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This conceptual paper examines the rationale for strategic planning in business schools and outlines an applied strategy development and controlling process that has been in use at a major Swiss business school for several years, contributing to a significant strengthening of the school's strategic position. It explains the strategy hierarchy and the strategy planning cycle, describes how to conduct a consistent strategic situation analysis, and details how to develop and manage a coherent strategy at all levels (normative, strategic, tactical, and operational), including type, nature, and structure of the corresponding documents.

This paper aims to understand how born global firms develop their international pricing strategies, practices, and models. It aims to expand the study of international entrepreneurship and born global firms by including a broader and deeper range of pricing aspects than is normally found in the international entrepreneurship and pricing literature. The paper opted for a multiple case-study research design using different sources of evidence, including four in-depth interviews with CEOs of born global firms. The case-study firms were selected using a purposive selection method. The theoretical framework of Ingenbleek, Frambach & Verhallen is used. The results suggest that successful leaders act as ‘integrating forces’ on two levels: by applying a structured and disciplined price-setting process with regular reviews and by mediating between corporate financial goals and the local market reality. The results support the claim that policy makers should offer insights, training and financial support to give promising born global firms the possibility to select the most efficient international pricing models and strategies. The results are relevant for entrepreneurs to understand the importance of efficient price-modelling processes and the influence of the different price strategies and price models on financial results and sales revenues.

Opera has a famous history and even the present-day repertoire in opera houses mostly consists of classical and well-known works. Marketers are trying to find new ways that would enable opera lovers all over the world to enjoy top quality performances. One of the most successful models is real-time transmissions of operas to geographically remote cinemas. Cinemas from all around the world participate in the project. In this paper, the authors analyze the spectators' profile and point out differences between North America and the Czech Republic, focusing on transmissions of performances by the Metropolitan Opera in New York. The authors submit a detailed analysis of the socio-demographic characteristics of the spectators and the attendance frequency. Special attention is paid to the marketing profile of Czech spectators, based on primary data gathered in the research. The paper is a combination of research report and business case study. The study reveals that female visitors prevail. Elderly people are also represented in high percentages. The spectators are characterized by refined taste in their lifestyles and familiarity with modern technology.

Conceptual evolution of the Internet and Web, substantiated through Web 2.0 and the emergence of online social networks, reinvented the way that enterprises interact with their customers. Museums, as cultural institutions with an important mission, are not unaffected by that change, however. In order to fulfil their duties and societal purpose successfully, they have to attract visitors' attention and engage the public effectively in a highly competitive and saturated environment. The goal of this paper is to analyze and compare the social media presence of museums in two European capitals. It focuses on museums in Prague and Berlin, and considers their general Web presence and the dynamics of activities on Facebook. In order to understand the integrative social media approach of museums in both regions, we investigated additionally Twitter and Youtube presence among museums with a Facebook account. The study reveals a lower presence of Prague museums both on the Web and in the identified social media networks, in comparison to Berlin museums. Moreover, we conclude that the presence of both regional museums on social media networks is low, while the integration and simultaneous application of more networks at the same time are negligible, both for Prague and Berlin museums.

This article analyzes the emergence of a new trend in marketing communication and PR in the Czech Republic. After the decline of public trust after the economic crisis in 2008, many state officials and politicians were blamed for corruption and fraud worldwide (Edelman, 2013). Anti-corruption attitudes have emerged in government communication, media, NGOs and also within the business sector. The term "anti-corruption" has become an often-used marketing claim. Anti-corruption claims and values have been used by a wide range of companies and institutions in their corporate communication or PR. Often, the main business leader serve as personalities and opinion leaders in anti-corruption activities; these include individuals such as Karel Janeček, Stanislav Bernard or Radim Jančura. This article analyzes and discusses embedding anti-corruption attitudes within the marketing communication and PR strategy and possible impacts on the reputation of the company's management.

This paper aims to focus on the determinants influencing the internationalization of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Czech Republic and Russia. The objective is to investigate and evaluate the business environment and, then, examine the importance of developing and promoting entrepreneurship to allow SMEs in Czech & Russia to develop a competitive position in the international marketplace. An overview of the current economic situation facing SMEs in CZ & RU is provided. Then the factors necessary for the expansion of the business will be discussed, along with the challenges of overcoming the resource gaps to be identified. We have conducted empirical surveys along with the use of SPSS statistical tools to predict the potential of revenue growth in SME sector. Information is provided concerning the current situation for SMEs in CZ & RU and the challenges encountered as they face a business environment that is becoming more competitive. We also found that SMEs are increasingly more integrated into the global economy and not limited to regional/international activities. Quantitative analysis shows that there is significant potential for SMEs for the next couple of years despite the economic uncertainty. This paper integrates entrepreneurship, and the resource-based internationalization of SMEs in Czech Republic & Russia, specifically focusing on the use of technology.

Communal forms of employment have deep roots in Europe; however, these definitions have not been clarified in Hungary yet. This is partly due to the lack of exposure, and partly due to the lack of a proper, sophisticated regulation framework. The goal of this paper is to organize general terms and aims, introduce the institutional environment, and to highlight problematic areas.

Negative feedback has been repeatedly identified as beneficial for organizational learning, adaptability, and performance. Despite having these advantages, most organizations still do not use negative feedback to its full potential, as they fail to spread it correctly among their members. The application of negative feedback, therefore, faces several issues like misuse or process avoidance that are mostly driven by psychological factors. The purpose of this paper is to discuss potential benefits of a newly emerged organizational approach called radical candor for contemporary state of the art in feedback-related behavior and to propose how it might be successfully applied in organizational settings. We define radical candor as a proactive and compassionate engagement in an unpleasant and direct feedback process. Radical candor may help reduce the influence of psychological factors like extreme levels of attachment, harsh emotions or low self-esteem in order to make organizational members more engaged and satisfied with the negative feedback process. Organizations willing to apply radical candor might consider either official implementation from top to bottom (through managers and leadership) or unofficial intervention through the agents (employees of all levels) depending on company characteristics.

Income contingent schemes have been widely used in student lending in the last few decades. Recently, in the aftermath of the crisis of 2007-2008, several authors argued that income contingent loans have much better risk profiles than traditional fixed loans, and they proposed to extend their scope to other areas of retail lending, too. Hence, understanding this scheme can be relevant from the point of view of both human resource management and financial engineering. In this paper we analyzed the unusual characteristics of income contingent repayments, and derived closed formulas for stability, success and shape. We concluded that humped debt paths can be frightening; however, if the growth rate of the debt is lower than the growth rate of the income, then it is not a debt trap, but a natural consequence of this patient and flexible scheme, which requires new methods of communication, risk management, financing and administration.

Relying on three questionnaire-based surveys from 2004, 2009 and 2013, each covering around 300 top financial managers of different Hungarian manufacturing and service companies, this article analyzes how the perception and measurement of intellectual capital (IC) elements has changed. Instead of focusing on stock exchange prices or case studies of individual firms, this research is unique for using a database on the opinion of top managers over a decade. After the managers, IC has slightly gained importance giving 48-51 percent of the firm value during the years analyzed, still, most companies give little attention to measuring these items correctly. This is dangerous, as by just focusing on traditional accounting measures or relying on outdated methods, top managers are less likely to take shareholder value maximizing decisions. Encouragingly, those who measure do it better: book value has lost popularity while more appropriate market value based estimates have gained importance.

At the end of 2014, the number of firms with an Italian presence in Romania was 39,556, representing 19.33% out of total registered firms and this number is still growing. This article focuses on answering the following question: what kind of Italian firms are investing in Romania and why? Starting from the empirical observation that the number of Italian firms in Romania grew by 6.82% last year, we have used a PESTEL analysis to find the key points characterizing the country, paying attention also to the concept of country brand. From the point of view of Italian firms, we have also analyzed the shifting paradigm of internationalization from a Vertical Foreign Direct Investment model to a Horizontal Foreign Direct Investment model. This paper can be useful for managers and entrepreneurs who are oriented towards investing in Romania following the path of Italian firms.

The goal of the paper is to identify factors influencing financial leverage in Lithuanian listed companies. The factors influencing financial leverage have been analyzed in theoretical and empirical literature although the authors haven't found this type of research done in Lithuania. The authors analyze the theories explaining financial leverage and factors influencing financial leverage. Survey data include 2008-2012 year financial statements of 30 firms listed on the NASDAQ OMX Vilnius stock exchange. The methods used in this paper include econometric and regression analysis. The research allowed the confirmation of financial constraints (specifically, working capital) and a firm's industry as factors influencing financial leverage. Financial constraints impel companies to have higher financial leverage, and firms in the same industry are predisposed to change their financial leverage accordingly.

The goal of this article is to present work-related attitudes of a sample of Czech Generation Z and their comparison to the results of an international research study. Currently, there are three important trends influencing the labor market: (1) the origin and development of a ubiquitous working environment, (2) the thriving of coworking centers, and (3) Generation Z's entering the labor market. Instead of traditional jobs, the bearers of human capital tend to choose independent work in an online environment, and often work in coworking centers. Using self-determination theory, we substantiate why they thrive better this way. Based on the results of an international research project focused on work attitudes among Generation Z and the results of a replication study we carried out in the Czech Republic, we attest that members of Generation Z may prefer independent virtual work in coworking centers, too. The total amount of available human capital, the lack of which is pointed out by companies, may grow thanks to new ways of working. Companies, which can use human capital of independent workers, gain a competitive advantage.

In 2014, the Czech automotive industry had a record-breaking year with 1 278 000 motor vehicles manufactured. This was a result of the investment of three major carmakers, who entered into the Czech Republic, because they believed in the industrial capacity of the country and its strategic location in Central Europe. The goal of this article is to analyze the different entry strategies into the Czech market and to compare the results of different strategic approaches for both foreign private investors and the recipient country. The main research method used in this article is a case study. In our case studies, we will analyze the cases of the Volkswagen group and its acquisition of the manufacturer Škoda, the greenfield investment of Hyundai, and the strategic alliance of the French car producer PSA with Japanese Toyota who had founded the TPCA joint venture in the Czech Republic. All three case studies show examples of good practices and prove that foreign direct investment (FDI) has the potential to generate employment, raise productivity, transfer skills and technology, enhance exports and contribute to the long-term economic development of the country.

The automotive industry is a key sector of the Czech national economy. Its share of GDP represents more than 8% and the Czech Republic is the 14^th biggest producer of personal cars in the world. The goal of this article is to analyze the development of the customer portfolio of automotive suppliers in the Czech Republic from the perspective of their international location. The diversification of the portfolio can be measured in many ways. The approach in this article relies both on the usual statistical tools (concentration ratio, Lorenz curve, Gini coefficient, Herfindahl-Hirschman index) and on specific approaches such as the number of partners, geographical diversification and average distance travelled by exported component. Even though the export volume has been dynamically growing, it has remained focused on a limited number of crucial countries, which are mostly located in the close neighborhood of the Czech Republic.

This article addresses the human potential of companies as well as the motivation and retention of employees, which play a key role in reaching a company's commercial and financial goals. The article's objective is to answer questions concerning employee education as a significant tool of employee motivation and retention in the financial sector. The initial part of the article deals with the theoretical background of employee motivation and retention, methodology, and hypotheses setting. Verification of the hypotheses should lead to objective achievement by their confirmation or refusal. The hypotheses were verified and confirmed through empirical research; the author conducted research among employees of financial companies in the Czech Republic. The research was supplemented by round table discussions with the respondents. A clear result has come of the research; financial sector employees valued further education the most out of eighteen offered benefits provided by employers. The article's provides managers with recommendations.

This article analyzes the trends and development of the retailing sector in Central Europe, namely in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. These markets serve about 63 million inhabitants. The retail industry in Central Europe has changed dramatically in the last two decades, and has become a model for successful transformation of emerging markets. The retail market is highly concentrated and dominated by Western European retail chains. International retail chains are using all formats of modern distribution. This article is focusing on the development of hypermarkets, supermarkets and discount stores. Due to international retail chains, Central European countries benefit from a dense network of modern shopping places; the intense competition of highly productive retailers contributes to a lower inflation rate because of the so-called Wal-Mart Effect. The constant pressure on prices influences the marketing strategies of both retailers and suppliers.

Since 2007, globalization of the world economy has led to the expansion of the financial crisis. It affects the long-term international negative positions of EU members. They reacted to the new situation by carrying out structural reforms and by support of new adaptation programs. An important element of this process was the preparing of the convergence of the national energy policies in the framework of the Europe 20-20-20 program, which should remain one of the determining elements of their success in support of the international competitiveness of the EU.

This paper analyzes the state of corporate sustainability in the Czech Republic compared with world trends, including case studies of best practices. Corporate sustainability has developed from ad hoc activities dominantly focused on cost-cutting or corporate image improvements to strategic issue requiring the attention of corporate boards and top management. The development of sustainability as an integral part of corporate existence comprises of the following managerial implications: strategy, collaboration, and implementation. The strategic component requires mission reformulation, strategy redefinition and involves the board and top managers' broader thinking, leaders capable of open mindedness, and creativity. The collaborative component calls for intensive collaboration and communication with all stakeholders, including association with avant-garde partners, such as, NGOs, regulators, universities, and competitors. The implementation component addresses the need for high quality change management programs.

This paper has been devoted to theoretically examining the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) agenda which has been dominating the business world in recent years. Customer relationship management is a new competitive weapon for organizations for serving internal and external customers. Today's organizations are focusing on conquering the minds of customers, to make them satisfied and loyal with the help of sophisticated, well-organized CRM efforts. This paper is to explore the CRM agenda in organizational interfaces and its effectiveness with regards to customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. The related literature demonstrates that there is a significant association among effective CRM, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty.

The goal of the current research is to analyze the impact of customers' perceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on their loyalty towards mobile telecommunication companies within the particular socio-cultural and economic context of one of the largest national markets of Central and Eastern Europe. In order to achieve this goal, a survey was conducted among a sample of 1,464 mobile telecommunication customers from the urban area of Romania. The findings point out the fact that Romanian mobile telecom customers' loyalty is not significantly impacted by how they perceive their service suppliers' responsibilities with regard to their employees or economic success, while their perceptions of companies' responsibilities towards customers, public authorities, the environment, community development, and sponsorship have a significant impact on corporate brand loyalty. The findings have managerial implications in what concerns the appropriate implementation and communication of CSR policies by mobile telecommunication companies from the region in order for them to enhance their customer's loyalty.

Social media is becoming a key part of business communication strategy. Despite all the advantages, social media also poses a threat to business reputation. Dissatisfied customers can reach a large audience and share their negative experiences with others. This paper deals with the impact of social media on the practice of public relations. The goal of the paper is to formulate a set of rules for dealing with negative contributions and generally with crisis communication in social media. It is based on two surveys. Individual interviews with social media experts are the core part of the analysis. They are complemented by questioning of consumers to get deeper insight into complaining behavior via social media. The defined set of rules provides a useful tool for the social media crisis management.

This article aims at analyzing the relationship between sustainable development and the financial system, mainly focusing on the role that the financial system plays within the process of sustainable development. Theoretically, the financial system could be a very important factor to promote sustainable development, as it could foster economic growth and development, efficient resource allocation, the protection of the environment and also social responsibility. Using panel data econometrical analysis, we tested for correlations between indicators of the financial system and indicators of sustainable development in five developing Eastern European countries. We found weak or no correlation between financial indicators and sustainable development indicators. This might be explained by several facts. First, the financial systems of these five developing countries are not highly developed, so that they do not have a high capacity to foster economic growth and development. Second, even if this was the case, promoting sustainable development requires a lot more than fostering economic growth and is not a question of whether the financial companies can promote sustainability, but whether they are interested in promoting it. Even though financial companies have embraced the sustainability agenda, they haven`t done much to change their short-term orientation to profit and to shift to long-run strategies in favor of sustainable development.

The article presents the idea of gaining a position of competitive advantage by companies operating in the knowledge-based economy and in the age of modern technology. The rate of change in companies' environments forces organizations to react quickly to clients' needs. In recent years, there has been an observed systematic increase in the importance of communicating customer value in Poland. This paper shows changes (trends) in the system of market communication in the age of modern technology and changes in the economy. The author presents the mechanisms and effects of communication in age new technology in Poland. Modern technologies enable the collection, storage and transmission of information. Reflections contained in the paper do not have definite characteristics and should be treated as an opinion in the discussion.