Francesco Parola

Market structures and competitive strategies: the carrier–stevedore arm-wrestling in northern European ports

Over the last few years, liner and stevedoring markets have been facing new challenges. The progressive concentration on the demand side (carriers) and the emergence of global alliances in the mid-1990s have triggered a similar process of consolidation on the supply side (stevedores). In turn, more recently, the strategic choices of pure terminal operators have led to the progressive involvement of carriers in port operations, both from a financial and a managerial point of view. This paper aims at analysing the current contest in northern Europe between customers and suppliers of port services. Substantial concentration in the stevedoring market and the emergence of dedicated facilities in that area, make this arm-wrestling stronger and stronger. At present, the liner market is following a number of strategic directions including the pursuit of economies of scale (larger vessels) and the supply of services using faster vessels (deployment of ‘fewer’ assets) in order to offer either new services or additional loops (scope). By exploring the strategic behaviours of the top carriers (‘bigger’ or ‘more effective’), the paper attempts to outline the future evolution of the two industries in a 2015 vision, highlighting in particular scenarios for north European ports. Global alliances are weakening and a new era of M&As is probably approaching: how will the bargaining power change between port users and port customers? Which competitive paradigm will dominate?

Word of mouth and satisfaction in cruise port destinations

As acknowledged, in addition to a short-term economic (monetary) value, cruise activities can also provide a destination with an additional (non-monetary) value, ‘showcasing’ the tourist attractions to several visitors, who, after the cruise experience, may potentially recommend the same destination to relatives, friends and colleagues. This paper contributes to the theme of the cruise tourism impact on the local community, assuming a long-term perspective, and investigates the effect of overall destination satisfaction on cruisers word-of-mouth (WoM) attitude in three Italian ports. The study analyses the relation between port-related satisfaction attributes and overall destination satisfaction. The empirical findings confirm the positive association between overall destination satisfaction and WoM attitude. In particular, the outcomes on port-related satisfaction attributes demonstrate the key role of the availability of well-designed and comfortable shopping areas and the endowment of properly organized and reliable ground transportation services as antecedents of the overall destination satisfaction. The results are consistent with and add to the academic literature. It is recommended that public policy makers (e.g. Port Authorities, Municipalities, etc.) should play a more significant role as stakeholders’ coordinators, to facilitate the dialogue between the various private actors affecting overall destination satisfaction and long-term value creation.

Managing port concessions: evidence from Italy

With the adoption of the landlord port model, the assignment of port areas to private operators has become a key point for the efficient management of port spaces as well as of port activities themselves. The paper investigates the procedural process that leads to the assignment of port concessions in Italy. The survey is conducted on a sample of ports and covers the last decade, focusing on some relevant decision-making and managerial variables (concession type and duration, criteria for the determination of fees, etc.). Despite the relatively small size of the sample, it highlights the different policies adopted by the Port Authorities (PAs) in order to attract private operators or enhance the development of port infrastructure. Moreover, the paper discusses how concession fees influence the total earnings of PAs and the extent to which they may be used in pursuit of ports’ economic and social goals.

Network economies in liner shipping: the role of home markets

This paper deals with the measurement of the network complexity of some selected shipping groups, also identifying the contribution of co-operative agreements among carriers. The empirical investigation is focused on: (i) the analysis of the distribution of the carrying capacity per range; and (ii) the comparison of that capacity with the throughput handled in the port facilities of the group. These variables are interpreted in the light of the impact that alliances have on the geographical wideness of the services supplied by each partner. This factor also allows to depict how the cultural and political origin of shipping lines affects the decision of joining an alliance and the outcomes deriving from such co-operation.

Refrigerated container versus bulk: evidence from the banana cold chain

During the last 20 years, the reefer shipping sector has been characterised by a gradual changing process, leading from specialised vessels to reefer containers. In fact, the reefer bulk fleet has experienced an irreversible decline, while the reefer container fleet has shown a continuous growth. This article investigates the current major factors shaping the reefer shipping industry, in order to understand the economic drivers inducing competition between bulk and containers. Therefore, a twofold analysis has been performed. First, an overview of the reefer market, including the cold chain, the demand for refrigerated products and the supply of reefer capacity given both by containership fleet and by conventional reefer fleet. Second, a specific case of the banana trade has been carried out for evaluating the revenues of each player involved in the banana cold chain followed by a cost analysis. The results reveal the market tendencies, focusing on the main sources of competition for bulk versus container.

Unveiling co-operative networks and ‘hidden families’ in the container port industry

Over the last few years, the progressive scarcity of land for greenfield projects in ports and the enormous financial resources required to realize new terminal facilities have induced international terminal operators (ITOs) to enter in various types of agreements. In particular, ITOs have growingly resorted to equity joint-ventures (EJVs) to develop new infrastructures and share project risks. This manuscript introduces a multi-layer conceptual framework and investigates the extent of EJVs through a network analysis of inter-firm communities across various nations. The study has been performed on a data set that includes all port facilities operated in 2010 by ITOs. Indeed, 427 terminal facilities and 250 container port operators, that is 40 ITOs and 210 local firms, have been examined. Results show the different co-operative attitudes of ITOs and demonstrate that firms co-operate in a selective way, disclosing emerging patterns and hidden networks of relationships.

Disclosure as a tool in stakeholder relations management: a longitudinal study on the Port of Rotterdam

This study applies stakeholder management principles to the port domain. We provide a conceptual framework for evaluating the communication strategies a (landlord) Port Authority (PA) relies on in the management of its relevant stakeholders and the adoption of disclosure to critical issues. The theoretical arguments are supported by empirical evidences from the Port of Rotterdam (PoR), i.e. a major port which leverages disclosure to successfully manage stakeholders and support the implementation of corporate strategy. The research questions are addressed using a content analysis on the annual reports (ARs) of PoR in the period 2000–2012. The overall research design enables the investigation of PA disclosure as a tool for managing the evolving interests of stakeholders from a longitudinal perspective. The PoR case shows that the relative importance of topics reported in the ARs change over time, as a result of external pressures and internal key events. The outcomes demonstrate the growing attention of PoR on topics relevant to the broader community (e.g. environment and safety/security) after a period characterised by a prominent focus on financial and governance issues. Besides, key breakthrough forces stimulating the shifts in landlord communication strategies are identified and discussed. Finally, by suggesting an indirect approach to evaluate how PA prioritises its salient stakeholders, the paper adds to extant port literature and brings methodological implications.

The drivers of port competitiveness: a critical review

ABSTRACT Academic research on port competitiveness has so far focused on the identification of the drivers of port competitiveness and their measurement. This paper argues that the port competitiveness and its drivers are significantly affected by major changes in maritime industry, which scholars have not sufficiently addressed. Therefore, the manuscript explores the multidimensional nature of “port competitiveness” by conducting a systematic literature review of leading peer-reviewed international journals, between the 1983 and 2014 time frame. The analysis allows a profound understanding and a categorisation of the main drivers of port competitiveness. Main findings present a hierarchy of key drivers and suggest that major industry transformations moderate the influential role of traditional drivers and reshuffle their relative salience. The study also identifies some unexplored research areas for future studies.

Insights to technological alliances and financial resources as antecedents of high-tech firms' innovative performance

High‐tech firms are triggered to externally acquire and combine additional supplementary and complementary resources to develop innovative capabilities and generate new knowledge, products, and business ideas. Firms may rely on cooperation, alliances, and other interfirm ties as well as on the external acquisition of the stock of resources and capabilities to foster their innovativeness and support their patent activity. This contribution develops and tests a conceptual framework for assessing external sources of a firms innovative performance in high‐tech industries. By simultaneously evaluating the explanatory power of technological alliances and financial resources in shaping a firms innovative performance, measured as new patents registered, the paper provides some original outcomes from both conceptual and methodological perspectives. Research hypotheses are tested performing ordinary least squares (OLS) regression models on 90 European‐listed firms operating in the aerospace and defence industry, engaging over 1,300 technological alliances within the 2007–2011 timeframe. The findings demonstrate that high‐tech firms leverage on technological supplementary alliances to innovate and to create new knowledge embodied in artifacts such as patents. In addition, financial slack is proved to be a prerequisite for a successful patent activity in high‐tech industries. Empirical outcomes, discriminating between small and large firms, bring valuable insights both for academics and practitioners.

Determinants of slow steaming and implications on service patterns

The research focuses on the impact of the shipping strategy to decrease the commercial speed of container vessels, in order to reduce the bunker costs, on current service patterns. In this regard, the study also hypothesizes potential development trends in the near future. The reduction of the commercial speed, commonly referred to as “slow steaming,” has been introduced to mitigate the negative effects of the recent economic crisis by cutting navigation costs and reducing the capacity supplied in order to assure a more efficient fleet deployment. Nowadays, this practice provokes a strong impact on maritime services and inter-port competition, as it leads to differentiate the offer of shipping services, combining fast and direct services among main hubs and cheaper and slower services also calling on small ports. The paper addresses the impact of slow steaming in the major shipping services and discusses the effects on service patterns between Asia and Europe, bringing practical insights for ocean carriers and ports.