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1 – 10 of 28Zhuang Qian, Charles X. Wang and Haiying Yang
This research aims to empirically investigate the impacts of product and international diversification strategies on firm-level inventory performance.
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to empirically investigate the impacts of product and international diversification strategies on firm-level inventory performance.
Design/methodology/approach
This study empirically examines the associations between product and international diversification strategies and inventory performance based on a sample of 64,124 observations across 7,367 US publicly traded firms between 1989 and 2019 from the COMPUSTAT Segment, Fundamental Annual and Fundamental Quarterly data files. We employ both linear and nonlinear regression models to perform our empirical analysis.
Findings
This research provides strong evidence that there exists a U-shaped relationship between unrelated product diversification and inventory level and a partially inverted U-shaped relationship between international diversification and inventory level. We also find a positive impact of related product diversification on inventory level, but there is no significant curvilinear relationship between related product diversification and inventory level.
Practical implications
Our research findings offer important insights into top management’s strategic planning for diversification strategies and operations manager’s inventory control policies to achieve the strategic fit between corporate diversification and inventory management.
Originality/value
Product and international diversification strategies not only play an essential role in the firm’s competitive advantage, but also have a significant influence on operations manager’s inventory decision. This research is among the first to systematically investigate how top management’s related product, unrelated product and international diversification strategies may have complex nonlinear impacts on inventory performance.
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Yunqing Tang, Liqiang Zhang, Haiying Yang, Juan Guo, Ningbo Liao and Ping Yang
– The purpose of this paper is to investigate thermal properties at Cu/Al interfaces.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate thermal properties at Cu/Al interfaces.
Design/methodology/approach
A hybrid (molecular dynamics-interface stress element-finite element model (MD-ISE-FE) model is constructed to describe thermal behaviors at Cu/Al interfaces. The heat transfer simulation is performed after the non-ideal Cu/Al interface is constructed by diffusion bonding.
Findings
The simulation shows that the interfacial thermal resistance is decreasing with the increase of bonding temperature; while the interfacial region thickness and interfacial thermal conductivity are increasing with similar trends when the bonding temperature is increasing. It indicates that the higher bonding temperature can improve thermal properties of the interface structure.
Originality/value
The MD-ISE-FE model proposed in this paper is computationally efficient for interfacial heat transfer problems, and could be used in investigations of other interfacial behaviors of dissimilar materials. All these are helpful for the understanding of thermal properties of wire bonding interface structures. It implies that the MD-ISE-FE multiscale modeling approach would be a potential method for design and analysis of interfacial characteristics in micro/nano assembly.
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Junyun Liao, Lu Wang, Minxue Huang, Defeng Yang and Haiying Wei
In an online brand community (OBC), consumers as a group occupy a dominant position, and their horizontal interactions are pivotal for the consumer–brand relationship. However…
Abstract
Purpose
In an online brand community (OBC), consumers as a group occupy a dominant position, and their horizontal interactions are pivotal for the consumer–brand relationship. However, little is known about the effect of group characteristics on brands. To partially fill this gap, this study examines how group characteristics influence brand loyalty from the perspective of social identity theory. Specifically, by collecting data from an online survey, this paper investigates the effects of group similarity, group receptivity and group involvement on brand loyalty, the mediating role of community identification and the moderating effect of tenure in a community.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from 482 brand community members were analyzed using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The results show that group similarity, group receptivity and group involvement increase brand loyalty; furthermore, the effect is mediated by community identification. Moreover, group receptivity is more effective in fostering community identification of short-tenure members, whereas group similarity plays a more important role for long-tenure members.
Originality/value
This paper enriches the brand community literature from a group perspective and provides implications for how brand communities develop customer loyalty strategies.
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Junyun Liao, Defeng Yang, Haiying Wei and Yulang Guo
Despite the increasingly common view that online brand community (OBC) members are heterogeneous, knowledge concerning the impact of group heterogeneity on community and brand…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite the increasingly common view that online brand community (OBC) members are heterogeneous, knowledge concerning the impact of group heterogeneity on community and brand level outcomes is lacking. In response and drawing from organization research, this paper aims to study the consequences of two types of group heterogeneity (i.e. visible heterogeneity and value heterogeneity) on brand community commitment and brand commitment. The moderating role of tenure in a community is also examined.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey of 467 members of OBCs was conducted, and structural equation modeling was used to test hypotheses.
Findings
The results show that perceived visible heterogeneity positively affects brand community commitment, whereas perceived value heterogeneity has a negative effect on it. Brand community commitment positively relates to brand commitment; it also mediates the effect of perceived visible heterogeneity and perceived value heterogeneity on brand commitment. Further, the positive effect of visible heterogeneity on brand community commitment is stronger for short-tenure members, but the negative effect of value heterogeneity is stronger for long-tenure members.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that managers should make efforts to foster visible heterogeneity and reduce value heterogeneity. In addition, managers are advised to emphasize the characteristics that carry different appeal for members of different tenure.
Originality/value
This research is one of the first few quantitative studies to examine the influence of brand community heterogeneity on community, and especially brand level outcomes. It extends the literature on the effect of brand community on brands and adds to the emerging heterogeneity view of OBCs.
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Haiying Kang and Jie Shen
South Korean multinational enterprises (MNEs) have developed rapidly since the late 1950s. This chapter investigates South Korean MNEs’ talent management, more specifically…
Abstract
Purpose
South Korean multinational enterprises (MNEs) have developed rapidly since the late 1950s. This chapter investigates South Korean MNEs’ talent management, more specifically international recruitment and selection policies and practices in their Chinese operations.
Methodology/approach
Using the snowball method through Chinese and Korean networks we recruited ten Korean MNEs to participate in this research. We conducted semi-structured interviews with key individuals within the organisations.
Findings
It reveals that South Korean MNEs tend to adopt the polycentric approach or a mixed approach of being polycentric and ethnocentric to international staffing, with the number of expatriates reducing gradually over time. South Korean MNEs adopt ‘one-way selection’ in recruiting and selecting expatriates and localise recruitment procedures and selection criteria for host-country nationals.
Originality/value
South Korean MNEs have paid inadequate attention to: firstly, expatriates’ career development; and secondly, personal and family issues emerging from expatriation and repatriation. This study highlights these issues.
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Ni Wang, Haiying Pan, Yuze Feng and Sixuan Du
The purpose of this paper is to clarify the impact mechanisms and weighting factors of environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices on corporate value through bibliometric…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to clarify the impact mechanisms and weighting factors of environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices on corporate value through bibliometric analysis and core interpretation of existing literature, further explore whether and under what conditions ESG practices contribute to the corporate value creation, and provide an outlook on future research directions.
Design/methodology/approach
Bibliometric method is used to analyze literature co-citation, burst detection and keyword co-occurrence, and literature review method is used to condense important ideas from the existing literature.
Findings
Through the review, analysis and summary of the existing literature, this paper finds that the perspectives of risk, information and strategy reflect the key pathways through which ESG practices play a role in avoiding harm and creating value for companies directly or indirectly. Macro, meso and micro factors moderate the direction and extent of the impact. Moreover, considering the relationship between ESG performance and ESG disclosure is key to understanding some contradictory findings.
Research limitations/implications
The search terms limit the articles considered, and therefore, the research framework may be incomplete. Moreover, this article is primarily aimed at the research field and lacks guidance at the practical level.
Practical implications
This paper helps the academic community to deepen its understanding of ESG, moving beyond the question of whether ESG is linked to corporate value to further understand why and under what conditions ESG practices create value for firms.
Social implications
This paper has great practical significance in motivating companies to actively participate in ESG practices.
Originality/value
The theoretical framework in this paper reveals the black box between enterprise ESG practices and value creation, and clarifies the research boundary of “the relationship between ESG practices and value creation,” contributing to the future research in this field.
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Shushan Zhang, Lei Sun, Qi Sun and Haiying Dong
This paper aims to explore how the novel information technology (NIT) [1] affects three dimensions of sustainable supply chain performance (economic performance, environmental…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how the novel information technology (NIT) [1] affects three dimensions of sustainable supply chain performance (economic performance, environmental performance and social performance) and how two dimensions of IT alignment (IT infrastructure alignment and IT human resources alignment) mediate the relationship between them.
Design/methodology/approach
NIT is defined, the dimension of IT alignment is expanded, the theoretical hypotheses are proposed and are tested using survey data from 394 manufacturing enterprises using NIT in China.
Findings
The results indicate that NIT plays a positive role in improving sustainable supply chain performance, and IT alignment mediates the impact of NIT on sustainable supply chain performance.
Originality/value
This study highlights the impact of NIT on sustainable supply chain performance and demonstrates IT alignment as a mediator between them, it also provides a deeper understanding of how different dimensions of IT alignment affect sustainable supply chain performance
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Arthur C. Graesser, Nia Dowell, Andrew J. Hampton, Anne M. Lippert, Haiying Li and David Williamson Shaffer
This chapter describes how conversational computer agents have been used in collaborative problem-solving environments. These agent-based systems are designed to (a) assess the…
Abstract
This chapter describes how conversational computer agents have been used in collaborative problem-solving environments. These agent-based systems are designed to (a) assess the students’ knowledge, skills, actions, and various other psychological states on the basis of the students’ actions and the conversational interactions, (b) generate discourse moves that are sensitive to the psychological states and the problem states, and (c) advance a solution to the problem. We describe how this was accomplished in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) for Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) in 2015. In the PISA CPS 2015 assessment, a single human test taker (15-year-old student) interacts with one, two, or three agents that stage a series of assessment episodes. This chapter proposes that this PISA framework could be extended to accommodate more open-ended natural language interaction for those languages that have developed technologies for automated computational linguistics and discourse. Two examples support this suggestion, with associated relevant empirical support. First, there is AutoTutor, an agent that collaboratively helps the student answer difficult questions and solve problems. Second, there is CPS in the context of a multi-party simulation called Land Science in which the system tracks progress and knowledge states of small groups of 3–4 students. Human mentors or computer agents prompt them to perform actions and exchange open-ended chat in a collaborative learning and problem-solving environment.
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Lara Martin-Vicario, María Eugenia Martínez-Sánchez and Ruben Nicolas-Sans
The aim of this study was to observe how a user’s individual factors in a commercial weight-loss treatment app affect their perceived usefulness of its features and how they…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study was to observe how a user’s individual factors in a commercial weight-loss treatment app affect their perceived usefulness of its features and how they relate to each other.
Design/methodology/approach
The information was obtained from an online survey with a sample of 412 users from a branded app for a commercial weight-loss treatment using body mass index (BMI), self-efficacy, social support and perceived usefulness as variables.
Findings
Users with higher self-efficacy perceived the app’s features as more useful. However, BMI was not a factor except for the psycho-emotional support features, which individuals with obesity perceived as more useful. Likewise, it was found that there weren’t any significant differences in self-efficacy based on their BMI. Lastly, it was found that social support could not be used as a factor to predict self-efficacy.
Research limitations/implications
This study helps understand how individual factors for behavioural change may affect the perceived usefulness of a weight-loss app. Furthermore, the significance of self-efficacy as an influencing factor provides useful information for companies and app developers alike when developing their branded apps.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the body of knowledge on factors affecting user perceptions of weight-loss apps. It also adds to the literature of branded apps as complimentary resources for companies, which has not been studied in detail.
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