Digitalization of SMEs : an ecosystem-based perspective

Over the last decade, digital technologies have been able to strike disruptive changes in the contemporary business landscape and so affecting small and medium enterprises (SMEs). SMEs have limited R&D, financial and human resources to invest in their digitalization process. In this research, we contextualize that SMEs can enhance their digitalization by collaborating with different actors of the ecosystem i.e., competing SMEs, higher education institutions (HEIs), co-creating with customers and utilizing support and facilitation activities provided by intermediary organizations. Therefore, our main research question is “How do SMEs enhance their digitalization through engaging with ecosystem-based dynamic collaborations?” To answer the research question, we conducted qualitative multiple case study research based on semi-structured interviews with the Northern Finland innovation ecosystem actors. The results confirm that ecosystem-based interactions enhance SMEs’ digital competencies, and digital orientation and help them in emerging technology adoption which eventually leads them to maintain competitive advantage and achieve business model innovation.©2022 International Society for Professional Innovation management, Lappeenranta University of Technology.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

A Roadmap for successful IoT implementation : empirical evidence from the energy industry

The Internet of Things has become a spotlight in contemporary literature in the domain of industry 4.0 and emerging technologies. Majority of research studies focuses on technicalities and theoretical implications of implementing IoT in the energy sector. However, in practice, organisations face a combination of technical and non-technical challenges. There is a clear need for the studies to empirically evaluate IoT use cases, challenges, and a roadmap for successfully implementing emerging technologies. To fulfil the research gap and provide insights for practitioners, we conducted seven semi-structured interviews with professionals working in Finland’s energy sector. Based on results retrieved through content analysis of transcribed interviews, we developed a roadmap with managerial implications for successfully implementing IoT and other emerging technologies. Furthermore, study results present practical insights on IoT applications, benefits, and major IoT utilisation challenges in the Finnish energy sector industrial ecosystem. In the end, conclusion and future research directions are discussed.©2021 the Authors. Articles published in Issues in Information Systems are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Consumer's Attitude towards Green Supply Chain Practices and its impact on their Intentions to Buy at Fast Food Restaurants in Bahawalpur, Pakistan

The purpose of this study is to find the impact of consumer perception on green supply chain practices in fast food places in South Punjab, Pakistan. Green supply chain practices focus on assimilating environmental thinking into the conventional supply chain, including areas like product design, material sourcing and selection, manufacturing processes, delivery of the final product as well as end-of-life management of the product after its useful life. To put it simply, green supply chain practices deal in creating an environmentally friendly supply chain that will result in an organization that not only sustains itself, but also the environment around it. This research work was conducted in South Punjab, Pakistan to see whether or not people perceived green supply chain practices important and whether that would affect their decision to dine at a certain place. To serve the purpose of the research, the data was acquired from the general population of South Punjab. The respondents included students from intermediate, people who held jobs, housewives etc. with a sample of 260 chosen randomly. The overall findings state that consumer perception is significantly affected by green supply chain practices in the fast food industry. The research is limited due to the time constraints, financial constraints and limited availability of the data. The results of this research study may not generalize to other province of the Pakistan as the study is conducted only in the context of South Punjab

Digital Innovations and SMEs : a systematic literature review and future research agenda

Digital technologies are altering competitive grounds in the different sectors of the economy worldwide. Therefore, the research on digital technologies in business and management literature has observed an increasing trend. However, despite growing research on digital innovations in SMEs, we lack an understanding of SMEs' external knowledge and resources exploration and exploitation to build digital innovations. Therefore, this research synthesizes the literature on SMEs' knowledge and resources exploration and exploitation for developing digital innovations. By conducting a systemic literature review, we identified actors and collaborative mechanisms that help SMEs overcome their resource and technological knowledge limitations. Furthermore, with the help of existing literature, we also explain the exploitation process of externally acquired knowledge and resources into organizational internal digital innovation systems.© 2023 Authors.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Competitiveness and Comparative Advantage of Pakistan in Leather and Leather Products Trade: Analysis and Trends

Livestock sector is considered the second key sector of agriculture through its share of more than half to value added and 11.8% to GDP and main source of raw material for leather industry of the country. This local availability of raw materials and low wage cost gives the country a competitive edge in the world market. This study is an effort to examine Pakistan's competitiveness of leather and leather products with a set of Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) and Revealed Competitive Advantage index with respect to international trade. The study has utilized Balassa index, Vollrath index and Revealed Symmetric Comparative Advantage index for empirical analysis in Pakistan during the time span from 2003 to 2014. The findings of the study illustrate that Pakistan has a high degree of comparative advantage in this sector during period under analysis which indicates the potential of leather sector exports for foreign exchange earnings. The results of the study also show that the position of Leather sector lies in the “Competitive position product group” and “Threatened product group”. There is need to strengthen comparative and competitive advantage in Leather sector by policy support and facilitating role by all stakeholders to attain the growth in livestock and agriculture sector and improve the income of related stakeholders

Impact of Online Consumer Reviews on Hotel Booking Intentions: The Case of Pakistan

This study is aimed at empirically investigating the influence of online consumer reviews such as realism, positive reviews, negative reviews and volume of online reviews on hotel booking intentions in Pakistan through mediational mechanism. Data was collected from 250 part-time business graduates of University of Punjab, the largest Public-Sector University of Provincial Capital of Pakistan. SPSS and AMOS were carried out to analyze the results and determine the impact of online reviews on hotel booking intentions. Results indicated that realism, the volume of reviews and positive reviews are the most influential dimensions of online consumer reviews. Moreover, trust act as an intervening variable between positive reviews, the volume of reviews, realism and hotel booking intentions. Empirical analysis also indicated that negative online reviews have no direct and indirect impact on hotel booking intentions of online customers. This study is an effort in proposing a combination of online consumer reviews dimensions in determining Hotel Booking Intentions

Non-ionic iodinated contrast-induced sialadenitis with parotid gland sparing in patient of hepatocellular carcinoma

61-years-old male patient presented with complain of neck swelling and soreness following contrast-enhanced (CE) CT examination with resolution of symptoms in 36-48 hours. He is diagnosed with hepatitis C virus and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC); already treated with radiofrequency ablation for HCC. He had already undergone two CECT examinations before he was referred to our institution for disease staging/treatment. He also underwent three triphasic CT scan examinations at our institution during the course of treatment for treatment response and staging. Patient remained undiagnosed up to his fourth CT scan due to inability to relate symptoms with contrast administration. The patient was offered close monitoring on fifth CT exam and ultrasound of neck revealed enlarged and echogenic bilateral submandibular glands, however, thyroid and bilateral parotid glands appear unremarkable. This represents transient iodinated contrast induced sialadenitis with sparing of parotid glands

Sub-lethal effects of lufenuron exposure on spotted bollworm Earias vittella (Fab): key biological traits and detoxification enzymes activity

Spotted bollworm, Earias vittella, is one of the most serious and devastating insect pests of vegetables and cotton. Currently, insecticides are necessary for its control in nearly all crop systems. In this paper, we evaluate the sub-lethal effects of lufenuron on biological traits and activity of detoxification enzymes: cytochrome P450 monooxygenases, esterase, and glutathione Stranseferase (GST) in second instar larvae of E. vittella. Results showed that sub-lethal concentrations (LC15 and LC40 of lufenuron), prolonged larval period (at LC40 = 13.86 ± 1.22 day, LC15 = 13.14 ± 1.15 day, control = 12.28 ± 0.7), pupal duration (LC40 = 11.1 ± day, LC15 = 11.8 ± 0.28 day, control = 9.40 ± 0.52), and extended mean generation time (LC40 = 27.3 ± 0.43 LC15 = 29.0 ± 1.19 day, control = 26.0 ± 0.65). Sub-lethal exposure significantly prolonged the pre-adult stage, decreased pupal weight, and reduced adult longevity in the parent (F0) and F1 generation. Moreover, the fecundity and egg viability were significantly lowered in parental and F1 generations at both sub-lethal concentrations compared to the control. While no significant effects were noted on reproductive parameters such as the intrinsic rate of increase (r), finite rate of increase (λ), and net reproduction rate (R0) of F1 generation when compared to the control. Only mean generation time (T) in F1 at LC15 was significantly longer compared to the LC40 and control (LC40 = 3.79 ± 0.37, LC15 = 32.28 ± 1.55 day, control = 29.79 ± 0.55). Comparatively, the activities of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases and esterase were higher than GST in treated populations. The increase in resistance development against insecticides may possibly because of elevated activity of detoxification enzymes. These results provide useful information for monitoring resistance in integrated pest management (IPM) programs for E. vittella

Hepatitis C Virus Infection Treatment: Recent Advances and New Paradigms in the Treatment Strategies

The advancement in hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapeutics has been profoundly enhanced by an improved understanding of viral life cycle in host cells, development of novel direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), and exploring other emerging treatment paradigms on the horizon. The approvals of first-, second-, and next-wave direct-acting antivirals highlight the swift pace of progress in the successful development of an expanding variety of therapeutic regimens for use in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection. Triple or quadruple therapies based on a combination of different direct-acting antivirals with or without pegylated interferon (IFN) and ribavirin (RBV) have raised the hopes to improve the current treatment strategies for other difficult-to-treat individuals. The development of more efficacious, well-tolerated, and cost-effective interferons with a low frequency of adverse events and short treatment durations is also in the pipeline. An experimental protective vaccine against hepatitis C virus demonstrated promise in preliminary human safety trials, and a larger phase II clinical trials are under consideration to further determine the efficacy of the vaccine. This pragmatic book chapter discusses the current state of knowledge in hepatitis C virus therapeutics and provides a conceptual framework of emerging and investigational treatment strategies directed against this silent epidemic