Online, set, go - Design and empirical test of an IT-based physical activity intervention

Financial services have been a recurrent subject of a multichannel inquiry but investigation into the wealth management area is scarce. This paper intends to fill the gap and presents the results of a questionnaire directed at customers of a financial conglomerate. The objective of this research is to examine which variables influence consumers’ channel preferences in the wealth management context, and to find out possible differences between the customers who prefer predominantly electronic service or personal service delivery. Logistic regression and t-tests are used in the analysis. The perceived channel attributes of personalization, convenience and safety, relationship strength, and the internet and wealth management knowledge influence the channel preferences. Typical wealth management customers prefer multichannel service delivery; only 4 % of customers prefer pure electronic service, and 14 % of customers prefer pure personal service. There are several aspects that differentiate those customers who prefer predominantly electronic or personal service. The preference for the electronic channel indicated investments in shares, independent decision making style in wealth management tasks and reliance on electronic information channels. In addition, the customers who perceive relationship strength with the service provider as weaker prefer predominantly eservices, which should give impetus for action among the management in the financial service companies

Predominantly Electronic or Personal Service Delivery? A Case in the Wealth Management Context

Financial services have been a recurrent subject of a multichannel inquiry but investigation into the wealth management area is scarce. This paper intends to fill the gap and presents the results of a questionnaire directed at customers of a financial conglomerate. The objective of this research is to examine which variables influence consumers’ channel preferences in the wealth management context,and to find out possible differences between the customers who prefer predominantly electronic service or personal service delivery. Logistic regression and t-tests are used in the analysis. The perceived channel attributes of personalization, convenience and safety, relationship strength, and the internet and wealth management knowledge influence the channel preferences. Typical wealth management customers prefer multichannel service delivery; only 4 % of customers prefer pure electronic service, and 14 % of customers prefer pure personal service. There are several aspects that differentiate those customers who prefer predominantly electronic or personal service. The preference for the electronic channel indicated investments in shares, independent decision making style in wealth management tasks and reliance on electronic information channels. In addition, the customers who perceive relationship strength with the service provider as weaker prefer predominantly eservices, which should give impetus for action among the management in the financial service companies

Analyzing the Internet-based Changes in the Finnish Residental Real Estate Market. Case: Igglo

This paper is about real estate industry in Finland, and the Internet-based changes that have turned a collection of static pictures and text into a more interactive search and decision making tool for home hunters. The novel e-services and marketing model of Igglo, a newcomer to the Finnish real estate industry, are described in detail. In addition, several US exemplars of innovative ways of offering real estate services are presented. Finally, different ways of providing real estate services are compared in order to judge whether the Internet is now ready to fulfill its promise of more efficient and nearly friction-free markets

Collaborative Knowledge Building for Accessibility in Higher Education. The inclusion of human diversity on the teaching & learning processes at Aalto University

This paper examines accessibility from the point of view of inclusive teaching and learning in the higher education. Instead of focusing on the various disabilities, addressing the needs and the diversity of all students is adopted as a starting point. We present several conceptual tools regarding the process of collaborative knowledge building. Finally, we suggest an iterative cycle of developing inclusive teaching and learning by using a PDCA tool with the continual iteration on communities of practice level among all stakeholders.Peer reviewe

Consumers\u27 acceptance and use of personal health record systems: A theoretical model

Recently, there has been a growing trend towards consumer-based healthcare in which consumers are increasingly becoming partners in their own care. One way of accomplishing this is to provide consumers with access to their health records through the use of Personal Health Record (PHR) systems. In spite of their potential benefits, recent research has shown that PHRs are not yet popular or well known to consumers. The overall objective of this research is to investigate the influences of various personal, behavioral, and environmental factors on the adoption and use of PHR systems by Canadian consumers. Drawing on both the information systems and behavioral healthcare literatures such a model is developed and presented. The proposed model will be validated using a longitudinal design over a period of 16 months involving patients from two local clinics. The study participants will be introduced to an existing PHR system at those clinics. The system will subsequently be made available for their potential use. Users will be surveyed at various points in time regarding their perceptions about the system utilizing both close-ended and open-ended questions. Collected data will be analyzed using structure equation modeling and qualitative data analysis techniques

An Exploratory Study on Customer Responses to Personalized Banner Messages in the Online Banking Context

In the 21st century the quantity of research on personalization has grown exponentially. New technologies enable efficient interaction with customers, even on one-to-one basis, providing the right content in the right format to the right person at the right time. The latest developments with “big data” analytics promise unprecedented opportunities for personalization, even in real-time. Although the technological advances allow fancy enhancements in personalization, it is imperative that the context-specific customer attitudes towards online personalization are taken into account by businesses. Customers are increasingly aware of their privacy, which improper personalization may intrude. This article presents the results of a two-phase study. Focus group interviews uncovered first the perceptions of bank customers regarding personalized marketing communication on online bank. A subsequent exploratory study investigated the online behaviour of customers, that is, their genuine responses to personalized messages. In this phase, bank customers were shown personalized banner advertisements when they logged in to their bank service. We studied, among others, the click-through rates and navigational behaviour and compared the effectiveness of personalized banners to default banners, and to traditional direct-mail messages. The personalized banners attracted more attention than default banners. In two of the three cases, the actual sales were also higher than in the case of direct-mail promotion. The results offer implications both for research and practice

Co-Creating a Research Landscaping and Visualization Service for Aalto University Library

The explosion of research available in digital journal databases poses increasing challenges but also opportunities to scholars. For a scholar to stay competitive, new information discovery tools such as text-mining and visualization software are needed to handle the data flood. A contemporary science library is in a key position in mediating the best practices via its services to scholars. This research depicts how Aalto University Library innovated such a service together with relevant stakeholders and customers. The dual goal of the research is 1) to ensure that the new service best fulfills the needs of scholars, and 2) to increase understanding on stakeholder and customer involvement in service innovation. The co-creation team included a senior scholar specializing in large-scale research profiling studies, an information specialist and the library’s IT account manager. During the service innovation process, four doctoral students as customers of the library were involved in pilot tests. The pilot sessions confirmed the need and usability of the new service for scholars, and informed how to refine it further. A service blueprint was sketched for the library and the service is being implemented based on that. The research landscapes produced via the service are visualized with a contemporary science mapping software using bibliographic information exported from licensed citation databases. To conclude, the co-creation with relevant stakeholders and customers was essential in innovating the new service. Librarians are experts in information retrieval tools, but not in conducting research, like scholars. Customers provide vital feedback during the service innovation process contributing to the success of i

Kuluttajien varallisuuden hallinta : Vertaileva tutkimus kuluttajien ja palveluntarjoajien näkemyksistä

Tutkimuksessa on selvitetty kuluttajien näkemyksiä varallisuuden hallinnasta ja vertailtu niitä finanssialan asiantuntijoiden kuluttajia koskeviin näkemyksiin. Tutkimuksen keskeisiä teemoja ovat varallisuuden sisältö ja varallisuuden hankinnan motiivit, varallisuutta koskevat päätökset ja tietolähteet sekä varallisuuden ja riskien hallinta. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on niin ikään arvioida lähtökohtia uudenlaisten varallisuudenhallinnan palveluiden kehittämiselle. Tutkimus on laadullinen dyadi-tutkimus. Kuluttaja-aineisto koottiin ryhmäkeskusteluin, joissa oli mukana 33 eri elinvaiheita edustavaa kuluttajaa Kuluttajatutkimuskeskuksen kuluttajapaneelista. Asiantuntija-aineisto koostui finanssiyrityksen 11 asiantuntijalle pidetyistä teemahaastatteluista. Tutkimuksen tulokset osoittavat kuluttajien ja asiantuntijoiden näkemykset varsin yhdenmukaisiksi. Kuluttajat pitävät varallisuuden hankkimisessa tärkeänä turvallisuutta ja elämän laatua. Sijoittamisen motiivina korostuu säästäminen pahojen päivien varalle. Korkea tuotto on tärkeää vain osalle kuluttajia. Kuluttajat tunnistavat hyvin varallisuuden eri lajit ja sijoitusinstrumentit, mutta pitävät myös henkistä pääomaa tärkeänä varallisuuseränä. Rahoitusvarallisuutta ja asuntovarallisuutta ajatellaan erillisinä ja varallisuuden hahmottaminen kokonaisuutena on kuluttajille vierasta. Kuluttajat liittävät päätökset elämän tilanteisiin, kun taas asiantuntijat keskittyvät kuvailemaan kuluttajien säästämis- ja sijoituspäätöksiä. Kuluttajien kiinnostus ja osaaminen sijoittajina ovat keskeisiä tekijöitä käyttäytymisessä. Kiinnostuneet kuluttajat luottavat omaan kykyynsä toimia sijoitusmarkkinoilla ja haluavat tehdä sijoituspäätöksiä itsenäisesti. Osa kuluttajia tukeutuu mieluiten päätöksissään finanssiyrityksen asiantuntijoihin. Kuluttajat nostavat haastatteluissa esiin luottamuksen merkityksen finanssiyrityksiä kohtaan. Luottamuksesta viestivät neuvonnan asiantuntemus sekä avoimuus esimerkiksi sijoitusten kulujen kertomisessa. Asiantuntijat sen sijaan uskovat kuluttajien luottavan finanssi-instituutioihin ja korostavat kuluttajien ymmärtämisen merkitystä. Kuluttajien näkemys varallisuuden hallinnan kokonaisuudesta on kapea-alainen. Esimerkiksi riskien hallinnan merkitystä osana varallisuuden hallintaa ei läheskään aina oivalleta. Myös asiantuntijoiden mukaan palveluntarjoajilta puuttuu käsitys varallisuudenhallinnan kokonaisuudesta ja tätä kokonaisuutta tukevat palvelut. Sekä kuluttajat että asiantuntijat pitävät tärkeänä kokonaisvarallisuuden hallitsemista tukevien palvelujen kehittämistä. Kehittäminen voi osittain tapahtua jo nykyisten palveluiden pohjalta