Challenges and Opportunities of Business Education in Southeast Europe: The Case of a Balkan Business School

In 2004, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) concluded a 4‐year, 10 million dollar contract with the University of Delaware to create the Sarajevo Graduate School of Business, the first Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business [AACSB]‐accredited business school in Southeast Europe. This case study examines inconsistencies in the school's mission and goals, the structure and operation of the joint venture between Delaware and the University of Sarajevo, the fit between Delaware's MBA program and the local environment, pricing in an emerging market, the impact of the school's business model on its sustainability, challenges of market estimation and new product introduction, and the realism of USAID's goal of cultural change. The article concludes with an up‐to‐date epilogue and summary of conclusions that pertain generally to organizational strategies in emerging markets.     

A comparison between Asian and Australasia backpackers using cultural consensus analysis

This study tests the differences in the shared understanding of the backpacker cultural domain between two groups: backpackers from Australasia and backpackers from Asian countries. A total of 256 backpackers responded to a questionnaire administered in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Krabi Province (Thailand). Cultural consensus analysis (CCA) guided the data analysis, to identify the shared values and the differences in the backpacker culture of the two groups. The findings revealed that while the two groups share some of the backpacker cultural values, some other values are distinctively different from one another. The study provides the first empirical evidence of the differences in backpacking culture between the two groups using CCA. Based on the study findings, we propose some marketing and managerial implications.     

Retail transitions in Southeast Asia

This special issue explores multi-dimensional retail transitions in Southeast Asia against the backdrop of the ongoing globalization of retail capital. As an introduction to the special issue, this paper does three things. First, it introduces the rationale for, and wider context to, the special issue. Second, it offers a contemporary snapshot of the leading retail markets in Southeast Asia in order to highlight the considerable national variation in market conditions that exists, and thereby to situate the papers that follow. Third, it reviews the existing literature on retail transformations in Southeast Asia, with a particular focus on three areas: deregulation and reregulation with respect to retailing, competitive impacts of foreign retailers on domestic firms, and the supply network impacts of inward investment in retailing. The paper concludes by outlining a brief research agenda for work on retail transitions in Southeast Asia.     

VALUE CONTENT AND PRODUCTION NETWORKS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA: APPLICATION OF AFTA AND ASEAN‐PLUS‐ONE FTA FORMULAS

Rules of origin are an integral part of all trade rules. To be eligible for Common Effective Preferential Tariffs under the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) agreement, a product must satisfy the conditions relative to value content. The present paper seeks to calculate value content of industries in Southeast Asia, using the formula specified by the rules of origin in AFTA, the ASEAN–China FTA, the ASEAN–Korea FTA, and the ASEAN–Japan FTA. Moreover, the paper attempts to calculate true value content of industries by applying a simple technique of input–output analysis, and to estimate error margins (i.e., overestimates) in calculating value content. The paper also examines the relationship between value content and production networks. The paper finds that many industries exhibited declines in local content during the period 1990–2000, but that the geographical spread of production networks raised the proportion of inputs supplied by the neighboring ASEAN countries, so that the contribution of the cumulative rule of origin increased.     

Analysis of agricultural research investment priorities for sustainable poverty reduction in Southeast Asia

Underinvestment in agricultural research remains rife across Southeast Asia, despite the remaining importance of the subregion’s agricultural sector and ample evidence of agricultural technology impact to date. To help identify specific areas where additional investment is most needed, this study compares the impact potential for the poor of alternative agricultural research foci, taking changes in production patterns, consumption patterns and environmental sustainability into account. New spatial data on the distribution of poverty and the expenditure patterns of households below international poverty lines are used to offer more detailed assessment of the poverty relevance of alternative foci than possible previously. Patterns of impact potential are evaluated against evidence of impact to date to discern probabilities of success in achieving potential impacts. Impact patterns discerned are contrasted with current relative funding allocations across research areas in the subregion by National Agricultural Research Systems (NARSs) and International Agricultural Research Centers (IARCs) to identify key funding gaps.     

From boom to bust: the challenges of managing people in Thailand

This article critically analyses the theory and practice of human resource management (HRM) in Thailand. Thailand emerged against all expectations as the most impressive of the 'tiger economies' with unprecedented growth rates of 8 per cent and above in the 1980s and early 1990s. This paper examines the human resource challenges associated with the industrial expansion during the period of transition from the boom era to the subsequent economic downturn that saw the collapse of the economy in 1997. Based on in-depth interviews with managers across eleven major industrial sectors, observations of office and factory practice, this paper attempts to characterize the diversity of approaches available and how they reflect the social-cultural and economic realities in Thailand today. Three generic HR models are identified: traditional , transitional and progressive . We assess the key definitive features of these models, identify some major thematic differences, and examine the relative importance of these models in the commitment to develop a competent and innovative workforce. Finally, we identify some possible avenues for further research, and set out a number of managerial and policy implications.     

闽东南地区中小企业文秘人才需求与培养分析

海峡西岸经济区建设全面推进,福建东南沿海地区中小企业对文秘人才的需求量在持续扩大,对文秘人才的素质与能力要求更高,高职文秘专业人才培养只有以海峡西岸经济区发展需求为导向,更加重视人才的综合素质、专业知识和职业技能的培养,突出面向中小企业的特色,才能增强文秘专业毕业生的就业竞争力,开辟更加广阔的发展前景。     

Comparative analysis of efficiency for major Southeast Asia airports: A two-stage approach

Within the past few years, the economy of Southeast Asia has been expanding rapidly with the rise in demand for air transport services. International airports are important driving forces for Southeast Asia countries' economies. Therefore, the competitive ability of these airports is very essential in terms of development and competitiveness within the region. This paper investigates the capabilities of these airports by a two-stage approach. The strengths and weaknesses of each Southeast Asia airport are evaluated by Data Envelopment Analysis – Slack-Based Measurement (DEA-SBM) in the first stage. This is a non-parametric approach to measure the efficiency of 9 major airports in the area including Changi Airport (Singapore), Suvarnabhumi Airport (Thailand), Kuala Lumpur Airport (Malaysia), Soekarno Hatta Airport (Indonesia), Ninoy Aquino Airport (the Philippines), Noi Bai Airport, Tan Son Nhat Airport (Vietnam) and Guangzhou Baiyun Airport (China), Hong Kong Airport (Hong Kong). In the second stage, Tobit regression is used to estimate the influence of multiple factors toward the efficiency of each airport. By generalizing and comparing two stages, the analysis allows us to evaluate each airport's efficiency in seven years, as well as the impact of multiple factors in one airport's performance. The implications for improvement are also obtained and discussed.