Generational management in corporate America： The differences and challenges in management of four generations of working adults

There are many differences and challenges that employers face while managing employees in the current work force. Our present day workforce is made up of a diverse group of people： Matures, also known as Veterans （age 55＋）, Baby Boomers （age 45-54）, Generation X （age 35-44） and Generation Y also known as Millennial （age 18-34）. The differences and challenges among these groups will be evident when reviewing recognition and praise, managerial styles, subordinate responses to generational leadership. Companies are stepping back and looking more holistically at how to develop programs and deploy technology that will speak to four distinct generations in the workforce （Sprague, 2008）. Each generation has their own definition of work ethic, responsibility, and performance. The best way to deal with the multi-generations is coming up with ways that make everybody feel like they are members of a team, thus helping them to learn how to develop a better way of communication than what exists between them now. If everybody is a part of a team, then they are all sharing the benefits that the other generations can bring to the table, making them a strong entity. Matures and boomers can become mentors to the X and Y＇s, and the X and Y＇s can then share and impart their knowledge of technology to the Matures and boomers. Companies in today＇s workplace must learn a better way to understand the values of the four generations, for it is very important in understanding and guiding these people in the workplace. Without this proper understanding, the guidance and alliance that managers are hoping to achieve will be even longer in the making and then one, possibly two, whole generations will be gone from the workforce and their knowledge and skill gone as well.     

The level of destination management in the South-Moravian Region

Tourism is not only a significant tool of prosperity in well-known tourist destinations, but it is also an important potential development element in developing rural regions. In Czech Republic, the field of regional development and managing destinations started to develop in the second half of the 1990s. Organizing tourism is in the phase of building and passes through natural development. Fierce competition between individual destinations imposes natural pressures on creating marketing managements of these destinations and such offer of products that perfectly come up to tourists＇ expectations. Together with increasing requirements, the demands on quality and well-prepared destinations within home tourism revive. In the final consequence, the level of destination management influences the increase in marketability and attendance in the region. The paper outlines the main theoretical basis, principles and tools of destination management, and subsequently it summarizes the results of the analysis, and conducted survey, the objective of which was to prove the functioning of these principles in practice. The practical verification of the functioning of destination management principles in Czech Republic has been conducted in the South-Moravian region （JMK） which is one of the most-often-visited regions in the country. The set targets have been reached not only by analysing available secondary data, but the techniques of depth interviews with experts in a destination management company have also been used, as well as the techniques of an orientation questionnaire survey among travel agencies and offices that should be one of the partners for a well-functioning destination management company.     

The concept of capital before and after industrial revolution： Islamic versus market economy

The concept of capital and ownership of capital in market economy and Islamic economy is different. Also the role that capital is expected to play in the economy is different in two economic systems. One of the key elements in creation of the capital （capital formation） is interest rate. In Islam interest is strictly forbidden. This paper reviews the concept of capital and the process of capital formation both before and after industrial revelation. In that context it also looks at the function of interest rate during the time of Prophet Mohammed and the present time.     

Rationality of escalating commitment in information systems project management： An inter-disciplinary perspective

Escalation of commitment has been linked to losses in information systems （IS） projects. Understanding the nature and the rationality of escalation allows the firm to promote optimal project management practices. This study takes an inter-disciplinary approach and draws on research from economics and management to create a model of irrational escalation and a model of rational escalation. The forces that contribute to irrational escalation include the responsibility of the same manager for both the project selection and project continuation decisions that create proneness to self-justification, the potential for negative framing of decision options due to large sunk costs, the proximity of project completion and the presence of organizational inertia. Identifying these irrational escalation factors helps design appropriate de-escalation techniques. The rational escalation model draws on the real option theory and the bandit process theory to identify conditions when project continuation is justified by the value of information and the value of flexibility that the firm receives from continuing the project.     

Stress perceptions and leadership orientation of Malaysians： Exploring their similarities and differences with Americans

To explore the management orientation of employees in Malaysia and the United States, this paper focuses on comparing the leadership and stress perception of respondents in these two different countries. It appears that Malaysians and Americans have a significantly higher score on the relationship-orientation than task-orientation. Similarly, the female respondents in Malaysia had a significantly higher score on the relationship orientation. Finally, the responses of these 216 Malaysian respondents were compared with the 87 Americans, demonstrating significantly higher scores for respondents from the U.S. on both orientations. For management and practical application, suggestions and implications for future studies are presented.     

Facilitating knowledge management strategies through IT and HRM

In an increasingly competitive environment, where new business practices are regularly introduced, organizations have to be innovative to survive. In the present competitive climate, knowledge is considered as the main distinguishing factor of business success, and it is seen as the foundation of organization＇s innovation. The emergence of knowledge-intensive society has changed the nature of business competition. Hence knowledge needs to be appropriately managed. Knowledge Management （KM） focuses on managing different knowledge processes such as acquiring, creating, storing, sharing, transferring and applying implicit and explicit knowledge with objective of product and process innovation, performance development and sustainable competitive advantage. This paper tries to demonstrate KM lead to promotion of innovation and performance when it is correctly supported by human resource management （HRM） and information technology （IT）. The questions we will try to investigate in this paper are： How knowledge in organizations can be managed？ What is the connection between HRM, IT and effective implementation knowledge management strategies and how these relationships affect on organizational goals？ For this means, this study ftrst states the importance of knowledge, KM process and introduces two strategies for managing knowledge （exploitative and explorative strategy）. Next, it demonstrates each strategy requires to desired facilitator to support them in action. Finally, with presenting of model, this study concludes that each one of strategy can cover some KM process. Hence for the effective implementation of knowledge management process, organizations have to utilize both strategies.     

The decision-making dimension of the systems approach to management

Theoretically, a system is anything that is made up of various parts. Theses parts are known as subsystems. At every point in time, these parts should work in harmony so that objectives could be achieved successfully. A system could be inanimate or animate item. Examples of inanimate systems include vehicles, households, computer and institution. Examples of animate systems are human being, animal and insect. Both inanimate and animate systems are made up of various subsystems. Such subsystems are required to co-operate, collaborate and work together so that set objectives could be achieved successfully. From practical managerial point of view, business organizations are equally systems that are made up of subsystems which may take the form of departments, sections and/or units. It is supposed to be collaborations among the managers and other members in these departments, sections and/or units so that organizational objectives could be achieved. All the managers in various departments, sections and/or units are required to work together as a team to make the system coherent and closely-knit to make disintegration impossible. Closely related to the systems approach to management is managerial decision-making. Decision-making is a very important function of every manager＇s job. The success and failure stories of many organizations are the result of the quality of decisions made. Many organizations have survived turbulent conditions. Others have also collapsed in spite of favourable conditions. These varying conditions are the result of the quality of decisions made by managers at positions of authority and responsibility. Therefore the systems approach to management enjoins top managers in particular to be very circumspect and cautious in certain decision-making activities. This is because, the quality of decision a manager makes can go a long way to determine the success or failure story of an organization as exemplified in the case study in this paper.     

Measuring the influences of supplier selection and supply chain tasks on firm performance among manufacturing firms in India

The primary objective of this research is to empirically probe the various aspects and variables that have been already addressed in the previous literature related to supplier selection criterion, supply effort management and firm performance. Further, this research aims to develop a measurement framework and pragmatically prove the framework through a measurement model. First, a factor structure for various constructs is made and the initial validity is determined from practicing managers and academicians. This research employs survey method and the data is collected from 358 supply chain professionals working in manufacturing firms in India. A measurement model is developed and proved with various tests of reliability and validity. Finally, three major latent constructs were formulated, namely, criterion of supplier selection, supply effort management and firm performance. The factor scores of these latent variables were used for further analysis. A six-stage approach was followed in the analysis of data. Firm performance was regressed against supplier selection criterion and supply effort management. The results indicate that the predictive variable has positive and significant effect on firm performance and they do not have any interaction and multicollinearity effects.     

Population distribution,urban construction and urban management in the process of China urbanization

Along with China＇s urbanization, a series of problems came, such as the rapidly expanding urban population, large-scale urban construction and investment, the financing gap of government＇s investment in construction, and urban management, etc. This article first describes the growth of urban population, the scale and the input of urban construction, and then analyzes the financial revenue and expenditure, and at last argues for the necessity of urban management, and puts forward the research content of urban management.     

Modification of Costanza＇s model of valuing ecosystem services and its application in China

In the past, evaluations of ecosystem functions were mostly based on Costanza＇s model, whereas the spatial, quality and temporal characteristics of regional ecosystems were not considered in the model. Focusing on these issues, coefficients of regional difference, spatial heterogeneity and willingness-to-pay （WTP） were established to modify Costanza＇s model, and a new comprehensive valuation model of ecosystem functions is proposed. The analytical results indicate that the comprehensive model could evaluate regional ecosystem functions in China accurately and provide more helpful information for decision-making. The empirical study on Zhangbei County in Hebei Province shows that the intensive human activities could limit the provision of ecosystem functions while the planned ecological programs might promote the restoration of ecosystem functions.     

Culture-related differences in process efficiency in corporations as a competitive factor

This paper focuses on cultural influences on the effectiveness of organizational processes in companies. At this time, there is a predominant emphasis on culture-related differences of processes and workflows in companies in the main body of articles on cross-cultural management research. This paper proposes an extension of these research efforts in that case that the different efficiencies of these processes, resulting from cultural influences, should be examined in more detail. Based on the beginnings of organizational theory and with practical examples, it has been already verified that cultural influences shape organizational structures as well as organizational processes. This kind of fact should lead to the assumption that these cultural influences should also create differences in their efficiency, depending on what kind of culture the companies are. These differences in efficiency can be regarded as opportunities for success from which further competitive advantages can be derived. As that the examination of differences in efficiency of processes is still a rarity in the field of cross-cultural management research this should be developed further.     

Strategic group theory： A customer-oriented view

Barney and Hoskisson （1990） argue that the strategic group research has neither established the existence of strategic groups, nor their relationship to firm performance. The primary reason behind the unsatisfactory results is the lack of a theoretical framework： what strategic variables to include in the analysis and their relative importance; the definition of an industry, and how to make competitive strategy operational. First, the author presents a customer-oriented theory of management which submits that, like Procter and Gamble, understanding customers should be the primary focus of a business. Second, the author proposes an integrated approach to competitive strategy. Because customer-perceived quality is far more critical to long-term success than any other factor, it should be the centerpiece of competitive strategy. The author suggests that competitive strategy should be divided in two interdependent dimensions： external and internal. It is the external strategy that should be considered the primary dimension because it reflects the customers＇ perspective, and provides a sense of direction regarding how the internal resources should be used. Next, the author presents an operational framework of competitive strategy which proposes that the best route to market share leadership in consumer markets is competing in the mid-price segment, offering superior quality compared to competition at a somewhat higher price： （1） to maintain an image of quality, and （2） to ensure that the strategy is profitable and sustainable. Finally, the author offers a framework of business or industry definition that extends Abell＇s （1980） three dimensions to seven. He suggests that an integrated approach to market segmentation provides the foundation for conducting strategic group analysis in consumer markets. So, in strategic group research, we need a bottom-up approach that begins with a product-market segment. In each product market, real competition occurs at the brand level. This is the ground where actual competitive wars are fought, and this is where the rich dynamics of competition often come to light.     

Interest and profit

This paper argues that it is important to distinguish between the real rate of interest on money and the profitability of business enterprise. The former is a purely financial or monetary phenomenon （as claimed by Keynes） and the latter is in the nature of a surplus over and above the costs of production, including financing costs. There is an inverse relationship between the real rate of interest on money and the average mark-up or profit share. A synthetic theory of profit illustrates these points.     

Concepts perception of strategy and strategic management： University case study

Aiming to reveal the university students＇ understanding in management as for the strategy and strategic management phenomena, this study accomplishes a phenomenographic research to assess the future managers＇ market perception. It was chosen university students in Management of a Portuguese University. We conclude that the strategy definitions obtained are an assembly of the diverse existing concepts. Concerning to strategic management it was perceived an approach with one of the main existing concepts. The findings raise interesting issues with respect to the difficulties felt by new managers in translating their theoretical definitions in real examples in the organizations.     

The effects of attributes and buyer regret on overall satisfaction

The current study represents an attempt at exploring product attribute, service attribute evaluation, and buyer regret influence overall satisfaction in the buyer decision context. The data used in the project were collected as part of a large study of buyer regret. The sampling frame consisted of automobile purchases in Taiwan We have collected yield 600 questionnaires, by screening out 44 questionnaires, including those missing value or incomplete answer, and finally a usable sample of 556 questionnaires were utilized in this study. The results reinforce the finding form early research that the concept of buyer regret plays an important role for automobile purchases in the buyer decision. Results show that higher evaluations of service and product attributes lead to less buyer regret, and lower buyer regret will likely to increase overall satisfaction. Specifically, the finding indicates that buyer regret mediates the effects of the attributes on overall satisfactions. Implications for marketing theory and practitioners are discussed, and possible directions for future research are sketched.     

HRD in a multipolar world： An introductory study

In the last two decades, the economic and political world was radically transformed. At the start, in the 1980s, the USA and the USSR ruled, in a bipolar context. But, after the fall of the Communist regimes, in the 1990s, a different form of world power sharing emerged, in which the USA, the European Union and Japan were the major players. That change was evident from the documents that were made by those political powers （i.e. the Lisbon agenda on human resource development （HRD））, which in itself contained a forecast of the world situation in 2010. However, life is by nature unpredictable, and the unforeseeable changes happen all the time. And, in the last decade, several main players emerged in the world scene, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China, the Arab World and Africa. In consequence, at the present moment, the world economy exists around at least 9 main players, 3 old and foreseen and 6 new and not foreseen. It is the author＇s opinion that this societal transformation should be addressed by the HRD community, because HRD scholars must study the more national relevant cases in a world that is changing very fast. Accordingly, in this paper, the author tries to make a rather introductory study in which he/she tries to define the basic economic variables for the HRD markets, namely demand, supply, need, equilibrium, investment, stock, flow, and return, for the USA, Japan, Brazil, Russia, India and China. The author uses the last available data, even if we tried to put the analysis in a historical perspective. The author concludes that several very different forms of situations exist in the HRD markets of those very important political entities.     

Sharing and evaluation of a new community co-management model for protecting Crested Ibis: a case study of Crested Ibis National Nature Reserve, China

The Crested Ibis（Nipponia Nippon） is endemic to Qinling Mountains of China and was once abundant over vast areas of north-east of Asia habitat.During the 20th century,however,the population declined greatly in numbers.Habitat quality used to be the main threat to this species but recent actions by the government and wildlife protection organizations have brought this under control.With the establishment of Crested Ibis Nature Reserve in China,conflicts between socio-economic development and Crested Ibis conservation have become more acute.How do we deal with the relation between Crested Ibis conservation and community development？ In this study,the Crested Ibis Nature Reserve co-management model namely ＂companies ＋ farmers ＋ Nature Reserve＂ model is proposed and evaluated with demonstration investigation methods,including continuous six-year fixed-site socio-economic development data of surrounding community,company sales revenue data and monitored data of Crested Ibis Nature Reserve.The results show that farmers＇ income and conservation awareness increased greatly from 2003 to 2008; company sales revenue has increased by about 20% annually in the recent years; management level has noticeably improved in Nature Reserve,the scope of Crested Ibis habitat has expanded 50 hm2; chemical composition of habitat reduced year after year; and the number of Crested Ibis had been growing annually.At the end,the success of the model is evaluated,and problems in implementation of the model are discussed from the following aspects：management system,co-management concept,economic base of partners,marketing mechanism,technical capacity and so on.     

A system dynamics approach for studying the resilience of irrigation systems

One of the most interesting outcomes from the recent collaboration between natural and social scientists is the concept of resilience, which imported from engineering to ecology. The problem with that concept is that it is hard if not impossible to get simple measures for resilience as far as social-ecological systems are complex ones. Using a system dynamics model, the author shows that, for assessing resilience of systems like irrigation systems, it probably helps to see the process of resilience loss as a systemic one, in which dynamics is given by positive self-reinforcing loops, like the one we have labeled in this paper--the death spiral. The author also presents a list of symptoms of collapse in irrigation systems, in order to assess the resilience of those systems, and suggest some future avenues of research on the subject.     

Implementing a model for identifying organizational complications for the purpose of increasing productivity in hydropower plant

The present economical conditions on today＇s world require specific point of view and policy making in business agencies. In this competitive world to achieve competence, competitive advantages in order to better governance, organizations have to increase their competitive powers through promotion and productivity. One of the fundamental approaches to elevate the productivity level is finding the complications and obstacles, and arise planning to remove them. In order to understand organizational complication, we have tried to take critical factors of success and continue improvement into consideration to demonstrate a model to find the main and radical problems and complications and recognize the recoverable areas in the business agencies. In order to verify and validate the performed research, he planned model has been accomplished in the Hydropower Plant Department, positive and acceptable results were obtained and organizations total factor productivity improvement was achieved which was appreciated by the organization.     

Intelligent tools and techniques for modern management

In order to make decisions all companies need information. As a rule, all the informatics systems of a company contain a multitude of data and turn these data into information that has to be analyzed in order to make decisions. It is a slow process. The solution of this drawback is given by Business Intelligence （BI） applications that can help companies increase income or diminish costs by offering the executive management appropriate information on the basis of which quick and efficient decisions can be taken.
The main purpose of the paper is to prove the necessity that BI tools should be used by the modem manager. Managers are aware of that by putting into practice the BI solutions, opportunities of getting control over the business process and methods are improved and better, timely analysis functions of the performance parameters can be obtained.