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Education, scientific-research and consulting work in agriculture of Serbia
11-18Views:148Serbia has small number of producers2 which have encircled production system (from primaryproduction to processing), which do business successful, introduce marketing strategy and production standards, registered their products' mark of origin, succeed to export on EU market, use internet or has its own internet domain, etc. For creation of such, competitive and modern agricultural producer, there is necessity for production specialization, any kind of cooperation and better organization. In same time, there is more space for bigger financial support of state, as expert and consultative support „created“ through strong partnership between public and private sector, i.e. tough and constructive cooperation of state and farmers sector, like as institutions of education, science, research and consultative work. In the paper was given review of number and territorial dispersion of educational institutions, current scientific-research work and consultative functions in agriculture in Serbia, than was pointed out main problems in their functioning and previous work and also proposed concrete suggestions for overcoming of existing limitations, as for modernization /reorganization of those institutions, in a way to be more useful for agricultural producers.
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Analysis of time management and self-management work practice by leaders – a focus group study
133-140Views:658Nowadays excellent leadership is one of the foundations of high organizational performance. Leadership excellence is a complex topic but efficiency and effectiveness are important components of it. These are closely linked to self-management and time management. In our focus group research, we asked senior executives about how they organize their average workday. We used two theoretical models: the Blue Ocean model and the Franklin Covey time-matrix. According to the participants the key component of effective self-management is the time management. In their leadership practice they often use a digital task manager, a workshop, an informal meeting as a tool and they find knowledge sharing also very important. They try to approach their employees empathetically. They would like to reduce the administrative tasks, spend less time on correspondence, travel and “small talks”. They would like to spend more time on automation and communication, further training and team work and dealing with the employees. They think that strategic planning, market analysis, sales, knowledge development and transfer should require more planning.
JEL code: M12
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The role of emotions and perceived control in the recovery strategy of service companies
65-68Views:139The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of service recovery tactics. The reseach included a qualitative study based on 30 interviews with customers and employees of a telecommunication company. This was followed by a quantitative study using between subject experimental designs based on scenarios. Our research results suggest that employees’ positive emotions and perceived control during the recovery process make consumers more satisfied.
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Is it worth being socially responsible?
73-80Views:220Several definitions for corporate social responsibility (CSR) exist and these vary greatly as to the activities it should cover and their motivators. Among the benefits of CSR are positive marketing/brand building, brand insurance and employee loyalty. Numerous arguments against CSR prevail, e.g. social responsibility is not a problem that belongs in the sphere of activities a corporation should be addressing or even that CSR distracts businesses from addressing the primary need to concentrate on sales. Thus, the strong economic question: is CSR worth it? In 2014, we carried out a representative survey in Hungary, in which the effects of responsible business practices on consumer purchase behaviour were studied. With our research results, we could show that there is a considerable gap between the apparent interest of consumers in CSR and the limited role of CSR in purchase behaviour.
JEL classification:M104
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Smallholder Food Marketing Behaviour: Exploring the Role of Informal Credit and Traders in Stabilization of Food Crop Prices
67-82Views:132Many farmers in Africa sell their produce at low prices immediately after harvest because they need cash. They could solve temporary liquidity constraints by use of credit and store their produce to sell when prices are high. However, due to various reasons such many poor farmers have been excluded from formal financial services. In response, the informal financial market has expanded, but the question why informal credit has not facilitated storage to enable farmers benefit from intertemporal arbitrage opportunities remains largely unanswered. To answer this question, we investigate the role of informal credit markets and traders in stabilizing seasonal food crop prices. Our analysis is based on a household survey data, and in-depth interviews with key players in the informal credit market and grain traders in rural southwestern Uganda. We find that community-based self-help savings and credit associations provide credit for the majority (62%) of farmers. Informal credit still excludes the very poor and is not sufficient to enable farmers benefit from intertemporal arbitrage opportunities. Thus, poor farmers continue to ‘sell low and buy high’. The study also addresses a related fundamental aspect of food marketing: why is there no competition between traders bidding up prices after harvest and eliminating seasonal price fluctuations? We analyse traders’ costs and profit structure in the study area, and shed some light on imperfections in the grain market and the barriers that limit competition between traders. We find that grain trade is not highly competitive. High transaction costs and limited access to credit are the main barriers limiting competition. Supporting community-based self-help savings and credit associations to raise their portfolio can enable more farmers to borrow at the same time. Investing in infrastructure, organising and supporting small scale farmers to bulk their produce might lower transaction costs, promote competition and dampen price fluctuations.
JEL Classification: D53, O13, O16, Q12, Q13
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Performance imbalances in the chain: EU traditional food sector
7-11Views:171Organizations nowadays no longer competeas independent entities, but as chains(Christopher, 1998; Cox, 1999; Lambertand Cooper, 2000). Hence, being part of a well-performing chain is crucial for the future of the individual food firm, especially in the context of the globalizing economy. As a result, the objective of this study is to identify performance imbalances of traditional food chains.Therefore, quantitative data were collected via individual interviews with 271 chain member (91 suppliers, 91 focal companies and 89 customers) of 91 traditional food chains from three European countries(Belgium, Italy and Hungary), representing six different traditional food product categories (cheese, beer, ham, sausage, white pepper and bakery). The results differentiate six different kinds of chain imbalances, namely: dyadic upper and lower, up-and down stream, internal and external indicate both dyadic and chain-wise imbalance. Most chain imbalances are noticed in relation to lowering logistic costs and to reducing lead time. Future research should extend the list of performance indicators with parameters other than economical ones such as ecological and social ones.
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Externality effects of honey production
63-67Views:268Bee-keeping and honey production has a long history in Hungary. Honey is an important and healthy food of people and it can be consumed without any human processing. The honey production has important role, too. Some researchers say that if honey bee will extinct the humanity in the world would also extinct. It is true since plant pollination by honey bees is very important. It is confirmed by researchers’ studies that plant pollination by honey bees has significant positive external impacts on potential yields in orchards. Although the contribution of honey production to the GDP in Hungary is only a few per cent, other benefits play more important role. One of them is the positive external effect – mentioned above – and the other is the contribution to the biodiversity of the nature. This paper focuses on secondary research methods, gathering and evaluating data regarding the positive external impacts of plant pollination by honey bees as well as finding possible solution for the problem that bee-keepers have a lot of costs in connection with carrying honey bees to orchards, while farmers “only” benefit from the positive externality of plant pollination of their fields. To evaluate its economic effects a numerical HEEM-model was developed and applied for the Hungarian situation.
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Comparison of consumption and purchase habits for University students for industrially kept pigs and mangalica pigs
Views:215The aim of the study is to compare the preferences for the purchase and consumption of industrially kept pigs and mangalica pigs. The research was conducted among the students of the Faculty of Economics and Business of University of Debrecen in October 2019, in the form of an online questionnaire. Descriptive statistical methods, chi-square tests, Spearman rank correlation indexes, factor analysis and two-step cluster analysis were used to analyze the data obtained from the survey. Based on the results, it can be said that there are differences in consumer perceptions of industrially kept pigs and mangalica pigs among a number of sociodemographic factors. Factor analysis was used to delimit three factors in the case of industrially kept pigs (“domestic-branded-fresh product” aspects, factors related to health awareness, aspects of a marketing nature), while in the case of mangalica pigs one factor was identified. Next, I used a two-step cluster analysis using the isolated factors, where several sociodemographic variables were tested. The best fit was shown by the combination of gender and highest educational level. Based on these, it can be concluded that in the case of industrially kept pigs, the factors considered in the purchase were the most important for women and men with higher education in the case of two factors (“domestic-brand-fresh product” aspect and marketing aspects) and for mangalica pigs. While in the case of industrially kept pigs, the third factor (factors related to health awareness) that were taken into account in the purchase proved to be the most important for men with a secondary education.
JEL Code: I12, M31
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Segmenting Hungarian people based on healthy eating
65-72Views:279Relying on customer trends healthy eating, which is one aspect of healthy lifestyle is becoming more and more popular. The aim of this study was to understand the healthy eating style of Hungarian adult consumers. An online empirical research with a sample of 1563 respondents (58.7% females and 41.3% males) was conducted in November 2018. Considering healthy eating two factors, namely the choice of healthy foods and the avoidance of unhealthy foods could be distinguished. A hierarchical cluster analysis was conducted to segment consumers. Four groups of consumers were identified: unhealthy food avoiders (20.3%), rejecters (11.8%), neutrals (26.2%) and healthy food choosers (14.7%). Unhealthy food avoiders are seniors. Rejecters are blue collar workers and have financial problems. Healthy food choosers live in families with children over 10 and do not have weight problems. This study is useful for the health sector and the government since targeted marketing programs can be planned to change eating behavior. To decrease overweight and obesity is the goal of all society, especially in developed countries. To increase the well-being of people and their quality of life educating social marketing campaigns are necessary with the aim of raising their awareness and explaining the basic principles of a healthy diet.
JEL Classification: 112, M30, M39
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Climate change effects on ski tourism
19-26Views:415Nowadays, climate change poses a common recurring problem in our everyday life. The weather forecasts tend to be inaccurate, the swiftly changing weather often makes fun of the people. The same unpredictability applies for forecasting the amount of precipitation or snowing. The major problem in ski tourism consists in the gradual shift of seasons, namely there is no snow in December yet, while at Easter-time we can count on such an enormous amount of snow. I’d like to present this climate condition and offer a sort of way out of this problem. In my empirical study, I have carried out document-analysis along the data collection phase, and I made half-structured deep-interviews, as well.
My research questions were the following: How is the winter season affected by climate change or by the lack of snow? Due to the unreliable climatic conditions what is the estimated ratio of drop in tourism in the season? How much shorter is a skiing-season and how does it affect the operation of the local ski-school? What are the features of pre, and post peak-season tourists’ emergence? How and for how long can a smaller ski-resort be maintained? What is the biggest challenge, problem at the ski-resorts along the state border?
First of all, I’d like to present and tackle the various solutions emerged facing the challenges of climate change effects related to skiing, on the other hand, I have made some personal interviews with Hungarian ski instructors working abroad and also with managers of Austrian ski schools trying to find out the various answers and reactions they have hammered out coping with the new challenges and difficulties in ski tourism.
Hungary can not be considered a skiing nation, although more and more people tend to take up skiing and get involved in this special field of sport tourism. The number of ski slopes being built and developed is increasing, yet the Hungarians ski-lovers tend to visit rather the foreign sport centers for the time being. The reasons mostly involve the various length and versatile difficulty level of the ski slopes. We should also take into account the challenging conditions imposed by climate change on the smaller winter sport centers and the way they can cope with it and also compete with other sport centers with similar features.
Climate change affects considerably the operation of skiing season, and the service providers must adapt to the new conditions. Many resort venues struggle for survival, though most of the local self-governments are clearly aware of the importance of ski-tourism, particularly in Austria. -
Socioeconomic determinants of frequency of fish purchasing among Trinidad and Tobago shoppers: A binary logit analysis
105-109Views:178As the Caribbean continues to succumb to the pressure of Non-Communicable Diseases innovative strategies are being sought to rectify the problem. Increasing the purchase and consumption of fish/seafood has great potential in this regard; however, very little empirical research appears to have been undertaken on food marketing in general and for fish in particular in the Caribbean. This study analyzed the factors that affect the frequency of fish purchasing in Trinidad and Tobago. The results of the analysis indicated that 63% of the sample are occasional purchasers of fish (purchased fish less frequently than once per week). The binary logit analysis showed that of the eight socioeconomic variables analyzed, only three were statistically significant – age, educational level attained and religion. The results suggested that persons over 35 years, more educated (tertiary level trained) and non-Christians are more probable to be regular purchasers of fish than younger, primary and secondary level educated Christians. It is hoped that marketers trying to develop strategies to gain market share in the highly competitive food market, nutritionists and others attempting to reduce the health care costs of Trinidad and Tobago and other Caribbean countries through the increased consumption of fish/seafood find these results informative.
JEL. Code: M31, Q13, C25
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Challenges to sustainable rural development in Russia: social issues and regional divergences
45-51Views:228Paper aims at investigation of contemporary approaches to sustainable rural development in Russia. It includes the overview of current experiences in rural development, analysis of major economic and social indicators of rural areas in comparison with urban ones. Analysis included the set of indicators such as number of rural people, number of rural settlements, rates of births and mortalities, natural and migration increases and declines of population, rates of employment and unemployment, average monthly nominal per capita wages, and level of the subsistence minimum. Indicators have been measured separately for rural and urban areas; regions have been grouped in relation to the particular indicator. The research is concluded by discovery of growth points for rural development and a set of recommendations on perspective measures of state and local policies in rural areas, directed on increase of living standards of rural population and retention of labour resources in their traditional rural areas of inhabitation.
JEL: Q18, P25
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Co-innovation: what are the success factors?
29-36Views:138The problem we address in this paper is that in projects focusing on public-private cooperation to stimulate innovation in the Netherlands, initiatives often lack continuation after the study-phase. We extracted possible influencing variables from business and (transaction) cost economic theorizing, stakeholder and capability theory. Moreover, we used measures for classifying projects with respect to financial interdependencies between participants. We supposed that project characteristics influence managerial behavior to continue or stop. We studied 28 projects (20 supply chain projects and 8 biological product development projects). Our aim was to explore the barriers and success factors for these co-innovation projects: innovation as a cooperative effort between public sector/research institute and private organization(s). We derived data from project descriptions and performed semi-structured interviews with project informants. Critical to success appears to be ex ante commitment of all parties. Goal congruence, both at a personal and a company level, and proportionality of sharing in project results are of decisive importance to establish such commitment. Estimations about financial project results should be made in an early stage; they should be used as a basis for negotiations on the (re)distribution of costs and benefits, especially if the value added is disproportionally distributed over the participants. Ideally, project teams of co-innovation projects should bring in complementary capabilities: technical, marketing, financial and organizational. Project governance should therefore be organized in such a way that the knowledge gaps are filled in before kick-off.
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Assessment of women farmers’ credit needs in imbulpe ds division in Sri Lanka
Views:225The study was conducted to identify the role of women farmers’ credit needs, using Imbulpe (Divisional Secretariat) DS Division in Sri Lanka. As the sample size of study 238 women farmers were selected from seven selected (Grama Niladhari) GN divisions of the study area. This study was conducted to identify the areas and level of credit needed by women farmers. And also, the agricultural credit sources of was identified. Women farmers were selected by using the simple random sampling method. Questionnaire Survey was used as the data collection method from March to July 2019. Descriptive statistics was used for the data analyzing process and the result showed that, 59.7 % of the women farmers were observed within the middle ages (40-59 years), most of them were married, and 4-5 members within their family. 64.3 % of women farmers were studied up to secondary level education. Majority of the women farmers were noted that they need credit facilities for the application of agrochemicals and fertilizers. In Addition to that, utilization of modern farming technologies, transportation & marketing of agricultural products and purchasing improved seeds & livestock related credit neediness most important for them. And also, they were showed a less interest regarding the credit neediness for pre-planting activities, irrigation facilities and harvesting activities. Most of the respondents were indicated high level of credit neediness for the application of agrochemicals and fertilizers and utilization of modern farming technologies while moderate and low level of agricultural credit neediness regarding the pre-planting activities, irrigation facilities and harvesting activities within the study area. Majority of the respondents were showed savings from the previous agricultural earnings and other family member or fellow women as their major credit sources of agricultural activities. Private money lenders act as the least important credit source for agricultural activities in the study area.
JEL CODE: Q1, Q12 -
THE EFFECT OF FARMER BUSINESS SCHOOL ON HOUSEHOLD WELFARE: EVIDENCE FROM COCOA FARMERS IN ATWIMA NWABIAGYA NORTH DISTRICT, GHANA
Views:131Farmer Business School (FBS) is an educational programme aimed at improving the knowledge and skills of farmers in various aspects of agriculture, including financial management and marketing. The purpose of the paper is to examine the effect of FBS on household welfare among cocoa producers in the Atwima Nwabiagya North District of Ghana. Data was collected from a sample of 330 cocoa farmers, 200 of which participated in the FBS programme and 103 who did not. The study employed a range of statistical techniques to investigate the effect of FBS on cocoa growers, thus, independent samples t-test, binary probit model, Kendall's Coefficient of Concordance and perception index. The results of the study suggest that involvement in the FBS programme has a positive significant influence on household welfare. Cocoa farmers who participated in the programme experienced a significant increase in income and yield, as well as improved overall well-being against those who didn't take part. The research's findings offer evidence that FBS programmes can play a vital role in enhancing the welfare of farmers, particularly in developing nations where agricultural livelihoods play a crucial role in economic growth and poverty reduction. The study highlights the importance of investing in education and training programmes for farmers to improve their skills, knowledge, and overall well-being.
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Sport sponsorship in Finland: the case study of FC JJK Jyväskylä
135-140Views:166This paper seeks to analyse sport sponsorship in Finland via using the case study of Football Club JJK Jyväskylä from the Finnish Premier League. The results of a master’s thesis conducted on FC JJK fans’ sponsor awareness and sponsor orientation is presented. This research has provided implications to the management of the club, such as how to increase sponsorship efficiency, how to benefit from applying sponsorship alignment as well as relationship marketing. In order to successfully implement the study, an online survey, interviews, and participant observation was utilised. In addition, statistical data were obtained from the club.
It has been concluded that JJK fans’ sponsor awareness and attitude stood at a low level, therefore JJK’s sponsorship strategy was advised to be reorganised. Conclusions from this paper might be beneficial for clubs from peripheral football countries, including those from Hungary as well. The size and level of Finnish and Hungarian football clubs are fairly similar and both countries can be considered as peripheral football countries at present. -
Focus points of health tourism in the view point of changing costumer values
23-29Views:149In our study, effecting role of values on consumer’s buying decisions is going to be introduced in accordance with health tourism. Investigation of values has a highlighted role to predict future trends, because trends of consumer behavior are formed by values in several aspects. Furthermore, individual values reflect to subject’s lifestyle, purchasing behavior and decisions in connection with free time activities. Since the end of ‘80s results of social studies pointed out that, status fortifying and demonstrative aspect of consumption have been getting stronger. So, the changes of buying decisions are not based on the social stratums any more, but it represents the values of the individual with the growing effect of subject. Hence, values, expressing the subjective judgments of consumers, are the most precise predictors of long term social changes. In our study mainstreams of health tourism are going to be evaluated on the basis of secondary data. Furthermore, we identify place of health among individual values and its role in consumer decisions. During the analysis, we use data of national representative research to determine the Hungarian society’s opinion and judgments in the viewpoint of health. Uni- and multivariate statistical methods are going to be used to get a wide view in accordance with the investigated topic. Among our most important result, we define those consumer groups, in which health has a highlighted role in consumer decisions. We introduce lifestyle characters of these segments and determine them special needs in connection with purchased goods and services. This type of characterization makes it real to organizations of health tourism to develop a more effective marketing communication strategy and improve service features according to consumer needs.
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Comparing the levels of expectation and satisfaction of Indian and foreign adventure tourists visiting India
5-13Views:454Purpose – The present study is undertaken to explore the difference between expectation and satisfaction level of Indian and foreign adventure tourists and the relationship between the levels of expectation and satisfaction of Indian and foreign adventure tourists.
Methodology – The data has been gathered from a sample of 300 adventure tourists comprising of 150 Indians and 150 foreigners. A principal component analysis with varimax rotation has identified 28 relevant items, which are broadly clustered into 6 significant factors. They are labeled as Aesthetic Appeal, Facilities, Accommodation, Information, Food and Safety and Security.
Findings – The findings of this study revealed significant differences between the levels of expectation and satisfaction of adventure tourists of Indian and foreign origin. The level of expectation among the Indian and foreign adventure tourist is higher and, comparatively, the level of satisfaction is lower. The level of expectation and the level of satisfaction of Indian adventure tourists are positively and significantly correlated with respect to variables such as Aesthetic Appeal, Facilities, Safety and Security and Accommodation. For the foreign adventure tourist, the level of expectation and level of satisfaction are positively and significantly correlated with respect to variables such as Information, Aesthetic Appeal, Facilities and Food.
Practical Implications – The research findings will help in the promotion of adventure tourism in India.
Originality/ Value – The identified factors can be used for similar kinds of studies at different destinations. The results of the study would be instrumental in developing strategies for ensuring more satisfied tourists. -
The impact of the internet on Hungarian food consumers’ ways of seeking information from the aspect of health awareness
13-18Views:177One of the main components of healthy lifestyle is proper diet. When putting together one’s diet, lots of information are needed in order to be able to pick from various foods which contribute to converting to a healthier lifestyle and maintaining it. The main purpose of this study is to determine and show examples of the characteristics of online marketing which could help consumers in the conscious conversion to healthy lifestyle. Of the various factors, great emphasis is placed on online health-related information. Based on the research findings, it can be concluded that healthy lifestyle-related information has a significant role in online sources. Consequently, Internet can be regarded as a preferred source of information in terms of the conscious converting to healthy lifestyle.
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