Deon Nel

Factors influencing family business succession

Classifies controllable or internal factors influencing family business transitions into three groups: preparation level of the heirs, family relationships, and planning and control activities. To assess the impact of each set of factors on the ease of generational transitions and subsequent family business performance, a cross‐sectional survey was directed at owner/ managers of second‐ and third‐generation family businesses. Suggests that, in successful transitions, heirs are reasonably well‐prepared, family relationships tend to be positive, and succession planning and related control activities are relatively informal. Of these three, trust and communication in family relationships appears to have the most significant impact on transitions. Draws managerial implications and makes suggestions for ongoing research.

Going with the flow: Web sites and customer involvement

This paper investigates a structure of commercial Web sites, and then attempts to analyse various patterns that emerge which may be of future use as a guideline to businesses that intend establishing a Web presence. Key to the understanding of these patterns is a clearer grasp of the implications of human interaction with the new medium. The focus is on an experiential construct, namely flow, and how this might vary by Web site, and on using this to begin to unravel the secrets of good commercial Web site design and its implications for business.

An examination of the ethical beliefs of managers using selected scenarios in a cross-cultural environment

Academic literature addressing the topic of business ethics has paid little attention to cross-cultural studies of business ethics. Uncertainty exists concerning the effect of culture on ethical beliefs. The purpose of this research is to compare the ethical beliefs of managers operating in South Africa and Australia. Responses of 52 managers to a series of ethical scenarios were sought. Results indicate that despite differences in socio-cultural and political factors there are no statistically significant differences between the two groups regarding their own ethical beliefs. Results thus support the view that culture has little or no impact on ethical beliefs.

Seabird mortality in the Patagonian toothfish longline fishery around the Prince Edward Islands, 1996-2000

Sanctioned longline fishing for Patagonian toothfish around the Prince Edward Islands (a globally important seabird breeding site) commenced in 1996 following high levels of Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) fishing. Independent fishery observers accompanied all but two sanctioned trips between 1996 and 2000, allowing a thorough understanding of the impact of this fishery on seabirds. Overall, white-chinned petrels Procellaria aequinoctialis were by far the most frequently killed species. However, during the first year, when lines were set during the day and night, a significant number of albatrosses (particularly grey-headed albatrosses Thalassarche chrysostoma) were also killed. Birds were caught almost exclusively during their breeding seasons and most birds killed were breeding adult males from the Prince Edward Islands. Albatrosses and giant petrels were caught almost exclusively during day sets, whereas catch rates of white-chinned petrels did not differ between day and night sets. Albatrosses were caught closer to the islands than white-chinned petrels. Most white-chinned petrel carcasses were hooked in their wings and bodies, whereas albatrosses were caught most frequently in their bills and contained large numbers of baits. Rates of seabird bycatch in the sanctioned fishery decreased from 0.19 birds per 1000 hooks to 0.034 birds per 1000 hooks during the time of this study. This was probably mainly due to stricter implementation of mitigation measures and a progressive movement farther away from the islands over the years. We estimate that the combined impact of legal and IUU longline fishing around the Prince Edward Islands over the past four years could have resulted in between 7000 and 17 000 seabird mortalities and could have had significant impacts on the breeding populations of several seabird species breeding on the Prince Edward Islands. This was mainly due to high levels of IUU fishing during 1996/97.

Role of the market maven in retailing: A general marketplace influencer

This article deals with the market maven. This maven is a general marketplace influencer which may be a significant constraint in the retail setting. This South African study highlights the importance of word-of-mouth communication in business. The South African market was chosen because of its cultural diversity and its unique set of European and African influences. This paper reviews the literature concerned with general marketplace influencers. It then reports the results of a study of 621 respondents. The results show that mavens appear to be good targets for general messages about marketing mix changes, messages spanning multiple product categories and messages concerning new product introductions. These results indicate that mavens appear to be good targets for retailers, provided they can be targeted effectively.

Service quality in NHS hospitals

Discusses the utilization of an instrument--SERVQUAL--as a means of assessing patient satisfaction with service quality. Patients treated (174) for a variety of health problems in a number of departments completed the SERVQUAL questionnaire. There is a dearth of knowledge in this important field and the authors note that the results indicate the need for improvement in service quality as identified by the study population.

User satisfaction and service quality of the IS department: closing the gaps

Measurement and management of user satisfaction with information systems (IS) have been issues of concern for practitioners and academics in the field for some time. This paper introduces the ‘Gaps’ approach to service quality, a topic widely discussed in the marketing literature, and proposes that a similar approach is applicable in the IS domain. The user gap is explained and its measurement suggested, and the other gaps within the IS arena are described and their causes and cures addressed.

Population Dynamics of the Wandering Albatross Diomedea Exulans at Marion Island: Longline Fishing and Environmental Influences

The subantarctic Prince Edward Islands (Marion and Prince Edward) support the largest breeding population of the Vulnerable wandering albatross Diomedea exulans. The number of birds breeding at Marion Island has fluctuated over the past three decades apparently as a result of both real changes in the size of the population and changes in the proportion of the population that attempts to breed in a given year. Changes in several demographic parameters that appear to be influenced by both environmental and anthropogenic effects are described. From 1994–2001, the proportion of first-time breeders in the population was positively correlated with the maximum ENSO (Niño 3) index, whereas from 1984–2000 the annual survival rates of breeding adults were negatively correlated with Japanese pelagic longline fishing effort in the southern Indian Ocean. Adult survival rates were significantly correlated with those on neighbouring Possession Island, Crozet Islands, but differed from those at South Georgia, suggesting common factors operating at an ocean-basin scale. The average survival rate of adult females was lower than that of males. Males who lost partners took 40% longer than females to find a new mate, suggesting a male-biased population. Survival rates of juvenile males and females did not differ. The age distribution of first-time breeders shifted progressively towards younger birds during the 1990s. Higher than expected survival rates of breeding adults during the late 1990s may be linked to large amounts of supplementary food being made available by the initiation of a longline fishery for Patagonian toothfish Dissostichus eleginoides close to the islands at this time. Overall, breeding success was better than recorded at other localities, indicating that breeding conditions at Marion Island were comparatively favourable. The early implementation of both international and national conservation initiatives to reduce the impact of longline fishing on this species and improve its conservation status is encouraged.

A framework for research in internal marketing and the study of service quality: some propositions

Considers the quality of service between internal partners within a company looking at how this can influence performance and quality. Looks at the different ways of defining the internal customer and suggests that measurement is most effective when complex procedures are broken down. States that internal marketing is a critical issue facing marketing professions, human resources and other executives. Argues that if poor service is provided between employees it is unlikely that good service will ultimately be provided to the external customer. Invites further research in this area.

Eleven years of scholarly research in the Journal of Services Marketing

Purpose – The publication of papers in scholarly journals is an important channel for the dissemination of academic knowledge. Analyzing academic content provides useful insights into how services marketing evolves over a selected time frame. The purpose of this paper is to determine key trends published in the Journal of Services Marketing during the recent 11‐year period from 1998 to 2008.Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents a content analysis of the papers published in the Journal of Services Marketing during the period 1998‐2008. A total of 417 papers, excluding book reviews, were analyzed. Descriptive statistics provide an overview of the research contributions.Findings – The main finding is that most of the papers published in the Journal of Services Marketing during the recent 11‐year period are research‐based papers. Other findings include a trend towards co‐authorship, the use of surveys and empirical data, adults as research subjects, factor analysis, structural equation modeling, a...