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§ 303 Schuldenkonsolidierung
(2022)
Der Beitrag befasst sich mit den wirtschaftlichen Auswirkungen auf Unternehmen der deutschen Automobilbranche in Folge der behördlichen Restriktionen im Rahmen der Corona-Pandemie. Untersuchungszeitraum ist das Jahr 2020 auf Quartalsebene. Unsere Auswertung zeigt, dass die Zulieferer von der Pandemie wesentlich stärker getroffen wurden als die Hersteller der Branche. Ebenso konnte eine zeitliche Wellenbewegung der Negativentwicklung entlang der Wertschöpfungskette festgestellt werden. Der Beitrag zeigt Instrumente der Supply-Chain-Finanzierung auf, die sowohl kurzfristige Erleichterungen in Krisenzeiten als auch langfristige Möglichkeiten der Working Capital Optimierung darstellen.
Will chatbots play a significant role for B2B marketingin the future? Chatbots in B2B businesses
(2022)
Digitalization has gained a foothold in our everyday lives. However, it remains to be seen what digital tools B2B companies can benefit from. During the last few years, chatbots have been on the rise and have played a more significant role in B2B marketing. Thus, this research follows a literature review to examine the current state of B2B chatbots. With this, the study will discover the buyer’s preferences for chatbots compared to sales agents and the role of chatbots in different stages of the B2B sales funnel.
Die Debatte über die Zukunft der Europäischen Wirtschafts- und Währungsunion ist seit geraumer Zeit omnipräsent (Herzog und Hengstermann 2013). Mit der temporären Aussetzung der europäischen (nationalen) Schuldenregeln bis zum 31. Dezember 2022 ging abermals eine leidenschaftlich geführte Post-Covid-19-Reformdiskussion los. Zu den bisherigen Veränderungsnotwendigkeiten kommen nunmehr die geopolitischen Herausforderungen hinzu. Ist die Stabilität der Währungsunion in Gefahr?
Ein Design Thinking-Projekt mit 17 20–50-jährigen kirchenfernen Proband*innen untersuchte die Fragestellung aus einer klaren Bedürfnisorientierung dieser für die Zukunft der Kirche wichtigen Altersgruppe. Mit ihnen wurden konkrete Lösungsvorschläge erarbeitet. Konsens der Proband*innen war, dass Kirche viel Potential hat, das sie aktuell nicht ausschöpft. Um die Kirchenbindung zu stabilisieren bzw. perspektivisch zu erhöhen, müsste Kirche im Lebensraum ihrer Mitglieder sichtbarer werden, und das vor allem digital. Zudem müsste sie ihre Angebote für das Leben der Mitglieder als relevant darstellen und aktiv mit einem offenen Ohr auf die Gemeindeglieder zugehen, statt auf ihr Kommen zu warten
Die Macht von Topmanagerinnen und Topmanagern ist in Verruf geraten. Je mächtiger die CEOs sind, desto eher neigen sie dazu, ihren eigenen Interessen zu folgen, sich unethisch zu verhalten und sich selbst zu überschätzen – zulasten des Unternehmenserfolgs. So zumindest die verbreitete Annahme, die von zahlreichen empirischen Studien und vielen Beispielen in den Medien gestützt wird. Aber stimmt sie auch?
Ivana Vitanova untersucht in ihrer Studie, inwieweit die Macht von CEOs mit deren Selbstüberschätzung zusammenhängt und wie dies den Erfolg des Unternehmens beeinflusst. Sie zeichnet dabei ein anderes Bild: CEOs, die mehr Macht haben, neigen zwar tatsächlich zu einer höheren Selbstüberschätzung. Allerdings kann dies dazu führen, dass das Unternehmen überdurchschnittlich erfolgreich ist. Weil solche Führungskräfte stärker an sich glauben, wichtige Entscheidungen mutig treffen und andere besser motivieren können. Aber der Reihe nach: Wie sind die Zusammenhänge und was für Konsequenzen ergeben sich daraus?
Gamification erfährt seit Jahren zunehmende Aufmerksamkeit in Wissenschaft und Praxis. Eine 2019 veröffentliche Metaanalyse zur Gamification-Forschung zeigt, dass der Fokus bislang auf den Bereichen Bildung und Gesundheit lag. Mit verbreiteter Anwendung steigt allerdings der Bedarf, die Forschung auf weitere Felder auszuweiten. Dieser Beitrag ergründet die Potenziale von Gamification im B-to-B-Vertrieb. Eine Betrachtung an dieser Stelle eignet sich aus den folgenden Gründen: Gamification wird vor allem für diejenigen Felder als attraktiv bezeichnet, wo Aktivitäten komplex und vielfältig sind und Fortschritt nur schwer nachzuvollziehen ist. Darüber hinaus unterstützt Gamification in der Erzielung nachhaltiger Ergebnisse mit Kontinuität und langfristigem Engagement.
The implementation of human resource (HR) policies often proves troublesome due to the appearance, and stubborn persistence, of gaps in the process. Human resource management (HRM) scholars problematise these gaps and advocate tight implementation to reduce gaps and to ensure the desired impact of policies on organisational performance. Drawing on organisational institutionalism, we contend that gaps in implementing HR policies can actually be productive, as they secure organisational legitimacy, and thus enable organisations to operate viably within several institutional environments. We suggest that different approaches to implementation are needed, some of them premised on accepting sustained implementation gaps. We introduce minimum and moderate implementation approaches, rooted in the notion of decoupling, to complement approaches aimed at tight implementation. Our aim is to support the further development of research based on a richer interpretation of HRM implementation challenges and choices they present for HR managers.
Nachhaltigkeit, Digitalisierung und New Work – es gibt viele Anlässe für Organisationen, Neues zu erlernen. In der Forschung wird seit den 80er-Jahren dabei anerkannt, dass organisationales Lernen neben dem Aufbau neuen Wissens auch Verlernen bedeutet. Dabei geht es weniger darum, dass Kenntnisse schlicht überflüssig werden. Stellt eine Organisation beispielsweise auf Glasfasertechnologie um, so wird das Wissen, wie man Kupferkabel anschließt, nicht mehr benötigt und irgendwann verschwinden. Beim organisationalen Verlernen geht es eher um Glaubenssätze, Annahmen und Routinen, die das Erlernen neuen Wissens behindern. So kann die (veraltete) Annahme, Kupferkabel seien weiterhin eine brauchbare Technologie, Unternehmen daran hindern, die Glasfasertechnologie voranzutreiben und einzuführen.
Eine zukunftsfähige Ausrichtung der betrieblichen Abläufe nach den Prinzipien des nachhaltigen Wirtschaftens erhöht die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit, die Innovationskraft und die Glaubwürdigkeit des Unternehmens bei allen Interessengruppen. Zudem zeigt die Praxis, dass Unternehmen damit nicht nur ökologische und soziale Aspekte angehen können, sondern auch ökonomisch besser aufgestellt sind, zum Beispiel durch Einsparungen an Ressourcen, einer höheren Akzeptanz im Markt und in der Gesellschaft oder einer besseren Mitarbeitermotivation. In der VDI 4070 Blatt 1 wurde eine Handlungsanleitung gegeben und eine strukturierte Vorgehensweise beschrieben, um Betriebe systematisch an ein nachhaltiges Wirtschaften heranzuführen. In Ergänzung dazu werden in Blatt 2 beispielhafte Methoden sowie bewährte und innovative Instrumente vorgestellt und praktische Anwendungshilfen und Beispiele aufgezeigt. Die Richtlinie richtet sich an Behörden, Beratungsunternehmen, kleine und mittelständische Unternehmen.
Values Management System
(2022)
The ValuesManagementSystem (VWS) is a management standard to “provide a sustainable safeguard of a firm and its development, in all dimensions (legal, economic, ecological, social)” (VWSZfW, p. 4). It includes a framework for values-driven governance through self-commitment and self-binding mechanisms. Values promote a sense of identity and give organizations guidance in decision-making. This is especially important in decision-making processes where topics are not clearly ruled by laws and regulations.
VMSZfW must be embedded in the specific business strategy, structure, and culture of an organization. The following four steps describe the implementation of the ValuesManagementSystemZfW: (i) Codify core values of an organization, for instance, with a “mission, vision and values statement” or Code of Ethics, (ii) implement guidelines such as Code of Conduct and specific policies and procedures, (iii) systematize these by establishing management systems such as Compliance and CSR management systems, and (iv) finally organize and establish structures to ensure the strategic direction and operational implementation and review of these processes. The top management shows that values management is taken seriously by their self-commitment to the core values of the company.
The United Nations (UN) Global Compact is a call to companies to align their strategies and operations with ten universal principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment, and anti-corruption, and to take actions that advance societal goals (UN Global Compact 2017, p. 3). The UN Global Compacts’ vision is “to mobilize a global movement of sustainable companies and stakeholder to create the world we want” (UN Global Compact 2021a). It is a global network with local presence all around the world.
The Principles for Responsible Investments (PRI) is “the world’s leading proponent of responsible investment” (PRI 2021a). With the development of six Principles for Responsible Investment, the PRI supports its international network of investor signatories in incorporating the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into their investment and ownership decisions. The goal of PRI is to develop a more sustainable global financial system by encouraging “investors to use responsible investment to enhance returns and better manage risks” (PRI 2021a). This independent financial initiative is supported by the United Nations and linked to the United Nations Environmental Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI 2021) and the United Nations Global Compact (UN Global Compact 2021).
The food system represents a key industry for Europe and Germany in particular. However, it is also the single most significant contributor to climate and environmental change. A food system transformation is necessary to overcome the system’s major and constantly increasing challenges in the upcoming decades. One possible facilitator for this transformation are radical and disruptive innovations that start-ups develop. There are many challenges for start-ups in general and food start-ups in particular. Various support opportunities and resources are crucial to ensure the success of food start-ups. One aim of this study is to identify how the success of start-ups in the food system can be supported and further strengthened by actors in the innovation ecosystem in Germany. There is still room for improvement and collaboration toward a thriving innovation ecosystem. A successful innovation ecosystem is characterised by a well-organised, collaborative, and supportive environment with a vivid exchange between the members in the ecosystem. The interviewees confirmed this, and although the different actors are already cooperating, there is still room for improvement. The most common recommendation for improving cooperation is learning from other countries and bringing the best to Germany.
Industrial practice is characterized by random events, also referred to as internal and external turbulences, which disturb the target-oriented planning and execution of production and logistics processes. Methods of probabilistic forecasting, in contrast to single value predictions, allow an estimation of the probability of various future outcomes of a random variable in the form of a probability density function instead of predicting the probability of a specific single outcome. Probabilistic forecasting methods, which are embedded into the analytics process to gain insights for the future based on historical data, therefore offer great potential for incorporating uncertainty into planning and control in industrial environments. In order to familiarize students with these potentials, a training module on the application of probabilistic forecasting methods in production and intralogistics was developed in the learning factory 'Werk150' of the ESB Business School (Reutlingen University). The theoretical introduction to the topic of analytics, probabilistic forecasting methods and the transition to the application domain of intralogistics is done based on examples from other disciplines such as weather forecasting and energy consumption forecasting. In addition, data sets of the learning factory are used to familiarize the students with the steps of the analytics process in a practice-oriented manner. After this, the students are given the task of identifying the influencing factors and required information to capture intralogistics turbulences based on defined turbulence scenarios (e.g. failure of a logistical resource) in the learning factory. Within practical production scenario runs, the students apply probabilistic forecasting using and comparing different probabilistic forecasting methods. The graduate training module allows the students to experience the potentials of using probabilistic forecasting methods to improve production and intralogistics processes in context with turbulences and to build up corresponding professional and methodological competencies.
Towards a model for holistic mapping of supply chains by means of tracking and tracing technologies
(2022)
The usage of tracking and tracing technologies not only enables transparency and visibility of supply chains but also offers far-reaching advantages for companies, such as ensuring product quality or reducing supplier risks. Increasing the amount of shared information supports both internal and external planning processes as well as the stability and resilience of globally operating value chains. This paper aims to differentiate and define the functionalities of tracking and tracing technologies that are frequently used interchangeably in literature. Furthermore, this paper incorporates influencing factors impacting a sequencing of the connected world in Industry4.0 supply chain networks. This includes legal influences, the embedment of supply chain-related standards, and new possibilities of emerging technologies. Finally, the results are summarized in a model for the holistic mapping of supply chains by means of tracking and tracing technologies. The resulting technological solutions that can be derived from the model enable companies to address missing elements in order to enable the holistic mapping of supply chain events as well as the transparent representation of a digital shadow throughout the entire supply chain.
Advancements in Internet of Things (IoT), cloud and mobile computing have fostered the digital enrichment—or “digitization”—of physical products, which are gaining increasing relevance in practice. According to recent studies, global IoT spending will exceed USD 1 Trillion by 2021 and there will be over 25 billion IoT connections (KPMG, 2018). Porter and Heppelmann (2014) state that IT is “revolutionizing products [as …] IT is becoming an integral part of the product itself.” Senior business executives like GE’s former CEO Jeff Immelt (2015) are even proposing that “every industrial company in the coming age is also going to become a software and analytics company.” This reflects the increasing relevance of IT components’ (i.e., software, data analytics, cloud computing) integration into previously purely physical products. We call IT-enriched physical products, “digitized” products to differentiate them from purely intangible “digital” products, such as digital music, e-books, and software. Examples of digitized products include the Philips Hue smartphone-controllable lightbulb, Audi Connect internet-connected cars, or Rolls-Royce’s sensor-enabled pay per use jet engines.
Digitized products provide their producers with a wide range of opportunities to offer new functionality and product capabilities (e.g., autonomy) that traditional, physical products do not exhibit (Porter and Heppelmann, 2014). In addition, the digitization of products allows producers to continuously repurpose their offerings, by extending and/or changing the product functionality and, thus, enabling new value creation opportunities. Based on their re-programmability and connectivity, digitized products “remain essentially incomplete […] throughout their lifetime as users continue to add and delete […] and change […] functional capabilities” (Yoo, 2013). For instance, the Philips Hue connected lightbulb enables remote control of basic functions (e.g., switching on and off the light) as well as setting more advanced light scenes for day-to-day tasks (e.g., relax, read) via Amazon’s Alexa artificial intelligence assistant (Signify, 2019), offerings that were not intended use cases when Signify (previously known as Philips Lighting) created Hue in 2012. Thus, digitized products present limitless potentials for new functionality and unforeseen use cases, which provides them with a huge innovation capacity.
Despite the limitless potentials offered by digitized products, there has been a slow uptake of digitized products by businesses so far (Jernigan et al., 2016; Mocker et al., 2019). According to a 2016 MIT Sloan Management Review report (Jernigan et al., 2016) only 24% of the investigated firms were actively using IoT technologies – a key technology for digitized products. In a more recent research study Mocker et al. (2019) found that the median revenue share from digital offerings (i.e., solutions based on IT enriched products) in large companies only accounted for 5% of the total revenue of the investigated companies.
The slow uptake of digitized products might be explained by the challenges that firms face regarding the changing nature of digitized products. Pervasive digital technologies (such as IoT) change the nature of products by adding new functionality that was previously not part of the value proposition of the products/services (e.g., a pair of shoes embedded with sensors and connectivity allows joggers to have access to data regarding their run distance, speed, etc.) (Yoo et al., 2012). The addition of new functionality and use cases of digitized products makes it harder for producers to design and develop relevant products (Hui 2014). As described in the paper ‘Do Your Customers Actually Want a “Smart” Version of Your Product?’, “just because [firms] can make something with IoT technology doesn’t mean people will want it.” (Smith, 2017).
The shift in digitized products’ nature poses new challenges for producers along the entire product development process (Porter and Heppelmann, 2015; Yoo et al., 2012) and create a paradox in product digitization, described by Yoo et al. (2012) as the paradox of pace: while technology accelerates the rate of innovation, companies need to spend more time to digitize their products, extending time to market. The production of these digitized products also becomes more challenging, e.g., as companies need to deal with different clock-speeds of software and hardware development (Porter and Heppelman, 2015). The above-mentioned challenges suggest that producers need to better understand how they can generate value from their digitized products’ generative potentials.
The body of literature on digitized products has been growing in recent years. For instance, Herterich et al. (2016) investigate how digitized product affordances (i.e., potentials) enable industrial service innovation; Nicolescu et al. (2018) explore the emerging meanings of value associated with IoT; and Benbunan-Fich (2019) studies the impact of basic wearable sensors on the quality of the user experience. However, it remains unclear what it takes for firms to generate value with their digitized product potentials. This dissertation investigates this research gap.
To generate greater value faster from digital innovation, many companies are increasing how much they learn from their own innovation efforts. However, in many companies, these changes are limited to one stakeholder group: innovation teams. Two other stakeholder groups, senior executives and experts from corporate functions, also need to learn from digital innovation initiatives. We have defined three learning imperatives that address a company’s needs to learn continually about building (1) a successful innovation, (2) a portfolio of initiatives that realizes strategic objectives faster, and (3) shared resources that propel multiple initiatives. All three imperatives involve collecting data regularly from digital innovation initiatives. In this research briefing we outline the three learning imperatives and provide examples of how companies are pursuing them to achieve strategic objectives more effectively and efficiently.
The time has come : application of artificial intelligence in small- and medium-sized enterprises
(2022)
Artificial intelligence (AI) is not yet widely used in small- and medium-sized industrial enterprises (SME). The reasons for this are manifold and range from not understanding use cases, not enough trained employees, to too little data. This article presents a successful design-oriented case study at a medium-sized company, where the described reasons are present. In this study, future demand forecasts are generated based on historical demand data for products at a material number level using a gradient boosting machine (GBM). An improvement of 15% on the status quo (i.e. based on the root mean squared error) could be achieved with rather simple techniques. Hence, the motivation, the method, and the first results are presented. Concluding challenges, from which practical users should derive learning experiences and impulses for their own projects, are addressed.
Purpose
This field study aims to investigate the interactive relationships of millennial employee’s gender, supervisor’s gender and country culture on the conflict-management strategies (CMS) in ten countries (USA, China, Turkey, Germany, Bangladesh, Portugal, Pakistan, Italy, Thailand and Hong Kong).
Design/methodology/approach
This exploratory study extends past research by examining the interactive effects of gender × supervisor’s gender × country on the CMS within a single generation of workers, millennials. The Rahim Organizational Conflict Inventory–II, Form A was used to assess the use of the five CMS (integrating, obliging, dominating, avoiding and compromising). Data analysis found CMS used in the workplace are associated with the interaction of worker and supervisor genders and the national context of their work.
Findings
Data analysis (N = 2,801) was performed using the multivariate analysis of covariance with work experience as a covariate. The analysis provided support for the three-way interaction. This interaction suggests how one uses the CMS depends on self-gender, supervisor’s gender and the country where the parties live. Also, the covariate – work experience – was significantly associated with CMS.
Research limitations/implications
One of the limitations of this study is that the authors collected data from a collegiate sample of employed management students in ten countries. There are significant implications for leading global teams and training programs for mid-level millennials.
Practical implications
There are various conflict situations where one conflict strategy may be more appropriate than others. Organizations may have to change their policies for recruiting employees who are more effective in conflict management.
Social implications
Conflict management is not only important for managers but it is also important for all human beings. Individuals handle conflict every day and it would be really good if they could handle it effectively and improve their gains.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no study has tested a three-way interaction of variables on CMS. This study has a wealth of information on CMS for global managers.
Compared to the automotive sector, where automation is the rule, in many other less standardized sectors automation is still the exception. This could soon hurt the productivity of industrialized countries, where the unemployment is low and the population is aging. Phenomena like the recent downfall in productivity, due to lockdowns and social distancing for prevention of health hazards during the COVID19 pandemic, only add to the problem. For these reasons, the relevance, motivation and intention for more automation in less standardized sectors has probably never been higher. However, available statistics say that providers and users of technologies struggle to bring more automation into action in automation-unfriendly sectors. In this paper, we present a decision support method for investment in automation that tackles the problem: the STIC analysis. The method takes a holistic and quantitative approach tying together technological, context-related and economic input parameters and synthetizing them in a final economic indicator. Thanks to the modelling of such parameters, it is possible to gain sensibility on the technological and/or process adjustments that would have the highest impact on the efficiency of the automation, thereby delivering value for both technology users and technology providers.
Gender pay gaps are commonly studied in populations with already completed educational careers. We focus on an earlier stage by investigating the gender pay gap among university students working alongside their studies. With data from five cohorts of a large-scale student survey from Germany, we use regression and wage decomposition techniques to describe gender pay gaps and potential explanations. We find that female students earn about 6% less on average than male students, which reduces to 4.1% when accounting for a rich set of explanatory variables. The largest explanatory factor is the type of jobs male and female students pursue.
Since project managers still face problems in managing interorganizational R&D projects, it is a promising approach to manage these projects project-culturally-aware. However, an important prerequisite for a project-culture-aware management is that the involved individual organizations pursue a collaborative strategy. Therefore, our article provides a conceptual approach including a new tool, the Collaborative Iron Triangle, which supports both project sponsors and managers in different phases of the collaboration process to pursue a collaborative strategy in interorganizational R&D projects.
Gewinn, Profitabilität und Wachstum eines Unternehmens sind untrennbar mit dem Arbeitseinsatz und der Mitarbeiterperformance verbunden (Birri, 2014; Bligh et al., 2006). Arbeitseinsatz und Performance wiederum erwachsen maßgeblich aus den grundlegenden intrinsischen und extrinsischen Motivationstreibern. Also müssen Unternehmen zur Sicherung ihres Erfolgs mit geeigneten Werkzeugen gezielt auf diese Treiber einwirken. Ein zentrales Werkzeug hierfür sind die Vergütungssysteme der Unternehmen.
This article explores the question of how sustainability and labour law are interrelated. The modern world of work is characterised by the growing social and environmental responsibility of companies. Especially in the post-COVID era, sustainability also plays an increasingly important role in the corporate context, which is also noticeable in the so-called ‘war for talent’. Achieving personal career goals is no longer enough for employees today. Corporate values and in particular the so-called ESG criteria (Environment, Social, Governance) are thus also becoming increasingly important in the employment relationship and in corporate reporting requirements. In terms of social sustainability, labour law instruments can, for example, promote the creation of a discrimination-free working environment, the introduction of flexible working time models or the protection of whistleblowers. From an ecological perspective, labour regulations are also suitable for implementing ‘green mobility’ and other measures to reduce companies’ ecological footprints. Working from home, which experienced a huge boom during the COVID-19 pandemic, is also sustainable, especially from an ecological point of view. Appropriate consideration of these sustainable work tools in future corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies not only creates a competitive advantage but can also be beneficial in recruitment.
Von den Covid-19-Restriktionen wurden im Automobilsektor die Zulieferer wesentlich stärker getroffen als die Fahrzeughersteller. Vor allem die Entwicklung des Working Capitals im ersten Pandemie-Jahr erwies sich als kritisch. Der Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über mögliche Lösungen für eine allseits vorteilhaftere, stabile Supply-Chain-Finanzierung in künftigen Krisen.
Up to now biorefinery concepts can hardly compete with the conventional production of fossil-based chemicals. On one hand, conventional chemical production has been optimised over many decades in terms of energy, yield and costs. Biorefineries, on the other hand, do not have the benefit of long-term experience and therefore have a huge potential for optimisation. This study deals with the economic evaluation of a newly developed biorefinery concept based on superheated steam (SHS) torrefaction of biomass residues with recovery of valuable platform chemicals. Two variants of the biorefinery were economically investigated. One variant supplies various platform chemicals and torrefied biomass. The second variant supplies thermal energy for external consumers in addition to platform chemicals. The results show that both variants can be operated profitably if the focus of the platform chemicals produced is on high quality and thus on the higher-priced segment. The economic analysis gives clear indications of the most important financial influencing parameters. The economic impact of integration into existing industrial structures is positive. With the analysis, a viable business model can be developed. Based on the results of the present study, an open-innovation platform is recommended for the further development and commercialisation of the novel biorefinery.
Within the last decade, research on torrefaction has gained increasing attention due to its ability to improve the physical properties and chemical composition of biomass residues for further energetic utilisation. While most of the research works focused on improving the energy density of the solid fraction to offer an ecological alternative to coal for energy applications, little attention was paid to the valorisation of the condensable gases as platform chemicals and its ecological relevance when compared to conventional production processes. Therefore, the present study focuses on the ecological evaluation of an innovative biorefinery concept that includes superheated steam drying and the torrefaction of biomass residues at ambient pressure, the recovery of volatiles and the valorisation/separation of several valuable platform chemicals. For a reference case and an alternative system design scenario, the ecological footprint was assessed, considering the use of different biomass residues. The results show that the newly developed process can compete with established bio-based and conventional production processes for furfural, 5-HMF and acetic acid in terms of the assessed environmental performance indicators. The requirements for further research on the synthesis of other promising platform chemicals and the necessary economic evaluation of the process were elaborated.
Personality matters! So lässt sich die Forschung zu Persönlichkeit und Berufserfolg des letzten Jahrhunderts zusammenfassen. Beruflicher Erfolg hängt nicht nur von den kognitiven Fähigkeiten ab, wie beispielsweise der allgemeinen Intelligenz, sondern auch von der Persönlichkeit. Das werden Führungskräfte sicher bestätigen können. Was aber macht eine Persönlichkeit aus, die beruflich sehr leistungsfähig ist? Wie wirken sich verschiedene Persönlichkeitsmerkmale darauf aus, wie gut man mit beruflichen Anforderungen zurechtkommt? Und welche Persönlichkeitsprofile eignen sich für welche Tätigkeitsfelder?
Mit diesen Fragen beschäftigt sich die Organisations- und Arbeitspsychologie seit vielen Jahren. Gewissenhaftigkeit (Conscientiousness) hat sie als einen besonders wichtigen Faktor für die berufliche Leistungsfähigkeit identifiziert. In einer Metastudie fassen Michael Wilmot und Deniz Ones die Erkenntnisse zur Gewissenhaftigkeit aus 100 Jahren Forschung zusammen – und erfassen dabei 2.500 primäre Studien mit über 1,1 Millionen befragten Personen.
Social commerce
(2022)
The concept of “social commerce” refers to a synthesis of e-commerce and social media. Despite the rapid growth in users of and revenues from social commerce, so far little in-depth research has been conducted in Germany on this topic. The goal here, therefore, is to conduct schematic research of the literature and an online survey of German consumers to analyze the potential opportunities for companies.
Das regelmäßige Schmieren von Maschinen verhindert Schäden, reduziert Ausfallzeiten und vermeidet Reparaturkosten. Schmiervorgänge werden jedoch oft unzureichend dokumentiert. Für die Überwachung manueller Schmierprozesse an Maschinen wird daher eine Smart-Maintenance-Lösung aufgebaut. Zusätzlich wird eine intelligente Fettpresse als cyber-physisches System entwickelt. Dadurch lassen sich Schmiervorgänge transparent dokumentieren und Fehlschmierungen verhindern.
Artificial intelligence is a field of research that is seen as a means of realization regarding digitalization and industry 4.0. It is considered as the critical technology needed to drive the future evolution of manufacturing systems. At the same time, autonomous guided vehicles (AGV) developed as an essential part due to the flexibility they contribute to the whole manufacturing process within manufacturing systems. However, there are still open challenges in the intelligent control of these vehicles on the factory floor. Especially when considering dynamic environments where resources should be controlled in such a way, that they can be adjusted to turbulences efficiently. Therefore, this paper aimed to develop a conceptual framework for addressing a catalog of criteria that considers several machine learning algorithms to find the optimal algorithm for the intelligent control of AGVs. By applying the developed framework, an algorithm is automatically selected that is most suitable for the current operation of the AGV in order to enable efficient control within the factory environment. In future work, this decision-making framework can be transferred to even more scenarios with multiple AGV systems, including internal communication along with AGV fleets. With this study, the automatic selection of the optimal machine learning algorithm for the AGV improves the performance in such a way, that computational power is distributed within a hybrid system linking the AGV and cloud storage in an efficient manner.
This research briefing describes the organizational capability of scaling at scale, which we define as enabling multiple digital innovation initiatives to realize bottom-line value from their innovation by leveraging shared resources. We illustrate this concept with a case study from global multi-energy company Repsol, which implemented scaling at scale to cultivate a portfolio of more than 450 initiatives and helped over seventy percent of initiatives to reach the scale-up stage. As a result, over five years Repsol realized €800 million of bottom-line value from digital innovations.
Praktische Schwierigkeiten bei der Gestaltung von Einkaufs-bedingungen bestehen oft, weil Käufer unterschiedliche Interessen haben: Bei „just-in-time“-Verträgen wollen Käufer keine Zeit verlieren, um die Ware nach Lieferung zu untersuchen. Sie wollen vielmehr die Ware sofort in den Produktionsprozess geben. Anders ist das bei technisch besonders komplexen Waren. Hier fürchten Käufer, bereits vor Abschluss der Untersuchung mögliche Sachmängel bei Gefahrübergang dem Verkäufer beweisen zu müssen. Gelten BGB/HGB, werden Einkaufsbedingungen nur bedingt diesen Interessen gerecht. Abbedingung der Unter-suchungs- und Rügeobliegenheit und Änderungen der Beweislastverteilung zum Vorteil des Käufers sind dann nicht möglich. Helfen kann hier aber das UN-Kaufrecht: Hier haben Käufergrößere Freiräume, wenn sie Einkaufsbedingungen gestalten.
Die Liebherr Hydraulikbagger GmbH setzt sich aktiv mit der Implementierung von Risikomanagementsystemen auseinander und treibt so das risikoorientierte Prozessmanagement weiter voran. Dabei gilt es vor allem, Prozesse auf Risiko-Anfälligkeiten und ihre Relevanz für den Unternehmenserfolg zu analysieren.
Recently, blockchain-based tokens have earned an important role in fields such as the art market or online gaming. First approaches exist, which adopt the potentials of blockchain tokens in supply chain management to increase transparency, visibility, automation, and disintermediation of supply chains. In context, the tokenization of assets in supply chains refers to the practice of creating virtual representations of physical assets on the blockchain. Solutions in supply chain management based on the tokenization of assets vary in terms of application objectives, token types, asset characteristics, as well as the complexities of supply chain events to be mapped on the blockchain. Currently, however, no review exists that summarizes the characteristics of blockchain-based tokens and their scope of applications. This paper provides a clear terminological distinction of existing blockchain token types and therefore distinguishes between fungible tokens, non-fungible tokens, smart non-fungible tokens, and dynamic smart non-fungible tokens. Subsequently, the token types are classified regarding their traceability, modifiability, and authorization to evaluate suitability for mapping assets in supply chains. Given the potential of blockchain in supply chain management, the results of the review serve as a foundation for a practical guide supporting the selection process of suitable token types for industrial applications.
The proper selection of a demand forecasting method is directly linked to the success of supply chain management (SCM). However, today’s manufacturing companies are confronted with uncertain and dynamic markets. Consequently, classical statistical methods are not always appropriate for accurate and reliable forecasting. Algorithms of Artificial intelligence (AI) are currently used to improve statistical methods. Existing literature only gives a very general overview of the AI methods used in combination with demand forecasting. This paper provides an analysis of the AI methods published in the last five years (2017-2021). Furthermore, a classification is presented by clustering the AI methods in order to define the trend of the methods applied. Finally, a classification of the different AI methods according to the dimensionality of data, volume of data, and time horizon of the forecast is presented. The goal is to support the selection of the appropriate AI method to optimize demand forecasting.
Purpose
Returnable transport packaging (RTP) solutions have found increasing attention in the recent past. It is not clear, however, under what conditions an RTP system improves a company's financial performance. This paper investigates the operational factors that influence the financial attractiveness of an RTP solution in a manufacturing environment and discusses how these factors are related to each other.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents the results of five empirical RTP use cases and compares the case study findings with the results found in literature in order to develop a taxonomy of RTP cost effects. Drawing on the concept of value-based management (VBM), the operational drivers of these RTP cost effects are systematized and categorized in a value driver model that relates RTP cost effects to overall economic value added (EVA).
Findings
Based on the use case findings, additional cost factors are identified that have not been previously discussed in literature. The amended taxonomy of influence factors is further operationalized in a value driver model.
Originality/value
The present paper is the first one providing a taxonomy of RTP cost effects and putting these effects in a conceptual framework that can be used for decision-making and performance benchmarking.
Global, competitive markets which are characterised by mass customisation and rapidly changing customer requirements force major changes in production styles and the configuration of manufacturing systems. As a result, factories may need to be regularly adapted and optimised to meet short-term requirements. One way to optimise the production process is the adaptation of the plant layout to the current or expected order situation. To determine whether a layout change is reasonable, a model of the current layout is needed. It is used to perform simulations and in the case of a layout change it serves as a basis for the reconfiguration process. To aid the selection of possible measurement systems, a requirements analysis was done to identify the important parameters for the creation of a digital shadow of a plant layout. Based on these parameters, a method is proposed for defining limit values and specifying exclusion criteria. The paper thus contributes to the development and application of systems that enable an automatic synchronisation of the real layout with the digital layout.
Being exposed to compulsory religious education in school can have long-run consequences for students’ lives. At different points in time since the 1970s, German states terminated compulsory religious education in public schools and replaced it by a choice between ethics classes and religious education. This article shows that the reform not only led to reduced religiosity in students’ later life, but also eroded traditional attitudes towards gender roles and increased labor-market participation and earnings.
The general conclusion of climate change studies is the necessity of eliminating net CO2 emissions in general and from the electric power systems in particular by 2050. The share of renewable energy is increasing worldwide, but due to the intermittent nature of wind and solar power, a lack of system flexibility is already hampering the further integration of renewable energy in some countries. In this study, we analyze if and how combinations of carbon pricing and power-to-gas (PtG) generation in the form of green power-to-hydrogen followed by methanation (which we refer to as PtG throughout) using captured CO2 emissions can provide transitions to deep decarbonization of energy systems. To this end, we focus on the economics of deep decarbonization of the European electricity system with the help of an energy system model. In different scenario analyses, we find that a CO2 price of 160 €/t (by 2050) is on its own not sufficient to decarbonize the electricity sector, but that a CO2 price path of 125 (by 2040) up to 160 €/t (by 2050), combined with PtG technologies, can lead to an economically feasible decarbonization of the European electricity system by 2050. These results are robust to higher than anticipated PtG costs.
Afrika ist ein Kontinent der Chancen, der in der künftigen weltwirtschaftlichen Arbeitsteilung eine deutlich größere Rolle spielen dürfte als bisher. Dennoch tut sich die deutsche Wirtschaft bislang schwer. Die digitale Transformation verändert die Investitions- und Innovationsbedingungen in Afrika. Daraus ergeben sich auch für deutsche Unternehmen Chancen auf dem afrikanischen Kontinent. Die Politik sollte Rahmenbedingungen für ein stärkeres privatwirtschaftliches Engagement deutscher und europäischer Unternehmen in Afrika schaffen.
Der vorliegende Beitrag schlägt auf Basis der Erfahrungen in der Augenheilkunde mit der SARS-CoV-2-Pandemie in den Jahren 2020 und 2021 einen Leitfaden für den Umgang mit (zukünftigen) Pandemien vor.
Die Kernpunkte:
• Das weltweite Epidemie-Geschehen sollte stets beobachtet werden.
• Deutet sich eine Pandemie an, sollte im ersten Schritt ein Krisenstab eingerichtet werden, der die Pandemielage bewertet und Maßnahmen koordinieren kann.
• Die zu ergreifenden Maßnahmen einer augenheilkundlichen Einrichtung betreffen vor allem die Sicherstellung der Versorgungssituation sowie organisatorische und wirtschaftliche Bereiche, um eine tragfähige Fortführung des Betriebs zu ermöglichen.
Neuromarketing is already relatively advanced when it comes to researching the principle effect of marketing in the brain. What is often still missing, however, is the transfer of these findings into practice. The reason for this is that research has so far primarily pursued the question of „why?“. For practice, however, the question of „how?“ is much more relevant. This article attempts to answer the latter question, i.e. to bridge the gap between research and practice in the field of retail marketing. Is there a buy button in the consumer´s brain? And if so, how can it be activated? Neuromarketing is a young discipline at the interface of cognitive science, neuroscience and market research. Due to technological progress, neuromarketing can provide important insights for retail, especially insights to explain consumer behaviour. By looking into the customer’s brain, retail companies can address their customers in a more targeted manner and thus gain an advantage over competitors. Especially the influence of emotions and the unconscious play a major role in the purchase decision of consumers. Using the limbic map, customers can be clustered into types based on the characteristics of their emotional systems, for which specific marketing measures can be derived. Best-practice examples from the retail sector show that a targeted approach to specific shopping types in retail can lead to success.
Einige Ideen, Erfahrungen und Realitäten für die Studierenden und Bürger in Reutlingen. Zusammengestellt von 50 Studierenden 2020/21 und aus Beiträgen von 40 Institutionen und Unternehmen in und um Reutlingen.
Ein Versuch, sehr konkret am Tatsächlichen zu erklären, was zu mehr Nachhaltigkeit führt, in Reutlingen. Dabei bleibt nicht aus, auch auf Schwachstellen hinzuweisen.
Wenn Studierende und Bürger in den nächsten Jahren bewusst zu mehr Nachhaltigkeit bereit sind, so sind sie mit den Ideen und Realitäten in diesem Projekt auf einem guten Weg.
Moral change and the purchase-sales-relationship: critical analysis of German and Swiss companies
(2022)
This study examines the awareness and causes of moral change from the economic perspective in Germany and Switzerland. Based on an analysis of value research to date and interviews with experts in B2B sales, the manifestations of moral change are critically examined and recommendations for action are derived on an employee-specific and company-wide level.
This article aims to give an overview of what German business needs in current times. By illustrating the Made in Germany label as a perceived image in sales, specific attributes are being evaluated to explain better the challenges German businesses are currently facing: Digitization, Education, Environment, and Quality & China.