The services field: A cornucopia filled with potential management topics

A primary aim of management research is to develop knowledge about the management of organizations. Many countries’ long-trend shift towards a service economy and the concomitant increase in the number of service organizations have stimulated advancements in service management research. However, some blind spots remain. In this article, we focus on product market stakeholders and organizational stakeholders and discuss research questions (or blind spots) that map to different areas of management literature, especially those of service management literature. We believe that attaining answers to those research questions can yield important insights that have the potential to advance management research.     

Sustainable supply chain management in the fast fashion industry: An analysis of corporate reports

In recent decades, the fast fashion industry has been characterized by widespread operations across both developing and developed countries. Due to the economic, social and environmental problems in developing countries, companies increasingly focus on sustainability and try to ensure the same quality and standards in working and production conditions throughout their supply chains. Although the tension in the exchange of resources between developing and developed countries lies at the heart of current sustainability activities, what these companies are actually doing to manage their supply chain has not yet been explored in depth in the literature. Drawing on the theoretical framework of Seuring and Müller (2008), the current study attempts to fill this void by conceptually mapping the current situation of sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) in the fast fashion industry by analysing reports from 9 companies that use the same reporting guidelines. The results of the study reveal that these companies focus significantly on supplier compliance with their code of conduct, employing further monitoring and auditing activities to prevent production problems in developing countries, improve overall supply chain performance and set sustainability criteria for their suppliers.     

How sustainable is the macroeconomic impact of foreign aid?

This paper examines how long the impact of foreign aid on growth lasts in recipient countries. An econometric technique is adopted which recognises that the impact of aid in the current year is a function not just of the current aid received but also of the aid received in previous years. Results indicate that foreign aid has a half-life of two years. In other words, half of the total impact of aid on growth is experienced within two years of its disbursement. Aid loans are found to have longer half-lives than their grant counterparts. Policy implications are discussed.     

Implementation of physically active lessons: A 2-year follow-up

Combining physical activity and academic content is a promising way to improve health and academic learning in schoolchildren. This paper examined the continuation of physically active lessons (PAL) in five Norwegian elementary schools, two years after a 10-month intervention period, which consisted of weekly minimum 2 x 45 min of PAL. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with nine teachers and five school leaders. The Level of Use instrument was used to assess how the teachers integrated PAL into the school day. Two years after the intervention period, seven of nine teachers conducted PAL regularly, on average one lesson per week. Teachers’ implementation progress varied from struggling with logistics, to stable routine and creative adaption. Perceived benefits for the children, active leadership, and ongoing implementation support seem important for continuation. Introduction of PAL as a school development project, systematic planning from the onset and a gradual introduction of PAL, can be an effective strategy for continuation and long-term sustainability. In addition, the Level of Use instrument was useful to better understand which support mechanisms are needed at different stages in the implementation of PAL.     

Quality of life and sustainability issues as seen by the population of low-income housing in the region of Campinas, Brazil

This paper presents a study on quality of life and sustainability indicators relating to site-planning parameters for low-income public housing projects in the region of Campinas, Brazil. The study is based on a post-occupancy-evaluation (POE), conducted in five housing developments. Most of these housing projects are based on a repetitive model and are devoid of urban infrastructure. Users act on their own in providing for some elements considered necessary to create an identity and community spirit. Results show that the population relates quality of life to economic factors and sustainability is associated to reduce utility bills. Houses are preferred to apartments and satisfaction with the present housing conditions is high, despite low feelings of security in the neighbourhood. This work is part of a broader study, which aims to develop design evaluation tools. Most sensitive quality of life and sustainability indicators related to site-planning should permeate these tools and establish design guidelines. The inclusion of a large number of qualitative design issues into the decision-making process and the questioning of existing standardized solutions are seen as essential means to increase local housing quality.     

Moving from sustainable management to sustainable governance of natural resources: The role of social learning processes in rural India,Bolivia and Mali

The present paper discusses a conceptual, methodological and practical framework within which the limitations of the conventional notion of natural resource management (NRM) can be overcome. NRM is understood as the application of scientific ecological knowledge to resource management. By including a consideration of the normative imperatives that arise from scientific ecological knowledge and submitting them to public scrutiny, ‘sustainable management of natural resources’ can be recontextualised as ‘sustainable governance of natural resources’. This in turn makes it possible to place the politically neutralising discourse of ‘management’ in a space for wider societal debate, in which the different actors involved can deliberate and negotiate the norms, rules and power relations related to natural resource use and sustainable development. The transformation of sustainable management into sustainable governance of natural resources can be conceptualised as a social learning process involving scientists, experts, politicians and local actors, and their corresponding scientific and non-scientific knowledges. The social learning process is the result of what Habermas has described as ‘communicative action’, in contrast to ‘strategic action’. Sustainable governance of natural resources thus requires a new space for communicative action aiming at shared, intersubjectively validated definitions of actual situations and the goals and means required for transforming current norms, rules and power relations in order to achieve sustainable development. Case studies from rural India, Bolivia and Mali explore the potentials and limitations for broadening communicative action through an intensification of social learning processes at the interface of local and external knowledge. Key factors that enable or hinder the transformation of sustainable management into sustainable governance of natural resources through social learning processes and communicative action are discussed.     

农村居家养老何以可行及可持续——基于浙江“金东模式”的实证分析

近年来,浙江金华市金东区探索实行的基于家庭养老与社会养老有机结合的农村居家养老服务成效显著。然而,目前在农村居家养老服务实践中尚存在诸如运行资金难以可持续保障、缺少专业化和市场化的社会组织参与、服务内容单一、服务范围及服务对象覆盖面有限等问题,从而影响和制约着居家养老服务的可持续性与可复制性。针对上述问题,应该加强和完善以多元主体协同参与的农村居家养老服务体系建设,为真正实现农村老年人“老有所养、老有所乐”提供坚实的组织平台和制度保障。     

生态人类学研究:中国经验30年(1978～2008)

环境保护与生态平衡问题,一直以来被各国政府、学术界以及形形色色的民间组织重点关注,也是近年来学术研究的焦点话题之一.从人类学的视角研究有关生态与环境问题、人与环境的关系等议题,使得"生态人类学"研究成为备受瞩目的一个新兴学科.本文简略地梳理了生态人类学的概念及其发展,侧重分析近30年来我国的生态人类学研究所取得的成果及其发展趋势.生态人类学研究在我国发展还不成熟,因而在学科规范上问题较为突出,所以,有必要进一步加强学科规范建设.     

Promoting Twenty-first-century Student Competencies: A Wellbeing Approach

In Australia and internationally, universities are preparing students for the twenty-first century through building the competencies fundamental for both social sustainability and wellbeing. However, there is little evidence on how these competencies can be fostered in curricula. This article presents the findings of a mixed-methods pilot of an Aboriginal wellbeing intervention that seeks to build such attributes when integrated into an undergraduate social work curriculum. A questionnaire incorporating the validated Growth and Empowerment Measure, the Australian Unity Personal Wellbeing Index, and open-ended qualitative questions was administrated to 64 first-year social work students before and after the intervention. Significant changes on both measures suggest that the intervention is highly relevant for student wellbeing, particularly for those who rated themselves as below the median at baseline. The qualitative findings highlight the relevance of the program for promoting social competencies that enable people to problem-solve and adapt in a complex world.     

Sustainability reporting patterns of companies listed on the Johannesburg securities exchange

The demand by stakeholders for information about companies’ social and environmental performance has led to sustainability reporting becoming essential. The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines are the international reporting standard whereas the Johannesburg Securities Exchange Socially Responsible Investment (JSE SRI) Index guidelines are used in South Africa. Although South Africa is regarded as one of the leaders in sustainability reporting in the world, the JSE SRI Index is still a relatively new standard and its efficiency will only be proved over time. The research on which this paper is based, determined whether reporting patterns exist across specific market sectors of the sustainability reports of companies listed on the JSE in order to establish if the JSE SRI Index guidelines on reporting are efficient. Results indicated that all the selected market sectors reported on the environment, society and governance (ESG) categories as per requirements of the JSE SRI Index. The mining and materials sector reported more in the environment and the society categories than the other sectors, while in the governance category less reporting on indirect impacts by all the sectors was noted. The implication of this is that in general, companies find the JSE SRI Index guidelines on reporting easy to implement. However, less reporting of companies’ indirect impacts on their operating environments could mean that there is still a lack of completeness and transparency from the companies’ reports, which could be as a result of a lack of firmer guidelines by the JSE SRI Index guidelines on reporting of such issues.