Strategic and organisational determinants of sophistication in deployed sales force automation systems within three industry sectors in the UK

Abstract

This paper investigates strategic and organisational context determinants of the sophistication of adopted sales force automation (SFA) systems in three UK industries: financial services, pharmaceuticals, and building/construction. Sophistication of adopted systems is associated with the organisation placing greater emphasis on information orientation, which is itself driven by an increased integration of IT and sales coupled with increased organisational slack. Increased integration of IT and sales is itself driven by increased strategic importance of sales coupled with increased use of internal communication networks. Importantly, a firm's marketing orientation, although also driven by the strategic importance of sales, has no impact on either information orientation or SFA sophistication. We discuss the implications of our findings to aid understanding of SFA implementation failure.     

Notes on contributors

Abstract

Today, many public professionals feel estranged from the policy programmes they implement; that is, they experience ‘policy alienation’. This is of concern as, for satisfactory implementation, some identification with the policy is required. We conceptualize policy alienation based on the sociological concept of work alienation, and show how this can be used in policy implementation research. Studying a Dutch case of professionals implementing a new work disability decree, we observe how NPM practices increase policy alienation because of a perceived dysfunctional focus on efficiency and results. A large number of policy changes and stricter implementation rules further increased policy alienation.     

NPM merger mania Lessons from an early case

A central doctrine of NPM requires the adoption of commercial management techniques to address the espoused goals of saving money and improving collaboration and service co-ordination. This article examines the evidence base for NPM mergers and uses study data to explain how two ingrained features of professional work helped to produce unintended outcomes at an early UK case involving a specialist mental health provider and an acute trust. The emergence of a de facto mental health trust within the merged entity arose from senior professionals' capacity to ‘buffer’ the work of colleagues from the rationalizing spectre of the merger. The persistence of ‘loosely coupled’ practices and structures restricted improvements in collaboration and service co-ordination. It is argued that these two enduring characteristics of professional organization will shape the outcomes of future NPM mergers in mental health care e.g. the creation of social care trusts and mental health ‘super-trusts’) and in other fields such as higher education.     

Maximizing the Success of Balanced Scorecard Implementation in the Hospitality Industry

Abstract

The balanced scorecard (BSC) is increasingly being adopted by firms in the corporate sector, with some studies estimating that more than 40% of the Fortune 100 companies will implement the BSC by 2001. Analogous to the instrument panel of a plane, the BSC provides management with a holistic view of what is happening inside and outside the organization. A well-designed BSC can help management to translate the organization's mission into goals, actions and performance measures, align individual and organizational goals, and measure/guide progress towards goal attainment. However, the BSC is not without its share of pitfalls and problems. This article discusses how hospitality establishments also can reap the benefits from implementing the BSC while avoiding its pitfalls. We provide an overview of the nature of the BSC, and review two case studies from the hospitality industry. Findings from discussions with hotel general managers also are reported. These managers strongly support the potential usefulness of the BSC in their industry. Then we draw on examples and experiences of organizations that have implemented the BSC to provide a comprehensive discussion of the pitfalls to avoid in BSC development and implementation.     

Marketing strategy and the efficacy of procedural justice: The mid-level marketing manager in industrial service firms

A principal challenge confronting the senior marketing team in B2B firms is how to ensure that the marketing strategies they develop are implemented effectively. The literature indicates that mid-level marketing managers' perceptions of the procedural justice within the firm may be critical in this respect. However, there has been little empirical research on this issue. The authors develop and test a conceptual model of the key drivers and consequences of marketing managers' procedural justice perceptions. The findings show that if mid-level marketing managers trust their senior marketing colleagues and simultaneously operate within moderately organic structures, then procedural justice will thrive. A consequence of this is more effective implementation of marketing strategy which, in turn, leads to increased market performance.     

基于战略地图的战略执行风险控制研究——一个整合的模型框架

市场环境的加速变化使企业面临的竞争压力不断增加。只有降低战略执行风险,才能实现企业的战略目标,获得长久的竞争能力。本文在分析战略执行风险产生的原因和战略风险控制工具利弊的基础上,提出了基于战略地图的战略执行风险控制整合框架,将战略地图、平衡计分卡、预算管理等管理工具集成于战略执行管理过程,实现功能互补,提高战略执行力,降低战略的执行风险,确保战略目标的实现。     

Optimal Returns Policy under Demand Uncertainty

Multiple categories of retail products suffer limited shelf life, demand uncertainty, and, in some cases, long lead times. To provide retailers with an incentive to increase the stocking quantity of such products, manufacturers may offer an option to return unsold items at wholesale or less than wholesale prices. This article extends the additive price-dependent demand model in three ways. First, partial returns are optimal for the manufacturer but do not induce higher stocking quantities compared with when the manufacturer offers no returns. Second, in terms of the effect of investment in demand-enhancing activities, when retailers invest, they set higher resale prices, but an optimal partial returns policy still does not induce higher stocking quantity, whereas when manufacturers invest, the optimal returns policy induces higher stocking quantity. Third, when the manufacturer and retailer have different expectations of demand uncertainty, the retailer's estimate influences the expected profits for both, whereas the manufacturer's estimate has a major impact on its profits only.     

Effort optimisation in artisanal fisheries with multiple management objectives,collective quotas and heterogeneous fleets*

In this study, we analyse effort optimisation in common rights‐based joint‐stock artisanal fisheries when several objectives are pursued by the authorities and the fleets are heterogeneous. The purpose is to discuss policy options available to the authorities and their implications in terms of trade‐offs between goals. We apply a multi‐objective programming model to the sardine and anchovy artisanal fisheries in central southern Chile. The results suggest that the regulatory system generates inefficient solutions for profit and employment maximisation goals. Moreover, the fleet structure of the artisanal organisations is central for the outcomes obtained by different policy simulations. To improve effort assignment, the authorities should seek to increase flexibility in the system.     

浅谈高职院校学生自主学习意识及能力培养

信息高速发展的时代,尽快调整自己的学习方式和方法以适应新的时代特点,对即将进入社会的大学生来说是尤为重要的。高职院校学生的主动学习意识不佳,影响了学生思维的全面开发。本文通过阐述自主学习的目的、意义等,分析提高学生自主学习的途径。     

Internal And External Adjustment To New Technologies

Schumpeterian creative destruction occurs not only at the industry level, but also with each firm trying to maintain or improve its position in the technology race. Based on a rich data set on more than 4,000 German business units, this paper shows that the simultaneous occurrence of hiring and separations is more likely in firms with the most advanced technologies in use than in units more distant from the technological frontier. This positive relation between technological advance and creative destruction documented also by churning and ‘excess job reallocation equations - holds particularly in recovery years, while it is weak during a recession. The explanation provided for this finding in the paper is that firms can also improve technologies by upgrading machinery and/or retraining workers, and these ‘implementation’ costs arc likely to be lower during economic downturns.