Using social media for competitive business outcomes: An empirical study of companies in China

Dr Yingxia Cao is an Associated Professor of Decision Science and the former Director of Institutional Research at the University of La Verne. Dr Cao finished her post-doctoral AACSB Bridge program at the University of Toledo in 2010. She holds PhD and MA Degrees in Educational Administration and Policy Studies from the State University of New York at Albany. She is also an alumna of Xiamen University (MA, Institute of Higher Education) and Anhui Normal University (BA, Department of Education) in China. She has presented and published numerous articles. She currently conducts research on social media, e-commerce, and online business education.

Haya Ajjan is an Associate Professor of Management Information Systems at Elon University. She earned her PhD Degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte’s Belk College of Business. Her research focuses on better understanding the impact of technology use on individuals, groups, and organizations. In particular, she is interested in understanding the role of emerging technologies such as wikis, blogs, and social networks in management information systems. Her research has appeared in The Internet and Higher Education, Information Resources Management Journal, and multiple regional and national conferences such as International Conference on Information Systems, American Conference on Information Systems, Decision Sciences, and International Council for Small Business.

Paul Hong is a Professor of Operations Management at the University of Toledo, USA. He received his PhD Degree in Manufacturing Management and Engineering from the University of Toledo. He also holds MBA and MA Degrees in Economics from Bowling Green State University, USA, and a BA Degree from Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea. His articles have published in the areas of global supply chain management, innovation strategy, and international comparative studies in journals including Journal of Operations Management, International Journal of Production Research, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Journal of Supply Chain Management, International Journal of Production Economics, Corporate Governance: An International Review, Journal of Business Research, Management Decision, European Journal of Innovation Management, Business Horizons and International Journal of Information Management and Benchmarking: An Internal Journal. His research interests are in operational strategy and global supply chain management.

Thuong Le was a Professor of Marketing, E-Business and Supply Chain Management in the College of Business Administration at the University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio, USA. His teaching and research focused on Web 2.0, B2B e-commerce, internet marketing, social computing, supply chain management, and global business. He had published his research in journals such as Electronic Markets, Electronic Commerce Research, Industrial Marketing Management, International Journal of Internet Advertising and Marketing, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Venturing, and International Journal of Services Technology and Management. He passed away in 2016.