<p>This explorative study address the concept of organisational identity described by Albert & Whetten and takes their concept from the individual level to the industry level. When doing so the lack of empirical research and theoretical knowledge within this area becomes clear. Although an unexplored area we argue that if Albert & Whetten interpreted, the members’ perception to an organisational level we believe that it is also possible to aggregate the perceptions of the members/managers to an inter-organisational/industry level. When taking the identity to the industry level questions like, who are we at an inter-organisational level or with other words is there an industry identity and how does the industry identity affect the actions within an industry?</p><p>In this thesis, we will try to fill this gap of knowledge and contribute to theoretical concepts of industry identities, by gathering empirical data to substantiate the concept of industry identity. We will try to fill the theoretical gap concerning identities within an industry; explaining the content of these identities and how they are defined, in line with the contribution by Albert & Whetten, the same way as individuals organisational identity arises. Whenever he or she asks the question, who are we and what kind of business are we in (Albert & Whetten 1985), it is the same way as for an organisation within an industry to ask questions like – which industry do I belong to and what kind of industry are we in. The processes stressed by Hatch & Schultz also raises questions like how does the industry identity affect the interactions/actions between identities within an industry or how does the actions by one identity affect another identity within an industry? One industry that can be assumed to have developed an inter-organisational identity over time, due to a long history and clear cultural anchoring the last 10-years has been faced with both radical change and crisis is the Swedish alcohol industry. The empirical data in this study is based on eight semi-structured telephone interviews with importers (managers or top team) in the Swedish alcohol industry.</p><p>Consequently, we approach this explorative study by stating the following question; Is there an industry identity within the Swedish alcohol import industry, and if so, what is the content of this identity and how does this identity affect the actions taken within the industry? The main purpose is to answer the question stated in this thesis by; to describe the central and distinctive characteristics/aspects of the Swedish alcohol importers identity and to find commonalities and differences within these industry identities. To relate to these central and distinctive aspects of the industry identity in relation to the actions taken by the organisations within the industry.</p><p>The conclusion of this thesis is; yes, there is an industry identity based on two orientations; the product or market orientation and the content of these identities are based on how their importers believe that you as an importer should act in selling wine to the customers. Further conclusion is that; yes, industry identity (i.e. product or market) does affect action or rather some types of actions.</p><p>The possibilities to extend and further explore this industry seem endless. The changes in the industry and the settings of the environment that it exists in are continuously and a constant on-going process even though Sweden still has a monopoly. Our study has raised many questions that would be interesting to investigate in another study, for example if these two approaches can co-exist or if one of them would be dominant. Or if they actually need each other.</p>

This explorative study address the concept of organisational identity described by Albert &amp; Whetten and takes their concept from the individual level to the industry level. When doing so the lack of empirical research and theoretical knowledge within this area becomes clear. Although an unexplored area we argue that if Albert &amp; Whetten interpreted, the members’ perception to an organisational level we believe that it is also possible to aggregate the perceptions of the members/managers to an inter-organisational/industry level. When taking the identity to the industry level questions like, who are we at an inter-organisational level or with other words is there an industry identity and how does the industry identity affect the actions within an industry? In this thesis, we will try to fill this gap of knowledge and contribute to theoretical concepts of industry identities, by gathering empirical data to substantiate the concept of industry identity. We will try to fill the theoretical gap concerning identities within an industry; explaining the content of these identities and how they are defined, in line with the contribution by Albert &amp; Whetten, the same way as individuals organisational identity arises. Whenever he or she asks the question, who are we and what kind of business are we in (Albert &amp; Whetten 1985), it is the same way as for an organisation within an industry to ask questions like – which industry do I belong to and what kind of industry are we in. The processes stressed by Hatch &amp; Schultz also raises questions like how does the industry identity affect the interactions/actions between identities within an industry or how does the actions by one identity affect another identity within an industry? One industry that can be assumed to have developed an inter-organisational identity over time, due to a long history and clear cultural anchoring the last 10-years has been faced with both radical change and crisis is the Swedish alcohol industry. The empirical data in this study is based on eight semi-structured telephone interviews with importers (managers or top team) in the Swedish alcohol industry. Consequently, we approach this explorative study by stating the following question; Is there an industry identity within the Swedish alcohol import industry, and if so, what is the content of this identity and how does this identity affect the actions taken within the industry? The main purpose is to answer the question stated in this thesis by; to describe the central and distinctive characteristics/aspects of the Swedish alcohol importers identity and to find commonalities and differences within these industry identities. To relate to these central and distinctive aspects of the industry identity in relation to the actions taken by the organisations within the industry. The conclusion of this thesis is; yes, there is an industry identity based on two orientations; the product or market orientation and the content of these identities are based on how their importers believe that you as an importer should act in selling wine to the customers. Further conclusion is that; yes, industry identity (i.e. product or market) does affect action or rather some types of actions. The possibilities to extend and further explore this industry seem endless. The changes in the industry and the settings of the environment that it exists in are continuously and a constant on-going process even though Sweden still has a monopoly. Our study has raised many questions that would be interesting to investigate in another study, for example if these two approaches can co-exist or if one of them would be dominant. Or if they actually need each other.

Export performance has an important role for firm survival, profitability and growth. Given these benefits and the challenges that firms may face when exporting, scholars have dedicated considerable efforts to understand the factors that enable export success. The current study investigates the role of experiential foreign market knowledge and exporter-importer (EI) relationship quality for export performance. A conceptual model involving the relationship between the role of experiential foreign market knowledge, E-I relationship quality and export performance satisfaction is developed and empirically tested using data from 264 Thai exporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Findings suggest SME managers' knowledge of foreign customers, culture and political environment have a positive influence on E-I relationship quality and satisfaction with export performance. Drawing upon the relational exchange theory, goodwill trust was found to be the most significant aspect that builds long-term E-I relationship quality. Secondly, the findings show that calculative approach (e.g. commitment based on cost and benefits) is a mainstream type of commitment between exporters and importers. However, a personalised tie between the exchange partners has a positive influence on commitment, resulting in the affective commitment to E-I relationship. Thirdly, in a collaborative business partnership, decision-makers emphasise information exchange and coordinating actions for taking strategic decisions, which are informed by the feedback recived in their collaboration. In addition, the study finds that political instability negatively moderates the link of competence trust and information exchange on export performance satisfaction. Theoretical, managerial and policy implications of these findings are discussed and areas for future research are proposed.

The current international monetary system is very different from that of a few decades ago. Many of the old restrictions that had been placed on currency and capital movements between countries have fallen away in favour of a much more liberal international payment and investment system. The global financial arena is now characterized by greater currency instability, volatility and heightened financial risks. Exchange Rate risk is one of the complex topics in the economic world. Since there are so many factors in the financial market that influence a country's currency value, it becomes very risky for importers, exporters and portfolio investors to be involved in the international trade and financial markets. The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding on how the major economic indicators have an impact on the decision-making of the importers, the exporters and investors, to further influence the volatility of the Rand; and to provide various hedging and arbitraging strategies to reduce foreign exchange rate risks. The layout of the study is based on six chapters. Chapter 1 focuses on the background and scope of the study, mainly explaining the reasons, objectives and methodology of this study. An historical overview takes place in chapter 2, where a number of different exchange rate systems will be discussed. Chapter 3 reviews different exchange rate theories in order to support the empirical study in the next chapter. Chapter 4 focuses on an investigation and comparative study on how foreign investments and trade with developed countries have an impact on currency values and visa-versa. A number of management strategies for reducing exchange rate risks are introduced in chapter 5. Chapter 6 is the summary and conclusion of the research. / Thesis (M.Com. (Economics))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009.

The current international monetary system is very different from that of a few decades ago. Many of the old restrictions that had been placed on currency and capital movements between countries have fallen away in favour of a much more liberal international payment and investment system. The global financial arena is now characterized by greater currency instability, volatility and heightened financial risks. Exchange Rate risk is one of the complex topics in the economic world. Since there are so many factors in the financial market that influence a country's currency value, it becomes very risky for importers, exporters and portfolio investors to be involved in the international trade and financial markets. The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding on how the major economic indicators have an impact on the decision-making of the importers, the exporters and investors, to further influence the volatility of the Rand; and to provide various hedging and arbitraging strategies to reduce foreign exchange rate risks. The layout of the study is based on six chapters. Chapter 1 focuses on the background and scope of the study, mainly explaining the reasons, objectives and methodology of this study. An historical overview takes place in chapter 2, where a number of different exchange rate systems will be discussed. Chapter 3 reviews different exchange rate theories in order to support the empirical study in the next chapter. Chapter 4 focuses on an investigation and comparative study on how foreign investments and trade with developed countries have an impact on currency values and visa-versa. A number of management strategies for reducing exchange rate risks are introduced in chapter 5. Chapter 6 is the summary and conclusion of the research. / Thesis (M.Com. (Economics))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009.

The current international monetary system is very different from that of a few decades ago. Many of the old restrictions that had been placed on currency and capital movements between countries have fallen away in favour of a much more liberal international payment and investment system. The global financial arena is now characterized by greater currency instability, volatility and heightened financial risks. Exchange Rate risk is one of the complex topics in the economic world. Since there are so many factors in the financial market that influence a country's currency value, it becomes very risky for importers, exporters and portfolio investors to be involved in the international trade and financial markets. The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding on how the major economic indicators have an impact on the decision-making of the importers, the exporters and investors, to further influence the volatility of the Rand; and to provide various hedging and arbitraging strategies to reduce foreign exchange rate risks. The layout of the study is based on six chapters. Chapter 1 focuses on the background and scope of the study, mainly explaining the reasons, objectives and methodology of this study. An historical overview takes place in chapter 2, where a number of different exchange rate systems will be discussed. Chapter 3 reviews different exchange rate theories in order to support the empirical study in the next chapter. Chapter 4 focuses on an investigation and comparative study on how foreign investments and trade with developed countries have an impact on currency values and visa-versa. A number of management strategies for reducing exchange rate risks are introduced in chapter 5. Chapter 6 is the summary and conclusion of the research. / Thesis (M.Com. (Economics))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009.

In this thesis I capture the effect of oil prices on the economic growth of net oil exporters and net oil importers of the world. The existing literature on this topic only covers some parts of the world, major oil exporters and oil importers and some covers only a single country. So, in this work I take a larger set of countries and enlarge the time period. This work covers the time period 1972-2021. The effect is examined by using the pooled OLS and two way fixed effect. I get significant results for both the net oil exporters and net oil importers. The results of both net oil exporters and net oil importers are significantly different from zero. But these results are opposite from the existing literature. I found that an increase in oil price has a negative impact on the economic growth of net oil exporters, but it has a positive effect on the economic growth of net oil importers. So, these results also do not support the theoretical and empirical literature.

Notre travail rend compte de la double articulation d’analyse d’Antoine Berman dans Pour une critique des traductions: John Donne. La méthode bermanienne intègre tant une histoire, événementielle et individuelle, des traductions qu’une analyse des textes à la lumière de leurs entours (paratextes, projets de traduction, etc.). Dans une première partie, nous tenterons de décrire à l’aide d’un panorama historique l’importation de la poésie de Rilke en traduction française, des premières versions du début du XXe siècle aux dernières traductions des Élégies de Duino. Nous nous attacherons à l’identité des différents (re-)traducteurs et à l’horizon général de leur travail. Dans une seconde partie, nous comparerons plusieurs versions françaises de la première Élégie de Duino, oeuvre poétique de Rilke la plus retraduite en français. A travers différents critères touchant à la forme et au sens, nous saisirons l’apport de ces traductions et le lien qui les unit, afin de constater in fine si les comportements socio-culturels observés dans la première partie se matérialisent aussi dans la pratique des (re-)traducteurs duinésiens / This dissertation rests on the double articulation of Antoine Berman’s analysis of translation in Toward a translation criticism: John Donne. Indeed, Berman’s method integrates as well a macroscopic and individual history of translations as an analysis of texts, considering their peripheral features (paratexts, translation projects, etc.). In the first part, we will depict through a historical panorama the import of Rilke’s poetry in French, from the first versions of the early 20th century to the latest translations of the Duino Elegies. We will thereby give heed to the identity of the different (re-)translators and to the general horizon of their translations. In the second part, we will compare several French versions of the first Duino Elegy, Rilke’s most retranslated poetical opus in French. Through various criteria dealing with form and sense, it will be a question of comprehending what these translations bring and the kind of bond holding them together. We intend eventually to find out whether the sociocultural behaviors we noticed in the first part are also observable in the practices of the Duinesian (re-)translators.

Le développement de cancer entraîne une dérégulation du métabolisme du cuivre (Cu) qui a notamment été étudiée par analyse de la composition isotopique naturelle du Cu. Les cellules tumorales hépatiques sont enrichies en isotopes lourds du Cu par rapport aux cellules péri-tumorales. Le but de cette thèse est d'identifier les mécanismes responsables de cette différence, en utilisant la levure Saccharomyces cerevisiae dont les mécanismes de réduction et d'import du Cu sont proches de ceux de l'Homme. En mutant les gènes codants pour les importateurs ou les réductases du Cu, j’ai montré que son import protéique génère un enrichissement intracellulaire en isotopes légers du Cu, qui est modulé par l'activité des réductases. Une modélisation numérique m’a permis de montrer que le flux de Cu par les importateurs haute-affinité Ctr est linéairement et négativement corrélé à la composition isotopique du Cu. Ce flux étant modulé par la capacité de réduction membranaire du Cu, j’ai pu lier l'enrichissement en isotopes lourds du Cu des cellules hépatiques tumorales à une diminution de l'activité des réductases membranaires. Par ailleurs, pour un même fond génétique, j'ai mis en évidence une corrélation entre un moindre enrichissement en isotopes légers du Cu et une résistance accrue à un médicament anticancéreux, le cisplatine. De plus, le traitement au cisplatine entraîne un enrichissement des cellules en isotopes lourds du Cu d'autant plus petit que la souche est résistante au cisplatine. Ainsi, ces résultats montrent que la mesure de la composition isotopique du Cu avant et après traitement au cisplatine pourrait permettre de suivre l'apparition d’une chimiorésistance chez les malades, caractérisée par un enrichissement en isotopes lourds du Cu dans les tumeurs, ce qui ouvre la voie au développement d'un nouveau biomarqueur non-invasif de l'apparition d'une résistance au cisplatine. / Cancer development leads to Cu metabolism disregulation which were especially studied by the natural copper (Cu) isotopic composition. Hepatocellular carcinoma (hCC) are enriched in heavy Cu isotopes compared to peri-tumoral cells. The goal of this thesis is to identify the mechanism responsible for this difference. I used the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae where Cu reduction and Cu import mechanism are close to the human. By mutating the genes coding for Cu reductases or Cu importers, I showed that protein Cu import generate an intracellular light Cu enrichment which is modulated by Cu reductases activity. With a numerical modelisation I calculated that the Cu flux through high-affinity Cu importers is linearly and negatively correlated to the natural Cu isotopic composition. This flux is modulated by the cell reduction ability. Therefore, I have linked the heavy Cu isotopes enrichment in hCC to a lower reductases activity. Besides, for a same genetic background, I observed a correlation between a lower light Cu enrichment and an higher resistance to a anti-tumoral drug, the cisplatin. Moreover, I observed that cisplatin treatment leads to an enrichment in heavy Cu isotopes which is lower for resistant to cisplatin strains. Those results shown that the Cu isotopes measurement in tumors before and after the cisplatin treatment might be used to trace the chemoresistance apparition in patient with cancer which is characaterize by a tumoral heavy Cu isotopes enrichment. This results might pave the way to the development of a new prognosis biomarker of the cisplatin resistance apparition.