Volume 12, Number 1, June 2009

EN:

The growing disparity in income between the rich and middle/lower income groups has resulted in significant skewness in the distribution of wealth in the U.S. The short and tall of it is that the real incomes of the top .01 percent of Americans rose seven fold between 1980 and 2007, but the real income of the median family rose only 22 percent, less than a third of its growth over the previous 27 years. Two main reasons given by economists are technological innovation and inadequate technical education in the U.S. However, there are several other factors that are relevant. This paper analyzes the other issues: 1) the funding of federal political campaigns, 2) the effects of offshoring, 3) the role of the U.S. tax code, and 4) the absence of a strong connection between performance and rewards that may be related to the recent shift in wealth. While wage differences naturally occur in a capitalistic system, massive differences provoke social unrest and the rise of demigods advocating collectivist solutions.

EN:

This study examines managers’ evaluations of overall job performance related to cultural orientations and nationality. Good citizenry enhances the common social welfare of a work unit, whereas task performance emphasizes core activities associated with task completion. Using data collected from both Chinese and Canadian respondents, we found collectivism related positively with good citizenry, which is beneficial to other citizens and organizations. Chinese respondents, as compared with their Canadian counterparts, gave more importance to good citizenship behavior, thinking that it would be beneficial to everyone. The behavioral differences between the nationalities remained strong even after controlling for differences in collectivism and power distance. The implications of this phenomenon into the future research and practices are discussed in this paper.

EN:

This study analyzes the internationalization strategies and the financial management practices of seven Spanish companies with the largest volume of investments in Latin America. The companies selected for an in-depth analysis represent approximately 80 percent of the total Spanish foreign investments during the period of analysis. Their investments have taken place mainly in service sectors such as banking, energy, and telecommunications. The study identifies the market conditions and the corporate strategies that have allowed these Spanish companies to successfully initiate and expand business activities into Latin America. The findings suggest Spanish investors have strengthened their global competitiveness and have accomplished greater financial results.

EN:

Consumer financing have become increasingly important in the private sector of Pakistan for the last two decades. With the new reforms in the banking sector, the marketing of financial products has become very competitive, creating a need for strategizing the marketing efforts. This study investigates the shift of Pakistani consumers towards the use of plastic money, with emphasis on credit cards. A survey of consumers holding (at least) one or no credit card were used for data collection. Variables related to demographics such as age, income level and gender have also been taken into consideration. This study makes (the) use of descriptive variables in terms of analyzing the general attitude about the use of credit cards and the factors contributing towards the selection of (a) one particular credit card over the other. A positive relationship has been found between the income level of a person and his/her possession of the credit card. While making the choice of a credit card the trust in a particular brand name seems to hold a very significant importance in the selection of a credit card, instead of the logo of Visa or Master card. The profession of the person seems to play a very interesting role with their behavior towards credit cards. Our study shows that the bankers hold negative attitude towards the use of a credit card. The moderating variables include the marketing campaign of a particular bank, sales teams support, openness from retailers for accepting credit card instead of cash, knowledge about the true interest rate imposed by the banks and the concept of Islamic mode of financing, etc. Based on our observations, suggestions have also been made for managers to refine the target market.