Journal of Business and Retail Management Research

This study evaluated customer relationship management in the telecommunication sector in Nigeria and its consequential effect on customer loyalty. Primary data were generated with the aid of structured questionnaire. A random sample size of 50 respondents was selected from each of 4 telecommunication firms to represent the entire population of study. Thus a sample size of 140 respondents was used. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics and variance estimation technique. Findings show that customer retention, and competitive advantages are major benefits that are accruable to the industry. These were achieved through better understanding and addressing the customer needs and issues. Among the strategies employed by the players in this industry to facilitate these were promotional activities and quick service delivery.

The transformation of the business model is mixed and based on economics concepts where the viability and the success of a good operation remain the concern first but also the continuity of the richness represented by human resources. It’s the reason for which we can affirm it can have a bringing together with the business practices of Arab countries and those of Europe. Each decision in the process of transformation implying the staff is the result of interactive connections intern and external through which the business policy is organized for the attack of objectives aiming at satisfying in priority the interests of the shareholders.

The objective of this research is to identify the role of Perceived Service Quality, Attitudinal Loyalty and Corporate Social Responsibility in influencing Repeat Patronage Intention in retail banking in two big cities in Indonesia - Jakarta and Surabaya. In addition, this paper also examines whether there are differences among the four variables above in demographic factors. Convenience sampling was used to conduct the survey. There were 150 respondents who took the survey in Jakarta and Surabaya, Indonesia. A 4 point Likert Scale was adopted and data analysis was performed using Regression analysis, ANOVA and an Independent T- test. There was a positive relationship between Attitudinal Loyalty towards Repeat Patronage Intention. However, Perceived Service Quality and Corporate Social Responsibility were not positively related with Repeat Patronage Intention. Furthermore, there was a different outcome in age group on Perceived Service Quality and Corporate Social Responsibility and a significance difference in perception of Corporate Social Responsibility within the education level group. The banking industry should have a strategic plan which includes the role of Corporate Social Responsibility and sincerely implement the plan as Corporate Social Responsibility is one of the variable that can enhance the Perceived Service Quality, Attitudinal Loyalty and Repeat Patronage Intention. Further study could expand to other service industries such as the hotel and tourism and c

Nigeria as a sovereign nation got her political Independence from the British Colonial Masters on the 1st October, 1960. She practiced democratic administration amidst of electoral violence and crisis between 1960 to 1966 and the military seized and hold onto power up to 1999 though, with a deceptive intermittent democratic rule for this period. Nigerians happily, joyfully and massively came out and elected leaders of their choice at the poll in 1999 with the enthusiasm and hope that Nigerians must have learnt their lessons to practice the long awaited democracy with the maximum cooperation of all Nigerians so that our nation could join the rest of the democratic nations of the world to enjoy the fruits and dividends of democracy. However, to the utter dismay and disappointment of rational and reasonably thinking Nigerians, the entrance into democracy by the Nigeria state was rather a curse than a blessing. It is in the light of the above that this paper examines the challenges of democratic survival between 1999-2011 in Nigeria. The paper equally concludes that the major problems of Nigeria are selfishness of Nigerians on the basis of tribal, religious and ethnic bigotry. The paper recommends that Nigerians should shun placing ethnic, religion and tribal consideration above national integration because it is only on this premise that Nigeria would thrive and survive democratically.

Uncertainty is one of the key points of international affairs and it plays a critical role in business decisions (Hofstede, 2001). This study is part of the project named “Managerial Behaviour in Romanian Organizations”, which is a wide explanatory research made by The Romanian Scientific Society of Management. We took into consideration various domains of economic activity and organizations from all over the country. The main objective of our paper is to analyze Uncertainty Avoidance (UA) as national cultural dimension. We tested UA in Romanian organizations. The research covers the period 2008 –2012. The cultural dimension under this research emphasizes the preference for strict laws and regulations over ambiguity and risk. This hypothesis was validated in this study. The results, corroborated with others, will be used for international comparison, so as to elaborate the Romanian pattern of organizational culture and managerial behavior.

The purpose of this study was to examine the accounting reflection of quality cost and customer satisfaction of health products in Nigeria. To achieve this purpose, hypotheses were raised and a critical review of extant literature was made. The population of the study consisted of seven (7) pharmaceutical companies quoted in the Nigerian Stock Exchange. Both primary and secondary data were utilized for this study. The primary data were collected through the administration of questionnaire on management accountants of the selected companies, while the company’s financial statements serve as the secondary data source. The findings generated in this study revealed a positive significant relationship between quality conformance cost and customer satisfaction of health products but a negative significant relationship between quality non conformance cost and customer satisfaction. It was recommended in the study that pharmaceutical firms in Nigeria should increase their quality conformance cost so as to eliminate internal and external failure cost for improved customer satisfaction.

Studies have been conducted on the barriers and the determinants of the use of e-commerce in Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries. However, studies on the adoption of e-commerce in Small Scale Enterprises (SSEs) in developing countries’ retail sector, particularly Nigeria, are scanty. This study explores the barriers and the extent of e-commerce adoption by SSEs in retailing sector in the South Western part of Nigeria. The data for this study were derived from the administration of questionnaires on the owners of 228 SSEs selected for the study. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The study reveals that the majority of the SSE owners in the study area are yet to adopt e-commerce. Moreover, those that have adopted it are at the early stage of e-commerce. Besides, the study shows that retail SSEs’ online sale is virtually zero. The paper concludes that for the opportunities offered by the e-commerce to be optimally utilized in Nigeria retailing SSEs, regular electricity supply, government financial assistance, internet security, and developed legal and regulatory system must be provided.

Middle-East is the most undeveloped region in terms of tourist destinations in the world. Many economists believe that the situation is bound to change with Saudi Arabia taking the lead. Saudi Arabia is one of the countries with tourism potential but it has remained unexploited. Recently the country has renewed efforts to market itself as a tourist destination. This study will look at the strengths and weaknesses that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia faces as it is now finding that it has a place in global tourism. Its much strength and the support of the monarchy in the endeavor over the last ten years make the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia a marvelous tourist destination for many reasons. While it faces cultural and infrastructural challenges, there is no question that Saudi is building a strong tourism base. This study will utilize qualitative research in order to highlight the strengths of the country for tourism and to demonstrate the areas where the Kingdom needs to put more effort into this endeavor. Conclusions and recommendations will be given at the end of the paper as a result of literature studies and the research conducted herein.

Product packaging design has become one of the most powerful tools in the marketing communications mix to delight consumers. Evoking nostalgic feelings through design can generate positive emotions to enhance consumer satisfaction effectively. The purpose of this study is to explore the different impact of nostalgic emotions on consumer satisfaction with rice packaging design. The questionnaire survey was conducted to gather the consumer s’ emotion evaluations and overall satisfaction on nostalgic packaging. The factor analysis was used to explore the consumers’ emotional experience dimensions, from which two factors: stirring emotion and historical emotion were identified. Then the two-dimensional Kano model was conducted. The 11 nostalgic emotions were categorized as different Kano’s classifications, including must-be quality, one-dimensional quality, attractive quality and indifference. This implies that there exist linear and non-linear relationships between nostalgic emotion performance and consumer satisfaction. Based on the result of Kano categorization can help designers to better understand consumer requirements, to identify the critical and high-return factors of satisfaction with nostalgia. It also can help designers determine the priority to resolve the trade-offs dilemma in multiple-attribute decision making.

This study attempted to investigate the impact of financial liberalization on stock market volatility in Nigeria. This purpose was achieved by hypothesizing that financial liberalization has a significant impact on stock market volatility in Nigeria. This was supported by a review of theoretical and empirical literature on the subject-matter. A longitudinal survey design which covers the period of 1981 – 2012 was employed in generating data on financial liberalization and stock market volatility from the central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin. The data generated were analysed using the regressing analysis. The findings revealed that financial liberalization has a negative but insignificant impact on stock market volatility in Nigeria. It was therefore recommended that a good knowledge of financial liberalization is needed to enable financial experts and economy analysts effectively predict stock prices in order to stabilize the stock market.

This paper considers the main elements of investment in a developing economy with emphasis on the role of national leaders. The theoretical arguments in favour of the topic study are considered and critiqued; and the importance of the role of leaders discussed. The problems of developing countries with respect to investment, economic instability and development effects are discussed. It is concluded that national leaders should be pragmatic in their decisions as nepotism, tribalism and the “me” syndrome cannot help an economy but a visionary leadership style.

Since the beginning of time, retailing has been with us. Through the years, the processes and systems used by retailing have been tailored and modified in order to meet the demands of the consumers. Similarly, the in-store activities aimed at the consumer has been growing and changing. In the early stages of retailing, the focus was solely on merchandising, but even merchandising has evolved and it became more absorbed, specialized and specific. This has led to this study focusing on visual merchandising displays and its effect-or not-on consumer expenditure. A great deal has been said about visual merchandising displays and the way it affects consumers and their behaviour. Consumer behaviour (with the focus on consumer perceptions) towards visual merchandising displays were therefore examined and assessed in this study. The main research question that pended from this study was to determine the effect of visual merchandising displays on consumer behaviour, with the focus on consumer perception. Explorative research was performed and qualitative data were collected by means of naïve sketches and focus groups. The data was analysed by means of thematic analysis. The key conclusions that could be drawn from the research is that the perceptions that is formed by consumers in terms of visual merchandising displays are subconscious in creating attention and desire to further examine the goods on offer and aesthetically to decorate the store.

As business becomes increasingly global with more and more companies penetrating oversea markets where culture and traditions vary, ethical consideration become more and more complex to handle. Differences in business customs and practices among nations of the world account for the reason why managers in organizations operating in an international context are confronted by complex ethical challenges. The business customs and practices revolve within the circumference of the peoples moral and cultural values. Some of the challenges facing the international business manager are sundry situations where there are no local laws, local practices that condone a certain behavior, an organization willing to do what is right is favoured over the organization that fails to engage in wrong business practices. In conclusion, being ethically correct is not a simple task for the international business manager because of diversity in cultural values. It is therefore imperative that governments establish a moral minimum as a guide for proper behavior or to draw the line to control unethical behaviours.

Management Control Systems are important tools supporting organization, organizational learning and innovation, as the premise of management control is to ensure the attainment of organizational objectives. The Sri Lankan manufacturing sector is the largest contributor to the industry sector, which in turn is the second largest contributor to the country’s GDP, has continuously shown improved financial results. This study focuses on the impact of Management Control Systems on the Return on Sales of manufacturing companies in Sri Lanka. A structured questionnaire was developed and forwarded to a sample population of 83 public quoted manufacturing companies in Sri Lanka. 85.5% or 71 of the companies responded to the questionnaire. Structured interviews were subsequently conducted with selected personnel in these 71 organizations to ensure proper completion of the questionnaire and to authenticate the information provided. Based on the analysis of data it was found that there is a statistically significant relationship between Management Control Systems and Return on Sales of manufacturing companies in Sri Lanka.

Relationship Marketing, which is at the heart of marketing management, inherits a small-world-type network characterized by short path-lengths. At a strategic level the discipline can gain from modelling on Stanley Milgram’s (1967) small-world experiment on average path length for social networks. The relationship marketing can consciously map the ‘average number of steps’ along the shortest paths for all possible pairs of social network nodes to configure a model that can measure efficiency of achieving a certain response from the task of information-sharing emphasizing on customer retention and satisfaction and even a transaction value. These efforts are expected to design innovative collaborative and social communication channels to push the agenda of relationship marketing by developing and implementing appropriate marketing plan to stimulate referrals (referral marketing). It also can create certain demographic and customer service data pervading all the spaces of referral marketing covering internal markets, influence markets, and customer markets and supplier markets. Thus, the sub-markets, for example government regulators and consumer associations falling under influence markets, can be better targeted with a laser-precision. The research explores the complexities in designing such a model based on Milgram's (1967) small-world experiment combined with other inspired models such as Metcalfe's law, Scott Feld's friendship paradox, Kevin Bacon's six degree