Identification and realisation of the benefits of participating in an electronic marketplace : An interpretive evaluation approach

Electronic marketplaces have proliferated as use of the Internet has become widespread in business. A rapid growth in the number of marketplaces, followed by a period of stringent consolidation, as market makers develop a greater understanding of effective business models, has resulted in a climate of uncertainty and confusion. As with many aspects of e-commerce the drive towards participation is fuelled less by strategy planning than by a fear of lagging behind competitors or losing first mover advantage. In this climate of uncertainty organisations often bypass effective evaluation of the benefits that can be realised from participation in e-marketplaces, thereby exacerbating the process facing them and hampering effective decision-making. Evaluation is perceived as a fraught subject within the Information System field, and particularly within the business community which adheres to tried and trusted, albeit often inappropriate, methods such as financial or technical evaluation. The difficulties involved in effective evaluation of systems are well documented; these will increase as systems become more pervasive throughout organisations and those of their trading partners. Calls for a more holistic approach to evaluation are increasing, based on a developing appreciation of interpretive methods of research within the Information Systems discipline. However, the understanding that the social, political and cultural factors affecting and organisation have an impact on the uses and advantages of systems is by no means universal, and empirical evidence of this view is only slowly emerging. This research examines the benefits that can be realised from participation in an electronic marketplace by taking an interpretive approach to the evaluation. It examines the nature of electronic marketplaces to provide clarity to a confused and dynamic environment. The study then focuses on the development of evaluation studies within the IS discipline to identify how an effective evaluation method for assessing the benefits of e-marketplace participation can be achieved. An empirical examination of an organisation’s participation in an electronic marketplace is used to identify the benefits that are realisable and the issues that impact on them. The case study is conducted through an interpretive lens, using a content, context, process (CCP) approach based on existing IS literature. This enables a crucial understanding of the internal and external environments influencing the organisation and its realisation of potential benefits. To allow for the range of interpretations and reflections required to fully address the complexity of the issues involved in such a case study, a variety of research influences such as dialect hermeneutics, critical realism and case study theory are drawn into the research model. The case study organisation’s motivation for participating in an e-marketplace was primarily cost savings. Over the two years of the study, several more potential benefits were identified, such as supply chain efficiencies, greater market awareness and a widening of the supplier base. However, the organisation’s commitments to its local and regional communities, its need to retain status and some consideration of existing relationships needed to be balanced against the gains that might be realised. In some cases the organisation chose to forgo a potential benefit in favour of socially or politically motivated actions. Cultural factors also influenced their actions, particularly as they moved towards extending participation in the marketplace to gain from a global sourcing strategy. The contribution of this research lies in two areas. Firstly, it was existing evaluation literature to development a framework for the evaluation of benefits in the complex area of electronic marketplaces, thereby extending and informing the call for more inclusive and interpretive evaluation studies. Secondly, the research contributes empirical evidence to support the recognition of benefits to be gained from electronic marketplaces and shows how the realisation of the economic benefits is impacted by the social, political and cultural factors that influence an organisation

Fresh fruit and vegetables: a world of multiple interactions : the case of the Buenos Aires Central Wholesale Market (BACWM)

This research explores ethnographically the everyday social interactions between the ‘users’ of a particular marketplace, the Buenos Aires Central Wholesale Market (BACWM). The ‘users’ of this marketplace are the social actors who work there everyday, and who bring and buy fresh produce. These ´users´ are the ´makers´ of the BACWM since, through their everyday practices, interactions and interpretations and knowledge, they socially construct this hub of distribution

Industrial Policy in Chile

This paper studies three horizontal policy instruments and two vertical ones in Chilean industrial policy, particularly regarding small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The horizontal instruments are (1) a guarantee program for borrowing by SMEs (FOGAPE), (2) a small subsidy to new exports that was applied from 1985 through 2003, and (3) the innovation subsidies provided by the Corporación de Fomento de la Producción (CORFO). The vertical policy instruments are the activities of Fundación Chile (FCh), a semi-public entrepreneur cum venture capitalist, and a CORFO program to attract foreign direct investment in information technology. Although most programs are well designed, they are numerous and insufficiently funded; Chile could benefit from a prioritization of needs and consolidation of these programs. Moreover, the instruments for making strategic bets on new sectors are particularly weak. In particular, FCh needs to refocus its activities on high-risk projects with long payoffs, something it cannot do with its small endowment.Industrial policy, Small and medium enterprises, Chile

Unfair contract terms: termination for convenience

This article considers the increasing use of termination for convenience clauses in contracts, allowing one party to terminate the contract without cause. Use of such clauses can render obsolete the traditional contract law distinction between conditions and warranties in contracts, and typically reflects the relative bargaining position of parties to a contract. The article considers whether development of the concept of good faith might be useful in ascertaining the extent to which the use of such clauses should be permitted

Derivatives and the financialisation of the Italian state

© 2015 Taylor & Francis.The existing literature on financialisation has devoted insufficient attention to how governments wield the market-based practices and technologies of financial innovation to pursue statecraft objectives. Because of this inattention, scholars have missed the opportunity to examine a crucial facet of the financialisation of the state. To remedy this limitation, the present article investigates how and why the Italian government designed derivatives-based strategies during the 1993–9 period. It argues that these tactics gained momentum in the context of the political struggles that developed in Italy beginning in the late 1980s. In particular, the study shows how a neoliberal-reformist alliance came to power and used financial innovation to comply with the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) admission criteria. EMU dynamics enhanced the power position of the neoliberal-reformist coalition vis-à-vis the country's traditional political and business establishment. This work offers insights that go beyond the specificities of the Italian case. It encourages further research on how governments in other countries simultaneously exposed state institutions to financial speculation and gained access to a range of new instruments through which they could manage state affairs in a financialised manner

Best practice guidelines for promoting MSMEs in public procurement markets

This report looks at how to promote micro small and medium sized businesses in public procurement markets. It examines the EU and Brazilian regulatory framework for public procurement and MSMEs. It then looks at 5 EU Member States experience in promoting MSMEs in public procurement markets. It concludes by identifing best practice recommendations for the promotion of MSMEs in public procurement markets

Effective Tax Rates in Transition

The paper addresses the question of effective tax rates for Russian economic sectors in transition. It presents a detailed account of fiscal environment for 1995 and compares statutory obligations with reported tax liabilities. The paper finds that taxation did not contribute to recession, as some observors believed at the time. It extends research by questioning the role that inflation played distorting revenue structure. When the costs of intermediate inputs are adjusted for inflation, many sectors have negative residual revenue, which is indicative of recession. Yet, modeling tax changes to correct the situation does not produce positive results, for the tax share in the cost structure of many sectors is small and cannot compensate for inflationhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39762/3/wp378.pd

Exploring the Boundaries of Patent Commercialization Models via Litigation

This thesis explores direct patent commercialization via patent assertion, particularly patent infringement litigation, a complex nonmarket activity whose successful undertaking requires knowledge, creativity, and financial resources, as well as a colorable infringement case. Despite these complexities, firms have increasingly employed patents as competitive tools via patent assertions, particularly in the United States. This thesis explores the business models that have been created to facilitate the direct monetization of patents. Since secrecy underpins the patent assertion strategies studied, the thesis is based on rich and enhanced secondary data. In particular, a data chaining technique has been developed to assemble relevant but disparate data into a larger coherent data set that is amenable to combination and pairing with other forms of relevant public data. This research has discovered that one particularly successful business model that employs a leveraging strategy, known as the non-practicing entity (“NPE”), has itself spawned at least two other business models, the highly capitalized “patent mass aggregator” and the “patent privateer.” The patent privateer, newly discovered in this research, is particularly interesting because it provides a way for firms to employ patents to attack competitors by forming specialized NPEs in a manner that essentially expands the boundaries of the firm. This research has also examined plaintiff firm management processes during litigations brought under leveraging and proprietary strategies, the two patent litigation strategies in which firms affirmatively initiate infringement litigations. In particular, this research investigates the commercial contexts that drive patent assertion strategies to explore the effective limits of the patent right in a litigation context. The investigation concludes that a variety of robust business models and management processes may be quite successful in extracting value from patents in the US

Effective Tax Rates in Transition

The paper addresses the question of effective tax rates for Russian economic sectors in transition. It presents a detailed account of fiscal environment for 1995 and compares statutory obligations with reported tax liabilities. The paper finds that taxation did not contribute to recession, as some observors believed at the time. It extends research by questioning the role that inflation played distorting revenue structure. When the costs of intermediate inputs are adjusted for inflation, many sectors have negative residual revenue, which is indicative of recession. Yet, modeling tax changes to correct the situation does not produce positive results, for the tax share in the cost structure of many sectors is small and cannot compensate for inflationTaxation in transition, Russian fiscal system