Operational planning and competitive strategies of male and female retailers

Interest in the managerial practices of females in business has increased over the past decade due to women's increased representation in business. Anecdotal evidence has suggested that women approach decision making differently from men. The purpose of this study is to determine if gender differences regarding managerial strategies exist in the retail setting. Targeted managerial strategies focused on short-term planning processes (personnel, financial, inventory and market planning) and competitive strategies in operation (differentiation, cost leadership and focus). In a sample of 459 retailers from a twelve-state region, MANOVA was used to determine if significant differences in managerial strategies existed between genders. The data on retail competitive strategies suggest that men and women more likely than male business owners to recognize in the importance of differentiation and focus as retail competitive strategies in their business operations. Gender differences were also found in the operational planning areas of market and inventory planning.     

Measures of brand attitude: Are cognitive structure approaches really needed?

Recent research on attitude toward the advertisement provides a theoretical base that questions the usefulness of multiattribute attitude measures. Arguments for global measures of brand attitude in affect-referral choice situations are presented. The two types of measures are tested as predictors of purchase intentions for ten supermarket brands. Global brand attitudes demonstrated greater predictive value for nine of the ten test brands.     

Determinants of restaurant's owners/managers selection of wines to be offered on the wine list

The aim of the paper is to better understand wine list design in restaurants in four countries with very different wine cultures. An interview protocol was developed and administered to 286 restaurants across the four countries (France, Australia, USA and China). The interview questionnaire included a Best/Worst methodology to identify the most/least important factors influencing the restaurant's owner/manager's selection of wine for the wine list. One of the most important reasons for selecting wine across most countries is ‘to match wine with the food menu’. There were few major differences between countries, but a latent class analysis found four clusters that differed significantly with membership also differing between countries. The cluster analysis also indicated that while some restaurateurs are more brand-driven, others value local wine or its matching with the food menu.     

American political values and agency theory: A perspective

This paper explores the historical American political values which have shaped modern financial theory and agency theory. Financial agency theory's intellectual roots are shown to be located in the liberal tradition which espouses the instrumental nature of property and property rights. The paper also argues that financial theorists should recognize that, historically, economic efficiency was not a value or end in itself but merely a means by which more fundamental social goals might be achieved. Fred R. Kaen is a Professor of Finance at the University of New Hampshire. He has written many articles about financial markets and international financial management. His work has appeared in The American Economic Review, The Journal of Finance and The Journal of Money Credit and Banking. He will be spending next year at the Norwegian School of Economics and Business as a Visiting Professor of Finance. Allen Kaufman is an Assistant Professor of Business Administration at the University of New Hampshire. He has written a number of books including Capitalism, Slavery and Republican Values and his work has been published in the California Management Review, the Journal of Political and Military Sociology, and Business Horizons.Larry Zacharias is an Associate Professor of Management at the University of Massachusetts. He holds a law degree and has written many articles about corporate law and anti trust.     

MODELING UNCERTAIN FORECAST ACCURACY IN SUPPLY CHAINS WITH POSTPONEMENT

We examine a situation where a manufacturer operates in a two‐mode production environment. The first mode could involve overseas vendors and manufacturing facilities. If additional units are later required, the company must use its second mode—more expensive last‐minute domestic vendors and manufacturing sites. We develop a new methodology for analyzing the impact of forecast accuracy on the decision to postpone production. We examine the interaction of forecast accuracy, shortage vs. holding costs, transportation costs and the cost of postponing production in the supply chain of a single product facing uncertain demand. Our model can be used to analyze the cost of important changes, such as increasing forecast accuracy, reducing the cost of backorders, lowering the cost of delaying production, or lowering transportation costs. Our model allows a firm to understand its overall cost structure so that it can accurately evaluate the impact of improved forecast accuracy and lowered costs in the context of postponement.     

Has bank holding companies' diversification affected their risk of failure?

The effect of nonbank activities on the riskiness of banking organizations is an important issue in capital regulation and deciding whether banking firms should be allowed to perform additional activities. This paper explores the potential effect of deregulation by examining the effect of existing nonbank subsidiaries on the riskiness of bank holding companies. The results provide no evidence to suggest that deregulation would increase banking organizations' risk and weak evidence that deregulation might decrease risk.     

A comparative analysis of international tourists’ satisfaction in Mongolia

The purpose of this study was to examine international tourism development in Mongolia in the last decade and analyze international tourists’ satisfaction of their travel experience with tourist attractions, facilities, services and prices. This study identified the demographic characteristics of international tourists from four regions: Europe, the US, Japan and other Asia/Pacific countries by surveying a sample of 530 visitors by air travel. Satisfaction level of international tourists from these four different regions were analyzed and compared to find regional similarities and differences. Recommendations were made for the Mongolian tourism authority to target efficiently its international tourism markets and improve tourism services in Mongolia.