We study, using the non-parametric data envelopment approach, we investigated the long-run profit efficiency dynamics and the short-run market reaction of nine pre-classified merger deals of merging and non-merging U.S. banks over the time period from 1992 to 2003. Our main results are as follows: First, merger deals that match least efficient acquirers with the least efficient targets could improve their profit efficiency four years following the merger event, unlike all other merger deals. Second, we find that mergers match least efficient acquirers with the least efficient targets could also achieve significant positive cumulative access returns (CARs) while all other deals were followed by significant negative CARs. Third, we find that, in general, that large-size acquirers have and maintain higher and efficiency scores than targets and non-merging banks. Fianally, the value-maximizing mergers are mostly large in size and match banks with clear chances to increase their future efficiency rankings.

Problem The banking industry is changing with new technologies and the financial sector is exposed to the strong pressure of change. All this appearing as a result of the ongoing digitalization. Purpose The purpose of this thesis is to gain a deeper understanding of how Swedish banks internally work with digitalization. Also, to create an understanding of the banks’ views of challenges, opportunities, and the future perspective of the Swedish banking industry that follows with digitalization. Theoretical Framework The theoretical framework has been developed from our three keywords: Digitalization, Bank industry and Digital banking. The theoretical foundation of this thesis is presented to create an understanding of the concept of digitalization. Methodology A qualitative research approach is used in this thesis where interviews are conducted with highly insightful respondents from each bank to fulfil the purpose and answer the research question. Empirical Findings The result of the empirical data collection consists of primary data collected through interviews with four major banks in Sweden. Conclusions All banks have a different internal approach to digitalization. However, there is no one-size-fits-all solution for a successful strategy, and the banks must adapt their internal work in order to manage the digitalization in the most suitable way. Although there are some difference and similarities in how banks internally work with digitalization, it is evident that the banking industry is changing along with the digitalization. We are facing a new reality where the digitalization brings both challenges and opportunities. The banks have a positive perspective on the future of digitalization. However, we will probably see a lot of changes in the banking industry in the near future.

Abstract   Introduction The way banks compete has changed dramatically during recent years, mostly because of international trends such as advances in information technology, globalisation and deregulations. This has made competition harsher meaning that survival and success requires knowledge about the competitors and understanding about the way they act and react. Within marketing there is a need to identify suitable strategies to acquire knowledge about competitor’s marketing and methods to how to react to it.   Purpose The purpose of our research study is to analyse how companies in the bank industry are aware and react to their competitor’s marketing activities.   Method We have conducted a qualitative study and used a mix of the inductive and deductive research approaches. We chose to do semi-structured case studies, gathering descriptive data from large Swedish banks with offices located in Jönköping. The banks that were included were Handelsbanken, Nordea, SEB, and Swedbank.   Conclusions Our analysis concludes that staying aware of competitors marketing is important for companies to be able to react and counter on a promotion attack. We found that there are certain methods that can be used to stay alert: competitor marketing analysis, customer focus and probing. We also concluded that standardisation, differentiation and presence are required to react to competitors marketing.

<p><strong>Abstract</strong></p><p> </p><p><strong>Introduction</strong></p><p>The way banks compete has changed dramatically during recent years, mostly because of international trends such as advances in information technology, globalisation and deregulations. This has made competition harsher meaning that survival and success requires knowledge about the competitors and understanding about the way they act and react. Within marketing there is a need to identify suitable strategies to acquire knowledge about competitor’s marketing and methods to how to react to it.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Purpose </strong></p><p>The purpose of our research study is to analyse how companies in the bank industry are aware and react to their competitor’s marketing activities.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Method</strong></p><p>We have conducted a qualitative study and used a mix of the inductive and deductive research approaches. We chose to do semi-structured case studies, gathering descriptive data from large Swedish banks with offices located in Jönköping. The banks that were included were Handelsbanken, Nordea, SEB, and Swedbank.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Conclusions</strong></p><p>Our analysis concludes that staying aware of competitors marketing is important for companies to be able to react and counter on a promotion attack. We found that there are certain methods that can be used to stay alert: competitor marketing analysis, customer focus and probing. We also concluded that standardisation, differentiation and presence are required to react to competitors marketing.</p>

Background/Problem: Sponsorship has grown a lot for the past twenty years, to become a part of the marketing activities not to say a full-fledged tool. Being now a major marketing tool, it is crucial to understand how the whole sponsorship process works, in order to control it perfectly. Purpose: To offer an overview of the whole sponsorship process, from the sponsoring side. Theory: In the theory part is a literature review about sponsorship. First a definition of sponsorship is presented. Then the different motivations to start a sponsorship activity are discussed, followed by the selection criteria. Finally, the evaluation methods of the activity are reviewed. Research questions: How do companies select their events and manage their portfolio? Which are the factors influencing the future decisions of continuing a sponsorship? Method: In order to identify what are the most relevant elements in the whole sponsorship-decision process, a quantitative approach was used. An online survey was created online in order to collect data that has been analysed through SPSS. Conclusion: Our results show that the selection of the event and the evaluation of the sponsorship activity are very important for the portfolio, although if there is a lack of evaluation among the companies.

Uma pobre Qualidade da Informação (QI) tem forte impacto no desempenho geral de uma organização. A efetividade e eficácia de utilização da Tecnologia da Informação (TI) e dos Sistemas de Informação (SI) dependem da Qualidade da Informação que é transitada por eles. Os investimentos em TI exerceram impactos significativos na indústria bancária nos últimos anos, gerando um grande aumento de volume informacional; tais investimentos, porém, não garantiram semelhante retorno no que se refere à qualidade dessa informação. O objetivo dessa pesquisa é medir a percepção da QI que é utilizada pelos executivos da Indústria Bancária, observando bancos públicos de âmbito federal e estadual. O método escolhido foi a pesquisa survey, realizada a partir de um instrumento previamente proposto para medir a QI, com 15 dimensões de QI divididos em 65 itens. A pesquisa survey foi executada em dois momentos: estudo de pré-teste e estudo final, originando um novo instrumento. Procedimentos qualitativos e quantitativos foram utilizados para refinar o questionário e definir as dimensões finais, como a Validade de Face e de Conteúdo, Análise de Confiabilidade, Análise de Correlação Item-Total Corrigido (CITC), Análise Fatorial Exploratória e Análise Fatorial Confirmatória. O modelo obtido possui quatro fatores de qualidade: Acessibilidade, Contextualidade, Confiabilidade e Compreensão, dispostos em 12 itens. A principal contribuição desta pesquisa para o conhecimento acadêmico foi a análise da qualidade da informação, tema escasso em trabalhos internacionais e nacionais, com a proposta de um modelo teórico para medir a qualidade no escopo dos bancos públicos nacionais. Para o setor investigado, apresenta-se um mapeamento da percepção de seus colaboradores acerca da qualidade da informação por eles operada nos seus cotidianos de trabalho. / A poor Information Quality (IQ) has a strong impact in the development of a organization. The effectiveness and efficacy of Information Technology (IT) and Information Systems (IS) depend on the quality of information which flows through them. IT investments made significant impact on bank industry in the last years, leading to a major informational volume increasing. However, these investments didn’t imply the same effect in IQ. The purpose of this research is to measure the perception of IQ used by bank executives, observing national and state public banks. The chosen method is survey research, conducted with an instrument previously proposed to measure IQ, containing 15 IQ dimensions divided in 65 items. Survey research was conducted in two moments: pre-test study and final study, generating a new instrument. Qualitative and quantitative procedures were used to refine the instrument and define the final dimensions, like Face and Content Validity, Reliability Analysis, Corrected Item-Total Correlation (CITC) Analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis. The model resulted has four quality factors: Accessibility, Contextuality, Reliability and Understanding, disposed in 12 items. The main contribution of this research to academic knowledge is the IQ analysis, a forgotten theme in national and international researches, proposing a theoretical model to measure quality in the public bank field. It is also presented, to the investigated segment, a map of the perception from its executives about IQ in their daily tasks.

Uma pobre Qualidade da Informação (QI) tem forte impacto no desempenho geral de uma organização. A efetividade e eficácia de utilização da Tecnologia da Informação (TI) e dos Sistemas de Informação (SI) dependem da Qualidade da Informação que é transitada por eles. Os investimentos em TI exerceram impactos significativos na indústria bancária nos últimos anos, gerando um grande aumento de volume informacional; tais investimentos, porém, não garantiram semelhante retorno no que se refere à qualidade dessa informação. O objetivo dessa pesquisa é medir a percepção da QI que é utilizada pelos executivos da Indústria Bancária, observando bancos públicos de âmbito federal e estadual. O método escolhido foi a pesquisa survey, realizada a partir de um instrumento previamente proposto para medir a QI, com 15 dimensões de QI divididos em 65 itens. A pesquisa survey foi executada em dois momentos: estudo de pré-teste e estudo final, originando um novo instrumento. Procedimentos qualitativos e quantitativos foram utilizados para refinar o questionário e definir as dimensões finais, como a Validade de Face e de Conteúdo, Análise de Confiabilidade, Análise de Correlação Item-Total Corrigido (CITC), Análise Fatorial Exploratória e Análise Fatorial Confirmatória. O modelo obtido possui quatro fatores de qualidade: Acessibilidade, Contextualidade, Confiabilidade e Compreensão, dispostos em 12 itens. A principal contribuição desta pesquisa para o conhecimento acadêmico foi a análise da qualidade da informação, tema escasso em trabalhos internacionais e nacionais, com a proposta de um modelo teórico para medir a qualidade no escopo dos bancos públicos nacionais. Para o setor investigado, apresenta-se um mapeamento da percepção de seus colaboradores acerca da qualidade da informação por eles operada nos seus cotidianos de trabalho. / A poor Information Quality (IQ) has a strong impact in the development of a organization. The effectiveness and efficacy of Information Technology (IT) and Information Systems (IS) depend on the quality of information which flows through them. IT investments made significant impact on bank industry in the last years, leading to a major informational volume increasing. However, these investments didn’t imply the same effect in IQ. The purpose of this research is to measure the perception of IQ used by bank executives, observing national and state public banks. The chosen method is survey research, conducted with an instrument previously proposed to measure IQ, containing 15 IQ dimensions divided in 65 items. Survey research was conducted in two moments: pre-test study and final study, generating a new instrument. Qualitative and quantitative procedures were used to refine the instrument and define the final dimensions, like Face and Content Validity, Reliability Analysis, Corrected Item-Total Correlation (CITC) Analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis. The model resulted has four quality factors: Accessibility, Contextuality, Reliability and Understanding, disposed in 12 items. The main contribution of this research to academic knowledge is the IQ analysis, a forgotten theme in national and international researches, proposing a theoretical model to measure quality in the public bank field. It is also presented, to the investigated segment, a map of the perception from its executives about IQ in their daily tasks.

Uma pobre Qualidade da Informação (QI) tem forte impacto no desempenho geral de uma organização. A efetividade e eficácia de utilização da Tecnologia da Informação (TI) e dos Sistemas de Informação (SI) dependem da Qualidade da Informação que é transitada por eles. Os investimentos em TI exerceram impactos significativos na indústria bancária nos últimos anos, gerando um grande aumento de volume informacional; tais investimentos, porém, não garantiram semelhante retorno no que se refere à qualidade dessa informação. O objetivo dessa pesquisa é medir a percepção da QI que é utilizada pelos executivos da Indústria Bancária, observando bancos públicos de âmbito federal e estadual. O método escolhido foi a pesquisa survey, realizada a partir de um instrumento previamente proposto para medir a QI, com 15 dimensões de QI divididos em 65 itens. A pesquisa survey foi executada em dois momentos: estudo de pré-teste e estudo final, originando um novo instrumento. Procedimentos qualitativos e quantitativos foram utilizados para refinar o questionário e definir as dimensões finais, como a Validade de Face e de Conteúdo, Análise de Confiabilidade, Análise de Correlação Item-Total Corrigido (CITC), Análise Fatorial Exploratória e Análise Fatorial Confirmatória. O modelo obtido possui quatro fatores de qualidade: Acessibilidade, Contextualidade, Confiabilidade e Compreensão, dispostos em 12 itens. A principal contribuição desta pesquisa para o conhecimento acadêmico foi a análise da qualidade da informação, tema escasso em trabalhos internacionais e nacionais, com a proposta de um modelo teórico para medir a qualidade no escopo dos bancos públicos nacionais. Para o setor investigado, apresenta-se um mapeamento da percepção de seus colaboradores acerca da qualidade da informação por eles operada nos seus cotidianos de trabalho. / A poor Information Quality (IQ) has a strong impact in the development of a organization. The effectiveness and efficacy of Information Technology (IT) and Information Systems (IS) depend on the quality of information which flows through them. IT investments made significant impact on bank industry in the last years, leading to a major informational volume increasing. However, these investments didn’t imply the same effect in IQ. The purpose of this research is to measure the perception of IQ used by bank executives, observing national and state public banks. The chosen method is survey research, conducted with an instrument previously proposed to measure IQ, containing 15 IQ dimensions divided in 65 items. Survey research was conducted in two moments: pre-test study and final study, generating a new instrument. Qualitative and quantitative procedures were used to refine the instrument and define the final dimensions, like Face and Content Validity, Reliability Analysis, Corrected Item-Total Correlation (CITC) Analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis. The model resulted has four quality factors: Accessibility, Contextuality, Reliability and Understanding, disposed in 12 items. The main contribution of this research to academic knowledge is the IQ analysis, a forgotten theme in national and international researches, proposing a theoretical model to measure quality in the public bank field. It is also presented, to the investigated segment, a map of the perception from its executives about IQ in their daily tasks.

[pt] O objetivo desta pesquisa é identificar, na indústria bancária brasileira, a existência de grupos distintos compostos por bancos que adotam estratégias competitivas semelhantes, relacionando-os a diferentes padrões de desempenho. Para tal, selecionou-se amostra de 50 bancos que operam no mercado brasileiro para os quais foram calculadas variáveis estratégicas, de ambiente, e de desempenho para o período 2017-2019.Através da aplicação de modelo estatístico, tendo como base as variáveis estratégicas de cada banco da amostra, foi possível classificá-los em grupos distintos, gerando taxionomia que reflete o posicionamento estratégico na indústria. Os padrões identificados determinaram a formação de quatro grupos, assim denominados: os Visionários, os Estacionários, os Eficientes, e os Tradicionais. Concluiu-se que os quatro padrões distintos de comportamento estratégico identificados na indústria bancária brasileira apresentam diferentes respostas às forças do ambiente, e estão associados a diferentes padrões de desempenho. Os grupos caracterizados como Estacionários e Tradicionais apresentaram, comparativamente, os piores desempenhos, em função da morosidade de seu processo decisório, adoção de padrões tradicionais de gestão, e dificuldades de mudança na condução estratégica. Acredita-se que para esses grupos, o desafio imposto para sobrevivência na indústria repousa na adequação aos novos padrões do mercado, onde consumidor e tecnologia passaram a ocupar o epicentro do negócio. Por outro lado, os grupos caracterizados como Visionários e Eficientes foram os que apresentaram os melhores desempenhos, o que reflete a relevância do investimento e da eficiência operacional na indústria. / [en] The purpose of this research is to identify, in the Brazilian banking industry, the existence of distinct groups composed of banks that adopt similar competitive strategies, relating them to different performance standards. To this end, a sample of 50 banks operating in the Brazilian market was selected for which strategic, environmental, and performance variables were calculated for the period 2017-2019. Through the application of a statistical model, based on the strategic variables of each bank in the sample, it was possible to classify them into distinct groups, generating a taxonomy that reflects the strategic positioning in the industry. The patterns identified determined the formation of four groups, thus called: the Visionary, the Stationary, the Efficient, and the Traditional. It was concluded that the four distinct patterns of strategic behavior identified in the Brazilian banking industry present different responses to the forces of the environment and are associated with different performance patterns. The groups characterized as Stationary and Traditional presented, comparatively, the worst performances, due to the slowness of their decision-making process, adoption of traditional management standards, and difficulties in changing the strategic direction. It is believed that for these groups, the challenge imposed for survival in the industry lies in adapting to the new market standards, where consumers and technology started to occupy the epicenter of the business. On the other hand, the groups characterized as Visionary and Efficient were the ones that presented the best performances, which reflects the relevance of investment and operational efficiency in the industry.

The banking sector in Ghana has witnessed significant improvement in relationship marketing. The purpose of this study is to bring deeper understanding and insight into the practice of relationship marketing and customer retention by banks in Ghana. For this study, 12 out of the 27 banks in Ghana were selected as the sample size. The research explains the role of relationship marketing in customer retention and also demonstrates how relationship marketing is applied and practiced by the banks in Ghana. A qualitative research approach was chosen and deductive research was conducted based on twelve case studies from both local and international banks. The following research questions guided the study: I. What are the major reasons for the adoption of relationship marketing in customer retention in the banking industry in Ghana? II. How is relationship marketing applied to retain customers in the banking industry in Ghana? III. How is relationship marketing practiced to increase loyalty and improve customer retention in the banking industry in Ghana? The findings of the study showed that indeed, all the banks have reasons for adopting relationship marketing in customer retention. The most popular reason for believing in the success of relationship marketing is customer retention. On practice, even though all the banks are similar in terms of their capacity, human behaviour influence relationship marketing and therefore brought differences in practices. The study found that banks apply relationship marketing in their customer retention efforts and all work towards retaining customers in order to make profit as it is more profitable to retain existing customers than to acquire new customers. As human behaviour is of great importance in relationship marketing activities of the banks, it was recommended among other things that banks staff training plan should be strengthened if they want success in their relationship marketing activities. / <p>Validerat; 20110901 (anonymous)</p>