Training programs are an integral part of employee development in many organizations that believe in the long-term advantage of investing in employee resources. The impact of training on employee learning and reflection of that learning in improved work performance is disputed by many who believe that training is often a sunk cost. Whatever be the debate, there is no doubt about the importance of training. Huge budgets are allocated for employee training with a positive intent and expectation of its outcomes. The first paper, “A Moderated Mediation Analysis of Supportive Work Environment, Motivation to Transfer and Training Transfer in the Small and Medium Retail Firms in Saudi Arabia” by Siddhartha S Brahma and Haimanti Chakraborty, looks at the issue of transfer of learning in training programs. Specifically, this paper considers an often ignored aspect of learning transfer process and the factors that moderate this process. In doing so, a moderated mediation model of training transfer is proposed by the authors that jointly examines motivation to transfer as the mediating mechanism and job involvement as the moderator, to enhance the theoretical and empirical validity of the linkage between supportive work environment and training transfer. The findings of the analysis reveal that opportunity created by the supportive work environment is a necessary but not a sufficient factor for training transfer. Transfer motivation acts as a mediating variable in the transfer process. The results of the study also demonstrate that the direct effect of supervisor support on transfer was fully mediated by transfer motivation. According to the authors, this affirms the recent theorization of scholars that supervisor support can lead to training transfer not directly but indirectly through their motivation to transfer.

Markets are getting increasingly competitive, leading companies to think of smart alternatives to survive and sustain. In some industries, effective supply chains are a crucial source of competitive advantage. In fact, it is not an exaggeration to say that often a customer-centric company supply chain is a clear difference between success and failure. The second paper, “Building a Customer-Centric Supply Chain Strategy: Enhancing Competitive Advantages” by Pankaj M Madhani, discusses the importance of customer- centric supply chain strategy. An organization’s supply chain strategy depends on customer demand which is very dynamic and uncertain. In order to meet this challenge, the author proposes a 4R framework, namely—Resilience, Reliability, Realignment and Responsiveness. According to the author, a customer-centric supply chain strategy helps organizations to sense consumer demand, respond to it in real-time and provide a superior consumer experience at every opportunity, while also decreasing the time to market, trimming overall costs and optimizing productivity.

Rapid environmental degradation has resulted in untold irreparable damage to planet earth. In most cases, the damage is irreversible to flora and fauna. In order to reduce the damage, environmentalists are suggesting a shift towards green products that are not only biodegradable but help restrict the damage to life on our planet. The third paper, “Green Lifestyle Dimensions and Cultural Orientation of the Users of Green Products: A Conceptual Analysis” by Sunpreet Kaur Sahni and Maneet Kaur Osahan, discusses the importance of moving towards a green lifestyle. In order to achieve this ambitious goal, many barriers must be crossed. Some crucial barriers that may affect the shift towards adoption of green products are lifestyle and cultural orientation. The authors propose a conceptual framework that discusses the influence of collectivist culture, social conformity and social influence on purchase intentions of green products. The proposed framework needs validation according to the authors.

Adventure tourism is a fast-growing business worldwide. Despite its huge potential and scope for growth, contribution to GDP and employment generation, it is seen that in India the industry has not received due attention. Policy makers and industry experts cite structural bottlenecks and lack of supportive infrastructure as major impediments for growth. The last paper, “Adventure Tourism: What Drives the Indian Consumer Towards It?” by Sriram Soundararajan and Upasana Singh, looks at this very new and emerging industry by way of an empirical study involving consumers. The paper reports the findings from an initial pilot study conducted on a sample of 200 respondents who are actively pursuing adventure sports. The results of the study show that involvement, attitude and destination image are the primary drivers that propel the target respondents to destination visit intention and word-of-mouth intention. The authors suggest that in future, the study can be expanded to consider the influence of variables such as place attachment, destination attraction and other psychological variables. Future research directions and implications for marketers are also discussed by the authors.