J. Martin Fraering and Michael S. Minor
This is a follow‐up of a study conducted by William Shanklin andpublished in 1988. He found a positive relationship between market shareand return on total assets, but concluded…
Abstract
This is a follow‐up of a study conducted by William Shanklin and published in 1988. He found a positive relationship between market share and return on total assets, but concluded that the absence of market share leadership did not preclude achievement of superior profitability. Attempts to verify Shanklin′s findings, but analysis of the data in this study does not support Shanklin; it suggests that the relationship between market share and profitability is questionable, except in certain industries. The pursuit of market share is not a useful “generic” strategy which can be applied in most industries.
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The objective of this study is to investigate how country risk, different political actions from the government and bureaucratic behavior influence the activities in industry…
Abstract
The objective of this study is to investigate how country risk, different political actions from the government and bureaucratic behavior influence the activities in industry supply chains (SCs) in emerging markets. The main objective of this study is to investigate the influence of these external stakeholders’ elements to the demand-side and supply-side drivers and barriers for improving competitiveness of Ready-Made Garment (RMG) industry in the way of analyzing supply chain. Considering the phenomenon of recent change in the RMG business environment and the competitiveness issues this study uses the principles of stakeholder and resource dependence theory and aims to find out some factors which influence to make an efficient supply chain for improving competitiveness. The RMG industry of Bangladesh is the case application of this study. Following a positivist paradigm, this study adopts a two phase sequential mixed-method research design consisting of qualitative and quantitative approaches. A tentative research model is developed first based on extensive literature review. Qualitative field study is then carried out to fine tune the initial research model. Findings from the qualitative method are also used to develop measures and instruments for the next phase of quantitative method. A survey is carried out with sample of top and middle level executives of different garment companies of Dhaka city in Bangladesh and the collected quantitative data are analyzed by partial least square-based structural equation modeling. The findings support eight hypotheses. From the analysis the external stakeholders’ elements like bureaucratic behavior and country risk have significant influence to the barriers. From the internal stakeholders’ point of view the manufacturers’ and buyers’ drivers have significant influence on the competitiveness. Therefore, stakeholders need to take proper action to reduce the barriers and increase the drivers, as the drivers have positive influence to improve competitiveness.
This study has both theoretical and practical contributions. This study represents an important contribution to the theory by integrating two theoretical perceptions to identify factors of the RMG industry’s SC that affect the competitiveness of the RMG industry. This research study contributes to the understanding of both external and internal stakeholders of national and international perspectives in the RMG (textile and clothing) business. It combines the insights of stakeholder and resource dependence theories along with the concept of the SC in improving effectiveness. In a practical sense, this study certainly contributes to the Bangladeshi RMG industry. In accordance with the desire of the RMG manufacturers, the research has shown that some influential constructs of the RMG industry’s SC affect the competitiveness of the RMG industry. The outcome of the study is useful for various stakeholders of the Bangladeshi RMG industry sector ranging from the government to various private organizations. The applications of this study are extendable through further adaptation in other industries and various geographic contexts.
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Martin Fraering and Michael S. Minor
– This paper aims to discuss the first effort to examine the relationships between satisfaction, the four loyalty phases, fortitude, and a sense of virtual community.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss the first effort to examine the relationships between satisfaction, the four loyalty phases, fortitude, and a sense of virtual community.
Design/methodology/approach
Oliver proposed an innovative framework to explain the relationships between satisfaction, loyalty, fortitude, and a sense of community.
Findings
Analysis of questionnaire responses of 493 customers of banks and credit unions indicated that satisfaction, cognitive, affective, conative, and action loyalty are positively related to fortitude.
Research limitations/implications
The Beyond Loyalty Model (BLM) does not address important strategic issues often associated with loyalty, such as firm profitability, complaint resolution, and firm profitability.
Practical implications
This research is the first to find that customers of financial institutions acquire satisfaction and strong loyalty ties with their bank or credit union after dealing with their financial services provider for a relatively short period of time. Thus financial institutions should consistently seek relationship-building opportunities from the outset of their relationships with their customers.
Originality/value
The resulting Beyond Loyalty Model (BLM) improves upon the American Bankers Association ' s ABA Financial Client Satisfaction Index, and is a means by which financial institutions can monitor and enhance the satisfaction, loyalty, and fortitude of the customers of financial institutions. Further, the increasing acceptance of virtual banking calls for additional study of this area.
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Martin Fraering and Sameer Prasad
Billions of dollars are being poured into developing nations by multinationals as part of their diversification, divestiture, facility location, and supplier selection strategies…
Abstract
Billions of dollars are being poured into developing nations by multinationals as part of their diversification, divestiture, facility location, and supplier selection strategies. By integrating the literature in international business, marketing, purchasing, and operations management, a contingency model is developed to minimize the overall costs of such decisions. This model provides linkages between the type of product, organizational and country characteristics, and the logistics and sourcing strategies. In addition, it provides specific recommendations to government officials in helping their countries become global platforms for manufacturing and attracting foreign investment.
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A collection of essays by a social economist seeking to balanceeconomics as a science of means with the values deemed necessary toman′s finding the good life and society enduring…
Abstract
A collection of essays by a social economist seeking to balance economics as a science of means with the values deemed necessary to man′s finding the good life and society enduring as a civilized instrumentality. Looks for authority to great men of the past and to today′s moral philosopher: man is an ethical animal. The 13 essays are: 1. Evolutionary Economics: The End of It All? which challenges the view that Darwinism destroyed belief in a universe of purpose and design; 2. Schmoller′s Political Economy: Its Psychic, Moral and Legal Foundations, which centres on the belief that time‐honoured ethical values prevail in an economy formed by ties of common sentiment, ideas, customs and laws; 3. Adam Smith by Gustav von Schmoller – Schmoller rejects Smith′s natural law and sees him as simply spreading the message of Calvinism; 4. Pierre‐Joseph Proudhon, Socialist – Karl Marx, Communist: A Comparison; 5. Marxism and the Instauration of Man, which raises the question for Marx: is the flowering of the new man in Communist society the ultimate end to the dialectical movement of history?; 6. Ethical Progress and Economic Growth in Western Civilization; 7. Ethical Principles in American Society: An Appraisal; 8. The Ugent Need for a Consensus on Moral Values, which focuses on the real dangers inherent in there being no consensus on moral values; 9. Human Resources and the Good Society – man is not to be treated as an economic resource; man′s moral and material wellbeing is the goal; 10. The Social Economist on the Modern Dilemma: Ethical Dwarfs and Nuclear Giants, which argues that it is imperative to distinguish good from evil and to act accordingly: existentialism, situation ethics and evolutionary ethics savour of nihilism; 11. Ethical Principles: The Economist′s Quandary, which is the difficulty of balancing the claims of disinterested science and of the urge to better the human condition; 12. The Role of Government in the Advancement of Cultural Values, which discusses censorship and the funding of art against the background of the US Helms Amendment; 13. Man at the Crossroads draws earlier themes together; the author makes the case for rejecting determinism and the “operant conditioning” of the Skinner school in favour of the moral progress of autonomous man through adherence to traditional ethical values.
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Mirza Tabrani, Muslim Amin and Ahmad Nizam
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of trust in enhancing customer loyalty, and to test the mediation role of commitment and customer intimacy in the relationship…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of trust in enhancing customer loyalty, and to test the mediation role of commitment and customer intimacy in the relationship between trust and customer loyalty.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 500 questionnaires were distributed and 200 were returned (40 percent response rate), and a structural equation modeling technique was used to test the hypotheses.
Findings
The results of this study show that trust has a significant relationship with commitment and customer intimacy but no significant relationship was found with customer loyalty. Commitment and customer intimacy have a significant relationship with customer loyalty. The mediation analysis reveals that commitment and customer intimacy play a mediation role in the relationship between trust and customer loyalty.
Practical implications
This study indicates that commitment and customer intimacy affect customer loyalty. The role of commitment and customer intimacy as a mediator between trust and customer loyalty indicates that customers are committed to continuing and maintaining the relationships with Islamic banks.
Originality/value
This study provides empirical evidence on interrelationships between trust, commitment, customer intimacy and customer loyalty in banking relationships.
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Martin Fraering and Michael S. Minor
The purpose of this research is to develop and test a sense of consumption community measurement scale. The concept is examined in an exploratory study in the context of the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to develop and test a sense of consumption community measurement scale. The concept is examined in an exploratory study in the context of the perceptions of customers of financial services firms.
Design/methodology/approach
This research consults the marketing, banking, psychology, and public policy literature. A sense of consumption community scale is tested for validity via exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Scale reliability analysis is also conducted.
Findings
The result is a second‐order construct composed of the first‐order constructs, camaraderie and communality, and social capital. The construct is found to be a means of measuring the strength of consumers' perceptions of consumption community. Additional evidence of its practical value is demonstrated in four findings. First, partial support is found that men perceive a greater sense of community than women. Second, there is a positive relationship between age and perceived sense of community. Third, no significant relationship was found between the various types of financial institutions and customers' sense of consumption community. Fourth, an identical finding was obtained for the relationship between sense of community and longevity. And fifth, this research also documents limitations of the Sense of Consumption Community Construct due to the exploratory nature of this research effort.
Originality/value
The scale formulated in this research is the first to measure a sense of community among the customers of financial institutions.