1,720,970 research outputs found
Entrepreneurship and COVID-19 : A Socio-Psychological Perspective
No full textThe Covid pandemic has exerted unprecedented damage to economies globally. This chapter recognises that the COVID-19 pandemic threatened African entrepreneurial activities with resultant social problems. The chapter further documents the relatively understudied aspect of the socio-psychological effects of Covid-19 on entrepreneurship within the African context, focusing on the experience of Nigerian entrepreneurs. The chapter highlights the interplay between the economic, social, and psychological aspects of entrepreneurship. Theoretically, the social and psychological impacts of the pandemic on entrepreneurship are explored under the critical lens of the socio-psychological theory buttressing the role of the society and institutions in shaping the entrepreneurial context. The chapter concludes that African entrepreneurs must possess vital skills to survive in a fast-paced, changing, and increasingly uncertain society. Recommendations are offered on the critical roles of entrepreneurial- and government-based initiatives in mitigating the challenges faced by entrepreneurs in pandemics and other national emergencies. To inspire knowledge development in this domain, future research directions have been flagged
Empirical Investigation of Accounting-Marketing Integragation in UK Financial Services Organisations : Dimensions, Antecedents and Strategic Marketing Evidence
No full textEThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo
An Empirical Insight into the Factors Affecting the Oscillation of Women between Self and Paid Employment in South Africa
Full text linkDiscourse in entrepreneurship has highlighted the importance of understanding the entrepreneurial motivation of women. Although prior literature documents significant similarity in women motivations there is limited understanding of what motivates South African women to oscillate between self-employment and paid employment. Therefore, this study aims to highlight these factors by exploring the career mobility perspective with expectancy, motivational and work-life balance perspectives. The study utilizes the interpretive phenomenological approach (IPA) to understand the influencing factors of women’s oscillation from self to paid employment in the South African socio-economic and cultural context. The sample was drawn from a population of women entrepreneurs in South Africa via interviews and focus group discussions. The results show that a major factor influencing women decision to engage in entrepreneurship is the need to achieve work-life balance. The inability to secure financial capital, gender bias, social and cultural norms are the most significant challenges women face in South Africa, thus leaving them with no option other than to seek sustenance in paid employment while maintaining their businesses by the side
Eradicating Poverty and Unemployment: Narratives of Survivalist Entrepreneurs
Full text linkResearchers continue to argue that survivalist entrepreneurs remain the untapped source for improved socioeconomic development because they have the potential to create employment, and reduce poverty. Unemployment and poverty remain the biggest challenges for sub-Saharan Africa but specifically South Africa with an escalating unemployment rate. This is the basis for this study, which set out to provide an authentic insight into the lives of survivalist entrepreneurs in Cape Town, South Africa, for the purpose of revealing the reasons why they are unable to significantly grow and add substantially to the economy. A qualitative approach by way of personal interviews was followed so as to gain an in-depth understanding of the participants' stories. The findings suggest that survivalist entrepreneurs are able to assist in the socioeconomic development of an economy if appropriate support is given to them by government or through some public-private growth initiatives. This study contributes to survivalist entrepreneurship literature by specifically illuminating why, according to Statistics South Africa, survivalist entrepreneurs do not seem to create more employment opportunities, improve the economy and alleviate poverty. In acknowledgment of some of the study's limitations, we consequently advise that further study in this area may consider a combination of methods as well as other locations
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Tourism service and digital technologies: a value creation perspective
No full textTourism service is globally becoming a significant tool for promoting economic growth: generating immense foreign exchange earnings, combating unemployment and poverty, as well as stimulating domestic consumption. Indeed, theoretical discourse suggests a snowballing contribution to economic growth. To contribute to knowledge development in this area, this study was based on a systematic review of literature. Forwarding a theoretical model that suggests a proactive approach for enhancing tourism customers service experience, and at a profit for tourism providers, this study draws the attention of tourism practitioners to the prominent role that digital technologies play in modern society, consumer socialising influence, as well as tourism customers’ service experiential impact. Furthermore, this study draws from the service gaps model of service quality to explain why tourism service providers must embrace customer engagement towards ensuring that their service offerings equate, if not exceed customers’ service expectations. Within the aim of advancing knowledge, this study also flags critical directions for future research
A structural equation modelling evaluation of antecedents and interconnections of call centre agents’ intention to quit
No full textCall centers play a significant role in the operational dynamics of different types of businesses. This is especially the case because a call center agent’s demeanor can impair or engender
customer satisfaction, which has ramifications for business patronage. Unfortunately, the pressures
associated with the role of the call center agent have made staff attrition a norm in the industry.
While this does not augur well for the call center or the organizations that they serve, the role of
possible antecedents in the equation of staff attrition in South African call centers remains largely
unexplored. Using a structural equation modeling approach, this study examined the interconnections between customer orientation, knowledge management, job satisfaction, and employees’
intention to quit. Additionally, the mediating influence of job satisfaction on the association between
customer orientation and knowledge management of the intention to quit is examined. This study
found significant relationships between knowledge management, customer orientation, and job
satisfaction and the dependent variable (intention to quit). In addition, this study establishes that
the extent to which job satisfaction may mediate the influence on the intention to quit hinges on
the organizational element considered
Gender discrepancy in economic participation: the case of young women in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Full text linkGiven the patriarchal nature of the African society, females are often secondary. In patriarchal societies, men are viewed as forbearers of knowledge and hence dominate other considerations. A direct consequence therefore is structural discrimination of women, and small businesses are owned and managed by men. Youth unemployment is notably high in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and especially among females. Notably too, one critical factor that drives entrepreneurship start-ups is self-employment, often induced by unemployment. In patriarchal societies, not only are there few opportunities for women but also women face more constraints than their male counterparts. Inspired by the gap in the literature, this study utilizes the descriptive literature review approach to understand the problems, faced by young women when starting a business in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo. Understanding this theoretical premise and from the perspective of the explored population is important given the criticality of entrepreneurship to economic growth (including unemployment and poverty reduction). In addition, this study would contribute to strategic policy change for achieving productive entrepreneurship. Finally, this study flags research directions for steering necessary research towards productive entrepreneurship goals
Strategic management accounting and performance implications: a literature review and research agenda
Full text linkThe important role that management accounting plays in driving organisational performance has been reiterated in the literature. In line with that importance, the call for more effort to enhance knowledge on strategic management accounting has increased over the years. Responding to that call, this study utilised a qualitative approach that involved a systematic review to synthesise existing literature towards understanding the strategic management accounting foundation, contingency factors, and organisational performance impact. Based on the evidence in reviewed literature, we flag key directions for advancing this theoretical premise towards providing further insights that would enable practitioners strategically align their strategic management accounting practices for optimal organisational performance. The limitations of this study have been acknowledged
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