Patrick Brecht, Research Associate, University of Applied Sciences Karlsruhe, Germany. Title: Platform Business Design – An Innovation Framework to Develop Platform Business Models based on the Google Sprint Method.
The four most valuable companies of 2020 all have a Platform Business Model (Interbrand 2020). This indicates the growing importance of Platform Business Models over the last years. At the same time, there are frameworks such as the Platform Design Toolkit 2.2 (Boundaryless S.r.l. 2019) and Design Sprints (Knapp et al. 2016) that tackle existing issues that occur in the process of Platform Business Model Design. But no standardized tools exist. To help companies design and grow complex platforms in a fast and efficient way, a tool is needed which helps to answer vital questions regarding a platform by creating and testing a prototype within a single week (Knapp et al. 2016). This research aims at filling the void in knowledge and available tools and providing a practical tool for start-ups and established companies. To create this tool, the Google Sprint has been altered in a way that allows the sprinters to understand the platform’s ecosystem before working on solutions. This understanding of the ecosystem has high significance for the success of a platform because of the relevance of network effects (Parker et al. 2016). To achieve this understanding of the ecosystem within the whole team, this tool makes use of the canvases included in the Platform Design Toolkit 2.2 released by Boundaryless S.r.l. (2019). The Platform Design Toolkit 2.2 has been chosen because it provides canvases that provide a guideline to understanding the ecosystem. The reviewed tools were synthesized to form a new framework called Platform Design Sprint. Based on the Google Sprint, the created framework is a five-day workshop. The Innovation Framework for Platform Business Models has been created to provide a toolkit for start-ups or established companies to quickly and profoundly understand core roles, core relationships, interactions, and the whole value generation of the ecosystem. To explore its practical applicability, the created tool was verified through five interviews with experts in the field of design thinking or platform business model design. Feedback provided by the experts that proved valuable to the process that was integrated, leading to a new iteration of the Innovation Framework. The second iteration of the Platform Design Sprint is leaner and more orderly due to the feedback provided by the experts. Furthermore, the expert helped with the question of how to initiate the Platform Design Sprint in a company or start-up. This new iteration is what will be described in the research paper. The Platform Design Sprint provides guidance to any team looking to implement a platform into a given ecosystem. Future research should be set out to test the framework empirically with higher fidelity by applying it in practice.
Manuel Niever, Research Associate, University of Applied Sciences Karlsruhe, Germany. Title: Innovation Driven by Cooperation of Startups and SME.
The digitization and innovation capabil it i es of SMEs could receive a boost from collaborations with start ups, which would once again drive the growth potential of the economy. The background to the se considerations is that start ups can provide important advantages for SMEs: Innovative and digitized business models and processes. At the same time, start ups can benefit by expanding their marketing and sales targets (Engels and Roehl , Cooperation between start ups and SMEs has increased in recent years. However, according to studies by Becker et al. 2018, 38% of startups are somewhat dissatisfied and another 8% are very dissatisfied with the cooperation. This suggests that ther e is significant potential for improvement in this area. The main difficulties are a lack of commitment on the part of the cooperation partner , conflicts of interest between the parties, and the one sided exploitation of cooperation advantages (Becker et a l. 2018). In various studies, the collaborations are divided into different phases, such as Learn.Match.Partner or initiation and implementation phase. In some cases, phase specific recommendations are made. In the studies to date, no particular point in time is considered critical, and therefore no weighting of the individual success factors or recommendations for action is given ( Wrobel et al., 2017; Becker et al., 2018). A promising option for initiating and supporting cooperations are intermediari es . Recommendations for action are formulated for startups and SMEs, but intermediaries themselves are not the focus of surveys or analyses (Wrobel et al., 2017). For instance, n o work was found that provides an overview of the support available in Germany . The aim of our research is to find out how collaborations can be improved to exploit the full innovation potential of SME´s a nd start ups by joint cooperation. The focus is on assistance and support options for achieving the cooperation goals and there fore answers the question on how the cooperation between start ups and companies can be supported. Within an empirical research approach the success factors of a cooperation as well as the core activities of a mediator will be analyzed and a solution will
Stefanie Baumgartner, MSc IM Graduate, University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland FHNW, School of Business, Switzerland. Title: Strategic Foresight and Innovation Management: Insights from International Swiss Banks.
International Swiss banks are challenged more than ever: the fast-pacing global environment forces them to develop new ideas and innovative products, services and processes in order to sustain in the long-term. This research project investigated how the incorporation of strategic foresight in international Swiss banks is executed to enhance the innovation activity of the bank. The first step was a detailed literature review of fifty academic papers which led to a first version of a framework for enhanced innovation activity through collaborative foresight. The framework was defined based on the analysis of thirty-four dimensions identified in a strategic foresight process. Ten dimensions were identified as decisive for the process and were, therefore, the key dimensions for the framework development. In a second step, the framework was validated and enriched in a business context through twelve semi-structured interviews with managers of three international Swiss banks. The findings elaborated that most of the organisations do not have a clearly structured strategic foresight process. Most of the organisations do however have affiliated parts of the process, such as innovation departments or transformation divisions. Research allowed the conceptualisation of the framework derived from the literature. It was identified that the most important dimension in the process is the vision. Additionally, soft factors such as the human element, employee participation and the organisational culture play decisive roles in the process. Innovation activity in banks can be enhanced by focusing on the right parameters throughout the organisation. The strategic foresight process enables practitioners of international Swiss banks in collecting the right information about future trends and customer needs in an organisational environment. Research confirmed that the framework should enable banks to focus on determining opportunities in order to remain competitive in the long-term.
Zafer Kizilkaya, Postdoctoral Researcher, Institute for European Studies, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. Mohammad Salman, Postdoctoral Researcher, Institute for European Studies, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. Title: Turkey as a ‘subject’ in regional politics and its implications for the European Union.
In the last couple of years, Turkey has adopted a very assertive foreign policy. It has conducted external military operations, used proxy militias in different battlegrounds, augmented its efforts on strengthening the national defence industry and acted unilaterally to realize political or security interests. This paper argues that more than anything else, it has been Turkey’s desire to become a “subject” in regional politics that shaped its recent foreign policy. The paper first explains what it means to be a “subject”, explores how it relates to the concept of “actorness” in international relations and details the five major components of emerging as a “subject”. It then sheds light on the implications of Turkey’s assertive policies on the EU-Turkey relations in general and on the migration deal in particular. Finally, the paper concludes by highlighting the opportunities and challenges for EU-Turkey cooperation in regional politics.
13:00-14:00 Lunch
14:00-14:30
Jiri Suchy, Assistant Professor, Charles University, Czech Republic. Title: Abuse of Doping Under the Shadow of Altitude Training.
Presentation will analyse possible relationships between doping and training at high altitudes in the latest Olympic cycles. During the monitored period, altitude has gradually become an integral component of sports training, particularly for elite athletes, with the benefit perceived in preparing for competitions at both high and low altitudes. During preparations for the OGs Barcelona and Atlanta the use of altitude in elite sport was not very common. Following the introduction of antidoping tests, including erythropoetin, leading up to the Sydney games. The frequency of altitude exposure increased significantly and many of the endurance (primarily) athletes moved to higher altitudes. In connection with this, coaches and training experts further specialised the training variant live-high, train-high (including some intensive training units at sea level – artificial or actual). After WADA in 2009 introduced biological passports there have been certain doubts as to whether declared altitude training is not partially used to cover up the illegal methods of achieving blood count changes. Following the increase of anti-doping tests and demands on athlete performance, special focus on hypoxic preparation can be expected by elite athletes.
14:30-15:00
Maria Konstantaki, Head, Sport, Exercise, & Kinesiology Unit, ATINER & Research Fellow, UK. Title: The Effects of a Pilates Intervention on Arterial Stiffness and Trunk Flexibility.
15:00-15:30 Ilan Riss, Director of Sector (Retired), Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics Israel. Title: Wave Structure of Migration Systems Immigration to Israel.
Background Migration streams develop over time in a wave-like manner, and the expression “waves of migration” is frequently used in research. However, the wave nature of migrations is still not fully understood. Migration waves have various shapes, and migration streams differ according to the different types of waves they contain, and migration systems are comprised of different types of migration streams. Variations in sets of waves and streams are still not considered as characteristics of migration systems. Objective This paper examines the wave structure of a migration system using Israeli data. Method This paper examined the wave features of the Israeli migration systems by detecting types of migration waves and describing the distribution of the types of migration waves. To this end, characteristic numbers for migration waves describing their shapes were defined and computed. Migration streams in the immigration to Israel were then classified by types according to their length, skewness, and steepness. Finally, a cluster analysis was applied to group similar waves and streams in sets. Results Several clusters of migration waves and migration streams were identified according to their shapes. Some migration determinants of representative waves were considered in order to begin explaining their various shapes. Contribution The types of waves and their different incidences in migration systems can indicate the character of the sets of migration determinants acting in the migration systems. The clustering of migration systems with different stream types, such as vibrating systems (many very short waves in the streams), quiet systems (smooth symmetric waves of moderate lengths), and troubled systems (many skewed waves of various lengths), can set the direction for the classification of migration systems. As determining the structure of the set of migration waves is easier than uncovering migration determinants, this method can boost the study of migrations by projecting knowledge from already studied systems to not-yet-studied ones by identifying the shapes of waves and streams comprising such systems.
15:30-16:00
Marija Bulatovic, President, SALA, Serbia. Vera Petrovic, Head, Department for Development of the Library Systems, University Library “Svetozar Markovic” Serbia. Title: Serbia Academic Library Association.
Faculty, academic, and special libraries, together with the University libraries form one specifically regulated system, with special requirements and needs in scientific and educational terms. In our country, as well as in the world, professional associations are the first level of taking initiative and solving the status and professional dilemmas and problems. Historically, from the first initiatives in 1972 until 1992, the work of professional librarians in higher education and research libraries took place on the territory of Belgrade. Academic Library Association in Belgrade has grown in Serbia Academic Library Association in 1992. In 1992 Serbia Academic Library Association was established at the University Library “Svetozar Marković”.
16:00-16:30
Maria de Fatima Ebole Santana, Researcher, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation/ Fiocruz, Brazil. Title: Knowledge Management and Scientific Foresight for Health Surveillance: Emphasis on Arboviruses Zika.
16.30-17:00 Marcio Sacramento de Oliviera, Researcher, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation/ Fiocruz, Brazil. Title: Scientific and Technological Global Contributions to the Yellow Fever.
Yellow fever (YF) is endemic in several countries of South and Central America, Caribbean islands and Africa. With the reinfestation of large urban centers in the American tropics by Aedes aegypti, most urban dwellers have become vulnerable due to low vaccination coverage. Since 2016, Latin America has been at greater risk of urban epidemics than at any time in the past 50 years. The present study aimed to evaluate how the new S&T knowledge produced about YF can contribute to innovations aiming to address global health challenges. Scientometric and network analysis methods were used to assess the World scientific contribution and potential technological development related to YF on the 2010 until 2019. YF related publications were retrieved from the Web of Science database. Patent registries were retrieved using Orbit Intelligence. Records from each database were individually downloaded, integrated, cleaned, standardized and analyzed. We retrieved 2,508 YF´s related publications, revealing sharp increase from the last four years, presenting significant increase in scientific production over 38.4%. Five countries accounted for almost 88% of all publications. USA and Brazil were among the top five most central countries in the global network research. There are more than 1,500 institutions, showing high dispersion among institutions worldwide. A total of 753 patent families alive backed up by experimental evidence were retrieved. It was observed that 40.16% of all patent registrations originated from assignees based in the USA, China and Canada, considering top10 countries. The largest contribution in innovation was on the antivirals of the YF (A61P-31/12). This analysis offered an overview about YF´s innovation and research and showed that: Brazil and USA have expressively contributed to research; Brazil was the only Latin American Country filing patents in the group of top 10 countries; Only some countries had a key role in generating and disseminating scientific knowledge.
17:00-17:30
Binh Le, Professor, The Pennsylvania State University, USA. Title: Advancing Asian Pacific Americans Into Library Leadership Position.
17:30-18:00
Judy Porter, Professor Rochester Institute of Technology, USA. LaVerne McQuiller Williams, Professor Rochester Institute of Technology, USA. Nicholas Robertson, Professor Rochester Institute of Technology, USA. Title: Intimate Partner Victimisation Perpetration Among College Students: The Effects of Child Maltreatment, Polyvictimization, and Auditory Status.
A study was conducted at a northeastern university in the United States that housed a college for the Deaf and hard of hearing concerning the effects of child maltreatment, polyvictimization of psychological, physical, and sexual abuse and the subsequent risks of becoming a perpetrator of such abuse. A survey was administered to 260 students of varying auditory status. Cross tabulations and binomial regression analyses were conducted. The findings indicated that some effects of polyvictimization were more likely to result in perpetration of intimate partner violence as an adult. Implications for further research and suggestions for policy are provided.
18:00-18:30
Xiaofen Keating, Associate Professor, The University of Texas at Austin, USA. Dwan Bridges, Professor, California State University, USA. Elizabeth A. Bridges, Educational Consultant, Benjamin & Yancy Foundation, USA, Toby Andrews, The University of Texas at Austin, USA. Xiaolu Liu, Assistant Professor, Eastern New Mexico University, USA. Title: Analysis of Changes in Chinese College Student Health-Related Fitness.
Background: Minority college students have a chance to serve as upcoming role models for minority citizens in China. Therefore, the purposes of the study were to test the overall changes of health-related fitness (HRF) in minority Chinese college students and to examine HRF differences in gender, race, and year in college in four years. Method: Participants (n = 1320) were minority college students with more than two thirds females (i.e., 76.1%), and Hui, Tibetan, and Mongolia consisted of 13.8%, 13.8%, and 11. 2%, respectively. Student HRF was tracked for four years. Data were analyzed using multilevel latent growth curve modeling. Results: Muscular strength and endurance were the weakest component in minority college students’ HRF, while BMI was within the category of “excellent”. Males outperformed female on all components of HRF. Conclusions: It is suggested that interventions concerning minority females’ HRF and muscular strength and endurance for both genders be constructed and tested.
18:30-19:00
Neill Fitzpatrick, Assistant Professor, MacEwan University, Canada. Title: No News is not Good News: The Impact of News Fatigue and News Avoidance in a Pandemic, Post-Truth World.
In an era dominated by a seemingly constant flow of grim news, news fatigue is becoming more recognized as a serious concern, even a health risk. Ongoing, around-the-clock reports of the pandemic, political upheaval, climate change, and other major global issues can feel unavoidable because of easy access via social media. For some, the weight of the world news can be too much to take. A 2020 survey of 12,000 American adults by the Pew Research Centre found 66% admitting they were “worn out” by the sheer amount of news available to them. This “news fatigue” can translate into a desire to consume less news in an effort to preserve and protect one’s mental health. Indeed, the World Health Organization addresses the concerns in the “Mental Health Tips” section of its website, advising to “limit your news intake if it is bothering you”. Growing numbers are apparently taking this to heart and reducing their news consumption. Some are taking it a step farther and opting for no news whatsoever as a means of coping. In May of 2020, the Reuters Institute studied the “infodemically vulnerable” in Britain, people who chose to reduce their consumption of COVID-19 related news and found more than one-fifth of those surveyed said “they often or always actively try to avoid the news” with the majority citing the impact of the news on their mood. While mental health concerns appear to be the primary reason behind the increase in news avoidance, distrust in mainstream media is also a factor. The trust factor has been exacerbated during the pandemic as anti-vaccination advocates and conspiracy theorists raise questions over the validity and accuracy of the facts shared by both governments and news organizations. The implications of news avoidance raise numerous questions to be studied: – Are news avoiders missing out on important health-related pandemic updates? – Are they more vulnerable to COVID-19 misinformation shared on social media? – Will the numbers of news avoiders continue to increase? Based on an analysis of news articles, scholarly research, and social media content, I will advance recommendations for journalism and media researchers and scholars seeking to understand these issues and for journalists and news organizations seeking to navigate them and find solutions to help their embattled profession recover and survive.
21:00-22:00 Greek Night
Tuesday 27 July 2021
07:00-09:00 Urban Walk
09:00-09:30 Fredrick Okaka, Lecturer, Moi University, Kenya. Title: Knowledge, Perception and Practice Towards COVID-19 Among Older People Living in Informal Settlements in Nairobi City, Kenya.
Informal settlements in developing countries such as Kenya are the least prepared to deal with COVID-19 pandemic due to lack of basic housing, water and sanitation, and overcrowding. The risk is magnified for older people in such an environment due to their advanced age that compromises their immune system, and the fact that they are more likely to have pre-existing health conditions which weaken their body’s ability to fight infectious diseases. This study sought to establish older people’s knowledge levels, perception, and risk assessment with regard to COVID-19, and adherence to prevention measures. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 150 respondents aged 60 years and above from two selected informal settlements in the city of Nairobi during the month of August 2020. Out of 150 respondents, 149 (99.3%) were aware of COVID-19 and their main source of information about the disease was radio. Knowledge of dry cough and fever as COVID-19 symptoms was high, but only 31.5% listed difficulty in breathing. Slightly over half correctly identified elderly people as being at greatest risk of getting severely sick from COVID-19. About 60% were aware that they are at risk of contracting COVID-19. Strong religious belief was the main reason among those who believed they are not at risk. Over 40% were worried about death, and only 1.3% were concerned about infecting others if they themselves were sick. Wearing face masks and hand-washing using soap were the main prevention measures adopted by the older people, while sneezing on closed elbow, social distancing and keeping distances were some of the less adopted measures. Most would visit a clinic when they have symptoms similar to those of COVID-19, but only a few would go for a test. In conclusion, the study revealed that knowledge about some key symptoms of COVID-19 is still low, and that a considerable number of older people do not think that elderly people are at great risk of getting severely sick. Misconception that a strong religious belief can protect one from contracting the disease is still common among older people. There is, therefore, need for well-tailored and contextualized awareness campaigns to reach this high risk group.
09:30-10:00 Sara Zamir, Associate Professor, Achva Academic College, Israel. Title: The Image and Status of Teachers as Reflected in Media Caricatures.
One of the marks of modern society is a crisis in education and a decline in teachers’ self and public esteem. This decline is a result of three intertwined social processes: the strengthening of skeptical trends, a shattering of the “people of the book” ideal, and the narrowing of the gap between adults and children. Because of these processes, teachers can no longer confine themselves to an agreed-upon social position and they are subject to constant criticism which undermines their status in society’s and their own eyes. The aim of the current research was to examine the image and status of teachers as reflected in popular caricatures relating to the teacher’s image and status. In the studied caricatures, the main or secondary persona is the teacher. To this end, a mixed qualitative and quantitative content analysis methodology was applied. Key findings show that most of the inventory of such caricatures focus on the teacher as a victim of the system and its components; the pupils, the parents and the policies. At the same time, the teacher is also portrayed as victimizing the pupils, treating them unfairly and scarring them.
10:00-10:30
Martinique Sparks, Associate Professor, North-West University, South Africa. Colin Powell, North-West University, South Africa. Cindy Pienaar, Associate Professor, Durban University of Technology, South Africa. Title: Relationship Between the Results of Fitness Tests and Match-Play Performance Variable of International Female Field Hockey Players.
10:30-11:00
Veselin Vasilev, Assistant Professor, Medical University of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Nikolay Boyadjiev, Professor, Medical University of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Title: Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs) in Sports.
Selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs), which are ligands for the androgen receptor, are divided into steroid and non-steroid. They tend to preserve the strong anabolic effects of anabolic androgenic steroids and on top of that exert very weak androgenic effects. This is a characteristic typical for the non-steroid representatives and it helps to reduce significantly their side effects in comparison with anabolic androgenic steroids. As a result this group of substances are very appropriate for misuse in sports. The leading non-steroid representative is Ostarine (S-22, Enobosarm, GTx-024, MK-2866). S-22, as all the other representatives of this class, is not yet approved by FDA but is in advanced phases of clinical trials. SARMs can be easily purchased on the Internet and are widely used by amateur sportsmen who train in the gym to increase their body mass. However according to a recent survey (2017) 44% of 52 examined products available on the Internet, which were supposed to contain SARMs, after examination did not contain any selective androgen receptor modulators molecules. SARMs have been included in the prohibited list of WADA in 2008. Their molecule may be found in some dietary supplements which can lead to unintentional positive doping test. So professional sportsmen should bear this in mind and carefully read the ingredients of the supplements they use. To detect the misuse of SARMs during doping control gas or liquid chromatography can be used as well as mass spectrometry. Selective androgen receptor modulators increase muscle mass, total lean body mass and bone mineral density. Apart from these effects which are concerned with sports SARMs have other beneficial effects. It is reported that they can be useful for various important diseases: osteoporosis, cachexia, prostate cancer, benign prostatic hyperplasia, hypogonadism, sarcopenia, breast cancer and others. Regarding the side effects of SARMs we can say that they are very low in frequency and easily reversible after discontinuation of the substance intake. This is SARMs’s biggest advantage over anabolic androgenic steroids. The most common side effects include changes in the liver enzymes – AST, ALT; changes in lipid profile – HDL; changes in the concentration of some hormones as testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG); rash; decreased appetite; hypophosphatemia (decreased phosphorus level in blood plasma). More investigation is needed to say whether SARMs have any unreported sides effect. However with the information known up to this date SARMs tend to be effective in sports and also a possibility for improving the treatment process in a lot of socially significant diseases.
11:00-11:30
Giuseppe De Luca Picione, Professor, University of Naples Federico II Italy. Domenico Trezza, Research Fellow, University of Naples Federico II Italy. Lucia Fortini, Adjunct Professor, University of Naples Federico II Italy. Title: Managing Multimedia Storytelling for Federico II University Cultural Heritage. Reflective Practices of Social Innovation.
The cultural heritage of the University Federico II, within the framework of an integrated communication strategy, may redefine the University as a broadcaster of social innovation in the public sphere. As the Eiffel Tour in the 1889 Expo was the medium to make Paris the city-world of modernity, multimedia storytelling is reconfigured as a method and management rather than a technique (Liu, 2020). New forms of production will emerge from the covid-19 crisis, such as the collaborative and digital economy in the tertiary sector of cultural heritage and sustainable tourism. This situation brings several goals: citizen empowerment, shared urban regeneration, eco-sustainable local development, and social use of technology platforms (Terstriep, 2020). Within this framework, the shift is represented from teachers and researchers civic with good ICT skill, and values and cultural capital – oriented. These ‘social innovators’ of the Federico II, with transversal skills, aim to combine economic impact and environmental sustainability for the territory, involving in unconventional forms the policy makers. In this sense, the social action of University is configured as a Strategic Communication Plan that adapts its objectives to represent itself as a collective tool for dealing with cultural heritage and other issues. In recent times, media has been critical to business or political success, but today the spread of social media has changed the rules, and news has become social constructs, built and shared by citizens. Starting with the concepts of mediashock, cultural form, and media experience (Kato, 2020), The huge socio-cultural transformations that have affected the relationship between users, places and images, with the progressive and pervasive use of digital technologies invite us to outline the new theoretical framework of “post-visitoriality” that goes beyond the limits of the concept of visitor. This is to identify a new type of media user, active and participating in the processes of contemporaneity, who is at the same time consumer (of his own space-time), programmer (of a rethought tourist offer), producer (of multimedia content through new devices), sharer (through social), archivist (through the cloud). From Statistics and Social Media Data Analysis techniques we will build the most effective methodologies to manage the “post-visitors” data extracted from Social platforms, using Web presence (Batrinca &Treleaven, 2015), through several techniques to visualize large amounts of semantic data and online services also based on geo-localization (Casado-Díaz & Ana, 2020).
11:30-12:00 Cancelled due to unavailability of the presenter
12:00-12:30
Sarit Rashkovits, Senior Lecturer, Yezreel Valley College, Israel. Title: Working from Home after COVID19 in Israel Demands, Resources, Social Yearning, and Gender.
12:30-13:00
Domenico Trezza, Research Fellow, University of Naples Federico II, Italy. Giuseppe De Luca Picione, Professor, University of Naples Federico II, Italy. Lucia Fortini, Adjunct Professor, University of Naples Federico II, Italy. Title: The Right to Migrate the Language Training for the Foreigners in the Local Contexts.
How have regional plans changed the governance of language training for foreigners? What are the attitudes, the networks and the behaviors of the actors involved? This contribution, by exploring the objectives of the FEI and FAMI projects, aims to answer these questions through a double research steps. The first one concerns the analysis of the normative context of the language training of foreigners and the second one concerns the local declination of these policies due to the actors’ social action. The study analyzes several best practices arose from the storytelling of several privileged witnesses (operators of the Area Plans and the regional offices). The rights of the citizen are mainly protected within specific territorial borders. In this sense, the analysis of the effects of the FAMI program means transforming the monitoring and evaluation of a program into an integration policy. This is the ‘right to migrate’ as a right of citizenship: it represents an innovation for a public system long-term oriented to measure and compare social interventions. The social impact of foreigner-oriented programs is really measurable just with purposes on economic and socio-cultural integration. The social and economic achievement and individual freedom are the only indicators to justify the asylum and migration support programs.
13:00-13:30
Maher Alzyadat, Researcher, University of York, UK. Title: The Role of Managers in Stimulating Engineers’ Intrapreneurial Capabilities – A Case Study of Technology-Based SMEs.
Intrapreneurship involves the exploration of new opportunities and innovative ideas within an organization. It provides a strategic route for many organizations to achieve growth, keep up with changing trends and improve business performance. Today technology-based firms are facing a lot of pressure to innovate, meet customer demands and build a competitive advantage so as to survive and sustain successfully in an unpredictable economic environment. In this context, these firms are seeking to be more intrapreneurial in nature by harnessing the intrapreneurial capabilities of their employees. Engineers in these firms are anticipated to contribute effectively to drive organizational success by being proactive in suggesting new ideas, pursuing innovative initiatives, and being intrapreneurial with their roles. Technology-based Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have certain limitations in comparison to large organizations in terms of resources and innovative capabilities. These, therefore, impose more pressures among SMEs to use their resources more efficiently. This includes stimulating and tapping into their engineers’ intrapreneurial potential. In such SMEs, managers play a significant role in facilitating intrapreneurship and empowering and supporting engineers to act as intrapreneurs. There is however, a lack of research on the management support for engineers in such SMEs. This paper addresses this gap, and the main research question for this study is: • How can managers in technology-based SMEs encourage, promote, and motivate engineers to contribute towards intrapreneurship and facilitate their intrapreneurial initiatives? This is part of a PhD research and uses a qualitative approach through longitudinal case studies. Three technology-based SMEs were selected in the UK that are engineering intensive and have a successful reputation for introducing innovative products and solutions over the years. For the purpose of anonymity, they are given specific codes, C1, C2, and C3. Company 1 (C1) is a technology leader in FinTech (Financial technology) that drives financial crime risk data. Its core business focuses on providing cutting-edge innovative products and solutions using complex technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Big Data. C2 is a world-class engineering and process automation company that develops innovative custom machinery design and solutions and support high-end production equipment and machinery in the health and medical industry. C3 is a leading supplier of software verification tools and services and providing quality, innovative solutions to the global high-integrity aerospace and automotive electronics industries. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with both engineers and managers at different hierarchy levels through open-ended questions. This paper focuses mainly on the role of managers to support their engineers’ intrapreneurial capabilities. Some of the interview questions focused on understanding the role of intrapreneurship in driving the firm’s success, the intrapreneurial process/culture, and the management support for engineers to develop their intrapreneurial capabilities. To build a comprehensive case study, secondary materials from published interviews, company websites, and other sources were also utilized. Interviews were conducted online due to Covid restrictions and each interview lasted approximately an hour. The recorded data were then transcribed and analyzed for emerging themes using NVivo, which is computer software used for qualitative data analysis. The study highlighted the benefits derived by technology-based SMEs from an intrapreneurial culture. The analysis of the three cases showed that managers play a critical role in instilling intrapreneurial spirit among engineers, resulting in the development of new technology products and solutions and enhancing existing product portfolios. Managers’ engineering background and professional experience helped in facilitating some of the intrapreneurial initiatives coming from their engineers. As they had some familiarity with the technical terms and terminologies used in engineering projects, it helped them in being receptive to technical suggestions from engineers, having a meaningful discussion to develop an idea, and also challenge some engineers to shape and strengthen their ideas to take it forward to the next step of development. Furthermore, managers also facilitate the interaction between engineers and executive management from both ways. They play a crucial part in implementing the strategy by explaining the vision down to engineers and driving them to execute it. Managers provide direct support by coaching and mentoring their engineers and developing their intrapreneurial competencies. The casual relationship between managers and engineers built on mutual trust and open communication is essential to creating a friendly culture conducive to intrapreneurship. The study findings will help organizations understand and develop the intrapreneurial potential of their engineers and effectively utilize their innovative initiatives to drive organizational success. Managers can provide the adequate support that keeps engineers motivated and productive in their roles and guide them in their route to be intrapreneurial engineers.
13:30-14:30 Lunch
14:30-15:00 David Kalisz, Associate Professor, Paris School of Business, France. Title: New Dimensions of Strategic Foresight. Beyond Scenarios The Six Directions of Modern Horizon Scanning.
New dimensions of Strategic Foresight. Beyond Scenarios – The Six Directions of Modern Horizon Scanning. In times of peace, prosperity, and growth, few people think about working boldly to build the future. Designing the future is more than just making accurate predictions. Creating the future is a way of looking at possible development solutions within a specific time frame. In 2020, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, future studies and New Normal took on a whole new meaning, and more than ever before. I have proposed to call the way of looking at the future – previstory , the science of previsions and forecasting. Humanity today is facing a global crisis. Humans have never been able to predict the future accurately, but neither have they ever stopped imagining the future. The future is already here, but it is not evenly distributed. Predictions, forecasts, and scenarios are never easy, but being imaginative is far more critical than being suitable for the future. Signals are not trends. The future of the industry is on the horizon, on the edge of the existing market. Identifying signals are supposed to build a particular “landscape” of possibilities (drivers of change). Trends need much more time to become mainstream and be accepted by the majority. Signals provide some basis for identifying a trend and can significantly affect the reality around us. In the future, there are always four scenarios (Figure 1) : growth, collapse, constraint, and transformation. And it is not that one scenario excludes the other. More often than not, several of them coexist and may co-occur.
Welcome remarks by Cleopatra Veloutsou, Head, Marketing Unit, ATINER & Professor of Brand Management, University of Glasgow, U.K.
15:00-15:30
Ralf Wagner, Professor, University of Kassel Germany. Malek Simon Grimm, PhD Student, University of Kassel, Germany. Title: The Impact of Culture on Intra-Brand Image Confusion.
Over the decades, automotive companies have significantly enriched the product assortments covered under the umbrella of a brand. Notably, neither the importance nor the effects of the relationship between assortment widening and brand image perception are well-understood until today. The consumer-sided effects of such assortment widenings define the intra-brand image confusion. This confusion arises from a similarity, ambiguity, and implausibility between all products of a brand. Brands, which aim to express their essence and uniqueness of a company in order to make a crucial difference in consumers’ perceptions, run the risk to forfeit their value, uniqueness and provided orientation advantages. Grimm & Wagner (2021) provided evidence on the extent of an intra-brand image confusion using the example of national (German) automotive market. Their results highlight considerable negative effects of inter-brand confusion on crucial brand-related KPIs such as brand sympathy, brand identification and the Net Promoter evaluation. Moreover, the results indicate that intra-brand image confusion leads to an increased tendency to apply heuristics during the assortment evaluation process and a tendency to delay purchase decisions. Recent research indicates that both the tendency to apply heuristics and delays in the decision processes are culture bound (e.g., Ma, Au & Ren, 2020; Pontinha & do Vale, 2019). Going deeper, Aliyev, Ürkmez and Wagner (2018) provide theoretical reasoning and empirical evidence suggesting consumers from individuals cultures tend to limit their precepting in a selective analytical way whereas consumers embraced by collectivistic cultures take advantage of a comprehensive perception in their decision processes. This study provides evidence on the cultural framing impacts on intra-brand confusion comparing evidence from mobile phone brands in India (n=200) and the United Kingdom (n=500).
15:30-16:00
Radmila Janicic, Professor, University of Belgrade, Serbia. Title: Social Marketing in Brand Building of Education and Educational Intitutions.
The paper presents theoretical and practical aspects of social marketing in brand building educational institutions. The subject of the paper is a theoretical and practical approach in development of educational institutions brands, based on raising awareness with social marketing strategies. Social marketing in development of educational institutions is a new field of marketing research in academic institutions and scientific marketing associations. Social marketing approach is a platform for raising awareness about education and educational institutions, based on internal marketing, integrated marketing, performance marketing and relationship marketing, as well as, strategic planning, strategic marketing analysis, implementation of strategies, media communications, evaluation and control. The goal of the paper is to analyze impact of social marketing in brand building of educational institutions and education. Specific goal of the paper is to enlighten social marketing strategies in development of education, educational institution and lifelong education. The major hypothesis is that social marketing strategies raise awareness about educational institutions brand, importance of education and lifelong education. From the major hypothesis the paper has two under major hypothesis. First under hypothesis is that social marketing is base for raising brand building of educational institutions. Second under hypothesis is that social marketing strategies raise awareness about importance of education and lifelong education. Methodology of research will be based on quantitative analysis, by two questionnaire. First questioner will be about attitude in educational institutions with target audience. The first target audience are students, master, doctoral and postdoctoral student. Second target audience are academics, educators, professors, researchers, psychologists, sociologists and andragogy’s about importance of education and brand building of educational institutions, about education and lifelong education. In methodology approach, the paper will give the qualitative analysis, by the focus group about importance of building educational institutions brand, education and lifelong education. The participants of the focus group will be pedagogics, educators, psychologists, sociologists and members of children organizations. Special aspect of the focus group will be social marketing approach in raising brand awareness about educational institutions. In empirical research the paper will present results about vision, mission, strategic goals, strategic marketing analysis, and strategic implementation of social marketing strategies and strategic control of brand building of educational institutions. The results of the research about student’s satisfaction would be important for further research of development of brand building of educational institutions. It is very important to improve educational projects in order to prepare students for new business opportunities and new business knowledge and skills that are important in global jobs market places. Today, new business knowledge and skills are for new professions, such as programmer of digital platform, managers for new social media, journalists for digital sport’s portal, small business in digital environment, influence marketing in digital environment, managers of fashion industry in digital environment, managers of music and arts festival in digital environment.
16:00-16:30
Ezgi Oguz, Phd Student, University of Leeds, UK. Jamie Marsden, Lecturer, University of Leeds, UK. Mariana Suter, Lecturer, University of Leeds, UK. Title: Using Design to Manage Copycat Packaging.
Copycat packaging involves a type of imitation strategy in which the appearance of a market leader’s packaging design is simulated by a low-cost alternative. By designing the components of colour, composition, graphic style, and typography in a visually similar way, copycat packaging attempts to exploit the positive associations related to a leader brand. Such practices used to be isolated occurrences, with the first known case emerging in 1994 for Sainsbury’s cola. However, research shows that it is now a rapidly growing phenomenon with 42% of all private label brands attempting to emulate the packaging design of the market leader. In addition to exploiting positive associations, copycat packaging can confuse consumers into mistaken purchases, and serve to dilute the impact of any distinguishing features in the leader brand’s packaging. It is, therefore, crucial for leader brands to defend against copycat packaging. Previous literature has focused on reactive strategies, primarily involving litigation and packaging design changes; however, very little attention has been assigned to the role of packaging design as a proactive strategy for mitigating against copycat packaging. To address this issue our study examined the role of design components in copycat packaging from a consumers’ perspective. We conducted a pilot study of 12 semi-structured interviews with participants who live in the UK that sought to understand how consumers respond to the design components on visually similar packaging designs across a range of FMCG products. The initial findings of the study reveal that, of all the visual components typically featured on packaging designs, consumers rank colour as the most significant feature, followed by structural design (shape) and logo. We found that these visual components are particularly important in cases where consumers have no prior familiarity with a brand: in the absence of any prior experience, packaging design cues have the greatest impact on purchasing decisions. In cases where consumers are already familiar with one of the category brands (either the leader brand or copycat brand), their past experience has the greatest influence on their purchasing decisions, closely followed by the brand name and logo. The implications of these findings are that, as unfamiliarity with a brand is a short-term state, the majority of consumers will be familiar with an existing brand. Therefore, because leader brands typically have higher familiarity, their packaging designs alone will have less influence on consumer purchasing decisions. The second implication is that leader brands should use their packaging design to emphasize the brand name and logo, as these features have the greatest impact on (familiar) consumers (and it is assumed that such features are legally protected). A number of avenues for further research emerged from these initial findings. The first is the need to explore how colour, as the most distinctive yet easily imitated feature, can be designed to operate as an exclusive mechanism in low involvement products. The second is the need to ascertain how the structural design of packaging for leader brands can serve as a key point of distinction for high involvement products.
16:30-17:00
Mian Wang, PhD Student, University of Leeds, UK. Title: The Role of Interactive Technologies in Retail Design: A Case Study of Canada Goose.
From rising costs to lower footfall, the physical retail environment is experiencing a number of substantial challenges. With online retail sales accounting for approximately 20% of all UK sales – and expanding rapidly – physical retail stores are being forced to question the value they bring to the customer experience. These increasingly difficult conditions have been exacerbated by the current pandemic and the subsequent lockdown enforcements, driving customers to embrace online retailing in greater numbers. In response to the evolving retail landscape, it is critical for brands with a strong physical retail presence to emphasize a richer, more sensory experience with which to engage customers and attract greater footfall. Previous literature has largely explored the use of technology in retail settings from a behavioral perspective rather than from a holistic viewpoint. The aim of our study was to explore how interactive technologies could transform retail design into a more engaging and immersive experience. To this end we examined a prominent case that had successfully incorporated interactive technology within a very particular retail setting. Specifically, we conducted seven qualitative interviews with experts directly involved in the design and application of the flagship store, called The Journey, for Canada Goose. Our findings revealed that the customer experience was enhanced because the use of technology was appropriate, and there was a greater emphasis on providing a genuine brand experience rather than being driven by sales alone. By using interactive technologies to create immersive experiences, customers were attracted to a retail space to participate in an event that was distinctive, memorable and facilitated a much broader type of engagement with the brand, beyond behavioral transactions. Furthermore this immersive experience stimulated participants to serve as brand advocates through the sharing of their experience via social media. The implications from this study are that brand-owned retail spaces can benefit more broadly by moving from a transactional retail mindset to a more emotionally engaging type of experience. By following this approach, the retail setting is not considered primarily a sales-orientated space – there are other channels for purchasing – but rather as a unique channel dedicated to delivering an immersive and engaging brand experience that drives visitors across channels and cultivates impactful forms of brand engagement (e.g. social media impressions). The limitations of this research are that the study is restricted to a premium brand, and therefore given the resource-heavy nature of this specific case, the implications are likely to be relevant to only a few brands that share similar status and position. We envisage that, if retail is to become a more meaningful function of brand experience, such retail experiences would be, in practice, most suitable for the flagship stores of premium brands. The most exciting avenue for further study is to extend the study to a less prestigious brand, thereby having wider applicability.
