Purpose – The purpose of this paper it to examine Electronic commerce (e-commerce) practices of Iranian business organizations, as a “traditional” business culture, as it compares to a “developed” business culture such as the one existing in business organizations in the USA. Design/methodology/approach – Executives from a sample of 50 business organizations in Iran were interviewed and asked to complete the research questions pertaining to e-commerce practices in their organizations. A factor analysis procedures with varimax rotations is used to analyze the data collected from these organizations. Findings – Comparing the result of this study with an earlier study on a sample of business organization in the USA shows more similarities than differences. Based on the results of the study, it appears that e-commerce practices and related technology present similar opportunities and challenges to organizations regardless of their business culture. Lack of appropriate technological hardware and software, however, is identified as a hindering factor preventing Iranian business organizations from reaching their e-commerce potentials. Originality/value – This research provides a rare insight into the Iranian business culture. The collection of data through personal interviews and the empirical nature of the study represent a unique opportunity to validate findings from other business cultures. This allows for a better practical understanding of the opportunities and constraints associated with e-commerce adoption.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine practices, realities and opportunities relevant to Moroccan tourism. In the process, the competitiveness of this vital economic sector is assessed. Based on this examination, relevant, benchmarking implications are identified and advanced to policy makers. Design/methodology/approach – The shiftshare technique is utilized to analyze tourist arrivals, from different regions of the world, to Morocco, Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt. The shiftshare analysis is utilized to understand the existing competitive position of Morocco in relation to her main competitors. Findings – The results of the shiftshare analysis revealed that Morocco has not performed as well as the rest of the competitors in the benchmark group. This was attributed, in part, to focusing on markets with less potential for growth. Research limitations/implications – The shiftshare technique utilized in this study is a diagnostic tool. Thus, more research is needed to uncover the dynamic relationships relevant to the competitive position of Moroccan tourism. Practical implications – The findings of this study have clear benchmarking implications to Moroccan policy makers, as they pursue a more comprehensive and systematic tourism strategy. Originality/value – The applied research presented in this article is consistent with the increasing significance of global tourism.

This article presents a conceptual benchmarking framework which applies a multiple criteria approach to assess performance. In the process, a multiple criteria procedure is used to assess the performance of three hundred and ninety two (392) Portuguese firms. Based on the results of this procedure, a conceptual framework is devised to facilitate addressing relevant benchmarking implications. The framework is designed to provide a conceptual linkage between the performance measurement methodology and the organizational benchmarking system.

Investigates several facets of the implementation of just-in-time (JIT) using a two-tiered empirical approach that included a field study and a mailed survey. The 277 respondents to the survey included 130 manufacturing organizations, 61 service organizations and 86 public sector organizations in the USA. Five hypotheses were tested. The results indicate that while all the organization types had enacted procedural and operational modifications in support of their JIT implementations, there were some differences in the impact that these modifications had in reducing problems during the implementation and on the eventual outcome of the project. Suggests areas where benchmarking can be utilized by the various organization types to alleviate potential problems in the JIT implementation process and to improve their chances of success.

To enhance their organizational performance, banks can benefit from the experiences of manufacturing firms and gainfully employ quality and process improvement philosophies with proven track records in manufacturing industries. This article presents a framework, which integrates root cause analysis with benchmarking, process reengineering and continuous improvement. A case study is employed to illustrate the application of the framework and to demonstrate how it can benefit a bank in lowering costs, enhancing productivity, responding to customer demands, reducing complaints and improving customer satisfaction.

The purpose of this thesis is to propose suggestions, which would be able to eliminate the bankruptcy risk of selected wine companies in South Moravian region. In the first part of the thesis is introduced the financial analysis via the literature resources. Second part of the thesis is focused on performing financial analysis for selected companies and quantification of their bankruptcy risk. There are presented suggestions for elimination of identified weak spots in the company in the ending part of this thesis.

Helísková, E. The increase of the efficiency of a company with benchmarking. Diploma thesis. Brno: Mendel University, 2019. The purpose of this diploma thesis is to propose suitable suggestions to increase the efficiency of the construction company Geprostav, based on the analysis and comparison with the benchmarking partner. In the summary of the literature the basic theoretical information about the method of benchmarking and about the rating of the efficiency of a company has been stated. Besides the description of the index, on which the financial condition of companies is regarded and compared, the Model excellence EFQM is described there. The Model excellence EFQM is the basis of appreciation of the non-financial factors as well. In the next part, the analysed company and the benchmarking partner are introduced. Pursuant the comparing analysis, the significant deficiencies have been identified and suitable measures are suggested.

L’émergence des contenus multimédias sur Internet, l’accès aux contenus multimédias et leurs enrichissements constituent un vaste domaine de recherche. Cette thèse s’inscrit dans ce contexte, et présente la réalisation complète et opérationnelle d’une plate-forme de diffusion multimédia interopérable et ouverte. Après avoir spécifié l’architecture de la plate-forme en introduisant le support de tous types de médias, l’indexation efficace, la recherche de contenus et leurs visualisations en ligne, la première contribution de cette thèse est une extension de la norme MPEG 7 permettant d’assurer la gestion des contenus graphiques 3D, ainsi que des informations liées à un système multimédia. Cette extension a permis le développement d’une plate-forme de diffusion gérant tous types de contenus, appelée MyMultimédiaWorld.com, entièrement normalisée à l’aide de MPEG 7 et MPEG 4. La deuxième contribution porte sur les facilités d’accès à la plate-forme multimédia. D’une part, nous avons développé une solution simple et originale d’API d’accès aux contenus multimédia par de applications tierces. D’autre part, nous proposons une solution basée sur le principe d’API pour intégrer dans une plate-forme des algorithmes multimédias. Cette solution permet la création de nouveaux services à partir d’algorithmes externes. A partir des deux APIs, nous proposons une nouvelle approche pour l’évaluation automatique d’algorithmes multimédias. Les aspects clés de cette approche sont l’évaluation en ligne, des conditions identiques pour l’exécution des algorithmes et la mise à jour automatique des résultats. L’approche développée est démontrée à l’aide de deux benchmarks différents, le premier pour l’évaluation des algorithmes de compression de maillage 3D et le second pour le benchmark des descripteurs de formes 3D développé dans le cadre des projets FAME2 et POPS du pôle de compétitivité System@tic. Les avantages de cette approche ont été reconnus récemment par le comité de normalisation MPEG avec sa décision d’adopter www.MyMultimédiaWorld.com pour l’évaluation des algorithmes de compression de maillage 3D. / The emergency of the Internet as a medium for multimedia content, the manner to access the content including means of enriching it with semantic information constitute large research domains. This thesis situates in this context and introduces an operational implementation of an open and interoperable multimedia content distribution platform. After specifying the platform architecture introducing the support of all media types, effective indexation, content search and on-line visualisation, the first contribution of the thesis consists in several MPEG 7 extensions allowing 3D object description, as well as multimedia service specification. These extensions makes it possible a novel approach of asset management systems fully normalised with MPEG 7 and MPEG 4, the concept being demonstrated by the implementation of the www.MyMultimédiaWorld.com platform. The second contribution of the thesis concerns the fundaments and tools to ensure easy access to the multimedia platform. We developed an original solution based on an access API making possible to third party applications to access content and metadata resident into the platform. A second API, makes it possible to integrate multimedia processing algorithm directly in the platform, transforming it into a continuous evolving environment. The Web2.0 paradigm of user generated content is now extended to user generated functionality. Based on the two APIs, we proposed a novel approach for evaluation of multimedia related algorithms. The key aspects are the online processing, evolving content, execution of algorithms in identical conditions, always up-to-date results. The approach is demonstrated for two benchmarks: the first deals with 3D mesh compression algorithms and the second with 3D shape descriptors developed in the FAME2 and POPS projects of the System@tic competitiveness cluster. The advantages of such benchmarking approach were recognized recently by MPEG committee when deciding to adopt www.MyMultimédiaWorld.com as the standard evaluation tool for 3D mesh compression.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・論文博士 / 博士(工学) / 乙第12982号 / 論工博第4129号 / 新制||工||1637(附属図書館) / 32452 / (主査)教授 小林 潔司, 教授 大津 宏康, 教授 河野 広隆 / 学位規則第4条第2項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

A new test set design and benchmarking approach (US Patent pending) allows a "standard observer" to assess the end-to-end image quality characteristics of video imaging systems operating in day time or low-light conditions. It uses randomized targets based on extensive application of Photometry, Geometrical Optics, and Digital Media. The benchmarking takes into account the target’s contrast sensitivity, its color characteristics, and several aspects of human vision such as visual acuity and dynamic response. The standard observer is part of the "extended video imaging system" (EVIS). The new test set allows image quality benchmarking by a panel of standard observers at the same time. The new approach shows that an unbiased assessment can be guaranteed. Manufacturers, system integrators, and end users will assess end-to-end performance by simulating a choice of different colors, luminance levels, and dynamic conditions in the laboratory or in permanent video systems installations.