This is an exploratory empirical study with the aim to identify the factors that affect the adoption of online auctions by Internet users in Hong Kong. The frameworks used were the TAM (Technology Acceptance Model), TCE (Transaction Cost Economics) and SERVQUAL (Service Quality). It was found that the dimensions that affected the customer’s perceived value of the online auction are benefits, costs, risks and service quality. Data was collected from four pilot focus groups, one online survey and a final focus group. The subjects in the focus groups were 21 undergraduates, whereas the subjects in the online survey were 152 internet users. The results of the pilot focus groups guided the design of the online survey. The results of the survey was analysed using the Kruskal-Wallis test. The final focus group was used to seek explanations to some issues arose from the online survey. It was found that the factors in the benefit dimension were liquidity, enjoyment, and price transparency. The factors in the cost dimension were time, effort, service charge and reputation of the user. The factor in the risk dimension was financial risk. The factors in the service quality dimension were efficiency and system availability. The final focus group revealed that the auctioneer’s role in policing the auction web site was important. For differences among the subjects, it was also found that the adult users consider their reputation in auction website, young adults are worried about financial risks, and female users are more concerned about financial risks than male users. The implications of these differences are discussed. The main academic contribution was the development of a questionnaire and a model which can be used in further research about other forms of auction.

A PPP concept has become one of the preferred strategic option used world over in the delivery of public services though still considered as a developing concept. In this study, it has been used as a tool for value addition and enhancement of service delivery as opposed to it being a financing strategy. The aim of the research was “to investigate into the use of existing PPP Models in the Zambian Water and Sanitation Sector (WSS) for increased effectiveness.” A quantitative research methodology was used to investigate the extent to which existing PPP Models could increase effectiveness through dimensions of cost, time and quality. Descriptive statistics and content analysis methods were used to analyse the data. Results indicate that all the existing PPP Models can be used to increase effectiveness of dimensions of cost, time and quality though at different levels of impact based on mean values. A Conceptual Beta Model has been developed based on the adopted existing PPP Models, the independent factors of cost, time and quality and peripheral aspects that arose from the interview survey. The sample was drawn from existing water utility companies, councils and other related stakeholders in Zambia. The data collection included literature review, questionnaires and follow up semi-structured interviews with PPP experts in Zambia. A Conceptual Alpha Model was first developed and subjected to further research prior to developing a Conceptual Beta Model. The Conceptual Beta Model aims to provide a basis for existing PPP Model increased effectiveness in the Water and Sanitation Sector and has been proposed for operationalization. The study provides a greater understanding of how existing PPP Models can be used to increase effectiveness through dimensions of cost, time and quality thereby providing tangible benefits in as far as the provision of water and sanitation services in Zambia is concerned.

This research studies the internationalisation of Nigerian banks between the period 2005-2012 by examining factors that influence the decision of the banks to enter foreign markets and their choice of entry mode. The study was underlined by a positivist philosophy that tended towards realism and adopted a mixed qualitative and quantitative approach. Multiple case studies were used and five Nigerian banks were purposively sampled. Primary data was collected using Likert scale questionnaires and interviews, while secondary data was obtained from multiple sources. Primary data was analysed using the normal distribution fitting algorithm approach. Findings from the primary and secondary evidence were compared with propositions developed from the theories in the literature. The research found that foreign market entry was triggered by the success of banking sector reforms in Nigeria, a shift in the strategic scope of the banks and a desire to exploit tangible and intangible assets in less developed, but profitable banking markets in SSA. It was also found that environmental uncertainties in host countries influenced entry through high equity commitment entry modes. This study offers an idiosyncratic contribution to the study of bank internationalization and may be useful to the business community, policy makers and academics.

Private label brands are of strategic importance to retailers worldwide. However, there is a dearth of knowledge, particularly in emerging markets such as South Africa, as to the manner in which consumers cognitively assess these brands. This impacts on the development and marketing strategies adopted by such retailers. At the heart of the issue is a gap in knowledge as to how consumers formulate a value proposition in their minds and the effect of loyalty to existing brands in this respect. This thesis assumes a positivist, hypothetico-deductive approach by attempting to address the question: What are the key drivers of perceived value of private label branded breakfast cereals, taking price, perceived risk and perceived quality into account? Moreover, the study ponders how various attributes of brand image contribute to the perception of such brands and the extent to which loyalty to established national brands inhibits purchasing intent of private label merchandise. A conceptual model, encapsulating the above constructs, was developed to map these influences. The model was then examined using Partial Least Squares linear regression. Preceding the full-scale main study of 482 respondents, a smaller scale pilot study of 152 respondents was implemented to verify the basic theory and methodology. A validation study, thereafter, supplemented the findings by subjecting the quantitative results to a panel of twelve academic and industry experts. This qualitative dimension to the research provided elementary triangulation in order to solidify the results. The outcome reflects that consumers do indeed take cognisance of value through price, risk and quality cues, but that loyalty to national brands has little to no effect on the final component of the psychological process conceptualised. Furthermore, both in- and out-ofstore influences were found to play a significant role in the determination of product quality. The implications suggest that, whilst customers appear mildly satisfied with the private label breakfast cereal under consideration, further improvements across the board are recommended. Inter alia, these include optimising packaging and shelf placement to create a positive impression within the store environment, enhancing the quality of the product content and stimulating trial thereof, providing reassurances to customers through moneyback guarantees, ensuring the price differential is substantial enough to merit brand switching in favour of private labels, and consistently evolving the product suite so as to ensure it stays relevant and enticing to shoppers.

This thesis attempts to answer the following research question: “What social and institutional factors impact on the current state of affairs concerning the disclosure of social and environmental reporting of listed companies in the UAE and how do they affect the potential for change?” A social constructionist viewpoint is held throughout. The research question is attempted to be answered by using Neo-Institutional Theory as a theoretical lens, including the role of organisational fields as well as Institutional Entrepreneurs. The research is broken down into three phases. The first phase looks at analysing all annual reports and sustainability reports of listed companies in the UAE. The research finds that only 26 out of 148 made any Sustainability Reporting (SR) disclosure, and very few produced qualitatively good reports. The second phase consists of 33 semi-structured in-depth interviews with 22 individuals from 21 organisations. Phase 3 is an in-depth organisational study of a mini organisational field, focusing on one of the most successful organisations in SR from the original sample of 148, as well as an interdependent network organisation. Phase 2 and 3 reveal that there are a complex number of issues currently hindering institutionalisation of SR to occur. However, there are some positive elements that could aid change in future. The research finds the following: The level of SR in the UAE is generally low, as might be expected based on previous research. There are, however, exceptions where companies actively promote sustainability and SR. The cultural context plays a more important role than generally recognised; small organisational fields (‘mini-fields’) play an important role in successful implementation of SR; Institutional Entrepreneurs are important; their success relies on their personal approach including commitment and resilience. For the Institutional Entrepreneur to succeed it is helpful to have a network of like-minded individuals inside and outside the organisation to connect with. The findings also suggest that influence regarding institutionalisation emanates from and towards the organisational context. Connections and interdependence play a critical role; there is evidence that change happens at a more subtle level than previously recognised.

The objective of this study is to investigate the dimensions of strategic enrolment management (SEM) in the area of enrolment, retention and graduation from senior and programme management perspectives of a continuing education institution in Hong Kong. How SEM attributes differ at programme level and at institutional level as well as in different programmes of a continuing education institution in Hong Kong are examined. In addition, perceived barriers to implementing SEM and SEM success metrics of a continuing education institution are identified so as to provide a suitable SEM model in a continuing education institution in Hong Kong. The literature on SEM demonstrated that managing enrolment is a global concern and requires institution-wide effort. The key attributes of SEM from the existing literature are marketing, admission, financial aid, academic advising, orientation, retention, career services, learning assistance and institutional research. This study employs a qualitative method, including the use of Atlas.ti, a formal content analysis methodology, with the main source of research data from a series of in-depth individual face-to-face interviews with the twenty participants of a continuing education institution in Hong Kong. The research concludes there are similarities and differences between senior and programme management in the SEM perceptions. The similarities are that both senior and programme management found the attributes of SEM are significant not only to optimize student enrolment, retention and graduation, but also to provide high quality learning experiences for the students. Senior management leads the development of SEM attributes for the institution; programme management designs and oversees the way SEM attributes are carried out and implemented, ensuring all set objectives are achieved as planned to reach institutional aims and mission. In order to achieve enrolment goals and the institutional mission, a continuing education institution in Hong Kong should plan, and implement SEM with the leadership and management of senior and programme levels.

This research examines the impact of the ‘contract culture’ on recruitment in voluntary sector health and social care organisations from the perspective of those responsible for hiring paid staff. The issues, which formed the core areas for deeper investigation, were those identified from the literature review and included brand, formal structures, skills, pay, rewards and benefits in relation to attracting paid staff, intrinsic vs. extrinsic rewards, cuts in benefits, impact on psychological contract, uncompetitive benefit packages, and tenure with regard to terms and conditions. However, these findings were based on only a small number of largely practitioner/professional publications and required more systematic investigation, which was completed during the second phase of this study. As the study is focused on the perceptions of hirers, sense-making theory has been used to explore what hirers believe the main issues to be. Personal Construct Theory and the elicitation of constructs from supplied elements were used together with the Repertory Grid Technique as a primary data collection tool. A questionnaire was used in the second stage of the research, and this was designed to incorporate the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data. The principal findings of this research show the impact that the ‘contract culture’ is having on recruitment in voluntary sector organisations. The study concludes that there are issues with pay, as the voluntary sector is unable to compete with the public and private sector remuneration packages; there is also confusion surrounding the voluntary sector’s brand as there is an assumption that the sector does not require skilled professionals or pay its staff, that few graduates are attracted to the sector, that there are skills gaps in business and tendering, that work-life balance is poor, and that an increase in fixed-term contracts is impacting on relationships between employers and employees. A lack of inter-sector partnership working was also found, from the perception of hirers, to be associated with contract dependency due to the increase in competition for funding. The outcomes of this empirical research will have relevance to the voluntary sector, commissioners, policy-makers, academic institutions and recruitment agencies. In addition, the key issues identified as impacting on recruitment will provide a foundation for recruitment strategies and talent management within the voluntary sector.

This thesis empirically investigated dynamic managerial capabilities (DMCs), which are the capacities that managers use to create, extend, and modify resources. The research objectives involved identifying, classifying, and assessing DMCs in generating competitive advantage using resource-based theory (RBT). The overall research aim was to build theory in a critical yet underdeveloped area of the literature. A multi-case study using a phenomenological approach was conducted with managers from five small-to-medium sized enterprises from the finance and insurance and real estate sectors. The managers were interviewed, and described episodes when they reconfigured resources during periods of rapid change (such as the recent financial crisis and recession) in order to compete. A survey questionnaire was also used in which respondents ranked DMCs, and discussed the joint uses of them, including which capabilities were used in developing and operating others. The results of the research showed that managers used specific transformational DMCs in periods of rapid change in order to generate advantage. The DMCs are learning-based (LBDMC) and innovation-based capabilities (IBDMC) and involve participative leadership (PL). They are mutually interdependent and reinforcing, impact on ordinary capabilities, and are evolutionarily fit. They exhibited commonalities, yet are considered idiosyncratic in detail. The results are relevant to the field of strategic management in terms of theory development and practical applicability. The academic contribution exploits a gap in the extant literature, and the research shows how DMCs can be developed, used, and maintained in practice.

A mixed method research design was used to answer the question; ‘does accreditation have an impact on hospital quality, clinical measures and patient experience?’ The thesis contains three study components: 1) A case study determining the predictors of patient experience; 2) a cross-sectional study examining the relationship of hospital accreditation and patient experience and 3) A four year time series analysis of the impact of accreditation on hospital quality using 27 quality measures. A case study analysis of patient experience, using a piloted, validated and reliable survey tool, was conducted in Al Noor Hospital. The survey was administered via face-to-face interviews to 391 patients. Patient demographic variables, stay characteristics and patient experience constructs were tested against five patient experience outcome measures using regression analysis. The predictors of positive patient experience were the patient demographics (age, nationality, and health status), hospital stay characteristics (length of stay and hospital treatment outcome) and patient experience constructs (care from nurses, care from doctors, cleanliness, pain management and quality of food). Recommendations were made on how hospital managers can improve patient experience using these modifiable factors. The cross-sectional study found that accredited hospitals had significantly higher inpatient experience scores than non-accredited hospitals. The hospital level variables, other than patient volume, had no correlations with patient experience. The interrupted time series analysis demonstrated that although accreditation improved the quality performance of the hospital with a residual benefit of 20 percentage points above the baseline level, this improvement was not sustained over the 3-year accreditation cycle. The accreditation life cycle theory was developed as an explanatory framework for the pattern of performance during the accreditation cycle. This theory was consequently supported by empirical evidence. Recommendations were made for improvement of the accreditation process. The Life Cycle Model and time series analysis were proposed as strategic tools for healthcare managers to recognise and prevent the negative trends of the accreditation life cycle in order to sustain improvements gained from accreditation. The findings of the three research components were triangulated to form a theory on the impact of accreditation on clinical quality measures and patient experience. This thesis is important from a research perspective, as healthcare accreditation, although commonly used to improve quality, is still under researched and under theorised. This is the first investigation of accreditation to use interrupted time series analysis, the first analysis on patient experience and hospital accreditation and also the first study on patient experience in the Middle East. Thus it adds to the evidence base of accreditation and patient experience but also has policy and management implications.

Business models are receiving increasing attention from practitioners and academics in entrepreneurship and management. However, few studies on business models follow the process of change in real time. This thesis explores the process of business model change in early-stage university spin-off firms, and how it impacts their performance. This thesis asks: (1) How does the process of business model change unfold in early-stage university spin-offs?, (2) How does business model change link to performance in early-stage university spin-offs?, and (3) How do business model elements change and interact over time in early-stage university spinoffs? Driven by the exploratory nature of the research questions, an inductive, longitudinal multiple-case study of 8 early-stage university spin-offs was adopted. These firms combine uncertainty with low market and business knowledge, thus performing several business model changes to survive. Data was collected over 12 months from documentation, archival data, and 98 longitudinal interviews with founders. I created case histories, tables, sequences of key business models events, and performed open and selective coding to the data. Within- and cross-case analyses were performed to reveal patterns and induce propositions. Various triangulation tactics were used to ensure consistency of information and high research quality. This thesis contributes mainly to the business model and university entrepreneurship literature with an identification of drivers and themes related to the process of business model change, and the introduction of the notions of realized and intended business models. It also generates a set of propositions relating business model change (aggregate and by element) and early-stage spin-off performance with: 1) commitment, market knowledge, managerial knowledge, and uncertainty, 2) technology scope and business scope, 3) relative frequency of causal and/or effectual behaviors (by using the effectuation theoretical framework), and 4) resource constraints (by using the resource-based view). Implications for entrepreneurs, managers, universities, policy makers, and business model educators are also discussed, as well as the limitations of the thesis and avenues for further research.