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Editorial Board of “Holistic Marketing Management” (A refereed journal published four times annually by the School of Management-Marketing of the Romanian-American University)
Editor-in-Chief Theodor Valentin PURCĂREA
Editorial Board
Bernd HALLIER
John SAEE
John L. STANTON Léon F. WEGNEZ
William PERTTULA Levent ALTINAY Dana ZADRAZILOVA
Managing Director EuroHandels Institute Retail, Germany; President of EuCVoT; President of European Retail Academy; Member of the Astana Economic Scientists Club; Chairman of the Advisory Board of EuroShop; Chairman of the Board of the Orgainvent; Trustee of EHI Retail Institute at GLOBALG.A.P. Association of Management and International Association of Management, USA; Australian Graduate School of Entrepreneurship, the Faculty of Business and Enterprise, Swinburne University of Technology; Member of France’s National Academy of Scientific Research (CNRS) Professor of Food Marketing, Erivan K. Haub School of Business, Saint Joseph’s University Philadelphia, USA; Director, Institute of Food Products Marketing, Editor, Journal of Food Products Marketing Secretary General, International Association of the Distributive Trade, AIDA Brussels; Member of France’s Academy of Commercial Sciences Internet Marketing Professor, College of Business, San Francisco State University, USA Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, Research Area Leader, Oxford School of Hospitality Management, Faculty of Business, Oxford Brookes University, UK Dean of Faculty of International Economic Relations, University
of Economics, Prague, Czech Republic Riccardo BELTRAMO University of Turin, Italy Sinisa ZARIC University of Belgrade, Yugoslavia Gabriela SABĂU Memorial University, Grenfell Campus, Corner Brook, Canada Hélène NIKOLOPOULOU University of Lille 3, France Vasa LÁSZLÓ Szent Istvan University, Hungary Peter STARCHON Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovakia John MURRAY Faculty of Business, Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland Faculty of Economics,University of South Bohemia in Ceske Kamil PÍCHA Budejovice Deputy Head of Department of Business Economics, University of EcoIrena JINDRICHOVSKA nomics and Management, Prague, Czech Republic Faculty of Business, Marketing Department, Cape Peninsula University of Norbert HAYDAM Technology, South Africa Constantin ROŞCA President of Romanian Scientific Society of Management - SSMAR Hans ZWAGA Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences, Finland
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Roxana CODITA Dumitru MIRON Valeriu IOAN-FRANC Iacob CĂTOIU Virgil BALAURE Gheorghe ORZAN Luigi DUMITRESCU Marius D. POP Petru FILIP Ion VOICU SUCALA Virgil POPA Alexandru NEDELEA Olguța Anca ORZAN Ana-Maria PREDA Ileana PONORAN Ovidiu FOLCUȚ Doinița CIOCÎRLAN Marius Dan DALOTĂ Mihai PAPUC Gheorghe ILIESCU Alexandru IONESCU Olga POTECEA Oana PREDA Nicoleta DUMITRU Monica Paula RAȚIU Costel NEGRICEA
Technische Universität München, TUM School of Management Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest National Institute for Economic Research, Romanian Academy; Romanian Marketing Association; Romanian Distribution Committee Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca Dimitrie Cantemir University, Bucharest Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, Management and Economic Engineering Department; University of Glasgow, UK, College of Social Sciences, School of Social & Political Sciences; Managing Editor, Review of Management and Economic Engineering Valahia University of Târgovişte Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy Bucharest Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University Romanian-American University
Associate Editors Irina PURCĂREA Dan SMEDESCU
Art Designer Director Alexandru BEJAN
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“Holistic Marketing Management” (A refereed journal published four times annually by the School of Management-Marketing of the Romanian-American University) Volume 4, Issue 2, Year 2014
Contents
Theodor Valentin Purcărea - Editorial: Customers, Companies’ Allies in Co-creating Value with the Support of Digital Technology and Marketers’ Want of Greater Levels of Integration in Their Digital Marketing Suite
Costel Iliuță NEGRICEA - Digital Marketing and the Pillars of Shopper Experience Ioan Matei PURCĂREA
Hans ZWAGA - Innovation Management and Tuning the Entrepreneurial Process
Virginie DULIÈRE - The Evolving Challenges Facing Project Managers and the Role of Human Resources Management in Fostering an Environment Best Propagating Success
Monica ROŞU - The Importance of Non Formal Education in a Formal World
The responsibility for the contents of the scientific and the authenticity of the published materials and opinions expressed rests with the author.
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Editorial: Customers, Companies’ Allies in Co-creating Value with the Support of Digital Technology and Marketers’ Want of Greater Levels of Integration in Their Digital Marketing Suite What kind of digital world are we living in, and what kind of future do we imagine for this digital world? As we all know, planning makes things happen, but we are not in such a position, of course… At least we can prepare… for the known unknown, by focusing on discovering how we, as consumers or marketers, can learn to live and work together in such a digital world in order to compete and cooperate in the same time. Is there a big question? Which question? Because we are billions of navigators in this digital world, defined by our complex choices and our distinct ways of working and even getting comfort for what we think this digital world is and will be … Consumers or marketers, we all have a personal continuum of achievement, coming from doing the right thing by doing what makes us happy, taking into account that happiness is a continuous journey. Our consumer life and our business life are dividing and uniting us, while always trying harder to be better, to do more, and looking and feeling better, while making time for what’s important to us. In 2005, the Open Knowledge Foundation created “The Open Definition” of what open data is: “Open data is data that can be freely used, shared and built-on by anyone, anywhere, for any purpose” (as the summary of the full Open Definition; since 2007 the Open Definition has been governed by an Advisory Council formally responsible for maintaining and developing this definition and associated material). Behind this definition there are three principles: Availability and Access; Re-use and Redistribution; Universal Participation.1 It is considered that this definition is used and it is important to be clear about what open means because of the generation of the necessary interoperability as the ability of diverse systems and organizations to work together (intermixing different datasets, and developing more and better products and services, by focusing on non-personal data).2 At the beginning of April 2014, Eric Ries, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and the author of The Lean Startup (Crown Business, 2011), argued in an interview3 that: “Open data” is one thing that is making more likely for someone to start a start-up in the first place, entrepreneur start-ups being experiments, and the more experiments you run (just like in a science lab), the more likely you are to create something great; digital technology has enabled the creation of new industries and upended many more, within the context of companies being all too aware of the disruptive power of technology. On the other hand, on April 24, 2014, Ryan Galloway argued that as businesses navigate further into the digital age companies must make a first step toward bringing IT and marketing (needing greater access to analytics and data often exists in siloed databases with reporting or business intelligence personnel acting as gatekeepers) together by understanding and acknowledging each department’s business goals.4 He also recommended entering the Chief Marketing Technologist, as a bridge builder and an embedded tech expert, by providing insight on how marketing can make the most of existing and emerging technologies, and reporting to the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), while CMO and CIO (Chief Information Officer) should share oversight equally. Two years ago, in March 2012, Dr. Jacques Bughin and Dr. James Manyika from 5
McKinsey & Company (which include: McKinsey Global Institute, MGI - the business and economics research arm of McKinsey & Company/established in 1990 to develop a deeper understanding of the evolving global economy; McKinsey’s High Tech Practice shapes the agenda of most of the global leaders in the industry - it serves both large and small companies in consumer electronics, data communications, enterprise computing, services, and software; McKinsey’s Business Technology Office, BTO - launched in 1997 to build knowledge and expertise in IT related matters)5 coordinated a Compendium organized around a collection of essays by experts tackling the theme of digital transformation as part of McKinsey & Company continuing major research program on the economic impact of information technology. This research was presented in various forums and outlets, including the e-G8 Forum, the B20 Business Summit, the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Aspen Institute, Techonomy, the Economist Ideas Economy: Information Conference, the London Conference on Cyberspace, the White House Open Innovation Event, The McKinsey Quarterly, the SSRN network, and the Journal of Direct, Data, and Digital Marketing Practice. A contributor to this Compendium, Dr. W. Brian Arthur,6 approached the issue of “The second economy” (as we all know, the effects of the internet and associated digital technologies including mobile communications are both evolutionary and revolutionary7), arguing that: “digitization is creating a second economy that’s vast, automatic, and invisible - thereby bringing the biggest change since the Industrial Revolution”; the vast global digital network (that is sensing, “computing,” and reacting appropriately) is starting to constitute a neural layer for the economy; this second economy will certainly be the engine of growth and the provider of prosperity for the rest of this century and beyond; the main challenge of the economy is shifting from producing prosperity to distributing prosperity; with the digital transformation fewer of us in the future may have white-collar business process jobs; the second economy (silently forming, vast, interconnected, and extraordinarily productive) is creating a new economic world and we must adapt. Another contributor to this Compendium, MIT professor Erik Brynjolfsson,8 while approaching “The new landscape”, showed that within the evolution in measurement starting with the switch from analog to digital data, companies: can learn about the preferences of an individual customer and personalize their offerings for that particular customer; by using the data from the revolutionary enterprise information systems (ERP, CRM, SCM etc.) in order to gain business intelligence and learn how they could be managed differently. He also expressed the hope that the technology will create a platform that people can tap into to create new entrepreneurial ventures, ordinary people becoming creative in using technology and their entrepreneurial energies to create value. In the same time, taking into account the results of “The State of Marketing 2013”, IBM’s Global Survey of Marketers,9 it is worth to underline ( beyond both: the fact that the leading marketers want greater levels of integration in their digital marketing suite, and are embracing new social and mobile location-based tactics; the traditional necessary fight of all marketers against creating new silos) the consistent difference between the leading marketers (base: n=102) and all other marketers (base: n=410) concerning their ability to coordinate and automate their “decisioning” process: Online Display: 79.0% compared to 62.0% (1.3x); Online Video: 67.0% compared to 44.0% (1.5x); Social Media: 70.0% compared to 58.0% (1.2x); Mobile Apps: 63.0% compared to 40.0% (1.6x); Mobile Display: 58.0% compared to 36.0% (1.6x).
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In February 2014, the Business School of the Open University10 delivered the latest business perspectives summary, this fifth issue being focused on the thought-provoking topic of strategic marketing, considered an increasingly essential part of modern business. Within this context a significant question was launched – “Disruption or Co-option?” – making reference to Dr. Terry O’Sullivan11 who reflected on how the twenty-first century is redefining the market from target to forum, pledging for product based cocreation (co-creation generating value at the interaction between company and consumers, and enabling greater transparency and the sharing of risks) as the only way to survive in meeting the needs of companies’ customers while directly showing them empathy and interest. Dr. Terry O’Sullivan recommends us to think both: of the internet (“the town square for the global village of tomorrow” according to Bill Gates) more as a market; and of the relationship between a business and a customer, like the relationship between a doctor and a patient. This recommendation to think of the internet more as a market, and of the relationship between a business and a customer, like the relationship between a doctor and a patient, led me to recall two things: - a presentation made by Karen Ingersoll (University of Virginia) and Chris Wagner (Virginia Commonwealth University) on the occasion of the 2nd International Conference on Motivational Interviewing (MI, defined as: “a collaborative, person-centered form of guiding to elicit and strengthen motivation for change”12), June 8, 2010, on the following topic: “Relational and Technical Processes of Client-Centered, MI, and Cognitive Therapies in Demonstration Videos”.13 The two authors started from building hypotheses (MI represents a middle way between Client centered and Cognitive therapy; Relational elements: Client => MI > Cog; Technical/directive: Client <MI <= Cog) and aims (Examine similarities and differences in treatment processes shown in demonstration videotapes; Assess the utility of a descriptive approach to understanding different types of treatment), and concluded that: A descriptive approach to therapy processes can illuminate therapist and client behaviors; MI is distinct from both Cognitive and Client-Centered therapies, but lies in a middle space between them in many characteristics; The integration of relational and technical processes in MI may be unique, and may partly account for its robust outcomes; - the recent discussions on the topic of “Selfie”, the word of the year in 2013 on the basis of the Oxford Dictionaries’ decision (selfie = a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website); on April 7, 2014, we find out that (according to Social News Daily)14 the American Psychiatric Association (APA) had not declared taking a selfie a mental disorder, the story doing the rounds on social media and other news websites proving to be a hoax (an article in The Adobo Chronicles claimed that the APA had declared selfie-taking a mental disorder – “selfitis = an obsessive compulsive desire to take photos of one’s self and post them on social media as a way to make up for the lack of self-esteem and to fill a gap in intimacy;” on the site of Adobo Chronicle is a disclaimer: “… Everything you read on this site is based on fact, except for the lies”); a year ago, in March 2013, a discussion paper of Birmingham Business School15 approached the effects of sharing photographs amongst multiple known social circles, carrying out two studies: the seven distinct photograph types (self, friend, event, family, scene, object, animal16) from the study 1 were used in study 2 to address the frequency, and using the photograph types and five targets (relative, partner, close friend, colleague and general Facebook friend), the relationship with the relationship qualities support and intimacy were investigated, one of the conclusions was that disclosure of photographs depicting different content, shared at different frequencies with different targets relates positively and negatively to relationship quality. 7
So, what kind of digital world are we living in, and what kind of future do we imagine for this digital world? As we all know, planning makes things happen, but we are not in such a position, of course… At least we can prepare… also considering Bill Gates words: “Digital reading will completely take over. It’s lightweight and it’s fantastic for sharing. Over time it will take over”.
Theodor Valentin PURCĂREA Editor-in-Chief
References
1
Open Knowledge Foundation - Defining Open Data, available at: http://blog.okfn.org/2013/10/03/defining-open-data/
2
Open Data Handbook - What is Open Data? Available at: http://opendatahandbook.org/en/what-is-open-data
3
Michael Chui - Disruptive entrepreneurs: An interview with Eric Ries, McKinsey & Company, April 2014, available at: http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/high_tech_
telecoms_internet/disruptive_entrepreneurs_an_interview_with_eric_ries
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Ryan Galloway - IT vs. Marketing: How to Prevent Clashes & Reach Your Business Goals, available at: http://www.workintelligent.ly/workstyle/productivity/2014-4-24-it-
marketing-business-goals/
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Jacques Bughin and James Manyika - Internet Matters. Essays in Digital Transformation, McKinsey & Company, 2012, available at: www.mckinsey.com/.../MGI_Internet_
matters_essays_in_digital_transfor... 6 W. Brian Arthur - The second economy, McKinsey & Company, 2011, in Jacques Bughin and James Manyika - Internet Matters. Essays in Digital Transformation, McKinsey & Company, 2012, pp. 206-211, available at: www.mckinsey.com/.../MGI_Internet_matters_essays_in_digital_transfor... 7
GT Briefing June 2013: The Digital Economy, available at: https://www.globaltrends.com/monthly-briefings/60-monthly-briefings/192-gt-briefing-june-2013-the-digital-
economy
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Erik Brynjolfsson - Competing through data, 2011, in Jacques Bughin and James Manyika - Internet Matters. Essays in Digital Transformation, McKinsey & Company,
2012, pp. 212-214, available at: www.mckinsey.com/.../MGI_Internet_matters_essays_in_digital_transfor... 9 Chris Wright, Derek Franks - The State of Marketing 2013, IBM’s Global Survey of Marketers, Global Summit 2013, Nashville,May 21-23, 2013, available at: http://public.dhe.ibm.com/ common/ssi/ecm/en/zzl03043usen/ZZL03043USEN.PDF 10 The Open University - Perspectives. Strategic marketing. Business perspectives. Business School. Mindset. Disruption. Customer. Creativity, 2014-02-14, OUBS Perspectives Leadership 03 final pdf, pp. 10-13, available at: ebookbrowsee.net/oubs-perspectives-leadership... 11
http://www.open.ac.uk/business-school/people/dr-terry-osullivan
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Motivational Interview Organization - A Definition of Motivational Interviewing, available at: http://www.motivationalinterview.org/Documents/1%20A%20MI%20
Definition%20Principles%20&%20Approach%20V4%20012911.pdf 13
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Digital Marketing and the Pillars of Shopper Experience Dr. Costel Iliuță NEGRICEA Ioan Matei PURCĂREA Abstract We already live in a world of digital empowered intelligent customers, of digital products, of digital business operations and digital competitors. The fierce competition forces firms to exploit digital technologies, to have profound knowledge, to focus on market imperatives and to demonstrate a deep commitment to these digital empowered intelligent customers that disrupts every industry. Advantaged are the companies that master relevant data flow and improve the performance of employees who are at the forefront in dealing with customers, on the background of the ongoing battle to acquire new customers, retain existing customers and improve customer loyalty and satisfaction, create consistent, relevant and positive experiences across marketing channels. Within the new digital business context, models reflecting pillars of the shopping experience are emerging, such as the recently launched SCAMP model. We were drawing a parallel with these pillars and even identified pillars of experience of the “shopper” of knowledge necessary to address “the digital”. We managed to point a link to one top of the challenges for digital marketing, beginning with measurements , analysis and ROI of digital marketing programs, and the need to unify and integrate in the “digital” and with what is “traditional” . And also taking into account that mobile is quickly becoming primary choice for customer engagement, the front line for customer experience.
Key words: Digital Marketing, Intelligent Customers, Digital Disruption, SCAMP JEL Classification: L81, L86, M15, M31, O33
1. The challenge and the opportunity to connect the digital resources from inside and outside the company in “The Age of the Customer” The world population is increasingly using the Internet as a means of communication and sales ran on a daily basis, and WOM is gaining credibility. The Internet 2.0 allows for years consumers to share and access text and video in many different formats and to improve social media communication among these consumers in different ways. (Shimabukuro Sandes & Urdan, 2013) On the other hand, consumers usually return to neutral disseminators of information on innovative products, product features and qualities of the product. (Geiß, Jackob & Quiring, 2012) The business world is facing a paradoxical situation: business leaders still do not think at “digital” as being central to their business, because in the past it did not exist. In the U.S., for example, while 74% of business executives say their company has a digital strategy, only 16% believe that their company has the skills and ability to execute on this strategy. Forrester Reserach specialists (Fenwick & Gill, 2014) consider that it is not sufficient to have a gradual penetration strategy on digital channels or in digital methods. Instead, in order to compete, there is a need to think about your company, as part of a dynamic ecosystem 9
of value linking digital resources inside and outside the company. Any company must exploit digital technologies both to offer a superior customer experience and to drive agility and operational efficiency that the company needs to stay competitive. According to the renowned global research and advisory firm mentioned above, Forrester Research (Nasdaq: FORR), today’s empowered customers have given rise to a new era, “The Age of the Customer” (solutions.forrester.com) defined as: „A 20-year business cycle in which the most successful enterprises will reinvent themselves to systematically understand and serve increasingly powerful customers.” Forrester argues that in order to be truly competitive the company must become customer-obsessed by proving deep knowledge of and engagement with the customers. 2. Marketing leaders and their investment priorities in “The Age of the Customer”. Market imperatives We agree with that there is a real need (Purcărea 2012): of accepting novel ideas, and identifying and challenging your own assumptions, considering that every marketing strategy is supported by the supply chain which is necessary to be designed from the customer inward, because customers are not passive recipients of what this kind of marketers do; of taking into account the complex patterns of customer demand and rising customer expectations, considering the new ways to improve the thinking and acting, and by planning for the unplannable. In the “Holistic Marketing Management” Journal (Purcărea 2012) of our RAU School of ManagementMarketing, the following was underlined: (by quoting David Armano) there is a problem with marketing, because many times it doesn’t allow marketers to gain an intimate understanding of human behavior and we have to consider the so-called “marketing spiral”: awareness - interaction, engagement, participation, conversation, affinity – community; (by quoting Tim Parker) the importance of “the new rules of thought leadership marketing”: the customer has become the hunter and the marketer the hunted… buyers are moving from biased to unbiased channels. In September 2012, “Romanian Distribution Committee Magazine” (Purcărea 2012) attracted our attention (by quoting Scott Brinker) on the fact that digital has disrupted the ability to cleanly separate communications from experiences and the first part of the customer experience journey is represented by the new-style landing pages. Today, accessing Forrester landing page, we are welcomed to the Age of the Customer, (forrester.com) invited to understand what it means to compete and win, and following this way we find out that: “Empowered customers are disrupting every industry; competitive barriers like manufacturing strength, distribution power, and information mastery no longer create competitive advantage.” (solutions.forrester.com) According to Forrester there are four: priority areas in which customer-obsessed companies are investing (Real-time actionable data sharing; Contextualized customer experiences across touch points; Sales efforts tied to buyers’ processes; Content-led marketing and customer interactions); four market imperatives (Transform the customer experience; Embrace the mobile mind shift; Become a digital disruptor; Turn big data into business insights). Because today company’s competitors, customers, and partners are digital, it is a real need of transforming the company customer experience and operations so as to become a fully digital 10
business. Despite prevailing wisdom that a company had to grow in size to achieve economies of scale, today many of the economies of scale that matter most can be attributes of a digital platform that a company exploits, connecting the company more directly to customers, and adding this way a digital component to even the most physical of product experiences. (McQuivey 2013)
3. The top three marketing challenges for the marketing leaders and the three “Marketers’ Next Steps” according to the IBM’s Global Survey of Marketers presented at Nashville Global Summit, May 21-23, 2013 Because the U.S. is losing $ 83 billion each year due to poor customer experiences in relation to the companies, IBM interviewed more than 500 marketing professionals worldwide in more than fifteen industry, finding out (Wright & Franks, 2013) that the top three marketing challenges for the marketing leaders are: acquiring new customers (42%), retaining existing customers (36%) and improving loyalty and satisfaction, creating consistent, relevant and positive customer experiences across channels (34%). It was concluded that in this situation are required to perform three steps (“Marketers’ Next Steps”): a) Integrate your channels: Identify a cross-functional marketer to map and prioritize all your channel activities to integrate; Determine your anchor technology platform (i.e. digital or email or cross-channel) and how it will extend to new channels; Establish a common data repository for all your customer interactions; b) Act on insight: Measurement doesn’t have to be complicated. Work towards metrics that provide a complete view of the customer relationship and interactions; Invest in the right skills and resources to uncover analytical insights; Do sweat the hard stuff. Get systematic about using insights to drive business outcomes; c) Be the customer: Understand how the customer engages your enterprise to pinpoint opportunities to serve them more effectively; Create a brand culture. Recognize that a brand is not a logo, but operating principles that places the customer at the center of the business; Extend marketing’s influence to all interactions to enrich the relationship with your brand. IBM (NYSE: IBM, US) also argued (ibm.com/news) that the price paid for failing to meet the needs of so-called “omni-channel shoppers” (multichannel buyers who attend both online stores and traditional ones) is so large (83 billion dollars, as mentioned above) just due to poor customer experiences in relation to the companies that lack adequate capacity to influence proactive customer experience. This spring, 2014, Genesys, a global multi-channel customer experience and contact center solution leader, showed that are being continuously introduced new digital communications channels, these new channels (including web, social and mobile) being quickly adopted by the customers that want to use them to contact the companies with whom they do business. Genesis recommends companies to take a holistic approach to digital channels in the contact center and beyond and to integrate them into their customer experience strategy: “allowing them to transform the end-to-end customer journey and deliver consistent, seamless and personalized experiences across all channels, touch points and interactions.” (genesys.com)
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4. The most powerful incitement to shopping. Digital disruption and retail experience. The overlap between customer experience and mobile Two years ago, it was remembered in the “Romanian Distribution Committee Magazine”, by quoting Paco Underhill (Underhill 2009), that customers like touching, trying, tasting, smelling, and exploring the world of desirable objects, and this artful juxtaposition of those objects can most of the times make all the difference in the world, this being probably the most powerful incitement to shopping, giving the mentioned opportunity. In March 2014, Miguel Ramos (Mobile Practice Lead, Confirmit) and James Tenser (Founder, VSN Strategies) approached, at a special forum held in the U.S., the issue of digital disruption and retail experience in the context of natural concern about the need for gaining customer loyalty. They considered, of course, a number of issues that we addressed above, starting with the deconstruction of the shopper experience in a world of what is called “Big Data”, highlighting the elements that define the “The New Big”, clarifying why “Big Data” matters (volume, velocity, variety of information; digital, connected consumers), and offering us a fresh look of the so-called “The Five Pillars”. Within the context of “The New Big” mentioned above, James Tenser advanced the “SCAMP” model reflecting the “Five Pillars of Shopper Experience”: SERVICE (People, Practices, Training), CONVENIENCE (Time-Saving, Effort-Saving), AMBIANCE (Design, Lighting, Sensory, Patrons), MERCHANDISING (Assortment, Display, Messaging), PRICE (Base, Promotion, Markdown). Conclusions Not long ago, in San Francisco, (Hinshaw 2012) it was argued that the world is rapidly changing to new digital interactions and that the world will digitize. Therefore, real opportunities at hand should not be overlooked: to learn more about customers thanks to digital context and provide pleasant experiences customized to meet customer needs in new ways, to drive true competitive differentiation accordingly. It becomes increasingly obvious that the five pillars of the experience of the “knowledge shopper” – making a parallel with the five pillars mentioned above –necessary to address the “digital” emerges: „digital” is at the heart of efforts to build a successful customer experience; digital empowered intelligent customers search, connect and buy online and on their cellular phones without giving it much thought; many companies still do not realize that in this “new world” the traditional sources of competitive advantage can become passive; the highest possible competitive advantage in this “age of smart customer” comes from the knowledge of customers and how firms use this knowledge to better serve and engage better to each client; for companies truly customer centric, digital experience becomes the center of any action. Indeed, in the highly competitive landscape of different relevant markets for goods and services, we must consider the company as part of a dynamic ecosystem of value linking digital resources inside and outside the company, valuing digital technologies, providing a superior experience to the customers and leading the agility and operational efficiency that any business needs to stay competitive.
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It is appropriate to conclude by remembering that: a) exactly two years ago, (Fou 2012) in a specialized publication, a top of the challenges for digital marketing was presented: „Metrics, analytics, and ROI of the digital marketing programs; Unifying and integrating within digital and also with traditional; Allocation of budget to digital; Finding the right marketing mix to allocate budget across channels; Creating lasting impact; Keeping up or missing out; Speed and innovation; Organizational structure and knowledge sharing.” b) in February this year, Michael Hinshaw (2014) pointed out that, at the beginning of the year, Econsultancy and Adobe published a report (Quarterly Digital Intelligence Briefing, based on a global survey of more than 2500 marketers and internet professionals), and highlighted key digital trends, challenges and opportunities which marketers need to be aware of during 2014; in Michael Hinshaw’s opinion (Managing director of customer experience innovation firm MCorp Consulting), the news is the overlap between the top two greatest opportunities for corporations identified: customer experience and mobile; he argues that mobile is quickly becoming primary choice for customer engagement, the front line for customer experience, and the question is how ready the company is to deliver the mobile experiences its customers demand. Within this context, Hinshaw underlined four (initial) steps to mobile experience mastery: Map your mobile customer journeys; Understand how mobile changes what customers want and need; Understand their multi-channel experience; Look for new ways to create sense-and-respond experiences. We also agree with Hinshaw’s final recommendation: “By really understanding what customers expect from your company as they interact through their phones, you’ll be in a position to create the kinds of unique, highly-differentiated experiences that can truly set you apart.” References Fabio Shimabukuro Sandes & Andre Torres Urdan (2013) Electronic Word-of-Mouth Impacts on Consumer Behavior: Exploratory and Experimental Studies, Journal of International Consumer Marketing, 25:3, 181-197, Taylor & Francis Group, Routledge, DOI: 10.1080/08961530.2013.780850 Stefan Geiß, Nikolaus Jackob and Oliver Quiring (2012) The impact of communicating digital technologies: How information and communication technology journalists conceptualize their influence on the audience and the industry, 2013 15: 1058 originally published online 10 December 2012 New Media Society, DOI: 10.1177/1461444812465597, SAGE, The online version of this article can be found at: http://nms.sagepub.com/content/15/7/1058 Nigel Fenwick, Martin Gill - Become A Digital Business, Forrester Research, March 2014, accesat la adresa: http://solutions.forrester.com/disruption/landing-261Q-3118SX.html Winning In The Age Of The Customer, Forrester, accesat la adresa: http://solutions.forrester.com/ageofthecustomer?intcmp=mkt:ban:ah:AoCAnon Theodor Purcărea - Refusing to be passive recipients as customers and striving to contribute to the courageous map of this new world of consumer space by encouraging authentic partners in great tasks of transformation, Romanian Distribution Committee Magazine, Volume 3, Issue 2, Year 2012, available at: http://crd-aida.ro/RePEc/rdc/v3i2/1.pdf Theodor Purcărea - In a Time of Deepening Crisis, Remaining in the Game for Customers thanks to the “Relationship Culture” necessary to the Resilient Organization, Holistic Marketing Management, Volume 2, Issue 2, Year 2012, available at: http:// holisticmarketingmanagement.ro/RePEc/hmm/v1i1/6/1.pdf Theodor Purcărea - Facing the reshaping of the world business, by adequately addressing the new realities via a change in response marketing across the full range of touch points specific to each customer-engagement ecosystem, Romanian Distribution Committee Magazine, Volume 3, Issue 3, Year 2012, available at: http://issuu.com/bcadv/docs/rdcmv3i3/6 http://www.forrester.com/home/ http://solutions.forrester.com/ageofthecustomer/landing-307PF-278755.html James McQuivey - The secrets of digital disruption, April 2013, available at: http://www.computerweekly.com/opinion/Forrester-The-secrets-of-digital-disruption Chris Wright, Derek Franks - The State of Marketing 2013, IBM’s Global Survey of Marketers, Global Summit 2013, Nashville,May 21-23, 2013, available at: http://public.dhe.ibm.com/common/ssi/ecm/en/zzl03043usen/ZZL03043USEN.PDF Noul Studiu IBM evidențiază liderilor din domeniul marketingului importanța experienței oferite clienților, available at: http://www.ibm.com/news/ro/ro/2013/05/21/b650475m18810c17.html Transforming Customer Experience in the New Digital World, Genesis, available at: http://www.genesys.com/about-genesys/resources/transforming-customer-experience-in-the-new-digital-world Paco Underhill - Why We Buy. The Science of Shopping, Updated and revised for the Internet, the global consumer and beyond, Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, New York, 2009, p. 170, quoted in Romanian Distribution Committee Magazine, available at: http:// crd-aida.ro/RePEc/rdc/v3i2/1.pdf Michael Hinshaw - Smart customers, Digital Experiences and 5 Stupid Mistakes, available at: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/11/prweb10183627.htm Augustine Fou - Top Digital Challenges of Marketers Today, April 26, 2012, available at: http://www.clickz.com/print_article/clickz/column/2170278/digital-challenges-marketers Michael Hinshaw - Mobile: The New Heart Of Digital Customer Experience, available at: http://eu.cmo.com/articles/2014/2/25/mobile_the_new_heart.html/
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Innovation Management and Tuning the Entrepreneurial Process Hans ZWAGA Professor Hans ZWAGA interviewed by Ioan Matei PURCÄ&#x201A;REA Abstract Professor Hans ZWAGA is Senior Lecturer in Marketing, Management and Internationalization, Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences, Finland and Visiting Senior Lecturer (Netherlands, France, Austria, Norway, Russian-Federation, and Romania), being deeply involved in cluster development especially cross-border, and having special research interests in Competency development in Entrepreneurship Education, Cluster theory, Knowledge and Innovation Management and Futurology. He has a strong involvement in Competency-Based Education Curriculum Designing and Competency Measurement. In February-March 2014 he held two Courses (Design Factory - Developing Innovation, and Start-up Garage: Tuning the Entrepreneurial Process) at the Romanian-American University. Key words: Learning by Design, Innovation Management, Entrepreneurial Process, Social Interaction JEL Classification: L26, M13
IMP/HMM: Mr. ZWAGA, I would like to ask you about your prior experience, teaching and classroom experience, work history, research interests, professional goals, professional activities and associations, your attitudes and beliefs, and your opinions on professional issues. And this because you made a very favorable impression on our students from the very beginning, being an excellent communicator and proving advance knowledge about the topic and even your enthusiasm in the topic. Your visual materials and notes, your clarity of explanation and your approach to instruction, confirmed that you master your pacing, volume, emphasis, and fluency, making the courses relevant and appealing to the students. When did you know you wanted to become a Professor? What made you choose an academic career? Hans ZWAGA: The choice of becoming a professor probably came when I noticed that I had some strong communication skills. I have been involved in sports, in student activities management. In these activities and actions I could make a team work perfectly because I could convince people of my views. That was actually not a choice. It was more the result of a process that brought me to higher challenges. I started in 1974 as a teacher of social sciences at higher secondary education. Later on, in 1985, I wanted to become a teacher in vocational education. I felt that in this type of education I could better in combining theory and practice. In that period I started to teach in English. My Vocational College was the first school 14
in Europe to introduce a full program in Business. In 1998 I became a part-time lecturer at the University of Applied Sciences in Eindhoven. In 2002 I migrated to Keminmaa, Finland where I became a full lecturer at the Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences. IMP/HMM: Who are the individuals who have had a profound influence on your career? Hans ZWAGA: Let me think for a moment. There are many people who have been in my life that have helped me to change rapidly. However, there are “some animals more equal than others” I will start with my language teachers who made me aware of the value of language. It is essential for understanding good communication, communication structures and culture in the general sense. My professor in private law who taught me to think critically and taught me the value of perception. I owe a lot to my professor in neuro-physiology who made me aware of systems-thinking. He influenced strongly the understanding of the brain as “a living computer” and its role in learning. My rector of the Vocational College had confidence in my teaching competencies. He allowed me to teach in English. Finally, I want to mention my professor in educational psychology and PhD supervisor. He let me experiment with all sorts of pedagogical thoughts until I found my format. IMP/HMM: Did your prior jobs contribute to your professional skills and attitude? Hans ZWAGA: I have been in education all my life. The university that I visited started already in 1970 with practice as a part of the curriculum (court-cases for law and research project for psychology). I have worked in consultancy and I have been a company ambassador. These practical experiences have deepened and widened my views on education: “learning-by-design” and “life-long-learning” IMP/HMM: How was the college that you attended? Please tell us a little bit about your graduate school experience. Hans ZWAGA: The University I attended was a young University with 3 faculties of economics, sociology and law. It was established in Tilburg, a town in the South of the Netherlands. I started my studies at the Law faculty and later also at the Faculty of Psychology. Rather conservative I would say now. It was nothing special, although the Law faculty was known as “very liberal”. The faculty of Psychology was very modern. Many foreign professors were appointed. That made following lectures and projects very special. There was no time for “sleeping on the couch”. IMP/HMM: In what ways do you feel you can lend support to young colleagues? Hans ZWAGA: I think that many younger colleagues already have good competencies to do their job properly. Many of them have had special training for teaching their subjects. My vision on education starts with having a future orientation towards what students should be able to perform. This process takes at least 3 years. Very often studies will take longer. Most curricula in contrast are based on theories from or in the past or in the present at best. “Learning by design” is a different process than traditional classes. The objective of this process is to educate students to the future and combine the future perspective with knowledge, skills and attitudes needed. I.e. the use of social media in education is already changing the nature of learning now. Technological prog15
ress, rapid changing markets, innovative organizational formats (virtual organization, the co-creator company, and the center-less organization) means that current knowledge, skills and attitudes are only of relative importance. My support could be: ·
to train younger colleagues to learn the competencies of “learning by design”
·
to build confidence in the competencies of scenario-planning in education
·
to learn how to run design classes (self-confidence)
·
what building a future orientation in education means in practice
·
how to build a double-tracking learning
·
trans-disciplinary learning
IMP/HMM: Please tell us something about your discussions and social interactions with your young colleagues, about the level of compatibility and sharing similar interests and values. Hans ZWAGA: Being interviewed for this Journal, the best example that I have describes a workshop that I have facilitated with 10 younger colleagues of Romanian-American University in September 2013 in Tornio, Finland. The objective of the workshop was to build a “brand-new” Master curriculum. Beforehand it must be understood that Romanian and Finnish educational systems differ significantly. It took 2 days before the colleagues “got” the message of the workshop. Albeit cultural differences (different countries but also different faculties) the team did the job excellently. My discussions and social interactions with younger colleagues cover many fields. In my opinion, the key competences in working with people are “open-mindness” and willingness to take another perspective”. Compatibility is merely a matter of absorption, finding the correct translation, putting the result at work and retention. Actually, the four steps described above (dynamic capabilities) characterize the successful universities and make them distinctively different from others. The younger colleagues I have met in RAU share many similar interests. And I do believe that there is a solid understanding and appreciation of each other’s values. IMP/HMM: What is the best thing about being a Professor? Hans ZWAGA: My job!! IMP/HMM: You have good research results. How do you manage the time and resources on each project apart from teaching responsibilities? Hans ZWAGA: I don’t keep them apart in the sense of content. The advantage is that projects and teaching cross-fertilize each other. So, I gain time and resources. IMP/HMM: You are involved in teaching and research. What are your research goals in the coming years? 16
Hans ZWAGA: My PhD, finally!! IMP/HMM: As we know, cooperation and teamwork can lead to very interesting outcomes in education. Within this framework, is there a potential for development of the relations with the Romanian-American University?
Hans ZWAGA: I am an optimist. My slogan is: When you never shoot you always miss! Very simple answer to the question: there is always a way for the prepared mind!!
IMP/HMM: Thank you very much.
Professor Hans ZWAGA interviewed by Ioan Matei PURCÄ&#x201A;REA (from right to left)
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The Evolving Challenges Facing Project Managers and the Role of Human Resources Management in Fostering an Environment Best Propagating Success Virginie DULIĂ&#x2C6;RE ESC RENNES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Abstract
As a result of globalization and the conjoining advances in telecommunications, networking and other technologies, the environment and factors determining the rise and fall of businesses has changed dramatically. In the past; individuals were either employed as general resources or were extremely specialized. Even when there were multiple functions operating under the same cause; the organization was rarely large or developed enough to operate under anything other than a form of executive leadership. The case these days is rather different; MNCs often use cross-functional teams to progress concepts from the drawing board to the market efficiently and rapidly. Coordinating such individuals differing in geographies, departments, cultures and hierarchies require a specialized function in its own; thus bringing about the advent of Project Management. Organizations are perpetually looking to develop project managers that fit their organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s culture and organizational structure. Human Resources (HR) managers also have a role to play in conditioning the organization and offering project managers the best resources in order to be successful in meeting their objectives.
Key words: Project Manager, Leadership, Globalization, Human Resources Management, Change JEL Classification: D78, D81, M14, O32, Z10
Introduction
Organizations primarily dealt with growing sizes by adding specialized departments (Sales, Marketing, Engineering, Manufacturing etc.) and subsequently adding levels of hierarchy into each department. This linear organizational structure was developed with the idea of having an executive leadership team defining the broad strategy and having the necessary organization in place for the rest of corporation to be in position to execute said strategy. The downside to this was that organizations often got too bureaucratic and did not capitalize on the intellect and creativity of individuals in the mid to low hierarchical tiers. Having departments operate as silos was also found to be detrimental as they often operated independently and in their interests. The needs and perspectives of all the stakeholders have to be considered and a united approach becomes paramount. 18
Organizations have found that an effective means to tackle the abovementioned problem is to implement a matrix structure. Although departments and roles of the employees are primarily defined by function; operationally individuals are expected to collaborate and work together with people from varied backgrounds. This way, while the global strategies can be determined and monitored at an executive level; smaller and more specialized teams can attack and devise specific tactics and solutions to best deal with problems. These cross-functional units can in addition to being from different departments be spread across different geographies, contain individuals of vastly diverse experiences, cultures and professional hierarchies and thus need a specific resource to maintain a collaborative and objective environment; thus creating a need for project managers.
In my personal professional experiences I have seen examples signifying the importance of this role and function. I have seen instances were a teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s performance could have been greatly improved by a centralized coordinating presence. I have seen instances where project managers are able to cultivate a strong sense of teamwork and collaboration to bring about the changes necessary and also times were project managers let different negative factors get the best of them and consequently the project. As an individual with a keen passion for Human Resources management and techniques to derive the greatest utilization and productivity from workforces, I have learned to respect and admire the role played by Project Managers in a successful organization. The focus for the rest of this document will be on the skills necessary to be an effective project manager and the role of HR management in facilitating success.
The ultimate purpose of a project manager is simple; the successful and timely execution of concepts and ideas, thus supporting the strategies of the management (Gaddis, 1959). For the purposes of analyzing the specific skills required we shall consider the distinct sources of the challenges faced by project managers.
Project Managers have to deal with experts of many fields and thus need to have at the very least an introductory level of understanding in all fields and the enthusiasm to sustain the continual intellectual pursuit (Crawford, 2000 and 2005). Project managers need to have an appreciation for the nuances of the constraints and capabilities of the sales, marketing, manufacturing and legal departments. Zhang names it the deep technical excellence (2012). While they need to have an understanding and dedications to processes and protocols, they also need to be open-minded enough to challenge false boundaries and always push the status quo. It is the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;fitting the man to the jobâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (FMJ) stated by Arnold, Randall and Patterson (2010). Project Managers are the living embodiment and representation of the project or team and thus have to be prepared to hold their ground on an intellectual level when informally questions or enquired of. Thus project managers have to be fundamentally competent in all fields and thus often benefit from having exposure or experience to a rotational or similar program preceding.
Project Managers are exposed to trials of working with resources in different time zones. A simple back and forth between two parties could take up to 24 h. They have to know and understand that there is a 19
limited window where you could have participation from multiple geographies and thus be primed to exploit that timeframe to the maximum possible. Crawford supports this view by saying that a top performer should concentrate on controlling cost and time (2005). In addition, since it is more than likely that the various resources involved in the team will be based in different facilities; project managers have to be confident working remotely. Ong, Richardson, Duan, He and Johnson describe it as the management of change (2009). Key techniques are the means to hold and chair teleconferences as well being meticulous at documentation and sharing data. At times, physical presence of certain resourced may be necessary and it is up to the project manager to assess the validity of needing physical presence with the understanding of everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s responsibilities and priorities.
Project managers are in essence the owners of the output of the team or project. We can consider them champions in that sense, yet they often are reliant on and have to deal with individuals who may not show the necessary commitment or cooperation and thus hinder the objective (Mast, 2010). Project managers need to have the social nous to navigate through the diverse personalities, egos, hierarchies and cultural notes that are likely to be present in a cross-functional team at a MNC. They need to be alert to situations when and where the dialogue deviates away from the agenda and keep meetings and discussions on course. Delinquent and otherwise detrimental behavior has to be dealt with in a strong and firm manner while; effort has to be made to help all parties feel involved, valued and evenly prioritized.
In addition to having the detail-orientated meticulous approach needed to minimize over-sights and mistakes (Anantatmula, 2010); it is my belief that project managers need to have the means to a broader perspective as well. They need to understand and believe that their efforts make a genuine impact on achieving the objectives determined by the strategy. They need to be highly motivated, have strong degrees of initiative and dedication. Without these qualities individuals might get jaded and lose motivation quickly which would severely compromise their abilities to lead and channel a project team objectively.
Project managers also have to be used to lacking routine in that their jobs are obviously project based and thus have a limited timeframe. According to Conner, global leaders know how to motivate people (2000). Therefore, project managers have to be dynamic with their schedules and be prepared to make the necessary adjustments to accommodate and motivate the other shareholders. At the same time they need to identify the value of the routine of weekly re-groups to emphasize the importance and priority of the project if they were to assess that the commitment and standards of participants were slipping. I strongly believe that speed to market and a culture of getting a job done are two crucial marginal principles determining the success and failure of organizations and it is crucial that project managers share these beliefs.
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Case Study of a Situation Lacking Project Management
I would like to reference a personal experience I had during a meeting I was attending in the workplace. During this meeting were present the representatives and the project manager to talk about a new launching project, a new program providing better controls and transparency and empowering staff members to make decisions more effectively. At the beginning of this meeting, the project manager began with humor a presentation in order to show the progress and offer some improvement on the topic. At this time, this Mexican representative Valeria was having a linear communication where the others people were only receiver of the message. This communication took a dominant position when his American analyst cut her into the middle of her presentation to express herself about a potential mistake in her statement. This interruption was made by David, who used a very neutral message by stating the fact without trying to show off. But this interruption into her Power Point presentation destabilized Valeria that changed totally the atmosphere meeting. Valeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tone changed and her posture changed into a more defensive one. She changed her speech into a very ironic tone and was not hesitating to undervalue David in the presence of everyone else.
The repercussions of Davidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s intervention were even more important. In the days following the meetings, Valeria changed literally her behavior towards David which in consequence reverberated on the atmosphere workplace in the team. During the following meeting, every member present during the past meeting were threatened to give their opinions on the topic. An objective and task-orientated project manager would have welcomed and commended David for his valued contribution and would have set about an environment encouraging others to make a similar impact.
I found myself attempting to take on this role informally by giving David my personal, albeit private, vote of confidence for his ideation. Whilst he was positive and welcoming of my assessment my fears that the negative damage was already done was confirmed eventually by the behavior of David and the others who looked for management to determine a course of action and then simply acquiesce to them without proper consideration; a tremendous pity given the promising talent available. I subsequently overheard conversations where individuals began slagging off management and expressed intent to simply contribute to their functions and treat cross-functional products as a hindrance worth nothing more than disdain. Some individuals were even considering making vocational changes. While we may not be able to attribute the entire breakdown of management to the lack of project managers; and while the poor performance of management definitely has to shoulder some portion of the blame it is without question that a project manager would have improved the situation. They could have acted as a secondary source of guidance and management to budding professionals and thus be a source of positive or negative feedback to the HR team, thus mitigating the situation significantly. The office had lost a degree of objectivity and I attribute this largely to lack of task-orientated project managers keeping things ticking.
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The Role of HR Managers in Empowering Project Managers for Success
Given that we have established the importance of Project Management in determining and sustaining the success of a corporation; it has to be key objective of Human Resources management to empower and grant project managers every tool and skills necessary to succeed. In principle we can define our strategy to promote strong project managers into three categories:
I. Giving them the necessary fundamental skills to succeed â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Starting from body language identification extended by Dunbar and Burgoon (2005), people management - taken further by Fulmer, Stumpft and Bleek (2009), objectivity, sense of power - developed by Anderson, John, Keltner (2012), professional communication and time management - built upon Trompenaars and Hampdn-Turner (1997), prioritization and many project management related skills which should give the individual all the tips and tricks necessary to handle a room, physical or virtual, of individuals; a solid grounding in fundamentals such as manufacturing, legal, sales and marketing technicalities and department perspectives would be of great assistance. This can be facilitated via visits to departments, external facilities or workshops created to stimulate and grow the knowledge and expertise of project managers
II. The value, worth and place of project managers has been expressed explicitly in this document. This has to be made clear to the rest of the organization in order to ensure that project managers are treated with the respect they deserve and while they may or may not â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;outrankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; the individuals they work with, they still need to be adhered to. When initiatives bring the corporation success, the role of project managers in bringing this about has to be recognized. A form of awards or a highly incentivized compensation package should bring about the necessary esteem that would mandate success.
III. Fostering a collaborative and team orientated environment can only help the job of project managers. In addition to emphasizing these qualities at a company-wide level; I think HR management should attempt to build social and inter-personal relationships between individuals from different departments; especially amongst those who are likely to work together. El Sabaa stated it as the human skill (2001). Numerous colleagues have mentioned how much better people work together after having met and shaking hands.
22
Conclusion
As organizations are increasingly committing to matrix organizations; the project management role has grown and continues to grow in relevance and significance. The global markets and the strategies to take advantage of them require likewise global and dynamic task forces to deal with the problems intelligently and promptly. Project managers are crucial in harnessing the resources and energies of the organization and translating them to outputs that are useful to the organization. Successful project managers have a steadfast sense of dedication and commitment to their functions. They are meticulous when it comes to detail yet open to creative thought processes that may shift the established paradigm. They have a wide array of knowledge over various functions and have tremendous social skills which allow to control and nurture a diverse set of individuals into a functional unit with the sole objective of getting the job done.
I have observed on numerous occasions the positive impact that project managers could have and the void of responsibility and ownership that could arise without them. I see project management as the lever translating theoretical concepts to tangible realities. HR needs to enable and empower project managers to improve their chances of success. In my opinion they work hand in hand with HR in that HR searches for the right talent and project managers contrive to utilize them in the most efficient manner.
References Anantatmula, V. 2010. Project manager leadership role in improving project performance. Engineering Management Journal; EMJ, p. 13 Anderson, C., John, O. and Keltner, D. 2012. The personal sense of power. Journal of personality, pp. 313-344 Arnold, J., Randall R., Patterson F. (2010) Work psychology: Understanding human behavior in the workplace, 5th edition, FT Prentice Hall Conner, J. 2000. Developing the global leaders of tomorrow. Human Resource Management, pp. 147-157 Crawford, L. 2000. Profiling the competent project manager. pp. 3-15 Crawford, L. 2005. Senior management perceptions of project management competence. International Journal of Project Management, pp. 7-16 Dunbar, N. and Burgoon, J. 2005. Perceptions of power and interactional dominance in interpersonal relationships. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, pp. 207-233 El-Sabaa, S. 2001. The skills and career path of an effective project manager. International journal of project management, pp. 1-7 Fulmer, R., Stumpf, S. and Bleak, J. 2009. The strategic development of high potential leaders. Strategy \& Leadership, pp. 17-22 Gaddis, P. 1959. The project manager. Harvard Business Review, pp. 89-97 Mast, M. 2010. Interpersonal behaviour and social perception in a hierarchy: The interpersonal power and behaviour model. European Review of Social Psychology, pp.1-33
Ong, V., Richardson, D., Duan, Y., He, Q. and Johnson, B. 2009. The Role of Project Leadership in Achieving Effective Project Management. pp. 157 Trompenaars, A. and Hampden-Turner, C. 1997. Riding the waves of culture. London: N. Brealey Pub Zhang, H. and Jia, T. 2012. Discuss employee wellbeing in project based organizations from a human resource management perspective
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The Importance of Non Formal Education in a Formal World Monica ROŞU Consultant Marketing / HR Trainer Marketing / Personal Branding
Abstract
The need for non formal education is becoming intense and more appreciated due to the fact that the formal educational system adapts too slowly in the socio - economic and cultural changes of our world. Non-formal education complements the formal education and only together lead to the reduction of unemployment, to the increase of self-confidence, to a world we can enjoy every day. Non formal education among students brings “motivation” which is not taught in universities, brings the experience of trainers in various fields they worked, acting as a button printed with big capitals letter saying: “Start Now”. In this respect we worked with Romanian – American University in a pilot project, and the results was spectacular. This paper aims to present the importance of non formal education among students / graduates.
Keywords: Training, Non-formal Education, Personal Branding, Professional Career, Students
JEL Classification: J23, J24, M12, M13, M31
Introduction
Non-formal education is a phrase mentioned for the first time in an international discourse about education in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. In Romania was first time mentioned by UNICEF in 1997. Non formal education can be described as an organized educational activity outside the existing formal system in order to meet the educational needs of a particular group / public that seeks clear learning objectives. While formal education uses an obligatory curriculum, non formal education curriculum is negotiated by group of students/ teachers/trainers to meet the targeted groups’ needs. Trainers may be aware about the problems faced by the group from statistical studies as well and create a program that meets the needs for the group guided by those materials. This way the information that students can not achieve at the university can be acquired attending training programs such as seminars, workshops, in order to increase the chances of success in life both personally and professionally. In Romania approaches related to non-formal education (personal branding, professional development, lifelong learning) appear blurred among young people, so their way of thinking has become different than their teachers, parents, employers etc. Non formal education has the capacity to create intergenerational ties and encourage each individual to communicate efficiently, changing him into an active and responsible participant in his group’s social life.
24
SITUATION:
Several studies have formed the basis for needs identification manifested by both students and employers about the level of employability.
â&#x20AC;˘
Study No 1: According to the study conducted by DOCIS, there are perception differences (in many cases substantial) in regards to importance given by the employers and candidates in the recruitment process to certain skills and competencies. (ACPART, DOCIS, Fig. 1)
Fig. 1 Source: Sociological Studies â&#x20AC;&#x201C; DOCIS (adaptation)
25
•
•
Study No. 2: According to studies conducted by Catalyst Solutions, the graduates average wage expectations do not coincide with the average salaries offered to graduates by employers (Source: BBC online edition)
Study No. 3: According to the Youth Strategic Plan presented by Ministry of Youth and Sport for the period 2014-2014, a number of 71614 individuals, younger than 25 years old were registered on welfare in 2012, representing 14% of the unemployed registered person in Romania. In the next age category 2530 are registered 40793 unemployed people, representing 8% of total unemployed people in Romania. As stated on the plan, one of the system’s weaknesses is the indifference showed over the positive effect the non formal extracurricular activities proves to have on personality development of the youth.
TASK:
• • • •
To enhance students’ knowledge on subjects related to employment process in order to establish a balance of student’s and recruiter’s perception regarding various skills and competencies. To clarify the issues related to salary expectations that students/graduates are not aware of especially if they participate to their first job interview. To accelerate the application process and rate of success based on skills acquired by students through non-formal education and contribute for a better insertion in the labor market facilitating the transition between education, and labor market. To increase the awareness among universities, teachers and students about non formal education and its importance for both students and universities.
ACTION:
I.
Strategy:
To accomplish our task we decided to approach the students from 2 non formal educational perspectives: Personal Branding and Recruiting and Selection. The reason to choose this approach is that before the students decide what career suits them better they have to know who they really are, what are their values, how is their personal brand perceived, what would they like to do and what are they good at and later on, they will be prepared to answer the question: “What career should I choose?” If the students/graduates/ candidates don’t know who they really are, how are they going to convince a recruiter to hire them? Through the subjects we decided to discuss with students, they will be surprised to find out so many interesting things about themselves. They will complete different personality tests, value tests, and vocational tests. They can 26
recognize the results but in the same time, more new information about themselves pop-up and engage their interest in finding more and build the competitive advantage they never thought of. As soon as they have a definition of themselves, they will be trained to become successful in the recruitment and selection process. They cannot get the best suited job if their personal brand is not well polished. The personal brand covers a lot of areas you have to work on but can be defined as an emotional response to the image or name of a particular person and each of us success depends on it. So what does a student have to do before applying for a job? Brand himself. That means that he has to create the right kind of emotional response he expected people to have when they hear his name, see him online, or meet him in real life. And this response he is waiting for will better be good.
II.
Establish the curricula:
• •
based on the results of these studies, we created a seminar and two workshops that were aimed mainly to improve the employability degree among candidates; the materials were designed to balance the perceptions, showing the students what a recruiter understand/analyze from each action / gesture / etc manifested by candidate. Inviting participants in the “recruiter’s backstage” we aimed to create a reality zoom of what should they expect as soon as they graduate the university and as well to make them aware that are responsible in terms of how they choose and manage their career and life.
We decided to create a group of 4 events to be held in February-March 2014. · One seminar will be held in 2 different days so the students have a second opportunity to participate. The presentation was build in an attractive way, and will be held in a friendly, familiar atmosphere, with participants interaction. The seminar contains general information, statistics, issues, solutions and new methods used by “Human Resources” and methods used by successful candidates, to identify the proper, best suited job/candidate. · First workshop’s objective was to support students in finding more about themselves in order to find the best career path. (Test, role play, examples, discussions) · Second workshop’s objective was to support students in attending a job interview in a professional manner. (Case study and interview simulation based on the “learn by doing” method) · Total hours of training = 10 hours
III.
Assure the trainers are prepared to offer higher standards of information. Trainers educational background and work experience comes to cover in the most professional ways the established curricula. Their educational background: 27
Trainer 1: a) Bachelor degree – Marketing & Management b) Master degree – Marketing c) Certified trainer Training subjects: Marketing, Personal Branding, Human Resources
Trainer 2: a) Bachelor degree – Psychology b) Master degree – Organizational and Human Resources Management c) Certified trainer Training subjects: Human Resource Management, Personal Branding
IV.
Set the details with Romanian-American University (Date, time, duration, and all the presentation assets needed)
Expected outcomes
Students will be able to find a career path that suits them, useful to them and to society, to fulfill them professionally and personally. The result is desired by both: students/graduates and employers, and - not least by universities that prepare students for the present and future labor market.
RESULT It was really rewarding to get the feedback and find out that participants were satisfied with the quality of the information, with the way it was transmitted, the degree of interactivity, and so on, which makes us believe that the assessment of needs that we developed at the beginning of this project was right and the information addressed to students were the ones they expected most. Analyzing the feedback from participants we realized that the collection of information we shared was very welcomed by students. The rate of employment was a reward of their participation will and our work. In first 2 weeks after the session of seminars and workshops, 10% of the participating students contacted us to announce that they went to interviews and are now employed based mostly on the information they received on seminars and workshops.
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CONCLUSION
We often describe the type of business we run using terms like B2B or B2C.(formal terms with no emotional impact) Whichever you choose, the business works because of people. Products, services provided by your company may not be sold if they are not accompanied by the emotion conveyed by the staff. This is why we are happy to present an approach agreed by those who deal in general with non formal education, and this is called H2H. (Bryan Kramer, 2014). Human 2 Human is a new concept showing the importance of people in any activities and mostly in the tertiary sector, today when the social network become our ID and non formal education has a strong effect on our way to progress next to formal education. What will we do with all the theory and practice if we are not aware of who we are and how we are, if we do not know what we like to do and what we can really do. How can an individual without a developed personal brand and professional identity be a part of your business? This is where our main desire comes from. It refers to train individuals to become better person with strong and better professional skills using different methods than universities does, using interactive classes, freedom of thoughts, empathy, etc. Heaving well trained people we will get a better turnover and a better place to live. We would like to underline, that there is a real need for such seminars and workshops. Non formal education is supporting students differently than what they get through formal education in the university and students appreciate this approach. It comes to complete them as people and professionals as well. References ACPART - Development of an operational system of qualifications in higher education in Romania, available at: http://docis.acpart.ro/uploads/noi/studiu_sociologic.pdf
Bryan Kramer - There is No B2B or B2C: It’s Human to Human: #H2H [Kindle Edition with Audio/Video], 2014 Erik Deckers, Kyle Lacy - Branding Yourself , Second edition, 2013, p. 6-8
Octavia Costea (coord.), Matei Cerkez, Ligia Sarivan - Educatia nonformala si informala: realitati si perspective in scoala romaneasca, Bucuresti, Editura Didactica şi Pedagogica, 2009, p. 9 Ministry of Youth and Sport - Strategia in domeniul tineretului, 2014-2020 - draft, p. 4-17
Monica ROŞU and Romanian-American University Students
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