Market Services: Productivity Benchmarks for the UK

This paper presents comparisons of labour productivity (value added per hour worked) in market services for the UK, the US, France and Germany in 1993. Market services, defined as (1) Distribution, Hotels and Catering, (2) Transport and Communications and (3) Finance, Insurance and Real Estate, make up 34–43 percent of total employment in the four countries. For productivity in market services overall, the US led the UK by 35 percent in 1993, Germany led the UK by 34 percent and France led the UK by 36 percent. The UK productivity shortfall vis-à-vis Germany and France was wider in market services than in manufacturing.     

Implementation of technology and relationships to supply chain performance: apparel manufacturers' perspectives

Apparel manufacturers operate within a distribution channel with suppliers, retailers and consumers. In a competitive market, apparel manufacturers, in transactions with retailers, must make changes. These changes have potential to affect the supply chain and consequently to add or reduce value of products for the retailer. This study investigated changes in products and services associated with implementation of new technologies. A two-stage design used both a qualitative study and a quantitative study. The qualitative study with 10 industry personnel was used to develop the change variable. The quantitative study had US apparel manufacturers (n = 105) respond to a mailed survey about changes their firms had experienced. Findings indicated that implementation of Quick Response (QR) technologies when moderated by the demographics of fashion level, seasonality, and price point of the product did correspond with changes in product offerings and customer services.     

ESTABLISHING A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR REGULATED INDUSTRIES'ACCOUNTING AND ACCOUNTABILITY

The regulation of monopoly utilities represents one of the'new frontiers'between the state and the private sector. Conceptual frameworks developed for profit-making companies are relevant to several of the central issues facing regulatory accounting. However, the role of regulation as a surrogate for the market place brings with it additional complexities for the clear attribution of accountability between the regulated company and the regulator with regard to the investor and the public. This means that key issues on procedures, confidentiality and public access to financial information on the regulated companies, and on the basis of regulatory decisions, must also be addressed within a conceptual framework for regulated industries. Without a general clarification of these issues, the process of regulation will increasingly be judged to be simply discretionary, rather than as publicly accountable.