Search results for "management science"
showing 10 items of 1017 documents
Operation management in reconfigurable manufacturing systems: Reconfiguration for error handling
2006
Abstract Reconfigurable manufacturing systems offer quick adjustment of production capacity and functionality in response to unpredictable market changes as being systems designed at the outset for rapid change in system configuration, its machines and controls. During the production process, out-of-ordinary events occur dynamically and unpredictably both at the system (machine breakdowns, change in job's priorities, etc.) and at the cell level (tool failures, robot collisions, etc.). Such exceptions interrupt the production process by causing errors in the schedule plan (system level) or in the task plan (cell level). Error handling is the policy meant for reacting to errors caused by the …
Market-driven product and service design: Bridging the gap between customer needs, quality management, and customer satisfaction
2000
Bridging the gap between a firm's internal quality improvements and external measures of customer needs and satisfaction is an important yet complex translation process. The process has traditionally been studied within two very different domains. An external focus on customers has been the domain of marketers. Manufacturing and engineering-based approaches to quality management and improvement have traditionally taken a more internal, process improvement focus. Both areas have recognized the need to broaden thier focus and bridge the gap between internal quality and external customers needs and satisfaction. This paper offers a framework to integrate these two domains. A case study is pres…
Innovation Dynamics in Space: Local Actors and Local Factors
1997
This paper addresses the issue of technogenesis and its geographical pattern. It aims to offer both a general analysis framework and a test on innovation data from several European cities. This framework is mainly built on the product life-cycle and the incubation approach. On the basis of this framework, it is argued that the phases of an industrial life-cycle have several firm-specific effects. First, these phases influence innovativeness and thus profit levels, output and employment of firms in a spatially distinct way. Second, the phases of the life-cycle mirror the importance of local factors for innovations, and third, they affect strategic decisions of firms, inter alia by influencin…
Sharing economy and incumbents' pricing strategy: The impact of Airbnb on the hospitality industry
2019
Abstract In this paper, we examine how the emergence of sharing economy platforms influences incumbents' price responses. Grounding on the literature on price reactions to new entrants and on the unique characteristics of the sharing economy, we argue that the effect of the penetration of the sharing economy on incumbents' prices is not straightforward, and actually depends on the type of incumbents as well as certain product/service offer characteristics. Indeed, relying on a large sample of hotel price offerings from the Italian market, we find that the effect of the growing relevance of the sharing economy (exemplified by Airbnb) on incumbents' prices depends on the type of incumbents (l…
Do commodity assets hedge uncertainties? What we learn from the recent turbulence period?
2022
AbstractThis study analyses the impact of different uncertainties on commodity markets to assess commodity markets' hedging or safe-haven properties. Using time-varying dynamic conditional correlation and wavelet-based Quantile-on-Quantile regression models, our findings show that, both before and during the COVID-19 crisis, soybeans and clean energy stocks offer strong safe-haven opportunities against cryptocurrency price uncertainty and geopolitical risks (GPR). Soybean markets weakly hedge cryptocurrency policy uncertainty, US economic policy uncertainty, and crude oil volatility. In addition, GSCI commodity and crude oil also offer a weak safe-haven property against cryptocurrency uncer…
Viral marketing through e-mail: the link company-consumer
2013
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the antecedents that may determine the opening of e-mails from companies that endeavour to promote their products, and what may motivate individuals to forward such messages to others. Design/methodology/approach – The paper presents exploratory research to approach the nature of the viral process and descriptive research for testing the proposed hypotheses. Findings – The opening of an e-mail is determined by the value that an individual may perceive that the message might contain. Forwarding of the message is determined by its opening, and by the individual's perception about the value of the message it may provide to others, besides the…
Insights from a Simulation Model of Disaster Response: Generalization and Action Points
2016
In a prior paper we presented a system dynamics model that simulates responder behavior in a Norwegian landslide. The model shows how a set of vicious feedback loops caused by following standard organizational procedures that do not fit the disaster situation initially increases errors in response. Eventually learning and sensemaking in an improvisation/experimentation process leads to new emergent dynamics whereby the loops act virtuously. In this paper we aim to generalize this initial study by explaining in more detail how the model can describe large scale disaster responses of different types and how it relates to the wider disaster response literature. We discuss what types of levers,…
Exploring the future: Runtime scenario selection for complex and time-bound decisions
2015
Abstract Scenarios are designed to support decision-makers in gaining a better understanding of the consequences of decisions. Despite their popularity in IT for Foresight, a major obstacle is the complexity of strategic decisions and the resulting multitude of scenarios. Therefore choices need to be made, which scenarios to fully work out, by which experts and in which level of detail. This paper presents an approach to support making these trade-offs between accuracy and resources spent by prioritising scenarios based on their significance for the decision even on the basis of incomplete information. This approach combines theoretical findings in decision theory with results that were eli…
Reciprocal Effects: Toward a Theory of Mass Media Effects on Decision Makers
2007
The article presents a framework for the analysis of reciprocal effects of mass media—in this case, their impact on subjects of media reports, especially on decision makers in areas of politics and business. It outlines a feedback model with three sets of variables referring to (1) media coverage and media as institutions, (2) awareness and processing of information, and (3) observable effects on subjects and others.The article presents several theories that explain effects on decision makers and illustrate the relevance of this approach with empirical data from a broad range of quantitative studies. In the final section, theoretical and methodological problems of such an approach are discu…
Business strategy in new high‐tech ventures: an empirical analysis
1999
The aim of this study is to determine the existence of specific and unique features characterising markets, activities and customers in at least two of the most representative high technology sectors nowadays, the microelectronics/software industry and the biotechnology/biomedical industry. Cross‐Tabs statistical method has been used to analyze the data collected from the sample made up by 18 high‐tech American firms. One of the major findings of this study is that the business strategy will hold better prospects in those high‐tech firms benefiting from a higher technological excellence, having spent longer time in developing and launching their products, being able to keep longer the novel…