http://www.business-and-management.org The mission of the International Journal of Business Science and Applied Management is to disseminate academic knowledge across the business and management scientific realms and to provide applied research knowledge to the appropriate stakeholders. We are keen to receive original contributions from researchers representing any business and management field. en-us RSS Feed Generator http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=28 Technology has evolved significantly and it is increasingly being used by businesses and consumers alike. Technologies such as those supporting electronic business (e-Business) and mobile business (m-Business) are being used across organizations extensively in an attempt to improve operations and subsequently translate in either financial gains or strategic advantages. Opportunities for realizing either of the two types of benefits can be identified through an examination of a business’ value chain. This conceptual study begins by proposing a business-centric interaction model that helps explain the interactions among all participants involved in an organization’s possible activities. The paper then explores the potential fit of wireless and mobile technologies across a company’s value chain through the citation of potential mobile and wireless business applications currently available. Finally, a discussion on the expected benefits and relevant concerns of mobile technology, as well as considerations for future research are provided. http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=31 This paper responds to the need for more data on the topical issue of older entrepreneurship by comparing Third Age (50+ years) and Prime Age (20-49 years) entrepreneurs in Finland. The data comprises responses from 839 small firms which were established 2000-2006. The fact that 16% of these firms were founded by individuals aged 50 or over indicates that older entrepreneurship is not a marginal issue, even though the start-up rate in the Third Age population was found to be slightly less than half of that in the Prime Age cohort. Further, the findings point to the need for more empirical, especially qualitative, research on issues related to the social and cultural perceptions of old age and gender as well as different ‘pull’ motivations leading to entrepreneurship at an older age, which were found to clearly dominate over ‘push’ motives in this context. http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=30 http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=27 Emerging business requirements, stemming from a holistic view over an organisation’s activities, place additional pressure on technical infrastructures and call for operational agility and a better alignment between business and technology. Business process oriented learning unites corporate training and business process management. Given the importance of an organisation’s human capital to business success, aligning individual training with business priorities, becomes a key challenge. The implementation of this new business service entails integrating learning into daily working tasks and putting in place mechanisms for the effective management of business processes, organisational roles, competencies and learning processes, to reduce the time to fill competency gaps and to build proficiency according to evolving business needs. In this paper we outline the main characteristics of this approach and provide insights regarding the changing role of the involved corporate information systems and the multiple aspects of the integration work. http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=29 There is limited empirical research on the internationalisation processes, strategies and operations of Asian multinational corporations (MNCs), particularly MNC's based in Malaysia. The emergence and development of an MNC from this developing country represents a significant addition to the literature on this topic which augments and supplements the information already available with regard to nascent MNCs from Asian Newly Industrialised Countries (NIC's). Drawing on primary data from in-depth interviews with 12 key executives from Sime Darby Berhad (SDB), a developing Malaysian-based MNC, this paper will examine and investigate the firm's internationalisation process, its characteristics and strategies, including motivations, patterns, and sources of competitive advantage. The empirical findings, limitations and areas for further research are discussed. http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=26 The question addressed in this paper is: Is non-sequential internationalization process solely technology enabled or a product of mutually interdependent forces? It is shown in this paper that even though the sequential approach in the process model is intuitively appealing, not all firms follow such a path. This void is filled by explaining how the international market entry process has changed with respect to the sequential approach. Data collection entails 60 Swedish SMEs operating in other countries and foreign SMEs operating in Sweden that tends not to develop in incremental stages with respect to their international. Findings include: that the sequential model is by no means reflective of, or appropriate for all firms' approaches to international business; the usefulness gained by using an international relationship approach to study the international activity of a firm; and the interplay between the identified driving forces behind a non-sequential internationalization process. Knowledge acquired from the empirical study is used to develop an integrated framework which aptly depicts that non-sequential internationalization process is not solely enabled by technology, as commonly envisaged in literature, but a product of mutually interdependent forces. Implications include: all firms are exposed to irrecoverable transaction costs that hamper their behaviours and complicate export supply responses in international markets. However, the magnitude of the costs and speed of internationalization is dependent on the ability of the firms to take advantage of the enablers of non-sequential internationalization pattern. This is particularly important for firms to and from developing countries and emerging markets and their propensities to succeed in their internationalization endeavours. http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=25 http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=24 The rapid diffusion of the Internet and the emergence of various social constructs facilitated by Internet technologies are changing the drivers that define how marketing techniques are developed and refined. This paper identifies critical factors for viral marketing, an Internet-based 'word-of-mouth' marketing technique. Based on existing knowledge, five types of viral marketing factors that may critically influence the success of viral marketing campaigns are identified. These factors are the overall structure of the campaign, the characteristics of the product or service, the content of the message, the characteristics of the diffusion and, the peer-to-peer information conduit. The paper discusses three examples of viral marketing campaigns and identifies the specific factors in each case that influence its success. The paper concludes with a viral marketing typology differentiating between viral marketing communications, unintended viral marketing and commercial viral marketing. This is still a rapidly evolving area and further research is clearly needed to monitor new developments and make sense of the radical changes these developments bring to the market. http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=23 Of the three forms of protest the propensity of word of mouth (WOM) seems to be the most common, and the most exclusive form of protest seems to be exit. The propensity for voice lies in between. The costs linked to voice influence the propensity for WOM. The customers seem to do an evaluation between the three forms of protest, yet the rational picture of the customers should be moderated. Leaders should improve their treatment of the customers making complaints. The more they can treat customer complaints in an orderly and nice way the less informal negative word of mouth activity they will experience and they will reduce the exit propensity and lead the customers to the complain organisation. They should also ensure that their customers feel they get equal treatment by the staff. http://www.business-and-management.org/paper.php?id=22