Employment Protection,Threat and Incentive Effects on Worker Absence

This article provides new evidence on the effect of changes in employment protection on worker absence. We use novel multi‐organization data to examine changes in worker absence as workers move from temporary to permanent employment contracts. We demonstrate a robust positive effect of employment protection on sickness absence. It has also been suggested that the impact of employment protection on absence and effort is due to a fear of dismissal. We also provide evidence that suggests that temporary workers' absence is influenced by incentives to attain jobs with protection that is unrelated to threat of dismissal. This has not been considered in earlier research. This channel of employment protection effects has important policy implications.     

Interacting effects of uncertainties and institutional forces on information sharing in marketing channels

Marketing channel members in China face difficulties created by market uncertainty and opportunistic costs resulting from behavioral uncertainty, both of which undermine channel performance. In this article, we argue that channel members can use information sharing to maintain channel performance under uncertain circumstances. With empirical data from China, we develop and test a theoretical framework which explores the effects of market uncertainty and contractual commitment on information sharing and supplier operational performance. Moreover, we also find that regulatory protection moderates the relationship between market uncertainty and information sharing. Normative and cognitive protection moderates the relationship between contractual commitment and information sharing. Indeed, information sharing serves as a mediator between uncertainties and supplier operational performance. Consequently, Chinese channel managers are advised to increase the use of more information sharing to counter market and behavioral uncertainties in marketing channels.     

Manufacturers shift the inventory carrying function

This article examines channelwide inventory management, and determines if manufacturers, as channel leaders, do force their policies onto subordinate channel members. Specifically, the ability of manufacturers to use their power to push the high cost of carrying inventories off onto other channel members is considered.     

Channel power, commitment and performance toward sustainable channel relationship

The primary purpose of this article is to expand our understanding of the sophisticated utilization of independent incentives and its influence on channel relationship commitment and performance toward sustainable channel relationship and competitive advantage. On the basis of a conceptual framework, this paper develops an analytical model to explore the correlations among channel power, relationship commitment and channel performance under the implementation of diverse independent incentives. The proposed model is empirically tested using LISREL and questionnaire survey data sampled from the liquid crystal display TV manufacturer-dealer channels of the optoelectronic industry in Taiwan. The results reveal that the sophisticated utilization of independent incentives through channel relationship commitment as the key mediator determines the channel performance; furthermore, relative to contractual incentives, relationship-building incentives appear to be more effective in promoting channel relationship commitment, thus leading to superior channel performance toward the ultimate goal of sustainable channel relationship management.     

基于全业务运营的中国电信营销渠道发展策略研究

随着中国电信行业的重组,具备全业务运营基础条件的新电信、新移动及新联通应时而生。面对相互间极为激烈的市场竞争,营销渠道作为市场开拓的动力核心开始成为运营商争先整合规划的焦点。基于此,文章对中国电信的营销环境进行分析;指出中国电信要适应全业务运营需要发展营销渠道,包括实体渠道、直销渠道、社会渠道及电子渠道;提出了中国电信在全业务运营下营销渠道发展的指导原则和总体定位以及中国电信全业务运营营销渠道的发展策略。     

Motivating independent distribution channel members

'This article discusses a general program for motivating independent distributors (channel members) to do a more effective selling job for the manufacturer. The program consists of three basic facets: (1) finding out the needs and problems of channel members; (2) offering support to channel members that is consistent with their needs and problems; and (3) providing the necessary leadership to institute the motivation programs. Practical methods and case histories are presented to illustrate how this motivation program can help to foster a more highly motivated group of channel members.     

Realigning industrial marketing channels

Dramatic changes are occurring in industrial patterns of distribution. This article provides a structure for analyzing realignments in industrial marketing channels. Specifically, the analysis centers on the channel efficiency and effectiveness dimensions that were generated by a shift from industrial distributors to a public warehouse.     

What British distributors dislike about manufacturers

Producers compete for the resources of the distributors they share. However, knowing how to win and retain a distributor's commitment is difficult because far too little is known about their perspective of the manufacturer-middleman relationship and about what they want producers to put into it. This article provides insights into the producer-related causes of dissatisfaction and motivation through a survey of British distributors of engineered products. A wide range of factors are shown to be relevant, and a fairly broad picture of distributors' views of a desirable channel partnership emerges. Implications for producers' channel relationship provisions are made.     

渠道权力结构与进场费的作用关系——基于中国家电渠道的案例研究

本研究以渠道权力理论为切入点,以国美电器和正阳家电的进场费实践为例,对渠道权力结构与进场费之间的作用关系进行了初步的实证研究,研究表明:在零售商处于权力优势的渠道中,零售商的权力优势越显著,进场费额度越高;在制造商处于权力优势的渠道中,不存在进场费;权力高度均衡的渠道中,存在进场费,但额度较低。此外,进场费也可通过影响渠道绩效而间接地作用于满意度,进而影响渠道关系稳定性。     

理想的营销渠道是怎样的？

商界说：＂得渠道者得市场,得品牌者得天下＂。我们是否可以这么来理解这句话,在渠道为王的当下,得到了渠道就将得到市场,而得到了市场自然可以得到天下？现下,中国玩具市场的繁荣背后仍然存在着诸多的问题,缺乏品牌成为首当其冲的而摆在广大企业面前而在玩具产业品牌＂群雄逐鹿＂,甚至是一派乱相的当下,谁将成就自己的＂品牌大业＂,谁能在渠道中称王,谁就赢在了起跑线。玩具的营销渠道一直以来都是一个大问题。其实,通俗地讲所谓的渠道,也就是一个买卖过程。     

Performance implications of distributor effectiveness, trust, and culture in import channels of distribution

Recent research has highlighted the need to examine international channels of distribution from the viewpoint of the industrial distributor, with a focus on how distributors may add value to their channel relationships. The present research responds to such calls and focuses on the value added in terms of the extent of channel functions undertaken by the distributor on behalf of export-manufacturers. Trust is also examined as a source of added value that may be particularly important for cross-cultural relationships. Trust is investigated for its mediating effects on otherwise detrimental effects of cultural value differences. We also examine the presence of explicit legal contracts used to govern channel relationships and find that the use of such contracts may also hinder distributor perceptions of performance.     

Factors that influence the length of industrial channels

This article is concerned with the length of channels utilized to market industrial products. Several marketing scholars have proposed that the appropriate channel structure is a function of conditions associated with the market for the product, the nature of the product itself, and characteristics of the producer and middlemen. By means of a survey of industrial product manufacturers, this study identified six characteristics of middlemen, industrial markets, and industrial customers that appear to be significant influences on the length of channels used to distribute industrial products.     

The deterrence effect of Guanxi on opportunism: The moderating effects of “three institutional pillars”

Marketing channel members are subject to opportunism, and guanxi (i.e., interpersonal ties) is a useful mechanism to deter it. This article argues that the effect of guanxi on opportunism depends on the institutional environments in which firms are embedded in. Drawing on institutional theory and guanxi literature, we investigated the effects of the “Three pillars” of institutional environments. Specifically, we examined whether legal effectiveness, Confucianism, and organizational culture incongruence moderate the impact of guanxi on exchange partners' opportunism. We collected survey data from both sales managers and salespersons in 268 manufacturing firms and merged the dataset with secondary data that measure institutional factors. The results show that guanxi deters opportunism more effectively when legal effectiveness is high, where Confucianism is more prominent, and when exchange firms' organizational cultures are more incongruent. This study provides implications for marketing channel members on how to use personal ties under different institutional conditions.     

Relationships of channel power, noncoercive influence strategies, climate, and solidarity: A real case study of the Taiwanese PDA industry

The management of channel relations has a significant impact on a firm's operational competitiveness; however, there is a lack of published research to better understand the linkages between channel relationships and channel power, noncoercive influence strategies, as well as channel climate and channel solidarity. This paper develops a model showing the linkages among these dimensions of channel relationships. Using linear structural relations (LISREL), a model of the Taiwanese personal digital assistant industry is developed to illustrate these interactions. The corresponding empirical test results indicate that channel climate has a significant impact on channel solidarity; however, this impact may be mitigated by both channel power and the use of noncoercive influence strategies. In addition, both mutual trust among channel members and continuity of the relationship have a positive influence on channel solidarity. Channel members with relatively more power appear able to determine the degree of channel solidarity through the use of effective noncoercive influence strategies.     

The distinction between carriage and content

The distinction between carriage and content has been offered as a conceptual means for distinguishing between new telecommunications activities which should be subject to regulation and those which should be unregulated. The author explores aspects of the limitations of that distinction and examines how a carrier can affect the content of the message, as well as who the message bearers and receivers will be. It is suggested that the most significant regulatory problems are at the boundary between carriage and content and that the carriage-content distinction should not be extended beyond its useful role (ie where the communications channel is effectively infinite). Throughout this article, reference is made to emerging issues of videotex regulation.     

Channel relationship and business uncertainty: Evidence from the Hong Kong market

This study examines the dynamics of channel relationships between an end user and multiple suppliers in Hong Kong, a major international logistics hub in Asia. Drawing on the literature on channel relationships, we examine the links between different channel relationship variables and the contingent effect of business uncertainty on the links between these variables and supplier commitment. The results of the study indicate that expected relationship continuity mediates the effects of trust and relationship quality on commitment. Furthermore, the positive effect of trust on commitment is found to be stronger when business uncertainty is high than when business uncertainty is low. As supply chain management is becoming essential for firms to succeed in today's business, industrial marketing managers need to be aware of the dynamics in channel relationships and to better manage their supply chains. The implications of our findings for research and for the practice of channel relationship management are provided.     

关于服装舒适性的评价与研究

本文通过对服装舒适性及舒适性对穿着的影响因素进行分析,指出在进行服装设计时,要以人体为中心原则,根据生理卫生学的观点来指导服装的设计和制作,追求保证人们身心健康要求的健康服装。     

Alternative Lending Channels and the Crisis in U.S. Housing Markets

To what degree has the development of alternative mortgage funding channels promoted the recent boom and bust in U.S. housing markets? Past research examined whether Alt‐A and subprime market shares are correlated with the housing bubble. This article expands the analysis to include the share of specific “alternative” lending terms and finds that the shares of interest‐only and negative amortization loans are important factors in explaining the housing bubble. This result suggests that research on the housing market bubble should focus on the impacts of loan contract terms rather than loan channel.     

Coordination in retailer-carrier channels for long term planning

We study a retailer-carrier channel for the purpose of long term planning and coordination. Here, the term channel represents the business interaction between the retailer and the carrier. The retailer sells a particular item with price-dependent demand, whereas the carrier is responsible for transporting the item to the retailer's site. We characterize the profit functions of each channel member as well as the total channel profit. We consider two specific channel structures: (i) the centralized channel and (ii) the decentralized channel. Under the first channel structure, the goal is to set the retail price so as to maximize the total channel profit. Under the latter, the carrier and the retailer choose their own policy parameters, i.e., the freight rate for the carrier and the retail price for the retailer, so as to maximize their individual profits. We model the decentralized channel as a Stackelberg Game and propose a coordination mechanism between the retailer and the carrier in which the retailer signals a price multiplier to the carrier. We illustrate that this mechanism could provide win-win solutions for both parties and present analytical and numerical results on the efficiency of channel coordination. We demonstrate that coordination in retailer-carrier channels can be as promising as supplier-retailer channels. We also discuss the effects of retailer-carrier coordination on inventory levels.