Angeliki Karagiannaki

A cost-benefit evaluation framework of an electronic-based traceability system.

Purpose – The concept of “traceability as a strategy and mandatory initiative” has replaced that of “traceability as a cost of a business or as a voluntary responsibility”. This implies that the introduction of a traceability system should be perceived and positioned as a catalyst for better business practices. However, despite these benefits, a traceability system is also investment‐worthy. Hence, the value of investment in a traceability system constitutes a matter of considerable concern and debate for both practitioners and academics alike. This paper seeks to present a cost‐benefit evaluation applied in a natural mineral water company regarding the pilot deployment of an electronic‐based traceability system.Design/methodology/approach – This is a case based study.Findings – Based on the experience described previously, a high‐level framework is generated that any organisation can refer to as a proper guideline in order to demonstrate how the costs and benefits can be compared for overall evaluation o...

Warehouse contextual factors affecting the impact of RFID

Purpose – Empowered by the possibility to automatically identify unique instances, radio frequency identification (RFID) is expected to revolutionize warehouse processes. However, every warehouse differs from each other in several ways. Given such dimensionality, a credible assessment of the true value of RFID requires that the contextual factors that differentiate one warehouse from another are taken into account. The same RFID implementation may generate high productivity in one warehouse but not in another, because the former warehouse may have characteristics that may influence the impact of RFID. As a result, the purpose of this paper is to provide a framework for identifying key contextual factors that appear to be contingent on the link between RFID and warehouse performance.Design/methodology/approach – The framework derived from a two‐phase research design. The first phase incorporated two case studies. This was an exploratory study and, therefore, there was a great deal of iteration between the ...

21 – Radio frequency identification (RFID) as a catalyst for improvements in food supply chain operations

Abstract: The objective of effective supply chain management is the coordination of information, materials and financial flows between organisations. The recent trends of globalisation, consumer pressure for responsiveness and reliability, and intense competition in the global trading community have made effective supply chain management a very challenging issue. New information technologies are promising for optimising supply chain operations and solving many related issues. Indeed, supply chain management information systems have greatly benefited companies that use them, minimising information processing costs and raising great potentials like information sharing and fast communication that were not feasible before. RFID is an emerging technology that can further contribute to supply chain optimisation. RFID enables accurate real time product location information provision in high volumes and at very low (or even zero) labour costs. This chapter looks closely into the technology of RFID and the way it is employed in supply chain management and, particularly, in the food supply chain by describing two applications. The first describes the requirements’ analysis, development and pilot implementation of a RFID-enabled traceability system for a company that deals with frozen food. The second describes a distributed, service-oriented architecture that supports RFID-integrated decision support and collaboration practices in a networked business environment. In the context of retail industry, a RFID-integrated ‘dynamic pricing’ service is described regarding its functionality and implementation. Several considerations from the cases are presented which could provide valuable feedback to other organisations interested in moving to a RFID-based scheme.

A framework for mapping the RFID-enabled process redesign in a simulation model

Empowered by the possibility to automatically identify unique product instances, the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is expected to revolutionize the supply chain processes. However, in view of the numerous possible ways that RFID can be implemented within the supply chain, the issue of supporting the design choices based on a credible assessment between the current (as-is) and the future (to-be) processes has become a matter of considerable concern and debate for both practitioners and academics alike. To design RFID implementations in the supply chain using a robust dynamic analysis, we resort to discrete event simulation. As a result, this paper conceptualizes the ‘RFID-enabled process redesign’ and proposes a framework regarding all possible types of RFID effects when integrating the technology within the supply chain processes. The research design was based on the empirical evidence through three case studies combined with the development of simulation models and on theoretical constructs regarding the information technology (IT)-enabled process redesign.

Investment Evaluation of RFID Technology Applications: An Evolution Perspective

Prior empirical research on the evaluation of RFID technology treats and assesses individual RFID applications independently and in isolation from each other. However, literature on investment evaluation of information technologies has recognised and utilised the significance of evaluating “interdependent” information systems (IS) projects with synergies. Moreover, previous studies when appraising the business value of an RFID investment ignore its opportunity to offer and evolve into additional follow-on investments in the future. Nevertheless, the importance of this notion has been acknowledged by the pertinent literature for the evaluation of other information technologies. This chapter proposes an approach for the investment evaluation of RFID applications considering them rather as a bundle of interdependent and sequential investments than as stand-alone ones. The results from a case study demonstrate how the proposed approach can be employed for the evaluation of RFID projects and offering an additional insight into evaluating investments in RFID applications.

Entrepreneurial Team Dynamics and New Venture Creation Process: An Exploratory Study Within a Start-Up Incubator

Many new product innovations are attributed to new venture creation. Although there are many success cases, many new ventures quit before they have fulfilled their greatest potential mainly because the team quits their effort. This research tries to delve into several factors that affect the dynamics of an entrepreneurial team along the different stages of the new venture creation process. Given such direction, primary data from 12 entrepreneurial teams are undertaken within an incubator environment, which is an underresearched context. An in-depth study of these entrepreneurial teams suggests numerous determinants (variation in the intentions and expectations, improper leadership, ineffective communication, engagement, team structure) to have a serious effect on team dynamics and team cohesiveness. Following a grounded theory approach, specific research propositions are formulated and theoretical insights are drawn. Moreover, the results of this research assist nascent entrepreneurs in assessing their potential, recognizing critical team dynamics, and basing their choice on moving to a sustainable new venture creation.

Leveraging Digital Entrepreneurship Through Collaboration Between Incumbent Firms and Entrepreneurial Ventures: An Inbound Open Innovation Perspective

Considering that traditional research and development (R&D) models cannot keep up with the disruptive advances, the incumbent firms should consider external sources for obtaining and commercializing digital innovations. By contrast, entrepreneurial ventures have the necessary tech development skills and agility to create digital innovations. There has never been a better time for incumbent firms and entrepreneurial ventures to collaborate. One paradigm that establishes such mutual beneficial partnership is called “inbound open innovation”. Based on a multiple-cases design, this research provides evidence of the benefits, the degree of co-creation required, and the various collaboration schemes that emerge through an open innovation initiative.