Inder Jit Singh Mann

City E-Government: Scope and its Realization

In this paper, the authors identify and explore the optimal scope of a generic city-level e-Government program. In order to corroborate theoretical research, a comprehensive feature comparison of different e-Government elements/services, of select city web sites from various countries in the world is conducted.The research finds that despite the manifest common features, the inherent scope of service provision by the websites studied is unique. This finding gives rise to the understanding that customizing e-Government initiatives is ideally conducive to the local needs of the constituents.

A Typology Framework of Loyalty Reward Programs

Loyalty reward programs (LRPs), initially developed as marketing programs to enhance customer retention, have now become an important part of customer-focused business strategy. With the proliferation and increasing economy impact of the programs, the management complexity in the programs has also increased. However, despite widespread adoption of LRPs in business, academic research in the field seems to lag behind its practical application. Even the fundamental questions such as what LRPs are and how to classify them have not yet been fully addressed. In this paper, a comprehensive framework for LRP classification is proposed, which provides a foundation for further study of LRP design and planning issues.

A Case in Medical Equipment Design for Strategic Sustainability

The alignment of strategic sustainability goals can be very challenging for industries where stringent product requirements restrict the ability to innovate environmentally friendly alternatives. This case studies an instance of medical equipment being designed to increase functionality and decrease disposability, creating greater utility. The primary outcome of this research is a demonstration that cost is not prohibitive when introducing reusable medical tools and equipment when innovative solutions satisfy stringent standards and can provide superior functionality.

The role of organizational orientation and product attributes in performance for sustainability

Abstract As regulation pushes for sustainability, organizations may choose to strategically orient themselves sooner rather than later for the inevitable move for more promising returns. Design and development of products for sustainability reaches the core of organizational operations and those that can orchestrate a meaningful shift to sustainability may gain in the long-run. The product itself and how it is perceived by the end-user may also significantly affect this move to sustainability for the organization. This research empirically tests the relationship between organizational orientation toward sustainability, attributes of sustainable products and the effect these have on performance in two separate geographical locations with differing economies. The value of this paper lies not only in empirically validating concepts from traditional new product development literature perspective in the context of sustainability but also in providing an insight into the current ‘mindset’ toward sustainability.

Providing custom enterprise resource planning solutions: benefits and challenges

Present-day enterprise resource planning systems (ERPs) cater to the ever-increasing need for real-time information and instant running analysis of financial trends and operational data. Out-of-the-box ERPs, while providing sturdy back-end architecture are still quite expensive and lack the flexibility of customised modules. Lightweight custom ERP solutions are cost-effective and favour the needs of modern businesses with unique reporting hierarchy and core processes. This study of a custom-solutions business partner of a US-based Fortune 500 company examines two cases to analyse key benefits and challenges that govern providing custom ERP solutions to organisations. Our results indicate that businesses realise optimal benefits from custom ERPs developed as modules around conventional solutions, providing the best of both worlds and a unique cost advantage.