New Product Development Process (NPD) is a key aspect of launching new and innovative products in the market. Many products fail in the market because of technical risks, financial risks and product development time risks. It is very important to understand the overall risk factors associated with different stages of product development so that risks can be mitigated effectively. This paper presents a methodology to understand the risk associated with the initial stages of NPD. Design flexibility is higher in initial design stages requiring minimum redesign efforts and costs. It is a great opportunity to deal with risk factors and uncertainties in initial design stages than the later design stages. Product development costs in initial stages are around 5 to 10 percent but impact is 70 to 80 percent so exploration assessment in initial stages of NPD can be hugely beneficial. Stage-wise risk assessment will also provide the details of risk associated with each stage, which will be helpful in implementing appropriate mitigation strategies. Since transition from one stage to another stage of NPD is independent of the previous stage, different NPD stages can be easily expressed by the transition state of the Markov process. In this paper, the Markov process has been used for the risk assessment of initial stages of NPD, keeping mitigation strategies in mind. The three initial stages of NPD considered in this study include the concept design, detailed design and integration & testing stages. This paper also explores a method by integration of quality function deployment (QFD) and Markov process, to understand risk patterns associated with several complete design solutions (CFDs). By using QFD, the mapping between customer requirements can be reflected into risk assessment of complete design solutions (CFDs). This methodology has been demonstrated by a case study on Coffee Maker.

This study investigates the impact of spiritual leadership on the decision-making process in Kuwaiti ministries. Also, this study adopted a quantitative analytical, and descriptive approach. The study relies on the strategy of a comprehensive survey of the study population, and it depends on the questionnaire as a main tool in collecting primary data. The survey is conducted on 322 employees in the Kuwaiti ministries. The data analysis uses the SPSS version 26. The results show that spiritual leadership dimensions, vision, altruistic love, calling, hope, and membership, have a significant impact on the decision-making process in the Kuwaiti ministries.

The purpose of the loop layout problem is to determine the optimal sequence for operations by giving a cyclical arrangement of the machines along a given route. Calculating the initial cost of processes is critical in general. Additionally, these expenses can be reduced by proposing an alternate flow for the system's components. It has been observed that machines at gyms are utilized in accordance with a certain program, and so they require the optimal arrangement to accommodate these programs. In this study, the best cyclical arrangement of the machines in a gym was determined using an intuitive method. Customers enrolled in various training programs will be required to change machines in accordance with the sequence of the machines in their training program. The purpose of this study is to determine the optimal layout of these machines in order to alleviate gym traffic congestion and provide a more intuitive movement plan for consumers. The purpose is to build a layout plan that minimizes backward movement using an objective function created from the positions of the machines in the training programs, the number of customers who use these programs, and the frequency with which the machines appear in multiple programs. For the first time in gyms, an effective solution to the machine layout problem has been proposed using an optimization approach.

Self-service technologies (SSTs) are systems that enable customers to independently access banking services at a time and place of their choosing. Such technologies have been widely incorporated into banking logistical systems to increase the geographical coverage, reduce labor costs and provide customers with a better service, thereby enhancing their satisfaction and loyalty. The fundamental aim of this research is to propose and examine a conceptual model that best explains the key factors influencing Jordanian customers' intentions and usage of SST banking channels: Internet banking, Mobile banking, and Telebanking. The conceptual model proposed was based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2). This was extended by adding perceived risk as an external factor. A quantitative approach was selected and data gathered from 348 bank customers was analyzed through Structural equation modelling (SEM) was conducted using AMOS 21. The results show that behavioral intention is significantly influenced by performance expectancy, hedonic motivation, price value and perceived risk; however, social influences do not have a significant influence on behavioral intention. This study makes an important contribution by applying UTAUT2 to examine new technology (SSTs) in a new context (Jordan).

Nowadays, the selection and management of the optimal portfolio are the most primary fields of financial decision-making. Thereby, selecting a portfolio capable of providing the highest efficiency and, at the same time, the lowest investment risk has been turned into one of the most critical concerns among financial activists. However, in this selection, the two factors above are not the only determining ones. Various factors are affecting financial markets' behavior under different possible scenarios, which should be identified. In this paper, we examine the high sensitivity of the Iranian capital market to the exchange rate fluctuations in the different scenarios due to the lack of a unified view of the value of that rate among experts as one of the mentioned factors and obtain its value using Dempster–Shafer theory (DST). Then, a portfolio selection model that prefers stocks with higher ranks is proposed. Representative results of the real-life case study reveal that the submitted approach is productive and practically applicable.

The purpose of this study was to determine the role of subjective norms as a mediation between the relationship opportunity to donate and agreeableness personality on intention to donate. This research includes a quantitative approach with a survey method distributed to 400 participants of BPJAMSOSTEK East Java Province using a Likert scale. Data analysis using SEM using WarpPLS 6.0 software. The results of this study state that subjective norms can be a link between the opportunity to donate and in accordance with the intention to donate. This can increase the intention to donate for BPJAMSOSTEK participants. The increased intention to donate owned by participants will increase participants who donate.

The paper aimed to examine the influence of employees’ COVID-19 fear on their performance through intervening mechanisms such as mental wellbeing and organizational support. A total of 446 workers from the bank completed a self-report survey. Findings from regression analysis conducted with SPSS PROCESS MACRO (Model 7) revealed that employees’ COVID-19 fear did not have any direct negative influence on their performance but instead had an indirect effect on their performance via mental wellbeing (anxiety and depression). The findings also revealed that organizational support was instrumental in buffering the adverse impact of employees’ COVID-19 fear via mental wellbeing (anxiety and depression). Therefore, organizations should increase employee-supportive measures throughout this era of the COVID-19 to help reduce the adverse impact of employees’ COVID-19 fear.

The aim of this paper is to explore the influence of training and development on employee’s performance through different dimensions. Moreover, this study proposes a model in the area of human resource development to be used for testing and improving the performance of employees in the Indian travel and tourism sector. An integrated model was developed highlighting the relationship between the training and development and employee performance. Using the sample of 146 employees, structural equation modelling (SEM) was employed to validate the hypothesized relationship by evaluating the responses of employees working in the Indian travel agencies. The findings of this study demonstrate a strong relationship between training and development and employee performance in the travel industry and also can be used by managers and HR professionals for organizing exclusive training programs for improving employee's performance based on the dimensions used in this paper. The present study provides an empirical and theoretical explanation of different dimensions associated with training and development and employee performance, especially in the Indian tourism industry.

In service firms, customer orientation and service innovativeness are the important strategic features to pledge sustainable wealth and growth for financial performance. Focusing on customer means, companies must have rigorous knowledge and understanding of customer needs, expectations, and demands. To satisfy those demands and expectations, new products and/or services need to be carefully designed. Customer orientation involves the introduction of something new or different in response to market conditions and can be perceived as an important driver for innovation. The literature on innovation in services demonstrates that this territory is still under-investigated. Our study is an attempt to slightly complement this shortcoming by empirically solving several issues related to service firms. In particular, we propose the service innovativeness as a mediating effect in the relationship between customer orientation and financial performance. A theoretical research model was investigated via structural equation modeling (SEM) using 686 survey responses from the service industry. The findings of the structural equation model indicated that customer orientation is positively related to financial performance and service innovativeness respectively. And service innovativeness was found as a partial mediating effect, which means that the service innovativeness intervenes for some part but not all of the relationships between customer orientation and financial performance.

This study examines the dimensions of learning organization essential in enhancing Human Resources (HR) effectiveness towards the attainment of the strategic objectives of commercial banks operating in Nigeria. This study adopted a survey research design following a quantitative approach for data collection and analysis procedure. The respondents (professional bankers) were selected using a convenience sampling technique. A structured questionnaire was designed and administered to 305 respondents in the participating commercial banks. The data was analysed using a variance-based structural equation modelling via SmartPLS, version 3.2.9. The results showcased specific learning dimensions to consider in designing learning and development interventions for HR effectiveness in commercial banks. There is a dearth of literature on the specific learning dimensions that play a prominent role in ensuring HR effectiveness in the banking industry in developing countries, particularly in Nigeria. The outcomes of this study contribute to the extant literature and assist HR business partners in adding value to commercial banks through HR effectiveness.