Leaders of small firms often lack support staff to whom they can delegate managerial tasks. Related to the small business management paradigm, these leaders need insight into what management practices to employ as they simultaneously balance operations, administration, and human resource duties. Strategic planning has been the focus of much scholarly attention. However, the effect of strategic planning on small business performance is unclear. We attempt to provide clarity by establishing a higher-order component construct, comprehensive strategic approach, which includes three related management practices: goal setting, strategic planning, and financial ratio analysis. We find evidence that a comprehensive strategic approach enhances small business performance.

A total of 40 qualitative studies were reviewed and coded according to the college student stressors they represented. These studies utilized a variety of qualitative methods to examine stressors representing the following themes: relationships, lack of resources, academics, the environment, expectations, diversity, transitions and other stressors. Relationship stressors were the most commonly reported theme and covered areas including stress associated with family, romantic, peer and faculty relationships. Three of the themes (relationships, diversity and other) are novel categories of stressors compared with quantitative reviews on the topic, highlighting the importance of gathering both quantitative and qualitative pieces of information. This review contributes to the stress literature by synthesizing and identifying trends in the qualitative student stress research.

The business case for diversity is really a technological one. Like the Hubble telescope uses multiple lenses to acquire an understanding of the universe that no one lens can achieve alone, the business case suggests that diversity (however defined) provides multiple perspectives that help organizations better understand an increasingly complex and heterogeneous marketplace. If the prevailing argument for diversity is indeed technology-driven, the present paper suggests that looking at diversity through the lens of the Technology Acceptance Model 3 (TAM3) might provide insights that could improve both the acceptance of diversity in the organization and its impact on organizational performance.

Purpose Using China's burgeoning logistics industry as a backdrop, the present study focused on how to build trust between logistics users and third‐party logistics (3PL) providers, and the antecedents and consequences of trust. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire‐based mail survey was conducted in mainland China. The conceptual model was tested using structural equation modeling. Findings The findings indicate that logistics users' satisfaction with prior interactions with logistics providers, 3PL provider's relationship‐specific investment, 3PL provider's information sharing, and 3PL provider's reputation are key determinants of logistics users' level of trust towards 3PL providers. Additionally, logistics users' trust may facilitate their loyalty behavior towards 3PL providers. Research limitations/implications The findings were drawn from a Chinese setting in which logistics outsourcing is in a relatively early developmental stage. The uniqueness of Chinese culture may also limit the findings' generalizability. China's transitional economy was not considered in the study. Different company ownership may significantly influence relationship formulation, maintenance and consequences. Practical implications The findings demonstrated how logistics providers can improve customers' trust in logistics outsourcing relationships. The study also revealed how logistics providers can improve customers' loyalty. Originality/value This paper was a pioneering study that investigates the logistics outsourcing relationship in China, a rapidly growing economy. The results offered valuable managerial insights regarding how to cultivate trust and loyalty in logistics outsourcing relationships.

Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative EducationVolume 4, Issue 1 p. 141-146 An Experiential Exercise in Giving Feedback to Enhance Student Skills David L. Duhon, Corresponding Author David L. Duhon College of Business, University of Southern Mississippi, Box 5077, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, e-mail: david.duhon@usm.eduCorresponding author.Search for more papers by this authorStephen C. Bushardt, Stephen C. Bushardt College of Business, University of Southern Mississippi, Box 5077, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, e-mail: david.duhon@usm.eduSearch for more papers by this authorFrancis Daniel, Francis Daniel College of Business, University of Southern Mississippi, Box 5077, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, e-mail: david.duhon@usm.eduSearch for more papers by this author David L. Duhon, Corresponding Author David L. Duhon College of Business, University of Southern Mississippi, Box 5077, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, e-mail: david.duhon@usm.eduCorresponding author.Search for more papers by this authorStephen C. Bushardt, Stephen C. Bushardt College of Business, University of Southern Mississippi, Box 5077, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, e-mail: david.duhon@usm.eduSearch for more papers by this authorFrancis Daniel, Francis Daniel College of Business, University of Southern Mississippi, Box 5077, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, e-mail: david.duhon@usm.eduSearch for more papers by this author First published: 03 January 2006 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4609.2006.00107.xCitations: 2Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume4, Issue1January 2006Pages 141-146 RelatedInformation

Attempts at managing diversity have met with mixed, mostly weak results over the years. Organizations have invested a great deal of money, time, and emotion in trying to help their employees “value diversity” in vain hopes of positively impacting the organization’s bottom line. The present study argues that the failure to realize gains from managing diversity stem from a basic misunderstanding of the nature of diversity itself, resulting in the view that it is both inevitable and inherently good. Once freed of these assumptions, managers can begin to truly manage diversity from a strategic perspective, insuring that their diversity strategy is consistent with other aspects of their competitive strategy, culture, and structure. The Competing Values Approach (CVA) is suggested as a model that ties this new perspective to other organizational imperatives. The resulting model identifies four strategic approaches to managing diversity, Valuing, Exploiting, Reducing, and Rejecting. The model also forces management to answer the crucial question of why diversity is being introduced or increased in the organization. Different reasons reflect different goals, which should in turn lead to different managerial expectations. Realistically matching expectations to diversity strategies will go a long way in reducing the frustrations and disappointments with Managing Diversity programs in use today.

BACKGROUND:This multicentre phase I/II study was designed to determine the maximum tolerated dose of irinotecan when combined with 5-fluorouracil and folinic acid according to the Mayo Clinic schedule and to evaluate the activity of this combination as first-line therapy in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. METHODS:Sixty-three patients received irinotecan (250 or 300 mg/m2, 30- to 90-minute intravenous infusion on day 1), immediately followed by folinic acid (20 mg/m2/day) and 5-fluorouracil (425 mg/m2, 15-minute bolus infusion) days 1 to 5, every four weeks. RESULTS:Diarrhoea was dose limiting at 300 mg/m2 irinotecan in combination with 5-fluorouracil and folinic acid, and this was determined to be the maximum tolerated dose. Grade 3-4 neutropenia was the most frequently reported toxicity. The recommended dose of irinotecan for the phase II part of the study was 250 mg/m2. The response rate for the evaluable patient population was 36% (13/36), and 44% (16 patients) had stable disease (including 19% of minor response). For the intention-to-treat population, the response rate was 29% (14/49) and 35% (17 patients) stable disease (including 14% of minor response). The median time to progression was 7.0 months and the median survival was 12.0 months. Grade 3-4 non-haematological drug-related toxicities included delayed diarrhoea, stomatitis, fatigue, and nausea/vomiting. There were three deaths due to septic shock that were possibly or probably treatment-related. CONCLUSIONS:This regimen of irinotecan in combination with the Mayo Clinic schedule of bolus 5-fluorouracil/folinic acid every four weeks showed activity as first-line therapy in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. In keeping with other published results of studies using bolus 5-fluorouracil combined with irinotecan, the use of this regimen is limited by a relatively high rate of grade 3-4 neutropenia, and the combination of irinotecan and infusional 5-fluorouracil / folinic acid should remain the regimen of first choice.

Although organizational research posits various relationships between a firm's slack resources and performance, findings to date have been ambiguous. To provide insight into this relationship, this study employed a meta-analysis based on 80 samples from 66 studies (n=54,249). Results provided evidence of a positive relationship among all three slack types (i.e., available, recoverable, and potential) and financial performance and showed that studies controlling for industry-relative performance demonstrated a stronger positive potential slack–performance relationship than those not including these controls. The analysis also found that studies employing lagged slack measures did not show a stronger positive slack–performance relationship than those employing current year measures for either recoverable or potential slack, a result counter to the one hypothesized. Overall, results highlight the importance of additional research into intervening factors impacting the slack–performance relationship.