The uninvited brand

Brands rushed into social media, viewing social networks, video sharing, online communities, and microblogging sites as the panacea to diminishing returns for traditional brand building routes. But as more branding activity moves to the Web, marketers are confronted with the stark realization that social media was made for people, not for brands. In this article, we explore the emergent cultural landscape of open source branding, and identify marketing strategies directed at the hunt for consumer engagement on the People's Web. These strategies present a paradox, for to gain coveted resonance, the brand must relinquish control. We discuss how Web-based power struggles between marketers and consumer brand authors challenge accepted branding truths and paradigms: where short-term brands can trump long-term icons; where marketing looks more like public relations; where brand building gives way to brand protection; and brand value is driven by risk, not returns.     

推进企业积极履行社会责任的对策思考

企业社会责任已经成为社会可持续发展的一个重要的战略研究内容,它受到了各国政府、非政府组织和众多学者的重视和关注。目前我国对于企业社会责任的研究还处于初起阶段,存在不少问题本文对其成因进行分析和探讨,并依据目前现有的资料和研究成果提出了有效对策。     

商会法变迁中的治理秩序

前近代中国民间社会的治理以简约治理为特征,官方介入的程度并不深。近代以来的商会法变迁显示,官方治理取代简约治理成为民间社会治理的主要形式,官方介入民间社会的程度不断加深。从近代以来中国商会法的变迁可以看出,官方介入民间社会既不同于前近代的简约治理,也不同于西方的规制治理,而是形成了一种以官治规则为主导,同时参酌民间规范的官治秩序。     

“I like to conserve the forest,but I also like the cash”. Socioeconomic factors influencing the motivation to be engaged in the Mexican Payment for Environmental Services Programme

Two of the main motives for people to be engaged in the Mexican Payment for Environmental Services (PES) programme are forest conservation and the income received from the programme. We explore the socioeconomic conditions that support choosing these motives. We used data from a 2012 nationwide survey, processed through logit models. Significant factors influencing the desire to conserve as a motive were family welfare improvement, land use change intention, and training. Those affecting income as a motive were formal education, indigenous people participation and training. Finally, factors related to both conservation and income, as a motive, were formal education, training, PES influence in water management, and land boundary conflicts. Income and conservation are not mutually exclusive motives for engagement in the programme, given that in developing countries income from PES may reduce the socioeconomic pressures triggering land use change, and has a role in conservation efforts, already present in many rural communities.     

Exploring agricultural advice networks,beneficial management practices and water quality on the landscape: A geospatial social-ecological systems analysis

Agricultural practices have been linked to detrimental effects on ecosystems, with water quality of particular concern. Research has been devoted to understanding uptake of beneficial, or best, management practices (BMPs) in agriculture; however, sources of advice and subsequent effects on the landscape have not been elucidated. This study set out to understand (1) what sources of information agricultural producers rely on when making land-management decisions; (2) the characteristics of their advice networks; and (3) how the advice network linked spatially to water quality on the landscape. A watershed in Alberta was used as a case study and respondents identified that regional advisors were relied upon most often for advice and these advisors had the most influence on the adoption of BMPs. Results indicate that respondents with connections to regional actors implemented more BMPs that those without. Regional government actors had a greater effect than regional non-governmental actors. Local actors played a lesser role in advice networks related to BMP adoption. A 3D geovisualization was used to explore linkages among advisors, BMPs, and water quality. This technique may be useful for other scenarios and can contribute to policy development and enhanced practices.     

临朐县铝型材产业集群形成机制研究

产业集群作为当今世界普遍的经济现象,是促进地方经济发展、提高区域竞争力的重要生产组织形式。本文结合临朐县铝型材产业集群现状特征,从社会网络机制的角度具体分析了临朐县铝型材产业集群的形成机理。此研究对提高临朐县铝型材产业集群竞争力、促进铝型材产业集群快速发展具有一定的理论和实践意义。     

Integrative Social Contracts Theory: Hype over Hypernorms

Applying social contract theory to business ethics is a relatively new idea, and perhaps nobody has pursued this direction better than Thomas Donaldson and Thomas W. Dunfee. Their "Integrative Social Contracts Theory" manages to combine culturally sensitive decision making capacities with trans-cultural norms by setting up a layered system of social contracts. Lurking behind their work is a concern with the problems of relativism. They hope to alleviate these problems by introducing three concepts important to the ISCT: "authentic norms," which clarify culturally specific norms, "priority rules," which determine the rules of engagement when authentic norms clash, and "hypernorms," which measure the value of authentic norms against a thin set of universally upheld values. This paper traces the genealogy of these hypernorms and challenges their value for the ISCT. It argues that well-conceived priority rules can do everything hypernorms can, and can do so more simply.     

Management caveats for measuring and assessing public responsibility performance

More and more, stakeholders are demanding company performance information in the areas of public responsibility. Unfortunately, as companies report these activities, stakeholders, rather than being satisfied, are increasingly demanding additional information. Management is then left wondering why actions meant to satisfy lead instead to greater dissatisfaction. Often, managers do not understand what steps to take in developing good measurement and assessment plans and communicating performance results. This article presents fourteen caveats in a checklist for managers to use as they go through this process. Recommendations for deciding what to measure, developing and interpreting appropriate metrics, setting benchmark standards, building learning systems, developing policies for inclusion of external stakeholders, and communication are given.     

Team and organizational resources, strategic orientations, and firm performance in a transitional economy

Firms in transitional economies are learning to develop strategies to exploit new market opportunities though bounded by their lack of market experience and resources as well as institutional and cultural heritage. This paper examines the managerial orientations of top managers in the transitional economy of China by focusing on a firm's team and organizational resources. Specifically, the following antecedents motivate a firm to put more emphases on strategic orientations: the firm has an effective top management team, strong managerial competences, and when the firm has ample endowment of slack resources, social network, and support from the institutional environment. Empirical results support that team orientation, managerial competence, social network, and local institutional support are instrumental in developing market-focused strategic orientations. In addition, strategic orientations with heavy emphases on overall low costs and product innovation relate to higher firm performance.     

Factors affecting couples' decisions to jointly shop

This paper explores the factors that influence individuals' decisions to jointly shop. Drawing from qualitative interviews and relevant theories, the researchers present a model of couple's likelihood of joint shopping. The model includes utilitarian motives (product purchase relevance and perceived financial risk), hedonic motives (expected shopping pleasure with one's partner), and a situational motive (time availability), along with two moderators (gender and relationship length). Online survey respondents answer questions relative to an experimental scenario involving the purchase of furniture or electronics. Results indicate that while all variables studied are influential, expected shopping pleasure and relevance of the purchase to both parties are the most influential aspects in the decision to shop together. Additionally, for males perceived financial risk has a stronger effect on their decision to jointly shop than it does for females.