Core and critical cities of global region airport networks

Citation

Lordan, O., & Sallan, J. M. (2019). Core and critical cities of global region airport networks. Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 513, 724-733.
doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physa.2018.08.123

Abstract

Air transport is one of the key infrastructures of today’s global economy. Connections between airports define airport networks, where nodes are cities served by airports, connected by edges if there is at least one direct flight connecting them. The aims of this research are to relate structural properties of airport networks which explain how these networks respond to isolation of critical nodes, and to gain insight into relevant socio-economic factors that influence the development of airport networks. We split the world airport network (WAN) into seven global region airport networks (GRANs), using the divisions established by OAG database. We gather information about structural properties of each GRAN determining core cities through k-core decomposition, and critical cities through robustness analysis. We find that differences of robustness across GRANs can be explained by the fraction of core cities relative to total cities. Furthermore, analysis of multilevel structure reveal relevant differences between GRANs, rooted on geographical and socio-economic factors, and give insight about how network robustness in airport networks can be enhanced.

Efficient multi-unit procurement mechanism with supply disruption risk

Citation

Xiang, J., Zhang, J., & Sallan, J. M. (2018). Efficient multi-unit procurement mechanism with supply disruption risk. Journal of Interdisciplinary Mathematics, 21(4), 883-895.
doi: 10.1080/09720502.2018.1478250

Abstract

In this paper, we study the multi-attribute multi-unit procurement mechanism design problem facing a set of potential suppliers who suffer from disruption risks. Each supplier's production cost depends on its disruption probability, and both are private information. We propose a Vickery-Clark-Groves auction with disruption risk (VCG-DR) for this problem and show that the mechanism is incentive-compatible, individual-rational and social efficient. Moreover, we compare the performance of the proposed mechanism and the popular single-attribute multi-unit forward auction (SA-MFV) with reserved attribute by numerical experiments. The results show that VCG-DR outperforms SA-MFV in both social efficiency and optimality.

The triple helix model of innovation

Etzkowitz and Leydesdorff (2000) present the evolution of innovation systems in terms of academia-state-industry relationships, which has taken three different models. In the etatistic model, the nation state encompasses academia and industry and directs the relations between them. The laissez-faire model consists of separate the three institutional spheres with strong borders dividing them and highly circumscribed relations among the spheres. The Triple Helix model is a knowledge infrastructure of overlapping institutional spheres,each taking the role of the other and with hybrid organizations emerging at the interfaces. These hybrid organization can be university spin-off firms, tri-lateral initiatives for knowledge-based economic development and strategic alliances among firms, government laboratories and academic research groups. The Triple Helix model represents an evolution from linear models of innovation (mode 1), with defined transitions between basic research, applied research and experimental development to nonlinear models of innovation (mode 2).

The integration of academia in innovation systems leads to an expansion of the mission of the university (Etzkowitz, 2003). The first mission of university was preservation and dissemination of knowledge through teaching. The first academic revolution made research a second university mission, and the second revolution added the technology transfer and economic development missions. The second revolution transformed the way that research was organized in academia: from professors assisted by assistants to research groups where professors and assistant professors have large autonomy, assisted by graduate students. The development of research groups leads to individual and collective entrepreneurship within academia, and to increasing collaboration with the state and the industry. The new mission of the university motivates the creation of new organizational units, like enterprise incubators and technology transfer units. University management has to choose between separating or integrating business activities and managing conflicts of interest.

Carayannis and Campbell (2009) introduces a fourth element in the triple helix model, which is the media-based and culture-based public. This fourth elements emphasizes the need that innovation policy should communicate its objectives and rationales to the public to seek for legitimation and justification. This can be achieved through cultural artifacts such as movies, that can arise awareness on utility of innovation among the public for supporting R&D policies and to enroll prospective students in science and engineering.

References

Carayannis, E. G., & Campbell, D. F. J. (2009). “Mode 3” and “Quadruple Helix”: toward a 21st century fractal innovation ecosystem. International Journal of Technology Management, 46(3/4), 201. http://doi.org/10.1504/IJTM.2009.023374

Etzkowitz, H. (2003). Research groups as ‘quasi-firms’: the invention of the entrepreneurial university. Research Policy, 32(1), 109–121. http://doi.org/10.1016/S0048-7333(02)00009-4

Etzkowitz, H., & Leydesdorff, L. (2000). The dynamics of innovation: from National Systems and “Mode 2” to a Triple Helix of university–industry–government relations. Research Policy, 29(2), 109–123. http://doi.org/10.1016/S0048-7333(99)00055-4

Student-perceived organizational support and perceived employability in the marketing of higher education

Citation

Trullas, I., Simo, P., Fusalba, O. R., Fito, A., & Sallan, J. M. (2018). Student-perceived organizational support and perceived employability in the marketing of higher education. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 1–16.
UPCommons:
doi: http://doi.org/10.1080/08841241.2018.1488334

Abstract

In the current context, the need for marketing in institutions of higher education is undeniable. The specification of the student not merely as a ‘customer’ means that traditional marketing no longer has sufficient capacity to explain the behavior of the student body. In this study, a four-level relationship marketing model is tested to check the influence of perceived organizational support (POS) and perceived employability on identification with the institution and the perceived price-quality ratio and how these influence student satisfaction. In addition, the constructs prior to POS and perceived employability are identified, which are explicit enough to enable specific marketing actions to be carried out. As POS is a construct defined for the labor market, its use applied to relational marketing comes up as something innovative.

To this end, Likert scales have been designed and validated to measure these constructs. The results of this test show how the perception of organizational support depends on the relationship of the student body with the administration and management of the center. Likewise, the perception of employability depends on the perceived reputation and the perception of the promotion of employability. Furthermore, it is confirmed that satisfaction is positively related to identification and the perceived price-quality ratio, which in turn are positively related to organizational support and perceived employability.

Transformational leadership and organizational commitment: mediating role of leader-member exchange

Citation

Keskes, I., Sallan, J. M., Simo, P., & Fernandez, V. (2018). Transformational leadership and organizational commitment: mediating role of leader-member exchange. Journal of Management Development, 37(3), 271–284.
UPCommons: http://hdl.handle.net/2117/117487
doi: http://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-04-2017-0132

Abstract

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose and to test three models in order to examine the mechanisms through which dimensions of transformational leadership influence different forms of organizational commitment by testing the possible mediating role of leader-member exchange (LMX) dimensions.

Design/methodology/approach
The participants in this study are represented by 427 senior executive French employees having a university degree and minimum two years of work experience in their current organization. The relationships between different variables were analyzed using structural equation modeling.

Findings
The results indicate that the dimensions of LMX mediated the relationships between the dimensions of transformational leadership and organizational commitment dimensions. The contribution dimension of LMX acts as a consequence, rather than an antecedent of commitment. These findings are important since they may serve as a bind between leadership dimensions and the kind of organizational commitment that each of these dimensions can generate in followers.

Originality/value
To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirical study that tests the interaction of transformational leadership and LMX on organizational commitment in a French context. The originality of this work leads on investigating these three concepts as multidimensional constructs and focusing on the mediating role of LMX in the relationship between dimensions of transformational leadership and different forms of organizational commitment which can be considered as a novelty in the field of research in this area. As a result, this study addresses concerns about that lack of academic research on the mechanisms by which transformational leaders influence the organizational commitment of their followers.

The six emotional stages of organizational change

Citation

Castillo, C., Fernandez, V., & Sallan, J. M. (2018). The six emotional stages of organizational change. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 31(3), 468–493.

doi: http://doi.org/10.1108/JOCM-05-2016-0084
UPCommons: http://hdl.handle.net/2117/118032

Abstract

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to define a model that both describes the evolution of the emotional stages of individuals during perceived negative organizational change and explains the evolution of their behavioral patterns and the effects on relationships with social environments (family, friends, co-workers, supervisor and organization).

Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative methodological research design was adopted, using individual interviews as the primary method of qualitative data collection. In total, 15 people who experienced perceived negative organizational changes participated in this research.

Findings
Through empirical qualitative research, an adapted Kübler (1969) model was used as a starting point. Co-occurrence analysis of the interviews led to the combination of the first two stages (denial and anger) of this model because they always appeared together. Two new stages (revising and deserting), based on the research of Schalk and Roe (2007), complete the model. Subsequently, the model comprised six emotional stages: denial and anger, bargaining, depression, revising, deserting and acceptance. The results show that individuals can move freely between the first four stages, but deserting and acceptance are always the final stages. Experiencing these emotional stages can influence the relationships between individuals and their social environments. During “denial and anger” and “bargaining,” the relationships with family, friends and co-workers improve; but during depression, the relationships with family and friends deteriorate, but because co-workers become much more important, those relationships improve. Relationships with supervisors deteriorate during denial and anger and depression but remain stable during bargaining.

Research limitations/implications
Time’s passage became an inconvenience accounted for during data collection. Over time, separate events can be confused, and nuances that were once determinants can be eliminated. Longitudinal studies at various stages of the change process would complement these results.

Practical implications
These results can guide managers in foreseeing and anticipating the actions that would reduce the emotional impact of organizational change and mitigate the impact of individuals’ negative emotions on the organization.

Originality/value
This paper extends the existing theory about the strategies of coping and organizational changes.

The infamous Stephen Elop email

These days I am reading Josh Bernoff's Writing without bullshit. He tells us that fear and lazyness are the main drivers of corporate bullshit. An outstanding example of this is the email that Microsoft's vice-president Stephen Elop sent in 2014 announcing a layoff of 12,500 jobs.

Microsoft's archives make the email accessible still today. Here you can have in its full glory. You will find the relevant sentence printed in bold.


Hello there,

Microsoft’s strategy is focused on productivity and our desire to help people “do more.” As the Microsoft Devices Group, our role is to light up this strategy for people. We are the team creating the hardware that showcases the finest of Microsoft’s digital work and digital life experiences, and we will be the confluence of the best of Microsoft’s applications, operating systems and cloud services.

To align with Microsoft’s strategy, we plan to focus our efforts. Given the wide range of device experiences, we must concentrate on the areas where we can add the most value. The roots of this company and our future are in productivity and helping people get things done. Our fundamental focus – for phones, Surface, for meetings with devices like PPI, Xbox hardware and new areas of innovation — is to build on that strength. While our direction in the majority of our teams is largely unchanging, we have had an opportunity to plan carefully about the alignment of phones within Microsoft as the transferring Nokia team continues with its integration process.

It is particularly important to recognize that the role of phones within Microsoft is different than it was within Nokia. Whereas the hardware business of phones within Nokia was an end unto itself, within Microsoft all our devices are intended to embody the finest of Microsoft’s digital work and digital life experiences, while accruing value to Microsoft’s overall strategy. Our device strategy must reflect Microsoft’s strategy and must be accomplished within an appropriate financial envelope. Therefore, we plan to make some changes.

We will be particularly focused on making the market for Windows Phone. In the near term, we plan to drive Windows Phone volume by targeting the more affordable smartphone segments, which are the fastest growing segments of the market, with Lumia. In addition to the portfolio already planned, we plan to deliver additional lower-cost Lumia devices by shifting select future Nokia X designs and products to Windows Phone devices. We expect to make this shift immediately while continuing to sell and support existing Nokia X products.

To win in the higher price segments, we will focus on delivering great breakthrough products in alignment with major milestones ahead from both the Windows team and the Applications and Services Group. We will ensure that the very best experiences and scenarios from across the company will be showcased on our products. We plan to take advantage of innovation from the Windows team, like Universal Windows Apps, to continue to enrich the Windows application ecosystem. And in the very lowest price ranges, we plan to run our first phones business for maximum efficiency with a smaller team.

We expect these changes to have an impact to our team structure. With our focus, we plan to consolidate the former Smart Devices and Mobile Phones business units into one phone business unit that is responsible for all of our phone efforts. Under the plan, the phone business unit will be led by Jo Harlow with key members from both the Smart Devices and Mobile Phones teams in the management team. This team will be responsible for the success of our Lumia products, the transition of select future Nokia X products to Lumia and for the ongoing operation of the first phone business.

As part of the effort, we plan to select the appropriate business model approach for our sales markets while continuing to offer our products in all markets with a strong focus on maintaining business continuity. We will determine each market approach based on local market dynamics, our ability to profitably deliver local variants, current Lumia momentum and the strategic importance of the market to Microsoft. This will all be balanced with our overall capability to invest.

Our phone engineering efforts are expected to be concentrated in Salo, Finland (for future, high-end Lumia products) and Tampere, Finland (for more affordable devices). We plan to develop the supporting technologies in both locations. We plan to ramp down engineering work in Oulu. While we plan to reduce the engineering in Beijing and San Diego, both sites will continue to have supporting roles, including affordable devices in Beijing and supporting specific US requirements in San Diego. Espoo and Lund are planned to continue to be focused on application software development.

We plan to right-size our manufacturing operations to align to the new strategy and take advantage of integration opportunities. We expect to focus phone production mainly in Hanoi, with some production to continue in Beijing and Dongguan. We plan to shift other Microsoft manufacturing and repair operations to Manaus and Reynosa respectively, and start a phased exit from Komaron, Hungary.

In short, we will focus on driving Lumia volume in the areas where we are already successful today in order to make the market for Windows Phone. With more speed, we will build on our success in the affordable smartphone space with new products offering more differentiation. We’ll focus on acquiring new customers in the markets where Microsoft’s services and products are most concentrated. And, we’ll continue building momentum around applications.

We plan that this would result in an estimated reduction of 12,500 factory direct and professional employees over the next year. These decisions are difficult for the team, and we plan to support departing team members with severance benefits.

More broadly across the Devices team, we will continue our efforts to bring iconic tablets to market in ways that complement our OEM partners, power the next generation of meetings & collaboration devices and thoughtfully expand Windows with new interaction models. With a set of changes already implemented earlier this year in these teams, this means there will be limited change for the Surface, Xbox hardware, PPI/meetings or next generation teams.

We recognize these planned changes are broad and have very difficult implications for many of our team members. We will work to provide as much clarity and information as possible. Today and over the coming weeks leaders across the organization will hold town halls, host information sharing sessions and provide more details on the intranet.

The team transferring from Nokia and the teams that have been part of Microsoft have each experienced a number of remarkable changes these last few years. We operate in a competitive industry that moves rapidly, and change is necessary. As difficult as some of our changes are today, this direction deliberately aligns our work with the cross company efforts that Satya has described in his recent emails. Collectively, the clarity, focus and alignment across the company, and the opportunity to deliver the results of that work into the hands of people, will allow us to increase our success in the future.

Regards,

Stephen

Pre-registration and Open Science

In social sciences, especially psychology, the open science paradigm is drawing growing attention. Recently, the American Psychologist published a special issue on open science and data sharing.
Claims for the need of open science come from the replication crisis, which refers to a methodological crisis in science in which scientists have found that the results of many scientific studies are difficult or impossible to replicate/reproduce on subsequent investigation, either by independent researchers or by the original researchers themselves. The effect of replication crisis is especially salient in research fields in which scientific evidence is gathered through hypothesis testing, such as psychology. Recently, the American Psychologist published a special issue on open science and data sharing. Those interested in that issue may follow the Improving your statistical inferences course by Daniel Läkens.

Tackling reproducibility crisis requires enhancing accumulation of evidence through data sharing, and ensuring avoiding some traps of hypothesis testing through pre-registration of studies. A good introduction about how registered reports work can be found here: https://cos.io/rr/.

The adoption of pre-registered reports by the scientific community may lead to substantial changes in scientific publishing.

Comunicación no violenta

En este vídeo, Sylvia Comas expone algunos principios de la comunicación no violenta. Hacia el final del vídeo, enuncia algunos principios que he encontrado interesantes para guiar nuestras interacciones en el mundo laboral en situaciones de conflicto:

• Es más apropiado hacer una petición que una exigencia. 
• Es mejor hacer preguntas que acusaciones.
• Describir el tema o situación evitando interpretaciones explícitas y comparaciones con otras personas o situaciones.
• Evitar juicios, y expresarse desde el "yo"y no desde el "tú". En vez de deberías o tienes que, mejor decir preferiría o me gustaría.  En vez de "tienes que entregar este trabajo ya", decir "me gustaría que entregaras este trabajo".
• Evitar absolutos y generalizaciones: evitar siempre, nunca, todo y nada.
• Tratar los temas de uno en uno, evitando derivar la conversación a otros temas conflictivos y que de este modo acumulemos emociones negativas.

Y hacia el principio expone algunos principios generales interesantes:

• Al exponer una situación que origina un conflicto, en vez de expresar juicios de intenciones, es mejor centrarse en observaciones objetivas y precisas sobre los hechos.
• Esto no significa que podamos expresar juicios o opiniones sobre la actuación de otras personas, pero es mejor hacerlo desde lo que uno está sintiendo o experimentando.
• Escoger el contexto: plantear un conflicto en un lugar y momento adecuado (evitar el aquí te pillo, aquí te mato), y procurar no mantener conversaciones delicadas delante de terceros.

Heuristics of node selection criteria to assess robustness of world airport network

Citation

Soria, M., Lordan, O.; Sallan, J. M. (2017). Heuristics of node selection criteria to assess robustness of world airport network. Chinese Journal of Aeronautics, 30(4), 1473-1480.
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cja.2017.04.012
UPCommons: http://hdl.handle.net/2117/108021

Abstract

The world airport network (WAN) is one of the networked infrastructures that shape today's economic and social activity, so its resilience against incidents affecting the WAN is an important problem. In this paper, the robustness of air route networks is extended by defining and testing several heuristics to define selection criteria to detect the critical nodes of the WAN. In addition to heuristics based on genetic algorithms and simulated annealing, custom heuristics based on node damage and node betweenness are defined. The most effective heuristic is a multi-attack heuristic combining both custom heuristics. Results obtained are of importance not only for advance in the understanding of the structure of complex networks, but also for critical node detection.

Turnover and balance between exploration and exploitation processes for high-performance teams

Citation

Fernandez, V., Simo, P., & Sallan, J. M. (2016). Turnover and balance between exploration and exploitation processes for high-performance teams. Team Performance Management, 22(3/4), 204-222.
doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/TPM-08-2015-0035
UPCommons: http://hdl.handle.net/2117/88373

Abstract

Purpose
This paper aims to use macro-level theories based on the equilibrium between the exploration and exploitation of resources in an organisation to examine the association between turnover and performance through the analysis of a professional football (soccer) team in the Premier League, namely, Manchester United Football Club.

Design/methodology/approach
This study compiles historical data for 24 seasons of the Premier League between 1984-1985 and 2008-2009. Using these data, the authors define measures of performance and player turnover.

Findings
The results show the existence of an inverted U-shaped relationship between exploration and exploitation (turnover processes) and group efficiency under certain conditions, such as the number of work systems considered and the period during which the level of turnover is calculated.

Originality/value
Most research on employee turnover suggests that reductions in turnover have a positive effect on the efficiency of the organisation. However, the present study suggests that worker turnover can be analysed using theories based on the equilibrium between the processes of resource exploitation and exploration, especially for high-performance work groups. These theories predict an inverted U-shaped relationship between turnover and performance, which has been identified through empirical analysis.

El camino a la iluminación

El simple hecho de mostrar esta entrada de PhD Comics de Jorge Cham deja bien claro que aún estoy en fase de formación.

Análisis de fiablidad en R

Los interesados en realizar análisis de fiabilidad (reliability analysis) de escalas en R pueden encontrar útil este tutorial.

Evidence-based debate

Algunos temas sobre los que podría realizarse un debate basado en evidencias:

• Efectividad de las encuestas de los estudiantes
• Beneficios y problemas del teletrabajo
• Cubrir puestos directivos con personal de la empresa o personal externo