Marketing and Professional Services: the Case of Consultancy Engineering

Professional services suffer from a dearth of literature on marketing, especially in New Zealand. Like other professioal services, consulting engineers have expressed particular concern on how to adapt to the present competitive environment. A survey of New Zealand consulting engineers indicated that the use of marketing techniques within consulting engineering practices is uncoordinated in nature and there is disagreement as to the most efective method of attracting clientele. The lack of coordination of marketing techniques is best illustrated by the majority of consulting engineering practices competing on price, while actually perceiving service quality as the most important method for success. Within consulting engineering practices, marketing is becoming a legitimate management function. However, evidence can be seen to illustrate that the ‘trappings' of marketing prevail rather than the ‘substance’ which is needed to have the customer-driven orientation fundamental to the implementation of the marketing concept.     

Technology diffusion and global welfare effects: Imitative R&D vs. South-bound FDI

A country in question is positioned in the middle of a global technology race. To shorten its technology gap with the forerunner (North), this middle country must invest in imitative R&D. To exploit cheap labor in the technological laggard (South), it also must invest in South-bound FDI. A dynamic general-equilibrium model of three countries (North, Middle, South) is set up to numerically analyze how the Middle’s refraining South-bound FDI affects international technology diffusion, international wage gaps, and international welfare. The Middle always finds a need to socially optimize investing balance between imitative R&D and South-bound FDI, while the South is instead in favor of as much South-bound FDI as possible. Interestingly, the North may, or may not, align with the Middle’s tightening South-bound FDI, depending on how fast the Northern product innovation can proceed over time. Both transitional dynamics and the steady-state equilibrium are computed.     

A new methodology for the logistic analysis of evolutionary S-shaped processes: Application to historical time series and forecasting

A new multi-logistic methodology to analyze long range time series of evolutionary S-shaped processes is presented. It conceptually innovates over the traditional logistic approach. The ansatz includes computing the residuals to an optimized multi-logistic trend curve least squares fitted to the time-series data. The elements of the residuals series are checked for autocorrelations and once detected the residuals series is further analyzed to search for eventual presence of underlying periodic structures using a truncated Fourier sine series. The method foundations ensures both a universal applicability and a capacity to disclose the existence of active clocks that can be possibly traced to the driving motors of the evolutionary character of the time series, due to the responsiveness of corresponding process to the development of economic cycles. On associating these two views, it is found that the methodology has a strong potential to improve the quality of short-term forecasts. These findings have been put to test through applications of the methodology to studying the time evolution of two commodities of strong economic and social importance (corn and steel) and good results were consistently obtained for both the analytical and forecasting aspects.     

Migration,self‐selection and income distributions

Self‐selection in rural–urban migration is examined using three datasets from rural and urban China in 2002. We construct a migrant sample including both migrants who converted their hukou status from rural to urban (permanent migrants) and those who did not (temporary migrants). We find a strong positive selection for permanent migrants, but the selection for temporary migrants is ambiguous. We reach these conclusions by comparing migrants' counterfactual wage densities, assuming they are paid as rural local workers, to actual wage densities of rural local workers. Our results imply that permanent migration has negative effects on rural human capital accumulation and income levels.     

Note on a model of Chinese national income determination

A macroeconomic model of Chow (1985) explaining aggregate consumption by the permanent income hypothesis of Robert Hall and aggregate investment by the accelerations principle was found to fit Chinese annual data from 1952 to 1982 well. This note shows that the same model can successfully explain Chinese annual data from 1978 to 2006.     

Land Transport for Export: The Effects of Cost, Time, and Uncertainty in Sub-Saharan Africa

In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), inland export transport costs and time delays are much higher for landlocked countries, vary substantially between different geographic corridors, and exhibit substantial uncertainty. Unit costs and costs of time for land transport of exports are high for many agricultural products relative to metals and other high-value products. We illustrate systemic uncertainty in land and maritime transport for exporting by use of simulation. Relationships among uncertainty, infrastructure quality, and other features of logistics systems are highly non-linear, and can be potentially used to identify priorities for trade facilitation.     

Commitment and Trust as Drivers of Loyalty in Logistics Outsourcing Relationships: Cultural Differences Between the United States and Germany

This study examines differences in loyalty formation within logistics outsourcing relationships between Germany and the United States. A model of loyalty formation on the basis of commitment and trust is developed and differences between Germany and the United States are hypothesized. They are tested based on 795 logistics outsourcing relationships in the two countries using structural equation modeling. The results indicate that these relationships differ depending on cultural traits relating to trust and commitment. The findings are relevant for practitioners and academics as they paint a more globally informed picture of loyalty formation within logistics outsourcing relationships in which to base both managerial decisions and future research.     

Role of the Internet Site in the Promotion Management of Sports Teams and Franchise Brands

This study examines the role that a website plays in the development of fan allegiance and as a promotion management tool for a sports team and brand. Research indicates that the combination of sports, media (television in particular), and sponsorships when employed in an integrated manner, can develop consumer connection to brands. This study suggests that the Internet is also an important part of an integration strategy of sports, media, and promotion. By working with a new team in the AIFA indoor football league, the researchers were able to determine what helped make fans allegiant to the team before the franchise's inaugural game. The results show that even before the team played its inaugural home contest, fans had become allegiant to the franchise brand and team by using the team internet site. These results indicate that an internet site can serve as a strong promotional tool in an integrated marketing plan of sports, media, and promotion to move fans toward brand loyalty and toward primary goals of the firm, including increased sales.