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The main goal of the study is to investigate how same-brand slogans simultaneously in use in two emerging markets, namely Turkey and Russia, differ semantically. The study further examines in what ways the industrial competition structure impacts the semantic slogan design within these two contexts.

The study uses the method of semantic explication that is based on a 19-device taxonomy. This method is applied to 56 slogan pairs in the Turkish and Russian languages launched for the same brands/products across 6 industries.

Results indicate that same-brand slogans differ semantically between Turkey and Russia. Moreover, firms tend to conform to a shared semantic pattern within a given industry, largely depending on the industrial competition structure. While strong local competition (as in the electronics and cleaning products industries in Turkey and in the personal care and beverages industries in Russia) leads firms to use self-reference, international competition (as in the automotive, personal care and beverages industries in Turkey and in the electronics and cleaning products industries in Russia) promotes them to use hyperbole in their slogan design.

Adopting a common semantic pattern within an industry may carry the risk of restricting brand differentiation and consumers' sense of novelty. Furthermore, the inclusion of brand names in slogans may make slogans sound assertive and lead consumers to overreact to the brand.

Unlike many studies exploring different-brand slogans through a syntactic or grammatical lens, this study investigates the semantic features of same-brand slogans launched in two emerging market contexts. It adopts a B2B perspective, unlike many extant studies that often focus on a B2C one.

The purpose of this study is to unpack the antecedents and consequences of clickbait prevalence in online media at two different levels, namely, (1) Headline-level: what characteristics of clickbait headlines attract user clicks and (2) Publisher-level: what happens to publishers who create clickbait on a prolonged basis.

To test the proposed conjectures, the authors collected longitudinal data in collaboration with a leading company that operates more than 500 WeChat official accounts in China. This study proposed a text mining framework to extract and quantify clickbait rhetorical features (i.e. hyperbole, insinuation, puzzle, and visual rhetoric). Econometric analysis was employed for empirical validation.

The findings revealed that (1) hyperbole, insinuation, and visual rhetoric entice users to click the baited headlines, (2) there is an inverted U-shaped relationship between the number of clickbait headlines posted by a publisher and its visit traffic, and (3) this non-linear relationship is moderated by the publisher's age.

This research contributes to current literature on clickbait detection and clickbait consequences. Future studies can design more sophisticated methods for extracting rhetorical characteristics and implement in different languages.

The findings could aid online media publishers to design attractive headlines and develop clickbait strategies to avoid user churn, and help managers enact appropriate regulations and policies to control clickbait prevalence.

The authors propose a novel text mining framework to quantify rhetoric embedded in clickbait. This study empirically investigates antecedents and consequences of clickbait prevalence through an exploratory study of WeChat in China.

This study employs creative strategies to contentanalyse Super Bowl commercials from 2001 to 2009, focusing specifically on message strategies. The findings aim to answer four research questions. What are the message strategies commonly employed in Super Bowl commercials? What are the trends of the message strategies employed in Super Bowl commercials over time? What are the relationships between the message strategies and the commercial likeability? What are the specific roles played by the high- vs. low-involvement product categories?

Achieving more from less is a preoccupation of many organizations in the turbulent 1990s. Midst the maelstrom of apparently mutually exclusive organizational objectives, managers respond to what may turn out to be the siren call of business process re‐engineering. Rapid assimilation of business process re‐engineering into managerial practice in the 1990s is arresting. However, a number of articles on the subject have been based on hyperbole rather than evidence. Considers and examines theoretical antecedents of business process re‐engineering within the context of this decade’s challenges. Uses empirical evidence to provide evidence‐based critical success factors for business process re‐engineering programmes. Discusses indications for future research in business process re‐engineering. Places emphasis on the need to bridge the lacuna between business process re‐engineering theory and evidence‐based practice.

Today, it is impossible not to be overwhelmed by the continual waves of hyperbole that come from the computer industry with each new technological innovation. For decades, senior managers have been told about, and have been invariably disappointed by, the strategic impact of new technology. Their experiences have led these managers to view the term “strategic computing” as an oxymoron and to greet any new technology with a heavy dose of skepticism.

Simon Cowell, the impresario behind The X Factor, a popular television talent show, has often been compared to P.T. Barnum, the legendary nineteenth century showman. This paper aims to examine the alleged parallels in detail and attempts to assess this “Barnum reborn” argument.

Putative parallels between the impresarios are considered under the aegis of two long‐standing, if contentious, historical “theories”: time's cycle and the great man thesis.

Seven broad similarities between the showmen are identified: vulgarity, hyperbole, rivalry, publicity, duplicity, liminality and history. In each case, the arguments pro and con are explored, as is humanity's propensity to personify.

In accordance with the iconic literary critic Harold Bloom, who “strikes texts together to seek if they spark”, this paper strikes two celebrated showmen together to generate historical sparks.

In the popular media there appears to be a growing refrain of the so‐called China threat. This paper offers an alternative perspective, in particular, how emerging Chinese economic prowess could actually prove beneficial to Western societies.

The approach is based upon personal experience within the country, as well as understanding of Chinese history and culture. In addition, the often cited hyperbole surrounding Chinese economic domination is challenged by the available data.

Although we often read about Chinese firms, buoyed by low‐cost labor and government subsidies, dominating the global marketplace, reality is often overlooked. Actually, the number of state‐owned enterprises (SOEs) in China is dropping dramatically and foreign firms are the majority in the growing private enterprise sector. In fact, foreign‐funded enterprises account for the majority of Chinese exports.

The paper offers a contrarian viewpoint. The aim is to present a more balanced inquiry and a broader understanding and discussion of the growing Chinese economy and the substantial global opportunities presented by such historic expansion.

China, indeed Asia as a whole, is emerging as a significant global economic force. If Western firms and economies are to benefit from such a boon, we must become more engaged. If we refrain, we are allowing others to assemble the personal infrastructure needed to capture the building Chinese market.

This paper offers a rebuttal to many of the myths surrounding Chinese economic development. Moreover, it demonstrates the critical nature of time sensitive engagement and collaboration if Western organizations are to reap the potential benefits of such remarkable economic growth.

The purpose of this research is to establish whether employers specify the requirement of CPD when recruiting managers and, in doing so, to open up the debate on the importance attached to CPD by employers.

An observational analysis was undertaken of job advertisements placed in four regional newspapers and a national online job web site over a two‐month period (August and September 2006).

From the newspaper job advertisements scrutinized none indicated CPD either directly or indirectly as a requirement for managerial jobs. Job experience (84 per cent) and personal attributes (82 per cent) were the most important requirements indicated for managerial jobs. An online national jobs web site, however, implied or specifically mentioned CPD for only five managerial posts.

Some of the job advertisements provided very scant details. The study has only taken a surface view of the posts, as opposed to a detailed reviewing of the person specification for jobs. Targeting “Managers” focused on only middle level positions and even this could have excluded some posts.

The lack of CPD evidence now challenges employers to consider the importance of CPD when preparing managerial job advertisements.

The paper highlights the gap between the value of CPD and its absence in job advertisements and discusses the impact of the findings on relevant stakeholder groups. It argues the need for employers to detail CPD implicitly or explicitly in job advertisements to enhance the quality of job applicants.

Last month I left the McDonald's cash register interface squared off against Lare Mischo's “command line or death” ultimatum. To those who feel each end of this spectrum has lapsed into hyperbole, I must report a very serious discussion held recently in the largest library in our state, where the so‐called “ATM” (automatic teller machine) interface was deemed a real possibility.

Less polemical authors have published useful overviews of scholarship and institutional development in family business (Chrisman, Kellermanns, Chan, & Liano, 2010; Heck, Hoy, Poutziouris, & Steier, 2008; Schulze & Gedajlovic, 2010; Sharma, 2004). I take this as license for hyperbole. In such a vein, I am skeptical eight times over: that the field can be objective, that it can be defined, that “family business” is the right label, that it will find useful theories, that kinship exists, that if it does exist (all right, I do believe it does) we really observe it in action, that the field can progress without regressing, that it can be relevant, and that it can find its niche in universities. “Skeptical” has a nice ring to it. I confess, though, that my concerns are worries more than a lack of willingness to believe. After all, I hope that the papers in this volume will goad us into avoiding pitfalls as the field develops.