Narrow Results

We investigate a simple motion pursuit-evasion differential game of one Pursuer and one Evader. Maximal speeds of the players are equal. The Evader moves along a given curve without self-intersection. There is no phase constraint for the Pursuer. Necessary and sufficient conditions to complete pursuit from both fixed initial position and all initial positions are obtained.

We consider pursuit and evasion differential game problems described by an infinite system of differential equations with countably many Pursuers in Hilbert space. Integral constraints are imposed on the controls of players. In this paper an attempt has been made to solve an evasion problem under the condition that the total resource of the Pursuers is less then that of the Evader and a pursuit problem when the total resource of the Pursuers greater than that of the Evader. The strategy of the Evader is constructed.

The compensation received by economic agents reflects their performance. Usually compensation reflects performance measured cardinally, but sometimes ordinal considerations play a role. It is well established that rewards — cardinal or ordinal — can rationally motivate contestants to put forth increased effort. We ask whether rewards, and in particular their cardinal or ordinal nature, can affect agents' strategies. Specifically, if level of effort is fixed and degree of difficulty is the only choice, what strategy is optimal? For example, in a high-jump competition, level of effort is not a meaningful variable; what is of interest is the choice of strategy — the height attempted, or degree of difficulty. We study how optimal strategies reflect reward structure, assuming that rewards may depend on level of difficulty, and go only to successful candidates, or only to candidates who succeed at more difficult tasks. Basing our conclusions in part on simple probabilistic models in which optimal choices can be determined analytically, we show how the structure of competitive rewards alters contestants' rational choices. We adopt a contest-design framework: What combinations of fixed and variable prizes cause contestants to select degrees of difficulty that maximize the contest designer's expected payoff? Our general conclusion is that competition can affect strategic choices, in magnitudes and even directions that are difficult to predict.

The United States and China have common but differentiated climate mitigation responses. Most studies so far have sought to explain this divergence with a focus on energy resources, technology, economic, or social factors. These studies ignore the role of strategy and institutions, and thus appear incomplete. In this paper, the author investigates the climate mitigation responses of the United States and China from a strategic and institutional perspective, explores how their climate responses are shaped, and identifies possible weaknesses hidden in their climate approaches. The paper finds that the United States and China have distinct national climate positions due to their diverse strategies and institutions. However, they have chosen similar policy tools and have achieved fairly comparable emission reductions thus far. In the long run, the effectiveness and efficiency of the low-carbon transformation will possibly be hindered by weaker policy innovation capability at sub-national levels in China and the operationally volatile energy strategy in the United States.

There is a growing concern among consumers for preserving the environment without compromising the current lifestyle. In this context, organizations are looking for a sustainable business model that can fulfil their business objectives effectively. The concept of the circular economy is emerging as a solution that can help the minimization of the ill effect of industrialization. The circular economy is efficiently adopted and implemented through circular practices. However, the adoption of circular economy practices is not easy for the industries, and it requires a comprehensive strategy. Therefore, this study aims to identify and evaluate the key strategies to accomplish circular economy practices in the present-day context. In order to fulfil the research objective, this study identified 11 significant strategies that are needed for the adoption of circular economy practices. These strategies are identified using an integrated approach of the literature review and focus group discussion with experts. Further, these key strategies are evaluated using the fuzzy DEMATEL and developed a causal relationship among the strategies. The applied method has also classified the strategies into cause and effect group. The cause group comprises the five strategies, while effect group contain the six strategies. The finding suggests that “management involvement, support and commitment” and “creating a vision and goals for circular economy” are prominent strategies. This study will facilitate the managers to make the action plan for implementing the circular practices in order to shift towards the circular economy.

Generating innovations is one of the key success factors of companies and organizations. To constantly create new innovations, an effective innovation strategy must be implemented by companies. Therefore, a variation of different strategic frameworks has been formulated. One framework which combines the idea of Open Innovation with startup-based interaction is the startup-orientated cooperative innovation (SOCI) strategy. The PANDA initiative of Fresenius University of Applied Science can be characterized as a coupled process of the SOCI framework. This paper presents the results of a survey, analyzing the impact of PANDA on the innovation strategies of the chemical and pharmaceutical industry based on the innovation attributes defined by the Oslo Manual 2018. The survey was used to compare 12 PANDA project evaluations implementing by European chemical and pharmaceutical companies. The main results of this study show that PANDA represents an effective tool to foster early-stage innovation development and indicates general effectiveness of SOCI strategies for chemical and pharmaceutical companies.

The study aims to scientifically substantiate the application of the scenario approach in predicting the development of the agri-food sector in rural areas. The conceptual novelty of the study is that it develops a scenario forecasting algorithm for the development of the agri-food sector of rural areas in the digital economy. It also clarifies methodological approaches and recommendations for forecasting production volumes of certain agri-food products at the zonal level. The paper shows that digitalization is one of the critical factors that directly ensure an increase in agribusiness efficiency in the current conditions in agriculture. An assessment of the impact of digital transformation processes on the activities of agricultural producers is given, and the advantages of using modern digital technologies in the agricultural sector are highlighted. Furthermore, the results of scenario forecasting of production volumes of agri-food products by farms of all categories are presented in the example of the non-black soil zone of the Republic of Bashkortostan. The study’s preliminary results are as follows: the world experience in scientific research on the use of digital technologies in the activities of agricultural producers was generalized.

Innovation is widely recognized as a major driver of long-term corporate growth. Successful innovators who manage to dominate new markets enjoy Schumpeterian rents for their inventions. How then can a firm dominate a new market? Two streams of literature have proposed opposite answers to this question.

The First Mover approach indicates that by setting up a strong differentiation strategy, companies are supposed to create a new area where profits abound. This approach is supported especially by Kim and Mauborgne (2004) who coined the term Blue Ocean to describe it.

The Fast Second approach, defended by Markides and Geroski (2005), contends, on the contrary, that companies should not try to become pioneers, but should target the newly created market in second position, and colonize it.

But neither Blue Ocean nor Fast Second are able to convincingly explain successful market domination. Our study of 24 innovation cases suggests that innovation which leads to market domination is instead achieved by using four kinds of breakthroughs, separately of simultaneously.

Changes in regulation trigger changes in the innovation environments. They may block specific development trajectories, but they may simultaneously inspire and stimulate completely new openings. In this study, we look into regulation that aims to address environmental problems and facilitate creation and diffusion of sustainable technologies and processes as we examine the responses of innovators to the regulation on plastic use and production—specifically, the so-called SUP-directive. A multiple-case study comprising six companies suggests that companies manage (with) the regulation-induced innovation and needs for change by adopting three distinctive strategies: (1) proactive change orientation, (2) reactive opportunity capturing, or (3) reactive survival mode. Acknowledging that sustainability-oriented regulation may push companies with environmentally friendly innovation activities and solutions towards reactive survival mode highlights the need for managerial agility in adjusting the solutions and the ability to adopt parallel innovation strategies. Observing the strategies adopted by innovators also is informative when evaluating whether the regulation meets its profound goals and intended effects.

Policy responses to the growing climate crisis are based on the belief that markets and corporate innovation will be sufficient to provide solutions in rapidly decarbonizing the global economy. This view has been evident in proposals for “carbon pricing” (Stern, 2007), as well as among leading executives. For instance, business tycoon Richard Branson has proclaimed that, “our only option to stop climate change is for industry to make money from it” (Neubacher, 2012). So while businesses continue to be key contributors to escalating greenhouse gas emissions (Heede, 2014), they are also increasingly presented as offering innovative ways to reduce carbon emissions through technological innovations and improved eco-efficiency. But how much faith can we place in business to save us from climate change?

Extant studies and my own work show that in US listed corporations, the presence of a firm’s founder adds value to the firm. The incremental value increases with the extent of decision rights controlled by the founder. Furthermore, the value addition is higher if the founder CEO is younger at the time of the initial public offering and decreases with the founder’s tenure in the firm. Further investigation reveals that the founders add value by improving operating performance and being more transparent than similar non-founder firms. Moreover, the founders are more focused on the strategic positioning of the firm in improving operating performance — they improve profit margins in differentiated firms while improving efficiency in firms with cost-leadership strategy. Analysts and investors can benefit by incorporating these insights into their analysis.

Our main focus in this and the next chapter is the application of Cooperative Game Theory (CGT) models to international water resource issues. In this chapter we will justify the use of CGT in water resource problems, and in particular, in international conflict-cooperation cases. The chapter reviews several important CGT concepts and demonstrates their use and calculation. After reading this chapter you will have a good grasp of basic CGT concepts and be able to apply them at both conceptual and empirical levels to simple cases.

This paper introduces the theory of social marketing to the areas of disaster management that deal with natural disasters such as earthquakes, flooding, hurricanes, etc. The theory of social marketing as a sub-theory of marketing is introduced and its implications in the area of disaster management are discussed. The paper further illustrates how social marketing can benefit various levels of government as well as organizations and communities in the disaster affected regions. A model of social marketing related to disaster preparedness will advance the use of social marketing concepts such as product, promotion, place and price to help governments, organizations, and local communities prepare for possible natural disasters with minimum negative impact.