Due to the fast changing environment of China’s logistics market and high participative level of foreign logistics enterprises, Chinese logistics players mostly suffer from their low service ability of Third Party Logistics. Big gaps certainly exist between domestic ones and foreign giants.   The thesis aims to compare the TMS of a local logistics company and a large multinational company. Investigating how TMS is applied in China’s logistics market and making comparison of TMS between a multinational company and a Chinese local company is the main contribution of the paper.     After conducting cases study and interview on a foreign multinational logistics enterprise United Parcel Service and a Chinese local small logistics Jiangsu Universal Logistics Company, this paper has a relatively high reliability and validity. Relevant knowledge of TMS, mode and carriers, and 3PL is selected to present in the theoretical framework.   In the thesis body, we compared two chosen companies from three logistical levels: strategic, tactical, and operational. In detail, we found a vast of differences lying in nine parts that we selected from the TMS reference functional model and domains. Considering the characteristics and future challenges of China logistics market, we strongly recommend JULC to adapt TMS. However, it is unfeasible for JULC to apply the entire TMS. Therefore, we provide the solutions in three perspectives. First and foremost, apply part of TMS in the relevant field, in terms of network design and capacity management. An equally important solution is adapting cost-saving solution in certain administrative field, namely: planning, vehicle, execution, finance. Last but not least, in order to provide the company more opportunities, a few general approaches will be presented.   After a closer examine of the consequences when the integrated solutions got applied, we surely drew the conclusion that 3PL performance of domestics companies will get enhanced in the near future.

This thesis examines the impact that third-party identity and techniques have on mediation outcome. The roles of the OAS and the Carter Center in the negotiations between the Venezuelan government and the opposition (DC), during the period 2002-2003, and the implementation of the agreement in 2004 are compared as representing track I and track II actors and styles. Using a process-tracing methodology, five conflict mappings and stages of conflict are combined with the results of focused interviews to main participants of the negotiation process. The analysis shows a significant impact of third-party identity and strategies on the outcome of mediation. Moreover, the outcome is more likely to be successful when track II actors, actually track I ½, participate as mediators in the actual negotiations. The most effective strategies used by third parties, dependent on the timing of the intervention and the stage of conflict, are communication and formulation strategies.

Fine art logistics concept is revealed by Innovative third party logistics services. However, fine art logistics concept is quite new topic of current logistics literature and existing resources, acquired knowledge are limited. Furthermore, innovative logistics services, which are provided by third party logistics service providers and their relation with niche market strategy, are not well researched. This study is prepared for making contribution to current logistics literature about fine art logistics and to investigate relation between niche market strategy and innovative third party logistics services. The method used is a qualitative case study at Benice Logistics, a fine art logistics service provider firm, located in Turkey. This study concludes and suggests how, third party logistics service providers should be more innovative for settle new business trend, and how they can create new opportunities and new specialization areas with their innovative services.

Motor Third Party Liability Insurance has appeared some years after serial production of cars was started. This kind of insurance was made obligatory in many European countries after it was noticed, that not all the drivers, who did harm to others or damaged their property, were able to suit civil liability claims and compensate damage. The Lithuanian Motor Third Party Liability Insurance Law was accepted on June 14, 2001 and came into force on January 1, 2002; the demand to insure vehicle came into force after 3 months, on April 1. Lithuania was the last country in Europe, which brought into practice this obligatory kind of insurance. In this work insurance markets of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are being compared. These markets were chosen because of economical and political situation: ex-members of USSR, similar living standards, no insurance market. After retrieving independence insurance companies were established little by little. The aim of this work is to show how insurance markets that started in the same conditions, later developed differently and to compare their present situation. Both: annual and average data is being used for the comparison. In the first part of this work statistical data of Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian insurance markets are compared: the number of insurance companies, average installment for a habitant, etc. In the second part the contracts, signed by Lithuanian insurance companies each quarter, are studied as time series. Several time... [to full text]

Aim: To evaluate an audiologic rehabilitation program previously piloted in the U.S. (Kelly-Campbell, in review) for unaided hearing-impaired working adults that was also modified to include their significant others. <p> <p> Method: In this quasi-randomised repeated measures waitlist design, forty-eight participants (24 hearing-impaired adults and their 24 normal hearing significant others) aged 50-64 years were randomised into either a non-waitlist group (immediate treatment), or a waitlist group (treatment after 12-weeks). In these groups, participant couples attended three weekly 2-hour group sessions and completed health-related quality of life (HRQOL) assessments. Treatment outcomes for hearing-impaired adults (HIAs) were measured from self and significant other (SO) proxy reports of the Communication Profile for the Hearing Impaired (CPHI; Demorest & Erdman, 1986; 1987). Treatment outcomes for SOs were measured from self-reports of the Significant Other Scale for Hearing Disability (SOS-HEAR; Scarinci, Worrall & Hickson, 2009b). An investigation of the effect of treatment on the congruence of SO-proxy versus HIA HRQOL measures was also undertaken. <p> Results: A series of analyses of variance and repeated-measures t-tests examined HRQOL outcomes for HIAs and their SOs between pre-treatment, post-treatment, and at 12-weeks follow-up. Results suggest a significant effect of time for all HRQOL assessments, with gender effects found for CPHI measures, but not for SOS-HEAR measures. Medium to large effect sizes were revealed for both HIAs and their SOs. <p> Conclusions: Group AR appears to be a beneficial treatment approach for reducing the consequences of hearing impairment for HIAs and for their normal hearing SOs.

With the development of online shopping, the number of third-party online payment systems increases. Alipay is a commonly used third-party online payment system among Chinese consumers. The purpose of this study was to explore the factors that affect the users’ acceptance of Alipay among Chinese B2C customers. This study adopts a deductive, theory testing approach. Based on the model of Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), a research model and hypotheses were proposed. A survey study was performed with a quota sample of 300 Chinese online shopping consumers. Based on the responses, the hypotheses were tested through statistical analysis. Through testing the hypotheses, it was concluded that: “Social Influence”, “Effort expectancy” were the factors that most prominently could affect B2C user’s acceptance of Alipay. Hence, third-party online systems suppliers should focus on social marketing and increasing the ease of use of the systems to increase user acceptance. Other similar third-party online payment company could take those identified factors as reference in further user acceptance study, and the proposed research model in this study could also help in improving understanding of user acceptance in similar third-part online payment system.

This paper examines the process of employing four kinds of information systems in fourth-party logistics. The paper mainly tries to answer research questions: what is fourth-party logistics and information systems; what are benefits and barriers for using four kinds of information systems (RFID, WMS, EDI, Electronic marketplace) with the help of fourth-party logistics; what are unique benefits and barriers for fourth-party logistics to employ the four kinds of information systems and how to overcome the difficulties. To answer the research question, qualitative case study approach was employed and two case companies were chosen. Information in literature review was collected from secondary data for example scientific paper. Information in findings was collected from interviews of people in charge of the project and internal reports.   Definitions of fourth-party logistics and information system were reviewed in literature review. The differences between fourth-party logistics and third-party logistics were presented as well. In addition, categorization of various kinds of advanced information systems was also listed.   Benefits and barriers organized from literature and case studies were gathered and compared in discussion. Two significant benefits were identified: opportunities to do businesses with leading companies and improved efficiency. Two main barriers are confusion of the concept of fourth-party logistics and terminology of information system and financial justification. There are different opinions between the two case companies, literature review and empirical data, and between different literature. The paper concluded that there are many benefits and barriers for employing the four kinds of information systems in fourth-party logistics, and the future development of it is promising.

The thesis aims to discuss effectiveness of the international conflict resolution in the region of the South Caucasus, analyzing the challenges to international efforts to solve the three conflict cases: the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh is among the frozen disputes in the region, the others Abkhazia and the South Ossetia are nominally independent states, however de facto occupied by Russia. It is the fact that three regional players Russia, Turkey and Iran and global players Russia, US, EU have different type of impacts to conflict settlements in the region which directly relate to their political and economic interests. Therefore, after two decades of mediation by powerful states provided no final resolution with numerous attempts at mediation, wherein the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has taken the lead. The complicated and interdepended relations of states make this region highly sensitive area for war and peace in the world theatrical chessboard. Author also analyzes the effectiveness of conflict management between the parties by focusing on conflicts in the South Caucasus region mentioning their historical, political, security and ethnic dimensions, where international organizations, namely OSCE, UN, EU involve.

La notion de partie comportant de nombreuses incertitudes, tant théoriques que pratiques, l'objet de cette thèse est de proposer une approche renouvelée de cette notion, en ne recherchant pas seulement quels sont les critères de détermination de la qualité de partie mais aussi quelles sont les personnes ayant vocation à disposer de cette qualité procédurale, car beaucoup de problèmes entourant cette notion nécessitent de pouvoir répondre à cette dernière interrogation. Il est ressorti de cette étude que le respect du principe selon lequel nul ne peut être jugé sans avoir été mis en mesure de se défendre impose que toute personne susceptible d'être jugée ait la qualité de partie, et que, sauf exceptions, le respect du devoir de non-immixtion dans les affaires d'autrui et de l'objectif de bonne administration de la justice implique de ne pas octroyer la qualité de partie à d'autres personnes que celles susceptibles d'être jugées. Dès lors, nous avons pu vérifier si les personnes étant parties ou tiers étaient légitimes à l'être et proposer, lorsque tel n'était pas le cas, des solutions pour y remédier. En outre, en analysant à la lumière de l'approche centrée sur la vocation à être partie les divers cas posant des difficultés de qualification procédurale, nous avons pu démontrer que les catégories de tiers et de parties ne nécessitent pas d'être complétées de classifications intermédiaires. En revanche, étudier isolément chaque situation à l'aune de cette nouvelle approche a permis de faire en sorte, pour tous ces cas jusqu'alors incertains, que chaque personne dispose de la qualité procédurale et des prérogatives auxquelles elle pouvait légitimement prétendre. / No English summary available.

Since the mobile communication technology gains a big success in China, internet finance becomes one of the most emerging industries in China in the past decade. People’s living habits have been deeply changed by this emerging service. Nowadays the majority of Chinese citizens use cellphones to deposit and make payments, rather than use traditional debit and credit cards. They can even scan their cellphones to pay the bus and subway fares. While facilitating people’s lives, internet finance also causes new challenges for the commercial banks in China. It makes financial transactions more efficient and lowers transaction costs. Meanwhile, it also takes some profit sources of traditional commercial banks. This study first analyzes the current developing situation of internet finance in China and then introduce the banks efficiency of Chinese banks. Finally, the profitability that is measure by the ROA and ROE of 15 public commercial banks are chosen as the independent variables that measure the profitability of banks. The market scale of internet finance and its profitability are the independent variables. The study finds that while internet finance continues to develop in China, commercial banks’ profitability keeps a decreasing trend. The test results indicate that with the increase of one percent in total revenue, net income and ROA of the internet finance industry, the commercial banks’ ROA decreases by 0.02%, 0.04 and 2.52%, while ROE reduces by 0.22%, 1.04%, and 3.99% respectively.