We analyse the take-up by firms of internationally recognized standards such as ISO 9000 and ISO 14000. Based on an analysis of 11,668 firms in countries in Asia and Eastern Europe, we conclude that the probability of standard certification increases with firm size, is greatest in large cities...

The problem of search for new improved methods of assessment of the level of product competitiveness and efficient ways of its growth is topical and requires a more detailed study. The goal and task of the article is a study of main directions of assessment of product quality as a main component...

This study explores the underlying factors that enable firms from developing countries to successfully export differentiated goods to developed countries. The article describes four case studies of export emergence in differentiated-good sectors in Argentina, namely wine, television programs,...

A company's quality performance is necessarily dependent on its internal quality control and improvement efforts, but also subject to reliable delivery of high quality materials and parts from suppliers. This study identifies four key practices in quality-focused supplier relation and...

This paper provides a derivation, justification, and application of a generalised return on investment (ROI) objective function of a design-and-manufacturing or 'high-tech' industrial firm. Based on analysis originally presented in Steele (1995), it offers a more expansive literature review and...

The existing literature suggests that an incumbent monopolist supplier of a system component can successfully deter entry by increasing its installed base, which plays a role similar to that of the commitment value of investment in capacity. In this paper, we consider a systems market with...

In a model of spatial competition, we analyse the equilibrium outcomes in markets where the product price is exogenous. Using an extended version of the Hotelling model, we assume that firms choose their locations and the quality of the product they supply. We derive the optimal price set by a...