Business Commons^™

Learning Through International Strategic Alliances: Processes And Factors That Enhance Marketing Strategy Effectiveness, Gregory E. Osland, Attila Yaprak

Gregory E. Osland

Intensified competitive, technological, and market pressures have made organizational learning a critical imperative in global strategy effectiveness. Firms can learn through experience and from three processes that involve other firms: imitation, grafting, and synergism. Interpartner learning has become critical, since experiential learning is insufficient for most firms. Responds to calls for a broadened role of marketing and synthesizes and extends research from organization behaviour and strategic management to the field of marketing to fuel further academic inquiry. Based on an extension of Chandler′s strategy‐structure‐performance paradigm, develops propositions on how the environment, organizational culture, strategy, and structure can affect a company′s …

Origins And Development Of The Product Life Cycle Concept, Gregory E. Osland

Gregory E. Osland

Underpinnings and recognition of the product life cycle concept are found in the writings of sociologists, anthropologists, economists, and marketers of the last two centuries. The fashion cycle and advertising spiral are antecedents of the well-known graphic form of the PLC that has been discussed for the last forty years.

Selecting International Modes Of Entry And Expansion, Gregory E. Osland, Charles R. Taylor, Shaoming Zou

Gregory E. Osland

Selecting a mode for entering or expanding in a foreign market is a crucial strategic decision for an international firm. This article identifies and compares the most influential factors that affect the international modes of entry and expansion decisions of US and Japanese firms. Using mail surveys, this is one of the first studies on this subject to collect data from top executives in both Japan and the USA. Findings reveal that the Japanese are particularly sensitive to external risk and other target market factors. For Americans, company factors, such as international experience, appear to be most important when selecting …

Lodge Selection And Satisfaction: Attributes Valued By Ecotourists, Robert D. Mackoy, Gregory E. Osland

Gregory E. Osland

Although the ecotourism literature is growing rapidly, few researchers have systematically examined how ecotourists select and evaluate lodging alternatives. Understanding lodging attributes of importance to ecotourists is the first step in modelling lodge selection and satisfaction processes of interest to both managers and researchers. We report on the results of two studies designed to gather such attributes. Study 1 uses e-mail survey responses from dedicated birders, while Study 2 uses data from on-site interviews with visitors at ecolodges in Mexico, Costa Rica, and Ecuador. The two most-commonly mentioned attributes in both studies were “proximity to natural areas” and “cost.” These …

"Doing Business In China: A Framework For Cross-Cultural Understanding, Gregory Osland

Gregory E. Osland

The process of doing business in The People′s Republic of China can be understood better and improved through a conceptual model that identifies and explains critical elements of their culture. An attempt is made to fill a gap in previous work by integrating anthropological and political theory, pertinent literature, and experience in the Chinese context. The model reveals the importance of understanding how communication occurs cross‐culturally through language, material objects, and non‐verbal behaviour. The critical role of interpersonal relationships in China is discussed, highlighting the important factors of guanxi, face, group orientation, and deference to age and authority. The …

Education And Ecotourism: A Framework And Analysis Of Education In Ecolodges In Costa Rica And Panama, Gregory E. Osland, Robert D. Mackoy

Gregory E. Osland

Education of tourists at nature-based lodges is an important but under-researched component of ecotourism. This paper proposes a framework that identifies and develops a typology of possible educational goals and activities in an ecotourism context. Using data from interviews and participant observation at fourteen leading ecolodges in Costa Rica and Panama, the paper describes, classifies and compares educational efforts directed toward ecolodge guests, with a particular emphasis on the role of nature guides in the educational process. Relationships among several educational goals, tourists' satisfaction, and views of the performance of nature guides are uncovered and explicated. Multiple managerial implications and …

Negotiation In Channels Of Distribution: Conditions, Behavior, And Outcomes, Gregory Osland, Lloyd Rhinehart

Gregory E. Osland

A model of the negotiation process is developed and tested on a sample of motor carriers that provide contractual service in distribution channels. The result indicate that expectation of continuity in a channel relationship leads to cooperative negotiating behavior. This cooperative (integrative) negotiating behavior, in turn, results in mutually beneficial outcomes. In addition, perceived dependence has a weak effect on negotiating behavior and outcomes. Managers are advised about conditions and outcomes of the use of both cooperative and arms-length negotiating strategies.

Successful Operating Strategies In The Performance Of U.S.-China Joint Ventures, Gregory E. Osland

Gregory E. Osland

Evaluations of the performance of international joint ventures (IJVs) in China have produced mixed conclusions. This study sought to uncover performance criteria used by various groups of managers and to identify critical factors in IJV performance in China. Using in-depth case studies, matched data were collected from personal interviews with managers from Chinese and U.S. parent companies, joint venture operating managers from both partners, and government officials from both countries. The performance criteria used by joint venture participants appear to be converging, with profitability emerging as the dominant element. This exploratory study uncovered four important strategic factors in the performance …

Foreign Market Entry Strategies Of Japanese Mncs, Charles R. Taylor, Shaoming Zou, Gregory E. Osland

Gregory E. Osland

While much prior research has focused on Japanese multi‐national corporations’ (MNCs) marketing strategies, little is known about the factors that influence Japanese MNCs’ foreign market entry mode choice. In this study, a survey of Japanese MNCs is conducted in order to assess the factors that are the most influential in the foreign market entry decisions of Japanese MNCs. Using bargaining power theory, eight factors are identified in the study. The findings indicate that five of the eight factors (stake of the host country, need for local contribution, riskiness of the host country, resource commitment, and host government restrictions) are significant …

Beginnings Of A Fulfilling Career, Gregory E. Osland

Gregory E. Osland

In 1989 I decided to join the doctoral program in Marketing at Michigan State University (MSU). Although I had been accepted into the doctoral programs at several universities, including UCLA and the University of Washington, I chose MSU because of its strong reputation in International Marketing, and its emphasis on managerial applications. Tamer Cavusgil had recently joined the MSU faculty and had just initiated the Center for International Business Education and Research. I wanted to learn from him as my mentor and dissertation chair, and was encouraged by the potential resources available through the CIBER to do international research. This …

Dimensions Of Internet Commerce Trust, D. Aiken, Robert Mackoy, B. Liu, Richard Fetter, Gregory E. Osland

Gregory E. Osland

Trust is a central construct and plays a critical role in understanding Internet consumer behavior. This research seeks to directly address the subject of Internet Commerce Trust (ICT) by developing a valid, reliable, and generalizable scale to measure this multifaceted subject. Two separate studies reveal a common five-factor structure. These dimensions are labeled (1) Certification, (2) Resources and Capabilities, (3) Shopping Method, (4) Reliability, and (5) Communication Viability. An accurate measurement of ICT will serve as a viable control factor in future studies of Internet consumer behaviors, segmentation analyses, and in marketing strategy research.

Dimensions Of Internet Commerce Trust, D. Aiken, Robert Mackoy, B. Liu, Richard Fetter, Gregory E. Osland

Gregory E. Osland

Trust is a central construct and plays a critical role in understanding Internet consumer behavior. This research seeks to directly address the subject of Internet Commerce Trust (ICT) by developing a valid, reliable, and generalizable scale to measure this multifaceted subject. Two separate studies reveal a common five-factor structure. These dimensions are labeled (1) Certification, (2) Resources and Capabilities, (3) Shopping Method, (4) Reliability, and (5) Communication Viability. An accurate measurement of ICT will serve as a viable control factor in future studies of Internet consumer behaviors, segmentation analyses, and in marketing strategy research.

Building Internet Trust: Signaling Through Trustmarks, Aiken Damon, Greg Osland, Ben Liu, Robert Mackoy

Gregory E. Osland

Ecolodge Performance Goals And Evaluations, Gregory Osland, Robert Mackoy

Gregory E. Osland

Note: full-text not available due to publisher restrictions. Link takes you to an external site where you can acquire this article from a local library.

Eco Paraiso, Gregory Osland, Robert Mackoy, Daniel Mcquiston

Gregory E. Osland

Note: full-text not available due to publisher restrictions. Link takes you to an external site where you can purchase the book or borrow it from a local library.

High- Versus Low-Content National Cultures: Preferences For Type Of Retailer And For Human Interaction, Gregory Osland, Bela Florenthal

Gregory E. Osland

No abstract provided.

Foundations And Evolution Of A Research Career In International Marketing, Gregory Osland

Gregory E. Osland

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Emotional Warmth On Preference For Human Interaction And Channel Preference: A Cross-Cultural Analysis, Gregory Osland, Bela Florenthal

Gregory E. Osland

No abstract provided.

Issues In Ecolodge Management In Latin America, Gregory Osland, Robert Mackoy

Gregory E. Osland

No abstract provided.