Remanufactured printer cartridges are a more environmentally friendly and cost-effective alternative to new cartridges. Each year, over 300 million used cartridges end up in landfills globally. Remanufacturing cartridges involves cleaning and refilling them, allowing them to be reused while keeping more plastic waste out of landfills. It also saves resources and energy compared to producing new cartridges. Remanufactured cartridges are typically 40-60% cheaper than new ones but provide comparable quality and reliability. Choosing remanufactured cartridges is better for the environment and a consumer's budget.
Understanding the differences between light, dark & bright green papers can be confusing, so to help you navigate this space New Leaf Paper invited Neva Murtha of Canopy to faciliate a free webinar on Tuesday, March 16th at 12pm PDT/3pm EDT.
Neva led the development of Canopy's Eco Paper Database (a listing of environmentally preferable papers available in the North American marketplace), drives Canopy's innovative Second Harvest campaign (building the case for investment in non-wood paper development), works with North American printers to develop Ancient Forest Friendly paper policies, sits on the board of the Environmental Paper Network and led the development of EPN's Paper Steps.
This free webinar explores the differences among environmentally preferable papers, including those commonly known as light, dark & bright green, to help you make more informed purchasing decisions.
Future Trends - Recycling - Material Recycling FacilitiesBruce LaCour
Eventually, non-organic waste will be a big business, and recycling will be one of the ways to recover the cost of creating, collecting, and sorting the waste created by communities. The launching point for this business will be the Material Recovery Facility.
This project involved bringing together two industries that rarely intersect at any point: waste paper and warm clothes. It re-imagines the end-use of waste paper, beyond just recycling. It proposes re-purposing the cellulose in that paper, processing it and using it as the lining in warm clothing. This results in creating a closed loop, saving on raw material costs and a highly effective, yet underutilized insulator being put to good use.
The choice of printing process for paperboard packaging is influenced by a number of key parameters including Product Applications, Design Features, End Use, Print Performance, Run Length, sustainability, and Overall Value. These are discussed as it regards Sheetfed and Web Offset Lithography, Flexography, and Digital Printing.
Technology Management - A Complex Adaptive Systems ApproachIan McCarthy
There are systems methods and evolutionary processes that can help organisations understand the innovative patterns and competitive mechanisms that influence the creation, management and exploitation of technology. This paper presents a specific model based on the evolutionary processes of variation, selection, retention and struggle, coupled with fitness landscape theory. This latter concept is a complex adaptive systems theory that has attained recognition as an approach for visually mapping the strategic options an evolving system could pursue. The relevance and utility of fitness landscape theory to the strategic management of technology is explored, and a definition and model of technological fitness provided. The complex adaptive systems perspective adopted by this paper, views organisations as evolving systems that formulate strategies by classifying, selecting, adopting and exploiting various combinations of technological capabilities. A model called the strategy configuration chain is presented to illustrate this strategic process.
Achieving contextual ambidexterity in R&D organizations: a management control...Ian McCarthy
Research on how managers control R&D activities has tended to focus on the performance measurement systems used to exploit existing knowledge and capabilities. This focus has been at the expense of how broader forms of management control could be used to enable R&D contextual ambidexterity, the capacity to attain appropriate levels of exploitation and exploration behaviors in the same R&D organizational unit. In this paper, we develop a conceptual framework for understanding how different types of control system, guided by different R&D strategic goals, can be used to induce and balance both exploitation and exploration. We illustrate the elements of this framework and their relations using data from biotechnology firms, and then discuss how the framework provides a basis to empirically examine a number of important control relationships and phenomena.
Understanding the differences between light, dark & bright green papers can be confusing, so to help you navigate this space New Leaf Paper invited Neva Murtha of Canopy to faciliate a free webinar on Tuesday, March 16th at 12pm PDT/3pm EDT.
Neva led the development of Canopy's Eco Paper Database (a listing of environmentally preferable papers available in the North American marketplace), drives Canopy's innovative Second Harvest campaign (building the case for investment in non-wood paper development), works with North American printers to develop Ancient Forest Friendly paper policies, sits on the board of the Environmental Paper Network and led the development of EPN's Paper Steps.
This free webinar explores the differences among environmentally preferable papers, including those commonly known as light, dark & bright green, to help you make more informed purchasing decisions.
Future Trends - Recycling - Material Recycling FacilitiesBruce LaCour
Eventually, non-organic waste will be a big business, and recycling will be one of the ways to recover the cost of creating, collecting, and sorting the waste created by communities. The launching point for this business will be the Material Recovery Facility.
This project involved bringing together two industries that rarely intersect at any point: waste paper and warm clothes. It re-imagines the end-use of waste paper, beyond just recycling. It proposes re-purposing the cellulose in that paper, processing it and using it as the lining in warm clothing. This results in creating a closed loop, saving on raw material costs and a highly effective, yet underutilized insulator being put to good use.
The choice of printing process for paperboard packaging is influenced by a number of key parameters including Product Applications, Design Features, End Use, Print Performance, Run Length, sustainability, and Overall Value. These are discussed as it regards Sheetfed and Web Offset Lithography, Flexography, and Digital Printing.
Technology Management - A Complex Adaptive Systems ApproachIan McCarthy
There are systems methods and evolutionary processes that can help organisations understand the innovative patterns and competitive mechanisms that influence the creation, management and exploitation of technology. This paper presents a specific model based on the evolutionary processes of variation, selection, retention and struggle, coupled with fitness landscape theory. This latter concept is a complex adaptive systems theory that has attained recognition as an approach for visually mapping the strategic options an evolving system could pursue. The relevance and utility of fitness landscape theory to the strategic management of technology is explored, and a definition and model of technological fitness provided. The complex adaptive systems perspective adopted by this paper, views organisations as evolving systems that formulate strategies by classifying, selecting, adopting and exploiting various combinations of technological capabilities. A model called the strategy configuration chain is presented to illustrate this strategic process.
Achieving contextual ambidexterity in R&D organizations: a management control...Ian McCarthy
Research on how managers control R&D activities has tended to focus on the performance measurement systems used to exploit existing knowledge and capabilities. This focus has been at the expense of how broader forms of management control could be used to enable R&D contextual ambidexterity, the capacity to attain appropriate levels of exploitation and exploration behaviors in the same R&D organizational unit. In this paper, we develop a conceptual framework for understanding how different types of control system, guided by different R&D strategic goals, can be used to induce and balance both exploitation and exploration. We illustrate the elements of this framework and their relations using data from biotechnology firms, and then discuss how the framework provides a basis to empirically examine a number of important control relationships and phenomena.
Complex adaptive system mechanisms, adaptive management practices, and firm p...Ian McCarthy
As a fascinating concept, the mechanisms of complex adaptive system (CAS) attracted many researchers from a variety of disciplines. Nevertheless, how the mechanism-related variables, such as strategic resonance, accreting nodes, pattern forming, and catalytic behavior of organization, impact the firm product innovativeness is rarely addressed empirically in the new product development (NPD) literature. Also, there exist limited studies on the antecedents of the mechanisms of CAS in the NPD literature. In this respect, we identified and operationalized the adaptive management practices, which involve bonding, nonlinear, and attractor behaviors of management, as antecedents of mechanisms and firm product innovativeness. By studying 235 firms, we found that (1) strategic resonance and accreting nodes are positively related to firm product innovativeness, (2) bonding, nonlinear, and attractor behaviors of management positively influence the mechanism variables, and (3) market and technology turbulence impact the adaptive management practices. We also found that mechanisms of CAS partially mediate the relationship between adaptive management practices and firm product innovativeness.
Organisational diversity, evolution and cladistic classificationsIan McCarthy
This article presents a case for the construction of a formal classification of manufacturing systems using cladistics, a technique from the biological school of classification. A seven-stage framework for roducing a manufacturing cladogram is presented, along with a pilot case study example. This article describes the role that classification plays in the pure and applied sciences, the social sciences and reviews the status of existing manufacturing classifications. If organisational diversity and organisational change processes are governed by evolutionary mechanisms, studies of organisations based on an evolutionary approach such as cladistics could have potential, because as March [March JG. The evolution of evolution. In: Baum JAC, Singh JV, editors. Evolutionary dynamics of organizations. Oxford University Press, 1994. p. 39±52], page 45, states ``there is natural speculation that organisations, like species can be engineered by understanding the evolutionary processes well enough to intervene and produce competitive organisational effects''. It is suggested that a cladistic study could provide organisations with a ``knowledge map'' of the ecosystem in which they exist and by using this phylogenetic and situational analysis, they could determine coherent and appropriate action for the specification of change.
Understanding outsourcing contexts through information asymmetry and capabili...Ian McCarthy
Outsourcing is a strategic activity that has long been central to operations management research and practice. Yet, there are still many outsourcing management challenges that remain. In this article, we explore two of the outsourcing challenges that motivated this special issue and are central to the 10 articles included. To do this, we develop a theoretical model that examines how variations in capability fit and information asymmetry combine to present firms with four different outsourcing contexts. We then explain how each of the articles included in this special issue relate to our theoretical model and explore several avenues for future research.
Innovation in manufacturing as an evolutionary complex systemIan McCarthy
The focus of this paper is on innovation in terms of the new product development processes and to discuss its main features. This is followed by a presentation of the new ideas emerging from complex systems science. It is then demonstrated how complex systems provides an overall conceptual framework for thinking about innovation and for considering how this helps to provide understanding and advice for the organisation of new product development in different circumstances. Three case studies are quoted which illustrate the application of these new ideas.
The ability of current statistical classifications to separateservices and ma...Ian McCarthy
This paper explores the performance of current statistical classification systems in classifying firms and, in particular, their ability to distinguish between firms that provide services and firms that provide manufacturing. We find that a large share of firms, almost 20%, are not classified as expected based on a comparison of their statements of activities with the assigned industry codes. This result is robust to analyses on different levels of aggregation and is validated in an additional survey. It is well known from earlier literature that industry classification systems are not perfect. This paper provides a quantification of the flaws in classifications of firms. Moreover, it is explained why the classifications of firms are imprecise. The increasing complexity of production, inertia in changes to statistical systems and the increasing integration of manufacturing products and services are some of the primary and interrelated explanations for this lack of precision. We emphasise, however, that such classification problems are not resolved using a ‘technical fix’. Any statistical classification method involves a number of tradeoffs.
Toward a Phylogenetic Reconstruction of Organizational LifeIan McCarthy
Classification is an important activity that facilitates theory development in many academic disciplines. Scholars in fields such as organizational science, management science and economics and have long recognized that classification offers an approach for ordering and understanding the diversity of organizational taxa (groups of one or more similar organizational entities). However, even the most prominent organizational classifications have limited utility, as they tend to be shaped by a specific research bias, inadequate units of analysis and a standard neoclassical economic view that does not naturally accommodate the disequilibrium dynamics of modern competition. The result is a relatively large number of individual and unconnected organizational classifications, which tend to ignore the processes of change responsible for organizational diversity. Collectively they fail to provide any sort of universal system for ordering, compiling and presenting knowledge on organizational diversity. This paper has two purposes. First, it reviews the general status of the major theoretical approaches to biological and organizational classification and compares the methods and resulting classifications derived from each approach. Definitions of key terms and a discussion on the three principal schools of biological classification (evolutionary systematics, phenetics and cladistics) are included in this review. Second, this paper aims to encourage critical thinking and debate about the use of the cladistic classification approach for inferring and representing the historical relationships underpinning organizational diversity. This involves examining the feasibility of applying the logic of common ancestry to populations of organizations. Consequently, this paper is exploratory and preparatory in style, with illustrations and assertions concerning the study and classification of organizational diversity.
Achieving Agility Using Cladistics: An Evolutionary AnalysisIan McCarthy
To achieve the status of an agile manufacturer, organisations need to clearly understand the concept of agility, relative to their industrial and business circumstances and to then identify and acquire the appropriate characteristics which will result in an agile manufacturing organisation. This paper is not simply another discussion on the definition of agility, or a philosophical debate on the drivers and characteristics of agility. This paper presents an evolutionary modelling technique (cladistics) which could enable organisations to systematically manage and understand the emergence of new manufacturing forms within their business environment. This fundamental, but important insight is valuable for achieving successful organisational design and change. Thus, regardless of the industrial sector, managers could use cladistics as an evolutionary analysis technique for determining ``where they have been and where they are now''. Moving from a non-agile manufacture to an agile manufacture is a process of organisational change and evolutionary development. This evolutionary method will enable organisations to understand the landscape of manufacturing possibilities that exist, to identify appropriate agile forms and to successfully navigate that landscape.
New Product Development as a Complex Adaptive System of DecisionsIan McCarthy
Early research on new product development (NPD) has produced descriptive frameworks and models that view the process as a linear system with sequential and discrete stages. More recently, recursive and chaotic frameworks of NPD have been developed, both of which acknowledge that NPD progresses through a series of stages, but with overlaps, feedback loops, and resulting behaviors that resist reductionism
and linear analysis. This article extends the linear, recursive, and chaotic frameworks by viewing NPD as a complex adaptive system (CAS) governed by three levels of decision making — in-stage, review, and strategic—and the accompanying decision rules. The research develops and presents propositions that predict how the configuration and organization of NPD decision-making agents will influence
the potential for three mutually dependent CAS phenomena: nonlinearity, selforganization, and emergence. Together these phenomena underpin the potential for NPD process adaptability and congruence. To support and to verify the propositions, this study uses comparative case studies, which show that NPD process adaptability occurs and that it is dependent on the number and variety of agents, their corresponding connections and interactions, and the ordering or disordering effect of the decision levels and rules. Thus, the CAS framework developed within this article maintains a fit among descriptive stance, system behavior, and innovation type, as it considers individual NPD processes to be capable of switching or toggling between different behaviors — linear to chaotic — to produce corresponding innovation outputs that range from incremental to radical in accord with market expectations.
Understanding the effects of outsourcing: unpacking the total factor producti...Ian McCarthy
Research on why firms should outsource and how they should do it has proliferated in the past two decades, but few consistent findings have emerged concerning the benefits of outsourcing. We argue that this is in part due to the lack of an adequate framework for measuring the effects of outsourcing. To address this, we present such a framework based upon the Cobb–Douglas productivity function. We explain how our framework can be used to unpack one component of the Cobb–Douglas productivity function, the ‘total factor productivity’, which represents the other numerous sub-variables that affect outsourcing productivity, beyond the capital and labour expenditures. We also demonstrate the framework using a simple illustrative example.
When customers get clever: Managerial approaches to dealing with creative con...Ian McCarthy
Creative consumers (defined as customers who adapt, modify, or transform a proprietary offering) represent an intriguing paradox for business. On
one hand, they can signify a black hole for future revenue, with breach of copyright and intellectual property. On the other hand, they represent a gold mine of ideas and business opportunities. Central to business is the need to create and capture value, and creative consumers demand a shift in the mindsets and business models of how firms accomplish both. Based upon their attitude and action toward customer innovation, we develop a typology of firms’ stances toward creative consumers. We then consider the implications of the stances model for corporate strategy and
examine a three-step approach to dealing with creative consumers: awareness, analysis, and response.
Why do some patents get licensed while others do not?Ian McCarthy
To understand why some patents get licensed and others do not, we estimate a portfolio of firm- and patent-level determinants for why a particular licensor’s patent was licensed over all technologically similar patents held by other licensors. Using data for licensed biopharmaceutical patents, we build a set of alternate patents that could have been licensed-in using topic modeling techniques. This provides a more sophisticated way of controlling for patent characteristics and analyzing the attractiveness of a licensor and the characteristics of the patent itself. We find that patents owned by licensors with technological prestige, experience at licensing, and combined technological depth and breadth have a greater chance at being chosen by licensees. This suggests that a licensor’s standing and organizational learning rather than the quality of its patent alone influence the success of outward licensing.
Making a face: Graphical illustrations of managerial stances toward customer ...Ian McCarthy
Creative consumers – consumers who adapt, modify or transform a proprietary offering – represent an intriguing paradox for business. On the one hand they can be a black hole for future revenue, with breach of copyright and intellectual property, while on the other hand they represent a gold mine of ideas and business opportunities. This problem is central to business – business needs to both create and capture value; the problem is that creative consumers demand a shift in the mindsets and business models of how firms both create and capture value. We develop a typology of firms’ stances to creative consumers based upon their attitude and action towards customer innovation. We then consider the implications of the stances model for corporate strategy, and examine a three-step approach to dealing with creative consumers, namely, awareness, analysis and response.
Game on: Engaging customers and employees through gamificationIan McCarthy
Managers are frequently tasked with increasing the engagement levels of key stakeholders, such as customers and employees. Gamification - defined as the application of game design principles to change behavior in non-gaming contexts - is a tool that, if crafted and implemented properly, can increase engagement. In this article we discuss how gamification can aid customer and employee engagement, and delineate between four different types of customers and employees who act as ‘players’ in gamified experiences. We include illustrative examples of gamification and conclude by presenting five lessons for managers who wish to utilize gamification.
Unpacking the Social Media Phenomenon: Towards a Research AgendaIan McCarthy
In this paper, we highlight some of the challenges and opportunities that social media presents to researchers, and offer relevant theoretical avenues to be explored. To do this, we present a model that unpacks social media by using a honeycomb of seven functional building blocks. We then examine each of the seven building blocks and, through appropriate social and socio-technical theories, raise questions that warrant further in-depth research to advance the conceptualization of social media in public affairs research. Finally, we combine the individual research questions for each building block back into the honeycomb model to illustrate how the theories in combination provide a powerful macro-lens for research on social media dynamics.
Product recovery decisions within the context of Extended Producer Responsibi...Ian McCarthy
Environmental and economic evidence is increasingly supporting the need for better analytical tools for evaluating the recovery of consumer products. In response, we present a novel mathematical model for determining what we call the Optimal Recovery Plan (ORP) for any given product. The ORP is based on an evaluation and optimization of the economics of remanufacturing consumer products versus demanufacturing in the context of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation, a driving force behind the adoption remanufacturing initiatives by firms. We provide an illustrative application of the model and then discuss its implications for scholars and practitioners concerned with sustainable business development.
Two related trends characterize the recent past: value propositions are migrating from the physical to the informational, and value creation is shifting from firms to consumers. These two trends meet in the phenomenon of “consumer-generated intellectual property” (CGIP). This article addresses the question: “How should firms manage the intellectual property that their customers create?” It explores how CGIP presents important dilemmas for managers and argues that consumers’ “intellectual property” should not be leveraged at the expense of their “emotional property.” It integrates these perspectives into a diagnostic framework and discusses eight strategies for firms to manage CGIP. (Keywords: Consumer Behavior, Intellectual Property, Innovation Management, New Product Management, Competitive Advantage, Consumers, Product Design)
An Integrated Approach to Studying Multiplexity in Entrepreneurial NetworksIan McCarthy
Multiplexity occurs in entrepreneurial networks when flows interact within and across relationships. It defines how these networks function and evolve and cannot be examined by studying network structure or flows separately. Despite the growing recognition of the importance of multiplexity, related research has remained limited and lacks an integrated approach to simultaneously examine structure and flows, thus restricting our understanding of entrepreneurial networks. We propose an integrated approach for conducting inductive studies into multiplexity, involving an adaptation of the “business networks” conceptual model, the configuration theory perspective, and the Q-analysis method.
Unpacking the social media phenomenon: towards a research agendaIan McCarthy
In this paper, we highlight some of the challenges and opportunities that social media presents to researchers, and offer relevant theoretical avenues to be explored. To do this, we present a model that unpacks social media by using a honeycomb of seven functional building blocks. We then examine each of the seven building blocks and, through appropriate social and socio-technical theories, raise questions that warrant further in-depth research to advance the conceptualization of social media in public affairs research. Finally, we combine the individual research questions for each building block back into the honeycomb model to illustrate how the theories in combination provide a powerful macro-lens for research on social media dynamics.
Organisational diversity, evolution and cladistics classificationsIan McCarthy
This article presents a case for the construction of a formal classification of manufacturing systems using cladistics, a technique from the biological school of classification. A seven-stage framework for producing a manufacturing cladogram is presented, along with a pilot case study example. This article describes the role that classification plays in the pure and applied sciences, the social sciences and reviews the status of existing manufacturing classifications. If organisational diversity and organisational change processes are governed by evolutionary mechanisms, studies of organisations based on an evolutionary approach such as cladistics could have potential, because as March (1994. p. 39], ``there is natural speculation that organisations, like species can be engineered by understanding the evolutionary processes well enough to intervene and produce competitive organisational effects''. It is suggested that a cladistic study could provide organisations with a ``knowledge map'' of the ecosystem in which they exist and by using this phylogenetic and situational analysis, they could determine coherent and appropriate action for the speciation of change.
Complex adaptive system mechanisms, adaptive management practices, and firm p...Ian McCarthy
As a fascinating concept, the mechanisms of complex adaptive system (CAS) attracted many researchers from a variety of disciplines. Nevertheless, how the mechanism-related variables, such as strategic resonance, accreting nodes, pattern forming, and catalytic behavior of organization, impact the firm product innovativeness is rarely addressed empirically in the new product development (NPD) literature. Also, there exist limited studies on the antecedents of the mechanisms of CAS in the NPD literature. In this respect, we identified and operationalized the adaptive management practices, which involve bonding, nonlinear, and attractor behaviors of management, as antecedents of mechanisms and firm product innovativeness. By studying 235 firms, we found that (1) strategic resonance and accreting nodes are positively related to firm product innovativeness, (2) bonding, nonlinear, and attractor behaviors of management positively influence the mechanism variables, and (3) market and technology turbulence impact the adaptive management practices. We also found that mechanisms of CAS partially mediate the relationship between adaptive management practices and firm product innovativeness.
Organisational diversity, evolution and cladistic classificationsIan McCarthy
This article presents a case for the construction of a formal classification of manufacturing systems using cladistics, a technique from the biological school of classification. A seven-stage framework for roducing a manufacturing cladogram is presented, along with a pilot case study example. This article describes the role that classification plays in the pure and applied sciences, the social sciences and reviews the status of existing manufacturing classifications. If organisational diversity and organisational change processes are governed by evolutionary mechanisms, studies of organisations based on an evolutionary approach such as cladistics could have potential, because as March [March JG. The evolution of evolution. In: Baum JAC, Singh JV, editors. Evolutionary dynamics of organizations. Oxford University Press, 1994. p. 39±52], page 45, states ``there is natural speculation that organisations, like species can be engineered by understanding the evolutionary processes well enough to intervene and produce competitive organisational effects''. It is suggested that a cladistic study could provide organisations with a ``knowledge map'' of the ecosystem in which they exist and by using this phylogenetic and situational analysis, they could determine coherent and appropriate action for the specification of change.
Understanding outsourcing contexts through information asymmetry and capabili...Ian McCarthy
Outsourcing is a strategic activity that has long been central to operations management research and practice. Yet, there are still many outsourcing management challenges that remain. In this article, we explore two of the outsourcing challenges that motivated this special issue and are central to the 10 articles included. To do this, we develop a theoretical model that examines how variations in capability fit and information asymmetry combine to present firms with four different outsourcing contexts. We then explain how each of the articles included in this special issue relate to our theoretical model and explore several avenues for future research.
Innovation in manufacturing as an evolutionary complex systemIan McCarthy
The focus of this paper is on innovation in terms of the new product development processes and to discuss its main features. This is followed by a presentation of the new ideas emerging from complex systems science. It is then demonstrated how complex systems provides an overall conceptual framework for thinking about innovation and for considering how this helps to provide understanding and advice for the organisation of new product development in different circumstances. Three case studies are quoted which illustrate the application of these new ideas.
The ability of current statistical classifications to separateservices and ma...Ian McCarthy
This paper explores the performance of current statistical classification systems in classifying firms and, in particular, their ability to distinguish between firms that provide services and firms that provide manufacturing. We find that a large share of firms, almost 20%, are not classified as expected based on a comparison of their statements of activities with the assigned industry codes. This result is robust to analyses on different levels of aggregation and is validated in an additional survey. It is well known from earlier literature that industry classification systems are not perfect. This paper provides a quantification of the flaws in classifications of firms. Moreover, it is explained why the classifications of firms are imprecise. The increasing complexity of production, inertia in changes to statistical systems and the increasing integration of manufacturing products and services are some of the primary and interrelated explanations for this lack of precision. We emphasise, however, that such classification problems are not resolved using a ‘technical fix’. Any statistical classification method involves a number of tradeoffs.
Toward a Phylogenetic Reconstruction of Organizational LifeIan McCarthy
Classification is an important activity that facilitates theory development in many academic disciplines. Scholars in fields such as organizational science, management science and economics and have long recognized that classification offers an approach for ordering and understanding the diversity of organizational taxa (groups of one or more similar organizational entities). However, even the most prominent organizational classifications have limited utility, as they tend to be shaped by a specific research bias, inadequate units of analysis and a standard neoclassical economic view that does not naturally accommodate the disequilibrium dynamics of modern competition. The result is a relatively large number of individual and unconnected organizational classifications, which tend to ignore the processes of change responsible for organizational diversity. Collectively they fail to provide any sort of universal system for ordering, compiling and presenting knowledge on organizational diversity. This paper has two purposes. First, it reviews the general status of the major theoretical approaches to biological and organizational classification and compares the methods and resulting classifications derived from each approach. Definitions of key terms and a discussion on the three principal schools of biological classification (evolutionary systematics, phenetics and cladistics) are included in this review. Second, this paper aims to encourage critical thinking and debate about the use of the cladistic classification approach for inferring and representing the historical relationships underpinning organizational diversity. This involves examining the feasibility of applying the logic of common ancestry to populations of organizations. Consequently, this paper is exploratory and preparatory in style, with illustrations and assertions concerning the study and classification of organizational diversity.
Achieving Agility Using Cladistics: An Evolutionary AnalysisIan McCarthy
To achieve the status of an agile manufacturer, organisations need to clearly understand the concept of agility, relative to their industrial and business circumstances and to then identify and acquire the appropriate characteristics which will result in an agile manufacturing organisation. This paper is not simply another discussion on the definition of agility, or a philosophical debate on the drivers and characteristics of agility. This paper presents an evolutionary modelling technique (cladistics) which could enable organisations to systematically manage and understand the emergence of new manufacturing forms within their business environment. This fundamental, but important insight is valuable for achieving successful organisational design and change. Thus, regardless of the industrial sector, managers could use cladistics as an evolutionary analysis technique for determining ``where they have been and where they are now''. Moving from a non-agile manufacture to an agile manufacture is a process of organisational change and evolutionary development. This evolutionary method will enable organisations to understand the landscape of manufacturing possibilities that exist, to identify appropriate agile forms and to successfully navigate that landscape.
New Product Development as a Complex Adaptive System of DecisionsIan McCarthy
Early research on new product development (NPD) has produced descriptive frameworks and models that view the process as a linear system with sequential and discrete stages. More recently, recursive and chaotic frameworks of NPD have been developed, both of which acknowledge that NPD progresses through a series of stages, but with overlaps, feedback loops, and resulting behaviors that resist reductionism
and linear analysis. This article extends the linear, recursive, and chaotic frameworks by viewing NPD as a complex adaptive system (CAS) governed by three levels of decision making — in-stage, review, and strategic—and the accompanying decision rules. The research develops and presents propositions that predict how the configuration and organization of NPD decision-making agents will influence
the potential for three mutually dependent CAS phenomena: nonlinearity, selforganization, and emergence. Together these phenomena underpin the potential for NPD process adaptability and congruence. To support and to verify the propositions, this study uses comparative case studies, which show that NPD process adaptability occurs and that it is dependent on the number and variety of agents, their corresponding connections and interactions, and the ordering or disordering effect of the decision levels and rules. Thus, the CAS framework developed within this article maintains a fit among descriptive stance, system behavior, and innovation type, as it considers individual NPD processes to be capable of switching or toggling between different behaviors — linear to chaotic — to produce corresponding innovation outputs that range from incremental to radical in accord with market expectations.
Understanding the effects of outsourcing: unpacking the total factor producti...Ian McCarthy
Research on why firms should outsource and how they should do it has proliferated in the past two decades, but few consistent findings have emerged concerning the benefits of outsourcing. We argue that this is in part due to the lack of an adequate framework for measuring the effects of outsourcing. To address this, we present such a framework based upon the Cobb–Douglas productivity function. We explain how our framework can be used to unpack one component of the Cobb–Douglas productivity function, the ‘total factor productivity’, which represents the other numerous sub-variables that affect outsourcing productivity, beyond the capital and labour expenditures. We also demonstrate the framework using a simple illustrative example.
When customers get clever: Managerial approaches to dealing with creative con...Ian McCarthy
Creative consumers (defined as customers who adapt, modify, or transform a proprietary offering) represent an intriguing paradox for business. On
one hand, they can signify a black hole for future revenue, with breach of copyright and intellectual property. On the other hand, they represent a gold mine of ideas and business opportunities. Central to business is the need to create and capture value, and creative consumers demand a shift in the mindsets and business models of how firms accomplish both. Based upon their attitude and action toward customer innovation, we develop a typology of firms’ stances toward creative consumers. We then consider the implications of the stances model for corporate strategy and
examine a three-step approach to dealing with creative consumers: awareness, analysis, and response.
Why do some patents get licensed while others do not?Ian McCarthy
To understand why some patents get licensed and others do not, we estimate a portfolio of firm- and patent-level determinants for why a particular licensor’s patent was licensed over all technologically similar patents held by other licensors. Using data for licensed biopharmaceutical patents, we build a set of alternate patents that could have been licensed-in using topic modeling techniques. This provides a more sophisticated way of controlling for patent characteristics and analyzing the attractiveness of a licensor and the characteristics of the patent itself. We find that patents owned by licensors with technological prestige, experience at licensing, and combined technological depth and breadth have a greater chance at being chosen by licensees. This suggests that a licensor’s standing and organizational learning rather than the quality of its patent alone influence the success of outward licensing.
Making a face: Graphical illustrations of managerial stances toward customer ...Ian McCarthy
Creative consumers – consumers who adapt, modify or transform a proprietary offering – represent an intriguing paradox for business. On the one hand they can be a black hole for future revenue, with breach of copyright and intellectual property, while on the other hand they represent a gold mine of ideas and business opportunities. This problem is central to business – business needs to both create and capture value; the problem is that creative consumers demand a shift in the mindsets and business models of how firms both create and capture value. We develop a typology of firms’ stances to creative consumers based upon their attitude and action towards customer innovation. We then consider the implications of the stances model for corporate strategy, and examine a three-step approach to dealing with creative consumers, namely, awareness, analysis and response.
Game on: Engaging customers and employees through gamificationIan McCarthy
Managers are frequently tasked with increasing the engagement levels of key stakeholders, such as customers and employees. Gamification - defined as the application of game design principles to change behavior in non-gaming contexts - is a tool that, if crafted and implemented properly, can increase engagement. In this article we discuss how gamification can aid customer and employee engagement, and delineate between four different types of customers and employees who act as ‘players’ in gamified experiences. We include illustrative examples of gamification and conclude by presenting five lessons for managers who wish to utilize gamification.
Unpacking the Social Media Phenomenon: Towards a Research AgendaIan McCarthy
In this paper, we highlight some of the challenges and opportunities that social media presents to researchers, and offer relevant theoretical avenues to be explored. To do this, we present a model that unpacks social media by using a honeycomb of seven functional building blocks. We then examine each of the seven building blocks and, through appropriate social and socio-technical theories, raise questions that warrant further in-depth research to advance the conceptualization of social media in public affairs research. Finally, we combine the individual research questions for each building block back into the honeycomb model to illustrate how the theories in combination provide a powerful macro-lens for research on social media dynamics.
Product recovery decisions within the context of Extended Producer Responsibi...Ian McCarthy
Environmental and economic evidence is increasingly supporting the need for better analytical tools for evaluating the recovery of consumer products. In response, we present a novel mathematical model for determining what we call the Optimal Recovery Plan (ORP) for any given product. The ORP is based on an evaluation and optimization of the economics of remanufacturing consumer products versus demanufacturing in the context of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation, a driving force behind the adoption remanufacturing initiatives by firms. We provide an illustrative application of the model and then discuss its implications for scholars and practitioners concerned with sustainable business development.
Two related trends characterize the recent past: value propositions are migrating from the physical to the informational, and value creation is shifting from firms to consumers. These two trends meet in the phenomenon of “consumer-generated intellectual property” (CGIP). This article addresses the question: “How should firms manage the intellectual property that their customers create?” It explores how CGIP presents important dilemmas for managers and argues that consumers’ “intellectual property” should not be leveraged at the expense of their “emotional property.” It integrates these perspectives into a diagnostic framework and discusses eight strategies for firms to manage CGIP. (Keywords: Consumer Behavior, Intellectual Property, Innovation Management, New Product Management, Competitive Advantage, Consumers, Product Design)
An Integrated Approach to Studying Multiplexity in Entrepreneurial NetworksIan McCarthy
Multiplexity occurs in entrepreneurial networks when flows interact within and across relationships. It defines how these networks function and evolve and cannot be examined by studying network structure or flows separately. Despite the growing recognition of the importance of multiplexity, related research has remained limited and lacks an integrated approach to simultaneously examine structure and flows, thus restricting our understanding of entrepreneurial networks. We propose an integrated approach for conducting inductive studies into multiplexity, involving an adaptation of the “business networks” conceptual model, the configuration theory perspective, and the Q-analysis method.
Unpacking the social media phenomenon: towards a research agendaIan McCarthy
In this paper, we highlight some of the challenges and opportunities that social media presents to researchers, and offer relevant theoretical avenues to be explored. To do this, we present a model that unpacks social media by using a honeycomb of seven functional building blocks. We then examine each of the seven building blocks and, through appropriate social and socio-technical theories, raise questions that warrant further in-depth research to advance the conceptualization of social media in public affairs research. Finally, we combine the individual research questions for each building block back into the honeycomb model to illustrate how the theories in combination provide a powerful macro-lens for research on social media dynamics.
Organisational diversity, evolution and cladistics classificationsIan McCarthy
This article presents a case for the construction of a formal classification of manufacturing systems using cladistics, a technique from the biological school of classification. A seven-stage framework for producing a manufacturing cladogram is presented, along with a pilot case study example. This article describes the role that classification plays in the pure and applied sciences, the social sciences and reviews the status of existing manufacturing classifications. If organisational diversity and organisational change processes are governed by evolutionary mechanisms, studies of organisations based on an evolutionary approach such as cladistics could have potential, because as March (1994. p. 39], ``there is natural speculation that organisations, like species can be engineered by understanding the evolutionary processes well enough to intervene and produce competitive organisational effects''. It is suggested that a cladistic study could provide organisations with a ``knowledge map'' of the ecosystem in which they exist and by using this phylogenetic and situational analysis, they could determine coherent and appropriate action for the speciation of change.
Paper recycling is the process of recovering waste paper and
remaking it into new paper products. It is estimated that on a
global basis municipal solid waste constitutes of about 35% by
weight of paper and paper products which are recyclable.
http://www.wirefabrik.com/snippets/842431570SNIP-MAY-11.pdf
Choosing not to recycle aerosol products harms the environment. Nearly 1 million pounds of waste find their way into landfills each year from Americans alone.
This presentation focuses on the global trends in the sustainable measures in a paperboard packaging. It also outlines the different measures of sustainability and the various steps that have to be taken to ensure sustainable procurement of paperboard packaging.
Start a Business Production of Disposable Plates and Cups From Waste Rice Hus...Ajjay Kumar Gupta
Start a Business Production of Disposable Plates and Cups from Waste Rice Husk Powder.
Disposable tableware covers all disposable tableware, such as paper, plastic, and coated paper cups, dishes, and so on. These items can be found in fast food restaurants, takeaways, and even airline meals. Consumers who prefer fast and simple clean up after events, etc. have found this type of disposable product to be quite common in private settings. Paper, plastic (including extended polystyrene foam), or plastic-coated paper are commonly used, just as they are for disposable cups.
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What Are Solutions For the Non-Recyclables That Our Industry Generates?Stephanie Elton
The following powerpoint presentation was shared at a Printing Industries of Northern California (PINC) webinar.
Channeled Resources Group provides solutions for both manufacturers and consumers of coated, treated, and laminated papers & films. We understand that companies need creative ideas and, particularly in today's economy, cost savings at both ends of the supply chain. Doing business should be simple and improve your company's bottom line.
CRG - Global Solutions is a recycler of both traditional and non-traditional papers. Our specialty is in processing roll stock and silicone coated release liner. We offer competitive pricing making us the ideal one-stop shop for your recycling needs.
Our niche is purchasing silicone-coated paper for repulping. We even buy discarded liner left behind from high-speed machine applicators.
Recycling has become one of the most important means of conserving the environment. Some of its benefits are maintaining environment cleanliness, preserving wildlife and reducing pollution. Recycling can also translate to more jobs and revenues for cities.
1. August 2002 | www.rechargermagazine.com
C Cartridge Solutions
‘Remanufacturing is a Superior Choice’
Save Money, Save the Environment with Remanufactured Cartridges
W
hat is remanufacturing? It’s
reusing and refilling ink
and toner printer car-
tridges so they can be used again.
Used cartridges are collected from
consumers and businesses, and
sorted by remanufacturers. The car-
tridges are disassembled and
cleaned, and any necessary replace-
ment parts are added. High-quality
toner or ink is added, and the car-
tridges are tested and packaged for
distribution.
Remanufactured cartridges con-
tain high-quality components, and
give excellent printing results. More
than 3 million companies around the world already rely on
these quality products for their printing needs. They trust the
quality and reliability of remanufactured cartridges for their
day-to-day printing needs as well as for their most important
projects.
Remanufacturing and the Environment
Every year, more than 300 million plastic printer cartridges end
up dumped in landfills in the United States and around the
world — almost eight cartridges are thrown away in the United
States every second, industry sources say. While we can never
completely stop the cycle of cartridges entering the waste
stream, we can at least stem the flow.
According to Lyra Research, in 2002 almost one billion toner
and inkjet cartridges will be shipped worldwide, and only 13
percent of those will be third-party cartridges, many of which
are remanufactured.
Remanufacturing matters. Every cartridge that we reman-
ufacture is one fewer going directly to the landfill. For every
remanufactured cartridge purchased, it’s one less new car-
tridge that needs to be produced, saving it from entering the
waste stream and from draining the planet’s natural
resources.
In fact, many printer cartridges end up dumped in places
you’d never expect — in rural areas of Asia, where they often
end up dumped in rivers or
stacked along roads, according to
a recent report by environmental
groups.
Save Money and Get Quality
Of course, many companies want to
be environmentally sensitive, but
the main reason companies use
remanufactured cartridges is to save
money. Most remanufactured car-
tridges are 40 to 60 percent cheaper
than the original equipment manu-
facturers’ (OEM) cartridges, with
comparable quality and reliability.
In fact, many remanufactured car-
tridges last longer, as they often have up to 20 percent more
toner than OEM cartridges.
In short, printer cartridges don’t need to be so expensive. In
order to protect their profit margins, the OEMs often claim that
non-OEM cartridges might damage your printer. No manufac-
turer (or remanufacturer) can guarantee that a cartridge will
never fail, but there is little chance that a toner or ink cartridge
could ever affect the functionality of a printer or fax machine.
Plus, many remanufacturers offer guarantees, promising to
repair any possible related damage; due to the excellent quality
of remanufactured products, this is an offer they almost never
have to make good on.
Customers Deserve a Choice
The way many OEMs design their cartridges discourages reuse
and remanufacturing. It would benefit both the environment
and consumers for the cartridges to be designed so that they can
be reused more easily. No car manufacturer would be allowed to
require consumers to buy its own brand of gasoline. Consumers
deserve a choice, and third-party suppliers and remanufacturers
provide that option.
Plus, many remanufacturers are small businesses, employing
workers from the local communities. There are more than
500,000 people employed by remanufacturers in the United
States.
by Megan Taylor | Recharger Magazine
Reprinted with permission from Recharger Magazine
2. Environmentally Friendly
The reason that many remanufacturers got into the business is
to help the environment. Reducing the number of cartridges
that take up the limited landfill spaces is good, and remanufac-
turing saves natural resources, as well. The plastic in each toner
cartridge takes three and a half quarts of oil to produce, and
each new inkjet cartridge requires two and a half ounces of oil.
Last year approximately two million cartridges were remanufac-
tured, saving more than three million gallons of oil. Half a gal-
lon of oil is conserved for each laser cartridge that is returned
for remanufacturing, industry sources say.
Saves Energy
Also, reusing cartridges saves energy. It uses significantly less
energy to remanufacture a cartridge than to produce a new
one, saving energy and the natural resources used to produce
power. Remanufacturing industries (of all types of products)
save as much energy each year as is produced by five nuclear
plants. Plus, remanufacturing reduces greenhouse gases, which
contribute to climate change, the U.S. Department of Energy
said.
It even takes less energy to remanufacture products than it
would to recycle them. Why? Recycling converts the material
back into raw material, which is used to manufacture an origi-
nal product, while remanufacturing captures a large percentage
of the resources from the original product, including the added
value of the labor, energy and capital.
The average toner cartridge weighs 3-1/2 to 4 pounds, which
means that the total weight of cartridges thrown away each year
is equivalent to 67,612 Ford Explorers or 112,463 Volkswagon
Beetles.
Reduces Waste
Plus, that’s more than 3 pounds of plastics, the main material in
most cartridges. Unfortunately, it’s plastic that’s not very recy-
clable, and in the landfill will take more than 100 years to
biodegrade.
Many consumers are familiar with the number system used
to indicate recyclability of plastics. These numbers range from
one, the most recyclable, to seven, the most difficult to recycle.
On many products, including shampoo and water bottles, the
number is stamped into the plastic on the bottom of the bottle.
PET plastic bottles, such as two-liter soda bottles, are fairly easy
to recycle, and are given a rating of one. Most laser cartridges
are rated a seven because they contain mixed resin plastics; esti-
mates indicate that only 5 to 10 percent of the plastics in this
category are recycled. In addition, the toner residue can seldom
be completely separated from the cartridge’s plastic, contami-
nating the plastic and making the cartridges even less likely to
be recycled.
A Better Choice
That’s where remanufacturing comes in. Remanufacturing is the
best way to save products from the landfill.
“Although recycling of toner cartridges does have a number
of benefits, remanufacturing is a superior choice, both environ-
mentally and economically. In most cases, recycling of plastics
has not proven to be economically viable,” said a report facili-
tated by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Industrial
Technologies.
“Toner cartridges are particularly difficult to recycle
because they are composed of several different types of
plastics and must be completely dismantled and sorted. In
addition, the cartridges are dirty, dusted with toner and
contain non-plastic parts, which require disposal,” the
report said.
“Remanufacturing, on the other hand, calls for cartridges
to be cleaned, inspected and refilled, reusing the majority of
the original plastic parts. For every cartridge that is remanu-
factured, over a pound of plastics is withheld from the waste
stream.”
‘Think About Environmental Impacts’
The Sierra Club, a well-known environmental group, advocates
“Sustainable Consumption,” maintaining a level of natural
resource use and consumerism that can be maintained by the
resources available. In an October 2000 report, the Sierra Club’s
Consumption task force encourages people to “think about the
environmental impacts of their consumption choices” and to
“make thoughtful choices as consumers.”
Choosing remanufactured products is one way to reduce
the environmental impact of printer cartridges, while getting
a high-quality product and saving you and your business
money.
August 2002 | www.rechargermagazine.com
“Although recycling of toner cartridges does have a number of benefits,
remanufacturing is a superior choice, both environmentally and economically.
In most cases, recycling of plastics has not proven to be economically viable.”
Reprinted with permission from Recharger Magazine