Terri Feldman Barr

The Value of Students’ Classroom Experiences from the Eyes of the Recruiter: Information, Implications, and Recommendations for Marketing Educators

Marketing students represent their years of undergraduate education with resumes, which along with interviews, become the process recruiters use to assess student employability. This article reviews research on resume development and presents a study that examines recruiters’ comments about the value they place on experience in and out of the classroom. Most recruiters indicate that internships, part-time jobs, and leadership positions in university organizations are better indicators of employability than classroom experiences. Recent changes in marketing/business pedagogy have led to more classes in which active learning approaches with client projects, field experiences, and skill-building activities are used. It is a concern that recruiters are unaware of, or pay little attention to, these classroom experiences where real-world knowledge and skill sare developed. Suggestions are made regarding how to include more business-relevant skill development into our classrooms and how to communicate these classroom changes to both studentsand recruiters.

Exploring the “Lone Wolf” Phenomenon in Student Teams

The proliferation of projects using student teams has motivated researchers to examine factors that affect both team process and outcomes. This research introduces an individual difference variable found in the business environment that has not been examined in a classroom context. The lone wolf appears to play a role in how teams function and perform. Described by practitioners and academics, the lone wolf is identified by a preference to work alone, a dislike of group process and the ideas of others, and a proclivity to see others as less capable and effective. This study finds the lone wolf phenomenon among marketing students working in teams through self-ratings and the assessments of team members. Furthermore, the inclusion of lone wolves on teams is found to have a negative impact on student team performance. Implications of these findings and ideas for managing the team process when lone wolves are present are considered.

I love my accountants – they're wonderful: understanding customer delight in the professional services arena

Purpose – This study of professional accounting firm clients identifies a set of common expectations, examines the opportunities to exceed expectations, and considers the potential of exceeding expectations and “delighting” clients.Design/methodology/approach – Using a subsample of accounting firm clients, common activities and behaviors thought to have the greatest potential for delivering exceptional service were identified. Two larger samples of business clients in the US Midwest were interviewed and they rated their accounting service provider on eight activities and then described an outstanding service encounter.Findings – Descriptive statistics showed that the strongest service expectations involve meeting deadlines, relating well to the clients employees, being available, and being knowledgeable about the clients firm and industry. The content analysis of the open‐ended question identified competency and expertise as areas where expectations were exceeded. Comments identified a few instances of ...

Social Enterprises and the Timing of Conception: Organizational Identity Tension, Management, and Marketing

Nonprofit organizations that engage in social enterprises can have difficulty reconciling the social service and business identities of their organization. In this exploratory qualitative interview study, we examine how social enterprises affect this organizational identity tension and how executive directors of nonprofits manage these multiple identities. Findings suggest that identity tension varied dependent upon the timing of conception of the social enterprise. Nonprofit leaders used different approaches to identity management and identity marketing for social enterprises: after conception and social enterprises: at conception. Initial guidance is provided about how nonprofits engaged in social enterprises can manage identity tension issues.

Identifying the Lone Wolf: A Team Perspective

Increased use of sales teams reduces salespeople’s latitude to operate as “lone wolves.” A lone wolf prefers to work alone when making decisions and setting goals, has little patience for group process, sees others as less effective, and seldom values others’ ideas. Research investigating lone wolves suggests they lack organizational commitment. However, no current scale exists for identifying lone wolves. Using sales representatives and student samples, we validate a lone wolf scale and demonstrate how lone wolves differ from autonomous individuals. Having good psychometric properties, the scale is useful to practitioners for assessing representatives for sales team contexts.

Marketing: is it still “just advertising”? The experiences of accounting firms as a guide for other professional service firms

Professional service organizations are finding themselves increasingly involved with marketing in order to develop and maintain relationships with their clients. Restricted by professional standards, and hindered by a lack of experience, firms are struggling to understand marketing and implement marketing programs. Nowhere is this struggle more evident that in the accounting profession, where firms are regulated by professional standards and guidelines. Based on a series of one‐on‐one interviews with accounting professionals, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants standards and guidelines, and information from both practitioner and academic literature, this research identifies the extent to which firms are following the prescriptive advice. Discussions of initiatives are provided as guidelines for further implementation of marketing strategies in the accounting profession and other professional service firms that are following in the accountants’ footsteps.

Social Entrepreneurship: A Grounded Learning Approach to Social Value Creation

The value of the inclusion of social entrepreneurship in entrepreneurship education courses and programs is considered in light of the increase in social entrepreneurial ventures worldwide as well as changing business school requirements. Using a grounded learning theory approach as a foundation, we consider factors unique to social entrepreneurship and present a live case social venture which provides hands-on experience to students. Student comments regarding their learning through this experience are also included. Future directions for social entrepreneurship education pedagogy and research are discussed.

Funding Implications of Social Enterprise: The Role of Mission Consistency, Entrepreneurial Competence, and Attitude Toward Social Enterprise on Donor Behavior

Social entrepreneurship covers a broad domain, including social enterprise, defined as the use of for-profit strategies by nonprofit organizations. Driven by multiple factors, nonprofit organizations have increasingly turned to social enterprise in the hopes of funding their social missions. However, only limited research has fully delineated how the use of social enterprises affects overall funding and the conditions under which social enterprises are relatively more effective. This mixed-method, three-study project provides evidence that the introduction of a social enterprise negatively affects individual donations but that some of the negative effects can be mitigated when the social enterprise is perceived as mission consistent and competent. In addition, the results show that donor attitudes toward social enterprises moderate the effects. The results of these studies have important implications for marketing, social entrepreneurship, and public policy.

Tailoring a Marketing Course for a Non-Marketing Audience: A Professional Services Marketing Course

Understanding the strategic implications of marketing is important to non-marketing majors, just as finance, accounting, and management are important to marketing majors. The need is real to develop ways to bring integrated, cross-functional insights into the classroom. To that end, various ways have been presented to integrate business courses. Team teaching using faculty from different functional areas and combining two or more functional areas to cover relevant topics are two ways to accomplish the task. This article focuses on a third approach to integration. By using principles of market segmentation, the authors have developed a professional services marketing course that focuses on the specific needs of various non-marketing audiences. Their objective was to develop a framework for an integrative course that would provide non-majors with an understanding of what marketing of professional services requires and an appreciation of its value in the creation of new business opportunities.

Airing the Dirty Laundry

Abstract This study considers the complexities associated with service failures and recovery in professional service firms. Interviews with sixty clients of professional accounting firms serve as the source of the data. The study results confirm that service failures occur in the professional services context, and provide insights into the most common types of service failures and service recovery efforts experienced by these clients. Of particular interest is the finding that clients often consider alternative service providers when service failures take place, but rarely switch. Possible explanations for this behavior and the implications for client retention are discussed.