Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a growing body of research on cloud computing, by studying the small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) adoption process. If SMEs have access to scalable technologies they could potentially deliver products and services that in the past only large enterprises could deliver, flattening the competitive arena. Design/methodology/approach-By adopting the Technological, Organisational and Environmental (TOE) framework as a theoretical base, this qualitative exploratory study used semi-structured interviews to collect data in 15 different SMEs and service providers in the north east of England. The north east of England was selected as it is a region that aspires to become home to innovative digital firms and most of the companies in the region are SMEs. Findings-The main factors that were identified as playing a significant role in SME adoption of cloud services were: relative advantage, uncertainty, geo-restriction, compatibility, trialability, size, top management support, prior experience, innovativeness, industry, market scope, supplier efforts and external computing support. In contrast, this study did not find enough evidence that competitive pressure was a significant determinant of cloud computing adoption. Research limitations/implications-These findings have important implications and great value to the research community, managers and information and communication technologies (ICT) providers, in terms of formulating better strategies for cloud computing adoption. For service providers, using the research model in this study can assist in increasing their understanding of why some SMEs choose to adopt cloud computing services, while seemingly similar ones facing similar market conditions do not. Also, cloud computing providers may need to improve their interaction with SMEs which are involved in the cloud computing experience, in an effort to create a healthy environment for cloud computing adoption, and to remove any vagueness surrounding this type of technology. Originality/value-This study is an attempt to explore and develop an SME cloud computing adoption model that was theoretically grounded in the TOE framework. By adopting the TOE framework this study has shown that the three contexts of this framework (technological, organisational, and environmental) are connected to each other.

Highlights  This research develops a holistic business model framework from a systematic literature review  Identifies emerging trends in the digital transformation of business models in the creative industries  A significant trend is the increasing adoption of multiple business models as a portfolio within one firm  Four variants of the portfolio models are identified and illustrated  The holistic business model framework can serve both as a cognitive instrument and a planning tool This paper has been accepted for publication in Technovation (2018)

This is the accepted version of the paper.This version of the publication may differ from the final published version. Permanent repository link AbstractToday, millions of people from around the globe play online role playing games (MMORPG), in which a large number of players interact with one another in a virtual world, either using their existing identities in the physical world, or more often than not, through new virtual identities that might not even be remotely linked to the identities of the players in the physical world. The number of users is growing at an exponential rate and we are probably on the verge of a new development that is going to be as significant as the Internet itself. This positioning paper will discuss the business opportunities and challenges of such a virtual world, that of Second Life, and will examine the resultant corporate social responsibility implications focusing on the ethical and policy-related ones. This will help to identify important research questions that need to be systematically addressed. Keywords IntroductionThe rapid development of massively multiplayer online role play games, also know as MMORPGs (pronounced more-peg), has resulted in the re-creation of many real world activities in the virtual environment. These activities are often released from many of the constraints of the physical world, although in some cases they are still primarily reflections of it. In the past few years several MMORPGs have been experiencing exponential growth and for many people they have evolved far beyond mere online games. The economic, social and policy implications for both the real physical world and the virtual world are likely to be very significant, as will be illustrated by many emerging examples later in the paper.In this positioning paper we will focus on the business activities and commercial applications that virtual worlds can host, and examine the wider implications of these virtual environments, often referred to as "metaverses". We will use the case of one such metaverse, that of Second Life (http://www.secondlife.com), to illustrate some of the key issues and challenges that arise when transacting in virtual environments. We will start by first considering the attributes of Second Life, in order to illustrate its popularity and usage, before examining how it can foster business opportunities for entrepreneurs. The paper will then move on to discussing the market implications and, based on these, propose an extension to the traditional taxonomy of business activities by including the "meta" dimension of the environment. Following this, the paper will consider the corporate social responsibility implications of this emerging business phenomenon by focusing on important ethical and regulatory issues. This is still an emerging and rapidly evolving area and more systematic research is clearly needed and further research avenues are suggested at the end.

PurposeThis study identifies three emerging approaches for leading successful digital transformation. It challenges the validity and effectiveness of traditional linear processes for digital transformation that first develop a new strategy, business model or organizational design enabled by digital technologies and then execute it according to the plan.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on current research with a group of global digital champions at the forefront of digital transformation, including Amazon, Alibaba, Baidu, Google, JD.com, Uber, VMWare and Slack.FindingsThe research finds that at least three new approaches are emerging in leading organizations, which are (1) innovating by experimenting, (2) radical transformation via successive incremental changes and (3) dynamic sustainable advantages through an evolving portfolio of temporary advantages.Research limitations/implicationsMore research is needed to systematically investigate such emerging approaches and develop new theories and new analytical frameworks.Practical implicationsThese emerging approaches can be used to guide digital transformation initiatives.Social implicationsThey also enable business leaders to tackle grand societal challenges using financially sustainable and scalable operational models, generating profit and impact at the same time.Originality/valueIt challenges traditional linear approaches for leading digital transformation and highlights the need for new and iterative approaches for bridging the strategy–execution gap in the volatile digital economy.

This paper examines the evolution of retailing, i.e. from traditional to electronic to metaverse retailing and sheds light on the ways metaverses influence that evolution. The spatial dimension is taken into consideration as retailers could operate simultaneously in three different, but intertwined spaces. Particular emphasis is paid to key promotional aspects and we highlight the key challenges and opportunities faced by traditional retailers, e-retailers and metaverse retailers. For the metaverse phenomenon, the authors analyse Second Life and a range of findings emerge. One key finding is that retailers need to employ a holistic and overarching approach when devising their promotional strategies, especially if they aim to operate at the metaverse stage as well. At the end, the authors recommend a range of future research avenues and note the immediate need for policy development dealing with the metaverse phenomenon.

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Purpose As a frequently observed business phenomenon, the use of product scarcity to improve a product’s market performance has received increasing attention from both academics and practitioners. The resulting literature has covered a wide variety of issues based on various theories, using different research methods, in a diverse range of settings. However, this diversity also makes it difficult to grasp the core themes and findings, and to see the outstanding knowledge gaps. This paper aims to review previous studies on the use of product scarcity in marketing and identifies new directions for future research. Design/methodology/approach A systematic review was conducted to identify and analyse 66 research papers published in business and management journals between 1970 and 2017. Findings The authors examined the underlying theories of scarcity-based marketing, and developed a conceptual framework that describes the key factors of product scarcity and how they influence both consumers and the market. They also highlighted some key achievements in modelling the processes involved in using product scarcity in marketing. Originality/value This analysis of the identified papers suggests that there are substantial gaps in our knowledge of this field, which opens up new paths for future research. For future research, the authors identified three directions aimed at: addressing the practical needs of firms in understanding product scarcity; guiding the implementation of scarcity-based strategies; and measuring, monitoring and predicting the level of product scarcity and its impacts during implementation.

This is the accepted version of the paper.This version of the publication may differ from the final published version. Permanent repository link