The effects of tied and untied development loans

A decisive change now seems to be occurring in the development practices of the major OECD donor countries. Their own economic objectives are being moved distinctly closer to centre stage. Changes in the instruments of development policy are reputed to generate direct benefits for their own economies. The following article shows that such behaviour is questionable.     

A flexible adaptation of the WIOD database in a virtual laboratory

ABSTRACT

The World Input-Output Database provides a time series of world input–output tables (WIOTs) that have been used for example to understand the manifold effects of the increased integration of markets through international trade. In order to enhance the flexibility of research on global trade issues using WIOD, we implement the WIOT workflow in a collaborative, cloud-based virtual laboratory environment. We demonstrate that a lab-based adaptation of WIOD is able (a) to continuously create and update versions of the WIOTs in a timely, consistent, and cost-effective way, (b) to enhance original information with accompanying information on standard deviations, and (c) to enable flexible re-casting of the entire WIOT time series into user-specific geographical and sectoral classifications.     

Alltagspublizistik

No doubt, newest technologies penetrate human communication in a way unheard of. We owe the knowledge about this and other happenings around the world to everyday public communication (Alltagspublizistik). Knowledge about the world (Bescheidwissen) is formed by medialized and technicalized circular societal processes as its own re-production and re-reception. In his »Zeitungs Lust und Nutz« of 1695, Kaspar Stieler was certain: »We honest people / living presently in the world / got to know this present world« — by reading newspapers. Some 300 years later, Niklas Luhmann certified in »Die Realität der Massenmedien« of 1996: »Whatever we know about our society, even about the world we live in, we know through the mass media.« Both authors’ ideas of a cultured semantics of newspapers or media, we acknowledge, to redescribe everyday public communication in relation to world society — before the horizon of a communicational culture. We start with a comparison of public communication and mass communication theories, both German and North American and we criticize traditional epistemological obstacles handed down in communications. Than, we discuss the concepts of communication, commonplace, and public(s) in historical perspectives, refering to the »knowledge about« (Bescheidwissen), »sensemaking« (Sinnmachen) and »comprehension for use« (Gebrauchsverstehen) — »homework« to be done as future research in everyday public communication.     

Comment on ‘Competition Tests with a Non‐Structural Model: The Panzar–Rosse Method Applied to Germany's Savings Banks’

Abstract. In a recent issue of this journal Gischer and Stiele (2009) applied the ‘Test for “Monopoly” Equilibrium’ advanced by Panzar and Rosse (1987) to German savings banks and came up with the claim that savings banks maximize profits under conditions of monopolistic competition in the meaning of Edward Chamberlin. Their proposition is not conclusive since it would require free entry and for savings banks to operate under increasing returns to scale. Available evidence, however, shows them being subject to constant or decreasing returns to scale. The empirical findings of Gischer and Stiele can more convincingly be explained by assuming savings banks abide by their legal goals to pursue the public interest.     

Geschäftsausrichtung der europäischen Banken

Die Ursachen der letzten globalen Bankenkrise werden vor allem in den aktuellen Rechnungslegungsvorschriften, der Rolle der Rating-Agenturen und der Schaffung von kaum nachvollziehbaren Wertpapierkonstruktionen gesehen. Diese Faktoren k?nnen zwar eine Krise beschleunigen, erkl?ren aber noch nicht, warum Banken ihre Gesch?ftst?tigkeit neben ihrem angestammten Kredit- immer st?rker auf das Wertpapiergesch?ft verlegen. Dies aber scheint eine Schwachstelle in der gegenw?rtigen Entwicklung des Bankenmarktes zu sein.     

CRM in Data-Rich Multichannel Retailing Environments: A Review and Future Research Directions

Many retailers have collected large amounts of customer data using, for example, loyalty programs. We provide an overview of the extant literature on customer relationship management (CRM), with a specific focus on retailing. We discuss how retailers can gather customer data and how they can analyze these data to gain useful customer insights. We provide an overview of the methods predicting customer responses and behavior over time. We also discuss the existing knowledge on the application of marketing actions in a CRM context, while providing an in-depth discussion on CRM and firm value. We outline future research directions based on the literature review and retail practice insights.     

Mike Friedrichsen Professor für Medienwirtschaft und Medienforschung in Stuttgart

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

The Global Leadership Life Inventory: development and psychometric properties of a 360-degree feedback instrument

The purpose of this paper is to describe the design of Global Leadership Life Inventory (GlobeInvent), a 360-degree leadership feedback instrument. This instrument is presently used in executive programmes to help identify the operational mode of individual executives. Proper use of this instrument enables the user to determinate those areas of leadership behaviour where improvement is needed.

Because most studies pay attention only to the surface manifestations of leadership, most leadership feedback instruments, in turn, are not concerned with the psychodynamic processes that underlie leaders' character and behaviour. To address this gap, the GlobeInvent is based on a clinical orientation to the study of leadership. This approach provides a more complete analysis of the ‘inner theatre’ of leaders?–?that is, what makes them tick?–?as well as measuring the dynamic, two-way relationship between leaders and followers.

The first step in designing the instrument was to pinpoint significant themes pertaining to exemplary leadership. To that end, semi-structured interviews with senior executives were held. The leadership dimensions that emerged from that process were then tested on an international sample of senior executives. Analysis of the data from the testing confirmed the existence of twelve robust dimensions with a high reliability and internal consistency.

Because the GlobeInvent is a 360-degree feedback instrument, this article addresses differences between ‘Self’ scores and scores given by others (‘Observers’), gender differences in scoring and the influence of nationality, management experience and age on test results. The implications of using such an instrument as a 360-degree feedback tool are reviewed, and suggestions for future research are offered.