Using Lean Six Sigma to improve mobile order fulfilment process in a telecom service sector

This study proposes and follows a specific and systematic framework for implementing Lean Six Sigma (LSS) methodology in a telecom company in order to improve customer satisfaction by minimizing the company’s response time to customer requirements. The goal of this study was achieved by utilizing several LSS tools under five phases of the DMAIC methodology. Unlike previous studies in the telecom sector that used only qualitative method, in this study, both qualitative and quantitative methods were utilized to draw meaningful conclusions. As a result of the implementation of the LSS methodology, the average order fulfilment lead time for sales orders (SO) and value-added service (VAS) orders was reduced from 10.3 to 5.9 days and from 1.5 to 0.5 days, respectively. The reduction in lead time resulted in an increase in the sigma level for SO and VAS orders from 0.44 to 1.26 and from 0.73 to 2.66, respectively. These improvements were expected to lead to a financial benefit in savings of over $600,000 per year in operational costs, enhancements to customer experience and an increase in revenue generating opportunities. Moreover, this article enriches the existing literature on the application of LSS concept in the service industry, and helps the company to speed up the response to customer requirements.     

从“以人为本”到政府“公信”--新世纪初政府公信力构建的进路评析

政府公信力是政府凭籍自身信用赢得公众信任的能力，十六大以来，党在施政理念上强调"以人为本"，在执政行为上关注"民生"；在绩效上彰显公平正义，施政方略渗透着人文关怀因素，政府公信力得到了有效提升。但由于腐败现象没有得到有效控制，党风廉政与制度化建设相对滞后，政府公信力也受到了冲击。在新一代领导集体治国理政中，"改革"成为新的常态，防腐败斗争与党风廉政建设取得了伟大成就，政府公信力的重振业已开启。     

数据驱动下收货方质量偏好与电商配送服务质量优化

针对"互联网+大数据"优化电商配送服务质量问题，明确不同收货方的质量需求稳定性，引导电商根据收货方不同质量敏感性提供相对精准服务，提升配送服务质量。模拟投票结果的形成过程聚类得到收货方对服务质量偏好的记忆性特征：（1）"无记忆"型收货方；（2）"记忆"型收货方；（3）"不确定"型收货方；（4）收货方总体。进一步推导不同规划类型求解空间，设计得到"无记忆"型收货方动态规划精确求解方法，及其他三种类型近似求解粒子群算法。研究过程中，配送资源质量感知度被嵌入到模型约束；"无记忆"型收货方的质量需求规划问题转化为零库存策略最优解问题，进而证明存在精确解；"记忆"型收货方呈现出对质量感知的累积；"不确定"型收货方模型通过赋值即可得总体收货方表达式。结果表明：数据驱动研究框架借助大数据资源，使得电商更易通过收货方的质量偏好设计更加匹配的配送方案；不确定服务需求得到有效满足，投入成本的利用率更高；通过特征分类的方式，尽可能地抽取能够精确最优化的部分，缩小NP范围，提高整体求解的精确度。     

Employers' perspectives on benefit conditionality in the UK and Denmark

This article examines the under-explored demand-side of active labour market policies (ALMPs). Based on interview data from a comparative study of the UK and Denmark, the paper analyses employers' perspectives and experiences of ALMPs. In both countries, employers were favourably disposed towards employing unemployed jobseekers but held negative views on conditionality. First, benefit conditionality led to employers receiving large numbers of unsuitable and unfiltered job applications, with associated negative resource impacts. Second, employers perceived this as a product of ‘box ticking' and compliance targets. Finally, employers criticised policy and media rhetoric for focusing solely on the supply-side and for problematizing unemployed candidates. The paper argues that these crucial, but neglected, employer perspectives demonstrate that the current benefit conditionality regime in the UK risks irrevocably ‘tarnishing' candidates, which undermines, rather than enhances, their chances of securing employment through ALMPs. This unique dataset provides further evidence that the current direction of policy requires urgent and radical re-thinking.     

论民族自治地方政府机构改革的深化——基于新中国成立初期探索的思考

民族自治地方政府在新一轮机构改革中进行了历史性变革和系统性重塑，然而顶层设计与分层对接机制优化、机构设置细化与整合、运转协同和效能提升仍未完全到位。回溯机构改革史，中华人民共和国成立初期作为政府顶层设计和系统性构建阶段，是民族自治地方政府机构建设最富成效的历史时期之一。这一时期的民族自治地方政府机构建设强调权能配置和人员构成的民族性，逐步差异化设置机构、探索单一制下政府机构平衡设置等历史经验，可以为进一步深化政府机构改革提供有益借鉴。在新的历史起点上深化民族自治地方政府机构改革应以新时代中国特色社会主义思想为引领，合理汲取历史养分，进一步深化理论研究，完善法制体系，明晰特殊性职权和民族性职能，健全顶层设计与分层对接机制，创新改革模式，强化地方参与性，切实破解改革难题，推动政府自身建设持续走向深入。     

People with disability and new disaster communications: access and the social media mash-up

This article explores how a lack of access to increasingly complex and overlapping digital communications platforms in times of disaster for people with disabilities has the potential to make already life-threatening situations considerably more dangerous. As we are increasingly coming to rely on a social media mash-up of digital platforms to assist in communications during disaster situations, the issue of accessibility for people with disabilities is as dire as if it was high ground during a tsunami or transport during a typhoon. The contemporary social media environment is characterised by a complex and overlapping network of complementary platforms, populated by user-generated content, where people communicate and exchange ideas. In this environment, YouTube videos are posted to Facebook and embedded in blogs, and Twitter is used to link to these other sites and is itself embedded in other platforms. These networks are increasingly supplementing and supplanting more traditional communication platforms, such as the television and radio, particularly in times of disaster. The concern of this paper is that the elements from which this mash-up of communications channels is made are not always accessible to people with disabilities. This evolving network of social media-based communication exposes the limits of existing Internet-based universal design.     

市场经济下政府与市场的关系

在市场经济中，市场必须在资源配置中发挥基础性或决定性的作用，但政府在市场失灵的地方又必须积极地发挥作用。本文分别从早期市场经济中政府的作用、现代市场经济中政府的作用等五个方面对这一问题进行论述。     

影子银行、地方政府债务及金融发展动态关系研究——基于省级面板VAR模型

基于2004—2017年中国省级面板数据,运用面板向量自回归(PVAR)模型,使用系统GMM估计、脉冲响应函数、方差分解以及格兰杰因果关系检验等方法分析了影子银行、地方政府债务及金融发展之间的动态关系.结果表明:影子银行、地方政府债务与金融发展水平三者之间存在动态耦合关系.在地方政府融资能力受到约束的情况下,影子银行为地方政府提供了多元的融资方式,在增加政府融资能力的同时提升了政府债务水平;而地方政府债务需求显著推动了影子银行规模的快速发展.同时,影子银行过度扩张危害了金融市场的健康发展,降低金融发展水平,继而使地方政府的融资渠道受到约束.但金融发展并不能有效约束影子银行规模,原因在于,政府融资需求是影子银行的主要动力,若不能控制地方政府的借贷行为则无法从源头解决问题.监管机构在去杠杆的过程中,应该综合考虑影子银行与地方政府债务、金融发展之间的动态关系,如此才能够实现预期的政策效果.     

不同冷链服务模式下生鲜农产品供应链决策

基于单物流服务商、单供应商和单零售商构成的生鲜农产品供应链，构建3种冷链服务模式：承诺模式、提前要求模式与延后要求模式，探讨不同冷链服务模式对定价与冷链服务水平、企业绩效的影响。研究发现：某种冷链服务模式是否有利于消减数量与质量损耗依赖于产品易腐性、冷链服务成本及其分担比例。供应链成员无法在承诺模式与提前要求模式下形成统一的模式偏好。当物流服务商承担的冷链服务成本比例较低时，相比于提前要求模式，供应商偏好承诺模式，否则，偏好提前要求模式。承诺模式比提前要求模式更有利于物流服务商，然而对于零售商，结果正好相反。数值实验表明，虽然供应链成员无法对冷链服务模式形成整体的一致性偏好，但仍可实现局部的一致性偏好。     

地方政府重大决策机制存在问题及优化路径

地方政府作为地方公共事务管理者，决策正确与否直接关系到公共管理活动的成败，并且在一定程度上影响地方经济发展的水平及其核心竞争力。由于我国地方政府现阶段决策主体多元性及其职能模糊性，一些重大决策失误现象屡屡发生，造成了有限资源的巨大浪费，严重影响了地方政府在人民群众中的威信和形象。对此，我国地方政府迫切需要优化重大决策机制，包括明晰体制内外决策主体的职能、第三方评估、公众参与、决策终身责任追究及倒查机制等，以推进地方政府决策的民主化、科学化和法治化。