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The purpose of this paper is to study integrated inventory system and pricing and ordering strategy for vendor‐buyer supply chain system. Here, the vendor offers a trade credit to the buyer when the buyer's order quantity exceeds a given pre‐specified quantity. Therefore, to incorporate the concept of vendor‐buyer integration and trade credit linked, the authors analyze the model to determine the optimal strategy for an integrated vendor‐buyer inventory system under the condition of credit linked to the order quantity when demand is quadratic.

A mathematical model for integrated inventory system is developed when demand rate is increasing function of the time and decreasing function of the retail price. By analyzing the total channel profit function, the authors developed some useful results to characterize the optimal solution and provide an iterative algorithm to find the retail price, buyer's order quantity and the number of shipments per production run from the vendor to the buyer.

By developing a solution algorithm, the optimal retail price, order quantity and number of shipments from the vendor to the buyer are provided. Numerical examples and sensitivity analyses are presented to validate the proposed model. Through extensive numerical analyses, it is observed that a longer credit term increases profits of the player for the entire supply chain. The vendor should establish the threshold for allowing trade credit comprehensively to ensure the greatest benefit for both players.

Most of the research articles available in the literature considered the constant demand or linearly changing demand. In this paper, a mathematical model is developed considering time dependent quadratic demand. Very few researchers have investigated joint optimal policy in vendor‐buyer supply chain system, considering trade credit is linked to order quantity, and still there are not many findings on the benefit of integrated policy and trade credit.

The purpose of this empirical research paper is to investigate the self-perceived role of the community partner of a higher education service-learning and community engagement module.

A qualitative approach was followed by distributing a questionnaire to the community partners of a community engagement module and coding the responses using ATLAS.ti. A total of 36 responses were received from community partners who work with students enrolled in a compulsory undergraduate community-based project module at the University of Pretoria's Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology.

The community partners share a common interest in the students' education. They are experts in their fields and can share their knowledge with the students and the university. Through these partnerships, long-term reciprocal relationships can develop. Community partners can become co-educators and partners in education. The pragmatist representations of community partners can be challenged when they understand their own stakes in service-learning or community engagement projects. This better aids higher education institutes in the management and evaluation of service-learning and community engagement pedagogies and curricula.

Two main limitations underlie this study. Firstly, this research is based on data from one community module at a single university. Although a large number of students are registered in the module, the study would be improved by conducting it at more than one university countrywide. Secondly, the study was performed during the first coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown the country experienced. This was a completely unexpected event for which everyone was totally unprepared. Many of the community partners lacked the resources to receive or respond to an online questionnaire. The nature of the lockdown prevented the researchers from reaching these community partners for a face-to-face interview. The voice of these community partners is, therefore, silent.

The community partners reiterated their need to be seen as equal partners in the module and appreciated being part of a group of non-profit enterprises working together with a university to pursue a set of common goals. However, their status as peers depends on their willingness and ability to contribute sufficiently to the structure and demands of the service-learning module. The community partners who were able and willing to orientate each group of students to their organisation's mission and objectives, and who executed their roles according to the course requirements, experienced the greatest success in terms of project effectiveness and efficiency, and also in terms of future benefits when students returned to volunteer or provide donations. Given time, these community partners grew into an equal partner with the university's stakeholders, where both their own needs and those of the students were met during the various service-learning projects.

Since all respondents in this study are non-profit organisations, the financial assistance and free labour afforded to them by the students are of paramount importance. The community partners also understand the longer-term value implications of successful student projects, as some students return of their free will to volunteer their services when gainfully employed after graduation.

Community engagement projects are rarely investigated from the community partner's point of view. This paper elicited their responses and examined them through the lens of Fraser's theory of social justice (Fraser, 2009).

This case involves the March of Dimes (MOD) Foundation, the “leading nonprofit organization for pregnancy and baby health.” MOD’s mission was to support medical research, organize volunteer workers, and provide community services and education to save babies’ lives (www.marchofdimes.org). The strategic issue in the case involves creating awareness of both the mission and services of MOD and the critical issue driving that mission – premature births. The organization must create a desire for various target markets to take action in response to the problem. The main protagonist is Doug Staples, Senior Vice President for Marketing and Communications.

Data were collected via personal interviews with the primary protagonists, Doug Staples, and Mike Swenson of the Barkley agency. The MOD provided quantitative Gallup studies they commissioned, as well as documents unveiling the roll-out in the San Jose, CA region. The Barkley Agency provided qualitative data from a study which consisted of eight focus groups conducted in two markets and ten personal interviews. Secondary research was used to provide a support for industry and market data, to supplement organizational facts provided by the MOD, and to identify and link marketing theory to the situations provided in the case. The organization, facts and characters in this case were not disguised. MOD was consulted throughout the case development process.

This case study is recommended for marketing courses at the undergraduate level. It is most appropriate for marketing management, introductory marketing, or marketing strategy classes. Additionally, this case is a good fit for courses focused upon not-for-profit marketing issues.

The strongest opportunities to apply theory using this case relate to branding (see De Chernatony and Dall’Olmo Riley, 1998 for a content analysis of the brand literature). These theories include brand image and personality (Aaker, 1997; Belk, 1998; Grohmann, 2009), brand awareness (Aaker, 2002), brand involvement and customer loyalty (Brakus et al., 2009), brand engagement (Sprott et al., 2009), brand relationships (Breivik and Thorbjornsen, 2008), and brand equity (Aaker, 2002, 2008). Specifically, question 2 addresses brand personality, and questions 3 and 4 explore relationships with the brand such as the emotional power of the brand and brand association. Question 6 focuses on positioning strategy.

This paper aims to investigate and provide insights on knowledge-based urban development (KBUD) in the context of emerging economies. KBUD has been an effective strategy and an opportunity for emerging economies for catching up with the developed economies.

The paper scrutinizes the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) of Malaysia by focusing on the planning, development and orchestration of the knowledge corridor.

The paper reveals a number of lessons and insights drawn from the development of MSC as the largest manifestation of the KBUD initiative in Malaysia.

The paper provides lessons and recommendations on the planning, development and management of KBUD for emerging economies that are seeking a prosperous development.

The learning outcomes are to sensitise with the cause of sport development in India; to familiarize with the concepts of SDGs and sport development continuum in context of the Tata Trusts work in sports (Sports Portfolio); to relate strategy concepts of resources, SWOT analysis, cooperative implications, Carroll's CSR pyramid and Porter-Kramer strategic corporate social performance and shared value framework of inside-out and outside-in linkages with the Sports Portfolio strategy at the Tata Trusts; and to link sport development concepts like sport and development, sports development continuum and capacity building with the Sports Portfolio work at the Tata Trusts.

The case explores the sport and development issues faced by Ms Neelam Babardesai, Head of Sports Portfolio, Tata Trusts in Mumbai, India. The Trusts had a long history of contributing to the development of sport in India and looked forward to aligning their work in the sport with the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals (SDGs). They started Sports Portfolio in 2016–2017 intending to complement their work in education and generate positive socio-economic change at the grassroots (local community) level in India. They also had the resources to implement the programmes. However, they were faced with issues like the deficiency of physical literacy in schools resulting in the disinterest of children and parents in sport and physical activity, which also might lead to health issues, later in life, minimal cooperation between entities involved with sport and development, lack of structured sports programmes and skilled human resources and the national sports policy needing better details and implementation and follow-up plans in India. Their strategic response was based on the use of a “sports development pyramid”, capacity building, alignment with the SDGs and complementary partnerships and collaborations. What were the outcomes? Should they continue with the same strategic approach? What should be their future course of action for sport and development? How should they respond to the COVID-19 crisis? Ms Babardesai reflected upon the above questions while concluding that India needed a long-term strategy for the development of sport.

The case is intended to be taught in the class of strategic management for postgraduate or master's level participants of business administration for concepts like resources, SWOT analysis, cooperative implications, corporate social responsibility (CSR), shared value and introducing the concept of the UN SDGs (SDGs), capacity building and sports development continuum (sports development domain) in context of the Indian sports scenario. The case should be equally useful in teaching relevant courses related to sports management and development. It may also be used for courses related to development studies and sustainability at the master’s level. The case may also be used by practitioners and researchers associated with sport and development/sports development and SDGs.

Teaching Notes are available for educators only.

CSS 11: Strategy

This study aims to investigate the optimum proportion of coconut fibre and cement suitable for rammed earth wall construction. Coconut fibres and cement can be easily incorporated into the soil mixture which adds strength and durability to the wall. This paper highlights the salient observations from a systematic investigation on the effect of coconut fibre on the performance of stabilized rammed earth blocks.

Stabilization of soil was done by adding Ordinary Portland Cement (2.5, 5.0, 7.5 and 10.0 per cent by weight of soil), whereas coconut fibre in length about 15 mm was added (0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0 per cent by weight of soil) as reinforcement. Thirty types of mixes were created by adding different proportions of cement and fibre to locally available soil and compacting the mix at constant compaction energy in three layers with Proctor rammer.

Samples were tested for compressive strength and tensile strength, and failure patterns were analysed. The use of cement and fibre increases ultimate strengths significantly up to an optimum limit of 0.8 per cent fibre content, provides a secondary benefit of keeping material bound together after failure and increases residual strength. Benefits of fibre reinforcement includes both improved ductility in comparison with raw blocks and inhibition of crack propagation after its initial formation.

After analysing the results, it is recommended to use 0.8 per cent fibre and 5-10 per cent cement by weight of soil to achieve considerable strength. This research may add a value in the areas of green and sustainable housing, waste utilization, etc.