Applying the goal programming in the management of the 7P marketing mix model at universities-case study.

The decision-making relating to effective marketing is less supported by operational methodologies and optimizing methods in high education sectors than in the companies. This paper presents an application of goal programming as an aid for the optimizing marketing mix elements. It describes a project undertaken at one of the Universities in Poland considering the marketing mix includes all 7Ps elements at University. The constraints are first identified based on interviews with academic experts and survey. The analytic hierarchy process method is used to select the forms of promotional activities and Activity-Based Costing method are performed to determine the costs of the activities. Then, based on constraints, the multiple-criteria-programming model is built and applied to construct the marketing mix model at university, and it was solved using LP-Solve software AMPL. A comparison between the newly designed marketing mix and the existing one in terms of each of the criteria shows that the overall objective function could be greatly improved, optimized value can be obtained, and the model can be easily applied in any other high education sectors. The consequence of using the model is the optimal selection (with existing limitations) of promotional activities, taking into account their impact on the perception of the image of the university, significant from the perspective of students and impact on profitability, which is important from the perspective of the university management.

Latin American Considerations for Infant and Young Child Formulae.

Infant formula is the only acceptable substitute for breastmilk from 0 to 6 months old when human milk cannot be provided in sufficient amounts. Manufacturers have developed options that intend to meet the changing needs of the child aged from six to twelve months (follow-on formulae) and after the age of one year (young child formulae). The international code for marketing breast milk substitute stipulates standards for marketing practices of these products. In Latin America there are local variations of marketing practices. Novel marketing strategies such as advertising through social media and influencers pose new threats for breastfeeding success in Latin America. This review aims to examine variations in local regulations for marketing of infant formulae and to analyze the emerging phenomenon of influencer advertising. We reviewed the local norms for Latin American countries and examined differences and possible gaps. Emerging evidence of influencer marketing was explored. The results indicate that national regulations differ among Latin American countries, particularly with respect to product labelling and the requirement to use a local native language, highlighting the cost of the product, and different regulations prohibiting certain messages and illustrations. Regarding new marketing strategies, there is limited evidence on advertising infant formula through social media influencers, where different categories of marketing strategies can be described. More transparent reporting of social marketing by formula providers and more independent research on novel marketing strategies are needed.

Finding links between organisation's culture and innovation. The impact of organisational culture on university innovativeness.

The objective of the paper is to diagnose organisational culture of selected universities and analyse its impact on the innovation processes within them. The subject matter of the study was organisational culture and innovation at universities. The subjects were four selected universities in Poland, Austria, Germany, and Ukraine. The paper provided a definition of organisational culture and its typology. It further discussed the organisational culture of universities and the relationships between organisational culture and innovativeness. The literature review provided foundations for building a model for the formation of a type of organisational culture at universities that is innovation-friendly, which is the added value of the paper. It offers actions worth taking to shape innovation-friendly culture at universities. It is particularly important during difficult time of changing labour market, when universities greatly impact the attitudes of young people. The knowledge of how to shape innovation-friendly organisational culture at universities is necessary for academia to profile future employees in times of continuous changes. To investigate the relationship between organisational culture and the innovativeness of universities, we designed an original survey questionnaire [S1 File]. Organisational culture was diagnosed with the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument by K.S. Cameron and R.E. Quinn. The analyses were conducted in Dell Statistica v. 13.1 (StatSoft Polska). We normalised data from the Likert rating scale using Kaufman's and Rousseeuw's formula. We used Spearman's correlation coefficient and Kendall's W to calculate correlations. The research shows that the investigated Polish and Austrian universities are dominated by hierarchy and market cultures. On the other hand, the German and Ukrainian universities host all cultures, but clan and adhocracy dominate there. Moreover, the analyses demonstrated that although the adhocracy culture was the least visible in the investigated organisations, it contributes to university innovativeness the most. The conclusions were used to build a model for promoting innovation-friendly organisational culture at universities. The model contains answers to the research questions. In addition, it offers guidelines for shaping organisational culture to bolster innovation at universities. The research identified relationships between organisational culture and university innovativeness and components that create innovation opportunities at universities as its contribution to management theory. When applied in practice, the guidelines can help form the university's organisational culture bottom-up.

Marine Biotechnology: Challenges and Development Market Trends for the Enhancement of Biotic Resources in Industrial Pharmaceutical and Food Applications. A Statistical Analysis of Scientific Literature and Business Models.

Biotechnology is an essential tool for the sustainable exploitation of marine resources, although the full development of their potential is complicated by a series of cognitive and technological limitations. Thanks to an innovative systematic approach that combines the meta-analysis of 620 articles produced worldwide with 29 high TRL (Technology Readiness Level) European funded projects, the study provides an assessment of the growth prospects of blue biotechnologies, with a focus on pharmaceutical and food applications, and the most promising technologies to overcome the main challenges in the commercialization of marine products. The results show a positive development trend, with publications more than doubled from 2010 (36) to 2019 (70). Biochemical and molecular characterization, with 150 studies, is the most widely used technology. However, the emerging technologies in basic research are omics technologies, pharmacological analysis and bioinformatics, which have doubled the number of publications in the last five years. On the other hand, technologies for optimizing the conditions of cultivation, harvesting and extraction are central to most business models with immediate commercial exploitation (65% of high-TRL selected projects), especially in food and nutraceutical applications. This research offers a starting point for future research to overcome all those obstacles that restrict the marketing of products derived from organisms.

COVID-washing of ultra-processed products: the content of digital marketing on Facebook during the COVID-19 pandemic in Uruguay.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the use of references to the COVID-19 pandemic as part of the marketing strategies used on Facebook to promote ultra-processed products. DESIGN: A search for Facebook accounts of ultra-processed products was performed using a master list of products commercialised in two online supermarkets in Uruguay. For each of the identified Facebook accounts, all the content posted from the confirmation of the first cases of COVID-19 in Uruguay, on 14 March 2020, until 1 July 2020 was recorded. Posts including mentions to COVID-19, social distancing measures or their consequences were identified and analysed using content analysis. SETTING: Uruguay, Latin America. RESULTS: A total of 135 Facebook accounts were identified, which generated a total of 1749 posts related to ultra-processed products, from which 35 % included references to COVID-19. The majority of the posts included references to prevention measures. Approximately one-third of the posts included proposals of activities to do at home, most of which were linked to a healthy lifestyle. Tips for coping with quarantine and descriptions of the charitable work undertaken by brands were also identified. CONCLUSIONS: Results from the present work provide evidence that industries of ultra-processed products have taken advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to promote their products, create positive associations with the brands and improve their image as part of their digital marketing strategies.

The influence of service quality on satisfaction and behavioral intentions of football spectators: a study in Pernambuco football / A influência da qualidade de serviços na satisfação e nas intenções comportamentais de espectadores do futebol: um estudo no futebol Pernambucano

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to examine the influence of service quality perception on spectators' satisfaction and behavioral intentions in the Pernambuco Professional Football Championship of 2017 - Brazil. Data were collected on match days, using an adapted questionnaire, consisting of four variables. The sample was composed of spectators at the competition, divided into two moments (1st. n = 386 / 2nd. n = 620). The data were analyzed through two-step structural equation modeling in AMOS 24. After the refinement of the model, the results of the structural model [χ² (314) = 762.849 (p <.001) χ² / df = 2.42; GFI = .92; CFI = .95; RMSEA = .05] indicated that the players' performance positively influenced both satisfaction (β = .76, p <.001) and behavioral intentions (β = .33, p <.001). In turn, the crowd experience had a positive influence only on the spectators' behavioral intentions (β = .38, p <.001). It is concluded that provision of service quality, positively evaluated by the spectators, especially in relation to the aspects of the game/players, is a way for the club to satisfy them and generate positive behavioral intentions.

RESUMO O objetivo deste estudo foi examinar a influência da percepção da qualidade do serviço na satisfação e nas intenções comportamentais dos espectadores do Campeonato de Futebol Profissional de Pernambuco de 2017 - Brasil. Os dados foram coletados em dia de jogos, a partir de um questionário adaptado, composto por quatro variáveis. A amostra foi composta por espectadores da competição, dividida em dois momentos (1º. n=386 / 2º. n= 620). Os dados foram analisados através da análise de equações estruturais de duas etapas no AMOS 24. Após o refinamento do modelo, os resultados do modelo estrutural [χ² (314) = 762,849 (p < .001) χ²/df = 2,42; GFI = .92; CFI = .95; RMSEA = .05] indicaram que a performance dos jogadores influenciou positivamente tanto a satisfação (β = .76, p < .001) quanto as intenções comportamentais (β = .33, p < .001). Por sua vez, a experiência como torcedor influenciou de forma positiva unicamente as intenções comportamentais dos espectadores (β = .38, p < .001). Conclui-se que para o clube prestar um serviço de qualidade, bem avaliado por parte dos espectadores, principalmente em relação aos aspectos do jogo/jogadores é um caminho para satisfazê-los e gerar intenções comportamentais positivas.

Marketing Breastfeeding Substitutes: A Discussion Document.

Marketing influences knowledge, attitudes, and decisions related to infant and young child nutrition, safety, development, parental confidence, and other aspects of health and wellbeing of the child. These attitudes and behaviours of parents, health workers, policy makers, and other influencers have short- and long-term effects on the child. There is an International Code of Marketing of Breast-Milk Substitutes. Is it time to have a code of marketing of breastfeeding substitutes?

Current Challenges in Labelling for Generic Medicinal Products: Company Core Data Sheet (CCDS) Development and Maintenance.

Labelling of pharmaceutical products plays a vital role in the safe and effective use of approved medicinal products. This information may be provided to end-users including patients and/or prescribers, and it needs to be made available in multiple formats including printed forms (patient information leaflets, pack inserts, etc.) or web portals of the product, based on national authority guidelines. The Company Core Data Sheet (CCDS) serves as a key document representing the pharmaceutical company's position on the product and is used as a reference document for national labels. Content from national labels may differ from the CCDS for different reasons including implementation of national authority requirements in the serving market and findings from local markets. In the current article, we discuss the process, challenges and key concepts in creating and maintaining CCDS documents for generic products. We highlight key parameters that are worthy of process improvement in generic products' CCDS updates. In addition, we argue that labelling harmonisation across multiple regions, especially safety section-related information, plays a key role in promoting end-user safety and would help communicate risks. We also strongly believe that the topic is worthy of the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) consideration, and propose that this is the key area that requires standardisation and harmonisation.

Social representation of fair price among professional photographers.

We investigated the social representation of fair price of French and English-speaking photographers using the free association method. In two independent studies, we performed a factorial analysis of correspondence of the words provided by the participants as well as a similitude analysis. The results indicated that "fair price" was mainly associated with time, effort and experience level of photographers. Both French- and English-speaking samples made similar associations around the concept of fair price but the order of importance varied. We observed some gender-related differences in both samples, although the relative number of male and female participants must be taken into consideration.

Advocacy, Strategy and Tactics Used to Confront Corporate Power: The Nestlé Boycott and International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes.

Douglas A. Johnson began his career as a human rights activist while earning his undergraduate degree in philosophy (1975) at Macalester College in the United States. He lived at Gandhi's ashram in India to study nonviolent organizing (1969 to 1970). He served as the director of the Third World Institute in Minneapolis, MN, USA (1973-1979), which functioned as the international social justice program of the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Johnson's work included creating and running a political collective; leading development study tours into villages in Guatemala and Honduras; and investigating how transnational companies (e.g., Nestlé) were penetrating the developing world. He was the co-founder of the Infant Formula Action Coalition (INFACT), elected national chairperson (1977-1985), and appointed as Executive Director (1978-1984). His role included representing INFACT before national and international organizations, the human milk substitute industry, the US Congress and Executive Branch, and the press. He initiated and coordinated the first international grass-roots consumer boycott (against Nestlé) in ten nations. He was also a co-founder of the International Nestlé Boycott Committee and the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN). He earned a Master's in Public and Private Management at Yale University (1988). Then he became the first Executive Director of the Center for Victims of Torture, in Minneapolis (1988-2012), the first treatment center for torture victims in the US. Since 2013, he has been teaching human rights theory and practice, and sharing lessons he has learned, as a Lecturer in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University (US). (This interview was conducted via Zoom and transcribed verbatim. It has been edited for ease of readability. DJ refers to Doug Johnson and LD refers to Laura Duckett.).

Availability of substances for use in personal vaporisers on three online cryptomarkets.

BACKGROUND: Personal vaporisers are gaining popularity as an alternative route of administration for a range of substances. Online cryptomarkets are becoming increasingly popular among people who use substances due to their perceived anonymity, ease of use, and reduced risk of violence compared to traditional face-to-face dealers. We examined the diversity of substances marketed for use in a personal vaporiser on these marketplaces. METHODS: Vaping related listings were extracted from three online cryptomarkets ('Agartha', 'Cryptonia', and 'Tochka') using The Onion Router browser. Data collection occurred between October and November 2019. RESULTS: We identified 1929 listings from 201 unique sellers. The top product on Agartha, Cryptonia, and Tochka were vape cartridges prefilled with the e-liquid (70.4 %, 39.4 %, 52.3 % respectively). The most common substance in these products was cannabis oil (96.1 %, 82.1 %, 87.8 %), followed by synthetic cannabinoids (3.7 %, 9.7 %, 9.8 %) and psychedelic substances (0.2 %, 6.4 %, 1.2 %). Vendors were primarily from the USA. Many products offered worldwide shipping (96.3 %, 42.4 %, 51.2 %). CONCLUSION: Vaping products listed on online cryptomarkets in 2019 primarily contained cannabis oils. Future studies should continue to examine cryptomarkets to identify emerging trends of substances that can be used in personal vaporisers.

Competitive intelligence and its impact on innovations in tourism industry of China: An empirical research.

Competitive intelligence (CI) has attracted much attention in innovation research, but most of existing literature studies CI in technological innovations in manufacturing industry, with little empirical research in context of service businesses. This paper first analyzes CI of service businesses and then uses covariance-based structural equation modeling (SEM) on a data of 333 got from the survey in tourism enterprises of east China to test the effect of customer CI, opponent CI, and supplier CI on service innovations in China's service industry. Results show that opponent CI and supplier CI have positive influence on both exploratory and exploitative service innovation. Customer CI has more obvious positive influence on exploratory service innovation than on exploitative service innovation.

Being There: The Development of the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, the Innocenti Declaration and the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative.

Margaret Isabirye Kyenkya (photo) grew up in Uganda with five bothers and six sisters. Her Bachelor of Arts was in Social Work and Social Administration (Makerere University, Uganda), and was followed by a Masters in Sociology, (Nairobi University), and a Certificate in Mother and Child Health (International Child Health Institute, London). Her PhD focused on Hospital Administration inspired by the WHO/UNICEF Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative. She has worked as a researcher, the founder of Non-Governmental Organizations, a Senior United Nations Officer (New York Headquarters and several regions), a Manager in the United States Agency for International Development-funded National Health and Nutrition Projects, and a governmental Health and Nutrition Adviser. A certified trainer in a number of health and nutrition areas, a breastfeeding counselor, and a retired La Leche League Leader, Dr. Kyenkya has significantly influenced the course of lactation support and promotion globally. She stated, "My most precious and valued occupation is that of a mother [of five] and grandmother [of eight]." Dr. Kyenkya currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States. (This interview was conducted in-person and transcribed verbatim. It has been edited for ease of readability. MK refers to Margaret Kyenkya; KM refers to Kathleen Marinelli.).

Implementing a Food Labeling and Marketing Law in Chile.

In 2012, Chile passed a law intended to reduce obesity in the country. It included several novel features, such as a front-of-package label, limitations to marketing and advertising, and policies targeting schools. The law required the creation of a regulation to address its implementation. Between 2012 and 2015, a process was carried out to generate this regulation that finally came into force in June 2016. This process confronted several difficulties: the involvement of multiple actors, political changes in national government, and endless negotiations to define the operational details of the regulation. The end result was one of the most discussed health policies of recent years in Chile. This article tells the story of the process defining this regulation, carried out between 2012 and 2015. It describes its evolution from a legal perspective but also reveals the trade-offs faced by the team in charge of providing the operational definitions for the implementation of the law. The article presents the main challenges as well the strategies used by the team at the Ministry of Health to overcome the many difficulties that arose during the process of implementing Chile's food labeling and marketing law. The experience of the Chilean reform may provide practical information and lessons for other countries and policy makers embarking on the task of preventing and reducing obesity. Although the Chilean experience has its own particularities, it also suggests common difficulties for similar reform processes in terms of technical challenges-such as the definition of concepts and the scope of regulation-and political challenges-like the opposition of the food industry and conflicts of interest among governmental institutions.

Changes in Tobacco Product Advertising at Point of Sale: 2015-2018.

OBJECTIVES: Tobacco point-of-sale advertising, particularly in retailers surrounding schools, is associated with youth tobacco use and must be monitored. This study examines how the point-of-sale environment surrounding youth changed over time with regard to diverse tobacco products. METHODS: Each spring from 2015 to 2018, research staff visited the same tobacco retailers (n = 141) within a half-mile of New Jersey high schools. For cigarettes, cigars, electronic cigarettes, and smokeless tobacco, advertisement presence, volume, and share of advertising voice (SAV) were measured for both the exterior and interior of the store. Analyses examined changes over time by product, controlling for store type and poverty. RESULTS: Over time, exterior cigarette advertisements declined in presence (61% to 49%) and SAV (50% to 40%), whereas interior advertisements maintained stable presence, volume, and SAV. In contrast, cigar advertisements increased in presence (exterior 11% to 23%; interior 19% to 30%) and volume (exterior mean 0.2 to 0.5; interior 0.3 to 0.8). For electronic cigarettes, exterior and interior advertising presence, volume, and SAV decreased from 2015 to 2017 but increased in 2018. Smokeless tobacco advertising was infrequent and stayed consistent except in volume in the interior of stores (mean 0.2 to 0.3). When there were any differences by store type, chain convenience stores had the most exterior and interior advertising for all products. CONCLUSIONS: The longitudinal changes observed for each product's advertising reflect national youth use rates of the corresponding products. The point-of-sale environment around schools may be influencing youth tobacco use and must be monitored and regulated.

Changes in Beverage Marketing at Stores Following the Oakland Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Tax.

INTRODUCTION: In July 2017, Oakland, California implemented a 1 cent/ounce sugar-sweetened beverage tax. This study examined changes in store marketing practices-advertising and price promotions-for sugar-sweetened beverages, artificially sweetened beverages, and unsweetened beverages following the introduction of the tax. METHODS: The study employed a quasi-experimental research design and included Oakland as the intervention site and Sacramento, California as a comparison site. Based on data collected pretax (May-June 2017), 6 months post-tax (January 2018), and 12 months post-tax (June 2018) at 249 stores across the 2 sites, exterior and interior advertising for 4 taxed sugar-sweetened beverage subtypes and 6 untaxed artificially sweetened and unsweetened beverage subtypes, as well as price promotions for 59 specific taxed products and 69 untaxed products were examined. In 2019, difference-in-differences logistic regressions estimated pre-post changes in Oakland relative to Sacramento. RESULTS: At 6 months post-tax, the odds of sugar-sweetened beverage price promotions fell 50% in Oakland but only 22% in Sacramento. Price promotions for regular soda in particular declined in Oakland post-tax, by 47% at 6 months and 39% at 12 months (versus no change in Sacramento). Moreover, the odds of artificially sweetened beverage price promotions fell by a similar magnitude as sugar-sweetened beverages in Oakland, 55% at 6 months and 53% at 12 months, which differed significantly from Sacramento. No significant post-tax changes were found in sugar-sweetened or artificially sweetened beverage exterior or interior advertising. CONCLUSIONS: Rather than increasing marketing, retailers and manufacturers may have tried to offset revenue losses by reducing price promotions for sugar-sweetened beverages, particularly regular soda, and artificially sweetened beverages.

Influence of pharmaceutical promotion on prescribers in Jordan.

Background Pharmaceutical promotion efforts should facilitate excellent quality patient care. However, there has been substantial debate about ethical principles related to pharmaceutical promotions. Objectives This study aimed to evaluate (i) attitudes toward pharmaceutical promotion among physicians in the private sector in Jordan, (ii) the impact of pharmaceutical promotion in influencing physicians' prescribing practices, and (iii) the prospect of academic detailing on this issue in Jordan. Setting The private health care sector in Jordan. Methods In this cross-sectional study, a self-administered questionnaire was distributed to a sample of physicians from the private health sector in Jordan during the period from December 2018 to March 2019. Descriptive statistics were conducted to describe physicians' attitudes toward pharmaceutical promotions, factors affecting prescribing practices, and perceptions toward academic detailing. Logistic regression models were performed to investigate predictors of acceptance and skepticism attitudes toward pharmaceutical promotion. Eisenberg model of physician decision-making was applied to evaluate factors influencing physicians' prescribing practice of promoted pharmaceutical products. Main outcome measure Attitudes toward pharmaceutical promotions, exposure to promoted pharmaceutical products, factors affecting physicians' prescribing practice of promoted pharmaceutical products, and their perceptions toward academic detailing and expected challenges. Results A total of 310 physicians completed the survey. The majority of physicians (73%) agreed that pharmaceutical companies provide valuable education on new pharmaceutical products. However, 66% of physicians agreed that lectures that are sponsored by pharmaceutical companies are often biased in favor of their products. Ninety-two percent of physicians agreed that drug samples were the most commonly offered promotional products by pharmaceutical companies. Being educated about the ethical principles related to pharmaceutical promotions among physicians was associated with higher likelihood of being skeptic about pharmaceutical promotional activities. Physicians' years of experience, payers' factors, environmental factors and participation in drug committees were significantly associated with high impact of marketing activities on physicians' prescribing practices (ORs of 1.2, 1.2, 1.49 and 0.43, respectively). The majority of participants in the current study reported positive attitudes toward applying academic detailing services in the future. Conclusions Education seems to play a crucial role in physicians' attitudes toward pharmaceutical promotion. Academic detailing is a promising strategy to counteract unethical marketing practice.

David Clark: Defender of Human Rights and Breastfeeding.

On September 10, I had the pleasure of interviewing my friend and colleague David Lawson Clark, the legal advisor for infant and young child nutrition and expert on the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes at UNICEF. A native of Scotland, David began his career as an attorney with the Scottish Development Agency and subsequently worked for the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute in Rome, Italy. Since 1995, David has assisted more than 60 countries in drafting legislation to implement the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes and has been instrumental in bringing a human rights-based approach to the protection, promotion, and support of breastfeeding. He has contributed to the development of international policy guidelines in the area of HIV and infant feeding and infant feeding in emergencies, and has provided guidance on issues around international trade agreements and intellectual property rights. David has written and contributed to many articles and publications on health and nutrition policy, developed courses and training materials on the implementation of the International Code and maternity protection, and has facilitated numerous workshops on the issue. (LGS refers to Dr. Laurence Grummer-Strawn and DC are the verbatim responses of David Clark).