Specific Customer Research Articles

Systemizing and Automating the Concept Development Process Based on Product Configuration and User Feedback: Case Study on Automating the Design Process of Creating Concepts for a Kitchen Stand Mixer

Optimizing the development and evaluation of concepts during the design of consumer products through, e.g., topology optimization, often excludes areas associated with user needs (e.g., usability). This paper reports on an exploratory study of developing a system which can create new product concepts based on users’ preferences, requirements, and a clearly defined product structure. The 3D model of the product (structured using top-down design and resilient modeling) was integrated with calculations of the performance of the user needs (performance indicators). Different designs were developed based on design of experiment analyses and optimization analyses of the 3D model of the product (a kitchen stand mixer). The outcome of the analyses was a range of concepts which scored differently in the performance indicators. The best designs (based on Pareto front) were evaluated by six potential customers. Half of the participants preferred the same design, suggesting that this tool can be used to develop a design which a specific customer segment prefers. The process of creating the model and using it for customer interviews contributed a set of qualitative findings to the literature on combining parametric design, customization, and systematic design with user needs.

Overcoming Machining Challenges

Reiden has utilised the expertise of tool manufacturer Mapal to help meet a specific customer requirement

Redefining capabilities as drivers of adaptation, incremental change, and transformation: recognizing the importance of strategic and operational intent on performance

AbstractPrior research has emphasized the importance of dynamic capabilities to organizational transformation. In this paper, we explore how dynamic capabilities can have varying roles in change, and only potentially create transformational outcomes. By conducting ethnographic phenomenon driven research and observing the interactions of specific customer data related capabilities over a long period of time, we relate the potential for change to the way in which capabilities' interact, and identify three different mechanisms for change. Transformation requires a disruption of existing operational capabilities, which may result from one of the three identified mechanisms. Introducing a more theoretically consistent and practical taxonomy for (dynamic) capabilities may help in resolving some of the criticisms for their unclear practical implications. Further, our findings underline the importance of studying capabilities in their networks within organizations and over time.

Application of Scheduling Systems in Smart Manufacturing

At the present time, where products are more and more often made for a specific customer, the production of such products requires more and more decisions to be made in the shortest possible time. This causes that solutions and methods are sought to support production planning and scheduling in such a dynamic environment of various variables. The problem concerns both the decision support system and the relevant data sets, on the basis of which schedules are generated. The article presents an algorithm related with generating schedules in the production planning system, as well as an application for supporting the process of decision making the purpose of which is choosing the best schedule from the set of available solutions. This is very important from the point of view of “product customization” and intelligent manufacturing.

A meta-analysis to identify factors associated with CPAP machine purchasing in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disease and related to several cardiovascular diseases. Treatment with a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine is effective. However, not all patients with OSA purchase a CPAP machine for personal use. Previous studies showed different predictors of CPAP machine purchasing in patients with OSA. The present study aimed to summarize and identify predictors of CPAP purchasing using meta-analysis. The study was conducted using factors associated with CPAP purchasing in patients with OSA. The types of studies conducted in adult patients with OSA included: Randomized controlled trials, observational studies or descriptive studies comparing factors between those who purchased CPAP and those who did not. A total of five databases, including PubMed, Central database, Scopus, CINAHL Plus and Web of Science, were searched, and the final search was performed on February 8, 2021. Predictors for CPAP purchasing were determined. There were 598 articles from five databases, which met the inclusion criteria. After duplicated article removal, 390 articles were included in the screening process. There were 12 eligible articles for full text evaluation, and of those, eight studies met the study criteria with 1,605 patients from four countries. There were 11 variables that were available for a comparison between those who purchased the CPAP machine and those who did not, and six factors were different between the two groups: Age, years of education, income, smoking, Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) score and apnea hypopnea index/respiratory disturbance index (AHI/RDI). The AHI/RDI was significantly different between the two groups, with the highest mean difference of 10.40 events/h (95% CI, 4.95-15.86). Patients who purchased CPAP were older (1.11 years), had more years of education (0.93 years), smoked more (1.15 pack/year), and had both higher ESS (0.61) and AHI/RDI (10.40) than those who did not purchase CPAP. Additionally, those who purchased CPAP had a 1.47 times higher income than those who did not. In conclusion, specific personal customer and clinical factors were related to the decision of CPAP purchase in patients with OSA.

Fintechs On Kenya’s Banking Industry: A Disruptive Threat?

Fintech is a new technology of financial innovations and solutions which are fueling financial inclusion especially in the developing countries. The digital challenge faced by banks is currently intensifying and the emergence of these alternative non-bank players is creating both opportunities and challenges. FinTechs are creating products and services that are disrupting the incumbents’ advantage by addressing specific customer needs and enabling them to do more with less. Throughout the world, we have seen the great shifts in the banking industry with changes from the use of bank tellers to ATMs to online banking, and then to mobile banking. These shifts have forced some banks in Kenya to close branches due to reduced businesses in those branches and to cut costs. Could banks reverse the trends by collaborating with Fintech’s and leveraging on their strength in technology-driven software, platforms and infrastructure? Or could this be signaling a new era in world payments in which banks can’t cope with? How can the banks work around this challenge? This paper answers these questions and considers the potential threats that Fintechs could bring in to Kenya’s banking industry and tries to draw lessons from previous literature and relate these insights to the topic under discussion. Key Words: Fintech, Revolution, Innovation, Digitalization, disruptive threat DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/14-8-09 Publication date: April 30 th 2022

MEASURING AND VALIDATING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE OF GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY (GICX) SCALE

Customer behavior is also changing with the technological advancement. General insurance industry also not remains untouched and due that market penetration of insurance industry also fasten in recent past. Academic literature reveals that insurance sector specific customer experience measure is still lacking. Thus, the current study explores what defines customer experience in general insurance Company and develop the scale which measures the experience of customers of general insurance company. This study conclude that customer experience measured in general insurance company with five factors namely service place, process, product and service, human interaction and brand trust. Furthermore this study also concludes that customer experience has the positive impact on the Satisfaction level.

The impact of corporate social responsibility on customer loyalty and employee satisfaction in Bosnia And Herzegovina

The aim of the study is to investigate consumer attitudes towards specific Customer Social Responsibility Activities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In order to support this research, a case study method, combined with qualitative and quantitative research methods (referenced survey) was used. To get an insight into the companies’ perspective, when it comes to an engagement in the employment practices, as an integral part of Corporate Social Responsibility, data regarding “The Most Desirable Employer” project- “Najpoželjniji poslodavac”, organized by Kolektiv d.o.o.-MojPosao.ba, for years 2020, 2019 and 2018 will be analyzed. The study should illustrate the exact scenario of customer loyalty in Bosnia and Herzegovina to the companies included in CSR activities and contribute to an advancement of overall knowledge in the field of CSR in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The directing outcome uncovers those corporate capacities have a critical part in fortifying the relationship between corporate social responsibility drives and customer trust in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in light of the fact that high corporate capacities with professional corporate social responsibility actions lead to high faithfulness of customers. The examination features the meaning of the corporate social responsibility activities, which are obligatory for authoritative achievement and guides the policymakers of companies, supervisors, and researchers.

An Empirical Performance Analysis of the Speak Correct Computerized Interface

The way in which people speak reveals a lot about where they are from, where they were raised, and also where they have recently lived. When communicating in a foreign language or second language, accents from one’s first language are likely to emerge, giving an individual a ‘strange’ accent. This is a great and challenging problem. Not particularly, because it is a part of one’s personality that they do not have to give up. It is only challenging when pronunciation causes a disruption in communication between an individual and the individuals with whom they are speaking. Making oneself understandable is the goal of perfecting English pronunciations. Many people require their pronunciation to be perfect, such as those individuals working in the healthcare industry, where it is rather critical that each term be read precisely. Speak Correct offers each of its users a service that assists them with any English pronunciation concerns that may arise. Some of the pronunciation improvements will only apply to a specific customer’s dictionary; however, in some cases, the modifications can be applied to the standard dictionary as well, benefiting our whole customer base. Speak Correct is a computerized linguist interface that can assist its users in many different places around the world with their English pronunciation issues due to Saudi or Egyptian accents. In this study, the authors carry out an empirical investigation of the Speak Correct computerized interface to assess its performance. The results of this research reveal that Speak Correct is highly effective at delivering pronunciation correction.

In pursuit of supplier resilience: The explanatory role of customer leadership style

Supply chains are only as strong as their weakest link. Given that most supply chain disruptions occur because of first-tier suppliers, the need to examine supplier resilience in supply chain relationships cannot be overstated. However, our understanding of how customers can engage with their suppliers and facilitate supplier resilience in their relationships is rather curbed. We examine the role of customer leadership styles in inciting supplier extra-role behaviors, such as relational flexibility and relationship-specific investments, by fostering supplier trust, which can then abet supplier resilience. We test our hypotheses using survey data collected from 207 U.S. firms while ensuring our model and findings are relevant to practice through interviews with high-level executives at several Fortune-1000 firms. We find that a customer’s leadership style enhances a supplier’s trust in the customer. Subsequently, the supplier might demonstrate relational flexibility and relationship-specific investments. While relational flexibility enhances supplier resilience, relationship-specific investments might limit the supplier’s alternatives to remedy a disruptive situation and impede its resilience towards its customer. Our study contributes to academic research and practice by showing that a customer can utilize its leadership style to enhance supplier resilience within the specific customer–supplier relationship. Nevertheless, if the mechanism to promote supplier resilience is not clearly understood, a customer’s leadership style might backfire.

Direct metal laser sintering of Ti-6Al-4V parts with reused powder

Ti-6Al-4V alloy is characterised by having excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance combined with low specific weight and biocompatibility. This material is ideal for many high-performance engineering applications. It is increasingly used in additive manufacturing (AM) thanks to the possibility of producing very complex lightweight structures, often not achievable with conventional manufacturing techniques, as well as to easily customise products according to specific customer requirements. In powder bed fusion (PBF) processes, only a small percentage of the powder is actually melted and solidified to achieve the final part while most is left after the build. Since the surface morphology and chemistry, the shape and size distribution of the un-melted particles are inevitably modified during the process, and this may affect the resulting properties of the final products, many companies tend to use virgin powders for AM builds to keep compliance with manufacturing requirements and minimise risk. From both an economic and environmental point of view, it results crucial to develop recycling methods to reuse the metal powder as many times as possible while maintaining compliance with manufacturing standards. In this work, the effect of Ti-6Al-4V powder reuse on the evolution of powder characteristics and mechanical properties of final products additively manufactured is investigated through a systematic approach based on design of experiments.

REAGAN STAR (RS) BEST DRIVER SELECTION USING MULTI FACTOR EVALUATION PROCESS (MFEP) METHOD

Reagan Star(RS) is a carpet distributor company that serves customers in Bandung Metropolitan. The number of customers served throughout Bandung Metroprolitan is 134 customers. Reagan Star has 5 (five) drivers who are used to distribute carpets in the Bandung Metropolitan area, namely Ali, Beni, Calsum, Dudi, Eman. The problem faced by Reagan Star is that the drivers have not provided individual performance as expected by Reagan Star, among others, often coming late to the Reagan Star office, late in delivering goods to customers, goods delivered to customers not in accordance with customers. This situation causes customer disappointment. Bandung Metropolitan. The leadership of Reagan Star originally had a plan to replace 5 (five) drivers with new drivers. The obstacle faced by the leadership of Reagan Star was that the old drivers had special customers who if the delivery of goods was not carried out by a certain driver, the customer would be reluctant to buy. the strategy of stopping the driver from becoming the driver of the Reagan Star, causing revenue from carpet sales to diminish. The Reagan Star leadership has a new strategy. The leadership organizes the selection of the best drivers. The Reagan Star leadership selects the best drivers using the Multi Factor Evaluation Process (MFEP) method. In selecting the best driver, the Reagan Star leadership determines 3 (three) dimensions that will be assessed for orderly traffic, quality of delivery of goods, and financial responsibility. In the first stage of unweighted assessment, the one who gets the highest score is Calsum. In the second study using the Multi Factor Evaluation Process (MFEP) where each dimension was assigned a weighted value, the results still determined Calsum as the winner. Many are orderly traffic, followed by the dimensions of the quality of delivery of goods, and finally financial responsibility. Conversely, if the assessment uses the MFEP method, the dimension that has the highest average value is orderly traffic, and the second is the financial responsibility variable and the last dimension is the quality of the delivery of goods. the driver starts from an orderly traffic, followed by good quality delivery of goods, followed by generating cash which is brought to Reagan Star. good quality of delivery of goods, resulting in cash which is a financial responsibility.

“I can get no e-satisfaction”. What analytics say? Evidence using satisfaction data from e-commerce

This study mines customer satisfaction (CS) segments using almost 270 thousand responses from a CS survey which ran in 140 e-commerce stores of a European country. To achieve this, it develops and applies a business analytics (BA)-informed framework. Then, it presents examples of how one e-commerce store exploited the extracted CS segments to build automated marketing actions for its customers, ranging from social media sharing strategies for the satisfied segments, to discounts for the less satisfied. This study contributes to customer satisfaction and segmentation literature. The extracted insights can be utilized to support decision making, ranging from targeted advertising for specific customer segments, to benchmarking for companies in similar industries.

Teaching a Weather Forecasting Class in the 2020s

Abstract We report on redesigning the undergraduate course in synoptic meteorology and weather forecasting at Wageningen University (the Netherlands) to meet the current-day requirements for operational forecasters. Weather strongly affects human activities through its impact on transportation, energy demand planning, and personal safety, especially in the case of weather extremes. Numerical weather prediction (NWP) models have developed rapidly in recent decades, with reasonably high scores, even on the regional scale. The amount of available NWP model output has sharply increased. Hence, the role and value of the operational weather forecaster has evolved into the role of information selector, data quality manager, storyteller, and product developer for specific customers. To support this evolution, we need new academic training methods and tools at the bachelor’s level. Here, we present a renewed education strategy for our weather forecasting class, called Atmospheric Practical, including redefined learning outcomes, student activities, and assessments. In addition to teaching the interpretation of weather maps, we underline the need for twenty-first-century skills like dealing with open data, data handling, and data analysis. These skills are taught using Jupyter Python Notebooks as the leading analysis tool. Moreover, we introduce assignments about communication skills and forecast product development as we aim to benefit from the internationalization of the classroom. Finally, we share the teaching material presented in this paper for the benefit of the community.

Small Rural Enterprises and Innovative Business Models: A Case Study of the Turin Area

Small businesses and farms are today struggling to find an innovative solution to a globalizing market and a challenging society. Among different aspects, small businesses, especially in rural areas, need to find a balance among tailor-made innovative solutions, specific customers engagement strategies, creative value creation solutions, and new business concepts able to reshape existing markets. In this study, 16 small enterprises of rural areas near Turin belonging to different sectors collaborated to co-create innovative business models. To guide this discussion through a sustainable innovation path, a territorial Living Lab set up the four macro-topics of the co-creation workshops linked to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Innovative business ideas were elaborated through the Brainstorming and Business Model Canvas tool and data were examined with SWOT and cross-case analysis. The results of the workshops pointed out four different innovative business ideas elaborated by the entrepreneurs, all linked by the need to translate innovation into sustainable adaptive solutions to local specificities. This case study showed that a range of enabling factors, such as the creation of a shared vision among local actors, can be codified to clear barriers and/or create innovative business solutions linked to economic, environmental, and social sustainability in rural areas.

ОСОБЕННОСТИ ЦИФРОВИЗАЦИИ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫХ ЗАКУПОК

The article discusses the advantages and risks of automation of procurement activities. The issue of digitalization of public procurement has not been fully developed. There is a need for industry testing in practice of solutions that allow automating the public procurement system as a whole and solutions of specific customers. Moreover, it is necessary to assess and minimize the possible risks of such automation. The features of automation of procurement activities are highlighted, recommendations on the organization of this process to improve the efficiency of organizations are proposed. Aspects of improving the components of departmental control and risk assessment can be applied everywhere due to the versatility and adaptability to all categories of customers of goods, works, services. The variants of application of real automated solutions are proposed not only from a formal, but also from a practical point of view.

Decision-Making Process Customization by using Expected Solution Point

Much effort in modern scientific work has been put into improving objective decision-making. However, very often, it turns out that some problems do not have objective solutions that ft everyone—for example, buying a cell phone or a car. If one model could meet the expectations of each user, then we would not have so much diversity in the market. This observation motivates to work on customization in the decision-making process. In this work, we show approaches that help customize the decision-making process for a specific customer. In addition to expert methods for determining importance weights, the characteristic object method or the SPOTIS method could be used for this purpose. The presented research shows how the Expected Solution Point (ESP) can be used to make individual decisions and thus facilitate the process of customization. For this reason, we compare the objective result obtained using Ideal Solution Point (ISP) and results for artificial decision-makers using simulated ESP vectors. Simulation studies on a real database demonstrate the usefulness of the ESP approach to expressing personalized preferences.

BANK ACCOUNT OF A CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE

This study covers the subject matter of bank accounts of campaign committees, including the ones taking part in the local government elections of 2018. It was also the author’s intention to discuss the background of the subject matter, which is why the presented discussion of the legislative framework refers also to bank accounts in general. Such an approach allows to refer the conclusions drawn to campaign committees taking part in other elections. Using the formal dogmatic method, the Author discusses the legal grounds for establishing cooperation between a bank and a customer (as parties to a bank account contract) and, then, between a bank and a campaign committee (as a specific customer type), obligations of the parties to that relationship and the bank’s obligations under other provisions performed in relation to campaign committees and bank accounts maintained for such campaign committees, including in particular in the area of counteracting money laundering and terrorist financing, and their impact on the performance of supervisory obligations and safety of the economic system.

A Vendor Inventory Management Policy to Optimize Sales of Thermal Energy Using Evolutionary Algorithms

초록·키워드 목차 오류제보하기 In recent years, supply chain management with the aim of making the supply chain more efficient and reducing over-all costs, is one of the key issues addressed in every industry. In today"s energy supply chain, determining the level of sales for manufactured goods in specific time periods and to specific customer groups is very important. This becomes even more important when we have to do this for sensitive marine products that have different customer categories. This article presents a model for determining the optimal level of sales of thermal energy in two levels and according to customer demand in different time periods to determine the optimal level of sales using accurate methods and some meta-innovative methods. For this purpose, two meta-heuristic methods of particle swarm optimization (PSO) and the evolutionary algorithm CPSO have been used. #Hybrid Optimization #Two Echelon Supply Chain #PSO Algorithm #Vendor Inventory Management #Thermal industry ABSTRACT1. INTRODUCTION2. INTRODUCTION OF THERMAL ENERGY SUPPLY CHAIN3. LITERATURE REVIEW4. METHOD5. RESULTS6. CONCLUSIONREFERENCES

Value co-creation in services for animal companions

PurposeAs other actors in the service ecosystem often have a pivotal role in value creation for actors experiencing vulnerability, this paper aims to explore caregiving customer value co-creation in services for animal companions.Design/methodology/approachStudy 1 follows a two-step procedure, using two different qualitative approaches (interviews and observations) to identify caregiving customer value co-creation activities. Study 2 serves to empirically test a higher-order structure of caregiving customer participation behaviour in value co-creation and test for differences regarding customer and service characteristics (questionnaire survey; n = 680).FindingsThe results reveal the existence of various value co-creation activities towards the service provider (e.g. cooperation under consideration of the animal companion’s needs) and animal companion (e.g. emotional support). Significant differences in individual caregiving customers’ activities were found regarding gender, age, type of service and animal companion. Caregiving customer value co-creation is influenced by emotional attachment and has a positive effect on value outcomes for both the caregiving customer and the animal companion.Originality/valueThis study extends and enriches customer value co-creation literature by providing innovative findings on various such caregiving activities and value outcomes in services for (non-human) actors experiencing vulnerability. It also adds knowledge by showing differences in customer value co-creation behaviour regarding specific customer and service characteristics.