate public use of the English and French sides and the public’s willingness to change their behaviour to better protect the Channel region. The survey was undertaken in the summer of 2014 and was answered by 2000 respondents. The Channel region public is willing to participate more in behaviour that involves direct changes or switches between buying/purchasing choices. In contrast, there is less willingness to engage in pro-environmental behaviour intentions that involve more active engagement activities. French respondents were slightly less inclined to change their consumer behaviour intentions, while women and older people were slightly more likely to do so. This research shows that pro-environmental behaviour could positively affect support for proposed public expenditure on environmental issues

Public perceptions of management priorities for the English Channel region

The English Channel region is an area of high conservational importance, as well being a contributor to economic prosperity, social well-being and quality of life of the people living around it. There is a need to incorporate societal elements into marine and coastal governance, to improve management of the Channel ecosystem. Public Perception Research (PPR) is a relatively unexplored dimension of marine science, with limited research at the scale of the Channel region. Using an online survey, this study examined the public’s use of, and funding priorities for, the Channel’s marine and coastal environment. It revealed that there are variations in how the English and French coastlines are used. Environmental issues were generally viewed as being more important than economic ones. Country-level differences were observed for public uses of, and priorities for the Channel region. Cleaner water and beaches, and improved coastal flood defences, were more highly prioritised by English respondents, while offshore renewable energy and sustainability of businesses were more highly prioritised by French respondents. The paper contributes to the debate on the value of PPR by addressing evidence gaps in the English Channel region, and to PPR literature more broadly. It provides baseline data to inform future engagement strategies for the marine and coastal governance of the Channel region specifically. It also identifies how this type of research has implications for the wider marine and coastal environment, including contributing to Sustainable Development Goal 14 on conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas, and marine resources

Manufacturing capabilities : Mere drivers of operational performance or critical for customer-driven innovation?

In is becoming increasingly common that R&amp;D and marketing is conducted internally and manufacturing performed by outsourcing partners, raising questions about the strategic role of internal manufacturing capabilities. This role can be evaluated by how they contribute to the focal firm’s competitive priorities. Based on a survey of 267 Swedish manufacturing firms, the paper show that when the competitive priority is innovation, the role of manufacturing capabilities is to facilitate more efficient product development in collaboration with customers. When operational efficiency is the dominant competitive priority, the role of manufacturing capabilities is naturally to provide high operational efficiency.Ingår i projekt1?Ingår i projektOm publikationen ingår i ett projekt, ange projektets namn. För att ange flera projekt, klicka på Ytterligare projekt.x</p

Externa integration and the need for manufacturing competence

For a number of years, manufacturers have increasingly focused on their perceived core competencies and outsourced activities not seen as such. In doing so there are an increasing number of competencies that fall outside the ‘core’ domain but are nonetheless required for effective product and process development. The proposed solution to this problem has been external integration with an emphasis on collaborative product or process development and also the wider concept of supply chain management. It is, however, not always easy to substitute internal competencies with customers’ and suppliers’ capabilities. Many authors have focused on finding the prerequisites for effective external integration and particularly on areas such as trust and power. This thesis contributes to the literature by extending the concept of absorptive capacity into the manufacturing domain and in the context of external integration. A conceptual framework is developed, where different streams of the literature have been merged into one coherent model. Integral parts of this framework are the concept of absorptive capacity as well as a model of competitive priorities. Competitive priorities have been taken into account as firms differ; what contributes to competitive advantage for one firm may be irrelevant for another. Three papers are included in the thesis. The first one uses survey data, from a representative sample of the Swedish manufacturing industry, in order to validate the concept of absorptive capacity in the manufacturing sector. The second paper also uses survey data but aims to shed some light on competitive priorities’ impact on both the extent and the outcome of internal and external integration. The third paper describes a case study of a first-tier supplier and aims to illustrate how absorptive capacity in a manufacturing firm may look in practice. The thesis concludes that the conceptual framework is indeed useful for understanding the challenges of effective external integration. Internal manufacturing competencies may allow a firm to integrate more effectively external sources, but the required competencies may vary from firm to firm. This implies a need for a fit between companies’ competitive priorities, external integration and absorptive capacity. It also implies that companies may struggle to achieve competitive advantage by utilising their customers and suppliers if they do not simultaneously develop appropriate competencies in-house.QC 2010112

Manufacturing capabilities : expendable commodities or catalysts for effective supply chain management

Many large companies have for a long time been very successful in their industries by combining leading edge R&amp;D and marketing with strong internal manufacturing capabilities. An alternative model is now getting increased attention, where R&amp;D and marketing is conducted internally and manufacturing performed by outsourcing partners. This development is partly due to divergent views on the strategic role of manufacturing capabilities: expendable commodities that can be purchased from a low-cost provider versus resources essential for sustaining long-term competitive advantage. Although assessments of the strategic role of manufacturing capabilities have been performed previously, recent supply chain trends such as globalisation and fragmentation mean that they may no longer be relevant. The purpose of the thesis is to assess the strategic role of manufacturing capabilities for a product-owning firm, by focusing on what impact its internal manufacturing capabilities have on the effectiveness of the supply chain. Two methods have been used for the research: survey and case study. The survey is representative for the entire Swedish manufacturing sector, whereas the case studies are to some extent industry- or company-specific. Two companies were researched: one in the telecom equipment sector, the other a supplier to multiple sectors, including the telecom equipment sector. The results of the research have been presented in five scientific articles that are also found in the appendices. The thesis argues that in order to evaluate the strategic role of manufacturing capabilities, it is important to look at how they contribute to the focal firm’s competitive priorities. When the technology is new, the competitive priority tends to be innovation, and the role of manufacturing capabilities is to facilitate more efficient NPD. When products mature, low cost becomes the dominant competitive priority, and the role of manufacturing capabilities is to facilitate a high operational efficiency of the supply chain. Although the potential role of manufacturing capabilities is dependent on the firms’ competitive priorities, just possessing manufacturing capabilities will not automatically translate into high performance. Instead, the performance outcome is dependent on both the level of manufacturing capabilities and, even more importantly, how they are leveraged through the integration of customers, suppliers and the product development department. This thesis contributes to the discourse on the role of manufacturing in two ways. First, the thesis investigates how competitive priorities impact the role of manufacturing capabilities in the supply chain. Second, this thesis explores how manufacturing capabilities influence the efficiency of integration. The main theoretical contribution is to develop and test the concept of manufacturing absorptive capacity within the context of manufacturing capabilities’ role in the supply chain. The thesis concludes that manufacturing capabilities are almost inevitably seen as strategic because they help firms integrate external sources more efficiently, thereby achieving performance improvement in terms of both operational efficiency and efficient product development. When the performance improvement corresponds with the prevailing competitive priority, the supply chain can be said to be effective. Manufacturing capabilities can thus act as a catalyst for effective supply chain management.QC 2012010

Analysing the institutional pressures on shippers and logistics service providers to implement green supply chain management practices

This paper applies institutional theory to analyse the institutional pressures (regulatory, market, competitive) experienced by two actors within supply chains: shippers (i.e. logistics buyers) and logistics service providers (LSPs). Both actors are subject to institutional pressures to adopt green supply chain management practices, which could drive shippers to purchase green logistics services from LSPs, and LSPs to provide them. Also, the two actors are influenced by various factors that moderate the level of pressures on them and the responses they undertake. This study examines these pressures and moderators in detail to analyse how they influence green logistics purchasing/providing decisions. Empirical data were obtained from eight individual cases of three shippers and five LSPs. Accordingly, we compare these pressures and moderators based on the actors’ different roles in the supply chain. The findings aim to contribute to advancing the theory through (i) incorporating the roles of the moderating factors and (ii) providing further applications within specific shipper-LSP contexts. Further, this paper aims to assist managers within shipper and LSP organisations by demonstrating how their firm and market characteristics moderate the pressures exerted on them to buy or provide green logistics services, while providing insights on issues influencing their responsiveness.QC 20200910</p

The impact of global purchasing and supplier integration on product innovation

Purpose – The interest in global purchasing has increased significantly in recent years, but the impact on product innovation is not well understood. The purpose of this paper is to empirically analyse the impact of global purchasing on product innovation sourced from suppliers, while taking into account how firms integrate their suppliers. Design/methodology/approach – The data used in this study are from the International Purchasing Survey, an international online survey on purchasing and supply management conducted in 2009. The data are analysed using factor and regression analyses. Findings – The paper shows that global purchasing has no direct impact on product innovation performance. However, supplier integration is more strongly associated with product innovation performance for firms purchasing globally compared to firms purchasing regionally. Practical implications – The implication is that when companies purchase globally, they must have a highly developed purchasing department in order to sustain a high level of innovation. For firms purchasing only regionally, the role of the purchasing department is diminished, at least in terms of contributing to innovation. Originality/value – This paper contributes to the discussion of potential advantages and disadvantages of global purchasing. First, the paper provides an explanation for the ambiguous results of previous research. Product innovation does not depend on whether firms are purchasing globally or not, it depends on how they purchase. This paper has showed that when purchasing globally, the role of the purchasing department becomes crucial for product innovation. The proficiency and activities of the purchasing department largely determine the success, in terms of supplier product innovation, of global purchasing

DIGITAL MUDA - THE NEW FORM OF WASTE BY INDUSTRY 4.0.

Lean management is an approach where value is created through the reduction of waste. Eight forms of waste were identified by the Toyota Company as worth considering while managing an efficient production process: overproduction, waiting, transport, over processing, inventory, movement, defects, and unused creativity. Modern manufacturing plants are being transformed by Industry 4.0, the fourth industrial revolution, which promotes a wide variety of technological solutions to increase innovativeness and competitive advantages. Technological solutions are created on the basis of data that must be analyzed to enable manufacturers to be more strategic in the decision-making process and generate new profit channels through data analytics. A conceptual framework was developed to investigate if the inefficient usage of data has a negative impact on manufacturing performance through the decision-making process. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in two leading manufacturing companies in Sweden that are following lean principles. A new form of waste, digital waste, was defined. This paper suggests considering digital waste as a new type of muda (waste), which is its theoretical contribution. From a practical perspective, the results of the paper encourage practitioners to pay extra attention to data analytics, work on the reduction of digital waste and establish new revenue channels based on data analysis. Download full PDF  Get metrics  Rate articl

Digital collaboration within the supply chain : new booster for hidden lean potential

This paper explores the hidden lean potential exposed by manufacturers’ usage of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. The potential can be classified into three types: unlocked lean potential in a connected ERP system, unlocked lean potential in an un-connected ERP system, and the lean potential for further unlocking in companies that do not use ERP systems when collaborating with suppliers/customers. Empirical data is obtained from two cases of manufacturing companies in Sweden and one ERP system company. The findings indicate that hidden lean potential can be unlocked through digital collaboration within the supply chain