Supply Chain Integration Strategy: A Conceptual Model of Supply Chain Relational Capital Enabler in the Malaysian Food Processing Industry

AbstractPrevious literature has confirmed the association between SCI and firm's performance. However, limited success of integration with key supply chain partners were found in literature. Indeed, the impact of SCRC that may facilitate to the success of SCI was not fully understood. Thus, this paper is to propose a framework in investigating the influence of SCRC on the execution of SCI by adopting relational capital theory. Through a review of related literature and formal interview, relational elements such as trust, commitment and socialization have become significant elements to facilitate the execution of SCI practices among firms in food processing industry

Destination image evolvement through experiential marketing / Nor Aminin Mohd Khalid, Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

This qualitative study is an exploratory attempt at understanding destination image through the writings of the travel writers who have undergone the familiarisation or fam programs organised by Tourism Malaysia. The idea behind the program is for the writers to experience first-hand specific destinations in Malaysia and then expressed their experiences through their travel writings. The data in the form of the travel articles were collected with the assistance of Tourism Malaysia based on the suggested criteria established. This study established that it was possible to derive destination image by interpreting the depth of the articles and through the expressions of the travel writers who very often narrated their experiences coherently through vivid depictions and emotions. It is suggested that future studies further test the evolving themes through empirical analyses that are more conclusive and statistically proven

Disequilibrium and divinity salience as invariant structures in the halal executives’ experience of eudaimonia / Jalilah Ahmad, Rosmimah Mohd. Roslin and Mohd. Ali Bahari Abdul Kadir.

The global Halal industry is large and continues to grow as the global Muslim population increases in size and dispersion. There are 1.84 billion Muslims today spread over 200 countries and is expected to increase to 2.2 billion by 2030. The industry will be worth USD6.4 trillion by the end of 2018 with more non-traditional players and emergent markets. The stakes are high with pressures to generate novel and sustainable practices. This goes beyond systems and hard skills as it needs to cut into the self – the person of virtues in virtuous acts, not because they “have to” but because it is the purpose of humankind or his telos - to be “living well” and “acting well” or eudaimonia. This study seek to explore Halal executives’ lived experience of “eudaimonia.”. Using Giorgi’s descriptive psychological phenomenological method for data analysis, the study elicits two distinct invariant structures – ‘disequilibrium in status quo’ and ‘divinity salience’

Knowledge Generation, Dissemination and Adoption in an Agro-industry: The Role of an Institutional Network

Abstract The Malaysian palm oil industry has become a major and diversified industrial sector over a period of forty years. Several palm oil firms have expanded internationally by establishing oil palm plantations in other developing countries, as well as by acquiring firms in developed countries. In addition, the Malaysian palm oil industry had managed to develop new technologies to improve production yields and create new products for consumers. Our study aims to analyze the role of an institutional network in the palm oil industry in the generation and sharing of new knowledge. It is suggested that this institutional network creates industry competitive advantages through the development and application of industry best-practices. A qualitative approach was used to have an in-depth understanding of the institutions involved in the institutional network and the types of interactions that take place among the key institutions for knowledge generation and sharing. The study involved gathering of primary data through in-depth interviews of key managers of palm oil palms, representatives of industry associations, government officials and senior staff in an industry-funded R&D institute. The main result of our findings shows that new knowledge is generated by on-going research activities of an industry R&D institute, which is managed as a government entity. The R&D institute is required to share the new knowledge with firms in the palm oil industry. It is found that the R&D institute tapped the knowledge of a global network of experts to search for new information and technology directions, which we call expert informational network (EIN). The institutional network is further reinforced by informal linkages among institutions and executives in the Malaysian palm oil industry. These relationships have been propagated by several generations of industry executives, industry leaders and heads of governmental units

Attaining competitive advantage through market orientation of Public Higher Education Institutions: mediating effect of quality assurance / Zarila Zahari, Rosmimah Mohd Roslin and Carol Teo Boon Chui.

The literature review thus far has indicated numerous studies have examined the relationship between market orientation (MO)and competitive advantage (CA)leading to greater organizational performance. A substantial number of studies on strategic management orientations have shown significant relationships between MO and organizational performance but direct contribution of CA is still lacking in consensus. This paper reviews the literature on the influence of market orientation (MO) towards competitive advantage and the mediating effect of quality assurance in public higher education institutions (PHEIs). The reviews specify that market orientation as the marketing strategic platform is likely to achieve superior value in gaining and sustaining competitive advantage however, within the context of PHEIs such relationships are still inconclusive. Quality assurance (QA) is postulated to have a mediating effect in the suggested framework of market orientation and competitive advantage. As QA is becoming a critical factor in the knowledge-based society, this variable needs to be explored further in the context of higher education. Thus, the aim of this paper is to accumulate existing literature in the investigation of the relationship between MO and CA as well as the effect of QA towards the performance of PHEIs based on non-financial dimensions

A review on Innovation and its Strategic Importance to the Growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)

This is a conceptual paper to review the innovation concept and determine the strategic importance of innovation towards the growth of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) globally. The study reviews the extant literature on the role of innovation in keeping SMEs competitive and sustainable in their business. This study’s findings show the evidence from past literature on the importance of innovation to SMEs’ growth, and its effect on SMEs if they failed to innovate. Another information that SMEs can gain when reading this paper is the definitions of innovation viewed from different perspectives and help SMEs get involved with relevant innovation activities

The lived Experience of eudaimonic well-being in a religio-economical role: a phenomenological study / Jalilah Ahmad … [et al.]

This phenomenological study aimed to identify and describe the general meaning structure of eudaimonic well-being experience in performing the role of halal executive. We interviewed three halal executives about their lived experiences with eudaimonic well-being and analysed the data with Giorgi’s descriptive phenomenological method. The general meaning structure describes eudaimonic well-being in performing the role of Halal executive as a phenomenon that interweaves three constituents: (1) awareness of an urgency for change, (2) striving for excellence in a malleable mind-set and (3) confrontation and intense involvement with inner potencies. We discuss these findings in relation to relevant literature on change, eudaimonic well-being, and inner potencies

Critical success and failure factors in SMEs - the retailing sector / Sofiah Abd Rahman ... [et al.]

Recently, SMIDEC has extended its instrument, acronym SCORE, to measure the 'state of health' of SMEs in the distributive sector. Through this tool, SMEs are rated against six dimensions of capabilities: management, financial, compliance, stock management, marketing, and operations management. The outcome provides an input in identifying the appropriate incentive/assistance and in linking potential SMEs to suitable global partners. This study primarily sets out to assess and enhance this instrument and to compare the success/failure factors of SMEs against SME categorization and ethnicity. An exploratory study by means of focus groups was first undertaken and as a result, non-compliance was included in this study. 'Innovation', another critical dimension to business success, was also incorporated into the framework. Using a stratified area sampling method, 503 SMEs were administered the survey instrument. Data analyses uncovered several key findings. Bumiputera SMEs had better educational background than their non-Bumiputeras counterparts, they claimed to work longer hours, and they rated themselves as having higher positive entrepreneurial traits but their returns (both on revenue and profits) were lower, indicating inefficiency and ineffectiveness in running the retail businesses. All capabilities contributed to the retail SMEs success led by innovation (fi = 0.362), marketing (fi = 0.310), and operations management (fi = 0.310), while non-compliance, proved to be detrimental (fi = -0.195). This study, thus, points out the need to include 'innovation' capability in measuring the 'state of health' of SMEs in the distributive sector and must be included in SCORE

Attaining competitive advantage through effective Supply Chain Management of SMEs / Noraini Ismail and Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

The inter organizational approach where relational elements are incorporated in the analysis of Supply Chain Management (SCM) of Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) is adopted in this study. This is in line with the study's main intention of assessing the determinants or drivers for effective SCM of small businesses and their impact on the attainment of competitive advantage. The findings suggest an interesting perspective on SCM and distribution channel functions among SMEs where elements of information sharing cooperation and integration are linked to competitive advantage. The correlation amongst the three independent variables of cooperation, information sharing and integration with competitive advantage are all significant, depicting the relevancy for SMEs to focus on these relational elements. The highest correlation is noted between information sharing and integration and this definitely makes sense as SMEs strive to integrate their functions that are moving towards the attainment of common goals. Thus, the more integrated the functions amongst supply chain and distribution partners, the more likely that information would be shared amongst them. However, it is interesting to note that the predictive ability of the relational elements of cooperation, information sharing and integration on competitive advantage is not supported through the regression analysis. In other words, the existence of cooperation, information sharing and integration amongst supply chain and distribution channel members do not necessarily predict that competitive advantage will be attained. There are perhaps other factors that should be considered besides relational elements that influence competitive advantage