Market segmentation, as an important instrument in strategic marketing and regarded as a key element of marketing strategy (Palmer & Millier, 2004; Hooley, Piercy, & Nicoulaud, 2012). It is viewed as a basis for superior financial performance (Cravens & Piercy, 2013). In marketing literature, it is often also referred to as marketing’s Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning (STP) process. For a while now, there is criticism against market segmentation’s usefulness to marketing practitioners by marketing academics For instance, Foedermayr and Diamantopoulos’ (2008) analysis of market segmentation practices indicated a need for market segmentation research that could be generalized with more confidence. Their literature review revealed that most segmentation research deals with how it should be done and not with how it is actually done. Reibstein, Day, & Wind, (2009) asserted that marketing academics’ neglect to develop applicable models for critical and strategic marketing issues and have created a vacuum between academics and their marketing counterparts in practice. In a sense it also marginalised marketing as a discipline that should add value to executives who are looking for solutions to the problems they face in a fast changing market space. After his research Quinn (2009) concluded that there is little practical advice in marketing literature for marketers on how to choose variables, identify segments, controlling performance in segments or how to follow a process in doing all this. The research was based on segmentation practices from apparel retail managers in the United Kingdom. Lastly, Harrison and Kjellberg (2010) concluded that there could be other ways to segment markets than what the segmentation literature process suggests. While marketing theory suggests that market segmentation is a determinant of marketing success, it is not clear to what extend marketing decision makers share this sentiment. The most pertinent findings of the review in this paper is that there is no uniform way of market segmentation that can be used by marketers. Marketing academics have, for some time now, urged their colleagues to come up with research that will be useful for marketing practitioners.

In this paper, we present the result of our experiment on finding the correlation between the monthly report issued by the Central Bank of Japan and the Nikkei 225 index monthly summary. We collected all monthly reports available online from December 1997 (around 30 years) and extracted several features concerning the content (term frequency, specific economics and financial terms, n-grams, …). For the Nikkei index, we put the data as monthly moving average and categorize each month into two classes (positive or negative) for moving up or down. We train a classifier such as Support Vector Machine (SVM) to assign the reports into Nikkei index class (0 for negative and 1 for positive). Then we use the classification model to predict the Nikkei index class giving a monthly report. We achieve 60% accuracy for 12 months period of test reports on Japanese language reports and above 90% on training data on English report texts. Our first conclusion is that the central bank reports analysis can give some hints to Nikkei index trends. The reports should be added to other indicators in global economy to further enhance the results.

This study aims to determine the model of the behaviour of job seekers to determine the influence of age, gender, status as head of household, income for job seekers looking for work, education levels and wages to the duration. The approach used is srch theory which assumes that job seekers during the search for work will pay the cost of looking for work, menenrima income as job seekers in order to sustain such charges, received a number of job offers and will stop the job search if the additional cost of searching for cooperation with the additional revenue that will be received or offered wages equal to the reservation wage set the job seekers (Stigler, 1962; Mc Call, 1970; Fitzgaard, 1998). Results from this research suggest that age, pedapatan job seekers, education level and the market wage is a positive effect, otherwise the status as head of the family and gender negative effect means semkin old age, the higher the income, the higher education and the higher market wage will be longer individuals are on time for work. Instead of job seekers male and status as head of the household would sooner be on time for work. Of the independent variables are involved, there are two variables that are not significant to a long search for work is the variable age and education categories graduated from high school. The implications of this research shows the importance of stakeholders easier access to job information, facilitate the maintenance requirements of jobseekers, giving knowledge and skills renewal encourage the opening of the business climate for job seekers who want to be entrepreneurs, to help job seekers in shortening the long search for a job.

In present-day, millions of tweets are sent, millions of contents are shared on Facebook, and millions of search queries are made on Search engines like Google and Yahoo etc, millions of videos are uploaded to Youtube, thousands of websites are created. The arrival of digital marketing tools has created a new venture which paves the way for a new grid of personal connections. Businesses see immense new opportunities and are eager to tap in to the trend, whereas consumers are put at the centre in the business world due to digital marketing tools. There are plenty of studies which explaining the reasons to tap into digital marketing platforms and achieving better position in exchanging messages, but very few intends to study from the customer’s perspectives. This difference is because oftentimes, customers feel differently from what marketers think about these digital marketing platforms. The objective of this research is to find how, why, when and where digital marketing tools can impact on customer buying decision process. The literature review rests on digital marketing tools such as social networks, websites, emails etc. consumer behaviour, decision making process etc. The common online marketing tools such as Social media Marketing, E-mail Campaigns, Online banners, Mobile Applications, and Website marketing were considered as independent variables for the study and consumer buying decision was considered as dependent variable. Accordingly quantitative research method was adapted and the data was gathered among 100 regular fashion customers via a survey using a questionnaire. As the study was designed to vindicate how digital marketing tools influence on customer buying decision at each stage in the buying process, correlation analysis was employed as main statistical tool for testing hypotheses. The findings indicate that individuals actively enrol with all digital platforms in each step in the buying decision process. Further findings revealed that social media marketing and company websites become most effective digital marketing tool in fashion retailers in Sri Lanka. Finally researcher has given some recommendations for improving performances of fashion retailers by effective application of digital marketing tools.

Organic food industry currently has become one most emerging markets around the world. Considering the recent economic growth in Sri Lanka, agricultural sector inclusive of organic food industry, holds a significant portion over the contribution to economic growth. However Sri Lanka being one of the largest exporters in agricultural sector, understanding the potential behaviour of the consumers regarding organic food products is vital to expand the industry. Hence the aim of this study is to analyse and discuss the organic food market and customer purchasing intention in Sri Lankan context. This research study is descriptive in nature and data has been collected from 150 respondents. Secondary data were collected through rigorous literature review. Primary data were collected through a consumer survey conducted in western province using a structured questionnaire. Stratified random sampling method was used to select the respondents for the survey. Collected data was analysed using mean analysis, frequency measures and regression. SPSS version 16.0 was used as software package to analyse the data. However based on the research outcome, marketing mix and pre purchase related factors have a clear positive relationship with the customer purchasing intention of organic foods. Hence the recommendation and insights for strategies have been provided via the study that can be used by organic food manufacturers in accordance with their business situation to maximize benefits for their business.

In present-day, millions of tweets are sent, millions of contents are shared on Facebook, and millions of search queries are made on Search engines like Google and Yahoo etc, millions of videos are uploaded to Youtube, thousands of websites are created. The arrival of digital marketing tools has created a new venture which paves the way for a new grid of personal connections. Businesses see immense new opportunities and are eager to tap in to the trend, whereas consumers are put at the centre in the business world due to digital marketing tools. There are plenty of studies which explaining the reasons to tap into digital marketing platforms and achieving better position in exchanging messages, but very few intends to study from the customer’s perspectives. This difference is because oftentimes, customers feel differently from what marketers think about these digital marketing platforms. The objective of this research is to find how, why, when and where digital marketing tools can impact on customer buying decision process. The literature review rests on digital marketing tools such as social networks, websites, emails etc. consumer behaviour, decision making process etc. The common online marketing tools such as Social media Marketing, E-mail Campaigns, Online banners, Mobile Applications, and Website marketing were considered as independent variables for the study and consumer buying decision was considered as dependent variable. Accordingly quantitative research method was adapted and the data was gathered among 100 regular fashion customers via a survey using a questionnaire. As the study was designed to vindicate how digital marketing tools influence on customer buying decision at each stage in the buying process, correlation analysis was employed as main statistical tool for testing hypotheses. The findings indicate that individuals actively enrol with all digital platforms in each step in the buying decision process. Further findings revealed that social media marketing and company websites become most effective digital marketing tool in fashion retailers in Sri Lanka. Finally researcher has given some recommendations for improving performances of fashion retailers by effective application of digital marketing tools.

The Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) sector has been identified as an important strategic sector to promote economic growth and social development in Sri Lanka where SME constitute 80 – 90 % of the total number of establishments and 20% of industrial value added. They accounts for 70% of employment generation in the business sector and play a key role in the economic development of the country, (Lin, 2009). When compared with statistics of other countries it is clear that Sri Lankan SME sector also holds an immense potential to enhance the present level of contribution made towards the economy. There are various donor agencies that are working in coordination with Government/CBSL to improve the access to finance for the SME sector. Although there had been various funding lines made available for the SME sector, the contribution made by such funding lines to the enhancement of the SME sector had not been properly evaluated. Accordingly the purpose of this study was to identify the key determinants of effective funds utilization to improve the organizational performance of SME sector in Sri Lanka. In order to achieve the purpose of the study the researcher adopted Quantitative research approach and survey method. The sample size of this study is randomly selected 50 SME‟s who have obtained credit facilities through ADB funding which routed through Sampth bank PLC. Data collected through a self administrated questionnaire were analysed using both descriptive and inferential standard techniques (Mean, percentages, variations, standard deviation, correlation and regression analysis etc). According to the findings, there is a strong positive relationship between Market orientation, Leadership qualities, Perceived risk and effective funds utilization and organizational performance of SME‟s in Sri Lanka.

A hybrid model based on Markov chain and data interpolation is proposed for evaluating the faculty recruitment policy in higher learning institutions. The question arise is how to evaluate the new recruitment policy in a quantitative projection approach. The data contains about 1033 individuals are collected from the registrar office at one university, the detail of academic staff such age and status ranks are used in the model design. The movement of this academic staff from one state to another categorized by age and status rank is developed using matrix transition diagram of Markov chain. The transition in each state is recomputed using interpolation. The revised transition matrix of Markov chain based on interpolation can be used as an equation solver to calculate mean time estimation for each category of faculties. The hybrid model results are then compared to the classical Markov chain results for both old and new policies by means of mean time estimation. Two scenarios were considered in the study; scenario 1 was based on historical data pattern between year 1999 to 2014 and scenario 2 was based on the new policies. The results showed the possibility average length of stay by position for both scenarios. The hybrid model shows the projection number of faculties in order to reduce the mean time at each category, if the new policies were to introduced. This study analyses the result of mean time estimation for faculties using classical Markov chain and hybrid Markov chain model. The numerical results showed that the hybrid Markov chain model presented lower mean time estimation than the classical Markov chain model. This approach presents an alternative yet effective way of the use of Markov chain technique in the planning of manpower.

The aim of this study is to assess the prospect of implementing Curriculum Linked Video (CLV) for effective English Language Teaching (ELT) at secondary school classrooms in Bangladesh. Video materials are widely used in many countries for ELT, which has a positive influence to improve students‟ communication/language skills. Currently, Go B (Government of Bangladesh) has made an effort to implement this idea as part of teaching strategies in English Language classroom practice. However, due to the weak theoretical foundation for this practice, there are numerous delicate issues in classroom practice which entails careful thoughts and reflections. This paper attempts to explore the effectiveness/impact of implementing curriculum linked video(CLV) for English Language Teaching (ELT) to propose a framework of teaching principles, strategies and tips on specific techniques of using CLV materials to facilitate ELT for secondary school classrooms in Bangladesh. The finding shows that the CLV is an essential tool for qualitative changes in the English language teaching and learning system at secondary school level of Bangladesh. The practical implication of the study was that the innovative approach to teach english using CLV lessons ultimately helps to enhance english language teaching and learning where teachers has been played their role as facilitators during English language learning journey of secondary school students of Bangladesh . Finally direction for future research are also highlighted.

In a competitive business, perishability management is a critical role of supply chain in a variety of industries such as food and agriculture industries. Hence, the consideration of freshness of products in perishability management system is a key element for producers to improve customer satisfaction and gain more competitive advantage. In order to satisfy customers’ demands of multiple perishable products in the planning horizon, a Production-Inventory-Routing problem (PIRP) that considers shelf life dependent loss function is proposed. In this research, a Mixed-Integer-Linear Programing (MILP) model is developed to handle the integration of production problems and distribution problems with perishability consideration. The objective model is to minimize loss of product value caused by deterioration and the supply chain costs such as setup and productions costs, inventory and delivery costs. The model can be used to determine optimal solution for production plan as well as distribution plan for each perishable product over the planning horizon. Numerical results are provided in order to show the applicability of the proposed model.

In recent years, the VANET (Vehicular Ad-hoc Network) technique is important and extensively discussed in many applications. In this paper, a novel file searing mechanism of VANET is presented. This mechanism contains two major issues: the overlay network and the packets situation. The presented mechanism focuses on file search in the overlay network. This paper employs the Chord protocol and then uses Agent and clustering techniques to reduce query message and more efficiently provide files on a Chord ring. Our file search mechanism is based on Chord algorithm which is proposed by MIT. In packets situation issue, this paper present discussions about the effect of the proactive and reactive routing protocols. The proposed scheme can be used to share driving video records of each vehicle when these vehicles are neighbored the locations of traffic accidents for accident investigation. The driving video records can be more easily obtain through our proposed Chord-based scheme. Besides, the proposed scheme also can be employed to other vehicle file sharing and search applications and can obtain more performance than traditional schemes. In experiments, NS2 is used to simulate a vehicle which is downloading the file from another vehicle in the city environment. The simulation results show that the presented mechanism can work well in the peer to peer (P2P) or vehicle to vehicle (V2V) communication.

Mercury is a toxic pollutant emitted from industrial sectors to environment and distributed globally. The potential for biological treatment of industrial wastewater contaminated with mercury was evaluated using Pseudomonas putida (P. putida) under various conditions in bioreactor. The effect of mercury concentration on the P. putida growth of bacteria and also mercury removal was determined. Modification on optimum operating condition in shake flask and bioreactor need to be determined so it could bring to a better result. In this research, optimum conditions for growth of P. putida in shake flask is identified: acclimatization time 24 hours, orbital shaker speed 180 rpm, temperature 37 °C, pH 7 and nutrient concentration 8 g/L. The removal efficiency obtained is 99% for 1 ppb, 99.8% for 6 ppb and 98.6% for 19 ppb while for 1000 ppb mercury, the removal efficiency is 92% for 1 hour and 98 % for 28 hours. In 2L bioreactor, same condition as shake flask is applied with agitator speed is 180 rpm and aeration time of 0.50 vvm. For 1300 ppb and 3000 ppb, the removal efficiency is 89% and 94% respectively. The findings of this study can be used as reference for future application in industrial wastewater treatment plant.

The health sector plays important role in preparedness and response toward disasters. Nearly 80 percent of natural disasters in the Asia region were resulted by global climate change. Indonesia consists of thousands small islands and a coastline of 80 thousand kilometers. This geographic condition has caused Indonesia more vulnerable to disaster. Based on the history of disaster, all types of the world’s natural disasters have occurred in Indonesia. Those disasters have caused diseases, disabilities and deaths. The purpose of this research was to describe the concept of disaster management in Indonesia and propose alternative concept or scheme to have better disaster management in Indonesia. Study of literature was the methodology in this research and used to find theories, concepts and research from a variety of references such as papers, books, and journals. This action was followed by combining some relevant data with the topic.One of study about the implementation of disaster management indicate that the Province of West Sumatra is one of the provinces in Indonesia that is highly vulnerable to disasters. There are seven districts/cities that are disaster-prone areas, especially the threat of tsunami for around 921.349 inhabitants citizens residing in the red zone. Meanwhile, other studies show that the eruption of Mount Merapi in 2010 has caused nearly 200 people died in Magelang, Klaten and Boyolali.The disasters that occurred in Indonesia has caused loss of many lives and properties.
The disaster management in Indonesia is regulated by Law No. 24, 2007. However, the implementation those efforts such as the application of early warning systems, disaster risk alertness and disaster management skills remain not optimum.The natural disasters occurred in Indonesia shows that disaster management in Indonesia is still weak. It needs more significant improvement especially for areas are prone to natural disasters.