by Mak Yuen-Kwan. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 161-189). / ABSTRACT --- p.i / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iv / LIST OF TABLES --- p.viii / ACKNOWLEDGMENTS --- p.x / CHAPTER / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Background --- p.1 / Impact of Cultural Values on Buying- Selling Process --- p.3 / Chinese Bargaining Behavior --- p.8 / Chapter II. --- REVIEW OF LITERATURE --- p.18 / Definitions of Bargaining --- p.18 / Buyer-Seller-Situation Dyadic Interaction Process --- p.31 / Consumption Buying Vs Organizational Buying --- p.36 / The Chinese Cultural Values --- p.40 / Yang's Chinese Social Orientation Concept --- p.45 / Refined Labor-intensive Farming --- p.49 / Commonly Owned Family Property --- p.50 / Patrilineal Descent with the Father- Son Chain --- p.51 / Rigid Hierarchical Social Structures --- p.52 / Familistic Orientation --- p.52 / Relationship Orientation --- p.55 / Authoritarian Orientation --- p.72 / Other Orientation --- p.73 / Independent and Dependent Variables --- p.76 / Independent Variables --- p.76 / Friendship --- p.76 / Seller Job Status --- p.77 / Buying Situation --- p.78 / Dependent Variables --- p.79 / Seller Credibility --- p.79 / Bargaining Style --- p.80 / Outcomes of Bargaining --- p.82 / Research Hypotheses --- p.84 / Chapter III. --- METHODS --- p.89 / Experimental Design --- p.89 / Development of the Research Design --- p.95 / Pretests --- p.96 / Experiment --- p.99 / Subjects --- p.99 / Procedure --- p.101 / Manipulations of Independent Variables --- p.103 / Buying Situation --- p.103 / Friendship --- p.103 / Seller Job Status --- p.104 / Measures of Dependent Variables --- p.107 / Seller Credibility --- p.109 / Bargaining Style --- p.109 / Integrative Bargaining Style --- p.109 / Positive Attitude --- p.110 / Outcomes of Bargaining --- p.110 / Perceived Efficiency --- p.110 / Perceived Satisfaction --- p.110 / Demographic Information --- p.111 / Analysis --- p.112 / Analysis of Interdependence --- p.113 / Analysis of Variance Test --- p.114 / Chapter IV. --- RESULTS --- p.117 / Differences of Experimental Groups --- p.118 / Manipulation Checks --- p.119 / Factor Analysis --- p.122 / Results of Experimentation --- p.127 / Findings --- p.129 / Friendship --- p.129 / Seller Job Status --- p.130 / Buying Situation --- p.130 / Buying Situation - Friendship Interaction --- p.131 / Buying Situation - Seller Job Status Interaction --- p.132 / Seller Job Status - Friendship Interaction --- p.132 / Chapter V. --- SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION --- p.134 / Summary of Hypotheses Testing --- p.136 / Discussion --- p.141 / Seller Credibility --- p.141 / Bargaining Style --- p.142 / Integrative Bargaining Style --- p.142 / Positive Attitude --- p.144 / Outcomes of Bargaining --- p.146 / Perceived Efficiency --- p.146 / Perceived Satisfaction --- p.147 / Significance of the Study for Theory and Practice --- p.148 / Theory --- p.148 / Practice --- p.151 / Limitations --- p.156 / Experimental Design --- p.156 / Hong Kong Chinese Sample --- p.156 / Suggestions for Future Research --- p.158 / Experimental Design --- p.158 / Hong Kong Chinese Sample --- p.158 / Unexpected Findings --- p.159 / Conclusion --- p.160 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.161 / APPENDICES --- p.190 / APPENDIX I. Questionnaire --- p.190 / APPENDIX II. One Way ANOVA and Chi-Square Tables --- p.206 / Exhibit 1 Sex --- p.207 / Exhibit 2 Education Level --- p.208 / Exhibit 3 Age --- p.209 / Exhibit 4 Number of Years of Working Experience --- p.210 / Exhibit 5 Ranking in the Company --- p.211 / Exhibit 6 Number of Years of Residence in Hong Kong --- p.212 / Exhibit 7 Level of Expertise on Computer --- p.213 / Exhibit 8 Amount of Time Involved in Business Bargaining --- p.214 / APPENDIX III. ANOVA Tables --- p.215 / Exhibit 1 Cell Means and Analysis of Variance of Seller Credibility --- p.216 / Exhibit 2 Cell Means and Analysis of Variance of Integrative Bargaining Style --- p.217 / Exhibit 3 Cell Means and Analysis of Variance of Positive Attitude --- p.218 / Exhibit 4 Cell Means and Analysis of Variance of Perceived Efficiency --- p.219 / Exhibit 5 Cell Means and Analysis of Variance of Perceived Satisfaction --- p.220 / Exhibit 6 Marginal Means for the Interaction of Buying Situation and Friendship on Seller Credibility --- p.221 / Exhibit 7 Mean Seller Credibility: Buying Situation by Friendship --- p.222 / Exhibit 8 Mean Seller Credibility: Friendship by Buying Situation --- p.223 / Exhibit 9 Analysis of Variance of Seller Credibility --- p.224 / Exhibit 10 Marginal Means for the Interaction of Job Status and Friendship on Integrative Bargaining Style --- p.225 / Exhibit 11 Mean Integrative Bargaining Style: Job Status by Friendship --- p.226 / Exhibit 12 Mean Integrative Bargaining Style: Friendship by Job Status --- p.227 / Exhibit 13 Analysis of Integrative Bargaining Style --- p.228

Corporate social responsibility in global supply chains has become an increasingly salient issue for many organisations. In a response to this, the aim of this research is to consider the influence of strategic management, and in particular the role of business strategy, in shaping socially and environmentally responsible purchasing and supply management activities. In examining this theme, this research draws heavily upon recent conceptualisations of the relationship between strategic management and corporate social responsibility, and empirically assesses this relationship with a focus on such practices within the supply chain. Using a novel data collection approach to capture firms’ actual social and environmental supply management activities, these data draw on interviews with 178 UK-based firms and observations of 340 separate buyer-supplier relationships. Primary data were supplemented with secondary data to capture both industry and firm characteristics. This methodology minimises social desirability bias and common source bias. The findings suggest that responsible purchasing and supply management is strongly driven by business strategy in the business to consumer market. In contrast, in the business to business market such initiatives are largely influenced by firms’ financial resources and economic obligations. In both the business to consumer and business to business sector, however, business strategy and financial resources are contingent on the industry environment. Hence, the industry environment plays a significant, albeit indirect, role in shaping socially and environmentally responsible purchasing and supply management activities. This research offers one of the first insights into how strategic management, and in particular how business strategy, influences firms’ investments in socially and environmentally responsible purchasing and supply management initiatives. Through conceptual and empirical investigations this research highlights this relationship and notes the importance of integrating business strategy with general supplier practices, with a focus on the implementation of corporate social responsibility in individual buyer-supplier relationships.

Although there are several solutions available in the industry to manage the vendor risk confronting corporate purchasers in their practices of traditional procurement mechanism, they are not widely accepted among industries practicing the traditional procurement mechanism. Moreover, they are unfeasible to be implemented in the eProcurement mechanism. They rely heavily on self-assessment data provided by vendors or transaction records from purchasing departments, and there is a lack of a systematic approach to accumulate the collective experience of the corporation in vendor risk management. / Moreover, the risk cause taxonomy identified in this study lays out the theoretical grounds for the development of any software applications relating to the deployment of risk perceptions held by procurement professionals and practitioners. / Recently, electronic procurement or eProcurement has gradually acquired wide acceptance in various industries as an effective, efficient, and cost-saving mechanism to search for and contact potential vendors over the Internet. However, it is also a common situation that purchasers do not have handy and reliable tools for the evaluation of the risk deriving from their choices of selecting seemingly promising but unfamiliar vendors, identified through the eProcurement mechanism. The purchasing corporations need to implement a systematic framework to identify, and assess the risks associated with their vendor choices, that is, the vendor risk, and even to memorize their collective experience on risk analysis, while they try to gain benefits from the practice of the eProcurement strategy. / The structure for the establishment of the semantic application identified in this study can be generalized as the common framework for developing an automatic information extractor to acquire Internet content as the support for making important business decisions. The structure is composed of three basic components: (1) an information collection method to identify specific information over the Internet through the deployment of semantic technology, (2) an ontology repository to associate the collected data and the specific data schema, and (3) a scheme to associate the data schema with the analytical methods which would be deployed to provide decision support. / This study proposes the establishment of the Vendor Risk Analysis (VRA) system to assist procurement officers in vendor risk analysis as a support to their decision of seeking promising vendors over the Internet. The VRA system adopts a Semantic-Assisted Risk Analysis (SARA) framework to implement an innovative approach in the implementation of risk assessment. The SARA framework deploys the collaboration of a knowledge-based Expert System and several emerging semantic technologies, including Information Extraction, a Community Template Repository, and a Semantic Platform for Information Indexing and Retrieval, to enhance the capability of the VRA system in the capability of acquiring sufficient risk evidence over the Internet to provide timely and reliable risk assessment support to vendor choice decisions. / Chou, Ling Yu. / "July 2007." / Advisers: Vincent Sie-king Lai; Timon Chih-ting Du. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-12, Section: A, page: 5128. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 178-186). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest dissertations and theses, [201-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / School code: 1307.

Song Xiping. / "August 2006." / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 136-142). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH / Vita. / Bibliography: leaves 261-267. / by Levi Amos Sorrell. / Ph.D.

Master of Agribusiness / Department of Agricultural Economics / Aleksan Shanoyan / Competition in the retail animal feed business can be challenging. Millennials are emerging as an increasingly important consumer group. Companies want to attract Millennials as new customers while at the same time retaining current customers of Baby Boomers and Gen X generations. Consequently, an important question is how do Millennial retail shopping habits for animal feed differ from that of other generations. To help answer this question the thesis research utilizes customer survey data obtained, from the Kent Nutrition Group. The data was collected through an online survey which was conducted with customers from Company W’s customer list. The total sample consists of 1068 customers. The data is analyzed using exploratory data analysis to gain insights on key differences and important attributes related to marketing and selling to customers from different generation groups. The results indicate that word of mouth serves as the largest initial source of awareness for all customers. Not surprisingly, the results show higher tendency to shop online and a preference for social media as a source of information by Millennials compared to Baby Boomers and Gen X customers. Knowledgeable staff and a positive in-store shopping experience continue to be a high priority for all customers. In general, e-mail or a mailed newsletter were identified as important communication methods by respondents of all generations. The results also show high preference by customers of all generations for receiving sales circulars and tips for animal and pet care. Sales circulars, direct mailers and newspaper ads are the core communication channels that customers view advertising from Company W. Three quarters of Company W’s customers expressed some level of interest in shopping online through Company W if the option were available. This implies that offering online shopping options will not only enhance the current customers’ experience but also attract new customers. The gained insights will be used by Company W to adapt and enhance their marketing and sales strategies to a) effectively engage and attract more Millennial customers and b) improve retention and service for customers of Baby Boomers and Gen X generations. The researcher will use the insights gained from this study to improve marketing efforts for the Kent Nutrition Group.

Este trabajo pretende aportar en el encuentro de la teoría desde el concepto y elementos de la compra y/o abastecimiento y su relación con el posicionamiento comercial, en función a la Empresa Epade Corporación S.A.C. Ésta es una investigación propositiva This work aims to contribute to the meeting of the theory from the concept and elements of the purchase and / or supply and its relationship with the commercial positioning, according to the company Epade Corporation S.A.C. This is a propositive investigation.

Thesis (MPA.) --University of Limpopo, 2011 / The public sector is faced with increased demands for public goods and services from communities. Public institutions have limited resources which should be managed effectively for effective and efficient service delivery. The South African government initiated and implemented financial management reforms since 1994 with the aim of improving public service delivery. The Public Finance Management Act, 1999(Act 1 of 1999) was promulgated to regulate financial management. The object of Public Finance Management Act is to secure transparency, accountability and sound management of revenue, expenditure, assets and liabilities of the public sector. The aim of the Public Finance Management Act is to enable public sector managers to manage and be more accountable with the purpose of eliminating waste and corruption in the use of public resources. A Supply Chain Management system was introduced by the South African government in 2003 to ensure effective procurement and improve financial management in the public sector. The introduction of Supply Chain Management led to procurement reforms which resulted in government decentralising and delegating authority for procurement to public institutions. Supply Chain Management forms an integral part of financial management. The process integrates general financial practices with budgeting, procurement and asset management. Supply Chain Management is currently not correctly implemented by some public institutions and this lead to irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure. Accounting officers should recognise the importance of Supply Chain Management in order to ensure effective procurement, sound financial management and improve service delivery. The study highlights the important of implementing Supply Chain Management in an institution. The implementation of adequate Supply Chain Management practices will promote efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, openness, accountability and fairness in procurement and improve ethical conduct of officials.

Suppliers provide new technology to firms and are important in firms‟ NPD. It is not sufficient for firms to select the most appropriate technology; they must also select the most appropriate supplier for their NPD. The purpose of this licentiate thesis is to map and identify criteria used in the process of selecting a suitable supplier, and explore the role of Purchasing in NPD collaborative projects. This thesis is based on case study research where two NPD projects have been studied. The case sampling consisted of searching for projects that were believed to be rich in information about the process of supplier selection. Both studied were conducted at ABB, which is a large high-tech system integration firm. ABB was a good firm to study because as a company, it is used to implementing new technology from suppliers. The data collection consisted of interviews, factory visits, internal and external documents. The data gathered was analysed by conducting content analysis and then using categorization to structure it. In addition, within-case analysis as well as cross-case analysis were performed. The research process was inductive and its purpose was formed throughout the on-going studies. This study has identified and categorised criteria for selecting a supplier that is suitable to become involved in NPD projects. Both criteria from existing literature and from the NPD projects studied are mapped into a process model of supplier selection in which they are classified into three categories: product and production factors, firm characteristics and relational criteria. The main findings from this study are criteria that firms use in their assessment and selection of suppliers. These supplier assessment criteria can be divided into basic, product and firm criteria. One difficult element to consider is the uncertainty of an NPD project. The thesis argues that uncertainty can be divided into technological and strategic uncertainty. Additional criteria to consider in supplier selection are divided into technological, business and relational-specific criteria. This study has investigated the role of Purchasing in NPD and argues that Purchasing can be a trouble-shooter. This role can solve problems that emerge in collaborative NPD projects that involve suppliers. The types of problems that a trouble-shooter can solve are concerned with lack of commitment and interest from the supplier or conflicts when the supplier has changed its strategy. To solve these problems, Purchasing does not need to be present during the whole NPD project, but can have the role of a trouble-shooter and become involved in the project when the problems have emerged. By not being a part of the NPD team, Purchasing can evaluate the situation objectively without affecting the personal relationships that exist among the individuals in the NPD.

Le cadre général de la thèse porte sur une démarche d’amélioration des suivis de projets dans les entreprises industrielles. Notre questionnement de recherche s’intéresse à la réponse que peut apporter une direction des Achats au cours de la phase de développement des produits nouveaux (DPN). La problématique s’inscrit dans l’obligation des entreprises à intégrer leurs fournisseurs dans les phases amont des DPN pour assurer leur pérennité. Nous avons orienté notre recherche suivant six axes principaux : le contexte et les enjeux des DPN, l’organisation en phase DPN, les ressources humaines (rôles et compétences d’un acheteur projets), la relation Achats/fournisseurs (problématiques de mise en oeuvre d’une démarche ESI (Early Supplier Involvement)) avec un focus particulier sur l’innovation et l’achat responsable, le processus des Achats pour suivre les DPN et l’axe prospectif (amélioration continue). L’ensemble de ces axes sont développés au cours des quatre parties du mémoire. La première partie aborde les problématiques contemporaines de l’industrie en termes de qualité, de capacité de production, de remise en cause permanente des organisations et, d’attentes des clients. Les impacts pour une direction des Achats sont alors étudiés. La deuxième partie présente la recherche bibliographique de l’état de l’art relatif à chacun des axes analysés. La troisième partie décrit la méthode de recherche retenue (DELPHI), la création d’un questionnaire d’entretien et la méthode d’analyse des données (le codage). Enfin la quatrième partie est exclusivement consacrée à l’analyse des entretiens réalisés auprès de 14 experts. Nous proposons alors 13 préconisations pour améliorer la performance d’une direction des Achats lors de la phase de développement des produits nouveaux. La mise en oeuvre de ces préconisations est détaillée au travers d’un guide pratique. La finalité de ce guide pratique est d’échanger sur les « best practice » des grands groupes, d’accompagner les PME dans ce changement et d’éclairer les fournisseurs sur la manière d’intégrer les cycles de développement de leurs clients. Au final, notre démarche cherche à contribuer à l’élargissement du cadre du métier des Achats bien au delà du stéréotype de la négociation commerciale pour permettre ainsi, l’amélioration de la compétitivité des entreprises. / The global subject of the thesis is in line with the continuous improvement method withinindustrial company. Our target is to analyse what would be the answer coming from thepurchasing organization to interface with New Project Development (NPD). Basically, toinsure their future industrial company must integrate their supplier base in NPD phases.Our study is based around six main axes : the context and the target of NPD, NPD globalorganization, human resources (project buyer tasks and competences), the relationshipbetween purchasing and suppliers inside Early Supplier Involvement (ESI) processesincluding a special focus on innovation and responsible approach, purchasing process tomanage NPD and finally future evolution (continuous improvement). Those axes are includedin four parts. The first part describes current issues in industrial industry in terms of quality,production capacity, permanent structure evolution, customer expectation and their impacton the purchasing organization. The second part shows the bibliographical research aboutthe state of the art and makes a deeper analysis of the first part topics. The third partpresents the research method chosen (DELPHI), how the questionnaire has been createdand the data collection and analysis processes (date code). Finally, the fourth part is fullydedicated to the 14 expert interview analysis. We introduce 13 recommendations to improvethe purchasing performance within the NPD. In order to implement those recommendationswe suggest to follow rules describe in a special guide. This guide is made to present a biggroup « best practice », also to give some guideline to the tier 2 suppliers in order to changetheir own organization and to better understand how their customers work in NPD. At theend, our thesis intends to enlarge the purchasing view within industry above the basic visionon company productivity support.