Roadmapping for technology push and partnership: A contribution for open innovation environments

There are several tools in the literature that support innovation in organizations. Some of the most cited are the so-called technology roadmapping methods, also known as TRM. However, these methods are designed primarily for organizations that adopt the market pull strategy of technology-product integration. Organizations that adopt the technology push integration strategy are neglected in the literature. Furthermore, with the advent of open innovation, it is possible to note the need to consider the adoption of partnerships in the innovation process. Thus, this study proposes a method of technology roadmapping, identified as method for technology push (MTP), applicable to organizations that adopt the technology push integration strategy, such as SMEs and independent research centers in an open-innovation environment. The method was developed through action-research and was assessed from two analytical standpoints: externally, via a specific literature review on its theoretical contributions, and internally, through the analysis of potential users' perceptions on the feasibility of applying MTP. The results indicate both the unique character of the method and its perceived implementation feasibility. Future research is suggested in order to validate the method in different types of organizations     

WORLD AGRICULTURE IN DISARRAY REVISITED*

In World Agriculture in Disarray I argued that the result of government intervention in agriculture would be to increase the costs of farm policies to taxpayers and consumers and to restrict agricultural trade. A review of the current situation in world agriculture confirms these projections. The policies of the major countries in relation to agriculture have clearly not succeeded in their aims and at the same time have created many problems, particularly in the sphere of agricultural trade. The solution to the crisis in the farm sector must take account of the inherent characteristics of agriculture itself.     

FARML AND AS A BUSINESS ASSET

This paper looks at the market value of farmland in the UK, and the problems of measuring it. The recent movement in farmland values is examined along with the variables which determine these values. Changing patterns of farmland ownership are surveyed in the context of the total balance sheet of British agriculture. Balance sheet values are related to each other and to the income returns on them, and farmland is discussed in terms of opportunity costs, or alternative economic uses to which it may be put.     

To Whom,When, and How Much to Discount? A Constrained Optimization of Customized Temporal Discounts

Customized temporal discounts are price cuts or coupons that are tailored by size, timing, and household to maximize profits to a retailer or manufacturer. The authors show how such discounts allow companies to optimize to whom, when, and how much to discount. Such a scheme allows firms to send just enough discounts just prior to the individual's purchase of a rival brand. To do so, the authors model household purchase timing and brand choice in response to discounts and use Bayesian estimation to obtain individual household parameters. They illustrate the model on a Japanese data set having price cuts, a US data set having coupons, and another US data set having discounts. They formulate the optimization task of customized temporal coupons as a constrained multiple-knapsack problem under a given budget. They use simulations of the empirical contexts to obtain optimal solutions and to assess improvement in profits relative to existing practice and alternate models in the literature. The proposed model yields increase in profits of 18–40 percent relative to a standard model that optimizes the value but not timing of discounts.     

Providing Ecotourism Excursions for Cruise Passengers

The aim of this paper is to argue that destinations can do more to offer coastal ecotourism experiences for cruise passengers, and in doing so they may secure a more sustainable product. An analysis of shore-side excursions currently available to P&O passengers in the Caribbean is presented. Excursions are classified against textbook tourism-type definitions. Time constraints imposed by cruise operators and an emphasis on selling rather than education are suggested as key factors that mean the limited number of existing ecotourism excursions were categorised as ‘soft’ rather than ‘hard’ ecotourism. Solutions demand concerted effort from all parties. Flexibility from cruise operators; political will and product development from destinations, and investment of time and energy from the tourists themselves. Ultimately, ecotourism excursions must embrace brand management, creating and delivering well-defined promises, so that cruise passengers can make intelligence-led decisions. In the Caribbean this requires a paradigm shift by the cruise operators in order to establish a meaningful and effective dialogue with groups such as the Caribbean Tourism Organisation.     

THE AUTOMATIC COUNTRY-OF-ORIGIN EFFECTS ON BRAND JUDGMENTS

An experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that country stereotypes can be spontaneously activated by the mere presence of country-of-origin (COO) information in the environment, and they may influence product judgments even when consumers do not intend to base their judgments on COO. Participants learned the attributes of a set of brands from advertisements, and categorized each brand as good or bad by using a simple attribute rule. Results indicate that the accuracy of participants' categorization decisions was influenced by their intentional use of the attribute rule and the country stereotypes that were activated automatically by COO cues presented during categorization. This study also employed the process dissociation procedure to generate quantitative estimates of the two sources of influence. The results provide converging evidence that COO effects occurred automatically and contributed to product evaluations without participants' intention or control.     

The Experiencing Self and the Remembering Self: Implications for Leisure Science

ABSTRACT

In this research reflection we question the way leisure experience is commonly understood and how leisure science is commonly conducted. Specifically, we focus on advances in multiple self-theory popularized by Daniel Kahneman in Thinking, Fast and Slow, an in-depth examination of human thought processes. After establishing Kahneman's foundational perspective, we apply his thinking to leisure experience and leisure science by reviewing recent scholarship focused on the “experiencing” and “remembering” selves (2000). We conclude the reflection by discussing the implications of Kahneman's thinking for the use of self-reports by leisure scientists, as well as call for greater congruence between the selves we seek to research and our selected research methods.     

THE RISK BEHAVIOR OF EQUITY OF FIRMS APPROACHING BANKRUPTCY

The risk behavior of financially distressed companies is studied using the shifting regimes regression model originally suggested by Brown, Durbin, and Evans. In addition, the presence of nonsynchronous trading is detected and the regression model is adjusted accordingly using Dimson's technique. The results reveal that the behavior of systematic risk as firms approach bankruptcy depends to some degree on appropriate identification of periods over which beta is constant and adjusting for nonsynchronous trading. The results also lend support to the importance of skewness and to some extent beta but not unsystematic risk in explaining the security returns of firms approaching bankruptcy. Finally, the behavior of equity risk is examined according to the outcome of the bankruptcy filing.