This book gathers selected peer-reviewed papers from the 16th World Congress on Engineering Asset Management (WCEAM), held in Seville from 5-7 October 2022. This book covers a wide range of topics in Engineering Asset Management, including: Asset management and decision support system Industry 4.0 tools and its impact on asset management Monitoring, diagnostics and prognostics for smart maintenance Asset life cycle management Asset management in the industrial sector Human dimensions and asset management performance Infrastructure Asset management Asset condition, risk, resilience, and vulnerability assessments Asset operations and maintenance strategies Reliability and resilience engineering Applications of international and local guidelines and standards The breadth and depth of this state-of-the-art, comprehensive proceedings make it an excellent resource for asset management practitioners, researchers and academics, as well as undergraduate and postgraduate students.

This volume celebrates the life and career of Gordon Rausser, pioneer and leader in natural resource economics, while critically overviewing the emerging literature in the field. As the chair of the Agriculture and Resource Economics department at UC Berkeley, Rausser led the transformation of the department from a traditional agricultural economics department to a diverse resource economics department addressing issues of agriculture, food, natural resources, environmental economics, energy, and development. This book builds on this theme, showcasing not only the scope of Rausser's work but also key developments in the field. The volume is organized into two parts. The first part speaks about the lessons of Gordon Rausser's career, in particular, his role as a leader in different spheres, his capacity to integrate teaching and entrepreneurship, and his impact on the world food system. The second part will address some of the significant developments in the field he contributed to and how it relates to his work. The chapters include contributions from modern leaders in the economics field and cover diverse topics from many subfields including public policy, public finance, law, econometrics, macroeconomics, and water resources. Providing an excellent reference, as well as a celebration of a pivotal figure in the field, this volume will be useful for practitioners and scholars in agricultural and resource economics, especially the many individuals familiar with Gordon Rausser and his career.

Navigate the complex decisions and critical relationships necessary to create and sustain a healthy family business—and business family.

Though "family business" may sound like it refers only to mom-and-pop shops, businesses owned by families are among the most significant and numerous in the world. But surprisingly few resources exist to help navigate the unique challenges you face when you share the executive suite, financial statements, and holidays. How do you make the right decisions, critical to the long-term survival of any business, with the added challenge of having to do so within the context of a family?

The HBR Family Business Handbook brings you sophisticated guidance and practical advice from family business experts Josh Baron and Rob Lachenauer. Drawing on their decades-long experience working closely with a wide range of family businesses of all sizes around the world, the authors present proven methods and approaches for communicating effectively, managing conflict, building the right governance structures, and more.

In the HBR Family Business Handbook you'll find:

• A new perspective on what makes family businesses succeed and fail
• A framework to help you make good decisions together
• Step-by-step guidance on managing change within your business family
• Key questions about wealth, unique to family businesses, that you can't afford to ignore
• Assessments to help you determine where you are—and where you want to go
• Stories of real companies, from Marchesi Antinori to Radio Flyer
• Chapter summaries you can use to reinforce what you've learned

A dramatic change of ownership, regulation, and organisation of essential public services, such as electricity, gas, and telecommunications, has taken place in Europe in less than 20 years. This was not the outcome of spontaneous adaptation, but an entirely top-down policy experiment, mainly conceived in London during Mrs Thatcher's years, then pursued in Brussels - the 'capital' of the European Union - and imposed on more or less reluctant players by laws, directives, regulations, and administrative and judicial decisions. The European reform paradigm revolves around three pillars: privatisation, unbundling, and regulated liberalisation of network industries. These industries, despite the reforms, are still special, as they include core natural monopoly components (the electricity grid, the gas pipelines, the telephony networks, etc.), are often based on complex system integration of different segments (for example of electricity generation, transmission, distribution and retail supply), and offer services that have critical social and economic importance, from heating to internet. This book offers a careful scrutiny of energy and telephony reforms and prices paid by households in 15 countries across Western Europe. It attempts to answer such questions as: Are the consumers in Europe happier than they were before the reforms? Do they pay less? Do they get a better quality for the services? Network Industries and Social Welfare provides an overview of the main facts, the conceptual issues, and of the empirical evidence on pricing, perceptions of quality of service, and the issues of utility poverty and social affordability. It suggests that the benefits of the reforms for the consumers have often been limited and that governments should reconsider their overconfidence in regulated market mechanisms in network industries.

This book assesses the digital Bangladesh initiative of the government through different lenses: supply-side and demand-side perspectives and policy diffusions. The Bangladesh government has been pursuing a big-push policy for digitalization, namely the "Digital Bangladesh Vision," since 2009 as a shifting development strategy to leapfrog into the next level of development with the leverage of demographic dividend. However, historical anecdotes, dictated policy, international success stories and other related issues could lead to a rethinking on ICT-based development strategy. The content of the book draws on the author's long-standing research works on ICTs and economic growth in Bangladesh.

This book builds an information platform on China's industrial competitiveness, providing scientific design and application case studies for integrated analysis and decision-making facilities and mechanisms for enterprises, industries, financial institutions and governments, which can make up for the lack of adequate information in China's market operations, especially the problems of duplicate construction and vicious competition aggravated by the lack of systematically processed industrial information. This book not only pursues innovation in technical methods and application theories but also pursues the collection, processing and collation of relevant domestic and international data and development and application so as to provide primary results for an industrial competitiveness database adapted to government management needs. The research is closely related to the actual problems in China and extensively uses statistical data to make various model analyses, which has a relatively sizeable academic value.

In the past few years, a considerable number of immigrants have established their own businesses. In doing so, they have contributed in many ways to the economic development of American and European metropolitan areas. Some businesses have been incorporated into the mainstream, while others have stayed on the economic fringes and got engaged in the informal economy. The starting point of this book is that a proper understanding of these businesses is served by focusing on the embeddedness of immigrant businesses in their economic, politico institutional and social environments from a multi disciplinary perspective rather than confining the attention to ethnic cultural or economic sociological aspects only.

This book examines the changing business and economic environment for postal services in Lithuania and the upcoming challenges for this industry. Postal services continue to play a central part in the development of national economies. However, the economic and social role of postal services has changed rapidly and fundamentally over the last two decades. In most industrialized countries, paper-based communications are in serious decline, while the demand for parcel delivery services is rising steadily with the continuing development of e-commerce, just-in-time production techniques, and global supply chains. For the postal sector as a whole, the centre of gravity has shifted dramatically from letters and documents to parcels. The authors explain how the organizational paradigm has inexorably shifted from that of a national, government-owned postal administration providing the basic delivery services required by society, to a system of interdependent local and regional undertakings that both compete and cooperate with one another. The book argues that there are no indications that the postal sector has stopped changing, and that it seems most probable that the European Union's postal sector will look quite different in 2035 than it does today. In closing, the book explains how the shareholders of postal services companies have recently confirmed that the time has come to rethink the strategy of creating and maintaining competitiveness in the postal services industry.

A classic American success story—with a twist

Like J. P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, and Andrew Carnegie, Marshall Field was one of the overlords of triumphant capitalism in the Gilded Age of the late nineteenth century. However, his phenomenal wealth and generous philanthropy masked a disastrous personal life. Deserted by his wife and alienated from his children, the founder of the Field dynasty left a legacy of immense wealth and misery to match.

The Marshall Fields recounts the classic tale of Field’s spectacular success as well as the tragic story of a man who, while making millions by knowing what women wanted, had no inkling of his own wife’s emotional needs. This revealing account follows the next five generations of the Field family, concentrating on the most important and controversial figures in each generation. What emerges is a startling saga of money, madness, and mystery.

From the son who may have been shot by a chorus girl to the great-great grandson who used his millions to create Hollywood fantasies, Field’s descendants have caromed wildly between rebellion and folly. Their story offers a new and penetrating take on wealth, success, and the nightmare that often accompanies the American dream.

This book provides a road-map to successful implementation of strategic outsourcing programmes, providing down-to-earth approaches to outsourcing decision making and programme management, based on a grass-roots understanding. A practitioner-focused book for business leaders and managers providing a holistic view of strategic outsourcing, covering the three essential pillars of success: risks, rewards and relationships. Theauthor shows how business leaders can transform organisational business models, structures and mind-sets, taking the reader on a journey through the book's fifteen chapters, helping the reader truly grasp: the drivers for change as a result of globalisation and convergence and their impact on organisational strategies; how outsourcing can transform the various processes and functions of an organisation; the impact outsourcing is having on various industry vertical sectors; the eight foundations of successful strategic outsourcing programmes, which when combined with strategic decision-making knowledge, guarantees that organisations embarking on the strategic outsourcing journey, derive the transformational benefits they seek."

This book provides an overview of the historical financial reforms and regulatory changes in China, highlighting the background to and causes of changes in the income structure of China's banks. It also investigates ongoing concerns with regard to banking diversification in China, and its consequences, amid the global trend of banks' shift to non-traditional businesses. Focusing on three critical aspects of bank-income diversification, namely the effects on profitability, risk level, and efficiency, it employs the concept of systemically important banks, which describes the scale and degree of influence a bank has in global and domestic financial markets. More importantly, rather than replicating techniques employed in the research on developed markets, it applies several improved methodologies to address bank diversification in the specific context created by China's unique institutional background and data characteristics, such as GMM-type threshold models and stochastic frontier analysis with the within maximum likelihood estimation. Shedding new light on the current status of income diversification in the Chinese banking sector, this book is a valuable resource for readers in fields such as banking and financial stability. It will also help banking professionals and financial regulatory authorities to better understand the reform of China's financial industry and the future direction of banking.

Through a series of case studies and surveys, the authors examine current sustainability trends in outsourcing and recommend how providers should prepare for increasing buyer demands in this area, suggesting buyers and providers can work together to build successful outsourcing relationships through collaborative sustainability projects.

This two-volume collection analyses the evolution of wine production in European regions across the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. France and Italy in particular have shaped modern viticulture, by improving oenological methods and knowledge, then disseminating them internationally. This second volume looks closely at wine markets and trade, also examining the role of institutions and quality regulation.

This book deals with World Class Operations Management (WCOM), detailing its principles, methods and organisation, and the results that this approach can bring about. Utilising real-world case studies illustrated by companies that have adopted this model (interviews with Saint-Gobain, L'Oreal, Tetra Pak, Bemis, and Bel Executives), it describes common patterns drawn from decades of hands-on experience, so as to present a theoretical approach together with the concrete application of its principles. WCOM, adopted by several multinational companies, is one of the more innovative management practises, as it integrates the best Continuous Improvement approaches (Lean, Total Productive Management, World Class Manufacturing) as well as the most innovative approaches in human dynamics like Change Leadership, Performance Behavior, Shingo Model, to name a few. Every book's chapter has been authored by an expert in these different fields, thus revealing the synergy among the different practices, which is one of the distinguishing and successful aspects of WCOM Maximising reader insights into the successful implementation of such an approach, and explaining not only its potentialities, but also its implementation dynamics, the critical points and the ways it can be integrated into different situations, this book is also about how to create a culture of excellence that is sustainable over a long period of time and delivers consistent (or ever-improving) results.

Businessmen with kids often feel trapped between rising expectations at work and at home. Although business demands seem to increase every day, fathers are now expected - and want - to be involved parents. But there are never enough hours in the day. What's a business dad to do?

Tom Hirschfeld, veteran businessman and father of two, addresses the dilemma with surprising insights and sensible solutions. He shows that many of the skills and abilities required to succeed in today's economy - such as motivation, team building, empathy, negotiation, and planning - can be applied just as successfully to parenting. Businessmen who leave their corporate skills at the office each evening may actually be handicapping themselves in the struggle to be more effective fathers. Work and parenting don't have to be separate, competing efforts, but can help and enrich each other.

Hirschfeld is a business dad writing for business dads. With common sense and a humorous touch, Business Dad applies proven business concepts to the challenges every father faces, such as communication, discipline, instilling moral values, sibling rivalry, and teamwork with Mom. It also tackles the toughest daily problems of the business dad, including work-family conflict, frequent travel, and time management. As a major bonus, finally, it shows how the committed dad can win at work, turning his fathering experience into a huge competitive advantage.

Fathering is the most important job a businessman can undertake, and Business Dad is the perfect job manual - filled with lessons from business history, tips from successful executives, and practical wisdom that could come only from real-life experience.

Given the most popular understanding of Chinese comparative advantage is their low labour cost, The Source of Innovation in China argues the fundamental source for Chinese economic growth is its innovation. Based on case studies and surveys collected from 600 firms, this book describes competitive advantages of successful Chinese enterprises.

This book explains how the traditional paradigm of private and public organizations is changing as a result of the multiple factors that are affecting the way in which goods and services are produced, and for whom they are produced. In view of these disruptive trends, the theory of the firm needs to be updated and to some extent rethought. Moreover, diverse challenges and opportunities such as climate change, aging populations, and new public accountability requirements are necessitating novel frameworks to ensure the long-term survival of public and private organizations. Against this backdrop, the authors contribute to the debate over the firm's primary interest by proposing a new way of viewing the nature of the firm and its relationship with stakeholders. In addition, they carefully analyze the challenges and opportunities mentioned above, evaluating their significance for various important aspects of organizations through different lenses. Global in scope, the book also takes the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals into account. Accordingly, it will be of interest to all readers seeking a better understanding of the evolving nature of firms and organizations in our changing world.

Energy policies play a pivotal part in helping countries achieve their sustainable development goals. Further, energy is one of the critical raw materials in companies' production processes. Therefore, ensuring a steady energy supply is essential to increasing production; otherwise, countries will inevitably slide into recession. In this context, countries should select their energy policies on the basis of a comprehensive analysis. In order to achieve this goal, many different factors must be considered at the same time.The aim of this book is to determine the right energy policies for the sustainable economic development of countries. In this framework, effective strategies for different types of energy will be presented and vital issues such as determining the right locations for nuclear power plants, providing optimal government incentives to increase clean energy investments, and determining appropriate energy policies to reduce energy dependence will be examined. Thus, country-specific optimal energy policies will be outlined, contributing to the achievement of the UN's sustainable development goals (SDG).

Fostering inclusive green growth in Africa means addressing existing and emerging development challenges, while efficiently managing Africa's natural capital and building resilience to environmental, social and economic risks. Although this new paradigm for development has the potential to create tremendous business opportunities, there are also challenges. This book provides empirical evidence on the conditions for the emergence of green businesses in Africa. It includes 13 case studies, which identify the determinants of small and medium-size enterprises' engagement in inclusive and sustainable growth in rural Africa, and the factors that hinder eco-innovation in business and entrepreneurial activities. Furthermore it discusses appropriate regulations and policies to stimulate the development of green business in Africa. Offering insights into the relationship between eco-innovation, labor productivity and business competitiveness in rural Africa, this book appeals to scholars, policy makers and practitioners interested in a green economy for Africa.

This book investigates how paid care work and employment are being transformed by policies of social care individualisation in the context of new gig economies of care. Drawing on a case study of the creation of a new individualised care market under Australia's National Disability Insurance Scheme the book provides important insights into possible futures for social care employment where care is treated as an individual consumer service. Bringing together sociological, political science and socio-legal approaches the book demonstrates how, in individualised care markets and with ineffective labour laws, risks of business and employment are devolved to frontline care workers. The book argues for an urgent re-evaluation of current policy approaches to care and for new regulatory approaches to protect workers in diverse forms of employment.

This book presents the first broad reflection on the challenges, opportunities, and implications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Unique results and insights are derived through case studies from diverse disciplines, including engineering, economics, data science, policy-making, governance, and humanscience. Particularly related to these 'softer' disciplines, we make some unexplored yet topical contributions to the literature, with a focus on the GCC (but by no means limited to it), including AI and implications for women, Islamic schools of thought on AI, and the power of AI to help deliver wellbeing and happiness in cities and urban spaces. Finally, the readers are provided with a synthesis of ideas, lessons learned, and a path forward based on the diverse content of the chapters. The book caters to the educated non specialist with interest in AI, targeting a wide audience including professionals, academics, government officials, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and non-governmental organizations.

The development of clusters of economic activity is an important feature of industrial policy. Industry clusters have long fascinated economists and geographers alike, the most renowned being Silicon Valley which is seen by many as the blueprint for regional development, innovation, and growth. Several clusters have also developed across Europe, including SiliconFen in Cambridge and Minalogic in Grenoble, and in recent years cluster policies have become popular among policy makers as a useful tool for informing decisions on industrial, regional, and public policy. This book looks at the mechanisms at work behind cluster dynamics, the gains that can be expected from increased clustering, and the determinants of cluster policies. Focusing on France, it provides a theoretical and empirical study of clusters, their success and failures, and the policy lessons that can be applied to the wider international community. France is particularly interesting because there is a long tradition of strong government intervention regarding the location of economic activity, and cluster initiatives are relatively unified across the country. This book shows that, whilst gains from clusters do exist, some firms tend to cluster too much and that spatial agglomeration is only successful to a point, after which congestion effects can offset these gains. It questions the need and the feasibility of cluster policies aimed at interfering directly in the concentration process of firms, and thus looks beyond the general enthusiasm for clusters.

The discussion in this book provides an introduction to the concept of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial business management. The author covers many elements of the entrepreneurial management discipline including choosing a business, organizing, financing, marketing, developing an offering that the market will value, and growing a business.

Paper and the British Empire examines the evolution of the paper industry within British organisational frameworks and highlights the role of the Empire as a market and business-making area in a world of shrinking commerce and rising trade barriers. Drawing on a valuable range of primary sources, this book covers the period 1861-1960 and examines events from the establishment of free trade backed by the gold standard to Britain's membership of the European Free Trade Association. In the field of the paper industry, the speed and intensity of the industrialisation process around the globe have been shaped by a wide variety of variables, including the surrounding institutional framework; entrepreneurial and organisational strategies; the cost and accessibility of transport; and the availability of capital, knowledge, energy resources, and technology. The supply of papermaking raw materials has also been key and has historically been the most important determinant for geographical location and dominance. The research in this work focuses on the roles played by such variants, on the one hand, and demand characteristics on the other. In particular, it considers developments connected to a quest for Empire-grown raw materials in order to tackle the problem of the lack of indigenous raw materials and the resulting dependence on Scandinavian wood pulp imports. This text is of considerable interest to advanced students and researchers in economic history, business history, and the paper industry, and will also be useful to organisations working within the pulp and paper industries.

Innovation Mechanisms in Start-ups: Practice, Strategies and Impacts serves as a practical resource for startups looking for innovating their business models in domestic and global markets. This book's main objective is to describe the innovative business practices adopted by startups during the pandemic, with a special emphasis on value proposition innovation and business model innovation more generally. In order to promote open innovation, this book emphasizes the value of strategic alliances with academic libraries, peer startups, and freelancers. Additionally, using actual startup case studies, it was shown how important technological innovation is for gathering feedback, prototyping, and conducting both secondary as well as primary market research. Startups can utilize the technology evaluation and adoption frameworks as a useful reference when choosing a technology to embrace strategically. The need of regularly experimenting with new approaches, learning from mistakes, and enhancing current processes is also emphasized in this book. The ability to dispel falsehoods, capitalize on technological advancements, and form strategic alliances will be essential for innovation even in times of pandemic. This book links theoretical insights with practical experiences of startups amid the pandemic. With a perfect balance of empirical research and assessment study types, this book is a source of quick knowledge for entrepreneurs, academics and researchers on how to enhance a company's innovative capacities and success rates. The BMI-Pandemic 2.15 model, which is an expanded version of the Odyssey 3.14 model, is presented in this book which highlight 15 guidelines to follow in order to innovate business models in pandemics. This book is suitable for Entrepreneurs, Academicians, Researcher and Technologists.