This study focuses on examining how the country-of-origin influences the purchase intention of Sri Lankan Consumers in Western Province. Data were collected from 384 respondents using the purposive sampling technique via an online questionnaire. Researcher used the bootstrapping method to explore how Brand Image and Attitude Towards the Brand act as bridges connecting Country of Origin with Purchase Intention. Findings reveal that Attitude Towards the Brand significantly mediates the relationship between Country of Origin and Purchase Intention, while Brand Image has no mediating effect. Furthermore, there is a direct relationship between the Country of Origin and Purchase intention of Consumers. This research contributes to the theoretical framework by focusing on the role of Brand Image and Attitude towards the Brand in mediating the relationship between Country of origin and Purchase intention of smartphones.

This paper observes the impact of Consumer Ethnocentrism on the Purchase Intention for imported products among Sri Lankan university students, with brand sensitivity as a mediator and product cues as a moderator. The Theory of Reasoned Action is used as the theoretical framework of the study. Although previous studies have investigated these constructs, only limited research has explored their combined effects in Sri Lanka mainly among young consumers exposed globally and influenced by nationalist sentiments. This study addresses this gap by analyzing 200 responses which is gathered through an online survey and analyzed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The results show that consumer ethnocentrism does not have a direct impact on purchase intention, but the relationship is mediated by Brand Sensitivity and moderated by Product Cues. These findings indicate that ethnocentric attitudes alone might not predict the purchasing patterns of globally connected youth. In practice, the paper suggests that marketers should intensify brand association and develop product cues, whereas policymakers should tighten the local branding policies to strike a balance between national and global consumer preferences.

Entrepreneurship plays a vital role in economic development, job creation, and societal progress. This study examines how socio-cultural characteristics influence entrepreneurial orientation (EO) among small and medium enterprise (SME) entrepreneurs in Gujarat, India. Specifically, it investigates the impact of education, prior experience, and family background on the EO dimensions of innovativeness, proactiveness, and risk-taking propensity. A structured questionnaire was administered to 100 SME entrepreneurs in Gujarat, selected through convenience sampling. The items were adapted from established scales and validated through expert review and pilot testing. Reliability was confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha, and factor analysis (Varimax rotation) supported the three-dimensional EO structure. Parametric tests (t-tests, ANOVA) were conducted to compare EO across socio-cultural groups. Results show that education significantly enhances innovativeness and risk-taking, while prior business experience contributes positively to innovativeness but has limited effect on risk-taking and proactiveness. Family business background strongly influences proactiveness, with entrepreneurs from business families being more proactive than those from agricultural backgrounds. Drawing on the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), the study demonstrates that education shapes entrepreneurial attitudes, family background influences subjective norms, and prior experience enhances perceived behavioural control, collectively shaping entrepreneurial orientation. The findings suggest that investors and policymakers can use socio-cultural profiles to evaluate entrepreneurial potential. Education and training initiatives should particularly target entrepreneurs from non-business backgrounds to foster innovation and proactive decision-making. This study contributes empirical evidence on the socio-cultural determinants of entrepreneurial orientation in the Indian SME context, offering insights into how education, experience, and family background interact to shape innovation, proactiveness, and risk-taking in entrepreneurship.

This study examines the role of Social Networking Sites in driving the degree, speed, and scope of internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises in Sri Lanka, framed through the Uppsala Revised Model, which emphasizes incremental learning and network-based internationalization. Employing a quantitative approach, data was collected through questionnaire from the senior management of 128 Sri Lankan SMEs engaged in export-oriented activities. A linear regression and moderated regression analysis have been conducted to analyse the relationship between SNS and internationalisation of SMEs and the moderating effect of international experience using Python 3.12. Findings reveal a significant positive association between SNS usage and SME internationalization, suggesting that SNS platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp enable firms to overcome traditional resource and network limitations by facilitating a successful internationalisation process. The study further identifies that international experience moderate this relationship, enhancing the impact of SNS on internationalisation for SMEs with prior international experience. The present study contributes to the literature on SME internationalisation by providing insights specific to developing economies and offering actionable recommendations for practitioners and policymakers on SMEs capacity building, government support for digital adoption and training programs.

The apparel industry in developing economies faces significant challenges in digital transformation due to infrastructural limitations, skill gaps, and regulatory constraints. These barriers have hindered the full realization of the benefits offered by Industry 4.0 technologies. Drawing on capability-based theory, this study investigates how three key Industry 4.0 technological capabilities—Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data Analytics (BDA), and Cloud Computing (CC)—influence supply chain performance (SCP). Cross-sectional data from 57 apparel manufacturers in Sri Lanka were analysed using multiple regression analysis. The findings reveal that IoT and CC significantly enhance SCP, while BDA demonstrates a positive but statistically insignificant effect. This study contributes to the literature by providing sector-specific empirical evidence on the impact of Industry 4.0 capabilities in developing economies and extends capability-based theory within contexts characterized by structural and institutional challenges. Managerially, the study offers insights into how firms can leverage I4.0 technologies to strengthen SCP, even in resource-constrained settings. Limitations include the focus on a single industry and reliance on fundamental statistical techniques.

Scholars are progressively focusing on the service quality its impact of higher educational institutions, acknowledging that quality has become a foremost and persistent topic of discussion. The viewpoint on service quality stresses its growing importance in shaping student experiences and institutional reputations. However, the links between service quality, institutional image, on students’ satisfaction and students’ loyalty are still confusing and inconsistent. Thus, the study focuses on to understand the influence of service quality and corporate image on students’ satisfaction and loyalty. the study employed a census survey using a structured questionnaire based on the Faculty of Management and Finance, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka. The study population comprised 2,400 undergraduates, and a census survey method was employed. Of these, 1,378 responses were considered for the final analysis. The study confirmed the existence of a positive and significant relationship of service quality on students’ satisfaction, there is a positive and significant relationship of corporate image on students’ satisfaction, there is a positive and significant relationship of service quality on loyalty, there is a positive and significant relationship of corporate image on loyalty, there is a positive relationship between students’ satisfaction and loyalty. furthermore, a study established a partial mediation of students’ satisfaction on the relationships between service quality-loyalty and corporate image-loyalty. the originality of this study has been confirmed that there are only a few studies that considered all these influences in a single study including indirect effect of students’ satisfaction in the service quality field of education. This study offers more robust empirical evidence on the role of service quality and corporate image on student satisfaction and loyalty. It identifies the key quality dimensions within higher education institutions that significantly impact student satisfaction. Future researchers are stimulated to perform similar studies across other state universities and private universities to ensure the consistency and generalizability of the findings.

This study explores the influence of internal capabilities on the financial performance (FP) of large export manufacturing firms in Sri Lanka. Grounded in the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Core Competency Theory, the conceptual model focuses on Leadership Capability (LS), Business Strategy (BS), Shared Value (SV), and staff Competence (STF). Adopting a positivist stance and deductive approach, a pilot survey of 39 responses was conducted to test content validity. Subsequently, structured questionnaires were distributed to 453 large-scale exporters listed by the Export Development Board (EDB), yielding 385 usable responses. Structural Equation Modeling was used for analysis. Findings reveal that LS, BS, and STF significantly influence (FP). However, SV did not show a statistically significant impact and was removed from the final model. This research provides empirical insights into which internal capabilities most effectively drive financial outcomes in Sri Lanka’s export-oriented manufacturing sector.

This study investigated employees’ voice from the purview of high-performance working system in the Ministry of Education Ondo State, Nigeria with the objective of examining the effect of promotive employee voice on employees’ participation in Ondo State Ministry of Education. The study was descriptive in nature and employed a survey research design. The multistage style of sampling method was utilized with a total of one hundred and twenty (120) respondents participated. Findings revealed that promotive employees’ voices significantly affect high performance work system in with (R2 0.829>0.5) and prohibitive employee voice shares significant relationship with high performance work system with (r= 0.715, p-value<0.05). The study concluded that high-performance work system brings efficiency and allows organisations to gain competitive edge but this cannot be achieved alone without giving employees the voice to adequately participate and provide suggestions as stakeholders in the organisation. The study recommended that employees should be recognised as stakeholders and give cognizance to their contributions to stimulate creativity and ensure autonomy at work.

The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) offers a powerful lens for understanding what drives people to choose organic food. It highlights how personal attitudes, social influences, and a sense of control over the decision all play a role in shaping buying behavior while environmental concern, price and unique qualities of organic foods, and health consciousness all play a major role in switching consumers into organic food consumption. To gain meaningful insights into key factors shaping consumers' intentions to purchase organic food, a cross-sectional survey involving 120 organic food consumers in the Colombo District was conducted using a convenience sampling approach. In identifying patterns and relationships that influence purchasing decisions, gathered data were analyzed through Pearson Correlation and Multiple Linear Regression techniques. The study finds that several psychological and product-related factors play a crucial role in shaping consumers' intentions to purchase organic food. Specifically, personal attitudes, social influences (subjective norms), a sense of control over the decision, and the inherent qualities of organic food significantly drive purchasing intentions. However, considerations such as health consciousness, environmental concerns, and price of organic food did not show a meaningful impact on consumers’ decisions to buy organic products.

This study assessed the impact of Performance Management Practices on employees’ commitment in Tanzania public service organizations. The study was grounded in Goal Setting and Social Exchange theories, which served as the conceptual foundation for interpreting and validating the study's findings. A cross-sectional design with a quantitative approach was employed. Primary data were collected using a structured questionnaire, and the sample comprised 249 respondents randomly selected from 51 public sector organizations in Tanzania. The study employed PLS-SEM to test and estimate causal relationships between variables. The findings indicated a positive and statistically significant influence of the Open Performance Review and Appraisal System (OPRAS) on affective, continuance, and normative dimensions of organizational commitment. It also revealed that proper implementation of OPRAS makes employees develop feelings of being cared, valued and supported, and this creates a feeling of indebtedness among employees through reciprocation that make them committed, therefore work tirelessly to achieve organizational goals.