A Framework for Fostering Easier Access to Enriched Textual Information

Considering the amount of information in unstructured data it is necessary to have suitable methods to extract information from it. Most of these methods have their own output making it difficult and costly to merge and share this information as there currently is no unified way of representing this information. While most of these methods rely on JSON or XML there has been a push to serialize these into RDF compliant formats due to their flexiblity and the existing ecosystem surrounding them. In this paper we introduce a framework whose goal is to provide a serialization of enriched data into an RDF format, following FAIR principles, making it more interpretable, interoperable and shareable. We process a subset of the WikiNER dataset and showcase two examples of using this framework: One using CoNLL annotations and the other by performing entity-linking on an already existing graph. The results are a graph with every connection starting from the document and finishing on tokens while keeping the original text intact while embedding the enriched data into it, in this case the CoNLL annotations and Entities

Building on eWOM to Understand Service Quality in Hotel Services

In recent years the volume and the reach of available online content in the form of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) has grown at an unprecedented pace. eWOM exerts an important influence for consumption decisions of consumers, and is acknowledged to be more accessible and trustworthy than other commercial information provided by companies by means of advertising and sales. The sophistication and widespread of communication technologies is making the volume of information released online by customers to become overwhelming. For consumers and for business managers alike, making sense of the available information is a challenge that needs to be met urgently in order to keep the pace with the expectations of consumers whom, as engaged providers of feedback require their observations to be taken into account. This advances with a contribution to support the development of methods for the analysis and visualization information from online sources, by adapting an importance-performance analysis for identifying salient quality attributes from eWOM, offering an efficient approach for extracting information and identifying priorities for service improvement

Customers’ Online Interaction Experiences with Fashion Brands: E-Information and E-Buying

Online platforms (such as websites, blogs, social networks, crowdsourcing) enable consumers to interact with companies and brands in new ways. This chapter is the first attempt to go further and analyse how perceived fashion website quality, social influence and recommendation, credibility, and experience influence fashion consumer behaviour, considering performance expectancy as the core element of online trust, satisfaction and word-of-mouth. The proposed model is tested in the context of the fashion industry. Data comprises a sample of generation Y users of fashion websites to get information and buy clothes. In order to collect data, convenience mall-intercept sampling (Lisbon city centre area) served to draw a broad cross-section of consumers. Researchers used tablets to be used by consumers to answer the online survey. The final sample consisted of 312 participants. The instruments employed were adapted from previous studies and pilot-tested with a group of master’s students to verify the clarity of meaning and comprehension. Findings reveal the stronger influence of perceived quality and experience on the performance expectancy. Performance expectancy, in turn, exercises a positive effect on satisfaction and word-of-mouth

Opportunities and challenges raised by Customer-to-Customer Interaction to service operations management: a quality management perspective

It is widely recognized that the presence of other customers is an important social component of the servicescape with an impact on the quality of services provided and, in particularly, on customer experiences Therefore, increasing attention has been paid to customer-to-customer interaction (CCI) by management literature, both by marketing and by operations management scholars. As stressed in previous literature, there are several types of CCI, each of them posing different opportunities and challenges to service providers. Digital transformation has also been contributing to the emergence of new forms of CCI through online platforms and other social media channels. The diversity of CCI forms has recently led to the development of CCI typologies (and taxonomies. Yet, the implications of CCI on the systems and tools typically used to manage quality in service operations, highly focused on the reduction of variability and unpredictability, are still under-researched. Based on a review of the literature on CCI and on a critical analysis of some scenarios, this paper identifies the main strategies and tools that have been used to either foster value creation through CCI or to mitigate their negative consequences, giving a particular attention to transport services. From a services operations perspective, and more specifically from a quality management point of view, some recommendations are derived on how to better deal with this additional source of variability, inconsistency and complexity.Patrícia Moura e Sá would like to acknowledge the contribution of the Research Center in Political Science (UIDB/CPO/00758/2020), University of Minho, supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and the Portuguese Ministry of Education and Science through national funds, to the current research

Sustainable economies: using a macro-economic model to predict how the default rate is affected under economic stress scenarios

This article aims to calculate the quarterly default rate of customers loans in the UK for different simulated stress-scenarios based on a macro-economic model. These simulations are from Q1 2019 until Q4 2023. The simulated default rates are compared to default rates from the 2007–2009 crisis. In addition to this, the uplift, elasticity and level of extremeness of a simulated default rate were also computed. This paper employed a systematic literature review methodology in order to gather knowledge about the available literature about the topic. The data analysis component of this project was divided into three different parts: 1) Monte Carlo simulations were used in order to simulate stress macro-economic conditions, 2) back-transformation was employed in order to calculate the default rate, which was calculated in function of the macro-economic variables, 3) a visualisation dashboard containing the results, built using R Shiny. Scenarios 1, 2 and 3 show a 30%, 3%, and 4% default rate increase, respectively, between Q4 2023 and the 2007–2009 economic crisis. Our research might be relevant for banks and stakeholders to assess how certain scenarios will affect the default rate and the macro-economic environment for sustainable economies. Furthermore, the findings can be used to validate or invalidate macro-economic models.publishe

ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION: A SCORECARD APPROACH TO ASSESS REGIONAL IMPACTS OF UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS

RESUMO As Universidades desempenham um papel importante no desenvolvimento das regiões, decorrentes da sua tripla missão (Brennan et al., 2004): Ensino, Investigação e "Envolvimento da Comunidade" (B-HERT, 2006). As Instituições de Ensino Superior estão equipadas com recursos humanos altamente qualificados e desempenham um papel fundamental na criação de conhecimento, bem como no desenvolvimento e na evolução das sociedades (European Union, 2011). Assim, é crucial uma efetiva incorporação destes conhecimentos no desenvolvimento de produtos e inovações (European Union, 2011). Ao longo das últimas décadas, as atividades de transferência de conhecimento foram alvo de especial atenção, nomeadamente pelo seu potencial para expandir o impacto das Universidades (Sánchez-Barrioluengo, 2014), através do desenvolvimento de relações com a comunidade. Assim, os países europeus estabeleceram políticas promotoras da transferência de conhecimentos da Universidade para as regiões europeias (Berbegal-Mirabent et al., 2013). A União Europeia (2011) elencou um conjunto de quatro áreas a partir das quais as Universidades estimulam o desenvolvimento regional: reforçar a inovação regional através das suas atividades de investigação; promoção das empresas, desenvolvimento e crescimento de negócios; contribuição para o desenvolvimento do capital humano regional e competências, e melhorar a igualdade social através da regeneração e desenvolvimento cultural. Este artigo centra-se na segunda área, abordando os projetos universitários que visam a promoção do empreendedorismo. O empreendedorismo tem um papel crucial no crescimento económico e na criação de emprego. A educação no empreendedorismo está incluída no leque de ferramentas através das quais se espera que as Universidades contribuam para o desenvolvimento regional (Laukkanen, 2000). Desde uma fase inicial que a educação ganhou relevância e foi definida como uma prioridade, tanto para a Comissão Europeia, como para as regiões europeias. Neste contexto, as Universidades têm beneficiado das oportunidades criadas pelos programas educacionais que promovem o desenvolvimento de um conjunto variado de competências, promovidos por Políticas de Educação Europeias (Cankaya et al., 2015). Atualmente o programa Erasmus+ cobre uma ampla gama de projetos destinados a aumentar as qualificações e a empregabilidade. O programa apoia parcerias transnacionais no campo da educação, formação e instituições e organizações jovens que promovam a cooperação e estabeleçam pontes entre o mundo da educação e do trabalho, com o objetivo de colmatar as lacunas de competências na Europa. A educação em empreendedorismo está no centro destas preocupações. O Erasmus+ promove o desenvolvimento de competências empresariais que criam um ambiente propício para o empreendedorismo (European Commission, 2010; European Commission, 2016), e oferece suporte para a promoção da educação empreendedora pelas Universidades, (Jansen et al., 2015). Este artigo propõe uma abordagem inspirada na abordagem de scorecard para desenvolver uma metodologia para aferir os impactos regionais dos projetos de empreendedorismo universitários desenvolvidos no âmbito do programa Erasmus+.   Palavras-chave: Educação em empreendedorismo; transferência de conhecimento; scorecard; cooperação universidade-região   ABSTRACT Universities play an important role in the development of regions (Brennan et al., 2004), stemming from their threefold acknowledged mission: Teaching, Research and "Community Engagement" (B-HERT, 2006). Higher Education Institutions (HEI) are equipped with highly qualified human resources and hold a key role in knowledge creation and on the development and evolution of societies (European Union, 2011). To this end an effective incorporation of such knowledge into product development and innovation is crucial (European Union, 2011). Over the past decades knowledge transfer activities have received special attention, notably for their potential for expanding the impact of Universities (Sánchez-Barrioluengo, 2014) through the development of relationships with communities. On this regard, European countries established policies encouraging the transfer of knowledge from university to the European regions (Berbegal-Mirabent et al., 2013). The European Union (2011) has put forward four main areas from which Universities stimulate regional development: enhancing regional innovation through their research activities; promoting enterprise, business development and growth; contributing to the development of regional human capital and skills, and improving social equality through regeneration and cultural development. This paper focuses in the second area, by addressing the university projects aiming the promotion of entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is regarded as instrumental in economic growth, and job creation. Entrepreneurial education therefore is included in the range of ways by which Universities are expected to contribute to regional development (Laukkanen, 2000). Education has gain relevance as priority for the European Commission and for European regions from an early stage. In this context, Universities have benefited from the opportunities created by the educational programs fostering the development of a varied set of competences that have been promoted, nurtured by European Education Policies (Cankaya et al., 2015). Currently the Erasmus+ program offers an umbrella for projects aimed at boosting skills and employability. The program supports transnational partnerships among Education, Training, and Youth institutions and organisations to foster cooperation and bridge the worlds of Education and work in order to tackle the skills gaps in Europe. Entrepreneurship education is at the core of these concerns. Erasmus+ promotes the development of entrepreneurial competencies which grant a propitious environment for entrepreneurship (European Commission, 2010; European Commission, 2016), and offers support for the promotion of entrepreneurship education by Universities (Jansen et al., 2015) This paper builds on a scorecard approach to develop a methodology for assessing the regional impacts of university entrepreneurship projects developed under the Erasmus+ program.   Keywords: Entrepreneurship education; knowledge transfer; scorecard; university region cooperatio

A field study on the impacts of implementing concepts and elements of industry 4.0 in the biopharmaceutical sector

[EN] This article proposes a field study on the applications and impacts of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) in the biopharmaceutical sector, based on an initial literature review. The world is facing a new industrial revolution that is happening at a faster pace than the previous ones. The central idea is the integration between the virtual and the real world through elements that will allow a greater degree of automation and digitization of processes The fieldwork, carried out between July and December 2019, considered semi-structured interviews with managers of pharmaceutical companies or specialists in the I4.0 theme. The interviews pointed out the need for the biopharmaceutical sector to adapt to the concepts of I4.0 and identified its main benefits and barriers. The perceptions were considerably diversified, with the benefits in operational efficiency, productivity and quality being the most scored items. Regarding the main barriers, the most highlighted by the interviewees were the need to break organizational cultural standards, regulatory requirements, the lack of organizational strategies for implementation and the lack of qualified professionals. In conclusion, this work in progress is a contribution to the biopharmaceutical sector and reinforces the imminent need for companies to adapt to this new reality.Silva, F.; Resende, D.; Amorim, M.; Borges, M. (2020). A field study on the impacts of implementing concepts and elements of industry 4.0 in the biopharmaceutical sector. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 1-8. https://doi.org/10.4995/CARMA2020.2020.11565OCS859

A field study on the impacts of implementing concepts and elements of industry 4.0 in the biopharmaceutical sector

This study proposes a field study, based on a literature review, about the applications and impacts of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) in the biopharmaceutical sector. The world is facing a new industrial revolution and the central idea is the integration between the virtual and the real world through elements that will allow for a greater degree of automation and digitization of processes. The production of medicines via biological processes is a booming domain in the pharmaceutical sector, that involves extraordinary technological challenges. The fieldwork, carried out between August 2019 and February 2020, involved semi-structured interviews with managers of pharmaceutical companies and specialists in the I4.0 theme. The interviews allowed for the identification of trends and key benefits and barriers for implementing I4.0 in the biopharmaceutical sector. While the perceptions were considerably diversified, benefits in productivity, competitiveness and quality ranked among the most scored items. The main barriers, highlighted by the interviewees, refer to the need to break organizational cultural standards, the regulatory requirements, the lack of organizational strategies for implementation, and the lack of qualified professionals. This work offers a contribution to the biopharmaceutical sector and reinforces the imminent need for companies to adapt to this new reality.publishe

Operational criteria for the design of front-office processes in multi-channel service delivery systems

This paper identifies relevant operational factors that affect the design of front-office processes in Multi-Channel Service Delivery Systems. Based on two in-depth case studies in banking and telecommunications, we distinguish four operational factors: i) characteristics of the inputs and outputs of the service activities; ii) characteristics of the transformation taking place; iii) the expected utilization; iv) the economics of developing the activities in the channels. Building on these results, we propose a stepwise approach for addressing the design of front-office models for MC services.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Emergent Digital Strategies and Networks: Advancements to Service Management Research

The purpose of this research is to report and explore new channel strategies, which allow delivering services through new digital technologies. Therefore, we have conducted an in-depth qualitative case study to generate comprehensiveness and rich knowledge. The case focused on a Private bank in Portugal and counted with several sources of data collection, gathering 42 semi-structured interviews, more than 80 direct observations and more than 3,600 internal documents, for triangulation and corroboration purposes. The results suggest that organizational synergies are changing the business landscape by encompassing triadic elements channels-services-firms. While some organizations are implementing this strategy around the world, we found that it provides greater channel freedom of choice to customers when compared with the previous strategies. Thus, our findings identify a set of potential advantages, as well as risks of adopting digital business networks as a strategy. This article also studies technologydriven solutions in business networks, as customers are becoming active co-producers.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio