bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Developing a route to market strategy for mobile communications in rural India
Authors: Anderson Jamie 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges of reaching low‐income customers in developing markets.Design/methodology/approachSemi‐structured Interview.FindingsThe paper suggests that managers need to go beyond traditional approaches to serving the poor, and innovate by taking into account the unique institutional context of developing markets.Research limitations/implicationsSingle interview.Practical implicationsThe experience of Hutchison Essar in India provides some important lessons for mobile network operators (MNOs) and other firms in other developing markets who are hoping to serve the rural poor: Hutchison has recognized the value of corporate and non‐corporate partners. The company has proactively established relationships with individual entrepreneurs, and has provided has provided development support to other partners such as distributors. The company has recognized the value of leveraging existing local institutions, and has seen gaps in local infrastructure or missing services as potential opportunities rather than barriers to growth. The company has seen the rural market as an opportunity – not just an obligation to be served because of universal service obligations.Originality/valueIn most cases, MNOs have served the poorest consumers through shared‐use models such as GrameenPhone's Village phone concept in Bangladesh, due to the commonly held belief that reaching these consumers is difficult due to two key challenges – affordability and availability. This paper demonstrates that MNOs can deliver availability and affordability to achieve increased individual or household penetration through business model innovation.
Impacts of a Thai cause‐related marketing program on corporate image
Authors: Chattananon Apisit , Lawley Meredith , Supparerkchaisakul Numchai , Leelayouthayothin Lackana 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe research which tested a Thai model of cause‐related marketing's impact on corporate image.Design/methodology/approachData were gathered from 1,071 participants in an established award winning cause‐related program in Thailand and analyzed using multiple regression.FindingsFindings indicated that a cause‐related marketing program can create positive attitudes toward corporate image. One specific demographic characteristic of respondents, household income level, showed a significant influence with participants from lower income households developing more positive attitudes than those from higher income households.Research limitations/implicationsThe data were gathered from participants in one program only, hence future research could extend these findings to other programs to test their generalisability.Practical implicationsThe proposed model serves as a basis for marketers to understand the influence of a cause‐related marketing program on the attitudes of Thai consumers who participated in the program toward corporate image. The results highlighted the importance of matching the company, its target market, participants in the program and the communication about the program to achieve desired results.Originality/valueThis empirical study contributes to cause‐related marketing research by focusing on a previously unresearched group, the participants in a program. In addition it was undertaken in an emerging market, Thailand.
Evaluating the effectiveness of export support services in developing countries
Authors: Tesfom Goitom , Lutz Clemens 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe lack of detailed statistics in many developing countries makes it very difficult to assess the effect of export support services on the firm's export performance. Moreover, a fundamental factor that creates confusion is the lack of a straightforward causal relationship between a specific export support activity and changes in actual trade patterns. Despite these difficulties, the purpose of this paper is to show that an assessment of the effectiveness of export promotion and support services can be made on the basis of the perceptions of the manufacturers involved. The method is simple and informative.Design/methodology/approachThis research is based on a survey of 88 footwear and textile manufactures from a small new African country, Eritrea. The sample size accounts for 90 percent of the overall population.FindingsOn average, the quality of the export support services is rated as satisfactory. This can be considered as rather low, as the export promotion policy of the government is much more ambitious. The results of the discriminant analysis are in line with the literature and show that small enterprises in Eritrea have less access to export support services than larger firms. This can be considered as a major failure of the policy as in the modern entrepreneurial export economy small firms play a crucial role.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough the sample size accounts for 90 percent of the population, it is relatively small. To verify the results it would be interesting to conduct a comprehensive survey that includes all export manufacturing industries in Eritrea.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study are useful for export policy makers in developing countries. The presented method shows that it is possible to measure the perception of the manufacturers with regard to the effectiveness of export promotion and support services. It also allows to compare the performance of those services and to identify priorities for the policy agenda.Originality/valueThe study develops a simple evaluation tool for the effectiveness of export support services in developing countries.
Excess sensitivity of consumption
Authors: Deng Shengliang , Jin Xiaotong 
Published: October 2008

PurposeUntil now, traditional western consumption theories have not been able to adequately explain the consumption behavior of Chinese residents in the economic transitional period. Based on annual data from 1986 to 2004, the purpose of this paper is to examine the excess sensitivity of consumption through a variable parameter model.Design/methodology/approachA regression model was used to analyse annual consumption data from 1986 to 2004 in China.FindingsThe analysis demonstrates excess sensitivity characteristic in Chinese residents' consumption in the economic transitional period.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper concludes that in order to make the demand stimulation policy in China more effective, it is necessary to take a series of measures to correct the excess sensitivity of consumption, so as to establish a healthy cycle of national economy. The paper has only explained excess sensitivity of Chinese residents' consumption from the point of view of economics. While consumption is an economic problem as well as a social problem, those factors beyond economics should not be excluded from the analysis.Originality/valueThis paper differs from former studies in that previous scholars failed to take into consideration the special economic characteristics in China's transitional economy. The variable parameter model this paper employed takes full consideration of such unique factors as economic expectations and systems changes during the transitional period so as to better explain Chinese people's consumption behavior and provide a new perspective to make government policies stimulate domestic demand more effectively.
Trust and commitment in Vietnam: the industrial distributor's perspective
Authors: Tuang Arlene , Stringer Christina 
Published: October 2008

PurposeEmerging economies provide a challenging backdrop for the building of trusting and committed cross‐border relationships; weak legal institutions and a turbulent business environment necessitate such relationships between business partners to effectively cope with external instabilities. The purpose of this paper is to focus on foreign supplier‐incumbent industrial distributor relations in the emerging economy of Vietnam.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is an exploratory and expository study of relationship marketing incorporating personal experiences and the opinions of five incumbent industrial distributors in Vietnam.FindingsUsing Lewickiet al.'s multi‐dimensional conceptualization of trust (which included the dimension of distrust), this exploratory study corroborated with preceding works in identifying some of these positive consequences of trust; but diverged from this research area, by also identifying the areas of distributor distrust that marked out the constraints of the relationship. Trust and commitment was found to be context‐dependent, where the narrative of a “good relationship” was contextually bound by the individual distributors' various experiences in Vietnam.Originality/valueThis paper allows researchers and practitioners to gain an understanding of the business environment and to build a contextual picture of the challenges faced by distributors operating in Vietnam.
Nollywood and the home video revolution: implications for marketing videofilm in Africa
Authors: Evuleocha Stevina U. 
Published: October 2008

PurposeIn the last 15 years, Nigeria has developed a feature film industry based on video and video compact disc distribution which currently produces over 600 films a year making Nigeria (in terms of numbers) one of the largest film producing nations in the world. English language films (Nollywood) have become a dominant media form all over the African continent. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the implications of this phenomenon for marketing video film in Africa, and examine the structure of the industry.Design/methodology/approachUsing the case study method, the paper examines how a technological innovation such as video home system (VHS) is being used in ways never imagined or intended by the innovators. Consequently, the emergence and proliferation of inexpensive VHS video tape recorders have led to the growth of video‐based movie production in several African countries, especially Nigeria.FindingsIt is hoped that findings of this case study will provide the basis for future scholarly analysis of the economy of the Nollywood industry, and also provide a template for practitioners to engage in future research in video film in Africa.Originality/valueThere have been no studies of Nollywood published to date.
A snapshot of strategy research 2002‐2006
Authors: Adcroft Andy , Willis Robert 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to assess both the philosophical underpinnings and contributions to knowledge made by research in the field of strategy in the five years between 2002 and 2006.Design/methodology/approachThe paper begins with a review of the literature on the philosophy, purpose, process and outcome of management research which leads to the development of a conceptual model. Following this, almost 4,000 articles from 23 journals are assessed on the basis of their philosophical underpinnings and contribution to knowledge. Findings are reported and implications are discussed.FindingsMost strategy research, especially in higher ranked journals, comes from a positivist perspective. Across all journals, most contributions to knowledge are in the form of stretching theory. There is a limited amount of reflective work in the strategy literature.Practical implicationsGiven the form and content of strategy research, it is increasingly unlikely that research will make the crossover from the academic to the practitioner world.Originality/valueThis paper provides a better understanding of the process through which academic management research can be carried out and the barriers to this process. The paper provides a number of important insights into the nature of strategy research.
Historicism in narrative reviews of strategic management research
Authors: Novicevic Milorad M. , Harvey Michael G. , Buckley M. Ronald , Adams Garry L. 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive analysis of methodological issues that accompany the articles reviewing past research in strategic management.Design/methodology/approachThe topic of the philosophical underpinnings and implications of historicism in strategy reviews is examined by contrasting and explaining deterministic, indeterministic, and underdeterministic views of strategy's intellectual history.FindingsThree diverse philosophical approaches to historicist interpretation are found to be embedded in key review articles in the field of strategic management.Practical implicationsThis paper indicates the need to develop and teach an accepted methodology of systematically reviewing and interpreting available knowledge in strategic management.Originality/valueThe unique contribution of this paper is that it indicates new paths that are important not only for the development of an alternative way to construct a shared history of the subject but also for the development of common norms for review articles that could help to advance strategic management scholarship.
Scientific Management revisited
Authors: Wagner‐Tsukamoto Sigmund 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to critically question conventional views of the one‐dimensional, mechanistic and negative image of human nature of Scientific Management. Both for worker behavior and for managerial behavior positive aspects of an image of human nature are reconstructed in organizational economic terms.Design/methodology/approachThrough institutional economic reconstruction, drawing on the methods and concepts of organizational and institutional economics, the portrayal of workers and managers by Scientific Management is critically assessed.FindingsIt is suggested that a conceptual asymmetry exists in Taylor's writings regarding the portrayal of human nature of workers and managers. Whereas for workers a model of self‐interest was applied (through the concepts of “systematic soldering” and “natural soldiering”), Taylor portrayed managers through a positive, behavioral model of human nature that depicted the manager as “heartily cooperative”. The key thesis is that by modeling managers through a rather positive image of human nature Taylor could no longermethodicallyapply the model of economic man in order to test out and prevent interaction conflict between potentially self‐interested managers and workers.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper focused on Scientific Management to advance the thesis that the portrayal of human nature has been ill approached by management and organization theorists who were apparently pioneering an institutional and organizational economics. Future research has to broaden the scope of research to other pioneers in management and organization research, but also to critics in behavioral sciences, such as organization psychology, who may misunderstand how economics approaches the portrayal of human nature, in particular regarding self‐interest.Practical implicationsTaylor's portrayal of managers as naturally good persons, who were not self‐interested, caused implementation conflict and implementation problems for Scientific Management and led to his summoning by the US Congress. By modeling managers as heartily cooperative, Taylor could no longer analyze potentially self‐interested behavior, even opportunistic behavior of managers in their interactions with workers. Scientific Management had thus no remedy to handle “soldiering” of managers. This insight, that managerialism needs to be accounted for in a management theory, has manifold practical implications for management consultancy, management education, and for the practice of management in general. Students and practitioners have to be informed about the necessary and useful role a model of self‐interest (economic man)methodicallyplays in economic management theory.Originality/valueThe paper reconstructs the portrayal of human nature in early management theory, which seemingly anticipated the advances – and certain pitfalls – of modern institutional economics. The paper unearths, from an economic perspective, conceptual misunderstandings of Taylor regarding his image of human nature of workers and managers.
A “missing scroll” ofThe Functions of the Executive
Authors: Novicevic Milorad M. , Ghosh Kaushik , Clement Dawn M. , Robinson Robert K. 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to reacquaint us with Chester Barnard's seminal treatise on status systems in organizations – the conceptualization that he labeled as a “missing scroll” ofThe Functions of the Executive.Design/methodology/approachThe paper analyzes this “missing scroll” to draw the parallels and distinctions between Barnard's and the contemporary views of status systems in organization.FindingsThe paper outlines how this forgotten piece can inform and enrich the current understanding of the role of status in organization theory.Practical implicationsThis paper draws practical parallels and distinctions between Barnard's and the contemporary views of status systems in organization and management literature.Originality/valueThis paper corrects the omission fromThe Functions of the Executiveshowing that Barnard was the first to recognize status systems as systematic in organizations.
A product of “his” time? Exploring the construct of the ideal manager in the Cold War era
Authors: Genoe McLaren Patricia , Mills Albert J. 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the idea that the ideal manager is a social construct that is a product of the context within which it exists. The context chosen to illustrate this idea is that of the first two decades of the Cold War (1945‐1965) in the USA.Design/methodology/approachThe methodology used is an analysis of 17 management textbooks published between 1945 and 1965 in the USA.FindingsThe analysis of the textbooks shows a typification of the ideal manager as an educated male who wielded authority effectively and accepted social responsibility. These four characteristics can all be tied to the social and political context of the early Cold War years.Research limitations/implicationsLimited by its focus on management theory in the USA during the early Cold War era, and a selection of textbooks based on available resources. Future research could analyze the ideal manager construct during social and political contexts other than the Cold War, and across other social formations (e.g. the UK, Canada, France, etc.).Practical implicationsPractical implications apply to both organizations and academic institutions. Management educators should be attempting to use textbooks that present management theory in a problematic way and organizations should be aware of the impact of social and political context on the construct of the manager in order to determine the qualities and characteristics that are most needed today.Originality/valueThe paper looks at the ideal manager as a social construct, rather than an ideal that was created void of outside influence and assumed to be ideal for all contexts. It also uses the context of the Cold War period, which has been a neglected context in management research.
Learning and development dimensions of a pan‐Canadian primary health care capacity‐building project
Authors: Aherne Michael , Pereira José L. 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to use a descriptive case study to establish how collaboration, innovation and knowledge‐management strategies have scaled‐up learning and development in rural, remote and other resource‐constrained Canadian delivery settings.Design/methodology/approachIntervention design was realized through a one‐time, collaborative, national capacity‐building project. A project portfolio of 72 sub‐projects, initiatives and strategic activities was used to improve access, enhance quality and create capacity for palliative and end‐of‐life care services. Evaluation was multifaceted, including participatory action research, variance analysis and impact analysis. This has been supplemented by post‐intervention critical reflection and integration of relevant literature.FindingsThe purposeful use of collaboration, innovation and knowledge‐management strategies have been successfully used to support a rapid scaling‐up of learning and development interventions. This has enabled enhanced and new pan‐Canadian health delivery capacity implemented at the local service delivery catchment‐level.Research limitations/implicationsThe intervention is bounded by a Canada‐specific socio‐cultural/political context. Design variables and antecedent conditions may not be present and/or readily replicated in other nation‐state contexts. The findings suggest opportunities for future integrative and applied health services and policy research, including collaborative inquiry that weaves together concepts from adult learning, social science and industrial engineering.Practical implicationsScaling‐up for new capacity is ideally approached as a holistic, multi‐faceted process which considers the total assets within delivery systems, service catchments and communities as potentially being engaged and deployed.Originality/valueThe Pallium Integrated Capacity‐building Initiative offers model elements useful to others seeking theory‐informed practices to rapidly and effectively scale‐up learning and development efforts.
Developing a public health leadership graduate program responsive to a global perspective
Authors: Zakariasen Kenneth , Zakariasen Victoroff Kristin , Karegyeya Gerald 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe a new public health leadership graduate program, and the incorporation of a practical global perspective to health leadership education using contemporary organization development inquiry methods to develop a case‐based learning strategy using graduate student‐authored cases.Design/methodology/approachCase‐based curricula have been designed for the leadership and organizational change courses in the Public Health Leadership MPH Program that promote a global orientation and relevancy by having graduate students individually develop cases based on their experiences and observations in their own health care and social systems. They develop these cases using an extensive series of Appreciative Inquiry questions that focus on successful leadership practices, and the key stages involved in leading successful sustainable change. This method gives the students a framework to analyze leadership and leading change cases from the perspective of what the leaders they have observed did well and what they could have changed to have been more effective.FindingsThe student‐authored leadership and leading change case‐studies, based on an Appreciative Inquiry question strategy, indicate that this approach is indeed helpful in meeting the adopted mandate of making the leadership training curriculum relevant not only to Canadians, but also to those international graduate students who come from widely differing health and social systems.Practical implicationsThe design of this leadership program appears to have real potential in facilitating graduate students to understand how leadership practices and leading change processes are applicable both within the context of their own health care and social systems, and through encouraging a class‐wide global perspective by learning from each other's unique case studies.Originality/valueThis paper illustrates how principles from organization development inquiry methods can be used to customize case‐study learning to bring global perspective to health leadership education.