Category: Uncategorized

Abstract

Good service businesses pay attention to clientele and workforce mutually. They realize how service earnings link proceeds from a service provider with human resource and consumer contentment. Service sector marketing entitles not only for outside marketing but for in-house marketing as well in order to encourage workers and interactive marketing to introduce skills between businesses which are presenting services. In order to succeed, service sector marketing must create competitive differentiation, offer high quality of service and find wants to increase service production.

Introduction

One of the most important world drifts in modern years has been the remarkable expansion of the services sector. Services are budding more rapidly in the world financial systems and making up the quarter of the worth of all worldwide dealings. In actual fact, a diversity of service industries, from bank, indemnity and communications to transport, touring and diversion, now accounts for sound in excess of sixty percent of the economy in the urbanized countries around the globe. (Bitner 2006, p.95)

Actions such as itinerant on a plane, hiring a lodge room, putting cash in a bank, acquiring a hairdo, having a car repaired, watching professional sport, watching a film and obtaining recommendation from a legal representative, all entail getting a service.

The service sector has been nurturing notably for over fifty years to the level that in the urbanized world, more public produce their source of revenue from generating services than manufacturing commodities. If truth be told, approximately three quarters of the residents in the United States of America and the European Union are occupied in service industries. As a result services have a most important force on national economies. The issue of services sector marketing has developed in reaction to this. Nonetheless, in recent times, industrialization and technology businesses have also acknowledged the want to offer services not merely as a source of accumulating importance to the material artifacts which they promote but also as the source for a diverse direction to the administration of their industries. Service sector marketing is an integrated communiqués supported course of action through which individuals and communities find out that presented and recently acknowledged requirements and desires can be fulfilled by the services of others. It is the action, set of association, and progressions for generating, corresponding, distributing, and substituting offers that have significance for consumers, buyers, associates, and people in general. (Marshall 2009, 58)

Marketing performance in the service sector inclines to be perceives as imaginative diligence, which incorporates promotion, circulation and advertising. It is also concerned with foreseeing the clients potential desires and requirements, which are frequently ascertained through market study. Perceived from an organizations approach, sales process engineering sights service sector marketing as a set of procedures that are interrelated and mutually supporting with other tasks, and whose processes can be enhanced by means of a selection of moderately innovative advances. (Davis 2006, p.96)

Services industries contrast to a great extent. Governments put forward services through magistrates, pay services, rest homes, credit bureaus, armed forces services, police force, and fire units, postal service, dogmatic organizations, and schools. Classified non-profit businesses proffer services through museums, donations, charitable trusts, universities, organizations, and hospitals. A great number of business organizations propose services in the shape of airlines, banks, hotels, insurance companies, property dealing firms, promotion and investigation agencies.

There are not only traditional service industries, but new types keep popping up to serve a new generation of time pressed consumers.

A few service companies are exceptionally great, through entire sales and property in the billion of dollars. There are furthermore tens of thousands of minute service providers. Selling services presents some special problems calling for special marketing solutions. (Lovelock 2008, p.65)

Characteristics of Services Sector

A corporation ought to think about four particular service attributes when intending to carry out marketing plans. These attributes are insubstantiality, inseparability, changeability and unpreserved nature.

Services insubstantiality means that they can not be witnessed, flavored, sensed, perceived or scented prior to they are purchased For instance commuters in a plane have zilch other than a travel document and a guarantee of safe delivery to their destination. To lessen improbability commuters try to find warning signs of service excellence.

Service inseparability means that they are generated and used at the similar point in time and can not be disconnected from their suppliers, without the consideration that the suppliers are citizens or devices. If a service worker offers the service, then the worker is the component of the service. Since the purchaser is there as well when the service is generated, supplier-purchaser dealings are a unique characteristic of services marketing. Both the supplier and the purchaser have an effect on the service product.

Service changeability refers to the actuality that their eminence may vary greatly, depending on who offers the service along with at what time, at what place, and in which shape. For case in point, various lodges have reputes for affording enhanced services in contrast to others. Still inside a particular lodge, one muster counter worker might be smiling and professional, while another positioned just a hardly at distance of a feet might be obnoxious and sluggish. Even the excellence of the particular lodge workers service differs in accordance to his vigor and mental condition at the occasion when each client comes upon. (Donnelly 2006, p.87)

Unpreserved nature of service indicates that they can not be accumulated for afterward retailing or utilization. A number of physicians charge patients for overlooked meetings for the reason that the service worth survived simply at that spot and faded away when the patient did not turn up. The Unpreserved nature is not a trouble while stipulate is balanced. On the other hand, when stipulate oscillates, service structures frequently have complicated setbacks. For illustration, As a result of a scuttle hour requirement, civic transportation corporations have to possess a lot more paraphernalia than they would if requirements were level all through the daytime. (Lovelock 2006, p.96)

Information Systems for Service Sector Marketing

Service quality information system is a set of processes and information basis utilized by marketing directors to separate information from the surroundings that they can employ in their decision making. This examination of the financial and commerce setting in services sector can be embarked on in a multiplicity of techniques, incorporating the following;

Nonspecific scrutinizing, where the administrator by good quality of what he interprets, listens and infers the information that might prove valuable. Even as the activities are nonspecific and the manager has no exact reason in mind, it is not unpremeditated. (Ellis 2006, p.101)

Partially focused scrutinizing, where again, the administrator is not in exploration of exacting bits of information that he is aggressively probing but does taper the choice of means that is scrutinized. Such as, the administrator may pay more attention to financial and industry periodicals, relays and so on, and give a lesser amount of concentration to political, methodical or industrial media.

Casual examination, where a reasonably restricted and free attempt is prepared to attain information for a particular rationale. For instance, the marketing director of a service sector firm allowing for switching the type of business. There would be slight constitution to this investigation with the manager making investigations with dealers he ensues to come across over and above with other improvised associates in offices, international relieve organizations, with employment relations, importers and exporters. (Lamb & Hair 2008, p.151)

Official exploration is a focused investigation following information in some organized manner. The information will be requisite to tackle a particular matter. Even as this type of doings might give the impression to share the attributes of market research it is accomplished by the manager himself sooner than a specialized investigator. Furthermore, the extent of the exploration is probably being tapered in span and far less rigorous than market research.

Without a doubt, information systems that assert to help service sector can not be fabricated except one appreciates what executives accomplish and how they do it. A service sector marketing information system is projected to fetch simultaneously incongruent items of information into a logical body of information. It is an ongoing and interrelating organization of public and systems to congregate, sort, scrutinize, assess, and allocate, well-timed, relevant and precise information to utilize by marketing decision makers to advance their marketing scheduling, realization, and power. (Edvardsson 2005, p.162)

The explanation of service sector information sources initiates with an explanation of each one of its four key constituent components. First one is the inner information systems, second is marketing research system, third is marketing aptitude system and fourth is marketing models. It is recommended that even as the service sector information sources contrasts in its level of complexity, amid several such sources in the developed nations being mechanized and also in a small number in the rising states. The essential components of developed and successful information sources are the techniques and expertise of gathering, accumulating, regaining and routing information aside. (Kotler & Keller 2008, p.158)

All business enterprises that are in this industry, generate a possessions of information for a prolong period of time. Nevertheless, this information frequently stays less developed for the reason that it is classified, either in the shape of a personal capitalist or in the practical sections of bigger companies. That is to say, information is frequently grouped according to its character, for instance, production, financial, marketing, manpower, logistical data and stockholding. Time and again the entrepreneurs, or different recruits working in the functional divisions embracing these portions of records, do not notice how it can facilitate decision makers in other serviceable parts. In the same way, decision makers can be unsuccessful to understand how information from other useful fractions may assist them and as a result does not demand it. (Fisk, Grove & John 2007, p.196)

The inner proceedings that are of instantaneous significance to marketing verdicts are the orders accepted, stockholdings and sales accounts. These are other than a few of the in-house documentations that can be employed by marketing executives, but still this little set of confirmations is proficient of producing a huge covenant of information. Several of the information that can be originated from sales charges is as follows;

• Product form, size and package form by region;
• Product form, size and package form by type of account;
• Product form, size and package type by business;
• Product form, size and package form by consumer;
• Common worth or quantity of trade by region;
• Standard rate or amount of retailing by kind of account;
• Common price or quantity of trade by business; and
• Common worth or level of sale through sales individuals.

Through contrasting orders accepted with charges a venture can ascertain the scope to which it is supplying a satisfactory point of customer service. Correspondingly, evaluating stockholding traces with categories assists an endeavor discover whether its reserves are in sequence with existing demand examples. (Kotler & Armstrong 2007, p.165)

Marketing astuteness is the area of capitalists and higher executives inside a service sector company. It engages them in searching tabloids, buy and sell periodicals, industry descriptions, fiscal estimates and other media. Additionally it entails organization in discussion to manufacturers, dealers and consumers, in addition to rivals. On the other hand, it is a fundamentally casual procedure of scrutinizing and communicating. (Kotabe & Helsen 2007, p.196)

Various projects will move toward service quality information systems in a more premeditated method and will educate its sales force, after sales workers and region managers to take cognizance of opponents proceedings, clients grievances and demands and distributor troubles. Ventures with visualization will also persuade mediators in order to be practical in assigning service quality back to them.

Service Quality Standards

By means of guaranteeing principles you can control your contacts whilst making certain that your business is offered in a proficient comportment continually. By following a few easy intend regulations you can instigate to trademark a representation, which is exceptionally controlling when it approaches to accumulating wealth.

Steadiness athwart the quality of the service provided facilitates through acknowledgment. Place your symbol on your circular or other promotion and transaction matters in more or less the identical spot as it shows on your pamphlet. Use the similar lettering and shade on all materials. Take account of the unchanged margin that emerges on your catalog. (Gronroos 2007, p.254)

Apply the similar tag line as a caption, subhead or placing contour on all promotion part of sets.

Utilize printed materials and make an effort not to run through the photocopier.

Photocopy duplicates are dispirited, as at lot of occasions photocopiers do not generate specialized outcomes. If you have got to duplicate a promotion part of a set on a photocopier, make certain that it is a high excellence printer that creates print prepared copies simply. If you would like to incorporate graphics then make use of line art or lucid and plain figures. Getting something on films does not frequently replicate appropriately through photocopy and have a tendency to turn out to be grimy and unpleasant. (Kerin & Hartley 2008, p.168)

Keep your communication uncomplicated, short and snappy. Utilize plenty of pallid gaps plus constantly ask the prospect to act that is Contact now. Personalize your communication and be imaginative. Formulate your material in attention clutching or eye holding so future customers do not consider it is just added useless items.

Verify alleges. Employ tributes, intermediary readings, and autonomous details.

Get your tender out in the foremost couple of sections and apply an appendix.

In direct correspondence, the proffer is the whole thing. Whatever it is that you are presenting, get the drift out in the initial section or two. If mailing an epistle, append an addendum. Even people who do not study the correspondence will comprehend the addendum.

Confirm the whole thing comprehensively. Hire a personnel affiliate who has not been engaged in the lettering to examine your materials. Have somebody comprehend primarily for substance; subsequently examine the entire section diffident to verify for the correction spellings and typing errors. (Grewal & Levy 2009, p.51)

Care for clients proficiently continually. The most excellent trades and promotion operations will not succeed if job orders can not be packed, consumers are badly treated or disregarded and every day procedures are not carried out in a suitable way. Keep in mind that your colleagues are your customers too, and should be taken care of in the similar manner.

The customer is always right. On no account disagree with the consumer. Pay attention and recognize their apprehensions and spend difficulty resolving practices.

Be approachable and quick to respond. Act in response to messages within twenty four hours. If you are not able to get in touch individually past three efforts, send a correspondence.

Make use of specialized phone values. A great deal of a clients initial intuition is generated over the phone. Employ telephone principles to indemnify that clientele approach believing like yours is a business they would like to go on with to do business. (Hoffman & Bateson 2005, p.49)

Service providing companies are in immense pressure to boost service efficiency in a quantity of techniques with their rates increasing swiftly. The service providers can educate existing recruits better or take into service fresh ones who will exert harder or extra competently. Or the service providers can augment the magnitude of their service by surrendering some excellence. For paradigm, physicians functioning for fitness protection institutes have shift in the direction of treating extra patients and offering less time to each one. Furthermore, the service providers can industrialize the service by accumulating gear and homogenizing fabrication.

Nonetheless, companies have got to keep away from thrusting efficiency so tough that acting in such a manner lessens worth. Efforts to industrialize a service or to slash rates can make a service company more resourceful in the short run however, diminishes its longer run aptitude to innovate, preserve service value, or retort to customer wants and requirements. In several cases, service providers acknowledge condensed output in order to generate new service demarcation or excellence. (Mullins & Walker 2009, p.135)

International service marketers face special challenges. They ought to choose how much to normalize or acclimatize their services for world marketplaces. Alternatively, corporations like to regulate their contributions. Homogeny facilitates a business to expand an unfailing worldwide representation. A number of service industries have an extensive narration of worldwide maneuvers. The commercial banking industry was amongst the foremost to develop internationally. Banks had to present large scale services with the purpose to convene the foreign exchange and credit requirements of their home country customers. The tourism sector also budged unsurprisingly into worldwide businesses.

One of the most important techniques service firms can make a distinction is by means of distributing, time and again, advanced value than its rivals do. Scores of service industries have now connected to the total quality movement. Withholding clientele is conceivably the unsurpassed determinant of worth. A service firms capability to preserve its clientele depends on how constantly it conveys significance to them. (Nordhielm 2005, p.185)

Service providers require recognizing the anticipations of intended patrons pertaining to service value. Regrettably, service value is tougher to identify as well as review. For example, it is tougher to acquire concurrence on the excellence of a hairstyle than on the eminence of a hair dryer. Moreover, although greater service quality results in greater customer satisfaction, it also results in higher costs. Still, investments in service usually pay off through increased customer retention and sales.

Many service companies have invested heavily to develop streamlined and efficient service delivery system. They would like to make certain that patrons will constantly obtain high value service in each service meeting. Nevertheless, service worth will fluctuate at all times, depending on the dealings involving workforce and clientele. Even though a service business can not constantly put a stop to service setbacks, it can gain knowledge of how to convalesce from them. High quality service revival can convert annoyed clients into trustworthy ones. If truth be told, high quality revival can succeed in acquiring more clients procuring as well as constancy than if everything had gone fine in the first place. For that reason, companies should acquire steps not simply to offer high quality service each point in time, but to improve from service faults as well, when they do take place. (Murray 2006, p.165)

The earliest step is to give power to front line service workers and to offer them right, dependability and inducements they need to distinguish, take into account and quick to consumer requirements. For case in point at Marriott, well taught workers are granted the right to do whatsoever it takes, then and there, to keep visitors contented. They are also anticipated to facilitate management to find out the reason of visitors troubles, and report to administrators of manners to perk up hotel service in general and guests reassure. (Pearlson & Saunders 2009, p.254)

Studies of well administered companies give you an idea that they allocate an amount of familiar good features concerning service excellence. Zenith service companies are consumer passionate and place service excellence principles which are far above the ground. They do not reconcile only for high quality service, they intend for hundred percent deficiency free services.

Peak service firms also observe service routine intimately, their personal and that of opponents equally. They utilize techniques such as contrast shopping, client appraisals, and proposal and criticism forms. For example, General Electric mails seven hundred thousand respond cards every year to family units who rate their service staffs professionalism.

First class service companies also commune their apprehensions regarding service value to human resources and afford performance response. For illustration, at Federal Express, excellence measurements are all over the place. When recruits walk in the entrance in the morning, they spot the preceding weeks punctuality percentages. Subsequently, the corporations internal television station provides those multifaceted collapses of what took place during the previous day plus some impending troubles for the day in front. (Palmer 2007, p.155)

Strategies for Re-Positioning

Within unpredictable markets, it can be essential, even imperative, to reposition a whole company, rather than just a product line or brand name. In a stretched decline, business advances that were effectual throughout vigorous financial systems regularly turn out to be unproductive and it becomes essential to alter a firms positioning. Upscale bistros, for example, which beforehand prospered on expenditure account banquets and business happenings, possibly for the first time require pressure worth as an auction instrument. (Peter 2008, p.86)

Repositioning a company engages more than a marketing challenge. It grips making unbreakable pronouncements about how a market is transferring and how a firms competitors will act in response. Time and again these assessments have to be prepared with no the advantage of adequate information, merely for the reason that the description of unpredictability is that alteration becomes complicated or impracticable to forecast.

The extra unpredictable a marketplace, the extra critical repositioning turn out to be. It can accurately be the distinction among existence and decease for a business.

In order to re-position, either part or all of it services, a service providing firm can adopt different strategies.

Just like in preferred and aimed marketplaces Southwest Airlines places itself as presently flat elegant for mechanized commerce; excellent service firms utilize promotion to place themselves powerfully commuter flyers, as a no embellishments small heave airline charging incredibly small fees. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel spots itself proposing an unforgettable occurrence that livens ups the sagacity, implants happiness, and accomplishes even the constrained aspirations and requirements of our visitors. These and other service companies ascertain their places by the help of long established marketing mix actions. (Rainer & Turban 2006, p.165)

Nonetheless, for the reason that services hold opposing views from substantial artifacts, they frequently have need of supplementary marketing advances. In an artifact business, products are reasonably consistent and can stay on shelves waiting for clientele. Although in a service business, the client and leading edge service worker cooperate to generate the service. Therefore, service providers should act together successfully with clientele to generate bigger significance all through service encounters. Effectual dealings, consecutively, depends on the talents of front line service staff, and on the service fabrication as well as support procedures patronizing these human resources. (Pride & Ferrell 2007, p.211)

Flourishing service companies focus their concentration on both their clientele and their recruits. They value the service-profit series, which connects service firm earnings with worker and purchaser contentment. This succession consists of five associations:

• Inner service excellence: better worker assortment and guidance, a value labor setting, and tough support for those dealing with clientele, which consequences in enhanced services.
• Contented and dynamic service human resources: more pleased, trustworthy, and punctilious staff.
• Superior service significance: more valuable and resourceful patron worth establishment and service delivery.
• Contented and trustworthy clientele: pleased consumers who stay trustworthy, replicate procurement, and submit other clients as well.
• Vigorous service returns and expansion: greater service firm presentation.

As a result, accomplishing service incomes and augmentation objectives initiates with taking care of those who take care of consumers. (Scott 2008, p.122)

All of this proposes that service marketing necessitates more than merely a customary outside promotion by means of the four Ps. The service firm ought to efficiently educate and encourage its customer-contact human resources and all the sustaining service people to effort as a squad to present customer contentment. For the firm to carry constantly high service excellence, marketers should get everybody in the business to put into practice a consumer point of reference. If truth be told, inner marketing should pave the way for outside marketing.

Interactive marketing indicates that service excellence depends a great deal on the worth of the purchaser-vendor communication through the service encounter. In manufactured goods marketing, product quality frequently depends little on how the product is attained. However in services marketing, service excellence depends on the service deliverer and the value of the deliverance equally. Accordingly, services marketers can not take for granted that they will gratify the customer plainly by offering superior technological service. They have to master interactive promotion talents too. (Ziethamal & Bitner 2008, p.12)

At the moment, as antagonism and prices swell, and as efficiency and excellence reduce, more service marketing classiness is required. Service companies counter three most important marketing chores. They desire to boost their competitive demarcation, service value, and production.

In these days of concentrated cost struggle, service marketers repeatedly whine regarding the complicatedness of differentiating their services from those of rivals. To the degree that consumers sight the services of diverse providers as analogous, they concern less regarding the supplier than the cost.

The explanation to cost opposition is to expand a discriminated proffer, delivery, and representation. The proffer can take account of ground breaking characteristics that place one companys tender distant from rivals offers. For instance, airlines have initiated modernizations such as in flight shows, advance sitting room, air to land phone service, and common flyer reward agendas to discriminate their offers. British Airways still proffers worldwide tourists a resting section, hot bathes, and cooked to order breakfasts. (Sernovitz & Kawasaki 2009, p.56)

Service companies can distinguish their service release by having more talented and dependable purchaser contact citizens, by developing greater physical surroundings in which the service product is delivered, or by manipulating a better delivery procedure. For instance, a financial institution might present its clients electronic home banking as an enhanced technique to access banking services.

As a final point, service companies also can effort on discriminating their representations through ciphers and trade marking. For paradigm, the Harris Bank of Chicago implemented the lion as its sign on its stationery, in its promotion, and even as distended creatures proffered to new shareholders. The recognized Harris Lion presents a representation of power on the bank. Other renowned service pictograms comprise The Travelers red umbrella, Merrill Lynchs bull, and Allstates Good Hands.

Perchance the only, most significant marketing strategy that ought to be followed by all service providers for re-positioning. There might be hundreds of special precedence striving for your consideration at any particular instant, but if you overlook marketing then you danger trailing prospective sales, being surpassed by the opposition, and inserting self compelled restrictions on your revenue increase. In a demanding financial system it is more imperative than ever to be identified as a business that offers significance, steadiness, and enormous service. Without some type of standard marketing plan, your presented and forthcoming customers may discover themselves to be unpredict

Introduction

A report on the sweatshops of the UK apparel companies operating their (or vendors) plants in Asia reported in 1998, workers in Bangladesh are forced to work 13-hour shifts, with no time off, for as little as 60 pence a day (BBC News, 13 November 1998). Almost a decade later the BBC run this report. Another report in The Guardian stated similar conditions in the UK retailers plants in Bangladesh with equally deplorable and inhuman conditions and low pay (McVeigh, 16 July 2007). The report states:

When faced with previous allegations that their suppliers are exploiting factory workers, Asda, Tesco and Primark have spoken of their commitment to labour rights. All three have signed up to a code of conduct which sets out basic rights for employees, including that they shall not regularly work more than 48 hours a week, that overtime shall be voluntary and not exceed 12 hours a week, and that a living wage should be paid. But last month, employees of factories supplying clothes to all three retailers told the Guardian that their wages were so low that, despite working up to 84-hour weeks, they struggled to provide for their families. (McVeigh, 16 July 2007)

Such a situation raises serious concern for the compliance of the voluntary code of conduct that the companies have in place. The series of accusations against UK based garment companies like Primark, Asda, Tesco, Mothercare, Marks and Spencers, etc. their continuous violation of international labour standards raises questions regarding the viability and effectiveness of the code of conduct and CSR reports they voluntarily disclose. Thus, questions arise regarding their conduct and the ethical/unethical nature of it.

Aim of research

Ethics refers to a set of rules of conduct or moral code (Abelson & Nielson, 1967, p.81). This definition points at the integral part of ethics in the inherent apparatus of the economic mechanism, to ethical business and corporate conduct, and indirectly to the way of life in the world. Therefore, ethics is an integral part of markets, or seen reversely no market can exist without ethics. However, corporate power can skew the balance of ethical corporate conduct. For this purpose, nongovernmental organizations (NGO) and social movements have attempted to take advantage of the corporate reliance on brand identity and push for clean ethical conduct.

Especially, in the apparel industry, the infamous sweatshop scandal of the 1990s led to the development of laws and regulations, and various forms of code of conduct and internal and vendor auditing system that could verify ethical conduct. Presently the company literature has been flooded with corporate codes of conduct (CoC), labour standards that have started to affect global production, and many conies hire external auditors who could monitor and assess ethical compliance in factories in the US and around the globe.

The increase in a private voluntary initiative to disclose of their ethical conduct and the code they follow in order to ensure ethical conduct in the name of corporate social responsibility (CSR). However, a pertinent question that remains is if the regulatory tools adopted by private organizations intersect with government regulations and accountability of the public. Does the code of conduct presented by the private organizations justify legal and social responsibility of organizations? Does ensuring of code of ethical conduct by private organizations ensure improved labour conditions and ensure ethical conduct?

Is it correct on part of the retailers to indulge in unethical conduct when they pledge to be ethically compliant in their CSR reports? Conversely, it is wrong on part of the retailers to promote business practices that contribute to continuous downward spiral working conditions and pay for employees working in factories of their vendors. However, most of the big garment retailers in the UK have a code of conduct written in paper, but their implementation is restricted and ambiguous. Therefore, the necessity to understand the true nature of the public disclosure of the code of conduct by organizations and CSR reports of companies in order to understand the true effectiveness of the voluntary disclosure programs?

Rationale of research

Apparel industry around the globe is highly competitive and the recurrent need to slash prices and meet ever-increasing consumer demand, keeping the product line fresh, shorten the lead-time, and maximize shareholder return has become the oxygen for the retailers in the UK and around the globe. Thus, the need for the fast-changing industry falls on the employees who are responsible for cutting, packing, and sewing the garment. Although many companies have subscribed to CSR and code of conduct regulations by regulatory institutions and conduct social compliance audit both internally and of their external vendors, they fail to implement these rules and still adhere to exploitative labour practices. The equation seems to be simple for the high streets apparel companies who provide low priced clothes at the cost of low wages.

In the UK the appeal industry is highly competitive with the market leaders like Marks and Spencers, Sears, The Burton Group, etc. enjoying the lions share in the market. Therefore, unethical behaviour on part of the retailers has become the code of conduct for the retailers who strive to remain competitive in an ever-demanding and ever-changing consumer market. A recent report stated that GAP the US-based apparel manufacturers has instructed its London based European fashion section to enforce a cost-cutting drive (Jamieson, 10 August 2008). Further, with the recent recession, most UK based retailers like Marks and Spencers (Potter, 3 August 2010) have taken to cost-cutting measures.

Therefore, the recent recession has made many companies indulge in cost-cutting measures that invariably put greater pressure on the initial stage of the supply chain. A study related to the ethical conduct of the UK apparel industry is imported as no substantial study has been conducted on the UK apparel industry and its ethical conduct even though many have attempted such study on US manufacturers and transnational organizations (Kolk & Tulder, 2005 ). Further, a content analysis of the CSR reports and code of conduct of the UK apparel companies would enable to analyse their compliance to international and national standards of ethical conduct and their effectiveness in implementing the same. This research will be of importance to both the corporate, public, government, and NGOs as this would provide the effectiveness of the ethical conduct of the companies.

With the effects of globalisation, outsourcing of many parts of the production chain has increased dramatically. Stakeholders are not only found in the country where the company is based but are now very frequently based abroad, mostly in the southern hemisphere. Corporations have an obligation towards their stakeholders, but what happens when the suppliers are in developing countries where the regulation, standards, habits, etc are not the same as in the western world? What is the corporations responsibility? To abide by the local regulation and standards and follow the local customs, even though theyre not ethical.

With increasing global pressure from the customers for newer fashion and better quality products, retailers put increasing pressure on manufacturers to deliver more goods at lower lead-time. Therefore, a very high degree of pressure is put on the lower level of the supply chain. Due to the high demand from the consumers, the retailers are changing their fashion every month, thus increasing pressure on them which means they are now purchasing cheap statement garments that they will only wear for a few weeks before moving on to the next trend. Therefore, high street brands are forced to source at exorbitantly low prices. In this rush towards lower and cheaper products, how can they recon ciliate their ethical imperatives? Are ethics and fashion compatible?

The high demand for low-cost fashion products evolves the need to study the companys strategies towards ethical trade, whether it is a mere response to the stakeholders or if their practices are genuine, and what is the level of ethics implemented in the industry. This paper therefore compares different reports and strategies of a range of companies in the industry. This research is also relevant to understand in business ethics in the garment industry is genuine or a mere response to the pressure groups and the stakeholders.

Research Questions

Most companies now intent to have high sourcing standards, as they know that bad practices would mean consumers rejecting the brand for another more ethical one. They therefore have a higher incentive to report about their CSR practices and make the reports available for a wider audience rather than just the internal stakeholders of the company. One of the main problems of the garment industry is that companies objective is to make higher profits by keeping the cost as low as possible. In these conditions, how do they manage to conciliate their commercial imperatives with their ethical promises? The main objective of the study is to ascertain the importance of ethical trade in their CSR reports, whether it is a core aspect of their business or not. In this effect, this paper attempts to analyse the content of the CSR reports and voluntary code of conduct disclosure of organizations in order to ascertain the following questions 

• Are such voluntary disclosure of code of conduct and CSR prevalent in the UK apparel industry?
• Does the disclosure vary with the size of the company and its target market?
• What are the differences observable in the modus operandi used for ensuring these codes?
• What the areas of code of conduct that are covered in the reports and the uniformity and diversity in their content?

Literature review

Introduction

CSR has evolved as an important instrument for apparel industry across the world. The reason for the increased importance of CR policy is due to the shift of the garment industry from the manufacturers to the brands and retailers that are designed primarily to trade the goods produced by others. This process has been termed by one company as global flagship network wherein their brand as flag and controlling a global fleet of suppliers (Merk, 2009, p.600). Thus, the suppliers or vendors functioning in low-wage cost countries perform the routine processes of the supply chain. This process enables multinational companies to enter the huge labour reserves like India, China, and Bangladesh and not enter into legal contractual relation with the workers.

As Merk points out these corporations have disassociated themselves from strategic control over labour-intensive production and large workforces, despite maintaining operational control over production processes through the processes of conceptualisation, design, quality control, etc. (Merk, 2009, pp.600-01) Therefore, literature evidently demonstrates that there has been a rise of the voluntary code of conduct for the apparel industry in the 1990s and it mainly aimed to regulate comply to the international regulations of the. The increase in the number of voluntary compliance codes has been observed in the apparel industry globally. With increased pressure from multiple stakeholders, companies started reporting their various activities regarding their CSR practices and about different activities in their supply chain. This literature review will deal with two main segments i.e. ethics in the garment industry, especially in the UK and the researches on voluntary disclosure in form of CSR or CoC.

Definition and Types of Code of Conduct

International code of conduct comprises of a set of rules and guidelines related to the society that details the behaviour of the corporate and helps them to enhance their corporate responsibility. Therefore the definition of code of conduct is International responsibility codes encompass guidelines, recommendations or rules issued by entities within society (adopting body or actor) with the intent to affect the behaviour of (international) business entities (target) within society in order to enhance corporate responsibility. (Kolk & Tulder, 2005, p.3)

According to this definition, the body that adopts the code can be anybody that works within the societal sphere. In case of corporate code of conduct, the companies are free to design their own code of conduct, adhering to the basic tenets of the internationally established code. Further, the codes that are formulated by companies are meant to influence other societal entities like the regulators, customers, suppliers, vendors, contractors, etc. therefore, as pointed out by Kolk & Tulder codes may serve other purposes than social responsibility as such is relevant when analyzing their properties and substance (2005, p.3).

Many NGOs and interest groups use codes of conduct as a tool to enhance corporate social responsibility in for-profit companies. Corporate today often use this tool as an opportunity for new market development, reducing risk, and/or increasing control over business partners. These codes allow companies to develop self-regulating norms to establish the competitive advantage for themselves. Therefore, these code of conduct voluntarily developed are used to develop mandatory regulations.

Stakeholder theory

The stakeholder theory is a key concept of CSR reporting. In the past, companies were only responsible towards their shareholders, the latter were engaging their capitals in the business, and therefore had to expect dividends. Managers were working on behalf of the shareholders, and their main role was to maximise the profit of the company. With time, the financial bottom line as main purpose of the company changed towards a notion of triple bottom line, where the social and environmental sides were as important as the economical aspect. (Murray, 2008) Businesses had to empower the stakeholders in order for them to understand what ethical constructs should be included. Therefore, businesses have a responsibility not only towards their shareholders, but also towards their employees, their suppliers, NGOs, the government and the community where they operate. Freeman introduced the notion of stakeholder theory (Freeman, 1984) and puts the stakeholders at the centre of a companys management strategies: managers must act in the interests of the stakeholders of their organisation. There is today a pressure from customers and society to invest in the community and the environment.

The main objective of CSR is to build trust in the stakeholder network, and to create a value in partnership with the key stakeholders. (Enquist & Johnson, 2006) Companies are given a licence to operate (Donaldson, 2001) which means they will require the approval of the stakeholders to run their business in an effective way. In the traditional way, a company gains its licence to operate by abiding by the rules and obligations, but the concept has been extended to the demand of social actors, and it now goes beyond the legal obligations of the company towards social and environmental obligations. Public values have changed, and now include actions towards working with the community for the well being and the advancement of the society. As Zinkin points out, a multinational can re-building its licence to operate by basing its business on mutual agreement, and having an interactive relationship with the different actors they have to deal with. (Zinkin, 2004)

Also, if companies dont act ethically, they risk losing their licence to operate and be seen as practising an egotistical business. They will then be seen by the stakeholders as enemies, when they want to be seen as partners. Consumers in the western world feel more and more responsible towards the people who produce the products theyre buying , and expect the company not only to provide them with products, but to make sure that these products are sourced in an ethical way. They dont want western companies to take advantage of poorer nations. CSR can be seen as a response to the excess of globalisation (Murray, 2008), and a way for other populations to benefit from globalisation and the wealth it can bring. As Zadek (Zadek, 1998)points out, the consuming public is an important stakeholder group whose ethical views may encourage companies to rethink their approach to business.

Businesses have a responsibility to all their stakeholders, and therefore, need to make sure all stakeholders are treated in a way that is approved by all and will benefit all. This is the reason why garment retailers need to assure that good working conditions are provided in the factories where they source their products from, and that poor nations are not being taken advantage of. As Jones (Jones, 1995) pointed out, ethical principles can bring a significant competitive advantage to a company provided that the principles are shared with the stakeholders.

Legitimacy theory

From a CSR point of view, a company can only exist if its core values are aligned with the core values of the society in which it operates (Murray, 2008) Therefore, corporations have to present their business as legitimate to the society (Deegan, 2000) In this context, companies have an obligation to disclose on their ethical and responsible actions. Companies want to get the implicite approval of the society on their actions and behaviour (Murray, 2008) and the only way they can get the aporoval is by disclosing the information about the corporations. Most large garment company now disclose their CSR practices and ethical trade initiatives either on their annual report, or on a separate CSR report, as we will see further in our research. The more attention a sector would get, such as the garment industry got in the 90s , the more information the companies will be willing to disclose. (Toms, 2000)

Ethics in the garment industry

Various studies have studied the content communication and compliance of the companies for CR (Stigzelius & Mark-Herbert, 2009). As there has been a shift of the apparel industry from the hands of the manufacturers to the brands and retailers, companies have developed chain of production houses under their banner in different parts of the globe. The routine works of the supply chain were outsourced to the vendors (or plants) in countries where labour is cheaper as in India or Bangladesh. As has been mentioned by Merk more routine tasks of production are now being performed by suppliers operating in low-wage countries (2009, p.600).

Therefore, it must be noted that in case of apparel industry, this means that manufacturers must internalise the risks the branded companies and retailers seek to externalize (Merk, 2009, p.601). In other words, tasks like recruiting can be outsourced in order to gain cost advantage, whereas not loosing onto the vital part of the marketing of the product. Therefore, this new mode of doing business has helped many companies to grow in size, but they had to divulge a lot of information, which earlier was considered to be confidential in order to retain a transparent supply chain.

The stress on ethics in trade was a phenomenon that emerged in the 1990s and referred to superior labour standards for workers in the supply chain in developing countries (Kolk & Tulder, 2005 ). However, many scholars believe that environmental consciousness of the corporate should be included in CSR of the companies. The first aim of the companies is to comply with the national and international codes of ethical conduct (Zadek, 2004). Zadek points out how companies opt for civil living wherein they transgress to become more socially responsible. Therefore, the corporations decide to trade in an ethical manner, the action of the companies becomes more affirmative, they have to help protect the people theyre doing business with, and provide assistance to improve their conditions. In the garment industry, the retailers dont normally own the factories from which they source their products, so the working conditions in place in the factory shouldnt be of their responsibility, but rather of the local government and the factories management. However, since the high mediatisation over sweatshops and child labour in the 1990s, a lot of pressure was put on the multinational companies to react on these problems.

The beginning of the ethical concern for corporations started with the extreme exploitation of the athletic footwear industry in the early 1990s that ignited the anti sweatshop movement began that aimed to safeguard the labours and working conditions in outsourced plants in underdeveloped or developing countries (Merk, 2009). Apparel companies like Gap and H&M became the targets of such campaigns. Merk points out that there were Numerous reports, scandals and campaigns have revealed repeated violations of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) core conventions (2009, p.604).

The main issues that were pointed out in the anti sweatshop campaigns were that of substandard labour conditions. This movement made the companies to comply with various national and international regulations and adopt codes of conduct. The main ethical issues found in the foreign supply chain in the garment industry are mainly labour and human rights issues such as child labour, prison, slave labour, the minimum wages  as often the minimum wages in developing countries is below a pound per day. Merk states, Today, in industries like textiles, clothing and footwear, hundreds of ethical codes have been adopted and corporate social responsibility has turned into a routine management function. (2009, p.605) The apparel companies, presently, have adopted the routine

Neve (2009) studied the garment factories of Tiruppur based on field research. His findings focused on the ethical nature of the corporate governance of the in the South Indian garment factories. His research suggests, The most popular form of private standard initiatives in the Tiruppur garment industry is the company codes of conduct, (Neve, 2009, p.65). The nature of the code of conduct has changed a lot over the years. Neves study demonstrates that in Tilruppur there is a certified standard for maintaining social and ethical health of the factories.

Tiruppur exporters can obtain certification for their garment factories by putting the required social management systems in place and having their units audited by an independent auditing company. Unlike the case of company codes, compliance with certified standards is checked through a third-party auditing process, which is said to enhance the standards credibility and hence, the value of certification itself. In Tiruppur, a branch of the Swiss international certification company Société Générale de Surveillance (SGS) was opened in 1996. Though initially they only undertook product testing and inspection, since 2000 they are also carrying out social audits, and they are now one of Tiruppurs leading accredited auditors for SA 8000, WRAP and other certifica­tions such as Environmental Management Systems (EMS). (Neve, 2009, p.65)

Egels-Zandén & Hyllman studied the transnational corporations (TNCs) and NGOs that were struggling for the clean clothes campaign in Sweden (2006). The paper studied the relationship between NGOs, TNCs, and union. Their study revealed that

& co-ordination relationships between unions and NGOs, particularly high-commitment co-ordination relationships, are likely to result in a broadening of the definition of TNC responsibility, while conflictual relationships, both high and low commitment, result in a narrowing of the definition of TNC responsibility. (Egels-Zandén & Hyllman, 2006, p.314)

The study therefore stressed on increased coordination between the three parties in order to increase ethical conduct and enforce corporate social responsibility.

Other researchers point out that compliance to ethical conduct has become the lifeline for entering a global market network (Nadvi, 2008). Therefore, the research article points out the relationship between the international compliance norms and the corporate governance. The article points out that at convergence on standards, especially on social, labour, and environmental aspects of process standards, which involved complex networks of diverse public and private, local and global actors. (Nadvi, 2008, p.16) Research also suggests that compliance with code of conduct is linked to changes in the working of the organization. In this context, it is important to understand that there has been a rise in the voluntary code of conduct by organizations that have strived to maintain a high degree of ethical conduct for the organizations. Given this increase in the code of conduct for the organizations, it is important to understand the researches that have been conducted in case of content of code of conducts and CSR reports.

CSR reporting

CSR reporting has become a well-developed trend with corporate. Research shows that sustainability reporting in terms of environment, social and economic status has increased considerably in many countries (Kolk, 2004). Studies have demonstrated that the companies belonging to the more polluting sectors have been most active in this regard. (Kolk, 2004, p.53) They can be instrumental/economical reasons  as bad or non-ethical practices might alter their reputation, and provoke boycott from the consumers  this is the main reason why companies in the clothing and retail industry would report on their social performance. The other reasons are political, to integrate demand from the stakeholders and ethical reasons as a response to external pressure.

Simon Zadek is a key author when it comes to CSR reporting. He pointed the following reasons why the companies measure and disclose their social and ethical performance (Zadek, 2004)

• to understand what they are trying to achieve and how best to measure performance against their aims;
• to know what they are doing;
• to understand the implications of what they are doing;
• to understand in what ways if any they can explain their actions to increasingly sceptical and aggressive stakeholders.
• to understand whether there are practical options for improving their social performance in ways that will not harm their business performance, and may in many cases improve it.

As CSR reporting is still voluntary, and not an obligation by law, it can be named in many different ways: Social audit, social responsibility reporting, social audits, ethical audit, etc. (Crane & Matten, 2008). The content of the social report will also defer depending on the type of company, size, type of business. Garment retailers would emphasize on their ethical practices in regards to their supply chain in developed countries. In this industry, they will also make this document available publicly to their stakeholders, whereas in other industries, the report would remain internal. (Zadek, 1998)

CR reporting

Corporate responsibility (CR) has become increasingly important for apparel and sports good industry. As it has been mentioned, CR assumes greater importance for companies that have a labour intensive production process, sell branded consumer products, and the ones that sell high end products by manufacturing them at a cost effective supply chain, as human rights are usually violated (Stigzelius & Mark-Herbert, 2009). One such example of a company that streamlined its CR policy is Nike. As Zadek points out:

In the 1990s, protesters railed against sweatshop conditions at its overseas suppliers made Nike the global poster child for corporate ethical fecklessness&. Nikes model  to market high-end consumer products manufactures in cost efficient supply chains  is no different from that of thousands of other companies&. And the lessons it has learned will help other companies traverse this same ground. (Zadek, 2004, p.1)

In the garment industry, over the last decade, an increasing number of multinational clothing companies have accepted their responsibility to uphold human rights in all the operations in their supply chain. Increasingly attempts have been made to improve the working conditions at the factories have been mentioned in the company CoC and acceptance of global standards in enforcing the national labour laws (Stigzelius & Mark-Herbert, 2009). Therefore, monitoring global suppliers and vendors in relation to national and international laws and internal CoC has become mandatory throughout the global apparel industry in order to enhance and preserve consumer confidence. Various studies have been conducted related to the CR practices of companies and their supply chains. Ethical conduct in the supply chain has assumed paramount importance for both the corporate and consumers and therefore, it requires further understanding of the situations.

The literature review shows that code of conduct ad ethical understanding of the corporate is a concept that evolved three decades earlier. To be sure, this phenomenon has brought forth many areas of the ethical behaviour of the company. Further, corporate conduct was enforced through soft laws by private enforcers in order to make the operations of the transnational corporations more transparent. The researches related to the ethics in apparel industry abundantly discuss the nature of the ethical conduct and the content of the codes. Further, they also indentify plethora of difference between the codes, standards, and norms followed by corporate. Difference in the way code of conduct and ethical conduct is handled is evident from previous content analysis research of the code of conduct. However, there is no research that had seen the similarity or differences in the practical implementation and reporting of the practice through a content analysis of the CSR reports or annual reports of the companies. As voluntary disclosure of the ethical practices has become an unsaid norm in the manufacturing industry.

Methodology

Content of CoC

The main issue areas that are dealt with in the code of conducts of UK apparel companies are environmental concern, labour condition and relation, disclosure of information, competition, taxation, policy regarding bribery and corruption, participation in research and development, consumer right protection, and other miscellaneous issues. Using these issues as the major areas on the basis of which the code of conducts and the CSR reports contents are analysed.

The trend of implementing and disclosing voluntary code of conduct was first attempted in the 1970s when international organizational like International Labour Organization (ILO) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) designed a code of conduct. Simultaneously, governments of both developed and developing countries and social interest groups stressed on the presence of corporate code of conduct in order to ensure ethical performing of transnational companies that were making steady inroads into different countries. However, there was little consensus that had been reached in this respect. Therefore, evolved voluntary code of conduct. For instance, when a company voluntarily adopted the ILO code, the trade unions used the code as an instrument to harass the company. This limited the adoption of such pro-labour code.

The scenario changed in the 1980s, the code of conduct for corporate was biased towards corporate ethics. The prevalence of the debate on code of conduct was based in the US. As pointed out by Kolk & Tulder (2005),

Introduction

Research Background

Fast growth of information technology and concurrently that of the banking services has triggered a great competition in the market. Electronic banking has been effective in transforming the lives of consumers and changing their expectations (Havasi et al, 2013).

The evolution of e- banking relates closely to the neo-classical economic theories of market functioning. It provides complete transparency of the markets enabling the consumers to compare and analyse the different banks. It helps them in making their choices regarding their banking partners.

Turner (2001) asserts that information technology has been an effective factor in cutting down the cost of the processing information. Internet has influenced the core of the banking industry (cited in Nitsure, 2003).

With the rapid increase of e-finance, completely innovated methods of offering financial services like internet banking and other technologies have fused in the financial systems (Rusu and Sehn, 2012).

Technological developments have widened the modes of communication between the clients and the banks. New services like home banking, internet banking, phone banking etc. are being integrated within the banking system (Chovanova, 2006).

The efficiency of the banking transactions has witnessed remarkable upgrading in terms of accuracy, time saving and reduction in operation cost, enhanced customer contentment, attractive services and innovative products and techniques. The innovative technology works in different forms:

Electronic fund transfer within the bank branches and between the worlds banks; use of internet banking service and application; telephone and mobile banking; ATM services; and cards payment system including debit cards, credit cards, smart cards, point of sale cards, and magnetic cards (Sabri, 2008, pg.68).

These services enhance the performance and competence of banking systems in the global economy; however, their applications are not very popular in the Arab economy, as people tend not rely on internet and ATM services. In case of accessibility, only few customers are inclined towards its use.

The reasons may be many: customers ignorance, unawareness of banking management and lack of support, dearth of infrastructure related to software and hardware and security reasons (Sabri, 2008). Few banks are imitating innovation, but they lack in having a personalized association with the customers. Further, the so-called convenient delivery channels have produced a conflicting and incoherent experience for the customers.

It has become necessary to find ways to understand the customers experience to determine the factors leading to positive outcomes and to realize the complexities that have arisen by these new delivery channels in banking.

The chief challenge before the retail banks today, is to be competent enough to make a distinct ranking in the highly productive and competitive market place. The banks need to focus on the varying requirements of the customers depending on their duration of association with the bank, their nationality and preferences related to products and services ( World Retail Bank Report, 2013).

Furthermore, they need to improve the traditional measures of operating in view of the expectations of the customers and their channel preferences. These attempts would enable them to have positive experiences in the desired areas (Sohrabi et al, 2013).

The global CEI index, 2013 observed in their worldwide survey that delivery channels and specifically the mobile channels play a vital role in making the banks distinguishable and magnetic for the new customers and retain the old ones in the competition.

The survey revealed, The mobile channel is currently perceived as less important than traditional channels, but is rapidly gaining in customer usage, as well as in the importance and satisfaction that customers associate with it.

In order to use channels as differentiators, banks need to focus on building capabilities to deliver the right products through the right channels, and to deliver a consistent multi-channel experience to customers (World Retail Banking Report, 2013, p.5).

According to Prahalad and Ramaswamy (2000), there have been abundant researches on the subject of increasing customer inclination towards e-banking in different contexts at the global level, however, the Middle East markets are lagging behind in this respect. Banking institutions are constantly engaged in applying diverse techniques to offer substantial services to their customers, but making these services widespread over the internet stimulates risk.

Wells Fargo bank set an example in this respect when it had to experience unfavourable consequences after enforcing PC-based services on their customers.

The newly introduced PC- based banking system did not yield much success due to customers dissatisfaction and caused a great loss to the bank (as cited in Kassim and Abdullah, 2006).

Hence, it is essential for the banks to provide diverse environments to their customers to increase their active participation in the e-banking processes (Kassim and Abdullah, 2006).

It is vital to consider the generational differences in the process of planning new products. The primary focus of the present day financial market is GEN-Y that lives a vibrant lifestyle upheld with basic financial products like cards, internet and mobile banking, loans etc. Unlike Generation X, they are not keen on investment or retirement products. Therefore, products should be designed according to their personality, mind-set and standard of living (Are Banks Ready for the Next Generation Customer, 2010).

The competition among financial institutions has led them to rethink about their strategies regarding customers satisfaction (AL-Smadi, 2012). In view of the mounting expenses on appropriate infrastructure and declining product margins, the institutions are compelled to make changes in their ways of operating and measuring success (King, 2010).

Almazari & Siam (2008) mention that electronic banking services are such facilities through which banks are constantly trying to offer easy, open and satisfactory services to their customers and remain at the forefront in the competition (as cited in Hamid, 2012).

Research Problem Statement

The present research is based on the context of e-banking services in Qatar, a small country with abundant natural assets. In spite of adopting different measures to generate value for the customer, banks in Qatar have not been able to get the majority of customers oriented towards e-banking. The electronic services are of no use if the customers do not realize the importance and implication of using those services (Jonsson & Hagg, 2009).

Customers disinclination towards e-banking is chiefly due to security and privacy and trust related issues. Hence, it is mandatory for the banks to implement exclusive services to sustain existing customers and magnetize the new ones (Yousafzai et al., 2005).

Electronic Banking services lag behind in their realization in Qatari banking sector in comparison to other global players. Additionally, companies are still looking at electronic banking services as a short-term strategy. Due to unforeseen technical hitches and blocks in e-commerce network at this time, few banks embrace the long-term benefits of investing in electronic banking services.

The need for greater customer satisfaction in the case study bank necessitates more research into the area of electronic banking services. Therefore, this research is focused on finding the reasons that are responsible for keeping the popularity of electronic banking services at a low pace in Qatar.

It would attempt to find the solution with respect to the technology to organize e-banking services, computerize, and bring the sales into line, improve marketing services and customer services, and provide technical support in the e-banking sector.

Aim of research

The main aim of the research is to increase active customer base for electronic banking services in the case study bank by developing proper technological applications and strategic campaigns in their mobile banking platform. It also concentrates on surveying different methods that the best banking institutions are adopting to improve customer satisfaction.

Further, the study focuses on customers perception about e-banking and the quality of e-banking services offered by the banks and the restrains in achieving customers satisfaction. It will help us to enhance our vision towards improvement in the desired areas.

Research Hypothesis

Customers perception and experience about e-banking services works as a deciding factor in increasing the number of its active users in a bank.

Proper technological application and strategic campaign will provide the case study bank with a framework for sustainable electronic banking services.

Significance of the Research

In Qatar, research on electronic banking services is still in its infancy stage. Among fifteen existing banks in Qatar, seven are under Qatari possession, seven are from foreign origin, and one specialized bank is under the possession of Qatar government. Out of these fifteen, the majority of the banks are operating 24-hour and seven days a week.

These banks provide convenience in managing an account with the help of internet, telephone, or ATMs. Consumers are more interested in finding an extensive range of products and efficient channels that are easy to use. The increasing competition demands that these services are offered at comparatively lower costs (Kassim, n.d.).

On the other hand, banks are yet to learn about the different platforms available to them that offer various electronic banking services. This research will assist the case study bank and other banks in the State of Qatar to implement electronic banking services effectively by preparing a framework for their strategies.

It will be a set of best practices prevalent in the top banking institutions regarding e-banking services. The study will also assist banks to know how they can effectively manage their customers data in order to learn extra information about them.

Limitations of the Research

As mentioned earlier, insufficient information exists concerning the electronic banking services in Qatari banking industry.

The present study will not be a magic bullet in the electronic banking service proposal; however, it will only provide structures that must be combined with the values and goals of a bank for enhancing the utilization of e-banking services. Furthermore, the capabilities and resources available to an institution will determine the success of their initiative.

In view of the slow pace of e-banking services acceptance in Qatar and especially in our bank, I feel the need to introduce adequate innovative and productive strategies to facilitate e banking and attract more customers to my bank.

The Dissertation Is Presented in the Following Parts

Introduction: Introduction part provides an overview of the topic and related developments in the field. It also proposes the need for further research and strategic development in e-banking sector in Qatar and the case study bank in particular.

Literature Review: Literature review offers a more comprehensive insight into the subject of e banking. It presents an overview of different researches and studies done in this field and the prevailing trends related to e-banking in Qatar.

Methodology: This chapter presents the details of the study conducted to discover the innovative strategic approaches for increasing e-banking customer base in the case study bank.

Reflection: This chapter reflects how my research has an impact on the customers as well as employees of the bank and how it has affected me personally.

Recommendations: This chapter provides some suggestions that can be used for the appropriate implementation and development of e banking services in the case study bank.

Conclusion: This part of the dissertation summarizes different aspects related to e-banking discussed in the dissertation.

Defining the Terms

E- Banking

E-banking refers to the banking process in which customers can connect to their banking website using their personal computers or browsers. In this system, banks operate with the help of a web supported central database.

The physical identity of the banks branches is taken away once they are linked through satellite links and lead to limitless entity allowing banking at anytime, everywhere in the world and in several manners. Therefore, e-bank is the electronic bank that provides the financial service for the individual client by means of Internet (Vyas, n. d.,Para 3).

Functions of E- banking

The primary functions of e-banking services are as follow:

• Enquiry about the details of account information including balance in the account, detailed chronological credentials
• card accounts transfer in the same city
• fund transfer between personal bank saving account and personal capital account in the securities company
• dealing of foreign exchange and enquiry about the dealing
• B2C communication regarding the payment feedback
• Services like modification in the login password, particulars of the Credit Card and clients information, closing or remove certain cards
• report of losses like Credit Card or passbook in the local area (Vyas, n. d.).

Benefits of E-Banking

Like the other financial sectors, banks are also adapting to information technology to elevate their efficacy, service excellence and draw new customers. According to Al-Sukkar & Hasan(2005), customers are preferring to use online banking since it is cheaper, does not require paper work and is almost error free ( cited in Havasi et al, 2013). Thronton and White assert that e- banking reduces transaction costs and provides a lucid course of processes.

E-banking has benefitted the consumers by offering 24/7 hours accessibility. Increased availability and accessibility to banking through e- banking has reduced the expenses on branch networking and staffing. Different options for channels of distribution will decrease the number of customers visiting banks and thus reducing the crowd in branches (cited in Havasi et al, 2013).

Qatar, like the other developing countries in the Middle East presents a typical portrayal of a socio-economic system that is predominantly influenced by its culture and religion.

The nation is still in the process of learning the use of E-Commerce as a large number of people and businesses are not proficient in using computers and information technology.

A significant number of banks and utility companies have developed their web sites to introduce extensive range of services to their clients (Qatar Investment and Business Guide, 2012).

Challenges in utilizing E-Banking

United Nations report (Conference on Trade and Development, 2002) has recognized some common challenges that the developing countries come across while utilizing the e-banking services. These challenges may pose a threat in achieving the utmost benefits of e-banking services.

Implementation of global technology to local needs

It is essential for the developing countries to build adequate infrastructure and develop human capacity for the satisfactory implementation of a global technology like e banking. The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications review on its migration plan to internet revealed that developing countries lack in sufficient infrastructure for e- banking.

Further, insufficient working capital and lack of technical proficiency is a barrier in carrying out their migration plan related to internet in developing countries. Widely used e-payment system also is not successful in many of the developing nations due to lack of trust on the part of the consumers and corporate and inaccessibility to the required infrastructure for dealing out e-payments.

Public Support for e banking

It is important to fortify public support for the advancement of e-commerce in developing countries. Cooperation between the private and public sectors has contributed to successful e-finance initiatives in the developing countries. Public and private sectors and multilateral organization such as World Bank can make collaborative efforts to foster public support for programme related to e-finance.

Regulatory and institutional framework

For impeding the progress of the e-banking services, it is necessary to establish regulatory frameworks, build trust, safety and privacy standards. It is necessary to build high trade barriers, provide customer and investor protection for successful e-banking initiatives.

Enabling SMEs towards e-banking

To motivate the small and medium scale industries towards e-banking, quality data and banking information should be made easily available and accessible for them (Nitsure, 2003).

Influencing Factors for E-Banking

Technology is a significant aspect of economic development that brings innovative amalgamation of labour and capital. Developing countries do not experience widespread technological growth. The use of technology remains concentrated in urban areas of the country.

The effectiveness of substitute delivery channels depends on the availability of options to clients. In case of inconvenience experienced in the bank branches, they may look for alternate delivery channels. The complexity of the financial system also affects the use of complementary delivery conduits.

For instance, clients may look for online banking or mobile banking for basic payment services or simple fund transfer, whereas they may not rely on these for complex services like applying for mortgage or seeking life insurance and go for branch-based services in such cases.

Moreover, demographic features relating to financial and technical literacy also influence the clients approval to e-banking. Customer behaviour related to a particular market function affects product plan, deliverance and consumer support. With e-banking clients may need orientation and a variety of customer service alternatives like call centers, ATM attendants at busy sites and retail agents.

Customer education is a significant pre-requisite for establishing e banking. It is important to adopt special measures like, trained attendants for ATMs and call centres with ample staff, while introducing such novel technologies in the areas where literacy levels are low.

These efforts would assist the clients in learning the procedures, provide encouraging preliminary experience, and instil faith in the innovative approach making them self-sufficient for upcoming transaction.

Apposite national regulations and financial infrastructure is mandatory for the success of e- banking. International experiences may be useful while constituting national regulations. National authorities and private sectors should cautiously implement these regulations.

E- Banking creates many legal and policy related doubts that require easy and quick explanation. E- Banking and e-money easily surpasses the national borders, hence, crucial issues related to international cooperation on standards, security and monitoring require consideration.

Emerging problems like criminal abuse of pre-paid cards, risk of money laundering and terrorist financing also need to be handled (Isren, 2008).

Literature Review

In this section of the study, an examination of the relevant histories, strategies, methods of customer engagement and other related topics will be examined in order to create a better idea regarding what potential strategies have been implemented and how they can be improved upon in order to create a better method of consumer engagement.

It is based on this that various literary sources delving into the differences in the adoption of financial tools and resources by various consumer demographics (i.e. Gen Y, Gen X, Millennial, etc.) will be examined to determine how different types of consumers respond to the assortment of strategies implemented by banks to encourage spending, deposits and electronic methods of transaction.

As such, this section should be able to clarify such concerns and will act as the framework behind understanding how particular types of banking instruments will be adopted by a diverse array of possible consumers.

The early 1990s witnessed significant financial reforms leading to the development of a strong and efficient financial industry. Banks realized that Information technology was an ideal tool to upgrade their customer services. Technology presented various delivery channels to facilitate the consumer with lots of options. To influence the consumer behaviour, banks need to be aware of their customers outlook towards technology in common.

Stranberg et al (2012) asserts that globalization and developments in the realm of information technology have intensified interbank competition (as cited in Mircholi et al, 2013). According to Abdullah et al (2011), banks are forced to offer eminent services to their customers for attaining success and stability in the competitive environment (as cited in Mircholi et al, 2013).

In view of the inevitability of higher customer satisfaction, there has been an urgency to study the correlation between service quality, satisfaction, and behavioural outcomes in past few years (Yavas et al, as cited in Mircholi et al, 2013).

With the increased complexities of market trends and the changed competitive environment, banking institutions need to focus on the customers needs and develop strategies that would provide them simple and convenient, time saving and comprehensive banking procedures.

It is also helpful to refer to the strategies taken up by other industries in the same field and their repercussions (Catalysts for Change: The Implications of Gen Y Consumers for Banks 2008).

Banks have been using mobile banking software for 2-3 generations. Initially, the services were based on the online banking systems of the banks, however, now all banking services are available through mobile such as enrolment in mobile banking through phone or tablet. Mobile banking has emerged as a global business (Groenfeldt, 2014).

Information and communication technology has paved the way for electronic media, internet and mobile phones in almost every aspect of our lives. Mobile phones were thought to be luxurious items, solely utilized by the people of developed and wealthy nations of the world, until a few decades ago.

However, today it is accessible to the people living even in the remote areas of Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia. Moreover, cell phones today are performing multiple tasks beyond phone calls and text messaging.

Along with internet access and social networking uses, mobile phones are being used for banking purposes providing a new dimension to information and communication technology. These are also providing new capabilities to the people with respect to the financial transactions and other services (Graham & Nikolova, 2012).

Expansion of M-Pesa in Africa exemplifies the innovation in this field. In Kenya, the use of M-Pesa has reached up to 70 percent. It is also gaining grounds in many other countries including Tanzania, Egypt, South Africa and Qatar. Mobile apparatus are considered a better option to substitute payment cards.

According to Bloomberg Business week, Chinese savers can easily manage transaction of funds from a bank account to the money market mutual fund using their Smartphone. The Hana Bank in Korea, in this regard, takes another initiative by replacing the paperwork for various loans with Smartphone. Hana Bank claims that it credited $4 billion through mobile banking without making the applicants visit the banks (Groenfeldt, 2014).

According to Philip Lu, (vice president, Knowledge Management Centre of Market Research and Management, Well Fargo) the mobile device will be the basis for raising a banking connection with the Generation Y. Gen Y are most occupied with mobile banking.

Hence, it is important to develop a mobile strategy enabling them to have different options for paying with the smart phone such as making payments by text, through the browser and the mobile app and at the time of sale. For the successful implementation of the mobile device, it is essential that the mobile user experience is modified as per the quality of the mobile device (Smartphone or a tablet).

It is necessary to make these services easily available so as meet the expectations of the Generation Y. Most importantly, banks require incorporating the solutions and products into wallet-based solutions. He says that the Gen Y are concerned about their finance and eager to use the PFM tools. Banks are also required to tap into social media networks to be associated with Gen Y customers (Camhi, 2014).

Gen Y is becoming the focus of several banks, as it is emerging as a prosperous and strong customer segment. According to Javelin Strategy and Research, the group has more than 70 million members, second in population only to the 80 million Baby Boomers, and boasts a collective income of approximately $1.89 trillion (n.g. 2008, pg.3).

Hence, it is important to maintain a positive and long lasting bond with this group. It is essential to review the strategies relative to dimensions of channels, products and marketing while focusing on the demands of this vital segment of customers.

These strategies would require a comprehensive knowledge of the values that influence the requirements and preferences of these consumers (Catalysts for Change: The Implications of Gen Y Consumers for Banks, 2008).

The financial institutions need to utilize a fundamentally innovative strategic approach to meet the distinguishing needs of the Gen Y consumers. The Gen Y is surpassing the older generation in terms of online banking convenience, confrontation with the conventional marketing and environment related considerations. Hence, it is important to visualize their requirements in view of larger market benefits.

One example of a remarkable strategy for the development and marketing of services is set by ING Direct. Simple and practical approach is required while aligning products with Gen Y. These products should be less complicated and easy to practice.

The overall product strategy will catch the attention of the Gen Y, if it exhibits commitment towards the benefits of the broader society. Gen Y is more attracted towards the products that signify social benefit. Banks require having the expertise in making the simpler things more distinctive and stimulating.

Joining the bank products and services in other industries together such as entertainment or retailing would enhance the banking experience of the users. The Robo bank in Netherlands presents an appropriate example of such banking initiative. The bank started the MiniTix scheme, which enabled consumers to pay through their mobiles for online TV content. It enabled the users to pay by SMS or mobile Internet for online and TV content.

It also offered scenario for monetization of the growing retailing prospects through Internet. Such facilities attract the younger generation or Gen Y- Robo bank has worked innovatively in this connection and is incorporating different experiments in various fields for payments such as supermarket, cinema ticketing, and school fee frequently.

This initiative is a fine example of the product development under controlled experimentation and suggests usefulness for Gen Y. Robo bank is the pioneer in combing mobile banking with striking calling charges in Europe that enables the users to have unlimited access to mobile internet for a fixed price.

Robo bank has targeted Gen Y, hoping to differentiate itself from its competitors, with its simple to use, affordable and practical mobile banking services and an operating model that supports the product approach (Catalysts for Change: The Implications of Gen Y Consumers for Banks, 2008, pg.14).

However, the banks strategy for attracting the Gen Y customers also visualizes the increase in the overall number of customers across all generations (Catalysts for Change: The Implications of Gen Y Consumers for Banks, 2008).

According to a research conducted by the Forresters research Gen Y is very prompt in switching the banks. Hence, it is wiser on the part of the banks to offer them personalized services like opening accounts online or on mobile and funds transfer online as they spend so much of time online.

Gen-Y is ready to pay premium for services that are available round the clock, anywhere, easy to access and quick to use (Are Banks Ready for the next generation customers, 2010, p.17). Hence, it is crucial for the banks to adopt and implement the most up-to-date technologies and improve their performance for greater customer satisfaction.

Keeping in mind the status of their consumers as multi channel users, banks should focus on creating integrated experience across channels. Banks need to produce appealing offers to magnetize Gen -Y for making them visit the branch.

The idea of applying for premiums online and distributing in the same manner would provide convenience to the consumers. Moreover, the consumers are enabled to confirm the premium data on their mobiles. These advantages attained t

Introduction

The advent of information technology has opened new avenues for business enterprises to reach out to their target audiences. Today, digital marketing has become part of every business firm, regardless of the industry. The predominant importance played by digital marketing has a direct impact on how businesses operate. With a contribution of 10% of the global GDP, the tourism and hospitality industry is often the largest in the world (Goldfarb and Tucker, 2019). However, in 2020, the tourism and hospitality industry was drastically disrupted by the outbreak of COVID-19, which forced hotels, restaurants, airlines, and cruise companies to close. It is also worth noting that the industry has attracted several players, hence stiff competition. To carve a niche over the rest is essential for organizations within the industry to carry out aggressive marketing campaigns.

The success of a television commercial for Bulova watches in 1944 inspired many businesses to embrace marketing as an essential tool for business operations. The subsequent two decades witnessed the expansion of marketing initiatives and the emergence of full-time advertising agencies. Organizations could now spend as much as 15% of the total revenues on marketing (Gupta, 2018). By the 1970s, it was apparent that customers had various choices, which necessitated firms to ensure that their products matched their target customers; specific needs. Hence, many enterprises made customer satisfaction and service quality part of the organizational strategy. In addition, companies developed marketing departments within their operations to handle the issue. Advertising agencies that entirely devoted their time to doing marketing campaigns on behalf of businesses came into being as well.

Research Purpose and Objectives

Before proceeding with the research, it is necessary to determine the philosophical approach to conducting the research. Hence, critically, positivism becomes the most effective, which is aimed at focusing on productive results. At the same time, it is important to consider realism, the value of which consists in the expectation of plausible results from the study. Researchers can gain a broader understanding of the problem through the research paradigm. This academic paper is based on the notion that despite the negative impact of the pandemic, the tourism industry is rapidly gaining strength and developing.

The tourism and hospitality industry has been one of the worst-hit by the novel coronavirus pandemic that struck the world in early 2020. To recover from the damages and losses caused by the pandemic, players in the industry have devised various strategies to win back their traditional customers. Coincidentally, online business approaches became the most preferred during the pandemic. Hence, as businesses are smarting themselves from the adversities of COVID-19, it is essential to highlight how they leverage digital marketing platforms to carve out an edge over their competitors.

The main purpose of the research proposal is to assess the effectiveness of the implementation of digital marketing in the tourism and hospitality industry on customer satisfaction. The valuable role of research in the management and growth of tourism and hospitality organizations is to help players in the industry gain relevant information about the significance of social media marketing and how it will boost their businesses. The leading objective of the work is to study the literature and gather necessary information about digital methods in the tourism industry. In addition, Appendix A shows the project plan that was made using the Gantt chart, which includes the stages of the research.

Literature Review

Introduction

Against the increasing role that social and digital media play in the tourism and hospitality industry, several scholars have attempted to delve into the matter in-depth, particularly regarding data strategy. Within the framework of realistic research paradigms, it is worth noting that in the field of tourism and hospitality management, scientific works could not fully cover some important aspects. Hence, from a range of research paradigms the existing studies and their methodological approaches to research have not yet fully explored the in-depth relationship that exists between social media marketing and customer satisfaction in this industry (Desai, 2019). The existing academic works on the subject tend to primarily focus on the modalities of infusing social media campaigns into the businesss operations.

Several studies have made sense of the significance of digital marketing to the entire spectrum of the tourism and hospitality industry. According to Damnjanovi et al. (2021), tourism and hospitality are often confused as the same thing. However, while tourism is the umbrella term that defines all the activities that create a tourist experience, hospitality, on the other hand, refers to the business of assisting people to feel relaxed and comfortable as they enjoy themselves. Over time, tourism and hospitality have evolved into something many enjoy, contrary to an experience only reserved for a handful of people. Historically, traveling as a tourism event was reserved exclusively for the upper class and the royalty.

During the Middle Ages, several societies encouraged their members to participate in religious pilgrimages. For instance, in the Islamic faith, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca or Hajj has made travel a default activity for every Muslim worldwide. Tourism and hospitality made a significant milestone when rail travel began to gain popularity in the 19th century (Piñeiro-Otero and Martínez-Rolán, 2017). However, it was not until 1952 that air travel became synonymous with the tourism and hospitality industry (Piñeiro-Otero and Martínez-Rolán, 2017). Modern-day tourism is attributed to the introduction of commercial flights.

About 4 billion people use at least one social media platform regularly. Therefore, it is incumbent upon business leaders and managers to familiarize themselves with the intricacies of digital marketing. Some pundits have even argued that the traditional marketing platforms will disappear sooner rather than later as digital spaces continue to expand. According to Piñeiro-Otero and Martínez-Rolán (2017), digital marketing has numerous advantages that will combine to edge out traditional platforms. First, thanks to digital platforms, an organization can manage to reach out to a large audience in minimal and shorter periods (Bala and Verma, 2018). This can be done through mail, websites, and social media platforms (Figure 2). This adds to the reasons why digital marketing is cheaper as compared to traditional media. The attractiveness of digital marketing is further exacerbated by the popularity of smartphones, computers, and tablets among consumers.

Many people find it difficult to imagine a world without the internet and digital marketing. However, over the past thirty years, the growth in digital marketing has been forced to keep up with the rise in technological advancements (Sharma et al., 2020). Whereas the era of sales had seen the invention of the telephone, the rapid rise of television marked another crucial milestone in advertisement and marketing. Nonetheless, the most significant change in marketing history was realized when the internet and digital platforms became a reality.

The Economic Impact of Tourism and Hospitality

Throughout history, tourism and hospitality growth has been severely interrupted. Some of the major interruptions of the industry include the First and the Second World Wars, the September 11, 2001 tourist attack, and the Great Depression. The latest interruption is the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had severe effects (Figure 1). These adverse global events drastically interfere with international travel (Albattat, 2020). Tourism is a significant economic activity that has the potential to generate positive impacts. In 2018, just before COVID-19, there were more than 1.4 billion international travelers, representing an increase of 5% from the previous year (Goldfarb and Tucker, 2019). The sheer growth of the industry is an illustration of how strong the global economy has emerged. Therefore, the economic impacts associated with tourism and hospitality make the industry quite important.

Digital tourism marketing can be traced back to the advent of the internet. Todays modern digital marketing was initially carried through Web 1.0, which allowed companies to create read-only web pages (Pacelt, 2021). These pages contained content that customers could only read and nothing more. Platforms such as these did not offer many contributions to tourism and hospitality marketing since the availability of information was only one-sided (Parvez et al., 2018). The beginning of the internet as it is today was realized in 1999 with the creation of Web 2.0 (Pacelt, 2021). This dynamic and active tool created by Darcy DiNucci allowed communication to be executed on two sides. This way, users were able to interact with each other. The most outstanding benefit of this kind of communication is that it provides a platform for users to post views and share their experiences. Thanks to this innovation, the digitalization of tourism and hospitality marketing emerged.

As technology advances, Web 2.0 has metamorphosed into Web 3.0, characterized by increased speed and the availability of multiple online applications in addition to creating user-generated content. From this brief history, it is thus safe to conclude that digital marketing is an ever-evolving phenomenon that keeps changing daily. Therefore, according to Piñeiro-Otero and Martínez-Rolán (2017), digital marketing is best executed through social media, which comes in different types (Hristoforova et al., 2019). These include content communities, virtual games, collaborative projects, social network sites, and virtual communities. Regarding tourism and hospitality, Albattat (2020) argues that collaborative projects offer facts, statistics, and general information about the destination. This implies that digital media plays a crucial role in different tourism and hospitality perspectives, particularly when it comes to decision-making, promotion, and information search.

Trends, Behaviors, and Preferences in Tourism and Hospitality

From the analysis of the historical developments and trends of the Internet, it is apparent that consumer experiences and behaviors have drastically changed over time. Todays tourists are more demanding and expect more from their hosts compared to the past. Hence, one of the most innovative ways to approach this is to seek a more personalized strategy to deal with them (Tsourgiannis and Valsamidis, 2019). According to Damnjanovi et al. (2021), service providers must accurately gather and analyze relevant customer information and act on them appropriately to meet these tourists expectations. Indeed, it is not enough to only gather information since various stages of tourism and hospitality should be assessed individually (Kapoor and Kapoor, 2021). The current data collection stages involve before, during, and after the phase of travel. If data collected in all three stages are analyzed, an organization can create a complete image of a client, albeit virtually.

A tourist hotel would, thus, have a database of the expectations, travel behaviors, and needs of a particular customer. This tallies with Tsourgiannis and Valsamidiss (2019) arguments that social media is primarily used for information gathering on the part of the tourism and hospitality industry players. However, social media helps the customer avoid bad hotels and destinations, seek advice before booking, and compare different alternatives. Incidentally, this kind of information will only be available to customers if organizations aggressively market their tourism and hospitality products digitally.

Customer Satisfaction as a Factor in Digital Marketing in Tourism and Hospitality

When it comes to tourism and hospitality, one of the most significant decision-making process determinants is the satisfaction of customers. Tsourgiannis and Valsamidis (2019) argue that when customers are satisfied, they are more likely to share their positive experiences through various online platforms by posting their reviews, which both family and friends will see. Incidentally, it is more likely that a satisfied customer will recommend a particular destination to others (Gupta, 2018). In the views of Albattat (2020), a delighted customer remain loyal to the organization. On the other hand, a low satisfied customer would not wish to recommend a destination to his or her friends and family members. In addition, satisfied customers are more likely to purchase additional services from an entity as compared to unsatisfied customers.

One of the primary reasons why tourism and hospitality organizations are increasingly presenting their products and services online is to trigger communication with their customers and sell more and reduce interaction costs with clients. With the growth of information technology, the entire tourism and hospitality industry is changing (Damnjanovi et al., 2021). Incidentally, the methods through which tourism and hospitality products and services are delivered and communicated to customers around the globe have been affected by these changes (Figure 3). The internet has proven to be a cheaper method of communication over the years.

Over time, traditional travel agencies have substantially been replaced by online travel services. This is because the latter offer updated and detailed information about the desired tourism and hospitality services and destinations. Moreover, it also sets no restrictions or boundaries for potential customers (Singh & Munjal, 2021). Furthermore, digital marketing allows customers to enjoy the advantage of additional services such as renting a car (Alghizzawi, 2019). Thus, with digital marketing, tourism and hospitality organizations allow customers to access detailed information about their products and services. It also offers multiple payment options, more outstanding assistance, and instant delivery.

Clients who are used to relying on traditional ways to gather relevant information about tourism and hospitality products and services would definitely find digital marketing tools more beneficial. In addition, digital marketing leaves minimal chances of misinterpretation. This means that digital marketing tools make customers less likely to be misled. For tourism and hospitality organizations, digital marketing is not limited to fixed office hours (Khmiadashvili, 2019). It can be done throughout the day and at night. Hence, it is a better platform to reach out to clients all over the world.

Factors Affecting the Implementation of Digital Marketing in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry

In tourism and hospitality, strategies for marketing are informed mainly by the need to satisfy customers by ensuring they experience comfort. Tourism facilities can be divided into three groups- principal tourism superstructures, tourism complimentary means as well as supporting tourism superstructures (Pelsmacker et al., 2018). The main tourism superstructure category includes tourist transport companies, restaurants and hotels, travel agencies, tour operators, and attractions. These are complemented by supplementary tourism superstructures that enhance tourists comfort.

Companies that provide recreational activities to tourists are included in this category. Others include destination and recreational facilities and public infrastructure facilities such as roads, water, and airports. The primary aim of these facilities is to enhance or improve a tourists stay across different destinations. Meanwhile, supporting tourism superstructures include mailing services, nightlife, souvenir shops, and entertainment. They ensure that tourists stay at their destinations comfortably (Liu et al., 2022). The ability of an enterprise to provide these services will determine whether visitors will flock to an establishment or not. Incidentally, these products and services can be broadcasted through social media sites.

In the opinion of Semerádová and Nme
kováVávrová (2017), the adoption of the most appropriate marketing tools and strategies in the tourism and hospitality industry play a pivotal role in revenue maximization. It is also significant in managing the companys reputation and building strong brand awareness. However, players in this industry should be aware of the industrys volatility, especially in the wake of the devastating COVID-19 pandemic that almost paralyzed the entire global economy (Mkwizu, 2020). There are several ways through which an organization can market its tourism products and services within the industry. It is incumbent upon an organization to diligently choose a strategy that would best work for it. The most important factors to consider are whether the selected strategies promote the business venture, attract more customers, generate awareness of the brand, and give the business a competitive edge (Kannan and Li, 2017). Many present-day marketing strategies in the tourism and hospitality industry are centered on the use of the internet, online advertisements, and social media platforms.

There is no doubt that tourism and hospitality are one of the largest industries in the world. It also follows that this is a highly competitive industry. Therefore, organizations operating within the tourism and hospitality industry must devise ways that make them stand out among their rivals in their pursuit to promote themselves as the most desired options for tourists (Semerádová and Nme
kováVávrová, 2017). Thus, businesses must strive to highlight the specific things or areas that make them different from their rivals. Incidentally, this can be effectively achieved through designing appropriate marketing strategies. Digital marketing has been identified as one of the most effective approaches to attaining this goal.

Consumer Behavior in Tourism and Hospitality

According to Sawicki (2017), customers in tourism and hospitality use their senses to hear, touch, see, and smell to comprehend messages conveyed by business enterprises. This means that it is customary for customers to decide the appropriateness of a product or a service based on perception rather than the actual acts; argue that several factors are responsible for determining the choices made by consumers (Sawicki, 2017). Such factors can as well be personal and mirror the wants, previous experiences, motivations, personal lifestyle, and needs of the consumer. They include interpersonal factors like social class, opinion leaders, culture, and family.

Social media marketing has emerged as one of the most important tools used to enhance perception among consumers. Consumers on social media sites are exposed to volumes of information that are meant to sway their decisions about different tourism and hospitality products and services (Goldfarb and Tucker, 2019). The challenge of online marketing, nonetheless, lies in the fact that one can only be noticed within the information customer volume. Consumers today seek information that is real-time, which marketers must respond to.

Research Methodology

One of the main objective of this research proposal is to assess the effectiveness of the implementation of digital marketing in the tourism and hospitality industry on customer satisfaction. Various methodological approaches to researching management problems in discussed industries can be used; however quantitative proved to be the most effective due to the conservation of time and the magnitude of the information received. At the same time, using the paradigm of realism in the construction of the design of the study, it is also necessary to conduct a qualitative collection of information. This is due to the fact that it can provide deeper and more detailed data.

To collect the primary data, this study will use a quantitative research method, which will involve the survey of 50 guests in a particular hotel through the use of a digital distribution survey. The guests will be both local and international, and the hotels will be based in leading international tourist destinations. The second part will be qualitative research where a specific number of hotel managers will be selected for interview. The managers will be divided into two sets: the first set will be from hotels already implementing digital marketing strategies, and the second set will be managers yet to do so. The third cadre of managers to be interviewed will be those partially implementing the digital marketing strategy.

Two hundred fifteen hotel guests will take part in the primary survey, which will be accomplished through the administration of questionnaires. It is expected that 150 questionnaires will be returned as fully filled. This will further be processed, tabulated, and analyzed using content analysis methodology. Since the younger population are the ones most targeted by online marketing, guests between the ages of 20 to 45 will form the bulk of the sample. After identifying the hotel destinations that will be considered for the study, arriving guests in the month of January will be selected and requested to take part in the study. An online questionnaire will be sent to them through their email addresses, which will be obtained from their registration information. A consent form will be attached to the questionnaire to assure the respondents of the safety of their data.

Although only 150 participants will be expected for data analysis, a total of 215 questionnaires will be sent out just in case some fail to take part in the study. Age, gender, the level of customer satisfaction, and whether they are willing to refer their friends and families to the facility will be some of the information sought through the questionnaires. The quantitative data obtained from the questionnaires will then be tabulated and analyzed. On the other hand, a total of 20 hotel senior managers and executives will be interviewed, specifically on whether they are using social media and digital marketing to advertise their tourism and hospitality products to their target customers. Those who answer in the affirmative will be asked to state their experiences and the outcome that such actions have brought to their organizations.

Findings

Content analysis was used as a methodology to analyze the gathered data. Of the 215 questionnaires sent out, only 168 were sent back as fully filled up. 60% of the respondents were males, while 40% were females. Most of the respondents were tourists between the ages of 22 to 38. 80% admitted to having been lured into their present destinations through advertisements that they came across on their social media platforms. 54% of the participants revealed that they give reviews of their experiences in their facilities on their social media sites. 67% also said that they reached the decision to come to the facility after the reviews they read online. 48% revealed that they shunned other facilities that had negative reviews from the previous customers experiences that they had encountered online on their social media pages.

On their part, 89% of the managers interviewed disclosed that they recognize the significant role played by social media in marketing their tourism and hospitality products. 63% of the respondents revealed that they use social media marketing, while 84% of those who are yet to embrace it mentioned that they have solid plans to do so. All the respondents who admitted to using social media marketing also disclosed that they are seeing positive impacts of doing the same.

Discussions

From the data obtained above, it is clear that many customers and managers are aware of and appreciate the critical role played by social media marketing. Customers make important decisions regarding their purchasing choices based on the information they receive through their social media sites. They are also willing to share their experiences in various destinations on social media. This reinforces the idea that social media is an important marketing tool that all players in the tourism and hospitality industry should take advantage of. Since most managers are in consensus that social media marketing is boosting their revenue, it is safe to conclude that every severe industry player should embrace the concept.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Social media and digital marketing are rapidly changing the business world. Many businesses soon realize that a satisfied customer is an asset to a business. Such a client will most definitely be a good ambassador by sharing his or her good experiences with other potential clients. However, despite the vital role played by social media marketing in boosting a businesss prospects, it is significant to plan for it comprehensively. Planning for effective marketing services requires deliberate and effective strategies among the tourism and hospitality industry players. A multiplicity of alternatives need to be carefully evaluated to choose the most appropriate activities for particular markets. While at it, one must anticipate challenges, adapt to them, and measure success. Marketers in the tourism and hospitality industry can also follow the PRICE concept, a strategic marketing management process.

Digital and online marketing is developing at a swift pace and replacing traditional forms of communication. The significant role played by digital marketing in the tourism and hospitality industry cannot be over-emphasized. Indeed, many players in the industry are introducing online communities as part and parcel of their marketing tools. The PRICE concept entails planning, researching, implementing, controlling, and evaluating. In planning, the marketer must identify where the business is at the moment and research where it would be after a specified time. Implementation entails all the activities designed to get the business to its target goal while controlling carries out deliberate actions to ensure the plan succeeds. Evaluation is identifying the gaps that could impede progress and rectifying them. This way, marketers in the tourism and hospitality industry will manage to meet the companies objectives and satisfy their customers needs.

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Tsourgiannis, L. and Valsamidis, S. (2019

Abstract

The paper reports on findings of the following research questions. How do threats to the economy like terrorism and financial crisis affect growth and development of the transport and logistics sector? How does the transport and logistics sector management help in correcting negative economic growth? What are the main factors affecting the management of transport and logistics today, in relation to economic policies of the federal government its security policies? It reviews the economic and security parameters that management in the transport and logistics sector in the U.S. will consider for the sectors and specific business growth. Findings shows that the future indicators for the sector are positive and managers will need to consolidate gains in security and competitiveness then seek additional ways of curbing costs and address capacity responsiveness issues.

Transport and Logistics in the U.S

After the financial crisis of 2008-2009 and the consequent meltdown of many markets in the years that follows, the world needs new ways that allow it to face traditional issues and the emerging one such as those that lead to crises. In the same way that markets play a major role in facilitating capital distribution in an economy, transport plays a big role in the movement of labor and goods in an economy. Crippling the transport sector is akin to crippling the backbone of the economy. After 9/11 terrorist attacks, the United States became extra vigilant on its transport and logistics sector with many companies and institutions making additional security consideration for typical activities, deployment, and designs or operations in the sector. Nevertheless, security challenges are becoming bottlenecks to the effective functioning of the sector and are therefore acting as a barrier to its contribution to economic success.

Businesses keep on adding new costs to operation about the importance of these cost areas to the success of their business. Divesting in different markets became a priority after the financial crisis. Similarly, security as part of transport and logistics became a priority after the 9/11 attacks (Plant, 2006). As much as private enterprise can work alone in contributing to economic development and realizing independent goals, the involvement of federal government into policymaking and implementation to safeguard business interest has increased in lieu of the threats to business.

Problem statement

Many studies looking into transport and logistics problems consider a single or a few features of the industry and analyze their relationship. For example, studies focus on transport, logistics management, supply chain security, professionalism, and risk management in the industry. Economic studies consider the impact that transport and logistics are having in the entire economy. While such studies are helpful in shedding light and providing information for future decision-making, they do not cover the entire sector. It is important to look at the impact of the economy on transport and logistics to realize opportunities for adapting either economic policies or transport and logistics practices to make maximum progress towards general economic prosperity. Moreover, these effects must be considered in relation to recession, security, transport and logistics challenges.

Research questions

• R1. How do threats to the economy like terrorism and financial crisis affect growth and development of the transport and logistics sector?
• R2. How does the transport and logistics sector management help in correcting negative economic growth?
• R3. What are the main factors affecting the management of transport and logistics today, in relation to economic policies of the federal government its security policies?

Objective of study

The study is highlighting features of the great recession and its effect on logistics and transport systems. It aims to synthesize the literature on the role that the economy plays in facilitating the adequate functioning of transport and logistics activities within it. It will also analyze threats to the economy and the way they transfer as specific threats to transport and logistics operations faced by companies and other stakeholders in the industry. The study will highlight the interdependence of the transport and logistics functioning with the economic policies and outcomes by the government.

Background of the study

The transport and logistics industry became the biggest economic sector focus for security analysts after September 11 attacks. Under the new security measures, the Department of Homeland Security works closely with independent stakeholders to security the sector and people. By definition, transport security is the securing of the flow of people and goods. It covers national highways, railways, airways and waterways (Lake, 2005). Another big challenge for the sector was the economic recession following the financial crisis of 2008/09. Measures to curb these threats in the economy and to the sector have been costly. According to Russell and Saldanha (2009), the cost of coping with security requirements to lower terror threats amount to about $65 billion annually for the sector.

Literature review

The U.S. is home to one of the largest infrastructure projects in the world for transport and logistics. Demands for effective management will continue to grow in the next decade. According to Hyunwoo and Jean-Claude (2008), the growth in some users for existing and new features of the sector calls for good strategic management of the sphere of transport and logistics. Besides, the government relies on the existing economic conditions to invest in the necessary infrastructure. Meanwhile, investment in such infrastructure under transport and logistics also offers avenues for economic growth. The interdependence was identified by OConnor (2010) bringing up the realization that many spheres of logistics can be actualized when there is the overall growth of the U.S. economy.

External factors affecting the U.S. economic policies will end up affecting management decisions areas in transport and logistics. These include world oil prices, and overall balance of trade and valuation of the U.S. dollar (Yilmazkuday & Kingsley, 2013). Advancement in technology has helped deal with challenges of the sector. Nevertheless, technological investments are expensive and not readily applicable to all industry players. They require additional investment in personnel. The pace of advancement is also fast, making it risky to invest without a long-term strategic insight. On its part, the government aligns mechanisms for efficient management of the sector to boost efficiency and make it a significant resource for overall economic competitiveness (Dhami & Grabowski, 2011).

Economic growth eventually leads to increase demand for transport and logistics services and goods. However, threats to either economic growth or transport and logistics sector introduce challenges of realizing expected benefits. As technology and infrastructure help to ease challenges, security measures such as checkpoints, packaging rules, certification programs, and declaration demands increase the complexity of transport and logistics. They also add new costs that affect the competitiveness of the industry and its ability to become an anchor resource for overall U.S. economic competitiveness.

Outcomes

Studies and reports on different aspects of logistics and transport management reactions to threats of security have come up with recommendations. They help to direct expectations of this studys findings. First, there are adjustments that must happen in the sector, especially with operators to ensure that their partnership with the government remains successful. Partnerships introduce several decision-making points, which can introduce bureaucratic challenges that negatively affect policy enactment. Given that cost of dealing with security challenges is a major issue affecting efficiency, it will be interesting to point out new measures by either government or the transport and logistics operators to combat the problem and realize their objectives. Alliances in transport and logistics stakeholders now encompass the government (Russell & Saldanha, 2009).

The impact of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 on the functions and effectiveness of transport and logistics will be an important addition to available information on the impact of government policy on the sector. The inherent nature of transport and logistics services to transverse state and national borders and the consolidation of border security activities under one department have created significant changes in the way of doing business for both service providers and clients. Transport operators now actively communicate with government security agencies for compliance and for safeguarding their security interests (Plant, 2006).

The ability of private companies to impact federal economic and security policies is making them major contributors to economic recovery. Nevertheless, their ability to do so relies on urgency created by economic effects on private business. In addition to the cost of security, other factors like interest rates, taxation and subsidies on fuel can be important influencers of the transports and logistics sphere (McCreery, 2013).

How do threats to the economy like terrorism and financial crisis affect growth and development of the transport and logistics sector?

Transportation and logistics companies need to consider security concerns when they choose their business routes and locations. They have to look at their dependence on particular logistics hubs and the security threats that are affecting the functioning of the hub or checkpoint. In addition, the companies in the sector have been looking at ways to reduce their exposure to threats in the given locations and to establish mechanisms that support quick response and recovery from attacks. The level of fabricated attacks on supply chains continues to increase and that is why security overall has become a big risk factor for consideration on any business strategy taken by a transport and logistics firm (PwC, 2011).

The sector has been forced to make decisions about threats based on the probable and the possible, always looking for opportunities to safeguard exposure against wildcard events like terrorist attacks and cyber-attacks. As a result, the investment in secure ICT systems has become paramount. The businesses in the sector have to ensure that their employees are capable of detecting and handling breaches in system security caused by external and internal malice intentions. Their goal is to support a reliance supply chain. On the other hand, the enforcement of strict standards has also helped the sector to remain responsive to the growth of threats. Working according to recommendations and guidelines of the Department of Homeland security is one way of ensuring that the sector remains immune to majority of security threats. In the airline freight section of the industry, the Certified Cargo Screening Program initiated by the federal government in response to terror threats has increased the cost of doing business. Airlines, freight forwarders and shippers now assume the cost of the security measures (Rodrigue, Comtois, & Slack, 2013).

In addition, the use of security audits along the entire supply chain has been a good incentive for overall investment in services and products that protect the entire sector. The sector however recognizes that being 100% secure is not possible. The threats are always changing and so must the approaches at security. Nevertheless, the gap between security measures taken and the possible or probably security threats should be minimized at all costs. Terminals serve as areas where freight and passengers assemble and disperse and they are a major focus of homeland security. The response of the sector to security threats has focused on safety and theft. This has included the setting up of procedures that help to maintain the integrity of cargo such as the use of inspections, the securing of facilities and personnel as well as investment in data security (Rodrigue et al., 2013).

The financial crisis affected overall economic demand and freight business in all channels of logistics. In the subsequent years of economic recovery, logistics and transport companies continued to struggle as they sought to boost their efficiencies and improve their trading margins. The biggest challenge in the aftermath of the crisis was the uneven freight demand that affected effective utilization of the available capacity in the sector. The end of the financial crisis period and the subsequent economic recovery that picked in 2014 led to improvements of the prospects of the sector. The following infographic highlights the composition of logistics and transportation costs as a factor in the GDP expenditure for the U.S. businesses in 2013.

The following figures show the growth of the GDP of the U.S. economy, and it is important to compare it with the 10-year graph of crude oil prices. A drop in crude oil prices has corresponded to an increase in the U.S. GDP.

How does the transport and logistics sector management help in correcting negative economic growth?

In answering this question, the discussion focuses on the role that management takes and the way the overall operations in the sector end up balancing the economic effects of a recession. The sector has the capacity to improve overall economic productivity by making better selection, delivery and operation choices. An efficient logistics and transport sector supports long-term economic growth by acting as a pillar for resource intensive manufacturing sectors. These sectors include metals, pulp and oil refinery products (Lund, Manyika, Nyquist, Mendonca, & Ramaswamy, 2013).

The reduction in costs of services offered by companies leads to ripple effects on the economy. In addition, investment in facilities, technologies and resources that reduce the travel times and help to lower risk events also help with overall business productivity in the economy. The reduction in disruptions due to security threats and other business threats ensures that many U.S. businesses are able to recover quickly after a risk event such as bad weather or a cyber-attack to their operations. They can rely on a solid partnership with logistics and transport companies that have invested in security and use sufficient security protocols for operations to become hinge points for recovery of their clients businesses. Notably, the increases in cost of doing business for freighters due to implementation of the security requirements has shown that in most case managers prefer to hold on to the cost rather than pass them to end users and this acts as a cushion for the general economy against ripple effects of high cost of operations. These would jeopardize opportunities for quick economic recovery in other sectors (Rodrigue et al., 2013).

Managers in the transport and logistics industry have an important task of leading businesses to sustained economic performance amid the threat events as well as economic upturn and downturn pressures. The management decisions areas include outsourcing, selection of staff and recruitment, management of technology, and protection of market share (Dartez, 2013). Economic growth amid low or stable operation costs is a good environment for transport and logistics companies. As highlighted in the discussion on the effect of the financial crisis on the sector, the evidence shows that improved economic growth leads to increase volume of freight and that leads to full utilization of transport capacity and logistics services within the economy. This leads to predictable operations in the short-term and profitable growth for individual businesses.

However, another realization is that many businesses had shrunk their operations in the recession and might not handle an upsurge in demand for their services effectively. They need to first invest in more capacity and address other supply issues in the transport and logistics sector before full advantage of the demand-side upturn is realized. Thus, managements key task will be in finding rapid scaling opportunities and resources amid the economic conditions such as high interest rates, high dollar currency value. Another parameter to consider is the changes in security requirements for businesses such as need for investing in technology systems for improving monitoring and security of people and resources. There is also a need to comply with government directives on protection against terror threats.

The challenges of operating in a highly secure environment will also be considered by management in both upturn and downturn economic periods. The challenges are not due to the threat events such as a terrorist attack, but the responses that governments and business take to recover and prevent future attacks. For example, the government closes borders, restricts movement of goods and services, and increases surveillance requirements, which can be costly to businesses and issues traffic policies for different locations around the country (Ekwall, 2011). Some other threats that will be considered by management include hijack, robbery, and theft from vehicle, theft of vehicle, fake police, fake accidents and deception. Most of these risks are due to trusted insiders that are involved with about 60 percent of losses affecting the businesses (Ekwall, 2011).

Managers have worked on the improvement of terminal security to enhance the reliability of freight transport. Increased linkage of terminals and monitoring of goods on transit is helping to curb most security threats in the sector. The increase in use of measures against opportunistic crime is also helping the sector comply with security policies of the federal government. The same zeal is needed in the adaptation of the sector to the changes in the economy.

The transportation sector is responsible for sustaining employment in an economic downturn and upturn. In 2013, there were more than 7 million employees in the sector. In addition, the business contributes directly to state and federal economies by paying highway user fees and other levies. It provides predictable revenue for governments at state and federal level unlike other sectors of the economy that can fluctuate and take time to recover from downturns. Nevertheless, the consideration for labor rules in the sector will continue being a decision area for management. For example, the 2013 changes in hours of service regulations for motor carriers affect transportation modes in the industry.

When combined with effects of bad weather and other constraints of the business, they lead to difficult operating environments that affect managements ability to respond to demand changes. During economic downturn, business volume is low and management has to be more critical at shifting loads from one channel of transportation to another as each channel has a different breaking even point for volume of goods moved. For example, in winter when rail networks clog, most logistics companies will prefer road networks, but if the volume of freight is not sustainable, then they must alter their operation schedules to adapt to the changes (Berman, ATAs American Trucking Trends reports an increase in truckings percentage of all domestic freight, 2014).

The sector is a major stakeholder in port and shipment business. The sectors improvement in its overall efficiency and security improves the competitiveness of the U.S. as a trade and manufacturing location. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 and subsequent legislation and government policies introduced expensive cost element for the industry. For example, all containers shipped to the U.S. need screening and the investment in security facilities at U.S. ports, the outcome has been that these ports are more competitive than foreign ports without screening. Global business will readily prefer moving goods through secure ports therefore contribute to economic growth (Rodrigue et al., 2013).

What are the main factors affecting the management of transport and logistics today, in relation to economic policies of the federal government its security policies?

The transport and logistics sector in the United States still relies on oil, which exposes it to the turbulence of the oil prices across the world. Nevertheless, the sector has recently had room for growth due to favorable period where oil prices have remained stable and lower than they were about three years ago. According to a report on the forecast of logistics and transportation industry for 2015, the drop in the price of oil is a boom because it leads to extra money in consumers pockets. This availability of cash leads to an increase in the demand of goods and services in the economy. As a result, logistics and transportation business grow as they feed their services to the rest of the economy.

Another factor affecting the sector is the value of the U.S. dollar in relation to other major currencies. Part of the business in the U.S. is tied to international trade and movement of people, which follows dollar values. A strong dollar hurts U.S. exports and cause more companies to focus on the domestic economy as they realize they can earn high revenues at home than abroad. With the shift in focus, the demand for logistics and transportation in the local economy increases, this will continue burdening the already crowded rail system. On one hand, a focus on the local economy improves local business prospects. On the other hand, the sector also gets increased demand that pressures its resources to their maximum capacity. Firms will need to expand rapidly and maintain agile strategies to support the increase in demand. Unfortunately, for the expansion of fleets and purchase of other assets necessary to improve capacity of transport and logistics in the U.S., domestic prices will be high because of a U.S. dollar strengthening that led to high domestic demand for overall goods and services. Although prices may remain the same as they were during the low-value dollar periods, their expensiveness is in relation to available options for importation of the same goods and services.

Either way, the present low oil prices and a strong dollar show that the sector has adequate circumstances for improvement. The general import bill for oil in the United States has also reduced. The U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasts for oil prices in 2016 show that there will be a stabilization of the prices around the current 50 to 60 dollars per barrel mark as shown in the graph below. The agency says that West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices will average $49 in the present year and increase to $54 in 2016 (EIA, 2015).

The analysis of the impact of oil prices on the U.S. economic upturn is significant to the logistics and transport sector. The main reason is the role that it plays in sustaining economic growth, and the effect that overall economic activity has on the sector as highlighted in previous paragraphs. Nevertheless, revisions of predictions of oil prices and value of the U.S. dollar can happen and the predictions only offer the potential business environment for the coming years.

As the U.S. dollar stays strong, the devaluation of any other global trade partner will lead to loss of competitiveness of the U.S. economy. An example is Chinas recent decision to devalue its currency by two percent, which instantly makes Chinese goods more competitive by the same margin. Unlike the U.S economy that can survive with a high domestic consumption level, such that it would sustain a strong dollar, the Chinese economy has been heavily reliant on exports to drive growth, and has used the value of its currency as the main instrument for improving its exports volume and value (Berman, 2015). On a deeper analysis, beyond the possible high demand for import of Chinese goods into the U.S. economy, the news is an indication of the slowdown of the Chinese economy. A major trading partner and a significant player in the global economy, slowdown of the Chinese economy spells doom for a strong U.S. dollar. In extension, it heralds a period of low demand for transport and logistics sector in the U.S. after the initial short-lived boom that will come with cheap Chinese imports.

Still, the U.S. economy may actually wither the influence, as its import patterns are long-term and less reactionary to a slight dip of one countrys currency value. In both outcomes, the trade volumes that support growth of transport and logistics sector will persist. It takes long for supply chains to adjust for manufactured products and this time will be sufficient for the logistics and transport industry to adjust. Therefore, the slight devaluation of the Chinese currency is not a major threat in the short run (Berman, 2015).

Logistics companies in Europe welcome a drop in the value of the Euro against the dollar, especially for their operations in the United States. An article by Jolly (2015) on the New York Times shows that the decrease in the value of the earning currency, against the value of the accounting currency is positive for the logistics company. For a U.S. company with operations being paid in Euros, the decrease in the value of the Euro will be a loss, because when the earnings are converted to Dollars for accounting, they lead to low revenues. Thus, overall decline in values of other currencies against the Dollar lead to less international earnings for the U.S. logistics and transport companies (Jolly, 2015). Nevertheless, this remains true only when the companies are accepting other currencies for payment. When using the dollar, the changes in other currencies value are not felt. For example, clients paying for international distribution of goods to a U.S. logistics company using dollars will allow the company to sustain its earnings even when the operations are in another country where the local currency is significantly lower in value than the dollar.

On the other hand, the circumstances affecting the interest rates in the U.S. do not favor a devaluation of the U.S. dollar soon. The increasing rate of employment is leads to support of the high interest rates and this has an overall effect of attracting more capital to the country. However, it reduces the opportunity for borrowing for existing companies, as the rates for payment are high. Therefore, these companies can best rely on organic growth of revenues to fund their expansion plans. Besides the currency and the price of oil, the U.S. infrastructure is a major factor for the profitability of the logistics and transport industry. According to the infrastructure service index trend, there is need for additional infrastructural investments in the U.S. to help meet supply side restrictions that arise out of the increasing demand as shown in the figure below.

Conclusion

Many researchers are interested in bringing out the relationship between movement policy on economic growth or security and industry challenges, opportunities and outcomes of transport and logistics. The U.S. economy has been through a long recession period that followed the great depression. At the same time, global factors such as oil prices have affected government policy on economic growth and investment in transport and logistics infrastructure. On the other hand, security issues post 9/11 continue to affect the organization of the Department of Homeland Security and the arrangement it has with transport operators. Besides being a cost factor, security is also a way to limit the risk of economic losses associated with security risk events. There are additional aspects of the government and transport and logistics sector worth looking at to confirm the role and effect that the former has on the latter. The future indicators for the sector are positive, and managers will need to consolidate gains in security and competitiveness then seek additional ways of curbing costs and address capacity responsiveness issues.

References

Berman, J. (2014). ATAs American Trucking Trends reports an increase in truckings percentage of all domestic freight. Web.

Berman, J. (2015). Posted in Uncategorized

Executive Summary

Corporate social responsibility encourages organizations and investors to conduct their operations in a principled way. Thus, corporate social responsibility enhances the image and growth potentials of business investments. However, the term social responsibility portrays different meanings across borders. This paper seeks to discuss corporate social responsibility from the Western and Islamic perspective. The paper will evaluate the CSR of three organizations from an Islamic perspective. The three UAE organizations include the Dubai Police, Ministry of Health and Prevention, and Sharjah Book Authority. The significant rise in CSR opportunity, variations, effect on business, and its partners have conveyed CSR to the motivation of each organization.

The research data was collected using interviewing method. This paper proposes a cross-case examination as a system for mining existing contextual investigations so that information from cases can be utilized for extensive purposes. It was obvious that the national course directs the sort of exercises led by organizations and influences their operations. The study revealed major classes of activities adopted by organizations in the UAE. It was found that Islamic perspective on CSR did not affect the customers choice of investment because of their commitment in these exercises. In contrast, CSR from the Western perspective is progressively a humanistic approach as opposed to a religious practice. Social duty of business from a conventional view is to generate profit for the investors using reasonable marketing strategies, fair pricing, and quality service. CSR from an Islamic view is a religious practice in accordance with the Shariah law. Based on the analysis, Islamic and conventional CSR are similar in humanitarian services but different the reason for implementation.

Introduction

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a wide term used to portray an organizations endeavors to enhance the society (Abou-Youssef et al. 2015). These organizations enjoy CSR through public image enhancement, media coverage, employee satisfaction, and investors capital. Organizations that exhibit their sense of duty regarding different causes are seen as humanitarian service providers. An enterprises image depends on its CSR and public perceptions (Abou-Youssef et al. 2015). Consequently, investors and customers feel great shopping at establishments that assist the society through their CSR initiatives. Thus, organizations can enhance their public image by supporting charities through financial gifts, volunteer scheme, services, and solid associations (Abou-Youssef et al. 2015). It makes no difference what an organization is doing to improve the ecosystem if no one knows about it. Media coverage provides a balanced information concerning projects implemented by corporate organizations (Gaither & Al-Kandari 2014).

Employees prefer working in organizations that has a good public image. A survey revealed that workers who are pleased with their organizations social duty are connected with their occupation (Gaither & Al-Kandari 2014). When organizations demonstrate that they are committed to the society through corporate giving, they keep skilled and efficient employees. Consequently, investors will work with organizations that use and manage their investments to empower the society. When organizations give cash to philanthropic associations and support their representatives to volunteer their services, they show to financial specialists, they do not mind the benefits (Gaither & Al-Kandari 2014). Rather, they demonstrate that they have an enthusiasm for the environment. Thus, corporate social responsibility enhances the image and growth potentials of business investments. However, the term social responsibility portrays different meanings across borders. This paper seeks to discuss corporate social responsibility from the Western and Islamic perspective. The paper will evaluate the CSR of three organizations from an Islamic perspective. The three UAE organizations include the Dubai Police, Ministry of Health and Prevention, and Sharjah Book Authority.

The Dubai Police

The Dubai Police Force was created in June 1956, with headquarters in Naif Fort. The Dubai Police utilizes the most astounding measures in conducting its obligations, capacities, and operations. As a result, the organization uses the institutional execution pointers, tactical planning, and the management of humans and financial assets. The organization conducts its operations using a streamlined strategy, group management, inventive activities, individual brilliance, and cooperation.

The institution uses social advance technologies to share and transfer information, DNA testing of criminal records and fingerprints. The operations are built on shared values of the rule of law and equality. Thus, their strategic plan includes security, equity, economic, and social freedom. The Dubai Police mission is to improve social welfare by giving extensive, inventive, and reasonable social insurance benefits according to global standards. Consequently, the organization conducts its activities as a controller for social insurance through an advanced and coordinated administrative framework. The private sector plays an essential part in advancing corporate social responsibility. Through vital advancement, organizations are expected to imbibe the benefits of giving, philanthropy, and volunteering in the UAE. The private sector collaborate with government agencies to help generous activities, including human alleviation, locally and foreign aid, and all-inclusive empowerment, which solidifies the countrys image as one of the worlds aid donors.

The Ministry of Health and Prevention

The Ministry of Health and Prevention was created in 1970, with headquarter in Dubai. The health institution implements, coordinates, control and manage health care policies across the country. In accordance with international health standards and practices, the health ministry collaborates with the private sector initiative program to bring quality health care delivery. In line with its mandate, the ministry has reported the dispatch of the Giving Clinics, which will give complimentary restorative counsels and services. These services and counsels will be in all health facilities associated with the ministry.

The health awareness program aligns with the objectives of the Time of Giving activity and it reveals the Ministrys policy to advance quality health care delivery in the UAE and maintain the extensive health benefits in a healthy environment.

In accordance with its corporate social responsibility, the ministry established a volunteer scheme. Volunteers will be members in the Giving Clinic, with numerous openings and motivations planning to instill the value of volunteering, improving solidarity, cooperation, and collaboration.

The volunteer scheme includes individuals, private institutions, and foundations. In line with its CSR framework, awareness programs on social initiatives, patriotism, and civic duties are conducted across the country. The objective is to entrench the value of charity and philanthropy in the UAE. Consequently, the mutual obligation regarding these activities will be on the general population, private sector, and on people who can amplify their potential through combined and joint endeavors.

Sharjah Book Authority

Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) is a literacy empowerment organization in the UAE. The organization was launched in 2014. SBA incorporates improving interest in imaginative ventures, constructing a stage for culture and learning exchange between UAE students and scholars, featuring the significance of books in the interactive media world, and supporting childrens education. Sharjah Book Authority is additionally entrusted with gathering memorable records and antiquities from the UAE, the Arab World, and to protect them by utilizing the most recent innovation and strategies. Moreover, the SBA coordinates, manages, and stores information on distributing, printing, interpretations, libraries, and other related exercises, and in addition aiding research for instruments and innovation.

Literature Review on CSR and Islamic CSR

Islam believes that there is a single God in this world (Abou-Youssef et al. 2015). Islam gives an arrangement of rules that have a coordinate effect on all parts of human life, including the improvement of social and monetary exercises (Abou-Youssef et al. 2015). The number of inhabitants as adherents of Islam is estimated to increase by 27.4% in 2050 (Abou-Youssef et al. 2015). Thus, it demonstrates that the significance of Islam is expanding globally. The investigation of CSR in Islam follows the direction and counsel of Al-Quran and Sunnah (Gaither & Al-Kandari 2014).

Previous studies have discussed diverse considerations concerning CSR and Islam. Thus, the premise of CSR in Islam is gotten from the teachings of Taqwa (Gaither & Al-Kandari 2014), and Tawhid (Gaither & Al-Kandari 2014), which is built on four moral adages. The moral values are solidarity, harmony, free giving, and obligation (Mohammed, 2013). Secondly, the teachings of Khalifah (Jusoh, Ibrahim & Napiah 2015) of spiritual responsibility, standards of good practice, and prohibiting sin (Jusoh, Ibrahim & Napiah 2015). The meaning of CSR in Islam is that each individual is responsible to give and do good other than having confidence and honoring Allah (God), keeping in mind the goal to accomplish Al-Falah (achievement in this world and the great beyond) from Allah and abstain from being rejected.

Conventional Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate social responsibility gained relevance in the 20th century with a move from researchers to global foundations, government, and consultancies (Gaither & Al-Kandari 2014). The legitimacy for CSR emerges from the request that business enterprises are to act dependably in the utilization of assets and evaluate its activities on the society, or they will react, or be made to react by investors, partners, or the law (Darrag & E-Bassiouny 2013). Consequently, the financial crisis shook shareholders view and requested firms to be more transparent, straightforward and have better responsibility records. The significant rise in CSR opportunity, variations, effect on business, and its partners have conveyed CSR to the motivation of each organization. Hou and Li (2014) emphasized that corporate social and ecological responsibility appears to be moving from the edges to the standards of corporate action, with prominent acknowledgment of an immediate and inevitable connection between corporate service, obligation, and workable development (Hou & Li 2014).

Nevertheless, the expansion in CSR practice and reputation has brought a few challenges in its meaning and created suspicion (Hou & Li 2014). Jusoh, Ibrahim and Napiah (2014) believes there are purposes for firms to act mindfully without lawful prerequisites, such as, marketing, strategic operations, and selfless driven inspirations. This corresponds with Imam and Kpodar (2013) hypothesis of CSR that expresses three sorts of corporate social responsibility, which include moral, philanthropy, and strategic operations. Ethical social responsibility is the interest for firms to safeguard the environment from its operations (Khan 2013). Philanthropic social responsibility is connected with consciousness and charitable perspective (Khan 2013). Strategic operation is enforced when a firm connects with CSR-related exercises that achieve a few business objectives. Although CSR is deliberate, organizations and investors will take part in social responsibility exercises to the degree they see valuable for its objectives (Mallin, Farag & Ow-Yong 2014). Thus, organizations similar to people, do not continuously show adequate good or social conduct. There are four legends associated with CSR implementation.

1. Organizations can convey short and long-term social benefits
2. The moral buyer will drive change
3. There will be a focused competition among organizations concerning CSR implementation
4. Nations will contend to have the best moral practices

Corporate Social Responsibility from an Islamic Perspective

The connection between business movement and the society is viewed as normal in Islamic social orders and the standards of implementation are implanted in the qualities described above. Thus, the goal of CSR in Islamic organizations is the same. Consequently, the reasoning that guides their exercises is cherished in the Shariah statutes that require them to work honorably, ethically and in a socially dependable way (Imam & Kpodar 2013). CSR as characterized above is a duty of Islamic institutions (Imam & Kpodar 2013). It is important to note that two objectives are enshrined in Islamic perspective. Thus, organizations must meet monetary and social objectives. Any revenue driven corporation that meets the first is coming short on the other. It is critical to emphasize that Islamic organizations are not beneficial; however, it is immoral for the administrators of these foundations to maximize profit and ignore social commitments (Nor, Rahim & Senik 2016). It is important to reach a balance (Aladl) between the two and equity (adalah) is enforced (Nor, Rahim & Senik 2016). It is also important to note that government and non-profit organizations (NGO) work for the society. They contribute cash for community development and prevent issues from the society. As a result, they conduct their activities for culture, education, quality living, and income of individuals.

The Islamic banking framework includes social ramification and has a unique trademark based on its philosophies (Imam & Kpodar 2013). In practicing and conducting its operations, Islamic banks evaluate the social suggestions that might be realized from its activities. Profit generation is not the prime component in assessing the execution of Islamic banks, since they need to coordinate social targets that would serve the interests of the community and help accomplish their part in the circle of social certification (Mallin, Farag & Ow-Yong 2014). Social objectives form an indistinguishable component of the Islamic financial framework that cannot be ignored. Cross-examinations have been conducted to test the correlation between Islamic CSR and Freemans hypothesis. The outcome shows the investors and shareholders are paid based on their stakes in the organization (Mallin, Farag & Ow-Yong 2014). The motivation behind this separation emerges from the notion that it is unfair to treat group investors the same since they are influenced contrastingly if there should be a huge loss in profit. Thus, the separation can be summarized below.

• Category 1. Those who are influenced by the achievement and disappointment of the business (shareholders, investors, and employees)
• Category 2. The individuals who are influenced by the achievement and disappointment of the business and its activities (providers, clients, and government)
• Category 3. The individuals liable to the externalities of the business (ecosystem and the society)

In the event that an organization enjoys haram exercises, a Muslim financial specialist or the organization should not use the income. In extreme situations, Islamic investors have two choices, either to force the organization to adjust its exercises to meet the requests of both shareholders and Shariah, or sell the investment of this rebellious organization and put resources into business that act in accordance with Islamic screening criteria (Mallin, Farag & Ow-Yong 2014)

Qualitative specialists gather information in an environment or places under examination. Interview incorporates the voices of the members, the reflexivity of the specialist, an explanation, and elucidation of the issue, which broadens the research or flags a call for action. This exploration is a gathering of perceptions of CSR in Dubai as observed by three case studies, which are investigated utilizing interviews with senior employees of the organization.

Qualitative interviews are open-structured designs that help researchers ask respondents Methodology

about the certainties of an issue and in addition their suppositions about events. They are helpful because they endeavor to comprehend things that cannot be monitored, for example, events that occurred previously, the implications individuals encounters and operations (Teherani et al. 2015). By conversing with those engaged with the advancement and usage of CSR system, or investors influenced by CSR, it would be conceivable to comprehend its concept from various angles and get knowledge into the implications attributed to it at an individual level. These positive viewpoints are the explanations for using interview as a strategy for gathering information in this research. The responses were examined using thematic analysis, which characterize a qualitative strategy for recognizing, examining, and revealing forms (themes) within the sample (Teherani et al. 2015).

Research Approach

The examination will depend on gathering, evaluating, and translating information by perception. The qualitative research approach alludes to the implications, ideas, definitions, qualities, illustrations, images, and depictions of variables. It likewise incorporates closeness to the respondents or to the source of the information (Teherani et al. 2015). Thematic analysis is an adaptive information design utilized to produce themes from an interview. This approach is adaptable because there is no particular research configuration associated with thematic analysis. It can be used for contextual investigations, phenomenology, subjective analysis, and narrative evaluation (Teherani et al. 2015). This design is ideal for both amateur and skilled analysts because of its application; however, it is sufficiently thorough to produce important discoveries from the information. Cross-case analysis is an examination technique that encourages the correlation of shared characteristics and distinction in occasions, exercises, and procedures. This paper proposes a cross-case examination as a system for mining existing contextual investigations so that information from cases can be utilized for extensive purposes. To prepare the case analysis, the paper presents the creation of a novel database.

Findings

This area will discuss the discoveries of the research using the information from the interviews with chiefs accountable for CSR and their representatives. The organizations used for the interview include the Dubai Police, Ministry of Health and Prevention, and Sharjah Book Authority. The themes in this thematic analysis include corporate social responsibility, understanding and definition, CSR perception and practices in the UAE.

Corporate Social Responsibility, Understanding, and Definition

Respondents were asked to explain what they understand about corporate social responsibility. The point was to test the level of CSR mindfulness among participants and additionally research whether they know if the organization is compliant. This question was discussed in the interview with the chiefs to perceive what CSR means. All interviewees specified that CSR mean offering back to society by utilizing diverse words with the same clarification. The supervisor in Sharjah Book Authority said CSR can be defined in the Sharjah Book Authority within the scope of voluntary work or work for free to activate the role of youth by giving them awareness sessions in the importance of initiatives and work passionately and provide help without charge. In addition to investing leisure time, exploiting energies and building relationships that serve all parties. The manager in the Ministry of Health and Prevention answered similar question. The manager described CSR as a group of health initiatives and services provided by the Ministry of Health and Prevention to all society groups to promote the health of the individual to enjoy a healthy environment and better lifestyle. The senior executive from Dubai Police described CSR as an active participant in initiatives and activities aimed at socializing and benefiting the community.

It is important to note that all the respondents showed an extraordinary conviction that corporate social responsibility is not a choice but a social commitment. The response proves that corporate social responsibility is rooted in Islamic doctrine and can be easily implemented by corporate organizations in the UAE (Platonova 2013).

CSR Perception and Practices in the UAE

This theme was discussed in the interview to understand the implementation of CSR practices in the UAE. The responses gave an insight on the current methodologies and practices.

CSR Execution

Respondents were asked to discuss the implementation of CSR strategies in their respective organizations. The respondents all concurred that corporate social responsibility is a critical aspect in the UAE. They explained that giving was an Islamic rite; therefore, it is easier to create CSR strategies in non-profit organizations.

It is intriguing that respondents affirmed the existence of CSR strategy in the organization due to the conviction it adds to the wellbeing of the business. This affirmation is consistent with previous survey on strategic corporate social responsibility (Rahman & Bukair 2013). The author emphasized that corporate social responsibility is strategic when shareholders and investors return to the community because it is religious (Rahman & Bukair 2013).

CSR Implementation in Organizations

Respondents were asked how they implemented CSR in their organizations. The senior executive from Dubai Police explained, There is a direct relationship between Dubai Police strategy on three main pillars, the most important of which is the communitys happiness and based on it as strategic indicator measures the percentage of the societys happiness for Dubai Police. This strategy includes a community responsibility strategy that focuses on implementing community initiatives and activities, while providing a permanent working environment for it. Consequently, the coordinating manager with the Ministry of Health and Prevention said To promote community health through the provision of comprehensive and innovative health services with fairness and global standards and to perform regulatory and preventive role in the health sector among UAE Emirates. Yes, there is a link between the Ministrys strategy and the CSR strategy in terms of health care delivery. The respondent from Sharjah Book Authority said, Our strategy is to exploit youth and encourage their role in the organizational events. The love of work and time management is an essential link between the strategy of the Authority and the CSR. Based on the analysis, CSR is a norm in most organizations. They perform the Haram duties as established in Islam.

Challenges of CSR Practice

The respondents were asked to identify challenges they faced during implementation. The responses varied because of product service, organizational operation, and the community. Based on this analysis, one can suggest that CSR implementation depends on the objective and service of the organization. The respondent from Sharjah Book Authority said, The main challenge is to spread the culture of volunteering and awareness of voluntary work, which is not limited to humanitarian and charitable work, but also includes a sense of belonging, responsibility, and free testing of professional work. However, the participant from Dubai Police listed four factors that affected its implementation. The factors include poor data capture of the communities, ineffective communication channel, poor collaboration between government agencies and the private sector. However, the senior executive of the Ministry of Health and Prevention said, The challenges are many, but the most important is the lack of acceptance of the elderly people to the concept of the need for doing periodic examinations to reduce some chronic symptoms and these periodic examinations of the elderly in the country consider one initiative that have been developed to encourage them.

CSR Practices

The leaders were requested to indicate the social obligations in their organization. Respondents mentioned education, and health initiative. Their responses were summarized using three themes, which include philanthropy, corporate governance, and community service.

Community Service

Education campaign and health care schemes were carried out in different locations. The health ministry provided health care givers at all clinics associated with the organization. The Sharjah Book Authority conducted a book fair to educate children on the importance of the library.

Philanthropy

All the organizations dealt with generous tasks as part of their CSR exercises and were focused on apportioning gifts and time for magnanimous projects. The health respondent said There are several ways in which senior leadership in the Ministry encourages the support for CSR, including: Health campaigns were aimed to detect the disease cases throughout the country and consider free. Charitable clinics where non-citizens patients are treated free. Payment is made for patients from low-income groups. Sharjah Book Authority personnel explained, Volunteers are supported in the Authority by highlighting them through different media channels. Giving the opportunity of training and acquisition of functional expertise in areas of authority, which include media, marketing, protocol, administrative, office and administrative work, and accounting.

Corporate Governance

The respondents explained how they carry out their duties in accordance with international standards and regulation.

Discussion

The thematic analysis revealed the relationship between Islamic doctrines and corporate social responsibility. While organizations created activities in line with their objectives, they carried out their operations under careful management. Thus, there is a correlation among the variables of operations. Board of directors and stakeholders played as vital role in CSR practices (Rahman & Bukair 2013). A survey conducted in a US steel company revealed that the CSR report reflected changes in the public arena (Rashid et al. 2013). Researchers believe organizations may engage in activities such as embracing vital CSR policies to improve their corporate integrity. A firms mission statement that supports CSR standards encourages the community to generate wealth. Culture influences moral qualities, which improves the firms disclosure standard. As a result, firms conduct activities that can be reported in its financial statement.

The board of council or office representative shows the CSR responsibility to investors and the society. In such organizations, the management guarantees that CSR is enshrined in the core policies of operations. They will probably see the significance of CSR by maintaining high standards to address social issues. This system is expected to persuade the association to execute practices to measure and report its CSR execution voluntarily. Thus, CSR strategy is a resource that signifies an illustrative factor for more noteworthy disclosure (Sairally 2013). Strategic alliance with private sectors, which is a standout amongst the most advanced methodologies, is similar as the conventional relationship, for example, charitable connections (Sairally 2013). Such alliance creates a solution-based scheme that improves the wellbeing of the society. Consequently, alliance between government and nonprofit organizations consolidates the qualities related to the monetary position of the government and the social influence of the NGO (Rashid et al. 2013). In conceptualizing strategic alliance with nonprofit organizations, it is observed that NGOs assume a vital part in monitoring and implementation CSR activities. It was proposed that attractive partnership might be enforced when shareholders adopt a strategic alliance in the collaborative relationship (Rashid et al. 2013).

There is adequate comprehension of CSR and its meaning among shareholders in this study. Based on the analysis, organizations are informed in characterizing their CSR activities. It was obvious that the national course directs the sort of exercises led by organizations and influences their operations. The study revealed major classes of activities adopted by organizations in the UAE. The CSR practices include training, medical services, and volunteer programs. However, other corporate activities such as shareholder relations, risk management, and strategic governance were not captured as components of CSR initiatives (Rashid et al. 2013).

These practices were viewed as a component of regulatory standards as opposed to being a piece of CSR. It is important to note that organizations practice CSR for different reasons, for example, reacting to the expanded requests of partners, brand marketing, social improvement, and community empowerment. Islam as a religion influences CSR activities in the UAE. For example, during religious festivities, conventional and Islamic organizations give to the society as a fundamental ritual. However, organizations lay emphasis on the meaning of CSR using Islamic perspectives. Thus, conventional corporations capture such events as a business standard, while Islamic institutions believe it is a religious doctrine (Tuhin 2014). It was found that Islamic perspective on CSR did not affect the customers choice of investment because of their commitment in these exercises. There is a general position that CSR in Islamic financial institutions is acknowledged. The writing likewise gives a view toward Islamic finance and CSR, particularly the Shariah, Islamic qualities, and its moral framework (Tuhin 2014). Thus, there are needs that cover CSR and because of the absence of quality research, numerous financial institutions may not be committed to society. The discovery is consistent with the findings in previous literatures that emphasized on the relationship between cultural heritage and CSR (Tuhin 2014).

Areas for Development

Government Responsibilities

Those in authorities should recognize the positive commitment of associations to improve the society. Consequently, government should search for approaches to urge associations to implement CSR by remunerating the best players and recognizing their endeavors on a national level. Although corporate social responsibility is a deliberate exercise, government should discover methods for creating and actualizing approaches that uphold CSR practices to advance business competition at a national level. This should be possible through the improvement of laws, directions, and consequences that will manage CSR activities by characterizing minimum benchmarks, mandatory community service, investment evaluation, and ecosystem program.

Consequently, a partnership between the legislature and private institutions to support CSR activities should be considered to manage social requests that cannot be met by the government alone. For example, medical service, youth empowerment, and business activities are areas that require private partnership. Strategic alliance with private sectors, which is a standout amongst the most advanced methodologies, is similar as the conventional relationship, for example, charitable connections (Ashman, 2001). Such alliance creates a solution-based scheme that improves the wellbeing of the society.

National Interest

Organizations should consider CSR practices that improve national interest. In Du

Introduction

The management of human capital has become a highly debated topic in contemporary entrepreneurial practices. In business, people are perceived as assets that can be increased in value through either the creation or identification of investment opportunities. The embracement of human capital management (HCM) involves the constant provision of clearly defined performance expectations for the employees. The managers play a central role in the appraisal, rewarding, and promotion of the employees with a view of realising the explicit business goals, modernisation, and uninterrupted entrepreneurial development. Entrepreneurship is perceived as the ability and willingness, to strategise, organise, and manage a business taking into consideration the risks that come along with the generation of profits.

An entrepreneur is a person who incorporates change while exemplifying high attitude in any business situation. An entrepreneur comes up with an idea of a product or service and gathers the courage to take the risk to do whatever it takes to turn it into reality. On the other hand, human capital management entails the strategic approaches used to assign business roles to people in an organisation. The management of people is conducted in a manner that promotes the sustainability and competitiveness of the business. The practice of human capital management helps organisations align the goals of the business with individual abilities and experiences. Indeed, a primary goal of HCM is the promotion of employee engagement in the accomplishment of the overall organisational goals. This report provides an overview of the management of human capital and entrepreneurship in contemporary business institutions.

Literature Review and Critical Analysis

Unger et al. (2011) posit that human capital helps organisations to predict the propensity of new business opportunities. The growth of entrepreneur human capital in an organisation is an enduring solution to the accomplishment of short-term, intermediate, and long-term business goals and objectives. According to Stokes (2010), entrepreneurship is the process of identifying opportunities and communicating them efficiently with a view of realising a tenable economic value of a business. Viable ideas can relate to either a service or a product. Stokes (2010) reveals that the identification of the product or is the initial stage of entrepreneurship. The importance of managing human capital cannot be underestimated when it comes to the realisation of entrepreneurial goals. Numerous researchers and business analysts theorise that entrepreneurs bring to new business opportunities qualities that are largely based on various resources such as education level, cognitive skills, talent, and experience among others (Unger et al. 2011).

However, the implementation of any business idea requires proper communication leadership strategies (Hatten, 2012). Successful entrepreneurship is determined the establishment of sufficient communication channels with the clients, staff, and other stakeholders. A research conducted by Martin, McNally, and Kay (2013) showed that communication is broken down to 9 per cent writing, 16 per cent reading, 30 per cent speaking, and 45 per cent listening. The research also indicated that listening was an important facet in every communication aspect. Business communication can be delivered in many ways, including the use of non-verbal cues. An entrepreneur should capture these cues because they send a clear message on what the client desires.

The management of human capital is considered important in the entrepreneurship world. Employees create a link between the organisation and its clients. The accomplishment of tasks within the specified timeframes is critical for the realisation of not only the individual and organisational goals but also customer satisfaction. According to Bridge and ONeill (2012), the ability to communicate under stressful conditions is vital in becoming a successful entrepreneur. For example, in a place of work where two or more employees are involved, disagreement on certain issues can arise. The impending negotiation process brings communication into use.

Entrepreneurs should constantly assess the underlying advantages of indulging in new business activities prior to abandoning ungainly ventures. The economic value of a new idea should be analysed with a view of improving the profitability of the organisation. Measuring the economic value of the business is based on factors such as consumer preferences, political climate, and industry experience, among others. It is believed that consumers are the best judges of what they require. As a result, the economic value of a product is based on individual opinions. For example, some people prefer perfume included in their bathing soap while others prefer the pure product. Such an incidence shows that people have different preferences.

According to neoclassical economists, human capital can be used to refer to the stocks of knowledge, skills, and experiences that prompt human capital to build economic value. The implementation of the division of labour concept is a clear indication of the management of human capital in contemporary organisations. Most businesses employ individuals who are specialised in particular tasks. This practice significantly improves the economic value of the service or product delivered to the consumer (Crook et al. 2011). Economic value can be altered easily by the quality and price of goods and/or services. In this case, there is a need to relate human capital and the labour market if businesses have to remain relevant in the contemporary competitive environment (Main 2011).

Martin, McNally, and Kay (2013) reveal that successful companies deem employees as the most valuable assets to the accomplishment of business objectives. Small, medium and large businesses strive to manage employees in a variety of aspects such as work involvement, job satisfaction, and continuous improvement. A survey of over 1200 human resource leaders conducted by Martin, McNally, and Kay (2013) showed that approximately 50% of their tasks were to manage human capital in the organisation. However, the management of human capital is a task that requires the adoption of various strategies such as the creation of employee profiles, onboarding, performance appraisal, unconstrained paid time-offs, and embracement of flexibility in the workplace among others (DeTienne 2010). At the outset, the creation of employee profiles plays as a vital role in the management of human capital. This approach to HCM allows the managers to gather, analyse, and store important information on aspects such as employee performance, openness, and comradery, among others.

In addition, Martin, McNally, and Kay (2013) reveal that onboarding is a technique that focuses on showing the significance of the company to the employee. The establishment of a reliable system to streamline employee onboarding using modern human resource management technology is crucial to the collection, analysis, storage, and monitoring of employee behaviour and performance (Hoque 2013). Besides, it helps in the promotion of socialisation through online networking portals such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn among others. Nahata (2008) posits that the entrepreneurial practices save the organisation both time and money since information on hire training, employee performance, and disbursement of wages among others can be stored and retrieved easily.

Furthermore, performance appraisal is a commonly used approach to the management of human capital in contemporary organisations (Martin, McNally, & Kay 2013). There is a need to adopt simple performance appraisal methods. The strategy can involve the interrogation of the employees by concentrating on core skills. The simplification of the appraisal systems can be realised using software HCM technology. The managers should also offer unlimited paid time-offs (PTOs) regardless of the fact that it is still a new concept in the corporate business sphere.

Martin, McNally, and Kay (2013) also suggest that managers should ensure flexibility in the workplace. Mobility is an aspect that offers both the employees and employers an opportunity to work from many places. For instance, a recent study that was conducted by Davidsson and Gordon (2012) exposed that the world had more than 1.5 billion smartphone users. Today, mobile applications have become useful even in the workplace. This experience has enabled many companies to improve the management of employees, especially in situations that demand immediate feedback. As a result, barriers associated with money, time, and location are reduced significantly. Besides, communication is greatly simplifies as the exchange of information takes place using versatile mobile tools and software applications.

Human Capital Strategy

According to Nahata (2008), human capital revolves around seven interrelated aspects that include leadership, change management, recognition, performance management, work confidence, values, and competence. These resources are aligned with the desired business goals to improve productivity (Dimov 2010). The first characteristic an entrepreneur should have is proper leadership. Planning is vital because it requires the entrepreneur to lay down any business situation, analyse the generated profits, and draw conclusions on issues that should be addressed. For example, if a business desires to sell ten cars in a day, the manager has to look for a suitable market, set a favourable cost, and decide how much profit will be made after undertaking the business transactions. However, this strategy should be guided by proper leadership principles that embrace feasible human capital management approaches.

Moreover, the employees in an organisation come from cultures that hold diverse values and beliefs. Dimov (2010) posits that the appreciation of different cultures and values is a first step towards the promotion of diversity inclusion in an organisation. This human capital strategy is paramount to the creation of a class of proficient managers and staff. It is believed that the embracement of diverse cultures and values in an organisation improves the perceptions of the workers on its image (Dimov 2010). In addition, the adopted HCM strategies should bring about both individual and team confidence in the performance of duties. This objective can be realised by minimising vices such as workplace conflicts.

Managers should aim at showing genuine concerns for the development of their personnel by establishing a relaxed working environment that promotes communication (Dimov 2010). This set of circumstances boosts employee morale thereby ensuring their satisfaction. Furthermore, apt human capital management also demands the managers to employee recognition by offering them rewards. This practice also encourages them to work even harder towards the accomplishment of both the individual and organisational goals. The recognition of employees is closely related to performance appraisal. Rewards are offered to the employees after their performances are evaluated.

A good entrepreneur should also create both individual and team confidence (Teece 2010). Those who have this quality achieve more even under pressure. They can analyse and evaluate huge challenges with a view of converting them to business gains and personal rewards (Longenecker et al. 2013). Most people think that success comes easy, but the truth is one has to put in a lot of effort before the desired goals are accomplished. When other people see a possible challenge, an entrepreneur should see the finish line, product, and the impending rewards. However, the accomplishment of this objective requires the managers to adopt HCM strategies that aim at creating a high level of work confidence in the employees.

According to Lombardi and Laurano (2013), performance measurement and management is a crucial undertaking in any organisation deemed to succeed. The human resource department is charged with the role of recruiting, training, and developing reliable workforce with a view of helping the organisation to realise both its short-term and long-term goals. The development of the employees requires the creation of a proper working environment that encourages the improvement of interpersonal relationships among them (Chrisman et al. 2012). Performance management is a critical success factor in the development of the workforce. For instance, good managers ensure that performance appraisals are conducted frequently with a view of rewarding the best employees and reinforcing the skills of those who are less productive through training (McGrath 2010). This situation creates a powerful corporate culture that promotes the accomplishment of the business goals in the organisation.

Conclusion

In the wake of globalisation and the ever-changing technological landscape, entrepreneurs should identify the key issues that influence the management of human capital. The management of change in an organisation is a core facet of HCM as it arrests rapid shifts in business strategies, concentration, and workforce mobility among others. Therefore, the handling of employee behaviour, attitudes, and perceptions is paramount to the creation of a free working environment that allows them to maximise their potential to accomplish the overall entrepreneurial goals.

Business Plan

Business Description

Treetops Hotel and Conference centre will be reasonably priced 62-seat restaurant that will deliver exceptional meals to diverse consumers. The hotel will also provide facilities such as presentation space, meeting, and conference rooms. Besides, it will offer outside catering services for different functions such as weddings, family gatherings, funerals, and graduation parties among others. Besides, the hotel will provide specialty choices such as hamburgers, salads, and wraps among others on the menu.

Various primary objectives of the Treetops Hotel and Conference Centre are listed below.

• To offer high-quality home-style cuisines at reasonable prices with exceptional customer services
• To be a superior 4-star hotel in Nottingham city, England
• To realize Prime Cost Ratios (PCR) not exceeding 65-percent
• To attain cover ratios of approximately 1X during peak hours

Our mission is to provide high-class dining experience with exemplary services. This mission will be accomplished by ensuring that the menu integrates superior ingredients at realistic prices. The staff and management will also be expected to treat customers with dignity to promote repeat business (Barrow, Barrow, & Brown 2008)

Background of the Idea

The company will be started in a location that has a minimal number of 4-star hotels. Besides, there is a large population of people who can be targeted as clients.

Business Identity

The high standards of our hotel management team will strive to ensure a high level of satisfaction to our customers. Both the conference and accommodation facilities will be designed to meet the highest standards in the hotel industry. Besides, special cuisines will be prepared upon request and customers requirements. For this reason, the hotel is deemed to offer a very high profile product mix. This undertaking will be aimed at improving the customers experience (Markovic & Raspor 2010). It is designed to be a home away from home.

Entrepreneurial Characteristics

According to Ward (2011), the entrepreneur must have passion for the hotel business. Since the business is sensitive to social, political, and economic factors, the businessperson should also be ready to take risks besides having a resourceful and an open mind.

Business Opportunity

The business opportunity in this area is quite high. There are two four-star hotels within a 30-kilometre radius. This position offers the new hotel an opportunity to enter the market with a chance to prosper. There is an indication that the hotel will attract, satisfy, and retain its customers.

Opportunity for the Idea

The nearby four-star hotels offer their services at a very high rate. Therefore, the Treetops Hotel and Conference centre will deliver high-quality services and products at slightly lower prices to lure the attention of many customers to the facility. Discounts will also be offered on special days such as holidays.

Macro Environmental Analysis

The hotel will serve as a landmark since people around the area will have something they can use as a reference point (Down 2010). The hotel will also serve the community by offering employment opportunities to the residents in the area.

Industry Analysis

The hotel industry is characterised by strong competition. The last ten years have seen new players enter the industry with unique products and services. Most four-star hotels offer conference, swimming, restaurant, partying, and catering, and recreational facilities. Similarly, the Treetops Hotel and Conference Centre will offer these services at comparatively lower prices to gain a competitive edge in the industry.

Market Analysis

The market analysis involved conducting interviews to potential customers. Other methods included the collection of booklets, magazines, price lists, catalogues, and brochures of the competitors with a view of analysing information on business support groups (Stutely 2010). In the regional analysis, the size of the market in the area is between 50% to 90% occupancy throughout a whole year (Burns 2010).

Marketing Strategy

A marketing strategy provides an overview of the planned business goals. Target customers will be put into consideration to ensure that the client profiles are identified (Wright & McMahan 2011). For example, their age, gender, preferences, and relationship with the hotel will be identified. The pricing and positioning strategy will also be taken into account. The hotel will have a distribution plan that will encompass strategies to reach customers in addition to retaining them for a long time (Wright & McMahan 2011).

Offers

The hotel will price its products and services as compared to those offered by the competitor companies. The offers will include discounts for different packages, free trials, and money-back guarantees. During special occasions such as holidays, free packages will be provided. This strategy is perceived to lure the attention of many customers to the hotel (Sadgrove 2015).

Marketing Materials and Promotion Strategy

Various marketing materials including websites, brochures, business cards, fliers, and catalogues will be used to promote the business. Particularly, the Internet and media will play a central role in the advertisement of the hotel business to reach a large population. The promotion sector is one of the most vital parts of the marketing strategy that entail putting up advertisements on the television, newspapers, and radio (Brinckmann, Grichnik, & Kapsa 2010).

Online Marketing Strategy

In this section, there are four main steps to be followed. They include the key word strategy, search engine optimisation, paid online advertising, and the social media tactics (Finch 2010).

Conversation Strategy

Various techniques will be used to turn the prospective customers into paying repeat clients. These strategies will include showing the testimonials of past and satisfied customers. Availing the records of our rising sale rate will also help to pull a number of customers to our business.

Marketing Mix

The Price

The marketing mix makes the sales revenue and extra costs. Setting the price of a product or service is an important determinant of the value of overall sales volume. The price will assist in determining the perceptions of the customers on the value of the services and products in the hotel.

The Place

The place is mainly concerned with various transportation modes and storage of goods in the hotel. The choice of the distribution and transportation in the hotel will depend on various circumstances. For instance, the distance between the source of the raw materials and the hotel will influence the delivery time. However, such goods will be procured in time to avoid unnecessary delays that can arise.

Projected Sales

The business is deemed to realise a sales projection of about 1100 customers per week. This position will generate weekly sales above $16,500 ($792,000 annual sales). This value translates to approximately $252 annual sales. As a result, the hotel will offer a profitable business opportunity in a table service market that considers $200-325 per square foot cost-effective. For this reason, the business can be regarded as an appropriate investment. A time-series projection will be put into consideration where the future sales will be based on the sales from the past. A market-based forecast is necessary since it will assist in the determination of the market demand, customer base, and their likelihood to revisit the hotel repeatedly.

Operations and Human Resource Plan

Form of Ownership

The hotel is a family business that will include ten relatives. They will have equal shares in the business. Therefore, each of them is expected to contribute an equal amount of capital. Three members of the family have pursued careers that relate to the hotel industry; hence, they will provide adequate guidance and information on the establishment and maintenance of the business (Hung, Shang, & Wang 2010).

Location of the Business

The 4-star hotel will be located Nottingham city, England. This location has been selected because of the image, surrounding environment, location, size, and ease of accessibility. In addition, Nottingham city has few 4-star hotels as compared to other cities and large towns in England.

Equipment

The hotel equipment will include conference rooms that will accommodate up to 200 people, sidewalk tables, checkrooms, elevators, free wireless Internet access, and standard technology.

Handling of Material

Waste reduction and efficiency are directly related (Yang 2010). As a result, any product that is purchased and used in the hotel should be less harmful to the environment.

Human Resource Team

The human resource team will include the board of directors, general manager accounting officer, chief engineer, housekeeping director, room assistant, director of marketing services, accounting staff, and the chefs. Other staff will include the security, food, and beverage manager.

Credentials of Top Management

The top management team should have a high level of education to understand how to run the hotel (Tajeddini 2010). They should have bachelors, masters, or a doctoral degree obtained from a relevant field of study such as hotel management and hospitality.

Responsibilities of the Top Management

The role of the top management in the hotel will be to determine the objectives of the organisation (Zarutskie 2010). The management will also be involved in the making of a frame policy will determine the quality and variety of services offered in the hotel. Besides, they will collect information and analyse the prevailing market demand. The hotel will need a marketing policy that will be designed by the top management team. This policy will ensure that adverts, sale promotions, commissions, and performance appraisal take place effectively (Dominici & Guzzo 2010). The execution of the plans is mandatory. This move will see the top management assume an active role to ensure that the objectives and goals of the hotel are met (Tari et al. 2010).

Strategy to Recruit, Motivate, and Reward Employees

Recruitment will be based on key qualifications and accurate job descriptions for each position in the hotel. Advertisements for job opportunities will be advertised on the television, radio, newspapers, and the Internet. Interested candidates will be required to apply for the job vacancies online prior to interviews. The motivation of employees will be realised by conducting continuous performance appraisal with a view of rewarding them using promotional strategies.

Financial Plan

Starting Funds

The initial capital will come from the ten members of the family where every member will contribute $8970. The remaining balance $109,560 will be raised by securing a bank loan.

Source of Funds

Running of the business will be facilitated by ploughing back the profits gained from the sales. The hotel will also sell shares to investors since they do not require interests.

Returns offered

Since the hotel business is sensitive to the nature of goods used, returned goods will not be acceptable. However, a refund will be offered to customers who show genuine concerns.

Revenues, Expenses, and Financial Control

The revenues obtained from the business will help in the identification of further sources of funding for future goals. A proper analysis of the generated revenues and expenses will result in the doubling of profits with minimal workload. The expenses will be identified with a view of reducing them by cutting unnecessary cost that will arise. The control of finances will evaluate progress towards the financial goal of the company.

Break Even Analysis

The analysis will assist in identifying whether it will be possible for the hotel to pay its expenses while maintaining a reasonable profit margin.

Financial Accounts

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