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1 – 10 of 11Mehreen Azam and Khurshid Ahmad
This paper aims to measure the adoption of big data analytics (BDA) to achieve sustainability in services being offered in university libraries in Pakistan.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to measure the adoption of big data analytics (BDA) to achieve sustainability in services being offered in university libraries in Pakistan.
Design/methodology/approach
The study applied a unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) as a framework and used quantitative data collection and analysis method. In total, 246 university library professionals were surveyed using a questionnaire consisting of UTAUT factors. The gathered data were analyzed using partial least structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).
Findings
The results showed that performance expectancy (PE), effort expectancy (EE) and social influence (SI) significantly impacted the behavioral intention (BI) to adopt BDA. Facilitating conditions (FCs) have a statistically significant influence on the adoption of big data in libraries, while BDA has a statistical influence on the sustainability of library services (SLS).
Practical implications
BDA assists libraries in making better decisions about demand-driven collection creation, library space management, usage tracking, and quality maintenance in routine and repetitive library tasks such as cataloging, indexing, archiving, administration, preservation and representation. BDA supports libraries in making more cost-effective, innovative, user-oriented services, resource transferring, social identity, resource utilization, healthier user experience, strategic planning, informed decision-making and state-of-the-art infrastructure.
Originality/value
The foundation of this study is based on information gathered from various sources and university libraries in Punjab to better understand the challenges associated with using BDA for the SLS in Pakistan.
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Keywords
Zulqurnain Ali and Aqsa Mehreen
Leadership development practices develop future leaders for the organizations which are evidence for the proper utilization of organizational resources. The purpose of this paper…
Abstract
Purpose
Leadership development practices develop future leaders for the organizations which are evidence for the proper utilization of organizational resources. The purpose of this paper is to integrate succession planning into the job demands–resources (JD–R) model to predict individual performance.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 239 participants were drawn from commercial banks located in a large city of Pakistan through a structured questionnaire. The proposed model was tested through structural equation modeling.
Findings
The results from 239 participants suggest that succession planning has a direct and indirect effect on engagement and employee performance through the JD–R model. Furthermore, job resources and engagement mediate the association between succession planning and employee performance.
Research limitations/implications
The present study employed a cross-sectional approach, and all constructs were answered on a self-report questionnaire. Thus, the findings should be validated through a longitudinal design by employing a more objective construct.
Practical implications
The banks should adopt proactive succession system to improve individual and organizational performance. Succession planning helps the banks to reduce recruitment cost and promote internal hiring. This study supports the managerial decisions making by mobilizing skilled and talented employees in the sudden resignation of a bank employee.
Social implications
Succession planning seems an important development factor that directly improves employees’ well-being through the JD–R model.
Originality/value
The present study demonstrates the integration of the JD–R model into succession planning.
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Jean-Noël Beka Be Nguema, Gongbing Bi, Zulqurnain Ali, Aqsa Mehreen, Christophe Rukundo and Yangqian Ke
Several manufacturing firms are facing various internal concerns such as financial and operational issues, which strongly pushed the firms to search for solutions (e.g. supply…
Abstract
Purpose
Several manufacturing firms are facing various internal concerns such as financial and operational issues, which strongly pushed the firms to search for solutions (e.g. supply chain finance; SCF) to sustain their supply chain operations and supply chain effectiveness (SCE). In this view, this study attempts to explore four key factors influencing the adoption of SCF, which, in turn, impacts SCE in Chinese manufacturing firms. Therefore, this study aims to propose that how information sharing, external collaboration, digitization and financial institutions enable manufacturing firms’ to adopt SCF that subsequently enhances SCE. Moreover, how supply chain risk (SCR) mediates the association between SCF adoption and SCE.
Design/methodology/approach
The current research recruited 177 Chinese manufacturing firms administrating a questionnaire to supply chain managers and tested the proposed conceptual model and associations using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The results reveal that all four factors are positively related to the adoption of SCF, which consequently improves the SCE of manufacturing firms. Moreover, the findings show that the effect of SCF significantly and positively impact SCE. Further, the result also confirmed that SCF significantly mitigates SCR, thereby leads to improves SCE.
Research limitations/implications
The current study mainly focuses on Chinese manufacturing firms, which may generate low generalizability. In addition, this study was based on a cross-sectional research design which may generate common method bias. Therefore, more comparative studies are needed between developed and developing countries to enhance the generalizability of the study findings.
Practical implications
This study provides significant new insights about how marketing managers and practitioners can adopt SCF in manufacturing firms via information sharing, external collaboration, digitization and financial institutions to mitigate firm risk and enhance SCE.
Originality/value
The approach used in this research differs from many of the previous studies and investigates the factors of adoption of SCF and their impact on SCE in the manufacturing firm sector within the context of the Chinese economy. Therefore, this research is an important guide for scholars, managers and executives of marketing, while providing them with a new model, significant insights which are significant in their organizations.
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Zulqurnain Ali, Sadia Sabir and Aqsa Mehreen
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the firm’s internal factors influence employee engagement (EE), which, in turn, enhances the performance of textile employees…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the firm’s internal factors influence employee engagement (EE), which, in turn, enhances the performance of textile employees. Furthermore, the present study pursues to address the indirect effect of EE on the relationship between the firm’s internal factors and employee performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were taken from 355 participants working in textile mills through a survey approach. Structural equation modeling was run to confirm the proposed model and structural relationships.
Findings
Results highlight that internal communication and reward and recognition are significantly related to EE, except for work‒life balance. Furthermore, EE has a significant effect on the performance of textile employees.
Practical implications
The present study helps the textile managers to improve employee performance while focusing on the firm’s internal factors of engagement. Proactive internal communication and reward system will help to bring a competitive edge and achieve the organizational goals. The findings also provide managers the information to reduce the organization interruptions in enhancing EE and performance.
Originality/value
This study covered the hidden gap in the previous literature on EE and performance, especially in the field of the textile sector by employing Kahn’s theory of engagement.
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Zulqurnain Ali, Bi Gongbing and Aqsa Mehreen
A growing need for financing in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) has become a significant obstacle to the development of firms. To remove this barrier, the purpose of this…
Abstract
Purpose
A growing need for financing in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) has become a significant obstacle to the development of firms. To remove this barrier, the purpose of this paper is to examine how supply chain finance (SCF) assists the firms to improve their performance by utilizing the resource-based view (RBV). Furthermore, the present study also pursues to test the effect of trade digitization as a moderating variable in the relationship between SC finance and the firm performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Using data from the textile sector, the authors run confirmatory factor analysis in AMOS 24 and hierarchical linear regression model in SPSS 23 to measure the proposed model and hypotheses, respectively.
Findings
The study suggests that SCF significantly improves the SMEs performance. Moreover, trade digitization strengthens the relationship between SCF and SMEs performance. Thus, the current study significantly describes the firm RBV through SCF and trade digitization to predict the SMEs performance.
Practical implications
SMEs entrepreneurs or executives can optimize the working capital through SCF and enhance the visibility of transactions through digitization for improving SMEs performance. Moreover, SCF protects the SMEs due to its nature of risk mitigation strategy.
Originality/value
This study covered the unexplored gap in the previous literature of supply chain management by establishing the relationship between SCF and the firm performance empirically while identifying the role of trade digitization as moderating variable in the context of textile SMEs by employing RBV theory.
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Hamza Saleem, Yongjun Li, Zulqurnain Ali, Muhammad Ayyoub, Yu Wang and Aqsa Mehreen
This paper aims to investigate the use of big data (BDU) in predicting technological innovation, supply chain and SMEs' performance and whether technological innovation mediates…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the use of big data (BDU) in predicting technological innovation, supply chain and SMEs' performance and whether technological innovation mediates the association between BDU and firm performance. Additionally, this research also seeks to explore the moderating effect of information sharing in the association between BDU and technological innovation.
Design/methodology/approach
Using survey methods and structural associations in AMOS 24.0., the proposed model was tested on SME managers recruited from the largest economic and manufacturing hub of China, Pearl River Delta.
Findings
The findings suggest that BDU is positively related to technological innovation (product and process) and organizational outcomes (e.g., supply chain and SMEs performance). Technological innovation (i.e., product and process) significantly mediates the association between BDU and organizational outcomes. Moreover, information sharing positively moderates the association between BDU and technological innovations.
Practical implications
This research provides deeper insights into how BDU is useful for SME managers in achieving the firm’s goals. Particularly, SME managers can bring technological innovation into their business processes, overcome the challenges of forecasting, and generate dynamic capabilities for attaining the best SMEs’ performance. Additionally, BDU with information sharing enables SMEs reduce their risk and decrease production costs in their manufacturing process.
Originality/value
Firms always need to adopt new ways to enhance their productivity using available resources. This is the first study that contributes to big data and performance management literature by exploring the moderating and mediation mechanism of information sharing and technological innovation respectively using RBVT. The study and research model enhances our insights on BDU, information sharing, and technological innovation as valuable resources for organizations to improve supply chain performance, which subsequently increases SME productivity. This gap was overlooked by previous researchers in the domain of big data.
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Zulqurnain Ali and Aqsa Mehreen
Considerable research has linked leaders’ development practices to employee performance, but little research has concentrated on how succession planning minimizes the turnover…
Abstract
Purpose
Considerable research has linked leaders’ development practices to employee performance, but little research has concentrated on how succession planning minimizes the turnover intentions. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of succession planning on turnover intentions among banking professionals. Moreover, the authors examine whether succession planning enhances the employee job security and creates career attitude that mitigates the risk of employee turnover intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the survey method, the authors recruited permanent employees of retail banking and the proposed model and structural relationships were tested via structural equation modeling.
Findings
The findings depict that succession planning provides job security and creates positive career attitude which in turn mitigate the turnover intentions among banks employees.
Practical implications
The present study helps the bank management to formulate a strategic and proactive succession system based on job security and build a strong career attitude to discourage the turnover intentions among banks employees. Moreover, the outcome supports the management of banks in case of the sudden resignation of a bank employee; they will be in a position to appoint a resourceful employee immediately on the vacant post to provide excellent customer services.
Originality/value
The current study successfully developed an empirical relationship between succession planning and turnover intentions which was skipped in the literature on human resource development. Furthermore, this study offers an important mediation mechanism for job security and career attitude for mitigating the turnover intentions among banks employees through succession planning.
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Keywords
Zulqurnain Ali, Bi Gongbing and Aqsa Mehreen
The purpose of this paper is to examine how a supply chain (SC) network helps small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to obtain liquidity and working capital for enhancing their…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how a supply chain (SC) network helps small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to obtain liquidity and working capital for enhancing their performance while developing the relationships among SC members through information sharing. Moreover, this study also investigates whether a strong tie or bridge tie improves the availability of SMEs’ credit and performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a survey approach, data were collected from textile SMEs, located in Pakistan. Structural equation modeling and hierarchical regression model were run to validate the proposed model and the relationships.
Findings
Findings highlighted that strong tie and bridge tie of SMEs positively and significantly enhance the credit quality and SMEs’ performance. Furthermore, information sharing significantly moderates the relationship between SC network ties and SMEs’ credit quality. Credit quality significantly explains the indirect (mediation) association between the strong tie and the firm performance.
Practical implications
This study will help the SMEs’ entrepreneurs and SC executives to strengthen the liquidity position of SME and improve SMEs’ performance by developing the bridge ties. SMEs should share more information in their SC network while performing business transactions so that financers or lenders can easily access their operational capabilities and individual characteristics to offer them quality credit such as supply chain finance (SCF).
Originality/value
SMEs always face the issue of risk-free financing which adversely affects the firm performance. This study covered the hidden gap in SCM and SMEs’ financing literature by identifying the crucial role of SCF as quality credit in the development of SMEs. Moreover, SMEs can get benefits (e.g. quality credit=SCF) for better embedding in an SC network through information sharing.
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Zulqurnain Ali, Bi Gongbing and Aqsa Mehreen
Due to globalization, textile small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operations have become complex which raised the needs of risk-free financing solutions to support the SMEs’ daily…
Abstract
Purpose
Due to globalization, textile small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operations have become complex which raised the needs of risk-free financing solutions to support the SMEs’ daily processes. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of supply chain (SC) finance, a risk-free financing solution, on SC effectiveness (SCE) in the context of textile SMEs by employing transaction cost (TC) approach.
Design/methodology/approach
The participants of the study were recruited from textile SMEs through a structured questionnaire. The proposed model and structural relationships were assessed by employing AMOS 24.0.
Findings
The results of this paper indicate that supply chain finance (SCF) has a significant effect on SCE. Furthermore, all proposed factors of SCF adoption have a positive and significant effect on SCF.
Practical implications
This study helps the SMEs executives or owners to adopt SCF as a secure financing scheme to reduce the credit TCs, optimize the firm working capital, reduce the risk of default, and improve SC effectiveness. SMEs and suppliers can build strong relationships while adopting the findings of this study. SMEs can engage the suppliers to work under strategic alliance through negotiation, collaboration, and work digitization, and extend their payment terms while providing an opportunity to the suppliers to get their payment back before a fixed time through discounting from financial institutions as needed.
Originality/value
The present study covered the gap related to SCF and SCE by identifying unique factors of SCF adoption which was ignored in the previous literature by employing TC approach.
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Faiza Tabassum, Syeda Hina Batool, Kanwal Ameen and Mehreen Hassan
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the status (information services, infrastructure, budget, collection and staffing) of public girls’ high school libraries of the Lahore…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the status (information services, infrastructure, budget, collection and staffing) of public girls’ high school libraries of the Lahore city. Lahore is the second largest and hub of educational institutions in Pakistan. Resource-based learning is the basic right of all citizens. School libraries support teaching and learning with best available information resources. In Pakistan, fewer studies have reported the status of school libraries, and keeping in view the significance of early education, the present study highlights the situation through a qualitative lens.
Design/methodology/approach
For an in-depth analysis of the situation, qualitative research approach was used. The data were collected through interviews and observation technique. Additionally, focus groups were conducted with the students of grade IX and X to find their school libraries’ perceptions.
Findings
The findings revealed that the overall status of school libraries was unsatisfactory. Libraries were facing many problems such as lack of staff, budget, place and poor infrastructure issues. It was also found that economic geographical location of schools was not the factor affecting the status of libraries; rather, the schools’ head was mainly responsible for the better condition of the libraries.
Research limitations/implications
The study has implications for educationists, librarians, library schools and library professional organizations to make effective policies. However, the findings cannot be generalized and can be applicable in a similar context.
Originality/value
The study is based on MPhil thesis and is significant to be added in global school librarianship literature.
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