Determinants of price formation for air transport services

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present the impact of the most important price formation determinants on the development of air transport. Design/Methodology/Approach: Research on the factors determining the price strategy of carriers is based on available literature, documents developed by IATA and the Civil Aviation Authority, materials of companies constructing Airbus and Boeing aircraft as well as on own empirical research. Findings: The empirical research carried out indicates the crucial importance of quality and price in creating the unique services and added value. The pursuit of strategic policy consists in defining the company’s directional goals and areas of its operation, as well as determining the principles of efficiency of allocation and use of assets. It is also necessary to develop the market rules for the price-making process in the management system and specify ways of behaving in crisis situations. Practical implications: The key factor determining the competitive advantage of service providers are modern methods of price formation and improving the quality of services. Data can be compared with other countries. Originality/Value: Since the choice of strategy appropriate for a given enterprise depends on its material situation, assets, management and relations with the environment, in which it operates, in particular the position it occupies on the market, the present study gives an insight in the determination of price formation in a unique way able to be adopted by the air transport industry taking into consideration all aspects mentioned above.peer-reviewe

Green growth in agriculture in the European Union : myth or reality?

Purpose: The concept of green growth gained in importance as a result of the recent financial and economic downturn. In the opinion of many experts it is a potential way of achieving a long-term goal, that is, sustainable development. An essential role in the context of green growth is attributed to the agricultural sector. The authors attempted to establish a synthetic measure of the level of green growth in agriculture. Design/Methodology/Approach: Research was carried out based on the taxonomic linear ordering method. The reference years 2000-2017 were chosen due to data availability on Eurostat, FAO and OECD database. Due to the existing information gap, 25 EU countries were accepted for analysis. Findings: The analysis showed that Poland is characterized by the highest level of green growth in agriculture, while Cyprus received the lowest rating. Generalizing the results of the study, it can be stated that the level of ‘greening’ agriculture in European Union countries is insufficient. Practical Implications: The results fill in the existing information gap by providing an answer to the fundamental question: How can green growth in agriculture be evaluated synthetically? The proposed method advances the OECD approach by adding evaluation metrics to assess the performance of each country relative to other jurisdictions by indicator and by a synthetic measure. This allows countries to clearly identify areas where their performance is weak and to prioritize their mitigation measures accordingly. Originality/Value: The proposed method advances the OECD approach by adding evaluation metrics to assess the performance of each country relative to other jurisdictions by indicator and by a synthetic measure. This allows countries to clearly identify areas where their performance is weak and to prioritize their mitigation measures accordingly.peer-reviewe

Model of Polish market of passenger air services in the conditions of EU standards

Purpose: The aim of the conducted research was to systematize the interdependencies existing on the market of air services and to identify the stimulators concerning models of sustainable development on this basis. . Design/Methodology/Approach: Research on the determinants governing the choice of the air travel segment is based on available literature, analysis and statistical documentation of the air transport market for the years 2003-2017. The following hypothesis was adopted: possibility of survival and development of passenger air transport companies on the market, in the conditions of globalization, is attributed only to those entities that are able to construct an effective strategy of competing and improving economic efficiency. Findings: The search for effective solutions to this problem on the passenger air transport markets required active participation in complex structures of mutual connections as a result of dynamic variability of relations between its participants. Practical Implications: The anticipated effect of this process will be creation of a new transport segment, in which the most effective and the most attractive elements of consumer service, which was defined as the central segment, will be developed. Increasing intensity of market competition leads to the intensification of the process of mutual adaptation of innovations and the best solutions existing on the market by some entities, as a result of which the differences in consumer service and changes in the structure of the sector are evened out. Originality/Value: This work includes the analysis of the process of creating and strengthening the market advantage in conditions of changes in the structure and functioning of the European air transport market after enlargement of the European Union. The model of the dependence of demand preferences on the price and comfort of services as well as evolution of airline operation models, was presented.peer-reviewe

Effectiveness of intersectoral competition in shaping the transport market

Purpose: The aim of the paper is to identify basic factors influencing the level of effectiveness of actions taken in the intersectoral transport market. The research undertaken in this area is aimed at demonstrating the importance and impact of stimulants and obstacles in shaping a favorable model of intersectoral competition. Design/Methodology/Approach: The research was based on the available literature, analyses of statistical data and original empirical research, supplemented by industry interviews. The structure of the study was based on the selection of three transport routes and the assessment of the effectiveness and efficiency of passenger service on them, under conditions of intersectoral competition among car, rail and air transport entities. Findings: Results of empirical research showed that in the discussed market, the highest efficiency of competition was achieved in the provision of car, lower in rail and the lowest in airservices. In the resulting model of competition, a resource of basic stimulants and determinants were specified, the analysis and importance of which may be useful in improving this competition system. Practical Implications: Growing intensity of intersectoral competition increases the interest of providers in the development of intermodal transport, the need to seek innovative solutions, and in some cases, to adapt to current market requirements. New solutions must consider the improvement of the quality and completeness of a consumer service, as well as increasing the price flexibility. Originality/Value: Results of the conducted research indicate that enterprises, while providing substitute services on the intersectoral market, are entering increasingly difficult requirements of shaping the market advantage (EU). In this situation, there is an urgent need to activate demand preferences, mainly by improving the quality, availability, competence, timeliness, responsibility and security of service provision.peer-reviewe

Main determinants of shaping the quality of air transport services

Purpose: The purpose of the article is to demonstrate the impact of the most important determinants on the selection of the best quality variant of the air service level, depending on the proposed price, standard, comfort, service quality, loyalty, scope of additional services and other criteria. Design/Methodology/Approach: Research on the determinants governing the choice of the air travel segment is based on available literature, statistical documentation, IATA and ULC, Airbus and Boeing, and mainly based on own empirical research. The tests carried out using the diagnostic survey method included two comparable periods in 2011 and 2018. They were carried out on a group of 321 passengers, who started their journey at Katowice-Pyrzowice, Kraków-Balice, Rzeszów-Jasionka and Lublin-Świdnik airports. Findings: The undertaken research based on own empirical study demonstrates the decisive importance of quality in creating the unique services and added value. The effectiveness of reasons determining the passengers’ movements between traditional and low-cost carriers, was also demonstrated as a result of the improvement of consumer service in internal, intersegmental and inter-branch conditions of competition. Practical Implications: The key determinant of obtaining a competitive market advantage by service providers is the improvement of passenger service quality at the departure port, on the aircraft and at the destination port. The skill and effectiveness of this dominant use is demonstrated by the level of elimination of unfavorable features of the service already in the design phase, the dimension of the outflow of loyal passengers to competitors, the number of new increments and the expansion of loyal customers, which is expressed in a synthetic way by the increase in purchases. Originality/Value: Comparison of services of traditional air carriers with the low-cost carriers on the polish market. Data can be compared with other countries.peer-reviewe

Institutions in the context of implementing the CSR concept and social trust

Purpose: The purpose of considerations undertaken in this paper is to emphasize the importance of public trust in institutions and to draw attention to the important (but often marginalized) relationship between institutions and the implementation of the CSR concept. Approach/Methodology/Design: The following research methods will be used in the article: wide range review of literature sources, descriptive method and selected methods of descriptive statistics (taxonomic measure of development and measures of correlation). Findings: The presented analysis shows that the perception of benefits associated with integration with the EU is not conditioned by trust in it as an institution. Importantly, trust in the EU is not affected by respondents’ perception of national and regional centers of power. Practical Implications: Changes in economies that took place recently caused the need for an interdisciplinary approach to economic research and a new definition of economics as a research field. They also make it necessary to recognize and identify social, economic, technical and cultural issues. The subject matter discussed in the paper refers to issues related to social initiatives such as the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the importance of institutions in the effective implementation of the CSR idea. The analyzed issues are considered in the cultural and institutional cognitive perspective. Originality/Value: The article raises an important social problem of public trust in institutions and the impact of institutions on the speed of dissemination of the concept of corporate social responsibility.peer-reviewe

Non-invasive monitoring of adrenocortical activity in three sympatric desert gerbil species

The study of the endocrine status can be useful to understand wildlife responses to the changing environment. Here, we validated an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) to non-invasively monitor adrenocortical activity by measuring fecal corticosterone metabolites (FCM) in three sympatric gerbil species (Gerbillus andersoni, G. gerbillus and G. pyramidum) from the Northwestern Negev Desert’s sands (Israel). Animals included into treatment groups were injected with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) to stimulate adrenocortical activity, while control groups received a saline solution. Feces were collected at different intervals and FCM were quantified by an EIA. Basal FCM levels were similar in the three species. The ACTH effect was evidenced, but the time of FCM peak concentrations appearance differed between the species (6–24 h post-injection). Furthermore, FCM peak values were observed sooner in G. andersoni females than in males (6 h and 18 h post-injection, respectively). G. andersoni and G. gerbillus males in control groups also increased FCM levels (18 h and 48 h post-injection, respectively). Despite the small sample sizes, our results confirmed the EIA suitability for analyzing FCM in these species as a reliable indicator of the adrenocortical activity. This study also revealed that close species, and individuals within a species, can respond differently to the same stressor