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This dissertation investigates social dynamics of marketplace interactions. The first essay shows that consumers are guided by market norms in their interactions with employees, but that observing incivility can break this social script and lead to a prioritization of social norms and emotional support towards employees. The second essay reveals that consumers perceive people in a commercial context (e.g., service employees) as less human than those in a non-commercial context. This phenomenon is especially pronounced for budget brands. Finally, the third essay demonstrates how marketplace interactions dynamically shape consumer resources in their pursuit of well-being goals.

Buying companies that want to have a better access to a supplier’s critical resources than competition need to develop close social relationships with this supplier’s employees. This is the outcome of a study by Agnieszka Blonska. This research is one of the first to demonstrate a close social relationship between buyer and supplier companies’ employees has a positive influence on supplier allocation of preferences among buyers, supplier and buyer customization, and cross-functional information sharing behavior of buyers and suppliers. The research was conducted from both, supplier and buyer perspectives.

Sustainability has become an undeniable aspect of corporate dealings this day and age. The advent of Corporate Social Responsibility as a morally sound issue has been caught up by market-oriented, profit-driven motivations for ‘greening’ the business. Also, new generations of professionals are growing up more environmentally aware than ever and eager to put their beliefs and attitudes into practice. This study explores the role of individual sustainability competences in eco-design building projects of small- and medium sized enterprises in the Netherlands. Building projects of multiple case companies have been investigated, in search of sustainability competences needed to deal with issues and problems during the process. A total number of 39 incidents were analyzed for the role of individual sustainability competences. Individual sustainability competences played a specific role in different phases and characteristic aspects of the building projects: the initial inspiration for eco-design; project development; and the involvement of stakeholders. However, not all individual sustainability competences appeared during the process. The most apparent competences were related to strategic management and action, diversity, interdisciplinarity, and interpersonal aspects. Systems thinking competence and foresighted thinking competence occurred considerably less in the incidents, while normative competence was only mentioned once. Respondents choose to merge normative dimensions of their behavior with the strategic and action-oriented dimensions. These findings confirm earlier theoretical conceptualizations of a virtuous competence for sustainability, and leads to further questions about the specific role and definition of normative competence in business and (higher) education settings.

Research has shown that the experience of fluency influences buying intentions of food products, but no study has examined how brand logos transferring a feeling of fluency might impact actual food intake. In two experiments, we assess how exposure to simple versus complex brand logos impacts food consumption. Study 1 shows that individuals consume more from a product which features a simple, flat logo compared to a product that features a complex, non-flat logo. Study 2 depicts the nature of the product as an important moderator in this effect: while for non-prestigious products simple brand logos increase consumption, the opposite occurs for prestigious food products. Overall, while the tenet of the findings is consistent with earlier work on fluency effects within the food domain, this research provides evidence that brand logo design has the potential to impact actual food intake.

Driven by the proliferation of augmented reality (AR) technologies, many firms are pursuing a strategy of service augmentation to enhance customers' online service experiences. Drawing on situated cognition theory, the authors show that AR-based service augmentation enhances customer value perceptions by simultaneously providing simulated physical control and environmental embedding. The resulting authentic situated experience, manifested in a feeling of spatial presence, functions as a mediator and also predicts customer decision comfort. Furthermore, the effect of spatial presence on utilitarian value perceptions is greater for customers who are disposed toward verbal rather than visual information processing, and the positive effect on decision comfort is attenuated by customers' privacy concerns.

With savings rates at record lows and inadequate long-term financial planning for retirement, financial well-being has become an important topic for individuals and households as well as for societies and countries. Research on the topic, however, remains scarce and scattered across disciplines. The present paper aims to consolidate and extend knowledge on financial well-being and makes a three-fold contribution to the discussion. First, we propose a new definition based on a perceptual perspective of financial well-being and link it to an individual's current and anticipated desired living standard and financial freedom. We then develop a framework that distinguishes key elements of financial well-being; namely, interventions and financial behaviors, consequences, contextual factors, and personal factors. We then present a research agenda to guide future research on financial well-being. This work is designed to inspire researchers to continue expanding the knowledge so that financial institutions can take measures to increase financial well-being.

Deciphering consumers’ sentiment expressions from big data (e.g., online reviews) has become a managerial priority to monitor product and service evaluations. However, sentiment analysis, the process of automatically distilling sentiment from text, provides little insight regarding the language granularities beyond the use of positive and negative words. Drawing on speech act theory, this study provides a fine-grained analysis of the implicit and explicit language used by consumers to express sentiment in text. An empirical text-mining study using more than 45,000 consumer reviews demonstrates the differential impacts of activation levels (e.g., tentative language), implicit sentiment expressions (e.g., commissive language), and discourse patterns (e.g., incoherence) on overall consumer sentiment (i.e., star ratings). In two follow-up studies, we demonstrate that these speech act features also influence the readers’ behavior and are generalizable to other social media contexts, such as Twitter and Facebook. We contribute to research on consumer sentiment analysis by offering a more nuanced understanding of consumer sentiments and their implications.

Service interactions run a gamut from an instrumental self-focus to full social appreciation. Observing another customer’s incivility toward a frontline employee can emphasize social concerns as guiding principles for the observer’s own service interaction. Five studies test these dynamics; the results reveal that an incivility incident leads observers to prioritize social over market concerns. This reprioritization becomes manifest in a subsequent service interaction through increased feelings of warmth toward the employee who experienced incivility. In turn, feelings of warmth prompt observers to provide emotional support to the affected employee. Yet such prosocial inclinations are less likely when an employee is held responsible for or reciprocates incivility. Finally, this article also examines the effects of different employee reaction strategies on observers’ inferences about the employee and the service firm, showing that observers are most positively disposed toward the employee and the firm when the former reacts to incivility with a polite reprimand. Together, the results suggest that, contrary to past theorizing, observing customers may contribute to employee well-being, contingent on appropriate employee responses. Notably, the commonly prescribed polite, submissive employee reaction that requires emotional labor may not be the most desirable reaction—neither for the employee nor for the firm.

Research offers mixed evidence about the risk management decision-making process of producers. Whether producers' characteristics drive behavior directly or through risk attitude remains a puzzle. We assess whether managerial/firm characteristics directly affect choices or if their influence occurs indirectly through impacts on risk attitude. The findings, which support indirect effects, indicate that failure to represent relationships between risk attitude, other characteristics, and behavior appropriately can mask the effect of risk attitude. A more complete understanding of the structure of decision-making may assist economists, policymakers, and industry stakeholders in designing and targeting mechanisms to manage or transfer risk.

Public organizations are increasingly adding environmental and social aspects in their strategic agendas. This paper focuses on the actors and factors that influence the speed of implementation of sustainability initiatives. Four healthcare organizations in The Netherlands were studied. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with top management, budget owners and procurement professionals. Although top management assigned strategic importance to sustainability initiatives, budget owners had the final say in implementation. Procurement professionals had very little influence on the implementation process of sustainability.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the superiority of comparative evaluation or relative attitudinal measurement approach in which the respondent evaluates one object with direct comparison with other objects. The study uses comparative and non-comparative approaches to examine the effects of service quality, value, and customer satisfaction on attitudinal loyalty in a service setting. Design/methodology/approach The study uses the data collected from the survey of 300 customers of two large Indian banks. Findings The results provide partial support to the superiority of the comparative evaluation over non-comparative evaluation. Additionally, results indicate that service quality positively affects customer value, and both service quality and customer value have a direct positive effect on customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction drives attitudinal loyalty which in turn leads to customers’ willingness to pay more. Research limitations/implications In the study, two banks were used for comparative evaluation. Since consumers’ consideration set can consist of more than two alternatives, future studies can include more than two objects. Practical implications Non-comparative measurements do not always adequately explain customer loyalty and superior performance of firms. This could potentially lead to misinterpretations of effects of service quality improvement programs and thus sub-optimal management decisions. Managers should use comparative evaluation approach for measuring marketing variables wherever possible. Originality/value Although the use of comparative evaluation is suggested in the literature (Dick and Basu, 1994), extant research has not systematically examined its superiority over non-comparative evaluation. This study empirically tests the comparative evaluation approach against the non-comparative approach by examining a comprehensive model involving the interrelationships among service quality, value, customer satisfaction, and their impact on attitudinal loyalty and willingness to pay more.

Purpose Service networks are inherently complex as they comprise of many interrelated actors, often driven by divergent interests. This can result in imbalance, which refers to a situation where the interests of at least one actor in a network are not secured. Drawing on the “balanced centricity” perspective, the purpose of this paper is to explore the causes of imbalance in complex service networks. Design/methodology/approach Adopting a qualitative case-based approach, this paper examines a public health service network that experienced imbalance that was detrimental to the lives of its users: the Mid-Staffordshire National Health Service (NHS) Trust, UK. Drawing on service-dominant logic and stakeholder theory, case evidence provides insight into the origin and drivers of imbalance in complex public service networks. Findings The origin of imbalance stems from competing institutional logics of various actors (patients/public, employees, managers, regulatory bodies, etc.), but the degree to which these competing institutional logics lead to imbalance is moderated by accountability, communication, engagement, and responsiveness within the service network. Research limitations/implications By uncovering causes of imbalance in complex public service networks, this paper pinpoints important research avenues for developing the balanced centricity perspective. Practical implications The inherent existence of multiple parallel institutional arrangements makes networks imbalanced, but value creation can be achieved when the appropriate mechanisms are fostered to manage balance between divergent logics. Originality/value By examining imbalance as the underlying cause of network dysfunction, this research contributes to understanding of the dynamics in, and performance of, complex public service networks.

The proliferation of free trials for high-tech services calls for a careful study of their effectiveness, and the drivers thereof. On one hand, free trials can generate new paying subscribers by allowing consumers to become acquainted with the service free of charge. On the other hand, a disappointing trial experience might alienate potential customers, when they decide not to adopt the system and are lost for good. This dilemma is particularly worrisome in early periods, when service quality has not been “tried and tested” in the field, and breakdowns occur. We accommodate these phenomena in a model of consumers’ free-trial and regular adoption decisions. Among other effects, it incorporates usage- and word-of-mouth-based learning about quality in a setting where quality itself is evolving. Consumers are forward-looking in that they account for changes in quality and anticipate uncertainty reduction due to trial usage. We estimate our model and run simulations on the basis of a rich and unique data set that incorporates customers’ trial subscription, adoption, and usage behavior for an interactive digital television service. The results underscore that free trials constitute a double-edged sword, and that timing and consumers’ usage intensity during the trial are key to the effectiveness of these promotions. Implications for managers are also discussed. Data, as supplemental material, are available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mksc.2015.0973 .

Social capital is a valuable asset for companies that stems from access to resources made available through buyer-supplier relationships. Many studies have investigated the antecedents and/or the impact of cognitive, relational, and structural dimensions of social capital on some performance measure. Our study extends this research by considering the moderating effect of technological uncertainty on the relation between social capital dimensions and the strategic performance of suppliers. A sample of 88 European industrial suppliers is used to test the hypotheses. Analysis shows a positive, significant impact of cognitive social capital, but failed to confirm the expected influence of the relational and structural dimensions. No moderator effects were found in the analysis, although we did find a positive association between technological uncertainty and strategic performance. This finding suggests that technological uncertainty can stimulate suppliers to develop new products and to enter new markets.

Since the early 1980s companies have tried to implement coherent global sourcing strategies. Research has identified many benefits and motives for global sourcing. However, it remains unclear how companies are reaching higher levels of global sourcing. We employed a single embedded case study at Royal Brinkman (leader in the Dutch horticulture industry) to explore the role of critical incidents in the development of global sourcing strategies. Company documents and interviews revealed which critical incident had a substantial impact on the development of global sourcing strategies. Apparently, critical incidents can initiate and further stimulate global sourcing. Global sourcing decisions were mainly an opportunistic response to unforeseen events. Reactive strategies appear to govern global sourcing despite stated intended strategies. A proactive strategy does not appear to be a requirement to make progress in the global sourcing stages model.

environmental concerns have become important in the shipbuilding industry. Governmental expectations about environmental and social performance are much higher than in the past. Public authorities penalize companies that do not comply with the rules. Shipbuilding companies face these challenges by introducing new technologies into their business processes. They do not only start initiatives to green their own business processes but also those of their supply chain partners. This form of environmental management is called green supply chain management (grscm) and its importance is increasingly recognized. Although grscm is growing, companies are experiencing difficulties engaging suppliers in environmental activities.this empirical study analyses drivers for supply chain participation of suppliers in the shipbuilding industry. We explain the participations of suppliers in grscm practice by investigating influencing factors including governmental involvement in greening the supply chain, customer requirements towards green issues, feeling of social responsibility, competitive advantage by going green, and grscm readiness. Hypotheses are tested with partial least squares, using survey data of 93 suppliers of two leading shipbuilding companies. We found grscm readiness, competitive advantage, and social responsibility to be significant drivers in supplier participation. No significant support was found for governmental involvement and customer requirements.

Extant research investigates a firms ability to manage co-creation with one type of stakeholder during the innovation process, rather than co-creation with multiple stakeholders simultaneously. While such stakeholder co-creation creates benefits for the focal firm such as access to unique resources and knowledge bases, it also raises new challenges because of the diverse characteristics, interests and goals of the different stakeholders involved. Specific capabilities to anticipate and manage these challenges are therefore of particular interest for research and practice. The study here narrows this gap by conducting an in-depth case study, examining multiple stakeholder co-creation projects embedded within a pharmaceutical firm. The study develops a contingency framework on the role of four stakeholder co-creation capabilities in generating valuable knowledge. Overall, these findings complement extant literature by examining how specific capabilities employed before and during the innovation project may explain differential performance of stakeholder co-creation activities.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework investigating patterns of online health communities. In particular, the study draws on coordination theory to identify four community configurations. Their distinct features determine communities’ capacity to internalize and externalize knowledge, which ultimately determines their value creation in a service context. Design/methodology/approach – The authors apply qualitative and quantitative techniques to detect similarities and differences in a sample of 50 online health communities. A categorical principal component analysis combined with cluster analysis reveals four distinct community configurations. Findings – The analysis reveals differences in the degrees of cognitive and affective value creation, the types of community activities, the involved patients, professionals, and other stakeholders; and the levels of data disclosure by community members. Four community configurations emerge: basic information provider, advanced patient knowledge aggregator, systematic networked innovator, and uncomplicated idea sharer. Research limitations/implications – The findings show that communities can be categorized along two knowledge creation dimensions: knowledge externalization and knowledge internalization. While, previous research remained inconclusive regarding the synergistic or conflicting nature of cognitive and affective value creation, the findings demonstrate that cognitive value creation is an enabler for affective value creation. The emerging configurations offer a classification scheme for online communities and a basis for interpreting findings of future services research in the context of online health communities. Originality/value – This research combines coordination theory with healthcare, service, and knowledge creation literature to provide a fine-grained picture of the components of online health communities. Thereby, inherent trade-offs and conflicts that characterize the components of coordination theory are investigated.

Purpose – Coproduction, as one component of cocreation of value, offers many benefits to customers and management, but also requires customers to invest a considerable amount of effort and time. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the coproduction paradox of benefits and costs. Design/methodology/approach – One experimental study and two cross-sectional field studies across three service industries test the nonlinear relationship between level of coproduction and customer loyalty. Findings – Results show not only the optimum level but also the negative effects of increasing levels of coproduction on customer loyalty and, in turn, monetary expenditures. The negative effect can be partially offset by perceived process enjoyment (PE), such that consumers who enjoy the process exhibit increased loyalty after the optimum coproduction point. Customer self-efficacy (SE), however, further strengthens the inverted u-shaped relationship. Research limitations/implications – Further research should try to replicate the findings in more complex and less hedonic service settings (e.g. financial investments) because both PE and SE might be even more powerful here. Practical implications – Service managers need to determine the optimal degree to which customers want to engage in the creation of services and avoid overburdening them. Management should further explore opportunities to elicit feelings of fun and enjoyment through coproduction. Originality/value – Research usually highlights the potential benefits of coproduction for customers and companies and suggests a positive linear relationship between coproduction and success outcomes. This article instead shows that after an optimum level, the marginal benefits of coproduction for customer loyalty turn negative.

Purpose Not all companies deal with green supply chain management (GSCM) in the same way. The purpose of this paper is to understand a company’s GSCM motivation and how this motivation is linked to stakeholder pressures, a company’s GSCM practices and performance. Design/methodology/approach The authors report the findings of a survey on GSCM motivations. Findings Clear differences are seen in why companies are motivated to pursue GSCM. Based on these different motivations, this paper explains differences in perceived stakeholder pressure and performance. Research limitations/implications GSCM motivation is a sensitive topic and as such might cause respondents to provide socially desired answers. However, the analyses show clear variances in the answers, indicating that the measures put forth by the authors are valid. Social implications This study shows that to achieve sustainable GSCM, companies can be motivated in various ways. Also, stakeholders can learn from this study: they need to focus their attention toward companies whom they have the highest impact on. Originality/value First, this study tests a framework for GSCM motivations and shows that motivation mediates the relationship between stakeholder pressures and performance. Second, this study shows that these differences in motivation impact performance outcomes.

© Springer International Publishing AG 2016. In this paper, we examine if the Relative Neighborhood Graph (RNG) can reveal related dynamics of page-level social media metrics. A statistical analysis is also provided to illustrate the application of the method in two other datasets (the Indo-European Language dataset and the Shakespearean Era Text dataset). Using social media metrics on the world’s ‘top check-in locations’ Facebook pages dataset, the statistical analysis reveals coherent dynamical patterns. In the largest cluster, the categories ‘Gym’, ‘Fitness Center’, and ‘Sports and Recreation’ appear closely linked together in the RNG. Taken together, our study validates our expectation that RNGs can provide a “parameterfree” mathematical formalization of proximity. Our approach gives useful insights on user behaviour in social media page-level metrics as well as other applications.

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate personalized communications through digital media, which include display, search, social and mobile communications. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on the literature pertaining to different digital mediums, the authors explore how different factors influence consumers’ responses to personalized communications. The current study integrates and reviews prior literature related to personalization, seeking a richer understanding of when personalized communications improve or hinder customer–firm interactions. Findings – Personalization can both enhance and diminish consumer engagement with the firm: it may heighten privacy concerns because consumers worry about how their data are collected and used, and it can also benefit them in meaningful ways. Thus, firms must use the information that they collect in a strategic manner to balance this personalization-privacy paradox. This paper finds that the benefits of personalization may vary as a function of the medium through which the communication is conveyed. It suggests directions for research in each of these media and strategies firms can implement to mitigate privacy concerns. Originality/value – This investigation of emerging themes related to search, display, social and mobile communications provides a more comprehensive overview of current research, as well as a foundation for further research into personalization.

The marketplace affords consumers various modalities to express their preferences (e.g., by pressing a button on a vending machine or making an oral request at a restaurant). In this article, we compare speaking to manual preference expression modalities (button-pressing, writing, and taking) and study their effect on self-control dilemmas. Based on studies of the Stroop task and on neuroscientific evidence, we predict that speaking is less likely than motor movement to evoke self-control. Our prediction relies on the observation that different expression modalities activate different regions of the anterior cingulate cortex and hence may influence the extent to which emotions rather than cognitions determine an individual’s decision. In six studies conducted both in the lab and the field, we show that speaking prompts more indulgent choice than manual modalities (studies 1a, 1b, 2, 3, and 4) but not when individuals speak in a foreign language (study 5).data source: none

Purpose – Brand alliances take various forms, yet academic research has not investigated how value spillovers differ between partners. The purpose of this paper is to address psychological mechanisms to uncover consumers’ perceptions of a service alliance when a strong service brand partners with a weak one. Design/methodology/approach – An experiment used a 2 (perceived value of parent brand X: high vs low)×2 (perceived value of parent brand Y: high vs low)×2 (alliance contribution: equal vs unequal) full-factorial between-subjects design. Findings – Service alliance value is maximal when both parent brands have high perceived value but is lowest when both are of low perceived value. When their perceived value varies, the alliance value approximates the higher rather than the lower value parent. This effect increases with the relative size of a parent brand’s contribution to the alliance service. Alliances also enhance perceptions of the value of each parent brand. Practical implications – In an alliance between a strong and a weak service brand, the strong brand lifts the alliance, and consumers perceive high value. Companies should avoid service alliances with weaker brands that make major contributions. Originality/value – This study investigates how value spillovers vary across different forms of service alliances. Moreover most alliance research focusses on products while services (such as education) are more involved in alliances than ever.

Recent studies on buying services have shown that service specifications and agreements present an on-going process in which service definitions evolve through buyer-service provider interactions. In the case of professional ICT services this interaction process is far from clear. Many organizations have been confronted with failing ICT projects, financial losses, and less-useable software and services. We investigated the procurement of professional ICT services in which stabilization and destabilization of specifications contributed to a successful sourcing process. We find that service definitions change during the purchasing process, induced by dissatisfaction about the current supplier, by new information from suppliers (market consultation), and by the need to clarify specifications for potential suppliers. Changing service definitions can be seen as ‘business as usual’ with collaborative suppliers. The results of this study indicate that relational governance plays a critical role in the purchasing process, supplemented by contractual governance. Contracts explicitly allow for adaptations of specifications within the agreed framework, stimulating and facilitating innovations and improvements by suppliers. This study challenges overoptimistic confidence in contracting, particularly performance-based, since specifications (including outcomes) cannot be agreed upon up-front in the case of professional ICT services.Data source: case

Product-harm crises are common in today's marketplace and are expected to occur with escalating frequency as products become increasingly complex, product-safety legislation evolves, and always-demanding customers continue to press for more. A product-harm crisis may cause major revenue losses, lead to costly recalls, and destroy carefully nurtured brand equity. Moreover, the crisis may not only be devastating for the affected brand, but also influence the entire category when other brands are perceived as guilty by association. Despite these enormous stakes, marketing managers are often unprepared to react appropriately to product-harm crises. Managers frequently increase advertising support or decrease price in the wake of a product-harm crisis in an attempt to regain lost consumers. Competitors in the same category may also boost advertising expenditures or lower their prices to benefit from the misfortune of the affected brand(s). This article provides insights regarding the effectiveness of these strategies in the wake of a product-harm crisis. The extant literature has shown that the effectiveness of these strategies depends largely on the role of the brand in the crisis—affected or not—and the characteristics of the crisis.

During the last few years there has been an increasing trend for companies to market their products or services as green or environmentally friendly as part of their corporate social responsibility. Few studies have analyzed the effects of this recent focus on the environment and its impact on airline passengers. Therefore, we examine passengers' general attitudes towards the green image of different airlines, perceived differences in eco-friendliness among these airlines, and effects on airline choice during booking. We also investigate how passengers' recent experiences with an airline affect perceived eco-friendliness of that airline. In addition we compare passenger ratings of airline eco-friendliness to those published by independent 3rd parties. Our findings show that the green image of airlines does influence airline choice during booking. We observed a passenger willingness to pay extra for a green image, however, not as much as their willingness to pay extra for amenities, such as additional legroom.Data source: survey

A growing number of firms are using crowdsourcing platforms to actively solicit the skills of external entities to help them solve innovation-related problems. Despite its increasing popularity, crowdsourcing has produced mixed success, because few external experts provide helpful solutions. The current research examines this issue by exploring why some external solvers are more successful than others. Grounded in dual-processing theory, this study combines survey and archival data to assess the impact of creative versus deliberate problem-solving styles on solving success. The results indicate that both styles can be effective, but their relative success depends on the amount of time a solver invests in a solution and his or her degree of contextual familiarity with the problem. Specifically, creative (deliberate) styles are more effective under conditions of high (low) contextual familiarity and shorter (longer) time investments. When solvers employ both styles, overall problem-solving success declines.Data source: survey

Little is known about the way local government utilizes the procurement function to promote sustainability. Sustainability is a political theme of considerable importance at the local government level. We investigated the relationships between municipal executive councillors and procurement managers in three Dutch municipalities. We found that the party-political councillors focus on initiatives affecting citizens to create public visibility and electoral support. Procurement managers however, are primarily concerned with stakeholders within the organization serving different interests. Sustainability initiatives appear largely input-based rather than result-based. Procurement managers rarely consult with the councillors. Rather, department heads have the final say in allocating funds in the course of sustainability initiatives.Data source: survey

Purpose – This paper aims to examine how the motivation and ability of individual employees to sell influences their units’ capability to align their service delivery with sales in a way that satisfies customers. It also addresses the potential influence of employees’ confidence in their supervisor’s ability to sell, such that they predict a joint influence of personal and proxy agency. Design/methodology/approach – This study uses hierarchical linear modeling to address the research issues. Findings – Employees’ learning orientation has a positive influence on service-sales ambidexterity, but the impact of a performance-avoidance goal orientation is negative, and a performance-prove orientation has no influence. Proxy efficacy enhances the positive impact of learning orientations due to the manager’s ability to lead by example, facilitate knowledge sharing and provide advice. However, it attenuates the impact of self-efficacy on service-sales ambidexterity, because skilled supervisors tend to take over and eliminate opportunities for employees to build their own skills. It also confirms the positive influence of service-sales ambidexterity on branch performance. Originality/value – To examine the emerging service-sales ambidexterity issues raised in frontline service units, this study adopts a motivation and capability paradigm. It is among the first studies to address service-sales ambidexterity issues by considering both individual and branch contextual factors.

Supply Chain Ethics: Using CSR and Sustainability to Create Competitive Advantage, John Manners-Bell, KoganPage, London (2017), p. 297, ISBN: 978-0-7494-7945-9

Creativity appears to be a powerful ally in an increasingly complex and fast-changing business environment. In the recent Future of Jobs Report released by the World Economic Forum, creativity has risen in the top 10 of skills needed in 2020 versus 2015 from number 10 to number 3 – only surpassed by critical thinking and complex problem-solving.

Background For immobile patients, a body wash in bed is sometimes the only bathing option. Traditionally, the bed bath is performed with water and soap. However, alternatives are increasingly used in health care. Washing without water is one such alternative that has been claimed to offer several advantages, such as improved hygiene and skin condition. This systematic review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the evidence on outcomes of the washing without water concept compared to the traditional bed bath. Methods Controlled trials about washing without water outcomes published after 1994 were collected by means of a systematic literature search in CINAHL, Embase, MEDLINE, and PUBMED at the 25th of February, 2016. Additionally, references and citations were searched and experts contacted. Studies were eligible if (1) the study designs included outcomes of washing without water products developed for the full body wash compared to the traditional bed bath, and (2) they were controlled trials. Two researchers independently used a standardized quality checklist to assess the methodological quality of the eligible studies. Finally, outcomes were categorized in (1) physiological outcomes related to hygiene and skin condition, (2) stakeholder-related outcomes, and (3) organizational outcomes in the data synthesis. Results Out of 33 potentially relevant articles subjected to full text screening, six studies met the eligibility criteria. Only two studies (of the same research group) were considered of high quality. The results of these high quality studies show that washing without water performed better than the traditional bed bath regarding skin abnormalities and bathing completeness. No differences between washing without water and the traditional bed bath were found for outcomes related to significant skin lesions, resistance during bathing and costs in the studies of high quality. Conclusions There is limited moderate to high quality evidence that washing without water is not inferior to the traditional bed bath. Future research on washing without water is needed and should pay special attention to costs, hygiene, and to stakeholder-related outcomes, such as experiences and value perceptions of patients, nursing staff and family. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12877-017-0425-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Raising a child is a life project that involves setting goals, making plans, and acquiring the means to execute the plans. This article examines how families modify their goals, plans, and means after learning a child is disabled. An inductive investigation of nine families who have a child with hearing loss emphasizes the pivotal role of individual and collective consumer resources in attaining central well-being goals (e.g., social inclusion). Results show that consumer resources are partly endowed, yet dynamically shaped by marketplace interactions. These resource dynamics unfold in both positive (e.g., creating family routines) and negative (e.g., losing trust in service providers) ways. Typically, goal pursuit determines resource acquisition; however, in certain conditions, resource availability also can influence goal pursuit, with potentially detrimental outcomes. Fully appreciating consumer resource dynamics is crucial for understanding how consumers pursue life themes and projects for significant others and for the family as a collective.