28 November 2014

Call for papers: “Internet Marketing and Advertising in the Framework of New Interactive and Multimedia Developments”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Internet Marketing and Advertising.

New interactive and multimedia developments are new and quickly evolving research area that offers great challenges, but also many new opportunities for managers. Since research in this area is still premature and sparse, a greater understanding is required. The purpose of this special issue is to study and explore how managers relate to these new media platforms in regard to strategies and implementations, and to also explore managerial consequences.

This issue aims to bring together collaborative efforts from different perspectives. Accordingly, the Guest Editors welcome submissions that offer innovative and illuminating insights into how executives in marketing and advertising management can
  • understand and evaluate the appropriateness of these new interactive and multimedia platforms in regard to creating and increasing consumer online relationships, involvement and persuasion;
  • understand and evaluate perspectives on how digital network environments facilitate new models of community organising, communication and public relations;
  • understand and evaluate the complementary roles marketers and pre/prosumers may play as they interact and collaborate on the marketing process on these new interactive and multimedia platforms;
  • evaluate the new methodology challenges and uncharted areas for the advertisers and marketing researchers needed to manage these platforms;
  • develop greater insight into consumers from these data-rich environments;
  • develop useful guidelines and tools for these new interactive and multimedia platforms to improve marketing and advertising activities for products and services;
  • design integrated marketing communication programmes and secure a holistic and consistent approach to digital network communication/marketing campaigns and their messages, content and form;
  • monitor and assess digital network communication/marketing campaigns on these new interactive and multimedia platforms and respond to changes in these new environments;
  • use the gained insight to complement traditional insight and develop even more powerful advertising and marketing mix programmes.
All rigorous and thoughtful conceptual papers, literature reviews, case studies, empirical studies and methodological papers on the new trends in interactive and multimedia developments are encouraged. In terms of methodological approach, we do not privilege any particular research methodology and welcome articles which are variously informed by quantitative, qualitative and behavioural experiments, data mining, case study research, or a combination of methods. Moreover, papers that delineate critical paths for future research and/or discussions on how marketing and advertising theories, strategies and practices focused on the internet are affected, and their implications for associated processes, products and services, are highly encouraged.

The special issue will carry revised and substantially extended versions of selected papers presented at the International Conference on Contemporary Marketing Issues (ICCMI) 2014. However, we also strongly encourage researchers unable to participate in the conference to submit articles for this call.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Contemporary marketing and advertising methods on the internet
  • Consumer behaviour and consumer responses through the internet
  • Evolutions in web marketing
  • Changes in marketing mix strategies and activities
  • Customer relationship management (CRM) with emphasis on web-CRM
  • Social media strategy
  • Social media advertising
  • Advertising using mobile phone applications
  • Internet review sites
  • Website optimisation using interactive and multimedia tools
  • Consumer co-creation on the internet
  • E-word of mouth
  • Contemporary e-commerce issues
  • E-communications
  • Multi-channels/omni-channels
  • Use of online and multimedia data
  • Web analytics and measurement strategies
  • Ethics in marketing and advertising through the internet
  • Agents to help determine pricing strategies
  • Web marketing services
  • Security and privacy issues on the internet

Important Dates
Submission deadline: 27 March, 2015
Notification of acceptance: 30 June, 2015

27 November 2014

Call for papers: “Innovation in Material Forming and Equipment”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Manufacturing Technology and Management.

Material forming through plastic flow forced by forming equipment is an efficient method for creating products possessing lightweight and long-term service reliability. During recent decades, global competition in the fields of transport and aerospace has led to increasing demand for new material-forming technologies and equipment.
 
The objective of this special issue is to collect papers which enhance our understanding of plastic flow behaviour, innovative material forming technologies, lightweight material forming, new structure designs, new equipment for material forming, etc.
 
The issue will mainly focus on recent advances in material forming technologies and forming equipment.
 
Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Materials forming with vibration, electromagnetism and laser
  • Forming with lightweight materials and structures
  • Sheet/bulk/tube metal plastic forming processes and equipment
  • 3D printing technology and equipment
  • Tool designs and tooling technologies
  • Powder metallurgy processes
  • Friction behaviour in metal forming
  • Composite/graded/multi-layer/metal foam materials forming
 
Important Dates
Submission deadline: 30 July, 2015
Notification to authors: 31 September, 2015
Final versions due: 31 November, 2015

Special issue published: "Energy, Economic Growth and Climate Change"

International Journal of Green Economics 8(2) 2014
  • Black energy intensity versus green energy intensity: implications for sustainable development
  • Is energy-led economic growth causing climatic shift? A causal analysis for India
  • Renewable energy potential of developing countries: the drivers towards a green economy (a case study from Uzbekistan)
  • Energy efficiency and environmental considerations for green data centres
  • Many hamsters: how the EU can enable private firms to provide renewable energy
  • A theoretical basis for green growth

26 November 2014

Call for papers: “Material Forming and Product Performance”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Materials and Product Technology.

Plastic deformation is one of the most economical material manufacturing processes in the industry. During the past two decades, the requirement for lightweight and high-performance materials in the automobile and aerospace fields has spurred many new plastic forming technologies.

Controlling product performance during material forming is a typical characteristic of these new forming technologies, and is becoming a popular topic at present. The topic often includes plastic forming with lightweight or graded materials, new structures and their forming technologies, new forming technologies for traditional materials, microstructures and performance control in plastic forming, etc.

This special issue will address recent advances in material forming technologies at scales ranging from micro- and macro-scales, microstructure evolution in forming, and the usage performance of formed products.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Lightweight materials and structure
  • Microstructure evolution in forming
  • New bulk forming technologies
  • New sheet metal forming technologies
  • Additive manufacturing
  • Micro- and nano-forming
  • Composite and graded material forming
  • Joining and welding processes by plastic forming
  • Formed products and their performance

Important Dates
Submission deadline: 15 July, 2015

Call for papers: “Pricing and Revenue Management in the International Hospitality Industry”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Revenue Management.

The international hotel industry, which comprises more than 14 million rooms, is one of the world’s largest service sectors, contributing nearly 10% of the world’s GDP. The growth and success of the hotel industry and its role in the global economy is enabled through the efficient and effective implementation of revenue management models and systems. But fast-evolving information technologies are contributing to the complexity of revenue management in the industry.

Big data is the name of the game in hotel revenue management as pricing decisions becoming increasingly dynamic, reflecting the evolution taking place in distribution channels. In addition, other hospitality sectors – such as restaurants – increasingly apply (new) pricing and revenue management techniques.

Unfortunately there is a paucity of academic research that provides deep consumer insights at a micro level to enable the better application of disciplined analytics that predict consumer buying behaviour to optimise revenues and profits. This special issue seeks to explore directions for future research in hospitality pricing and revenue management, a significant and yet under-researched topic.

This issue invites high-quality research offering insights into the key emerging challenges in pricing and revenue management. Since it is a special issue, we are not bound by methodological restrictions. We are more interested in papers that make significant contributions to understanding pricing and revenue management decisions in hotels than in the choice of methodologies.

We are open to diverse methodologies including data-based mathematical models, empirical research, integrative literature reviews, meta-analysis papers, case studies, experimental research, conceptual frameworks and/or any innovative methods.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following: 
  • Behavioural pricing – Deep insights into how consumers perceive, process and respond to prices
  • Price presentation – Greater understanding of impact of price formats, price endings, discounts, price levels and fences on revenue management
  • Data and segmentation – New possibilities to unlock customer-oriented data
  • Discrete choice modelling and conjoint analysis – Consumer choice in the context of pricing
  • Dynamic pricing and learning – Determining optimal selling prices under changing circumstances
  • Forecasting – Improving the quality of forecasts through better models and evaluation
  • Revenue analytics – Customer-oriented metrics to assess revenue management performance
  • Technology, internet and revenue management systems – Capturing abundant consumer data via an advanced (IT) infrastructures to collect and store demand data and to automate the processing of revenue management decisions
  • Distribution channels – Challenges faced by hotels in managing ever-evolving distribution channels
  • Other specific hospitality pricing and revenue management topics with significant implications are also welcome; in such cases, please do not hesitate to contact the editors with a short outline of the intended submission

Important Dates
Manuscript submission: 31 August, 2015

Call for papers: “Data Acquisition and Processing, Uncertainty Management and Inverse Problem Techniques for Structural Health Monitoring Applications”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Sustainable Materials and Structural Systems.

The objective of this special issue is to present recent advances and emerging cross-disciplinary approaches in the broad field of structural health monitoring with a focus on novel techniques for (a) data acquisition and processing, (b) uncertainty modelling and quantification, and (c) inverse problems.

In particular, this issue intends to provide a forum for a fruitful exchange of ideas and interaction among diverse technical and scientific fields such as aerospace, structural, marine, mechanical and electrical engineering, as well as applied mathematics, statistics and computer science. Specific contributions related both to fundamental research and to engineering applications of advanced signal acquisition/processing techniques and health monitoring algorithms for damage detection and reliability prognosis are welcome.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Multi-scale data processing methodologies
  • Joint time-frequency signal analysis tools
  • Spectral analysis/estimation subject to highly incomplete/sparse data
  • Compressive sensing algorithms for efficient real-time data management
  • Theoretical and experimental modal identification
  • Operational modal analysis
  • Linear and nonlinear system identification
  • Statistical system identification methods (maximum-likelihood, Bayesian inference) for parameter and state estimation
  • Model updating/validation and correlation
  • Uncertainty quantification in model selection and parameter estimation
  • Optimal strategies for experimental design
  • Optimal sensor and actuator placement methods

Important Dates
Submission of manuscripts: 1 May, 2015
Notification to authors: 1 July, 2015
Final versions due: 1 September, 2015

Hacked emails slice spam fast

Spam spreads much faster and to more people when it is being propagated by hacked, or otherwise compromised, email accounts rather than legitimate accounts, according to research published in the International Journal of Security and Networks. The insight should help those modeling the dynamics of information diffusion as well as those hoping to track and trace spam with a view to slowing or blocking its propagation. Spam traditionally contained ads for fake or counterfeit products, but currently also contains disruptive rumors and information of a political nature.

Ghita Mezzour and Kathleen Carley of Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, explain that spammers often use hacked accounts to spread spam. Spam sent from hacked accounts is often given more credence than anonymous spam or spam with an obviously scurrilous or scandalous source. This is by virtue of the spam coming from someone the recipient may know via the hacked account’s address book. In some cases, the recipients believe the spam content is correct and forward it to their friends who may, in turn, forward it to their friends. Large numbers of accounts are hacked (or hijacked) through malicious software (malware) or by guessing passwords with the purpose of using them as hosts for sending out vast numbers of spam messages. However, modeling the spread of this kind of information usually assumes that the source is a human deliberately sharing the information.

The team has found that modeling the behavior of hacked accounts results in spam diffusion dynamics different from what work on information diffusion has predicted. Hacked accounts tend to more aggressively send spam, partly because deliberately, individually propagated spam is done manually, whereas hacked spam is more commonly generated automatically by the malware that has infected the account in the first place. This aggressive behavior of hacked accounts causes spam to reach more people faster. The online equivalent of word-of-mouth is powerful when a message is repeatedly and forcibly sent to one’s inbox. Today’s social networking sites are plagued by malicious accounts that behave aggressively and differently from humans. Understanding and modeling the effect of the behavior of these accounts is important to reducing spam and attacks on social networking sites.

Mezzour, G. and Carley, K.M. (2014) ‘Spam diffusion in a social network initiated by hacked e-mail accounts’, Int. J. Security and Networks, Vol. 9, No. 3, pp.144–153.

Hacked emails slice spam fast is a post from: David Bradley's Science Spot

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25 November 2014

Call for papers: “Small Business Financing”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business.

SMEs play a crucial role in fostering growth and employment in many countries in Europe and elsewhere in the world. However, these firms face serious financing difficulties, especially in times of crisis.
 
Consequently, this special issue aims at bringing to the forefront issues and challenges related to small business financing, noticeably during periods of the financial crisis. Authors are invited to submit high-quality empirical and theoretical contributions.
 
Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Economics, finance and accounting issues of small business financing
  • Availability of leverage and access to capital markets
  • The consequences of the financial and economic crisis
  • The role of financial intermediaries, especially banks and private equity investors, in small business financing
  • The role of non-bank intermediaries, governments and other institutions in small business financing
  • The relationships between access to finance and small business performance, investment, innovation and growth
  • The influence of new regulatory and supervisory requirements (Basel III, etc.) on small business financing
  • Policy proposals to encourage small business financing of creation and innovation, etc.
 
Important Dates
Submission of manuscripts: 15 July, 2015
Notification to authors: 15 September, 2015
Final versions due: 15 November, 2015

Call for the papers: "Design-based Research for Online Learning Environment Development"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Social Media and Interactive Learning Environments.

Online learning has evolved from a marginal form of education to an increasingly popular alternative. Online learning environments can be developed using learning management systems (such as Blackboard or Edmodo), social media platforms (such as Facebook Groups) or authoring tools (such as Articulate or Adobe Captivate). However, as an online learning environment has some limitations such as a lack of classroom climate or social cues, its development often faces challenges. Research indicates that design-based research can be a practical approach to the development of high-quality online learning environments.
 
Design-based research (also referred to in this context as educational design research or educational design experiments) has two primary purposes: 1) producing a usable artifact such as an online learning environment through several rounds of prototyping, and 2) generating design principles for guiding the development of similar artifacts. It often involves a number of iterations, in which design, development, formative evaluation and revision are systematically carried out and the quality of the artifact is gradually improved.
 
This special issue aims to collect and publish exemplary cases and development studies on using the design-based research approach in the development of online learning environments. Development and research articles and conceptual papers are welcome. In particular, examples of showing how effective online learning environments are developed by progressing through several iterations are preferred.
 
Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Theoretical frameworks or models for design-based research
  • Theoretical frameworks or models for online learning environment development
  • Cases studies and examples of online learning environment development
  • Experiences of using authoring tools (such as Articulate or Captivate) to create online learning environments by following the design-based research approach
  • Experiences of using learning management systems to develop and host online learning environments by following the design-based research approach
  • Experiences of using social media platforms to design online learning environments by following the design-based research approach
  • Lessons learned from design-based research studies
  • Meta-analysis of design-based research studies
  • Design and development of interactive online learning environments
  • Social media for online learning
 
Important Dates
Full paper submission: 28 February, 2015
Notification of acceptance: 31 March, 2015
Final submission: 15 May, 2015

Call for papers: “Interorganisational Knowledge Management and Value Co-Creation in Service Networks”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Services Sciences.

Industrial companies face new challenges when their offerings shift towards service- and knowledge-intensive solutions. The service perspective on networks emphasises customer focus along with the relational and interactive nature of networked value co-creation. In service networks, superior customer value can only be co-created through more intense interaction and knowledge sharing between the network actors. Thus, the role of knowledge management emerges as central in these service-oriented business networks.
 
There is a need for research that addresses both the role of explicit and tacit knowledge in interorganisational relationships and interdisciplinary problems arising in the service industry. The service perspective emphasises that it is crucial to assess customer knowledge, customers’ perceptions of value, and customers’ experience in different markets. Furthermore, the network approach highlights the importance of understanding the value drivers of all network actors in order to find practical solutions to enhance value creation from all of the actors’ perspectives.
 
References:
Kothandaraman, P. & Wilson, D. (2001). The Future of Competition: Value-Creating Networks. Industrial Marketing Management 30(4), 379-389.
Lusch, R. F., Vargo, S. L., & Tanniru, M. (2010). Service, value networks and learning. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 38(1), 19–31.
 
Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Knowledge sharing practices in service networks
  • Effects of digitalisation in service networks
  • Value co-creation models in service business relationships
  • Small businesses and entrepreneurship in this area
  • Service solutions for local businesses and customers
  • Management of international service operations
  • Methods and approaches for co-learning in the service context
 
Important Dates
Submission of manuscripts: 15 August, 2015
Notification to authors: 15 October, 2015
Final versions due: 15 December, 2015

24 November 2014

Call for papers: “Visionary entrepreneurship in complex worlds: computer modelling, business games and scenario analysis”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Markets and Business Systems.

The aim of this special issue is to (1) advance knowledge, (2) stimulate innovative theorising and (3) facilitate discussion and connections about entrepreneurship in complex worlds using computer modelling, business games and scenario analysis. Building computer models to run simulation experiments in virtual environments provides a strong tool to support scenario-based analysis of long-term sustainability of business ideas (Delauzun and Mollona, 1999) as well as supporting decision making through the so-called model-based governance (Armenia et al., 2013). Computer-aided processes of deduction go far beyond the human capability to appreciate long-term consequences of strategic decisions. Thus, computer simulation supports entrepreneurs interpreting complex patterns of behaviour, such as peaks and lowest point, oscillations with different characteristics and changes in rates of growth or decline (Sterman, 2000).
 
Selected papers will be published from the 15th EURAM Conference, Track Entrepreneurship - Subtopic: "System Dynamics & Business Simulations", 17-20 June 2015, Kozminski University, Poland, but submissions from outside this event are also welcome
 
References: 
Armenia S., Carlini C., Onori R., Saullo A. P., 2014. “Policy Modeling as a new area for research: perspectives for a Systems Thinking and System Dynamics approach?”, Proceedings of the Business Systems Laboratory - 2nd International Symposium, Rome (Italy).
Delauzun, F. and Mollona E.. 1999. “Introducing System Dynamics to BBC World Service. An insider perspective”, Journal of Operational Research Society, 50:364-371.
Sterman, J.D. 2000. “Business Dynamics: Systems thinking and modeling for a complex world”. McGraw Hill.
 
Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Learning/teaching entrepreneurship through business games
  • Utilisation of computer modelling for scenario analysis
  • Organisational complexity with computer-based scenario analysis
  • Environmental complexity with computer-based scenario analysis
  • Business games as experimental test-beds for internal corporate entrepreneurship
We especially welcome papers that present business games and computer models or that report cases of utilisation of these tools for education or as supports for entrepreneurial decision-making.
 

Important Dates
Deadline for Submissions: 30 September, 2015

Educating on sickle cell risk

Members of the public in sub-Saharan Africa who are carriers of the hereditary disease sickle cell disease must be educated aggressively through public health campaigns to raise awareness of the risks of parenting offspring with the disease if their partner is also a carrier, according to research published in the International Journal of Medical Engineering and Informatics.

There are many physical and emotional public health components of sickle cell disease, explains William Ebomoyi of the Department of Health Studies College of Health Sciences, Chicago State University, Illinois, USA. Moreover, there ethical and legal considerations surrounding the screening of newborns for this potentially lethal disease.

Sickle-cell disease (SCD), also known as sickle-cell anemia (SCA) or drepanocytosis is an inherited condition in which a child of parents both of whom are carriers of the associated hemoglobin gene who inherits both copies will produce abnormal red blood cells that are rigid and often sickle-shaped. The disorder causes both acute and chronic health problems, such as repeated infections, severe attacks of pain and potentially stroke and death. Carriers of just one copy of this particular hemoglobin gene tend to have greater resistance to the lethal parasitic disease malaria compared to people without a copy of the gene. However, around 2 percent of the population of sub-Saharan Africa is born with SCD. Moreover, incidence is rising across the globe as populations migrate.

In the age of genomics, however, Ebomoyi suggests that raising awareness of the risks of having children with SCD if both parents are carriers is important. “An aggressive health education of the public is required to maintain a shared responsibility for their courtship behaviour by alerting potential suitors of their heterozygous status,” he suggests. He adds that, “Major sickle cell education programmes need to be integrated into the curriculum of elementary, secondary and tertiary academic institutions.”

Ebomoyi, E.W. (2015) ‘Ethical, legal, social, and financial implications of neonatal screening for sickle cell anaemia in Sub-Sahara Africa in the age of genomic science’, Int. J. Medical Engineering and Informatics, Vol. 7, No. 1, pp.46–56.

Educating on sickle cell risk is a post from: David Bradley's Science Spot

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End to End 5G for super, superfast mobile

A collaboration between NEC Electronics and several academic centres in China and Iran, is investigating how software-defined cellular networking might be used to give smart phone users the next generation of super-superfast broadband, 5G. They provide details in the International Journal of Communication Networks and Distributed Systems.

Currently, the fourth generation of mobile phone connection technology, 4G, in as far as it has been adopted provides broadband-type connectivity for enabled devices such as smart phones, tablet computers, laptops and other gadgets through two standards: the Mobile WiMAX standard (first used in South Korea in 2007), and the first-release Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard (in Oslo, Norway and Stockholm, Sweden since 2009). Peak speeds were set in the standards at 100 megabits per second (Mbit/s) for mobile users and ten times that for static, domestic 5G users, 1 gigabit per second. 100 Mbits/s is three times faster than the earlier 3G system but users commonly do not see data transfer at such high rates, downloads are usually at best 10 Mbits/s.

As yet there is no single standard for 5G although various systems are being touted based on rebuilding the cellular networks to be super-efficient and exploiting different frequencies with their capacity for greater data rates. The hope is to be able to achieve download speeds of perhaps 10 Gbits/s.

Lei Jiang of NEC Laboratories in Beijing and colleagues are working with colleagues at the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in Chengdu, Beijing Jiaotong University and the University of Kurdistan. They have assessed the latest developments aimed at 5G systems and have proposed their own novel end-to-end (E2E) software-defined cellular network (SDCN) architecture which they say offers flexibility, scalability, agility and efficiency. Moreover, it will be sustainable for providers as well as profitable.

They are currently building a demonstration system that will allow them to utilise several promising technologies in their architecture for 5G including cloud computing, network virtualisation, network functions virtualisation and dynamic service chaining. The approach, they suggest could overcome bandwidth shortage problems, improve quality of service so avoiding delays and data loss, as well as reducing the vast number of error-prone network nodes needed for such a system.

Lai, J., Jiang, L., Lei, M., Abdollahpouri, A. and Fang, W. (2015) ‘Software-defined cellular networking: a practical path towards 5G’, Int. J. Communication Networks and Distributed Systems, Vol. 14, No. 1, pp.89–105.

End to End 5G for super, superfast mobile is a post from: David Bradley's Science Spot

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Special issue published: "Current Trends in Tribology in the Iberian Peninsula II"

International Journal of Surface Science and Engineering 8(4) 2014

Expanded versions of papers presented at the Iberian Conference on Tribology 2013.
  • Mechanical and tribological performances of polypropylene composites containing multi-walled carbon nanotubes
  • Predictive maintenance of a worm reducer with an unbalanced load
  • Force relaxation and hysteresis in a frictionless superconducting magnetic bearing
  • Effect of varying cashew dust and resin on friction material formulation: stability and sensitivity of µ to pressure, speed and temperature
  • Testing and FEA as prediction strategies on the ball bearings behaviour
  • Analysis of different multiaxial fatigue criteria in the prediction of pitting failure in spur gears
  • Corrosion resistance of tungsten carbide-based cermet coatings formed by sinter-brazing
  • Investigations on the effects of surface texture on the performance of a porous journal bearing operating with couple stress fluids

Hearing the cheer of the crowd

The modern consumer is keen to be more than a passive recipient of goods and services. Social media, web 2.0 and more have empowered customers so that they share their opinions with other consumers online, offer feedback to corporations and through crowdsourcing schemes may even be asked for their expertise, ideas and sometimes financial backing by those companies.

There have been many examples during the last decade or so of organisations that have turned to the crowd for assistance, perhaps in solving a problem that will lead to a better product for the people who help and others, perhaps in backing financially a novel invention or book and allowing the organisation or individual to bring it to market. Writing in the International Journal of Technology Marketing, researchers in Finland consider the drivers that lead members of the public, the crowd, to participate in such activities and provide insights for those who wish to use crowdsourcing for their own ends, and for the greater good.

Miia Kosonen and Kaisa Henttonen of the School of Business, at Lappeenranta University of Technology in Finland, explain that members of the public, acting essentially en masse, can provide organisations with valuable knowledge and new ideas in a very cost-effective way. “However, while existing research has focused on the users and the general characteristics of crowdsourcing, there is still a lack of understanding of how the hosting organisation should organise and govern crowdsourcing initiatives,” they explain. Their research has allowed them to identify six management practices that if implemented well would allow a crowdsourcing initiative to work the most effectively and efficiently.

The six management practices identified by the team are:


  1. Selecting appropriate communication technologies

  2. Defining tasks

  3. Evaluating crowd size and its knowledge base

  4. Launching tasks and supporting interpretation

  5. Giving feedback and encouraging interaction

  6. Allowing user-driven idea evaluations

“Crowdsourcing platforms support firms in integrating users and customers in various types of innovation tasks,” the team explains. Their insights, based on illustrative cases and a survey of earlier research suggests that the transformation from company-driven innovation to user-driven models brings challenges that might be addressed by considering these six key aspects of developing a crowdsourcing program. “Our study has implications for the emerging research on crowdsourcing, where most studies have so far focused on the individual user level and neglected the hosting organisation’s perspective,” the team points out.

The team adds that crowdsourcing has to be seen as a two-way process and that it must have obvious benefits for the individuals among the “crowd” as well as the hosting organisation. “An organisation should not presume its crowdsourcing initiative will be successful,” they say. “But instead be prepared to define tasks and target crowds by trial and error. This is a two-way process at the heart of any successful idea crowdsourcing initiative.”

Kosonen, M. and Henttonen, K. (2015) ‘Cheer the crowd? Facilitating user participation in idea crowdsourcing’, Int. J. Technology Marketing, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp.95–110.

Hearing the cheer of the crowd is a post from: David Bradley's Science Spot

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23 November 2014

Call for papers: “Integration of Wireless Technologies with High-Performance Computing and its Applications”

For a special issue of the International Journal of Mobile Network Design and Innovation.

There is an ever-increasing demand for the integration of wireless communication technologies with high-speed computing, which makes use of super computers and parallel processing techniques for solving complex computational problems. Many scientists, engineers and research groups are already actively involved in high-performance computing (HPC) with the help of integration of wireless technologies to allow the solving of computer science, engineering and business problems using various applications that require high bandwidth, low-latency networking and very high computing capabilities.
 
Wireless technologies integrated with HPC have moved into the mainstream of computing and have become a key technology in determining future research and development. These technologies hold great potential for the future but still require many challenges and questions to be addressed. This special issue aims to foster the dissemination of high-quality research into the integration of wireless technologies incorporated into HPC paradigms, models, algorithms, technologies and applications.
 
Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Algorithms and technologies for integrating wireless networks with HPC
  • Evaluation of existing tools and techniques in wireless networks in regard to computing with applications
  • Various stages of novel accelerator processors, systems and architectures (including analysis, design and implementation)
  • Simulation methods and comparisons for any kind of wireless networks in regard to HPC with applications
  • Parallel and distributed system architectures, software technologies and algorithms
  • Wireless sensor networks and applications with HPC
  • Novel computing models for integrating wireless networks with peer-to-peer/grid and cluster/cloud/pervasive computing
  • Database applications and data mining
  • Programming models, analysis and design of algorithms for accelerator-based computing
  • HPC in modelling and simulation
  • Parallel applications on accelerators

Important Dates
Deadline for the paper submission: 15 May, 2015

22 November 2014

Call for papers: “Next Generation of Research in Transportation and Logistics: Our Common Future”

For a special issue of the World Review of Intermodal Transportation Research.

In the last several decades, the transportation and logistics field has witnessed many remarkable changes as a result of innovation in ICT that have facilitated improvements in manufacturing, data interchange, network design, intelligent transportation systems, warehousing and inventory, and cargo handling. New innovations in alternative fuels and vehicle/engine designs have also begun to change the dynamics of transportation, creating more options for transport. Furthermore, the industry is now on the verge of witnessing a sixth mode of passenger and freight transportation: commercial space.
 
While this rapid change creates many opportunities, there are also challenges concerning safety and security as well as the design and integration of the transportation system itself. How do governments regulate an increasingly integrated transportation system? How do they safely incorporate vertical and horizontal space launch as well as greater commercial use of unmanned systems?
 
The purpose of this special issue is to act as a platform for the innovative work of the next generation of researchers and scholars in transportation and logistics. It is targeted specifically at doctoral students who are at the cutting edge of transportation and logistics research. We encourage papers from all aspects of transportation and intermodal transportation where innovation has occurred or should occur.
 
Suitable topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Air cargo and passenger transportation
  • Alliances in the transportation industries
  • Brokering services
  • Cargo handling, equipment and facilities
  • Electronic data Interchange
  • Ground transportation
  • Infrastructure development, maintenance and upgrade
  • Intelligent transportation systems
  • Leasing companies
  • Network design
  • Ocean port development, facilities and linkages
  • Pipeline operations
  • Railroad development and involvement in intermodal transportation
  • Regulation of intermodal transportation
  • Security and safety of transportation systems
  • Supply chain innovation
  • Sustainability/transformational innovation
  • Transportation competition and cooperation
  • Transportation networks
  • Trends in intermodal transportation
  • Unmanned systems
  • Warehousing and inventory

Important Dates
Submission of full papers due before: 30 June, 2015

20 November 2014

Special issue published: "Intelligent Approaches to Pattern Recognition"

International Journal of Applied Pattern Recognition 1(3) 2014

Expanded version of papers presented at the 11th International Conference on Cybernetic Intelligent Systems.
  • A cancellation method of additive external noise and state dependent noise in sound environment systems
  • A blind watermarking algorithm for fingerprint images based on contourlet transform
  • Hindi viseme recognition using subspace DCT features
  • Comparative analysis on SIFT features in visible and infrared aerial imaging
  • Classification in e-procurement

Special Issue published: "Advances in High Performance and Pervasive Modelling and Simulation in Intelligent Networking"

International Journal of Ad Hoc and Ubiquitous Computing 17(2/3) 2014
  • Action planning for multi-robot-based reconfigurable fixture
  • A framework for comparative performance study on virtualised machines
  • Design and evaluation of a quorum-based synchronisation protocol of multimedia replicas
  • Parallelisation of a watershed distributed ecohydrological model with dynamic task scheduling
  • High performance wireless sensor network localisation system
  • High throughput wavelet coherence analysis of neural series
  • AEDB protocol tuning with a fast efficient parallel multi-objective local search
  • The design of dynamic access control for hierarchical sensor networks with key-lock-pair mechanism
  • Measuring the similarity of PML documents with RFID-based sensors
  • Phase imperfect collaborative event driven energy efficient protocol

19 November 2014

Call for papers: "Culture, Integration and Communication: Issues and Approaches in Higher Education Contexts"

For a special issue of the European Journal of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management.

There is a growing number of studies associated with the internationalisation of higher education (HE) that reflect the increasing challenges in this sector. These studies are informed across several disciplines and include research into mobility, the mutual influence of higher education systems, strategies in teaching and learning and the delivery of acquired skills (Altbach & Knight, 2007; Enders, 2004; Kehm & Teichler, 2007; King, Marginson & Naidoo, 2013; Naidoo, 2011; Scott, 2000; Van Damme, 2001).

Studies are increasingly informed by cultural and communication issues from a critical viewpoint (Grimshaw, 2007). This is also reflected in an expanding body of literature on the “Anglicisation” of higher education, largely linked to areas of teaching and research (Altbach, 2005; Coleman, 2006; Deardorff, 2012; Grin, 2010; Hughes, 2008; Kirkpatrick, 2011; Pennycook, 2006; Phillipson, 2006). Generally, there is no doubt that internationalisation nurtures the adoption of English as a common language and reinforces this shift. On a policy level, the promotion of academic mobility within Europe, notably through the Bologna Process and the development of a European Higher Education Area (EHEA), has inadvertently helped to establish English as the main academic language (Hughes, 2008; Phillipson, 2006).

Despite some fundamental scholarly work that has been done to date, we call for expanding this research stream to explore how these cultural, language and communication issues are implemented at different levels in higher education institutions from a management perspective.
The aim of this special issue is to further explore through the lens of management the integration of cultural, language and communication issues in the sphere of higher education, and to investigate the various influences and contingencies of contextual factors.

We invite manuscripts that are methodologically rigorous and conceptual or empirical in nature, and which offer new insights into current cultural issues in higher education contexts.

References
Altbach, P. G.; Knight, J. (2007). The Internationalization of Higher Education: Motivations and Realities. Journal of studies in international education, 11(3/4), 290-305.
Coleman, J. A. (2006). "English-medium teaching in European Higher Education." Language Teaching, Cambrige University Press 39(1): 1-14.
Deardorff, D. K. (2012). The SAGE handbook of International Higher Education. Thousand Oaks, CA; London, SAGE.
Enders, J. (2004). Higher education, internationalisation, and the nation-state: Recent developments and challenges to governance theory. Higher education, 47(3), 361-382.
Grimshaw, T. (2007). Critical perspectives on language in international education. The SAGE handbook of research in international education, 450-461.
Grin, F. (2010). Managing languages in academia: Pointers from education economics and language economics. Professionalising Multilingualism in Higher Education. Luxembourg. Hughes, R. (2008). "Internationalisation of Higher Education and Language Policy." Higher Education Management and Policy 20(1): 111-128.
Kehm, B. M., & Teichler, U. (2007). Research on internationalisation in higher education. Journal of Studies in International Education, 11(3-4), 260-273.
King, R. Marginson, S. and Naidoo, R. (Eds) (2013) The Globalization of Higher Education. Edward Elgar.
Kirkpatrick, A. (2011). Internationalization or Englishization: Medium of Instruction in Today's Universities, Centre for Governance and Citizenship, The Hong Kong Institute of Education (Working Paper Series No. 2011/003): 1-18.
Naidoo, R. (2011). Rethinking development: Higher education and the new imperialism. Handbook on globalization and higher education, 40-58.
Pennycook, A. (2006). Postmodernism in Language Policy. An Introduction to Language Policy: Theory and Method. T. Ricento, Blackwell Publishing: 60-76.
Phillipson, R. (2006). Are linguistic human rights an alternative to linguistic imperialism?. World Englishes: Critical Concepts in Linguistics, 5(1), 298.
Scott, P. (2000). Globalisation and Higher Education: Challenges for the 21st Century. Journal of Studies in International Education, 4(1), 3-10.
Van Damme, D. (2001). Quality issues in the internationalisation of higher education. Higher education, 41(4), 415-441.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Cultural integration polices/practices in higher education
  • Student/staff integration on campus
  • Intercultural competence of students and staff in higher education
  • Management of multicultural campuses
  • Cross-cultural communication in higher education
  • Multicultural teamwork in higher education (students/staff)
  • Practices/issues of teaching multi-cultural classrooms

Important Dates
Submission deadline: 31 March, 2015

Int. J. of Computational Vision and Robotics to publish expanded papers from ICIMR 2015

Expanded versions of papers presented at the International Conference on Intelligent Mechatronics and Robotics (12-13 April 2015, Bhubaneswar, India) will be published by the International Journal of Computational Vision and Robotics.

International Journal of Oil, Gas and Coal Technology increases issues

The International Journal of Oil, Gas and Coal Technology has announced that it will be increasing issues from eight to twelve from 2016 onwards.

Call for papers: "Critical Infrastructure Computer Technology and Protection"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Critical Computer-Based Systems.

In recent years, critical infrastructures have become increasingly dependent on ICT and more complex, interconnected and linked to the Internet. Consequently, this makes these systems more vulnerable and intensifies the threat of successful cyber-attacks taking place. The growing use of wireless networks further exacerbates the situation, as critical infrastructures become more susceptible to direct digital attack than ever before.

Traditionally, protecting against environmental threats was the main focus of critical infrastructure preservation. Now, however, with the emergence of cyber-attacks, the focus has changed and infrastructures are facing a different danger with potentially devastating consequences.

As threats evolve and become more adaptive, so should security measures evolve and adopt increasingly innovative security techniques. The future lies with combating cyber-attacks in innovative ways, where adaptive systems are employed and existing methods are built upon to provide well-structured defence-in-depth. The increasing complexity and susceptibility of these systems, combined with significant weaknesses in current security measures, highlights the need to develop effective protection methods.

For this special issue, we solicit research papers addressing this pertinent topic.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Critical infrastructure protection
  • Cyber security
  • Cyber attacks
  • Data analysis
  • Intrusion detection systems
  • Unified threat management systems
  • Control systems
  • Smart grids
  • Defence-in-depth
  • Wireless networks
  • Complex and systems-of-systems security
  • Cyber-physical security

Important Dates
Submission deadline: 15 July, 2015
Notification of acceptance: 1 September, 2015
Final version due: 1 November, 2015

18 November 2014

Call for papers: "Induction Heating and Heat Treating"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Microstructure and Materials Properties.

There are many ways to heat and heat treat metallic workpieces, including the use of electromagnetic induction, which has become one of the most popular technologies due to its environmental friendliness, high energy efficiency, ergonomic advantages and ability to provide high production rates. In recent years, the metalworking industry has increased its technological knowledge of the production high quality components. This knowledge has led to many improvements in manufacturing powertrain and transmission components, gears and gear-like parts, long forged, rolled and extruded products and others. Novel steels appear quite regularly dramatically improving mechanical properties and microstructures resulting in many advancements in manufacturing critical components with superior properties including lower noise, lighter weight, energy efficiency, and lower cost as well as increased load-carrying capacity. The objective of this issue is to discuss innovations and breakthroughs that were recently developed in induction heating and heat treating technologies.

Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Theoretical and practical aspects of electromagnetic induction heating
  • Innovative process technologies
  • Computer modelling and optimisation
  • Microstructural and grain size control
  • Material properties
  • Hardening/tempering/stress relieving
  • Heating prior to warm and hot metal forming
  • Nondestructive testing
  • Failure analysis
  • Thermal processing development
  • Process monitoring and quality assurance
  • Advanced coil designs

Important Dates
Submission of Manuscripts: 31 December, 2015

Inderscience journals to publish expanded papers from DIEM 2015

Expanded versions of papers presented at the 2nd Dubrovnik International Economic Meeting (1-3 October 2015, Dubrovnik, Croatia) will be published by the following journals:

Call for papers: "Next Generation of Social Computing for Computational Collective Intelligence"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Information Technology and Management.

Recently, Web 2.0 technologies such as Blog, SNS, Wikipedia, and Youtube have emerged as possible channels for exploitation by business and education. They are involved in the information production and distribution processes as well as the consumption process. Also, social network research in sociology and psychology has shown an interest in modelling and analysing the relationship between users and their communities. As well as providing ways to stay in touch with friends and make online transactions and new interactions in cyber environments, research areas are focused on sharing, collaboration and interoperability of web documents and social media.

This special issue brings various next generation social computing tools to construct, integrate, analyse, mine, annotate and visualise the social data from various transactions and interactions in engineering, business management and education.

Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Web 2.0 & Web 3.0
  • e-Learning and social media
  • Social computing and social networks
  • Social network services in business/education
  • New computational models for social networks
  • Social media in business/education
  • Collaboration and KM using Web 2.0
  • Semantic web applications and developments
  • The role of the educator in social networks
  • Adaptation of learning theories for social networks
  • Social network analysis in courses and learning environments
  • Mobile devices in social learning
  • Personal learning environments and networks
  • The value of openness in learning
  • Next-generation social technologies
  • Scholarship and peer review in online social networks
  • Privacy and security issues for social networks

Important Dates
Submission of Manuscripts: 1 April, 2015
Notification to Authors: 1 July, 2015
Final Versions Due: 1 September, 2015

Gender diversity and innovative R&D

Gender diversity is relevant when it comes to R&D innovation, according to a study of Spanish manufacturing firms; however much more important is “diverse functional expertise”, say researcher in a paper to be published in the International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business.

Juan Fernández-Sastre of FLACSO Ecuador explains that innovation does not result from rational managerial decisions, rather it emerges from the complex social systems in which individuals share knowledge to generate new ideas. The personnel working in a research and development (R&D) department are perhaps the most relevant to the innovation structure.

Fernández-Sastre has analyzed data extracted from the Spanish Survey of Technological Innovation (PITEC). PITEC is panel data compiled by the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE), the Science and Technology Foundation (FECYT) and the Foundation for Technical Innovation (COTEC). He has looked at four different types of innovation: product, service, process and organisational. Product innovation involves a company marketing a new or improved product. Service innovation involves the introduction of new or improved services. Process innovation involves novelty and improvements in production, distribution or support activities. Organisational innovation involves changes for the better in management practices.

The analysis reveals that among the Spanish companies studied, the emergence of innovation was specially related to the functional diversity of the R&D workforce and to a lesser extend to its gender diversity, except in the case of service innovation, for which gender diversity was as beneficial as functional diversity, due to the personal interactions and market insights necessary for improvements at the service level.

“Manufacturing firms, for which service innovation is a source of competitive advantage, should be really concerned with human resource management practices for gender diversity and not only with the building of cross-functional teams,” says Fernández-Sastre. Additionally, the data suggests that, “Managers should not consider forming teams with equal proportions of men and women. This may reduce male-female interaction and the benefits associated with the existence of minority groups in the creative and problem-solving process”. Finally, “Those firms aiming at introducing innovations that involve interactions among internal and external agents and those that require a better interface with the market place will benefit more from gender diversity than those firms pursuing innovations related to the solution of technical problems”, Fernández-Sastre concludes.

Fernández-Sastre, J. (2015) ‘The impact of R&D teams’ gender diversity on innovation outputs’, Int. J. Entrepreneurship and Small Business, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp.142–162.

Gender diversity and innovative R&D is a post from: David Bradley's Science Spot

17 November 2014

Int. J. of Business and Emerging Markets to publish expanded papers from 2015 ABEM Conference

Expanded versions of papers presented at the 2015 ABEM Conference on International Business and Emerging Markets (4-6 August 2015, Windhoek, Namibia) will be published by the International Journal of Business and Emerging Markets.

Call for papers: "Evidence-Based Management Practices in Accounting and Finance"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Management Practice.

In recent decades, a great deal of scientific research has been carried out on issues relevant to management practices. Evidence-Based Management (EBM) means making decisions based on best accessible facts, that is, scientific findings and unbiased organisational facts. It is a field that explicitly applies the contemporary and optimal evidence in management and decision making processes. EBM emerged as a separate discipline of management initially from healthcare (Sackett and Rosenberg, 1995; Sackett et al., 1996). In early 1999, the systematic foundation of EBM started to appear and the entry of EBM into the behavioural sciences enabled more effective decision making. In the first decade of the 21st century, EBM gained popularity due to Evidence Oriented Organizing; Strategic-Finance; Marketing; Healthcare-Finance and Policy-Making (Walshe and Rundall, 2001; Sanderson, 2002; Junco et al., 2010; Armstrong, 2011; Rowley, 2012; Tourish, 2013).

This special issue aims to document the increasing acceptance and popularity of decision making based on the available evidence. It invites manuscripts of new ideas on EBM practices. More particularly, the special issue focuses on accounting and finance, one of the emerging areas of EBM decision making, and will contribute to the literature with suggestions and recommendations to policy makers and practitioners. It also has a unique angle targeting the evidence-based managerial decisions made by firms operating at the international level. Empirical evidences from national settings such as India, China, Japan, Korea and emerging Asian markets are welcome.

References
Armstrong, J. S. (2011). Evidence based advertising: an application to persuasion. International Journal of Advertising, Vol.30, No. 5, pp.743-767.
Junco, J. G., Zaballa, R. D., & Perea, J. G. (2010). Evidence-based administration for decision making in the framework of knowledge strategic management. The Learning Organization, Vol. 17, No. 4, pp.343-363.
Rowley, J. (2012). Evidence based marketing. International Journal of Market Research, Vol. 54, No. 4, pp.5215-41.
Sackett, D. L., & Rosenberg, W. M. (1995). The need for evidence-based medicine. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Vol. 88, No.11, pp.620-624.
Sackett, D. L., Rosenberg, W. M., Gray, J. A., Haynes, R. B., & Richardson, W. S. (1996). Evidence based medicine: what it is and what it isn't. BMJ, Vol. 312, No. 7023, pp.71-72.
Sanderson, I. (2002). Evaluation, policy learning and evidence‐based policy making. Public administration, Vol. 80, No. 1, pp.1-22.
Tourish, D. (2013). ‘Evidence based management’, or ‘evidence oriented organizing’? A critical realist perspective. Organization, Vol. 20, No. 2, pp.173-192.
Walshe, K., & Rundall, T. G. (2001). Evidence‐based management: from theory to practice
in health care. Milbank Quarterly, Vol. 79, No. 3, pp.429-457.

Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Economics of auditing
  • Role of accounting
  • Financial reporting and disclosure
  • Tax regulations
  • Forensic accounting
  • Managerial accounting
  • Asset pricing
  • Corporate finance
  • Corporate governance
  • Disclosures and earnings quality
  • Financial institutions and market linkages
  • Market microstructure
  • Derivatives and regulation

Important Dates
Submission of Manuscripts: 30 June, 2015
Notification to Authors: 31 August, 2015
Final Versions Due: 31 October, 2015
Final Decision/Notification: 15 November, 2015

Inderscience journals to publish expanded papers from AWICT2015

Expanded versions of papers presented at the International Conference on Advanced Wireless Information and Communication Technologies (20-23 September 2015, Tunisia) will be published by the following journals:

Call for papers: "University Spin-offs – Process, Context and Globalisation"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Globalisation and Small Business.

University spin-offs (USOs), i.e., firms based on university research, have attracted a considerable amount of research interest in the last decades (for a recent review see Grimaldi et al, 2011). Also policy makers in Europe and elsewhere have taken interest in measures to stimulate and facilitate commercialisation of university research (Jacobsson et al 2013). Previous research has focused on issues such as typologies of university spin-offs (Pirnay et al, 2002), lack of market knowledge and inferior growth performance compared to corporate spin-offs (Lindholm Dahlstrand,1997), different forms of research commercialisation such as licencing and spin-offs (Kenney and Patton, 2009), and the relation to university technology-transfer offices, incubators and the university itself (Lejpras and Stephan, 2011).

While we have learned quite a lot about USOs through this research, some topics are still under-researched. These include ssues regarding process and context of USOs (Wright, 2014). Furthermore, the issues of internationalisation and born globals (Bengtsson, 2004) do not seem to have attracted any attention even though USOs are incubated in highly internationalized university environments.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Does the process of USOs differ from other spin-off processes?
  • What are the long-term effects of USOs?
  • Are there processes which lead to a higher likelihood of success?
  • What characterise successful USOs?
  • Which contexts are beneficial to USOs?
  • In which industrial and regional contexts do USOs matter most?
  • Which roles do USOs have for industrial renewal and change?
  • Do USOs follow the same pattern of internationalisation as other small businesses?
  • Are born global USOs different from other USOs and/or from other born globals?

Important Dates
Submission of full paper: 1 November, 2015

13 November 2014

Call for papers: "Putting together environmental sustainability and profitability in logistics and supply chains"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Business and Systems Research.

In recent years, the natural environment has become a major issue as global warming and resource scarcity became more prevalent. In addition, the economic global crisis has accelerated the need for sustainable growth where better usage of natural resources creates the potential to develop a greener economy. As a result, the impact of business operations on the natural environment is one of the main areas in which societies and governments have become more sensitive.

Road congestion, urban mobility, local air pollution and the need for CO2 reductions and energy conservation is having a dramatic impact on future logistics systems and supply chains in all industries and geographic regions. Companies and public authorities are being forced to reduce the impact on the environment of their supply chains and logistics systems and will have to develop sustainable logistics and supply chain strategies. Realising environmental objectives can be done in synergy with other strategic and financial goals. Green logistics and green supply chain practices often reduce logistics costs as they will reduce energy use. But it is also true that some economic trends, such as a shift to more offshore manufacturing and more frequent JIT deliveries, have a negative impact on the ecological performance of supply chains.

At a macro level, transport and logistics related activities contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. In the growing research literature, various aspects of environmental sustainability in logistics have been addressed. However, with few exceptions, the main focus has been on environmental aspects while profitability and business effectiveness perspectives are only sparsely addressed.

The main aim of this special issue is to explore strategies for simultaneously improving environmental sustainability and business profitability and sustainability in logistics systems and supply chains. The specific objective is to present a number of papers that deal with this boundary spanning challenge in various ways. This can be reflected through addressing the situation of different actors, like 3PLs or shippers, or addressing issues relating to relationships between supply chain actors from the academic and practitioner point of views.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following, with a focus on the Eurasian area context:
  • Sustainable business system development relating to logistics and supply chains
  • Business models and ICT systems supporting sustainable business development in logistics and SCM
  • Assessing and measuring logistics and supply chain environmental and financial performance
  • Coordination and collaboration for developing more sustainable logistics and supply chains
  • Strategies for environmentally and financially sustainable supply chain logistics.
  • Design of business- and carbon-efficient logistics systems
  • Sustainable reverse logistics systems
  • Profitable greening of third party logistics operations and strategies
  • Implications for logistics from Environmental Management Systems (EMS)
  • Purchasing green and profitable logistics services
  • Drivers and barriers to green and profitable logistics and supply chains
  • Knowledge-based approach for green and profitable logistics and supply chains
  • Modelling and optimisation of green logistics networks
  • Decision-support systems for green logistics and SCM
  • Risk management in green logistics and supply chains

Important Dates
Full paper deadline: 1 July, 2015

Int. J. of Internet Manufacturing and Services to publish expanded papers from International Conf. on Service Science

Expanded versions of papers presented at the 2015 International Conference on Service Science (8-9 May 2015, Weihai, China) will be published by the International Journal of Internet Manufacturing and Services.

Call for papers: "Advanced Digital Human Models for Social Interaction on the Internet"

For a special issue of the International Journal of the Digital Human.

The goal of this special issue is to present a comprehensive multi-disciplinary view of advanced digital human models for social interaction on the Internet. The emphasis of the special issue is on digital human models with novel and exceptional abilities. Manuscripts must therefore contain appropriate and interesting theoretical, experiential, and application self-views and comparative-views of digital human models with novel and exceptional abilities. The aim is to show that digital human models can be used to simplify user interfaces, increase communication, and improve information transfer during social interaction on the Internet.
 
Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • The state of the art in digital human models for social interaction on the Internet
  • Theoretical models used to analyse social interactions on the Internet
  • Theoretical models used to create or improve avatars in virtual worlds
  • Observational studies on the effects of avatars on social interactions on the Internet
  • Issues related to security, trust, privacy, commitment, values, integrity, knowledge and social contexts in social interactions on the Internet
  • Trends in digital human models for social interaction on the Internet
 
Important Dates
Submission of manuscripts: 31 March, 2015
Notification to authors: 1 June, 2015
Final versions due: 31 July, 2015

12 November 2014

Call for papers: "Electronic Governance and Open Society: Challenges in Eurasia"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Electronic Governance.

This special issue aims to examine e-governance developments in the vast Eurasian region, which primarily includes the former communist countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). While a broad range of e-governance issues will constitute the contents of the issue, its main emphasis is placed on open governance; that is to say, how new digital media can – or cannot for that matter – help in making post-communist public governance not just effective and efficient under the traditional e-government paradigm, but also open, transparent and accountable as the citizen-centric e-democracy concept suggests.

Since, in academic terms, not much research from the Eurasian region has been published in English, a major objective is to also bring together researchers and practitioners from other regions so as to make informed and grounded comparisons of the state of play, the currently prevailing trends and future prospects to better understand the complex relationship between electronic governance and open society.

The issue welcomes literature and academic discourse-based position papers, research articles and field-level case studies investigating electronic governance and open society challenges in Eurasia, especially the relationship between efficiency and openness in general and in the post-communist context in particular.

The issue will carry revised and substantially extended versions of selected papers presented at the Electronic Governance and Open Society: Challenges in Eurasia (EGOSE 2014) international conference, but we also strongly encourage researchers unable to participate in the conference to submit articles for this call.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following, with a focus on the Eurasian area context:
  • Information society and e-governance policies
  • Open government prospects
  • Convergence in e-governance services
  • Citizen-centric e-government
  • Participatory e-governance
  • Open data
  • e-governance and policy modelling
  • e-governance and Eurasian Integration
  • Social media: tools for Analysis, participation and impact on public policies
  • Building smart cities
  • Smart citizens, e-inclusion and quality of life
  • Disruptive e-governance
  • e-government infrastructures

Important Dates
Submission of manuscripts: 10 May 2015 (hard extended deadline)
Interim notification to authors: 10 July 2015
Revised versions due: 10 October 2015
Final notification to authors: 5 November 2015
Final versions due: 15 November 2015

Inderscience journals to publish expanded papers from Int. Conference on Advanced Wireless Information and Communication Technologies

Expanded versions of papers presented at the International Conference on Advanced Wireless Information and Communication Technologies 2015 (20-23 September 2015, Tunisia) will be published by the following journals:

Reputation and online buzz

Reputation is an asset to cherish, whether corporate, institutional or personal. In the age of social media, however, reputation is more fragile than ever. News of a simple mistake or misjudged action can spread rapidly via social networking sites. The ill-judged video, the angry response, the tasteless joke, the inappropriate photograph… In the past, they would reach very few people and would be quickly forgotten in the print era, unless particularly gruesome. Today, Twitter and YouTube and a legion of citizen journalists will prevent the Internet from ever letting you, your friends, family, customers or membership from ever forgetting even the most trivial of faux pas.

Thierry Warin, Associate Professor of International Business at HEC Montréal and Vice-President of Strategy and International Economics at Cirano (Canada) and colleagues Nathalie de Marcellis-Warin, William Sanger, Bertrand Nembot and Venus Hosseinali Mirza of the Polytechnique Montréal, have turned to game theory to help them understand corporate reputation in the age of social media. Their results serve as a warning to corporations to be ready to protect their reputations more vehemently than ever before. They also suggest that it is essential for companies to be aware of the risks associated with social media and social networking in terms of “buzz” and the potential to “go viral” in the context of bad publicity or those aforementioned faux pas.

“More and more companies are exposed to the judgment of social media,” the team reports in the International Journal of Economics and Business Research. “On the one hand, local companies can be criticized by local consumers on media such as Facebook, while on the other hand, global companies can be criticized by consumers anywhere in the world.” At the time of writing, Facebook has a “population” akin to that of China or India, with almost 900 million daily users. Other social sites also have memberships numbering in the hundreds of millions and current estimates suggest that around 40 percent of the world’s population now have Internet access, 20 years ago it was just 1 percent. There is plenty of scope for sharing of both information and disinformation across the globe.

Events with the potential to damage reputation might include news of a genuine problem shared, hoaxes, libel and slander, activist activities and industrial sabotage. Whether or not the event will have a significant impact will ultimately depend on whether or not the wider social media is interested and thus whether the issue is shared widely enough that it reaches critical mass and “goes viral” to the detriment of the company, institution or individual.

Fundamentally, the team’s game theory model of commercial reputation versus social media buzz demonstrates that those corporations that do not set much store by social media and are not concerned with their reputation in this sphere will struggle to contain the “buzz” in the face of an adverse event and so it will take longer for the buzz to die down. Their reputation may never recover in some cases, stock prices can plummet and companies can go out of business. “From a management perspective, this model helps us advocate in favor of a strategy that consists in investing a lot of resources in brand building,” the team says. “Brand building strategies are an efficient investment. It may prevent a buzz in case of an adverse event by convincing social media users that they should play the coordination strategy. But even in the case of a buzz, having a high level of reputation as a result of brand building strategies help reduce the recovery time.”

Warin, T., de Marcellis-Warin, N., Sanger, W., Nembot, B. and Mirza, V.H. (2015) ‘Corporate reputation and social media: a game theory approach’, Int. J. Economics and Business Research, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp.1–22.

Reputation and online buzz is a post from: David Bradley's Science Spot

via Science Spot http://ift.tt/1ubw1Wj

Special issue features in entrepreneurship and piracy discussion in Canada's The Globe and Mail

A recent special issue on entrepreneurship and piracy (International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2014, 22(4)) has featured in a discussion on modern-day piracy in the Canadian newspaper, The Globe and Mail, Disruptors are just pirates on the high seas of capitalism.

11 November 2014

Call for papers: "Managing Emerging Technologies and Industries in East Asia"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Technology Management.

Emerging technologies are technologies that are newly emergent from their science base at an early and pre-commercial stage. Furthermore, emerging technologies are those technologies that have the potential to enable innovations that will fundamentally allow new value propositions and disrupt existing markets. Emerging technologies may also be adopted by existing industries or new industries. More importantly, emerging technologies may result in the growth of new industries, which are called emerging industries. The electric vehicle and robot are good examples of such innovations and industries.

Harvard Business School Prof. Clayton M. Christensen proposed the concept of disruptive technologies to predict industry change. Through disruptive technologies, technology enablers disrupt business models by making new products and services affordable and accessible. Emerging technologies and disruptive technologies may arise from (1) a major scientific breakthrough, such as radar or next-generation genomics; (2) the integration of several technologies, such as advanced robotics or energy-storage devices or systems; (3) a single advance that enables a much bigger innovation, such as electric vehicles or high-speed rail. Accordingly, emerging industries can come about via emerging technologies or new business models, such as e-commerce or application software (apps), etc.

Many advances in newly emerging technologies and industries transform our way of life, business and economy. Good examples of emerging technologies and industries include the following. Tesla Motors make electric vehicles to change our way of transport, energy systems and public transport systems. FANUC Corporation makes robots and robotic tools to take on human tasks through automation and intelligence design. While Alibaba, Amazon and Ebay encourage many people to purchase their books, clothing and daily goods online, WhatsApp, Line and WeChat help many people to communicate through interactive social media. CSR Corporation’s development of a 600-800 km/h high-speed rail will reform human transportation. The challenges and opportunities involved in the above deserve the attentions of emerging technologies and industries.

There are great shifts in innovation and production hubs in East Asia today. In this special issue we aim to discuss managing emerging technologies and industries in parts of East Asia such as China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, etc. We are interested in a wide range of types of paper, including quantitative, qualitative and case-based research. Consequently, wide arrays of approaches to research are welcome.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • The impact of managing disruptive technologies, emerging technologies and emerging industries
  • Origins, evolution and interdependence in managing emerging technologies and industries
  • The commercialisation process in managing the diffusion of emerging technologies
  • The role of business models and ecosystems in managing the diffusion of emerging technologies
  • Managing changing business models and ecosystems in emerging industries
  • Strategic management of emerging technologies and industries
  • Intellectual property rights management of emerging technologies and industries
  • The role of stakeholders (e.g. investors, venture capitals, incubators, customers) in managing and facilitating emerging technologies and industries
  • The role of government and public policy in managing and facilitating emerging technologies and industries
  • The role of supporting infrastructure (e.g. ICTs) in managing and facilitating emerging technologies and industries
  • Managing new business models, new revenue models and new ecosystems in emerging industries

Important Dates
Submission of manuscripts: 30 June, 2015

8 November 2014

Call for papers: "RFID Applications in the Internet of Things"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Embedded Systems.

IoT (the Internet of Things) offers an environment of interconnected physical objects which capture meaningful data and communicate that information through IP networks and different kinds of software applications. Though different definitions of IoT exist today, it is agreed among researchers that smart objects, machine-to-machine communications and radio frequency (RF) technologies are the integral aspects of IoT. While many other emerging technologies could contribute to the development of IoT, with the recent trend it is evident that radio frequency identification (RFID) technology will shape a key part of IoT.

According to the predictions of Gartner, Inc., by the year 2020, there will be nearly 26 billion devices on the Internet of Things. There will be various types of devices that would participate in it, some of which may not use RFID, but for automated identification of most of the objects and people in IoT, RFID will surely play a very critical role. We have recently seen noticeable advancements in RFID technologies, but there still remain many other issues and considerable scope of improvement of services via RFID technologies. Hence, for this special issue we are interested in works that focus on RFID technologies and their applications in IoT.

The issue will carry revised and substantially extended versions of selected papers presented at the International Conference on Advanced Wireless, Information, and Communication Technologies (AWICT 2015), but we also strongly encourage researchers unable to participate in the conference to submit articles for this call.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Communication standards for RFID
  • RFID system architectures for IoT
  • RFID-enabled smart devices
  • RFID middleware
  • Algorithms in RFID tags and reader localisation
  • Security and privacy issues of RFID
  • Innovative RFID applications
  • Case studies and operational experiences

Important Dates
Manuscript submission due: 30 October, 2015
Notification of acceptance/rejection: 30 January, 2016
Revised/final paper due: 1 March, 2016

7 November 2014

Call for papers: "Big Data Intelligence and Knowledge Engineering"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Big Data Intelligence.

Big data computing and services have received significant attention recently. In this special issue we invite papers focusing on big data applications in various domains such as medicine, healthcare, business and financing, education and learning, social networks and media, retailing, smart environments, sensors and the Internet of Things, as well as technology aspects such as computing services and architecture, modelling, data mining and analytics, and databases.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Innovative, concurrent and scalable big data analysis
  • Big data mining techniques, frameworks and solutions
  • Big data knowledge models, systems and tools
  • Big data mobile apps and crowdsourcing systems
  • Knowledge-based big data systems, applications and tools

Important Dates
Submission of manuscripts: 1 July, 2015
Notification to authors: 1 October, 2015
Final versions due: 1 December, 2015

Call for papers: "Internet Marketing and Retailing in the Context of New Interactive and Multimedia Developments"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Electronic Marketing and Retailing.

The evolution of interactive and multimedia technologies offers new contemporary marketing tools and services and has enhanced the alternative of interactive and online relationships. Additionally, developments in technology and the socioeconomic changes that are taking place all around the world pose a series of challenges for marketing and retailing academics and practitioners to research and respond to. Rapid advancements in technology and the changes that are occurring in the retail industry present new methodological challenges and uncharted areas for marketing researchers, and yet research in this area is still rather sparse.

This special issue invites conceptual, empirical and methodological papers on the new trends in interactive and multimedia developments and how these can affect marketing and retailing theories, strategies and practices focused on the internet, and their implications for associated processes, products and services.

The special issue will carry revised and substantially extended versions of selected papers presented at the International Conference on Contemporary Marketing Issues (ICCMI) 2015. However, we also strongly encourage researchers unable to participate in the conference to submit articles for this call.

In terms of methodological approach, we do not place an emphasis on any particular research methodology and welcome articles which are informed variously by quantitative or qualitative research, behavioural experiments, data mining, case study research, or a combination of methods.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Consumer behaviour through the internet
  • Evolution of web marketing
  • Customer relationship management (CRM) with emphasis on web-CRM
  • Ethics in marketing and retailing through the internet
  • Agents to help to determine pricing strategies
  • Web marketing services
  • Big data in retail
  • Omni-channel retailing
  • Security and privacy issues on the net
  • m-Retail
  • Social media strategy
  • Website optimisation using interactive and multimedia tools
  • e-Word of mouth
  • Internet marketing multi-channels

Important Dates
Submission of papers: 31 May, 2016

6 November 2014

Call for papers: "Applied Metaheuristics for Addressing Big Data Problems"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Bio-Inspired Computation.

With computers becoming increasingly smaller and the number of transistors on a CPU becoming consequently increasingly higher, the speed of computers is increasing at an almost exponential rate. This and almost an equal improvement in storage capacity, coupled with the availability of more and more data resulting from decentralised locations through computer networks (especially the Internet) or from advanced measurement devices, has lead to a wealth of information hitherto not captured or unavailable.

This scenario has added a new term, “big data”, to the vocabulary of not only the scientific community working in data-driven areas such astronomy and physics, bioinformatics, computational biology, engineering (e.g. electricity networks, communication networks, image and video processing, sensor networks or the remote control of machines), etc., but also of economists, administrators, managers, etc.

Big data usually implies a collection of huge as well as diverse data sets. These no doubt provide huge opportunities in the aforementioned areas. However, opportunities always give rise to challenges too.

Big data brings with it very vital and useful information which would otherwise remain elusive and which hence, in many cases, proves to be a booster for the successful completion of scientific, engineering or business projects, increasing productivity in organisations, etc. However, this data often becomes too large and complex to capture, process, store, search, share, transfer and analyse. Traditional database management or data processing techniques fail to handle such a deluge of data for tasks such as capture and analysis. In other words, there is an imperative need to use innovative and new tools and techniques for handling big data.

In particular, from the perspective of data analytics, making sense out of big data accurately, efficiently and quickly has become a popular research challenge. Traditional data analytics require the full set of data to be bounded and available. These methods may fall short when the big data potentially amounts to infinity. The development of new techniques such as, for instance, in-memory types of analysis and incremental methods have received much attention recently from researchers.

Metaheuristics are known to be strong in optimisation when the problem is computationally difficult or simply too large. Although metaheuristics often do not result in an optimal solution, they may provide reasonable solutions within acceptable computation times, e.g. by using stochastic mechanisms. Both metaheuristics and big data analytics share a common ground of looking for approximate results out of a potentially intractable search space, via incremental operations. There has been much research effort emerging recently in applying metaheuristics to non-stationary data and incremental analytics.

This special issue aims to capture some of these efforts and so that they can contribute towards further analysis and progress. Papers are invited which look at the issues of applied metaheuristics in big data scenarios.

The objective of the issue is to bring together researchers from (i) various areas where big data problems arise and (ii) from the field of metaheuristics. Up to now there is no common forum for this research direction and publications on using metaheuristics in a big data context are widely distributed over different types of publications. This issue will provide new research results in this area and thus foster attention on the usefulness and importance of using metaheuristics to make big data problems more tractable. Applications of metaheuristics in diverse areas such as the sciences, engineering and business will surely expand the application domain of existing methods. It is also expected that significant methodological progress in metaheuristics can be stimulated because most metaheuristics applications today focus on smaller types of problems, so the suitability and effectiveness of the methods for larger problems is not obvious.

This special issue will commemorate the 5th anniversary of the International Neural Network Society (INNS) India Regional Chapter. More details of INNS-India are available here. Although this special issue is meant for commemorating this anniversary, it is open to submissions from all interested authors, and hopes to encompass every corner of the scientific world.

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Decision support systems
  • Swarm intelligence and optimisation
  • Cuckoo search
  • Bee algorithms
  • Firefly algorithms
  • Data mining
  • Routing and scheduling optimisation
  • Ant colony optimisation
  • Genetic algorithms
  • Big data analytics
  • Intelligent information technology
  • Intelligent agents and nature-inspired computing
  • Large-scale logistics and production planning
  • Simulation and modelling
  • Text analysis and mining
  • Computational biology
  • Web mining
  • Impacts, issues and challenges of big data - real-world applications

Important Dates
Deadline for manuscripts: 31 May, 2015
Notification of authors after reviews: 31 October, 2015