The contribution of marketing to competitive success: A literature review

This paper reviews the literature relating to the practice of marketing and its relation to corporate success, examining pertinent concepts and issues. The marketing factors thought to be determinants of success are categorised as attitudinal, strategic and tactical factors, and these provide the framework against which enhanced corporate performance through marketing effort is analysed. The final section of the paper presents a summary of observations on the literature reviewed.     

Resilience and the (micro-)dynamics of organizational ambidexterity: implications for strategic HRM

Abstract

In the twenty-first century, resilience has emerged as a seminal and important topic linked to calls for adaptability, well-being and organizational performance. Extant strategic human resource management (HRM) literature and practices have developed many insights into resilience. However, overall, they have a propensity to conceptualise resilience as being associated with ‘macro-’ and ‘extreme’ situations. This paper complements the prevailing perspective by developing a micro-focus on resilience through the conceptual framework of organizational ambidexterity surfacing under-examined individual resilience in connection with HRM practices. Methodologically, the paper adopts a qualitative approach presenting data from two illustrative contexts: an ‘everyday’ quasi-governmental institution and a prima facie ‘extreme’ pan-international military organization. Using template analysis, a number of valuable themes and similarities are identified. The findings and discussion underline the managerial challenges in handling organizational ambidextrous dynamics and tensions surrounding resilience, positive and sceptical approaches in relation to individual and organizational stances towards HRM practices. As such, the results point at value in HRM managers and practices recontextualising and appreciating ‘extremes’ and resilience more as an everyday (rather than exceptional) phenomenon wherein myriad micro-moments are highly significant in constructing and influencing macro-contexts. This also implies a need to see cynical resistance as normative rather than automatically negatively.     

U.S. real exchange rate fluctuations and relative price fluctuations

Traditional theory attributes fluctuations in real exchange rates to changes in the relative price of nontraded goods. This paper studies the relation between the United States’ bilateral real exchange rate and the associated bilateral relative price of nontraded goods for five of its most important trade relationships. We find that this relation depends crucially on the choice of price series used to measure relative prices and on the choice of trade partner. The relation is stronger when we measure relative prices using producer prices rather than consumer prices. The relation is stronger the more important is the trade relationship between the United States and a trade partner. Even in cases where there is a strong relation between the real exchange rate and the relative price of nontraded goods, however, a large fraction of real exchange rate fluctuations is due to deviations from the law of one price for traded goods.     

Comparing sustainable consumption patterns across product sectors

In this paper, we present findings from two qualitative studies where we explored sustainable consumption practices through examining consumers' information search and decision-making processes for recent purchases of five categories of goods/services: fast moving consumer goods (such as foodstuffs and household products), white goods (such as fridges and washing machines), small electrical products (such as TVs and computers), green energy tariffs (such as electricity from renewable sources) and tourism (such as flights). This research has provided us with a set of rich data which explores the nature and extent of sustainable consumption practices across different product sectors. A comparative analysis has allowed us to draw out patterns of consumer behaviour for different product and service types. Our findings suggest that even the same green consumer will not use the same information sources or decision-making criteria, consider the same options or focus on the same industry actors, for products in different sectors. However, we have identified some degree of consistency in purchases within sectors. We present these sector-specific patterns of consumer behaviour and highlight differences in the criteria utilized and the research norms in each sector.     

Third‐country Effects of Regional Trade Agreements

Does regionalism negatively impact non‐members? To answer this question, we examine the effect of regional trade agreements (RTAs) on imports from non‐members and the tariffs that they face. Using data from six RTAs in Latin America and Europe, we do not find evidence that implementation of the regional agreements is associated with trade diversion from third countries to regional members. Using detailed industry data on preference margins and most‐favoured nation (MFN) tariffs for three trade agreements in Latin America over 12 years, we find that greater preference margins do not significantly reduce imports from third countries. We also look at the effect of preferences on external tariffs. We find evidence that preferential tariff reduction tends to precede the reduction of external MFN tariffs in a given sector, offering evidence of tariff complementarity. Overall, the results suggest that regionalism does not significantly harm non‐members.     

循序渐进——成功转型之道

成功的转型通常都设定明确的拓展性目标，制定了清晰的转型结构，同时动员企业的全体员工积极参与。公开而强有力的领导参与是第四个设计主题，它是其他设计主题乃至整个转型成功与否的关键。     

Computerising the salesforce: the introduction of technical change in a non-union workforce

Employee participation and involvement in the introduction of change provide specific challenges for the non-union firm. This article provides evidence from a case study of a pharmaceutical salesforce and argues that the lack of employee 'voice' in the introduction of technical change had far-reaching consequences for employee satisfaction and the performance of the company.     

Competition,Cooperation and Regulatory Intervention Impacts on Independent School Fees

This paper examines the factors determining fee levels set by independent schools, focusing on the impact of competition, cooperation and regulatory intervention in the sector. Results indicate that, once account is taken of factors such as the extent of local competition between independent schools, the impact of the 2003–2005 Office of Fair Trading investigation into the fee-setting cartel on independent school fees becomes insignificant. Meanwhile, the extent of competition between independent schools has a significant effect on levels of boarding school fees. Results highlight the importance of considering pricing strategies of groups within a cartel.     

Cost effectiveness of adding clostridial collagenase ointment to selective debridement in individuals with stage IV pressure ulcers

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the cost effectiveness (from a payer’s perspective) of adding clostridial collagenase ointment (CCO) to selective debridement compared with selective debridement alone (non-CCO) in the treatment of stage IV pressure ulcers among patients identified from the US Wound Registry.

Methods: A 3-state Markov model was developed to determine costs and outcomes between the CCO and non-CCO groups over a 2-year time horizon. Outcome data were derived from a retrospective clinical study and included the proportion of pressure ulcers that were closed (epithelialized) over 2 years and the time to wound closure. Transition probabilities for the Markov states were estimated from the clinical study. In the Markov model, the clinical outcome is presented as ulcer-free weeks, which represents the time the wound is in the epithelialized state. Costs for each 4-week cycle were based on frequencies of clinic visits, debridement, and CCO application rates from the clinical study. The final model outputs were cumulative costs (in US dollars), clinical outcome (ulcer-free weeks), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) at 2 years.

Results: Compared with the non-CCO group, the CCO group incurred lower costs ($11,151 vs $17,596) and greater benefits (33.9 vs 16.8 ulcer-free weeks), resulting in an economically dominant ICER of ?$375 per ulcer. Thus, for each additional ulcer-free week that can be gained, there is a concurrent cost savings of $375 if CCO treatment is selected. Over a 2-year period, an additional 17.2 ulcer-free weeks can be gained with concurrent cost savings of $6,445 for each patient.

Conclusions: In this Markov model based on real-world data from the US Wound Registry, the addition of CCO to selective debridement in the treatment of pressure ulcers was economically dominant over selective debridement alone, resulting in greater benefit to the patient at lower cost.