Providing International Opportunities For Business Students: A Guide To Planning A Short-Term Study Abroad Program At Regional And Small Universities

In recent years the perceived value and interest in participating in study abroad programs among college students has been increasing.  Faculty who endeavor to develop study abroad programs face many challenges, particularly at smaller universities where resources may be very limited.  This article offers recommendations to help faculty of regional and small universities who are considering developing a new direct-enrollment short-term program. The article addresses several pertinent issues including: the suitability of faculty, selecting a location, designing the course content, and post-trip evaluation

Do Word Of Mouth And Advertising Messages On Social Networks Influence The Purchasing Behavior Of College Students?

Many online advertisers are exploring the use of Internet social networking to build brand awareness and loyalty. Social networking is particularly popular among the younger, 15-24 year- old generation, who is more computer savvy and spends more time on the Internet than adults. While this generation has substantial potential, they also represent a challenge to advertisers. This group is notoriously skeptical of being “advertised at.” They expect a more personal, interactive experience. The purpose of this research is to determine which types of social networks are used most by college students and what types of online marketing impact their purchasing choices. In carrying out this research, the following research questions were addressed: which social networks are used most by college students; do factors such as student and/or parent income, student age, classification, gender, marital status, or employment status influence use of social networks; do ads on social networks impact purchasing decisions; does advice from other users of social networks impact purchasing decisions; and do online games, scavenger hunts, and contests influence purchasing decisions? The research provides a better understanding of social network use and provides insight into effective online advertising to college students

Enhancing Cross Cultural Communication In The Marketing Classroom: A Case Approach

The importance of effective communication skills in the workplace is widely documented and recognized as a success factor in many fields of endeavor.  As the workplace becomes more diverse and more global in nature, the ability to communicate across cultures is gaining in importance.  A class exercise in which Panamanian educators and US students cross-interviewed each other is discussed with regard to its perceived impact on the communication process and on its ability to enlighten students on shopping behaviors of persons from another culture

Five Principles For Workable Client-Based Projects: Lessons From the Trenches

Despite the wide-ranging benefits of using client-based projects (CBPs) in the classroom, such projects can be overwhelming for instructors, and many shy away from the considerable workload and time commitment often required by CBPs. This article is designed to help marketing educators overcome such apprehensions and provide them with concrete tools to simplify CBPs and make them easier to manage. The authors discuss five principles they have developed for creating and implementing workable client projects. Their principles come directly from the trenches of their own experiences in planning and managing client-based projects across multiple courses. They address, for example, ways to customize CBPs to fit within specific course and professor time constraints, tips to manage the client relationship and students\u27 expectations, and strategies to streamline the feedback process. They offer workbench-level insights and practices drawn from their own experiences that instructors can put into practice immediately. © 2005 Sage Publications

Examining Market Orientation As Both Culture and Conduct: Modeling the Relationships Between Market Orientation and Employee Responses

The market orientation construct is central to the study of marketing; however, scholars have expressed concern about the multiple market orientation conceptualizations. This paper introduces and tests a model of market-oriented culture and conduct that reconciles the prevailing conceptualizations. In addition, it extends previous research by considering the effect of market orientation on individual-level responses. Findings support the proposed market orientation model. Findings also support a positive relationship between market-oriented responsiveness and salesperson customer orientation. The proposed model offers significant insight into the market orientation construct. © 2007 M.E. Sharpe, Inc. All rights reserved

Perceptions of ethical work climate and person-organization fit among retail employees in Japan and the US: A cross-cultural scale validation

International retailers can only be successful if they understand similarities and differences between cultures. This study compares retail employees' perceptions of ethical work climate and person-organization fit in the U.S. with those of the same employee type in Japan. The results can help retailers understand employee perceptions of their relationship with the firm. An important aspect of this research involves testing the cross-cultural validity of the ethical work climate (EWC) and person-organization fit (POF) scales. Findings suggest that these scales are valid in both different national contexts and can also be used to compare differences between the cultures. Significant differences were noted in the EWC and POF between retail employees in Japan and the U.S. The relationship between EWC and POF varies significantly for employees in Japan and the U.S.Retail/service employees Cross-cultural Ethical climate Value Fit

The Influence of Psychological Climate On the Salesperson Customer Orientation: Salesperson Performance Relationship

Because salespeople are a primary revenue-generating mechanism for many organizations, it is important that we understand the factors that facilitate or hinder their performance. This study examines psychological climate as a boundary condition of the salesperson customer orientation - salesperson performance relationship. We apply Mischel\u27s (1976) theory, which suggests that the impact of individual differences (such as salesperson customer orientation) is less pronounced when situational conditions (such as psychological climate) are strong. In addition, we introduce the concept of a strong balanced psychological climate to the marketing literature. Our findings suggest that the salesperson customer orientation - salesperson performance relationship is moderated by psychological climate such that the relationship is weakened in strong balanced psychological climates. Implications of this research are discussed