Yer Van Hui

The antecedents of service quality and product quality and their influences on bank reputation: evidence from the banking industry in China

Although an increasing number of studies is being performed in the field of service management, less work is being done on an integrated framework of service quality and product quality, especially that supported with evidence from developing countries. As a result, little is known about the distinction between service quality and product quality, their respective antecedents, and their distinctive contributions to performance in service industries in the developing world. Generalization of related findings from developed countries is not necessarily appropriate. Unlike most related studies that are based on evidence from developed countries, focuses attention on the distinction between, and respective antecedents of, service quality and product quality in the Chinese context. Gives much emphasis to the importance of a positive bank reputation. The findings are based on structural equation models developed by AMOS.

Consumer satisfaction index: new practice and findings

This paper reports the development of the Hong Kong consumer satisfaction index (HKCSI) – a new type of consumer‐oriented economic performance indicator representing the quality of products (commodities and services) sold in Hong Kong as evaluated by Hong Kong consumers – as well as the findings of HKCSI from 1998 to 2000, each year with more than 10,000 successful telephone interviews on about 60 products. According to Hong Kongs special economic structure, the HKCSI is constructed from a consumption point of view concentrating on products and the products’ consumers, rather than from the popular production point of view focusing on firms and the firms’ customers. Key features of HKCSI include: the direct introduction of consumer characteristics (such as age, education, and income) in model construction; the wide coverage of services, especially free services; and the adoption of a product weighting system based on consumer price index (CPI), not on gross domestic product (GDP). In this paper, a theoretical framework of consumer satisfaction is first presented after investigating the relevant literature, and then the large‐scale consumer survey scheme adopted to collect the data and the structural equation modeling technique employed to estimate the indexes are discussed. New considerations in the HKCSI in such areas as model structure, indicator and questionnaire design, and product classification are elaborated upon. Next, the estimated results are analyzed focusing on the reliability and validity of the model, on the relationships among consumer satisfaction and its antecedents and consequences, and especially on the effects of consumer characteristics on consumer satisfaction and the implications of such effects for marketing practice. The results are generally consistent across different products, broadly acceptable and in agreement with previous findings, and are also relevant to Hong Kongs special situation. The paper concludes with a summary and some remarks on problems in the present study and future research directions.

Evolution of e-commerce Web sites: A conceptual framework and a longitudinal study

Before the 1990s, the digital exchange of information between companies was achieved using electronic data interchange (EDI) and needed agreement between the organizations. The early 1990s saw the commercialization of the Internet and the advent of open computer technology and connectivity became affordable for individuals as well as businesses. The consequence was the World Wide Web. As e-commerce activities extended across businesses, enterprises, and industries, a genre of Web sites emerged allowing the integrative management of business operations. Here, we provide an evolutionary perspective of e-commerce Web sites. We posited that there have been four eras. To chart the evolution of e-commerce Web sites, a conceptual framework was developed to characterize such sites. Based on the framework, we conducted a longitudinal study between 1993 and 2001. The result showed that the proposed four eras were clearly discernible.

Analysis of compatibility between interdependent matrices in ANP

Analytic network process (ANP) addresses multi-attribute decision-making where attributes exhibit dependencies. A principal characteristic of such problems is that pairwise comparisons are needed for attributes that have interdependencies. We propose that before such comparison matrices are used—in addition to a test that assesses the consistency of a pairwise comparison matrix—a test must also be conducted to assess ‘consistency’ across interdependent matrices. We call such a cross-matrix consistency test as a compatibility test. In this paper, we design a compatibility test for interdependent matrices between two clusters of attributes. We motivate our exposition by addressing compatibility in Sinarchy, a special form of ANP where interdependency exists between the last and next-to-last level. The developed compatibility test is applicable to any pair of interdependent matrices that are a part of an ANP.

Airfreight forwarder shipment planning: A mixed 0–1 model and managerial issues in the integration and consolidation of shipments

The planning and management of air cargo logistics is a complex endeavor, involving collaboration of multiple logistics agents to deliver shipments timely, safely and economically. Airfreight forwarders are third-party brokers/operators who coordinate and manage cargo shipments for their clients. It is important for a forwarder to develop a shipment plan to evaluate the possible integrations and consolidations, to assess whether shipments can meet their respective target delivery dates, and to estimate the amount of costs involved. In this paper, we formulate a forwarders shipment planning problem as a mixed 0-1 LP. Effects of integration and consolidation - on the timely delivery of shipments during any phase of the shipping process - are explicitly addressed. A forwarders in-house capacity, as well as the available capacity of its partners and sub-contracting agents, are incorporated. We also consider the target cost for a shipment. Based on the special characteristics of the model, we design a customized tabu-search algorithm. We also provide an illustrative case to examine several managerial issues.

A 0--1 LP Model for the Integration and Consolidation of Air Cargo Shipments

This paper addresses the problem of determining the optimal integrations and consolidations of air cargo shipments. A freight forwarder arranges for the execution of many jobs (shipments) on behalf of several clients. Each job consists of a number of sequential activities, such as pickup, truck transportation, warehousing, and air transportation. Each activity can be performed by a number of processing units, such as trucking companies, warehouses, and airlines. If a number of consecutive activities of a job are integrated, i.e., performed by the same processing unit, then it typically costs less. If a number of similar activities of different jobs are consolidated, i.e., performed by the same processing unit, then it also typically costs less. Given a number of jobs and processing units, the sets of activities that can be integrated and consolidated, and the associated costs, the decision problem is to determine which processing unit should perform each activity of each job to minimize the total cost. This problem of assigning shipment activities to processing units is formulated as a linear 0--1 program. Principal properties of the model are established. Exploiting the special structure of this model, we design a solution procedure that includes heuristics and a branch-and-bound algorithm.

Influence diagnostics for generalized linear measurement error models.

We study influence diagnostics for generalized linear models when the true covariates are unobservable but measured with error. Based on the bias-corrected estimation of model parameters, diagnostic measures are developed to identify outlying and influential observations. The magnitude of influence is then assessed via a simulated envelope approach. The proposed diagnostic procedure is illustrated on two examples.

An analytic network process approach to the selection of logistics service providers for air cargo

AbstractNowadays, enterprises typically outsource their logistics needs to logistics agents, who have become vital partners in managing supply chains. The logistics needs in a supply chain consist of many different interrelated services, each with its own set of requirements and constraints. A logistics agent might specialize in the provision of a single logistics service or might provide a range of services. The selection of logistics agent(s) cannot be separated into a series of stand-alone selections as the decisions are interrelated. Decision makers must assess the merits of individual activity-agent combinations, as well as their interrelationships along the entire supply chain. Such an evaluation is non-trivial, because both tangible and intangible elements are involved. In this research, we model the selection problem using analytic network process, a multiattribute decision-making methodology suitable for assessing interdependent elements, both tangible and intangible. We examine the significance of integration and consolidation of shipments, the trade-offs between costs, benefits and risks within activities of the logistics process, and the differing roles of traditional freight forwarders and integrators.

4th Party Cyber Logistics for Air Cargo

Preface. 1: Air Cargo Logistics and Information Technology. 1: Introduction. 2: A New Era for Air Cargo Logistics. 3: Cyber Logistics - The 4th Party Logistics e-Business Platform. 3.1. Managing Logistics Services in a Business Chain. 3.2. First, Second, Third, and Fourth Party Logistics. 4: Key Concepts of Cyber Logistics. 4.1. Eras of Websites. 4.2. Frameworks for a 4th Party Air Cargo Logistics e-Business Platform. 4.3. A Benefit, Cost and Risk Analysis for the Stakeholders of e-Platform. 4.4. Design and Implementation Issues of e-Platform. 4.5. E-Platform Decision Support: Optimizing Shipment Design. 4.6. Business Intelligence on the e-Platform. 5: Concluding Remarks. 2: Evolution of e-Commerce and Modern Air Cargo Logistics. 1: Introduction. 1.1. Websites - e-Commerce & e-Business. 2: Elements of an e-Commerce Website. 2.1. Participants. 2.2. Host. 2.3. The Website Core. 3: Analysis of Website Elements. 3.1. Analysis of the Host Objects. 3.2. Core Functions of a Website - A Transaction-based Hierarchy. 3.3. Core Technology. 4: Evolution of e-Commerce Websites. 4.1. Pre-Web Era. 4.2. Reactive Web Era. 4.3. Interactive Web Era. 4.4. Emerging Integrative Web Era. 5: Concluding Remarks. 3: Frameworks for a 4th Party Air Cargo Logistics e-Business Platform. 1: Introduction. 2: An Example of Modern Air Cargo Logistics. 3: An e-Business Information Infrastructure. 3.1. Marketspace for Trading. 3.2. Virtual Integration. 3.3. Customization at Low Cost. 3.4. Quality Logistics at a Low Cost. 3.5. Strategic Alliances. 3.6. Third-party e-Logistics Center. 3.7. e-Business Capability. 3.8. Decision Support. 4: A Conceptual Framework for a 4th Party e-Business Platform. 4.1. Functions of e-Business Platform. 5: An Architectural Framework of the e-Business Platform. 5.1. Technical Framework of e-Platform. 5.2. e-Platform Challenges. 6: Concluding Remarks. 4: A Benefit, Cost and Risk Analysis for the Stakeholders of a 4th Party Logistics e-Business Platform. 1: Introduction. 1.1. The Stakeholders: Government, Investors, and Users. 1.2. Modeling the Benefits, Costs and Risks of the Stakeholders Using AHP and ANP. 2: Benefits, Costs, and Risk to Government, Investors, & Users. 2.1. Benefits to Government. 2.2. Costs to the Government. 2.3. Risks to the Government. 2.4. Benefits to Investors. 2.5. Costs to Investors. 2.6. Risks to Investors. 2.7. Benefits to Users. 2.8. Costs to Users. 2.9. Risks to Users. 3: Risk Sharing in Platform Design: An Illustration. 3.1. Solution Methodology of Aggregating Benefits, Costs and Risks in ANP and AHP. 3.2. Aspects in Determining an Agreeable Solution. 3.3. A Solution Procedure Based on Sensitivity Analysis. 4: An Illustrative Numerical Example. 5:<

Robust modelling of ARCH models

The autoregressive conditional heteroscedastic (ARCH) model and its extensions have been widely used in modelling changing variances in financial time series. Since the asset return distributions frequently display tails heavier than normal distributions, it is worth while studying robust ARCH modelling without a specific distribution assumption. In this paper, rather than modelling the conditional variance, we study ARCH modelling for the conditional scale. We examine the L[subscript 1]-estimation of ARCH models and derive the limiting distributions of the estimators. A robust standardized absolute residual autocorrelation based on least absolute deviation estimation is proposed. Then a robust portmanteau statistic is constructed to test the adequacy of the model, especially the specification of the conditional scale. We obtain their asymptotic distributions under mild conditions. Examples show that the suggested L[subscript 1]-norm estimators and the goodness-of-fit test are robust against error distributions and are accurate for moderate sample sizes. This paper provides a useful tool in modelling conditional heteroscedastic time series data. Copyright