LABOR PRODUCTIVITY WITHIN THE AFRICAN AGRICULTURAL HOUSEHOLD: THE HOUSEHOLD PRODUCTION MODEL REVISITED

The benchmark concept is used to understand changes in farm household response to development dynamics. 1996-97 cropping seasons data from Cameroon is used to develop and test a "separate spheres" household model. Labor productivity for men and women is discussed, along with their implications for research and resource management policies.agriculture, labor productivity, gender, production, consumption, Consumer/Household Economics, Labor and Human Capital,

Qualitative Methods In International Sales Research: Cross-Cultural Considerations

As the global marketplace continues to change owing to the proliferation of global brands, changing international trade policies, and the rise of consolidated buyer power, the need for cross-cultural sales research continues to increase. International sales research differs from its domestic counterparts because its application to a multitude of cultural environments where comparable, relevant data are oftentimes nonexistent. In a similar vein, the roles, activities, and approaches to sales may vary across markets, which injects bias and confounds the results. Because of this complexity, conducting international sales research requires flexibility and creativity on the part of the researcher. The complexity of the international marketplace, the extreme differences that exist in different countries, and the unfamiliarity of foreign markets demand better information prior to launching costly international marketing and sales strategies. The focus of this paper is to develop a framework and discuss the role of qualitative methods in international sales research. More specifically, the paper focuses on the following key topics: the value of qualitative research, measurement equivalence in cross-cultural sales research, theory testing and building, and cross-cultural issues in conducting international sales research

Qualitative Methods In International Sales Research: Cross-Cultural Considerations

As the global marketplace continues to change owing to the proliferation of global brands, changing international trade policies, and the rise of consolidated buyer power, the need for cross-cultural sales research continues to increase. International sales research differs from its domestic counterparts because its application to a multitude of cultural environments where comparable, relevant data are oftentimes nonexistent. In a similar vein, the roles, activities, and approaches to sales may vary across markets, which injects bias and confounds the results. Because of this complexity, conducting international sales research requires flexibility and creativity on the part of the researcher. The complexity of the international marketplace, the extreme differences that exist in different countries, and the unfamiliarity of foreign markets demand better information prior to launching costly international marketing and sales strategies. The focus of this paper is to develop a framework and discuss the role of qualitative methods in international sales research. More specifically, the paper focuses on the following key topics: the value of qualitative research, measurement equivalence in cross-cultural sales research, theory testing and building, and cross-cultural issues in conducting international sales research

The Internationalization Of Indian SMEs In B-to-B Markets

Purpose – The study aims to examine the effect of market orientation on the international performance of Indian SMEs in the business-to-business market; assess the potential moderating effect of environmental uncertainty, along with market orientation, on SMEs’ performance; and discuss implications to guide SME owners/managers in their efforts to successfully expand internationally in turbulent markets. Design/methodology/approach – Surveys were sent to a random cross-sectional industry sample of SMEs located in India. The data consisted of 150 responses. Findings – Market orientation and international orientation are positively related to export performance and the relationship between the market orientation and international performance of Indian SMEs is moderated by market turbulence. Research limitations/implications – The data were collected at a single point in time, and therefore do not allow the determination of cause and effect or the impact of changes over time. Data were collected with a reliance on self-reports for all of the research variables. Practical implications – The positive relationship between market orientation, international orientation, and the degree of internationalization of the firm would suggest that the upper management of Indian SMEs should place a priority on promoting behaviors consistent with a positive international orientation, especially in turbulent markets. Originality/value – Studies focused on market orientation have been done primarily in the context of advanced economies. The significant economic contribution of SMEs is well understood, but their business practices in emerging economies have not been studied extensively. This study extends the literature concerning factors that impact business success in an important emerging market such as India

The Internationalization Of Indian SMEs In B-to-B Markets

Purpose – The study aims to examine the effect of market orientation on the international performance of Indian SMEs in the business-to-business market; assess the potential moderating effect of environmental uncertainty, along with market orientation, on SMEs’ performance; and discuss implications to guide SME owners/managers in their efforts to successfully expand internationally in turbulent markets. Design/methodology/approach – Surveys were sent to a random cross-sectional industry sample of SMEs located in India. The data consisted of 150 responses. Findings – Market orientation and international orientation are positively related to export performance and the relationship between the market orientation and international performance of Indian SMEs is moderated by market turbulence. Research limitations/implications – The data were collected at a single point in time, and therefore do not allow the determination of cause and effect or the impact of changes over time. Data were collected with a reliance on self-reports for all of the research variables. Practical implications – The positive relationship between market orientation, international orientation, and the degree of internationalization of the firm would suggest that the upper management of Indian SMEs should place a priority on promoting behaviors consistent with a positive international orientation, especially in turbulent markets. Originality/value – Studies focused on market orientation have been done primarily in the context of advanced economies. The significant economic contribution of SMEs is well understood, but their business practices in emerging economies have not been studied extensively. This study extends the literature concerning factors that impact business success in an important emerging market such as India

Strategies for Sustaining the Edge in Offshore Outsourcing of Services: The Case of India

PURPOSE: Offshore outsourcing offers competitive advantages when goods and services are produced economically and with acceptable or superior quality by suppliers located outside a firm\u27s home country. The purpose of this paper is to focus on India as a destination for offshore outsourcing of services and the challenges it faces in maintaining its leadership in this area. The paper discusses the growth of services outsourcing and the economic and environmental forces that have contributed to the outsourcing of high-end services, also known as knowledge process outsourcing (KPO). DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: This article surveys the literature of offshore outsourcing and identifies strategic drivers and options that can help India to grow and consolidate its position as an exporter of services and build long-term competitive advantages in its relationships with global partners. To understand why nations gain competitive advantage in certain industries, Porter\u27s “diamond” model is utilized as a broad framework for examining policies and national strategies that can sustain India\u27s competitive advantage in outsourcing of knowledge-based services. The paper discusses India\u27s current and prospective assets and liabilities that correspond to the model\u27s four components. FINDINGS: The article discusses India\u27s competitive edge as a leading supplier of knowledge-based services and proposes a model for sustaining this edge. The model proposes key policy steps to move from the current position (e.g. supplier of business process outsourcing services) to a role of knowledge leader by providing advanced value added services to global clients. This model suggests ways in which a supplier nation can gain leverage in the value chain. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS: The article is conceptual, not empirical. Public and corporate policy implications are presented to strengthen India\u27s competitive advantages in outsourced services. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The article presents a strategic roadmap with policy implications that can help move India up the value chain from being primarily a destination for low-end business process outsourcing (BPO) to that of a co-equal, high value-adding partner or principal who offers knowledge leadership in the design and delivery of services for global markets. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The article discusses a nation\u27s technical strengths, as well as cultural and infrastructure weaknesses, that can contribute to volatility as a global outsourcing leader. The article also presents strategies that can reduce a nation\u27s vulnerabilities to competitive actions

Entrepreneurship, Muddling Through, And Indian Internet-Enabled SMEs

Advancements in internet technology are enabling Indian entrepreneurs to engage in entrepreneurial activities and innovations using new business models to achieve scale and scope as they begin to compete in a global marketplace. An understanding of how these Indian entrepreneurs are successfully growing and rapidly expanding their businesses is critical, not only from research perspective, but also from a practitioner view. This paper contributes to the understanding of entrepreneurship in SMEs in emerging markets such as India. This aim is accomplished through the examination of companies that adopt the incremental decision making methods proposed by Lindblom (1959)

The ePetri dish, an on-chip cell imaging platform based on subpixel perspective sweeping microscopy (SPSM)

We report a chip-scale lensless wide-field-of-view microscopy imaging technique, subpixel perspective sweeping microscopy, which can render microscopy images of growing or confluent cell cultures autonomously. We demonstrate that this technology can be used to build smart Petri dish platforms, termed ePetri, for cell culture experiments. This technique leverages the recent broad and cheap availability of high performance image sensor chips to provide a low-cost and automated microscopy solution. Unlike the two major classes of lensless microscopy methods, optofluidic microscopy and digital in-line holography microscopy, this new approach is fully capable of working with cell cultures or any samples in which cells may be contiguously connected. With our prototype, we demonstrate the ability to image samples of area 6 mm × 4 mm at 660-nm resolution. As a further demonstration, we showed that the method can be applied to image color stained cell culture sample and to image and track cell culture growth directly within an incubator. Finally, we showed that this method can track embryonic stem cell differentiations over the entire sensor surface. Smart Petri dish based on this technology can significantly streamline and improve cell culture experiments by cutting down on human labor and contamination risks

Network information and connected correlations

Entropy and information provide natural measures of correlation among elements in a network. We construct here the information theoretic analog of connected correlation functions: irreducible $N$--point correlation is measured by a decrease in entropy for the joint distribution of $N$ variables relative to the maximum entropy allowed by all the observed $N-1$ variable distributions. We calculate the ``connected information'' terms for several examples, and show that it also enables the decomposition of the information that is carried by a population of elements about an outside source.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure