Implementation of Strategic Pricing Model in Fashion-Based Creative Industry

This study aims to obtain empirical evidence of cost structure and implementation of competitive strategy in order to determine the selling price using strategic pricing model for fashion-based creative industry. The research method used was a survey using questionnaires with respondents from practitioners of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) in East Java. Questions in the questionnaire are: cost structures along the downstream, upstream, and production costs, as well as policies related to the implementation of competitive strategies; tend to low cost or differentiation. Data analysis is descriptive quantitative, and for the separation of SMEs which is implement Low Cost or Differentiation strategy using model developed by Jermias and Ghani (2005). A total of 78 questionnaires returned and were eligible for further process. The results of this study show that most of SMEs (60%) have been exporting their products, and they consider the products from China is the main competitors. SMEs that have used social media for promotion and sales are 57%. The downstream cost structure of most SMEs are design and model development cost. Production costs includes the cost of raw materials, labor costs and other costs. While, upstream costs includes: marketing costs, product returns, and compensation costs. A 40% of SMEs implement competitive strategy tend to differentiation, and the rest uses strategy tend to Low Cost. With this results, the using the traditional model to set the selling price that has been applied by SMEs based on fashion need to be improved. It is suggested to use strategic price model, especially for SMEs which are implementing differentiation strategy. This means, the selling price strategy implemented by SMEs have to consider the strategy and its position in the product life cycle (Blocher et al, 2010: 566). This because theoretically, strategic pricing model is considered more appropriate for companies which are implementing differentiation strategies. While, SMEs which are implementing Low Cost strategy, using traditional selling price model is still considered appropriate. The results of this study is useful for development of pricing theory, in particular for SMEs. This result is also useful for the development of SMEs in order to improve competitive advantage from the aspect of price, so, the SME’s product will be able to compete with imported products

Environmental Policy and Federal Structure: A Comparison of the United States and Germany

The assignment of tasks to the appropriate level of government is an important aspect of environmental policy design. Because the costs and benefits of pollution control policies are closely tied to geography, political solutions should reflect the underlying spatial structure of environmental problems. These solutions should not only incorporate the long-distance effects of air and water pollution, but also account for the mobility of economic actors and the resource base of governments. There are three general types of environmental problems. Global issues have no complex geographical component. Regional problems arise when political boundaries do not coincide with the pollution\u27s geographical impact. The environmental effects of local issues are confined within existing governmental borders. After outlining the political-economic arguments for the division of regulatory authority, I examine the actual pattern in two concrete cases: the United States and Germany. Both have advanced capitalist economies governed by representative federal democracies. They have similar levels of economic development and energy use and similar types of pollution problems. Both are viewed as environmental leaders. Public and private spending on environmental protection is high.\u27 Germany is, however, much smaller in area and population and is much more densely populated. It is embedded in the European continent, and its economy depends heavily on crossborder trade. Conditions in other European countries affect the quality of Germany\u27s air and water. American and German federalism have different structures, and this difference has had an impact on environmental policy. American federalism gives a strong role to federal officials in the administration of environmental laws, though in practice the states carry out much of the day-to-day implementation. Earmarked matching grants and federal oversight of state efforts provide high levels of central influence. In contrast, the German federal system delegates implementation to the states and localities with federal statutes, regulations, and guidelines providing the regulatory structure. For some environmental issues only federal framework statutes are permitted, giving the states considerable independent lawmaking authority. Earmarked intergovernmental grants are unimportant and face constitutional limits, but federal subsidies and tax breaks for industry are a recognized aspect of environmental policy. Although both Germany and the United States have recognized the complex geographical character of environmental problems, neither has done an adequate job of matching problems to government structures. To oversimplify, Germany seems too decentralized and the United States too centralized. Part of the problem derives from the countries\u27 respective constitutional structures, but much of it is a by-product of substantive environmental law

Framing by media and social movement organizations: Cross-cultural prestige press coverage of the Kyoto Protocol

This dissertation examines the effects of news values and media routines on the framing of societal issues, with emphasis on cross-cultural prestige press coverage of the Kyoto Protocol. Media use news values to determine what makes the daily news and how that news is portrayed to the public. Journalists selectively choose news stories based on media routines, which help in gathering and disseminating the news in an efficient manner. Stakeholders attempt to frame the news in a manner worthy of news coverage, but media primarily report on the acceptance of or opposition to master frames. Evidence of this interplay exists when examining contentious issues like that of Kyoto Protocol. To find evidence of these processes, a computerized content analysis using the VBPro suite of programs examined 421 American prestige press articles, 721 British prestige press articles, 112, news releases and 443 opinion pieces appearing from January 1997 to Sept. 11, 2001. The texts were gathered from the Lexis-Nexis and Dow Jones databases. Hierarchical cluster analysis provided visual representations of the frames involved. The focus on prestige press coverage limits the external validity of the findings. The analysis uncovered four master frames supported by 10 stakeholder frames concerning global climate change and the Kyoto Protocol. The news value of prominence affected the master frames, though not in the predicted manner concerning stakeholder support or opposition. However, historical analysis indicates support for previous research that indicated international politics held sway over the issue. The analysis also found evidence of media routines at work, including gatekeeping, balancing competing positions and the spiral of opportunity. Theoretically, this dissertation provides a synthesis of communications and sociological literature, and a cross-cultural comparison of an international environmental issue. Methodologically, VBPro was shown to quantify master frames, which may be the first time this has happened. Practically, the dissertation provides an explanation to journalists and stakeholders in government, science, business, and social movement organizations of how news values and media routines lead to the acceptance or rejection of issue frames, as well as the possible de-legitimization of sources outside the media routine

Effectiveness of a Postpartum Breastfeeding Protocol for Avoiding Pregnancy and Descriptive Analysis of the Physiology of the Postpartum Transition

Traditionally, postpartum breastfeeding women used Natural Family Planning (NFP) methods that required observation of cervical mucus and basal body temperature as indicators of return to fertility. These indicators resulted in high unintended pregnancy rates (i.e., 14-32 over 12 months of use). High pregnancy rates were due to the inaccuracy and subjectivity of those fertility indicators which required extended periods of abstinence. Ineffectiveness of NFP methods is also related to changing patterns of fertility during lactation amenorrhea (LA) and the first six menstrual cycles postpartum.Studies of a NFP protocol where women used objective urine hormone biomarkers were 92-98% effective for avoiding unintended pregnancy while in LA. The protocol has women test urine pre-ovulatory estrogen (E3G) and luteinizing hormone with an electronic home fertility monitor. In 2013 a revised protocol was published. The revised protocol increased daily testing to twice a day and added instructions for the initial menstrual cycles. The purposes of this study were to describe the physiological breastfeeding transition to fertility from LA through the first six cycles postpartum and to evaluate the correct and typical use effectiveness pregnancy rates of the revised protocol at 12 months and 12 cycles of use. This repeated measures quasi-experimental (n = 216) and descriptive study (n= 64) used an established data set from an archived NFP website. Kaplan-Meier survival rate analysis showed four unintended pregnancies per 100 women at 12 months and 6 per 100 women at 12 cycles of use. A descriptive analysis of LA\u27s length and the following 6 cycles found LA and cycle one positively skewed. Cycles two through six were normally distributed. On average, 89% of the women experienced an estimated day of ovulation (EDO). The EDO occurred around 8 months and first menses around 9 months. In cycle one, the EDO occurred around day 28, and in cycles two through six, the EDO occurred between days 19-22. Comparison between the original and revised protocols found menstrual cycle parameters and characteristics of the first menses were near identical. Findings from this study were used to develop new algorithms to improve accessibility of the protocol

Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) Applications in Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems:A Study of Blockchain-Based Payment Barriers and Potential Solutions, and DLT Application in Central Bank Payment System Functions

Payment, clearing, and settlement systems are essential components of the financial markets and exert considerable influence on the overall economy. While there have been considerable technological advancements in payment systems, the conventional systems still depend on centralized architecture, with inherent limitations and risks. The emergence of Distributed ledger technology (DLT) is being regarded as a potential solution to transform payment and settlement processes and address certain challenges posed by the centralized architecture of traditional payment systems (Bank for International Settlements, 2017). While proof-of-concept projects have demonstrated the technical feasibility of DLT, significant barriers still hinder its adoption and implementation. The overarching objective of this thesis is to contribute to the developing area of DLT application in payment, clearing and settlement systems, which is still in its initial stages of applications development and lacks a substantial body of scholarly literature and empirical research. This is achieved by identifying the socio-technical barriers to adoption and diffusion of blockchain-based payment systems and the solutions proposed to address them. Furthermore, the thesis examines and classifies various applications of DLT in central bank payment system functions, offering valuable insights into the motivations, DLT platforms used, and consensus algorithms for applicable use cases. To achieve these objectives, the methodology employed involved a systematic literature review (SLR) of academic literature on blockchain-based payment systems. Furthermore, we utilized a thematic analysis approach to examine data collected from various sources regarding the use of DLT applications in central bank payment system functions, such as central bank white papers, industry reports, and policy documents. The study's findings on blockchain-based payment systems barriers and proposed solutions; challenge the prevailing emphasis on technological and regulatory barriers in the literature and industry discourse regarding the adoption and implementation of blockchain-based payment systems. It highlights the importance of considering the broader socio-technical context and identifying barriers across all five dimensions of the social technical framework, including technological, infrastructural, user practices/market, regulatory, and cultural dimensions. Furthermore, the research identified seven DLT applications in central bank payment system functions. These are grouped into three overarching themes: central banks' operational responsibilities in payment and settlement systems, issuance of central bank digital money, and regulatory oversight/supervisory functions, along with other ancillary functions. Each of these applications has unique motivations or value proposition, which is the underlying reason for utilizing in that particular use case

Capitalist Organizing and Organizations: the Case of the American Petroleum Institute

Sociologists have underestimated the importance and power of organizations established to unify capitalist firms and interests. Existing research on trade associations tends to take one of two approaches, either atheoretical studies developing typologies of trade association activities or cultural sociological approaches overemphasizing the cultural significance of these organizations for business communities. Utilizing Marxian organizational theory, this dissertation conceptualizes trade associations as inherently capitalist organizations created to build and maintain the interests of the capitalist class. This perspective is applied to build an historical sociological case study of the formation and subsequent activities of the American Petroleum Institute (API), the largest trade association representing the petroleum industry in the United States. Findings show that the creation of API came only after capitalists in the petroleum sector recognized their mutual, class-based interests. Prior to the establishment of API, in the late 1800s, the petroleum industry was marked by bitter divisions and monopolistic practices that exacerbated an unstable economic and political environment. World War I proved to be a crucial period in which the state called on industry leaders to work together to produce and deliver war supplies. Their wartime experiences led petroleum capitalists to recognize their collective interests and therefore to create API just after the war. The planning processes that went into its creation shaped API as the leading formal organization through which petroleum sector capitalists could work together to protect and promote their collective, class-based interests. Since its inception in 1919, API has served to solidify both internal organization of the petroleum industry via the creation of standards and statistics and build strength via external activities to promote the interests of petro-capitalists against challenges from labor and the state, as well as through broader promotion of petroleum’s so-called necessity with the general public