Multinational Corporations and the Social Contract

The constitutions of many nations have been explicitly or implicitly founded upon principles of the social contract derived from Thomas Hobbes. The Hobbesian egoism at the base of the contract fairly accurately represents the structure of market enterprise. A contractarian analysis may, then, allow for justified or rationally acceptable universal standards to which businesses should conform. This paper proposes general rational restrictions upon multi-national enterprises, and includes a critique of unjustified restrictions recently proposed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). I propose restrictions that may be tighter than the OECD and international law currently demand, because reason requires that the activities of enterprises accord with standards of environmental and governmental sustainability in addition to consortium, national law and international law agreements. I argue that it is justifiable that indictments may be presented by a citizen or a government against the local arm of a multinational enterprise in response to violations committed by an arm within a different country.     

Trustee decision making in small UK charities

Management theory suggests that increasing the quantity and quality of management information available to key members in organisations will lead to improvements in their decision making. However, judgements as to what counts as ‘management information’, and in what its quality consists may vary according to organisational location, size and purpose. Where those ‘key members’ are volunteers, as with charity trustees, perceptions of management information need, amount and value, may vary further. This paper explores aspects of this theory, with particular reference to trustees of small charities in the United Kingdom. It outlines a research programme drawing on trustees in organisations working for children and for people with disabilities. A range of findings is presented, recording trustee experiences of and responses to management information, as this affects their charities' performance. Following from three in-depth case studies in small charities, findings show that informal systems are in operation, whereby trustees devolve much of the responsibility for management information to their chief officers, who are then monitored by their chairs. While this system is viewed by participants as an effective and practical means of enabling decision making, certain questions are raised regarding trustee liability and accountability.     

Was the Burden of the Deep Swedish Recession Equally Shared?

The development of income inequality in Sweden up to 1998 is described and analyzed using yearly data focusing on the 1990s when average income fell rapidly and unemployment sky rocketed. Inequality in equivalent disposable income increased during the 1990s as during most of the 1980s. Decomposing total inequality by population groups and studying the earnings of full–time workers shows that while many groups experienced drops in income during the 1990s, some large groups did not. Examples of the latter are pensioners and full–time workers. Young adults and recent immigrants are examples of the former. Decomposing the Gini–coefficient by income source indicates that forces leading to increased inequality during the 1990s differed from those at play during the 1980s.     

Relationship marketing: Local implementation of a universal concept

Relationship marketing has been described as a new paradigm for the study of exchange. However, current interest in developing relationship marketing programs overlooks the existence of relational exchange as the dominant form of exchange in many of the world's economies. This paper discusses the nature of relational exchange and governance within a cross-cultural context and advises caution in the implementation of western style tactical relationship marketing activity in markets where relationships represent core cultural values.     

Management Information Needs and Perceptions in Smaller Charities: An Exploratory Study

This article explores the extent and nature of management information needs of trustees, as perceived by selected trustees of smaller charities. It links these perceptions to questions concerning charity performance, drawing on assumptions in the literature (often implicit) that the quality of management information can be gauged. Also, that there is a corresponding link between meeting management information needs and improving organisational performance. The research methodology comprised a general pilot study and trustee survey, followed by accounts analysis and in-depth interviews in selected charities. From this, vignettes of trustees' perceptions were drawn up and case study accounts of three charities' approach to trusteeship, management information handling strategies, and self-assessment of performance were developed. The study discovered the existence of an 'expectations gap'between what charity trustees are supposed to do and what they can actually achieve.     

Causes and consequences of underutilised capacity in a tourist resort development

There is a widespread presumption that the development of tourism resorts brings direct and indirect benefits to the area where they are located. There has been extensive critical discussion about the magnitude and distribution of these benefits. This paper adds to knowledge of these benefits by investigating the causes of under-utilisation of tourist resort capacity, typified by the problem of “empty beds”. Many owners of holiday homes in tourist resorts choose not to rent out their property when they are not making personal use of it, thereby reducing income earning potential of businesses in the area. This paper reports on a qualitative and quantitative study of holiday home owners at a ski resort in France. While personal use of properties was low, 40% of owners had never rented out their property. Analysis of the data converged on four emergent themes to explain this apparent reluctance to rent out: fears about the social habits of renters; issues of freedom and flexibility in use of their property; life course changes which forced renting/non-renting decisions; and financial issues. Financial issues were not a driver of investment/rental decisions, but derived from other social and lifestyle factors. The paper makes suggestions about how resort management can help to reduce owners' reluctance to rent, and thereby alleviate problems associated with empty beds.     

Determinants of Community‐Based Sponsorship Impact on Self‐Congruity

Sponsors increasingly shift from large professional to community‐based properties, as these can deliver an engaged audience and enable them to demonstrate their corporate social responsibility (CSR). This research comprises two studies and shows that community‐based sponsorship may improve CSR image and, in turn, self‐congruity, a key determinant of consumer behavior. Study 1 investigates perceived sponsor–club fit, confirming attitude and corporate positioning similarity as relevant predictors. Importantly, CSR image similarity does not impact fit, suggesting sponsorship opportunities for organizations independent of their initial CSR image. Study 2 shows perceived sponsor CSR image to mediate the relationship between the perceptions of a community‐based property's CSR image and consumers' self‐congruity with the sponsor. While perceived sponsor–club fit and sponsorship awareness moderate the relationship between property and sponsor CSR image, attitudes toward CSR moderate the association between sponsor CSR and self‐congruity. The paper concludes with implications and future research directions.