Sprinting for creative economy growth – a case study of a business planning and rapid prototyping toolkit for the Brazilian creative economy sector

This article reflects on the development of a creative economy training product and toolkit developed by Coventry University with SEBRAE (the Brasilian Micro and Small Business Support Service) and funded by British Council. It was devised following two weeks creative economy scoping visits in autumn 2017 in Brasil. The scoping visits identified the need for a fun and “disruptive” business planning experience leading to rapid prototyping which would allow new creative economy ideas to be brought to market at low development cost – “Sprint”. A one day micro Sprint was tested in four locations in Brazil to excellent feedback in late 2017. The client subsequently requested a three day version of the methodology to invest more time in the cultural change of the creative entrepreneur and the development of an associated toolkit. However, this Sprint has subsequently also been rolled out in a super condensed 3 hour version piloting in 2019 and 2020 in Ukraine through British Council Creative Spark programmes. The toolkit offers skills and techniques to train creative entrepreneurs and their mentors in enabling the growth of the creative economy in their communities. This paper predominantly focuses on the implementation of the client commissioned three day Sprint

Gelation mechanism of thermoreversible poly(vinylidene fluoride) gels in glyceryl tributyrate

Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVF2) gels in glyceryl tributyrate (GTB) with fibrillar morphology in the dried state. The gels are transparent and WAXS results indicate the presence of α-phase PVF2 crystals in the gels. The gelation rate (t-1gel) has been measured by the test tube tilting method and has been analysed with the equation t-1gel ∝ f(c)f(T), where f(c) = concentration function and f(T) = temperature function. At a fixed temperature, the variation of t-1gel with concentration suggests that the nature of the connectedness in this system obeys the three dimensional percolation mechanism. On the other hand, at a fixed concentration, the variation of the gelation rate with temperature suggests that the gelation is a two step concerted process of conformational ordering and crystallization, the former acting as the rate determining step. The formation of fibrillar gels in this system has been attributed to the solvation of the TGTG conformer of PVF2 through compound formation in a 3:1 molar ratio of the monomeric units of PVF2 and GTB

The potential link between corporate innovations and corporate competitiveness:Evidence from IT firms in the UK

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a thorough empirical investigation of the potential link between corporate innovations and corporate competitiveness in the context of the UK IT industry. Design/methodology/approach: This research uses a panel of 216 UK IT firms for the period from 2000 to 2016. The sample data for this study were extracted from the Worldscope, extracted from the Datastream database from Thomson Reuters. For the analysis of the data, the generalised method of moments model is applied. Findings: The results of this study provide empirical evidence that there exists a strong, positive link between corporate innovations and corporate competitiveness. Such evidence further reinforces the common view in the current literature of strategic management that because of the nature of their business, firms in the IT industry need to enhance their innovative capacities on a continual basis because of their critical role on these firms’ success and survival. Also, it is found that when the proxies for corporate innovations are lagged by two periods, their impact on corporate competitiveness becomes relatively more significant. However, when they are further lagged, i.e. by three periods, such an impact turns out to be relatively less pronounced. Research limitations/implications: The data gathered for this paper was restricted to IT-oriented firms in the UK. Using a secondary database (Datastream), the paper considered the period of 2000-2016. Originality/value: The research makes a significant contribution to the current debate on the relationship between information technology, innovation and performance, referred to in the literature as the productivity paradox, by studying the problem in the IT industry. It supports organisations from the sector in their efforts to deal with the dynamic nature of technological innovations and of the context where they operate. Methodologically, the way the study has measured the concepts of innovation and performance and the lessons learned from their analysis has also brought value to the research

Reciprocity and resilience: teaching and learning sustainable social enterprise through gaming

Against a backdrop of increased global environmental and economic uncertainty, the resilience and sustainability of urban communities is a paramount concern for decision makers. The work presented here aims to explore how teaching and learning around transition initiatives, based upon social enterprise and reciprocity, might be supported by game theory and strategy simulation environments. Key elements for this are the coevolutionary nature of internal and external organisational contexts. The gaming prototype developed here (Exploring Community Resilience, ExCoRe)is based upon an extension of the Prisoner’s Dilemma as a medium for active learning, but is enacted through a multi-player and dynamic environment. The key learning objectives for the game are to introduce a broad concept of reciprocity and collaboration on a systems level, and the importance of an emergent and responsive ‘learning strategy’ for new start-ups and enterprises. The static nature of the traditional strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) approach is challenged and students are encouraged to appreciate, through establishing game strategy, a much more fluid and dynamic relationship between internal and external environments

Digital resilience and firm internationalization: a study of Chinese listed companies

Purpose: The aim of this research is to explore the impact of digital resilience on firms' international performance. Using internal operation efficiency and innovation as channel variables, this paper explores the relationship between digital resilience and international firm performance of Chinese listed firms. Design/methodology/approach: The research design follows a quantitative approach. Using firm-level panel data from 2007 to 2020, this paper tests the hypotheses between digital resilience and international firm performance through internal efficiency and innovation. Findings: The results note that digital resilience has a positive effect on internationalization while operation efficiency is a channel through which digital resilience promotes internationalization. Digital resilience also facilitates innovation by improving research and development (R&D) efficiency and matching innovation collaborators. Originality/value: This paper is one of the first to explore digital resilience in the context of internalization and international firm performance. This paper extends the notion of resource-based view (RBV) to examine the relationship between digital resilience, internal efficiency and innovation on international firm performance.The National Social Science Fund of China, "Research on the Mechanism and Policy of Market Integration driven by Digital Economy under the New Development Pattern" (22CJY065

Scaffolding in Indoor and Outdoor Mobility a Wearable and Mobile Application for Senior Tourism in a Playable City

The growth of urban population and the challenges of an ageing society have brought to the fore the need of innovative ways to re-invent sustainable healthy ageing lifestyles and meet the growing demand on transport and residents’ assistance with ageing-in-place. Fatalities involving older adult pedestrians is a major problem in EU urban areas, given the general lack of information about traffic and road conditions. Indoor and Outdoor Mobility are also likely to affect Senior Tourism and older adults’ travel patterns. This paper proposes a digital application designed for wearables and mobile devices that engages the users in a set of missions and routes that are customized to their context and mobility condition, based on a multi-peer review system.This work was supported by FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia) and ESF under Community Support Framework III – the project SEDUCE 2.0 nr. POCI-01-0145-FEDER- 031696.publishe

Cyber risk assessment in small and medium-sized enterprises: A multilevel decision-making approach for small e-tailors

The role played by information and communication technologies in today's businesses cannot be underestimated. While such technological advancements provide numerous advantages and opportunities, they are known to thread organizations with new challenges such as cyberattacks. This is particularly important for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that are deemed to be the least mature and highly vulnerable to cybersecurity risks. Thus, this research is set to assess the cyber risks in online retailing SMEs (e-tailing SMEs). Therefore, this article employs a sample of 124 small e-tailers in the United Kingdom and takes advantage of a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method. Indeed, we identified a total number of 28 identified cyber-oriented risks in five exhaustive themes of “security,” “dependency,” “employee,” “strategic,” and “legal” risks. Subsequently, an integrated approach using step-wise weight assessment ratio analysis (SWARA) and best–worst method (BWM) has been employed to develop a pathway of risk assessment. As such, the current study outlines a novel approach toward cybersecurity risk management for e-tailing SMEs and discusses its effectiveness and contributions to the cyber risk management literature