Basic Business Research Articles

Lessons Learned From the Creation of a Business of Medicine Course.

This article was migrated. The article was marked as recommended. Knowledge, attitudes, and skills required to successfully manage business and personal finances are rarely taught within traditional medical education. This has contributed to low financial literacy, high stress related to educational debt, and burnout among physicians. To address this deficiency, we created the Business of Medicine course for fourth-year medical students which teaches basic business and personal finance topics. As we have reflected on lessons learned in the creation and implementation of this course, we have recorded them for the benefit of others who desire to partner with us in teaching this important topic to the next generation of physicians.

Challenges Faced by SMEs in Oman

SMEs play a significant role in income generation, labour absorption, poverty alleviation and contribution to gross domestic product. The significant challenges faced by them are Lack of basic business knowledge, Lack of market knowledge and information, Lack of adequate finance, complicated procedures and delay in loan disbursement, Limited network, experience and expertise, Reluctant in using modern technology. The study objectives are: to identify the obstacles faced by SMEs in Oman, to understand the difficulties encountered in accessing finance by SMEs in Oman and to study the relationship between the availability of funding and performance of SMEs. The required data were collected using structured Questionnaire from 102 respondents' selected using simple random sampling method. The results show that 47.1% and 37.2% of the respondents felt that gender and age are not an obstacle. Around 54 respondents have ranked that their funds were used for their business while loans from commercial banks were listed as number 2 for accessing finance by 35 respondents. Out 22 respondents who have applied for a bank loan, 13 respondents have faced difficulties in obtaining it. Poor business performance has been ranked number 1, followed by inadequate business planning as a reason for the failure of a bank loan. SMEs need adequate training, finance, and teaching entrepreneurial culture among students.

The Application Module Design of Three Application Scenes of Intelligent Exhibition

Intelligent venue, intelligent exhibition and intelligent conventions are three application scenarios of intelligent exhibition. The application module design of intelligent venue includes a basic business module, personalized experience module, system integration module, and people flow value module. The application module design of intelligent exhibition includes builder management system, exhibition customer relationship management system, exhibitor management platform, audience registration management, the system to match business opportunities, exhibition data analysis, etc. The application module design of intelligent conventions includes VIP database, reception service, convention service module, etc. Chinese exhibition enterprises should further explore and practice three application scenarios of intelligent MICE to meet the development needs of new forms of exhibitions.

Android-Based Intelligent Farmer Power Management System

Intelligent farmer power management system software is available for intelligent, small, single-user rural farmer systems. It is mainly used for real-time monitoring, data analysis and comprehensive coordinated control of solar energy, farm household consumption and energy storage units. The traditional farmer power management system is based on the Internet B/S structure and is developed using a standard J2EE platform. It requires an independent computer, software server, and database server to support operation and access. Based on the Android operating system, middleware and key applications, the intelligent farmer power management system software platform is based on the basic business of intelligent farmer power system consumption management, and solves the needs of farmers for real-time and historical data consumption. The easy-to-carry mobile phone smart terminal device overcomes the drawbacks that must be accessed by a computer, and can be conveniently and flexibly used for login, data access and remote control at any time, and is an important means for intelligent agriculture and intelligent farmer business promotion.

Theoretical aspects of functioning of agro-food chains and features of their development in Ukrainian

The peculiarities of creation and functioning of agro-food chains based on the study of scientific works were generalized, which allowed to establish a variety of approaches to the definition of agro-food chains and their structure. The study describes the understanding of agribusiness supply chains based on global and local approaches to their functioning, and the "smart" supply chain of agro-food. The main flows in the agro-food chain have been identified, namely: physical (agricultural raw materials, agro-food, logistics operators etc.), information, financial flows, as well as knowledge and experience of management. The purpose of the article is to synthesize scientific approaches to understanding the concept of supply chain and agro-food chain in domestic and foreign practice, systematization of the principles and basic business processes of their functioning, as well as identification of the main factors of the external and internal environment of their functioning in modern conditions. It is highlighted that the main approaches to the interpretation of the supply chain are process and object approaches, both in foreign and domestic practice. Particular attention is paid to the specifics of the functioning of global agro-food chains, which are not considered by academics as buyer-seller relations in the open market, but as coordinated chains of interactions that occur under the influence of key agents in these chains. These leading global chain members control other members of the chain, which has led to increased pressure, primarily on agricultural producers and processors. The scientific opinions on the understanding and specificity of the functioning of alternative supply chains of agro-food, which give rise to economic, social and / or environmental benefits, are generalized. The directions of development of local agro-food chains in domestic conditions and their influence on creation of competitive rural territories are grounded. The factors of the external and internal environment of functioning of agro-food chains and the directions of influence of their changes on the stability of their development, in particular, globalization of climate change, innovation development, and others, are systematized. The necessity of developing additional adaptations to the listed changes in other sectors – transport, storage and energy systems – has been proved, which actualizes the need for strengthening integration and cooperation between the participants of the supply chain. The main goals of the functioning of agro-food chains are highlighted: increase of competitiveness of products, achievement of economic interests of all participants of chain, sustainable development of rural territories, more efficient satisfaction of needs of end users. Achievement of these goals can only be achieved on the basis of observance of the principles of sustainable development and innovation of the chain, resource-saving development of production activities. It is emphasized that the question remains, both in practical and methodical aspects, as to the distortion of the information flow in agro-food chains, especially in chains with a large number of participants and numerous connections between them. In domestic practice, the issue of improving the quality and safety of agri-food products in agricultural supply chains needs to be actualized. Key words: supply chain, agro-food chain, global chains, local agricultural chains, demand chains, logistic chains, "smart" chains.

Marginal, localized and restricted activity

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate marginal, localized and restricted (MLR) activities in pork processing on local food markets in Poland, and identify the value generated for individual links in the supply chain.Design/methodology/approachThe paper takes a case study approach to investigate the enterprises operating as MLRs. Data were collected during direct interviews with entrepreneurs in Siedlce county, in the Mazovian Region in Poland. The methodology of the basic Business Model Canvas (BMC) was applied to distinguish the two models they operate within direct and with an agent.FindingsThe results of the research process led to identification of customer value generated by MLR activities. For example, directness, authenticity and high quality, which are the main features that differentiate MLR from conventional activities.Research limitations/implicationsThe case studies selected for the research were typical of their local food system (LFS). However, it can be expected that the processes described herein can also be found in the various different environments of other small and medium enterprises.Practical implicationsThe models worked out during the research process fit perfectly into the assumptions of sustainable rural development, and their implementation could be a source of competitive advantages in LFS.Originality/valueWhile MLR activities are usually characterized by the legal perspective, less is known about their operation in practice. This is the first academic study in Poland investigating MLR business models. With application of the BMC, this analysis could be used as a tool guide for building similar models on local food markets. Studies of business models for pork processing could provide inspiration for both academics and practitioners dealing in other food sectors.

Mining online comments to understand customer satisfaction with hotel technologies: A comparison of hotels in Beijing and Washington, DC

For hotel customers, satisfaction with amenities has long been a key factor in the stay experience. Using content analysis from 2,100 TripAdvisor reviews of hotels in Washington, DC, USA and Beijing, China, this study evaluates how various categories of hotel technology influence the satisfaction of hotel customers. Of the five categories of hotel technology considered (ie basic in-room, entertainment, business, comfort and mobile technologies), the study finds that entertainment technology is the most important. The results also indicate that comfort technology is considerably more important for hotel customers in Washington, DC than for hotel customers in Beijing. In addition to providing a research framework, this study provides a practical application for hotel managers to analyse guest comments to address customer complaints and enhance customer satisfaction at a location-specific level. Hotel managers can easily adopt the methodology to analyse property-specific customer data without substantial difficulty. Such data can then be used to meet customer needs and enhance customer satisfaction through the provision of technology that guests genuinely value. It can also assist managers in developing better marketing strategies for their hotels.

Impact Assessment of the Real Sector and Non-Productive Spheres on the Dynamics of the Business Activity Index

The article is devoted to the impact assessment of the real sector and other factors of economic growth (characteristics of the financial sector, paid services and household incomes) on the dynamics of the business activity index, an integral indicator characterizing the state and trends of the country’s macroeconomic development. The purpose of the article is to justify the need and highlight the feasibility for developing new aggregated business activity indexes that include a wider range of the national economy areas than the output index of goods and services for the Rosstat basic business lines. The authors have used the design method for integral estimates of macroeconomic dynamics, regression analysis, and a probabilistic approach (the method of pairwise preferences) to determine the weighing coefficients of the basic indicators. The work has resulted in time series of business activity indices (in tables and graphs), based on the method proposed by the authors. The new index of business activity suggests a more objective assessment of the state and trends of socio-economic development compared to the same Rosstat index. This index can help to improve the macroeconomic forecasting efficiency and lay the groundwork for more grounded management decisions.

Analysis of Basic Business & Office Work and Educational Needs of Office Workers in SMEs

Analysis of Basic Business & Office Work and Educational Needs of Office Workers in SMEs

Implications of Canada’s restrictive FDI policies on employment and productivity

The merits of foreign direct investment (FDI) have been well documented, thus explaining the openness of many countries to foreign capital. There is, however, some debate on the importance of FDI into key basic business services sectors such as financial services, air transportation services, and telecom services, which remain protected in many countries, including Canada. These restrictions, together with the presence of a review mechanism for foreign investment, has resulted in Canada being ranked above average in terms of restrictiveness by the OECD. We estimate that a leveling down of Canadian FDI restrictions to average OECD levels would raise Canadian labor productivity by a very large 0.79%. It would also either raise employment by 137,400 jobs or raise annual earnings for each Canadian worker by CA$648, or $9.6 billion economy-wide. These results therefore highlight the merits of FDI to local economies.

A Corpus-Based Analysis of Business Contract English Registers

In trades between different countries, business English is the basic step and business contract is the guarantee. In this special transaction context, the wording of business contract English is fair and rigorous; the structure of it is clear; and the style of it is solemn. Based on the register theory in systemic functional linguistics, this paper analyzes the lexical, syntactic and textual rhetorical features of contract English. Some of the data are from business English Corpus established by University of International Business and Economics. It aims to promote the writing of business contract English.

The DEEPSAL Project: Using the Past for Local Community Futures in Jordan

ABSTRACTThe Deep Past as a Social Asset in the Levant (DEEPSAL) project, conducted in 2015–16 by the Council for British Research in the Levant, examined two communities in southern Jordan, Beidha and Basta, who live near significant Neolithic archaeological sites. The project collected information on the communities’ current socioeconomic conditions, their relationship with local cultural heritage and how that cultural heritage currently benefits or hinders them. The information was used to inform nascent strategies to utilize the sites sustainably as development assets and suggest alternative strategies as necessary. The results showed that a tourism-based strategy is suitable for Beidha but there was a need to focus on basic business skills. For Basta a tourism-based strategy is currently unsuitable, and efforts should rather focus on supporting educational activities. The results of the project are presented here within the context of archaeology’s increasing interest to use archaeological resource to benefit local communities, and outlines lessons for that effort.

ANALYZING THE STRATEGIC ALIGNMENT BETWEEN INFORMATION SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY AND BUSINESS PROCESS IN SMALL MEDIUM ENTERPRISE (SME) USING FRAMEWORK COBIT 4.1– A CASE STUDY IN UNIVERSAL TRADING, SURABAYA

This research was conducted in Universal Trading as one of SME that applies Information Technology as daily business process in order to analyze whether the use of Information Technology is alligned with the strategy formulation. Type of research is Descriptive Research with Qualitative technique by using direct observation and depth interview with all user of TI from leader to staff. In depicting a further detail description, Internal and External Matrixas well as COBIT Verse 4.1 were utilized in supporting so. From the position of Average as a result of IFE-EFE Matrix and the Score of COBIT 4.1 in primary process of Strategic Allingment is 2,95 could be concluded that only strategy of new market penetration could be alligned by the use of Information Technology as the company basic business process is limiting the strategy of new product development using only company’s internal source. Keyword: strategic allignment, information technology, COBIT 4.1

English

Business sustainability of corporations a hundred years old, is not a regular occurrence in Africa. A qualitative historical study of the development of an insurance company succeeding on the trajectory of adapting to challenging context constitutes the core of this study. The historical analysis illustrates the role of social context, international political economy and management agency in negotiating a successful company to overcome contextual constraints. The South African Life Assurance Company (Sanlam) arrived at the end of the Second World War in 1945 with a basic business strategy focusing on sustaining its growth since 1918. Dynamic contextual changes mandated strategic management changes in the business focus, empowerment strategy and strategic vision of the company. This article explains how management responded to change, relying on international management practices to secure a century of African business success.   Key words: Context, sustainability, management. &nbsp

Exit, Voice, and Denial

AbstractDespite opposition from social movements, the animal agriculture industry has largely succeeded in averting serious challenges to its basic business practices. This outcome reflects not only the industry’s political and economic clout, but also divisions among the industry’s opponents and the difficulties that their proposed solutions pose for consumers. Albert Hirschman argues that those dissatisfied with a product or organization have three options: exit, voice, and loyalty. We argue that “voice,” the public expression of protest, has been fractured by disagreement over ultimate goals and the proper form of “exit”: substitution or abstention. Both forms of exit are difficult for the consumer. The default response is therefore “loyalty”: continued consumption. This loyalty is based not on ignorance or acceptance of the industry’s shortcomings, but on socially organized denial of the evidence and its implications. Our methodology is a “qualitative metasynthesis” of previous scholarly analyses of the primary social movements involved.

Monetary Policy Rules and Macroeconomic Stability

This paper attempts to characterize the monetary policy regimes in the United States and analyze their effects on macroeconomic stability. It does so by estimating Taylor-type forward-looking monetary policy reaction functions for the pre- and post-1979 periods, and simulating the resultant coefficients in a basic New Keynesian business cycle model. The feedback coefficient on inflation in the estimated policy reaction function is found to be less than unity for the 1960-1979 period, suggesting an accommodative monetary policy stance of the Federal Reserve. However, for the 1979-2017 period, the feedback coefficient on inflation is estimated to be substantially greater than unity, implying that the Federal Reserve adopted a proactive policy stance towards controlling inflation. It is also found that in recent times, the Federal reserve has shifted its focus from short one period ahead inflation targets to longer target horizons such as one year ahead inflation targets. Meanwhile, the model simulations show that the economy exhibits greater stability under a model with post-1979 calibration than a model with a combination of pre-1979 parameters and `sunspot' shocks.

Personalised service recommendation process based on service clustering

Personalised service recommendation is the key technology for service platforms; the demand preferences of users are the important factors for personalised recommendation. First, in order to improve accuracy and adaptability of service recommendation, services are needed to be initialised before being recommended and selected, then they are classified and clustered according to demand preferences, and service clusters are defined and demonstrated. In the sparse problem of service function matrix, historical and potential preferences are expressed as double matrices. Second, service cluster is viewed as the basic business unit, we optimise graph summarisation algorithm and construct service recommendation algorithm SCRP, helped by the experiments about variety parameters, which has more advantages than other algorithms. Third, we select fuzzy degree and difference to be the two key indicators, and use some service clusters to complete simulating and analyse algorithm performances. The results show that our service selection and recommendation method is better than others, which might effectively improve the quality of service recommendation.

Digital Transformation of Innovative Business Processes on Railway Transport

The article finds that acceleration of the pace of global high-intellectual development causes the digital transformation of innovative business processes in the Ukrainian railway transport, and consequently, the continuous improvement of intellectual information systems and technologies of management of innovative processes. The study of the existing models of the innovation process enabled to distinguish its sixth type of “model of digital networks and artificial intelligence”. The main feature of this stage of the development of the innovation process is the formation of a single digital platform (innovation portal), which will allow to make transparent the basic business procedures and to form Big Data with the ability to optimize the main innovative business processes. It is proved that a new approach to innovative business processes should include the formation of an intellectual information platform for innovative management which should become a key link to support innovative business processes in the industry. An integrated data bank (Big Data) and situational control centers should also be created as tools for promoting the process of making innovative decisions. As the coordinating situation centers of innovation activity, it is advisable to distinguish between “Investments”, “Innovation”, “Personal”, “Transport Logistic”.

The influence of management's accounting skills on the existence of their South African small, medium and micro enterprises

In South Africa (RSA), small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) provide assist government with the reduction of unemployment and poverty. Unfortunately, research shows that RSA SMMEs are not sustainable as 70% fail after being operating for three years. This phenomenon is caused by the non-management of economic factors, including a lack of skills. In a recent study, basic business skills evident in RSA SMMEs were found to leave much to be desired. One of these skills is that of accounting skills. Accounting skills should assist with making economic business decisions; taking into account the failure rate of RSA SMMEs, the question arises: Do the accounting skills of management influence the existence of RSA SMMEs? To answer this question, empirical research was conducted and data were collected from respondents. From the results, respondents who were equipped with accounting skills were more likely to remain in existence for the foreseeable future.

ОРГАНІЗАЦІЯ КАДРОВОГО АУДИТУ НА БУДІВЕЛЬНИХ ПІДПРИЄМСТВАХ З ПОЗИЦІЙ УПРАВЛІННЯ ЯКІСТЮ ТА ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ЕКОНОМІЧНОЇ БЕЗПЕКИ

The article links the international standards of ISO 30408: “Human Resources Management. Guidelines for Human Management ”, ISO 30405: 2016“ Human Resource Management. Recruitment Guidelines , ISO 30409: 2016 Human Resource Management. Personnel planning”, ISO 30400: “Human resources management. Basic Terms ”and the economic security of construction companies. The author's concept of audit of the state of the personnel management subsystem as a component of the economic security of construction is offered. construction company. The basic purpose, tasks, directions of carrying out personnel audit of the state of the personnel management subsystem as a component of the system of economic security of construction enterprises are established. The basic functions, characteristics and basic principles of the personnel audit of the personnel management subsystem as a component of the economic security of construction enterprises are systematized. The objects and subjects of the personnel audit of the state of the personnel management subsystem as a component of the economic security of construction enterprises are identified. The basic business processes related to personnel management at construction enterprises subject to personnel audit are systematized. The registration of the results of the personnel audit of the state of the personnel management subsystem as a component of the economic security of construction enterprises in the form of a conclusion, which can be: positive, conditionally positive or negative, is regulated. Carrying out a personnel audit of the state of the personnel management subsystem will contribute to ensuring the economic security of construction enterprises.