Purpose -The purpose of this study is to assess the current state of affairs in the product recovery domain as perceived by Greek industry. The extent of involvement of original equipment manufacturers in product recovery activities (PRA), the direct profitability of PRA and the most important specific drivers and barriers to the implementation of PRA are the main issues that are explored. The paper also investigates whether these issues are affected by two factors: level of PRA and profitability of existing PRA. Design/methodology/approach -A questionnaire-based survey was conducted and 312 valid responses were received. Statistical analysis of the responses was carried out via non-parametric x 2 -tests for homogeneity, Mann-Whitney U-tests and Friedman two-way analysis of variance. Findings -The results suggest that PRA are not very much developed by manufacturing companies in Greece. The companies engage in PRA mainly because they want to provide service to their customers; they are hesitant to embark on an unknown set of new activities, which complicate their manufacturing operations. Research limitations/implications -A limitation of the study is the variability in the manufacturers' responses as the data comes from the entire Greek industry. Originality/value -The paper responds to the repeated calls for more empirical research in reverse logistics. It is the first survey-based study of PRA in an industry that is not as developed as the industry in the USA or Western Europe, where most similar empirical research is conducted.

Road safety communication campaigns are considered an efficient strategy for reaching a wide audience. They aim at reducing the number and severity of road crashes by influencing road user behavior. Despite the large number of campaigns that have been designed and implemented in recent years, few have been formally evaluated. This paper presents the evaluation design and the implementation of a national road safety communication campaign on the effects of fatigue on driving behavior. The campaign targeted primarily professional drivers and, secondarily, all other drivers The definition of the objectives of the campaign was addressed through the health belief model. Objectives included increasing awareness of the severity of driving while fatigued and of effective countermeasures. The measurement variables of the evaluation design, also addressed by the health belief model, were knowledge, behavioral beliefs, risk comprehension, behavioral intentions, past behavior, and self-reported behavior. The evaluation was based on a nonexperimental design. The use of control groups was not feasible, since the whole population was exposed to the campaign and data were collected by means of a face-to-face questionnaire survey conducted before, during, and after campaign implementation. Process and outcome evaluations were conducted to assess the impact of the campaign on driving behavior. Results indicated that the audience was reached at a mean rate of 13%, and the distribution of campaign leaflets was the most effective media channel (70%). In addition, a statistically significant increase in the proportion of respondents who were aware of the causes and effects of fatigue while driving was observed. Similar results were indicated in testing behavioral beliefs, risk comprehension, behavioral intentions, and past behavior. The main message of the campaign reached both the primary and the secondary target groups, and its success can be seen by the increase in the percentage of professional drivers and all other drivers who self-reported that they stop and rest for 15 min in the “during” and “after” phases, as compared with the “before” phase.

Purpose—The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of Information Systems (ISs) implementation in Greek industry. The main issues that are explored through this survey in regards to IS adoption are the financial and nonfinancial benefits that are derived due to IS adoption. The study also investigates the effect that IS adoption had in several business areas in regards to the factor of financial performance. Design/methodology/approach—The survey that was conducted was questionnaire based. Of the 96 valid responses that were received, 83 of them implemented at least one IS. Those 83 responses were analyzed statistically. Several statistical tools were used for that, such as: nonparametric χ2 tests for homogeneity, Cronbach Alpha method for the reliability of the questionnaire, and Mann–Whitney U tests. Findings—The results suggest that the majority of industry in Greece has implemented—at least—the ERP to conduct their business. In addition, most of them use a combination of not more than three ISs. The respondents are also satisfied by the financial impact of IS adoption. Inventory and warehouse management, along with customer service, were most positively affected by IS implementation. On the other hand, returned products reduction and the relationship with the suppliers were less positively affected by IS adoption. Research limitation/implications—The study has a limitation of being conducted in North Greece and not in the whole country. Originality/value—The paper constitutes an empirical research in regarding the financial and nonfinancial contribution of IS adoption in Greek industry. There are rather limited studies that have been conducted in Greece regarding IS implementation and the impact it poses in business affairs. The financial crisis along with the political instability that Greece has faced in the last decade makes it interesting to explore the influence of IS adoption in manufacturing enterprises. Usually, those studies are conducted in more developed countries where the financial and political environment is more stable.

This paper presents an empirical study of certain features of the practices and management of value recovery processes that follow the acquisition of used products. The research focuses on the implementation of refurbishing and remanufacturing in small and medium enterprises. Twelve cases have been examined in detail, representing both original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and independent remanufacturers (IRs), with different products and nature of operations. The analysis indicates that the factors having the strongest influence on the choice of value-added product recovery activities (PRA) at the OEMs are the type, features, and quality of the returned products, along with the consumer perceptions for recovered products, while the main factor influencing the choice of PRA for IRs is market demand for recovered products. Furthermore, willingness to pay for a recovered product constitutes the basic factor defining the pricing policy for recovered products. The findings of the research also include measurements of important quantifiable parameters of refurbishing and remanufacturing, such as the actual costs and prices expressed as fractions of the respective values for new products.

A road safety campaign, as one of the measures used to influence road user behavior to follow the driving regulations and to safeguard safety on the road network, may contribute to the reduction of the number of people killed on the roads. This study aimed to develop prediction models for the assessment of the impact on driving behavior of a fatigue road safety communication campaign based on the health belief model. This behavioral model took into account the behavior and the objectives of the campaign, as defined in the measurement variables of the evaluation, which were composed of self-reported data collected through a face-to-face questionnaire survey conducted before, during, and after the campaign implementation. Linear regression analyses were used to define the causal relationships between the dependent variables, intention and behavior, and other constructs. Results showed that the models developed for predicting drivers’ intention to stop and rest when they became tired and drivers’ behavior toward stopping and resting when they became tired varied significantly, depending on the characteristics of the sample tested (i.e., nonprofessional drivers versus professional drivers, younger versus older drivers, etc.). Also, it was observed that behavioral beliefs and risk comprehension were weak for the predictability of intentions and behavior; however, the inclusion of past behavior increased the predictability of the models predicting intentions, and the inclusion of past behavior and intentions (as observed also in similar studies) increased the predictability of the models predicting behavior.

The business environment is characterized by high complexity and competitiveness. This is the reason why information is considered to be the most valuable source companies have available. From the social point of view, information technology (IT) has a positive effect on business performance, creates strong and transparent relations with enterprise’s clients, and increases competition. The purpose of this study is to assess the current state of information systems (ISs) adoption by Greek industry. The main issues that are explored through this survey in regards to IS adoption is the extent, the most important specific drivers and barriers, and the profitability due to IS adoption. The study also investigates whether motivators or inhibitors are affected by the factor of profitability due to IS adoption. The survey that was conducted is questionnaire-based and the responses were analyzed statistically using several statistical tools. The results suggest that the majority of the industries in Greece have adopted IS to conduct their business. Reducing errors that occur during their business activities seems to be their main motivation for IS adoption. On the other hand, they are hesitant to invest in an IS because of its cost.

No abstract

Road safety communication campaigns are considered as an efficient strategy to approach the wide audience and influence road users towards a safe behavior, with main aim to lead to the reduction of the number and the severity of road accidents. When designing the implementation of a campaign, it is important to plan at the same time its evaluation, so that to enable the assessment of its effectiveness. For the achievement of high reliability and the development of “clear” conclusions, the campaign evaluation should be carefully organized, following a feasible scientific design. Towards this direction, three road safety campaigns, two local campaigns addressing drink driving and seat belt usage, and one national campaign addressing driving fatigue, were implemented and evaluated. Presenting the design components of the three campaigns and the evaluation results, this paper aims at revealing the similarities and differences of the effectiveness of road safety communication campaigns on driving behavior.