Business Domain Research Articles

Managing Student Mobility in Cameroon’s University Ecosystem: A FORM/BCS Approach

Nowadays, student mobility cannot be avoided in Cameroon university ecosystem. This phenomenon has many causes. Certain students live with their parents who are civil servants and they have to move with them when they are sending to a different region; another situation is link to universities newly created in cities where the cost of the live is better than in the home university city and students prefer move to these new universities. Since student circuit is not the same in each university, it is difficult to find his level in the new university and which courses he has to follow in order to complete his training. This problem is crucial in Cameroon university ecosystem and we tackle it in this paper. The Feature Oriented Reuse Method with Business Component Semantics (FORM/BCS) is a software domain engineering method that has been proposed to design an adaptable architecture for systems belonging in a same business domain. In this work, we apply the FORM/BCS method to manage student mobility in Cameroon university ecosystem. The result of this work is a management model that allows once a student gets an enrolment in a new university, to transfer credit from the student home university to the host one.

Research on Anti-monopoly Regulation of the MFN Clause on Internet Platforms

With the continuous development of electronic information technology, internet companies are playing an increasingly important role in the business field. This evolution has not only catalyzed shifts in business models and transaction habits but has also introduced novel practices, such as the integration of Most-Favored-Nation clauses (MFN clauses) that were formerly exclusive to traditional business domains. Currently, MFN clauses are widely used in commercial activities between internet platform companies, which require high attention from antitrust enforcement agencies. Through a comprehensive analysis of existing literature and research, this study aims to shed light on the similarities and differences between these two types of MFN clauses, offering valuable insights into the evolving landscape of business practices within the digital age. In addition, the article also uses case analysis to examine two typical cases in foreign jurisdictions, demonstrating the regulatory approaches of the extraterritorial judiciary towards MFN clauses within internet platforms. Based on the analysis, the conclusion of this paper is that the for collusive MFN clause, the illegal per se doctrine should be applied for exclusive MFN clause, the principle of reasonableness should be applied, taking account of both the effects on restricting and promoting competition.

ExDe: Design space exploration of scheduler architectures and mechanisms for serverless data-processing

Serverless computing is increasingly used for data-processing applications in both science and business domains. At the core of serverless data-processing systems is the scheduler, which ensures dynamic decisions about task and data placement. Due to the variety of user, cluster, and workload properties, the design space for high-performance and cost-effective scheduling architectures and mechanisms is vast. The large design space is difficult to explore and characterize. To help the system designer disentangle this complexity, we present ExDe, a framework to systematically explore the design space of scheduling architectures and mechanisms. The framework includes a conceptual model and a simulator to assist in design space exploration.We use the framework, and real-world workloads, to characterize the performance of three scheduling architectures and two mechanisms. Our framework is open-source software available on Zenodo.

Application of “Agile” principles to business process management: enhancing organizational efficiency

Agile principles, originally developed for software development, have gained significant attention and popularity due to their ability to foster flexibility, adaptability, and continuous improvement. However, these principles are not limited to software development alone and can be successfully applied to various business domains, including business process management (BPM). This article explores the application of agile principles to BPM, highlighting the benefits and challenges that organizations may encounter during the implementation process. Agile BPM involves a shift from traditional process management methodologies to a more iterative and collaborative approach. It focuses on delivering value to customers by enabling organizations to respond quickly to changing market dynamics, customer demands, and internal requirements. The core principles of agile BPM include customer-centricity, iterative management, continuous feedback and improvement, cross-functional collaboration, and empowerment of teams. By adopting agile principles in BPM, organizations can enhance their ability to identify and prioritize process improvements, reduce time-to-market, and increase customer satisfaction. Agile methodologies, such as Scrum or Kanban, provide frameworks and tools to manage work in smaller, manageable increments, allowing for faster and more frequent delivery of process improvements. This iterative approach enables organizations to respond to changing business needs and obtain early feedback, ensuring that processes are aligned with current requirements. However, implementing agile BPM is not without its challenges. It requires a cultural shift within the organization, as individuals must adapt to a more flexible and iterative mindset. Resistance to change, lack of clarity in roles and responsibilities, and inadequate training and support can hinder successful implementation. Therefore, organizations need to invest in change management initiatives, provide training and support to employees, and create an environment that encourages experimentation and continuous learning. In conclusion, applying agile principles to BPM offers organizations a way to optimize their processes, increase agility, and deliver enhanced value to customers. Successful implementation requires careful planning, stakeholder involvement, and a commitment to fostering a culture of agility and continuous improvement.

Linking supply chain performance with organizational strategic performance – a review and research agenda

PurposeThis article aims to comprehensively review the measurement and management of supply chain performance (SCP) and strategic performance (SP). It strives to identify integrable features regarding frameworks, measurement approaches, practices and emerging research issues in these areas to integrate SCP and SP for measuring and managing performance. It intends to develop a dynamic-integrated-performance-system by incorporating integrable aspects of SCP and SP to link these domains for organizational performance improvement.Design/methodology/approachUsing systematic-literature-review, this study analyzes 154 articles published in selected peer-reviewed international journals from 2000 to 2023 regarding SCP and SP. It assesses existing knowledge regarding research-design followed, challenging areas and imperatives in these critical business domains to investigate the prior conceptual, empirical, case study-based and literature-review-based articles.FindingsThe study identifies integrable features regarding key theoretical and measurement frameworks, critical objectives, significant measures, effective practices for measuring and managing SCP and SP and emerging research issues common to these areas. The findings help develop a dynamic-integrated-performance-system that uses the theoretical lenses of resource-based-view/dynamic-capability-theory and adopts a comprehensive framework like DBSC (system-dynamic-model with BSC perspectives). It incorporates identified integrable measures and best practices to monitor, measure, manage and improve organizational performance for sustainable competitive advantage. The article reveals that earlier studies have overlooked analyzing SCP and SP integration aspects.Research limitations/implicationsFrom the theoretical viewpoint, the present SLR is unique in three ways: first, in investigating both the measurement and management of SCP and SP holistically; second, in identifying integrative features of these two; and third, in proposing a DIPS to link SCP and SP for performance improvement. The study reveals that existing literature has focused on measuring and managing SCP and SP in isolation without attempting a comprehensive and unified approach to integrate the respective domains. The present SLR adopts a holistic approach to link SCP and SP from SCM and strategic-management perspectives. The study proposes a dynamic-integrated-performance-system to measure, manage and improve performance in a unified method.Practical implicationsThis study provides SC and strategy practitioners with an understanding of strategy-performance pathways for achieving strategic objectives and executing risk mitigation initiatives to counter disruptions. It enables SC managers to comprehend SC practices and SCP leading to dynamic SC capabilities development. Operationalizing the proposed DIPS will help firms link SCP and SP, align operational SC practices with strategic sustainability and circularity objectives and meet sustainable development goals while benefiting social and environmental stakeholders.Originality/valueAssessing relationships and identifying a unified approach integrating SCP with SP have not been addressed earlier. This study's uniqueness is finding integrable features of SCP and SP and constructing a dynamic-integrated-performance-system to link these domains for achieving strategic competitiveness.

How Satisfaction with Running Business and Private Life Are Related to Small-Business Owners’ Subjective Well-Being

This study examined how satisfaction with aspects of running the business as well as satisfaction with aspects of the private life are related to small-business owners' subjective well-being (SWB). Measures were obtained of both life satisfaction (LS) and emotional well-being (EWB) to investigate possible differences. Questionnaire data from a survey of small-business owners (n=614) showed that in the business domain LS is associated with satisfaction with revenues, EWB with satisfaction with customer and employee contacts, and both LS and EWB with satisfaction with working time. In the private life domain, LS is associated with satisfaction with family and economy and EWB with satisfaction with leisure. Overall, LS has a stronger association than EWB with satisfaction with aspects of private life, while the associations with satisfaction with business aspects are equally strong.

Privacy-Compliant Software Reuse in Early Development Phases: A Systematic Literature Review

ContextPrivacy-compliant software development has received substantial attention in recent years, especially with the growth of digital services and the emergence of privacy regulations and standards. The increasing popularity of open-source software repositories and reuse practices challenges privacy-compliant software development. ObjectiveThis paper aims to present the state-of-the-art in privacy-compliant software reuse, focusing on early development phases of requirements engineering, domain analysis and software design, as well as to discuss the current challenges that identify directions for future research. MethodWe conducted a Systematic Literature Reviews (SLR) and analyzed 61 papers published in the last two decades, in terms of their business and technological domains, followed reuse approaches, applied privacy strategies, and utilized evaluation approaches. ResultsThe reviewed studies vary in terms of business domains (e.g., healthcare, smart objects and finance) and technological domains (e.g., IoT, mobile, cloud and microservices). Most of the studies do not refer to a specific regulation and if so – to GDPR. Their common purpose is to support benign reuse, most notably through patterns, components & libraries and model-driven engineering, but malicious reuse is also researched to a lesser extent. A strong emphasis is put on integrating privacy strategies whose goal is building trust and transparency (in particular, inform and demonstrate), while other strategies are studied to a limited extent in software reuse context. Evaluation is commonly performed through analytical, observational and experimental approaches. ConclusionsThe operationalization of privacy compliance practices for existing software artifacts is still challenging. The challenges encompass improving trustworthiness of reused artifacts, ensuring privacy compliance in distributed architectures, bridging the gap between legal regulations and software requirements, enhancing privacy analysis and vulnerability detection, supporting late application of privacy strategies, and developing objective assessments for privacy-compliant software reuse.

A closed-loop analysis approach for ensuring stormwater source control design solution to achieve the intended goals

Stormwater source controls have been adopted worldwide to address hydrological and environmental impairments caused by the spread of impervious surfaces in cities. Current design method in China uses 30-year daily rainfall records to generate relationship of rainfall volume capture ratio (αg) and daily design storm, and then uses design storm to propose design solution. However, source control performance differs from rain to rain, and hence the design solution's actual effect may deviate from αg. Borrowing closed-loop feedback concept from business domain, this study proposes closed-loop analysis (CLA) which uses design solution's 30-year simulated result as data feedback to check design solution's effectiveness and then make improvements if necessary. It consists of four methods: 1) hourly design storm statistical method, for addressing the weakness of current daily design storm; 2) design solution model credibility examination method, for guaranteeing credibility of 30-year simulated results for CLA; 3) appropriate design storms determination method for source control without underdrain; 4) additional design parameters optimization method for source control with underdrain. Taking Xiamen city for example, case study results shows that design solution's 30-year simulated results were consistent/comparable with sizing calculation formula that was used to propose design solution, and therefore they were credible for CLA. Appropriate design storms ensured design solutions without underdrain to achieve the intended αg±3 %. Optimal design parameters combinations ensured design solutions with underdrain to achieve αg but also restore natural runoff events with pre- and post-development runoff frequency spectra similarity being 0.670–0.691. Based on stormwater mathematical model, CLA can drive source control design computation to a new methodological stage.

Valuation in emerging technoscience business: a case study of Finnish biobank research

PurposeThe paper contributes to the discussion on valuation in organization studies and strategic management literature. The nascent literature on valuation practices has examined established markets where producers and consumers are known and rivalry in the market is a given. Furthermore, previous research has operated with a narrow meaning of value as either a financial profit or a subjective consumer preference. Such a narrow view on value is problematic and insufficient for studying the interlacing of innovation and value creation in emerging technoscientific business domains.Design/methodology/approachThe authors present an empirical study about value creation in an emerging technoscience business domain formed around personalized medicine and digital health data.FindingsThe results of this analysis show that in a technoscientific domain, valuation of innovations is multiple and malleable, entails pursuing attractiveness in collaboration and partnerships and is performative, and due to emphatic future orientation, values are indefinite and promissory.Research limitations/implicationsAs research implications, this study shows that valuation practices in an emerging technoscience business domain focus on defining the potential economic value in the future and attracting partners as probable future beneficiaries. Commercial value upon innovation in an embryonic business milieu is created and situated in valuation practices that constitute the prospective market, the prevalent economic discourse, and rationale. This is in contrast to an established market, where valuation practices are determined at the intersection of customer preferences and competitive arenas where suppliers, producers, service providers and new entrants to the market present value propositions.Practical implicationsThe study findings extend discussion on valuation from established business domains to emerging technoscience business domains which are in a “pre-competition” phase where suppliers, customers, producers and their collaborative and competitive relations are not yet established.Social implicationsAs managerial implications, this study provides insights into health innovation stakeholders, including stakeholders in the public, private and academic sectors, about the ecosystem dynamics in a technoscientific innovation. Such insight is useful in strategic decision-making about ecosystem strategy and ecosystem business model for value proposition, value creation and value capture in an emerging innovation domain characterized by collaborative and competitive relations among stakeholders. To business managers, the findings of this study about valuation practices are useful in strategic decision-making about ecosystem strategy and ecosystem business model for value proposition, value creation and value capture in an emerging innovation domain characterized by collaborative and competitive relations among stakeholders. To policy makers, this study provides an in-depth analysis of an overall business ecosystem in an emerging technoscience business that can be propelled to increase the financial investments in the field. As a policy implication, this study provides insights into the various dimensions of valuation in technoscience business to policy makers, who make governance decisions to guide and control the development of medical innovation using digital health data.Originality/valueThis study's results expand previous theorizing on valuation by showing that in technoscientific innovation all types of value created – scientific, clinical, social or economic – are predominantly promissory. This study complements the nascent theorizing on value creation and valuation practices of technoscientific innovation.

Distributionally Robust Optimization Under Distorted Expectations

Optimal Decision Making Under Distorted Expectation with Partial Distribution Information Decision makers who are not risk neutral may evaluate expected values by distorting objective probabilities to reflect their risk attitudes, a phenomenon known as distorted expectations. This concept is widely applied in behavioral economics, insurance, finance, and other business domains. In “Distributionally Robust Optimization Under Distorted Expectations,” Cai, Li, and Mao study how decision makers using distorted expectations can optimize their decisions when only partial information about objective probabilities is available. They show that decision makers who are ambiguity averse can optimize their decisions as if they are risk averse with their risk attitudes characterized by a convex distortion function. This finding demonstrates why even non–risk-averse decision makers, such as those studied in the celebrated cumulative prospect theory, may consider it optimal to take risk-averse decisions when facing uncertainty about objective probabilities. Leveraging this finding, the authors show that a large class of distributionally robust optimization problems involving the use of distorted expectations can be tractably solved as convex programs.

The Impact of Job Training on Recruitment and Employability Skills Among Graduates

Purpose: The aim of the study is to examine the impact of job training on recruitment and employability skills among graduates by utilizing the self-perceived employability scale. Theoretical framework: the study is based on the evidence from the literature, we provide valuable insights through a literature review into the significance of job training for graduates in terms of recruitment and employability skills. Design/methodology/approach: This study used a sample of 190 graduate students who underwent job training with a specific company. Employability was measured by descriptive analysis using SPSS to assess questionnaire stability. The analysis also utilized Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) through the Smart-PLS 4.0 program. Findings: The findings of this study indicated a positive and significant relationship between job training and employment within the same company. This suggests that graduates who received training courses in their final year showed increased interest and likelihood of obtaining employment within the training company. Additionally, a significantly positive impact was found of job training on employability, highlighting the contribution of job training to the development and enhancement of employability skills among graduates. Research, Practical & Social implications: The results of this study strengthen employability skills among graduates, which holds implications for graduates seeking employment and organizations designing training programs to improve recruitment outcomes and employability skills within a company. Originality/value: The research value of this study is that it can positively grow the management and business domain, it has beneficial effects on both employed and unemployed individuals, with a greater impact on increasing employment opportunities for the unemployed.

Interactive Effects of CEOs’ Firm-Specific Experience and Versatile Experiences on Pursuit of New Growth Opportunity

Prior research has opposing views about the merits of firm-specific managerial experience, and empirical findings are mixed. To address this problem, we ask when firm-specific managerial experience is helpful versus harmful in pursuit of new growth opportunities. We propose that when CEOs’ firm-specific experience is combined with versatile managerial experiences, its growth-constraining effect is alleviated due to increased adaptability of CEOs' human capital to support growth in new business domains. We find support for this argument in a sample of U.S. food firms and their pursuit of the organic food opportunity during 1997 to 2007. We also find that CEOs’ versatile experience by itself is not sufficient for the pursuit of new growth, but it is when the two types of experience are combined synergistically that firms can achieve higher rates of opportunity pursuit. In this vein, our research reconciles the alternative theoretical perspectives on firm-specific experience and invites further consideration of experience combinations where both positive and negative synergies drive the ultimate impact of key managerial experiences.

Creative self-efficacy – a double-edged sword: the moderating role of mindfulness between deliberate practice, creative self-efficacy, and innovation performance

PurposeDeliberate practice, an iterative process, has garnered increasing attention of researchers and practitioners in entrepreneurship and business domains in the recent years. However, research studies are on rise that found its positive correlates with superior performance. Nevertheless, whether the relationship always holds positive is an intriguing question that wedged the authors’ attention to probe the causal mechanism that might scrutinize the association otherwise. The purpose of the study is to build on the social cognitive theory and the attribution theory to project that deliberate practice deteriorates innovation performance due to augmented creative self-efficacy (CSE). While, individuals who draw on their mindfulness can overcome the harmful effects of increased CSE on innovation performance, subsequently translating deliberate practice into enhanced innovation performance through CSE.Design/methodology/approachThe authors gather data from 312 entrepreneurs in the small and medium enterprises using a time-lagged research design and analyze the results using SmartPLS (v 4.0).FindingsThe findings reveal that deliberate practice significantly affects CSE of entrepreneurs. Besides, deliberate practice negatively influences innovation performance through CSE. In addition, the study finds that mindfulness significantly moderates the relationships between CSE and innovation performance and deliberate practice and innovation performance through CSE.Originality/valueThis is the first study that examines a moderated mediated model of CSE as a deteriorating agent and mindfulness as a coping mechanism between deliberate practice and innovation performance of entrepreneurs. The study highlights several essential theoretical and practical implications.

Global oil and gas development in 2022: Situation, trends and enlightenment

Through analysis of four aspects, including the distribution and production of global oil and gas fields, the distribution and changes of remaining recoverable reserves, the differences in oil and gas production between regions/countries, and the development potential of oil and gas fields with production capacity not built and to be built, this paper presents the situation and trends of global oil and gas development in 2022. It is found that, in 2022, oil and gas fields are widely distributed worldwide, and upstream production activities continue to recover; the oil and gas reserves decrease slightly year on year, and the oil and gas reserves in sea areas increase significantly; the oil and gas production increases continuously, and the key resource countries make a significant contribution in oil and gas production growth; the oil and gas fields with production capacity not built and to be built hold abundant reserves, and their development potential will be gradually released with the economic benefits increase. Further analysis is conducted from the perspectives of global oil and gas resources continuity, geopolitical risks, potential of international cooperation, and upgrade of unconventional oil and gas technology. Finally, in view of core business domains and strategies under the new situation, the Chinese oil companies are recommended to: (1) keep a foothold in onshore conventional oil and gas development by virtue of their comparative advantages and learning from other's experience in cooperation; (2) carry out pilot tests on development adjustment, and deepen the international cooperation in enhanced oil/gas recovery; (3) improve the oil and gas operation capabilities in sea areas to transform from follower as minority shareholder to joint venture and then to independent operations; and (4) seek appropriate ways for shale oil/gas development to reduce the dependence on foreign oil and gas.

Fostering Intelligence and AI by an Operational Wisdom and Artificial Wisdom (AW)

Especially in the domains of business and management, it is vital that Intelligence as well as AI are to be taken good care of , directed and controlled by Wisdom inclusive by Artificial Wisdom :AW. This requires that Wisdom and Artificial Wisdom are made operational. In the past Wisdom received a lot of attention. The last decennia enormous efforts and investments was made on intelligence and AI. Scientific research and attention on wisdom was minimal. A lot of components of wisdom were elaborated in the Sumerian Mesopotamian cultures , in the Indian , Chinese Persian, Grec, Roman, Islamic cultures… These components of wisdom have still a lot of relevance. Only they have to be made operational in view of todays challenges, needs, requirements …. From the large set of historical wisdom approaches ( possible targets of other attempts for making them more operational), we overview, the Sumerian conflict resolution, the Illeism wisdom approach and the innovation approach within the Wisdom fractal frame (WFF) in view of elaborating an operational wisdom and artificial wisdom (AW).

Methods and Applications of Data Mining in Business Domains

This Special Issue invited researchers to contribute original research in the field of data mining, particularly in its application to diverse domains, like healthcare, software development, logistics, and human resources [...]

A meta-learning based stacked regression approach for customer lifetime value prediction

Companies across the globe are keen on targeting potential high-value customers in an attempt to expand revenue, and this could be achieved only by understanding the customers more. Customer lifetime value (CLV) is the total monetary value of transactions or purchases made by a customer with the business over an intended period of time and is used as a means to estimate future customer interactions. CLV finds application in a number of distinct business domains, such as banking, insurance, online entertainment, gaming, and e-commerce. The existing distribution-based and basic (recency, frequency, and monetary)-based models face limitations in terms of handling a wide variety of input features. Moreover, the more advanced deep learning approaches could be superfluous and add an undesirable element of complexity in certain application areas. We, therefore, propose a system that is able to qualify as both effective and comprehensive, yet simple and interpretable. With that in mind, we develop a meta-learning-based stacked regression model that combines the predictions from bagging and boosting models that are found to perform well individually. Empirical tests have been carried out on an openly available online retail dataset to evaluate various models and show the efficacy of the proposed approach.

Creating culturally relevant curricula and pedagogy: Rethinking fashion business and management education in UK business schools

The dominant western contemporary fashion business and management-related curriculum at business schools in the United Kingdom continues to uphold an Anglo-Eurocentric narrative, which limits knowledge and practice for local and international students in fostering unbiased and democratic global approaches. This study aims to tackle these pedagogical gaps by using a constructivist approach as a theoretical frame to design and deliver a culturally relevant curriculum and pedagogy (CRCP). The research followed an in-depth three-stage qualitative investigation involving thematic analysis of programme websites and descriptors, key informant interviews with educators, and student-led focus group feedback. Among the major contributions of this study is the creation of a learning framework as a pedagogic device to aid institutions and educators. This exploratory study is the first to examine how to create and deliver a CRCP in the domain of fashion business and management studies and provides important implications.

AI-driven Marketing: Transforming Sales Processes for Success in the Digital Age

In the era of digital transformation driven by disruptive technologies, organizations are striving to overcome challenges and enhance customer value through innovative solutions across all business domains. Artificial intelligence (AI) stands out as a pivotal technology expected to significantly influence marketing strategies in the foreseeable future. This paper examines the anticipated role of AI solutions in marketing decision-making across the five stages of the marketing process. Through a systematic review of research articles published from 2020 to 2022, this study identifies and categorizes AI applications in marketing. The applications are then aligned with the five stages of the marketing process: analysis, strategy development, tactical implementation, customer relations management, and value proposition creation. The analysis reveals that current AI applications predominantly focus on understanding and predicting customer behavior in the initial analysis stage and on executing tactical marketing initiatives. The paper concludes with actionable insights for marketing practitioners and suggestions for future research directions.

Analyzing the potential benefits and use cases of ChatGPT as a tool for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of business operations

The study addresses the potential benefits for companies of adopting ChatGPT, a popular chatbot built on a large-scale transformer-based language model known as a generative pre-trained transformer (GPT). Chatbots like ChatGPT may improve customer service, handle several client inquiries at once, and save operational costs. Moreover, ChatGPT may automate regular processes like order tracking and billing, allowing human employees to focus on more complex and strategic responsibilities. Nevertheless, before deploying ChatGPT, enterprises must carefully analyze its use cases and restrictions, as well as its strengths and disadvantages. ChatGPT, for example, requires training data that is particular to the business domain and might produce erroneous and ambiguous findings. The study identifies areas of deployment of ChatGPT's possible benefits in enterprises by drawing on the literature that is currently accessible on ChatGPT, massive language models, and artificial intelligence. Then, using the PSI (Preference Selection Index) and COPRAS (Complex Proportional Assessment) approaches, potential advantages are taken into account and prioritized. By highlighting current trends and possible advantages in the industry, this editorial seeks to provide insight into the present state of employing ChatGPT in enterprises and research. ChatGPT may also learn biases from training data and create replies that reinforce those biases. As a result, enterprises must train and fine-tune ChatGPT to specific operations, set explicit boundaries and limitations for its use, and implement appropriate security measures to avoid malicious input. The study highlights the research gap in the dearth of literature by outlining ChatGPT's potential benefits for businesses, analyzing its strengths and limits, and offering insights into how organizations might use ChatGPT's capabilities to enhance their operations.