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Purpose This study aims to understand how informational factors influence online purchase intention when considering secondhand books. Design/methodology/approach A conceptual model linking book condition, description, delivery cost, picture, sellers’ rating and delivery date to purchase intention was developed and tested by using structural equation modeling. Survey data from 234 respondents was used to analyze both direct and mediating relationships. Findings The examination demonstrates how book condition, delivery cost and sellers’ rating influence consumers’ purchase intention. Book condition directly and indirectly influenced purchase intention, while delivery cost and sellers’ rating were significant only when including the mediating variable delivery date. Originality/value This work clarifies where resources should be allocated when offering secondhand books online. Sellers should dedicate time to include informational factors such as book condition, delivery cost and sellers’ rating. Contra wise, there is little value expounding on the book’s description or providing a high-quality picture when selling online.

In this paper we propose and test a staged knapsack model to create a supplier portfolio for retailers. The first two stages in the model use judgement criteria related to supplier characteristics ...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand if organizations can leverage recovery/continuous improvement (RCI) capabilities and two competencies to mitigate manifest supply chain (SC) disruptions. Specifically, the authors examine how learning from previous experience and SC disruption-orientation affects organizations’ capability to recover/continuously improve once a SC disruption has manifested. In addition, knowing that organizational inertia likely exists during disruptions, the authors examine the mediating effects of routine rigidity on proposed relationships. Design/methodology/approach To determine how these antecedents impact an organization’s RCI capabilities, the authors collected survey data from 219 procurement managers and analyzed these records using structural equation modeling. Findings The results indicate that by fostering SC disruption-orientation and developing competencies to learn from previous experience, firms can enhance their RCI capabilities, which in turn improves operational performance. Furthermore, the authors demonstrate how routine rigidity mediates the positive effects these antecedents have on the RCI capabilities construct. Originality/value By developing these risk management (RM) tactics and managing routine rigidity, organizations broaden their continuous improvement capability, which enables practitioners to respond to and recover from manifest disruptions. When used in conjunction with other RM tactics, such as inventory and/or redundant capacity, organizations can address an array of disruption scenarios.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to understand consumers’ use of online retail channels. This study examines how tracking capabilities, delivery speed, trust, logistics carriers’ reputation, people important to the consumer and online reviews influence Millennials’ online purchasing attitudes and intentions. Design/methodology/approach A survey was administered to 321 Millennials. Subsequently, it was used to test both direct and indirect hypotheses using structural equation modeling techniques. Findings The study determined that tracking capabilities, trust, people important to the consumer and online reviews directly influence online purchase attitude and by extension intention formation. The results also revealed that logistics carrier reputation moderates the trust to online purchase attitude linkage. Research limitations/implications This work improves the explanatory power of the theory of reasoned action by linking logistics factors to online shopping behavior. Further, it provides insight into the moderating influence of logistics carriers’ reputation. Practical implications For retailers, the results provide information on how to better develop ecommerce service offerings. By providing information about logistics services and capabilities during the ecommerce transaction, retailers can improve the chance that consumers will complete online purchases. Originality/value This research fills a gap in the literature regarding how to influence millennial consumers. Moreover, findings strengthen the understanding of online-purchasing attitudes and intentions formation, important to retailers developing new online shopping platforms and technologies.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to understand how task conflict and relationship conflict influence teams’ transactive memory systems (TMS) and by extension team performance.Design/methodology/approachLeveraging experiential learning theory and a popular operations management simulation tool, survey data from 341 students, who worked on 117 simulation teams, are collected. To examine the present hypotheses bootstrapping analysis and SPSS were used.FindingsBoth task and relationship conflict can significantly diminish TMS development, which in turn, inhibits team performance. Thus, when teams disagree on how to approach a task, conflict could diminish TMS formation. In addition, when one team member has a personal conflict with one or more members that it further amplifies the influence of task conflict. To address the negative influence of both task and relationship conflict, teams should develop processes to better utilize members’ specialized knowledge and work together in a coordinated manner.Research limitations/implicationsThe research adds to the literature by articulating the mediating influence that relationship conflict has on task conflict. Furthermore, it highlights how teams can develop TMS as a means to improve team performance when using simulation tools as a teaching device.Originality/valueThis work broadens our understanding of the conditions under which educators can teach students about teams and teamwork capabilities. In addition, the authors expand the use of simulations as an experiential learning tool.

Objectives Knowing there is a shortage of qualified nurses throughout the healthcare industry, it is imperative that program administrators understand the factors that affect nursing students as they select and commit to their academic major. They should consider key influences on potential students as new recruiting and retention tactics are developed and employed. Thus, we develop the current study to understand factors that shape students' commitment to nursing. Specifically, we attempt to discern how potential career growth, students' understanding of available occupational specialties, family members, and instructors affect nursing students' commitment to their chosen academic program. In addition, we analyze the mediating effect of stress in order to explain why some factors have more influence than others do. By conducting this research, we hope to provide insight into how to better recruit potential students and retain existing students already enrolled in nursing programs. Design/setting/methods Data collection took place in 2016 at one public and one private nursing program. The sample is understanding of available occupational specialties of 167 nursing student who completed a structured survey. Career growth, occupational specialties, instructors' and family influence were measured to understand how they affected major commitment and by extension intention to stay with their nursing program. We also assessed the potential mediating effect of stress on students' commitment to the nursing major. Ordinary least squares regression (SPSS version 22) was then used to evaluate both direct and mediated relationships. Results Based on the analysis, potential career growth, students' understanding of available occupational specialties, and family members directly affect nursing students' level of commitment to their chosen academic major. Results indicate that when students learn about the growth potential of the nursing profession or the different occupational specialties available that they will be more committed to the chosen major. The students likely believe the nursing profession aligns with their personal ambitions and skillsets. In addition, results indicate that stress fully mediates the level of commitment a student has towards nursing as an academic major. Evidence from the nursing students in this study indicates that their level of commitment to nursing programs is harmed by high levels of experienced stress. Students may feel that they identify with this area of study, but if they are stressed they may believe they lack the necessary abilities to succeed and/or perceive the nursing profession as undesirable to them personally. Conclusion Understanding factors that influence students' commitment to an academic major is important to administrators as they work to improve the number of students enrolled in accredited nursing programs. Specifically, they can use insights from this study to better develop recruitment and retention programs by enabling students to garner feelings of pride, enthusiasm, and positively identify with the nursing profession.

Leveraging a popular operations management simulation, we examine how team interaction, students' previous software experience, simulations' ease of use, team leadership, and instructors' guidance affects students' comprehension. Respondents completed a 27-item survey designed to assess individual comprehension. To illustrate the various affects, we use structural equation modeling to compare first-generation and continuing-generation undergraduate populations. The results indicate software's ease of use and instructors' guidance affects both groups, while team interaction to comprehension is present for only first-generation students. We also find that the strength of the various relationships depends on the population of students being studied. As simulations continue to grow in popularity, educators need to recognize how these pedagogical tools affect different student populations.

Purpose This study aims to understand how mode of delivery, online versus face-to-face, affects comprehension when teaching operations management concepts via a simulation. Conceptually, the aim is to identify factors that influence the students’ ability to learn and retain new concepts. Design/methodology/approach Leveraging Littlefield Technologies’ simulation, the study investigates how team interaction, team leadership, instructor’s guidance, simulation’s ease of use and previous software experience affects comprehension for both online and face-to-face teaching environments. Survey data were gathered from 514 undergraduate students. The data were then analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings For the face-to-face population, this study found that team interaction, previous software experience, instructor’s guidance and simulation’s ease of use affected student comprehension. This differed from the online population who were only affected by the simulation’s ease of use and instructor’s guidance. Originality/value Understanding how the mode of delivery affects comprehension is important as educators develop new online teaching techniques and experiment with innovative technologies like simulation. As demand for online education grows, many instructors find they need to refine their methods to ensure students comprehend the concepts being taught regardless of modality.

To insure appropriate inventory levels in retail outlets, replenishment managers concern themselves with both timing of shipments and quantity of product available within the store. While organizat...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine if internal integration, information sharing, and training constitute direct antecedents to organizations’ warning and recovery capabilities. Assuming that organizations periodically face various supply chain risks, the authors intend to show that managers can develop these antecedent competencies in ways that bolster their supply chain risk management (SCRM) capabilities. Design/methodology/approach To understand the relationships between the antecedents and SCRM capabilities, the authors used Q-sorts and confirmatory factor analysis to develop new warning and recovery measures. The authors then collected survey data from 231 hospital supply managers and analyzed these records using structural equation modeling. Findings The results indicate that internal integration and training positively affect organizations’ warning and recovery capabilities, in both a direct and indirect manner. The authors also illustrate how managers can leverage their SCRM capabilities to affect operational performance. Research limitations/implications These results suggest that by developing antecedent competencies like internal integration and training, firms may bolster their warning and recovery capabilities, and ultimately operational performance of the organization. Originality/value The findings provide hospital supply organizations and other inventory management teams with a novel approach to managing an evolving array of supply chain risks. Rather than investing in costly risk management techniques, like inventory stocks, organizations can use internal integration and training to improve their SCRM capabilities.

The authors investigate how job-related beliefs, professors, and families influence major decidedness for undergraduate business students. When students are decided about their major, they can focus on studies, have clearer direction, and reduce the time and number of classes necessary to complete their degree. By understanding how business students decide their academic major, universities can better direct recruitment, guidance, and retention resources. Using survey data from 410 undergraduates, the authors link job-related beliefs to major decidedness and show when students are optimistic about career potential, job structure, and the people orientedness of the profession associated with their major they will be more decided about their major. The findings also confirm the effects of professors and families on academic major decidedness. The results offered herein represent a call to action suggesting professors should spend time with undecided students, so they can better coach the students as they decide their major. Additionally, business schools should direct resources to educate family members, so they can help students decide their major. Lastly, when examining differences between first-generation and non-first generation students, the authors found professors and family members were more influential to the first-generation population. Hence, first-generation students are more receptive to guidance about their academic major.

The authors introduce a disruption management framework that incorporates both the probability of disruption and the predictability of consequences. The resulting model prescribes one of four supply chain strategies: flexibility, risk and loss mitigation, agility, and resilience. Managers can leverage the presented framework within a comprehensive supply chain risk management process to develop tactics aligned with risk management, supply chain, and overall operating strategies to overcome a range of disruption consequences.