Financial socialization's impact on investment orientation and household net worth

This study investigates the role of financial socialization for investment orientation and household net worth. Combining consumer socialization literature with findings in the behavioural finance literature, survey data were analysed to (1) investigate the relationship among household net worth, financial socialization, indicators of investment orientation and socio-demographic investor characteristics; (2) examine the influence of socio-demographic investor characteristics and financial socialization on indicators of investment orientation; and (3) test whether financial socialization affects household wealth above and beyond socio-demographic and investment orientation factors. Parents emerged as a relevant socialization agent of investors, influencing investment regularity and household net worth above and beyond other factors. This result extends earlier findings about parents' role for a person's financial management and savings behaviour to the investment context. Based on our findings, educators may want to involve parents in their efforts. They may want to emphasize the importance of starting investing regularly at an early age and of continuing to increase involvement in investing over the years. Financial planners and financial counsellors may consider emphasizing these two practices for their clients and involve children of their clients when and where appropriate.     

The impact of external environmental on business process management and organizational performance

The external business environment as a variable for explaining the impact of business process management (BPM) on organization performance is investigated. The developed model is tested using partial least squares, using a survey on human resource/information technology managers in Malaysia. Statistical results show that dynamism and hostility influence the degree of implementation of BPM. The extent of BPM also has an impact on organization performance. The model can be used by organizations to assess their level of BPM success depending on specific environmental characteristics. This research also contributes to understanding an environment–BPM–performance interface in a developing economy, not previously examined.     

Collaborating for success: managerial perspectives on co-branding strategies in the fashion industry

Abstract

This article investigates the nature of co-branded relationships within the fashion industry. Existing co-branding literature focuses heavily on consumer evaluations, and many studies explore FMCG and electronics markets, within which ingredient co-branding is common. When two brands from the fashion industry collaborate, both brands exist independently and do not rely on ‘ingredients’ for developing a new product and, therefore, presenting an opportunity for exploring the drivers and types of relationships that could exist. This study adopts an interpretive method of investigation using in-depth interviews with brand managers. Findings provide empirical support for value creation through different relationship levels (such as brand/awareness co-branding, values endorsement and complementary competence co-branding) while highlighting some challenges and risks for co-branding in practice. This article discusses implications for theory development and practice and highlights avenues for future research.     

Will Consumers Purchase Stevia as a Sugar Substitute?: An Exploratory Study on Consumer Acceptance

Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni, commonly known as Stevia, is an ancient sweet herb native to Paraguay. The plant, especially the leaves, has a sweetening effect 300 times sweeter than saccharose. Malaysia has taken a particular interest in promotion of Stevia derivatives as a precautionary measure to combat chronic diseases. This study aims to investigate factors that influence the acceptance of Stevia-based products by consumers. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a structured questionnaire with 900 consumers from Klang Valley areas. The results revealed that most of the respondents were willing to use Stevia-based products as a substitute for sugar. There was also a significant relationship between level of education and consumer’s willingness to change for Stevia-based products. Health benefits, promotion, availability, and price were found to be the most influential factors toward acceptance of Stevia-based products by consumers. An effective promotion is necessary to increase consumer’s awareness toward a more healthy diet.     

The Power of Social Network Construction and Analysis for Knowledge Discovery in the Medical Referral Process

The social network model is powerful enough to provide for the analysis and study of a variety of application domains from daily life, including health care and health informatics. After the widespread appearance of automated tools capable of deriving and analyzing social networks, social network analysis (SNA) and mining in the health care domain has recently received considerable attention for its key role in understanding how various bodies within the health care system form communities and how they are socially connected with each other. This understanding helps enhance the organizational structures and process flows, among others. In this article, we show how SNA techniques can solve issues in the medical referral system in the Canadian health care system and the like, by analyzing the social network of general practitioners (GPs) and specialists (SPs). One of the main targets is to optimize the communication between GPs and SPs with hopes of decreasing the waiting time of patients to be seen by SPs. Various SNA and mining techniques are described and analyzed, backed by reporting some experimental results.     

Better late than never: a study of late entrants in household electrical equipment

For the most part, studies on timing of entry have attempted to determine the advantages that early entrants may be able to develop and hold over subsequent entrants. Given that a large number of firms attempt to enter at a much later stage in the development of the market, it is particularly surprising that little research has attempted to examine the differences in the ability of late movers to penetrate the market. In this paper, we focus exclusively on late movers and examine the extent to which their early success can be tied to existing market conditions, their resource strengths, and their strategic positioning. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Probing the unobtrusive link: dominant logic and the design of joint ventures at General Electric

Prahalad and Bettis (1986) have proposed that the successful management of highly diversified firms can be attributed to the concept of a corporate “dominant logic” that guides all of its business units. We argue that dominant logic addresses the problem of balancing the needs of business units against those of the corporation as a whole. We also suggest that the presence of a clear and consistent dominant logic must lead to a high degree of consistency in the strategic moves that are undertaken by each of the business units within the diversified firm. Based on a study of the joint ventures initiated by General Electric between 1984 and 1993, we show that the design of these ventures follows a pattern that is consistent with the presence and influence of dominant logic. Finally, we demonstrate that the early failure of joint ventures can generally be linked to a shift away from this dominant logic. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Smallholder Adoption of Tree Crops: A Case Study of Cocoa in Sulawesi

Tree crops play an important role in the Indonesian economy. A large share of these crops is grown by smallholders, most of whom have not been assisted in any way by government policies. In order to assess the future potential for tree crops, it would be useful to know what factors determine smallholder tree crop adoption. This paper uses survey data from Sulawesi to assess the role of such factors as education, land ownership and information in explaining the adoption of cocoa, a new tree crop introduced into the region in the late 1970s.