Browsing by Author "Helal Ahammad"

Now showing 1 - 17 of 17
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    A CASE STUDY OF THE NSU STARTUPS NEXT (NSUSN): FOSTERING ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION IN BANGLADESH
    (North South University, 2022-12) Samuel Mursalin; Ridwart Monk; Bente Formai; Helal Ahammad
    University business incubators (UBIs) give universities a dedicated entrepreneurship hub where young entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas receive mentorship, resources, and networking opportunities to lay the foundations for successful ventures and utilize the university's research outputs. Three years into the journey. North South University NSU Startups Next (NSUSN) has considerably impacted the Bangladeshi start-up ecosystem with its entrepreneurial education quality and business model. creating quality spin-off ventures and contributing to social and economic development. This article provides a case study for North South University's NSU Startups Next (NSUSN) which works with limited resources to support young star-up founders and provide value to the university entrepreneurs, the institution, society, and the economy. The study also outlined the model of NSU Start-up Next and provided insights on the outcomes obtained through its cohort-based system. The paper applies David 1 Miller's 'The Campus and the Ecosystem' framework to explain how a university's entrepreneurial ecosystem interacts with external stakeholders.
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    A Study of HRM Practices in the Apparel Industry in Bangladesh: A Social Perspective
    (North South University, 2021-12) Muzdalifa Anzum; Helal Ahammad
    The article examined the current HRM practices in the manufacturing industry in Bangladesh, most prominently in the apparel sector which is the most important booster of economic growth for the country. Unfortunately, research has shown that the industry has observed lack of leadership and managerial proficiency which has led to various devastating accidents and fierce labour protests. The study was able to scrutinize the gap and some future managerial implications based on analysis of information from different scholarly resources. The entire article was constructed and analysed from a social perspective to pinpoint the under covered societal issues which leads to different other problems in countries like Bangladesh where the societal structure is the base for most of the management practices locally. The Government and many international organizations like IMF, World Bank have lent hand and given immense support to the industry, but the development path is still hindered. Since most of the researches earlier conducted research on the health and safety issues in this industry and general HRM practices, this paper will allow readers to further perceive the concerned issues from societal viewpoint in terms of leadership and management from the very core that has allowed spread of all other branches of complications and unrest. The findings of this paper have indicated that there is no standard HRM structure practiced in factories and the core issue is the absent role of efficient leaders and motivating executives.
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    AN INVESTIGATION OF THE MODERATING EFFECT OF SELF-EFFICACY AND ALERTNESS ON REGULATIVE, COGNITIVE, AND NORMATIVE DETERMINANTS OF ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION
    (North South University,, 2022-12) Md Reaz Uddinf; Md Shaifid Islam; Helal Ahammad
    The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between institutional environment and entrepreneurial intentions and to determine whether self-efficacy and alertness moderate this relationship. Drawing on institutional theory, we set hypotheses and test them by applying regression based on a primary dataset of students collected from the local public and private universities. The results show that cognitive institutions positively influence entrepreneurial intentions; thus, they inspire students to set up more entrepreneurial minds. Furthermore, we find direct positive effects of entrepreneurial alertness and self-efficacy on entrepreneurial intentions. Still, we do not see any moderating (interaction) effects of the institutional environment on entrepreneurial intentions. The research results suggest that Bangladesh needs to develop cognitive institutions to encourage student& entrepreneurial intentions. Future research should be expanded for retesting the empirical validity of the included moderators by using longitudinal datasets.
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    Dynamics of Customers' Online Medicine Purchase Intention
    (North South University, 2021-12) Sumaiya Farhana Sumi; Mohammed Abdul Mumin Evan; Rashedul Hasan; Md Afnan Hussain; Muhammad Sabbir Rahman; Helal Ahammad
    The outbreak of COVID-19 and the availability of online buying sites encouraged people to order products staying from home. It has been observed that people even buy their medicine online by uploading their prescriptions. Despite the importance of online medicine purchase, scant attention is given to investigate the factors motivating customers to use such advancement. As a result, drawing on the technology acceptance model (TAM) and other contemporary literature directions, the study identifies four factors that might influence customers' online medicine purchase intention. Consequently, data were collected from 160 respondents for empirical investigation. Using PLS-SEM, the data analysis reveals that perceived usefulness, ease of use, and security issues play a vital role while customers intend to order medicine through online platforms. The factor of website layout design does not produce any significant effect. The study contributes by extending TAM theory and addressing the gap by advancing the business and management information system literature in the aspect of online medicine purchase intention. Practically managers of firms will likely be able to engage more customers in online platforms advancing such factors. The study of online medicine purchase intention is novel during the COVID-19 pandemic in a specific country context.
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    Exploring the Level of Acceptance of e-Newspapers over Print Newspapers
    (North South University, 2022-06) Farzana Nahid; Helal Ahammad
    Newspapers have been a dominant medium of communication and knowledge transfer around the world for over four centuries. Recently, due to the exponential rise of the Internet and online platforms to satisfy the knowledge demands of consumers, news consumers are slowly shifting to digital platforms to consume news. In fact, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption process of digital channels and e-newspapers, and potentially questions the relevance of printed newspapers. The objective of this study is to understand the behavioral change or acceptance of Bangladeshi newspaper readers in light of the rising demand for e-newspapers. This study applies a qualitative approach where in-depth interviews of 60 people from diverse demographic backgrounds and geographical locations were conducted for data collection. According to the findings, e-newspapers are considered to be faster, accessible, and convenient especially to young generation. However, quality of connection, news trustworthiness, digital literacy and cost related to e-newspaper reading are some of the factors that are still considered as not that improved or developed. On the other hand, printed newspapers still count as an icon of the habit, cultural heritage, convenience of reading and storing, and affordability to middle aged and elderly generation. Therefore, the finding of this research suggests the coexistence of both print newspapers and e-newspapers as both versions have demand. While the younger generation may be comfortable with the transition to e- newspapers, the general newspaper readers especially professionals from sub-urban areas along with older generation both in metropolitan cities and sub-urban areas still prefer print newspapers.
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    Food-Demand Responsiveness in Bangladesh: An Econometric Investigation
    (North South University, 2022-06) Fariha Taskin; Helal Ahammad; Helal Ahammad
    The primary objective of this study is to investigate the food-demand responsiveness in Bangladesh. More specifically, applying the Stone Price Index to an Almost Ideal Demand System (AIDS), this paper estimates income (i.e.; expenditure) and price elasticities of demand for ten composite food products in Bangladesh; namely, Cereals, Fish, Meat, Pulses, Edible oil, Milk, Vegetables, Fruits, Spices, and Other foods. The study utilizes data from the Household Income and Expenditure Surveys including the most recent one of 2016, undertaken by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. An empirically based demand system can numerically inform a variety of simulation models in projecting future food demands in Bangladesh. As such, the up-to-date estimates of demand responsiveness are expected to help Bangladeshi policymakers understand the impact of some exogenous price and/or income ‘shocks’ as well as in formulating pragmatic and effective food and agricultural policies, fiscal and financial stimulus packages, among many others. The results reported and analyzed in this paper seem to suggest that, in Bangladesh, a representative household regards Fish, Meat, Fruits, and Spices as luxury food products, each with an estimated expenditure elasticity value of greater than unity. This implies that as the economy of Bangladesh keeps on growing, leading to an ever higher per capita household income, the economy will likely witness some structural shift in food demand—in particular, households will increasingly spend a higher proportion of its food budget on the protein-rich, more balanced food basket involving fish, meat, fruits and spices. However, all composite food products are estimated to be price inelastic regardless of the household being compensated and uncompensated for any price hike. Furthermore, the estimated cross-price elasticities appear to suggest no strong substitution happening across various product groups, lending support to the hypothesis of ‘separability in consumption’ at a reasonably high level of commodity aggregation. Comparing with the previously estimated elasticities available in the literature, the new estimates for the composite food products (except for Meat) seem to fall within the historical range of estimated values.
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    IMPACT OF ENERGY USE ON WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN BANGLADESH: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS
    (North South University, 2022-12) Anta Atalantial; Sakib Bin Amin; Helal Ahammad
    Bangladesh achieved significant progress in the energy sector from 2009 to 2019, and it has helped the country to improve the socio-economic conditions of women. However, to the best of our knowledge, there are no empirical time-series studies that explicitly address the relationship between electrification and women's empowerment. For an emerging country like Bangladesh, where women's work is often undervalued and society seems to be biased towards men, the demonstrated relationship between electrification and women's empowerment may have unveiled the immense impact that this might have had on the society. Hence, this paper investigates and quantifies the impact of electrification on women's empowerment, taking the general view that increasing electrification in Bangladesh results in empowering women in a community. Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF), Dickey-Fuller- GLS (DF-CLS), Johansen Cointegration methods have been used in this paper to explore this relationship. Moreover, the Granger-causality-test, Vector-Error-Correction Model (VECM) tests have also been applied to quantify this relationship. Our results support the view that energy use has a potential impact on the female laborforce in Bangladesh's both in the long and short run. Moreover, it also has a statistically significant effect on the female literacy rate in the long run. The Dynamic OLS (DOLS) results show that a 1-unit increase in energy consumption can lead to a 0.20 percent increase in female labor force participation in the long run other things remain unchanged. So, access to adequate electricity can provide the opportunity for employment creation to the poor female. To do so, the Bangladesh government should pay more attention to the development of off-grid electrification to better the socio-economic conditions of the unprivileged rural women in Bangladesh.
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    Impact of Parenting on Leaders' Behavior in Workplaces in Bangladesh
    (North South University, 2022-06) Samuel Mursalin; Ridwanul Monir; Ayaz Mohammad Abrar Tamim; Ashiful Hogue Chowdhury; Helal Ahammad
    Parenting style may play a significant role in the development of the personality and behavior of individuals. Individuals are likely to showcase in their adulthood the outcome of the individual parenting styles that they have experienced during their childhood. Leadership behavior is likely to be a crucial outcome of the parenting structure that an individual has grown up in. Eventually, this leadership behavior may be exercised in multiple group contexts (e.g., workplaces). The aim of this study is to understand whether the different parenting styles that leaders have received during their childhood impact their leadership behavior in their workplaces. Five leaders from different companies and industries were chosen for in-depth research. The leaders were asked to fill out a short version (32 questions) of the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ). The survey captures information on the parenting styles that the leaders have experienced based on seven constructs: support and affection; regulation; autonomy; physical coercion; verbal hostility; punishment; and indulgence. Next, we conducted in-depth interviews of at least three team members of each leader to understand the leaders’ leadership behavior in the workplace. The questions of the in-depth interviews were inspired by Scott’s research on leaders’ power and control in the workplace (Scott,2018). The results indicate that parenting style has an impact on leadership behavior. Leaders who have received support and affection tend to become emotionally intelligent promote inclusive work culture. And leaders who were brought up in regulation displayed strict professionalism or power distance. In addition, leaders who were physically or verbally abused displayed signs of coercion, threat, emotional abuse, and blaming. Furthermore, leaders who were physically or verbally adored could show signs of emotional intelligence and inclusivity if they have also received support & affection.
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    IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGICAL AND SERVICE INNOVATIONS IN BANKS: A META ANALYSIS
    (North South University, 2022-12) Shahin Akther; Javed Tariq; Helal Ahammad
    With market rivalry on the rise, many banks are striving to obtain a competitive advantage through various types of innovation. Existing research, however, has not reached consistent results on the relationship between innovation and bank performance. As a result, the goal of this work is to give a quantitative analysis of the innovationperformance link based on existing research findings. A total of 24 peer-reviewed publications were reviewed and analyzed using a random effects model, a statistical technique well-suited for meta-analytic analysis, to examine the relationship between innovation and bank performance. The analysis also explored the impacts of different subgroups, focusing on both technological and service innovations. The result found that there is a significant positive association between overall innovation and different kinds of bank performance, such as profitability, income, Return on Asset (ROA), and customer satisfaction. Notably, technological innovation emerges as a key driver of bank performance, demonstrating a considerable positive impact across these performance metrics. Furthermore, specific technological innovations such as mobile banking and agent banking also show considerable positive effects on performance. Moreover, some other innovation such as product, service, has a considerable positive impact on bank performance. On the contrary, telephone banking, internet banking, Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT), etc., didn‘t have a significant effect on bank performance. Overall, the findings underscore the critical importance of technological innovation, particularly data or AI-driven analytics, in enhancing the customer satisfaction of banks, suggesting that banks should prioritize these advancements to achieve a greater competitive advantage.
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    Interpretive Paradigm in Business and Management Research: A Philosophical Reflection
    (North South University, 2021-12) Md. Rezaul Kabir; Md. Mumin Ullah; Helal Ahammad
    With the increasing importance of understanding the social complexities of organizational problems in business organizations, the interpretive research paradigm has started to gain momentum in business and management research. Lots of debates and discussions have taken place among academics and researchers in regard to the nature and uses of interpretive paradigm, especially its uses within organizational settings. This conceptual paper attempts to explore the interpretive research paradigm in business and management research from a philosophical perspective. Alternatively, the paper tends to explain how the interpretive paradigm affects the choices of research approaches and strategies in business and management. The paper is concluded with a discussion of the implications of choosing an interpretive paradigm in business research. The paper is expected to contribute to the existing literature on research methodology to a large extent. Academics, particularly early career researchers, and doctoral students will benefit from this study.
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    Men in a Matrilineal Society: Construction of Masculinity Among Garo Men in Bangladesh
    (North South University, 2021-12) Naveed Ferdous; Subah Samara; Helal Ahammad
    To analyse the social dynamics between men and women in a society, it is very important to understand masculinity and precisely how masculinity is constructed. Generally, we have discussed about masculinity from the lens of a patriarchal society. However, this paper, with support of the relevant theories, aspires to understand the masculinity from the perspective of a matrilineal society. It endeavours to examine how construction of masculinity is being shaped up and influenced in a matrilineal society – the psycho-social construction of men living in a matrilineal society. It then emphasizes how the social norms and practices, including interaction with some factors shape up the masculinity construction of a man.
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    Occupational Health and Safety, Employee Engagement and Employee Job Performance in the RMG Sector in Bangladesh
    (North South University, 2022-06) Alima Aktar; Helal Ahammad
    The objective of this study is to discuss safety and health management practices (six dimensions are elaborated) theoretically and empirically test the relationship of safety objectives with performance outcomes through employee engagement. Although the readymade garments industry is one of the dominant sectors in Bangladesh, it is also considered one of the most hazardous industries. Having an effective occupational health and safety (OHS) management system is very crucial to safeguard employees and the industry more broadly. This study gathers the data from 351 garments employees through a standardized questionnaire to evaluate the link between different safety practices and employee job performances. The analysis in this paper shows a positive correlation between occupational health and safety systems and employee engagement and job performances. Moreover, this study shows that, among the six dimensions of an OHS system, management commitment towards safety is one of the stronger predictors for both employee engagement and job performances. It is also found that employee engagement has a mediating role on job performance. This study concludes that employee job performances are highly influenced by the OHS system. Particularly, management commitment is to ensure the effective development of safety process and procedures at the workplace.
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    POST-PANDEMIC RECOVERY STRATEGIES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW ON TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
    (North South University, 2022-12) Muslima Zahan; Md. Al-Amin; Helal Ahammad
    The tourism and hospitality industry has been profoundly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, necessitating a systematic review to comprehend the strategic recovery approaches suggested and employed across the industry. The review will examine existing literature to identify key challenges, trends, threats, and opportunities following the pandemic. The comprehensive analysis revealed that the recovery strategies require substantial shifts in customer satisfaction levels, adoption of sustainable practices, technological advancements, and heightened health-related considerations.
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    Sustainable Green Marketing: Increasing Awareness of Recyclable Items
    (North South University, 2021-12) Mehe Zebunnesa Rahman; Farhana Ferdousi; Shabnin Rahman Shorna; Tanya Ahmed Chowdhury; Helal Ahammad
    Managing waste has become a crucial issue in Bangladesh, especially at the advent of COVID 19 Pandemic. In Dhaka alone, approximately 6500 metric tons of waste are produced every day, with only 40% of this waste is correctly disposed of and managed. Bangladesh is aspiring to become a middle-income country within a few years, and waste management plays a vital role in ensuring that happens. The main objectives of this paper are to understand the nature of recyclable materials, the demand for these materials in the local market, business trends, and how to maintain sustainable economic growth through business. It also outlines the contribution of the informal recycling sector to the national economy and provides some policy recommendations regarding this sector. The study is aimed to assess recyclable eco-friendly product producers and build a green platform to combat global warming. This paper examined a method aligned with business principles that investigated whether this method would be effective and plausible in empowering those who are currently involved in waste management, and encouraging them to recycle and produce eco-friendly products, simultaneously encouraging sustainable development in the community, while also letting them earn a decent livelihood. This study utilized primary data through a questionnaire survey on 450 workers living in Bangladesh. The sample collections followed a purposive random sampling. The two latent exogenous constructs, namely training of recyclable items collections and attitude towards green marketing, are significant variables to achieve sustainable livelihood vis-à-vis economic growth.
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    THE ADOPTION OF AGENT BANKING: THROUGH THE LENS OF COMMERCIAL BANK CLIENTS
    (North South University, 2022-12) Ms. Afrin Rifat1; Dr. Mehree Iqbal2; Dr. Nabila Nisha3; Helal Ahammad
    Agent banking has played a crucial role in promoting financial inclusion in Bangladesh, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic when accessing banking services in rural areas became challenging. This study aims to explore the factors and dimensions that influence agents' intention towards agent banking services post-pandemic, drawing from the Technology Acceptance Model, SERVQUAL model, and perceived risk theory. A survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire, gathering data from 300 current agents recruited by commercial banks during the fiscal year 2021-2022 and residing in major divisions of Bangladesh. The study findings indicate the significant roles of perceived risk dimensions, service quality factors, and technological dimensions in agent banking services in Bangladesh. Specifically, dimensions of perceived risk were identified as having a significant negative influence on agents' intention towards agent banking adoption. These findings highlight the risk factors that hinder people's intention to adopt agent banking services and emphasize the importance of service quality factors in promoting adoption behavior. Policymakers, such as the central bank of Bangladesh and operating banks, can leverage these study findings to develop effective strategies for maximizing the adoption behavior of agent banking services.
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    THE CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OIL PRICE AND INFLATION IN BANGLADESH: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS
    (North South University, 2022-12) Sakib Bin Amin; Maimaz Afiabi Atiqtee; Farheen Rishia Butte Benazirs; Helal Ahammad
    Bangladesh is one of the fastest growing developing economies in the South Asian region with very little fossil fuel endowment. As a result, the country typically relies on imported energy sources. Existing media reports point out an increase in global energy prices in recent years. An increase in global oil price simultaneously increases the rate of inflation in the oil importing countries as well. Hence, the aim of this paper is to empirically analyze the short-run and long- run causal relationship between oil price in the international market and domestic inflation in Bangladesh. Using annual data ranging from 1980 to 2021, the paper conducts a Johansen's cointegration test to identify the variables' cointegrating relationship. Moreover, Granger Causality and VECM causality tests confirm a unidirectional causality runs from oil price in the international market to domestic inflation in Bangladesh. both in the short run and in the long run.
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    The Impacts of COVID on Mental Wellbeing: An Empirical Study on Students at Tertiary Level of Bangladesh
    (North South University, 2021-12) Ireen Akhter; Ahmed Pasha; Tanzila Mahmud; Helal Ahammad
    The aim of this paper is to find out the mental status of the final year Business School students who have started exploring the job market, when the overall state of mental wellbeing of the students all over the world has been deteriorating due to the massive impacts of COVID-19 pandemic. To collect data Standard Google form and to measure mental status of the respondents the 14-items Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS) were used. A left skewed distribution of WEMWBS score indicated poor mental states of the students in general. The overall females’ score is less than males’ score, which can be attributed to our patriarchal culture. Nonetheless, with the Spearman’s Rank Correlation test, it is seen that many of the variables are strongly correlated with each other. The result of this paper may direct the corporate policy makers to develop some policies for this target audience.