The purpose of this paper is to introduce a template to guide practitioners in the creation of multiple marketing plans that are intended to target different groups of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to introduce a template to guide practitioners in the creation of multiple marketing plans that are intended to target different groups of stakeholders – some of whom are supportive, others adversarial, namely, the business-to-business (B2B) marketer’s agenda.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology involved a combination of purposeful sampling, real-time participatory observation, action research and secondary data analysis. The main method of this research is analytical and conceptual with the objective of identifying the diverse groups of stakeholders with whom business marketers must interact.
Findings
In cases where multiple marketing plans were used for different stakeholder groups, B2B firms encountered lower levels of negative attribution from social network systems, mass media and subsequently public and governmental stakeholders.
Originality/value
This paper suggests the need for multiple marketing plans that target not only supportive customers but also neutral and adversarial stakeholders who represent a source of negative attribution because they have the potential to derail or even destroy the B2B firm’s marketing agenda. It is suggested that practitioners must also address those stakeholders who distrust or even dislike their firm and its marketing objectives.
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Dean Tjosvold, Lindsay Meredith and R. Michael Wellwood
Addresses the problem of implementing relationship marketingsystems. Uses LISREL to analyze how co‐operative, competitive andindependent goals affect the ability of a firm′s…
Abstract
Addresses the problem of implementing relationship marketing systems. Uses LISREL to analyze how co‐operative, competitive and independent goals affect the ability of a firm′s personnel to work together in serving customers. Results indicate that goal interdependence affects employee perceptions of the quality of service they deliver.
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Buyers have been formally evaluating suppliers for many years.Intends to “turn the tables” and suggests three importantreasons why vendors should formally evaluate their…
Abstract
Buyers have been formally evaluating suppliers for many years. Intends to “turn the tables” and suggests three important reasons why vendors should formally evaluate their customers. A straightforward easily applied mechanism is provided to aid business marketers in carrying out customer evaluations.
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This paper seeks to focus more attention on market threat variables, their role in contributing to market risk and how to anticipate them.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to focus more attention on market threat variables, their role in contributing to market risk and how to anticipate them.
Design/methodology/approach
Selected marketing and economics variables are considered in the context of their potentially dangerous or destructive impacts on business markets. Numerous “real world” examples are used to demonstrate the negative effects of these variables.
Findings
A matrix based on market information levels and lead times is introduced to demonstrate how the threat variables can be classified in terms of their potential risk to the business marketer. The threat variables can then be located on the risk matrix and the degree of their potential danger can be defined.
Originality/value
The discussion should hopefully be of use to both students and practitioners. An “early warning” template is provided to help identify specific variables and their risk potential so that scanning efforts can be prioritized according to the most likely sources of market threats.
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IF we devote this page largely to the Library Association we believe our readers, who are the most active workers in librarianship, will think us justified because the Association…
Abstract
IF we devote this page largely to the Library Association we believe our readers, who are the most active workers in librarianship, will think us justified because the Association is the central fact in our lives. Its Annual Report for 1955 has reached us. It is a document to be read, appreciated and criticised; we only wish we could say that it always is, for then surely some of the tart utterances about the inactivity, even uselessness, of our organization would be evaluated at their real worth or want of it. The Association does not work by means of press campaigns, or illegal dismissal of members who do not fulfil all its professional ethical codes. It has more direct access to the Government than is usually known. It was not quiescent when the Post‐master General increased book and newspaper postage; with other folk of influence it went to see him. It is not idle when posts are advertised at rates unsuitably parsimonious; it protests to the authorities issuing them invariably, and it makes it clear to chartered librarians that in applying for such posts they undersell and betray us all. Unfortunately these, the only lawful methods open to the Association, do not influence certain members. In fifteen cases, twelve were filled by those who will remember all their lives that they “let down the side” and probably at least five times as many were also their competitors. This is merely an explanatory word to those who complain of inaction.
Maria Mathews, Dana Ryan, Lindsay Hedden, Julia Lukewich, Emily Gard Marshall, Judith Belle Brown, Paul S. Gill, Madeleine McKay, Eric Wong, Stephen J. Wetmore, Richard Buote, Leslie Meredith, Lauren Moritz, Sarah Spencer, Maria Alexiadis, Thomas R. Freeman, Aimee Letto, Bridget L. Ryan, Shannon L. Sibbald and Amanda Lee Terry
Strong leadership in primary care is necessary to coordinate an effective pandemic response; however, descriptions of leadership roles for family physicians are absent from…
Abstract
Purpose
Strong leadership in primary care is necessary to coordinate an effective pandemic response; however, descriptions of leadership roles for family physicians are absent from previous pandemic plans. This study aims to describe the leadership roles and functions family physicians played during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada and identify supports and barriers to formalizing these roles in future pandemic plans.
Design/methodology/approach
This study conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews with family physicians across four regions in Canada as part of a multiple case study. During the interviews, participants were asked about their roles during each pandemic stage and the facilitators and barriers they experienced. Interviews were transcribed and a thematic analysis approach was used to identify recurring themes.
Findings
Sixty-eight family physicians completed interviews. Three key functions of family physician leadership during the pandemic were identified: conveying knowledge, developing and adapting protocols for primary care practices and advocacy. Each function involved curating and synthesizing information, tailoring communications based on individual needs and building upon established relationships.
Practical implications
Findings demonstrate the need for future pandemic plans to incorporate formal family physician leadership appointments, as well as supports such as training, communication aides and compensation to allow family physicians to enact these key roles.
Originality/value
The COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to examine the leadership roles of family physicians, which have been largely overlooked in past pandemic plans. This study’s findings highlight the importance of these roles toward delivering an effective and coordinated pandemic response with uninterrupted and safe access to primary care.
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Kelly Benati, Sophie Lindsay and Juan Fischer
Universities have traditionally focused on imparting theoretical knowledge, which graduates then transfer to the workplace. However, the unpredictable modern workplace makes this…
Abstract
Purpose
Universities have traditionally focused on imparting theoretical knowledge, which graduates then transfer to the workplace. However, the unpredictable modern workplace makes this transfer less certain. Whilst the gap between theory and practice has often been considered from an employer and academic standpoint, less is known about the graduate perspective. The purpose of this study is to determine the ways in which theoretical knowledge and practical experience interact for graduating students.
Design/methodology/approach
The views of 86 undergraduate business approaching graduation were gathered on how they applied theory to practice during their recent internship.
Findings
Graduating students apply theory that they have learnt at university through the direct application of fundamental knowledge and through workplace experience, which built on and deepened the knowledge accumulated at university. The findings indicate that there is, indeed, a gap between theory and practice but that employability skills may assist in the transfer process.
Research limitations/implications
The research broadens the understanding of how theoretical knowledge is applied in practice and helps to determine if graduating students are prepared to meet the demands of an ever-changing workplace.
Practical implications
The results give us insight into how theory and practice interact for graduating students and give support to universities further exploring experiential learning opportunities for students and continuing to the development of employability skills.
Originality/value
The findings encourage a more nuanced debate regarding the role of universities and that both the provision of core theoretical concept and employability skills are necessary for graduates to effectively use their academic education in the modern workplace.
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A LETTER from the President of the Library Association (Mr. Berwick Sayers) has been received which we have pleasure in giving prominently.
Maxim Kovalenko and Dimitri Mortelmans
Individual employability has become a crucial element in ensuring labor security in flexibilizing labor markets. The importance of agency-side factors as antecedents of…
Abstract
Purpose
Individual employability has become a crucial element in ensuring labor security in flexibilizing labor markets. The importance of agency-side factors as antecedents of employability has been emphasized in the relevant literature, spurring the criticism that some worker groups may be more restricted than others by contextual factors in respect to their employment prospects. The purpose of this paper is to examine empirically how labor market groups differ in what shapes their employability.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors used a representative sample of 1,055 employees to detect differences in the impact of career self-directedness (agency-side) and several contextual factors (structure-side) on employability, comparing workers with and without higher education and workers in and outside managerial positions. Confirmatory factor analysis with subsequent tests of invariance was used.
Findings
Results confirm that employability is affected both by contextual factors and by self-directedness. No significant differences were observed between the compared groups in the extent to which self-directedness and the contextual factors influence employability. An important finding is that self-directedness itself is affected by preceding career history (career mobility and previous unemployment), which may suggest a vicious-circle relationship between past and future career precariousness.
Practical/implications
The findings support the view prevailing in policy circles that fostering agency-side factors such as self-directedness is instrumental toward achieving higher employment security. At the same time, individual agency cannot replace traditional policy measures in tackling structural labor market inequalities.
Originality/value
This study uses robust methodology and a representative respondent sample to statistically disentangle the effects of agency and context on employability. Its key contribution pertains to the explicit comparison of different worker groups, with separate contrasts on each model parameter.