Whither Japanese keiretsu? The transformation of vertical keiretsu in Toyota,Nissan and Honda 1991–2011

Drawing on institutional theory, this paper discusses the transformation of vertical keiretsu in the Japanese automotive industry from 1991 to 2011. By investigating the cases of Toyota, Nissan, and Honda, the paper empirically contributes to the debate on whither the Japanese economy is heading. Long-standing relationships to suppliers and exclusiveness have changed significantly in Nissan, while remaining stable in Toyota and Honda. New competition-based elements and more open support systems have been added to earlier governance mechanisms such as power and anshin (security). We argue that the studied keiretsu since the 1990s follows diverse and complex trajectories of hybridization, and we suggest that the Japanese economy is developing similarly.     

电子政务中的商务服务研究

系统地介绍了我国电子政务与电子商务的发展历程,进行了电子政务与电子商务的关联需求和相互作用机制的分析,指出了电子政务商务服务的发展现状,并进一步分析了在电子政务商务服务中存在的问题．提出了相应的对策和建设路径。     

The Influence of Selected Factors on the Perceptions of Managers of Small Business Firms Regarding Legal Firms

Abstract

The South African service provider is faced with an increasingly turbulent and complex competitive environment (Griffith & Rust, 1997:109-116). Factors that impact specifically on the environment of service firms (such as the providers of legal services) include the growing importance of consumerism and a drastic increase in competition (Harrel & Fors, 1992:299-306).

The latter factor has a number of causes, amongst others, a stagnating economy (Griffith & Rust, 1997:109-116). A factor that impacts directly on the growing competition amongst providers of legal services is the increase in law graduates and commensurate increase in qualified attorneys and advocates entering the market. Figures supplied by the Law Society of the Cape of Good Hope and the Law Society of the Transvaal indicate an increase in excess of 50% in the number of practising attorneys in both the former provinces of the Cape and Transvaal between the years 1990 and 1997.

This article presents an exploratory study establishing the relative value attached by small business in South Africa to certain factors, inter alia advertising and location, pertaining to firms providing legal services. A better understanding of the importance of these factors will assist legal firms to improve service delivery thereby improving profitability.     

The Evolution of Marketing Thought in Change-Agent Discipline

The Evolution of Marketing Thought in Change-Agent Discipline     

中日超市通道费盈利模式发展差异研究

超市通道费盈利模式虽然存在一定的合理性,但因其会破坏零供关系、影响供应商的发展、不利于超市培育自身的经营能力和影响消费者利益而存在很大的弊端。综合来看,由于法律监管、供应商规模、消费者习惯和消费观念、商业文化等因素的不同,超市通道费盈利模式在中日两国的发展中表现出了明显的差异,要重塑我国超市盈利模式,必须完善相关法律法规并加大惩罚力度、扩大供应商的营销渠道以降低供应商对超市的依赖程度,并促使超市将目光从关注短期利益转向构建新的可持续盈利模式上。     

Bridging what we know: The effect of cognitive distance on knowledge-intensive business services produced offshore

The rise of offshoring of knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS), causing a physical separation between clients and service providers in co-created services, is a major trend in practice but challenges existing theories. International business literature has addressed many types of distance that may affect (service) offshoring, such as cultural or geographic distance. However, limited emphasis has been placed on the implications of differing cognitions of individuals that produce a cognitive distance (CD). We address this gap and ask how increased CD through offshoring affects KIBS production processes. This conceptual paper focuses on how CD interacts with the modularity of different process stages in service production and what effect CD has on repeated production processes. In order to do so we first predict what stages of KIBS production processes can be offshored and what implications offshoring has on these services. We contribute to literature by deepening the understanding of CD and providing a process perspective on KIBS offshoring that looks at modularity within services, rather than firms as bundles of modular production, and on the impact repeated production processes have on service characteristics.     

Does innovativeness of knowledge-intensive business services differ from other industries?

This article seeks to determine whether the innovative capabilities of knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) do actually differ from other industries through comparing the innovation capacities and financial performance of KIBS with firms operating in other sectors (non-KIBS). Based upon a 1000-firm sample, the results of our estimated econometric model demonstrate that non-KIBS firms are in possession of significantly greater innovation capacities than KIBS firms. These differences were observed across factors such as organisational process innovation, the launch of already existing products in new markets, branding and new product designs. Nevertheless, as regards the actual importance attributed to product/service innovation, KIBS firms place a greater comparative importance on innovation in comparison with their non-KIBS peers. In addition, the empirical evidences display a significantly different range of effects of innovation capacities on financial performance and concludes that non-KIBS firms turn in better comparative performances than specialist KIBS firms.     

Innovation patterns and their effects on firm performance

This study aims to identify various innovation patterns and understand their effects on firm performance across business service sectors. By collecting empirical data from 198 Korean business services firms, we explore these firms’ major innovation patterns, conceptualized as combinations of different service innovation dimensions: service concept, service delivery, customer interaction, and technology. Then, in accordance with the innovation patterns they display, we group these firms into four clusters: ‘service delivery-based high-technology', ‘service delivery and customer interaction-integrated', ‘customer interaction-based high-technology', and ‘strongly balanced’ innovators. Last, we investigate whether these patterns influence firm performance. Our findings are three-fold: (1) the innovation patterns in business service firms result from the creation of new combinations of major service innovation dimensions, (2) four independent innovation patterns emerge in business service firms, and (3) these patterns lead to different levels of firm performance. Practically, our findings highlight the importance of highly qualified employees, customer interaction, and technology in improving financial performance.     

加入WTO后我国银行卡业务的SWOT分析

加入世界贸易组织后 ,我国银行卡业务面临着前所未有的威胁。采取SWOT分析方法深入分析我国银行卡市场可能发生的变化 ,全面考虑面对国外的竞争压力 ,我国银行卡业的竞争优势、劣势、威胁和机遇 ,把银行卡业发展重新定位 ,以适应我国特色的经营发展。     

金融服务业BPO的非系统性风险分析与管理

金融服务业的发展体现出强化核心业务,发展外包业务的明显特征。分析国内外金融机构BPO模式现状,实施BPO面临的主要风险为宏观风险、行业风险和金融机构风险。其中金融机构风险是非系统性风险,也是金融BPO业务中的主要风险。包括:战略风险、决策风险、声誉风险、合规风险、操作风险、退包风险、信用风险、履约风险、人力风险、财务风险、合同风险。运用风险规避、风险度量、内部控制、外部监管等方法进行管理。     

知识密集型服务业集群内企业间知识转移影响因素——环同济建筑设计产业带的实证研究

在回顾国内外相关研究的基础上,构建知识转移的影响因素模型。然后,基于知识密集型的环同济设计产业集群的调研数据对上述理论模型进行实证研究。研究结果显示:企业间亲密的关系和企业浓厚的学习文化对知识密集型服务业企业之间的知识转移有重要的促进作用;企业较强的吸收能力、企业间较近的组织距离对产业集群内知识密集型服务业企业之间的知识转移有较大促进作用;知识的模糊性对知识密集型服务业集群内企业之间的知识转移有阻碍作用;中等的知识距离比较远的知识距离更有利于产业集群内知识密集型服务业企业之间的知识转移。