Search results

Vocational Training in Europe and the effectiveness of the European Social Fund are examined and recommendations made for ensuring that funds allocated to the UK by continental partners in the EC are wisely prioritised in channelling them into the necessary training areas for the unemployed, looking as always to 1992 and the dawn of the Single Market.

This study aims to report on an investigation into decision-making leading to a UK firm’s first export order. It demonstrates the application of appreciative inquiry (AI) as an underutilised research method in marketing investigations.

An AI research approach was undertaken in a firm that had not started exporting at the commencement of the study whereby the interventionist approach allowed the management team to overcome negative perceptions in their decision-making. From a research perspective, marketing decision-making could be understood in real time as opposed to in hindsight.

While the key decision-maker is likely to be the owner/manager in small newly internationalising firms, a variety of factors will affect the decision to start exporting including the influence of the management team. In particular, the management team’s perceptions towards a combination of effectuation- and causation-based decision-making where risk/reward considerations in exploiting various international marketing opportunities are undertaken in light of perceived affordable losses, as well as against evolving objectives.

The contribution is to demonstrate the AI methodology, which to date has received attention in management domains other than marketing; it offers an interventionist approach to help managers overcome barriers and move positively forward in decision-making. It offers researchers an opportunity to understand marketing decision-making in real time.

Focuses on impact fee adoption as a means of financing growth in an increasing number of Florida communities. The discussion includes the types of impact fees, their multiple uses, the extent to which they have increased in number, and subsequent increases in costs to residents of new development. Concluding observations offer an analysis on the interplay of economic and political variables that may help to explain the present status of impact fees in Florida and their probable continued growth in Florida localities. While impact fees may be revenue enhancement mechanisms, they also raise serious policy making questions, the answers to which will depend on local political and economic circumstances.

Provides empirical evidence of the export marketing practices of ethnic minority‐owned small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK clothing industry. Provides a contribution to the literature since, although a large body of literature exists on the areas of exporting, SMEs, and to a lesser extent business practices of ethnic minority‐owned businesses (from different disciplines such as sociology, economics, etc.), there is a need to bring these research topics together in the form of a single study. With this in mind, discusses empirical results from an exploratory study investigating aspects of the export behaviour of SMEs owned by managers of an Asian origin in the UK clothing industry. The results provide a foundation on which future academic work can build, in addition to offering managers and policy makers an insight into selective aspects of the behaviour of these firms.

Provides empirical findings concerning the motives for exporting of UK small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in different stages of the internationalization process. Findings are based on a large scale sample of UK SMEs, and MANOVA is employed to establish that statistical differences exist between the groups of firms in relation to their motives for undertaking export activities. Provides a contribution to the literature, since it questions whether current export assistance and targeting procedures are suitable for addressing the stimuli perceived as important by managers within different stages of export development.

Front-of-packaging (FOP) is a critical branding tool that uses “cues” to communicate product attributes and establish distinct brand images. This paper aims to understand how food brands utilize cues and their relative proportions to hierarchically communicate brand image and belonging to particular subcategories.

A content analysis is used for analysing 543 food FOPs sold in Australia (breakfast cereals, chips, snack bars). Samples are collected and classified into product sub-categories defined by ingredients, consumer-audience and retail placement. A novel 10 × 10 coding grid is applied to each FOP to objectively analyse cue proportion, with statistical comparison undertaken between sub-categories.

Results reveal intrinsic cues are favoured over extrinsic cues, except for those in the eatertainment sub-category. Hierarchies are evidenced that treat product and branding cues as primary, with health cues secondary. Statistically significant differences in cue proportions are consistently evident across breakfast cereals, chips and snack-bar FOPs. Clear differentiation is evidenced through cue proportions on FOP for health/nutrition focused sub-categories and eatertainment foods.

“Cue utilization theory” research is extended to an evaluation of brand encoding (not consumer decoding). Design conventions reveal how cue proportions establish a dialogue of communicating brand/product image hierarchically, the trade-offs that occur, a “meso-level” to Gestalt theory, and achieving categorization through FOP cue proportions. Deeper understanding of packaging design techniques provides inter-disciplinary insights that extend consumer behaviour, retailing and design scholarship.

This paper reports on a case history drawn from a larger investigation that profiled “successful” Asian entrepreneurs in order to encourage future entrepreneurship within the broad Asian community in the UK. Asian entrepreneurs were chosen for the larger study due to their propensity to engage in entrepreneurial activities in the UK in comparison to other ethnic communities. Ten case histories were developed via personal interviews with entrepreneurs in the Asian Eye “Rich‐List” of the 100 wealthiest Asians in the UK and data was supported with information from Web sites, newspapers etc. One case history is presented in this paper in order to explore the richness of the qualitative data and this serves as a learning vehicle for future ethnic businessmen and women working at the marketing/entrepreneurship interface.

Cartooning is an industry, a subculture, and a field. Educational cartooning is none of these. It is a flexible, popular art that is constantly being reinvented by diverse people working in isolation from each other. As an educational cartoonist, I have been aware of this lack of communication for years. Recently, Michigan State University's Randy Scott, the world's preeminent comic book librarian, sent me a list of the comic books about AIDS that are included in the Educational Materials Database of the National AIDS Information Clearinghouse. (For addresses of materials discussed in this article, see sidebar 1.) I was astounded. As of June 1990, their list included 46 titles from almost three dozen sources. After years of keeping an eye out for AIDS education comics, I had found out about only 15 of these titles.

Mr. Robert Bernays, Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health, speaking at Leeds on October loth, at a meeting convened by the Lord Mayor in support of the National Health Campaign, said that the object of the campaign was nothing less than to improve the health, and with it the happiness—for the two were inseparable—of the whole nation. The growth of the social services had been remarkable. In 1900 the total expenditure was some £30,000,000, while at the present time it was over £400,000,000, of which three‐quarters was met from rates and taxes. It was natural to ask ourselves whether we were getting the fullest possible value for the financial sacrifices we were making. Remarkable as were the statistics of health improvement, it was idle to suggest that a great deal more could not be done. The campaign was being conducted to ensure that everyone should know the facilities available, where and when and how they could be obtained, and that they were open to all who would take advantage of them. We were endeavouring to overcome any inertia and lack of interest which still existed, and, if possible, to eradicate the fear which, in many cases, kept people from obtaining early advice and treatment. He felt sure that these objects could be attained if we could get the full co‐operation of the ordinary citizen, and particularly of the wife and mother. We were already assured of the active co‐operation of all those concerned in the provision of the various facilities including doctors, nurses, teachers and others who were so closely in touch with the homes of the people. Though the present campaign was being waged to encourage the greater use of existing health services, it must not be supposed that plans were not also being actively pursued for their further expansion. His first task, for instance, in the new session would be to assist Sir Kingsley Wood in the passage of yet another National Insurance Bill which would fill up the gap in medical attendance and supervision which at present existed between the time when a boy or girl left school at 14 and entered at 16 into insurable employment. These were two critical years of development and that they should be brought within the framework of health insurance was an urgent reform. Another line of progress that was being actively pursued was the possibilities of improved nutrition, the greater knowledge of the right type of food. The Government were most carefully examining the recently published report of the Mixed Committee on Nutrition presided over at Geneva by Lord Astor. As the spokesman of H.M. Government at this year's Assembly on the League Committee that discussed nutrition, Mr. Bernays was able to state with the full authority of the Government that we regarded that report at once as a challenge and an opportunity. That these were not just words was demonstrated by our Milk in Schools Scheme, instituted in 1934. Under that scheme more than 2¾ million children in public elementary school, or more than half the number of children on the register of these schools, were receiving a daily ration of milk at a reduced rate or in necessitous cases free. One of the objects of this campaign was to induce yet more parents and children to take advantage of that scheme. Following on the report of the National Advisory Committee on Nutrition some months ago, maternity and child welfare authorities had been urged to review their arrangements for the supply of milk and food to expectant mothers and young children so as to ensure that those in need of additional nourishment were able to secure it. In the present session of Parliament the Government hoped also to bring forward proposals for securing, in co‐operation with the industry, a reduction in the price of milk to local authorities who would thus be in a position to extend their present schemes and so secure increased consumption among this class. Thus it could be seen that this health campaign was no standstill arrangement. In the phraseology of the motor trade, we were commending to the nation the 1937 model of our health services, but we were not slackening an instant in our efforts to ensure that the 1938 model and that of subsequent years was an increasing improvement on what we were able to offer now.