Vol. 3(6) June 2010
Transformational Leadership and TQM Implementation
Correia Rui, Mainardes Emerson and Lourenço Luis
Several studies have identified leadership as a promoter of total quality management
(TQM). In addition, empirical studies have shown significant positive relationship
between transformational leadership and working efficiency. Researchers also defend
that it is top management duty to lead the movement for quality. In this sense,
leaders are expected to define organizational strategy and mission, values and principles
that will inspire TQM oriented management practices. This conceptual work explores
the relationship between transformational leadership and total TQM – defined by
the dimensions of innovation, creativity, trust and teamwork – presenting initial
propositions that can guide future research in this area of knowledge.
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Cooperation between Knowledge Intensive Business Services and Universities:
A Conceptual Model Proposal
Fernandes Cristina
Knowledge is now perceived as the basic core of firms, is becoming more a role in
the recognition and capitalization of entrepreneurial opportunities. The growing
number of researches on the importance of regional entrepreneurship, as well as
the characteristics of location, show that the basis for creation of new firms is
the knowledge thus giving emphasis spillovers of knowledge coming from universities
and other institutions. Thus, the knowledge generated arises from the collaboration
between companies and public research institutions. Entrepreneurial activity tend
to be even better in the sense that investments in new knowledge are relatively
high, while businesses, particularly new ones, use the true source of knowledge
(universities and R&D institutes). Here we specifically address the KIBS (Knowledge
Intensive Business Services and Universities), to the extent that they are creators,
users and transmitters of intensive knowledge. This shows the importance of the
study of cooperation between universities and firms, especially KIBS.
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Role of Micro Finance on Women Empowerment through Self Help Groups in Tamilnadu
Vetrivel S.C. and Chandrakumaramangalam S.
Under the trickle down theory in the planning process it was expected that women
will equally benefit along with men. This has been belied by actual development.
The ninth plan document recognizes that in spite of development measures and constitutional
legal guarantees- women have lagged behind in almost all sectors. In India, the
emergence of liberalization and globalization in early 1990’s aggravated the
problem of women workers in unorganized sectors from bad to worse as most of the
women who were engaged in various self employment activities have lost their livelihood.
Despite in tremendous contribution of women to the agriculture sector, their work
is considered just an extension of household domain and remains non-monetized. Microfinance
is emerging as a powerful instrument for poverty alleviation in the new economy.
In India, Microfinance scene is dominated by Self Help Group (SHGs)-Bank Linkage
Programme as a cost effective mechanism for providing financial services to the
“Unreached Poor” which has been successful not only in meeting financial
needs of the rural poor women but also in strengthening collective self help capacities
of the poor leading to their empowerment. Rapid progress in SHG formation has now
turned into an empowerment movement among women across the country. Economic empowerment
results in women’s ability to influence or make decision, increased self confidence,
better status and role in household etc. Micro finance is necessary to overcome
exploitation, create confidence for economic self reliance of the rural poor, particularly
among rural women who are mostly invisible in the social structure.
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Role of Disclosure in Corporate Governance
Vyas Vijay H. and Solanki Ashvinkumar H.
Preserving investor confidence in the integrity of our securities markets and the
accuracy of financial information is an enormously important goal. The mutual fund
industry endorsed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act because of the pressing need to bolster
the independence of the accounting standard-setting process, strengthen the oversight
of public auditing and increase the authority and resources of the Securities and
Exchange Commission. This paper examines the effects of disclosure and other corporate
governance mechanisms on the cost of equity capital in Asia's emerging markets with
newly released surveys from Credit Lyonnais Securities Asia (CLSA).
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Apparel Private Label Brands and Store Patronage
Sasinandini S. and Lysander Manohar Hansa
Apparel sector in particular has a great opportunity with alignment of Indian economy
to globalize markets. The foray of private labels in apparel retail is very pronounced
making market to have the second highest percentage of organized retail. Apparel
retailers have popularized their private labels which have attracted shoppers and
thus have increased the loyalty to a store rather than any particular garment brand.
Private label brands have become an important contributor to retail differentiation
and basis for building store patronage. The decision to patronize a particular store
usually starts with a set of characteristics or attributes that consumers consider
important. Consumers then use these attributes to make decisions regarding what
store or stores can cater to their particular needs. Past retail and marketing studies
have identified several consumer-oriented store attributes such as price, quality,
variety, discounts and store reputation but the relation with store patronage and
loyalty and store image has not been studied. This paper tries to focus on how private
label brands are inducing store patronage among the customers
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Corporate Social Responsibility- An Indian Perspective
Hakhu Rahul
In this paper an attempt has been made to discuss the various issues related to
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in India. In addition, the studies pertaining
to the status of CSR in Indian corporate sector have been critically elaborated
during pre and post liberalization era. It is also evident that most of the forward
looking companies in India have strongly been adopting CSR in their corporate policy
to accomplish competitive advantage, profitability and performance in the light
of liberalized world. In addition, it provides valuable information to the companies
of India and other primary stakeholders about the prospects of development, reputation.
In India, the government has been providing due emphasis on the growth of the CSR
as a vehicle for transformation of the agrarian economy to the path of industrialization.
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Strategic Alliances in the Internationalization of Family Firms: An Exploratory
Study on the Spanish Wine Industry
Guadalupe Fuentes-Lombardo and Rúben Fernández-Ortiz
When examining the different ways in which companies penetrate foreign markets,
the decision to use or not to use strategic alliances may be conditioned by the
characteristics of the company. In the case of family firms, such alliances offer
a series of advantages and disadvantages due to the way in which the two different
systems, family and business, overlap and interact. By drawing on the literature
about strategic alliances and analysing information obtained in interviews, we propose
a number of reasons that prompt family businesses to establish (or not to establish)
strategic alliances in their processes of inter-nationalization, as well as the
discriminating factors that favour or hinder the selection of such strategies. This
study is based on qualitative empirical research in the Spanish wine industry. We
also developed a model of antecedents and expected outcomes of these reasons and
factors.
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Entrepreneurial Strategies within the Tourism Cluster of Serra da Estrela: Implications
for Regional Competitiveness
Estevão Cristina1, Ferreira João2*
and Braga Vitor3
Tourism is an economic activity of supreme importance in certain countries (or regions).
It can have a decisive role in triggering the economic development of the regions
where, in some cases, there are no other sources of development. Tourism can also
be used as a strategic tool to take full advantages of the promotion of natural,
historical and cultural aspects of depressed regions. Cluster analysis is seen,
in general, as an important tool to analyze the regional competitiveness and to
explore the tourism potential, in particular. In this sense, this research aims
to analyze different strategies that are being taken in a region and to identify
the existence (or not) of clusters. An empirical study was developed based on hotels
population of the Serra da Estrela Tourism Region (SETR). The results evidenced
that hotels units enforce combined strategic typologies and different competitive
strategies.
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