Hood College

Purpose Service organizations are increasingly using technology to respond to consumer needs, necessitating the development of technological knowledge in their workforce, especially in technology-intensive service firms (TISFs). Technological knowledge is conceptualized as the technology-related specialized knowledge, expertise and skills possessed by the firm’s workforce. Research on technological knowledge has been sparse, and even less research has examined the technological knowledge–firm performance relationship in TISFs. Using the knowledge-based view (KBV) perspective, our study addresses this gap in the literature by investigating the role of technological knowledge as a driver of firm performance in TISFs. We also examine the moderating role of environmental hostility and employee autonomy on the above relationship. Design/methodology/approach Survey data are obtained using a questionnaire from a sample of 85 TISFs. We conduct statistical tests for common method bias and validity and reliability of our constructs and use hierarchical regression to test our hypotheses. Findings Our analysis shows that technological knowledge and employee autonomy are positively associated with TISF performance, while environmental hostility has a negative relationship with it. Further, environmental hostility enhances the relationship between technological knowledge and TISF performance. Research limitations/implications The relationship between technological knowledge and performance may not hold for other service sectors. However, there is a need to address different types of service firms in research studies. Hence, our focus on TISFs and our research findings add to our knowledge about an important service sector such as TISFs. Finally, a larger sample size, drawn from a nationwide or global TISF population, will provide additional validity to our results. Practical implications Managers need to manage the linkages between technological knowledge and performance in light of moderating factors such as environmental hostility and employee autonomy. Our results on the positive relationship between technological knowledge and employee autonomy with firm performance are consistent with the practitioner-oriented literature. Our research suggests that managers should go beyond measuring “hard” technology aspects of TISFs such as R&D spending, investment in technology, product upgrades, patents, etc. and assess the “soft” technology aspects that are more employee oriented (such as technological knowledge), as they can also enhance firm performance. Originality/value This study focuses on technological knowledge but conceptualizes this construct based on the perceptions of the service value chain’s members (the focal organization, vendors, suppliers and customers). Further, it contributes to the sparse research on technological knowledge and highlights the role of technological knowledge of the firm’s employees in driving performance in TISFs. Managers interested in enhancing TISF performance may consider going beyond an emphasis on “hard technology” and also focus on the “soft technology” aspects (such as employee autonomy), necessary for understanding and utilizing technology to better satisfy customer needs. They also need to manage the linkages between technological knowledge and performance in light of moderating factors such as environmental hostility and employee autonomy.

Abstract We examine bicoset digraphs and their natural properties from the point of view of symmetry. We then consider connected bicoset digraphs that are X-joins with collections of empty graphs, and show that their automorphism groups can be obtained from their natural irreducible quotients. We further show that such digraphs can be recognised from their connection sets.

ABSTRACT American horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus populations are recovering because of cooperation among diverse stakeholders and data-driven collective action. Limulus polyphemus is one of four extant species facing common threats, and conservation successes and limitations hold lessons applicable to all the species. We review the advancement in management and monitoring over recent decades, discuss the current population status throughout the species’ range, and describe the potential future status and recovery based on recent assessments. In retrospect, L. polyphemus conservation has followed the frameworks promoted by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature: mobilize networks to increase assessment capacity, engage diverse stakeholders, measure impacts, and amplify successes. Data show significantly increased populations in the Delaware Bay region and improved status in the Northeast. The average abundance of adults in Delaware Bay over the recent decade (2013–2022) is more than twice that in the previous decade (2003–2012). In 2022, the abundances for adult females and males in the Delaware Bay population were estimated to be 16 million and 40 million, respectively. However, reversing persistent poor conditions in some regions and mitigating the widespread threat of habitat loss from coastal development and sea level rise will rely on collaboration among diverse stakeholders to build upon the current conservation successes. Scientists and conservationists working on the horseshoe crab species indigenous to Asia are advancing along a similar track, establishing a monitoring network and mobilizing diverse stakeholders. However, there is a need for capacity building for robust assessment of the species in Asia to measure the impact of conservation, just as that need remains unmet for L. polyphemus in the Gulf of Mexico. The importance of partnerships and collaborations is apparent in their absence. The regions where partnerships and collaborations among researchers, conservationists, and agency scientists do not exist are those where the capacity for monitoring and assessment is notably lacking.

Despite a large body of literature on the various study skills that predict academic performance in college students, there is no consensus on which specific study skills contribute the most toward college success. Additionally, the emphasis in the literature is primarily on large public universities and specialized groups such as chiropractic, medical, pharmacy, and vocational students, with little to no research focused on small liberal arts institutions. Finally, studies in the field typically assess all students, and use a wide range of GPAs in examining differences between high- and low-performing students. It is important to see if differences in study strategies exist even when only a small subset of students are tested – many of whom are on probation for already low academic performances. The present study assessed ten different learning and study skills via the Learning and Study Skills Inventory (LASSI) in 41 students enrolled in a general studies class at a small liberal arts college. Academic achievement was assessed via cumulative GPA for each student. There were significant correlations between individual scores on the motivation subscale and GPA, and between utilizing academic resources and GPA. Both motivation and utilizing academic resources were found to also significantly predict GPA. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed, in the context of enhancing student success via early and proactive interventions.

We suggest a new random model for links based on meander diagrams and graphs. We then prove that trivial links appear with vanishing probability in this model, no link L is obtained with probability 1, and there is a lower bound for the number of non-isotopic knots obtained for a fixed number of crossings. A random meander diagram is obtained through matching pairs of parentheses, a well-studied problem in combinatorics. Hence tools from combinatorics can be used to investigate properties of random links in this model, and, moreover, of the respective 3-manifolds that are link complements in 3-sphere. We use this for exploring geometric properties of a link complement. Specifically, we give expected twist number of a link diagram and use it to bound expected hyperbolic and simplicial volume of random links. The tools from combinatorics that we use include Catalan and Narayana numbers, and Zeilberger’s algorithm.