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Collaboration in agricultural value chains (AVCs) has the potential to increase smallholders’ participation in international value chains and increase their benefits from participation. This scoping review explores existing collaboration models among stakeholders of AVCs in developing countries, examines enablers and constraints of collaboration and identifies policy gaps.

We systematically searched three databases, CAB Abstracts, Econlit (EBSCO) and Agricola, for studies published between 2005 and 2023 and included 59 relevant studies on AVC collaboration.

The primary motivations for collaboration are to enhance market access and improve product quality. Key outcomes of collaboration include improvements in farmers’ welfare, market participation and increased production; only a few studies consider improved risk management as an important outcome. Robust support from government and non-governmental entities is a primary enabler of collaboration. Conversely, conflicts of interest among stakeholders and resource limitations constrain collaboration possibilities. Collaboration involving high-value crops prioritizes income increases, whereas collaboration involving staple crops focuses on improving household food security.

This study may have publication bias as unsuccessful instances of collaboration are less likely to be published.

This study is unique in highlighting collaboration models’ characteristics and identifying AVC policy and programmatic areas where private firms, farmers’ groups, local governments and donor agencies can contribute.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a nuanced framework for evaluating a channel partner’s performance in distribution channel relationships. Given a channel partner’s task environment characteristics (high/low munificence, dynamism and complexity), the study examines which performance metrics (output, activity or capability) are most relevant for evaluating its performance levels effectively.

The study adopts self-administered cross-sectional survey-based research design. Matched data were collected from 252 channel partners – manager relationship dyads. The latent change score (LCS) model within SEM framework provides mean paired-differences of the relevance ratings for each metrics. This was used to assess the empirical validity of the hypothesized relationships.

The study demonstrates the importance of calibrating performance evaluation metrics to a channel partner’s task environment state, made possible by its holistic approach to performance evaluation. Based on an extensive analysis, it shows that no single metric is relevant within all environmental states; rather, it could be dysfunctional, a result that differs from vast majority of the literature.

Investigates individual linkages between task environment dimensions and performance metrics to provide a fuller understanding of these relationships. Also provides a theoretical framework to support further research on the topic.

The study provides managerial guidelines (and extensive graphical analysis) for nuanced and dynamic evaluation of channel partners’ performance that can enable firms to identify and promote their most valuable channel partners and prevent the deterioration of others.

First one to develop and empirically validate a nuanced framework for evaluating performance of exchange partners that operate under diverse task environment states.

The aim of this paper states that total productive maintenance (TPM) is an improvement tool which employs the effective utilization of employees in order to enhance the reliability of the equipment in consideration.

This paper identifies and evaluates the factors accountable for the adoption of TPM methodology in manufacturing organizations. Twenty-four factors affecting the TPM implementation are explored and categorized into five significant categories. Afterwards, these identified TPM factors have been evaluated by using a most popular Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) approach namely fuzzy pivot pairwise relative criteria importance assessment (F-PIPRECIA).

In this paper, through application of F-PIPRECIA, “Behavioural factor” is ranked first while “Financial factor” the last. Considering the sub-factors, “Top management support and commitment” is ranked first while “Effective use of performance indices” is ranked the last. A further sensitivity analysis indicates the factors that need higher level of attention.

The result of current research work may be exploited by the top administration of manufacturing enterprises for assessing their TPM adoption status and to recognize the frail links of TPM application and improve accordingly. Moreover, significant factors of TPM can be identified and deploy them successfully in their implementation procedure.

The conclusion obtained from this research enables the management to clearly understand the significance of each considered factor on the adoption of TPM in the organization and hence, provides effective utilization of resources.

Here, diazo coupling reaction was imparted on chemically inert lignin isolated from natural resources. Activated lignin was coupled with the diazotised aniline, m-nitroaniline, p-nitroaniline-, and p-anisidine gives organic pigments.

The continuous increase in particle size of pigments confirms addition of diazotised salt to lignin by coupling reaction. Further, the dispersing ability of these coloured pigments were exploited in polymer matrix. Epoxy-polyamine cross linking system was doped with difference percentage of pigments and coated on mild steel metal surface. The morphology of these composites was understood by SEM, particle size, differential scanning calorimeter and thermo gravimetric analysis.

The synthesised organic pigments were characterised by FT-IR, ¹H NMR and UV-visible spectroscopy. It was observed that hiding power of aniline- and m-nitroaniline–based azo pigments was more than p-nitroaniline- and p-anisidine–based azo pigments. Thermal properties as well as water contact angles of coatings were improved with pigment concentration. The chemical resistivity of coating was observed to be improved with the increasing % of lignin-based azo pigment.

Lignin-based azo pigment has great potential to replace metal oxide pigment and provide strategy for utilisation of lingo-cellulosic biowaste material.

A change in monetary operating procedures provides a natural experiment which is used to evaluate, first, whether Indian monetary policy transmission is better when durable liquidity is in surplus or when it is in deficit; second whether it is better with interest rates as the policy instrument or quantity of money or a mixture of the two.

This study first shows that the period of analysis can be divided into two separate regimes one of liquidity surplus (2002–2010) and the other of deficit (2011–2019).This study then estimates separate structural vector auto-regressions (SVARs) for the financial and real sector, with relevant exogenous foreign, policy and other variables for each of the periods as well as SVARs for the whole period with alternative operating instruments.

Monetary transmission from the repo rate was better during the period the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) was in surplus with the central bank in absorption mode denoting excess durable liquidity. Pass through was faster and the repo rate had a greater influence on other variables. The impact of the rate on output gap exceeds that on inflation. The weighted average call money rate was found to outperform others as the operating target. Monetary policy has evolved so that policy rates are more effective in transmission compared to money supply, but best results are when durable liquidity is also in surplus.

The results contribute to ongoing debates on the Indian monetary policy framework and give useful inputs for policy in emerging markets where research is scarce. They suggest keeping the LAF in deficit mode over 2011–19 was not optimal.

Inorganic oxide addition can be synergistically beneficial in organic coatings if it can impart anti-corrosion properties and also act as an additive to enhance physical and/or chemical properties. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-corrosion benefits of nano nickel zinc ferrite (NZF) in the polymer film.

The time-dependent anti-corrosion ability of NZF (0.12-1.0 per cent w/w NZF/binder), applied on API 5L X-80 carbon steel, was characterized by electrochemical techniques such as open circuit potential, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, linear polarization resistance and potentiodynamic. Characterization of corrosion layer was done by removing coatings after 216 h of immersion in 3.5 per cent w/v NaCl. Optical microscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction techniques were used to characterize the corroded surface.

Corrosion measurements confirm the electrochemical activity by metallic cations on the steel surface during corrosion process which results in improvement of anti-corrosion properties of steel. Moreover, surface techniques show compact corrosion layer coatings and presence of different metallic oxide phases for nanocomposite coatings.

The suggested protection mechanism was explained by the leaching and precipitation of metallic ion on the corroded surface which in turn slowed down the corrosion activity. Furthermore, improvement in barrier properties of rubber-based coatings was confirmed by the enhanced pore resistance. This work indicates that along with a wide range of applications of NZF, anti-corrosion properties can be taken as an addition.

This study aims to find out the influence of green practices used by the five-star hotels on the guest’s online hotel assessment and their revisit intentions. It also evaluated how the use of green practices by the hotels influenced the guest’s willingness to pay a premium price. Apart from the conventional hotel service attributes, this study also identified some new and innovative services offered by the hotels which have an overall effect on the guest’s revisit intentions.

This study applied focus group interviews from 12 hotel managers and accessed the hotel’s internal database to identify the latest and innovative service attributes offered by the hotels. The information regarding the green practices offered by the hotels was collected through TripAdvisor and LEED-IGBC website. It identified 10 independent and four dependent variables based on previous literature. Guest’s revisit intentions were measured on a five-point Likert scale. Data was analysed using a multi-step hierarchical regression model.

The use of green practices by the hotels revealed a positive and significant influence on the guest’s revisit-intentions and their intention to pay a premium price. It was also found that the use of new and innovative green practices has a positive influence on the guest’s overall online evaluation of the hotel.

This study suggests that the amalgamation of green practices along with the conventional service attributes may help in the incremental revisit and online hotel assessment intentions, which might be of use for the managers and hotel policymakers.

Although previous studies have explored the conventional hotel service attributes in the context of Indian Hotel industry, this is one of the first studies which discussed the influence of recent and emerging hotel service attributes on the guest’s revisit and pay a premium price intention. Moreover, the influence of green practices on the guest’s overall online evaluation of the five-star hotels in Delhi was discussed in this study which was not performed before.

This study aims to identify, analyze and rank the critical success factors (CSFs) of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) implementation in Indian manufacturing sector based micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This study provides critical insight for managers and researchers aspiring for successful implementation of LSS in Indian manufacturing MSMEs.

The CSFs were extracted from literature followed by a questionnaire-based survey from 120 industry professionals with extensive knowledge and experience about LSS working in Indian manufacturing MSMEs. Further, the CSFs were grouped based on their fundamental relevance and ranked using best worst method (BWM) approach using inputs from LSS experts.

This study provides insights on success factors that have helped Indian manufacturing MSMEs to implement LSS. The findings signify that “Strategy based CSFs” were ranked as the top most important factors, followed by two other category factors namely “Bottom-Line CSFs” and “Supplier based and other category-based CSFs”.

The proposed research is specifically relevant to the context of MSMEs in the Indian manufacturing sector. In the future, the same approach can be extended to a global context, encompassing service sector-based MSMEs in healthcare and finance.

This study provides valuable inputs for managers, decision-makers, industrial practitioners and researchers about Indian manufacturing MSMEs. The identified CSFs and their prioritization offer a roadmap for successful adoption of LSS. Managers can allocate resources, and make strategic decisions based on the prioritized CSFs. Decision-makers can align their initiatives with the identified CSFs. Industrial practitioners gain insights to enhance their LSS initiatives, and researchers can focus their efforts on areas critical to LSS implementation in Indian MSMEs. Furthermore, the structured approach employed in this study can be adopted by various MSME sectors globally, thereby broadening the comprehension of LSS implementation.

This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge by addressing the gaps in literature on CSFs related to LSS adoption within Indian manufacturing MSMEs. While LSS has been widely studied, there is limited focus on its adoption in the context of Indian MSMEs. The combination of extensive literature review, questionnaire-based survey and the application of the BWM approach for prioritizing CSFs adds originality to the research.

Lean Six Sigma (LSS) implementation follows a structured approach called define-measure-analyze-improve-control (DMAIC). Earlier research about its application in emergency healthcare services shows that it requires organizational transformation, which many healthcare setups find difficult. The Kotter change management model facilitates organizational transformation but has not been attempted in LSS settings till now. This study aims to integrate the LSS framework with the Kotter change management model to come up with an integrated framework that will facilitate LSS deployment in emergency health services.

Two-stage Delphi method was conducted by using a literature review. First, the success factors and barriers of LSS are investigated, especially from an emergency healthcare point of view. The features and benefits of Kotter's change management models are then reviewed. Subsequently, they are integrated to form a framework specific to LSS deployment in an emergency healthcare set-up. The elements of this framework are analyzed using expert opinion ratings. A new framework for LSS deployment in emergency healthcare has been developed, which can prevent failures due to challenges faced by organizations in overcoming resistance to changes.

The eight steps of the Kotter model such as establishing a sense of urgency, forming a powerful guiding coalition, creating a vision, communicating the vision, empowering others to act on the vision, planning for and creating short-term wins, consolidating improvements and producing still more change, institutionalizing new approaches are derived from the eight common errors that managers make while implementing change in the institution. The study integrated LSS principles and Kotter’s change management model to apply in emergency care units in order to reduce waste and raise the level of service quality provided by healthcare companies.

The present study could contribute knowledge to the literature by providing a framework to integrate lean management and Kotter's change management model for the emergency care unit of the healthcare organization. This framework guides decision-makers and organizations as proper strategies are required for applying lean management practices in any system.

The proposed framework is unique and no other study has prescribed any integrated framework for LSS implementation in emergency healthcare that overcomes resistance to change.