Bussecon Review of Social Sciences

This study mainly aimed to investigate the impact of seasonal changes on media advertising revenues (AR) in R environment through a visual-print media company example. So, the study primarily aimed to examine whether visual, print and internet ARs were affected by seasonal change. The study also aimed to indicate the trends of visual/ print/ and internet ARs over time in the light of seasonality. Furthermore, it was also aimed to make AR estimates for the next year with the best performing methods covering ARIMA and ETS. Methodologically, R programming language and its libraries were used together with ARIMA and ETS time series models. The data set consisted of a monthly ARs series consisting of 180 rows covering the period between January/2007-December/2021 and having a sufficient number of observations for the application of the models. Data were analyzed with R and next year’s forecasts were done with ARIMA and ETS. The study revealed that all AR types were affected by seasonal changes in the specified period and included seasonality, i.e. specially in the summer months.  Additionally, it was observed that AR types have different trends despite containing seasonality. The study found that visual ARs denoted a slight downward trend including seasonality during the period. It was also indicated that print ARs reflected a very rapid and drastic downward trend covering seasonality. The study also revealed that internet ARs showed a very rapid and sharp upward trend compared to the other two AR types despite having seasonality. Furthermore, taking into account the calculated error metrics, it was found that the ARIMA model showed the best estimation performance in both i.e. visual and internet ARs. On the other hand, the ETS model indicated the best estimation performance in print ARs. Accordingly, estimations of the visual/print and internet ARs for the next year were made with the best performing methods. It was pointed out that estimated ARs included seasonality in the summer months and revealed similar results to the previous trends based on historical data.

This study explores the influence of digital marketing strategies on brand loyalty among young airline passengers, specifically targeting Millennials and Gen Z individuals aged 18-35 years old. With the increasing reliance on digital channels such as social media, email marketing, and search engine marketing, it is crucial to understand how these strategies impact the customer-brand relationship, brand trust, and ultimately, brand loyalty. The research employs a quantitative approach, gathering data from 230 participants who are frequent users of digital platforms and have recent travel experiences with airlines. The findings reveal that social media marketing has the most significant impact on the customer-brand relationship, followed by email and search engine marketing. Additionally, the study confirms that brand trust acts as a critical mediator between digital marketing activities and brand loyalty. These results highlight the importance of tailored digital marketing strategies for airlines aiming to engage and retain young passengers in a highly competitive industry.

This study investigates the impact of public procurement procedures on the efficacy of public projects within Zambia's Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development (MIHUD) and the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD).  Inefficient procurement methods, characterised by delays, cost overruns, and inferior project quality, have impeded the successful execution of public projects, especially in infrastructure and rural development.  The research is to evaluate the impact of Supplier Qualification Screening (SQS), Competitive Bidding (CB), and Supplier Evaluation (SE) on project performance.  A quantitative research methodology was utilised, employing a survey-based descriptive design to gather data from 120 procurement experts and project managers within the designated ministries.  Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was employed to examine the correlations between procurement methods and project outcomes.  The results demonstrate that SQS and CB enhance project performance by facilitating timely delivery and cost effectiveness.  Nonetheless, SE exerted a detrimental impact, indicating that too rigorous evaluation processes may result in delays and impede project accomplishment.  Hypothesis testing validated these findings, corroborating the alternative hypotheses for SQS and CB, however SE demonstrated an inverse correlation with project outcomes.  The report advocates for the fortification of regulatory frameworks, the augmentation of capacity-building programs, the rectification of bureaucratic inefficiencies, and the encouragement of e-procurement platform usage to enhance procurement efficiency.  A review of supplier evaluation procedures is essential to avert needless delays in project execution.  The study's results have substantial implications for procurement reforms and efficiency enhancements in Zambia.  Improving openness, accountability, and stakeholder collaboration in procurement procedures can result in superior project outcomes, fostering national infrastructure development and socio-economic advancement, especially in rural regions.  Enhancing procurement policies and using digital solutions will be crucial in developing a more efficient and accountable public procurement system.

In today's competitive business landscape, organizations constantly seek strategies to enhance their market position and profitability. One of the pivotal inquiries that many industry experts and scholars are delving into is: How do cost leadership, service innovation, and customer value creation influence business performance? Cost leadership, often seen as a way to gain a competitive edge through operational efficiency, might offer immediate financial benefits. Given the frequent economic challenges, it has become increasingly crucial for hotel businesses to embrace strong competitive and marketing strategies. The hospitality sector, particularly susceptible to the ramifications of such crises, has long been scrutinized to discern the strategic measures they employ during turbulent times. This empirical investigation, encompassing insights from 437 industry professionals, underscores that initiatives centered on corporate service innovation yield a direct and favorable augmentation in organizational performance. However, the study found inconclusive evidence regarding the mediating impact of value creation through customer engagement.

There has been increasing studies that details the transmission channels through which financial development permeates to speed up growth to higher echelon. Studies have underpinned that financial development yield more growth when these channels are optimized. With studies on real sector performance sparse, this paper contributes to this discussion as it examined the effect of financial development in fostering industrial growth under the condition of high and low human capital endowment. This was investigated for a sample of five (5) West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) countries from 1990 to 2022. The study developed a panel threshold regression (PTR) model where human capital functioned as threshold variable and data collected from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), World Development Indicator (WDI) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) databases. The study finds a threshold effect of financial development on industrial sector growth. The PTR estimator shows financial development can produce more industrial growth if human capital exceeds a gross of 62.9493%. Additionally, other factors such as trade openness, natural resource rents and higher labour participation in economic activities support industrial sector growth. In the design of industrial growth enhancing policies, policy mandarins should implement measures that improve human capital and further develop the financial system by scaling up education expenditure to the UNESCO prescribed 26% of GDP, educating women, leveraging technology to improve human capital productivity and outcomes, reducing loan collateral requirements, strengthening legal frameworks, and boosting banking competition by allowing entrant of capitalized financial institutions and timely exist of insolvent ones.

This study investigates the impact of public procurement procedures on the efficacy of public projects within Zambia's Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development (MIHUD) and the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD).  Inefficient procurement methods, characterised by delays, cost overruns, and inferior project quality, have impeded the successful execution of public projects, especially in infrastructure and rural development.  The research is to evaluate the impact of Supplier Qualification Screening (SQS), Competitive Bidding (CB), and Supplier Evaluation (SE) on project performance.  A quantitative research methodology was utilised, employing a survey-based descriptive design to gather data from 120 procurement experts and project managers within the designated ministries.  Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was employed to examine the correlations between procurement methods and project outcomes.  The results demonstrate that SQS and CB enhance project performance by facilitating timely delivery and cost effectiveness.  Nonetheless, SE exerted a detrimental impact, indicating that too rigorous evaluation processes may result in delays and impede project accomplishment.  Hypothesis testing validated these findings, corroborating the alternative hypotheses for SQS and CB, however SE demonstrated an inverse correlation with project outcomes.  The report advocates for the fortification of regulatory frameworks, the augmentation of capacity-building programs, the rectification of bureaucratic inefficiencies, and the encouragement of e-procurement platform usage to enhance procurement efficiency.  A review of supplier evaluation procedures is essential to avert needless delays in project execution.  The study's results have substantial implications for procurement reforms and efficiency enhancements in Zambia.  Improving openness, accountability, and stakeholder collaboration in procurement procedures can result in superior project outcomes, fostering national infrastructure development and socio-economic advancement, especially in rural regions.  Enhancing procurement policies and using digital solutions will be crucial in developing a more efficient and accountable public procurement system.

In today's competitive business landscape, organizations constantly seek strategies to enhance their market position and profitability. One of the pivotal inquiries that many industry experts and scholars are delving into is: How do cost leadership, service innovation, and customer value creation influence business performance? Cost leadership, often seen as a way to gain a competitive edge through operational efficiency, might offer immediate financial benefits. Given the frequent economic challenges, it has become increasingly crucial for hotel businesses to embrace strong competitive and marketing strategies. The hospitality sector, particularly susceptible to the ramifications of such crises, has long been scrutinized to discern the strategic measures they employ during turbulent times. This empirical investigation, encompassing insights from 437 industry professionals, underscores that initiatives centered on corporate service innovation yield a direct and favorable augmentation in organizational performance. However, the study found inconclusive evidence regarding the mediating impact of value creation through customer engagement.

There has been increasing studies that details the transmission channels through which financial development permeates to speed up growth to higher echelon. Studies have underpinned that financial development yield more growth when these channels are optimized. With studies on real sector performance sparse, this paper contributes to this discussion as it examined the effect of financial development in fostering industrial growth under the condition of high and low human capital endowment. This was investigated for a sample of five (5) West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) countries from 1990 to 2022. The study developed a panel threshold regression (PTR) model where human capital functioned as threshold variable and data collected from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), World Development Indicator (WDI) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) databases. The study finds a threshold effect of financial development on industrial sector growth. The PTR estimator shows financial development can produce more industrial growth if human capital exceeds a gross of 62.9493%. Additionally, other factors such as trade openness, natural resource rents and higher labour participation in economic activities support industrial sector growth. In the design of industrial growth enhancing policies, policy mandarins should implement measures that improve human capital and further develop the financial system by scaling up education expenditure to the UNESCO prescribed 26% of GDP, educating women, leveraging technology to improve human capital productivity and outcomes, reducing loan collateral requirements, strengthening legal frameworks, and boosting banking competition by allowing entrant of capitalized financial institutions and timely exist of insolvent ones.

There has been an increase in the elderly population worldwide in recent years. This situation creates some needs both at individual and social level. In particular, elderly individuals need support in carrying out their daily activities. Therefore, elderly care centers are seen as an important supporter in this respect. This study aims to identify the criteria affecting the selection of elderly care centers and prioritize them with SWARA method. The SWARA method was used to weight the criteria affecting the selection of elderly care centers in order of priority. Eight criteria identified through literature review were evaluated by five experts experienced in the relevant field. The experts evaluated the criteria by ranking them according to their importance and the final prioritization was carried out by taking the geometric mean of the evaluations. According to the results of the analysis, the most important factor affecting the selection of an elderly care center was the Quality-of-Life Comfort and Service with a weight of 22%. This was followed by Financial Status with 20%, Health Services with 16%, and Professional Staff with 13%. Location and Transportation criterion was determined as the least important factor with a weight of 0.7%. The fact that life comfort and service quality have the highest weight indicates that elderly individuals expect a quality and comfortable living environment. The results obtained from the study show that policies for elderly care homes should be organized in a way that aims to increase the comfort of living, improve service quality, ensure economic accessibility and ensure the sustainability of health services.

The study aims to investigate the extent to which the concepts of social innovation and talent management will affect the innovation performance of enterprises as a result of the literature studies on the concepts of social innovation and talent management in family businesses in the Marmara Region. A questionnaire consisting of 78 questions was applied to the employees of small, medium and large-sized family businesses operating in the Marmara Region. A total of 460 questionnaires were evaluated. SPSS program was used for the survey results and the answers were analyzed by reliability analysis, factor analysis, correlation analysis and regression analysis methods. With the analysis study, the impact of social innovation and talent management on innovation performance was tried to be determined. As a result, it has been determined that there is a significant relationship between talent management practices and innovation performance. In other words, it has been determined that talent management is a strong factor in increasing the innovation performance of enterprises. In addition, no effect of social innovativeness on innovation performance was observed. In the light of the findings, the results of the research are discussed and recommendations are presented for both managers and academicians.