Customer Enquiry Management in a Global Competitive Context: A Comparative Multi-Case Study Analysis

Business-to-Business (B2B) relationships, such as between a manufacturer and a customer, are increasingly important during the Customer Enquiry Management (CEM) process, particularly so for non-Make-To-Stock (non-MTS) companies operating in industrial markets. Few empirical studies have explored the CEM practices adopted by firms in practice. A study of the Italian capital goods sector by Zorzini et al. (2007) is a recent exception. Moreover, most studies have approached CEM from a cross-department integrated perspective but in the digital economy, and with globalization, outsourcing and extended supply chains, CEM needs to be approached from a broader supply chain-oriented perspective, incorporating B2B exchanges. This paper builds on the study by Zorzini et al. (2007) by conducting multi-case study research with seven UK-based companies in the capital goods sector, including three sales and support companies with offshore manufacturing. By adopting a cross-national research perspective, it assesses whether the proposed theory applies to other capital goods firms outside Italy. By also adopting a supply chain perspective of CEM it investigates current industry practice in B2B markets and explores whether cross-functional coordination and formalization issues can be extended into a global context. Evidence from the UK generally supports prior theory, confirming links between high levels of coordination, formalization of the CEM process and improved performance. Some refinements are proposed, for example, in order to make the theory suitable for a global context. The characteristics of a supply chain are important factors that affect CEM. This research has managerial implications for improving the CEM process in non-Make-To-Stock (non-MTS) capital goods companies from both an intra and an inter-organisational (B2B) perspective. Coordination with partners along the supply chain is needed at the enquiry stage and constraints linked to global customers should be considered when structuring the

Immunoreactivity for a calmodulin-dependent protein kinase is selectively increased in macaque striate cortex after monocular deprivation

Immunocytochemical methods were used to localize type II Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase in the macaque primary visual cortex. Neurons that stain for the kinase include both pyramidal and nonpyramidal cells and they appear to form a subset of cortical neurons. They are densely packed in layers II and IVB, somewhat more sparse in layers III, IVCß, and VI, and nearly absent in layer V. In normal animals the distribution of kinase-positive cells within each layer is relatively uniform. However, in animals in which one eye is removed 7-14 days before sacrifice or sutured shut for 9 or 11 weeks, the cells in layer IVCß are divided into alternating lightly and darkly stained bands. Comparison of immunocytochemically stained sections with adjacent sections stained for the mitochondrial enzyme, cytochrome oxidase, reveals that the kinase staining increases in ocular dominance columns originally driven by the removed or closed eye. These findings suggest that either the concentration of type II Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase or its accessibility to the antibody probe increases dramatically and selectively in neurons of macaque primary visual cortex that have been deprived of their normal visual input. This may indicate that changing levels of activity in cortical neurons can alter their regulatory machinery

MObile Technology for Improved Family Planning: update to randomised controlled trial protocol.

BACKGROUND: This update outlines changes to the MObile Technology for Improved Family Planning study statistical analysis plan and plans for long-term follow-up. These changes result from obtaining additional funding and the decision to restrict the primary analysis to participants with available follow-up data. The changes were agreed prior to finalising the statistical analysis plan and sealing the dataset. METHODS/DESIGN: The primary analysis will now be restricted to subjects with data on the primary outcome at 4-month follow-up. The extreme-case scenario, where all those lost to follow-up are counted as non-adherent, will be used in a sensitivity analysis. In addition to the secondary outcomes outlined in the protocol, we will assess the effect of the intervention on long-acting contraception (implant, intra-uterine device and permanent methods).To assess the long-term effect of the intervention, we plan to conduct additional 12-month follow-up by telephone self-report for all the primary and secondary outcomes used at 4 months. All participants provided informed consent for this additional follow-up when recruited to the trial. Outcome measures and analysis at 12 months will be similar to those at the 4-month follow-up. The primary outcomes of the trial will be the use of an effective modern contraceptive method at 4 months and at 12 months post-abortion. Secondary outcomes will include long-acting contraception use, self-reported pregnancy, repeat abortion and contraception use over the 12-month post-abortion period. DISCUSSION: Restricting the primary analysis to those with follow-up data is the standard approach for trial analysis and will facilitate comparison with other trials of interventions designed to increase contraception uptake or use. Undertaking 12-month trial follow-up will allow us to evaluate the long-term effect of the intervention. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01823861

Aplikasi E-Commerce Sebagai Jembatan Perancang Dan Konsumen Pada T-Shirt Design

— In Indonesia, there is still not a special website that accommodates designers to design, to sell t-shirts with their own design, most websites only sell t-shirts. Abroad, some websites have been selling design t-shirts such as Teespring. Teespring makes it easy to create, sell, and order custom t-shirts, but has the disadvantage that the price is less affordable for the people of Indonesia. T-Shirt Design is an e-commerce website that makes it easy to create, sell and order custom t-shirts with affordable prices. T-Shirt Design embraces designers as sellers with their own design products and accomodate selling their custom t-shirts. T-Shirt Design will process orders from designer/seller and display t-shirt products that have ready to sell to consumer. Consumer can order, buy t-shirt product, and pay it. After receiving the product, consumer will give the feedback that use to improve serving, accuration, expedition. Designer/Seller get selling report, inventory report and list of consumer for each shop. Keywords—Custom T-Shirt, E-commerce, T-Shirt Desig

A robust method for measuring the Hubble parameter

We obtain a robust, non-parametric, estimate of the Hubble constant from galaxy linear diameters calibrated using HST Cepheid distances. Our method is independent of the parametric form of the diameter function and the spatial distribution of galaxies and is insensitive to Malmquist bias. We include information on the galaxy rotation velocities; unlike Tully-Fisher, however, we retain a fully non-parametric treatment. We find $H_0=66\pm6$ km/s/Mpc, somewhat larger than previous results using galaxy diameters.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, Cosmic Flows Workshop, Victoria B.C. Canada, July 1999, ed. S. Courteau, M. Strauss & J. Willick, ASP conf. serie