On Incentive and Coordination Mechanism of Service Outsourcing Based on Principal-Agent Theory and Blockchain Technology

To address the issue of information asymmetry between the two parties and moral hazard among service providers in the process of service outsourcing,this paper builds the Stackelberg game model based on the principal-agent framework,examines the dynamic game situation before the contract being signed,and develops four information models.The analysis reveals a Pareto improvement in the game’s Nash equilibrium when comparing the four models from the standpoint of the supply chain.In the complete information scenario,the service level of the service provider,the customer company’s incentive effectiveness,and the supply chain system’s ultimate profit are all maximized.Furthermore,a coordinating mechanism for disposable profit is built in this study.The paper then suggests a blockchain-based architecture for the service outsourcing process supervision and a distributed incentive mechanism under the coordination mechanism in response to the inadequacy of the principal-agent theory to address the information asymmetry problem and the moral hazard problem.The experiment’s end findings demonstrate that both parties can benefit from the coordination mechanism,and the application of blockchain technology can resolve these issues and effectively encourage service providers.

Can harvest outsourcing services reduce field harvest losses of rice in China?

The purpose of this study is to quantify the rice harvest losses in China and to evaluate the impacts of machinery and harvest outsourcing services on these losses,given the background of high-speed mechanization and outsourcing services.Data were collected from a national survey conducted in 2016 by the research team in conjunction with the Research Center for the Rural Economy of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China.A non-parametric method was used to test whether combine harvesting and outsourcing services could significantly reduce harvest losses.Next,quantile regression was used to estimate the real effects of machinery and outsourcing services on harvest losses.The analysis yielded four main study outcomes.First,the harvest loss rate of rice in China was 3.65%.Second,mechanical reaping and winnowing caused greater losses than manual methods,while the opposite was true of field transportation.Third,combine harvesting increased the losses.Fourth,the effects of an outsourcing service on losses differed among the different harvesting methods.Outsourcing services increased losses in segmented harvesting but they reduced losses in combine harvesting.

Service outsourcing:A new way to shrink regional gaps

International outsourcing is an important way to realize intra-product division of labor. China's industrial upgrade and policy efforts directed at outsourcing are not entirely endogenous but have a dependent path prone to be captured and locked at the low end of the global value chain by developed countries at the chain's high end. In light of the stage and reality of China's economic development, we should not only upgrade manufacturing outsourcing but also grasp service outsourcing opportunities. We should implement a strategy of coordinated development of manufacturing and service outsourcing rather than hastily transforming China from a "factory of the world" into an "office of the world." Balancing services with manufacturing and linking the global value chain with the domestic value chain is the best tool to address the problem of China's uneven regional development and establish a multi-tiered modern industrial system.

Analyze the service outsourcing on the base of the modern economy theory

The paper provides information about the concept and the characteristics of the service outsourcing. It also analyzes the service outsourcing classification and the modem economy theory of the service outsourcing. Through the analysis, we hope to provide the foundation for further study.

Outsourcing Service Departments

In a manufacturing company, certain departments can be characterized as production departments and others as service departments. This paper expands and simplifies the results by the author and his co-author （Lowenthal ＆ Malek, 2005; 2013）, by explaining in a simple way how to obtain the fair-price per unit to pay to external suppliers that replace service departments. The paper also proves that replacing several service departments at once produces exactly the same fair-price per unit if they were replaced sequentially.

Questionnaire Survey of Services and Outsourcing in Finnish Distribution Companies

The aim of this study was to find out what types of services Finnish distribution companies were purchasing and what is the future trend related to them. Results were gathered from Finnish distribution companies using questionnaire. Theoretical background was collected from literacy to get more information of benefits and risks. Results indicate that purchasing services especially from independent service providers is increasing. Also the benefits are greater than the risks related to service purchasing.

Can whole steps of grain production be outsourced? Empirical analysis based on the three provinces of Jiangsu,Jilin,and Sichuan in China

Certain outsourcing services for agricultural management in China,such as pest control in grain production,have experienced prolonged sluggishness,contrasting with the relatively high level of outsourcing services observed in harvesting,land preparation,and sowing.This study examines the feasibility of implementing whole-step outsourcing in grain production by conducting a case study of rice and maize production in Jiangsu,Jilin,and Sichuan provinces in China.The provision of outsourcing services hinges on two essential conditions:technological advancements fostering specialized production and economies of scale,coupled with a market size sufficient to realize the aforementioned potential economies of scale.The results showed that outsourcing pest control or harvesting services had varying economies of scale.The outsourcing services in pest control were less common than in harvesting services,and their marginal growth space of the economies of scale with technological change was also smaller.Determined by the operational characteristics of pest control itself,the market scale of its professional services is small.Therefore,achieving the whole-step outsourcing of grain production necessitates not only technological innovation but also effective policy interventions to overcome the constraints of market scale.Such interventions include(1)optimizing crop layouts between planning regions and reducing land fragmentation and(2)supplying timely and effective inter-regional agricultural information for service providers aided by information technology.

Business Service Centres and Their Current Challenges in Slovak Republic

Globalization of the world economy and the entrance of the information society have a significant impact on the development of business activities of individual firms.Since centralization and outsourcing of business services is a globally growing trend,this industry has enormous potential.Business Service Centres(BSCs)are considered to be a model in the European Union that leads to improved performance and results achieved by the company.Within the framework of EU free trade,up to 70%of European centres state that standardization and process transformation is the first corner in deciding to set up the BSC.The aim of the article is to analyse the market of business service centres in the Slovak Republic and their impact on employment within the EU.The competitive advantage of Slovakia lies above all in economic and political stability,geographic location,skilled workforce and European currency.Thanks to positive business experiences in Slovakia,most investors remain and large numbers of them are expanding their activities,despite the rising cost of work.Based on the use of quantitative methods,we analyse secondary data on business service centres.Higher education graduates are often the main source of workforce for business service centres.

基于Wi-Fi指纹且计算外包的室内定位隐私保护方案

为了解决室内定位中用户和服务器双方的隐私保护问题,提出了一种在使用Paillier加密的过程中将部分计算外包给云服务器的方案,这不仅保护了用户和定位服务器的隐私,而且避免了产生过大的计算和通信开销。该方案的主要思想是服务器先在离线阶段建立指纹数据库,在线阶段用户将k匿名算法和Paillier加密结合,将加密后的Wi-Fi指纹发送给定位服务器,服务器对接收到的Wi-Fi指纹和数据库指纹进行聚合处理,然后外包给云服务器进行解密和距离计算,最终得到定位结果。理论分析和实验结果表明了所提方案的安全性、有效性和实用性。

机械化及其模式如何影响农户农药投入?——基于中国乡村振兴综合调查数据的实证检验

有效降低农户农药投入是实现农业生产提质增效、加强农业生态环境保护、保障食用农产品质量安全的重要举措,是促进绿色发展、推进农业现代化的必然要求。本文基于2020年中国乡村振兴综合调查(CRRS)数据库,实证检验了农户农业机械化及其主要模式——自有机械作业与外包服务作业对农户农药投入的影响,并讨论了种植规模与村庄特征的调节与交互效应及差异。研究发现:第一,机械化作业能够显著降低农户农药投入;第二,自有机械与外包服务两种主要的机械化模式均能显著降低农户农药投入,但外包服务作业的效果相对更好;第三,种植规模可能抑制外包服务作业降低农户农药投入的效果;第四,平原地区、非城郊村庄均显著增强自有机械作业降低农户农药投入的效果,大规模村庄显著增强外包服务作业降低农户农药投入的效果。基于上述发现提出,应稳步推进施药环节机械化的普及,大力培育和完善外包服务市场,因地制宜支持不同机械化模式发展,引导城郊农民树立绿色长效化发展观念,并针对中小规模村庄农户施药过程建立公共组织参与与监督机制。

公立医院物业外包服务全生命周期管理

医院物业服务外包项目通常为2-3年一个周期,本文从项目招标阶段、合同执行阶段、项目交接阶段进行分析,以广州医科大学附属第二医院为例,探讨公立医院物业外包服务全生命周期管理关键点及其策略。

政府购买服务合同治理研究的国际进展与趋势前瞻——基于2006—2023年SSCI期刊论文的文献计量分析

合同治理是影响政府购买服务能否达到预期效果的关键因素。以2006—2023年探讨政府购买服务合同治理的SSCI来源期刊文献为样本,借助CiteSpace文献计量软件,从时空分布、期刊分布、关键词共现、关键词聚类、关键词突发性等方面,探析政府购买服务合同治理研究的概貌、热点与趋势。研究发现,时空分布呈现发文数量“波动递增”、被引频次“加速递增”、发文国家以美国和英国为主等特征;期刊分布呈现来源期刊较为分散、跨学科期刊占有一定比例等特征;核心文献运用定量、定性、混合等多种研究方法,聚焦讨论政府购买服务合同治理的主体关系、决策机制及其影响因素,热点主题主要关注合同治理的风险、工具和绩效;演进历程展现出较为明显的阶段性特征,可大致分为合同治理成本研究(2006—2014年)、合同履行研究(2015—2019年)和合同治理创新研究(2020—2023年)三个阶段,未来的前沿方向与研究重点可能会是合同治理问责、合同设计创新、合同治理关系。

服务外包政策对城市创业活跃度的影响机制--来自服务外包示范城市的证据

基于2006—2021年我国283个城市的面板数据,探究服务外包示范城市政策对创业活跃度的赋能效应。研究表明:服务外包示范城市政策提升了城市创业水平,实证结论在经过PSM-DID、二阶段DID等稳健性检验后仍然成立;三重差分模型检验结果表明,数字经济政策与服务业制度开放政策具有协同效应,且政府数字注意力越高,服务外包示范城市政策赋能创业活动的作用越显著;服务外包示范城市政策的创业赋能效应在对外开放水平高、资源依赖度低、营商环境良好的城市中更为明显。文章丰富了服务外包示范城市政策领域的相关研究,为激发社会创造力和地区经济内生动力提供了政策参考。

AI赋能哲学社会科学研究、传播及评价

人工智能正在改变整个人类社会,丰富人们的文化生活,促进科技创新与发展,是各行各业“新质化”的促进剂。人工智能可为哲学社会科学提供高效的研究工具和研究场景,将深刻影响哲学社会科学研究、传播及评价的方方面面。加速人工智能在哲学社会科学研究、传播及评价领域的深入应用,提升哲学社会科学研究效率,促进哲学社会科学的创新与发展,构建自主知识体系,是当下哲学社会科学工作者的重要使命。为推进AI赋能哲学社会科学(AI4SS),2024年9月28日,由西华大学、四川省社会科学学术期刊协会主办,西华大学学术期刊部、四川省社会科学重点研究基地四川学术成果分析与应用研究中心承办的“AI赋能社科研究与评价天府论坛”在西华大学举行。来自南京大学、中国人民大学、四川大学等高校与科研机构的20位专家学者,从不同学科、研究领域出发,就人工智能赋能哲学社会科学研究、传播及评价进行了深入交流。文章为20位专家学者在论坛上所作报告的主要观点。这些报告议题包括AI赋能人文社科研究方法的变革,法学、教育学、经济学、图书情报学、新闻传播等社会学科视域下的人工智能,AI辅助社会科学研究的学术伦理,人工智能在医疗健康、大宗商品价格风险监测、大学生高阶思维能力培养等方面的应用,AI赋能学术期刊出版与传播,AI赋能哲学社会科学评价新模式、新平台、新场景,等等。这些议题共同描绘了一个由AI技术驱动的多学科融合与创新的新时代。

农机服务外包对绿色农业门槛效应研究——基于老龄化和规模化视角

探究农机服务外包对绿色农业的影响机制,旨在寻求绿色农业的可持续发展路径。基于全国31个省(市、自治区)2012—2021年的面板数据,使用固定效应模型、门槛模型实证检验农机服务外包对绿色农业的影响以及门槛效应。结果表明:农机服务外包能够显著促进绿色农业;异质性分析发现,农机服务外包对粮食主产区、非粮食主产区的绿色农业均存在显著的促进作用,但对非粮食主产区绿色农业促进作用更大,播种环节、收割环节和翻耕环节的农机服务外包对绿色农业的促进作用依次递减。农机服务外包对绿色农业的影响存在基于老龄化和规模化的双门槛效应,随着老龄化程度的加深,农机服务外包对绿色农业的促进作用呈现“低—高—低”的倒U型特征;随着规模化的扩大,农机服务外包对绿色农业的促进作用呈现递增特征。据此,提出构建农机社会化服务新机制,完善农机服务外包体系;实施差异化扶持政策,推动区域均衡发展;盘活农村土地资源,积极应对人口老龄化以促进绿色农业发展。

雇用抑或外包:高治理负荷下基层政府的策略选择——基于福建橙镇“两巡”任务的分析

政府的雇用和外包本质上都是从组织外部吸纳治理资源,但是以往文献大多将两者孤立开来讨论,少有将它们纳入一个整体性的框架进行分析。论文借助橙镇“两巡”任务执行案例,构建了“行政权威依赖-行政风险”的分析框架,探讨了基层政府在雇用与外包之间的选择问题。研究发现:(1)完成任务的高行政权威依赖和执行过程的高行政风险,使橙镇必须采用雇用模式执行违建巡查;完成任务的低行政权威依赖和执行过程的低行政风险,为橙镇选择外包模式执行安全生产巡查留下了空间。(2)在向上负责制的背景下,为了保障升迁之途顺畅,官员既要确保任务能够有效完成,也要保证任务执行过程的各项风险能够得到控制。因此,只要完成任务需要高度依赖于行政权威或者执行过程潜在的行政风险较高,雇用模式都将成为首选;只有当完成任务对行政权威的依赖低并且执行过程潜在的行政风险低,外包模式才会成为可选项。

以新型服务外包培育新质生产力:理论逻辑和现实路径

服务外包是国际产品内分工的有效手段,具有技术含量高、数字赋能强、新业态新模式密集等特点,能够从培育新劳动者、催生新劳动资料、重塑新劳动对象三个方面提升新质生产力。在服务外包的赋能下,我国能够主动参与突破性技术创新,创造更多新的商业模式,促进传统产业转型升级。但同时,服务外包产业自身发展也面临“友岸外包”、传统人力资本消失和新兴离岸外包国家崛起、国际需求萎缩、产业发展不受重视等困境。基于此,文章提出大力发展在岸外包,促进产业自身数字化转型升级,进一步扩大开放拓展市场空间,高水平建设服务外包示范城市等政策措施,以新型服务外包更好培育新质生产力。

数字经济对农机服务外包的影响与机制研究

数字经济的发展为农机服务外包提供契机。基于2011-2021年全国31个省(市、自治区)面板数据,利用FGLS模型、IV-2SLS、IV-GMM、门槛模型等方法,实证检验数字经济对农机服务外包的影响效应与作用机理,研究发现:数字经济对农机服务外包具有显著的促进作用,具体而言,数字经济每提升1个单位,农机服务外包将会提升0.349个单位。机制检验表明,数字经济通过促进非农就业、强化社会网络与产业集聚途径,间接推动农机服务外包。门槛模型表明,数字经济对农机服务外包存在老龄化的逆转效应和市场化的边际递增效应。具体而言,老龄化的逆转效应表现为当老龄化越过门槛值0.017 1时,数字经济对农机服务外包的回归系数由为0.244变为-0.012 5;市场化的边际递增效应表现为当市场化越过门槛值3.25时,数字经济对农机服务外包的回归系数由为0.031 7变为0.565。异质性表明,数字经济对农机服务外包呈现出显著的地理差异、农业功能区差异和地形区位差异,数字经济对西部地区、粮食主产区和平原地区农机服务外包的促进更明显。

医院后勤服务项目外包标准化管理研究

医院后勤管理是医院管理工作中重要组成部分。目前,多数医院把后勤服务项目外包,借助社会专业力量,提高后勤保障质量效益,减轻医院后勤管理负担,加速实现医院后勤服务专业化。医院后勤服务项目外包,在运行当中逐步暴露出追逐利润、强压成本、管理困难等诸多风险。医院后勤服务是构成医疗卫生服务能力的重要方面,对促进医院精细化管理、保障医院正常运行、改善医疗环境起到积极推动作用。本文结合现实需求,系统总结医院后勤服务项目外包存在的风险,深入分析风险形成原因,围绕提升医院后勤服务管理部门和外包单位的融合程度,规避外包服务风险,有针对性地提出应对措施,旨在不断提高后勤服务质量,降低运行成本,提高患者就医体验,促进医院健康平稳发展。

连片种植能促进农户的绿色生产行为吗?——以化肥、农药减量施用为例

农地规模经营是促进农业绿色发展的重要路径。连片规模作为农地规模的一种特殊形式,能否带动农户进行农业绿色生产,是值得讨论的重要话题。利用2017-2019年广东省阳山县的农户追踪数据分析水稻连片种植对农业绿色生产的影响,结果表明:第一,农户开展连片种植能够显著促进化肥与农药投入的减量,即连片种植显著促进了农户的绿色生产行为。经多种稳健性检验后结果依然成立。第二,机制分析发现,连片种植农户通过增加机械服务外包环节和提升机械服务外包契约化程度等路径实现绿色生产。第三,异质性分析表明,小经营规模农户和小地块规模农户开展连片种植后,更能够促进其进行农业绿色生产。第四,情景分析表明,在承包地完成了农地确权和村庄内拥有高信任水平的情景下,连片种植会强化农户的绿色生产行为。由此提出,鼓励农户开展连片种植,发育农业生产性社会化服务市场,有助于将小农户卷入农业绿色化发展进程之中。