Search Results (1,460)

The primary objective of this article is to examine the organizational, economic, and sustainability-related implications of implementing artificial intelligence (AI) systems in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Poland. The study combines a survey of 112 SMEs in the Kuyavian–Pomeranian region, including 70 AI-using firms, with 13 in-depth interviews with managers. The quantitative analysis applies logit models to identify determinants of perceived AI effects on internal processes: working time and workload reduction, automation, cost effects, and creativity. The qualitative component explains how AI is adopted and embedded in business practice. The results show that AI adoption in SMEs is increasingly common but remains uneven and mostly operational. The strongest effects concern workload reduction and time efficiency, particularly in service firms and where AI is used intensively. Advanced AI adoption increases the probability of perceiving workload and cost-related effects. However, these effects should not be interpreted simply as direct cost reduction. Rather, AI improves productivity and work capacity while creating new costs related to paid tools, data preparation, integration, output verification, and governance. The interviews show that AI implementation follows a staged path: from curiosity-driven experimentation, through cognitive work augmentation, to workflow integration and, in selected cases, AI-enabled business model innovation. The transition from ad hoc use to strategic implementation depends less on firm size alone and more on process maturity, capabilities, and data readiness. Barriers also change with maturity: early-stage firms face a lack of knowledge, time, and clear use cases, whereas advanced users encounter data quality, hallucinations, security, integration, and governance problems. The study finds that sustainability considerations, particularly environmental impacts and ESG-related implications of AI, remain largely unperceived in SME decision-making. Entrepreneurs primarily interpret sustainability through the lenses of organizational resilience, long-term competitiveness, adaptability, and responsible digital transformation rather than through formal environmental metrics. The findings suggest that SME managers should implement AI gradually, link adoption to measurable process-level outcomes, and invest in AI literacy and governance. They should also integrate responsible AI principles into organizational strategy to support sustainable digital transformation. The study contributes to the literature by showing that AI adoption in SMEs should be understood not only as a productivity-enhancing process but also as a broader organizational transition shaping long-term sustainability and resilience. Full article

Centered on lean production, this study integrates operational technologies (OT), communication technologies (CT), and information technologies (IT) within an open-system software architecture. Under stochastic customer demand, reliance on static data and experience-based decision-making constrains firms’ responsiveness to market. The integration of lean management with a data-driven database enhances operational flexibility and decision quality, enabling small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the bicycle industry to develop responsive digital factory environments with real-time monitoring and improved operational transparency. The proposed platform is applicable to both manufacturing processes and operational management, improving overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), production efficiency, process optimization, and reducing quality losses, inventory levels, and workforce misallocation. This study investigates the application of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) within a performance framework integrating ESG indicators and a balanced scorecard to identify key success factors for digital lean improvement in the bicycle industry. A case study of a bicycle manufacturer was conducted using questionnaire surveys and expert interviews with exporters. The results indicate that the five most critical success factors are: enhancing return on invested capital, strengthening digital capabilities, improving product quality, minimizing inventory waste, and reducing lead time. These findings provide practical guidance for decision-makers in designing more effective lean management strategies in highly competitive digital markets. Furthermore, by facilitating the adoption of appropriate digital technologies under a reasonable return on investment, this approach supports the systematic implementation of Industry 4.0 initiatives and transforms traditional lean practices into more efficient and sustainable digital lean operations. Full article

Engineering computer graphics education frequently exhibits a gap between procedural CAD software (e.g. CATIA 2022) training and the strategic engineering reasoning required by industrial practice. This paper documents a holistic redesign of two advanced CAD courses. The study is framed within the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) tradition as a practitioner-led reflective case study. The redesign integrates four pedagogical mechanisms within an enterprise-CAD context: authentic problem-based learning, dual-layered asynchronous video scaffolding, software-agnostic heuristics (including pre-modelling cognitive mapping), and cognitive apprenticeship. The analysis triangulates three institutional data sources: quantitative Course Experience Survey indicators, qualitative student response themes, and twelve consecutive years of cohort-level academic performance records (2013–2024). The 2022 intervention iteration coincided with a marked elevation in academic performance. Grades reached approximately two standard deviations above the historical baseline. Concurrently, qualitative themes highlighted perceived industrial relevance and platform-portable confidence. However, performance in the post-intervention iterations (2023 and 2024) partially regressed. While scores remained above the historical mean, they did not sustain the 2022 peak. This pattern indicates partial sustainment, rather than evidence of a stable or definitive sustained pedagogical effect. This case is reported as descriptive rather than inferential. While the observed patterns align strongly with theoretical predictions, they do not establish definitive causal effects. Ultimately, the primary contribution of this study lies in documenting the integrated operationalization of these four mechanisms. Furthermore, it highlights longitudinal pedagogical sustainability as a critical, under-examined dimension that single-iteration evidence systematically obscures. Full article

Circular economy principles are increasingly influencing tourism development strategies, particularly in rural destinations characterized by strong linkages between agriculture, gastronomy, and local economic systems. This study develops and empirically examines a conceptual model investigating the relationship between circular economy practices, gastronomy integration, perceived authenticity, and destination competitiveness within rural tourism economies. The research focuses on the role of gastronomy as a circular tourism resource capable of connecting local sourcing, sustainability, and experiential value creation. Data were collected through a stakeholder-based survey targeting tourism enterprises, local producers, destination management organizations, and hospitality providers operating in rural tourism destinations. The proposed relationships were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) implemented in SmartPLS 4 and bootstrapped mediation analysis. The findings indicate that circular economy practices positively influence gastronomy integration, while gastronomy integration significantly enhances perceived authenticity. Furthermore, authenticity demonstrates a strong positive effect on destination competitiveness. The mediation analysis confirms that gastronomy integration and perceived authenticity function as intermediary mechanisms through which circular economy practices contribute to competitiveness outcomes. The study contributes to tourism economics and destination competitiveness literature by developing and empirically testing a mediation-based framework linking circular gastronomy, authenticity, and rural tourism competitiveness. The findings provide theoretical and practical implications for destination managers and policymakers seeking to strengthen sustainability, local value creation, and competitiveness through circular gastronomy strategies. Full article

This study examines the relationship between emotional intelligence and enterprise risk management maturity among risk leaders in Indonesia’s financial services sector, adopting a workplace accountability perspective to explain how leadership behavioural competencies support effective risk ownership, risk communication, and accountable risk decision-making. Drawing on survey data from 280 board-level executives holding the Qualified Risk Governance Professional credential, the study measures emotional intelligence using the Bar-On EQ-i and enterprise risk management maturity using the RIMS Risk Maturity Model. The findings reveal a strong and positive association between emotional intelligence and enterprise risk management maturity, with interpersonal competence and adaptability exhibiting the strongest associations with ERM maturity, while no significant differences are observed across job roles or organisational size. By empirically examining the association between leadership emotional capabilities and the institutionalisation of risk governance, the study contributes to global management and the literature on risk by extending enterprise risk management research beyond technical frameworks and compliance models, particularly within emerging market contexts. The results suggest that emotional intelligence may represent a transferable governance capability that is relevant to organisations operating in complex, uncertain, and globally interconnected environments. Practically, the study suggests that emotional intelligence development may represent a useful complement to leadership and risk capability programmes aimed at supporting risk culture, cross-functional engagement, and accountability. Full article

With the rapid expansion of the pet economy, owner–pet matching outfits have grown increasingly popular among pet owners. Grounded in the extended theory of planned behavior, this study investigates the key determinants of pet owners’ purchase intentions and actual purchase behaviors toward owner–pet matching outfits, and explores the moderating effect of aesthetic risk on the intention–behavior transition. Questionnaire survey data from 222 pet owners were collected for empirical analysis, and regression analysis was adopted to verify the proposed research hypotheses. The empirical results reveal that subjective norms exert a direct promotional effect on consumer purchase behavior and indirectly boost such behavior through the partial mediating role of purchase intention. By contrast, behavioral attitude is positively associated with purchase intention and further stimulates purchase behavior via a full mediating pathway of purchase intention. Perceived behavioral control displays a significant positive direct impact on purchase behavior yet yields no significant effect on purchase intention. Furthermore, purchase intention serves as a robust positive predictor of purchase behavior, whereas aesthetic risk significantly weakens the association between purchase intention and purchase behavior. Brands are suggested to foster consumers’ favorable behavioral attitudes by optimizing product design, enriching practical functions, and minimizing potential risks to pets in owner–pet matching outfits. Meanwhile, enterprises should actively shape supportive subjective norms to popularize the owner–pet matching outfit wearing lifestyle. Additionally, brands need to enhance consumption accessibility through diversified sales channels, reasonable pricing strategies and abundant product style options. This study pioneers the application of the extended theory of planned behavior to the emerging field of owner–pet matching outfits, empirically verifying the positive effects of behavioral attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control on consumers’ purchase intention and purchase behavior. Full article

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is intended to link producer design decisions to end-of-life costs, but collective EPR schemes typically weaken this link by routing funding through producer responsibility organisations. We develop a multi-level framework of consumer-integrated environmental protection (CIEP) and argue that individual producer responsibility (IPR), where producers bear product-specific end-of-life liability, can function as a governance mechanism that reconnects design, consumer behaviour and waste governance. This paper is a qualitative multiple-case research study—not a systematic review—which draws on three funded research projects: (i) small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) tools for design-for-recyclability, (ii) an artificial intelligence (AI) application for household waste sorting, and (iii) closed-loop recycling of fishing gear in Vietnam. Within the first project (ToCoReRaM), a PRISMA-based systematic review of web-accessible circular economy tools finds that only 2 of 23 tools are SME-accessible through standard web searches. The AI-based waste-sorting application achieves approximately 75% classification accuracy under real-world conditions. The fishing gear study demonstrates technical and economic viability of closed-loop recycling, and a survey of more than 1500 Vietnamese fishers finds 95.8% willingness to return used gear given appropriate incentives. Together, the cases show that effective circular governance requires four complementary elements: IPR-based producer accountability, SME-accessible design tools, digital consumer guidance at the point of disposal, and context-sensitive governance capacity. These findings inform policy pathways for Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12 and SDG 14. Full article

The maritime and logistics sector is undergoing digital transformation, positioning digital logistics platforms (DLPs) as important tools for improving operational coordination, information visibility, and organizational performance (OP). However, prior studies have mainly examined platform adoption, digital capabilities, or macro-level performance outcomes, while paying insufficient attention to the micro-level cognitive and experiential mechanisms through which DLP innovation diffusion is translated into OP, particularly in the Chinese maritime logistics context. Grounded in an integrated framework combining the Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) paradigm, Diffusion of Innovations Theory (IDT), and the Extended Technology Acceptance Model (ETAM), this study investigates how DLP innovation diffusion affects OP through perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEOU), and flow experience (FE). Using survey data from 400 professionals in Chinese maritime and logistics enterprises and second-order structural equation modeling (SEM), the results show that DLPs’ innovation diffusion significantly enhances PU, PEOU, and FE. PU has the strongest standardized effect among the paths from DLPs’ innovation diffusion to the mediators (β = 0.779), whereas FE has the strongest direct effect on OP (β = 0.279) and the largest mediating effect. These findings clarify the cognitive–experiential pathway linking DLPs’ innovation diffusion to OP and inform DLPs’ implementation in maritime logistics. Full article

The economic resilience of agricultural enterprises is increasingly relevant for maintaining processing continuity and food quality in highly perishable agro-food chains. This study examines the associations between financial knowledge, financial management competency, business liquidity, and operational food-processing continuity in Türkiye’s tea sector. A quantitative cross-sectional design was employed, using structured survey data from 203 senior managers across 86 public and private tea-processing firms in Rize Province. The data were analysed using Ordinary Least Squares regression, mediation analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and robustness checks in accordance with OECD/INFE guidelines. Results indicate a significant deficit in theoretical financial knowledge (mean score: 4.47/10) alongside widespread overconfidence among 85% of managers. Applied financial management competency is positively associated with perceived business liquidity (β = 0.336, p < 0.001), suggesting that practical budgeting, cash-flow planning, and financial decision-making capabilities are relevant to maintaining operational funding capacity. In contrast, cash-flow difficulties are not significantly explained by firm-level financial knowledge, managerial competency, liquidity, or ownership structure (R² = 0.014, p = 0.722), indicating that these difficulties may reflect broader seasonal and sector-wide financing constraints. The findings challenge the assumption of a linear relationship between theoretical financial knowledge and managerial outcomes. They suggest a dual policy approach that combines applied financial management training with structural financing mechanisms to ensure the continuity of fresh leaf procurement and processing. While the study does not directly measure food safety, post-harvest losses, or SDG outcomes, the results have potential implications for reducing processing disruptions and supporting more resilient agro-food processing systems. Full article

Disability Enterprises have the potential to address employment barriers that people with an intellectual disability experience as they move into open employment. Disability Enterprises are able to facilitate this transition through strategic organisational design, but it is unknown the extent to which organisations are following what could be considered best practice. Utilising a survey and interview approach, we aimed to understand how well organisations align with the ‘WISE-Ability’ model and the ongoing challenges they face in supporting open employment pathways for people with a disability working at the enterprise. Staff (94) from Disability Enterprises completed a survey where they rated their own organisation against a number of criteria related to organisational design and operation related to transitioning supported employees to open employment. After completing the survey, organisational staff (19) participated in a semi-structured interview. Disability Enterprises provide training and life skills development options with the end goal of employment transition. Training is adapted to the needs of individuals and there is flexibility in the pace of learning and rostering of shifts. Disability Enterprises develop industry-specific work skills and independent life skills. Pathways to employment are offered in most cases; however, there is variation in the success and scale of employment pathways. Organisations continue to face challenges that exist in the disability service system and open labour market. Organisations are confident that they are able to offer a culture of support and respect, choice and variety of employment options, busy and quiet spaces, and areas for rest and accessible workspaces where individuals feel empowered and safe to try new tasks. Many organisations developed relationships with external stakeholders and employers to facilitate financial sustainability and employment pathways. However, organisations face challenges in the following areas: resourcing pathways to employment and offering certified training options for people working in a Disability Enterprise. Employment pathways were often carved out on a case-by-case basis relying on significant staff support and after-hour work. Full article

Digital platforms are increasingly presented as instruments for sustainable tourism governance, yet destinations often remain data-rich and governance-poor: digital traces are dispersed across actors, indicators are weakly standardised and communities frequently lack meaningful access to the information that shapes destination decisions. This article addresses this problem through the conceptual design and preliminary formative evaluation of ORVE (Optimisation of Resources and Valorisation of Experiences), a destination-level platform designed to connect tourists and residents, companies and institutions and Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) through a circular data ecosystem, understood as feedback loops across stakeholder levels. Methodologically, the study adopts Design Science Research (DSR). It operationalises problem identification, definition of solution objectives, artefact design and development, preliminary demonstration and formative evaluation, while recognising that full-scale causal evaluation remains a future research stage. The empirical component draws on a real-world pre-test with 12 tourism companies mediated by Biosphere Portugal, two Biosphere-administered pilot-company surveys involving 58 and 52 companies and scenario-based testing by 14 student groups involving more than 60 final-year students from Tourism and Tourism and Hospitality Management programmes. These sources are interpreted as exploratory and formative evidence rather than as a representative adoption study or a causal impact evaluation. The results suggest perceived usefulness for structuring sustainability information, supporting indicator monitoring and informing decision making, while also revealing operational constraints related to usability, data-entry flexibility, privacy communication, validation mechanisms, data availability in micro and small enterprises and the need for close onboarding support. The article contributes a refined platform architecture, a governance requirements matrix, design principles, an operationalisation roadmap and an evaluation protocol for sustainable tourism platform governance. Full article

Digital leadership, as a core organizational capability driving technological transformation, plays a pivotal role in the digitalization of traditional industries. Focusing on employees of Sichuan Baijiu enterprises in China and grounded in upper echelons theory, this study develops a theoretical framework in which digital leadership and organizational learning influence organizational innovation through the mediating mechanism of employees’ digital capabilities. Using survey data from 309 employees of Baijiu enterprises, we employ partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to test our hypotheses. The empirical results reveal three key findings: (1) digital leadership positively affects organizational innovation by enhancing employees’ digital capabilities; (2) employees’ digital capabilities partially mediate the relationships between digital leadership and organizational innovation, as well as between organizational learning and innovation outcomes; and (3) these capabilities serve as a critical transmission channel that amplifies the effect of organizational learning on innovation, thereby forming a “learning–capability–innovation” chain. This study extends upper echelons theory to the digital transformation context of traditional manufacturing industries. By introducing employee-level digital capabilities as a key mediating variable, it provides both theoretical insights and practical implications for Baijiu enterprises and analogous traditional industries seeking to foster innovation through strengthening digital leadership, building learning-oriented organizations, and developing employees’ digital competencies. Full article

This study examines how organizational pro-environmental values are associated with employee sustainable behavior through differentiated motivational pathways and under what leadership conditions these associations are strengthened. Drawing on self-determination theory, we propose that autonomous and controlled motivation serve as distinct mediating mechanisms, while green transformational leadership facilitates the internalization of organizational pro-environmental values into autonomous motivation. A two-study design was adopted. Study 1, based on individual-level survey data from 158 employees in tourism enterprises, showed that employee-rated organizational pro-environmental values were positively associated with both high-level and general-level sustainable behavior through different pathways: autonomous motivation mediated the relationship with high-level sustainable behavior, whereas controlled motivation mediated the relationship with general-level sustainable behavior. Study 2, a scenario-based experiment with 234 participants with tourism-related work experience, showed that green transformational leadership strengthened the effect of organizational pro-environmental values on autonomous motivation and amplified the corresponding indirect effect on high-level sustainable behavior intention. Supplementary analyses further indicated that this moderating role did not equivalently extend to the controlled-motivation pathway toward general-level intention. These findings advance research on employee sustainable behavior by distinguishing behavioral levels, motivational mechanisms, and leadership-based boundary conditions. Practically, the study suggests that organizations should embed pro-environmental values, align motivational strategies with behavioral goals, and develop green transformational leadership. Full article

Digital small and medium-sized enterprises (digital SMEs) in emerging market economies operate in disruption-biased environments where interruptions can quickly deteriorate operational reliability and long-term performance. Existing studies insufficiently integrate business continuity management (BCM) into capability-based performance models in the digital SME context, especially when focusing on operational rather than strategic perspectives in emerging market economies. Moreover, empirical evidence on how multiple organisational capabilities interact under disruption remains fragmented. This study therefore aims to prioritise the most influential capability-based determinants of sustainable performance in Thai digital SMEs using expert consensuses analysed via Fuzzy TOPSIS. This study adopted the following two-stage research design. Stage 1: A three-round e-Delphi panel (n = 21) refined and prioritised the most influential determinant; the expert group included SME business owners (with more than 20 years of SME management experience) and relevant specialists. The consensuses were then analysed using Fuzzy TOPSIS to rank the determinants by relative importance. Stage 2: Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) using survey data from 817 Thai digital SMEs was utilised to validate the proposed capability transmission pathways, and a strong fit was demonstrated (χ²/df = 1.672, CFI = 0.984, RMSEA = 0.029). The study findings highlight continuity-oriented routines as a practical leverage point for SME leaders and policymakers seeking resilient and sustainable performance in digital markets, and positions BCM as an actionable strategy toward achieving these goals. Full article

Aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which emphasizes sustainability, innovation, and economic diversification, this study investigates how green innovation (GI), organizational learning (OL), and regulatory pressure (RP) influence sustainability performance (SP) among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Additionally, addressing a key theoretical gap, this study examines OL as a mediating mechanism and RP as a moderating factor in the GI–SP relationship, an area rarely explored in emerging economies. Grounded in the Resource-Based View and Dynamic Capabilities Theory. Methodology: This study adopts a quantitative, cross-sectional design and gathers data from 386 SME employees across Saudi Arabia using validated survey instruments. SPSS analysis revealed that GI significantly improved SP both directly and indirectly via OL, highlighting the critical role of internal learning capabilities. Furthermore, RP positively moderates the effect of GI on SP, indicating that supportive regulatory environments can amplify the benefits of innovation for sustainability outcomes. This study contributes to the literature by integrating internal capabilities and external pressures into a cohesive framework for understanding sustainability. Empirically, it offers fresh insights into the under-researched SME sector in Saudi Arabia. Practically, the findings provide valuable guidance for managers and policymakers to promote sustainability through enhanced learning culture and well-structured regulatory frameworks. Full article