Products are priced in order to sell them and make a profit. Every firm, therefore, needs a pricing strategy. Such a strategy should be simple. It should ensure simplicity in tactics and decisions and minimize complications. It is difficult to set a price with the help of only one pricing model. The price of a product may vary due to factors like geographical area, different clients and time difference. Prices must always be cost-compatible. An essential step in deciding on a pricing strategy involves looking at the characteristics of pricing decisions. The classic economic theory is based upon demand and supply and attempts to balance these two concepts. In most cases it works on the basis of cost plus profit. This way of thinking about prices does not guarantee a profit, because costs and profit depend upon volume and volume is dependent on the correct price. Prices can be cut at first. In this way only a small profit will be ensured. If the price is too low it will not automatically ensure a profit. Usually little attention is paid to the market itself in deciding on a price. It is not an easy task to arrive at the 'envelope of acceptable prices". Not to fall into the standard trap of adding profit to cost, one has to have a broad overview of pricing strategies. Multiple approaches are followed in determining prices. Firstly, one can look at cost and its characteristics. By adding a profit margin to cost, one can determine a new price. It may be too low or it may be too high, resulting in the risk that customers will buy the competition's product. It is there for essential to look at strategic concepts like the competition's price as well. The way a buyer looks at certain prices and then decides whether to buy or not, also plays a very important role. All of these factors have to be taken into consideration and all aspects have to be balanced to arrive at a price. A framework for pricing decisions includes the recognition of the need for a pricing decision, determining a price, developing a model, identifying and anticipating pricing problems, developing feasible courses of action, forecasting the outcomes of each alternative and monitoring and reviewing the outcome of each action. Management's pricing decision is taken after studying all this information. Information can be given as a single answer or in detail. Costs can be divided into direct costs and absorption costs. Although prices can be determined in more ways than one, the ideal is to take more than one factor into consideration. Every aspect must carry a weight and these weights can be changed. That is why the multiple criteria decision method is so effective. With this method a few factors are taken into account. Each of these factors adds to the price definition in a certain manner with regard to each product. By changing the profit margin, the price can be adjusted until one is satisfied with the new price. A company's structure, location and nature will play a role in determining which technique is used to determine a price. The best technique is one that can be adjusted and where multiple criteria can be set. The choice of a technique is a personal choice. The multi-criteria method is flexible and prices can be determined uniformly for all products or for a single product. / Thesis (M.Sc. (Computer Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

This thesis explores the relationship between funding practices and the non-profit sector through a case study of one community-based organization, called Ma Mawi wi Chi Itata Centre, located in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The thesis traces implications of the shift to project funding models and outcomes-based management for the communitybased organizations (CBOs). The research draws on Foucault’s governmentality analytic to illuminate how funding practices relate to neoliberal discourses and traces the tensions and resistances that are created by funding policy interventions at the point of practice. I argue tensions arise between: competition and collaboration; textual accountability and community need; reporting, learning, and teaching; different problem solving approaches; and individualism and community building practices. CBOs are intimately wrapped up in the project of governing. They are not either, a symbol of citizen engagement or a symptom of a decimated state; rather they are both, part and parcel of a system in which we are both governed and govern. / Graduate

Radio spectrum is scarce in wireless communication. While there is an increasing demand for spectrum due to the substantial growth of wireless communication systems, extensive measurements observe that conventional static spectrum allocation policies introduce significant inefficiency in spectrum utilization. To achieve higher spectrum efficiency, cognitive radio networks have emerged as a revolutionary technology by allowing unlicensed (secondary) users to utilize licensed bands opportunistically without harming licensed (primary) users. In this thesis, we seek to design a new framework that addresses three important issues in cognitive radio networks simultaneously: protection of primary users, incentives for primary networks to share their spectrum and the performance guarantee for secondary users. Leveraging the idea of Value at Risk from economics, in our solution, primary networks maximize their profits by charging secondary users for opportunistic spectrum access, while in the meantime secondary users impose utility constraints to manage the risks and guarantee performance probabilistically.

Radio spectrum is scarce in wireless communication. While there is an increasing demand for spectrum due to the substantial growth of wireless communication systems, extensive measurements observe that conventional static spectrum allocation policies introduce significant inefficiency in spectrum utilization. To achieve higher spectrum efficiency, cognitive radio networks have emerged as a revolutionary technology by allowing unlicensed (secondary) users to utilize licensed bands opportunistically without harming licensed (primary) users. In this thesis, we seek to design a new framework that addresses three important issues in cognitive radio networks simultaneously: protection of primary users, incentives for primary networks to share their spectrum and the performance guarantee for secondary users. Leveraging the idea of Value at Risk from economics, in our solution, primary networks maximize their profits by charging secondary users for opportunistic spectrum access, while in the meantime secondary users impose utility constraints to manage the risks and guarantee performance probabilistically.

In this study, we deal with the profit oriented partial disassembly line balancing problem which seeks a feasible assignment of selected disassembly tasks to stations such that the precedence relations among the tasks are satisfied and the profit is maximized. We consider two versions of this problem. In the profit maximization per cycle problem (PC), we maximize the profit for a single disassembly cycle given the task times and costs, part revenues and demands and station costs. We propose a heuristic solution approach for PC based on the liner programming relaxation of our mixed integer programming formulation. In the profit maximization over the planning horizon problem (PH), the planning horizon is divided into time zones each of which may have a different disassembly rate and a different line balance. We also incorporate other issues such as finite supply of discarded product, subassembly and released part inventories availability, and smoothing of the number of stations across the zones. PH is decomposed into a number of successive per cycle problems, which are solved by a similar heuristic approach. Computational analysis is conducted for both problems and results are reported.

No description available.

The voluntary sector is growing in importance; in fundraising turnover, number of players and marketing professionalism. This study explores the process by which the fundraising organisations define and develop their propositions to the market. Starting with an observation that organisations with very different history and tradition present themselves to the market in similar ways, it investigates how three leading Swedish organisations create the basis for their propositions to the market of donors, which in fundraising practice jargon is called the Case for Support. Drawing upon research in philanthropic giving and organisational identity, the author suggests a theoretical framework for such a fundraising Case for Support. It recognises two main sources of influence, an external market source driven by donors, consumer image and behavioural trends and an internal mission driven source, defined by organisational history, values and programme track record. In the playing field between Market and Mission an organisation can reflect, develop and communicate their Case for Support – and their own "selves".

ABSTRACT This thesis studies the background of the largest single farmer organisation in Australia and its role in influencing practice change. The study seeks to address a number of questions starting with: how did a small Western Australian farmer group reach national prominence over a relatively short period and become a major influence on agriculture in Australia? This research uses quantitative and qualitative methods and is informed by a constructionist philosophy. The research process involved five phases. Phase one consisted of examining the possibilities of the research and its value. It also addressed the research problem and questions. Phase two involved a survey of Kondinin Group members and negotiating with the Kondinin Group for access to its database. The survey was faxed to 1501 members in the northern region of Australia and the data from 272 responses was entered and reported. From this, the researcher could validate that the study had merit and the Kondinin Group was making a substantial difference to its members. Phase three revolved around a literature review to see what information was available on the Kondinin Group and other farm organisations. The study also examined how the group related to management and organizational theory, social trends and the body of work on extension and farmer capacity building. Phase four sought to further examine the organisation through interviews with key informants including people from the Kondinin Group and other farm organisations. Phase five of the research involved bringing information and data together to more comprehensively address the research questions and draw conclusions from the study. It also examined the challenges facing the Kondinin Group and lessons that can be drawn for other organisations along with identifying further research that may be worthwhile.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- Mississippi State University. Department of Finance and Economics. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

Univ., Diss.--Bern, 2004.