JDRE2

ACADEMIA DE STUDII ECONOMICE DIN BUCURETI THE BUCHAREST ACADEMY OF ECONOMIC STUDIES
Jurnalul Cercetrii Doctorale n tiine Economice Journal of Doctoral Research in Economics

Vol. I nr. 2/2009
Bucureti 2009
Cuprins
Cercetarea tiinific un semn al normalitii universitare .....................................3 Ion STANCU 1. Salvarea companiilor afectate de criza economica la ndemna stakeholderilor i profesionitilor contabili .................................5 Claudia-Maria BOBE Mihaela MOCANU 2. Remodelare managerial n contextul europenizrii ........................................16 Cristina BADEA BOLCA Florica BADEA 3. Factori majori de influen ai competitivitii IMM-urilor romneti n contextul economiei actuale ..........................................................26 Mihaela-Georgia SIMA 4. Influena economiei i managementului cunoaterii asupra serviciilor de sntate .............................................................................36 Roxana GNESCU Celestin CONSTANTIN 5. Reclamele online ca mecanism de promovare, instrument de monetizare i metod de informare...............................................................44 Liviu LIC 6. Inteligena colectiv n sisteme multi-agent .......................................................54 Iulia MRIE 7. Marketing pe timp de criz .................................................................................63 Mdlina MATEI (NIOIU) 8. Publicitatea prin comunitile virtuale form modern de marketing online n contextul crizei economice mondiale ..........................74 Iacob CTOIU Ivona STOICA 9. Capital de risc: soluii financiare pentru IMM-urile din Romnia n condiii de criz mondial........................................................83 Monica BIOLAN 10. Convergene ntre globalizare i dezvoltarea durabil studiu de caz Romnia ........................................................................................92 Suzana Elena CHIRIAC Ioana Maria GHIDIU-BTA Alexandru GHIIU-BRTESCU 11. Un nou model pentru gestiunea riscului n domeniul bancar ..........................105 Silviu Florin TEODORU 12. Autentificarea bazat pe cunotine n aplicaiile orientate spre cetean ........................................................................................114 Bogdan VINTIL Drago PALAGHI
Jurnalul Cercetrii Doctorale n tiine Economice
Contents
Saving companies affected by the economic crisis at hand of stakeholders and accounting professionals .....................................3 Claudia-Maria BOBE Mihaela MOCANU 2. Managerial remodeling in European context ....................................................13 Cristina BADEA BOLCA Florica BADEA 3. Major influencing factors of romanian smes competitiveness in todays economic context ................................................................................25 Mihaela-Georgia SIMA 4. The influence of the economy and of knowledge management on the health services ..........................................................................................35 Roxana GNESCU Celestin CONSTANTIN 5. Online advertising as a promotion mechanism, a way to monetizeand a source of information .................................................43 Liviu LIC 6. Collective intelligence in multi-agent systems....................................................53 Iulia MRIE 7. Marketing during the crisis .................................................................................62 Mdlina MATEI (NIOIU) 8. Social network advertising a modern means of online marketing in the context of world financial crisis ............................................73 Iacob CTOIU Ivona STOICA 9. Venture capital: Financial solutions for Romanian SMEs in crisis time .........................................................................................................81 Monica BIOLAN 10. Convergences between globalisation and sustainable development study case Romania ...................................................................89 Suzana Elena CHIRIAC Ioana Maria GHIDIU-BTA Alexandru GHIIU-BRTESCU 11. A new model for risk management in banking domain ....................................102 Silviu Florin TEODORU 12. Knowledge based authentication in citizen oriented applications ...................110 Bogdan VINTIL Drago PALAGHI 1.
Journal of Doctoral Research in Economics
CERCETAREA TIINIFIC UN SEMN AL NORMALITII UNIVERSITARE

Strategia de dezvoltare a Academiei de Studii Economice din Bucureti poziioneaz, prin formularea misiunii i viziunii, instituia noastr ca fiind una de nvmnt i cercetare. Aceast orientare strategic a organizaiei noastre a determinat n ultimii ani o efervescen extraordinar n rndul comunitii tiinifice din Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti i care s-a concretizat n creterea numrului contractelor de cercetare coordonate de cercettori din ASE, a numrului de articole tiinifice publicate n reviste indexate n baze de date internaionale, inclusiv ISI. Cercetare tiinific este o component intrinsec a activitii fiecrui cadru didactic din cadrul Academiei de Studii Economice din Bucureti. Activitatea de pregtire i cercetare avansat n cadrul studiilor universitare de doctorat reprezint ciclul superior de studii universitare, a crui finalitate const n dezvoltarea cunoaterii prin cercetare tiinific original. Doctoratul n cadrul Academiei de Studii Economice din Bucureti este unul de tip tiinific, ceea ce presupune integrarea n structura sa a unei importante componente creative i de cercetare avansat, care constituie baza dezvoltrii cunoaterii. Realizarea unui salt calitativ n cercetarea economic va genera efecte pe termen lung, standardele de calitate impuse de noua elit de tineri doctori n economie generalizndu-se ca repere pentru generaiile viitoare de cercettori. Acest jurnal tiinific este un avanpost al cercetrii, fiind susinut att de doctoranzi ct i de profesori prin ideile lor. Ca orice avanpost, trebuie ntrit i aprovizionat cu informaii i experien, modele teoretice i ipoteze i aprat de voluntari, dar nu pe cmpul de lupt, ci ntr-un mediu de dezvoltare a ideilor lor, prin polemic, raionalism critic, experiment. n definitiv este mai bine aa, deoarece, dup cum spunea Karl Popper n celebra sa carte de epistemologie, Conjecturile i infirmrile, dezvoltarea ideilor trebuie s primeze deoarece, n caz de disput, ,,e mai bine s moar ideile, nu oamenii. Alegoria avanpostului nu are fundament militar dect din punct de vedere al disciplinei i a mobilizrii resurselor intelectuale ale fiecrui doctorand n parte pentru a-i ndeplini o serie de obiective pe parcursul unui interval limitat de timp, ncununate de un obiectiv final, acela de susinere cu succes a tezei de doctorat. n momentul n care s-a ajuns la acest nivel, nseamn c exist deja dovada unei contribuii tiinifice personale i a unei activiti de cercetare pe parcurs, pe care respectivul jurnal i propune s o sprijine ntr-un mod ct mai complet. Cercetarea nu trebuie vzut ca o obligaie, ci ca o onoare i o responsabilitate rezervat unor oamenilor dedicai, care au ales s externalizeze la nivelul societii o parte din propriul lor inventar intelectual. Este vorba de
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responsabilitate social academic i de altruism social, atitudini care nu pot fi evaluate material, dei implic un cost de oportunitate pentru doctorandul cercettor care a ales acest drum. Pe termen lung ns, importana output-ului intelectual face diferena dintre gradele diferite de dezvoltare a societilor n ntreaga lume. Jurnalul Cercetrii Doctorale n tiine Economice este scris ntr-un limbaj internaional, i prin asta nu se nelege limba englez sau oricare alt limb de circulaie internaional, ci limbajul cercetrii i al promovrii cunoaterii. Acest limbaj trebuie nvat de toi cei care doresc s aib un cuvnt de spus n domeniul tiinific. Totodat, Jurnalul Cercetrii Doctorale n tiine Economice este un pol important n sprijinul actualilor i viitorilor doctoranzi. Articolele publicate pn n acest moment au demonstrat deja c ofertei Academiei de Studii Economice i s-a rspuns din partea doctoranzilor cu toat motivaia i interesul ateptat. Este un rezultat bun. ns ca orice rezultat bun, nu trebuie doar atins, ci i meninut.
Prof. univ. dr. Ion Stancu, Prorector al Academiei de Studii Economice din Bucureti
SALVAREA COMPANIILOR AFECTATE DE CRIZA ECONOMIC LA NDEMNA STAKEHOLDERILOR I PROFESIONITILOR CONTABILI

Claudia-Maria Bobe
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia clau_sunny@yahoo.com
Mihaela Mocanu
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia mocanu.miki@gmail.com
Rezumat
Mediul economic actual se caracterizeaz prin incertitudini legate de volatilitatea preurilor, dificulti n evaluarea instrumentelor financiare, precum i a activelor i datoriilor n general. Tot mai multe companii se confrunt cu probleme de lichiditate, care le-ar putea amenina chiar existena. n aceste condiii, salvarea companiilor devine o preocupare tot mai important a celor interesai n mod direct, supravieuirea fiind termenul cel mai des utilizat n contextul actual al economiei mondiale. Pe fundalul acestor turbulene economice la nivel internaional, principalii stakeholderi i profesionitii contabili sunt pui n situaia de a-i revizui procedurile, obiectivele, strategiile dar i comportamentul, atitudinea n general, pentru a limita sau chiar elimina consecinele negative ale crizei financiare. Din perspectiva noastr, comunicarea dintre companie, stakeholderi i auditori, precum i transparena informaiilor reprezint fundamentul unei strategii de succes n afaceri. Cu toate acestea, comunicarea ntre prile amintite poate fi adesea ngreunat, mai ales n condiii de incertitudine i criz. Prezentul articol i propune s identifice oportunitile i ameninrile generate de criza economic i s analizeze fluxurile de informaie dintre companie, stakeholderi i profesionitii contabili, n condiiile n care continuitatea activitii ar putea fi ameninat. Lucrarea noastr evideniaz importana comunicrii dintre companie, stakeholderi i auditori n vederea ntreprinderilor afectate de criza economic.
Cuvinte-cheie: turbulene economice, stakeholderi, profesioniti contabili, comunicare,

transparen
Clasificare JEL: G30 Introducere Declanarea crizei economice la nivel mondial, care a nceput mai nti cu o criz financiar cauzat de creteri fr precedent a creditelor, stimulate de o lung perioad caracterizat prin condiii financiare i economice moderate, deschide n prezent drumul spre schimbri la nivelul ntreprinderilor, stakeholderilor i a relaiilor dintre acetia, i la schimbri la nivelul ntregii societi. Schimbrile sunt de fapt rspunsuri, reacii, efecte ale adaptrii la noile condiii economice nefavorabile. De multe ori, schimbarea a nglobat procese multiple, ample,
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ndelungate, dar necesare pentru a supravieui noilor coordonate economice i care au utilizat instrumente specifice, printre cele mai importante fiind comunicarea. Lucrarea noastr prezint stadiul actual i cauzele crizei economice, aspecte privind guvernana corporativ i rolul stakeholderi-lor n viaa ntreprinderii i n mediul economic, precum i reacia stakeholderilor la schimbrile economice actuale. Nu n ultimul rnd, am prezentat rolul i importana comunicrii n plin criz economic, ca principal factor de supravieuire i chiar de ieire din criz. 1. Stadiul actual i cauzele crizei economice Criza financiar care a izbucnit n vara lui 2007 uimete prin magnitudine, prin rapiditatea cu care se rspndete la nivel internaional i prin persistena sa, deoarece este nc departe de a se fi rezolvat. n prezent, lumea financiar se caracterizeaz prin aversiune la risc, lichiditate redus, volatilitate a preurilor, incertitudine privind viitorul instituiilor financiare, semne de ntrebare privind calitatea produselor de credit structurate i incertitudine asupra perspectivelor macroeconomice, n general. Numeroi factori au contribuit la declanarea prezentei crize economice, printre care politicile macroeconomice expansioniste din Statele Unite ale Americii avnd scopul de a reinstaura creterea economic afectat n timpul precendentei crize din prima jumtate a secolului; acordarea excesiv de credite; folosirea de instrumente financiare complexe fr a avea o imagine realist a riscurilor asociate cu acestea etc. Unii autori menioneaz chiar i lipsa unei comunicri i cooperri economice eficiente la nivel global ntre marile ri (Report on the Financial Crisis, 2008, p. 3). Aceste turbulene de pe majoritatea pieelor financiare avansate au fost o urmare a unei creteri fr precedent a creditelor, stimulate de o lung perioad caracterizat prin condiii financiare i economice moderate. n acea perioad s-au nregistrat niveluri extrem de sczute ale ratelor reale ale dobnzii i nu au existat probleme de lichiditate, ceea ce a crescut nivelul de risc pe care creditorii, investitorii i intermediarii au fost dispui s i-l asume. La aceasta s-au adugat inovaiile financiare, care au extins capacitatea sistemului de a genera instrumente de creditare, dar au depit capacitatea acestuia de a administra riscurile asociate (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 5). S-a creat un sistem sofisticat i aparent stabil, care consta n crearea de instrumente financiare extrem de complexe (n special n Statele Unite ale Amercii) i care permitea bncilor s-i transfere riscurile. Aceste instrumente financiare erau apoi distribuite i cumprate cu precdere n Europa, fr a se mai acorda atenia cuvenit activelor de la baza lor i fundamentului economic real al acestor instrumente (Report on the Financial Crisis, 2008, p. 3). Expansiunea instrumentelor financiare complexe a fost ncurajat i de rating-urile de credit favorabile, care sugerau c activele erau de calitate nalt i cu risc sczut. Garanii financiari au contribuit i ei la percepia c oportunitile de investiie sunt nelimitate i de calitate ridicat. Ca urmare, lichiditatea perceput a instrumentelor de credit a crescut. n plus, mai muli factori au condus la scderea standardelor
folosite n analiza eligibilitii clienilor care au dorit s beneficieze de produsele instituiilor financiare. Printre aceti factori se numr: condiiile macroeconomice relativ stabile, creterea competitivitii ntre instituiile financiare, ratele sczute ale dobnzii, preurile din ce n ce mai mari ale locuinelor, slaba supraveghere din partea guvernelor. Astfel, produsele instituiilor financiare i n particular creditele se acordau cu mult mai mult uurin, ajungndu-se uneori chiar la practici frauduloase (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 7). Cu toate acestea, nici investitorii, nici bncile i nici chiar ageniile de rating nu au apreciat corect riscurile pe care astfel de instrumente financiare le-ar pune n eventualitatea unei deteriorri generale a condiiilor economice (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 5). Instrumentele standard de management al riscului folosite de instituiile financiare nu s-au dovedit adecvate pentru a estima impactul pierderilor poteniale pentru produsele de credit structurate. Absena unei istorii a veniturilor, complexitatea multora dintre aceste produse au creat incertitudine privind riscurile estimate (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 7). Actorii de pe pia au subestimat riscurile de nerambursare, riscurile de pia i riscurile de lichiditate. n unele bnci, controlul asupra riscurilor extrabilaniere era deficient, ca i comunicarea ntre diversele linii i funcii de afaceri. n consecin, atunci cnd au nceput turbulenele, majoritatea companiilor, investitorilor, ali participani la viaa unei ntreprinderi i chiar societatea n ansamblul su nu au fost capabili s estimeze corect i rapid expunerea la riscuri. Rolul stakeholderilor este foarte important atunci cnd vorbim de riscuri, deoarece acetia dispun de suficiente instrumente pentru salvarea companiilor i a mediului economic de la dezastrele iminente ce ar putea fi consecinele crizei economice mondiale. 2. Guvernana corporativ i rolul stakeholderilor n viaa ntreprinderii i n mediul economic n teorie se consider c noiunea de ntreprindere este asociat unui tot unitar ce prezint o funcionare armonias, al crui principal scop este maximizarea valorii i a averii acionarilor. Datorit apariiei unor elemente noi i a unor necesiti complexe, s-au dezvoltat alte viziuni asupra ntreprinderii. Astfel, definiia ntreprinderii se poate baza pe noiunea de interes social, scopul su fiind acela al crerii de bogie, ca urmare a colaborrii participanilor la viaa ntreprinderii (acionari, manageri, creditori, salariai, clieni, furnizori, putere public). Astfel, obiectivele unei companii sunt de natur social, dar i de maximizare a profitului. (Feleag N., 2006, p. 69). Definiia conform primei teorii conduce spre o informare financiar preponderent ndreptat spre investitori, n timp ce definiia a doua este orientat spre satisfacerea necesitilor de informare financiar a tuturor utilizatorilor (Feleag N., 2006, p. 69).
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Unul dintre factorii-cheie care influeneaz utilizarea eficient a resurselor, creterea ncrederii acionarilor n managerii ntreprinderii, succesul n atingerea obiectivelor ntreprinderii i eficiena economic este sistemul de guvernan corporativ prin care o companie este controlat. Acest sistem promoveaz corectitudinea, dar i transparena la nivelul companiei, fiind un set de reguli de conduit prin care se urmrete bunstarea societii n ansamblul su, dar mai cu seam cea a acionarilor i a altor pri interesate: manageri, creditori, salariai, clieni, furnizori, putere public etc. (World Bank, 1998, 7). Acionarii, unul dintre elementele cheie ale ntreprinderii, sunt aportorii de fonduri necesare desfurrii activitii i la rndul lor sunt interesai ca aceste fonduri s fie utilizate i administrate ct mai bine i ct mai corect de ctre managerii desemnai n acest sens. Relaia dintre proprietari i manageri este controversat, ntruct cele dou categorii de participani pot avea interese diferite, adesea contradictorii. Spre exemplu, acionarii au, n general, o nclinaie mai mare spre risc, deoarece portofoliul acestora de titluri este diversificat, n timp ce managerii au o mai mare aversiune la risc, deoarece toate interesele financiare dar i de alt natur se concentreaz ntr-o singur ntreprindere (Feleag N., 2005, p. 171). Teoria ageniei, prin care ntreprinderea este vzut ca un nod de contracte (Feleag N., 2005, p. 51), este cea cu ajutorul creia este permis rezolvarea conflictelor de interese ntre acionarii i managerii unei ntreprinderi (Feleag N., 2005, p. 170). Aceast teorie stabilete un ansamblu de relaii, reciproc avantajoase, pe de o parte, ntre acionari i manageri, dar i ntre celelalte pri interesate de bunul mers al ntreprinderii (salariai, creditori etc). Cu toate acestea, relaia acionari-manageri este cea care genereaz cele mai complexe conflicte de interes, iar rezolvarea acestora este n strns legatur cu organizarea unui sistem eficient de guvernan care s favorizeze alinierea intereselor managerilor la cele ale acionarilor (Feleag N., 2005, p. 170). Stimularea managerilor pentru ca acetia s i ndeplineasc cu corectitudine responsabilitile se refer n principiu la avantajele financiare (salariu, aplicarea tehnicii opiunilor pe aciuni care creeaz avantaje de natura dividendelor i a plusurilor de valoare generate de vnzarea prilor sale), dar i la cele n natur (autoturism de serviciu, locuin de serviciu etc.). Un rol important n conflictele de interese existente ntre acionari i manageri l au auditorii. Acetia realizeaz o evaluare corect, imparial, independent asupra situaiilor financiare ale ntreprinderii, avnd rolul de a prezenta acionarilor situaia real. Prin intermediul auditului extern, acionarii beneficiaz de un instrument important pentru a evalua eforturile depuse de ctre manageri n vederea realizrii obiectivelor ntreprinderii, i respectiv a maximizrii averii proprietarilor. Creditorii reprezint teri care acord mprumuturi companiilor, i au interese legate de dobnd i principal. Astfel, creditorii sunt direct interesai ca ntreprinderea s obin profit, aceasta fiind sursa de acoperire a dobnzilor
aferente mprumuturilor. n timp ce, pentru acionari, mprumuturile pot reprezenta o soluie viabil de obinere de noi fonduri, riscul asociat poate fi ridicat, deoarece administrarea eficient a capitaului astfel obinut depinde de atitudinea, priceperea, dar mai ales de interesul managerului. Salariaii prezint multiple interese n cadrul unei ntreprinderi. Acetia reprezint una dintre cele mai importante resurse de care dispune o companie. Principalele interese ale salariaiilor vizeaz nivelul de remunerare, avantajele n natur (tichete de mas i cadou, telefon, asigurri de via, excursii, autoturism de serviciu etc.), securitatea i condiiile de desfurare a muncii etc. n acest sens, salariaii urmresc evoluia profitabilitii, precum i continuitatea activitii companiei. Clienii i furnizorii reprezint partenerii comerciali ai ntreprinderii. Clienii sunt interesai de capacitatea companiei de a-i continua activitatea i de preurile practicate, deoarece acetia sunt direct interesai dac furnizorul lor poate s le asigure bunurile/serviciile de care au nevoie pentru o bun desfurare a activitii. Furnizorii urmresc dac ntreprinderea-client are suficiente resurse pentru a-i putea plti obligaiile financiare (Feleag N., 2005, p. 57). Sistemul de guvernan corporativ poate s difere n funcie de importana acordat categoriilor de participani, ns relaia dintre acionari i manageri ocup poziia central, ntruct relaia acestora prezint cele mai multe divergene. 3. Impactul crizei financiare actuale asupra stakeholderilor i profesionitilor contabili 3.1 Managerii, investitorii i auditorii Managerii sunt cei care, folosindu-se de o serie de legi, principii, metode etc., precum i de competenele i abilitile personale, conduc compania ctre atingerea scopurilor stabilite. Ei sunt mandatai de investitori s foloseasc resursele companiei (de la echipamente pn la cunotinele i competenele salariailor) pentru a obine succes n afaceri. Pentru investitori, care i-au asumat riscuri financiare, succesul se rezum de cele mai multe ori la performane financiare, respectiv la profit. Cu toate acestea, obiectivul maximizrii profitului pe care l au n vedere investitorii nu este ntotdeauna i obiectivul managerilor, care sunt deseori tentai s-i urmreasc propriile interese, n detrimentul investitorilor. n condiii de criz economic, managerii i investitorii se concentreaz i mai mult pe propriile interesele, de multe ori opuse. Totui se poate ntmpla i ca obiectivele managerilor i ale investitorilor s coincid, deoarece ambii urmresc supravieuirea i ieirea din criz. Pentru c investitorii nu au ntotdeauna contact direct cu managerii responsabili, cei care acioneaz n numele lor i pentru protejarea intereselor lor sunt auditorii financiari. Auditorii financiari sunt experi independeni care i exprim opinia asupra situaiilor financiare ale companiilor, fiind interesai dac acestea ofer o imagine fidel. n condiiile crizei financiare, rolul auditorilor externi a crescut n importan, iar bncile i organismele de supraveghere se bazeaz din ce n ce mai mult pe expertiza i judecile auditorilor externi. Un audit condus n conformitate cu standardele internaionale de audit de etic, n condii de independen,
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integritate i competen profesional, poate aduce numeroase beneficii instituiilor, companiilor, sistemelor financiare i organismelor de supraveghere (External audit quality and banking supervision, 2008, p. 2). Auditurile cresc ncrederea actorilor de pe pia prin creterea credibilitii situaiilor financiare, n special n condiii de turbulene economice. Dei nu se numr printre principalele lor obiective, auditorii pot ajuta n identificarea punctelor slabe ale controlului intern aferent raportrii financiare i astfel contribuie la existena unor sisteme bancare sigure i solide. Majoritatea instituiilor de credit ale lumii sunt auditate, iar organismele de supraveghere se bazeaz din ce n ce mai mult pe auditurile bancare de nalt calitate, care vin n completarea proceselor de supraveghere. n contextul globalizrii, majoritatea firmelor de audit s-au extins la nivel internaional i, n consecin, structurile lor sunt complexe, iar guvernana corporativ n cadrul companiilor de audit se caracterizeaz prin dificulti n asigurarea transparenei (External audit quality and banking supervision, 2008, p. 8). n consecin, profesia de auditor se confrunt cu noi provocri n contextul actual al crizei financiare. Una dintre aceste provocri se refer la verificarea de ctre auditor a principiului continuitii activitii, care st la baza ntocmirii situaiilor financiare. Majoritatea situaiilor financiare sunt ntocmite pe baza presupunerii c, ntr-un viitor previzibil, unitatea i continu n mod normal activitatea, fr s intre n starea de faliment, de lichidare sau de reducere sensibil a activitii (ISA 570). Auditorul este chemat s verifice corectitudinea acestei afirmaii pe care managementul o face, n cadrul responsabilitii sale de a ntocmi situaiile financiare ale companiei. n contextul crizei economice, se ateapt ca tot mai multe companii s-i pun problema dac ntr-adevr i vor continua activitatea n viitorul previzibil (aceasta nsemnnd, de regul, pe o perioad de mai mult de 12 luni) (Audit Considerations in Respect of Going Concern in the Current Economic Environment, 2009, p. 5). Prin urmare, auditorul va trebui s acorde o atenie sporit n efectuarea testelor specifice acestui aspect. nainte de criza financiar, auditorii aveau un rol relativ pasiv, deoarece analizau probele pe care s-a bazat managementul n concluzia asupra continuitii activitii i investigau viabilitatea lor. n prezent, auditorii sunt provocai la un rol mai activ, de a cuta n mod contient i independent factorii care ar putea infirma presupunerea managementului i ar putea duce la redactarea unei opinii adverse. O alt provocare pentru aceti profesioniti contabili o constituie auditul situaiilor financiare bazate pe evaluarea la valoarea just. Att evaluarea la valoarea just, ct i verificarea acestei evaluri este dificil prin complexitate i implic subiectivism i incertitudine, n special n condiii de criz. Prin urmare, auditorul va trebui s-i dezvolte competenele pentru a se adapta noii situaii.
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3.2 Creditorii Nevoia de finanare a unei companii poate fi satisfacut prin intermediul mprumuturilor de la creditorii bancari, societi din cadrul grupului etc. Pentru a determina capacitatea de rambursare a mprumuturilor, creditorii bancari iau n calcul valoarea just a elementelor, i nu valoarea lor istoric. Prudena pe care o manifest acetia poate conduce chiar la o subevaluare a activelor i o supraevaluare a datoriilor, n scopul asigurrii unei marje de securitate (Feleag N., 2005, p. 56). Creditorii bancari evalueaz gradul de lichiditate al companiilor finanate, dar i valoarea personal, tehnic, moral a managerilor, situaia general a ramurii de activitate din care face ntreprinderea, situaia general a companiei (natura produselor, calitatea, preul, clienii, furnizorii), i situaia financiar a ntreprinderii (Feleag N., 2005, p. 56). Creditorii bancari i fundamenteaz decizia de creditare n funcie de mrimea companiei i urmresc ndeaproape evoluia rambursrii mprumuturilor. ns, datorit nerespectrii cu strictee a principiilor generale legate de mprumutare, imprudena creditorilor bancari a condus spre declanarea crizei financiare mondiale din anul 2007. Ca o reacie normal, n plin criz financiar, atenia creditorilor bancari crete semnificativ. Dac n condiii normale, prudena reprezint principiul de baz, n situaia de criz financiar, creditorii i ndreapt atenia asupra unei prudene exagerate, asupra continuitii activitii ntreprinderilor, capacitatea acestora de meninere a profiturilor, gradul de lichiditate, dar i asupra factorului uman, n special a managerilor, a comportamentului lor i a msurilor luate pentru a supravieui, dar i pentru a iei din criz. Refuzul din partea creditorilor bancari de a finana o companie poate conduce spre o criz de lichiditi. Comunicarea permanent dintre creditori i manageri, prezentarea situaiei reale a companiei, flexibilitatea, transparena i corectitudinea reprezint factori cheie pentru stabilirea unei relaii viabile ntre creditori i companii. n condiii de criz, supravieuirea reprezint principalul obiectiv al companiilor, iar finanrile sunt primordiale. ns, dac mprumuturile nu sunt utilizate eficient, acestea pot conduce spre faliment. n condiii economice dificile, mprumuturile de la companiile din cadrul grupului reprezint o alternativ fiabil. Condiiile de obinere a unor astfel de mprumuturi pot fi mai permisive, dobnzile mai mici, sau timp de rambursare mai ndelungat. Cu toate acestea, alternativa de finanare nu este accesibil dect companiilor mari, care fac parte dintr-un grup de ntreprinderi. 3.3 Ali stakeholderi angajaii, clienii i furnizorii 3.3.1 Angajaii Supravieuirea rmne provocarea cea mai mare n condiii de criz financiar. ns ea este neleas n mod diferit de ctre managerii i angajaii unei companii. Atunci cnd managerii consider c supravieuirea nseamn reducerea numrului
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de personal, cu siguran c salariaii vor considera exact contrariul, deoarece disponibilizarea le-ar afecta bunstarea, ntruct omajul poate fi mai ndelungat dect n mod normal. Pe de alt parte, acceptarea unui numr de angajai prea mare n comparaie cu necesitile de supravieuire sau continuare a activitii companiei poate conduce la ineficien i chiar la faliment. n condiii de criz, salariaii sunt interesai sa nu i piard locul de munc, sa i menin aceleai avantaje financiare i de alt natur. De aceea, permanenta comunicare cu managerii lor, participarea activ la activitatea ntreprinderii, ori dimpotriv, confruntri mai mult sau mai puin violente ntre manageri i salariai reprezint cteva dintre efectele posibile ale reaciei salariailor n aceste condiii dificile. 3.3.2. Clienii i furnizorii Partenerii comerciali dau dovad de mai mult pruden atunci cnd continuitatea activitii lor este pus n pericol. Clienii urmresc n principal continuitatea activitii ntreprinderilor, dar au n vedere i posibilitatea de negociere mai uoar a preurilor. Pe de alt parte, furnizorii sunt interesai i urmresc cu mai mult strictee profitabilitatea companiilor i capacitatea acestora de a achita obligaiile financiare. Cu toate acestea, urmrirea debitelor i a termenelor constituie principalele obiective ale furnizorilor n condiii de criz financiar. mbuntirea relaiilor dintre partenerii comerciali i companii poate fi realizat prin comunicare i transparen a informaiilor. Criza financiar conduce la schimbri importante n comportamentul prilor direct interesate de activitatea unei companii. Reaciile difer n funcie de rolul paricipanilor la viaa ntreprinderii. Pentru a se evita falimentul i conflictele de interese, managerii trebuie s adopte o atitudine flexibil, s se adapteze la cerinele stakeholderi-lor implicai i nu n ultimul rnd, trebuie s asigure o comunicare permanent ntre companie i prile interesate. 4. Importana comunicrii n plin criz economic Majoritatea crizelor economice conduce la apariia zvonurilor, distorsionarea percepiilor asupra mediului economic, stres, lips de control, panic, dezorientare, incertitudini, lips de siguran i chiar la dezechilibre majore la nivelul ntregii societi. Primii afectai de efectele menionate anterior sunt ntreprinderile, proprietarii i conductorii acestora, precum i alte pri interesate i direct implicate n viaa unei companii. Acetia pot avea reacii de negare, de evitare a responsabilitii, de neasumare a vinoviei, de justificare. n cele din urm, reaciile se transform n reacii pozitive, de acceptare, remediere, ntreprinderea de aciuni corective, optimism i ncredere (fig. 1).
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Manageri Urmrirea obiectivelor pe termen scurt i a intereselor personale
Investitori Subestimarea riscurilor de investiii
Instituii financiare Expansiunea creditelor, instrumente financiare complexe Auditori Asumarea unui rol pasiv n testarea principiului continuitii activitii
Maximizarea averii
Angajai Rapacitate de a cumpra locuine i alte bunuri fr venituri pe msur
CRIZA FINANCIAR
Zvonuri, distorsionarea percepiilor asupra mediului economic
Stres, lips de control, panic, dezorientare
Incertitudini, lips de siguran,dezechilibre majore la nivelul ntregii societi
Efectele crizei
COMUNICARE
Supravieuirea i ieirea din criz
Figura 1 Fenomenul de criz financiar
Unul dintre factorii care fac trecerea de la o atitudine negativist asupra situaiei de criz la un comportament cel puin orientat spre supravieuire, sau chiar optimist este comunicarea dintre companie i stakeholderi i dintre companie i mediul economic n ansamblul su. Indivizii reacioneaz diferit la o anumit situaie dat. Personalitatea acestora, temperamentul, mediul n care si-au dezvoltat i i desfoar activitatea, factorii psihologici, sociali, economici, politici i de alt natur au condus ctre reacii diferite, complexe, uneori chiar opuse. Mediul social implic interaciunea dintre indivizi, care se poate realiza n principal prin comunicare. Rolul comunicrii este important, deoarece poate crea relaii durabile, productive ntre indivizi sau din contr reacii de respingere, de conflict, dar i de indiferen. Relaiile umane influeneaz apariia, existena i dezvoltarea ntreprinderilor, dar i mediul economic. Companiile nu pot exista fr indivizi, crendu-se o legtur puternic: indivizii sunt dependeni de existena i buna
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funcionare a companiilor, n timp ce ntreprinderile nu pot exista n lipsa indivizilor. Legtura puternic ce s-a creat ntre diferitele categorii de indivizi, datorit interaciunilor dintre acetia, a avut la baz comunicarea. n condiii de criz financiar, comunicarea ia amploare, deoarece indivizii au nevoie de o informare corect asupra faptelor (eliminarea zvonurilor i a distorsionrii percepiilor asupra mediului economic). Pe de alt parte, prin comunicare i cu ajutorul instrumentelor oferite de psihologie, indivizii i pot relua echilibrul (eliminarea stresului, lipsei de control, panicii, dezorientrii). Nu n ultimul rnd, incertitudinea, lipsa de siguran i dezechilibrele majore pot fi controlate i ndeprtate doar atunci cnd la nivelul societii, panica i dezorientarea sunt diminuate. Astfel, indivizii pot s ia decizii corecte, raionale asupra situaiei de criz, s identifice cauzele, sa le ndeprteze, s restabileasc echilibrul mediului economic i social. Din aceste motive, corectarea efectelor negative declanate de criza economic reprezint primul pas pentru ieirea din criz. ns responsabili pentru aceste aciuni sunt indivizii (stakeholderii) care au ca instrument principal comunicarea. Concluzii Efectele crizei financiare care s-a declanat n vara anului 2007 la nivel internaional se resimt i n prezent. Incertitudinile, falimentele din ce n ce mai numeroase, aversiunea la risc a investitorilor, lichiditatea redus, nsprirea condiiilor de creditare, volatilitatea preurilor sunt doar cteva dintre manifestrile fenomenului de criz. Toi participanii la viaa economic sunt afectai, direct sau indirect, ntr-o msur mai mare sau mai mic, de actuala criz. n consecin, sunt necesare schimbri, att n atitudine, ct i la nivel concret, n aciunile ntreprinse, esenial fiind comunicarea ca instrument de supravieuire i chiar de ieire din criz. Managerii, ca primi responsabili de bunul mers al companiilor, vor trebui s dezvolte strategii de supravieuire i instrumente puternice de management al riscului. n plus, prudena i conservatorismul vor fi atitudinile principale ale investitorilor, care pn la izbucnirea crizei s-au artat dornici s-i asume riscuri. Creditorii care s-au dovedit relativ tolerani n perioada de expansiune a creditelor, vor deveni mai strici n analiza eligibilitii potenialilor lor clieni. Importana auditorilor va crete, deoarece att creditorii, ct i investitorii, dar i publicul larg, n general, se bazeaz pe opinia lor de expert independent. Salariaii vor deveni direct interesai de succesul sau insuccesul companiei n care lucreaz, datorit relaiei de dependen pe care o presupune activitatea de angajat. Liantul tuturor acestor schimbri de atitudine va fi comunicarea. Acest articol a fost elaborat ca parte a proiectului Doctorat i doctoranzi n triunghiul educaie-cercetare-inovare (DOC-ECI), proiect cofinanat din Fondul Social European prin Programul Operaional Sectorial Dezvoltarea Resurselor Umane 2007-2013 i coordonat de Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti.
14 Jurnalul Cercetrii Doctorale n tiine Economice
Bibliografie Audit Considerations in Respect of Going Concern in the Current Economic Environment 2009, International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, accessed at 19.03.09, http://web.ifac.org/download/IAASB_Staff_Audit_ Practice_Alerts_2009_01.pdf External audit quality and banking supervision 2008, Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, accesat la 23.03.09, http://www.asbaweb.org/E-News/enews16/Documentos%20Finales/Supervisi%C3%B3n%20Bancaria/ SB-01EXTERNAL%20AUDIT.pdf Feleag L., Feleag N. 2005, Contabilitate financiar-o abordare european i internaional, volumul I, Editura Infomega, Bucureti Feleag N. 2006, Criza financiar la cumpna dintre secolele XX i XXI i guvernana ntreprinderii, Editura Economie teoretic i aplicat nr. 9, pp. 61-70 International Standard on Auditing 570 Going Concern, accesat la 22.03.09, www.apb.org.uk/images/uploaded/documents/ACFAB2.pdf Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience 2008, accesat la 01.04.09, http://www.fsforum.org/publications/r_0804.pdf Report on the Financial Crisis 2008, drafted by Ren Ricol, accesat la 20.03.2009, www.expertscomptables.org/csoec/content/download/139505/2840268/vers ion/1/file/FinalReport-def.pdf The Business Environment and Corporate Governance 1998, World Bank, accesat la 25.04.09, www.worldbank.org
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REMODELARE MANAGERIAL N CONTEXTUL EUROPENIZRII

Cristina Badea Bolca
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia cristina.badeabolcas@yahoo.com
Florica Badea
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia badea_florica_2005@yahoo.com
Rezumat
Integrarea Romniei n structurile europene determin modificri la nivelul organizaiei la tot pasul. Punctul de plecare n demersul remodelrii manageriale n organizaia romaneasc l constituie analiza i posibilitatea implementrii modelelor manageriale deja existente i studiate de noi: Modelul I. Ansoff, Modelul G. Hofer i D. Schendel, Modelul J.A. Pearce II i R.B. Robinson, Modelul LCAG al colii de la Harvard, Modelul K. Andrews, Modelul M.J. Stahl i D.W. Grisgby, Modelul R. Daft, Modelul B. Gluck, W. Kaufman, A. Walleck. Analiza modelelor de management strategic a constat n delimitarea caracteristicilor, avantajelor i limitelor acestora. n urma studierii particularitilor din organizaia romneasc am emis contribuii proprii privind posibilitatea implementrii modelelor mai sus menionate.Am considerat necesar propunerea i proiectarea unui model de management strategic inand cont de efectele nefavorabile ce pot apare in situaia in care resursa umana nu este obiectiv motivat.
Cuvinte-cheie: management strategic, remodelare manageriala, strategie globala,

resurse umane, cunotine
Clasificare JEL: M1, M12, M13, M16 Introducere Managementul strategic aplicabil organizaiilor din Romnia este influenat de particularitile perioadei istorice pe care o traverseaz economia, adic aceea a tranziiei treptate la sistemul global al economiilor de pia. ndeplinirea anumitor cerine este absolut necesar pentru ca efectele pozitive rezultate din utilizarea modelrii manageriale s se produc. Cele mai importante sunt urmtoarele: utilizarea frecvent n practica managerial a unor metode, sisteme, tehnici moderne de management n general i a celor specifice exercitrii funciei de previziune n special luarea n considerare n practica managerial a impactului tendinelor care se manifest pe plan mondial n acest domeniu; aceste tendine reprezint axe majore de direcionare a transferului de know-how managerial i direcii de remodelare i modernizare a conducerii firmelor din orice ar. (Hill, E.,
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OSulivan, T., 1998). Schimbrile de mediu pot afecta capacitatea firmei de a crea i menine clieni profitabili. 1. Modele de management strategic Modelul I Ansoff (1996, p.108-109) Utilitatea modelului provine din faptul c planul strategic, aa cum l numete autorul, este rezultatul cenzurrii de ctre pia (furnizori, clieni, concureni) a obiectivelor previzionate. Modelul are drept componente: strategiile de pia, strategiile financiare i strategiile administrative fiecare avnd un buget propriu dar acionnd mpreun datorit sinergiei.
Model de management strategic Modelul I. Ansoff AVANTAJE Caracteristici LIMITE - are ca finalitate conceperea unui plan strategic care conine strategia global a societaii exprimate sub forma unor obiective cu provenien multipl - planul strategic este rezultatul cenzurrii de ctre pia a obiectivelor previzionte. - ntrzierea finalizrii planului strategic (bucla nu se inchide) - aplicarea unor analize premergtoare conceperii planului strategic ce vizeaz autorii pieei (furnizori, clieni, concuren etc). - identificarea riscului de mediu - riscul cuantificrii influenei factorilor de mediu asupra strategiei de ansamblu a organizaiei Contribuie proprie
Modelul G. - este determinat de trei -luarea in considerare a etape: procesul de obiectivelor propuse si Hofer i fundamentarea lor de D. Schendel formulare a scopurilor fiecare subdiviziune organizaie, procesul organizatoric de formulare a - surprindere influenele strategiei, strategia de factorilor ce aparin ansamblu a mediului ambient organizaiei - nu surprinde influenele de ansamblu pozitive i negative ale factorilor mediului ambiant asupra etapei procesului de formulare a strategiei
G. Hofer i D. Schendel1 (in R. Draft 1990, p.193-197) au propus, un alt model, care are trei etape importante: procesul de formulare a scopurilor firmei (care este i punctul de plecare n modelul lor), procesul de formulare a strategiei (ca etap intermediar) i strategia de ansamblu a firmei (ca rezultat al acestui proces). Formularea strategiei se realizeaz la nivelul fiecrei subdiviziuni organizatorice, fie integrate n funcionarea de ansamblu a organizaiei, fie funcionnd independent. Obiectivele firmei pot fi realizate prin examinarea atent a perspectivelor de dezvoltare a subdiviziunilor organizatorice actuale.
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Un alt model este conceput de J.A. Pearce II i R.B. Robinson, (1991, p.125) i cuprinde, toate componentele procesului managementului strategic. Potrivit modelului, succesul unei echipe manageriale n materie de strategie este condiionat de modul cum se realizeaz concordana dintre dorina de a realiza anumite obiective i posibilitatea concret de a le obine, conform potenialului organizaiei i disponibilitii resurselor.
Model de management Caracteristici strategic Model J.A. - analizeaz Pearce II i impactul majorimplementarea R.B. strategiei i Robinson impactul minorimplementarea profilului organizaiei, ambele asupra mediului AVANTAJE LIMITE - analiza comparativ a celor doua impacte - corespondena dintre etapa de implementare i cea de evaluare a strategiei - posibilitatea verificrii influenelor determinate de implementarea strategiei - cuantificarea redus a influenelor atat a strategiei ct i a profilului asupra mediului i viceversa Contribuie proprie - se consider prioritar analiza impactului profilului organizaiei asupra mediului funcie de care se determin strategia
coala de la Harvard, cunoscut sub formularea LCAG, dup numele autorilor si (A. Learned, N. Christensen, J. Andrews, S. Guth (1990, p.47-48), modelul pune pe acelai plan analiza intern i extern a firmei, prin ceea ce este cunoscut sub numele de analiz SWOT. Rezultatele analizei mediului i ale diagnosticului intern determin posibilitatea enumerrii i evalurii modalitilor de aciune posibile, innd cont de avantajele i dezavantajele fiecreia. Intervin n model, n acest moment, dou tipuri de valori eseniale pentru ca modelul s dobndeasc dimensiunea cultural capabil s individualizeze firma n contextul economic n care ea se situeaz; este vorba de integrarea valorilor culturale ale managementului fimei n mediu i responsabilitatea social a acesteia, adic a elementelor care din perspectiva echipei de conducere au un rol important n formularea strategiei. Modelul LCAG al colii de la Harvard surprinde, pentru prima dat, rolul culturii n procesul de fundamentare, elaborare, implementare i evaluare a strategiei unei organizaii precum i responsabilitatea social a acesteia. Potrivit modelului K. Andrews, (in R.Daft, p.111) luarea deciziilor strategice const n formularea n prealabil a scopurilor generale, n identificarea problemelor strategice majore, n alegerea celei mai bune soluii i punerea n practic a acesteia. La baza formulrii obiectivelor strategice i a politicilor care pot servi la obinerea lor, stau analize complete ale resurselor interne disponibile i ale restriciilor mediului exogen. Modelul propune formularea mai multor strategii alternative dezirabile ceea ce poate reprezenta un avantaj n comparaie cu alte modele care nu ofer aceast posibilitate de alegere.
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Model de AVANTAJE management Caracteristici Contribuie proprie LIMITE strategic - neconcordana Modelul LCAG - folosete analiza - integrarea valorilor SWOT culturale i a organizaiei integrrii valorilor al colii de la n mediu socio-cultural culturale i a Harvard - rolul de catalizator social organizaiei n al organizaiei mediul sociocultural cu - obiectivele generale nu importana acordat sunt considerate a fi obiectivelor generale importante - formuleaz n - formuleaz mai multe - riscul cultural / Modelul prealabil strategii n alegerea management K. Andrews scopurile soluiei optime comportamental generale - conturarea dimensiunilor - identific economice, culturale, problemele sociale ale strategiei strategice propuse de organizaie majore nu are limite evidente
Aspecte particulare mult diferite de elementele cuprinse n modelele prezentate anterior, se ntlnesc n modelul strategic propus de M.J. Stahl i D.W. Grisgby (1992, p.289). Punctul de plecare n demersul strategic l reprezint existena unei situaii stimul, care poate determina schimbri profunde de management pentru perioada ulterioar. Percepia managerial a fenomenelor economice cu care se confrunt firmele i interpretarea acestora se realizeaz prin intermediul lurii n considerare a valorilor culturale ale organizaiei i a elementelor de factur cognitiv existente. Valorile culturale reprezint variabile independente, iar percepia managerial este o variabil dependent. Reprezentarea sistematic a modelului demonstreaz cum din mai multe interpretri posibile ale contextului, managementul firmei decide pentru aceea pe care o consider adecvat scopurilor firmei i conjuncturii temporale.
Model de management strategic Modelul M.J. Stahl i D.W. Grisgby
AVANTAJE Caracteristici - existena unor situaii-stimul ce permit schimbri n management - implementarea valorilor culturale i cognitive ale personalului LIMITE - particularitile resursei umane este factor de filtrare a situaiei - limitarea personalului de a percepe strategia organizaiei Contribuie proprie - managementul cunotinelor *
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Modelul, propus de R. Daft (1992, p. 103-104) respect etapele i componentele procesului managementului strategic, avand la baza analiza SWOT. Modelul are ca element central redefinirea misiunii organizaiei i a scopurilor acesteia, pe baza identificrii atuurilor, slbiciunilor, ameninrilor i oportunitilor care vin din mediul intern i extern. Analiza SWOT este o consecin a existenei i evalurii curente a firmei prin prisma misiunii, a elurilor i a strategiilor anterioare. Noua misiune i noile scopuri contribuie la formularea de ctre managementul superior a celor trei tipuri de strategii: strategia de firm, strategia pe domenii de activitate (subdiviziuni organizatorice) i strategia funcional. Modelul se ncheie cu etapa de implementare, care potrivit autorului, necesit, n ordine: leadership, structur, resurse umane, sistem de control, tehnologii, sistem informaional. B. Gluck, W. Kaufman, A. Walleck (1990, p.39-40) prezint ntr-un alt model evoluia unei organizaii spre practicarea managementului strategic. Astfel, organizaia urmeaz patru etape n evoluia sa: o etap axat pe planificarea financiar, o etap bazat pe previziune, o etap bazat pe planificare orientat spre exterior, adic spre stakeholderi i etapa ultim, a managementului strategic, ca rezultat previzibil a precedentelor. Autorii acestui model coreleaz etapele din evoluia organizaiei cu sistemele de valori specifice. Acestea evolueaz de la primordialitatea acoperirii bugetului necesar realizrii strategiei, la prefigurarea viitorului, la gndirea strategic i apoi la previziunea viitorului, pentru obinerea avantajului concurenial n condiiile actuale.
Model de management Caracteristici strategic - redefinirea misiunii i a Modelul scopurilor organizaiei R. Daft n baza analizei SWOT - elaborarea strategiei de ansamblu a organizaiei; strategia pe domenii de activitate i strategia funcional - presupune urmtoarele Modelul faze: B. Gluck, W. Kaufman, a) planificarea financiar b) previziunea A. Walleck c) planificarea orientat spre exterior (deintorii de interese) d) managementul strategic AVANTAJE LIMITE - implementarea pornete de la nivelul superior i se ncheie cu sistemul informaional - formularea n acelai timp a celor trei tipuri de strategii Contribuie proprie - consultani externi **
- avantaj concurenial obinut ca urmare a anticiprii viitorului. - red activitaile n mod detaliat pe cele patru faze - posibilitatea apariiei unor confuzii n coninutul etapelor
- considerarea mangementului strategic ca un tot unitar al etapelor anterioare
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2. Model propriu pentru societatea romneasc 2.1 Caracteristici analizarea caracteristicilor specifice Romniei din punct de vedere al mentalitii, i al neglijrii statutului social analiza factorilor de globalizare, cercetare - dezvoltare i perfecionarea cunotinelor resurselor umane integrarea valorilor individuale n valoarea global a organizaiei recunoaterea n mod obiectiv a abilitilor, competenelor fiecrui angajat i motivarea adecvat 2.2 Mod de realizare (implementare) la nivelul subsistemului organizatoric- abordarea i utilizarea cunotinelor din mai multe domenii cu accent pe cele de strategie organizaional subsistem informaional - tratarea cunotinelor i a sistemului informaional ca factor de succes al organizaiei i identificarea cauzelor ce conduc la situaii de risc prin prisma integrrii n Uniunea Europeana subsistem metodologic - aplicarea de proceduri operaionale cu efect direct asupra reducerii costurilor n general i n special, reducerea costului calitii subsistem decizional reengineria organizaional la nivelul subsistemului resurselor umane: valorificarea eficient a cunotinelor fiecrui salariat, indiferent de locul ocupat n organigrama firmei, protejarea cunotinelor organizaionale i aplicarea politicii de nvare continu selectarea unor manageri specializai n modelarea proceselor strategice omogenizarea i unificarea dimensiunilor culturale ntocmirea unui portofoliu care alturi de indicatorii tehnico-economici s conin i indicatori de natur uman referitor la: capital educaional fluctuaie profilul resursei umane capacitatea de a lucra n echip adaptabilitatea la schimbare motivare i dedicare pentru munc 2.3 Obiectivele - mbuntirea eficacitii i susinerea viabilitii organizaiei - Creterea responsabilitii sociale a organizaiei - mbuntirea relaiilor cu actorii pieei (clieni, furnizori, concureni etc.) - Practici de realizare a modelului - Crearea i implementarea la nivelul organizaiei a unui sistem expert decizional capabil s identifice problemele i s optimizeze variantele decizionale. 2.4 Etapele modelului Identificarea: domeniilor de cunotine i a capacitilor strategice Capturarea: ncercarea de a obine cunotine din surse interne i externe
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Selecia: aprecierea valorii cunotinelor i filtrarea lor, n vederea obinerii cunotinelor necesare. Stocarea: adugarea n memoria organizaional i actualizarea permanent Transfer: crearea unei baze de date a cunotinelor accesibile tuturor membrilor organizaiei Aplicarea: folosirea cunotinelor pentru luarea deciziilor optime Crearea: descoperirea de noi cunotine prin studii de cercetare fundamental i aplicativ 2.5 Principii de implementare a modelului de strategie managerial * stabilirea unui pachet de reguli pentru stimularea creativitii i inovrii; * perfecionarea continu a resurselor umane concomitent cu evoluiile tehnicii i tehnologiei * acces continuu la activitatea organizaiei fr bariere determinate de timp i spaiu * elaborarea unor rapoarte pentru evaluarea capitalului intelectual * msuri de recreare a factorilor ergonomici corespunzatori n cadrul climatului firmei 2.6 Avantaje - Permite ca modificrile strategiilor manageriale s decurga tip zal n zal, dezvoltnd aspectele pozitive i remodelarea celor negative - Monitorizarea continu a performanelor i corectarea imediat a situaiilor deficitare - Posibilitatea ca fiecare salariat s devin acionar n organizaie - Promovarea transferului de cunotine - Creterea eficacitii i transparenei - Consolidarea cooperrii orizontale 2.7 Posibile bariere de aplicare * reinerea pentru schimbare din partea resursei umane * specificul cultural, valorile, mentalitile, deprinderile i comportamentul * teama de pierdere a scaunului i a unor informaii relevante 2.8 Efecte i rezultate ateptate 1) Relaii de munc mai bune (climat corespunzator) 2) Produse i servicii mai performante 3) Reducerea costurilor 4) Creterea gradului de satisfacie a clienilor 5) O mai mare deschidere spre revoluia noului 3. Contribuii proprii pentru modelele prezentate 3.1 Contribuii proprii privind Modelul M.J. Stahl i D.W. Grisgby: De-a lungul anilor de aplicare a managementului cunotinelor s-au conturat mai multe practici de succes referitor la managementul factorului uman n scopul de a facilita convertirea cunoaterii implicite n cunoatere explicit. Acestea sunt:
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convertirea cunoaterii implicite n explicit (crearea de comuniti de cunoatere, comuniti de practici, reele de cunoatere, aliane, parteneriate, folosirea de aplicaii inteligente pentru suport); mbuntirea cunoaterii (mbuntirea mecanismelor organizaionale, facilitarea inovaiei, facilitarea dialogului mbuntirea culturii i infrastructurii (participarea, motivarea, recunoaterea) abordarea cunoaterii ca i capital (identificare, mapare, analiz, evaluare); iniierea, participarea la discursul de cunotine (knowledge discourse).
Diferena unor practici specifice are ca rezultat nsuirea de cunotine cu efect imediat, spre deosebire de comunitatea de cunoatere unde are loc discutarea unor elemente mai generale, care pot afecta modul de management al firmei pe un interval mai ndelungat. Atractivitatea acestor comuniti const n deschiderea pe care o au fa de non-membrii organizaiei, care pot aduce perspective noi i interesante. Pericolul scderii nivelului calitii cunotinelor datorit principiului liberei afilieri este redus, deoarece singura surs de recompens pentru participanii din afara organizaiei este prestigiul i ctigarea unui statut de expert local, elemente ce descurajeaz amatorismul. Comunitile de practici i de cunoatere sunt extrem de importante deoarece conin cea mai rar resurs a timpurilor noastre i anume, atenia uman sub form de dialog sau sub form de ntrebare rspuns. ntrebrile i rspunsurile au ca efect transferul de cunotine extrem de specifice, de obicei tacite, iar dialogul duce la crearea de noi cunotine i la explicitarea celor tacite. n viitor, tehnicile de IT ar putea facilita dialogul prin: (1) organizarea automat a dialogurilor i (2) realizarea de traduceri ntre diferite domenii de specializare cu ajutorul ontologiilor. Datorit costului redus i efectelor pozitive, din ce n ce mai multe companii folosesc comunitile de cunotine. Exemple notabile sunt: AMS, Shell, Daimler-Chrysler, Hewlett Packard, IBM etc. Pe lng comunitile de cunotine care grupeaz indivizi cu interese comune indiferent de apartenena lor la organizaie, schimbul de cunotine poate fi realizat i la un nivel mai formal, interorganizaie n cadrul reelelor de cunotine". Organizaiile cele mai interesate n a stabili relaii de cunoatere cu alte organizaii sunt cele orientate pe cunotine (universitile, centrele de cercetare i companiile productoare de tehnologie de vrf). 3.2 Contributii proprii privind Modelul R. Daft ** La nivelul organizaiei rezistena la schimbare este dat de urmtoarele cauze: 1. structura organizatoric 2. imobilizarea capitalului 3. resurse limitate 4. conveniile, acordurile ntre organizaii 5. ameninri asupra puterii i a influenei
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Spre deosebire de alte domenii de activitate, specialitii n management trebuie s se bazeze pe nivelul de cunotine, informaii i practica, de care dispun, precum i pe receptivitate i etic n relaiile cu membrii organizaiei. n managementul schimbrii pot fi utilizai consultani ce proven att din interiorul organizaiei ct i din exterior. Folosirea consultanilor din interiorul organizaiei ct i din exterior prezint avantaje ct i dezavantaje, dupa cum sunt prezentate in tabelul 1 i tabelul 2. (Badea, F., Bolca Badea, C., 2008)
Avantajele i dezavantajele consultanilor din interiorul organizaiei Tabelul 1
Avantaje Posed cunotine detaliate despre organizaie Economie de timp pentru nelegerea problemelor Accesibilitate mare la informaii
Dezavantaje O posibil lips de obiectivitate Compromisuri n defavoarea eficienei Lipsa de experient comparativ
Avantajele i dezavantajele consultanilor din exteriorul organizaiei Tabelul 2
Avantaje Experien n plus
Dezavantaje Timp suplimentar pentru nelegerea problemelor Obiectivitate mare n analiza procesului Sane reduse pentru mplementarea unor de dezvoltare a organizaiei msuri datorit lipsei de ncredere din partea salariailor
Sursa: autori Badea ,F. i Bolca Badea, C., The Informational System factor of success in the management of the organization, Revista Informatica economic, vol XII, no.4/2008 pp. 22-26.
Msurile de schimbare la nivelul organizaiei trebuie s ndeplineasc anumite condiii de baz, astfel nct procesul s se realizeze cu succes, i anume: - recunoaterea de ctre consultani i de ctre membrii sistemului faptul c, organizaia trebuie s aib o opinie despre cum ar putea s arate schimbarea; - capacitatea organizaiei de a genera informaii corecte; - ataamentul membrilor organizaiei la strategia schimbrii. Concluzii Strategia de conducere pentru organizaie devine o chestiune de nelegere a caracterului foarte diferit a prilor sale, n a face determinri de unde, cum, i ce s se dezvolte, pentru a produce i a vinde bunuri i servicii, chiar nelegnd faptul, c ntregul proces de analiz va fi reconsiderat de ndat ce acesta este n vigoare. Romnia a intrat deja in diviziunea european a produciei i, n acest sens, trebuie promovate msuri de politic economic care s conduc la mbuntirea competitivitii. Elaborarea, chiar i numai teoretic a unui model managerial pentru organizaiile economice romnesti, este o provocare care decurge din complexitatea i continua modificare a vieii economice, politice, sociale. Prin analiza unor modele de management strategic deja implementate la nivel european, prin analiza corecta a tuturor factorilor endogeni i exogeni, piaa romnesc poate
beneficia de implementarea radional i judicioas a unei remodelari manageriale n contextul europenizrii. Un studiu mai aprofundat a crizei economice la nivel mondial, a msurilor de reluare a creterii economice prin delimitarea caracteristicilor specifice Romniei, implic msuri ferme i obinerea unor rezultate lente pe o perioad ndelungat de timp. Gndirea creatoare este cea mai de pre i profitabil caracteristic a fiecrui individ, a fiecrei corporaii i ri. Cu toate acestea, rmn suficiente lacune n nelegerea noastr astfel nct i alii ar trebui s fie ncurajai s continue munca de cercetare n acest domeniu. Dorim s mulumim profesorilor notrii coordonatori din Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, specialiti n management, prof. univ. dr. Ion Verboncu, respectiv, prof. univ .dr. Constantin Bgu, care cu sugestii i gnduri, rbdare i pasiune, ne sprijin i ndrum. Bibliografie Ansoff, I., Stratgie et dveloppement de lentreprinse, 1996, Paris, Les Editions dOrganisation, p. 108 Badea, F., Badea Bolca, C., 2008, The Informational System factor of success in the management of the organization, Review Informatica Economic vol. XII, nr.4/2008 pp. 22-26 Burdu, E., Management comparat international, Bucureti, Editura Economic, 2004 Colesca, S., Androniceanu, A., Dobrin, C., Abalanuta, O. M., Pacesila M., Sava M., Burcea S., Managementul cunotinelor n sectorul public, Raport de cercetare ASE Tema nr.1 COD CNCSIS 1216/2006 Daft, R., Management, The Dryden Press, New York, 1990, pp. 103-104, 111 Gluck, B., Kaufman, W., Walleck, A., 1990, Strategic Management for Competitive Advantage, Harvard Business Review, nr.1, p.39 Hill, E., OSulivan, T., Marketing, 1998, Editura Antet Bucureti Hitt, M.A., Freeman, R.E, Harrison, J.S, 2006, Handbook of Strategic Management, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford Hisrich, R., Peters, M.P. 1994, Entrepreneurship-laser, laborer et grer une entreprise, Economica, Paris Hofer, G., Schendel, D., 1990, n Daft, R., Management, The Dryden Press, New York, pp. 193-197 Hofstede, G., 1995, Managementul structurilor multiculturale, Editura Economic, Bucureti Learned, A., Christensen, N., Andrews, J., Guth, S., 1990, Strategic Management n Harward Business Review, no.24, p. 47 Istocescu, A., 2005, Strategia i managementul strategic al organizaiei, Concepte fundamentale/Aplicaii Manageriale, Editura ASE, Bucureti Nicolescu, O., Verboncu I., 2008, Managemenul Organizatiei, Editura Economic, Bucureti PearceII, J.A, Robinson Jr,. R .B., 1991, Strategic Management, Illinois, Irwin, Homewood, p. 125 Stahl, M.J, Grisgby, D.W., 1992, Strategic Management for Decisions Making, Boston, Massachusetts, p. 289
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FACTORI MAJORI DE INFLUEN AI COMPETITIVITII IMM-URILOR ROMNETI N CONTEXTUL ECONOMIEI ACTUALE

Mihaela-Georgia Sima
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia georgiasima@yahoo.com; georgia.sima@ccib.ro
Rezumat
Economia romneasc este dominat de ntreprinderi mici i mijlocii( IMM-uri). Evoluia lor este condiionat de contextul economic, politic i social n care acestea i desfoar activitatea. Dac pn de curnd, printr-un management adecvat, evoluia i performana unui IMM erau previzibile, iar estimrile, dac erau facute n mod corect i realist duceau n final la rezultatele scontate, n prezent, configuraia factorilor de influen s-a schimbat, dat fiind situaia economic mondial, cu impact direct asupra economiei romneti. Astfel se impun schimbri att de ordin intern, care in de regndirea sistemului de management al firmei, ct i msuri de susinere din partea administraiei locale i centrale, a guvernului i mai ales, susinerea IMM-urilor prin programe de finanare. Fr aceast susinere, eforturile nregistrate de firme vor avea un efect temporar. Lucrarea cuprinde elemente teoretice, referitoare la tematica abordat competitivitate, factori de influen interni i externi firmei, contextul economic i social prezent, rezultate ale unor studii de caz efectuate, att la nivel naional, ct i regional, prin care s-a urmrit obinerea de date privind situaia general a firmei, determinarea principalilor factori cu impact negativ- cadrul legislativ, climatul i tensiunile sociale, schimbarile i luptele politice i a modalitilor lor de aciune asupra activitii IMM-urilor, precum i propuneri de diminuare a impactului i susinere a existenei i competitivitii firmelor romneti, cu propagare la nivel naional.
Cuvinte-cheie: IMM, factori, fonduri, management, inovare Clasificare JEL: A, A1, A10
Micile afaceri reprezint catalizatorul principal al cresterii economice. Peter Drucker
Introducere Multe din IMM-uri traverseaz o perioad foarte grea. Aceast perioad survine dup doi ani de impact cu noile realiti de dup aderarea la Uniunea European (UE), ale mediului concurenial acerb de pe pia. O comprimare semnificativ a numrului de firme mici i mijlocii, n primii doi ani de dup aderare, din cauza faptului c acestea nu au avut resursele i fora necesar de a se moderniza i a se alinia la cerinele i standardele europene, a avut loc deja. Falimentele nregistrate
din aceast cauz sunt o realitate statistic. Dar, pe fondul economiei cu cel mai bun ritm de cretere din UE, n 2008, alte noi firme de acest gen au fost nfiinate, investitorii mici din ele provenind mai ales din rile membre ale Uniunii Europene. Piaa IMM-urilor a cunoscut, aadar, rigorile unei prime site de cernere. Criza global le va trece printr-un alt proces de ncercare i de selecie natural. Supravieuirea acestui sector const att n rezolvarea problemelor de finanare, ct i n evoluia pieii, tot mai comprimat pentru ele. Potrivit dlui Ovidiu Nicolescu, preedintele Consiliului Naional al IMM-uri private din Romania, peste 90% dintre IMM-uri au probleme mai mari sau mai mici legate de criza economic. Primul motiv de ngrijorare este restrngerea activitii i diminuarea produciei marilor ntreprinderi, IMM-urile fiind, cel mai adesea, subcontractori ale acestora. Marian Milu, preedintele Uniunii Naionale a Patronatului Romn, susinea c 30% dintre ele vor da faliment n acest an, fenomenul fiind doar nceputul. Pe lng restructurrile de personal din marile companii, va trebui s ne confruntm i cu pierderea unui numr foarte important de locuri de munc n sectorul mic i mijlociu. Urmtoarele temeri sunt legate de dificulti n plata furnizorilor, greuti n contractarea creditelor, de incheierea anului financiar cu pierderi. In acelasi timp, una din trei firme se teme de faliment.Scderea comenzilor primite ar putea antrena "un efect de domino" asupra lichiditilor, profitabilitii i angajatilor. Cum i construcia bugetului din acest an se face pe criterii de austeritate, filozofia acestuia constnd n reduceri drastice a cheltuielilor publice, nici comenzile care reveneau din acest sector IMM-urilor nu vor mai fi la nivelul anului abia ncheiat. La aceasta se adaug i mult discutata problema a impozitului forfetar. n Romnia se caut soluii pentru susinerea IMM-urilor, care asigur mai mult de dou treimi din locurile de munc existente, intensificndu-se contactele ntre Guvern, partenerii sociali, banca naional i ali factori care pot contribui la definirea unei politici coerente n domeniu. Se mizeaz n continuare foarte mult pe absorbia fondurilor structurale, dar se caut i alte modaliti de deblocare a creditrii pentru finanarea sectorului. Unul din acest instrumente este Facilitatea Bncii Europene de Investiii (BEI) pentru IMM-uri - mprumut global, contractat de Ministerul Finanelor Publice. Aceast facilitate este accesat frecvent de intermediarii financiari i const ntr-o linie de credit acordat ctre o instituie financiar sau o banc, i care, la rndul lor, submprumut capitalul BEI ctre IMM-uri, n vederea finanrii de proiecte aferente acestui sector. Singura problem poate fi birocraia accesrii acestor finanri, dar i accesul mult prea limitat la ele, care fac ca injecia de bani s vin, uneori mult, prea trziu. Noiuni teoretice Economia de pia este un sistem economic caracterizat prin faptul c obiectivul economic urmrit de agenii economici, majoritari la nivel naional, este maximizarea profitului, managementul i funcionarea firmelor se realizeaz
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folosind preponderant prghii economice, piaa are rolul decisiv n dirijarea i funcionarea economiei naionale, iar proprietatea privat este predominant. Competitivitatea este un concept complex care, la un nivel general, exprim capacitatea persoanelor, firmelor, economiilor, regiunilor de a se menine n competiia derulat la un nivel intern i/sau internaional i de a obine avantaje economice, n condiiile unui anumit mediu de afaceri. Din punctul de vedere al unei naiuni ns, competitivitatea exprim capacitatea i abilitatea rii respective de a utiliza n mod eficient oportunitile de pe piaa mondial. Evalualea performanei competitivitii naionale fa de economia mondial se bazeaz pe elemente: cantitative (decalajul dintre nivelul rii i nivelul global) i calitative. Nivelul de competitivitate din economia romneasc rezult din analiza datelor din bilanurile contabile i ofer posibilitatea evidenierii corelaiilor care exist ntre principalii indicatori, precum i factorii care au contribuit direct sau indirect la variaia fenomenelor economice. Analiza trebuie sa fie cat mai ampl, lund n calcul indicatori economici precum: mrimea i dinamica profitului, volumul profitului, rata de profitabilitate, gradul de indatorare. Se poate afirma c profitabilitatea reprezint o imagine a activitii economice, att la nivel micro, ct i macroeconomic i de asemenea msura n care firmele fac fa concurenei i sunt competitive att pe piaa extern, ct i pe cea intern. Participarea Romniei la piaa unic european, prin cerinele de competitivitate i calitate, a afectat performanele agenilor economici n sensul diminurii numrului de ageni economici care au nregistrat profit i majorarea corespunztoare a numrul de agenti care au nregistrat pierderi. Rolul si importana IMM-urilor IMM-urile contribuie n bun msur la realizarea unor obiective fundamentale ale oricrei economii naionale. Ele joac un rol nsemnat n economie din urmtoarele motive: Supleea structurilor care le confer o capacitate ridicat de adaptare la fluctuaiile mediului economic; Se pot integra relativ usor ntr-o reea industrial regional, ceea ce contribuie pe de o parte la dezvoltarea economic a regiunii respective, iar pe de alt parte la reducerea somajului si cresterea nivelului de trai, pentru c ofer locuri de munc; Dimensiunea lor redus contribuie la evitarea birocraiei excesive si la evitarea dezumanizrii; IMM-urile formeaz la nivelul individual un ansamblu mult mai usor de controlat/condus; Favorizeaz inovarea si flexibilitatea;
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Se constituie practic n locuri unde personalul se perfecioneaz; Stimuleaz concurena; Ajut la buna funcionare a ntreprinderilor mari pentru care presteaz diferite servicii sau produc diferite subamsamble; Fabric produse si presteaz servicii n conditii de eficien.
IMM-urile
GENERAREA DE NOI PRODUSE I TEHNOLOGII
SUSINEREA COMPETITIVITII MARILOR COMPANII
CREAREA DE LOCURI DE MUNC
Figura 1 Locul IMM-urilor in economia de piata
Factorii de influen Factorii de influen se regasesc sub diferite forme, ei fiind divizai n: Factori de mediu: 1. Interni (endogeni); Proprietarul firmei; Managementul de nivel superior; Dimensiunea organizaiei; Complexitatea organizaiei; nzestrarea tehnic i tehnologiile; Dispersia teritorial a subdiviziunilor; Potenialul uman al organizaiei; Potenialul informaional al organizaiei. n esen, acesta cuprinde ansamblul informaiilor i know-how-ului, indiferent de natura lor tehnic (brevete, mrci nregistrate, proiecte), economic (referitoare la pia, preuri, credite, impozite, taxe), juridic (legile, ordonanele, alte acte legislative care privesc firma), managerial (privind subsistemele organizaiei) pe care le posed organizaia; Starea economic a firmei; Cultura organizaional privit, n viziunea lui Kotter i Haskett, ca vizibil i invizibil. 2. Externi, n care funcioneaz organizaia. Mediul ambiant include toate elementele exogene organizaiei, de natur economic, tehnic, politic, demografic, cultural, tiinific, organizatoric,
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juridic, psiho-sociologic, educaional i ecologic ce marcheaz stabilirea obiectivelor acesteia, obinerea resurselor necesare, adoptarea i aplicarea deciziilor de realizare a lor. Factori de eficacitate se refera la influenta performantelor organizatiei asupra structurii organizatorice: Eficienta economica cuantificata prin rezultatele economice si financiare ale organizatiei Eficienta sociala parametrii sociali mai greu de cuantificat: calitatea climatului de munca, relatiile dintre conducerea organizatiei si sindicate, tipuri de motivare folosite. Eficienta orgazitionala indeplinirea sarcinilor individuale, gradul de acoperire a activitatii cu personal adecvat ca numar si structura Situatia actuala In general n activitatea IMM-urilor pot aprea probleme cum ar fi: managerii (conductorii) nu au pregtirea necesar; lipsa resurselor financiare; deficienele activitii de marketing; dificulti n recrutarea personalului; pachet salarial (nemotivant) fa de firmele mari; instabilitate (rat mare de apariie i disparie). Consecinele unui faliment sunt prezente: n plan material; n plan psihologic: de regul un patron care a dat faliment nu se apuc prea repede de o alt afacere; n plan social: reducerea locurilor de munc, dispariia anumitor produse de pe pia. n contextul situiei economice actuale, principalii factori care influeneaz negativ activitatea IMM-urilor sunt evolutia cadrului legislativ, climatul social, precum i politicile Fondului Monetar Internaional (FMI) i ale Bancii Mondiale. Datoria public extern nu implic riscul unui gol de finanare i nu pune presiune pe cursul de schimb, fiind, conform declaraiitor guvernatorului Bancii Naionale a Romniei (BNR), Mugur Isrescu de 10,7 miliarde euro la finalul anului trecut, din care scadent anul acesta este suma de 1,6 miliarde euro, iar necesitatea de finantare poate ajunge pana la 4 miliarde de euro. Acordul cu Fondul Monetar Internaional, dar i msurile de relaxare a creditrii pe care le va lua Banca Central vor permite o evoluie n V, nu una n U, inta fiind o relansare a economiei imediat dup luna aprilie. Cu toate acestea, n urma situaiei financiare aparut in ultimele luni, muli dintre romni au rmas fr slujbe, iar altora li s-au micorat veniturile. Cele care sufer n mod direct sunt micile magazine. Conform declaraiilor preedintelui Federaiei Sindicatelor din Industria Alimentar (FSIA) Drago Frumosu: n urm cu civa ani, din cauza apariiei hipermarketurilor au disprut circa 70% dintre magazinele mici. Acum, din cauza crizei care a dus la mrirea costurilor, a preurilor i a faptului c hipermarketurile practic, la unele produse, preuri foarte mici, multe dintre magazinele mici rmase
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pe pia vor disprea. Un alt aspect negativ evidentiat de Frumosu este preul chiriei, care a devenit un impediment foarte mare pentru magazine. Majoritatea iau negociat chiriile n euro. Magazinele mici se afl ntr-o criz foarte mare. Chiriile n euro i lipsa finanrii au dus la imposibilitatea de plat ctre furnizori, fapt care contribuie la blocarea activitatii comerciale. Acest fenomen nu se manifest numai la nivelul magazinelor mici, ci se extinde. Din ce n ce mai muli retaileri au anunat nchiderea mai multor uniti pentru a reduce din costuri. Potrivit unui sondaj realizat pe un esantion de peste 1.100 de IMM-uri, factorii care influeneaz puternic negativ activitatea acestora sunt: un cadru legislativ care nu stimuleaz n mod real activitatile (65%); instabilitatea i incoerena legislativ; climatul i tensiunile sociale, lipsa stabilitii sociale; schimbarile i luptele politice (19,3% dintre IMM-uri), ce nu confer o continuitate n conducerea unor instituii importante; aproximativ 15% dintre repondeni apreciaz c politicile FMI i ale Bncii Mondiale fa de ara noastr sunt de multe ori n contradicie cu unele interese economice i sociale ale Romniei; aproximativ 10% consider c integrarea n Uniunea European, desi dorit, are un impact negativ asupra activitilor desfurate de acetia, situaie ce poate fi explicat prin adaptarea legislaiei romneti la cea european. Printre factorii negativi considerai cu impact minim asupra activitii IMM-urilor, au fost nominalizai privatizarea (2.13%) i tensiunile interetnice (1.19%). n privina surselor de finanare a activitii IMM-urilor, se arat c peste jumatate (aproximativ 60%) isi deruleaza activitatea numai din resurse proprii, 17% apeleaz la bnci pentru finantare, iar 8% au raspuns c acceseaz alte surse de finanare pe lang cele proprii. Cele mai multe IMM-uri care apeleaz la credite pentru a-i finana activitatea sunt din sectorul industrial. Cele care nu apeleaz la credite bancare i i reinvestesc profitul, sunt n majoritate din domeniul serviciilor. Cea mai recent problem aparuta i cu efecte negative majore asupra evoluiei IMM-urilor este cea a impozitului forfetar care, conform opiniei preedintelui Consiliului Naional al IMM-urilor din Romnia, Ovidiu Nicolescu, ar falimenta cteva zeci de microntreprinderi, dac se va aplica n cuantumul i forma propuse de Ministerul de Finane. Factorul inovare Pentru IMM-uri, inovarea reprezint principalul motor de crestere. Fie c este vorba de dezvoltarea unor produse sau servicii noi sau de identificarea celor mai eficiente metode de realizare a celor existente, inovaia aduce valoare unei ntreprinderi. In acelai timp, ii permite s-i menin sau s-i mbunteasc cota de pia.
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Inovarea este o activitate din care rezult un produs (bun sau serviciu) nou sau semnificativ mbuntit lansat pe pia, sau reprezint introducerea n propria organizaie a unui proces nou sau semnificativ mbuntit. Inovarea este bazat pe rezultatele unor tehnologii noi, a dezvoltrii tehnologice, a noi combinaii ale tehnologiei existente sau utilizarea altor cunotine obinute de organizaie. Din complexitatea evident a procesului de inovare, care poate fi privit ca o investiie de risc a firmei pe termen lung, rezult necesitatea unui efort susinut de management, destinat special inovrii. Pentru a determina specificul regiunii Bucureti-Ilfov, din punct de vedere al inovrii, n perioada decembrie 2008-februarie 2009 s-a efectuat o cercetare n cadrul unui eantion reprezentativ de 168 de firme. Rezultatele obinute arat c 73.96% dintre firme consider c inovarea este o condiie necesar pentru competitivitate. Analiznd organizaiile inovative, 62% nregistreaz inovare de produse-servicii, 32% au inovare de proces-tehnologie, 17% au inovare organizaional i 17% inovare de marketing.
70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 inovare de marketing inovare de produseservicii inovare de procestehnologie inovare organizationala
Figura 2 Distribuia tipurilor de inovare n cadrul firmelor
Dintr-un total de 3983 ntreprinderi inovative active n Romnia, 848 (21%) se afl n regiunea Bucureti-Ilfov, unde se nregistreaz 41,7% din cheltuielile naionale de inovare i 72,57% din cheltuielile pentru licene i brevete. Terminologia de ntreprinderi inovative include toate ntreprinderile cu inovare de produs sau proces finalizate, precum i nefinalizate sau abandonate i se refer la ntreprinderile active. Cheltuielile cu inovarea includ cheltuielile pentru inovarea finalizat precum i pe cele pentru inovarea nefinalizat sau abandonat. Principalele componente sunt: - cercetarea-dezvoltarea interna i cercetarea-dezvoltarea extern; - achiziia de maini, echipamente i software; - achiziii de alte cunotine externe (licene, brevete, know-how).
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Activitatea documentar a demonstrat faptul ca Regiunea Bucureti-Ilfov este regiunea cu cel mai ridicat grad de dezvoltare comparativ cu media naional pe toate palierele, oferind cele mai multe oportuniti de atragere de investiii i de dezvoltare. Este, simultan, centrul activitilor de inovare i cercetare din Romania. Au fost identificate cinci sectoare avnd inalt potenial de inovare, incluznd domeniile: mecanic fin, Tehnologia Iinformaiei i electronic, mase plastice i construcii. La aceste domenii se adaug sectorul serviciilor bazate pe cunoatere intensiv. Factorii de inovare luai n calcul n desfurarea analizei au fost: 1. potenialul de conducere al inovrii; 2. potenialul de creare a cunotinelor; 3. capacitatea de inovare; 4. performana activitilor de inovare; 5. proprietatea intelectual.
100 80 60 40 20 0
potentialul de conducere al inovarii potentialul de creare a cunostintelor capacitatea de inovare performanta activitatilor de inovare proprietate intelectuala
Figura 3 Distribuia factorilor de inovare
Punctele forte ale afacerilor se refer la orientarea spre inovare i servicii de calitate (49% din respondeni). Piaa de munc din Bucuresti este format din for de munc calificat. Efectul utilizrii acestei fore de munc poate fi potenat printr-un sistem profesional de instruire permanent, intermediat de parteneriatul dintre universiti, cercetare i obligatoriu firme, astfel nct formarea s corespund cu nevoile, n continu schimbare, ale firmelor, precum i cu cerinele pieei. Fiind un factor important de influen a competitivitii firmelor, el trebuie potenat la maximum astfel nct s se obin cele mai bune rezultate posibile, manifeste n pstrarea avantajului competitiv al firmei respective i materializate n profitul nregistrat. Punctele slabe sau principalele obstacole n calea desfurrii de activiti inovatoare, aa cum sunt percepute de ctre firme au fost: fluctuaia personalului i resursele financiare. Dac problema personalului, printr-un proces elaborat i
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constant de retenie, bazat pe o motivare corespunztoare, se poate rezolva, lipsa resurselor financiare (30% din firme au menionat acest factor), nu le permite firmelor s se angajeze la acele cheltuieli pe care le implic activitatea de inovare (21% din firme au menionat costurile ridicate drept un obstacol n calea inovrii). Sursa major de capital provine din venituri proprii (80%), combinat cu credite bancare (29%) sau alte surse nemenionate. Finanarea din fonduri publice (bugetare) s-a dovedit necorespunztoare i mai cu seama greu de obinut (72% din firme au declarat greoaie procedura de accesare i obinere a fondurilor). Instrumente de susinere a IMM-urilor. Soluii posibile Incubatoarele de afaceri. Sunt laboratoare economice care ofer asisten IMMurilor i care contribuie la stimularea i cultivarea talentului de ntreprinztor. Pun la dispoziie asisten i spaiu pentru schimbul de idei, cursuri de pregtire i perfecionare, programe de pregtire pentru manageri i salariai, ofer consultan gratuit i usureaz contactele cu bncile i partenerii. Ageniile de consultan care ofer sprijin IMM-urilor n: 1. testarea aptitudinilor ntreprinztorului, 2. elaborarea planului de afaceri, 3. cursuri de pregtire n domeniul afacerilor, 4. ofer informatii necesare pentru nceperea afacerilor Acesul IMM-urilor la programe de finanare prin intermediul reelei naionale de inovare i transfer tehnologic (lista centrelor poate fi regasita la adresa: www.ccib.ro/ctt). Acestea vor asigura o parte din necesarul de fonduri necesare desfaurrii activitii curente, inovrii si meninerii IMM-urilor la acel nivel de competitivitate cerut de actuala economie. Concluzii Este important identificarea oportunitilor generate de actuala perioada de criza: regndirea sistemului de management, implementarea unuia profesionist, orientat mai mult spre partea intelectuala dect spre cea fizic; dezvoltarea sau reorientarea afacerii spre zone de activitate mai profitabile; ctigarea de avantaje ca urmare a unei concurene mai slabe sau a unor preuri mai mici la echipamente sau materii prime; consolidarea portofoliului actual de client; renunarea la scopul cresterii cifrei de afaceri momentan i stabilirea de obiective legate de posibile achiziii sau fuziuni; reducerea costurilor generate de furnizori sau de diverse cheltuieli administrative; accesarea de programe de finanare, de preferin cu fonduri externe, astfel nct s se poat realize acea infuzie de capital real i att de necesar n prezent. n privina impozitului forfetar, consultanii ofera posibile soluii, mai mult sau mai puin ortodoxe i cu att mai puin constructive pentru economie: raportarea unei cifre de afaceri impozabile mai mici, suspendarea temporar a activitii firmelor, mutarea sediului i a activitii n alt ar cu regim fiscal mai atractiv, transferarea activitii pe persoan fizic autorizat (PFA), reducerea numarului de angajai,
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micorarea numrului de firme n cazul grupurilor, plata la negru a anumitor angajai. Prin instruirea celor care vor i pot s acceseze programe de finanare, se ofer firmelor o posibilitate de ndeplinire a obiectivelor propuse i n acelai timp, creterea competenei profesionale a propriilor angajai. Printr-un sprijin manifest al mediului n care i desfoar activitatea, iar cnd m refer la mediu, includ partea economic, autoritile locale i centrale, legislaia n vigoare i mai ales promovarea de politici de relaxare fiscal, susinute de Banca Central a Romniei. Acestea sunt cteva din modalitile reale existente la dispoziia societii romanesti prin care ntr-un ritm mai sczut dar eficient se poate atenua impactul crizei economice actuale. Bibliografie Brsan, S.C., Sima, M.G., 2008, Inovarea i transferul tehnologic-instrumente de aliniere a IMM-urilor la cerinele economiei de pia, Seminar Interferene economico-sociale la frontiera inovrii editia 1 Carnal, C. 1998Managing change in organizations. London Grey, C., 1997, Management as a technical practice: Professionalization or responsibilization?, Systemic Practice and Action Research, Volume 10, Issue 6, pp. 703 725 Nicolescu, O. Verboncu, I. 1999, Management, Editura Economica, Bucureti; Svescu, D. Reea naional de educatie, stimulare si constientizare a Dreptului de Proprietate Intelectual-RECPIN. National project. Nr. 192CPII/9.09.2008 Sima, M.G., 2009, Role of Technology Transfer Center in the promotion, protection and capitalization of industrial property; the impact on competitiveness of Romanian SMEs, rev. Hidraulica, nr. 3, pp. 21-25 *** http://www.ccib.ro/ctt *** http://www.cnipmmr.ro *** http://www.irecson.ro *** http://www.mimmc.ro *** http://www.osim.ro
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INFLUENA ECONOMIEI I MANAGEMENTULUI CUNOATERII ASUPRA SERVICIILOR DE SNTATE

Roxana Gnescu
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia rganescu@yahoo.com
Celestin Constantin
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia celeste_business@yahoo.com
Rezumat
Economia bazat pe cunotine se caracterizeaz prin transformarea cunotinelor n materie prim, capital, produse, factori de producie eseniali ai economiei i prin procese economice n cadrul crora generarea, vinderea, cumprarea, nvarea, stocarea, dezvoltarea, partajarea i protecia cunotinelor devin predominante i condiioneaz decisiv obinerea de profit i asigurarea sustenabilitii economiei pe termen lung. Organizaia sustenabil este acea organizaie care, pe baza unei abordri echilibrate din punct de vedere economic, ecologic i social, valorific la un nivel superior cunotinele i celelalte resurse de care dispune i pe care le atrage, genernd pentru perioade ndelungate, de zeci de ani, eficien i performane multidimensionale, validate de pia i recunoscute de societate. Cu alte cuvinte, organizaia sustenabil este o organizatie bazat pe cunotine, care stabilete obiective economice, sociale i ecologice pe termen lung, pe care este capabil s le ndeplineasc prin valorificarea de cunotine strategice, genernd multiple consecine pozitive pentru organizatie, stakeholderii i mediul su.Modificrile fa de economia actual constau n: principalele funciuni ale organizatiei devin conceperea, protecia i integrarea cunotinelor; tranzaciile i activitile care implic nivele ridicate de specializare i cunotine implicite se internalizeaz; tranzaciile i activitile care implic cunotine explicite pronunat specializate, se externalizeaz; proprietatea i managementul organizatiei devin convergente; legturile dintre nvmnt, activitatea economic i pregtirea proprie a personalului se redefinesc. Serviciile de sntate din Romnia ar putea beneficia de pe urma acestui tip de organizaie mai ales dac inem seama c managerii care cunosc etapele evoluiei organizaiei sustenabile au un avantaj n proiectarea mecanismelor intreprenoriale, economice i manageriale ale organizaiei pe care o conduc.
Cuvinte-cheie: management, management sanitar, sntate Clasificare JEL: A 12; I 11
Introducere Opiniile specialitilor referitoare la definirea economiei bazat pe cunotine sau a noii economii difer nc ntre limite foarte largi, de la un specialist la altul Daniele Archibrugi, Bengt Ake Sundvall, Thomas Steward etc. Economia bazat
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pe cunotine se caracterizeaz prin transformarea cunotinelor n materie prim, capital, produse, factori de producie eseniali ai economiei i prin procese economice n cadrul crora generarea, vinderea, cumprarea, nvarea, stocarea, dezvoltarea, partajarea i protecia cunotinelor devin predominante i condiioneaz decisiv obinerea de profit i asigurarea sustenabilitii economiei pe termen lung. Organizaia bazat pe cunotine trebuie s fie o firm sustenabil. Asupra acestui concept, dei s-au elaborat mai multe abordri, inclusiv unele foarte recente, ele nu ofer o definire riguroas. Propunem o definire pe care se bazeaz abordarea acestui articol. Organizaia sustenabil este acea organizaie care, pe baza unei abordri echilibrate din punct de vedere economic, ecologic i social, valorific la un nivel superior cunotinele i celelalte resurse de care dispune i pe care le atrage, genernd pentru perioade ndelungate, de zeci de ani, eficien i performane multidimensionale, validate de pia i recunoscute de societate. Organizaia sustenabil este o organizaie bazat pe cunotine, care stabilete obiective economice, sociale i ecologice pe termen lung, pe care este capabil s le ndeplineasc prin valorificarea de cunotine strategice, genernd multiple consecine pozitive pentru organizatie, stakeholderii i mediul su. Trecerea la economia bazat pe cunotine modific substanial modul n care se nfiineaz i funcioneaz unitatile sanitare, inclusiv structura acestora. La baza nfiinrii oricrei organizatii se afl valorificarea unei oportuniti. Organizatiile bazate pe cunotine se creeaz - din aceast perspectiv n dou moduri: valorificnd noile tipuri de oportuniti asociate economiei bazat pe cunotine valorificnd oportunitile economice clasice, dar ntr-o manier nou, focalizat pe cunotine Cele mai importante noi oportuniti de natur tehnico-economic sunt: sistemele mondiale de navigare prin satelit teleserviciile ecranele plate noile tehnologii revoliionare internetul i magistralele electronice comerul electronic agenii inteligeni. Managerii die spital sunt forai s examineze costurile asociate ngrijirilor medicale i se afl sub o permanent presiune de a gsi noi abordri care s ajute la efectuarea mai rapid, mai bun i mai ieftin a problemelor. elul final const , de fapt, n focalizarea instituiilor medicale n scopul crerii ghidurilor de practic pentru diagnostice comun acceptate i conduit terapeutic la un anumit nivel de calitate.
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Primordialitatea cunotinelor n toate componentele economiei Fundamentarea avantajului competitiv al economiilor, ramurilor economice i firmelor, predominant pe diferenele n cunotinele posedate i utilizate Globalizarea anumitor activiti generatoare de valoare adugat
Creterea rapid a valorii proprietii intelectuale, care va deveni, treptat, majoritar n economie 1 2 3 Concentrarea activitilor economice asupra cunotinelor i producerii de bunuricunotine Fundamentarea activitilor economice pe resurse intangibile Specificitatea pronunat a capitalului cunotine Predominarea absolut a intelectualizrii proceselor de 6 munc n economie Proliferarea echipamentelor i produselor simbolice
1 8
1 7
Proliferarea i diversificarea formelor de asociere economic ntre organizaii 1 6 Multiplicarea rapid a firmelor sanitare, care vor predomina relativ i 1 absolut n economie 5 Ponderea majoritar, n cretere, a serviciilor n ansamblul economiei
2
1 4
Caracteristici
Diviziunea muncii la nivel 8 micro, mezo, macro i mondo sistem tinde s reflecte distribuirea cunotinelor Multiplicarea rapid a salariailor axai pe cunotine, ce vor deveni majoritari n resursele umane ocupate Demasificarea produciei
Dezvoltarea exporturilor la 1 nivele nemaintlnite, n cadrul crora cunotinele 1 dein o pondere apreciabil 3
Amplificarea conceperii i importanei tehnologiilor n toate domeniile de activitate, 1 tehnologiile i reelele informaionale devenind 2 precondiii ale dezvoltrii 1
1 0
1 0 1 Dispariia treptat a 1 frontierelor organizaiilor
Figura 1 Principalele caracteristici ale economiei bazate pe cunotine
Managerul tinde sa fie responsabil in principal pentru aspectul financiar al spitalului si sa mentina ordinea morala si sociala la nivelul organizatiei intr-un mediu ce se afla in continua schimbare.
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Trecerea de la o economie centralizata si monopolista, cu o structura de relatii ncordata (in sensul unor conexiuni preponderent unilaterale, fara alternative optionale) la o economie concurentiala, bazata pe mecanismele pietei, ale actiunii legii cererii si ofertei, reprezinta cu siguranta una din cele mai severe provocari ale actualei perioade. Procesele complexe- de anvergura privatizarii, restructurarii, liberalizarii preturilor si eliminarii subventiilor- ce insotesc reforma economica, precum si transformarile institutionale si legislative, modificarile profunde in mecanismele de coordonare la diferite niveluri concomitent cu tendinta de aderare la un nou spatiu economic prin intentia de integrare in structurile europene constituie schimbari de fond, mutatii semnificative si de amploare ce caracterizeaza mediul romanesc. n mod traditional mangementul bazat pe cunotine se refer la proprietate, control i valoare cu punerea accentului pe planificare. Nonaka i Takeuchi disting dou tipuri majore de cunotinte: explicite i tacite. Cele explicite au urmatoarele caracteristici: - sunt obiective; - sunt raionale; - sunt secveniale; - deriv din teorii; - sunt codificate, se raporteaz la trecut, n timp ce cele tacite sunt: - subiective; - bazate pe experien - simultane - greu de formalizat i comunicat - cognitive,cu viziune asupra viitorului. Procesul de management bazat pe cunotinte se bazeaz pe crearea, diseminarea i utilizarea informaiilor n cadrul organizaiei. Acest proces presupune parcurgerea a dou etape: etapa de nceput cu crearea i extragera informaiei urmat de depozitarea acesteia, de diseminarea i n final exploatarea informaiei. Valorificarea noilor oportuniti i dezvoltarea organizatiei bazat pe cunotine este nsoit de modificri n planul ntreprinztorilor. Aceste modificri sunt strns legate de natura i volumul cunotinelor posedate de ntreprinztori sau potenialii ntreprinztori pe de o parte i de cunotinele aferente organizatiilor implicate, pe de alt parte. Astfel se contureaz o nou categorie de ntreprinztori ce furnizeaz anumite cunotine ntreprinderilor de care acestea au nevoie, dar care, din raiuni economice sau organizaionale, prefer s le fie furnizate de organizatiile sau experii externi care le posed. Organizatia bazat pe cunotine are nevoie i de alte cunotine n completare pentru a-i atinge obiectivele economice stabilite. Aceste cunotine i pot fi furnizate din exterior de: - salariai cu program de munc flexibil, ce ofer cunotine de nivel relativ redus, dar cu o specificitatea ridicat i care devin puternic dependeni de organizatia cu care lucreaz;
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furnizori de servicii mediate pentru a furniza cunotine cu nivel de specificitate redus, care nu sunt dependeni semnificativ de organizatia cu care lucreaz; - experi sau ntreprinztori ce posed cunotine de nalt nivel i cu o pronunat specificitate, care sunt puternic dependeni de organizatia client; - experi sau ntreprinztori ce posed cunotine de nalt nivel, dar cu o specificitatea redus, care sunt dependeni semnificativ de organizatia client. Evoluia sectorului de servicii de sntate din Romnia va fi influenat de urmtorii factori: 1. Congruena dintre caracteristiciele firmelor sanitare i economia bazat pe cunotine 2. Creterea nivelului de pregtire al populaiei i noua cultur economico-social 3. Individualizarea i personalizarea crescnde ale produselor i serviciilor 4. Schimbrile tehnice i tehnologice 5. Informatizarea economiei i societii 6. Externalizarea activitilor organizaiilor 7. Regionalizarea i dezvoltarea local 8. Internaionalizarea activitilor economice Organizatia bazat pe cunotine prezint caracteristici diferite fa de organizatia care predomin n perioada actual. n tabelul nr. 1 evideniem aceste caracteristici pe baza elementelor cuprinse n lucrarea lui Burton Jones i lui Francis Coincross.
Principalele caracteristici ale organizatiei bazat pe cunotine Tabelul 1
Nr. Caracteristici crt. 1 Diminuarea organizatiei n ceea ce privete activele fizice, activitile realizate i salariaii utilizai, concomitent cu dezvoltarea bazei interne de cunotine i extinderea legturilor cu clienii, furnizorii i resursele umane externe 2 Externalizarea activitilor care nu sunt eseniale pentru firm, n paralel cu internalizarea celor care fac parte sau sunt puternic complementare cunotinelor eseniale ale organizaiei. 3 Schimbarea relaiilor cu resursele umane externe organizatiei, n sensul apelrii la aceasta pentru activitile funcionreti mai puin importante i pentru cele de ntreinere ale organizaiei; pentru realizarea lor se va apela pe scar larg la organizatii sanitare i persoane care lucreaz independent. 4 Dezvoltarea strategic a organizatiei se va baza pe creterea n profunzime i/sau lrgime a cunotinelor organizatiei, ceea se presupune c ea dispune de capacitatea de a-i dezvolta propriile cunotine i de a recunoate oportunitile pentru cooperare de tip sinergetic n domeniul cunotinelor 5 Modelul de organizare intern a organizatiei bazat pe cunotine este analog modelului cognitiv uman, caracterizndu-se prin reele mai puin structurate, echipe semiautonome, formate din persoane posesoare de cunotine, disponibiliti organizaionale i individuale pentru nvare etc.
Nr. Caracteristici crt. 6 Maximizarea eficacitii i eficienei se bazeaz pe structuri de echipe, ntre care cuplarea trebuie minimizat i coeziunea maximizat 7 Scderea numrului i rolurilor managerilor de nivel mediu i inferior i externalizarea treptat a persoanelor ce realizeaz activiti periferice, simultan cu integrarea n firm de manageri de cunotine, care, frecvent, i ncep activitatea ca ageni sau consultani ai schimbrii n cadrul organizaiei 8 Remodelarea capabilitilor manageriale i economice ale organizatiei, pentru a pune n valoare cunotinele, prin opiunile, deciziile i aciunile pe care le practic 9 Direcionarea investiiilor n training, n fora de munc extern utilizat, pentru a nlocui propriul personal ce nu progreseaz suficient 10 Alocarea unor resurse mai reduse pentru training i oferirea de posibiliti mai limitate de promovare a personalului din grupurile periferice, care poart principala responsabilitate pentru propria pregtire i evoluie profesional 11 Reconceperea sistemului de motivare, corespunztor urmtoarelor coordonate: amplificarea recompensrii n funcie de performane i merite pentru tot personalul organizatiei; creterea utilizrii recompensrii personalului din grupurile periferice n funcie de performanele individuale; intensificarea folosirii concomitente a stimulentelor globale, de grup i personale, pentru personalul de baz al organizatiei; apelarea pe scar larg la promovarea personalului n cadrul i din afara organizatiei Dezvoltarea unei culturi deschise, compania invitnd n cadrul su clienii 12 i furnizorii ce pot s urmreasc cum operaionalizeaz deciziile care-i privesc- precum i celelalte categorii de stakeholderi 13 Practicarea de forme de colaborare multiple cu alte organizatii, n condiii de uurin, timp i costuri mai bune 14 Diminuarea barierelor dintre diferitele categorii de resurse umane, dintre munca de la organizatii i munca de acas, dintre individ i organizaie 15 Acordarea unei atenii majore obinerii, utilizrii, protejrii i valorificrii capitalului intelectual n mod normal cunotinele pot fi vzute ca un bun personal n cadrul unui context social, ele putnd fi identificate, codificate, transferate prin canalele de comunicaii, decodate i apoi folosite. Capacitatea unei instituii medicale de a mprii cunotinele necesit ca aceasta s-i dezvolte capacitatea de recunoatere i folosire a informaiilor pentru pacieni, personalul medical precum i pentru personalul administrativ.
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Domeniul medical din ultimii ani trebuie s fac fa presiunii continue i constante de a scdea costurile concomitent cu creterea calitii serviciilor medicale oferite. Acste dou presiuni foreaz la schimbri majore n cadrul sistemului i a instituiilor medicale. Managerizarea cunotinelor devine crucial pentru atingerea elului de scdere a costurilor concomitent cu creterea calitii serviciilor medicale. Starea de sntate are un coninut complex si se afl ntr-o relaie sistemica cu starea societii n ansamblul su, prin urmare, i cu celelalte componente ale economiei, calitii vieii, mediului, nivelului cultural. Studiile de specialitate pun n eviden o relaie de bideterminare a acesteia n raport cu nivelul general de dezvoltare economico-social. O stare de sntate bun asigur paticiparea efectiv a omului n procesul produciei, exercitarea capacitii sale de munc, integrarea lui n viaa economic i social, formarea i afirmarea personalitii sale. Aproximativ o treime din timpul medicilor este ocupat cu nregistrarea i combinarea informaiilor i o treime din costurile din sntate sunt destinate pe comunicarea profesional. Realizarea unei organizaii bazat pe cunotine sustenabil este un proces complex ce comport o succesiune de faze, aa cum arat specialistul german Michael Kuhndt de la Institutul Wuppertal. n figura nr. 2 este prezentat sintetic aceast abordare procesual. Intreprenoriat clasic Faza 1 Faza 2 Faza 3 Intreprenoriat eficient Faza 4 Intreprenoriat responsabil Faza 5
Orientat pe performan
Orientat pe procese
Orientat pe sisteme
Orientat pe lanul valorii
Orientat pe stakeholderi
Figura 2. Fazele dezvoltrii organizatiei sustenabile bazat pe cunotine
Cunoaterea acestor etape de evoluie ale organizatiei sustenabile dei nu ntotdeauna obligatorii - este deosebit de util pentru proiectarea mecanismelor intreprenoriale, economice i manageriale ale organizatiei bazat pe cunotine. Serviciile de sntate din Romnia ar putea beneficia de pe urma acestui tip de organizaie mai ales dac inem seama c managerii care cunosc etapele evoluiei organizaiei sustenabile au un avantaj n proiectarea mecanismelor intreprenoriale, economice i manageriale ale organizaiei pe care o conduc. Concluzii Strategia n domeniul calitii ar trebui s urmareasc dezvoltarea unui sistem de management al calitii extins care s cuprind toate entitile participante. Aceasta presupune crearea unui compartiment de asigurare a calitii n toate unitile sanitare
care asigur servicii medicale. Aceste compartimente vor avea ca sarcin principal proiectarea, implementarea i meninerea sistemului de management al calitii. Managementul este unul dintre cei mai importani factori generatori de performane economice la nivel de organizaie. Funcionalitatea, eficiena i eficacitatea acesteia sunt dependente apreciabil de calitatea, eficiena i eficacitatea managementului. Sistemul de sntate din Romnia se afl n mijlocul unei crize de resurse umane care a devenit o ameninare n ultimii ani i care nu pare s-i fi gasit o rezolvare fezabil. Migrarea forei de munc medicale calificat este o problem ntlnit i n rile din Uniunea European. Pregatirea i perfecionarea personalului medical este foarte costisitoare i tocmai de aceea trebuie gsite modaliti de dezvoltare a organizaiei cu ajutorul personalului ce face parte din organizaie. Instituiile medicale se afl ntr-un proces de schimbare care presupune strategii viabile n noile condiii ale pieei libere din cadrul Uniunii Europene. Din acest motiv trebuie bine definite strategiile de pia pe termen scurt i mediu care s ina cont de evoluia tehnologic din domeniul medical, de necesitile i dorinele pacienilor i nu n ultimul rnd de calitatea serviciilor oferite care se reflect din gradul de pregtire al personalului dar i din nivelul de satisfacie personal a acestuia. Bibilografie Abrams Michael, Bevilacqua, Building a leadership infrastructure: the next step in the evolution of hospital system, Health care strategic management, April 2006; 24,4, (12-16) Bali, Rajev Clinical knowledge management: opportunities and chalanges, Idea Group Publishing 2005 Farr J. Ronald, Senn F. Girard, Whitten M. Catherine, Using a business practice model to control product line costs, Healthcare financial management, August 2006; 60, 6, (100-104) Hosking, Sarah, Healing the hospital environment: design, maintenance and management of healthcare premises, Spon Press 1999 Nicolescu O, Nicolescu L. Economia, firma si managementul bazat pe cunsotinte Ed. Economica 2005 O. Nicolescu, Luminia Nicolescu, Economia, organizatie i managementul bazate pe cunotine, Editura Economic, 2005 Popa I. Management strategic, Ed. Economica 2004 J.D. Seiber-Hansman, Cristie Liedtke, von Weizscker E.U., Eco-Efficiency and Beyond, Breenleaf Publishing, Sheffield, 2004 Verboncu I. Manageri & Management, Edit. Economica, Bucuresti, 2000 Walburg, Jan Performance Management in Healthcare: Improving Patient Outcomes: an Integrated Approach Routledge Health Management Series. Publication: London, New York Taylor & Francis Routledge, 2006 Wickramasinghe, Nilmini Creating knowledge based healthcare organitations, Idea Group Publishing 2004
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RECLAMELE ONLINE CA MECANISM DE PROMOVARE, INSTRUMENT DE MONETIZARE I METOD DE INFORMARE

Liviu Lic
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia lica.liviu@yahoo.com
Rezumat
Care este urmtoarea etap n evoluia reclamelor online? Pentru a gsii rspunsul trebuie s nelegem ce st n spatele evoluiei reclamelor n prezent. Scopul lucrrii este prezentarea reclamelor din puncte de vedere ce permit nelegerea fenomenului. Lucrarea arat cum au evoluat reclamele, care sunt dificultile modelului Pay Per Action, care pare s aib succes tot mai mare n ultimul timp, i arat care sunt tendinele din domeniu. Reclamele cele mai bine primite de ctre utilizatori sunt cele de tip Pay per Action. Aceste reclame se confrunt cu o serie de dificulti ns au i multe beneficii. Acest tip de reclame va fi tot mai ntlnit n viitor. Evoluia reclamelor din ultima perioad este impulsionat de dezvoltarea tehnologiei i, n cea mai mare parte, de evoluia consumatorilor. Acetia devin imuni la reclamele ce vor s ntrerup i sunt tot mai deschii la reclame care ajut la gsirea rspunsului cutat. Principala concluzie a lucrrii este c urmtorul pas n evoluia reclamelor va fi axat n jurul consumatorilor.
Cuvinte-cheie: reclame, promovare, monetizare, informare, pay-per-click, pay-peraction
Clasificare JEL: M37, L86 Introducere Reclamele sunt prezente n toate mediile existente, de la presa scris pn la Internet. Printre eforturile de promovarea, reclamele au o pondere semnificativ. Cu apariia unui nou canal de comunicare, Internetul, reclamele au ptruns rapid, adaptndu-se pe msur ce mediul n sine se dezvolt. Prima form de reclam a fost cea de banner, urmat de pop-uri i pop-under, i de reclame in-line, toate fiind percepute de ctre utilizatori drept mai mult sau mai puin intruzive (McCoy, 2007, p. 87). Cea mai recent tendin este evoluia ctre reclamele integrate n imagini i filme (Mei, Hua, Li, 2008, p. 443). Indiferent de modul n care sunt prezentate reclamele este unanim acceptat faptul c relevana acestora este crucial pentru felul n care sunt percepute de ctre utilizatori. O reclam, chiar i sub form de pop-up, considerat cea mai intruziv form de prezentare a reclamelor pe Internet, dac este relevant pentru ce caut utilizatorul, va fi considerat util, nu enervant (Ghosh, Mahdian, 2008, p. 166). Mecanismele prin care sunt analizate paginile i prin care sunt identificate reclamele relevante sunt obiectul studiului pentru muli autori (Anagnostopoulos et al. 2007, p. 133), (Chakrabarti, Agarwal, Josifovski, 2008, p. 420), (Mei, Hua, Li, 2008, p. 442).
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Evoluia site-urilor de tip reea-social a dus la o nou tendin, cea de a folosii informaiile pe care utilizatorii le furnizeaz prin intermediul profilelor n algoritmii care selecteaz reclamele relevante. Google testeaz un sistem prin care creeaz profilul utilizatorilor pe baza site-urilor pe care le viziteaz (Wojcicki, 2009). ns, aceste abordri ridic probleme legate de viaa privat a utilizatorilor. FaceBook a fost printre primii dintre giganii Internetului care a atras nemulumirea profund a utilizatorilor afind reclame care erau considerate mult prea personale. ns reclamele trebuie privite dintr-un punct de vedere mai general, nu numai din perspectiva utilizatorilor, care sunt doar una dintre cele patru pri implicate n consumul de reclame. Aceste pri sunt (McCoy, 2007, p. 85): Deintorul spaiului publicitar este proprietarul site-ului unde este afiat reclam. Scopul su este maximizarea profitului din reclame. Dilema sa este dat de gsirea unui echilibru ntre reclame i coninut, echilibru care trebuie s satisfac suficieni utilizatori i s-i genereze suficient profit. Un alt aspect important este i modul n care sunt pltite reclamele pay-per-impresion, pay-perclick, pay-per-action. Agentul de publicitate este cel care furnizeaz reclamele. De obicei acesta organizeaz campanii publicitare care au un anumit scop, cum ar fi creterea vnzrilor de bere n luna mai. Este i el foarte interesat de modul n care sunt pltite reclamele. Interesul lui este s obin o cretere a profitului ct mai mare cu o investiie ct mai mic. Reeaua de distribuie a reclamelor sunt companii care fac legtura ntre deintorul spaiului publicitar i agentul de publicitate. Utilizatorul este cel care consum reclamele. Scopul su nu este acela de a se uita la banere sau a da click pe reclame. Acesta dorete s gseasc informaii sau un produs care satisface nevoile. Pentru el reclamele ori sunt utile, pentru c l ndreapt ctre cea ce vrea s gseasc, ori sunt un obstacol. n final totul se rezum la felul n care utilizatorul consum reclamele. Pe lng scopurile diferite a prilor implicare, problema este complicat de evoluia spectaculoas a canalului de distribuie. Site-urile web, tehnologia i nsi utilizatorii evolueaz rapid, fornd reelele de distribuie, agenii de publicitate, i deintorii de spaii publicitare s gseasc soluii noi. Printre problemele cu care se confrunt cele trei pri sunt: Utilizatorii devin imuni la reclame; Captarea ateniei utilizatorilor pentru o perioada suficient de lung devine dificil; Msurarea eficienei reclamelor este dificil; Probleme legate de intimitatea utilizatorilor; Utilizatorii nu sunt dispui s suporte orice form de reclam; Identificare reclamelor relevante, la un moment dat, este dificil.
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n continuare sunt prezentate diferite modele de plat a reclamelor, innd cont de rolul reclamelor i dificultile cu care se confrunt reelele de distribuie, agenii de publicitate i deintorii de spaii publicitare. Utilizatorul inta final a reclamelor Pornind de la cei patru participani n procesul de consum al reclamelor, rezult trei puncte de vedere asuprea reclamelor: Mecanism de promovare - pentru agentul de publicitate reclamele reprezint unul dintre mecanismele pe care le are la dispoziie pentru promovarea serviciilor, produselor, imaginii organizaiei sale. Instrument de monetizare - n funcie de natura site-ului, proprietarii de site-uri se pot afla fie n postur de agent de publicitate, atunci cnd se promoveaz pe sine nsi, sau pot s joace rol de deintor de spaiu publicitar. De multe ori acetia joac ambele roluri. Exist, ns, un numr foarte mare de site-uri care nu vnd un serviciu uor monetizabil, precum sunt site-uri cu coninut generat de utilizatori, bloguri pe diferite teme. n aceast situaie reclamele devin o metod atractiv de monetizare. Venind s creeze legtura ntre agenii de publicitate i deintorul spaiului publicitar, apar i reelele de distribuie. Metod de informare - utilizatorul are drept scop gsirea unei informaii sau a unui produs, serviciu. Acetia consum reclamele doar dac aduc un plus de informaie, dac le indic n ce direcie s mearg ca s gseasc cea ce caut. O reclam relevant poate fi la fel de util ca un rezultat bun furnizat de motoarele de cutare. Google, cel mai mare motor de cutare, folosete acest principiu atunci cnd adaug la rezultatele de cutare reclame, principiu care s-a dovedit pn n prezent foarte eficient. Din cauza complexiti interaciunii dintre cele patru pri i a scopurilor diferite pe care acetia le au, este uor s se piard printre detalii tehnice scopul final al reclamelor. Reclamele sunt lansate de ctre agenii de publicitate pentru a atrage atenia asupra companiei sau produselor companiei pentru care lucreaz, atenie care trebuie s se transforme n vnzri i profit. Scopul final este creterea profitului celui care lanseaz reclama. Consumatorii sunt utilizatorii, acetia reprezint inta final a reclamelor. Este foarte important de reinut acest lucru pentru toi cei implicai n procesul de creare i distribuie a reclamelor. Modele existente de plat a reclamelor Odat cu evoluia Internetului a evoluat i comportamentul utilizatorului, cea ce la rndul su a condus la evoluia felului cum sunt afiate reclamele i cum sunt pltite de ctre agenii de publicitate. Prima model folosit a fost cel Pay per Impression (PPM). Agentul de publicitate pltete de fiecare dat cnd e afiat reclama sa. Acesta a fost modelul predominat mult timp. Problema modelului este c e greu de msurat efectul pe care l are o
afiare asupra vnzrilor. De acea, ncet-ncet, majoritatea reclamelor sunt taxate acum prin modelul Pay per Click (PPC). Acesta este modelul care st la baza imperiului Google. Agentul de publicitate pltete doar atunci cnd utilizatorul d efectiv click pe una dintre reclame. Exist, ns, i aici numeroase probleme, cum ar fi frauda de clickuri (Mahdian, Tomak, 2007, p. 88). O companie poate da clickuri pe reclamele concurentului su direct cu scopul de a crete costurile de promovare a acestuia peste pragul de rentabilitate. Exist i deintori de spaii publicitate care dau click pe propriile reclame cu scopul de a-i majora venitul din reclame. n acelai timp reeaua de distribuie este interesat s obin ct mai muli bani de la agentul de promovare, de acea a existat i nc exist suspiciunea c unii dintre marii juctori de pe piaa reclamelor online fie sunt la baza fraudelor de clickuri, fie nu acord suficient atenie, ne avnd nici un interes n acest sens. Google a fost implicat n cteva procese ce au devenit celebre, iniiate de ageni de publicitate care au considerat c au fost victima unor fraude de clickuri (Vise, Malseed, 2005). Pe lng fraud, nu este chiar uor s se spun cu exactitate cte clickuri au fost efectuate, din motive tehnice, i nu este uor nici s se stabileasc eficiena campaniilor. Din ce n ce mai des se aduce vorba despre modelul Pay per Action (PPA), care pare a fi o soluie ce rezolv o parte din problemele modelului Pay per Click (Mahdian, Tomak, 2007, p. 87). Pay per Action nseamn, practic, c agentul de publicitate pltete doar n momentul cnd utilizatorul efectueaz aciunea pe care dorete acesta s o atrag prin reclam. Dac agentul vinde cri, atunci deintorul spaiului publicitar va fi pltit doar atunci cnd o carte este efectiv cumprat, utilizatorul venind printr-o reclam afiat pe site-ul acestuia. Pay per Action rezolv problema fraudei de clickuri, clickurile devenind irelevante. Este i mult mai uor s se msoare eficiena reclamei. Apar, ns, probleme la raportarea efectiv a vnzrilor. Agentul fiind cel care trebuie s semnaleze, printr-un mecanism, de fiecare dat cnd este efectuat o vnzare. Acesta poate fi tentat s influeneze sistemul de raportare. Ce este interesant de subliniat este felul cum au evoluat modelele de taxare a reclamelor. Pay per Impression este asociat i cu perioada banerelor n exces i a pop-upurilor, cnd utilizatorul era inundat cu astfel de reclame. Deoarece utilizatorii au nceput s evite asemenea site-uri au aprut i abordri diferite, cum ar fi cea a Google, care spre diferen de rivalul su direct, Yahoo!, a integrat pe ct mai discret posibil reclamele n site. O asemena abordare a venit mpreun cu modelul Pay per Click. Reclamele au devenit mai puin agasante i mai informative. n momentul de fa, cnd muli deja susin moartea bannerelor i prezic moartea reclamelor sub forma actual (Drgan, 2009) Pay per Action ncepe s se fac simit. Pentru ca o reclam de tip Pay per Action s fie eficient pentru deintorul spaiului publicitar, este necesar ca ea s fie amplasat ntr-un context relevant i s nu distrag atenia utilizatorului, ci s o atrag n momentul cnd acesta dorete informaia sau produsul furnizat prin reclam.
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Partea dificil, pentru deintorii de spaiu publicitar, este s integreze corect reclamele. Reelele de distribuie trebuie s gseasc metode de identificare a reclamelor relevante, n funcie de context. Chiar dac modelul Pay per Click a nlocuit n majoritate cazurilor modelul Pay per Impression, acesta din urm este nc folosit. Motivul este dat de scopurile diferite pe care pot s le aib agenii de publicitate. Atunci cnd agentul dorete s i fac marca cunoscut, sau s promoveze o idee poate fi mult mai interesat doar s afieze n ct mai multe locuri reclama. n aceste cazuri, modelul Pay per Impression este nc des folosit. Pay per Click este modelul dominant pentru c msoar cu mai multe exactitate dac reclama a atras sau nu atenia. O dat ce utilizatorul a dat click pe o reclam, agentul poate fi sigur ca a atras atenia utilizatorului. Dac scopul agentului este s obin o aciune concret, de genul completarea unui chestionar sau cumprarea unui produs atunci cel mai eficient, pentru agent este modelul Pay per Action. Aciune ntrziat n modelul Pay per Action studiu de caz O problem cu care se confrunt modelul Pay per Action, rar ntlnit n literatura de specialitate, este cea a atribuirii unei aciuni n cazul n care un agent de publicitate apeleaz la mai multe reele de distribuie. Acest situai vine din practic i reprezint o situaie real. Dac agentul folosete serviciile Google dar i serviciile TradeDoubler, poate s apar situaia cnd utilizator a vizitat site-ul agentului nti printr-o reclam afiat prin sistemul Google dup care prsete site-ul revenind dup un timp fie: - apelnd site-ul direct i finalizeaz aciunea, - printr-o reclam din sistemul TradeDoubler i finalizeaz aciunea. ntrebarea este cui trebuie s i se atribuie aciunea: - n situaia 1 - Google, pentru c a fost primul care a adus utilizatorul pe site; - n situaia 1 - niciunuia, deoarece utilizatorul a efectuat aciunea revenind direct pe site, nu prin intermediul reclamelor; - n situaia 2 - TradeDoubler, deoarece prin reclama sa a revenit pe site utilizatorul a doua oara; - n situaia 2 - Google, pentru c a fost primul care a adus utilizatorul pe site; - n situaia 2 - amndurora, TradeDoubler si Google. Din punctul de vedere al tehnologie folosite de majoritatea reelelor de distribuie i a preteniilor acestora ambii trebuie s primeasc taxa stabilit. Din punctul de vedere al agentului, acesta consider c trebuie s plteasc doar celui care i-a adus vizitatorul atunci cnd s-a realizat aciunea. inei minte c aciunea poate reprezenta cumprarea unui produs complex, cum ar fi un pachet turistic. De multe ori utilizatorul ajunge pe site printr-o reclam, studiaz ofert, salveaz adresa siteului i prsete site-ul, revenind ulterior folosind diferite ci. n sistemul Pay per Click situaia este relativ simpl, dac clickul s-a efectuat, atunci agentul trebuie s plteasc. n situaia modelului Pay per Action, aciunea poate fi efectuat dup ce clientul a vizitat site-ul de mai multe ori. O soluie ce poate fi adoptat n aceast situaie este atribuirea aciunii ultimei reele de distribuie prin care a ajuns utilizatorul pe site, n cazul situaiei 1, de mai
sus fiind vorba de Google, iar n cazul situaiei 2 este TradeDoubler. Din punctul de vedere al agentului este corect, de multe ori ne fiind profitabil s plteasc aceiai tax pentru dou sau mai multe reele. Reelele de distribuie nu au mare interes s gseasc o soluie imediat pentru aceast situaie, ca i n cazul fraudei de clickuri, ctignd. Dificulti recomandri n implementarea modelelor Pay per Action Dup cum am vzut n studiul de caz, din punct de vedere tehnologic, implementarea metodelor de taxare n cazul modelului Pay per Action, este abia n stadiul incipient. Succesul proliferri reclamelor de tip linkuri afiliate i a reclamelor aferente modelului Pay per Action ine n mare msur de calitatea sa. Dac modelul Pay per Click este indisolubil legat de noiunea fraudei de clicuri, modelul Pay per Action risc s fie legat fie de probleme n nregistrare a aciunilor fie de fraude n raportarea fcut de ctre agenii de publicitate. Printre probleme modelului se numr: Raportarea incorect, dinadins, a numrului de aciuni efectuate de ctre agentul de publicitate Ambiguiti n atribuirea corect a aciunii n cazul n care agentul de publicitate folosete serviciile mai multor reele de distribuie Dificulti tehnice de nregistrare a aciunilor n cazul trecerii utilatorilor de pe un dispozitiv pe altul. Pentru a evita afectarea imaginii modelului drept un sistem corect i eficient, reelele de distribuie, care sunt practic motorul schimbrii modelelor de reclam folosite, trebuie s conlucreze ndeaproape cu agenii pentru a-i asigura pe acetia c nu sunt supui riscului de a plti mai mult, ca n situaia prezentat n studiul de caz dar i reelele trebuie s se asigure c nu vor fi nelate de ctre ageni. n cazul pr2, dup cum am artat n studiul de caz, este necesar ca agenii s se pun de acord asupra unui sistem echitabil de atribuire a aciunilor. Din practic reiese c problema este rezolvabil, reelele de distribuie acceptnd idea raional ca doar ultima reea care a direcionat utilizatorul ctre agent s fie pltit. ns, pn n momentul de fa, nu am vzut, n documentaia distribuit de ctre reelele de distribuie, introducerea din start a acestui caz n codul ce trebuie implementat de ctre agent pe site-ul su. Acest lucru poate afecta serios credibilitatea reelelor. Recomandare este ca agentul i reelele de distribuie s cad de acord asupra faptului c agentul va raporta aciunea doar unuia dintre ageni. Agentul, avnd control aproape complet asupra raportrii aciunii ctre reele, poate fi tentat s ascund o parte dintre acestea pentru a-i reduce costurile. Reeaua nu poate verifica agentul dect printr-o analiz statistic, monitoriznd dac rata conversiei scade sub un nivel mediu, pentru tipul de activitate desfurat. Soluia la aceast problem este de folosirea unui sistem de taxare a serviciilor oferite agentului care s varieze o dat cu numrul de aciuni nregistrate concomitent cu folosirea i unei taxe de intrare n sistem, suficient de mic ca s nu descurajeze dar
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suficient de mare ca s nu permit schimbarea deas a identitii (Mahdian, Tomak, 2007, p. 87). Prin aceste msuri se poate reduce semnificativ rata fraudei. Din punct de vedere tehnic este destul de dificil de creat un sistem care s permit nregistrarea corect a aciunilor chiar dup ce utilizatorul nchide browser-ul i revine pe site-ul agentului folosind un alt dispozitiv. n momentul de fa, cele mai multe sisteme de nregistrate a aciunilor se bazeaz pe folosirea de cookie-uri sau sesiuni. Ambele tehnici fiind relevante dect dac acelai dispozitivul i browser este folosit din momentul n care utilizatorul ajunge pe site-ul agentului prin reclam i pn la momentul cnd aciunea dorit este ntreprins. O soluie pentru aceasta problema este folosirea de deeplink-uri la nivelul site-ului agentului. Cu toate c n acest fel s-ar rezolva problema trecerii de pe un dispozitiv pe altul se face presupunerea c utilizatorul va folosii numai linkul n formatul furnizat, cea ce nu este adevrat ntotdeauna i c site-ul agentului de publicitate are capacitatea s interpreteze aceste linkuri cea ce iari nu este adevrat ntotdeauna. O alt soluie, aplicat n marketingul afiliat, este folosirea de coduri promoionale. Chiar dac are diferene fa de o reclam clasic, folosirea de coduri este o soluie simpl i eficient. Problema determinrii de noi metode de depire a dificultilor tehnice rmne deschis pentru studii ulterioare. Gsirea de metode de descurajare a fraudei din partea agenilor sau de soluii tehnice pentru nregistrarea corect a aciunilor va crete semnificativ credibilitatea modelului. Tendine n evoluia reclamelor Evoluia reclamelor este impulsionat, n primul rnd de necesitatea de a ajunge la consumatori cu mesajul dorit. Cu ct acetia devin mai versai i cu ct numrul reclamelor crete, consumatorii capt o imunitate fa de avalana de informaii i reclame, de cele mai multe ori ignorndu-le complet. n mediul online acest lucru se poate msura destul de exact. Un numr suficient de mare de utilizatori recunosc c nu dau click niciodat pe reclamele de pe bloguri sau reele sociale. Cu ct utilizatorii diferitelor site-uri devin mai educai, acest proporie tinde s creasc n detrimentul celor care dau click pe reclame. Cei mai afectai de fenomen sunt proprietarii de site-uri pentru care reclamele pot fi o surs considerabil de venituri. Acetia,ns, au avantajul c sunt n contact direct cu utilizatorii, fiind primii care observ tendine din nia lor i au capacitatea se a se adapta rapid. Printre tendinele cele mai puternice n rndul proprietarilor de site-uri este migrarea de la un model de monetizare bazat, n principal, pe reclame la folosirea de linkuri afiliate. Linkurile afiliate sunt, ntr-un fel, nrudite cu modelul Pay per Action de plat a reclamelor. Un link afiliat conine un cod, ce identific unic proprietarii de site-uri. Acestea sunt, cel mai des, ctre un produs, sau ctre o parte a site-ului furnizorului de bunuri. Dac utilizatorul ajunge pe site-ul furnizorului folosind un link afiliat i cumpr produsul sau serviciul sau realizeaz aciunea dorit, cel care a direcionat utilizatorul primete un procent din valoare achiziiei sau o sum fix.
Pentru comerciani modelul este foarte eficient, ei practic pltind bani doar n momentul cnd realizeaz efectiv vnzarea. Proprietarii de site-uri sunt obligai s aib o abordare un pic diferit, scriind review-uri sau dnd informaii utile ce au menirea s conving utilizatorii c produsul sau serviciul merit achiziionat. Utilizatorii sunt cei care ctiga cel mai mult, reclamele fiind nlocuite cu informaii ce pot fi cu adevrat utile. Problema principal a modelului este c proprietarii de site-uri trebuie s aib grij ca s ii pstreze credibilitatea i s nu publice material care d impresia c a fost pus doar cu scopul de a fi o reclam scris n mai multe cuvinte. Calitatea coninutului are o importan covritoare. Pentru site-uri de dimensiuni foarte mari i mai ales pentru reelele sociale care dein informaii vaste despre utilizatori, cea mai mare tentaie este oferit de reclamele direcionate ctre o ni foarte ngust. Informaiile stocate n profile permit o segmentare foarte precis pe nie nguste. n acest domeniu, marii juctori de pe pia, precum Google (Wojcicki, 2009), Facebook i MySpace abia au nceput s experimenteze, primele tentative fiind nsoite de critici dure din partea utilizatorilor i aprtorilor drepturilor la via privat. Problema principal este dat de natura informaiilor din profile i se pune ntrebarea cine deine informaiile, compania care deine site-ul sau utilizatorul care le-a introdus. Tendina este clar, ns nu exist nc o implementare de mare succes. n prezent, reclamele contextuale afiate la momentul cnd site-ul se ncarc, sunt bazate pe informaiile despre pagina pe care se afl, extrase numai din textul respectivei pagini. Problema este c paginile web conin din ce n ce mai multe date n format multimedia, adic video, imagini i sunet. Sunt depuse eforturi considerabile pentru crearea de algoritmi ce pot spune ce se afl ntr-o anumit poz sau film. Companii gen Youtube experimenteaz cu amplasare reclamelor n clipuri video ns alegerea reclamei este nc bazat pe descrierea pe care utilizatorii o introduc manual. Indiferent de felul cum o s evolueze reclamele, noile modele trebuie s in cont de evoluia consumatorilor. Concluzii Reclamele trebuie privite din diferite puncte de vedere, din perspectiva agentului de publicitate, interesat s i sporeasc veniturile prin reclame, din punctul de vedere al proprietarului de spaiu publicitar, pentru care reclamele reprezint o metod de monetizare, ca i pentru reelele de distribuie care fac legtura dintre cei doi, dar i din punctul de vedere al utilizatorului, care percepe reclama fie ca un obstacol n calea sa, un zgomot, ce l incomodeaz s gseasc cea ce cauta, fie ca o informaie util, care l ajut. Avnd o privire de ansamblu este uor de neles de ce au evoluat modelele de plat a reclamelor de la Pay per Impression, la Pay per Click i tind ctre Pay per Action i modele de linkuri afiliate.
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Modelul Pay per Action atrage dup sine o serie de beneficii dar i dificulti. Cele mai mare caliti ale sale sunt credibilitatea sporit pentru utilizator i garania pe care o primete agentul de publicitate c va plti doar pentru cea ce vinde efectiv. Modul n care sunt tratate dificultile tehnice va determina succesul pe termen lung al modelului. Prin studiul de caz i prezentarea diferitelor dificulti am artat genul de probleme care apar la folosirea modelului Pay per Action. Chiar dac exist deja o serie de soluii i recomandri, continuarea cercetrii n vederea gsirii de soluii mai eficiente este esenial pentru modelul Pay per Action i conferirea acestuia credibilitate. Evoluia reclamelor n mediul online este cel mai bine vzut din perspectiva utilizatorului final, care devine din ce n ce mai bine informat i tie s filtreze informaiile utile din zgomotul Internetului. Orice nou pas n evoluia reclamelor trebuie s in cont, n primul rnd de evoluia consumatorului.
Bibliografie Anagnostopoulos, A., Broder, A., Gabrilovich, E., Josifovski, V. & Riedel, L. 2007, Just-in-time contextual advertising, Proceedings of the sixteenth ACM conference on Conference on Information and Knowledge Management, pp. 331-340, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Chakrabarti, D., Agarwal, D. & Josifovski, V. 2008, Contextual advertising by combining relevance with click feedback, Proceeding of the 17th international conference on World Wide Web, pp. 417-426, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Drgan, M., 2009, Death of Adverting, MyDayOf.com, 10 April, accesat la 10 Aprilie 2009, <http://mydaysof.com/interactive-advertising/death-ofadvertising.html> Ghosh, A & Mahdian, A 2008, Externalities in online advertising, Proceeding of the 17th international conference on World Wide Web, pp. 161-168, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Godin, S. 2009, Sixty to zero, Seths Blog, 20 Aprilie, accesat la 20 Aprilie 2009, <http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/04/sixty-to-zero.html> Mahdian, M. & Tomak, K. 2007, Towards a pay-per-action model in sponsored search, Proceedings of the ninth international conference on Electronic commerce, pp. 87-88, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Mahdian, M. & Tomak., K. 2007, Pay-per-action model for online advertising, Proceedings of the 1st international workshop on Data mining and audience intelligence for advertising, pp. 1-6, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library
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McCoy, S, Everard, A, Polak, P & Galleta, D 2007, The effects of online advertising, Communications of the ACM, Vol. 50, no. 2, pp. 84-88, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Mei, T., Hua, X. & Li, S. 2008, Contextual in-image advertising, Proceedings of the 16th ACM international conference on Multimedia, pp. 439-448, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Nazrerzadeh, H., Saberi, A. & Vokra, R. 2008, Dynamic cost-per-action mechanisms and applications to online advertising, Proceedings of the 17th international conference on World Wide Web, pp. 179-188, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Stewart, A., Chen, L., Paiu, R. & Nejdi., W 2007, Discovering information diffusion paths from blogosphere for online advertising, Proceedings of the 1st international workshop on Data mining and audience intelligence for advertising, pp. 46-54, accesat la 12 Aprilie 2009, Gzduit de: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library Vise, D. & Malseed, M. 2005, The Google Story, Bantam Dell, New York Wojcicki, S. 2009, Making Ads More Interesting, The Google Blog, 11 Martie, accesat la 11 Martie 2009<http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/03 /making-ads-more interesting.html>
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INTELIGENA COLECTIV N SISTEME MULTI-AGENT

Iulia Mrie
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia iulia.maries@hotmail.com
Rezumat
Reputaia i ncrederea sunt concepte fundamentale n sistemele multi-agent, n acelai timp fiind eseniale i vieii umane. n lucrare sunt descrise conceptele de inteligen colectiv, sisteme multi-agent, ncredere i reputaie. Apoi sunt propuse i analizate patru modele computaionale de reputaie i ncredere. Comportamentul agenilor este simulat utiliznd ipoteza legturi prefereniale. Scopul acestei lucrri este de elabora un nou model bazat pe ncredere i reputaie, cu ajutorul cruia s poate fi mrit nivelul inteligenei colective n cadrul organizaiilor. Inteligena artificial se ndreapt dinspre paradigma unei inteligene izolate spre paradigma unei inteligene sociale, colective. Datorit paradigmei agenilor inteligeni sau adaptivi i sistemelor multi-agent, i totodat emergenei tehnologiilor societii informaionale, interesul artat mecanismelor de reputaie i ncredere aplicate societilor electronice a crescut semnificativ. Inteligena colectiv este o inteligen distribuit, sau o inteligen de grup, care emerge din colaborarea indivizilor. Studiul inteligenei colective este considerat un subdomeniu n cadrul sociologiei, comunicaiei sau comportamentului, informaticii sau ciberneticii. Inteligena colectiv analizeaz comportamentul colectiv de la nivelul particulelor elementare i pn la nivelul bacteriilor, plantelor, animalelor i societii umane. Conceptul de inteligen colectiv poate fi extins spre un alt concept, acela al inteligenei relaionale. Utilizarea noilor tehnologii informaionale trebuie orientat cu precdere spre domeniul inteligenei colective, cu scopul de a ajuta oamenii s gndeasc, s dezvolte i s aplice ideile colectiv.
Cuvinte-cheie: inteligena colectiv, sisteme multi-agent, ncredere, reputaie Clasificare JEL: C63, C92
Introducere Prezena inteligenei colective a fost simit de-a lungul timpului: familiile, companiile i statele sunt formate din indivizi care, cel puin uneori, acioneaz inteligent. Coloniile de albine i furnici sunt exemple de grupuri de insecte care gsesc sursele de hran acionnd inteligent. Chiar i creierul uman poate fi privit ca o colecie de neuroni individuali care colectiv acioneaz inteligent. n ultimii ani, au aprut noi exemple de inteligen colectiv: Google i Wikipedia. Google reunete cunotinele colective create de milioane de indivizi pentru a crea site-uri web, utiliznd algoritmi i tehnologii sofisticate pentru a rspunde ntrebrilor utilizatorilor. Wikipedia utilizeaz tehnologii mai puin sofisticate, dar funcioneaz pe baza unor principii organizaionale foarte inteligente i pe baza
unor tehnici motivaionale, pentru a determina indivizi din toat lumea s participe la crearea unei colecii de cunotine. Matematic, mrimea aplicat este coeficientul de inteligen colectiv, coeficient care poate fi formalizat mai uor dect coeficientul de inteligen individual. Inteligena individual este evaluat pe baza unor rezultate ale comportamentului din timpul unor procese reale sau din timpul testelor de inteligen, n timp ce elementele inteligenei colective, cum sunt deplasrile, aciunile sau schimbul de informaie, pot fi observate, msurate i evaluate. Szuba (2000, pp. 2) a propus un model molecular formal, descris n logica matematic, pentru a prezenta conceptul de inteligen colectiv. Procesul, aleator i distribuit, este testat n logica matematic de structuri sociale. Oamenii, coloniile de furnici i bacterii, i informaiile sunt modelate sub forma unor molecule abstracte care au expresii ale logicii matematice. Acestea sunt plasate quasi-haotic n urma interaciunilor cu mediul lor extern. Interaciunile din spaiul computaional abstract creeaz un proces de inferen privit ca i inteligena colectiv. Definiia formal a inteligenei colective are o serie de cerine: moleculele informaionale trebuie s emearg ntr-un spaiu computaional concret, care poate fi format din ageni, furnici, oameni sau structuri sociale; interaciunile trebuie s emearg n spaiul computaional, ceea ce se reflect n abilitatea de a soluiona probleme specifice; iar emergena inteligenei colective determin inferene specifice, ntr-o perspectiv probabilistic. Pe baza cerinelor anterioare sunt prezentate trei ipoteze: 1. Ipoteza anterioritii: nti a aprut inteligena colectiv, ca rezultat al interaciunii moleculelor chimice de pe Pmnt 2. Ipoteza originii: apoi a aprut viaa, din aciuni colective inteligente de stabilizare sau dezvoltare 3. Ipoteza ciclicitii: dependenele dintre via i inteligen (individual sau colectiv) este rezultatul unui ciclu de dezvoltare al evoluiei. Heylighen (1999, p. 1) consider c inteligena colectiv poate fi definit ca abilitatea unui grup de a soluiona mai multe probleme dect indivizii care l compun. Pentru a depi limitele cognitive individuale i dificultile de coordonare, poate fi utilizat o hart mental colectiv. O hart mental colectiv este reprezentat ca o memorie extern cu acces partajat, putnd fi formalizat cu ajutorul unui graf direct. Mecanismul de baz al evoluiei unei hri mentale colective const n determinarea mediei preferinelor individuale, amplificnd legturile slabe prin feedback pozitiv i integrnd sub-grafuri specializate prin diviziunea muncii. Eficiena soluionrii mentale a problemelor depinde de reprezentarea acestora n sistemul cognitiv. Problema reprezentrii poate fi explicat prin mulimile strilor, aciunilor posibile, i prin criteriul de fitness, o funcie de preferin pentru selectarea aciunilor adecvate, care difer n funcie de obiectivele specifice i preferinele agentului. Mai mult, o hart mental este o reprezentare selectiv a caracteristicilor relevante soluionrii problemei, constnd n probleme ale strilor, aciunilor care conduc de la o stare la alta, i ale funciei de preferin pentru determinarea celei mai potrivite aciuni la fiecare moment. Pentru a mri abilitatea de a soluiona probleme sunt necesare dou procese
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complementare: extinderea hrii cu stri i aciuni suplimentare, i mbuntirea funciei de preferin. n aceast situaie, cu ct harta mental colectiv este mai bun, cu att mai uor vor fi soluionate problemele. Agenii inteligeni sunt caracterizai de calitatea hrilor colective pe care le dein, calitatea cunotinelor i nelegerea mediului, aciunilor i obiectivelor. Inteligena colectiv ncearc s ofere o nou perspectiv asupra unor diferite fenomene. Conceptul propune noi puncte de vedere cu privire la eficacitate, profitabilitate, munc n echip sau leadership. 1. Sisteme multi-agent Agenii i sistemele multi-agent reprezint o nou modalitate de analiz, modelare i implementare a sistemelor complexe. Viziunea bazat pe ageni ofer o gam variat de instrumente, tehnici i paradigme, cu un real potenial de a mbunti utilizarea tehnologiilor informaionale. n dicionare, agentul este definit ca cineva sau ceva care acioneaz n interesul unei alte persoane sau a unui grup. O astfel de definiie este prea general pentru a putea fi considerat operaional. Dar agenii au fost definii ca entiti computaionale rezolvatoare de probleme, autonome, capabile s execute operaii n medii dinamice i deschise (Luck, McBumey, Preist, 2003, pp. 10). Astfel, agenii ofer noi modaliti de dezvoltare a sistemelor complexe, n special n medii deschise i dinamice. Sistemele multi-agent pot aborda probleme care au multiple metode de rezolvare, multiple posibiliti de structurare sau multiple entiti rezolvatoare, ca i n cazul sistemelor distribuite. Astfel, sistemele multi-agent au avantajul rezolvrii distribuite i concurente a problemelor, dar i pe cel al reprezentrii modalitilor complexe de interaciune. Interaciunile se refer la cooperare, coordonare i negociere. 2. ncredere i reputaie n aceast seciune va fi prezentat o selecie de modele computaionale de reputaie i ncredere i vor fi descrise caracteristicile importante ale fiecrui model, fiind nti clarificate noiunile de ncredere i reputaie. Acest domeniu este relativ recent, n ultimii ani fiind propuse modele interesante cu implementare direct n diferite domenii. 2.1 ncrederea ncrederea are un rol important n societatea uman datorit componentei sociale. Conceptul de ncredere are diferite nelesuri, dar punctul de vedere al lui Gambetta pare a fi cel mai important:... ncrederea (sau, simetric, nencrederea) este un nivel particular al probabilitii subiective cu care un agent apreciaz c un alt agent sau grup de ageni vor efectua o anumit aciune, nainte de a putea verifica o astfel de aciune (sau independent de capacitatea sa de a o monitoriza) i ntr-un context n care sunt afectate doar aciunile proprii. (Gambetta, 2000, p. 4) Sunt cteva caracteristici importante ale ncrederii menionate n definiia anterioar: ncrederea este subiectiv ncrederea este afectat de aciunile care nu pot fi verificate
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Nivelul de ncredere depinde de modul n care aciunile unui agent sunt afectate de aciunile celorlali ageni. Avnd n vedere perspectiva socio-cognitiv propus de Castelfranchi i Falcone (1998, pp. 2), ncrederea reprezint o form explicit bazat pe logic i pe inteligen. Deoarece ncrederea reprezint diferite lucruri, conceptul poate fi vzut ca: O atitudine mental fa de un alt agent, o dispoziie O decizie de ncredere ntr-un alt agent, o intenie de a delega i ncrede Un comportament, de exemplu un act intenionat de ncredere i relaia dintre agentul care acord ncrederea i agentul cruia i se acord ncredere. Tipologii ale ncrederii Din perspectiva social, au fost identificate trei tipuri de ncredere: ncredere interpersonal (ncrederea direct pe care un agent o are ntr-un alt agent) ncredere impersonal (ncrederea din interiorul unui sistem, care este perceput prin diferite proprieti) ncredere dispoziional (atitudinea general de ncredere). 2.2 Reputaia Comportamentul unui agent poate fi determinat de ali ageni care coopereaz, crend un mecanism de reputaie. O definiie simpl a reputaiei poate fi exprimat prin opinia pe care ceilali o au despre noi. Cu alte cuvinte, reputaia reprezint percepia pe care un agent o are despre intenia unui alt agent, sau o ateptare cu privire la comportamentul agentului. Abdul-Rahman and Hailes (2000, p. 8) au definit reputaia ca o ateptare cu privire la comportamentul unui agent pe baza informaiilor sau observaiilor despre comportamentul anterior al acestuia. Aceast definiie consider informaiile despre reputaie provenite doar din experienele personale. 2.3 Modele computaionale de reputaie i ncredere Acest domeniu este relativ recent, n ultimii ani fiind propuse noi abordri, cu implementri directe n diferite domenii, pentru a putea determina nivelul de ncredere. Marsh (1994, pp. 53-68) a introdus un model computaional de ncredere n inteligena artificial distribuit. Un agent artificial poate atrage ncrederea i apoi poate lua decizii pe baz de ncredere. Modelul propune o reprezentare a ncrederii sub forma unei variabile continue n intervalul [-1, +1). Astfel sunt difereniate trei tipuri de ncredere: ncrederea de baz (calculat din experienele tuturor agenilor), ncrederea general (ncrederea ntr-un alt agent fr a lua n considerare o situaie specific) i ncrederea situaional (ncrederea ntr-un alt agent lund n considerare o situaie specific). Sunt propuse trei metode statistice pentru a estima ncrederea general, fiecare determinnd un alt tip de agent: metoda maximului conduce la un agent optimist (ia valoarea maxim din toate experienele avute), metoda minimului conduce la un agent pesimist (ia valoarea minim din toate
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experienele avute) i metoda mediumului conduce la un agent realist (ia valoarea medie din toate experienele avute). Valorile de ncredere sunt utilizate de ageni n luarea deciziei de a coopera sau nu cu un alt agent. Zacharia (1999, pp. 37-55) a propus dou mecanisme de reputaie (Sporas i Histos) pentru comunitile online bazate pe evaluri colective pe care agenii le primesc din partea altor ageni. Sporas ia n considerare doar cele mai recente evaluri dintre ageni, iar utilizatorii cu valori foarte mari ale reputaiei vor avea schimbri minore n urma actualizrii comparativ cu utilizatorii cu reputaie sczut. Histos vine ca rspuns, lund n considerare att informaiile directe, ct i informaiile martorilor. Valoarea reputaiei este subiectiv atribuit de fiecare individ, astfel mecanismul de reputaie putnd genera schimbri sociale n comportamentul utilizatorilor. Un mecanism de succes asigur rate de predicie ridicate i robustee mpotriva ncercrilor de manipulare sau cooperare din comunitile online. Abdul-Rahman i Hailes (2000, pp. 10-20) au sugerat un model care permite agenilor s decid n opinia crui alt agent s aib ncredere. ncrederea poate fi privit din dou perspective: ca ncredere direct sau ca ncredere recomandat. Reprezentarea ncrederii directe se poate realiza prin una din valorile: foarte de ncredere, de ncredere, de nencredere, sau de foarte puin ncredere. Pentru fiecare partener, agentul are un panel cu numrul experienelor din fiecare categorie, iar ncrederea n partener este dat de gradul corespunztor valorii maxime din panel. Acest model ia n calcul doar ncrederea provenit de la martori, ncredere recomandat, considerat reputaie. Aceast abordare nu poate diferenia agenii care mint de agenii care spun adevrul, dar care au opinii diferite, astfel c modelul ofer mai mult importan informaiilor provenite de la ageni cu puncte de vedere similare. Sabater i Sierra (2001, pp. 1-5) au propus un model modular de reputaie i ncredere (ReGreT) pentru mediul comerului electronic. Acest model ia n considerare trei tipuri de surse de informaii: experienele directe, informaiile de la alte grupuri de ageni i structurile sociale. ncrederea poate fi determinat prin combinarea experienelor directe cu modelul de reputaie. ncrederea direct este construit din interaciunile directe, utiliznd informaii percepute de agent, i detemin ncrederea pe baza experienelor directe. Modelul de reputaie este compus din tipuri de reputaie specializate: reputaia martorilor (calculat din reputaia provenit de la martori), reputaia vecinilor (calculat din informaiile cu privire la relaiile sociale dintre ageni) i reputaia de sistem (calculat din roluri i proprieti generale). Reputaia martorilor este calculat pe baza informaiilor altor ageni din comunitate. Reputaia vecinilor este exprimat pe baza mediului social al agentului i a relaiilor dintre agent i mediu. Reputaia de sistem este considerat ca o caracteristic obiectiv a agentului (de exemplu, rolul agentului n societate). Aceste componente se mbin i determin un model de ncredere bazat pe cunotine directe i reputaie.
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3. Simulri n NetLogo Legturile prefereniale sunt utilizate n descrierea reelelor sociale, biologice i tehnologice, reprezentnd mecanismul de formare pentru modelele din astfel de reele. Reelele sociale sunt reele de interaciune, unde nodurile sunt ageni i legturile dintre noduri sunt interaciuni ntre ageni. n evoluia reelelor sociale, o ipotez important este aceea c nodurile cu multe conexiuni i cresc conectivitatea mai rapid dect cele cu puine conexiuni, ipotez numit legturi prefereniale. Experimentele au artat c rata cu care nodurile atrag noi legturi depinde de gradul nodului, oferind suport cantitativ direct pentru evidenierea legturilor prefereniale. Modelele de dezvoltare a reelelor sunt bazate n special pe dou ipoteze fundamentale, creterea reelei i legturile prefereniale. Ipoteza de cretere susine c reelele se extind continuu prin adugarea de noi noduri i legturi ntre noduri, iar ipoteza de legturi prefereniale susine c rata cu care un nod ce are k legturi atrage o nou legtur este o funcie monoton cresctoare de k. 3.1 Legturi prefereniale n NetLogo Acest model arat o modalitate de apariie a reelelor, atunci cnd exist doar cteva noduri cu multe conexiuni, n timp ce majoritatea au doar puine conexiuni. Modelul pornete cu dou noduri conectate de un arc. La fiecare pas este adugat un nou nod. Un nou nod alege s se conecteze aleator de un nod deja existent, putnd fi observat c posibilitatea ca un nod s fie selectat este direct proporional cu numrul conexiunilor pe care nodul respectiv le are deja. n urmtoarele simulri, agenii vor fi nzestrai cu dou atribute, reputaie i inteligen.
Fig. 1 a)
Fig. 1 b)
Se poate observa c exist dou noduri cu au multe conexiuni, n timp ce majoritatea nodurilor au doar puine (figura 1 b) arat nodurile redimensionate, pentru claritate). Experimentele au artat c nodurile cu multe legturi vor atrage noi legturi mult mai repede dect celelalte (figurile 1 a) i 1 b)).
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3.2 Simulri Urmtoarele simulri vor ncerca s surprind comportamentul agenilor, presupunnd c sunt nzestrai cu dou atribute, reputaie i inteligen. Se va reprezenta reputaiei ca variabil aleatoare n intervalul [-1, 1] i inteligena ca variabil aleatoare n intervalul [1, 100]. Figura 2 a) arat valorile inteligenei pentru ageni. Valoarea maxim a inteligenei este 100 i valoarea minim este 80, dar diferena dintre ele se amplific pe msur ce numrul agenilor crete.
Inteligena primului agent este o valoare aleatoare ntre 1 i 100. Agenii se vor putea conecta ntre ei doar dac diferena de inteligen dintre ei variaz cu mai puin de 10. De exemplu, dac un agent are inteligena 92, el va putea avea conexiuni doar cu ageni care au inteligena ntre 82 i 100. Se poate observa c agenii se conecteaz cu acei ageni care au cea mai apropiat
Fig. 2 a)
valoare a inteligenei. De exemplu, dac exist doi ageni, unul cu inteligena 92 i un altul cu inteligena 95, un al treilea agent cu inteligena 87 va alege s se conecteze cu agentul care inteligena cea mai apropiat, agentul cu inteligena 92. n figura 2 b) sunt artate valorile reputaiei, variind n intervalul [-1, 1]. Reputaia agentului este determinat de numrul conexiunilor pe care agentul le are cu ali ageni. Cu ct numrul conexiunilor pe care le are un agent este mai mare, cu att valoarea reputaiei este mai apropiat de 1. Primul agent are frecvent valoarea reputaiei 1, fiind agentul cu cel mai mare numr de conexiuni.
Fig. 2 b)
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Figura 2 c) arat agenii nzestrai cu cele dou atribute, reputaia i inteligena.
Fig 2 c)
Un agent prefer legturi cu un alt agent care s aib un nivel mare al reputaiei, dar n acelai timp o valoare apropiat a inteligenei. Concluzii Domeniul care studiaz comportamentul organizaional este interesat n analizarea organizaiilor ca sisteme sociale complexe. ncrederea este o surs important de capital social n cadrul sistemele sociale. Teoriile susinute n acest domeniu cerceteaz comportamentul uman, individual i colectiv, din cadrul organizaiilor, iar activitile centrale ncearc s identifice determinanii cooperrii intraorganizaionale. Administrarea inteligenei colective n cadrul unei organizaii necesit combinarea tuturor instrumentelor, metodelor i proceselor care pot conduce la conectarea i cooperarea inteligenelor individuale. Inteligenta individual nu poate face fa tuturor problemelor cu care se confrunt lumea real. Pentru a clarifica problemele cu mai mult uurin este necesar extinderea inteligenei colective ctre o civilizaie global. Inteligena colectiv poate contribui la creterea competitivitii din interiorul organizaiilor n contextul unei piee globale, iar productivitatea colectiv a devenit un factor critic n dezvoltarea organizaiei. Acest lucrare evideniaz n principal aspecte teoretice cu privire la inteligena colectiv i sistemele multi-agent. Comportamentul agenilor este simulat n mediu virtual i poate fi extins la mediul real, la nivel organizaional. Cercetrile ulterioare se vor concentra asupra simulrii comportamentului agenilor prin adugarea de noi atribute sau caracteristici. Mai mult, pe baza acestor simulri se va elaborarea un model de reputaie i ncredere care s conduc la creterea inteligenei colective din cadrul organizaiilor. Acest articol a fost elaborat ca parte a proiectului Doctorat i doctoranzi n triunghiul educaie-cercetare-inovare (DOC-ECI), proiect co-finanat din Fondul Social European prin Programul Operaional Sectorial Dezvoltarea Resurselor Umane 2007-2013, coordonat de Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti.
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Bibliografie Abdul-Rahman, A., Hailes, S., 2000, Supporting Trust in Virtual Communities, Proceedings of the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, Maui, Hawaii, pp. 8-20. Atlee, T., 2008, Co-Intelligence, collective intelligence, and conscious evolution, in Tovey M. (ed.), Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace, Earth Intelligence Network Castelfranchi, C., Falcone, R., 1998, Principles of Trust for MAS: Cognitive Anatomy, Social Importance, and Quantification, Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Multi-Agent Systems Castelfranchi, C., Falcone, R., Marzo, F., 2007, Cognitive Model of Trust as Relational Capital, 10th Workshop on Trust, Privacy, Deception and Fraud in Agent Societies, Honolulu, Hawaii Falcone, R., Castelfranchi, C., 2004, Trust Dynamics: How Trust is influenced by direct experiences and by Trust itself, AAMAS 2004, New York, USA Gambetta, D., 2000, Can We Trust Trust?, in Gambetta, D. (ed.) Trust: Making and Breaking Cooperative Relations, University of Oxford Heylighen, F., 1999, Collective Intelligence and its Implementation on the Web: algorithms to develop a collective mental map, Journal of Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, Vol.5, No.3, Springer Netherlands, pp. 1-4. Lvy, P., 2006, Collective Intelligence, A Civilization: Towards a Method of Positive Interpretation, International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society, Vol.18, No.3-4, Springer Science Luck, M., McBurney, P., Preist, C., (ed.) 2003, Agent Technology: Enabling Next Generation Computing A Roadmap for Agent Based Computing, Agent Link Malone, T., W., 2008, What is collective intelligence and what will we do about it?, in Mark Tovey (ed.), Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace, Earth Intelligence Network Marsh, S., P., 1994, Formalizing Trust as a Computational Concept, PhD Thesis, Department of Computing Science and Mathematics, University of Stirling Sabater, J., Sierra, C., 2001, REGRET: A Reputation Model for Gregarious Societies, Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Autonomous Agents, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, pp. 1-9 Scarlat, E., (ed.) 2005, Ageni i Modelarea bazat pe Ageni n Economie, Editura ASE, Bucharest Szuba, T., Almulla, M., 2000, Was Collective Intelligence before Life on Earth?, in Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Parallel and Distributed Processing, Springer Berlin/ Heidelberg, pp 1-2. Zacharia, G., 1999, Collaborative Reputation Mechanisms for Online Communities, Master Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Zara, O., (ed.) 2004, Managing Collective Intelligence, Translated by Julie E. Johnson, M21 Editions, Paris
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MARKETING PE TIMP DE CRIZ

Mdlina Matei (Nioiu)
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia nitoiu.madalina@procema.ro
Rezumat
n timp de criz, unul din primele bugete reduse este cel de marketing, cu toate c acele companii inteligente tiu c pentru a rmne n via, comunicarea are o importan crucial. Motto-ul lui Darwin: "Nu supravieuiesc cei mai puternici, nici cei mai inteligeni ci aceia care tiu s se adapteze cel mai bine!". Cum ii adaptezi aadar strategia la criz? Cte resurse mai scoi la btaie i cum le faci s funcioneze ct mai bine? Cum se schimb comportamentul consumatorului pe timp de criz? Strategii n funcie de gradul n care potenialii consumatori sunt afectai de asta.Marketingul trebuie s devin o problem a ntregii companii. Totui, n continuare, n multe companii marketingul este nc insularizat i foarte puin legat funcional de celelalte departamente. Obiectivele de marketing trebuie cunoscute, susinute i evaluate pe baza de indicatori precii la toate nivelurile. A folosi la maximum resursele de IT sau sistemele de ERP n folosul marketingului, a primi la timp informaii proaspete despre schimbrile din pia de la fora de vnzri, a canaliza resursele ntregii companii pentru ndeplinirea obiectivelor de marketing sunt condiii eseniale pentru performan. n 2009, marketingul ar trebui s nceteze s mai fie un departament izolat n companii.Marketingul poate fi chiar soluia ieirii din criz pentru multe companii, ns ceea ce este mai trist e c multe dintre acestea nu realizeaz acest lucru.
Cuvinte-cheie: strategie de criz, marketing, comportamentul consumatorului Clasificarea JEL: M31 Introducere Criza financiar impune o disciplinare riguroas a ntregului proces de marketing, de la planificare pn la evaluare. Fiecare activitate i strategie trebuie revizuit i reevaluat n funcie de rezultatele pe care le-ar putea aduce. Pentru c miza este mult mai mare ntr-o perioada marcat de lipsa lichiditilor, trebuie s existe sigurana c fiecare investiie va asigura rezultate bune. Cel mai important lucru pentru marketeri n aceast perioad este certitudinea unei strategii viabile, care poate s aduc vnzri, profit i cretere pe termen lung. Un lucru normal i de bun sim de altfel, dar care devine mult mai clar, evident i necesar mai ales acum, cnd lucrurile se complic. Cel mai sigur ns este c recesiunea va impune o disciplin binevenit practicii de marketing din Romnia. A trecut vremea campaniilor fr rezultate. Dac destule companii tind s supraevalueze efectele crizei, multe se zbat s supravieuiasc. Reducerile de buget sunt drastice, iar marketingul este primul tiat de pe list, chiar dac fr voia marketerilor.
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Retrospectiva economic Companiile din Romnia au anunat concedieri masive, reduceri ale produciei i sistarea investiiilor n 2009, din cauza scderii comenzilor pe fondul accenturii efectelor crizei economice i financiare mondiale. Lipsa de pe plan local a unor instrumente financiare de tipul derivatelor aferente creditelor (mprumuturi ipotecare cu grad mare de risc) i-a fcut pe muli s spere c Romnia nu va fi afectat de criza ce ncepuse n SUA nc din vara lui 2007. ns pe msur ce criza creditelor s-a extins n toate centrele financiare puternice ale lumii, ncrederea n instituiile financiare s-a pierdut, bncile temndu-se c dac dau bani cu mprumut, s-ar putea s nu-i mai poat recupera. Astfel s-a creat un blocaj financiar propagat n valuri i ctre instituiile financiare romneti. Multe din ele s-au vzut nevoite s opreasc liniile de creditare pe care le acordaser companiilor i astfel au fost afectate imediat i cheltuielile de producie i investiii. n aceast criz a economiei reale, exportatorii primesc cea mai grea lovitur pentru c cererea i finanrile din Uniunea European i Statele Unite, principalii parteneri de afaceri ai Romniei, au nceput s scad odat cu extinderea crizei. Domeniile cele mai afectate sunt industria auto, industria prelucrtoare i cea textil, sectorul construciilor i industria lemnului. Au fost anunate numeroase concedieri, renunri la contractele de munc temporare, trimiteri n omaj tehnic, numrul persoanelor afectate urmnd s se situeze ntre 100,000 i 400,000, potrivit analitilor. Statistica oficial arat c economia romneasc a nceput s se resimt n ultimele trei luni ale anului 2008. Astfel, producia industrial a sczut cu 0,7% n octombrie fa de luna anterioar, n timp ce fa de luna similar din 2007 aceasta s-a diminuat cu 3%, din cauza comprimrii cu 4,6% a industriei prelucrtoare, care nu a putut fi compensat de creterile din sectorul de utiliti i din industria extractiv, potrivit datelor publicate de Institutul Naional de Statistic. n plus, cifra de afaceri din comerul cu amnuntul, care exclude vnzrile de autovehicule i motociclete, a sczut n octombrie 2008 cu 19% fa de luna precedent, iar ritmul anual de cretere s-a temperat semnificativ, la 8,6%. Comenzile noi din industrie au fost cu 3,6% mai mici n octombrie dect n luna anterioar, ca urmare a scderilor din sectorul bunurilor de capital i al produselor de uz curent, potrivit INS. Piaa imobiliar a fost prima care a cedat, nc din vara lui 2008. Tranzaciile din piaa imobiliar au nceput s se rreasc din vara acestui an, pe seama evoluiei incerte a preurilor pe plan internaional. n luna octombrie 2008, piaa aproape c a ngheat, n condiiile n care blocarea financiar la nivel internaional a fost dublat de noile msuri de limitare a creditrii impuse de Banca Naional a Romniei (BNR) . Pe de alt parte, temperarea creterii preurilor la construcii i terenuri era de ateptat dup scumpirile galopante din ultimii cinci ani. Astfel, muli dezvoltatori imobiliari i-au ntrerupt proiectele spernd la o revenire a preurilor, iar unii au nceput dup un timp s mai reduc marjele de profit ca s poat vinde. Efectul n lan s-a rsfrnt asupra ageniilor imobiliare, a productorilor i distribuitorilor de materiale de construcii, a productorilor de
mobil i decoraiuni interioare, dar i a celor de electrice i electrocasnice. n plus, multe companii s-au vzut nevoite s renune la planurile de extindere, tocmai din cauza blocrii pieei imobiliare. Analitii imobiliari susin c, din cauza crizei imobiliare internaionale i a condiiilor de creditare, preurile locuinelor vechi au sczut n medie cu 30%, n timp ce la apartamentele noi, scderea a fost de 5-10% n 2008. Ct privete numrul tranzaciilor imobiliare, acesta a sczut cu 20,08% n octombrie 2008 fa de aceeai lun a anului trecut, pn la 41672 uniti, potrivit ultimelor date prezentate de INS. Piaa auto romneasc a fost tras n jos de problemele investitorilor i clienilor. Industria auto din Romnia reprezint aproape 10% din PIB, cu o cifr de afaceri de circa 11,5 miliarde de euro, pare s fie unul din cele mai afectate sectoare de criza economic global, n condiiile n care marile companii pentru care Romnia produce piese i automobile i restrng activitatea. n aceste condiii, la jumtatea lunii decembrie 2008, cei doi mari productori de automobile prezeni pe piaa romneasc Renault i Ford au cerut chiar sprijin din partea statului romn. Astfel, constructorul auto american Ford, care s-a angajat s investeasc 675 milioane euro n uzina de la Craiova, ncepnd cu 2009, a cerut statului romn garanii pentru mprumuturi de 400 milioane de euro la Banca European de Investii (BEI). Renault a cerut la rndul su garanii pentru un mprumut de 100 milioane euro, n condiiile n care deruleaz la Titu dezvoltarea unui centru de proiectare. Potrivit datelor APIA, criza financiar global a mpins piaa auto romneasc la cel mai sczut nivel din 1999, nmatriculrile de maini noi din primele 11 luni din 2008 diminundu-se cu 53% fa de aceeai perioad din 20071. n luna februarie 2009 au fost vndute 10.514 automobile, n cretere cu 28,4% fa de luna precedent, dintre care 9082 autoturisme (+27,8%), 1368 vehicule comerciale (+34,1%) i 64 autobuze (+6,7%), potrivit Asociaiei Productorilor i Importatorilor de Automobile (APIA). Pe ansamblul primelor dou luni din 2009, ns, vnzrile totale fa de perioada similar a anului trecut au sczut cu 63,5%, de la 51.186 la 18.702, la autoturisme scderea fiind de 61,8%, de la 42.351 la 16.1902. Companiile siderurgice i metalurgice i-au restrns produciile. Cea mai mare oelrie din lume Arcelor Mittal, care deine combinate importate n Romnia, a anunat la jumtatea lunii decembrie c a deschis procedura plecrilor voluntare din societate, urmnd s acorde pn la 24 salarii lunare i sume compensatorii ntre 10000 i 25000 lei, n funcie de vechimea angajailor. n plus, conducerea Arcelor
Super oferte doar pe hrtie: Scumpirile pentru maini, case i turism cosmetizate de afaceriti 2009, Front news, accesat la 6 iulie 2009, <http://www.frontnews.ro/social-sieconomic/companii/super-oferte-doar-pe-hartie-scumpirile-pentru-masini-case-si-turismcosmetizate-de-afaceristi-24805> Scdere drastic a vnzrilor de maini fa de acum un an 2009, Business Standard, accesat la 23 iunie 2009, <http://standard.money.ro/articol_87203/scadere_drastica_a_ vanzarilor_de_masini fata_de_acum_un_an.html 65
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Mittal a decis s reduc numrul angajailor la nivel mondial cu 9000 de persoane n perioada urmtoare. Cel mai mare productor de aluminiu din Europa Central i de Est, Alro Slatina, a anunat, spre sfritul lunii decembrie, c ia n considerare reducerea produciei cu pn la 50% i diminuarea numrului de angajai cu 1200 de persoane n 2009, din cauza ieftinirii aluminiului cu peste 50% de la mijlocul lunii iulie 2008 i pn n prezent. Decizia final va fi luat n ianuarie. n plus, Alro ncearc s reduc i costurile cu materii prime, precum alumin, cocs, smoal i alte materiale i servicii. Productorul de cereale Interagro a anunat c disponibilizeaz n 2009 peste 90% din salariaii grupului, respectiv 5500 de oameni, 4500 dintre acetia fiind din domeniul chimiei, n condiiile n care acionarii anticipeaz c pierderile grupului vor depi 100 milioane de dolari i sper la o intervenie salvatoare din partea statului. Ageniile de turism promit s scad preurile de teama crizei. Majoritatea ageniilor de turism au anunat c din primele luni ale lui 2009 vor opera reduceri de preuri de pn la 30%, pe fondul acutizrii impactului crizei financiare asupra sectorului de profil. Bncile se confrunt n continuare cu probleme de lichiditate. Reticena bncilor de a se mprumuta ntre ele a determinat creterea rapid a ratelor dobnzii pe pieele monetare i chiar blocarea acestor piee. Marile bnci centrale au injectat lichiditi substaniale n piee, au sczut ratele dobnzilor de politic monetar i au oferit i garanii pentru depozitele interbancare. Cu toate acestea, n prezent, pieele financiare continu s fie lichide numai pentru scadenele pe termen scurt, la depozitele pentru o zi sau pentru o sptmn. Toate aceste perspective negative au determinat ageniile de rating Standard&Poors i Fitch s ne scoat din grupa rilor pentru care recomand investiii. Moodys ne-a psuit, anunnd c va atepta s vad msurile pe care le va lua noul guvern. Criza trece, strategia rmne Anul viitor va fi unul n care toata lumea va trebui s-i pun serios problema strategiei. S nu devieze de la strategia pe care o au ca urmare a presiunilor din pia, sa-i adapteze politica la noile condiii sau s o defineasc dac nu au fcut-o nc. ntr-o perioad n care costurile i lichiditile devin o problema de supravieuire, puin lume are timp de poveti cu strategii. Conteaz banii. De unde-i scoatem, cum i economisim? Mai putem face profit? Totui, fie c e vorba de supravieuire sau performan, de companii private sau instituii publice, o strategie sntoas rmne cea mai solid baz pentru orice ar
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nsemna mutrile i micrile anului 2009, indiferent de companie3. Un inteligent om de afaceri ncerca s explice, de curnd, pe un post de televiziune cu pretenii, importana strategiei de ar, n aceste momente de criz. Pentru c avea i harul vorbirii, omul spunea c nc exist bani n lume, chiar dac e criz. Doar c... sunt ascuni. Pentru ca s-i scoat la lumin i s-i atrag, Romnia are nevoie mai presus de orice de o strategie. Pentru c, dincolo de competiia global, lupta se d acum pentru capital, nu doar pentru produse i servicii. De ce ar veni banii ncoace i nu n Bulgaria, care pe lng un marketing mai eficient i mai vizibil are nc TVA de doar 14% pentru turism? Ce poate face acum Romnia? Care sunt atuurile reale si cum ar putea face o diferen semnificativ n aceast competiie global? Ct s-ar putea ctiga? Pentru c o strategie de ar ar da n sfrit o direcie pentru fiecare domeniu cu potenial, dar care bjbie nc i performeaz lamentabil, cum ar fi turismul sau agricultura. Strategia poate salva nu doar companii, ci i ri Pe timp de criz, nu doar companiile dar i rile au nevoie de o strategie inteligent de marketing. ntr-o perioada din ce n ce mai puin fast pentru turismul mondial, afectat i el inevitabil de scderea resurselor disponibile pentru cltorii, Ucraina i Turcia au devenit destinaiile de top al Europei, prima ocupnd locul 8, iar Turcia locul 9, conform ultimului studiu al Delloite, European Performance Review. Turcia i-a fcut un plan pe urmtorii 15 ani cu obiective clare: 63 de milioane de turiti pn n 2023. Un alt obiectiv este s-i ncurajeze turitii s cheltuiasc 86 de milioane de dolari n timpul cltoriilor. Planul include msuri de dezvoltare durabil a turismului i msuri concrete care i-au dovedit deja eficacitatea, cum ar fi reducerea TVA-ului pentru aceasta industrie, de la 18% la 8%. Rezultatele de pn acum sunt vizibile: o cretere de 17,6% a numrului de turiti, la 22 de milioane anual, locul 9 n topul destinaiilor turistice ale lumii i cea mai rapid rat de cretere a venitului mediu pe camer din Europa, de 18%, pn la 120 de euro. Ce-i propusese Romnia, conform aceluiai raport? S investeasc 75 de milioane de euro intr-un exerciiu de branding care s creasc vizibilitatea Romniei ca destinaie turistic. n astfel de vremuri tulburi este obligatoriu s existe o strategie. Se vorbete ns ntr-att de strategie nct cuvntul risc s-i piard semnificaia, dup prerea lui Michel Porter. Strategia a devenit un adevrat tic verbal, spune pe bun dreptate i Richard Rumelt, de la compania de consultan Mc Kinsey. Jargonul de business a transformat marketingul n strategie de marketing, procesarea datelor n strategie IT, iar achiziiile n strategie de cretere. E suficient s tai preurile i auzi vorbindu-se de strategii de pre. Strategia te face unic, spune Michael Porter. Definirea strategiei este vital pentru c ea va modela ulterior deciziile i activitile companiei. 2009 ar trebui s fie
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Oana Sav, 2009, Opinii de marketing pe timp de criz, Financial Director Romania, 27 noiembrie 2008, accesat la 30 august 2009, <www.financialdirector.ro/opinii/opinii-marketing-pe-timp-decriza.html> 67
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momentul n care s se recunoasc cinstit dac exist vreo strategie sau nu i dac aceasta e viabil. Criza care impune performan Nimic nu lmurete mai mult o minte dect o criz, spune Richard Rumelt. Schimbrile din pia oblig companiile s i reanalizeze afacerile i mediul n care opereaz, s i reconsidere abordrile i prioritile. Actuala criz poate scoate la iveal mutri i schimbri mai profunde n mediul n care concureaz companiile, modificri structurale care ar trebui s le oblige s-i revizuiasc profund strategiile. Presa scris, de exemplu, confruntat n prezent cu schimbrile legate de canalele de distribuie i obinuinele de consum i pstreaz atuul de productor de coninut ns trebuie s i revizuiasc integral actualele modele de business. Unul dintre paradoxurile crizei actuale, dup prerea lui Michael Porter autoritatea mondial n materie de strategie competitiv - ntr-o recent conferin la Seul, este c dei companiile trebuie s fie ct se poate de pragmatice, n aceste momente, trebuie s se asigure c nu rspund doar la probleme legate de criza ci i c msurile pe care le iau acum sunt valide pe termen lung. S-a dovedit de-a lungul timpului c pentru a rezista, companiile trebuie s aib capacitatea de a integra prioritile pe termen scurt i cele pe termen lung i de a rspunde la ambele, n acelai timp. Nu este suficient c se iau urgent nite msuri. Dimpotriv, dac aceste msuri risc cumva s lezeze acele competene care fac compania diferit i unic n raport cu competiia, atunci pot aprea probleme serioase. Exemplul pe care l d Porter este c o companie orientat spre excelent, ar face cea mai mare prostie sa reduc acum calitatea de dragul costurilor, punndu-i astfel in pericol avantajul competitiv. Marketerii trebuie s fie n stare s gndeasc i s-i justifice aciunile pe termen lung. Actuala criz nu poate duce dect la un marketing mai performant i la o redefinire a rolului marketingului n companii. Un marketing mai performant nseamn unul orientat pe rezultate exprimate n valoare adugat pentru acionari. Dac aceste rezultate ar putea fi vzute n termeni de ROI (Return on Investment) rentabilitatea unei investiii, atunci ar exista mai mult ncredere c investiiile mai mari ar aduce i mai multe rezultate - spunea Ian Edwards, director financiar al concernului britanic Comet. Este normal c, dincolo de mrimea bugetelor de marketing, n actualele condiii, acest indicator va deveni unul esenial n evaluarea investiiilor de marketing in 2009. Marketing privit prin prisma rentabilitii unei investiii Exist cel puin cinci modaliti prin care activitile de marketing pot fi mult mai concentrate pe rentabilitatea unei investiii: directorul general i cel de marketing s-i construiasc o agend comun, activitatea de marketing s fie integrat la nivelul ntregii companii, s existe o continuitate a activitii departamentelor de marketing, s se creeze o cultur bazat pe rezultate i, nu n ultimul rnd, s existe
o relaie mai eficient cu ageniile de publicitate i companiile de consultan. Noile provocri ridic mingea la fileu marketingului de calitate. Rolul managerilor este s creeze valoare pentru companie i va trebui s neleag c asta nseamn marketing. ntr-o economie n criz, companiile nu au cum s creeze valoare dect dac reuesc s creeze un avantaj care s le diferenieze n materie de costuri sau de performan. Fr un avantaj competitiv, unic, companiile nu au cum s genereze profituri care sa depeasc costurile capitalului investit. Abordarea unei strategii bazate pe valoare este esenial pentru meninerea avantajului competitiv. Din acest motiv cumprtorii prefer o companie n detrimentul alteia. Marketingul furnizeaz instrumentele pentru a crea acest avantaj competitiv. n plus, durata medie a mandatului unui director de marketing este foarte mic, de aproximativ 22 de luni n Marea Britanie i similar i la noi, chiar dac nu avem cifre exacte. Explicaia este legat n mare msur de lipsa abilitaii oamenilor de marketing de a-i justifica activitile n termeni financiari, de insularizarea marketingului n cadrul companiei i de ateptri nerealiste n legtur cu ce rezultate poate livra acesta. De multe ori nu exist o continuitate n strategie, iar noii directori nu profit de realizrile predecesorilor. O cultur bazat pe rezultate nseamn identificarea unor indicatori de performan relevani i care pot fi msurai n termeni de rentabilitate a unei investiii i valoare pe care o genereaz, sisteme de informaii de marketing funcionale i eficiente, deschidere pentru indicatori care msoar eficiena pe termen lung, cum ar fi valoarea de via a consumatorului versus rezultate pe termen scurt, deschidere ctre experiment i inovaie. Relaia cu ageniile de publicitate, cercetare sau consultanii de marketing ai companiilor trebuie i ea reconsiderat. Cel mai adesea companiile se plng n legtur cu performana i eficiena acestora, ns i trateaz mai degrab ca pe nite executani, ca pe nite furnizori care trebuie disciplinai prin reduceri de bugete dect ca pe nite parteneri care pot ntr-adevr s i ajute s i creasc business-ul. n loc s-i piard timp cu licitaii i s reia procesul lung prin care o agenie ajunge s-i cunoasc bine clientul, marketerii ar putea s ncerce s scoat tot ce e mai bun de la colaboratorii lor prin obiective mai clare i soluii care s fac din agenie un adevrat partener. Procter&Gamble, de exemplu, i rspltete ageniile cu un comision din creterile de vnzri pe care le genereaz. Strategii pentru succes n 2010 n 2010 marketingul ar trebui s-i rectige influena i impactul n conducerile companiilor. Ponderea marketerilor n consiliile de conducere att la noi ct i aiurea rmne foarte mic, iar numrul directorilor de marketing promovai la conducerea firmei rmne destul de mic. Un exemplu rarisim i binevenit la noi este cel de la Arctic, n care directorul de marketing i vnzri a fost promovat ca director general. Conform unui studiu al Chartered Institute of Marketing, doar 14 % dintre primele zece companii britanice, aveau un reprezentant de marketing n conducere. Probabil c la noi cifra ar fi semnificativ mai mic. Un studiu recent al
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Delloite - Marketing in 3D, arat din nou ct de puin este neles nc rolul marketingului la nivelul consiliilor de conducere. Privind partea pozitiv, 2010 va fi un an n care marketingul va conta mai mult ca oricnd n Romnia, un an n care rezultatele vor fi singurele apreciate. Pentru a trece cu bine peste anul 2010, trebuie s avem un plan de marketing bine pus la punct. Acesta trebuie s conin analiza concurenei, poziionarea propriei companii, aciunile tactice, planificarea i bineneles instrumentele de msurare. Dac la momentul respectiv, tu ca marketer, ai intuit bine evoluia ulterioar a evenimentelor i ai pus la punct un plan de rezerv sau un plan B pentru perioada de criz, atunci probabil ai fost mai pregtit pentru ceea ce a urmat i eti pregtit n continuare cu strategia i tacticile potrivite. n condiiile schimbrilor brute survenite n obinuinele de consum, n aciunile concurenilor, n atitudinile furnizorilor, n posibilitile de plat ale clienilor, strategia pentru perioada urmtoare va trebui regndit. Eficiena proceselor trebuie s fie una din preocuprile principale. Concentrarea pe produse cheie i o estimare realist a vnzrilor pot reprezenta reduceri de costuri importante fie cu stocurile fie cu necesarul de personal4. Meninerea sau creterea cotei de pia actual sunt obiective de preferat n locul extinderii pe o pia nou sau lrgirea gamei de produse. n unele cazuri ns, criza va aduce oportuniti pe unele piee, odat cu falimentul unui competitor sau disponibilitatea consumatorilor pentru un produs/serviciu nou. Lansarea de produse adaptate contextului economic trebuie s fie n concordan cu viziunea pe termen lung a brandului, nu doar s profite de posibile realizri pe termen scurt. Reevaluarea target-ului de vnzri trebuie s reflecte potenialul real existent n mediul economic. Nu toi consumatorii sunt afectai la fel de criza financiar. Clientul de materiale de construcii e posibil s fie mult mai prudent i s-i reduc drastic planurile de achiziii pentru perioada imediat urmtoare. Este nevoie mai mult dect oricnd s tii cum i redefinete consumatorul valoarea i cum reacioneaz la criz. Consumatorul caut produse durabile, care ofer siguran, i al cror raport pre/calitate este perceput ca fiind foarte bun. Sunt predispui s amne achiziia altor produse sau servicii, s se concentreze pe strictul necesar i cntresc minuios opiunile. ncrederea este unul din factorii cheie ai relaiei ntre companie i client. Nu face promisiuni nerealiste pe care nu le poi respecta. O promisiune nclcat va nsemna un client nemulumit, care acord mai puin credit companiei pe viitor. Vei pierde resurse importante dac nu tii s respeci cu strictee aceast regul.
Henry Mintzberg, 2008, Ascensiunea i declinul planificrii strategice Editura Public, Bucureti Jurnalul Cercetrii Doctorale n tiine Economice
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Oamenii nu au timp, bani i chef de pierdut. Utilizeaz i optimizeaz canalele de comunicare bidirecionale cu consumatorul. Pentru orice informaie, nemulumire, ntrebare, sugestie clientul trebuie s aib acces ct mai facil la companie. nainte de a comanda o cercetare de pia, gndete-te la datele de care dispui. Analizeaz baza de date cu clienii existeni, verific cota de client, analizeaz evoluia anual. mparte clienii n categorii, verific care categorii sunt cele mai profitabile i ce caracteristici aparte au. D dreptate cifrelor i nu supoziiilor, cerceteaz i realizeaz toate conexiunile posibile pentru a extrage date valoroase. Baza de date cu clieni poate reprezenta un activ extrem de valoros dac o tratezi ca atare. Faptul c un client a fost de acord s-i furnizeze informaii despre el la un moment dat nseamn c dorete s continue sau cel puin i permite s comunici. Lansarea de noi produse, adaptate climatului economic ar trebui fcut cu grij, calculnd beneficiile existente versus resursele implicate. Meninerea bugetelor de cercetare-dezvoltare este o abordare corect pentru a asigura o poziie solid n pia pe termen lung. Reducerea preurilor n perioada de criz, poate fi tentant n scopul atragerii de clieni sensibili la pre, dar poate fi o strategie riscant pe termen mediu i lung. n primul rnd trebuie s fi atent la micrile iniiate de concuren. E posibil ca i ei s fac acelai lucru. Marketingul poate fi chiar soluia ieirii din criz pentru multe companii, ns ceea ce este mai trist e c multe dintre acestea nu realizeaz acest lucru. Ba mai mult, companiile, din dorina de a economisi ct mai mult n aceast perioad, reduc bugetele de marketing cu procente ngrijortoare. Concluzii Avem de-a face cu o criz plin de paradoxuri. n primul rnd, companiile trebuie sa creeze un echilibru ntre msurile pe care le iau pe termen scurt i strategia pe termen lung i s reueasc s le mpace pe ambele. Chiar dac provocarea, pentru muli, este deocamdat supravieuirea i trebuie s reacioneze n mod pragmatic la criz, miza rmne strategia pe termen lung. Vor avea probleme cei care reacioneaz exagerat. De exemplu, companiile care sunt orientate strategic pe excelent, ar face cea mai mare greeal s reduc n aceste momente calitatea serviciilor sau a produselor. n al doilea rnd, n mod paradoxal, n aceast perioad multe companii au mai mult flexibilitate pentru decizii i micri strategice pe care nu le-ar fi putut avea n condiii normale. Criza financiar e un moment n care nu are rost s te uii la indicatori pe termen scurt: preul aciunilor, raportri trimestriale pentru c acum diferenele nu conteaz. Dimpotriv, este un moment favorabil s gndeti implicaiile, alternativele i strategiile pe termen lung. n plus, este vorba de o criz atipic i care se manifest ca un cancer , o criz ale crei cauze se afl integral n problemele create n piaa serviciilor financiare.
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Multe companii globale au demonstrat performane ludabile, au luat decizii bune, s-au extins i fac exporturi de succes s-au trezit afectate indirect de probleme legate de credite, investiii, lichiditi.5. S fii aproape de clieni (sau de consumatori) n funcie de tipul de business, este uor, ns este de asemenea uor s uii acest lucru n timpul unei recesiuni cnd activitile operaionale par a conta mai mult. Iat 10 lucruri importante pentru a nu pierde contactul cu clienii: Concentreaz-i atenia spre cei mai buni clieni cei care doresc s colaboreze cu firma ta i care aduc profituri n urma serviciilor contractate. Cerceteaz prioritile lor aflate n schimbare prioritile clienilor se schimb n timpul unei crize aa c afl ce conteaz pentru ei acum, ce este i ce nu este esenial pentru ei. Dezvolt propuneri mai relevante vino n ntmpinarea nevoilor clienilor ntr-un mod mai specific, de exemplu prin combinarea mai multor produse cu scopul de a rezolva anumite probleme. Comunica pe ci relevante recesiunile sunt mai puin legate de individualism, aer liber i aventur i au mai multe n comun cu familia, casa i sigurana. Servete-i ntr-un mod mai personal te ajut s-i nelegi mai bine i s faci ceea ce conteaz mai mult pentru fiecare client n parte. Cldete relaii, nu tranzacii nu i aglomera cu oferte care s fie doar simple reduceri de pre (e numai o risip de bani din partea ta). Fii empatic la suferinele lor f mai multe pentru ei, de exemplu ajut-i cu termene de plat mai favorabile sau prin adugarea unui nou produs sau a unui nou serviciu Conecteaz-i cu ali clieni adaug mai mult valoare business-ului tu conectnd clieni care se aseamn n modul de gndire atunci cnd consumatorii au n comun un sport sau o alt pasiune, afacerile au n comun idei i oportuniti. Continu s comunici cu ei este foarte uor s uii de clieni pe timp de criz tocmai acum ei au nevoie de suport i reasigurare newslettere regulate, distribuite ieftin prin SMS sau prin email te ajuta sa pstrezi legtura. Energizeaz-i clienii! trim ntr-o lume dur n care ncrederea a ajuns la un minim, mass-media e plina de tiri negative ofer clienilor un motiv s zmbeasc, s fie fericii i s vorbeasc despre ceva pozitiv. Pe scurt, soluia pe timp de criz e tot strategia. Cum spunea Porter, tehnologia se schimb, strategia nu. Criza trece, strategiile rmn. Companiile fr strategie nu.
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Cum s adaptezi strategia de marketing la criz, 07 mai 2009, Only Word Dot, accesat la 23 iunie 2009 <http://www.onlywords.ro/2009/05/07/cum-sa-adaptezi-strategia-de-marketing-lacriza/> Jurnalul Cercetrii Doctorale n tiine Economice
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Bibliografie Anghel D., Petrescu C , 2000, Business to Business Marketing, Editura Uranus, Bucureti Florescu C., 1973, Marketing - Editura Independena Economic, Bucureti Henry Mintzberg, 2008, Ascensiunea i declinul planificrii strategice Editura Public, Bucureti Michael Porter, 28 noiembrie 2008, The Trilogy: Competitive Strategy, Competitive Advantage, the Competitive Advantage of Nations, Seoul National University Oana Sav, 2009, Opinii de marketing pe timp de criz, Financial Director Romania, 27 noiembrie 2008, accesat la 30 august 2009, <www.financialdirector.ro/opinii/opinii-marketing-pe-timp-de-criza.html> Liviu Voinea, 2009, Economia trebuie stimulat nu frnat, Adevrul, 25 februarie 2009, accesat la 01 noiembrie 2009, <www.adevarul.ro/articole/ liviu-voinea-economia-trebuie-stimulata-nu-franata.html> William Bonner, Addison Wiggin, 2007, The Rise of an Epic Financial Crisis, John Wiley&Sons, Inc, Canada Cum s adaptezi strategia de marketing la criz, 07 mai 2009, Only Word Dot , accesat la 23 iunie 2009 <http://www.onlywords.ro/2009/05/07/cum-sa-adaptezi-strategia-demarketing-la-criza/> Scdere drastic a vnzrilor de maini fa de acum un an 31 martie 2009, Business Standard, accesat la 23 iunie 2009, <http://standard.money.ro/ articol_87203/scadere_drastica_a_vanzarilor_de_masini_fata_de_acum_un_ an.html > Super oferte doar pe hrtie: Scumpirile pentru maini, case i turism cosmetizate de afaceriti 25 februarie 2009, Front news, accesat la 6 iulie 2009, <http://www.frontnews.ro/social-si-economic/companii/super-oferte-doarpe-hartie-scumpirile-pentru-masini-case-si-turism-cosmetizate-de-afaceristi24805>
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PUBLICITATEA PRIN COMUNITILE VIRTUALE FORM MODERN DE MARKETING ONLINE N CONTEXTUL CRIZEI ECONOMICE MONDIALE
Iacob CTOIU
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia facultatea@marketing.ase.ro
Ivona STOICA
Universitatea Romno-American, Bucureti, Romnia ivonas@ase.ro
Rezumat
Criza economic mondial a dus la restrngerea activitii a numeroase firme prea puin puternice din punct de vedere financiar pentru a supravieui. n viitorul apropiat, puini actori vor rmne n scen iar acetia sunt liderii de pia care au investit n imaginea lor i care au cercetat ndelung piaa reuind s se adapteze la condiiile conjuncturii nefavorabile care ne nconjoar. Creativitatea mijloacelor folosite n mediul online depete cu mult mijloacele marketingului tradiional care ncepe s fie considerat ca fiind costisitor i din ce n ce mai greu de aplicat. n acest context firmele trebuie s fie prezente n mediul online fie c este vorba de o lansare de produs, fie de consolidarea imaginii unui brand existent, apariia unui nou serviciu. Orice aciune de marketing realizat n mediul online ajunge s genereze comportamente de marketing, scopul fiind atins prin mulimea de internaui care vor ajunge la informaia postat i vor lua decizii cu privire la aceasta. n viitorul cel mai apropiat, o firm nu i va mai putea permite s fac publicitate online fr s fi studiat exact nevoile cybernauilor. Astfel publicitatea contextual, aplicaiile online, comunitile sociale, vor deveni instrumente strategice direcionate ctre segmentul int putnd astfel s se poziioneze clar n mintea consumatorilor. Criza economic a dus astfel cu fora la maturizarea rapid a afacerilor din mediul online. Momentul de criz devine o oportunitate benefic pentru marketerii curajoi care vor tii s exploateze situaia de recesiune aprut n SUA i rspndit n toat lumea i care vor folosi drept catalizator pentru pia folosirea de noi canale de comunicare mai eficiente i puin costisitoare instrumente puternice precum comunitile virtuale.
Cuvinte-cheie: criz economic mondial, marketing online, comuniti virtuale Clasificare JEL: M39 Introducere Dimensiunea economic dezvolt noi paradigme ale economiei digitale i ale economiei bazat pe cunotine (e-marketing, e-comer, e-banking, e-learning, emoney, e-trading, plile online, afaceri online, etc.). ncasrile operatorilor din servicii Internet au urcat anul trecut cu 33,2%, la 293 mil. euro, n timp ce veniturile din telefonia mobil au crescut cu 16,2% la 1,88 mld. euro, iar cele din serviciile TV au avansat cu 20,3%, la 367 mil. Euro.
n aceast perioad nefavorabil din punct de vedere economic, puini sunt cei care se mai gndesc la dezvoltarea unei afaceri aceasta fiind o consecin a faptului c ntr-un timp relativ scurt multe firme din Romnia s-au gsit n dificultatea de a concedia din personal i de a tia din bugete pentru a nu deveni falimentare. Concedierea personalului de departe nu apare ca cea mai strlucit soluie, iar acest perioad de criz ar trebi privit ca pe un stimulator de gsire a unor mijloace creative satisfctoare pentru client i aductoare de profit pe termen lung. Istoria economic ne-a artat c fiecare perioad de criz a adus cu sine o alta lung i prosper, marketerii oferind o perspectiv optimist deoarece consider perioada ca fiind fertil din punctul de vedere al instrumentelor folosite i a gsirii de noi mijloace profitabile de a dezvolta afaceri cu bugete reduse. Afacerile cu terenuri, spaii de birouri au pierdut considerabil din valoare odat cu instalarea crizei, cei mai ctigai fiind cei care s-au reorientat i au gsit refugiu n mediul online crend o afacere mic dar care n civa ani de zile va aduce ctiguri uriae dac este concertat corespunztor din perspective folosirii strategice a instrumentelor i mijloacelor de marketing online. n 2008 conform unui studiu efectuat de o companie de cercetri din SUA, cheltuielile cu publicitatea i relaiile publice au avut o pondere de 10%, satisfacia consumatorilor - 8%, teste de produs - 30%, sales tracking - 20%, atitudini i utilizare - 11%, studii sociale i politice - 3%, evaluare site-uri de utilizatori - 5%, cercetri calitative - 1% etc.. n mediul online este imperios necesar s nu uitm regula celor 3 C caut, compar, cumpr deoarece internauii caut informaii pe Internet, compar rezultatele de cutare i n cele din urm sunt influenai n decizia de cumprare. Ca atare, marketingul online nseamn folosirea puterii reelelor de computere i de comunicaie online i a mediului digital interactiv pentru a atinge obiectivele de marketing. Modul cum arat reeaua Internet s-a schimbat n mod dramatic, cu o cretere stabil a ratei de penetrare a Internetului n rile dezvoltate, a lrgimii benzii de acces la Internet, creteri impresionate chiar i n rile n curs de dezvoltare. Creterea rapid a Internetului creeaz oportunitatea desfurrii cercetrii de marketing online. Se estimeaz c aproximativ 60% din populaia Statelor Unite i a Uniunii Europene are acces la Internet. De asemenea, aceste regiuni nsumeaz un procent important din puterea de cumprare mondial, conform British Marketing Research Association i ESOMAR (ESOMAR World Wide Panel Research 2008). Comunitile virtuale instrumente de marketing online O reea social se poate defini ca o aplicaie care ajut, extinde sau capt consisten cu ajutorul interaciunii umane, interaciunii ntre grupuri care mprtesc aceleai interese, care vin din acelai mediu cultural, geografic sau
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care n funcie de un anumit criteriu se pot altura i constitui ntr-o comunitate de interese. Reelele sociale prezint structura unui muuroi de furnici; micrile i punctele de contact sunt observate i nu sunt ntmpltoare acestea reprezentnd un patern de construire a profilului publicului int cruia marketerii se adreseaz. Termenul de comunitate virtual face referire la grupurile a cror comunicare este mediat prin intermediul calculatoarelor i a Internetului. Comunitatea virtual se definete prin website-uri, forumuri, RSS Feeds - fluxuri de tiri. Analiza reelei se bazeaz pe noiuni intuitive i aceste paternuri reprezint de fapt caracteristici importante n viaa individului care le afieaz. Cei care analizeaz reelele sunt de convingerea c se poate observa n cea mai mare parte comportamentul real al individului din modul n care acesta interacioneaz n cadrul acestor comuniti virtuale. Majoritatea organizaiilor i targeteaz publicul int tocmai prin profilurile analizate pe reelele sociale. De asemenea reelele sociale sunt i un mod plcut de a scpa de stress-ul acumulat la locul de munc sau de diverse ntmplri mai puin fericite din viaa fiecruia, un mod gratuit de petrecere a timpului liber dar i un mod liber de exprimare. Dezvoltarea Internetului n era tehnologic n care trim a adus cu sine noi instrumente din ce n ce mai neconvenionale dar care s-au propagat printre noi i care au ajuns s devin cele importante arme de marketing n lupta cu concurena. Odat cu apariia Internetului au disprut bariere precum timpul i distana, iar revoluia creat a fcut posibil accesul la informaii disponibile instantaneu i de ultim noutate. Conectarea la aceast lume virtual permite crearea de legturi ntre sute de milioane de oameni de pe ntreaga planet unii de interese comune putnd face schimb de informaii, fie n scopuri profesionale, fie recreativ. Marele avantaj al Internetului pe lng schimbul cultural este anonimitatea i posibilitatea de a evada din viaa real pentru ca individul s poat deveni altcineva i astfel se poate reinventa. Acest fapt a condus la apariia a mii de comuniti online pe diverse teme, devenind un fenomen foarte amplu ntr-o perioad scurt de timp. Comunitile online se definesc ca fiind acele grupuri sociale formate din indivizi ce mpart aceleai interese, valori, credine beneficiind de avantajul c-i pot atribui o identitate proprie. Astfel prin comuniti virtuale precum Twitter i-a ctigat popularitate Barack Obama Preedintele SUA n rndul alegtorilor si, dar exemplul acesta a fost urmat de o serie de celebriti dar i de branduri cu scopul de a atrage ct mai muli followeri care s propage informaii de la un user la altul atribuindu-se sursei de rspndire putere i credibilitate. Comunitile online sunt cele mai vnate de frmele care doresc s-i promoveze brandurile mai eficient. Strategia care se folosete este o strategie tip pull (de tragere) ce implic activiti de marketing mai exact publicitate, direcionate ctre
end user i menite s-l atrag pe acesta s solicite informaii despre produsele promovate pentru ca n final decizia de cumprare s se manifeste solicitnd produsele de la intermediari, determinndu-i astfel pe acetia din urm s comande produsele la productori. Un raport recent (realizat de Jennings, R., Spivey Overby,C., Bowen, E., 2009) de ctre prestigioasa firm de cercetri de marketing Forrester, dezvluie creterea considerabil a publicitii realizate n mediul online. Din studiu reiese poziionarea pe prmele locuri a mobile marketing urmat de comunitile virtuale i apoi de email marketing.
Marketing pe mobil Re ele sociale Marketing prin email Publicitate pe LCD
Cheltuieli cu marketingul interactiv (milioane $)
Marketing de cutare
Marketing pe mobil Re ele sociale Marketing prin e-mail Publicitate pe display Marketing de cutare Total Cheltuileli cu publicitatea (%)
Figura 1 Cheltuieli previzionate cu publicitatea interactiv pentru SUA (Sursa: Forrester Research)
Utilizatorii care contribuie la dezvoltarea prosper a oricrei comuniti virtuale se mpart n mai multe categorii i anume creatori, critici, organizatorii de informaii/strngtorii, membrii/joinerii, spectatorii, i userii inactivi (http://www.forrester.com). Ca s nelegem mecanismul de funcionare al unei comuniti virtuale este necesar definirea categoriilor de lucrtori care propag informaia, alimenteaz stupul i genereaz venituri. Astfel creatorii/iniiatorii sunt cei care lanseaz informaia, scriu articole n propriile bloguri, i ncarc fiiere text, audio, video despre firma pe care o reprezint dac acetia urmresc ca scop repoziionarea brandului i recogniia produselor sale n rndul internauilor.
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Criticii sunt cei care replic celor care au creat informaia i posteaz review-uri referitoare la subiectul lansat de creatori sau la blog, devin membrii n forumuri sau scriu articole de tipul celor wikipedia. De asemenea posteaz ratinguri i reviewri/evaluri pentru produce i servicii, comenteaz alte bloguri etc. Strngtorii de informaii sunt cei care i organizeaz informaiile folosind RSS Feed, taguri i voteaz favorabil sau nefavorabil pentru diverse site-uri. Membrii/joinerii sunt cei care se altur comunitilor sociale precum Twitter, MySpace, FaceBook, care au grij s i actualizeze profilul de fiecare dat pe site-ul comunitii din care face parte i care viziteaz i ale asemenea comuniti. Spectatorii sunt aceia care asimileaz informaiile citind blogurile, urmrind materialele audio/video postate de alii, ascultnd podcast-urile, citind forumurile online, citind reviews-urile/rating-urile clienilor. Userii pasivi/inactivii sunt aceia care nici nu genereaz i nici nu consum informaia ci pur i simple exist acolo doar pentru c este n trend s fii membru al unei comuniti virtuale sau pur i simplu dintr-o curiozitate satisfcut i sufocat din cauza unei incompatibiliti de interese sau poate din cauz c timpul un le permite s se regseasc n nici una din categoriile active explicate mai sus. Toate aceste categorii formeaz un ecosistem car ecu ajutorul a ceea ce cunoatem despre fiecare putem elabora diverse strategii cares ne poat poziiona n mintea consumatorului. E modul cel mai sigur i tenace de a ajunge n black-box-ul consumatorului ctigndu-i ncrederea datorat celor pe care el i urmeaz (followeri). Potrivit unor autori, studiile online au o acuratee egal sau chiar mai mare dect interviurile telefonice n previzionarea comportamentelor). De asemenea se observ cum se desfoar relaiile B2B, B2C ceea ce face din acest tip de comunicare s devin interesant pentru marketeri. Conform studiului dezvoltat de Forrester research, 91% din consumatori iau decizii n urma informaiilor de pe bloguri, din postri video, review-uri ale clienilor fiind membri ai cel puin unei comuniti virtuale, 55% din categora cumprtorilor B2B sunt joineri care i-au creat un profil pe o astfel de reea social, i criticii care reprezint cea mai impotant categorie dup spectatori, aceia las comentarii pe
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bloguri, fac review-uri produselor, au fost mprii n 58% care pur i simplu s-au lsat dui de valul unor discuii online iar 43% sunt cei care fac parte din segmentul creative media care urmresc s creeze profiluri de consumatori, segmenteaz piaa, poziioneaz produsul i elaboreaz strategii de marketing generatoare de profituri. Cele mai cunoscute retele sociale sunt Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, BlackPlanet, binecunoscutul hi5, Yahoo 360 care din clasament arat c este pe poziia 10. De asemenea nu trebuie uitate comunitile video-muzicale precum YouTube sau artistice ca DeviantArt. My Space are cea mai mare cot de pia, 72,3%. Facebook reprezint a doua putere n S.U.A. pe segmentul comunitii virtuale. Limite ale comunitilor virtuale nscrierea pe o astfel de comunitate online, a devenit mai mult o tendin printre utilizatori deoarece prietenii sau cunoscuii sunt nscrii, dar i un instrument profitabil de promovare pentru cei din mediul business. Reelele sociale sunt un mijloc de comunicare, sincron prin chat sau asincron prin forum, o posibilitate de cunoatere avnd n vedere faptul c se folosesc poze, respectiv avataruri. Exist ns i dezavantajul n care se depesc limitele normaliii iar utilizatorii ajung s nu se mai dezlipesc din faa calculatorului, comand online, iubesc online, comunic cu prietenii online, retregndu-se treptat din viaa real n viaa virtual. Afacerile dezvoltate online folosind comunitile virtuale ca instrument de propagare a informaiilor despre produsele i serviciile oferite i intesc un public mult prea grbit i mult prea preocupat de ctigarea existenei i de pstrarea locului de munc cu att mai mult cu ct este situaie de criz. Marketingul online n aceast perioad de criz economic, se afl n continu expansiune deoarece datorit costurilor mici, firmele ncep s foloseasc din ce n ce mai mult reelele sociale i comunitile online pentru a-i promova produsele, prin afiarea de bannere sau prin inflitrarea unei persoane care mai apoi face reclama unui produs sau unei firme prin expunerea linkului n listele de discuii. De asemenea, conform statisticilor, angajatorii caut informaii despre actualii sau potenialii angajai pe acest gen de site-uri, pentru a-i face o idee asupra valorilor i a profilului psihologic al acestora pentru c n mediul online ne desfurm exact aa cum suntem, i chiar i cel mai mic detaliu dezvluie adevrata noastr personalitate. Pentru ca aceste reele sociale din care cei mai muli fac parte s nu aib o influen negativ userii nu trebuie s-i expun datele reale, astfel se reduce i riscul fraudelor pe Internet care nu sunt deloc uor de controlat.
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O comunitate mediat pe calculator utilizeaz programe speciale pentru a controla activitile participanilor. O comunitate online ca s fie considerat una responsabil trebuie s colaboreze cu un software open source i poart denumirea de comunitate de dezvoltare. Posibilitatea de a interaciona cu alte persoane ntre care exist anumite afiniti, aflate oriunde pe glob are beneficii considerabile, dar comunitile virtuale prezint i dezavantaje folosite cu abilitate de persoane cu rele intenii din care cauz inspir fric i nate controverse i critici. Concluzii Importana unei comuniti virtuale const n puternicul su caracter social pe care-l manifest asupra membrilor ntre care se construiete o strns legtur emoional. Aceast legtur emoional se creeaz n primul rnd datorit faptului c membrii mprtesc acelea convingeri, au interese comune i se creeaz schiburi de informaii chiar dac se afl n locuri diferite pe glob. O comunitate virtual implic de asemenea i o serie de efecte psihologice pozitive, ceea ce permite membrilor mai mult putere de interaciune (apartenena la grup), susinerea din partea celorlali membrii, identificarea cu comunitatea, recunoatere, putere de influen, legtur emoional puternic datorit intereselor comune pe care le mprtesc. Este important ca managerii s neleag motivul pentru care apar comunitile virtuale, care sunt prghiile care intervin i mai ales cum este posibil meninerea relaiei dintre membrii. Termenul de comunitate implic numeroase efecte psihologice pozitive, ceea ce le acord membrilor comunitii virtuale mai multa for de interactiune (identificarea cu comunitatea i apartenena la grup, sprijin din partea celorlali membrii ai comunitii, recunoatere pe domeniul de interes, putere de influen, stabilirea unor relaii susinute de interese comune etc.). Diversitatea avantajelor pe care le aduc comunitile virtuale se manifest n special prin faptul c adun oamenii i ei devin propovduitorii brandurilor care tiu s se promoveze. Printre avantajele comunitilor virtuale se numr sentimentul de apartenen (cum sunt comunitatea oamenilor de afaceri din Romania, comunitatea managerilor de proiect, comunitatea specialistilor n Resurse Umane), apare inevitabil i nevoia de integrare (presupune abiliti n gestionarea grupului, mprirea valorilor, acordarea de ajutor celor care se confrunt cu diverse probleme). De asemenea, importante sunt conexiunea emoional care se stabilete n urm interaciunilor care au loc n interiorul comunitii, sentimentul de influen care survine din normele stabilite de grup etc. Toate aceste avantaje confer comunitilor online putere de influen asupra clienilor, i ctigare de poteniali clieni, transformndu-le n instrumente strategice de marketing online.
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Valoarea pieei de publicitate online din Europa n 2008 a fost de 12,9 miliarde euro, cu 20% mai mult fa de 2007, conform unui studiu IAB Europe realizat n parteneriat cu firma de audit i consultan PricewaterhouseCoopers. ara cu cele mai mari venituri rezultate din publicitate online n 2008 a fost Marea Britanie, cu 3,44 miliarde euro cu 19% mai mult fa de 2007. Locul doi este ocupat de Germania, cu 2,97 mld. euro, tot cu 19% mai mult fa de 2007, iar pe locul trei Frana, cu 1,8 mld. euro, adic a nregistrat o cretere de 18% fa de 2007. Pe ultimele trei locuri sunt situate Slovenia, Romnia i Croaia, primele dou la egalitate cu cte 20 mld. euro, Croaia nregistrnd 16 mld. euro din segmentul de publicitate online. Pentru prima oar, Romania intra in acest clasament european. Piaa de publicitate online din Romnia nu evolueaz ntr-un ritm destul de lent fiind considerat de dou ori mai mic dect piaa de publicitate online din Grecia i de patru ori mai mic dect cea din Ungaria. La momentul n care ne aflm, comunitile virtuale sunt folosite ca instrument strategic n publicitatea online, n ri precum Rusia unde numrul userilor a crescut semnificativ n ultima vreme, un aspect foarte interesant i o nou perspectiv este oferit de firmele de HR din Marea Britanie care folosesc comunitile virtuale ca i portaluri n recrutarea angajailor i iari la un nivel foarte ridicat se afl i Polonia. Propunerea pentru firmele din Romnia este aceea de a-i creea propriile comuniti virtuale de a le folosi cu ncredere deoarece sunt adevrai magnei n atragerea clienilor i mai ales deoarece, brandurile care vor avea curajul s se foloseasca mai mult de mediul online vor cpta puteri nebnuite pe piaa publicitii online. n Romnia, cu pai timizi, ncep s se afirme n mediul online diverse firme care nu au gsit nca curajul de a investi bani n mediul digital dar care, sunt contiente c n viitorul apropiat mediul afacerilor de succes este Internetul datorit creterii vertiginoase a numrului de utilizatori, a propagrii informaiei n timp real i mai ales datorit faptului c investiiile financiare sunt mai avantajoase. Bibliografie Balaure V. (coordonator), Marketing, ediia a II-a, Editura Uranus, Bucureti, 2002 Chui Michael, Miller Andy, and Roberts P. Roger - Six ways to make Web 2.0 work, february 2009, Source: Business Technology Office Orzan, G., Orzan, M., Cybermarketing, Editura Uranus, Bucureti, 2007 Orzan, Gh., Sisteme informatice de marketing, Editura Uranus, Bucureti, 2001 Seceleanu, A. Explozie pe rezidenial la abonaii de telefonie mobil, Ziarul Financiar, 8 decembrie 2008 Ungureanu, A., Internetul de band larg din Romnia, mai ngust dect media european, Curierul Naional, 10 aprilie 2009, http://www.curierulnational.ro /print/117128
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http://www.insna.org/sna/what.html Lin Freeman http://www.forrester.com http://www.submitsuite.ro/blog/lista-retele-sociale-romania http://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societate_informaional http://www.info-ghid.com/fenomenul-comunicarii-online-retelele-sociale-s.html http://athenian-legacy.com/ro/2009/01/comunitatile-virtuale/comment-page-1/ http://www.journaldunet.com/cc/03_internetmonde/reseaux-sociaux.shtml http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007042 http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Six_ways_to_make_Web_20_work_2294 Jennings, R., Spivey Overby,C., Bowen, E. - Previziuni asupra marketingului interactiv i a canalelor de comunicare folosite n condiiile unei economii defectuase, articol realizat cu sprijinul Forrester Research, 2009
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CAPITAL DE RISC: SOLUII FINANCIARE PENTRU IMM-URILE DIN ROMNIA N CONDIII DE CRIZ MONDIAL
Monica Biolan
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia monica.biolan@perepanalytics.eu
Rezumat
Economia mondial nfrunt o criza financiar ce s-a manifestat n ultimul an la toate nivelurile ce in de sfera economicului. Instituiile financiare europene ct i cele de stat au demarat o serie de msuri ca i rspuns la criza financiar globala, ns economia trebuie s-i gseasc un sprijin intern. Infuzia de capital n sectorul privat pentru situaii de dificultate, cercetare i dezvoltare sau proiecte de start-up poate reprezenta parte a soluiei de depire a dificulilor crizei. Organismele financiare care fac de obicei infuzie de capital nfrunt dificulti foarte mari n gestionarea activitii lor, astfel nct firmele de investiii cu capital de risc pot fi noua direcie pe care multe companii o vor lua n considerare. Entitile cele mai vulnerabile n condiii de criz sunt IMM-urile (ntreprinderi mici i mijlocii) iar nevoia lor de capital poate fi satisfcut poate doar de aceste firme de investiii cu capital de risc avnd n vedere caracteristicile acestora ce le fac s fie ncadrate ca investiii de risc ridicat. Avnd n vedere toate acestea, lucrarea va explora mecanismul infuziei cu capital iniial de investire i implicaiile sale la nivel economic n timp de criz pentru IMM-uri. Pentru a identifica impactul economic al capitalului de risc, vor fi analizate cifrele preliminare furnizate de EVCA pentru a determina dac infuzia de capital de tip investiii cu capital de risc reprezint parte a soluiei crizei financiare.
Cuvinte-cheie: IMM, capital iniial de investire, investiii cu capital de risc, criz

financiar
Clasificare JEL: G01 Introducere Sectorul IMM-urilor (ntreprinderi mici i mijlocii) a atras foarte mult atenie din partea cercettorilor n ultimele decenii, astfel formndu-se o vast literatur dedicat acestor ntreprinderi. Acest lucru i gsete justficarea n realitatea empiric pe care o reprezint acest sector precum i n teoriile economice ce abordeaz problematica acestor entitai. n ceea ce privete justificarea de tip empiric, observm n prezent un procent de 99% de astfel de ntreprinderi din totalul firmelor la nivel european ct i n Romnia, existena unui organism de stat care se ocup exclusiv de consilierea i problemele IMM-urilor (Agentia Nationala pentru ntreprinderi mici i mijlocii), legi ce-i sunt dedicate acestui sector, un interes susinut al Uniunii Europene ce este consolidat de fonduri alocate pentru dezvoltarea IMM-urilor. Toate acestea determin ca acest sector al IMM-rilor s reprezinte un element important intr-o economie, explicndu-se interesul susinut manifestat pentru acest tip de firme.
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Teoriile economice au avut o implicare pregnant in vederea determinrii unui interes susinut fa de IMM-uri. Schumpeter pune in discuie pentru prima dat subiectul privind inovarea din cadrul IMM-urile n lucrarea The Theory of Economie Development, Schumpeter [1934], prin care sugereaz c aceste organisme reprezint sursa de idei noi i de noi tehnologii. n teoria resurselor [Penrose, 1959], ntreprinderea este analizat ca un ansamblu de resurse tangibile i intangibile de diferite naturi, conjugate cu diverse competene, viznd astfel creterea profitului pe termen lung. Teoria resurselor mai precizeaz c strategia de ntreprindere provine din armonizarea compeentelor mediului intern ntreprinderii cu resursele disponibile. Penrose arat cum know how-ul ntreprinderii trebuie luat in considerare n aceeai manier ca i resursele materiale. Conceptul de competene de baz i gsete astfel originea n teoria resurselor, ce explic succesul firmei bazate pe competene [Ritter, 2004]. Penrose argumeneteaz faptul ca o organizaie nu i gsete avantajul competitiv n resursele sale, ci n competenele distincte ale acesteia ce fac posibil o mai bun utilizare a resurselor. IMM-urile, ntreprinderi cu potenial mare de inovare [Kaufmann, 2002] dezvolt adesea astfel de competene ce reprezint avantajul ce-l dein fa de concurena prezent pe piaa pe care activeaz. Teoria economiilor de scar abordeaz subiectul IMM-urilor dintr-o perspectiv critic, evideniind astfel limitele acestui tip de organizaie. n perioada postbelica de reconstrucie, se considera c ntreprinderile mari sunt singurele capabile de a susine dezvoltarea economica. Avnd acces la resurse financiare prin intermediul bncilor i oferind salarii ridicate, acest tip de organism devenea motorul economiei angajnd multa for de munca i genernd prosperitate i securitate n ansamblul societaii. n acest context IMM-urile erau vzute ca forme ineficiente de organizare, ele oferind salarii mai mici si posibiliti reduse de dezvoltare. Acest optic a nceput s se schimbe n anii 70, o dat cu fenomenul de globalizare i cu creterea n importan a economiei bazate pe cunotine [David,2002]. n contrapatid cu teoria de scara, Mills si Schumann [1985] sugereaz c IMM-urile compeseaz limitele lor date de acest teorie, prin flexibilitatea produciei ntr-o economie turbulent. Avnd n vedere cele menionate mai sus, limitele teoriilor economice tradiionale cu privire la IMM-uri sunt demonstrate prin neglijarea unor fenomene economice importante, precum persistena i expansiunea continu a acestora. Totui aceste teorii au reuit a surprinde pri importante ale caracterizrii IMM-rilor, nsa fr a contura o imagine completa a lor i a nevoilor lor ntr-o economie ce poate fi afectat de criz. Ne confruntm cu o criz financiar, care s-a extins, la toate nivelurile economice, n ultimul an. Criza s-a declanat n momentul n care s-a produs pierderea de ncredere a investitorilor n valoare de titluri de credite ipotecare din SUA, fapt ce a dus la o criz de lichiditate care a determinat o injecie de capital n pieele financiare, de ctre United States Federal Reserve, Bank of England si European Central Bank.
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n acel moment, un indicator al riscului de credit, TED spread (diferena dintre rata dobnzii la creditele interbancare pe termen scurt i a datoriei publice din SUA) a atins n jur de 150-200 bps. n septembrie 2008, criza a determinat o serie de prabuiri ale pieelelor bursiere i un numr considerabil de bnci i societile de asigurare au intrat in faliment. Pe 3 noiembrie 2008, Comisia Eurpean de la Bruxelles a prezis pentru 2009, o cretere extrem de slab a PIB, de 0.1 la sut, pentru rile din zona euro i un numr negativ, pentru Marea Britanie (-1.0 la sut), Irlanda i Spania. Banca Angliei i Banca Central pentru zona euro, respectiv, au redus rata dobnzii de la 4,5 la sut pn la 3 la sut, iar de la 3.75 pn la 3.25 la sut. n ceea ce privete situaia economic din sectorul de producie, toate industriile, par a fi afectate. Ca urmare, ncepnd cu noiembrie 2008, mai multe ari au lansat programe de salvare a economiilor lor destinate in special companiilor mari al cror colaps ar avea un impact considerabil n economie. n ceea ce privete IMM-urile acestea sunt cele mai afectate n acest conjuctur. Totui doar in prima lun din 2009 n Romnia au fost nfiinate nu mai puin de 5000 de firme noi, cu o valoare medie a capitalului social subscris de 22 000 RON. Avnd n vedere c in momentul constituirii societii, capitalul social este egal cu activul patrimonial, iar n medie acesta nu depete pragul de 5500 de euro, determin incadrarea majoritii startuprilor din ianuarie 2009 n sectorul IMM-urilor (clasificare fcut dupa activul ntreprinderii). Dei n scdere fa de numrul de companii nou nfiinate anul trecut n luna ianuarie, totaliznd numrul de persoane fizice autorizate observm c diferena vine doar din orientarea antreprenorilor spre alt form juridic a startupului lor, numrul de noi astfel de formaiuni ramnnd acelai [Grafic 1]
Societati Comerciale
Persoane Fizice Autorizate
10000 9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
1515 2609 2520 2361 2155 4115 5185 5586 5698 7483 6275 5465 8615 7682
Grafic 1 :Evoluia numrului stat-upurilor n luna ianuarie 2003-2009 in Romnia

[Sursa datelor pe baza crora a fost construit graficul: Registrul Comerului]
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Fenomenul poate fi explicat prin gradul ridicat de adaptabilitate al IMM-urilor chiar i n condiii dificile de criz. Cu toate acestea, observnd mediul de aciune al IMM-urilor se delimiteaz un set de constrngeri, dificulti i bariere majore cu care aceste ntreprinderi sunt confruntate. Acestea au fost grupate n dou categorii, prima dintre ele privind dificultiile referitoare la producie precum :lipsa de capital, lipsa de credit, dificulti de plat, lipsa angajailor calificai, lipsa tehnologiei, lipsa materiei prime. A doua categorie de dificultai ntmpinate de IMM-uri sunt cele privitoare la cererea de producie i servicii : lipsa cererii solvabile, concurena puternic, pre de pia foarte sczut, lipsa de notorietate, lipsa unei strategii de marketing. [Nicolescu, 2001, p.130] Observnd stratisticile [Eurostat] cu privire la gradul dificultailor ntmpinate de IMM-uri, cea mai important constrngere identificat, resimit de IMM-uri este cea referioatre la lipsa capitalului. Capitalul se formeaz prin acumularea de economii (renuarea la consum) respectiv prin investiii. Acumularea de capital sporete productivitatea celorlali factori de producie i duce astfel la randament mai mare, care la rndul lui contribuie la o nou acumulare de capital. n condiiile unei economii afectate de criza financiar, investiiile n IMM-uri au de suferit chiar mai mult dect n mod normal, infuzia de capital fiind poate elementul esenial n supravieuirea unei astfel de ntreprinderi. Avnd n vedere situaia dificil instalat pe piaa creditelor, una dintre principalele surse de infuzie de capital pentru IMM-uri, soluii alternative la acest problem devin un necesar. O soluie propus n acest lucrare n special pentru IMM-urile din Romania este industria de investiii cu capital de risc. Puin cunoscut pe plan local, aceast industrie a reprezentat suport pentru companiile mari din Romnia, companiile mici i mijlocii fiind obiectul unei astfel de investiii doar ocazional. Pentru a construi convergena nevoilor de infuzia de capital a IMM-urilor din Romania spre fondurile de investiii cu capital de risc se impune o analiz amanunit a sectotului de investiii cu capital de risc mpreun cu implicaiile nregistrate la nivel economic [Berger, 1998]. Avnd n vedere prea puina aciune a acestui sector n Romnia, consideraiile teoretice ct i empirice vor fi conturate pe baza datelor nregistrate la nivel European al acestei industrii. Repere privind industria de investiii cu capital de risc Conceptul de investiii cu capital de risc s-a dezvoltat foarte mult n ultimul deceniu ns pricipiul de baz a rmas constant: un grup de investitori ce cumpr o companie i o vnd dup ce valoarea acesteia crete [Wright, 1998]. Totui implicaiile pe care le are relaia investitor-companie din portofoliu devine esenial n definirea conceptului de investiii cu capital de risc. Investitorul nu este un actor pasiv vis-a-vis de dezvoltarea si evoluia companiei ce o deine n portofoliu. Principalul scop al investitorului este de a crete valoarea ntreprinderii, iar acest lucru reprezint un efort susinut din partea investitorului. Potenialul pe care l are compania din portofoliu joac de asemenea un rol important n procesul
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investiional, dar acest lucru se ia n considerare numai n etapa de evaluare a companiei, motivul ce-l animeaz pe investitor s ia decizia cu privire la infuzia de capital. Viitoarea evoluie a companiei depinde i de implicarea direct a investitorului acest lucru fcndu-se n funcie de tipul de investiie. Tipologia investiiilor de investiii cu capital de risc i implicaiile acesteia asupra companiei din portofoliu Investiiile cu capital de risc se mpart n dou mari categorii : investiii orientate ctre finanarea companiilor aflate ntr-un stadiu incipient de dezvoltare ori nou create i investiii ce implic preluarea unui pachet majoritar. Aceste dou categorii se disting una de celalat prin procesul de infuzie de capital i prin caracteristicile implicrii fondului de investiii cu capital de risc n compania din portofoliu. Investiii prin intermediul capitalului iniial de investire Infuzia de capital ntr-o tranzacie de acest tip reprezint o vrsare de capital ce va fi folosit unui obiectiv precis al companiei n cauz. Exist dou tipuri distincte de investiii realizate prin intermediul capitalului iniial de investire: investiiile in companii aflate in stadii incipiente de dezvoltare i cele de dezvoltare menite companiilor ce se afla intr-un stadiu de dezvoltare ceva mai avansat, generand chiar profit. Investiiile in companii aflate in stadii incipiente de dezvoltare pot fii seed-uri sau start-up-uri. Investiia de tip seed susine faza de cercetare i dezvoltare a unui concept ce nc nu a ajuns n stadiu de demarare. Investiiile de tip start-up reprezint o form de finanare pentru dezvoltarea iniiala a unui produs i marketing-ul aferent ceea ce implic necomercializarea nc a produsului n cauz. Implicarea pe care o afieaz fondul de investiii cu capital de risc de tip capital iniial de investire n acest stadiu este unul de tip parteneriat, compania nefiind controlat de fondul de investiii ns necesitnd experiena i managementul acestuia. n ceea ce privete investiia bazat pe dezvoltare acesta este destinat unei companii ntr-un stadiu de dezvoltare mai avansat menit s : finaneze o cretere a capacitii de producie, dezvoltarea pieei sau a produsului companiei sau capital de lucru. Implicarea la acest nivel a fondului de investiii poate fi mai moderat datorit gradului de maturitate a ntreprinderii. Dei se observ anumite trasturi definitorii referioare la implicaiile acestor fonduri asupra companiilor n care se investete nu exist reguli n ceea ce privete acest implicare. Fiecare investitor prezint anumite particulariti i noi provocri pentru fondul de investiii. IMM-urile beneficiaz in general de investiii de acest tip ns exist i investiii ce vizeaz preluarea unui pachet majoritar prezente la nivelul acestui sector. Investiii realizate prin preluarea unui pachet majoritar O tranzacie de acest tip este un mix de fonduri proprii i datorie bancar, n care o companie este achiziionat cu ajutorul unui investitor financiar din acionariatul curent. n acest caz infuzia de capital este absorbit de ctre vnztor i nu de ntreprinderea nsi. Tipologia acestor investiii se mparte in : preluarea unui
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pachet majoritar cu ajutorul managementului intern (MBO), preluarea unui pachet majoritar cu ajutorul unui management extern (MBI), preluare institutional (IBO) i preluare nsoit de un levier de datorie bancar (LBO). n cazul MBI si MBO tranzacia se realizeaz de echipa de management cu ajutorul unui investitor ce face investiii cu capital de risc. Diferena dintre cele doua tranzacii rezid n faptul ca n cazul MBO echipa de management este din interiorul companiei ce face obiectul tranzaciei. Finanarea acesta este menit a susine un grup de manageri din afara sau din interiorul companiei s cumpere entitatea n cauza, avnd alaturi un grup de investitori din industria fondurilor de investiie cu capital de risc. n ceea ce privete IBO, acesta este fcut de investitorii cu un mimimum de participare din partea managementului. n cele din urma, particularitatea tranzaciei LBO rezid n nivelul ridicat al datoriei bancare, ce este n mare parte garantat cu activele companiei. n ceea ce privete implicarea investitorului n cadrul companiei achiziionate, acesta este de o nsemnata amploare datorit riscului ce-l implic de aceast dat deinerea pachetului majoritar. Acest lucru este amplificat de factorul decizional ce l are n centru n acesta situaie pe investitor. Mecanismul infuziei cu capital iniial de investire Mecanismul infuziei cu capital iniial de investire este construit din trei elemente: investitorii, fondul de investiii i compania n care se investete [Kaplan, 2005]. Investitorii sunt entiti care au lichiditi ce trebuie plasate ntr-o activitate generatoare de profit. Dac aleg un fond de investiii, ei devin investitorii acelui fond. Investitorii pot fi: corporaii, fundaii, fonduri de investiii care investesc n alte fonduri, companii de asigurare, fonduri de pensii private i publice, sectorul public. Cnd aceti investitori subscriu pentru susinerea unui fond de investiii cu capital iniial de investire, este posibil ca aceste fonduri s nu fie necesare ntr-un viitor apropiat, de aceea vrsarea efectiv de capital se poate realiza atunci cnd este nevoie. Sumele strnse sunt definite ca sume subscrise sau strngere de fonduri, procesul efectiv ce va implica utilizarea lor antreneaz contribuiile efective de capital atunci cnd este necesar. Procesul ce implic strngerea de fonduri permite managerilor fondului s fac investiii. Astfel al doilea proces important al mecanismului infuziei cu capital iniial de investire l reprezint investiia care este o contribuie a fondului dedicate companiei care va deveni parte din portofoliul fondului. Cnd acest companie va atinge valoarea dorit de ctre managerii fondului, al treilea proces al mecanismului va emerge : dezinvestirea. Cel de-al patrulea proces este distribuia care este reprezintat de sumele obinute din vnzarea companiei din portofoliu ce nu au fost reinvestite n fond i sunt redistribuite investitorilor.
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Circuitul capitalului ce-l implic mecanismul infuziei cu capital iniial de investire este ilustrat in figura de mai jos:
Investitori Strngere de fonduri Process Investitional Fond de investitii Compania n care se investete
Distribuie
Dezinvestire
Figura 1: Circuitul capitalului n mecanismul infuziei cu capital iniial de investire
Impactul economic al industriei de investiii cu capital de risc Implicarea capitalului investiii cu capital de risc este un suport pe termen lung care este destinat acelor companii ce demonstreaz n orice moment potenialul succesului i sustenabilitii. n Europa se ntalnesc companii de acest gen care dein att tehnologia necesar, entuziasmul ct i un management capabil pentru a fi susinute de ctre industria de investiii cu capital de risc ce le ajut n construirea activitii lor, dezvoltndu-se ntr-un ritm mai alert dect ar fi fcut-o n mod normal. Influena acestui tip de infuzie de capital ce activeaz pentru toate sectoarele de activitate i arat necesitatea mai ales acum n timp de criz, cnd disponibilitatea capitalului reprezint o provocare. Industria de investiii cu capital de risc contribuie la rata ocuprii forei de munca, dezvoltare i inovare n Europa. Rolul acestei industrii este de a restructura vechile companii aa cum este i susinerea finanrii ntreprinderiilor cu potenial mare de inovare [Becheikh, 2006]. Toate acestea sunt consideraii ce au fost reflectate prin analiza studiilor anterioare ce au vizat impactul social i economic pe care l are aceast industrie att la nivel european ct i la nivelul rilor europene. [AFIC 2004, BVCA 2004]. Chiar dac aceste studii sunt realizate cu o frecven redus ( o data la 4-5 ani) datorit necesarului de timp ce l implic mecanismul de investiie pentru a crea valoare, cele mai recente studii la nivel european ne arat evoluii pozitive n ceea ce privete crearea de locuri de munc de ctre industria de investiii cu capital de risc [EVCA 2005] Dei nc o industrie tnr, impactul su economic este notabil, acionnd n vederea protejrii i crerii de locuri de munc, stimularea tehnolgiei de tip hightech i clean-tech, susinerea industriilor precum biotehnologie i tratamente medicale revoluionare. Scopul fondurilor de investiii cu capital de risc este de a ghida ct mai multe companii spre atingerea ambiiilor de cretere, procurndu-i finanare, consiliere strategic ct i infomaie la nivelul stadiului lor critic de dezvoltare. Avnd in vedere efectele acestei industrii la nivel macro ct i individual la nivelul companiilor ce fac obiectul unor astfel de investiii n Europa, ncurajarea acestui
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tip de infuzie de capital reprezint un suport real n vederea consolidrii activitii IMM-urilor din Romnia. Acest demers poate fi posibil prin reglementari specifice la nivelul legislativului prin urmarea unor modele viabile aplicate in rile din vestul Europei (Franta, Irlanda, Belgia, UK). In urma unei analize a cadrului legislative din rile Uniunii Europene, EVCA a realizat un scoring pentru fiecare ar analiznd sistemul de impozitare si cadrul legal ce are implicaii asupra industriei de investiii cu capital de risc n urma caruia Frana este prezentata ca avnd cel mai favorabil mediu legislativ pentru acesta industrie.[EVCA, 2008] Propunerea mea este de a adapta caracteristiciile acestui cadru legislativ si a o transfera in universal romanesc. Acest demers va reprezenta continuarea lucrarii prezente ce si-a propus a aduce in discuie o soluie la problema lipsei de capital a IMM-urilor din Romnia, o solutie cunoscut ns prea puin prezenta pe piaa din Romnia, devenind mai mult o excepie n ceea ce privete sectorul IMM-urilor. Concluzii Criza financiar este un rezultat al eecului instituiilor financiare care au afectat ntreaga economie mondiala. Aceast situaie reprezint o mare provocare pentru instituiile europene i de stat ce trebuie s gestioneze o serie de programe de salvare a economiei. Organismele internaionale ce furnizeaz capital pentru economiile ce necesit surmontarea crizei reprezint o soluie, ns sistemul economic trebuie s gasesc i soluii alternative. Aceast lucrare a artat una dintre resursele de capital care nca sunt active pe piaa de investiii, circulaia lui nefiind condiionata de frontiere, acionnd acolo unde va gsi potenial de dezvoltare. Industria de investiii cu capital de risc i n particular ramura de investiii cu capital iniial de investire, reprezint o alternativ de infuzie de capital, n special pentru IMM-uri care ntmpin dificulti cu privire la finanare. Industria ns nu i-a lsat amprenta ntr-un mod evident asupra pieei din Romnia, prin urmare nu putem pretinde o atenie desosebit acordat acestui subiect, aa cum se ntmpl n Frana unde fondurile cu capital de risc sunt incitate a investi n IMM-uri prin diverse metode precum crearea fondurilor comune de plasament n inovaie, create de Legea finanelor 1997, ce faciliteaz dezvoltarea IMM-urilor inovante. Astfel aceste fonduri trebuie s investeasc cel putin 60% din valoarea fondului n ntreprinderi inovante. Ctigurile din aceste fonduri beneficiaz de asemenea de o fiscalitate redus, ceea ce le face i mai atractive pentru investitori. Aceste msuri s-au luat datorit recunoaterii unui impact economic pozitiv al IMM-urilor ce au beneficiat de fonduri de capital de risc. Influena asupra economicului este cu att mai accentuat cu ct ponderea acestor tipuri de ntreprinderi este foarte mare la nivel european. Prin stimularea ntreprinderilor mici, sursa de inovaie i creatoare de locuri de munc, se vizeaz dezvoltarea economica. Romnia este n perioada de construcie a unei economii viabile de aceea susinerea IMM-urilor trebuie privit din diferite unghiuri, nu numai din perspectiva tradiional.
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Bibliografie AFIC paper, 2004, Association Franaise des Investisseurs en Capital: Le poids conomique et social du capital investissement en France Becheikh N., 2008, Learning and novelty of innovation in established manufacturing SMEs, Technovation, Volume 28, Issue 7, Pp 450-463 Berger A.N., 1998, The Economics of Small Business Finance: The Roles of Private Equity and Debt Markets in the Financial Growth Cycle, Journal of Banking and Finance Volume 22 BVCA paper, 2004, British Venture Capital Association, The Economic Impact of Private Equity in the UK 2004 David B.A., 2002, Knowledge, Globalization, and Regions: An Economist's Perspective EVCA paper, 2005, European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association: EVCA study of Employment contribution of Private Equity and Venture Capital in Europe, Available from: <http://www.evca.eu/UploadedFiles/ c2_evca_exec_employment_contribution_pe_2005_english.pdf> EVCA Paper, Benchmarking European Tax and Legal Environement, October 2008, Available from< www.evca.eu/uploadedFiles/a1_benchmark 06.pdf> Kaplan, S.N., Schoar, A., 2005, Private Equity Performance: Returns, Persistence, and Capital Flows, The Journal of Finance 60 (4), 17911823 Kaufmann, A. and F. Todtling, 2002, "How effective is innovation support for SMEs? Ananalysis of the region of upper Austria," Technovation, 22 (3), 147-59 Mills, D.E. and Schumann, L., 1985, Industry Structure with Fluctuating Demand, American Economic Review, 75 pp. 758-767; Nicolescu O., 2001, Managementul modern al organizatiei, Tribuna Economica Penrose, E., Theory of the Growth of the Firm, 1959, Oxford Univeristy Press Ritter, T. and H.G. Gemunden 2004, "The impact of a company's business strategy on its technological competence, network competence and innovation success," Journal of Business Research, 57, 548-56 Schumpeter, JA., 1934 The Theory of Economie Development, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass.; Wright, M., Robbie, K.,1998, Venture Capital and Private Equity: A Review and Synthesis , Journal of Business Finance & Accounting 25 (5&6), 521 570;
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CONVERGENE NTRE GLOBALIZARE I DEZVOLTAREA DURABIL STUDIU DE CAZ ROMNIA

Suzana Elena Chiriac
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia chiriacsuzana@yahoo.com
Ioana Maria Ghidiu-Bta

Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia i_ghidiu@yahoo.com
Alexandru Ghiiu-Brtescu
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia alexghitiu@yahoo.com
Rezumat
Nevoia i scopul general al umanitii a fost dintotdeauna reprezentat de bunstarea societii globale, ca ntreg. Globalizarea este un fenomen multidimensional, la fel ca i dezvoltarea durabil. Ambele iau n calcul att aspecte economice, ct i aspecte sociale i ecologice, acesta reprezentnd principalul element de noutate i prevalena acestor preocupri n ultimii ani: oferirea unei viziuni de ansamblu asupra unei regiuni sau a unei ri. Oamenii au devenit contieni de faptul c se confrunt cu tot mai multe probleme i singura soluie viabil este gsirea de alternative sustenabile. Un alt lucru important pe care l-au realizat este c doar un efort comun le poate aduce efecte i beneficii cu adevrat vizibile. Articolul pornete de la ideea c ambele fenomene, pentru care exist o vast preocupare n ultima perioad, prezint o serie de caracteristici asemntoare i abordeaz subiecte delicate, dar extrem de importante, precum securitatea, srcia, ameninarea mediului, mpuinarea resurselor. Pornind de la aceast premis i pe baza analizei instrumentelor de msurare a celor dou fenomene, se va ajunge la concluzia c totui, exist diferene ntre cele dou concepte, fiecare individulizndu-se prin indicatori diferii. Preocuprile de analiz nsele sunt diferite. Datele analizate vor evidenia situaia Romniei, ca spaiu european, dar i ca membru al comunitii globale; ca deintor de resurse, bunuri, capital, informaii, dar i precum consumator al acestora; ca actor al scenei politice, economice, dar i ca individualitate social.
Cuvinte-cheie: globalizare, dezvoltare durabil, convergene, indicele KOF al

globalizrii, indicele societii durabile
Clasificare JEL: A12, B00, C80, F02, I28, I31, I32, O51, Q20 Introducere i ipoteze de lucru Pentru a putea porni spre analizarea convergenelor dintre cele dou concepte, vom defini mai nti cele dou fenomene, pentru a putea crea o imagine ct mai clar asupra acestora.Globalizarea este, pentru unii dintre cercettori, un fenomen prezent de cnd lumea nsi, privit din prisma comunicrii i transmiterii orale a tradiiilor, obiceiurilor, prin prisma migraiilor i evoluiilor colective ale societii, precum i prin prisma aspiraiilor nalte, economice i sociale. O alt parte a cercettorilor resping aceast teorie, considernd c ea este puin fondat pe
argumente palpabile, reale. ns ei i recunosc contribuiile globalizrii ca reacie la industrializare, la tehnologizare i reactie la progresul tiinific, ca nevoie de evoluie i dezvoltare relativ recent. Dei globalizarea este i a fost definit de-a lungul timpului extrem de amplu, ncepnd prin definiii care se limitau la latura sa economic, apoi extinzndu-se la conceptualizri ce includeau i alte componente (cea social n special); ne vom opri n cadrul acestei lucrri la o definiie pe care o considerm suficient de cuprinztoare.Globalizarea reprezint "o modalitate sau sistem de receptare i abordare pe termen lung a marilor probleme contemporane, determinate de interaciunea multiplelor procese i fenomene economice, tehnice, politice, sociale, culturale, ecologice etc. i preconizarea soluionrii lor ntr-o larg perspectiv de ctre comunitatea internaional." (Dicionar de economie, 2001) n opinia mea, globalizarea este un fenomen extrem de amplu, ce trebuie modelat pentru a minimiza influenele negative (rzboaie, riscuri ecologice, riscuri sociale, discrepane de dezvoltare, de venituri, de progres, crime, corupie, etc.) i pentru a maximiza efectele sale pozitive (progres tiinific, dezvoltare economic, dezvoltare armonioas a societii, satisfacie, fericire, comunicare, prosperitate, propagare de bune practici i modele de reuit, etc.). Desigur, aceast traiectorie, dei ideal, este posibil, ns necesit mai mult dect un efort individual, mai mult chiar dect un efort regional sau naional. Ea necesit un efort global, ceea ce aduce n discuie att oportunitile, ct i marile constrngeri pe care fenomenul le ntlnete. Nu este uor s reuneti o serie de obiective individuale sau naionale, chiar pentru un scop comun, la fel cum nu este deloc uor s iei n calcul influenele locale, care confer particulariti deosebite ale anumitor zone, dar i baza pentru crearea de diferene ntre state. La fel ca i globalizarea, dezvoltarea durabil este cunoscut ca un fenomen ce a luat amploare n ultima perioad de timp. Ea se bazeaz pe dorina de evoluie armonioas a celor trei mari componente: economic, social i ecologic. Dezvoltarea durabil este cel mai cuprinztor definit de "Raportul Brundtland" (numit astfel dup preedintele Comisiei Mondiale pentru Mediu i Dezvoltare, Gro Harlem Brundtland) sau "Viitorul nostru comun": "Omenirea are abilitatea de a se dezvolta durabil s se asigure c generaiile prezente i pot satisface nevoile fr a compromite posibilitatea generaiilor viitoare de a-i satisface propriile nevoi". (Comisia Mondial pentru Mediu i Dezvoltare, 1987) Considerm c dezvoltarea durabil reprezint att materializarea dorinelor i aspiraiilor pentru viitor, ct i rezultatul necesitii contientizrii unui viitor incert, pentru care omenirea trebuie s acioneze. Dac vom cuta preocupri istorice mai vechi, vom regsi dorina popoarelor de a se dezvolta din toate punctele de vedere, de a evolua pe toate planurile. n plus, mnat de progresul tiinific i de creterea economic, societatea global a apelat la crearea de gigani industriali, la agrearea unor obiective economice ndrznee, obinute deseori cu orice pre. Pn cnd lumea a realizat c dac va continua s acioneze mnat de o serie de scopuri pur cantitative, fr a lua n calcul celelalte componente i
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acionnd iraional, va risca s destrame tocmai baza vieii. i de aici ncepe istoria n care scopurile i obiectivele strategice s-au rentors la preocupri sociale, ambientale, de convieuire n armonie. Importantul aspect de menionat aici este c preocuprile pentru bunstare durabil nu au rmas izolate, ci rile, organismele internaionale, oamenii de pretutindeni s-au aliat, au discutat, au stabilit obiective, strategii, politici, msuri de aciune, au creat diferite variante i scenarii de soluionare. Tocmai acest lucru evidenieaz aspectul de strns corelaie ntre globalizare i dezvoltarea durabil: ambele sunt fenomene fie vechi de cnd lumea nsi, fie aprute relativ recent, ca reacie la schimbrile ivite sau ca nevoie de adaptare. n acelai timp, ambele fenomene iau n calcul o multitudine de aspecte: sociale, economice, ecologice, politice, ideologice i ambele fenomene se afl n permanent evoluie. De asemenea, cele dou fenomene se afl n interdependen: globalizarea are cele mai mari anse s extrapoleze efectele sale pozitive atta timp ct respect premisele unei dezvoltri durabile, iar dezvoltarea durabil are nevoie de un efort i o propagare global pentru a reui. n cadrul acestui proiect de cercetare dorim s evideniem convergenele existente ntre globalizare i dezvoltarea durabil, prin studierea instrumentelor de analiz a celor dou fenomene, lund n calcul indicele KOF al globalizrii i indicele societii durabile pentru Romnia. Aceste instrumente au fost alese deoarece constituie indici ce au la baz o serie larg de indicatori, facilitnd compararea fenomenelor i iau n calcul componente ale mai multor domenii, nelimitndu-se la o arie anume (precum indicele libertii economice, indicele performanei de mediu, indicele dezvoltrii umane sau indicatori pur sociali). Globalizarea aspecte metodologice i practice Indicele KOF al globalizrii a fost introdus n anul 2002 (Dreher, 2006), revizuit i detaliat n anul 2008 de ctre Dreher, Gaston i Martens. Dup Clark (2000), Norris (2000) i Keohane i Nye (2000), acesta definete globalizarea ca fiind procesul de creare a reelelor de cunotine ntre actori aflai la distane mari, intercontinentale, mediate printr-o varietate de fluxuri, incluznd oameni, informaii, idei, capital i bunuri. Globalizarea este neleas de designerii indicelui ca fiind un proces ce destram graniele naionale; integreaz economiile, culturile i tehnologiile naionale; guverneaz i produce relaii complexe de interdependen mutual. (Dreher, 2006, citat online pe <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/> - "Methods of Calculation) Indicele KOF este calculat pentru 158 de ri, bazat pe date din perioada 1970-2006. El cuprinde 24 de indicatori, grupai n trei mari categorii i ase subcategorii, dup cum ilustreaz fig. 1.
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I. Globalizarea economic A. Fluxuri reale Comerul (ca procent din PIB) Investiiile strine directe, ca fluxuri (% din PIB) Investiiile strine directe, ca stocuri (% din PIB) Portofoliul de investiii (% din PIB) Dividende de plat ctre naiuni strine (% din PIB) B. Restricii Bariere ascunse de import Rata tarifului mediu Taxe pentru comerul internaional (% din venitul curent)
II. Globalizarea social A. Date despre contactele personale Trafic de telefonie Transferuri (% din PIB) Turism internaional Populaia strin (ca % din populaia total) Scrisori internaionale (per locuitor) B. Date despre fluxurile internaionale Nr. de utilizatori de internet (la 1000 de locuitori) Televiziune (la 1000 de locuitori) Comerul pentru ziare (% din PIB) C. Date despre proximitatea cultural Nr. de restaurante McDonalds (per locuitor) Nr. de magazine Ikea (per locuitor) Comerul cu cri (% din PIB)
COMPONENA INDICELUI KOF AL GLOBALIZRII
Restricii de cont de capital
III. Globalizarea politic Nr. de ambasade din ar Calitatea de membru n cadrul organizaiilor internaionale Participarea n cadrul misiunilor Consiliului de Securitate al Naiunilor Unite Tratate internaionale Figura 1. Elementele componente ale indicelui KOF al globalizrii
Sursa: Dreher, 2006, citat pe http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/ - "Variables and Weights 2009"
Bazat pe estimri pornind de la datele aferente anului 2006, pentru anul 2009, Romnia ocup locul 44 din 158, n timp ce statele cu cel mai ridicat nivel de globalizare sunt Belgia i Irlanda. (Dreher, 2008, citat pe <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/> - "Detailed Rankings 2009") Cu toate acestea, la
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nivel european, Romnia este clasat printre ultimele state, doar Ucraina i Moldova nregistrnd valori mai sczute ale indicelui. Dup cum putem observa, pentru Romnia indicele KOF a nregistrat o cretere continu, n perioada 1970-1992 situndu-se la un nivel sub 40 i abia n 1993 atingnd pragul de 40,83. De atunci, indicele a nregistrat creteri graduale, iar la nivelul anului 2006 se situa la pragul de 70.58 (dup cum este ilustrat i n fig. 2.) .
Figura 2 Indicele KOF al globalizrii pentru Romnia n perioada 1970-2006

Sursa: Dreher et al. 2008, citat pe <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - software interactiv
Cu toate acestea, interesant, n opinia noastr, este discuia asupra celor trei mari componente ale indicelui: cea economic, social i politic. La nivel global, componenta social a nregistrat n ultimii ani o stagnare, lucru reliefat i n Romnia. Componenta social a pornit cu valori situate ntre 28 i 29, superioare celei economice, n perioada 1970-1990, crescnd gradual ntre 1990 i 2000 i ajungnd n 2006 la cifra de 60.95, totui cea mai sczut valoare dintre cele trei elemente ce constituie indicele. (Sursa datelor: Dreher et al. 2008, citat pe <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - software interactiv online) Interesant este c i din punct de vedere al globalizrii economice, Romnia nregistra n anii '70 - '90 valori sczute, situate n jurul valorii medii de 27. ncepnd cu anul 1998 nu a mai nregistrat valori sub 50, iar la nivelul anului 2006 se situa la nivelul de 68.14. (Sursa datelor: Dreher et al. 2008, citat pe <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - software interactiv online) Media indicelui pentru Romnia este de 70, cu valorile componentelor sociale i economice situate sub aceast valoare, o poziie totui bun la nivel global a Romniei nu ar fi n consecin justificat. Motivul bunei situri a Romniei este
componenta politic, care a nregistrat nc din anii 1970 valori de aproape 50. n anul 2004, globalizarea politic a atins pragul de 90, iar n 2006 nregistra o valoare de 90.88. (Sursa datelor: Dreher et al. 2008, citat pe <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - software interactiv online) Analiznd ns modalitatea de calcul a indicelui, trebuie s lum ns n calcul avem n vedere faptul c indicele KOF msoar globalizarea politic prin indicatori precum numrul de ambasade prezente la nivel naional i numrul de tratate internaionale ratificate, ceea ce este un lucru foarte bun pentru Romnia, demonstrnd o globalizare, aa cum este ea neleas n sensul clasic (ca deschidere internaional), foarte ridicat. De asemenea, nu trebuie s neglijm faptul c aspectele reliefate de politicile Uniunii Europene, care insist foarte mult n aceast perioad pe latura social, iar Romnia a nceput deja s se preocupe i ea de astfel de aspecte, dovad fiind campaniile sprijinite i iniiate n ultimii doi ani. Dezvoltarea durabil aspecte metodologice i practice Cnd se discut despre dezvoltarea durabil, majoritatea cercetrilor se refer la cele trei componente principale: economic, social i de mediu (sau ecologic); o serie de metodologii incluznd i o a patra component, foarte important, de altfel, care ajut att la promovarea preocuprilor, ct i la implementarea propriu-zis a programelor de dezvoltare durabil. Aceasta este componenta instituional sau guvernamental (ea este, inclus, de exemplu, n cadrul setului de indicatori de dezvoltare durabil al Comisiei pentru Dezvoltare Durabil a Naiunilor Unite). Bineneles, n cadrul acestor componente principale se regsesc o varietate de teme, subteme i indicatori luai n calcul. n opinia noastr, indiferent de abordare, dezvoltarea durabil trebuie s asigure concomitent, dezvoltarea economic, bunstarea social i protecia mediului. Indicele societii durabile (ISD) ia n calcul dezvoltarea durabil evalund criteriile Brundtland extinse, mai exact ia n calcul urmtoarele trei aspecte: (Kerk i Arthur 2009, citat pe <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Sustainable_ Society_Index>) satisfacerea nevoilor generaiilor actuale; nealterarea posibilitii generaiilor viitoare de a-i satisface propriile nevoi; posibilitatea fiecrui individ de a se dezvolta n libertate, n cadrul unei societi echilibrate i n armonie cu mediul nconjurtor. ntr-o imagine de ansamblu, indicele societii durabile adreseaz probleme precum mpuinarea resurselor, aspecte ecologice i de mediu i calitatea vieii. Indicele pentru Romnia a fost calculat i este monitorizat n continuare n cadrul unui proiect, finanat prin Programul de Transformare Social (MATRA) iniiat de Ministerul Olandez de Afaceri Externe n colaborare cu Ministerul Mediului i Dezvoltrii Durabile, Ageniei Naionale pentru Protecia Mediului, Institutului Naional de Statistic, Centrul Naional pentru Dezvoltare Durabil (NCSD) i o
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serie de alte organisme non-guvernamentale. (Kerk i Arthur 2009, citat pe <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm>) Indicele este bazat pe date prelevate de la o serie de organisme i instituii internaionale i analizeaz 150 de ri, printre care i Romnia. Indicele a fost pentru prima oar calculat n 2006, iar ultimele date aparin anului 2008. Indicele societii durabile pentru Romnia a fost special creat pe baza indicelui global, pentru problemele aprute la nivel naional. n cadrul indicelui societii durabile, Kerk i Arthur iau n calcul 22 de indicatori, grupai n cinci categorii, dup cum urmeaz: (fig. 3) I. Dezvoltare personal
Via sntoas Hran suficient Ap potabil suficient Servicii de salubritate corespunztoare Oportuniti de educaie Egalitate ntre sexe
III. Societate echilibrat

Bun guvernare omaj Creterea populaiei Distribuia veniturilor COMPONENA INDICELUI SOCIETII DURABILE Datoria public
II. Protecia mediului

Calitatea aerului Calitatea apei Calitatea solului
IV. Folosirea durabil a resurselor

Reciclarea deeurilor Consumul de ap din surse regenerabile Consumul de energie din surse regenerabile
V. Lumea durabil
Starea pdurillor Conservarea biodiversitii Emisiile de gaze cu efect de ser Amprenta ecologic Cooperarea internaional Figura 3. Elementele componente ale Indicelui Societii Durabile
Sursa: Kerk i Arthur 2009, citat pe <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm>
n plus, pentru Romnia, indicele mai insist pe cinci indicatori, i anume: A1. Produsul intern brut A2. Rata srciei A3. Cercetare i dezvoltare A4. Transport A5. Agricultur ecologic La nivelul anului 2008 indiele se afla la un scor total de 5.7, plasnd Romnia pe locul 23 din 37 de ri europene, maxima aparinnd Norvegiei, cu un indice de
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7.0 i minimum nregistrndu-se pentru Malta (4.3). Fa de anul 2006, cnd Romnia nregistra un punctaj de 5.5 se simte o uoar mbuntire, cauzat, n principal, datorit demarrii unor proiecte pentru mbuntirea serviciilor de salubritate i canalizare. (Sursa datelor: Kerk i Arthur 2009, citat pe <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm>) Detalierea indicatorilor componeneni este exemplificat de fig. 4 i tabelul 1.
Figura 4. Indicele societii durabile la nivelul anului 2008

Sursa: Kerk et al. 2009, Raportul "Romnia ctre o societate durabil"
n cele ce urmeaz vom interpreta datele relevate de raport. Cu toate c Romnia nregistreaz valori bune pentru preoponderena hranei (este singurul stat european ce nregistreaz pentru hrana suficient un scor de 10.0), salubritate, consumul de ap din surse regenerabile, totui nivelul general al indicelui se situeaz cu puin dup jumtate, fiind n principal afectat de reciclare, utilizarea energiei din surse regenerabile, calitatea apei i cea a solului.
Valorile indicatorilor ce constituie indicele societii durabile pentru Romnia la nivelul anului 2008 Tabelul 1 Detalierea indicelui societii durabile pentru Romnia la nivelul anului 2008 Via sntoas 7.2 Creterea populaiei 8.3 Hran suficient 10.0 Distribuia veniturilor 7.4 Ap potabil suficient 5.7 Datoria public 8.3 Servicii de salubritate 9.4 Reciclarea deeurilor 2.1 corespunztoare Oportuniti de educaie 7.7 Consumul de ap din surse regenerabile 8.9 Consumul de energie din surse Egalitate ntre sexe 8.1 1.3 regenerabile Calitatea aerului 6.0 Starea pdurillor 7.0 Calitatea apei 2.9 Conservarea biodiversitii 4.2 Calitatea solului 3.9 Emisiile de gaze cu efect de ser 5.5 Bun guvernare 5.2 Amprenta ecologic 6.0 omaj 5.4 Cooperarea internaional 8.3
Sursa: Kerk et al. 2009, Raportul "Romnia ctre o societate durabil"
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Privind din prisma celor cinci arii principale ce compun indicele, Romnia nregistreaz cel mai mare punctaj pentru dezvoltarea personal (8.0), are scoruri medii pentru societate echilibrat (6.9) i lume durabil (6.2); n timp ce discrepanele apar la nivelul proteciei mediului (4.3) i folosirii durabile a resurselor (4.1). (Sursa datelor: Kerk et al. 2009, Raportul "Romnia ctre o societate durabil") Vom analiza n cele ce urmeaz, foarte pe scurt, cele cinci categorii de indicatori ce compun indicele societii durabile, n comparaie cu celelalte state ale UE, ncercnd s facem presupuneri pertinente referitoare la motivele ce stau la baza obinerii acestor scoruri. Dintre cele cinci categorii ce alctuiesc indicele, dezvoltarea personal constituie punctul forte pentru Romnia. Acest lucru se bazeaz pe suficiena hranei, a apei, pe oportunitatea accesului la educaie, egalitate de anse i sistem sanitar. n ceea ce privete suficiena hranei, majoritatea statelor ex-comuniste au scoruri ridicate i, ce este drept, n calcularea indicelui se consider cazurile declarate de subnutiie. Indicele ar trebui, ntr-un mod optim, corelat cu rata srciei, ceea ce ar pondera cu siguran scorul total. Pentru accesul la ap potabil scorurile sunt mici, n principal datorit calitii apei, considerm noi. Surprinztor este c nu putem de aceast dat da vina pe rile din Europa de Est, Bulgaria i Ungaria obinnd cele mai ridicate punctaje la acest indicator. Pentru sistemul sanitar este drept c s-au despus foarte multe proiecte pentru finanare din fonduri structurale, fapt dovedit, iat, n datele statistice naionale i internaionale. Pentru educaie datele sunt preluate din cadrul UNESCO i combin rata brut de nscriere pentru ciclul primar, gimnazial, liceal i universitar. Moldova este singura ar aflat sub nivelul Romniei, iar Ungaria ocup primul loc n Europa. Cu toate acestea, nu se ia n calcul nici rata abandonului colar, nici calitatea educaiei, aspecte ce ar putea schimba ntru totul clasamentul. Pentru protecia mediului se pare c Romnia nregistreaz cele mai sczute punctaje. Pentru calitatea aerului, dei Romnia a ratificat protocolul de la Gothenburg i momentan limitele maxime admise pentru anul 2010 sunt deja atinse, se pare c scorul nu este unul satisfctor. Cel mai probabil datorit sistemului naional de monitorizare a aerului, care nu este nc implementat i a altor asemenea iniiative. Din nou, singurul stat din Europa care se afl dup Romnia este Moldova. Pentru calitatea apei i a solului, poluarea i las amprenta extrem de mult. ntradevr investiiile n domeniu sunt extrem de costisitoare, iar proiectele sunt de mare anvergur. Cu toate acestea, din punctul nostru de vedere aici ar trebui corelate datele i cu indicatorul guvernan. Romnia, cel puin la nivel declarativ, a ratificat o serie de convenii, este deja obligat prin directive ale UE la anumite niveluri sczute ale polurii i fr o implicare asumat din partea conducerii rii, investiii de asemenea proporii nu credem c vor putea fi posibile.
Pentru componenta social societate echilibrat Romnia nregistreaz un punctaj bun, comparativ cu rile vecine (doar Ucraina are un scor mai bun). Cu toate acestea, rata omajului combinat cu creterea populaiei, mai ales a celei rurale i nivelul veniturilor nu vor ajuta deloc calcularea indicelui de acum ncolo. Ce este drept, datele prelevate pentru obinerea scorurilor au fost estimri dup perioada 2003-2005, cnd toate statele nregistrau valori bune. Bineneles, ca s nu lum n calcul doar aspectele negative, guvernana, n perioada de dup 2007, a nregistrat o mbuntire, n special datorit mai bunei reglementri impuse de statutul de membru UE. Pentru utilizarea durabil a resurselor Romnia nregistreaz, de aceast dat, cele mai sczute scorurile dintre cele cinci categorii de indicatori. ntr-adevr, dac lum n calcul minele, industrializarea, pustiirea pmntului doar n perioada comunist, dar i ulterior, Romnia a dezvoltat un sistem de exploatare intensiv i, ce este cel mai ru, i-a creat o astfel de mentalitate pentru utilizarea resurselor, care este dificil de schimbat. Programele de reciclare, campaniile ecologiste sunt un nceput bun, ns n opinia noastr este necesar o mai mare implicare a autoritilor publice cu competene n domeniu i este necesar o promovare intens a practicilor moderne, precum: utilizarea total a resurselor, promovarea principiilor economiei circulare, etc. Dup cum tim cu toii, procentul sczut de informare are aici cea mai mare influen. n cele din urm, pentru lumea durabil, Romnia se situeaz pe locul 7 n Europa, surprinztor, fa de niveluri sczute nregistrate de aceast dat de ri precum Norvegia sau Islanda. Cu toate c au avut loc defrri intense, este adevrat c Romnia a reglementat i monitorizat ndeaproape fondul silvic, la fel cum a implementat rapid normele referitoare la emisiile de carbon. Iar pentru pstrarea biodiversitii, ntr-adevr, cele mai multe eforturi, depuse de organizaii private sau non-guvernamentale sau sprijinite prin fondurile de mediu (Natura 2000, de exemplu) sunt vizibile n meninerea parcurilor i rezervaiilor. Privind n ansamblu cele cinci componente, nu putem s nu observm c, dei are acces la o serie vast de instrumente, cele mai la ndemn fiind fondurile structurale, se pare c Romnia nu a profitat de acestea ndeajuns, mai ales n ceea ce privete proiectele pentru conservarea i protecia mediului, care ar trebui s fie una dintre principalele preocupri. Concluzii Dac ne desprindem puin de situaia reliefat din indicatori i ncercm s ne facem o prere pe baza observaiilor din practic, vom observa cu uurin, c cel puin pentru Romnia, n ceea ce privete componentele globalizrii, factorul politic deine un rol decisiv. El influeneaz foarte mult latura economic, care are, la rndul ei, implicaii sociale i de mediu. n consecin, slaba guvernare nsoit de o perioad prelungit de exploatare iraional a resurselor, plus deteriorarea mediului nconjurtor prin activitile zilnice i fondul crizei globale sunt ameninrile ce planeaz asupra tuturor statelor
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n ultima perioad. Soluia const n transparen i cooperare, n special n domeniul logistic, tehnologic i la nivelul implicrii guvernamentale. De aici deducem faptul c orice iniiativ n acest sens trebuie s se axeze pe utilizare total a resurselor i inovare. De exemplu, dac lum cazul pesticidelor, ntr-adevr acestea polueaz mediul; ns orice activitate agricol modern se bazeaz pe utilizarea lor. Drept urmare, partea de cercetare i teste de laborator este vital, pentru a pstra efectele pozitive generate de acestea asupra produciei i minimizrii impactului negativ. Dup evaluarea corect i complet a impactului, este nevoie de o aciune internaional pentru propagarea soluiilor ce au fost implementate i au avut rezultate. n concluzie, cercetarea, inovarea i cooperarea internaional, dublate de o implicare real i asumarea responsabilitii la nivel strategic i de conducere sunt premisele necesare unui viitor mai bun pe toate planurile. O serie de soluii ce pot fi propuse pentru politicile macroeconomice, deja aplicate n practic sau testate la nivel internaional vor fi sintetizate n cele ce urmeaz, pe baza analizrii componentelor la care Romnia a nregistrat valori sczute n cadrul indicilor analizai. Pentru componenta pduri, Naiunile Unite au lansat o metodologie (REDD) pentru reducerea emisiilor produse de defriri i degradri silvice, destinat n special rilor n curs de dezvoltare. Elementul de noutate introdus de aceasta este cuantificarea impactului de mediu, msurat n efecte negative produse de aceste emisii duntoare de dioxid de carbon i ali radicali. O alt propunere pertinent este sistemul contabilitii de mediu, ce ia n calcul, pe lng PIB, i cuantificarea bazat pe date statistice, a resurselor de hran, energie, ap i include i o component referitoare la legislaie. Avantajul acestui sistem este c ia n calcul i proiectele derulate efectiv, cuantificate monetar. i, nu n ultimul rnd, o alt propunere este sistemul conturilor naionale, care se bazeaz tot pe o cuantificare financiar a aspectelor de mediu, n special resurse naturale. n ceea ce privete metodologia de cercetare prezentat n cadrul articolului, dup cum putem observa din compararea indicatorilor ce compun cei doi indeci, totui globalizarea i dezvoltarea durabil nu insist asupra unor componente comune, cu excepia cooperrii internaionale, care este inclus ca indicator n cadrul ambilor indeci. Dezvoltarea durabil este mai mult axat pe aspecte de mediu, care nu se regsesc la nivelul indicelui globalizrii, n timp ce indicele globalizrii insist mult mai mult asupra indicatorilor ce pot oferi o analiz asupra schimbului de informaii, coordonate economice, persoane, produse, servicii ntre ri. Totui, indicele globalizrii utilizeaz anumii indicatori luai ca parte din Produsul Intern Brut, tot PIB constituind i un indicator indirect pentru Indicele Societii Durabile.
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De asemenea, nu se poate s lsm deoparte faptul c ambii indeci iau n considerare o serie larg de componente sociale, dei nu aceleai, ele sunt foarte similare. Cu toate acestea, indicatori precum omajul sau rata de srcie nu sunt luate n calcul dect de indicele dezvoltrii durabile. ntr-adevr, indicele globalizrii trebuie s insite asupra deschiderii globale, a comerului i a transferurilor. Dac lum totui n calcul interdependenele indirecte dintre factori, vom constata c exist o strns legtur ntre cele dou fenomene. De exemplu, distribuia venitului sau investiii n cercetare-dezvoltare, la fel ca i rata srciei sau produsul intern brut (calculate pentru indicele dezvoltrii durabile) vor influena numrul de utilizatori de internet, comerul, dezvoltarea restaurantelor McDonalds sau a magazinelor Ikea, vor contribui de asemenea la stabilirea tarifului mediu (indicatori calculai pentru globalizare). Legtura invers (dintre globalizare i dezvoltarea durabil) poate fi, de asemenea, prezent, investiiile de portofoliu putnd influena rata srciei, produsul intern brut, comerul cu cri i cu ziare influennd gradul de educaie, turismul i traficul de telefonie influennd direct produsul intern brut. Iat c putem demonstra totui c exist o corelaie ntre globalizare i dezvoltarea durabil, dei ea nu este nc evideniat prin prezena acelorai indicatori n cadrul instrumentelor de analiz a celor dou fenomene. Bineneles, trebuie s nu uitm c dezvoltarea durabil insist mult mai mult asupra calitii mediului i calitii vieii. n acelai timp, globalizarea ia aceste lucruri n calcul, dar nu neaprat n msurarea impactului su. Faptul c rile lumii a treia, rile n dezvoltare, cele srace, au o rata de srcie mai mare i o calitate a vieii mai sczut nu nseamn c ele nu prezint o deschidere global. ntr-adevr, nu una sustenabil, durabil. Se poate, ca, totui, n viitor, globalizarea s se axeze mai mult asupra premiselor dezvoltrii durabile, chiar i la nivel metodologic i practic, ns, dup cum putem vedea, dezvoltarea durabil deja include cooperarea internaional, deci componenta principal a globalizrii. n consecin, se pare c mai degrab globalizarea este parte a dezvoltrii durabile, dect este dezvoltarea durabil o parte a procesului de globalizare. Rezultatele cercetrii i ncurajarea desfurrii unor astfel de comparaii ntre indicatori pot constitui o foarte bun baz pentru fundamentarea politicilor publice n domeniul dezvoltrii economice i durabile. n principal, astfel de cercetri sunt derulate de organisme non-guvernamentale sau de mediul privat i este posibil ca ele s nu ajung n atenia actorilor politici, care au puterea de decizie. Considerm c propagarea detaliilor unor astfel de rapoarte poate aduce beneficii reale pentru elaborarea i implementarea de msuri concrete i pentru depunerea de proiecte cu impact real asupra zonelor slab dezvoltate reliefate din statistici i cercetri.
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Dorim s mulumim, pe aceast cale, Ministerului Mediului, n special Unitii de Politici Publice, Direciei de Comunicare i Organizare i Direciei Protecia Mediului i Dezvoltare Durabil, pentru punerea la dispoziie a raportului Romnia, ctre o societate durabil, n form cu ISBN; a altor publicaii de specialitate i pentru amabilitate i cooperare. Bibliografie Agenia European pentru Protecia Mediului, 2009, Regional climate change and adaptation, ISSN: 1725-9177 Comisia Mondial pentru Mediu i Dezvoltare a Naiunilor Unite 1987, "Chapter 1: A Threatened Future", NGO Committee on Education (ed.), From A/42/427. "Our Common Future: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development", accesat la 1 mai 2009, <http://www.undocuments.net/ocf-01.htm#II> Dicionar de economie, 2001, Editura Economic, Bucureti Dreher, Axel 2006, "Does Globalization Affect Growth?", Evidence from a new Index of Globalization, Applied Economics 38, 10: 1091-1110; revizuit n Dreher, Axel, Noel Gaston i Pim Martens 2008, "Measuring Globalization Gauging its Consequences", Springer, New York, citat online, accesat la data de 1 mai 2009, <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/> Dreher, Axel, Noel Gaston i Pim Martens 2008, "Measuring Globalization Gauging its Consequences", Springer, New York, citat online - software interactiv online, accesat la data de 1 mai 2009, <http://globalization. kof.ethz.ch/query/> Ecologic Group SRL 2009, Revista Ecologic Friends of Europe 2009, Europe`s World, nr. 13, toamn 2009 Kerk, Geurt van de i Arthur R,. Manuel 2009, "Sustainable Society Index.", citat online pe <http://www.sustainablesocietyindex.com>, Sustainable Society Foundation (ed.), accesat la 1 mai 2009, <http://www.sustainablesocietyindex.com/ssi-description.htm> Kerk, Geurt van de i Arthur R,. Manuel 2009, "Sustainable Society Index.", citat online pe <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/home-en.htm>, Sustainable Society Foundation (ed.), accesat la 1 mai 2009, <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm> Kerk, Geurt van de i Arthur R. Manuel (Lead Authors); Graham Douglas (Topic Editor) 2009, "Sustainable Society Index." citat online pe: Encyclopedia of Earth, Cutler J. Cleveland (ed.), Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment, Washington, D.C, publicat prima oar pe Encyclopedia of Earth la 29 decembrie 2008; revizuit ultima oar pe 2 februarie 2009; accesat pe 1 mai 2009, <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Sustainable_Society_Index> Kerk, Geurt van de, Veraart, Ralph, Popovici, Ciprian 2009, Raportul "Romnia ctre o societate durabil", Sustainable Society Foundation (ed.)
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UN NOU MODEL PENTRU GESTIUNEA RISCULUI N DOMENIUL BANCAR

Silviu Florin Teodoru
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia teodorusil@yahoo.com
Rezumat
Noul Acord de Capital Basel II a stabilit un cadru mai complex pentru bnci de msurare a riscului i de a constitui rezerve de capital suficiente pentru a acoperi posibilele pierderi cauzate de riscul de pia, de credit i cel operaional.Majoritatea instituiilor financiare vor trebui s-i mbunteasc sistemele informatice parial sau integral n privina integrrii, culegerii i stocrii datelor, securitii i raportrii, din cauza volumului sporit de date care necesit identificare, extragere, stocare, calcul, reconciliere i raportare pentru a ndeplini cerinele Basel II. Sunt trei cerine obligatorii n acest sens: Procesele de gestiune a riscului trebuie s fie parte integrant din activitatea bncii; Indicatorii i metodologiile de gestiune a riscului trebuie s fie consistente, att la nivel global ct i local; Acordul trebuie s fie respectat n toate jurisdiciile, pe toate segmentele de afacere. Scopul Acordului este este de a adresa toate riscurile ntr-o manier strategic. Este de dorit un nou model pentru gestiunea datelor, unul care nu este predefinit, ns este flexibil, deschis i permite cele mai bune soluii. n msura n care Acordul evolueaz, este esenial posibilitatea adaptrii i extinderii soluiei. Acordul va avea un impact semnificativ asupra ntregului sistem bancar, n special asupra profitabilitii. Instituiile financiare care vor evalua riscurile la nivelul ntregii organizaii i vor realiza alocarea capitalul economic n funcie de aceste riscuri, vor avea de ctigat, ns cele care nu vor adopta aceast abordare vor descoperi c acest lucru este necesar pentru a-i continua activitatea.
Cuvinte-cheie: risc bancar, date, depozit de date, raportare, model Clasificare JEL: G32, D81
Introducere Primul Acord de Capital Basel a fost constituit n 1988 pentru a coordona eforturile globale de reglementare i de a stabili cerinele minime de capital pentru eliminarea riscului reprezentat de ctre bncile subcapitalizate. Aa cum menioneaz Greuning van i Bratanovic (2007, p. 5055), pentru a face fa complexitii crescute din domeniul financiar i riscurilor sistemice, un nou Acord de Capital a fost propus de ctre Comitetul Basel de Supervizare Bancar, pentru a stabili un cadru mai complex pentru bnci de msurare a riscului i de a constitui rezerve de capital suficiente pentru a acoperi posibilele pierderi cauzate de riscul de pia, de credit i cel operaional. Basel II va impacta toate serviciile financiare, inclusiv serviciile financiare pentru companii, servicii bancare de larg consum,
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managementul activelor, pli i decontri, servicii bancare comerciale i servicii de custodie. Dup cum se menioneaz n Georgescu (2005, p. 2-3), Noul Acord de Capital este structurat pe trei piloni: Pilonul I: Cerinele minime de capital acest pilon stabilete cerinele minime de capital i definete elementele care constituie capitalul. El mbuntete principiile de msurare ale Acordului din 1988 prin includerea a trei opiuni pentru calcularea riscului de credit, de la cel mai simplu la cel mai sofisticat, i introduce un cost al capitalului pentru riscul operaional. Datele trebuie s fie suficient de detaliate i s surprind tendinele istorice pentru a asigura o imagine detaliat a riscului n cadrul instituiei. Pentru prima dat li se va solicita bncilor s pun deoparte capital pentru riscul de pia, de credit i cel operaional. Pilonul II: Supravegherea adecvrii capitalului pune n eviden legtura dintre capitalul de reglementare i puterea i eficacitatea proceselor de control intern i gestiune a riscului. Acest pilon solicit conducerii bncii s explice fa de banca de reglementare din fiecare ar, cuantificarea riscului i activitile i strategiile de conducere. Conducerea bncii va trebui s fac cunoscut organelor de reglementare nivelul de risc al bncii, comportamentul fa de risc i metodologiile folosite pentru evalua i gestiona riscul. Organele de reglementare vor solicita, de asemenea, din partea instituiilor tere, validarea metodologiilor i aciunilor referitoare la risc ale bncilor. Pilonul III: Disciplina de pia Acest pilon solicit conducerii bncii s creasc nivelul de transparen i prezentare ctre pia, astfel nct pieele de capital s dispun de suficiente informaii pentru a evalua eficient riscurile pe care o banc i le asum i pentru a impune o disciplin a acestei piee pentru accesarea capitalului. Cerine de raportare i transparen sporit vor fi solicitate asupra elementelor precum: structura capitalului, cuantificarea riscului i practicile de management, profilul de risc i adecvarea capitalului. Fiecare din aceti piloni adreseaz obiectivul declarat al Acordului Basel II de a determina instituiile financiare s integreze gestiunea riscului n practicile lor de afaceri zilnice. Acordul urmrete s determine instituiile financiare s investeasc constant n mbuntirea practicilor de gestiune a riscului. Altfel spus, organele de reglementare internaionale intenioneaz ca Basel II s fie o platform de gestiune mai bun a afacerii, n care instituiile financiare integreaz n mod sistematic riscul ca un factor cheie in deciziile de afacere. 1. Provocri ale Basel II Fiecare din cei trei piloni ai Basel II sunt fundamentai pe date. Activele i cerinele de capital ponderate n functie de risc, procesele de supraveghere i disciplina de pia i prezentarea toi aceti piloni cresc sau scad n funcie de modalitatea n care banca utilizeaz viteza, calitatea, acurateea, completitudinea i transparena datelor.
Aa cum se menioneaz n Building Enterprise Wide Performance and Compliance Architecture (2004, p.4), trei considerente strategice sunt importante n planificarea creterii i integrrii sistemelor de gestiune a datelor pentru a obine statutul cerut de Basel II: Scalabilitate Complexitatea i granularitatea datelor la nivel de cont, care trebuie s fie extrase i analizate necesit baze de date i resurse de gestiune a datelor scalabile, pentru c n timp este de asteptat s creasc foarte mult cantitatea de date care s fie stocat i accesat, acest lucru urmnd s se ntmple indiferent de mrimea instituiei; Disponibilitatea Continuitatea performanei sistemului, mpreun cu fiabilitatea dovedit a bazei de date vor fi definitorii pentru a asigura faptul c informaiile de reglementare sunt complete, corecte i reconciliate integral n contabilitate. Sistemele vor trebui de asemenea s se dovedeasc robuste prin teste riguroase la date anterioare i teste de performan; Securitate Utilizarea datelor la gradul de detaliu i granularitate cerut de Basel II va pune accentul n mod inevitabil pe integritatea i confidenialitatea datelor. Probleme complexe de securitate sunt ridicate, de asemenea, de nevoia de consolidare i standardizare a datelor din multiple locaii i filiale, astfel nct s poat fi raportat o imagine complet a riscului pentru toate relaiile comerciale ale acestora. Majoritatea instituiilor financiare vor trebui s-i mbunteasc sistemele informatice parial sau total n privina integrrii, culegerii i stocrii datelor, securitii i raportrii, din cauza volumului sporit de date care necesit identificare, extragere, stocare, calcul, reconciliere i raportare pentru a ndeplini cerinele Basel II (Figura 1). 1.1 Integrarea datelor Construirea unui depozit scalabil pentru ntreaga instituie reprezint opiunea corect pentru ndeplinirea cerinelor Basel II. Alegerea celei mai bune soluii nu numai c va crete gradul de ndeplinire a cerinelor, dar va i spori capacitile managementului financiar i a raportrilor n general, de exemplu ndeplinirea cerinelor privind standardele internaionale de contabilitate. Conform Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper (2005, p.3 6), principalele provocri privind colectarea i stocarea datelor sunt: Volume uriae de date complexe manipularea multitudinii de date incluznd informaii istorice cu privire la riscurile de credit, istoricul tranzaciilor i altele necesit un depozit de date bine gndit, testat i construit pentru un anumit scop. Surse de date multiple datele sunt colectate i gestionate ntr-un mod consistent, complet si corect, de-a lungul sistemelor de risc de credit, contabilitate i celelalte sisteme ale bncilor.
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Urmrirea riscului operaional reprezint noua mare provocare a Basel II. Bncile au nevoie de o viziune complet asupra proceselor, oamenilor i sistemelor. Granularitatea datelor tranzacionale nivelul de detaliu necesar semnific faptul c bncile trebuie s aib o singur imagine clar a adevrului ntr-un depozit de date, altfel cifrele nu vor fi consistente. Integrarea soluiile punctuale nu vor fi suficiente. Bncile vor trebui s minimizeze interfeele dintre numeroasele sisteme, deoarece pe msur ce aceste sisteme evolueaz i reglementrile se schimb, complexitatea va deveni greu de gestionat.
Figura 1. Arhitectura Basel II
1.2 Realizarea calculelor Conform International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards - A Revised Framework (2004, p.12, 58, 79, 107, 118), principalele provocri privind realizarea calculelor sunt: Pregtirea Cu ct bncile vor ncepe mai curnd procesul de colectare a datelor, cu att se vor decide mai repede asupra metodei de calcul care s fie adoptat. Totui, bncile trebuie s fie flexibile, deoarece pot aprea anumite schimbri n viitor. Scalabilitatea Aa cum a fost menionat, volumul i complexitatea datelor va continua s creasc n timp. Algoritmii de calcul trebuie s fie stabili pentru a face fa cerinelor n cretere. Granularitatea Calcule detaliate ale expunerilor i alocrilor de capital reprezint elementul principal pentru nivelul avansat al Basel II.
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Revizuire Calcularea capitalului reglementat trebuie s fie argumentat de date complete i corecte. Reconcilierea Este vital ca toate expunerile s fie incluse. Bncile trebuie s fie capabile s reconcilieze datele folosite pentru calcularea capitalului cu evidenele contabilite i alte surse. Evidena controlului Este important s se poat justifica cum anumite neconcordane au fost soluionate, i s existe proceduri documentate pentru supervizarea activitilor. Motoare de calcul Soluii specializate sunt necesare pentru calcularea costului capitalului bazate pe:
PD (probabilitatea de nerambursare) pentru clieni, garani etc; LGD (pierderea datorat nerambursrii) incluznd aspecte legate de rangul
i calitatea colateralului;
EAD (expunerea la riscul de nerambursare) cu privire la valoarea

expunerii, compensarea cu depozite i la situaia instrumentelor extrabilaniere; Riscuri operaionale Bncile trebuie s poat identifica sursele riscului operaional, s le msoare i s le monitorizeze, inclusiv riscurile testelor de performan generate de produse noi, proceduri noi etc. Consistena Consistena ntre calcularea capitalului reglementat i cel economic trebuie s fie asigurat. Calcule intermediare Bncile trebuie s poat urmri att calculele la nivel de componente ct i la nivel agregat, furniznd indicatorii LGD, EAD i alii n mod separat. 1.3 Raportare i analiz Dup cum se menioneaz n International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards - A Revised Framework (2004, p.161), Pilonii II i III supravegherea adecvrii capitalului i disciplina de pia - pun n eviden n mod clar abilitatea bncilor de a raporta eficace n termeni de coninut, format i canal. Aceasta se aplic n mod egal raportrilor interne i externe. De asemenea, bncile trebuie s poat demonstra c au ndeplinit cerinele privind reconcilierea, analizele scenariilor pentru riscul de credit i cel operaional, validarea modelelor, msurarea riscului operaional n relaie cu costul capitalului i cerinele privind raportarea excepiilor. Instituia de supraveghere va dori ca evidena documentat i procedurile formalizate ale acestor procese s fie disponibile. Totui, flexibilitatea rmne elementul cheie al eficacitii i trebuie s fie elementul principal n planificarea curent. Unele rapoarte vor rmne n format tiprit, dar altele vor necesita s fie n concordan cu standarde web recunoscute,
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cum ar fi XML limbaj de baz pentru interschimbarea datelor sau standardul mai nou aprut XBRL. Asa cum se precizeaz n (2003, p.12), arhitectura de raportare trebuie s permit alegerea aplicaiei corecte pentru nevoile de raportare ale bncii. Principalele provocri sunt: Automatizarea Rapoartele trebuie s fie periodice i parte component a unui mediu stabil de raportare. Completitudine Sistemele trebuie s ofere o gam larg de raportri, lund n considerare instrumentele, reconcilierea, controlul schimbrii, indicatorii cheie ai riscului operaional i testele de performan. Portal i flux de lucru Un singur portal este folosit pentru distribuirea rapoartelor ctre utilizatorii interni i externi i pentru alte aciuni care trebuie ntreprinse. Arhivarea Un depozit de date pentru datele istorice, documentaie i rapoarte trebuie s fie meninut. 1.4 Riscul operaional Conform International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards - A Revised Framework (2004, p.137 150), riscul operaional reprezint un termen cuprinztor n cadrul acordului Basel II i semnific expunerea la pierderi care nu se refer la riscul de credit, de pia sau de rat a dobnzii. Factorii externi organizaiei trebuie de asemenea s fie luai n considerare. Acesta continu s fie un aspect evolutiv al noii abordri, atta vreme ct cuantificarea acestor riscuri i calcularea nevoilor de capital aferente nu este un simplu proces statistic. Un numr de dimensiuni sunt acoperite: Oamenii Frauda cauzat de angajai, neglijena sau incompetena, nclcarea regulilor de serviciu, absena personalului cheie din diferite motive. Procesele Riscuri privind plata, decontarea i livrarea; deficiene datorate schimbrilor sau managementului de proiect; vnzarea greit; ntreruperea procesului de afacere; erori de conformitate. Sistemele Riscul investiiei n tehnologie, incluznd dezvoltarea i implementarea sistemului; lipsa capacitii sistemului; deficiene ale sistemului, timp de rspuns sczut, performan redus n pia; bree de securitate; recuperare n caz de dezastru. Surse externe Obligaii de plat legale/publice; activitate criminal; riscul furnizorului, al infrastructurii, sistemic, de guvernare i de reglementare. Modelarea datelor trebuie s permit organizaiilor s trateze aceste riscuri, adesea evaluate n mod subiectiv, furniznd soluii pentru calcularea riscurilor prin aplicaii specializate care urmeaz s apar pe pia. 2. Un nou model pentru gestiunea informaiei despre risc Odat ce a fost aleas o soluie de calcul puternic, este important s fie construit cadrul potrivit n care aceasta s funcioneze. Fluxurile de date vor fi foarte
importante; calculele care necesit volume semnificative de date vor trebui s fie realizate, verificate i reconciliate, stocate i raportate. Atingerea nivelelor cerute de performan pentru fiecare etap trebuie s se realizeze la costuri minime, n mod ideal prin folosirea a ct mai mult posibil din infrastructura de afacere i de sistem, i construirea pe sistemele i aplicaiile conforme cu Basel, oricnd acest lucru este posibil.
Figura 2. Procesele Basel II
Aa cum se menioneaz n Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper (2005, p.1719), exist un numr de etape pentru proiectarea unui astfel de cadru (Figura 2), un numr de probleme i livrabile pe care fiecare proiect Basel II trebuie s le adreseze: Toate sursele de date trebuie s fie accesibile pentru extragerea datelor i conectate n mod securizat i stabil inclusiv sursele externe de date. Extragerea i transferul datelor din toate sursele vor solicita un volum de munc considerabil pentru configurarea i modelarea n mod corespunztor a unor cantiti mari de date. Potenialul de stocare a datelor va trebui s fie optimizat: nu doar pentru capacitate, ci i pentru vitez, flexibilitate i disponibilitatea cerut de Basel II.
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Calcularea riscului trebuie s fie dezvoltat pentru a acoperi criteriile de risc de credit extinse i noile cerine ale riscului operaional. Datele rezultate n urma calculelor nu trebuie doar s fie stocate, de asemenea, ele trebuie s fie reconciliate i testate la o dat anterioar n mod riguros. Rapoartele de reglementare vor necesita un grad semnificativ mai mare de detaliere este esenial s se beneficieze de acest regim de raportare cu valoare adugat i, de asemenea, s se foloseasc informaia solicitat de Basel II pentru a coordona deciziile de management i a mbunti performana. Soluii pentru integrarea datelor Conform cu Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper (2005, p.3 6), n centrul unei soluii pentru Basel II trebuie s fie sistemele de gestiune a datelor care sunt testate n majoritatea instituiilor la nivel global. Depozitul de date trebuie s fie special proiectat pentru un domeniu de activitate i trebuie s fie mbuntit pentru a fi in conformitate cu Basel II. Un depozit de date central pentru toate datele relevante interne i externe cu puterea i sclabilitatea de a furniza imagini multiple peste volumele de date colectate va asigura o singur imagine a adevrului. Soluia trebuie s furnizeze o vedere de ansamblu complet, consolidat a tuturor legturilor bncii cu clienii, furnizorii i alte persoane tere. O arhitectur integrat pentru extragerea i stocarea datelor va sprijini raportrile ctre management i cele statutare. Soluii pentru realizarea calculelor Bncile trebuie s aib capacitatea s utilizeze cele mai bune aplicaii pentru a asigura ndeplinirea cerinele detaliate ale Basel II privind calcularea riscului i capitalului. O singur imagine a adevrului permite reconcilierile obligatorii i controlul cerut de Acord. Acestea au nevoie de analize ale riscului de rat a dobnzii structurate, previziuni ale bilanului i evaluri ale pieei. Soluii de raportare Raportrile beneficiaz datorit imaginii unice a adevrului precum i datorit proceselor comune de gestiune a datelor de-al lungul ciclului de extragere, stocare, calcul i raportare a datelor. Este esenial ca arhitectura s sprijine aplicaii de raportare specializate. Raportrile interne i externe conform Pilonilor II si III nu au ca scop doar adoptarea celui mai avantajos statut posibil sub Basel II, ele oferind i beneficii semnificative pentru raportrile ctre management i pentru gestiunea performanei.
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Concluzii Conformitatea cu Basel II rmne o iniiativ important pentru orice organizaie. Doar pentru ndeplinirea cerinelor de baz va fi nevoie de o investiie substanial de timp i resurse din partea fiecrui departament al unei organizaii de servicii financiare. Totui, culegerea beneficiilor dintr-o astfel de investiie depinde de proporia n care institiiile financiare integreaz informaia Basel II n practicile lor de afacere. Instituiile financiare vor avea o singur imagine a adevrului susinut de procese standard de gestiune a datelor, avnd la baz o infrastructur capabil s interogheze multitudinea datelor la nivel de cont, n mod consistent, n cadrul ntreprinderii. Toate caracteristicile relaiilor cu clientul, furnizorul i alte pri tere vor fi construite mult mai transparent. Toate aceste elemente ofer un mediu puternic pentru o gestiune a afacerii mult mai eficace i mai profitabil. Pentru a face unitile de afacere de succes, factorii de decizie trebuie s-i optimizeze profitabilitatea n relaie cu profilul lor de risc. Acordul Basel II ofer instituiilor financiare capacitatea de a msura riscurile, dar nu poate cuantifica efectul riscului asupra profitabilitii. Prin urmare, urmtorul pas pentru mediul de afacere este s implementeze solutia de Gestiune a performanei ajustat la risc astfel nct s poat beneficia total de datele ntreprinderii. Bibliografie Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper, 2005, IBM Corporation, accesat la 20 Apr 2009, http://whitepapers.techrepublic.com.com/thankyou.aspx?&promo=110000& docid=273519&view=273519 Building Enterprise Wide Performance and Compliance Architecture, 2004, Oracle Corporation, accesat la 20 Apr 2009, http://www.oracle.com/industries/financial_services/fsi_sibos_basel_II_arch.pdf Georgescu, F, 2005, Stadiul pregatirii pentru aplicarea reglementrilor Basel II n sistemul bancar romnesc accesat la 20 Apr 2009, http://194.102.208.22/Ro/Prez/R20050303primvice.pdf Greuning van, H. i Bratanovic, S. B., Analiza i managementul riscului bancar, Editura IRECSON, 2007, Bucureti International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards A Revised Framework, 2004, Bank for International Settlements, accesat la 20 Apr 2009, < http://www.bis.org/publ/bcbs107.pdf> Sangani, S., 2003, Meeting the Requirements of Basels New Capital Accord An Oracle White Paper, accesat la 20 Apr 2009, http://www.oracle.com/industries/financial_services/brady_final_oracle_whtpr_jan0 4.pdf
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AUTENTIFICAREA BAZAT PE CUNOTINTE N APLICAIILE ORIENTATE SPRE CETEAN

Bogdan Vintil
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia vb@vintilabogdan.ro
Drago Palaghi
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti, Romnia mail@dragospalaghita.ro
Rezumat
Sunt definite aplicaiile orientate spre cetean. Caracteristicile de calitate ale acestora sunt prezentate. Este realizat o comparaie cu aplicaiile tradiionale pentru care restriciile nu sunt la fel de puternice. Sunt prezentate metode de autentificare n cadrul aplicaiilor informatice. Mecanismul de funcionare al autentificrii bazate pe cunotine este analizat. Este definit noiunea de factoid. Caracteristici ale factoizilor sunt enumerate i descrise. Sunt analizate implicaiile utilizrii autentificrii bazate pe cunotine n aplicaii informatice. Sunt definite metode de mbuntire ale securitii aplicaiilor informatice. Implementri practice ale metodei sunt prezentate. Direcii de dezvoltare ale metodelor de autentificare sunt prezentate.
Cuvinte-cheie: cunostinte, autentificare, securitate, aplicatii informatice, orientare spre

cetatean
Clasificare JEL: L86
Introducere Economia digital presupune realizarea de tranzacii economice utiliznd tehnica de calcul i tehnologiile de comunicaie. Dezvotarea exploziv a tehnicii de calcul i comunicaie a condus la o evoluie ascencent a volumului de tranzacii economice realizate online. Volumul n continu cretere al tranzaciilor economice electronice duce la apariia unei noi categorii de aplicaii informatice care trebuie s rspund noilor cerine ale utilizatorilor. Numrul tranzacie crete att prin efectuarea de mai multe tranzacii de ctre utilizatorii exiteni ct, mai ales prin atragerea de noi utilizatori ai aplicaiilor online. Mrirea numrului de utilizatori ai aplicaiei informatice impune actualizarea acesteia pentru a suporta noi tehnologii ce ridic nivelul de calitate. Creterea volumului de tranzacii realizate n mediul online duce de asemenea la o cretere a cerinelor de securitate a datelor transmise. Aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean vin s rspund cerinelor utilizatorilor referitoare la calitile aplicaiilor informatice online.
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Aplicaii informatice orientate spre cetean Aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean reprezint o nou categorie de aplicaii informatice destinate rezolvrii de probleme cu care se confrunt grupuri foarte mari de persoane. Aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean, spre deosebire de celelalte aplicaii informatice au ca obiectiv maximizarea gradului de satisfacie a ceteanului conform [IVSA08]. Aplicaiile informatice clasice au ca obiectiv soluionarea de probleme pentru organizaia pentru care se realizeaz produse software. Dac efectele aplicaiilor informatice clasice se reflect n celelalte sectoare ale beneficiarului, aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean produc profit proprietarilor lor n msura n care cetenii care le activeaz i soluioneaz problemele. AIOC este integral la dispoziia ceteanului, acesta rezolvndu-i probleme prin ea n timp ce aplicaiile clasice interacioneaz cu cetenii n ideea soluionrii de probleme pentru organizaie, ceteanul fiind operator, nu beneficiar. Diferenele eseniale dintre aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean i cele clasice, conform [POIV08], sunt: AIOC sunt create cu scopul de a rezolva problemele cetenilor, n timp ce aplicaiile informatice clasice sunt create pentru a rezolva problemele companiei pentru care sunt realizate; AIOC pun la dispoziia cetenilor o succesiune de pai de urmat pentru a-i rezolva problemele, n timp ce aplicaiile informatice clasice pun accentul pe paii de urmat pentru rezolvarea problemei companiei n cauz; n cadrul AIOC informaia prezentat este cea de care ceteanul este direct interesat, n timp ce aplicaiile clasice pun accentul pe promovarea companiei i a produselor i serviciilor comercializate de aceasta; dezvoltarea aplicaiei este realizat numai dup realizarea unui studiu asupra grupului int i, toate etapele ciclului de dezvoltare, sunt realizate innd cont de caracteristicile grupului int; AIOC sunt aplicaii cu utilizare liber, proprietarul obinnd profit n msura n care aplicaia este accesat de ct mai muli utilizatori; aplicaiile clasice au costuri de achiziie i utilizare; AIOC funcioneaz n mediul online pentru a fi disponibile indiferent de zona geografic i timp; AIOC au un nivel de securitate foarte ridicat spre deosebire de aplicaiile clasice unde securitatea nu este intotdeauna vital. Avnd n vedere avantajele AIOC este necesar ca toate aplicaiile s fie caracterizate ntr-o anumit msur de orientarea spre cetean. Aplicaiile clasice sunt nlocuite cu cele orientate spre cetean care vin cu soluii la problemele acestora.
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Sistemul caracteristicilor de calitate Avnd n vedere faptul c AIOC nseamn alocare de resurse i lucrul independent de proprietar i de dezvoltator, ele trebuie s fie nzestrate cu urmtoarele caracteristici de calitate: amplexiune, adic dac cetenii au de rezolvat n cadrul problemei P, pentru care se construiete AIOC, subproblemele SP1, SP2, ..., SPN, aplicaia trebuie s implementeze componente corespunztoare tuturor celor N subprobleme; corectitudinea care revine la a stabili msura n care se realizeaz concordan perfect ntre rezultatele din seturile de date de test i rezultatele efective obinute prin rularea datelor de intrare din seturile de date de test; un set de date de test SDTi conine date de intrare, rezultate intermediare i rezultate finale; n procesul de testare se introduc datele de intrare i se compar rezultatele intermediare din SDTi cu rezultatele intermediare oferite de aplicaie, respectiv rezultatele finale din setul de date de test i rezultatele finale oferite de aplicaie; corectitudinea e relevant n momentul n care nu exist niciun dubiu asupra calitii seturilor de date de test; completitudinea ceea ce revine la a asigura toate prelucrrile n toate situaiile cu care se ntlnesc, pentru rezolvarea unei subprobleme, oricare dintre membrii grupului int; fiabilitatea arat msura n care aplicaia execut fr incidente prelucrrile necesare pentru soluionarea problemelor cetenilor; aceast caracteristic depinde i de componentele hardware pe care ruleaz aplicaia; AIOC fiabil trebuie s execute prelucrrile fr incidente pentru cetean chiar dac n reeaua n care ruleaz au loc defectri de calculatoare; mentenabilitatea AIOC msoar efortul necesar actualizrii; date fiind caracteristicile AIOC, actualizarea acestora este frecvent pentru a satisface cerinele cetenilor, deci un grad nalt de mentenabilitate trebuie s caracterizeze aceste aplicaii; costurile acestor actualizri trebuie s fie foarte mici pentru a permite actualizarea aplicaiei i pentru a evita necesitatea reproiectrii acesteia; autoconfigurabil; AIOC trebuie s se autoconfigureze n funcie de cele mai frecvente probleme ale cetenilor; pentru aceasta aplicaia informatic trebuie s nregistreze frecvena de apariie a problemelor pe care le rezolv i, la un anumit interval de timp, prin autoconfigurare s scurteze timpul necesar rezolvrii celor mai ntlnite probleme; reconfigurarea trebuie s ia n calcul i seriile de date nregistrate n trecut pentru o eficien ct mai mare; s fie prietenoas; AIOC se adreseaz unui grup int mult mai larg i mai variat dect aplicaiile informatice clasice ceea ce duce la necesitatea realizrii unei interfee grafice foarte uor de folosit; ntruct majoritatea cetenilor ce folosesc aplicaia nu sunt informaticieni, interfaa prietenoas trebuie s caracterizeze AIOC i s permit tuturor utilizatorilor s-i soluioneze problemele; flexibilitatea reprezint abilitatea aplicaiei de a se adapta la mesajele primite de la mediu; n timpul utilizrii de ctre ceteni aplicaia trebuie s se poat adapta cererilor acestora i s furnizeze soluii adecvate la problemele acestora;
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uor de revenit asupra unor pai, actualizarea date de intrare s se fac ntr-o manier logic i facil, mesajele s fie clare; memorie n timp ceea ce presupune memorarea datelor despre cetean, a activitilor sale i a datelor pe care le introduce, urmnd ca la utilizri ulterioare ale aplicaiei s nu mai fie nevoie de introducerea de date suplimentare, eventual s fie actualizate datele deja existente; portabilitatea se refer la posibilitatea rulrii aplicaiei indiferent de platforma hardware folosit; lund n calcul numrul foarte mare de utilizatori ai aplicaiei i varietatea acestora din punct de vedere al platformei hardware folosite, este vital ca AIOC s ruleze pe ct mai multe platforme hardware; indiferent de platforma hardware folosit, AIOC pun la dispoziia utilizatorilor aceleai faciliti, nefiind permis ca o facilitate disponibil pe o platform s fie indisponibil pe alta; n [BOPO08] portabilitii aplicaiilor informatice i este atribuit un rol foarte important n succesul pe care aplicaia l nregistreaz; precizia calculelor se refer la numrul de zecimale reinute n timpul calculelor; pentru AIOC este important ca precizia calculelor s fie ct mai mare deoarece la un numr foarte mare de utilizatori erorile ce se propag sunt mari dac precizia este redus; securitatea reprezint abilitatea aplicaiei de a asigura protecia datelor i aciunilor utilizatorilor mpotriva oricror aciuni criminale. Securitatea aplicaiilor informatice orientate spre cetean este o caracteristic de calitate vital ce trebuie satisfcut n cel mai nalt grad. Aplicaia trebuie s asigure utilizatorul c datele i aciunile sale sunt protejate mpotriva atacurilor cu caracter criminal. Securitatea AIOC Dat fiind numrul foarte mare de utilizatori ai aplicaiilor informatice orientate spre cetean, securitatea este un aspect foarte important al acestor aplicaii. Fiecare utilizator trebuie s acceseze numai datele sale i s realizeze aciuni numai n numele su. Accesul utilizatorilor la aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean se impune s se fac pe baza autentificrii dac aplicaia implic i realizarea de operaiuni economice. n cazul aplicaiilor informatice orientate spre cetean pentru informare accesul este liber, autentificarea fiind necesar numai pentru accesarea de servicii cu plat. n [LIZH08] se arat c modalitile de autentificare devin tot mai sigure i mai complete pe msur ce noi tehnologii sunt dezvoltate i cerinele utilizatorilor cresc. Autentificarea se definete ca fiind procesul de stabilire dac un obiect este autentic conform [IVDO08]. n cazul aplicaiilor informatice orientate spre cetean aceasta revine la a stabili dac un utilizator este cel drept care se prezint. Funcionarea componentei de autentificare pentru aplicaiile informatice este prezentat n Figura 1. Utilizatorul introduce datele de autentificare sau solicit resetarea parolei. Serviciul de autentificare verific dac utilizatorul a introdus parola asociat contului su i acord acces la componentele aplicaiei dac acest
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lucru se confirm. Dac este primit o cerere de resetare a parolei, aceasta este trimis mai departe serviciului de resetare parol. Dac cererea este de autentificare dar parola furnizat nu este asociat contului sub care s-a facut cererea, utilizatorului i se solicit s furnizeze alte date de identificare. n cadrul aplicaiilor informatice orientate spre cetean autentificarea bazat pe cunotine asigur un grad ridicat de securitate i ofer de asemenea utilizatorilor o metod de autentificare comod. Autentificarea bazat pe cunotine este folosit ca sistem primar sau ca sub-sistem de autentificare in cadrul aplicaiilor orientate ctre cetean. Oferirea posibilitii seleciei unui mecanism simplu i comod de autentificare este vital pentru AIOC. Selecia este cea mai facil modalitate de a introduce date n aplicaiile informatice [CHLI08]. Posibilitatea de a selecta autentificarea bazat pe cunotine trebuie implementat de toate aplicaiile orientate spre cetean. Acest tip de autentificare are la baz o serie de factoizi ce reprezint informaii stiute de utilizator pe baza crora se face autentificarea ulterioar.
START
Introducere elemente de autentificare
Elemente de identificare noi Serviciul de resetare parol
Nume de utilizator/ parol incorecte
Cerere de autentificare/ resetare parol Serviciul de autentificare
Cerere de resetare parol
Componentele aplicaiei
STOP
Figura 1 Componenta de autentificare
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Un factoid este reprezentat sub forma unei perechi: unde: f=(c,v) c reprezint cheia data de ctre utlizator; v reprezint valoarea asociat cheii c.
Factoizii au urmtoarele caracteristici: memorabilitatea ce reprezint uurina cu care utilizatorul reine datele introduse; intuibilitatea care se concretizeaz n uurina prin care informaiile oferite sunt ghicite de ctre o persoan ter ce nu posed cunotine despre identitatea utilizatorului; simplitatea reprezint o caracteristica sctrict legat de memorabilitate, cu ct factoidul este mai simplu cu att memorabilitatea crete; utilizabilitatea este acea caracteristic ce permite utilizarea facila a factoizilor; unicitatea este caracteristica ce garanteaz c fiecare factoid este unic n setul de care aparine; portabilitatea asigur funcionarea sistemului de autentificare bazat pe cunotine indiferent de platform; familiaritatea este o sub caracteristic a intuibilitii ce ine de caracterul personal al cunotinelor cuprinse n factoid.
Utilizator Interferene
Cheie
Valoare Factoid
Interferene
Sistem
Figura 2. Mediul ambiant al factoizilor
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Pentru creterea nivelului de securitate se utilizeaz un set de factoizi F = {f1, f2,, fn} unde factoidul fi = (ci, vi) i factoidul fj = (cj, vj). Elementele din mulimea F au urmtoarele proprieti: fi fj adica (ci, vi) (cj, vj) adic ci cj i vi vj, i,j sunt arbitrar alese din mulimea [1;n]; fk F, daca i numai dac fk se refer la utilizatorul U caruia i aparin factoizii prezeni in multimea F; au numr finit. n figura 2 este prezentat mediul ambiant al factoizilor. Perturbaiile sunt cauzate de probleme de transmisie a datelor intre utilizator si serverul de autentificare, sau de atacuri iniiate pentru a intercepta datele de identificare ale utilizatorului. Se consider un set SU = {U1, U2,, Um} de utilizatori, fiecare utilizator Ui are asociat un set de facotizi SFi = {Fi1, Fi2, Fin} ce l identific n setul de utilizatori SU, asfel se genereaz matricea de identitate M prezentat n( tabelul 1).
Matrice de identitate Tabelul 1
Utilizator U1 U2 Un
Factoizi F11 F21 Fn1
F12 F22 Fn2
F1m F2m Fnm
Fiecare utlizator Ui din matricea M este identificat utiliznd oricare factoid valid din setul SFi. Dac autentificarea are succes se permite accesul n sistem, daca nu accesul este refuzat pn cnd se prezint un factoid valid. n figura 3 este prezentat definirea factoizilor pentru aplicaia disponibil la adresa kba.dragospalaghita.ro care implementeaz un model de autentificare bazat pe cunotine. n prima faz utilizatorul introduce un nume de utilizator dorit i un numr de factoizi. Pe rnd se introduc factoizii ce sunt stocai n baza de date. Autentificarea se face prin regsirea numelui de utilizator n baza de date i confruntnd factoizii furnizai cu cei existeni. n figura 4 este prezentat interfaa de autentificare bazat pe cunotine. Utilizatorul introduce numrul de factoizi. Sunt generate dinamic controale pentru furnizarea factoizilor i valorilor asociate acestora. La apsarea butonului verific factoizii furnizai de utilizator sunt comparai cu cei deja existeni n baza de date. Dac utilizatorul furnizeaz un set valid de factoizi primete acces la resursele aplicaiei. Dac utilizatorul nu furnizeaz un set valid de factoizi procesul de autentificare se reia. Autentificarea bazat pe cunotine este foarte important pentru aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean ntruct ofer utilizatorilor
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posibilitatea de a se autentifica n cadrul aplicaiei pe baza unor informaii deja cunoscute.
Figura 3- Definirea de factoizi
Figura 4 - Identificarea pe baza factoizilor
Concluzii Aplicaiile informatice orientate spre cetean redefinesc conceptul de aplicaie informatic astfel nct s corespund cerinelor grupului int. Acestea indeplinesc o mulime de caracteristici de calitate pe care aplicaiile clasice nu le indeplinesc sau le indeplinesc ntr-o msur foarte redus. Securitatea este o caracteristic de calitate foarte important pentru AIOC, acestea fiind bine realizate numai dac nivelul de securitate este foarte ridicat. Autentificarea, pentru majoritatea aplicaiilor informatice se realizeaz prin intermediul numelor de utilizator i parolelor asociate. Utilizarea autentificrii bazate pe cunotine in cadrul aplicaiilor orientate ctre cetean ofer urmtoarele avantaje: diminuarea gradului de tentative euate de autentificare, tinnd cont de faptul ca multimea factoizilor este mare, iar cunotinele inregistrate n ea sunt familiare utilizatorului; micorearea gradului de risc n cazul atacurilor cu dicionar din cauza utilizrii aleatoare a factoizilor dai pentru autentificare i a caracterului personal al factoizilor, cunotinele cuprinse n ei, cheia i valoarea fiind introduse de ctre utilizator.
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Primordialit atea cunotinel or n toate component ele economiei
Dezavantajele utilizarii autentificrii bazate pe cunotine sunt legate de caracterul public al factoizilor i disponibilitatea lor n spaiul virtual. Din aceasta cauz este recomandat utilizarea de informaii ct mai diferite i cu un grad de disponibilitate redus. Dezvoltarea viitoare a metodei i implementarea sa n aplicaiile orientate spre cetean astfel nct utilizatorii acestora s selecteze metoda de autentificare dorit duce la creterea calitii aplicaiilor i a gradului de satisfacie al utilizatorilor. n dezvoltarea viitoare se iau n considerare aspecte referitoare la asigurarea caracteristicilor factoizilor, la dezvoltarea de noi faciliti ale metodei i asigurarea securitii informaiilor transmise n procesul de autentificare. Acest articol a fost elaborat ca parte a proiectului Doctorat i doctoranzi n triunghiul educaie-cercetare-inovare (DOC-ECI), proiect cofinanat din Fondul Social European prin Programul Operaional Sectorial Dezvoltarea Resurselor Umane 2007-2013 i coordonat de Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureti. Bibliografie [BOPO08] Ctlin Boja, Marius Popa, Iulian Niescu 2008 Characteristics for Software Optimization Projects, n Informatic Economic, vol. 12, nr. 1, Inforec, Bucureti, pp. 46 51 [CHLI08] Ye Chen, Divakaran Liginlal 2008 - A maximum entropy approach to feature selection in knowledge-based authentication, Elsevier Science Publishers B. V. Amsterdam, The Netherlands, The Netherlands [IVDO08] Ion Ivan, Mihai Doinea, Drago Palaghi 2008 - Aspects Concerning the Optimization of Authentication Process for Distributed Applications, Theoretical and Applied Economics, Bucharest, Romania [IVSA08] Ion Ivan, Leonard Scuiu, Daniel Milodin 2008 - The development of computer science oriented towards the citizen, The Proceedings of Journal ISOM Vol. 2 No.2 / December 2008, ISSN: 1843-4711 [KRSM08] E. Kritzinger, E. Smith 2008 - Information security management: An information security retrieval and awareness model for industry, Computer Security 1 - 8, Elsevier Science Publishers B. V. Amsterdam, The Netherlands [LIZH08] Jia-Yong Liu, An-Min Zhou, Min-Xu Gao 2008 - A new mutual authentication scheme based on nonce and smart cards, Computer Communications 31, Elsevier Science Publishers B. V. Amsterdam, The Netherlands [NIMC07] Andrea Di Nicola, Andrew McCallister 2007 - Existing Experiences of Risk Assessment, Eur J Crim Policy Res (2006) 12:179187 DOI 10.1007/s10610-007-9034-7, Springer Science + Business Media B.V. [POIV08] Marius Popa, Ion Ivan, Drago Palaghi, Bogdan Ctlin Vintil 2008 Quality metrics of citizen oriented informatics applications, Forth International Conference on Applied Statistics ICAS4, Bucharest Romania, November 20-22
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SAVING COMPANIES AFFECTED BY THE ECONOMIC CRISIS AT HAND OF STAKEHOLDERS AND ACCOUNTING PROFESSIONALS
Claudia-Maria Bobe
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania clau_sunny@yahoo.com
Mihaela Mocanu
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania mocanu.miki@gmail.com
Abstract
The current economic environment is characterized by uncertainties related to price volatility, difficulties in the valuation of financial instruments, as well as of assets and liabilities in general. More and more companies face liquidity issues that could even threaten their existence. Under these circumstances, saving such companies becomes a major concern for the ones directly interested, survival being the term most used in the current state of the worlds economy. In the context of this economic turmoil at international level, the main stakeholders and the accounting professionals find themselves in the position of revising their procedures, objectives, strategies, but also their behavior, their attitude in general, in order to limit or even eliminate the negative consequences of the financial crisis. From our perspective, the communication among company, stakeholders, and auditors represents the fundament of a successful business strategy. However, communication difficulties could be encountered, especially under conditions of uncertainty and crisis. The present article intends to identify the opportunities and threats generated by the economic crisis and to analyze the information flows among company, stakeholders and accounting professionals under circumstances in which the going concern assumption is threatened. Our paper emphasizes the importance of communication among company, stakeholders, and auditors in saving the firms affected by the economic crisis.
Keywords: economic turmoil, stakeholders, accounting professionals, communication,

transparency
JEL Classification: G30 Introduction The break-out of the world economic crisis, which has initially started with a financial crisis, caused by unprecedented increases in credits (stimulated by a long period of moderate financial and economic conditions) is opening the road to changes affecting companies, stakeholders and the relationships between them, as well as to changes at the level of the whole society. These changes are rather answers, reactions, effects of the adaptation to the new unfavorable economic background. Usually, change involves multiple, ample, long processes, that are
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necessary for survival within new economic coordinates and which use specific tools, whereas one of the most important is communication. Our paper presents the current situation and the causes of the economic crisis, aspects related to corporate governance and the role of the stakeholders in the enterprises life and the economic environment, but also the reaction of the stakeholders to the current economic changes. Last but not least, we presented the role and importance of communication in times of financial crisis, as main survival factor and even exit from the crisis. 1. Current Situation and Causes of the Economic Crisis The financial crisis that broke out in the summer of 2007 is striking in its magnitude, its speed of spreading internationally and in its persistence, since it is far from being over. At present, the financial world is characterized by risk adversity, reduced liquidity, price volatility, uncertainty regarding the future of financial institutions, doubts related to the quality of the structured credit products and uncertainty about the macroeconomic prospective in general. A number of factors contributed to the break out of the current economic crisis, among which: the expansionary macroeconomic policies of the United States of America to restore the economic growth affected during the previous crisis from the first half of the century, excessive distribution of credit, the use of complex financial instruments without having realistic image on the associated risks etc. Some authors also mention lack of economic cooperation between major countries (Report on the Financial Crisis, 2008, p. 3). This turmoil in the most advanced financial markets was the consequence of an exceptional growth of credit, stimulated by a long period characterized by benign financial and economic conditions. During that period, there were extremely low real interest rates, whereas no liquidity problems existed, which raised the level of risk that creditors, investors and intermediaries were willing to take on. In conjunction with this, financial innovations expanded the systems capacity to generate credit assets and leverage but outpaced its capacity to manage the associated risks (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 5). A sophisticated and apparently stable system was established, which consisted in originating extremely complex financial instruments that allowed banks to offload risks (especially in the United States of America). These financial instruments were then distributed and bought mostly in Europe, without paying proper attention to the underlying assets and the real economic fundament of these instruments (Report on the Financial Crisis, 2008, p. 3). The expansion of complex financial instruments was also encouraged by favorable credit ratings that implied assets were high-quality and low-risk. Financial guarantors contributed further to the perception that investment opportunities were unlimited and of high quality. As a consequence, the perceived liquidity of credit instruments increased. Additionally, several factors led to lowering the standards used in analyzing the eligibility of clients who wanted to benefit from the products
of the financial institutions. Some of these factors were: relatively stable macroeconomic conditions, increased competitiveness among financial institutions, low interest rates, rising house prices, weak government oversight. Thus, the products of the financial institutions (in particular credits) were given much easier, and this lead in some cases to fraudulent practices (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 7). Despite that, neither investors nor banks, and not even rating agencies correctly assessed the risks associated with this kind of financial instruments that deterioration in general economic conditions would pose (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 5). Standard risk management instruments used by financial institutions were not appropriate in estimating the impact of potential losses connected to structured credit products. The absence of a history of returns, the complexity of many of these products created uncertainty regarding estimated risks (Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience, 2008, p. 7). Market participants underestimated default risks, market risks and liquidity risks. In some banks, the control over off-balance sheet risks, as well as the communication across business lines and functions was weak. As a result, when turmoil began, most companies, investors, other stakeholders, as well as the society as a whole were not able to correctly and rapidly assess risk exposure. The stakeholders role is very important in conjunction with risks, because they have enough instruments for saving the companies and the economic environment from the imminent disasters that could be the consequences of the worlds economic crisis. 2. Corporate governance and the role of stakeholders in the companys life and in the economic environment In theory it is considered that the concept of enterprise refers to a single entity which operates harmoniously and whose main goal is to maximize value and shareholder wealth. Due to the appearance of new elements and complex needs, other views on the enterprise have been developed. Thus, the definition of the enterprise could be based on the concept of social interest, with the purpose of generating wealth as a result of the participants collaboration in the companys life (shareholders, managers, creditors, employees, customers, suppliers, public power). Thus, the objectives of a company are of social nature, but also relate to maximizing profits (Feleag N., 2006, p. 69). The definition developed under the first theory leads to financial information directed towards investors, while the second definition is oriented to satisfy the financial needs of all users (Feleag N., 2006, p. 69). One of the key factors that influence the efficient use of resources, the increase of the confidence shareholders have in the enterprise managers, the success in achieving the companys objectives and the economic efficiency is the corporate governance system by which a company is controlled. This system promotes fairness and transparency at company level, and consists in a set of rules of conduct
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that aims the welfare of the society as a whole, but mostly the welfare of the shareholders and other stakeholders: managers, creditors, employees, customers, suppliers, public power, etc. (World Bank, 1998,7). Shareholders, one of the key elements of the company, bring the funds necessary for the activity, and are in turn interested that these funds are used and managed well and fairly by the managers appointed for this purpose. The relationship between owners and managers is controversial, because the two categories of participants may have different interests, often contradictory. For example, the shareholders have, in general, a greater preference for risk, because their securities portfolio is diversified, while managers are more risk-adverse, because all financial interests and of other nature focus on a single enterprise (Feleag N., 2005, p. 171). Agency theory, by which the company is seen as "a knot of contracts" (Feleag N., 2005, p.51), is the one that makes it possible to solve "the conflict of interests between the shareholders and the managers of an enterprise" (Feleag N., 2005, p.170). This theory establishes a set of relationships, with mutual benefits, on the one hand, between shareholders and managers, but also between other parties interested in the smooth running of the company (employees, creditors, etc.). However, the shareholders-managers relationship is the one that generates the most complex conflicts of interest and settling them is closely related to the organization of an effective system of governance which "encourages that the interests of the managers are aligned to the ones of the shareholders" (Feleag N., 2005, p. 170). Stimulating managers so that they fulfill their responsibilities with fairness refers in principle to financial benefits (salary, implementation of a stock-option plan that creates benefits such as dividends and increases of value generated by the sale of the companys shares), but also to benefits in kind (company car, company house, etc.). Auditors play an important role in the conflicts of interest between shareholders and managers. They make a fair, impartial, independent evaluation of the financial statements of the enterprise, having the role of showing shareholders the real situation. Through external audit, shareholders benefit from an important tool to assess the efforts of managers in achieving the companys goals, and in maximizing the wealth of owners. Creditors are third parties who provide loans to companies, and look out for interest and principal. Thus, creditors are directly interested in that company obtains profit as this will be the source of payment of the related loan interests. As for the shareholders, the loans can be a viable solution for obtaining new funds, but the associated risk may be high, because the effective administration of the equity thus obtained depends on the attitude, skills, and especially on the interest of the manager. Employees have multiple interests within a company. They represent one of the most important resources available to a company. The main interests of the employees concern the remuneration level, the benefits in kind (meal and gift tickets, phone, life insurance, trips, company car, etc.), the security and the work
conditions etc. For this purpose, the employees follow the evolution of profitability and the business continuity of the company. Customers and suppliers are the trading partners of the company. Customers are interested in the ability of the company to continue its activity and in its prices, because they are directly interested whether their supplier can provide to them the goods/services they need for the smooth running of the activity. Suppliers have in view whether the customer-company has sufficient resources to pay its financial debts (Feleag N., 2005, p. 57). The corporate governance system may differ depending on the importance given to the categories of participants, but the relationship between shareholders and managers occupy the central position, as their relationship has the most divergent elements. 3. The Impact of the Current Financial Crisis on the Main Stakeholders and Accounting Professionals 3.1. Managers, Investors and Auditors Managers are the ones who, by using a series of laws, principles, methods etc., as well as their own competences and abilities, run the company towards achieving its established purposes. They are charged by investors with using the companys resources (from equipment to employees knowledge and competences) in order to achieve business success. For investors, who took financial risks, success means, in most of the cases, financial performance, namely profit. However, the objective of maximizing profit set by investors is not always the objective of the managers, who are often tempted to follow their own interest, at the expense of the investors. Under financial crisis, managers and investors focus more on their own interests, sometimes opposite to one another. However, it may happen that the objectives of the managers and those of the investors are the same, since both are interested in survival and exist from the crisis. Since investors do not always have the benefit of direct contact to the responsible managers, the ones that act instead of them and protect their interests are the financial auditors. Financial auditors are independent experts that express their opinion on the financial statements of the companies, their interest being whether these statements provide a true and fair view. Under financial crisis, the role of the external auditors has an increased importance, and banks and supervisors rely more and more on the expertise and judgment of external auditors. An audit conducted in accordance with international audit and ethics standards, under independence, integrity and professional competence, can provide a number of benefits to institutions, companies, financial systems and supervisors (External audit quality and banking supervision, 2008, p. 2). Audits increase the confidence of market participants by increasing the credibility of the financial statements, especially under economic turmoil. Although it is not one of their main objectives, auditors can help identify weaknesses in internal control relating to financial reporting and thus can contribute to safe and sound bank systems. Most of the
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worlds credit institutions undergo audits, and supervisors rely more and more on high quality bank audits that complement the supervisory processes. In the context of globalization, most audit companies expanded at international level, and consequently, their structures are complex and corporate governance within audit companies is characterized by difficulties in insuring transparency (External audit quality and banking supervision, 2008, p. 8). Therefore, the audit profession faces new challenges within the current financial crisis. One of these challenges refers to testing the going concern assumption, which is fundamental in preparing financial statements. Most of the financial statements are prepared based on the assumption that the entity is continuing in business for the foreseeable future with neither the intention nor the necessity of bankruptcy, liquidation or reducing activity (ISA 570). The auditor is in charge with verifying the appropriateness of this statement made by management, as part of its responsibilities to prepare the financial statements of the company. Under economic crisis, it is expected that more and more companies put question whether they will indeed continue as going concern in the foreseeable future (which usually means over a period of more than 12 months) (Audit Considerations in Respect of Going Concern in the Current Economic Environment, 2009, p. 5). As a consequence, the auditor will need to pay particular attention in conducting the specific tests related to this aspect. Before the financial crisis, auditors had a relatively passive role, because they analyzed the evidence on which the management made the going concern assumption and investigated the soundness of this evidence. Nowadays, auditors are challenged to take a more active role, to search in an alert and independent manner the factors that could dismiss the managements assumption and that could lead to issuing an adverse opinion. Another challenge for these accounting professionals is auditing financial statements based on fair value measurement. Both measuring fair value and verifying this measurement is difficult due to its complexity and involves subjectivity and uncertainty, especially under crisis. Therefore, the auditor will need to develop his/her competences in order to adapt to the new situation. 3.2. Creditors The companys need for funding can be satisfied through loans from bank lenders, from companies within the group etc. To determine the ability of reimbursement of the loans, the bank lenders take into account the fair value of the items, not the historical value. The prudence that they manifest may conduct to an undervaluation of the assets and an overvaluation of the debts in order to ensure a safety margin (Feleag N., 2005, p. 56). Creditors assess the liquidity indicators of the companies funded, but also "the personal, technical, moral value of the managers, the general situation of the activity branch the enterprise is part of, the general situation of the company (the nature of products, the quality, the price, the customers, the suppliers) and the financial situation of the enterprise "(Feleag N., 2005, p.56). Bank creditors document their lending decision according to the companys size and closely analyze the evolution of loans reimbursement. However, due to non-compliance
with the general principles related to loans, the imprudence of bank creditors led to the break-out of the global financial crisis in 2007. As a normal reaction, in times of financial crisis, the attention of bank creditors grows significantly. While in normal conditions, prudence is the basic principle, during financial crisis, lenders focus on excessive prudence, on business continuity of companies, on their ability to maintain profits, on the degree of liquidity, but also on the human factor, especially on managers, on their behavior, the measures taken to survive, and also to exit the crisis. The refusal of bank creditors to fund a company can lead to a liquidity crisis. The permanent communication between creditors and managers, the fair description of the companys situation, the flexibility, the transparency and the fairness are key factors for establishing a viable relationship between creditors and companies. In crisis conditions, survival is the main objective of the companies and funds are primary. However, if loans are not efficiently used, it can lead to bankruptcy. During difficult economic conditions, the loans from companies within the group represent a reliable alternative. The conditions for obtaining such loans may be more permissive, the interests lower, or the reimbursement periods longer. However, the funding alternative is available only to larger companies, who are part of a group of enterprises. 3.3. Other stakeholders employees, customers, suppliers 3.3.1. Employees Survival remains the biggest challenge in times of financial crisis. However, survival is understood in different ways by the managers and the employees of a company. If managers believe that survival means reducing the number of staff, for sure, the employees will think exactly the opposite, because the disposal would affect their welfare, as the unemployment period may be longer than normal. On the other hand, accepting a number of employees too large in comparison with the necessities of survival or continuation of activity can lead to inefficiency and even bankruptcy. In crisis conditions, the employees are interested not to lose their job, and to maintain the same financial and other benefits. Therefore, the permanent communication with their managers, the active participation in the business of the company, or on the contrary, the more or less violent confrontations between managers and employees are some of the possible effects related to the reaction of employees during these difficult conditions. 3.3.2. Customers and suppliers Trading partners demonstrate more prudence when there are going concern issues. Customers are mainly interested in the companys going concern assumption, but they also have in mind the possibility of negotiating prices easier. On the other hand, the suppliers are interested and analyze more strictly the profitability of the companies and their ability to pay the financial liabilities. However, the monitoring
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of debits and deadlines is the main objective of suppliers in times of financial crisis. The improvement of the relationships between the trading partners and the companies can be achieved through communication and informational transparency. The financial crisis leads to significant changes in the behavior of stakeholders. The reactions differ depending on the role of the participants in the companys life. To avoid bankruptcy and conflicts of interest, managers should adopt a flexible attitude, adapt to the demands of the stakeholders involved and not at last, insure permanent communication between company and interested parties. 4. Importance of communication under economic crisis Most economic crisis lead to rumors, to distorted perceptions regarding the economic environment, to stress, to lack of control, to panic, to disorientation, to uncertainty, to lack of security and even to major lack of balance in the whole society. The first affected by the above mentioned facts are companies, their owners and managers, but also other stakeholders and parties directly involved in the life of a company. They may have reactions such as denial, avoidance of responsibility, disclaimer of culpability, justification. Finally, the reactions are transformed into positive ones: acceptance, remediation, corrective actions, optimism and confidence. One of the factors that make the transition from a negative attitude on the crisis to a survival-oriented behavior, if not to optimism, is the communication between the company and stakeholders and between the company and the economic environment as a whole (fig. no. 1). Individuals react differently to a given situation. Their personality, temperament, and the environment in which they have developed and worked, the psychological, social, economic, political factors and the factors of other nature have led to different, complex, sometimes opposed reactions. Social context involves individuals interaction, which can be achieved mainly through communication. The role of communication is important because it can lead to sustainable and productive relationships between individuals or to the opposite reactions of rejection, conflict, and indifference. Human relationships influence the creation, the existence and the development of the enterprises, and of the economic environment. Companies cannot exist without individuals, whereas a powerful connection is created: individuals depend on the existence and the proper functioning of companies, while companies cannot exist in the absence of individuals. The strong link that has been created between the different categories of individuals, due to the interactions between them, had as starting point communication. In times of financial crisis, communication takes magnitude, since individuals need accurate information on the facts (in order to eliminate rumors and distorted perceptions of the economic environment). On the other hand, using communication and tools offered by psychology, individuals can recover their balance (by eliminating stress, lack of control, panic and disorientation). Last but
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not least, the uncertainty, and the lack of security and balance can be controlled and removed only when panic and disorientation in the society are reduced. Thus, individuals can make correct and rational decisions related to the crisis situation, can identify the causes, clear them off and restore the social and economic balance. For these reasons, correcting the negative effects triggered by the economic crisis is the first step to getting out of the crisis. However, the responsibility for these actions is to be taken by individuals (stakeholders) whose main tool is communication.
Managers Followed short-term objectives and personal interests Investitors Underestimated investment risks
Financial Institutions Credit expansion, complex financial instruments
Auditors Took a passive role in testing the going concern assumption
Employees Rapacity in buying houses and other goods without appropriate income
FINANCIAL CRISIS
Effects of the crisis
Rumours, distorted perception on the economic environment
Stress, lack of control, panic, desorientation
Uncertainties, lack of security, major lack of balance within the entire society
COMMUNICATION
Figure 1: The phenomenon of financial crisis
Conclusions The effects of the financial crisis that broke out in the summer of 2007 at international level are also felt today. The uncertainty, the increasing number of cases of bankruptcy, the risk adversity of investors, the reduced liquidity, the stricter credit conditions, the price volatility are only some of the features of the crisis phenomenon. All participants in the economic life are affected, directly or
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indirectly, more or less, by the current crisis. As a consequence, changes are necessary, both in attitude, but also in the undertaken actions, whereas communication is essential as instrument of survival and exit from the crisis. Managers, who are responsible for their companys well-being, will need to develop survival strategies and powerful instruments of risk management. Moreover, prudence and conservatism will characterize the attitudes of investors, who before crisis started, were willing to take risks. Creditor, who proved to be quite tolerant in the period of credit expansion, will become stricter in analyzing the eligibility of their potential clients. The importance of auditors will increase, because creditors, investors and the public in general rely on their opinion as independent expert. Employees will become directly interested in the success or failure of the company where they work, due to their dependency relationship with the employer. The driver for all these changes in attitude will be communication. Acknowledgements This article is a result of the project Doctoral Program and PhD Students in the education research and innovation triangle. This project is co funded by European Social Fund through The Sectorial Operational Programme for Human Resources Development 2007-2013, coordinated by The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies. References Audit Considerations in Respect of Going Concern in the Current Economic Environment 2009, International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, accessed at 19.03.09, http://web.ifac.org/download/IAASB_Staff_Audit_ Practice_Alerts_2009_01.pdf External audit quality and banking supervision 2008, Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, accessed at 23.03.09, http://www.asbaweb.org/ENews/enews-16/Documentos%20Finales/Supervisi%C3%B3n%20 Bancaria/SB-01-External%20Audit.pdf Feleag L., Feleag N. 2005, Contabilitate financiar-o abordare european i internaional, volumul I, Infomega, Bucureti Feleag N. 2006, Criza financiar la cumpna dintre secolele XX i XXI i guvernana ntreprinderii, Economie teoretic i aplicat nr. 9, p.61-70 International Standard on Auditing 570 Going Concern, accessed at 22.03.09, www.apb.org.uk/images/uploaded/documents/ACFAB2.pdf Report of the Financial Stability Forum on Enhancing Market and Institutional Resilience 2008, accessed at 01.04.09, http://www.fsforum.org/ publications/r_ 0804.pdf Report on the Financial Crisis 2008, drafted by Ren Ricol, accessed at 20.03.09, www.experts-comptables.org/csoec/content/download/139505/2840268/ version/1/file/FinalReport-def.pdf The Business Environment and Corporate Governance 1998, World Bank, accessed at 25.04.09, www.worldbank.org
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MANAGERIAL REMODELING IN EUROPEAN CONTEXT

Cristina Badea Bolca
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania cristina.badeabolcas@yahoo.com
Florica Badea
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania badea_florica_2005@yahoo.com
Abstract
Romanian integration in the European structures determines modification at organization level on every step of the progress. The starting point in managerial remodeling in Romanian organization constitute the analyze and the possibility of managerial modeling implement already existing and studied by us: Model I. Ansoff, Model G. Hofer and D. Schendel, Model J.A. Pearce II and R.B. Robinson, Model LCAG of Harvard, Model K. Andrews, Model M.J. Stahl and D.W. Grisgby, Model R. Daft, Model B. Gluck, W. Kaufman, A. Walleck. The strategic management analyse of the models consist in characteristic delimitation of their advantages and their limits. After studying particularities of the Romanian organization have issued their own contributions depriving the possibility of implementing the models mentioned above.We considered necessary the proposal and design of a strategic management model having in mind of the unfavorable effects that may occur in circumstances in which human resource is not objective motivated.
Keywords: strategic management, change management, global strategy, human

resources, knowledge
JEL Classification: M1, M12, M13, M16 Introduction The strategic management which can be applied to organizations from Romania is influenced by particularities of the historical periods which cross the economy, namely that of the gradual transition to the global market economy. Meeting certain requirements is absolutely necessary so that positive effects resulting from the use of modeling management to occur. The most important are: the frequent use in the practice of management methods, systems, modern techniques of management in general and specific prediction of exercise function in particular taking into consideration the impact of the managerial practice trends worldwide in this area, these trends represent the "major axis direction of the transfer of know-how and managerial lines of remodeling and modernizing the management of any companies of any country" ( Hill, E., OSulivan, T., 1998).
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Environmental changes may affect the company's ability to create and retain profitable customers.
Model of strategic management ADVANTAGES Characteristics its ultimate purpose is the conception of a strategic plan that contains the global strategy of the society rendered in objectives with multiple origins LIMITS the strategic plan is the result of the censorship of the forecast objectives by the market the delay in completion of the strategic plan (the loop would not close) Personal contribution the administration of some analyses aiming at the authors of the market (suppliers, customers, competitors), prior to the conception of the strategic plan
I.Ansoff Model
1. Models of strategic management I. Ansoff Model. (1996, p.108-109) The utility of the model comes from the fact that the strategic plan, the way the author names it, is the result of the censorship of the forecast objectives predicted by the market (suppliers, customers, competitors). The model has the following components: the market strategies, the financial strategies and the administrative strategies each of them having their own budget but acting together because of the synergy. G. Hofer and D. Schendel1 (in R. Draft 1990, p.193-197) suggested another model, that has three important stages: the process of drawing up the goals of the firm (that is also the starting point in their model), the process of drawing up the strategy (as an intermediate stage) and the overall strategy of the firm (as a result of this process). The drawing up of the strategy is accomplished at the level of each organizational subdivision, either integrated in the general functioning of the organization or by functioning independently. The objectives of the firm can be accomplished by the thorough analysis of the perspective of development of the current organizing subdivisions. Another model was produced by J.A. Pearce II and R.B. Robinson (1991, p.125), and it comprises all the components of the process of strategic management. According to this model, the success of a management team in terms of strategy depends on the way in which the concordance between the wish to achieve certain objectives and the concrete possibility of getting them is fulfilled, according to the organizational potential and resource availibility.
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Model of strategic management
Characteristics it is determined by three stages: the process of stating the purposes of the organization, the process of stating / drawing up the strategy, the general strategy of the organization
ADVANTAGES LIMITS
Personal contribution
G. Hofer and D. Schendel Model
taking into account the identification of the proposed the environmental objectives and their risk substantiation by the risk to quantify every organizational the influence of subdivision environmetal factors -detecting the on the organizational influences of the general strategy factors belonging to the environment it does not refer to the positive and negative overall influences of the environmental factors on specific stages of the process of stating / drawing up the strategy ADVANTAGES Personal contribution the analysis of the impact of the organizational profile on the environment is considered the priority and then the strategy is drawn up accordingly
Model of strategic management
Characteristics it analyses both the major impact the implemetation of the strategy and the minor impact the implementation of the organizational profile on the environment
LIMITS the comparative analysis of the two impacts the correspondence between the stages of implementation and assessment of the strategy -the possibility of checking the influences determined by the implementation of the strategy the slim quantification of the influences of both the strategy and the profile on the environment, and the other way round
J.A. Pearce II and R.B. Robinson Model
Harvard School, known under the acronym LCAG, after the name of its authors A. Learned, N. Christensen, J. Andrews, S. Guth (1990, p.47-48); the model places
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the internal and the external analyses of the firm on the same level, via what is known under the name of SWOT analysis. The results of environment analysis and of the internal diagnosis make possible for the ways of action to be listed and assessed, taking into account all their advantages and disadvantages. Two new types of values are introduced, that are actually essential to the model so that in order to get a cultural dimension, capable of individuating the firm within the economic context to which it belomgs, that is the elements which, from the point of view of the leading team, have an important role in the drawing up of the strategy. LCAG Model of Harvard school focuses, for the first time, on the role that culture plays in the process of substantiation, drawing up, implementation and assessment of an organizational strategy and on its social responsibility, as well. According to K. Andrews model, (in R.Daft, p.111) making strategic strategies consists in the prior stating of the general aims, in the identification of the major strategies, in choosing the best solution and its putting into practice. When drawing up the strategic objectives and policies that can help to obtain them, at the very base, there are complete analyses of the internal available resources and of the exogen constraints of the environment. The model proposes the drawing up of more alternative desirable strategies, fact that can represent an advantage in comparison with other models that do not offer this possibility to choose.
Model of strategic management ADVANTAGES Characteristics LIMITS Personal contribution
it uses the the integration of the the disagreement SWOT analysis cultural values and of between the the organization into the integration of the social-cultural cultural values and of environment the organization into LCAG Model of the role of social the social-cultural Harvard School catalyser of the environment and the organization importance attached to the general the general objectives objectives are not considered important it formulates it formulates more the cultural risk / beforehand the strategies in order to comportamental general choose the most management objectives appropriate one it identifies the the outline of the K. Andrews major strategic economic, cultural and Model problems social dimensions of the strategy proposed by the organization there are no obvious limits
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These particular aspects which are, so different from the elements comprised in the models presented previously, are in our opinion, met in the strategic model suggested by M.J. Stahl and D.W. Grisgby (1992, p.289). The starting point in the strategic approach is represented by the existence of a stimulus-like situation, that can trigger profound management changes for the time to come. The management perception of the economic phenomena that firms have to cope with and their interpretation is done by taking into consideration the organizational cultural values and the existing cognitive elements. The cultural elements represent independent variables, while the management perception is a dependent one. The systematic representation of the model proves how, out of more possible interpretations of the context, the organizational management is the one that decides for the one they consider adequate for the purposes of the firm and for the temporal context.
Model of strategic management ADVANTAGES Characteristics LIMITS Personal contribution the existence of the particularities of the the knowledge some stimulushuman resource is a management * like situations filtrating element for a that allow for given situation management the staffs limit in changes perceiving the the organizational strategy implementation of the staffs cultural and cognitive values
M.J. Stahl and D.W. Grisgby Model
Another model, suggested by R. Daft, (1992, p. 103-104) that observes the stages and the components of the strategic management, is proposed by 1. This model, based on SWOT analysis, has a central element the re-defining of the organizational mission and its goals, starting from the identification of the strong points, weaknesses, threats and opportunities derived from the internal and external environments. The SWOT analysis is a consequence derived from the existence and the permanent assessment of the firm from the point of view of the mission, the goals and the previous strategies. The new mission and the new goals are instrumental in superior managements drawing up of the three types of strategies: the firm strategy, the strategy on domains of activity (organizing subdivisions) and the functional strategy. The model ends with the implementation stage, that, according to the authors, require these elements, in the following order: leadership, structure, human resources, controlling-system, technologies, informational system.
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In another model, B. Gluck, W. Kaufman, A. Walleck (1990, p.39-40) present the evolution of an organization towards the practice of the strategic management. Thus, the organization goes through four stages in its evolution: a stage focused on financial planning, a stage based on forecast, a stage based on exterior-oriented planning, that is on stakeholders, and the last stage, of the strategic management, as a visible result of the previous stages. The authors of this model correlate the stages within the organizational evolution with the specific systems of values. These one evolve from the primordiality of meeting the budget necessary to implement the strategy into the anticipation of the future, strategic thinking and then into the creation of the future, as a unique possibility of acquiring the competing advantage under the contemporary circumstances.
Model of strategic management ADVANTAGES Characteristics LIMITS Personal contribution the implementation external consultants ** starts from the superior level and ends with the informational system the simultaneous drawing up of the three types of strategies the general objectives are not considered important
redefining the mission and the goals of the organization, starting from the SWOT analysis the drawing up R. Daft Model of the general startegy of the organization; the stategy on separate domains of activity and the functional strategy presupposes the following stages a) the financial planning B. Gluck, b) the forecast W. Kaufman, A. c) the planning Walleck Model oriented towards the exterior (the interest holders) d) the strategic management
the possible emergence of confusions in the contents of the stages
regarding the strategic management as a unitary whole of the previous stages
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2. Personal model for the Romanian society 2.1. Characteristics: the analysis of the characteristics specific to Romania from the point of view of the mentalities and the disregard for the social status the analysis of the globalization factors, research, development and improvement of the knowledge of the human resources the integration of the individual factors into the global value of the organization the objective acknowledgement of each employees abilities and competences and their adequate motivation. 2.2. Procedure (method of implementation) 1) at the level of organizing the subsystem: the approach and the use of knowledge from more domains, emphasizing the ones of organizational strategy 2) the informational subsystem trating the knowledge and the informational system as factor of succes of the organization the identification of the causes that lead to risk situations, seen from the light of the integration in the EU 3) the methodological subsystem applying operational procedures with a direct effect on cost cuts in general and especially on the cost of quality 4) the decisional subsystem the organizational reengineering 5) the human resources subsystem the efficient valorization of each employees knowledge, no matter of the place they hold within the firm - the selection of managers specialized in molding strategic processes the homogenization and the unification of cultural-behavioral dimensions the elaboration of a portfolio that, apart from the technical-economic indicators, should also contain human nature indicators concerning : -the educational capital -fluctuation -the profile of the human resource -team work ability -adaptability to changes -motivation and devotion to work. 2.3. Objectives The improvement of efficacy and the supporting of the organizational viability. The increase in the social responsibilities of the organization. The improvement of the relationships with the market actors (customers, suppliers, competitors etc). Practices of model achievement. The creation and the implementation at the level of organization of an expert decisional system, capable of identifying and optimizing the decisional variants.
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2.4. The stages of the model Identification of the knowledge areas and of the strategic capacities Capture - the attempt to get information from internal and external sources Selection: estimation of the value of the knowledge and its sorting out in order to get the necessary knowledge Stocking: adding the information to the organizational memory and its permanent updating Transfer: creation of a database containing information accesible to all the members of the organization Use: using the information in order to make the right decisions Creation: discovery new information as a result of studies of fundamental and applicative research. 2.5. Principles of implementation of the model of management strategy the establishment of a set of rules in order to stimulate creativity and innovation the permanent improvement of the human resource simultaneous with the evolution of technique and technology the elaboration of reports for the assessment of the intellectual capital measures regarding entertainment within the organizational environment providing some appropriate ergonomic factors 2.6. Advantages It allows for the changes in management strategies to run smoothly, to get assimilated perfectly so that they manage to strengthen the positive aspects and adjust the negative ones The possibility for every employee to become a shareholder in the organization The promotion of knowledge transfer The increase in efficiency and transparency The consolidation of horizontal cooperation 2.7. Possible barriers in implementation hesitation when it comes to replacing human resources the cultural particularities, values, mentalities, habits and behavior the fear not to lose out on power position within the organization and also some relevant information 2.8. Effects and estimated results 1) Better working relationships (appropriate environment) 2) Better performing goods and services 3) Cost cuts 4) The increase in the customers degree of satisfaction 5) A more open attitude towards the revolution of the new
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3. Personal contributions for models 3.1. Personal contributions to M.J. Stahl and D.W. Grisgby Model * During the years when the management of knowledge was applied, there have been shaped many success practices regarding the human factor management for the purpose of facilitating the conversion of implicit knowledge into explicit knowledge. These are: -the conversion of implicit knowledge into explicit knowledge (the creation of knowledge communities, practice communities, knowledge networks, alliances, partnerships, the use of intelligent support for backing up) -knowledge improvement (the improvement of organizational mechanisms, the facilitation of innovation, of dialogue) -the approach of knowledge as capital (identification, filing, analysis, assessment) -the improvement of culture and infrastructure (participation, motivation, acknowledgement) -the approach of knowledge as capital (identification, filing, analysis, assessment) The initiation, the participation in the knowledge discourse (Knowledge Discourse). The difference in some specific practices leads to knowledge acquisition with an instant effect, unlike the situation in the knowledge community where some more general elements are discussed, elements that can affect the way to manage the firm for a longer period of time. The appeal of these communities consists in the openness they show towards their new organizational members, members who can bring along new and interesting perspectives. The danger of diminishing the level of the quality of knowledge due to the principle of free affiliation is reduced because the only source of reward for the participants coming but from the organization is prestige and earning a status of local expert, elements that discourage amateurism. The practice and knowledge communities are extremely important as they contain the rarest resource nowadays, namely, the human attention under the form of dialogue or of question answer. The questions and the answers have as a result the transfer of extremely specific knowledge, usually tacit, while the dialogue leads to the acquisition of new knowledge and the explanation of the tacit ones. In the future, the IT techniques could facilitate the dialogue through: (1) the automatic organization of dialogues and (2) the achievement of translations among different specialization domains by means of ontologies. Due to the low cost and the positive effects, more and more companies use the knowledge communities. Notable examples are: AMS, Shell, Daimler-Chrysler, Hewlett Packard, IBM.
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Apart from these knowledge communities that group together individuals with common interest, regardless of what organization they belong to, the knowledge exchange can also be done at a more formal level, namely the inter-organizations within the knowledge networks. The most interested organizations in establishing knowledge relationships with other organizations are the knowledgeoriented ones (universities, the research centres, and the companies producing top technology). 3.2. Personal contributions to R. Daft Model ** At the organizational level resistance to change is given by the following causes: 1. the organizing structure 2. the capital imobility 3. limited resources 4. conventions, agreements among organizations 5. threats to lose power and influence Unlike other domains of activity, in their relationships with the members of the organization, the management specialists have to rely on the one hand on the level of knowledge, information and practice they have at their disposal and, on the other hand, on receptivity and ethics. In change management there can be used consultants that can either come from the exterior or from the interior of the organization. Using consultants from both the interior and the exterior of the organization has advantages and disadvantages, as well, as presented in Table 1 and Table 2.(Badea, F., Badea Bolcas, C, 2008)
Advantages and disadvantages from the interior of the organization Table 1 Advantages They possess detailed information about the organization Time-saving to understand the problems Great accessibility to information Disadvantages A possible lack of objectivity Compromises to the detriment of efficiency Lack of comparative experience
Advantages and disadvantages from the exterior of the organization Advantages More experience Great objectivity when analysing the development process of the organization Table 2 Disadvantages Supplimentary time for understanding the problems Smaller chances to implement some measures due to the lack of trust shown by the employees
Source: authors Badea, F. and Bolcas Badea, C., The Informational System factor of success in the management of the organization, Review Informatica economic , vol XII, no.4/2008, pp. 22-26
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The measures of change at the organizational level must fulfil certain basic conditions so that the process to be accomplished successfully, namely: the acknoledgement of the fact that the organization must have an opinion on what the change could look like by the consultants and by the members of the system; the capacity of the organization for generating correct information; the members of the organizations attachment to the change strategy. 3. Conclusion Managerial strategy for such organization becomes a question of understanding the character of many very different palces and many very different parts of the company in making determinations of where, how, and what to develop, to produce, to sell and to service even while understanding that the entire analytical process will be reconsidered as soon as it is in place. Romania has already entered the European division of production and in this sense measures of economic policy must be promoted in order to improve competition. The development, be it just theoretical, of a managerial model for the Romanian economic organizations is a challenge which stems form the complexity and continuous changing of the economic, political and social life. By analysing some strategic management models already implemented at a European level and by analysing correctly all the endogenous and exogenous factors the Romanian market could benefit from a rightful and judicious managerial achievement in the European context. A more thorough study of the world economic crisis and of the measures taken in order to boost the economy by limiting the characteristics specific to Romania imply strict measures and results on a long period of time. A creative mind is the most important and profitable characteristic of each individual, of each corporation and country. However, there remain sufficient gaps in our understanding that others should be encouraged to pursue research in this area.
Acknowledgements We are grateful to our teachers coordinators from The Bcharest Academy of Economic Studies, specialists in management, Professor Ion Verboncu, respectively, Professor Constantin Bgu, who offered us excellent suggestions and thoughts, patience and passion for instructional support and expertly guide.
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Reference Ansoff, I., Stratgie et dveloppement de lentreprinse, 1996, Paris, Les Editions dOrganisation, p. 108 Badea, F., Badea Bolca, C., 2008, The informational System factor of success in the management of the organization, Review Informatica economic vol.XII, no.4/2008, pp. 22-26. Burdu, E. 2004, Management comparat internaional, Bucureti, Editura Economic Colesca S., Androniceanu, A., Dobrin, C., Abaluta O. M., Pacesila, M., Sava, M., Burcea S., Managementul cunotinelor n sectorul public, Reserch report ASE Theme no.1 COD CNCSIS 1216/2006 Daft, R., Management, 1990, The Dryden Press, New York, pp.103-104, p. 111, pp. 193-197 Gluck, B., Kaufman W., Walleck A., 1990, Strategic Management for Competitive Advantage, Harvard Business Review, no. 1, p. 39 Hill, E., OSulivan, T., 1998, Marketing, Editura Antet, Bucureti Hitt M.A., Freeman R.E, Harrison J.S, 2006, Handbook of Strategic Management, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford Hisrich, R., Peters, M.P., 1994, Entrepreneurship-laser, laborer er grer une enterprise, Economica, Paris Hofer, G., Schendel, D., 1990, quoted in Daft R. Management The Dryden Press, New York, pp.193-197 Hofstede, G., 1995, Managementul structurilor multiculturale, Bucureti, Editura Economic Learned, A., Christensen, N., Andrews, J., Guth S., 1990, Strategic Management in Harward Business Review, no .24, p. 47 Istocescu, A., 2005, Strategia i managementul strategic al organizaiei Concepte fundamentale/ Aplicaii Manageriale 2005, Editura ASE Bucureti Nicolescu, O., Verboncu, I, 2008, Managemenul Organizaiei, Editura Economic, Bucureti Pearce II, J.A, Robinson Jr.R.B, 1991, Strategic Management, Illinois, Irwin, Homewood, p. 125 Stahl, M.J,Grisgby, D.W., 1992, Strategic Management for Decisions Making, Boston, Masachussette, p. 289
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MAJOR INFLUENCING FACTORS OF ROMANIAN SMES COMPETITIVENESS IN TODAYS ECONOMIC CONTEXT
Mihaela-Georgia Sima
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania georgiasima@yahoo.com; georgia.sima@ccib.ro
Abstract
Romanias economy is dominated by Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). Their evolution is conditioned by the economic, politic and social context in which they live and act. If until recently, the evolution and performance were predictable with the help of realistic estimation and professional management, leading to worthwhile results, in todays economy, due to the world economic crises, these estimations are hard to make. This imposes changes at internal level, concerning the management system as well as support measures from the local and central administration, the government and especially the access to financing programs that could sustain these SMEs and furthermore the Romanian economy. Without this kind of support, the soul SMEs effort will only prove to be temporarily effective. The present paper contains theoretical notions in accordance to the elected subjectcompetitiveness, influencing internal and external factors, the present economic and social context, results of different studies and polls, applied at regional and national level, through which the aimed objectives were obtaining data regarding the general SMEs situation, determining the main negative influencing factors the legal frame, social climate and tensions, political changes and disputes and the way this factors manifest on companies activity. Proposals and solution have been offered in order to diminish the impact on SMEs and sustain their competitiveness, considering the chain propagation of the phenomenon at the entire Romanian economy level.
Keywords: SMEs, factors, founds, management, innovation JEL Classification: A, A1, A10
Small business represents the main catayist of economic growth. Peter Drucker
Introduction Many of SMEs pass through a hard period that comes after two years of confrontation with the new realities of European Union (EU) competition market system. Because of the lack of resources and strength to modernize in order to align to European standards and demands, in the first two years after acceding EU there has been registered a lossy compression of SMEs number. The bankruptcies registered
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because of the up mentioned causes are a statistic reality. But, on the bases of the economy with the highest growth rhythm registered, in 2008 new SMEs appeared, their owners being mostly from EU member countries. The SMEs market has been sifted ones. The global crises will sift them again. The survival of this sector depends on solving the financing problems as well as the evolution of the market, more and more compressed. According to Mr. Ovidiu Nicolescu, the president of National Council of Small and Medium Sized Private Enterprises in Romania over 90% of SMEs have smaller or bigger problems because of the economic crises. The first reason for concern is the restrain of the activity and the diminution of large companies production, SMEs being most of the time subcontractors for them. Mr. Marian Mihut, president of National Union of Romanian Employers affirms that 30% of SMEs will suffer bankrupt this year, this only being the beginning. Beside the personal reorganization inside large companies, the SMEs sector will show the same signs of disease. Other fears concern the payment of suppliers, difficulties in contracting credits and ending the financial year with losses. In the same time one of three companies is afraid of bankruptcy. The diminution of orders could lead to a domino effect on liquidity, profitability and employees. As the construction of this years buget is based on austerity criteria, its filosofy being the drastic reduction of public expenditure, not even those orders will come to SMEs at last years level. To that one can add the very debated problem of flatrate tax. In Romania there is a permanent search for solutions in order to sustain the SMEs, the providers for two third of working places, by intensifying the contacts between Government, social partners, national bank and other factors that can contribute to defining a coherent politic for the field. It still wagers on the intense absorption of structural funds, but other solutions and methods of unblocking the credit system are look up in order to provide financing for the sector. One of these is the facility for SMEs offered by Investment European Bank (BEI), a global loan, contracted by Ministry of Public Finances. This facility is often accessed by financial agents and consists of a credit line granted by a financial institution or bank, that lend at their turn BEI founds to SMEs in order to finance projects for this sector. The problem might be the birocracy and difficulty of accessing this founds, facts that sometimes lead to obtaining money so late they became worthless. Theoretical notions Market economy is an economic system characterized by the fact that the economic objective purchased by most companies, at national level is maximizing the obtained profit, the function and management of companies rely mostly on economic levers, market has a deciding role in rigging the national economy and private property is predominant.
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Competitiveness is a complex concept that, at a general level, expresses the capacity of persons, firms, economies and regions to maintain at a certain internal and/or external level of competition and to obtain economic advantages in a business environment. From a nation viewpoint, competitiveness expresses the capacity of a country to efficiently exploit the opportunities of international market. The evaluation of national competitiveness performance in comparison with international economy is based on qualitative and quantative (the disparity between the country level and the international level) elements. The level of competitiveness of Romanian economy results from the analyses of data from the balance sheets and offers the possibility to mark out the correlations between the main indicators and the factors the contributed directly or indirectly at the variation of economic phenomenons. The analyses needs to be complex, taking into consideration the economic indicators such as the size and dynamic of profit, the profit volume, the profitability rate, the indebt degree. It can be said that profitability represents an image of an economic activity at micro and macro level and also mesures the companiess competitiveness on internal and external market. Romanias participation to European market affected the companies performance in the way of diminuating the number of economic agents that registered any profit and increasing those who registered loses, all that because of the quality and competitiveness demand of the new market. The role and the importance of SMEs SMEs contribute to achieving fundamental objectives of any national economy. That happens for the following reasons: Flexibly of structure that confers a high capacity of adaptability to economic fluctuations; It can be easily integrated into an industrial network that contributes to economic development of the region, to reducing unemployment and the growth of living standards; Their small dimension contributes to avoiding excessive birocracy and dehumanize; SMEs form at an individual level an ensemble easier to control and lead; Favors innovation and flexibility; Are places where employees learn; Stimulate competition; Contributes to the well being of large companies for which it perform different services or deliver different subassemblies; Fabricate products and deliver services efficiently.
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SMEs
GENERATING NEW PRODUCTS AND TECHNOLOGIES
SUSTAINING LARGE COMPANIESS COMPETITIVENESS
CREATING JOBS
Figure 1. The place of SMEs in market economy
Influencing factors Influencing factors are divided in: Environmental factors: 1. Internal; The owner of the company; Superior management; The companys dimension; The companys complexity; Technologies and technical endowment; The displacement of subdivisions; Human potential; Informational potential. It contains all the informations and know-how, regardless of their nature technical (patents, registered marks, projects), economic (regarding market, prices, credits, taxes), legal (laws, other legal papers that regalements the activity), management (regarding the management subsystems) the company owns; The economic situation; The organizational culture regarded as visible and invisible (Kotler and Haskett). 2. External, in which the company evolves. The environment includes all the external elements of economic, technical, politic, demographic, cultural, scientific, organizatoric, legal, psycho-sociological, educational and ecologic nature that influence the conception of companys objectives, obtaining the necessary resources, adopting and implementing them. Efficacy factors refers to the influence of companys performance on the organizatoric structure: Economic efficacy measured by economic and financial results; Social efficacy, harder to quantify: the quality of work climate, the relationship between management and unions, used motivation types.
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Organizational efficacy: accomplishing individual tasks, the activity cover

degree with personal proper as number and structure. Present situation In general, in the activity of SMEs problems might show up, such as: unfit and unproperly prepared management; lack of financial resources; marketing deficiency; difficulties in personal recriutment; desadvantage salary pacage compared to large companies; instability (high rate of apparence and bankrupcy). The consequences of bankruptcy are manifest: At material level; At psychological level: usually, an employer that suffered a bankruptcy doe not start a new business so quickly; At social level: jobs reduction, the disappearance of certain products of the market. In todays economy the main factors with negative influence on SMEs activity are the legal frame, social climate, as well as the politics of International Monetary Found and World Bank. According to Mr. Mugur Isarescu, The Romania National Bank governor, the external public debt was of 10,7 billion euro at the end of last year, from which 1,6 billion euro is due this year, fact that does not implicate a lack of financing and does not put pressure on the exchange rate. The necessary financing amount can lead up to 4 billion euro. The agreement with the International Monetary Found and the mesures regarding credits relaxation that Central Bank will take will allow a V evolution and not a U, the target being a boost of Romanian economy after April 2009. Regardless of that, due to the crises many of Romanians are out of jobs and others gain less. Those who suffer first are the small stores. According to Mr. Dragos Frumosu, the president of Food Industry Union Federation because of hypermarkets approximately 70% of small stores disappeared. Now, with the crises that led to rising costs and hypermarkets practicing small prices, many of the small stores will disappear. The rent is another important factor. Many stores negotiated their rent in euro and with the recent variation, many of them are in huge difficulty. Rents in euro and lack of financing led to the impossibility of paying bills which contributed to the blockade of commercial activity. This phenomenon extends to the level of many retailers that started closing down subsidiaries in order to cut down loses. According to a poll on over 1100 SMEs, the strongest negative influencing factors are: a legal frame that does not realistic stimulate the activity (65%); instability and incoherence of legislative system; climate and social tensions, lack of social stability; changes and political disputes (19,3%), that does not confer a continuity in management in important institutions; the International Monetary Fund politics for Romania are often in contradiction with our economic and social interests
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(15%); the integration in the European Union, though wanted has a negative impact on the activity, phenomenon explained by the adaptation of Romanian legislation to the European one (10%). Among the factors with minimum negative impact on SMEs activity are privatization (2, 13%) and interethnic tensions (1, 19%). Concerning the financing sources it has been shown that over half of SMEs function based on own resources (60%), 17% go to banks for loans and 8% access other sources. The majority of those who take credits are in industrial sector and the ones who invest their profit function mostly in services sector. The most recently appeared and with huge negative impact problem is the flat-rate tax. The president of National Council of Small and Medium Sized Private Enterprises in Romania Mr. Ovidiu Nicolescu thinks that this tax will led tens of SMEs to bankruptcy if applied in quantum and form advanced by Ministry of public Finance. Innovation factor For SMEs innovation is the main instrument of development. Whether we are talking about developing new products or services or identification of the most efficient already existing methods of accomplishment, innovation brings added value to an organization. In the same time allows it to maintain or improve their market share. Innovation represents an activity from which a new or significantly improved product (good or service) launched on the market results, or represents the introduction of a new or significantly improved process in its own unit. Innovation relies on the results of a new technology, of technological development, of new combinations of existent technologies or on using other knowledge obtained. The innovation process, regarded as a company long term risky investment, requires a sustained management effort dedicated to the sector. To determine the specific of Bucharest Ilfov Region, from the innovation view point, between December 2008 and February 2009, a survey has been made within a representative sample made of 168 SMEs. The results have shown that 73, 96% of them consider that innovation is compulsory for maintaining their competitiveness. Product-service innovation has been reported in 62% of the cases, processtechnology innovation in 32%, organizational innovation in 17% and marketing innovation in 17%.
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Distribution of innovation types in SME'S
80 60 40 20 0
...
..
..
uc t-.
ss -.
iza
od
oc e
an
pr
or g
pr
Figure 2. Distribution of innovation types in SMEs
Out of 3983 active innovative enterprises, 848 (21%) are in Bucharest Ilfov Region and the innovation expenditure for the area is 41, 7% of national innovation expenditure. 72.57% are destined to licenses and patents. The term innovative enterprise covers all type of innovators: product, process innovators as well as enterprises with on-going or abandoned innovations and refers to active enterprises. Innovation expenditure comprises both expenditure for finalized innovation activities, as well as those for on-going or abandoned innovation activities. The main components of expenditure for innovation activity are: internal and external research development; machinery, equipment and software acquisition; other external knowledge (licenses, patents, know-how). The research proved that Bucharest Ilfov Region has the highest development rank compared to the national average at all levels, offering the biggest opportunities of investment and development. In the same time, it is the centre of research and innovation activities from Romania. There have been identified five activity sectors with high innovation potential: precision mechanics, IT&C, electronics, plastics and construction. To these we add the intensive knowledgebased services sector. Analyzed innovation factors: the potential of innovation management; the potential of creating knowledge; innovation capacity; innovative activities performance; intellectual property.
ar
ke t
in
...
Distribution of innovation types in SME'S
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Distribution of innovation factors

100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
IN SWOT, the S refers to innovation orientation and quality services (49% of answers). The Romanian labor market is made out of qualified labor force. The effect could be stronger if proper training is provided. This should be permanent, implicate universities, research and companies partnership, so that the results would correspond to the continuously changing needs of companies and market demands. That would lead to maintaining the competitive advantage and obtain profit. The W or the main obstacles in carrying on innovative activities were: personal fluctuation and material resources. If the personal fluctuation problem can be solved through an elaborate and constant retentions program, based on proper motivation, the lack of material resources (30% of companies mentioned this factor), detain companies from making the investments that innovative activities require (21% of companies mentioned raised costs as an obstacle in achieving innovation). The major capital source comes from their own income (80%), credits (29%) and other unmentioned sources. The financing from public founds (budgetary) proved to be insufficient and more than that, hard to obtain (72% of companies declared the programs accessing procedure difficult). Instruments for sustaining SMEs. Posible solutions Business incubators. Are economic labs that offer assitance to SMEs and contribute to stimulating and cultivating yhe antreprenorial spirit. Allow ideas exchang, training and perfectioning courses, programs for managers and employees, offer free assistance and soothen the contact with banks and parteners.
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te nt ial of po inn te ov nt .. . ial of in cr no ea va t i. tio . n in ca no pa va cit tiv y ea in ct te ivi lle t i. ct .. ua lp ro pe rty
Di s tri bution of i nnova tion fa ctors
po
Figure 3. Distribution of innovation factors
Consultance agencies offer support for SMEs in: Testing antreprenorial skills; Business plan elaboration; Traing courses in business; Offer basic informations for business start up. SMEs access to financing programs through national innovation and technological transfer network (the list of centre is available at www.ccib.ro/ctt). This will assure part of the necessary funds for a coherent basic activity, innovation and competitiveness level maintaining requested by the present economy. Conclusions Identifying opportunities generated by the present crises period is important. Possible options are: rethinking the management system, implementing a professional one based mostly on intellectual capital instead of industrial production; development or reorientation of business toward more profitable activity fields; gaining advantages as a result of a weaker competitiveness of companies or smaller prices for the equipments or raw materials; strengthen the present client portfolio; quit raising the turnover currently and build objectives related to possible acquisitions or mergers; reducing costs generated by suppliers or different administrative expenditure; accessing financing programs, preferably with external financing in order to obtain the really and necessary present capital infusion . To where the flat-rate tax is concerned, the consultants offer more or less healthy solutions, not so constructive for the economy, such as: reporting a smaller taxable turnover; temporarily suspended activity; moving the headquarters of the company to another country with more attractive tax regime; transferring the activity to authorizes person; reducing the number of employees; decrease the number of subsidiaries in case of groups; the underhand payment of some employees where some activities are concerned. Through training of persons who want and can access financing programs two important things can be done: achieving the objectives and increasing the professional competence of employees. The support of the environment is important and when I speak of environment I am referring to the economic field, local and central authorities, present legislation and especially to promoting fiscal relaxation politics sustained by the Central Bank of Romania. These are some of the real possibilities of Romanian society to combat the impact of economic crises in a slower but sure rhythm aiming to definite positive results.
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Bibliography Brsan, S.C., Sima, M.G., 2008, Inovarea i transferul tehnologic-instrumente de aliniere a IMM-urilor la cerinele economiei de pia, Seminar Interferene economico-sociale la frontiera inovrii editia 1; Carnal, C. 1998Managing change in organizations. London ; Grey, C., 1997, Management as a technical practice: Professionalization or responsibilization?, Systemic Practice and Action Research, Volume 10, Issue 6, pp. 703 725; Nicolescu, O. Verboncu, I. 1999, Management, Editura Economica, Bucureti; Svescu, D. Reea naional de educatie, stimulare si constientizare a Dreptului de Proprietate Intelectual-RECPIN. National project. Nr. 192CPII/9.09.2008; Sima, M.G., 2009, Role of Technology Transfer Center in the promotion, protection and capitalization of industrial property; the impact on competitiveness of Romanian SMEs, rev. Hidraulica, nr. 3, pp.21-25; *** http://www.ccib.ro/ctt ; *** http://www.cnipmmr.ro; *** http://www.irecson.ro ; *** http://www.mimmc.ro; *** http://www.osim.ro.
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THE INFLUENCE OF THE ECONOMY AND OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT ON THE HEALTH SERVICES
Roxana Gnescu
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania rganescu@yahoo.com
Celestin Constantin
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania celeste_business@yahoo.com
Abstract
Knowledge-based economy is characterized by the transformation of knowledge into raw material, capital, products, essential production factors of the economy, and by economic processes within which the generation, sale, purchase, learning, storing, development, division and protection of knowledge become predominant and decisively condition the obtaining of profit and the assuring of the long-term durability of the economy. The sustainable organization is that organization which, on the basis of a balanced approach, from the economic, ecological and social point of view, capitalizes at a higher level on the knowledge and the other resources available to it and which it attracts, generating for long periods, of tens of years, multi-dimensional efficiency and performances, validated by the market and recognized by society. In other words, the sustainable organization is a knowledge-based organization, which sets long-term economic, social and ecological objectives, which it is capable of reaching by capitalizing on strategic knowledge, generating multiple positive consequences for the organization, its stakeholders and environment. The modifications compared to the present economy consist of: the main functions of the organization become the conceiving, protection and integration of knowledge; the transactions and activities implying high levels of specialization and implicit knowledge are internalized; the transactions and activities implying deeply specialized explicit knowledge are externalized; the organization ownership and management become convergent; the relations between education, the economic activity and the personnels own training are redefined. The health services in Romania could benefit from this type of organization, especially if we take into account the fact that the managers who know the stages of the sustainable organization evolution have an advantage in designing the entrepreneurial, economic and managerial mechanisms of the organization they lead.
Keywords: management, health management, health JEL Classification: A 12; I 11
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The specialists opinions regarding the defining of knowledge-based economy or of the new economy still differ between very wide limits, from one specialist to the next - Daniele Archibrugi, Bengt Ake Sundvall, Thomas Steward etc. Knowledge-based economy is characterized by the transformation of knowledge into raw material, capital, products, essential production factors of the economy, and by economic processes within which the generation, sale, purchase, learning, storing, development, division and protection of knowledge become predominant and decisively condition the obtaining of profit and the assuring of the long-term durability of the economy. The knowledge-based organization must be a sustainable company. On this concept, although several approaches were elaborated, including some very recent, no rigorous definition was offered. We propose a definition which the approach of this article is based on. The sustainable organization is that organization which, on the basis of a balanced approach, from the economic, ecological and social point of view, capitalizes at a higher level on the knowledge and the other resources available to it and which it attracts, generating for long periods, of tens of years, multi-dimensional efficiency and performances, validated by the market and recognized by society. The sustainable organization is a knowledge-based organization, which sets longterm economic, social and ecological objectives, which it is capable of reaching by capitalizing on strategic knowledge, generating multiple positive consequences for the organization, its stakeholders and environment. The passing to the knowledgebased economy substantially modified the manner in which the sanitary units are established and operated, including their structure. At the basis of the establishment of every organization there is the capitalization of an opportunity. The knowledge-based organizations are created from this perspective in two manners: Capitalizing on the new types of opportunities associated to knowledge-based economy Capitalizing on the classical economic opportunities, but in a new manner, focused on knowledge. The most important new opportunities of technical-economic nature are: world systems of navigation via satellite tele-services flat screens new revolutionary technologies Internet and electronic base lines electronic trade smart agents.
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Figure 1. Main characteristics of knowledge-based economy
Hospital managers are forced to examine the costs associated to medical care and are under permanent pressure to find new approaches that help the more rapid, better and cheaper settling of the problems. The final aim actually consists of the focusing of the medical institutions for the purpose of creating practice guides for
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commonly accepted diagnosis and therapeutic behaviour at a certain level of quality. Traditionally, knowledge-based management refers to ownership, control and value, emphasizing planning. Nonaka and Takeuchi distinguish two major types of knowledge: explicit and tacit. The explicit ones have the following characteristics: are objective; are rational; are sequential; derive from theories; are coded, relate to the past, while the tacit ones are: subjective; based on experience simultaneous difficult to formalize and communicate cognitive, with vision on the future. The knowledge-based management process is based on the creation, dissemination and use of the information within the organization. This process presupposes the going through two stages: the beginning stage, with the creation and extraction of the information, followed by its storage, dissemination and, finally, exploitation. The capitalization on the new opportunities and the development of the knowledgebased organization is accompanied by modifications in the entrepreneurs plan. These modifications are closely linked to the nature and volume of knowledge possessed by the entrepreneurs or potential entrepreneurs, on the one hand, and the knowledge afferent to the organizations involved, on the other hand. Thus, a new category of entrepreneurs is outlined, which supplies certain knowledge to the enterprises that need it, but which, for economic or organizational reasons, prefer to have them supplied by the organizations or foreign experts who own them. The knowledge-based organization also needs other additional knowledge in order to reach its set economic objectives. This knowledge can be supplied from outside by: Employees with flexible working schedule, who offer relatively low level knowledge, but with high specificity, and who become strongly dependent on the organization they work with; Suppliers of mediated services, to supply low specificity level knowledge, who are nor significantly dependent on the organization they work with; Experts or entrepreneurs who posses high level knowledge and with high specificity, who are strongly dependent on the client organization; Experts or entrepreneurs who posses high level knowledge, but with low specificity, who are significantly dependent on the client organization.
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The evolution of the health services sector in Romania will be influenced by the following factors: Congruence between the characteristics of the sanitary companies and knowledge-based economy Increase of the educational level of the population and the new economicsocial culture Increasing individualization and personalization of products and services Technical and technological changes Informatization of the economy and of society Externalization of the organizations activities Regionalization and local development Internationalization of the economic activities The knowledge-based organization presents different characteristics from the organization prevailing at present. In table 1, we highlight these characteristics, on the basis of the elements comprised in the work of Burton Jones and Francis Coincross.
Main characteristics of the knowledge-based organization
Table 1
No. Characteristics 1 Organization decrease with respect to the physical assets, the activities performed and the employees used, simultaneously with the development of the internal knowledge base and with the expansion of the relations with the clients, suppliers and external human resources 2 Externalization of the activities that are not essential for the company, in parallel with the internalization of those making part of or being strongly complementary to the organizations essential knowledge. 3 Changing of the relations with the human resources external to the organization, in the sense of calling upon it for the less important clerk-like activities and for the maintenance activities of the organization; for their performance, on the large scale, health organizations and persons working independently will be resorted to. 4 The strategic development of the organization will be based on the increase of the organizations knowledge in depth and/or in wideness, which presupposes that it has the capacity to develop its own knowledge and to recognize synergetic-type cooperation opportunities in the field of knowledge 5 The internal organization model of the knowledge-based organization is analog to the human cognitive model, being characterized by less structured networks, semiautonomous teams, made up of persons with knowledge, organizational and individual availability for learning etc. 6 The maximization of the efficacy and efficiency is based on team structures, among which the joining must be minimized and the cohesion must be maximized 7 Decrease of the number and roles of medium and low level managers and gradual externalization of the persons performing peripheral activities, simultaneously with the integration within the company of knowledge managers, who, frequently, start their activity as knowledge agents or consultants within the organization
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No. Characteristics 8 Remodeling of the organizations managerial and economic capabilities, in order to place value on the knowledge, by means of the options, decisions and actions they undertake 9 Directing investments in training, in the external work force used, in order to replace its own personnel who does not progress sufficiently 10 Allocation of smaller resources for training and offering more limited possibilities of promoting the personnel in the peripheral groups, who bears the main responsibility for their own training and professional evolution 11 Re-conception of the motivational system, corresponding to the following coordinates: Amplification of rewards depending on performance and merits for the entire organization personnel; Increase of the use of rewarding the personnel in the peripheral groups depending on individual performance; Intensification of the simultaneous use of global, group and personal incentives, for the organizations basic personnel; Large scale resorting to the promotion of the personnel within and outside the organization 12 Development of an open culture, the company inviting within it clients and suppliers who can see how it makes operative the decisions regarding them as well as the other categories of stakeholders 13 Practicing multiple collaboration forms with other organizations, in conditions of ease, time, and better costs 14 Diminishing of the barriers between the different categories of human resources, between the work in the organizations and the work at home, between the individual and the organization 15 Giving major attention to obtaining, using, protecting and capitalizing on intellectual capital
Normally, knowledge can be seen as a personal asset in a social context, being able to be identified, coded, transferred through communication channels, decoded and then used. The capacity of a medical institution to share knowledge requires it to develop its ability to recognize and use the information for the patients, the medical staff, as well as for the administrative staff. The medical field in the last years has to cope with the continuous and constant pressure of decreasing the costs at the same time with increasing the quality of the medical services offered. These two pressures force major changes within the medical system and institutions. Knowledge management becomes crucial for reaching the goal of decreasing the costs simultaneously with increasing the quality of the medical services. Healthcare has a complex content and is into a systemic relation with entirely status of society and consequently with other components of economy, quality of life, environment, cultural level. The studies reveal a relation of bi-determination of healthcare reported to general level of social-economic development. A good healthcare assures effectively participation of the man in production process,
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exercise of his work capacity, integration in social & economic life, formation and affirmation of his personality. Approximately one third of the physicians time is occupied with the recording and combining of information and one third of the health costs are destined for professional communication. The execution of a sustainable knowledge-based organization is a complex process implying a succession of stages, as indicated by German specialist Michael Kuhndt from the Wuppertal Institute. This process-based approach is synthetically presented in figure 2. Classical entrepreneurship Efficient entrepreneurship Stage 3 Stage 4 Responsible entrepreneurship Stage 5
Stage 1
Stage 2
Performanceoriented
Processoriented
Systemoriented
Value oriented
chain- Stakeholdersoriented
Figure 2. Stages of development of the sustainable knowledge-based organization
Knowing these evolution stages of the sustainable organization although not always obligatory is very useful for designing the entrepreneurial, economic and managerial mechanisms of the knowledge-based organization. The health services in Romania could benefit from this type of organization, especially if we take into account the fact that the managers who know the stages of the sustainable organization evolution have an advantage in designing the entrepreneurial, economic and managerial mechanisms of the organization they lead. Strategy in quality should follow the development of a extensive management system of quality which includes all entities participating. This involves creating a quality assurance department in all medical units which assures medical services. These departments will have as main task the projection, implementation and maintaining of quality management system. The management is one of the main factors generating economic performance at organizational level. The function, efficiency and effectiveness are depending on quality , efficiency and effectiveness of management. Healthcare system into Romania is in a middle of crisis of human resources , being a threat in the last years and seems that a feasible solution hasnt find. Migration of qualified medical work force is a problem met into countries of European Union,
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too. Training of medical personnel is very expensive and therefore it should be find ways of developing of organization with staff belonging to the organization. Medical institutions are in a changing process which assumes viable strategies in the conditions of free market inside of European Union. Thats the reason for strategies for short and medium term should be well defined taking into account technological evolution in medical field, needs and desires of pacients and not in the last time the quality of services offered which reflects the level of training of personnel but also the level of personal satisfaction of medical staff. Bibliography Abrams Michael, Bevilacqua, Building a leadership infrastructure: the next step in the evolution of hospital system, Health care strategic management, April 2006; 24,4, (12-16) Bali, Rajev Clinical knowledge management: opportunities and challenges, Idea Group Publishing 2005 Farr J. Ronald, Senn F. Girard, Whitten M. Catherine, Using a business practice model to control product line costs, Healthcare financial management, August 2006; 60,6, (100-104) Hosking, Sarah, Healing the hospital environment: design, maintenance and management of healthcare premises, Spon Press 1999 Nicolescu O, Nicolescu L. Economia, firma si managementul bazat pe cunostinte Ed. Economica 2005 O. Nicolescu, Luminia Nicolescu, Economia, organizatia i managementul bazate pe cunotine, Editura Economic, 2005 Popa I. Management strategic, Ed. Economica 2004 J.D. Seiber-Hansman, Cristie Liedtke, von Weizscker E.U., Eco-Efficiency and Beyond, Breenleaf Publishing, Sheffield, 2004 Verboncu I. Manageri & Management, Edit. Economica, Bucharest, 2000 Walburg, Jan Performance Management in Healthcare: Improving Patient Outcomes: an Integrated Approach Routledge Health Management Series. Publication: London, New York Taylor & Francis Routledge, 2006. Wickramasinghe, Nilmini Creating knowledge based healthcare organizations, Idea Group Publishing 2004
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ONLINE ADVERTISING AS A PROMOTION MECHANISM, A WAY TO MONETIZE AND A SOURCE OF INFORMATION

Liviu Lic
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania lica.liviu@yahoo.com
Abstract
What is the next stage in the evolution of online Advertising? In order to find the answer we must understand what drives the evolution of advertisement today. The goal of the paper is to present ads from points of view that will allow us to understand the phenomenon. The paper shows how ads have evolved, what are the difficulties of the Pay per Action model, which seems to be more and more successful lately, and what are the trends in the industry. The best received ads by the users are the Pay per Action ads. These have to overcome a series of difficulties but also have many advantages. This type of ads will be increasingly more popular in the future. Currently the evolution of ads is influenced by the advertisement in technology and, mostly, by the evolution of consumers. They become immune to ads that want to interrupt and are increasingly open to ads that help in finding the answer to they were looking for. The main conclusion of the paper is that the next step in the evolution of ads will be related to the consumers.
Keywords: advertisement, promotion, monetizing, information, pay-per-click, pay-peraction
JEL Classification: M37, L86 Introduction Ads are present across all mediums, from written press to the Internet. Ads are a big part of the promotion efforts of companies. With the emergence of a new communication channel, the Internet, ads quickly made their way into it, evolving together with the medium itself. The first type of online ads that made it to mainstream use were in the form of banners, followed by pop-ups and pop-under and in-line ads, all being perceived by the user as intrusive in varied degrees (McCoy, 2007, p. 87 ). The latest trend in the evolution of ads is integration with images and movies (Mei, Hua, Li, 2008, p. 443). However, for all types of ads it is unanimously accepted the fact that the relevance of ads, in the context in which these are displayed, is crucial for the way these are perceived by the users. Even a pop-up, considered the most intrusive form of online ads, will be considered useful, not annoying, by the user if it contains relevant information for him (Ghosh, Mahdian, 2008, p. 166). The mechanism with the help of witch relevant contextual ads are identified is the subject of study for many authors (Anagnostopoulos et al. 2007, p. 333), (Chakrabarti, Agarwal, Josifovski, 2008, p. 420), (Mei, Hua, Li, 2008, p. 442).
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The evolution of social-networking websites brought to life another trend, the use of user profile information in the contextual ad selection algorithms for indentifying relevant ads. Google is beta testing a system that creates a profile for each user based on the visited websites (Wojcicki, 2009). However, such approaches raise user privacy issues. Facebook was among the first of the Internet giants that attracted the profound insatisfaction and criticism of its users by displaying ads that were considered much too personal. However, ads must be perceived from a more general point of view and not only from the point of view of the users. The users are only one of the four parts involved in the consumption of ads. According to (McCoy, 2007, p. 85) these four parts are: The publisher represents the owner of the site where the ads are displayed. His goal is the maximization of the profit ads bring him. His dilemma is finding the equilibrium between ads and content, equilibrium that must both satisfy the consumers needs and bring him enough revenue. Another important aspect is the way ads are paid pay-per-impression, pay-per-click, pay-per-action. The Advertiser the one that supplies the ads. He usually organizes ad campaigns that have a well defined goal like raising the volume of sold beer in May. He is also very interested in the way ads are being paid He is interested in raising the profit as much as possible with the smallest possible investment. The Ad Distribution Network these are companies that make the connection between publishers and advertisers. The User is the person that consumes the ads. His goal is not looking at banners and clicking on ads. He is looking for information or a product that satisfies his needs. For him ads are either useful, as they point him in the right direction or represent an obstacle. In the end everything comes down to how the user consumes the ads. Besides the different goal each of the four parts have, the situation is further complicated by the spectacular evolution of the distribution channel, which is the Internet. Websites, the underlying technologies and the users themselves evolve rapidly, forcing the publishers, the advertisers and the distribution networks to find new solutions. Among the problems these three parts face are: Users are becoming immune to ads; It is becoming increasingly difficult to capture the users attention for long enough; Measuring the efficiency of ads is difficult; Privacy concerns; Users are not willing to accept ads in any form; Identifying relevant contextual ads is difficult. Further are presented different models of ad payment from the point of view of the role ads have and the difficulties publishers, advertisers and ad networks face.
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The User The Target of the Ads By looking at the four participants of the process of ad consumption three facets of ads arise: Promotion Mechanisms for the advertiser ads are one on the tools he has at hand to promote his products, corporate imagine, services. Way to monetize based on the nature of the website, the site owners can play the role of advertisers, when they want to promote their websites and products, or the role of publishers. Many times they play both roles. On the flip side, there are many websites that dont sell any monetizable goods, the likes of user generated content websites, blogs. In these situations ads are an attractive way to monetize. And between the two, the publisher and advertiser, there is place for the distribution network, which links the two. Method for spreading information the users goal is to find some piece of information or a product, service. They consume ads only if this brings some additional information which points users in the right direction to get to what they are looking for. A relevant ad can be as useful as a good search result provided by a search engine. This is the principle Goggle, the most widely used search engine at the moment, uses when they mix the search result and ads, a principle that has proved very efficient. Because of the complex interaction between the four parts and their very different goals it is easy to lose among technical details the goal of ads. Ads are launched by the advertisers to attract attention on their company and products, attention that has to convert into sales and profit. The ultimate goal is increasing the profits of the advertiser. The consumers are the users. They are the ones targeted by ads. It is crucial for all participants in the process of ad creation and distribution to remember this. Existing ad payment methods Consumer behavior has evolved together with the evolution of the Internet, which in its turn, has influenced the way ads are displayed and the ad payment systems. The first widely used system was Pay per Impression (PPM). The advertiser pays each time an ad of his is displayed. This has been the dominant way to pay for ads for some time. The main problem of the model is that it is hard to measure the effect that displaying one ad has on the overall volume of sales. Because of this most ads are now paid using the Pay per Click model (PPC). This is the model that lays at the foundation of the Google Empire. The advertiser pays only when the user clicks on one of his ads. There are problems, however, with this model too, like click fraud (Mahdian, Tomak, 2007, p. 88). A company can click on his competitors ads to increase his advertising costs until their profits are threatened. There are also publishers that click on the ads from their own websites in order to increase their ad revenues. In the same time ad distribution networks are interested in getting as much money from the advertisers as possible, therefore the
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suspicion existed that some of the big players in the online ad industry were involved in click fraud or at least did not do much to prevent it, as they have no interest in doing that. Google was involved in a few high profile lawsuits started by advertisers that though they were the victims of click fraud (Vise, Malseed, 2005). Besides click fraud, it is still not that easy to tell how many clicks were actually made, because of different technical difficulties and its not easy to tell how efficient campaigns are either. More and more often the Pay per Action model (PPA) is being discussed, which can be a solution for some on the issues related to Pay per Click (Mahdian, Tomak, 2007, p. 87). What Pay per Action means is that the advertiser only pays the publisher when the user actually does the action the advertiser wants to encourage with his ad. If the advertiser sells books then the publisher will only be paid when a book is actually bought, when coming on the advertisers site via an ad placed on the publishers site. Pay per Action thus solves the click fraud problem, rending clicks irrelevant. It is also much easier to measure the efficiency of an ad. But there are other problems, like reporting of the number of actual sales. The advertiser, being the one that has to signal each time, through some mechanism, when a sale is made, might be tempted to wrongfully report. It is interesting to point out the way the payment methods have evolved. Pay per Impression is associated with the period of banner and pop-up over flooded websites. Because the users began to avoid such websites different approaches to appeared, like the one taken by Google, which integrated as discretely as possible the ads into their website, in contrast to its archrival Yahoo!. Such approaches brought with them the Pay per Click model. Ads became less annoying and more informative. At this point, when many preach the death of banners and foresee the death of advertising in its current form (Drgan, 2009), Pay per Action is starting to make its presence felt. For Pay per Action ads to be efficient for the publisher it is necessary for ads to be places in a relevant context and not to distract the attention of the user but to attract it at the moment when he wants the information or product the ad gives. The difficult part for the publisher is integrating correctly into his website the ads. The distribution networks must find methods for identifying relevant contextual ads. Even if Pay per Click has replaced in most cases Pay per Impression, this model is still used. The reason is given by the different goals that advertiser may have. When an advertiser wants to make his brand known or to promote some idea he might be more interested in just displaying ads in as many places as possible. In such a situation Pay per Impression is still used. Pay per Click is the dominant model because it allows more accurate measurements of the impact of an ad. Once the user clicks on an ad, the advertiser can be sure that he managed to capture the users attention..
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If the goal of the advertiser is to determine a certain well defined action, the like of filling a form or the buying of a book, than most efficient for the advertiser is the use of the Pay per Action model. Delayed action in the Pay per Action model case study A problem which the Pay per Action model faces, rarely mentioned in the works on this subject, is the one of granting the action when the advertiser has contracts with more than one distribution networks. This situation comes from practice and it is a real case. If the agent uses the services of Google and the ones of TradeDoubler, the following situations may arise when the advertisers website is accessed through an ad displayed in the Google network, after which the user leaves the website and after a while: 1. Returns to the website directly and completes the action; 2. Returns to the website through a TradeDoubler ad and completes the action. The question is who the advertiser grants the action: In situation 1 - Google, because it was the first to direct the user to the website; In situation 1 to none, because the user made the action when he came directly to the website and not using an ad; In situation 2 TradeDoubler, because trough it the user returned to the website the second time In situation 2 - Google, because it was the first to direct the user to the website; In situation 2 to both TradeDoubler si Google. From the point of view of the technology used by most distribution agents and their expectation both should receive their promised fee. From the point of view of the advertiser, he considers that he should pay only the one that brought him the visitor that made the action. Remember that actions may represent the acquisition of a complex product or service, like the buying of a travel package. Many times the user reaches the website through an ad, studies the offer, saves the website address and leaves the website and returns later through some other means. In a Pay per Click system, the situation is relatively simple. If a click was made then the advertiser must pay. In the situation when a Pay per Action model is used the action can be made several visits to the website. A solution for this situation is to grant the action to the last distribution network through which the user arrived at the website. In situation 1, from above, the action will go to Google, in situation 2 it will go to Tradedoubler. From the point of view of the advertiser this is fair, many times for him paying two or more distribution networks for the same action is not profitable. Distribution networks are not too interested in finding an immediate solution for this situation. As in the case of click fraud they, usually win something out of it.
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This is just one of the situations faced when using the Pay per Action model, but because ads that use this model are more focused on the user, many times these serve better the advertisers ultimate goal of increasing the profit. Difficulties and recommendations regarding the implementation of Pay per Action models As we have seen in the case study, from the technological point of view, implementing the payment methods, in the case of Pay per Action models, is still in its infancy. Successful proliferation of affiliate link based ads and of Pay per Action ads depends a great deal from the quality of the models. If the Pay per Click model is associated to the notion of click fraud, the Pay per Action model risks being associated with problems in keeping track of the performed actions and fraudulent reports made by the advertisers. Among the problems of the model are: Fraudulent reports made by the advertiser who reports a smaller number of actions than he actually recorded Ambiguities in assigning an action to the right ad distribution network in the case when the advertiser uses the services of more than one ad distribution network. Technical difficulties in recording of actions when users change from one device to another. To avoid affecting the image of the model as a just and efficient one, the ad distribution networks which are the engine of change when it comes to the ad models used, must closely work together with the advertisers in order to assure them that they do not face the risk of paying more than they bargained for, as in the situation presented in the case study but also, the ad networks themselves must make sure that they will not be tricked by the advertisers. In the case of pr2, as shown in the case study, it is necessary that the advertiser to agree on a just system of assigning the actions. From real life situations we know that the problem can be solved, ad networks accepting the rational idea that only the last network that directed the user on the advertisers website should be paid. However, until now the official documentation of the ad distribution networks that was reviewed did not had in the code that the advertiser needs to implement on his website a case for this situation. This can seriously affect the credibility of the networks. The recommendation would be that the advertiser and the ad distribution networks to agree that the advertiser will only report the action to one of the agents, usually the last one who sent the lead. The advertiser having almost full control over the reporting of the actions back to the ad distribution networks can be tempted to withhold part of those in order to reduce his costs. The network can verify the advertisers reporting only by statistically analyzing the conversion rates and monitoring that they do not fall under a certain medium value computed for the kind of activity the advertiser does. The solution to this problem is to use a payment system for the services offered to the add agent that vary with the number of recorded actions, together with the use
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of an tax for entering the system, sufficiently small not to discourage new customers and high enough to make non profitable often changes in identity (Mahdian, Tomak, 2007, p. 87). Through these measures the fraud rate can be reduced significantly. From a technical point of view it is quite difficult to make a system that will allow correctly recording of the actions even when the user closes her browser and comes back to the advertisers website by using another device. Presently, most system that records the actions relies on cookies and sessions. Both techniques are relevant only when the same device and browser is used from the moment the user arrives on the advertisers website through an ad up to the moment the desired action is completed. A solution for this problem is the use of deep links at the level of the advertisers website. Although in this way the problem of moving from one device to another will be solved, the assumption is made that the user will use the link in the format in which it was provided, which is not always true and that the advertisers website has the capacity to work with such links, which is also not always true. Another solution, used in affiliate marketing, is the use of promotional codes. Even if there are differences, compared to a traditional ad, the use of codes is a simple and efficient solution. The problem of finding new methods of overcoming the technical difficulties is open to future research. Finding methods to discourage advertisers fraud or technical solutions for correctly recording the actions will increase significantly the credibility of the model. Trends in the evolution of ads The evolution of ads is fueled primarily by the necessity to reach the consumers with the desired message. As consumers become more experienced and as the number of ads grow, consumers develop certain immunity to the avalanche of information and ads which manifests itself by ignoring them completely. In the online environment this can be measured with a sufficient accuracy. A considerable number of users admit to never clicking on an ad displayed in blogs or social networks. As consumers become more educated, this proportion grows in the detriment of those who still click on an ad. Most affected by this phenomenon are de site owners, the publishers, for who revenue from displaying ads can be a considerable part of the revenue. These, however, have the advantage that are in direct contact with the users, being the first that notice trends from the niche in which they work and have the capacity to quickly adapt. Among the most noticeable trends with site owners is the migration from the monetization models mostly based on ads to the use of affiliate links. Affiliate links are, in a way, related to the Pay per Action ad payment model. An affiliate link contains a code that uniquely identifies the site owners. These usually link to a product or to a certain section of the suppliers website. If the user gets to the suppliers website using an affiliate link and buys the product or service or undertakes the desired action, the site owner that was hosting the link gets a percent from the value of the sale or a fixed amount.
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For the suppliers the model is very efficient, they practically have to pay money only when a sale is actually made. Site owners are forced to have a slightly different approach, writing reviews or providing additional information with the purpose to convince the user that the product or service is worth buying. Users are the ones that have most to gain, ads being replaced with information that can be genuinely useful. The main problem of the model is that site owners must be careful not to lose their credibility and not to publish material that gives the impression that is was put there with the sole purpose of being the written equivalent of an ad. The quality of the content has an overwhelming value. For very big website and especially for social networks, which have a vast amount of information about its users, the biggest temptation is provided by very narrow niche targeted ads. Information stored in profiles permits a very precise segmentation on narrow niches. The big players the likes of Google (Wojcicki, 2009), Facebook and MySpace have only began to experiment in this field, the first attempts being followed by harsh criticism from users and privacy advocates. The main problem is given by the very nature of the information from the profiles and the question is asked who owns that data? The company that owns the site or the user that put it in there. The trend is clear, however there is no successful implementation yet. At this moment contextual ads are displayed when the site loads based on the information about the page on which the ad is extracted from the text found on it. The problem is that pages contain more and more often information in the form on multimedia - videos, images and sound recordings. Considerable efforts are undertaken for the creation of algorithms that are able to find out what a picture or movie is about. Companies the likes of Youtube experiment with ad placement inside movie clips but the choosing of the ad is still based on the description that the user fills in manually. No matter how ads will evolve, the new models must be correlated with the way consumers themselves evolve. Conclusion Ads must be viewed from different perspectives, from the point of view of the advertiser, who is interested in increasing his income, from the point of view of the publisher, for whom ads represent a way to monetize his business and from the point of view of the distribution networks, which bring together the two, but also from the point of view of the user, who perceives the ads either as an obstacle in his way, noise that prevents him from finding what he is looking for, either as an useful information that aids him in his search. Having a birds eye view makes it easy to understand why the ad payment models have evolved from Pay per Impression to Pay per Click and now tend to Pay per Action and affiliate link models.
50 Journal of Doctoral Research in Economics
The Pay per Action model comes with a series of advantages and challenges. Its most notable qualities are the increased credibility in the eyes of the user and the guarantee the advertiser has that she will only pay for what she sells. The way the technical difficulties are treated will determine the success, in the long run, of the model. With the help of the case study and the presentation of various challenges it was shown the kind of problems that are faced when using the Pay per Action model. Even if a number of solutions and recommendations already exist, continued research for finding more efficient solutions is essential for the Pay per Action model and granting in credibility. The evolution of online ads is easiest perceived from the point of view of the user who is increasingly better informed and has developed the ability to filter out the useful pieces of information from the noise of the Internet. Any new stage in the evolution of ads must give attention to the way users evolve. References Anagnostopoulos, A., Broder, A., Gabrilovich, E., Josifovski, V. & Riedel, L. 2007, Just-in-time contextual advertising, Proceedings of the sixteenth ACM conference on Conference on Information and Knowledge Management, pp. 331-340, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Chakrabarti, D., Agarwal, D. & Josifovski, V. 2008, Contextual advertising by combining relevance with click feedback, Proceeding of the 17th international conference on World Wide Web, pp. 417-426, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Drgan, M., 2009, Death of Adverting, MyDayOf.com, 10 April, accessed on 10 April 2009, <http://mydaysof.com/interactive-advertising/death-ofadvertising.html> Ghosh, A. & Mahdian., A. 2008, Externalities in online advertising, Proceeding of the 17th international conference on World Wide Web, pp. 161-168, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Godin, S. 2009, Sixty to zero, Seths Blog, 20 April, accessed on 20 April 2009, <http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/04/sixty-to-zero.html> Mahdian, M. & Tomak, K. 2007, Towards a pay-per-action model in sponsored search, Proceedings of the ninth international conference on Electronic commerce, pp. 87-88, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Mahdian, M. & Tomak, K. 2007, Pay-per-action model for online advertising, Proceedings of the 1st international workshop on Data mining and audience intelligence for advertising, pp. 1-6, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library.
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McCoy, S., Everard, A., Polak, P. & Galleta, D. 2007, The effects of online advertising, Communications of the ACM, Vol. 50, no. 2, pp. 84-88, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Mei, T., Hua, X. & Li, S. 2008, Contextual in-image advertising, Proceedings of the 16th ACM international conference on Multimedia, pp. 439-448, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Nazrerzadeh, H., Saberi, A. & Vokra, R. 2008, Dynamic cost-per-action mechanisms and applications to online advertising, Proceedings of the 17th international conference on World Wide Web, pp. 179-188, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Stewart, A., Chen, L., Paiu, R. & Nejdi, W. 2007, Discovering information diffusion paths from blogosphere for online advertising, Proceedings of the 1st international workshop on Data mining and audience intelligence for advertising, pp. 46-54, accessed on 12 April 2009, Available from: ACM Portal: ACM Digital Library. Vise, D. & Malseed, M. 2005, The Google Story, Bantam Dell, New York Wojcicki, S. 2009, Making Ads More Interesting, The Google Blog, 11 March, accessed on 11 March 2009, <http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/ making-ads-more-interesting.html>
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COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE IN MULTI-AGENT SYSTEMS

Iulia Mrie
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania iulia.maries@hotmail.com
Abstract
Trust and reputation are fundamental concepts in multi-agent systems, but at the same time are essential to human life. Perspectives concerning concepts of the collective intelligence, multi-agent systems, trust and reputation are presented. Then, four computational models of trust and reputation are proposed and analyzed. Agents behavior is simulated through the preferential attachments hypothesis. The purpose of this paper is to elaborate a new model based on trust and reputation, which can enhance collective intelligence within organizations. Artificial intelligence is moving from the paradigm of an isolated intelligence to the paradigm of social and collective intelligence. The paradigm of the intelligent or adaptive agents and multi-agent systems, together with the emergence of the information society technologies, are responsible for the increasing interest on trust and reputation mechanism applied to electronic societies. Collective intelligence is a shared intelligence, or group intelligence, that emerges from the collaboration of individuals. The study of collective intelligence is considered a subfield of sociology, communication or behavior, computer science or cybernetics. Collective intelligence explores collective behavior from the level of quarks to the level of bacterial, plant, animal and human societies. The concept of collective intelligence can be extended to another concept, relationship intelligence. The use of new informational technologies should be oriented to collective intelligence field in order to help people think, develop and implement ideas collectively.
Key words: collective intelligence, multi-agent systems, trust and reputation JEL Classification: C63, C92 Introduction The presence of collective intelligence has been felt for a long time: families, companies and states are groups of individuals that at least sometimes act intelligent. Bee and ant colonies are examples of groups of insects that are finding food sources acting intelligent. Even the human brain could be seen as a collection of individual neurons that collectively act intelligent. In the last few years there have been shown up new examples of collective intelligence: Google and Wikipedia. Google takes the collective knowledge created by millions of people for making websites, using sophisticated algorithms and technologies to answer the questions typed in. Wikipedia uses less sophisticated technologies, but very clever organizational principles and motivational techniques, to get people from all over the world to create a collection of knowledge.
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Mathematic, a measure applied is the collective intelligence quotient, which can be easier formalized than the individual intelligence quotient. Individual intelligence has been evaluated based on external results of behavior during real processes or during IQ tests, while elements of collective intelligence, like displacements, actions of beings or exchange of information, can be observed, measured and evaluated. Szuba (2000, pp. 2) has proposed a formal molecular model of computation and mathematical logic for describing the collective intelligence concept. The process, random and distributed, is tested in mathematical logics by social structure. Humans, ant and bacterial colonies, and information are modeled as abstract informational molecules that have expressions of mathematical logic. They are displaced quasi-chaotically due to interactions with their environments. Their interactions in abstract computational space create an inference process perceived as collective intelligence. The formal definition of collective intelligence has a set of requirements: informational molecules must emerge in a certain computational space, which can be software agents, ants, humans or social structures; than interactions must emerge between computational space, which consists in the ability to solve specific problems; and the emergence of collective intelligence determines specific inferences, in a probabilistic perspective. Based on above conditions, three basic hypotheses are presented: Precedence hypothesis: collective intelligence emerged first, as a result of interacting chemical molecules on Earth Hypothesis of origin: life emerged later, from collectively intelligent actions of stabilization or development Hypothesis on cycles: dependency between life and intelligence (individual or collective) is the result of a development cycle of evolution. Heylighen (1999, pp. 1) considers that collective intelligence can be defined as a groups ability to solve more problems than its individuals. In order to overcome the individual cognitive limits and the difficulties of coordination, a collective mental map can be used. A collective mental map is represented as an external memory with shared access and it can be formalized as a directed graph. The basic mechanism of collective mental map development consists of averaging the individual preferences, amplifying the weak links through positive feedback and integrating specialized sub-networks through division of labor. The efficiency of mental problem-solving depends on the problem representation in the cognitive system. Problem representation can be determined by a set of problem states, a set of possible actions, and fitness criterion, a preference function for selecting the adequate actions that varies with the specific goals and preferences of the agent. Therefore, a mental map represents a highly selective representation of features relevant to problem-solving and consists of problem states, actions that lead from one state to another, and a preference function for determining the best action at any moment. Increasing problem-solving ability needs two complementary processes: enlarging the map with additional states and actions, and improving the preference function. In this situation, the better collective mental map is, the more easily problems will be solved. Intelligence agents are characterized by the quality of their mental maps, knowledge and understanding of their environment, capacities for action or goals.
Collective intelligence is trying to offer a new perspective to different phenomena. The concept is trying to suggest another way of thinking about effectiveness, profitability, teamwork or leadership. 1. About multi-agent systems Agents and multi-agent systems offer a new possibility for analyzing, modeling and implementing the complex systems. Agent-based vision offers a wide range of tools, techniques and paradigms, with a real potential to improve the use of informational technologies. In a dictionary, an agent is defined as someone or something who acts on behalf of another person or group. This type of definition is too common to be considered operational. But agents have been defined to be autonomous, problemsolving computational entities capable of effective operation in dynamic and open environments, (Luck, McBurney, Priest, 2003, p. 10). Therefore, agents offer a new and appropriate route to the development of complex systems, especially in open and dynamic environments. Multi-agent systems can approach problems with multiple solving methods, multiple structuring possibilities or multiple solving entities, like distributed systems. Thus, multi-agent systems have both the advantage of distributed and competitive solving problems, and the advantage of representing the complex ways of interactions. Interactions refer to cooperation, coordination and negotiation. 2. Trust and reputation In this section will be presented a selection of computational trust and reputation models and describe their main characteristics, but first we need to clarify the notions of trust and reputation. This field is quite recent, but in the last years there have been proposed interesting models with direct implementation in different domains. 2.1 Trust Trust is important to human society due to its social component. The concept of trust has different meanings, but Gambettas point of view is the most significant: trust (or, symmetrically, distrust) is a particular level of the subjective probability with which an agent assesses that another agent or group of agents will perform a particular action, both before he can monitor such action (or independently of his capacity ever to be able to monitor it) and in a context in which it affects his own action. (Gambetta, 2000, pp. 4) There are significant characteristics of trust mentioned in the above definition: Trust is subjective Trust is affected by the actions that cannot be monitor The level of trust is dependent on how our actions are affected by the other agents actions.
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From the socio-cognitive perspective of Castelfranchi and Falcone (1998, pp. 2), trust represents an explicit reason-based and conscious form. While trust means different things, the concept can be seen as: A mental attitude towards another agent, a disposition A decision to rely upon another agent, an intention to delegate and trust A behavior, for example the intentional act of trust and the relation between the trustier and the trustee. The above concepts imply multiple sets of cognitive elements involved in the trustier mind. Typologies of trust In a social manner, there have been identified three types of trust: interpersonal trust (the direct trust that an agent has in another agent) impersonal trust (the trust within a system that is perceived through different properties) dispositional trust (the general trusting attitude) 2.2 Reputation An agent behavior can be induced by other agents that cooperate, determining a reputation mechanism. The simplest definition of reputation can be the opinion others have of us. Otherwise, reputation represents a perception that an agent has of another agents intentions or an expectation about an agents behavior. Abdul-Rahman and Hailes (2000, pp.8) have defined reputation as an expectation about an agents behavior based on information about or observations of its past behavior. This definition considers reputational information based on agents personal experiences. 2.3 Computational Trust and Reputation Models This field is quite recent, but in the last years new approaches have been proposed, with direct implementation in different domains, in order to determine the level of trust. Marsh (1994, pp. 53-68) has introduced a computational trust model in the distributed artificial intelligence. An artificial agent can absorb the trust and than he can make trust-based decisions. This model proposes a representation of trust as a continuous variable over the range [-1, +1). There are differentiated three types of trust: basic trust (calculated from all agents experiences), general trust (the trust on another agent without taking into account a specific situation) and situational trust (the trust on another agent taking into account a specific situation). There are proposed three statistical methods to estimate general trust, each determining a different type of agent: the maximum method leads to an optimistic agent (takes the maximum trust value from the experiences he has), the minimum method leads to a pessimistic agent (takes the minimum trust value from the experiences he has) and the mean method that lead to a realistic agent (takes the mean trust value from
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the experiences he has). Trust values are used in agents decision whether to cooperate or not with another agent. Zacharia (1999, pp. 37-55) has proposed two reputation mechanisms (Sporas and Histos) in online communities based on collaborative ratings that an agent receives from others. Sporas takes into consideration only the recent ratings between agents and users with very high reputation values have smaller rating changes after updates than users with a low reputation. Histos comes as a reply, taking into consideration both direct information and witness information. The reputation value is subjectively assigned by each individual, so reputation mechanisms could generate social changes in users behavior. A successful mechanism ensures high prediction rates, robustness against manipulability and cooperation incentives of the online community. Abdul-Rahman and Hailes (2000, pp. 10-20) have suggested a model that allows agents to decide which other agents opinion they trust more. In their view trust can be observed from two perspectives: as direct trust or as recommender trust. Direct trust can be represented as one of the values: very trustworthy, trustworthy, untrustworthy or very untrustworthy. For each partner, the agent has a panel with the number of past experiences in each category, and trust on a partner is given by the degree corresponding to the maximum value in the panel. The model takes into account only the trust coming from a witness, the recommender trust, which is considered reputation. This approach could not differentiate agents that are lying from those that are telling the truth, but think different, so the model gives more importance to the information coming from agents with similar point of view. Sabater and Sierra (2001, pp. 1-5) have proposed a modular trust and reputation model (ReGreT) to e-commerce environment. This model takes into consideration three different types of information sources: direct experiences, information from third party agents and social structures. Trust can be determined combining direct experiences with the reputation model. Direct trust is built from direct interactions, using information perceived by the agent itself, and determined trust based on direct experiences. The reputation model is composed of specialized types of reputation: witness reputation (calculated from the reputation coming from witness), neighborhood reputation (calculated from the information regarding social relations between agents) and system reputation (calculated from roles and general properties). Witness reputation is calculated based on information from other agents of the community. Neighborhood reputation is expressed based on social environment of the agent and the relations between the agent and that environment. System reputation is considered as objective features of the agent (for example, agents role in the society). Those components merge and determine a trust model based on direct knowledge and reputation. 3. NetLogo Simulation Preferential attachment is frequently used in describing social, biological and technological networks and it represents the mechanism of formation models for
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such networks. Social networks are interaction networks, where nodes are agents and links between nodes are interactions between agents. In the evolution of social networks, an important hypothesis is that highly connected nodes increase their connectivity faster than their less connected peers, called preferential attachment. Experiments reveal that the rate at which nodes acquire links depends on the nodes degree, offering direct quantitative support for the presence of preferential attachment. The evolving network models are mostly based on two important hypothesis, growth and preferential attachment. The growth hypothesis sustains that networks continuously expand through new nodes and links between the nodes, and the preferential attachment hypothesis sustains that the rate with which a node with k links acquire a new link is a monotonically increasing function of k. 3.1 Preferential Attachment in NetLogo This model shows a way of arising networks, when there are a few hubs that have many connections, while the others have only a few. The model starts with two nodes connected by an edge. A new node is added at each step. A new node picks an existing node to connect to randomly, but there is a tendency observed: a nodes chance of being selected is directly proportional to the number of connections it already has. In our simulations, we are going to endow agents with two attributes, reputation and intelligence.
Fig. 1 a)
Fig. 1 b)
We can observe there are two nodes that have many connections, while the most of them have only a few (figure 1 b)) shows resized nodes, for clearance). Experiences have shown that the popular nodes will acquire new links faster than the other ones (figure 1 a) and figure 1 b)). 3.2 Simulations The forthcoming simulations will try to show agents behavior assuming that they are endowed with two attributes, reputation and intelligence. We propose a
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representation of reputation as a variable over the range [-1, 1] and intelligence as a variable over the range [1, 100]. Figure 2 a) presents the intelligence values for the agents. The maximum intelligence value is 100 and the minimum intelligence value is 80, but the difference between them is amplified by the growing number of agents. The first agents intelligence is a random value between 1 and 100. Agents are going to be linked each other only if their intelligence is varying with less than 10. For example, if an agent has intelligence 92, it could have connections only with agents that have intelligence between 82 and 100. We can notice that agents make links with those agents that have the closest value of intelligence.
Fig. 2 a)
For example, if there are two agents, one with intelligence 92 and the other with intelligence 95, a third agent with intelligence 87 will choose to connect to the agent with the closest intelligence, the agent with intelligence 92. In figure 2 b) are shown the reputation values, ranging between [-1, 1]. Agents reputation is determined by the number of connections that agent has with other agents. The more connections an agent has, the reputation value is closer to 1. The first agent has frequently reputation value 1 because it is the agent with the higher number of connections.
Fig. 2 b)
Figure 2 c) shows agents endowed with the two attributes, reputation and intelligence.
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Fig 2 c)
An agent prefers to connect with another agent that has a high level of reputation, but in the same time with the closest value of intelligence. Conclusions The organizational behavior field is interested in studying organizations as complex social systems. Trust is a decisive source of social capital within social systems. Most of the theories from this field explore individual and collective human behavior within organizations and their central activities try to identify the determinants of intra-organizational cooperation. Managing collective intelligence within an organization implies combining all tools, methods and processes that can lead to connection and cooperation among individual intelligences. Individual intelligence can not face all the problems in todays world. To successfully deal with problems we need to develop collective intelligence as a global civilization. Collective intelligence can improve competitiveness within organizations in the context of a global market and collective performance has become a critical factor in the organizations development. In this situation creating, developing and sustaining trust among members within teams is the core that leads to performance. This paper mainly shows theoretical aspects regarding collective intelligence and multi-agent systems. Agents behavior is simulated in a virtual environment and can be extended to the real one, at organizational level. Future work will focus on simulating agents behavior by adding new attributes and characteristics. Furthermore, a trust and reputation model that would lead to an increase of collective intelligence within organizations will be developed based on simulations. Acknowledgement This article is a result of the project Doctoral Program and PhD Students in the education, research and innovation triangle. This project is co-funded by European Social Fund through The Sectorial Operational Programme for Human Resources Development 2007-2013, coordinated by The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies.
References Abdul-Rahman, A., Hailes, S., 2000, Supporting Trust in Virtual Communities, Proceedings of the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, Maui, Hawaii, pp. 8-20. Atlee, T., 2008, Co-Intelligence, collective intelligence, and conscious evolution, in Tovey M. (ed.), Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace, Earth Intelligence Network Castelfranchi, C., Falcone, R., 1998, Principles of Trust for MAS: Cognitive Anatomy, Social Importance, and Quantification, Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Multi-Agent Systems, pp. 1-8. Castelfranchi, C., Falcone, R., Marzo, F., 2007, Cognitive Model of Trust as Relational Capital, 10th Workshop on Trust, Privacy, Deception and Fraud in Agent Societies, Honolulu, Hawaii Falcone, R., Castelfranchi, C., 2004, Trust Dynamics: How Trust is influenced by direct experiences and by Trust itself, AAMAS 2004, New York, USA Gambetta, D., 2000, Can We Trust Trust?, in Gambetta, D. (ed.) Trust: Making and Breaking Cooperative Relations, University of Oxford, pp. 4. Heylighen, F., 1999, Collective Intelligence and its Implementation on the Web: algorithms to develop a collective mental map, Journal of Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, Vol.5, No.3, Springer Netherlands, pp. 1-4. Lvy, P., 2006, Collective Intelligence, A Civilization: Towards a Method of Positive Interpretation, International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society, Vol.18, No.3-4, Springer Science Luck, M., McBurney, P., Preist, C., (ed.) 2003, Agent Technology: Enabling Next Generation Computing A Roadmap for Agent Based Computing, Agent Link Malone, T., W., 2008, What is collective intelligence and what will we do about it?, in Mark Tovey (ed.), Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace, Earth Intelligence Network Marsh, S., P., 1994, Formalizing Trust as a Computational Concept, PhD Thesis, Department of Computing Science and Mathematics, University of Stirling Sabater, J., Sierra, C., 2001, REGRET: A Reputation Model for Gregarious Societies, Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Autonomous Agents, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, pp. 1-9. Scarlat, E., (ed.) 2005, Ageni i Modelarea bazat pe Ageni n Economie, Editura ASE, Bucharest Szuba, T., Almulla, M., 2000, Was Collective Intelligence before Life on Earth?, in Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Parallel and Distributed Processing, Springer Berlin/ Heidelberg, pp. 1-2. Zacharia, G., 1999, Collaborative Reputation Mechanisms for Online Communities, Master Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Zara, O., (ed.) 2004, Managing Collective Intelligence, Translated by Julie E. Johnson, M21 Editions, Paris
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MARKETING DURING THE CRISIS

Mdlina Matei (Nioiu)
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania nitoiu.madalina@procema.ro
Abstract
In time of crisis, one of the first budgets to be "sacked" is marketing communication, although smart companies know that it's then that it becomes crucial to communicate wisely - to stay alive. It is not the strong, nor the intelligent who survive, but those who are quickest to adapt. (Charles Darwin). How you adapt to the crisis, therefore the strategy? May many resources out how to fight and make them work better? How to change behavior during the crisis? Strategies depending on the degree to which potential customers are affected by this. Marketing needs to become an issue for all companies. However, still many companies marketing is very little functionally related to other departments. Marketing objectives should be known, supported and evaluated on the basis of precise indicators at all levels. To use up IT resources and ERP systems for the benefit of marketing, to receive timely information about changes in market fresh from sales force, to channel resources of the entire company for marketing objectives are essential conditions for performance. In 2009, marketing should cease to be an isolated department in the company. Marketing may be just the solution out of the crisis for many companies, but what is more sad is that many of them don't this.
Keywords: crisis strategy, marketing, consumer behavior JEL Classification: M31
Introduction Financial crisis requires a rigorous discipline of the entire marketing process, from planning to evaluation. Each strategy and activity must be reviewed and reassessed in light of the results which they could bring. Because the stakes are much higher in a period marked by a lack of liquidity, there should be to ensure that each investment will ensure good results. The most important thing for marketers during this period is certainly a viable strategy that can make sales and profit growth over the long term. A normal sense and in fact, but which becomes more clearly evident and necessary especially now, when things get complicated. But the best is that the recession will impose a discipline welcome practice of marketing in Romania. A campaign last time without results. If enough companies tend to over-the crisis, many struggle to survive. Budget cuts are drastic, and marketing is first on the list, even if not wanted marketers.
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Economic Retrospective Companies in Romania have announced massive layoffs, reductions in production and ceasing investment in 2009, due to decreased orders emphasis on the background of economic crisis and the financial world. Lack of local financial instruments of the type derivatives related credit (mortgage loans with high risk) led many to hope that Romania will not be affected by the crisis that began in the U.S. since the summer of 2007. But as the credit crisis has spread to all the powerful financial centers of the world lost confidence between financial institutions, banks fear that if they give money to loan, it may no longer be able to recover. Thus was created a financial jam and spread in waves to the Romanian financial institutions. Many of them were forced to stop credit lines which gave companies and so were affected immediately and the costs of production and investment. In this crisis the real economy, exporters receive the hardest blow to the application and funding from the European Union and the United States, the main business partners of Romania, began to decrease with the extension of the crisis. Areas most affected are announced to be the automotive industry, manufacturing and the textile, construction and wood industry. Have been announced many layoffs, surrendered to temporary employment contracts, technical references in unemployment, the number of people affected will be between 100,000 and 400,000, according to analysts. Official statistics show that the Romanian economy began to be felt in the last three months of 2008. Thus, industrial production decreased by 0.7% in October from the previous month, while over the same month of 2007 decreased by 3% due to compression by 4.6% in manufacturing, which could not be offset by increases in the utilities sector and the mining industry, according to data published by the National Institute of Statistics. In addition, turnover of retail trade, which excludes sales of motor vehicles and motorcycles, fell in October 2008 with 19% compared to the previous month and the annual growth rate to moderate significantly to 8.6%. New orders in industry were 3.6% lower in October than then the previous month, due to the reduction in the capital goods and household products, according to INS. Property market which was first assigned, since the summer of 2008. Transactions of the housing market began to decline in summer this year on account of the uncertain evolution of prices internationally. In October 2008, the market has almost frozen, provided that the international financial blockade was accompanied by new measures to limit the credit required by the National Bank of Romania (BNR). Furthermore, tempering price increases in construction and land - was expected after galloping the last five years rises.
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Thus, many real estate developers and projects have stopped hoping a return to prices, and some have started after a while to reduce profit margins to be able to sell. The chain was reflected on the real estate agencies, producers and distributors of building materials, manufacturers of furniture and interior decorations, but also those of electrical and electronics. In addition, many companies have seen forced to abandon the expansion plans because of blocking the housing market. Real estate analysts say, because of the international real estate crisis and credit conditions, housing prices fell in the old average of 30%, while the apartments we were decreased 5-10% in 2008. As for the real estate transactions, it decreased by 20.08% in October 2008 compared to the same month last year, to 41,672 units, according to the latest data submitted by the National Statistics Institute. Romanian car market has been held down by the investors and customers. Automotive industry in Romania - is nearly 10% of GDP, with a turnover of around 11.5 billion, seems to be one of the most affected sectors of the global economic crisis, when the big companies that produce Romania automobile parts and restrict their activity. In these circumstances, in mid-December 2008, the two largest producers of cars on the Romanian market - Renault and Ford - have asked whether support from the Romanian state. Thus, American car manufacturer Ford, which agreed to invest 675 million euros in plant in Craiova, since 2009, has asked the Romanian state loan guarantees of 400 million euros from the European Investment Bank (EIB). Renault asked in turn guarantees a loan of 100 million euros, on condition that runs in Titu developing a design center. According to APIA, the global financial crisis pushed the Romanian car market to its lowest level since 1999, registrations of new cars in the first 11 months of 2008 decreasing by 53% over the same period in 20071. In February 2009 they sold 10,514 cars, up 28.4% from the previous month, of which 9082 vehicles (27.8%), 1368 commercial vehicles (34.1%) and 64 buses (6 , 7%), according to the Association of Automotive Manufacturers and Importers (APIA). Throughout the first two months of 2009, but total sales over the same period last year decreased by 63.5%, from 51,186 to 18,702, the car is decreased by 61.8%, from 42,351 to 16,1902.
Hot Offers on paper: rises for cars, houses and travel by businessmen embellish 2009, Front news, accessed at 6 July 2009, <http://www.frontnews.ro/social-si-economic/companii/superoferte-doar-pe-hartie-scumpirile-pentru-masini-case-si-turism-cosmetizate-de-afaceristi-24805> Sharp decrease in sales of cars over a year ago 2009, Business Standard, accessed at 23 June 2009, <http://standard.money.ro/articol_87203/scadere_drastica_a_vanzarilor_de_masini_fata_de_ acum_un_an.html > Journal of Doctoral Research in Economics
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Steel and metallurgical companies have limited production. The world's biggest steel mill ArcelorMittal, which has combined imported in Romania, announced in mid-December that the open proceedings of voluntary departure in the company, will pay up to 24 monthly wages and compensatory amounts between 10,000 and 25,000 lei, depending the age of employees. In addition, Arcelor Mittal's management decided to reduce the number of employees worldwide to 9,000 people in the next period. The largest aluminum producer in Central and Eastern Europe, Alro Slatina, announced the end of December, that consider reducing production by up to 50% and reduce the number of employees 1200 people in 2009, due to cheaper aluminum with over 50% since mid July 2008 until the present. The final decision will be taken in January. In addition, Alro trying to reduce the costs of raw materials such as alumina, coke, pitch and other materials and services. Manufacturer of grain Interagro announced that dismiss in 2009 over 90% of the employees group, that 5500 people, 4500 of whom were in chemistry, given that shareholders group anticipates that losses will exceed 100 million dollars and hopes to one intervention saving the state. Travel agents promise to reduce prices for fear of crisis. Most travel agencies have announced that the first months of 2009 will operate discounts up to 30%, amid pressing financial crisis on the sector profile Banks are still facing problems of liquidity. Reluctance of banks to lend among themselves led to a rapid increase in interest rates on the money markets and even blocking these markets. Major central banks have injected substantial liquidity into markets, interest rates fell monetary policy and provided guarantees for deposits and interbank. However, at present, financial markets continue to be fluid for short-term maturities, the warehouses for a day or a week. All these have resulted in negative rating agencies Standard & Poor's and Fitch to pull of the group that recommended investments. Moody's to indulge us, announcing that he would expect to see the measures they will take the new government. The crisis passes, the strategy remains Next year will be one in which everyone will have to put serious problem strategy. Not diverge from the strategy that we have as a result of pressures from the market, to adapt policy to new conditions or to determine if they have not done so. In a period in which costs and liquidity becomes a problem of survival, the world has little time for stories with strategies. Money matters. How do I get, how they save? Can make profit? However, be it survival or performance of private companies or public institutions, a sound strategy remains the more solid basis for any means movements and
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movements of 2009, regardless of the company.3 A smart business man trying to explain, recently, a television with claims, the strategy of the country, in these moments of crisis. Because it had speech and grace, the man said that there is still money in the world, even if the crisis. Just ... are hidden. In order to remove the light and wants to attract, Romania needs above all a strategy. Because, beyond the global competition, the fight is now to deliver capital, not only for products and services. Why would the money come here and not in Bulgaria, in addition to marketing a more effective and more visible tax is only 14% for tourism? What can Romania do now? What are the real strengths and how could make a significant difference in this global competition? How would win? For a country strategy that would finally give a direction for each area with potential, but still groping and performs badly, such as tourism or agriculture. Strategy can save not only companies but also countries In time of crisis, not just companies but countries need a smart marketing strategy. In a period of less fast growing global tourism, and it inevitably affected by the decrease of resources available for travel, Ukraine and Turkey have become Europe's top destinations, ranking first 8 and Turkey instead of 9, according to latest study of Deloitte, European Performance Review. Turkey and made a plan for the next 15 years to clear: 63 million tourists by 2023. Another objective is to further encourage tourists to spend 86 million dollars during the journey. The plan includes measures for sustainable tourism development and concrete measures which have already proven efficacy, such as reducing VAT for this industry, from 18% to 8%. Results so far are visible: an increase of 17.6% in the number of tourists to 22 million annually, instead of 9 in the top tourist destinations of the world and the fastest growth rate of average revenue per room in Europe, 18 %, to 120 euros. What is proposed and Romania, according to the same report? To invest 75 million euros in a "branding exercise to increase the visibility of Romania as a tourist destination. In these troubled times is mandatory to have a strategy. But speaking in such a way that the word strategy is likely to lose its significance to him by Michel Porter. Strategy has become a verbal tic really, says rightly and Richard Rumelt, the consulting company Mc Kinsey. These sayings transformed business marketing strategy in marketing, processing of data in IT strategy and procurement strategy for growth. It's enough to cut prices and to hear the price strategies. Strategy makes you unique, says Michael Porter. Strategies is vital because it will shape subsequent decisions and activities of the company. 2009 should be when to recognize honest if there is any strategy or not and whether it is viable.
Oana Sav, 2009, Views of the marketing on the crisis, Financial Director Romania , 27 November 2008, accessed at 30 August 2009, <www.financialdirector.ro/opinii/opinii-marketing-pe-timp-decriza.html> Journal of Doctoral Research in Economics
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Crisis that requires performance Explains nothing more than a mind a crisis, said Richard Rumelt. Changes in market forces companies to reconsider their business and operating environment, to rethink their approaches and priorities. The current crisis can evolve and move deeper changes in the environment in which companies compete, structural changes should oblige them to reconsider deeply strategies. Print media, for example, currently faced with changes in distribution channels and consumer habits retain the advantage of content production, but must fully review their current business models. Explains nothing more than a mind a crisis, said Richard Rumelt. Changes in market forces companies to reconsider their business and operating environment, to rethink their approaches and priorities. The current crisis can evolve and move deeper changes in the environment in which companies compete, structural changes should oblige them to reconsider deeply strategies. Print media, for example, currently faced with changes in distribution channels and consumer habits retain the advantage of content production, but must fully review their current business models. One of the paradoxes present crisis, in the opinion of Michael Porter - the world in terms of competitive strategy - in a recent conference in Seoul, is that although companies should be as pragmatic, in these moments, you must ensure that not only respond to problems and crisis but that the measures they take are valid in the long term. Proved in time to resist that, companies must have the ability to integrate short-term priorities and long term and to respond to both at the same time. It is not enough to take some urgent measures. Conversely, if these measures may somehow harm those skills that are different and unique company in relation to competition, then serious problems may arise. The example they give is that a company Porter oriented excellent, would be the dumbest thing now reducing the quality of sake costs, thus putting in jeopardy the competitive edge. Marketers must be able to think and to justify long-term actions. The current crisis can only lead to a higher performance marketing and a redefinition of the role of marketing in companies. A marketing higher performance means one result-oriented in terms of value added for shareholders. If these results could be seen in terms of ROI (Return on Investment) - return on investment, then there would be more confident that greater investment would bring more results - January said Edwards, chief financial officer of the corporation British Comet. It is normal that, beyond the size of marketing budgets in the current circumstances, this will become crucial in evaluating marketing investment in 2009. Marketing focused on Return on Investment There are at least five ways in which marketing activities can be more focused on return on investment: the general manager and marketing to build a common agenda, marketing activity is integrated across the company, that there is continuity
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business marketing departments, to create a culture of results and, not least, to have a better relationship with advertising agencies and consulting companies. Poses new challenges to the ball fillet marketing quality. The role of managers is to create value for the company and you have to understand that this is marketing. In an economy in crisis, companies have no way to create value unless you manage to create an advantage that would differentiate them in terms of cost or performance. Without a competitive advantage, unique, companies have no way to generate profits that exceed the costs of capital invested. Addressing a strategy based on value is essential to maintain competitive advantage. For this reason, buyers prefer a company to the detriment of another. Marketing provides tools to create this competitive advantage. The new challenges of quality ball to the net marketing. The role of managers is to create value for the company and you have to understand that means marketing. In an economy in crisis, companies have no way to create value unless you manage to create an advantage that would differentiate them for cost or performance. Without a competitive advantage, unique, companies have no way to generate returns that exceed capital costs. Addressing a value-based strategies is essential to maintaining competitive advantage. For this reason buyers prefer one company to the detriment of another. Marketing provides the tools to create this competitive advantage. In addition, the average duration of the mandate of a marketing director is very small, about 22 months in the UK and similar to us, even if we do not have exact figures. The reason is largely related to lack of marketing ability of people to justify their activities in financial terms, the isolation of marketing in the company and unrealistic expectations about what it can deliver results. Often there is a continuity of strategy and new executives do not profit from the achievements of his predecessors A culture of results means the identification of relevant performance indicators that can be measured in terms of return on investment and value that generates marketing information systems functional and efficient, open for indicators to measure the long term, such as the value of life versus the short-term consumer, openness to experiment and innovation. Relationship with advertising agencies, research consultants and marketing companies have also reconsidered. Most companies often complain about the performance and efficiency, but rather treat it as some performers, as some suppliers to be disciplined by reductions in budgets than on some partners that may indeed help them to grow your business. Instead of losing time with auctions and to resume the long process by which an agency get to know the customer better, marketers could try to bring all the best from their employees through clearer objectives and solutions that make the agency
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a true partner. Procter & Gamble, for example, its rewards agencies with a commission from sales increases it generates. Strategies for Success in 2010 In 2010 marketing should be to regain influence and impact executives. Share marketers in the new boards and elsewhere remains very small and the number of marketing directors promoted to senior staff remains quite small. An example glade and welcome to us is that of the Arctic, the director of marketing and sales was promoted to general manager. According to a study by the Chartered Institute of Marketing, only 14% of the top ten British companies, had a marketing representative in leadership. Perhaps the new figures would be significantly less. A recent study by Deloitte - "Marketing in 3D, shows again how little is still understood in the role of marketing boards. On the positive side, 2010 will be a year of marketing will matter more than ever in Romania, a year in which the results will be only appreciated. To pass well over 2010, we should have a well established marketing plan. This should include competition analysis, positioning their companies, tactical operations, planning and measuring instruments of course. If at the time, you as marketer, you guessed right the further development of events and you set up a backup plan or a plan B for a period of crisis, then you probably have been more prepared for what followed and are still prepared strategy and appropriate tactics. With sudden changes occurring in consumer habits, in actions by competitors, the attitudes of providers, the payment options for customers, the strategy for the next period will be reconsidered. The efficiency of processes must be a primary concern. Focusing on key products and a realistic estimate of sales can be significant cost savings with either stocks or the staffing4. Maintain or increase current market share targets are preferable to extend a new market or expand the range of products. In some cases, however, the crisis will bring opportunities in some markets, with the bankruptcy of a competitor or the availability of consumers for a product / service. The launch of products that economic context must be consistent with long-term vision of the brand, not just to take advantage of possible short-term achievements. Reassessment's sales target must reflect the real potential existing in the economic environment. Not all consumers are equally affected by the crisis. The customer of construction materials is likely to be more cautious and to drastically reduce procurement plans for the near future. It takes more than ever to know how he is redefining the consumer value and how we react to the crisis. The consumer seeks durable,
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Henry Mintzberg, 2008, The rise and decline of strategic planning Editura Public, Bucureti 69
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providing security, and whose price / quality is perceived as very good. Are likely to postpone the purchase of other products or services, to focus on strictly necessary and carefully weighed the options. Trust is one of the key factors of the relationship between company and customer. It is unrealistic promises that you can not comply. A broken promise will mean an unhappy customer, providing less reliable company in the future. You will lose important resources if you can not strictly comply with this rule. People have time and mood to lose money. Use and optimize bidirectional communication channels with consumers. For any information, complaint, question, suggestion client should have as easy access to the company. Before ordering a market research, think about the data that you have. Analyzing the database of existing customers, verify customer share, review annual progress. Share customers into categories, check which categories are most profitable and which have special characteristics. Go right figures and not assumptions, examine and perform all possible connections to extract valuable data. Database Client can be an extremely valuable asset if you treat it as such. The fact that a customer agreed to provide you with information about it at one time means that he wants to continue or at least allows you to communicate. Launching new products tailored to the business climate should be made carefully, calculating benefits available versus resources involved. Maintenance budgets to "Research and development is a correct approach to ensure a solid market position long term. Reducing prices during the crisis, may be tempted to attract price sensitive customers, but can be a risky strategy in the medium and long term. The first step is to be alert to movements initiated by the competition. You may like them to do the same. Marketing may be just the solution out of the crisis for many companies, but what is more sad is that many of them do this. Moreover, companies, in an effort to save as much during this time reduced marketing budgets with alarming rates. Conclusions We are dealing with a crisis full of paradoxes. First, companies must create a balance between measures that they take the short and long-term strategy and managed to reconcile them both. Even if the challenge for many, is still survival and must respond pragmatically to the crisis, the stakes remain long-term strategy. They have problems who react excessively. For example, companies that are strategically focused on excellence, would make the biggest mistake in these moments reduce the quality of services or products. Second, paradoxically, this period many companies have more flexibility for decisions and strategic moves that would not have had under normal conditions.
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The financial crisis is a time when it is pointless to look at short-term indicators: share prices, quarterly reports because the differences do not matter now. On the contrary, is a favorable time to think about the implications, alternatives and longterm strategies. In addition, a crisis that manifests as atypical and cancer, a crisis whose causes are entirely created problems in the financial services market. Many global companies have shown commendable performance, taking good decisions have been expanded and are successful exports have been affected indirectly raised issues of loans, investments, liquidity5. Being close to customers (or consumers) to the type of business is easy, but it is also easy to forget this during a recession when operational activities seem to matter more. Here are 10 important things to not lose contact with customers: Focus your attention to "best" customers - those who want to work with your company and make profits from contracted services; Examine their priorities changing - customer priorities change during a crisis so far is what matters to them what is and what is not essential for them; Develop more relevant proposals - come to meet customer needs in a more specific, for example by combining several products in order to address certain issues; Communicate relevant inland - recessions are less related to "individualism, outdoors and adventure and have more in common with" family, home and safety "; Serve them in a more personal way - it helps to understand better and to do what matters most to each client Builds relationships, not transactions - do not overcrowd the deals to be just simple discounts (just a waste of money of you); Be empathetic to their suffering - do more for them, for example, help them with more favorable payment terms or by adding a new product or new service; Connect them with other clients - added more value to your business is like connecting customers in their thinking - where consumers share one sport or another passion, share business ideas and opportunities; Continue to communicate with them - is very easy to forget the customers during the crisis - right now they need support and reassurance - newsletter regularly distributed cheaply through SMS or email helps you keep in touch; Energize your customers! - Live in a harsh world in which confidence has reached a minimum, the media is full of negative news - offers customers a reason to smile, be happy and talk about something positive. In short, the solution for the crisis is all strategy. As Porter says, technology is changing, not strategy. The crisis passes, the strategies remain. Companies with no strategy.
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Cum s adaptezi strategia de marketing la criz, 07 May 2009, Only Word Dot, accessed at 23 June 2009 <http://www.onlywords.ro/2009/05/07/cum-sa-adaptezi-strategia-de-marketing-lacriza/> 71
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Bibliography Anghel D., Petrescu C , 2000, Business to Business Marketing, Editura Uranus, Bucureti Florescu C., 1973, Marketing - Editura Independena Economic, Bucureti Henry Mintzberg, 2008, The rise and decline of strategic planning Editura Public, Bucureti Michael Porter, 28 noiembrie 2008, The Trilogy: Competitive Strategy, Competitive Advantage, the Competitive Advantage of Nations, Seoul National University Oana Sav, 2009, Views of the marketing on the crisis, Financial Director Romania, 27 November 2008, accessed at 30 August 2009, <www.financialdirector.ro/opinii/opinii-marketing-pe-timp-de-criza.html> Liviu Voinea, 2009, The economy must be encouraged not hindered, Adevrul, 25 February 2009, accessed at 01 November 2009, <www.adevarul.ro/articole/liviu-voinea-economia-trebuie-stimulata-nufranata.html> William Bonner, Addison Wiggin, 2007, The Rise of an Epic Financial Crisis, John Wiley&Sons, Inc, Canada Cum s adaptezi strategia de marketing la criz, 07 May 2009, Only Word Dot , accessed at 23 June 2009 <http://www.onlywords.ro/2009/05/07/cum-saadaptezi-strategia-de-marketing-la-criza/> Sharp decrease in sales of cars over a year ago 31 March 2009, Business Standard, accessed at 23 June 2009, <http://standard.money.ro /articol_87203/scadere_drastica_a_vanzarilor_de_masini_fata_de_acum_un_ an.html > Hot Offers on paper: rises for cars, houses and travel by businessmen embellish 25 February 2009, Front news, accessed at 6 July 2009, <http://www.frontnews.ro/social-si-economic/companii/super-oferte-doarpe-hartie-scumpirile-pentru-masini-case-si-turism-cosmetizate-de-afaceristi24805>
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SOCIAL NETWORK ADVERTISING A MODERN MEANS OF ONLINE MARKETING IN THE CONTEXT OF WORLD FINANCIAL CRISIS
Iacob Ctoiu
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania facultatea@marketing.ase.ro
Ivona Stoica
Romanian American University of Bucharest, Romania ivonas@ase.ro
Abstract
The finacial crisis led to activity limitation for many firms that were not financially strong enough to survive. In the near future, few actors will manage to survive. These are the market leaders that invested in their image, analyzed the market thoroughly, and managed to adapt to the unfavorable environment. The creativity of online media implies much more than traditional marketing, that is now considered as expensive and difficult to implement. Under these circumstances, companies must be online, no matter if there is a product launch, the strengthening of brand image or new services. Any marketing activity online generates marketing behaviors; this way, any Internet user will be able to access the existing information and make decisions according to it. Soon companies will not afford to advertise online without having studied the needs of computer users first. This way, contextual advertising, online applications, virtual communities will become strategic instruments aiming directly at specific market segments, and positioning themselves in consumers' minds. The financial crisis led to business maturation online. The crisis period has turned into great opportunity for brave marketers who are able to make good use of the recession within the U.S. and in the entire world. These marketers have managed to use new communication channels which are more efficient and less expensive such as online communities as market catalyst.
Keywords: online marketing, virtual community, global financial crisis JEL Classification: M39 The economic aspect leads to new paradigms of digital economy and the economy based on knowledge (e-marketing, e-commerce, e-learning, e-money, e-trading, online payment, online business etc.). The revenues of Internet operators rose 33,2%, up to 293 million, the revenues in mobile telephony rose 16,2%, up to 1,88 billion, and for cable television they rose 20,3%, up to 367 million last year. Under the unfavorable economic circumstances, few people consider developing any type of business, as many companies have made personnel reductions and lowered salaries in order to avoid bankruptcy.
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Personnel reductions are not the best solution, and this period of financial crisis should be an incentive to find creative elements for customers, that could be profitable on the long run. The economic history proved that prosperity arose after every crisis, and marketers are now optimistic. They consider crisis as productive, as far as the instruments and the profitable means are concerned, which can lead to new businesses with low budgets. Businesses that involve land selling and offices lost their profitability at the beginning of this financial crisis. This is why people who have taken online businesses into consideration will be successful in the future, even if they start a small business. Of course, the strategic use of online marketing instruments is highly important, as well. In 2008, according to study conducted by a research company in the U.S., advertising and PR contributed 10%, consumer satisfaction 8%, tests on products 30%, sales tracking 20%, attitude and usage 11%, social and political studies 3%, users' evaluation of web sites 5%, qualitative research 1% etc. We must not forget about the three stages find, compare, buy as Internet users search for information on the Internet, they compare the results, and finally they decide what to purchase. This leads to the conclusion that online marketing is all about using computer and online communication networks, as the Internet penetration rate rises steadily in developed and even developing countries. Internet development creates the opportunity of research carried out online. The Internet has changed its appearance, and the penetration rate has risen in developed countries, and even in developing countries. The fast development of Internet leads to the opportunity of online marketing research. Approximately 60% of the population in the U.S. has access to the Internet. These regions are very important as far as the global purchasing power is concerned, according to British Marketing Research Association and ESOMAR 5. Virtual communities instruments for online marketing Virtual communities can be defined as an application that helps, expands or becomes substantial by means of human interaction of groups with common interests, the same cultural, geographical environment or another common criterion that generates a community with common interests. Online communities have the structure of ant hills; their moves and contact points are observed, as they are patterns for the profile of target customers, the main focus of marketers.
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Figure 1 Expenditure estimate for interactive advertising within US
Network analysis relies upon intuition-specific aspects, and these patterns are important features of individuals. People who analyze networks believe that real behavior can be observed when it is encountered within online communities. The target audience is created by means of profiles analyzed within social networks. Social networks are also a pleasant way of getting rid of the stress that is accumulated in the workplace or other unfortunate events, a free way of spending time, and a way of expressing identity. Internet development in the current technological era has brought new unconventional instruments that have become the most important marketing weapons in fighting the competition. Thanks to the Internet, there are no more time and distance barriers, and the revolution it has brought about made possible to have access to latest information within their reach. Being connected to this virtual universe creates bonds among millions of people in the entire world who have a common interest and are able to exchange information for professional reasons or for fun. The great advantage of the Internet is the anonymous identity and the possibility to escape from the real world, so that individuals could become somebody else and reinvent themselves. This led to
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thousands of online communities according to different topics, a really great phenomenon in short time.
Figure 2 Manager profile regarding e-communities
Online communities are social groups of individuals who share interests, values or beliefs, and create their own identity within the group. This way, even President Barack Obama gained popularity by means of virtual communities like Twitter. This example was taken into account by many celebrities and brands, all willing to have as many followers as possible and spread information among users, thus gaining power and credibility. Online communities are most hunted by companies that need efficient promotion for their brands. The pull strategy is used in this case. It implies marketing activities - namely advertising - that aim at end users and make them require information on promoted products. This way, clients ask for products, and intermediaries order the products from producers. A recent report (2009 European Interactive Marketing Predictions Interactive Channels Will Produce Upsides In A Down Economy by Rebecca Jennings with Christine Spivey Overby, Emily Bowen) by Forrester a famous marketing
research company highlights the great development in online advertising. Mobile marketing, virtual communities and email marketing are in the first positions. Users who support the prosperous development of any e-community fall into several categories: creators, critics, information organizers, joiners, spectators, and idle users. Creators launch information, write articles for their own blogs, upload text, audio, video files on the company they work for if the purpose is brand repositioning or product recognition by Internet users. Critics reply to creators and post reviews on the existing topic or blogs, become forum members or write articles (the wikipedia type of articles). They also post ratings and reviews for various products and services, comment on other blogs etc. Information organizers use RSS Feed, tags and vote for or against other sites. Members or joiners join social groups like Twitter, MySpace, Face Book, which update their profile, and visit other similar communities, as well. Spectators internalize information from blogs, listen to/ watch audio/video files, listen to podcasts, read online forums, customers' reviews or ratings. Idle users do not generate or use information, but simply believe it is trendy to be members of an e-community, who are curious about it and suffocated by conflicts of interest or cannot be considered as pertaining to any of the categories stated before. All these categories create an ecosystem that helps us develop strategies based on what we know and could position us in consumers' minds. It is the the best way to reach the black box of consumers, who considers us reliable thanks to the followers. According to various authors, online studies are as accurate if not even more accurate than phone interviews in predicting behaviors. B2B and B2C relations can also be observed, which makes this communication interesting to marketers. According to a study conducted by Forrester, 91% of consumers make decisions according to blog information, videos, customers' reviews. They are members of one or more virtual communities, 55% of the B2B clients are joiners who have created a profile, and critics come second after spectators, generate discussions on blogs, reviews for products. 58% of them have been carried away by online discussions, and 43% are part of creative media, creating consumer profiles, segmenting the market, positioning products and creating marketing strategies that generate profits.
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The best known virtual communities are MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, Black Planet, hi5, Yahoo 360, which is rated 10th. Video, music and artistic communities must be taken into account: YouTube, DeviantArt. MySpace has the best market share, 72,3%. Facebook is the second great power in the U.S., as far as online communities are concerned. Online community specific limits Being a member of such an e-community has turned into more than a trend among users, considering that friends or acquaintances have already signed up. It is an efficient promotion tool for business people, as well. Social media are a means of communication, synchronous for chats and asynchronous for forums, a way of getting to know people and things while using photos and avatar systems. Sometimes, users go beyond normality, users do not leave their PC anymore, order online, fall in love online, discuss with their friends online, stepping more and more often into a virtual world, or e-life. Online businesses use online communities as a way of spreading information on products and services they provide. They aim at an audience that is constantly in a hurry and keen on keeping jobs all the more now when there is a financial crisis. Online marketing costs. Companies to promote their advertises for a discussion lists. is expanding even during the financial crisis because of the low start using virtual networks and online communities more often products by displaying banners or including somebody who specific product or company by mentioning a link within
According to several statistics, employers search for information on current employees or jobseekers on web sites so that they have an image on their psychological features and skills. Employers believe people show their real identity online and even insignificant details can show our true personality. For a positive outcome, users shouldn't display real data about themselves, and the risk of being subjected to Internet fraud becomes lower. A computer-based community uses special programs to control participants' activity. Reliable e-communities must have open-source software and they are called development communities. Being able to interact with people who have similar interests from all over the world is highly important, but e-communities also provide disadvantages used by evil intended people, which generates fear, controversy and criticis.
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Conclusions The importance of e-communitites lies within their strong social nature that it shares with their members, thus creating a strong emotional connection. This can happen because of the fact that members have common beliefs and information exchange is created even if people live in totally different places. Online communities are all about positive psychological effects, as well, so their members have more power to interact (being part of a group), support from other members, the opportunity to identify themselves as members of one particular group, the power to influence other people, strong emotional contact with other members due to their common interests. It is important for managers to understand the reason why e-communities are created in the first place, what elements come up during the process and the way the connection among members can last for a long time. The term community involves several positive psychological effects, which awards interaction power to members (identifying themselves with e-community, being a part of a group, being supported by other community members and acknowledged within a certain domain, influence, settling relations based on sharing interests etc.). Online communities have various advantages, considering that they bring people together who become brand advertisers for brands that are well promoted. The advantages of virtual communities include the feeling of being part of a group (the e-community of businesspeople in Romania, project managers' e-community, the online community of Human Resources specialists), the desire of being integrated within a group (group management skills, common values, helping people with different problems), the emotional connection created by interaction within community, being able to influence other people as a result of the principles set by the group etc. All these advantages of online communities ensure influence over existing/new customers, thus being strategic instruments within online marketing. The online advertising market in Europe rose to 12.9 billion in 2008 (20% higher than in 2007), according to IAB Europe research conducted in partnership with PricewaterhouseCoopers, an audit and consultancy company. The country with highest revenues from online advertising in 2008 was Great Britain, with 3.44 billion, a rise of 19% in one year. Germany comes second, 2.97 billion, with a rise of 19% in a year, and France is in third place, with 1.8 billion, which indicates a rise of 18% in 2008. Slovenia, Romania and Croatia are rated as last in this top with 20 billion for Slovenia and Romania and 16 billion for online advertising. For the first time ever, Romania is in this European top. Online advertising in Romania does not grow fast enough, thus being considered twice smaller than the same market in Greece and four times smaller than the Hungarian online advertising market.
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Online communities are currently used as stategic tools in online advertising, in countries like Russia, where the number of users have skyrocketed lately, which is highly significant and a new perspective highlighted by HR companies in Great Britain that use online communities as portals when it comes to recruiting employees. Poland is also at a high level as far as this market is concerned Romanian companies are supposed to create their own online communities and use them widely, as they are magnets that attract clients. Brands that have the courage to use online environment will be very strong in the online advertising market. In Romania, slowly but surely, companies begin to discover online advertising, but they do not have the courage to invest in the digital environment. However, these companies are aware that the Internet is essential for future successful businesses due to the growing number of users, quick dissemination of information, and advantageous financial investment.
References Balaure V. (coordonator), Marketing, ediia a II-a, Ed. Uranus, Buc., 2002; Chui Michael, Miller Andy, and Roberts P. Roger - Six ways to make Web 2.0 work, february 2009, Source: Business Technology Office; Orzan, G., Orzan, M., Cybermarketing, Ed. Uranus, Bucureti, 2007; Orzan, Gh., Sisteme informatice de marketing, Ed. Uranus, Bucureti, 2001, p.139; Seceleanu, A. Explozie pe rezidenial la abonaii de telefonie mobil, Ziarul Financiar, 8 decembrie 2008; Ungureanu, A., Internetul de band larg din Romnia, mai ngust dect media european, Curierul Naional, 10 aprilie 2009, http://www.curierulnational. ro/print/117128; http://www.insna.org/sna/what.html Lin Freeman; http://www.forrester.com; http://www.submitsuite.ro/blog/lista-retele-sociale-romania; http://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societate_informaional; http://www.info-ghid.com/fenomenul-comunicarii-online-retelele-sociale-s.html; http://athenian-legacy.com/ro/2009/01/comunitatile-virtuale/comment-page-1/; http://www.journaldunet.com/cc/03_internetmonde/reseaux-sociaux.shtml; http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007042; http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Six_ways_to_make_Web_20_work_2294; Jennings, R., Spivey, Overby C., Bowen, E. - 2009 European Interactive Marketing Predictions Interactive Channels Will Produce Upsides In A Down Economy, published online on the Forrester Research site, 2009.
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VENTURE CAPITAL: FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS FOR ROMANIAN SMEs IN CRISIS TIME

Monica Biolan
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania monica.biolan@perepanalytics.eu
Abstract
The world economy is facing a financial crisis, which has extended itself at all economic levels during the last year. European financial institutions and State institutions have agreed to a series of measures in response to the global financial crisis but the economic mechanism has to be sustained within also. Capital infusion in private sector for rescue situations, research and development stages or start-up project may be the key to surpass the crisis difficulties. The financial organisations that usually make infusion capital, know these days great difficulties in managing their activity, so the private equity firms or asset management companies can be the new direction that many companies need. The entities that are most vulnerable at crisis conditions are the SMEs (small and medium size enterprises) and their need of capital may be satisfy only by these private equity firms since SMEs present a series of characteristics that may be seen as high risk investment. The paper will explore the venture investment mechanism and its implications at economic level in crisis time for the SME. To identify the economic impact of venture capital, European preliminary figures provided by EVCA (European Venture Capital Association) will be analysed to determine if private equity capital infusion represents part of the financial crisis solution.
Keywords: SME, venture capital, private equity, financial crisis JEL Classification: G01 Introduction SME (small and medium size enterprises) Sector has been the central of attention for many researchers in the last decade which it has formed a very vast literature dedicated to these firms. This thing has its justification in the empirical reality which is represented by this sector and in economics theories which have been studied their filed. Regarding the empirical justification, we can observe in the present the percentage of 99% of these enterprises in the total of firms at European level and Romanian as well, the existence of a stat organism which works exclusively with SME, lows which are dedicated to these sector, o great interest of European Union which is consolidate by funds allocated for the SMEs. All that makes from SMEs sector a very important element in the economy. Economic theories had also a contribution regarding the interest of researchers in SMEs sector. Schumpeter [1959] is the one that brings the subject regarding the SMEs innovation in his book, The Theory of Economie Development,
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suggesting the great capacity of these enterprises in new ideas and new technologies. In the resources theory [Penrose, 1959], the enterprise is analysed like an assembly of tangible and intangible resources of varies nature which had the purpose of long term profit. The resources theory shows us that the enterprise strategy came form the correlation of internal environment with the available resources. Penrose also points out the fact that enterprise know-how has to be considered with the same impotency like material resources. The core competencies has its origins in the resource theory which explains the success of the enterprise based on competences [Ritter, 2004]. Penrose gives an explication regarding the comparative advantage of an enterprise which consists in its competences and not in its resources. SMEs have this kind of competences and innovation potential [Kaufmann, 2002] which makes them survive on the market. The theory of economy of scale has a critical view of SME, showing the limits of these firms. After the war, in the reconstruction period, only the big companies were considered the only ones that can sustain the economy. These ideas have their origins in the fact that big companies had access to finance which generates big pay checks and stability in the market. In this context the SMEs were seen like inefficient forms of organisation, which generates low salaries and low possibility of development. This view will change in 70, once the globalization phenomenon begins and the economy based on knowledge increase in importance. Contrarily of the theory of economy scale, Mills and Schumann [1985] suggest that the SMEs surpass their limits thought their flexibility in a turbulent economy. The limits of these traditional theories are demonstrated trough the fact that some important elements of this sector like the persistency and the expansion of SMEs, are neglected. Even if this theories have reveled many characteristics of these sector there is still some aspects that need to be covered like the crisis difficulties that SMEs confront these days. We are facing a financial crisis, which has extended itself at all economic levels during the last half of year. The crisis took place when a loss of confidence by investors in the value of securitized mortgages in the US resulted in a liquidity crisis that prompted a substantial injection of capital into financial markets by the United States Federal Reserve, Bank of England and the European Central Bank. At the time, an indicator of perceived credit risk in the general economy, the TED spread (difference between the interest rates on interbank loans and short-term U.S. government debt) has attained around 150-200 bps. In September 2008 the crisis
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determined a series of stock markets crash and a considerable number of banks, mortgage lenders and insurance companies failed. On November 3rd, 2008, the EU commission at Brussels predicted for 2009 an extremely weak growth of the BIP, by 0.1 percent, for the countries of the Euro zone and a negative number for the UK (-1.0 percent), Ireland and Spain. The Bank of England and the Central Bank for the Euro zone, respectively, reduced their interest rates from 4.5 percent down to 3 percent, and from 3.75 percent down to 3.25 percent. Regarding the economic situation of the production sector, all industries seem to be involved. As a consequence, starting from November 2008, several countries launched programs of rescue for their economies. In these times the SMEs are the most affected. Nevertheless in January 2009 in Romania, were being created no more then 5000 new firms which had an average asset value around 22 000 RON. This classifies them like SMEs (classification based on asset level). The trend of creating new-start-ups is decreasing but if we observe also the self-employed persons, we can see that the total number startups is the same only the organisation form have been change. [figure 1]
Companies Self-employed Persons
10000 9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
1515 2609 2520 2361 2155 4115 5185 5586 5698 7483 6275 5465 8615 7682
Figure 1 : The evolution of Romanian start-up in January 2003-2009

[Source: Trade Register]
The phenomenon can be explained by the high level of adabtability of SMEs. Even if the SMEs have many survival characteristics, these companies encounter many difficulties regarding both the production and products and services supply. The statistics show us that the greatest difficulty of SMEs is the lake of capital which is very important in creating productivity. [Nicolescu, 2001, p.130] The difficult situation on the credit market which is one of the most important sources of capital for SMEs is not very approachable in financial crisis time, so the alternative solution that this paper proposes is the private equity industry.
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The industry is not very popular in Romania where these sorts of investments had been made in general only in big companies and exceptional in SMEs. For reuniting the need of capital of the SMEs and with the private equity fund, the paper will analyze this industry and its implication at economic level [Berger, 1998]. All the consideration empirical and theoretical will be made on European data since the national activity of the industry is not notable. 1. General considerations regarding private equity industry The concept of private equity is developing over the past decade but the basic principle has remained constant: a group of investors buy out a company and sells it after its value increases [Wright, 1998]. Nevertheless the implications of the investor-portfolio company relationship became an essential element in defined the private equity concept. The investor is not a passive actor regarding the development and the evolution of his portfolio company. His involvement in the portfolio-company is very active and has extended itself at various levels inside the company: management, production, and human resources. The main purpose of the investor is to rise company value and this is a result of a very sustain effort of the investor. The potential of the portfolio-company is also playing an important role of this process, but the portfolio-company evaluation is the start element only, the raison that animate the investor to make the investment decision. The future evolution of the company depends less or more about the involvement of the investor which directly depends of the investment type. The nature of the investment type will be detailed in the section dedicated to this special topic. 1.1. Private equity investment typology and its implication at portfolio- company level Private equity investments can be divided in two big categories venture investments and buyout investments. These two categories distinguish itself one from another through the capital flow process and the private equity fund implication in the portfolio-company activity. 1.1.1. Venture Capital The capital flow in a venture capital transaction is a direct infusion of capital in the company which will be used for a precise objective of the company. There are two distinguish types of venture investments that correspond to the company stage development: early stage investments and expansion investments. The early stage investments can be a seed investment or a start-up investment. The seed investment is a financing provided to research, assess and develop an initial concept before a business has reached the start-up phase. The start-up investment is a financing provided to companies for product development and initial marketing. Companies may be in the process of being set up or may have been in business for a short time, but have not sold their product commercially. The implication of the private equity fund at this development level of the portfolio-company has a partnership nature. The portfolio-company is not owned by the private equity fund but it needs its
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implication and management experience. Regarding the expansion investment (later stage venture) which is a financing provided for development of a company, one may say it is a follow on of an early stage investment. The later stage capital investment may be used to: finance increased production capacity; market or product development; provide additional working capital. The private equity fund implication on this level may be less present because the portfolio-company is mature enough at this point to manage its development process. Even if we observe a certain pattern regarding the private equity implications at certain investments stage levels, there are no rules or requirements regarding these implications. Each investment has its particularities and presents new challenges for the private equity fund. SMEs are in general the object of this kind of private equity investment. 1.1.2. Buyout Capital A buyout is a transaction financed by a mix of debt and equity, in which a business, a business unit or a company is acquired with the help of a financial investor from the current shareholders. In this case the capital flow will be absorbed by the vendor and not the company itself. There are many types of buyout transactions: management buyout (MBO), management buyin (MBI), institutional buyout (IBO), leveraged buyout (LBO). The management buyout and the management buyin transaction are buyouts in which a management team acquires an existing product line or business from the vendor with the support of private equity investors. The differences between the two transactions reside in the fact that in the case of MBO the management team is from inside the portfolio-company. The MBI transaction is a buyout in which external managers take over the company. Financing is provided to enable a manager or group of managers from outside the target company to buy into the company with the support of private equity investors. The IBO transaction is a buyout made by outside financial investors (for example a private equity house) with a minimum of management implication. Alternatively, the investor may install its own management. The particularity of a LBO transaction is that the portfolio-company capital structure incorporates a particularly high level of debt, much of which is normally secured against the companys assets. The involvement of the private equity fund in the portfolio-company which is a result of a buyout capital infusion is very important inside the company in question. This time the main shareholder is the private equity fund or the investment syndicate (the private equity firm together with other parties that join the private equity firm) which means the decisional factor depends of the investors. 1.2. Venture Capital Mechanism The venture capital mechanism is build by tree actors: investors, venture fund and portfolio-company [Kaplan, 2005].. The investors are entities that have liquidity which has to be placed in some profitable return activity. If they choose a venture
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fund, they became the investors of that fund. These investors can be: corporate investor, endowment, family office, foundation, fund of funds, other asset manager, financial institution (other than bank, endowment, family office, foundation, insurance company or pension fund), private pension fund, public pension fund, public sector. When investors commit themselves to back a venture fund, all the funding may not be needed at once. Some is used as drawn down later. The amount that is raised is defined as amount committed or fundraising. The amount that is effectively drawn down at various timings is defined as contributed capital or capital calls. This fundraising process allows venture fund managers to do investments. The second important process of the venture mechanism is the investment which is a contribution of a venture fund dedicated to a company that will became a portfoliocompany of the fund. When the portfolio-company reaches the value wanted by the private equity fund managers, the third important process of the venture capital mechanism will take place: the divestment. The fourth process is the distribution which represents the amounts of proceeds not reinvested in the fund, which is given back to investors. The capital flow in the venture capital mechanism is illustrated in the bellow figure:
Investors fundraising investment Portfolio Company
distribution
Venture Fund
divestment
Figure 1: The capital flow in the venture capital mechanism
1.3. Economic impact of private equity industry The involvement of private equity capital is a long-term support, which goes to those companies, which have at all times, the potential of success and sustainability. There are in Europe, a high number of very promising European companies with great technology and enthusiastic and capable management. Private equity is there for them, to help them build businesses and grow faster than they otherwise would. The influence of this capital infusion of the private equity fund in all activity sector has shown the need of the private equity funds now more then ever, when the liquidity represents a challenge for many companies in crisis time.
The private equity industrys contribution to employment, growth and innovation in Europe has grown. The industrys role in rejuvenating and restructuring existing companies, as well as its support in financing highpotential and often innovative enterprises [Becheikh, 2006] has become widely recognised. This has been reflected in several previous studies analysing the economic and social impact of private equity and venture capital at both European and national levels [AFIC 2004, BVCA 2004] Even if these studies are realised once at several years because of the time needed by the capital to create true sustainable value, the most resent study at European level show us the positive evolution of job creation by private equity industry.[EVCA, 2005] Even if the industry is still young, its economic impact is notable, protecting and creating jobs, stimulating technology and being close to life sciences sector. The purpose of these funds is to guide the companies in their achievements regarding theirs development, growth trough strategically advising. Given the private equity industry effects at macro and individual level in Europe, the encouraging of this type of capital infusion represents a real support for the consolidation of Romanian SMEs activity. This approach can be possible thought specific legislation regulations which can be taken from viable models for west European countries (France, Irland, Belgium, UK). Following the benchmarketing European tax and legal environment EVCA study, France is the country with the most favorable environment for private equity investments.[EVCA, 2008] In my opinion, by adapting the characteristics of the French environment, the transfer of some legislative dimensions can be adopted by the Romanian universe. This will be a future study that will continued the proposition made in this paper which has bring in the discussion the private equity industry as a solution of the SMEs lack of capital. Conclusions The financial crisis is a result of financial institution failure that affected the entire world economy. This situation represents a great challenge of European and State institutions which have to manage a series of safety programmes for the economy. There is a series of injection capital from international organisms that will help the economy to surpass the crisis, but economic system will have to find the energy to revitalise itself. This paper has shown one of the capital resources that still are active on the investment market and its circulation doesnt have to be conditioned by the borders. This is travelling capital that will implant itself when it will find potential of development. The private equity industry and its particular part of venture investments, represents the alternative of capital infusion, especially for SMEs that encounter difficulties regarding financing. The industry is not very notable in Romania, like in other European countries where the venture funds have a special treatment, like in France, the country that supports the funds that made investments in innovative business and SME having also a reduce tax payment.
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These actions are the result of the positive impact of portfolio-companies SMEs. This influence is more important with the density of SMEs which represents a source of innovation and job creator, an important element in economic development. Willing to construct a viable economy, Romania has to reconsider many aspects of its vision regarding many economic aspects, one of them is SMEs, which has to be seen from different angles, not only the traditional ones. References AFIC paper, 2004, Association Franaise des Investisseurs en Capital: Le poids conomique et social du capital investissement en France Becheikh N., 2008, Learning and novelty of innovation in established manufacturing SMEs , Technovation, Volume 28, Issue 7, pps 450-463; Berger A.N., 1998, The Economics of Small Business Finance: The Roles of Private Equity and Debt Markets in the Financial Growth Cycle, Journal of Banking and Finance Volume 22; BVCA paper, 2004, British Venture Capital Association, The Economic Impact of Private Equity in the UK 2004 David B.A., 2002, Knowledge, Globalization, and Regions: An Economist's Perspective; EVCA paper, 2005, European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association: EVCA study of Employment contribution of Private Equity and Venture Capital in Europe, Available from: <http://www.evca.eu/UploadedFiles/c2_ evca_exec_employment_contribution_pe_2005_english.pdf> EVCA Paper, Benchmarking European Tax and Legal Environement, October 2008, Available from< www.evca.eu/uploadedFiles/a1_benchmark06.pdf> Kaplan, S.N., Schoar, A., 2005, Private Equity Performance: Returns, Persistence, and Capital Flows, The Journal of Finance 60 (4), 17911823; Kaufmann, A. and F. Todtling, 2002, "How effective is innovation support for SMEs? Ananalysis of the region of upper Austria," Technovation, 22 (3), 147-59; Mills, D.E. and Schumann, L., 1985, Industry Structure with Fluctuating Demand, American Economic Review, 75 pp. 758-767; Nicolescu O., 2001, Managementul modern al organizatiei, Tribuna Economica Penrose, E., Theory of the Growth of the Firm, 1959, Oxford Univeristy Press Ritter, T. and H.G. Gemunden 2004, "The impact of a company's business strategy on its technological competence, network competence and innovation success," Journal of Business Research, 57, 548-56. Schumpeter, JA., 1934 The Theory of Economie Development, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass.; Wright, M., Robbie, K.,1998, Venture Capital and Private Equity: A Review and Synthesis, Journal of Business Finance & Accounting 25 (5&6), 521570
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CONVERGENCES BETWEEN GLOBALISATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT STUDY CASE ROMANIA

Suzana Elena Chiriac
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania chiriacsuzana@yahoo.com
Ioana Maria Ghidiu-Bta

The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania i_ghidiu@yahoo.com
Alexandru Ghiiu-Brtescu
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania alexghitiu@yahoo.com
Abstract
The human beings have always needed and aspired to the welfare of the global community, as a whole. Globalisation is a multidimensional phenomenon, same as sustainable development. They both take into consideration economic, ecologic and social aspects. This is, actually, what the two concerns bring to us and this is why they have been so popular lately: they offer an integrative overview upon a country or region. Humans understood that they need to confront problems more and more and the only possible option is to find sustainable solutions. Another important issue they discovered is that only a common effort can reveal the real effects and benefits. The article is based on the idea that the two phenomena, widely debated in the last period, share a lot of characteristics and dare to highlight delicate, but yet extremely important subjects, such as security, poverty, environmental threats, resource limitation. Based on these hypotheses and on the analysis of research instruments for the two phenomena, we will reach the conclusion that differences exist between the two, each being individualised by different indicators. The analysis concerns themselves are different. The data analysed will highlight the situation in Romania, as a European territory, but also as a member of the global community; as a supplier of resources, goods, capital and information, but also their consumer; as a political and economic actor, but also a social individuality.
Keywords: globalisation, sustainable development, convergences, kof index of

globalisation, sustainable society index
JEL Classification: A12, B00, C80, F02, I28, I31, I32, O51, Q20 Introduction and Hypotheses In order to be able to analyse the convergences between the two concepts, we shall firstly define the two phenomena, in order to create a clearer view upon them. Globalisation is, for a series of the researchers, a phenomenon present since the world itself, understood as communication and oral transmission of the traditions,
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customs; as migrations and collective evolutions of the society; as high economic and social aspirations. A different part of the researchers reject this theory, arguing that it is little founded on real, tangible arguments and they acknowledge the contributions of globalisation as a reaction to industrialisation, technology propagation and reaction to scientific progress, as a relatively recent need of evolution and development. Although globalisation is and has been defined extensively during the history, starting with definitions that insisted on its economic impact, then expanding to conceptualisations that also included other components (the social one especially), we will only take into consideration one definition within this paper, one that we consider to be comprehensive. Globalisation represents "the international community designing a mean or a system for the reception and approach of contemporary problems on a long term; problems determined by the interaction of multiple processes and phenomena, such as economic, technical, political, social, cultural, ecological, etc. and the preconisation of solutions for their solving in a wider perspective." (Dicionar de economie, 2001) In my opinion, globalisation is an extremely ample phenomenon, that needs to be shaped in order to minimise the negative influences (wars, ecologic risks, social risks, development inequalities, revenue or progress discrepancies, crimes, corruption, etc.) and to maximise its positive effects (scientific progress, economic development, society development in harmony, satisfaction, happiness, communication, communication, propagation of best practices and successful models, etc.). Of course, this scenario, although ideal, is possible, but it requires more than an individual effort, perhaps more than a regional or national effort. It requires a global effort, which brings into discussion the opportunities, but also the constraints the phenomenon has to deal with. It is not easy to reunite a series of individual and national objectives, even for a mutual scope, as it is not easy to take into account the local influences, which offer particularities for different areas, but also create differences between states. Same as globalisation, sustainable development is known as a phenomenon that became popular in the last period of time. It is based on the desire for harmonised development of three main components: economic, social and ecologic. Sustainable development is most widely defined by the "Brundtland Report" (named so after the president of the World Commission on Environment and Development, Gro Harlem Brundtland) or "Our Common Future": "Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." (United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987)
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We consider that sustainable development represents the materialisation of the needs and aspirations for the future and also the result of understanding the future is unsecure and the humanity needs to act. If we search for older historic proofs, we will encounter the desire of people to develop from all points of view, to evolve in all areas. Moreover, driven by the scientific progress and economic growth, the global society created industrial giants, agreed to high economic targets, frequently obtained no matter the implications. Until the world realised that if it continues to act driven by a series of purely quantitative objectives, without taking into consideration the other components and acting irrationally, it risks destructing the basis of life itself. And this is where the history where the aims and strategic objectives came back to social, ambient, harmonised preoccupations begins. What is important to mention her is that the preoccupations for sustainable development were not isolated, but the countries, international organisations and people everywhere formed alliances, debated, established objectives, strategies, policies, action plans, created different alternatives and scenarios. It is this aspect that highlights the close correlation between globalisation and sustainable development: they are both phenomena either as old as the world itself, either that appeared recently, they were generated as a reaction to changes that appeared or by the need to adapt; they both consist of a multitude of aspects: social, economic, political, ideological and they are both phenomena that permanently evolve. Also, the two phenomena are interdependent: globalisation has the greatest chance to extrapolate its positive effects as far as it respect the principles of sustainable development, while sustainable development needs a global effort and propagation in order to succeed. Inside this research project we wish to highlight the existent convergences between the two phenomena, by taking into consideration the KOF Index of Globalisation and the Sustainable Society Index for Romania. These instruments were chosen as they are indices which consist of a large series of indicators, therefore we can easily draw a comparison between the two phenomena and they take into consideration several areas, they are not limited to a single area (such as the economic freedom index, the environmental performance index, the human development index or other purely social indicators). Globalisation Methodological and Practical Aspects The KOF index of globalisation was introduced in 2002 (Dreher, 2006), updated and detailed in 2008 by Dreher, Gaston and Martens. After Clark (2000), Norris (2000) and Keohane and Nye (2000), it defines globalisation as "the process of creating networks of connections among actors at multi-continental distances, mediated through a variety of flows including people, information and ideas, capital and goods. Globalization is conceptualized as a process that erodes national boundaries, integrates national economies, cultures, technologies and governance and produces complex relations of mutual interdependence." (Dreher, 2006 quoted on <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/> - "Methods of Calculation").
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The KOF index is calculated for 158 countries, based on data from 1970 to 2006. The index consists of 24 indicators, grouped in three main categories and six subcategories, as shown by figure 1.
I. Economic globalisation A. Actual Flows Trade (percent of GDP) Foreign Direct Investment, flows (percent of GDP) Foreign Direct Investment, stocks (percent of GDP) Portfolio Investment (percent of GDP) Income Payments to Foreign Nationals (percent of GDP) B. Restrictions Hidden Import Barriers Mean Tariff Rate Taxes on International Trade (percent of current revenue) THE KOF INDEX OF GLOBALISATION COMPONENTS Social globalisation A. Data on Personal Contact Telephone Traffic Transfers (percent of GDP) International Tourism Foreign Population (percent of total population) International letters (per capita) B. Data on Information Flows Internet Users (per 1000 people) Television (per 1000 people) Trade in Newspapers (percent of GDP) C. Data on Cultural Proximity Number of McDonald's Restaurants (per capita) Number of Ikea (per capita) Trade in books (percent of GDP) III. Political globalisation Embassies in Country Membership in International Organizations Participation in U.N. Security Council Missions International Treaties Figure 1. The KOF index of globalisation components
Source: Dreher, 2006, quoted on <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/> - Variables and Weights 2009
Capital Account Restrictions
Based on estimations elaborated on data from 2006, in 2009, Romania is on the 44th place, out of 158, while the most globalised countries are Belgium and
Ireland. (Dreher et al., 2008, quoted on <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/> Detailed Rankings 2009) With all these, from the European countries, Romania is one of the last states, only Ukraine and Moldavia hold lower rankings for this index. As we can observe, for Romania, the KOF index registered a continuous evolution; between 1970 and 1992 it was situated below 40 and only in 1993 it reached 40.83. Ever since, the index rose gradually, and in 2006 it was situated at 70.8 (as shown by figure 2).
Figure 2. The KOF index of globalisation for Romania between 1970 and 2006
Source: (Dreher et al., 2008, quoted on <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - online interactive software)
With all these, what it is interesting in our opinion is the to discuss debate upon the three main components of the index: the economic, social and political ones. Globally, the social component stagnated in the last few years, as also seen in Romania. The social component started from values between 28 and 29 in 19701990, superior to the economic elements themselves, and increased gradually between 1990 and 2000, reaching 60.95 in 2006, yet the lowest ranking of all the three components of the index. (Data source: Dreher et al., 2008, <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - online interactive software) It is interesting that, for economic globalisation, Romania registered low rankings between 1970 and 1990, situated at an average value of 27. Starting 1998, it hasn't recorded values under 50 and in 2006 it reached 68.14. (Data source: Dreher et al., 2008, quoted on <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - online interactive software) The mean of the index for Romania is 70, with the values of the social and economic components under 70, a good position of the country could not be possible. The reason for this is the political component, which registered high values even from 1970, when it was close to 50. In 2004, the political globalisation reached 90 and in 2006 it was situated at 90.88. (Data source: Dreher et al., 2008, <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> - online interactive software)
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Offering an insight to the method of calculation for the KOF index, we must not forget that for the KOF index, political globalisation is understood as the number of international treaties and the number of embassies in the country, which is a very good thing for Romania, demonstrating a very high level of globalisation, as it is classically understood (as international opening). Also, we must not neglect the fact that the European Union Policies insist a lot in the past few years in the social issues, and Romania itself started to be preoccupied by such aspects, a proof for that being the campaigns initiated and supported in the last two years. Sustainable Development Methodological and Practical Aspects When talking about sustainable development, the majority of researchers refer to the three main components: the economic, social and environmental (or ecological) elements: but a series of methodologies also include a fourth, very important component, which helps promote the preoccupations and also implement the sustainable development programmes: the institutional or governmental element (it is, for example, included in the set of sustainable development indicators designed by the United Nations Sustainable Development Commission). Of course, inside these main components, a variety of themes, subthemes and indicators taken into consideration can be found. In our opinion, no matter the concept, sustainable development must simultaneously ensure economic development, social wellbeing and environmental protection. The Sustainable Society Index (SSI) sees sustainable development as an extended Brundtland Report definition, more specifically by taking into consideration three main aspects; therefore the sustainable society is a society: (Kerk and Arthur, 2009, quoted on <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Sustainable_Society_Index>) that meets the needs of the present generation, that does not compromise the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, in which each individual has the opportunity to develop himself in freedom, within a well-balanced society and in harmony with its surroundings. In an integrative picture, the sustainable society index addresses problems such as resource limitation, ecological and environmental issues and the quality of life. The index for Romania was calculated and is further on monitored inside a project financed by the Social Transformation project (MATRA), initiated by the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Netherlands in close collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, National Environmental Protection Agency, National Institute of Statistics and National Centre for Sustainable Development, as well a series of other non-governmental organisations. (Kerk and Arthur 2009, quoted on <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm>)
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The index is based on data obtained from a series of international organisms and institutions and analyse 150 countries, among which Romania is also included. The index was firstly calculated in 2006 and the latest set of data is for 2008. The Sustainable Society Index for Romania has been especially created for the country, based on the global index, for the problems revealed at the national level. For the Sustainable Society Index, Kerk and Arthur consider 22 indicators, grouped in five main categories, as follows: (figure 3)
I. Personal Development Healthy Life Sufficient Food Sufficient to Drink Safe Sanitation Education Opportunities Gender Equality II. Clean Environment Air Quality Surface Water Quality Land Quality V. Sustainable World Forest Area Preservation of Biodiversity Emission of Greenhouse Gases Ecological Footprint International Cooperation Figure 3. Sustainable Society Index Constitutive Elements
Source: Kerk and Arthur 2009, quoted on <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm>
III. Well-balanced Society Good Governance Unemployment Population Growth Income Distribution SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY INDEX COMPONENTS Public Debt IV. Sustainable Use of Resources Waste Recycling Use of Renewable Water Resources Consumption of Renewable Energy
In addition, for Romania, the index insists on five supplementary indicators, respectively: A1. Gross Domestic Product A2. Poverty Rate A3. Research and Development A4. Transportation A5. Ecologic agriculture For 2008, the index was situated at a total score of 5.7, placing Romania on the 23rd place out of 37 European countries, with a maximum score for Norway, with a score of 7.0 and the minimum level for Malta, with a score of 4.3. Compared to 2006, when Romania got 5.5, we can sense a slight improvement, due to several projects for sanitation services. (Data source: Kerk and Arthur 2009, <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm>)
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The detailed indicators for the index are shown in figure 4 and table 1.
Figure 4. The Sustainable Society Index for Romania in 2008

Source: Kerk et al. 2009, "Romania, on its way to a sustainable society" Report
Values of the indicators that compose the sustainable society index for Romania in 2008
Table 1 The detailed sustainable society index for Romania in 2008 Healthy Life 7.2 Population Growth Sufficient Food 10.0 Income Distribution Sufficient to Drink 5.7 Public Debt Safe Sanitation 9.4 Waste Recycling Education Opportunities 7.7 Use of Renewable Water Resources Gender Equality 8.1 Consumption of Renewable Energy Air Quality 6.0 Forest Area Surface Water Quality 2.9 Preservation of Biodiversity Land Quality 3.9 Emission of Greenhouse Gases Good Governance 5.2 Ecological Footprint Unemployment 5.4 International Cooperation 8.3 7.4 8.3 2.1 8.9 1.3 7.0 4.2 5.5 6.0 8.3
Source: Kerk et al. 2009, "Romania, on its way to a sustainable society" Report We will further on offer an interpretation of the data included in the report. Although Romania registers positive values for the presence of food (it is the only European state recording a score of 10.0 for sufficient food), sanitation, use of water from renewable resources, yet the general level of the index is situated only a little after half, being primarily influenced by recycling, renewable energy use, air and land quality. Analysing the five main areas of the index, Romania reaches the highest score for personal development (8.0), has moderate scores for wellbalanced society (6.9) and sustainable world (6.2); while discrepancies appear for clean environment (4.3) and sustainable use of resources (4.1). (Data source: Kerk et al. 2009, "Romania, on its way to a sustainable society" Report) We shall briefly analyze the five categories the index consists in, comparing the results with those of other countries and trying to make suitable suppositions regarding the motives that generated these scores. From all five categories, personal development is the main strength for Romania. This is based on food and water sufficiency, opportunities for access to education,
equal opportunities and sanitary system. Regarding food sufficiency, most of the ex-communist countries scored well, but, on the other hand, what the SSI takes into consideration are the declared cases of undernourishment; therefore we may questions the results. The index should, as an optimum, be correlated with the poverty rate, for the weighting of the total score. For water access facilities the percentage is low, most probably because of poor water quality. What is surprising, though, is the fact that we may no longer blame Eastern European Countries for this, as Bulgaria and Hungary obtained a very good score for this component. Regarding sanitation, it is true that a lot of projects have been implemented lately and it is a pleasure to notice that their results can be foreseen in national and international statistics. For education, data are taken from the UNESCO researches and combine the enrolment ration for primary, secondary and higher education. Moldavia is the only country situated at a level below Romania, while Hungary holds the first place in Europe. Given all this, we may suggest the fact that the index does not take into consideration school abandon ratio or the quality of the education system, data that may entirely change the classification. For environmental protection it seems that Romania registered the lowest scores. Regarding air quality, although we ratified the Gothenburg protocol and, for the moment, the limits settled for 2010 have already been reached, it seems that the score is not a positive one. This may be caused by the incapacity to implement the national air quality monitoring system or other similar initiatives. Again, the only state that scores worse than Romania is Moldavia. For water and soil quality, the implication of pollution can be widely observed. Indeed, investments required in this area are costly and projects involve a huge capacity. With all this, in our opinion, data should be correlated with scores for good governance. At least at a declarative level, Romania ratified several agreements and has already assumed different regulatory documents for pollution levels and, without taking responsibility for these acts and a firm governmental implication, such investments are impossible to be made. For the social component, well-balanced society, Romania scores well, in comparison with the neighbouring countries (only Ukraine scores better). In the same time, though, the unemployment rate combined with the growing population and low levels of income may highly affect the index calculation from now on. And the truth is that the calculations were made based on estimations with data from 2003 to 2005, when all states were doing well. Of course, to not only refer to negative aspects, we must state that governance, in the period after 2007, registered a high increase, due to a better regulation involved by the status of an EU member state.
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For sustainable resources use, Romania accounts, this time, for the lowest scores of all indicators. And indeed, if we think of digging, industrialization, land highly intensive exploitation, in the communist period and even after, Romania has changed its mentality regarding resources use, which is hard to be changed. Recycling programs and ecologist campaigns are a good start, but, in our opinion, a higher governing involvement and modern practices promotion (such as total use of resources, circular economy principles, etc.) are a must. As we all can assume, the level of information holds account for this situation. For the last category, sustainable world, Romania is ranked 7 of all 37 European countries, compared to surprising levels registered this time by countries such as Norway or Iceland. Although massive deforestations took place, it is true that Romania has implemented and monitored closely its forestry resources, as well as it rapidly implemented directives and regulations regarding carbon dioxide and other radicals emissions. As for biodiversity actions, indeed, most of efforts, coming from NGOs, private sector actors or financed through environmental funds (such as the Nature2000 initiative) have had visible effects in the maintenance of parks and reservations. Comprising all five major components in a holistic view, we cannot leave aside the fact that, although it has access to a vast series of instruments, the most handy being the structural funds, it seems that Romania has not took advantage of them, especially for the projects for environmental protection and preservation, which should constitute a main concern of the country. Conclusions If we try to leave aside the results arising from indicators and methodological analysis and proceed further on to examining practical aspects, we will nevertheless be able to observe that, for Romania, globalisation components are highly affected by the political factor. It influences a lot the economic elements, which account for mass influences upon social and environmental issues. As a consequence, weak governance, combined with a prolonged period of intensive resource exploitation, plus environmental degradation and the current crisis, are threats that massively impact all states in the last period of time. The solution consists in transparency and cooperation, especially in the logistics, technological and governmental implication sectors. We can deduct from here that any initiative must be based on total resource usage and innovation. For example, taking into consideration pesticides, indeed they represent a threat for the environment, but, on the other hand, any modern agriculture practice is based on using them. Therefore research and laboratory tests are vital, in order to maintain highly positive effects generated by their usage and minimize the negative impacts. After a correct and complete assessment of impact, an international propagation of tested and successfully implemented solutions with real results is needed.
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In conclusion, research, innovation and international cooperation, doubled by a real implication and responsibility assumption at a managerial and strategic level constitute the basis for a better future in all areas. A series of suggested macroeconomic solutions, already applied or tested internationally will be briefly presented below. They are based on the analysis of areas where Romania scored low, compared to other countries, inside the indexes analysed inside this article. For forestry, the United Nations proposed a methodology for emissions reduction, especially those arising from deforestations and forestry degradations, targeting developing countries. The REDD quantifies the negative environmental impact, measured in carbon dioxide and other radicals footprint. Another suggestion is Natural Resource Accounting that, apart from the GDP, considers monetary values for food, energy, water and climate regulation. Its advatange is that it comprises the amounts of projects elaborated and implemented. And, not last, another option is the System of National Accounts, also based on a financial assessment of environmental criteria, focused on natural resources this time. Regarding the methodology presented inside the article, as we can observe from the comparison of the indicators that compose the two indexes, globalisation and sustainable development do not insist on common components after all, excepting the international cooperation, found in both of the indexes as an indicator. Sustainable development insists much more on environmental aspects that are not found in the globalisation index, while the globalisation index is much closer to indicators that can offer an analysis upon the exchange of information, economic coordinates, persons, products, goods and services between countries. However, the globalisation index uses several indicators as percentages of the Gross Domestic Product, the GDP being also an indirect indicator for the Sustainable Society Index. Also, we must not leave aside the fact that both indexes take into consideration a series of social components, even if not the same, yet similar. Notwithstanding, indicators such as unemployment, poverty rate are only taken into account by the sustainable development index. It is true though that the globalisation index must insist upon the global openness, trade and transfer. If we consider the indirect interdependencies between the factors, we will observe a tight connection between the two phenomena. For example, the income distribution or research and development expenses, as well as poverty rate or gross domestic product (calculated for the sustainable society index) will influence the number of internet users, trade, the development of McDonalds restaurants or Ikea stores, they will also contribute to the establishment of the mean tariff (indicators taken into consideration for the globalisation index.
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The reverse connection (between globalisation and sustainable development) can also be present, the portfolio investments can influence the poverty rate, the gross domestic products, the books and newspapers trade can influence the degree of education, tourism and telephone traffic directly influence the gross domestic product. In consequence, we can demonstrate there is a connection between globalisation and sustainable development, even though it is not highlighted by the presence of the same indicators within the analysis instruments of the two phenomena. Of course, we must not forget that sustainable development insists a lot more upon the quality of the environment and the quality of life. In the same time, globalisation does take into account these factors, but they are not reflected in its impact. The fact that the third world countries, the developing countries, the poor countries have a lower quality of life and a higher poverty rate does not mean that they cannot have a global openness. True enough, it is not a sustainable, durable one. We may witness, in the future, the fact that globalisation will become closer to the principles of sustainable development, even methodologically and practically, but, as we can see, sustainable development already includes issues such as international cooperation, merely the main component of globalisation. In consequence, it seems that sustainable development rather includes globalisation, as a process, and the sustainable development is not a part of the globalisation process, after all. The research results or other such comparisons between indicators may become a thorough basis for substantiating public policies in the area of economic and sustainable development. This type of research is mainly financed or undertaken by NGOs or private sector organisations; therefore, it is quite possible for them not to reach the public actors, which hold decision power and authority. We strongly believe that such details arising from report analyses may bring real benefits to the elaboration and implementation of actual measures and their propagation may also benefit the elaboration of projects for the poorly developed areas foreseen in statistical and research data. Ackowledgements We wish to thank, on this occasion, the Romanian Ministry of Environment, especially the Public Policy Unit, the Communication and Organization Directorate and the General Directorate for Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development, for providing us the printed version of the Romania, on its way to a sustainable society report and other specialised publication, as well as for their cooperation and availability.
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REFERENCES European Environmental Agency 2009, Regional climate change and adaptation, ISSN: 1725-9177 Dicionar de economie, 2001, Editura Economic, Bucureti Dreher, Axel 2006, Does Globalization Affect Growth?" Evidence from a new Index of Globalization, Applied Economics 38, 10: 1091-1110; Updated in Dreher, Axel, Noel Gaston and Pim Martens 2008, "Measuring Globalization Gauging its Consequences", Springer, New York, quoted online, accessed 1 May 2009, <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/> Dreher, Axel, Noel Gaston and Pim Martens 2008, Measuring Globalization Gauging its Consequences, Springer, New York, quoted online - online interactive software, accessed 1 May 2009, <http://globalization.kof.ethz.ch/query/> Ecologic Group SRL 2009, Ecologic Magazine, ISSN: 1584-6652 Friends of Europe 2009, Europe`s World, nr. 13, Autumn 2009, ISSN: 1782-0642 Kerk, Geurt van de and Arthur R,. Manuel 2009, Sustainable Society Index., quoted on <http://www.sustainablesocietyindex.com>, Sustainable Society Foundation (ed.), accessed 1 May 2009, <http://www.sustainablesocietyindex.com/ssidescription.htm> Kerk, Geurt van de and Arthur R,. Manuel 2009, "Sustainable Society Index.", quoted on <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/home-en.htm>, Sustainable Society Foundation (ed.), accessed 1 May 2009, <http://www.romaniadurabila.net/organ-en.htm> Kerk, Geurt van de and Arthur R. Manuel (Lead Authors); Graham Douglas (Topic Editor) 2009, Sustainable Society Index. quoted on: Encyclopedia of Earth, Cutler J. Cleveland (ed.), Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment, Washington, D.C, First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth December 29, 2008; Last revised February 2, 2009; accessed on 1 May 2009, <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Sustainable_ Society_Index> Kerk, Geurt van de, Veraart, Ralph, Popovici, Ciprian 2009, Romania, on its way to a sustainable development, Sustainable Society Foundation (ed.), ISBN: 978-90-76224-23-7 United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development 1987, Chapter 1: A Threatened Future, NGO Committee on Education (ed.), From A/42/427. "Our Common Future: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development", accessed on 1 May 2009, <http://www.undocuments.net/ocf-01.htm#II>
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A NEW MODEL FOR RISK MANAGEMENT IN BANKING DOMAIN

Silviu Florin Teodoru
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania teodorusil@yahoo.com
Abstract
The new Basel II Capital Accord established a more sophisticated framework for banks to measure risk and set aside sufficient capital to cover losses from market, credit, and operational risk. Most financial institutions will need to enhance their systems partly or wholly in terms of integration, data capture, data storage, security and reporting because of the increased volume of data to be sourced, extracted, stored, calculated, reconciled and reported to comply with Basel II. There are three imperatives: Risk management processes must be an integral part to everything the entire bank does; Risk metrics and methodologies must be consistent - globally and locally; In all jurisdictions all the business must comply completely. The purpose of Basel II is to address all risks strategically. A new model for the management of data is desirable - one that is not prescriptive, but flexible and open, and enabling of best-of-breed solutions. It is essential to have the scope to adapt and expand as the Basel II regime evolves. Basel II Accord will have a dramatic impact on the entire banking industry, particularly on profitability. Financial institutions that take an enterprise-wide view of risk and assign economic capital on a risk-adjusted basis will benefit greatly, but those that dont will soon discover that they must in order to survive.
Keywords: risk banking, data, data warehouse, reporting, model JEL Classification: G32, D81 Introduction The first Basel Capital Accord was instituted in 1988 to coordinate global regulatory efforts and to institute minimum capital requirements to eliminate the threat posed by undercapitalized banks. According to Greuning van and Bratanovic (2007, p. 50 55), to deal with the growing complexity of the financial industry and with the systemic threats, a new Capital Accord was proposed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, to establish a more sophisticated framework for banks to measure risk and set aside sufficient capital to cover losses from market, credit, and operational risk. Basel II will impact the entire spectrum of financial services, including corporate finance, retail banking, asset management, payments and settlements, commercial banking and custody services.
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As specified in Georgescu (2005, p. 2-3), the New Capital Accord is structured on three pillars: Pillar I: Minimum Capital Requirements - this pillar sets out minimum capital requirements and defines what constitutes capital. It refines the 1988 Capital Accord measurement framework to include three options for calculating credit risk, from the simplest to the most sophisticated, and introduces a capital charge for operational risk. Data must be sufficiently granular and capture historical trends to ensure a detailed view of risk across the enterprise. For the first time, banks will be required to set aside capital for market, credit, and operational risk. Pillar II: Capital Supervisory Process - emphasizes the correlation between regulatory capital and the strength and effectiveness of internal control and risk management processes. This pillar requires bank management to explain their risk assessment and management activities and strategies to bank regulators located in individual countries. Bank management will need to educate regulators on their banks risk level, philosophy towards risk, and methodologies used to assess and manage risk. Regulators will also require third-party validation of a banks risk methodologies and actions. Pillar III: Market Discipline - This pillar requires bank management to increase the level of transparency and disclosure to the marketplace, so capital markets have sufficient information to effectively assess the risks a bank undertakes and impose capital market discipline for accessing capital. Enhanced reporting and disclosure will be required on items such as: capital structure, risk measurement and management practices, risk profile, and capital adequacy. Each of these pillars addresses the Basel II Accords stated objective of moving financial institutions to incorporate risk management into their daily business practices. The Accord seeks to induce financial institutions to consistently invest in improving risk management practices. Stated differently, international regulators intend Basel II to be a platform for better business management where financial institutions systematically incorporate risk as a key driver in business decisions. 1. Basel II Challenges The three pillars of Basel II are each based on a foundation of data. Risk-weighted assets and capital requirements, supervisory processes, and market discipline and disclosure - all these pillars stand or fall in relation to the way the bank utilises the speed, quality, accuracy, completeness and transparency of data. As mentioned in Building Enterprise Wide Performance and Compliance Architecture (2004, p.4), there are three strategic considerations in planning the expansion and integration of data management systems to achieve Basel II status: Scalability - The complexity and granularity of account level data which needs to be captured and analyzed requires scalable database and data management resources, because the huge amount of data to be stored and accessed can be
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expected to continue to grow massively over time, this is true regardless of the size of the institution; Availability - Continuity of system performance, together with proven database reliability will be essential to ensure that regulatory data is complete and accurate, and fully reconcilable with the General Ledger (GL). Systems will also need to prove themselves robust by rigorous back- and stress-testing; Security - Utilizing data to the degree of detail and granularity required by the Basel II inevitably puts the spotlight on data integrity and confidentiality. Complex security issues are also raised by the need to consolidate and standardize data across multiple locations and subsidiaries, so that a complete picture of risk across all trading relationships can be reported. Most institutions will need to enhance their systems partly or wholly in terms of integration, data capture, data storage, security, and reporting because of the sheer volume of data to be sourced, extracted, stored, calculated, reconciled and reported to comply with Basel II requests (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Basel II Architecture
1.1 Data Integration Building a scalable data warehouse for the entire institution is the right option to meet the Basel II challenge. Choosing the best solution will not only enhance the compliance profile of an organisation, it will also advance capabilities in financial management and reporting generally, for example in meeting the demands of the International Accounting Standards. According to Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper (2005, pp. 3 6), the key challenges related to collecting and storing data are: Huge volumes of complex data - mass data handling including historical information on credit risks, transaction histories and so forth requires a tried, tested and purpose built data store.
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Multiple data sources - extracted and managed consistently, fully, and accurately, across credit risk, GL and all enterprise-wide systems. Tracking operational risk - the big new Basel II challenge. Banks need a total view of processes, people and systems. Granularity of transactional data - the level of detail required means banks must have a reliable, single view of the truth in a data warehouse environment or the figures just will not be consistent. Integration - point solutions will not suffice. Banks need to minimise interfaces across numerous systems because as those systems evolve and regulations change the complexity will run out of control. 1.2 Calculation According to International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards - A Revised Framework (2004, p.12, 58, 79, 107, 118), the key challenges related to calculation are: Preparation - The sooner financial institutions commence the data extraction process, the more scope they will have deciding which calculation approach to adopt. But financial institutions also need to ensure flexibility because certain changes can occur in the future. Scalability - As we have already noted, data volumes and complexity will continue to escalate over time. Calculations will have to be robust to cope with this growing requirement. Granularity - Detailed calculations of exposures and capital allocations are key to advanced status under Basel II. Reviews - Regulatory capital calculations must be demonstrably based on complete and accurate data. Reconciliation - It is vital to include all exposures. Banks must be able to reconcile data used for capital calculations with the GL or other source. Evidence of control - It is important to be able to show how any discrepancies are resolved, and to have documented procedures for supervisory review. Calculation engines - Specialised solutions are required for the calculation of capital charges based on: 1. PD (Probability of Default) across customers, guarantors and so forth; 2. LGD (Loss Given Default) including issues of seniority and quality of collateral; 3. EAD (Exposure at Default) with regard to exposure value, offsetting deposits, and off-balance-sheet aspects of the instrument. Operational risks - Banks must be able to identify the drivers of operational risk, measure and monitor them - including stress testing risks involved in new products, procedures and so forth. Consistency - Consistency between calculations of regulatory and economic capital needs to be assured.
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Intermediate calculations - Banks need to be able to track component-level as well as aggregate calculations - providing LGD, EAD and so forth separately. 1.3 Reporting and analysis As mentioned in International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards - A Revised Framework (2004, p.161), Pillars II and III capital supervisory review and market discipline - firmly put the spotlight on the banks ability to report effectively in terms of content, format and channel. That applies equally to internal and external reporting. Banks also need to be able to demonstrate they have performed reconciliations, scenario analysis for credit and operational risk, validation of models, operational risk measurement in relation to the capital charge, and exception reporting. The supervisor will want to see documentary evidence of and formalised procedures for such reviews. However flexibility remains the key determinant of effectiveness, and should be the principal element in current planning. Some reports may continue to be in printed format; others will require de facto web standards such as XML-based data interchange - or the emerging XBRL standard. As specified by Sangani (2003, p.12), the reporting architecture needs to enable the choice of the right applications for banking reporting needs. The key challenges are: Automation - Reports must be timely and produced as part of a robust reporting environment. Completeness - Systems must support a wide range of reporting across instruments, reconciliations, change control, key operational risk indicators and stress testing. Portal and Workflow - A single portal enables reports to be distributed as required for internal and external users, and for other actions to be undertaken. Archive - A data warehouse of historical data, documentation and reports needs to be maintained. 1.4 Operational Risk According to International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards - A Revised Framework (2004, p.137 150), Operational risk is a catchall term under the Basel II Accord, and means exposure to loss which is not credit, market or interest-rate related. Factors which are external to the organisation also need to be embraced. This continues to be an evolving aspect of the new regime, since the quantification of these risks and the calculation of the related capital requirement is not a simple statistical task. A number of dimensions are covered: People - Employee fraud, negligence or incompetence, breach of employment law, absence of key personnel from different reasons.
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Processes - Payment, settlement and delivery risks; change or project management failures; mis-selling; interruption to business; compliance failure. Systems - Technology investment risk including system development and implementation; lack of system capacity; system failures, slow response, poor market performance; security breaches; disaster recovery. External - Legal/public liability; criminal activity; supplier, infrastructure, systemic, government and regulatory risk. Data modelling will allow organisations to embrace these often subjectively assessed risks, providing solutions for risk to be calculated by the emerging breed of specialist applications. 2. A New Model for the Management of Risk Information Having decided on a robust data engine, it is essential to build the right framework in which it can perform. Data flows will be very significant; calculations involving huge amounts of data will need to be performed, checked and reconciled, stored, and reported. Achieving the requisite levels of performance at every stage has to be done costeffectively, ideally using as much of the existing business and system infrastructure as possible, and building on current Basel compliant systems and applications wherever this can be done.
Figure 2. Basel II Process Framework
As mentioned in Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper (2005, p.17 19), there are a number of stages in designing such a framework (Figure 2), a number of issues and deliverables every Basel II project must address.
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All data sources must be accessible for extracting data and connected securely and resiliently - including external data feeds. Extract and transfer of data from all sources will call for extensive work to configure and model large amounts of data appropriately. Data storage capabilities need to be optimised: not only for capacity, but for speed, flexibility and Basel-II-readiness. Risk calculation must be extended to embrace expanded credit risk criteria and new operational risk requirements. Post-calculation data must not only be stored, but also reconciled and back-tested rigorously. Regulatory reporting will require significantly higher degrees of granularity - it is essential to benefit from this added-value reporting regime and also use the information required by Basel II to drive management decisions and improve performance. Data integration solutions According to Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper (2005, p.3 6), at the heart of the Basel II solution should be data management systems which are tested in major global institutions. The data store should be purpose designed for the sector and be fine tuned for Basel II compliance. A central data warehouse of all relevant internal and external data - with the power and scalability to provide multiple views across mass data volumes - will ensure a single view of the truth. The solution should provide a complete, consolidated overview of the banks totality of relationships with customers, suppliers and counterparties. An integrated architecture for data extraction and storage will support management and statutory reporting. Calculation solutions Banks need to be able to use best-of-breed applications to ensure the detailed requirements of Basel II for risk and capital calculation are met. A single view of the truth enables the required reconciliations, and the control required by the Accord. They need structured interest rate risk analysis, balance sheet forecasting and market valuation. Reporting solutions Reporting benefits from the single view of the truth as well as common processes of data management throughout the data extraction, storage, calculation and reporting cycle. It is essential the architecture supports specialist reporting applications. Internal and external reporting under Pillars II and III not only offers the scope to adopt the most advantageous possible status under Basel II, it provides for significant management reporting and performance management benefits.
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Conclusion Basel II compliance remains a significant initiative for any organization. By simply meeting the baseline requirements will require a substantial investment of time and resources from almost every department of the financial services organization. However, reaping the benefits from such an investment depends on the extent to which a financial institution incorporates Basel II information in to their business practices. Financial institutions will have a single view of the truth supported by standardised data management processes, based on an infrastructure able to interrogate mass account level data, consistently, across the enterprise. All aspects of customer, supplier and other counterparty relationships will be made much clearer. All these elements provide a powerful environment for more effective and profitable business management. To make business units successful, executives must optimize their profitability relative to their risk profile. The Basel II Accord offers financial institutions the ability to measure risks, but does not account for the effect of risk taking on profitability. Consequently, the next step is for businesses to implement Risk Adjusted Performance Management solution so that they can fully leverage their enterprise data. Bibliography Banking Data Warehouse and the Basel Capital Accord White Paper, 2005, IBM Corporation, accessed on 20 Apr 2009, http://whitepapers.techrepublic. com.com/thankyou.aspx?&promo=110000&docid=273519& view=273519 Building Enterprise Wide Performance and Compliance Architecture, 2004, Oracle Corporation, accessed on 20 Apr 2009, http://www.oracle.com/ industries/financial_services/fsi_sibos_basel_II_arch.pdf Georgescu, F, 2005, Stadiul pregatirii pentru aplicarea reglementrilor Basel II n sistemul bancar romnesc accessed on 20 Apr 2009, http://194.102.208.22/ Ro/Prez/R20050303primvice.pdf Greuning van, H. and Bratanovic, S. B., Analyzing and Managing Banking Risk, Irecson Publishing House, 2007, Bucharest International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards - A Revised Framework, 2004, Bank for International Settlements, accessed on 20 Apr 2009, < http://www.bis.org/publ/bcbs107.pdf> Sangani, S., 2003, Meeting the Requirements of Basels New Capital Accord An Oracle White Paper, accessed on 20 Apr 2009, http://www.oracle.com/ industries/financial_services/brady_final_oracle_whtpr_jan04.pdf
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KNOWLEDGE BASED AUTHENTICATION IN CITIZEN ORIENTED APPLICATIONS

Bogdan Vintil
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania vb@vintilabogdan.ro
Drago Palaghi
The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, Romania mail@dragospalaghita.ro
Abstract
Citizen oriented informatics applications are defined. Their quality characteristics are presented. A comparison is made with traditional applications for which the restrictions are not as strong. Authentication methods for informatics applications are presented. The functioning mechanism of the knowledge based authentication is analyzed. The notion if factoid is defined. Factoids characteristics are enumerated and described. The implications of the knowledge based authentication in informatics applications are analyzed. Methods for improving the informatics applications security are defined. Practical implementations of the method are presented. Future development directions for authentication methods are presented.
Keywords: knowledge, authentication, security, informatics applications, citizen

orientation
JEL Classification: L86 Introduction Digital economy assumes completing economic transactions using IT&C. The explosive development of IT&C leaded to an ascending evolution of the volume of online economic transactions. The increasing volume of online economic transactions leads to the arising of a new category of applications that must fulfil the users requirements. The transaction number grows through the increase of the number of transactions made by existing users and, mainly, through attraction of new user intro the system. The increased number of users leads to the applications update as to support new technologies that increase the quality level. The increase of transactions also leads to an increase in the applications security requirements. Citizen oriented informatics applications came to answer the users requirements regarding online informatics applications qualities. Citizen oriented informatics applications Citizen oriented informatics applications are a new category of applications designed to solve problems that a very large number of persons deal with. Citizen orientated informatics applications, compared to other informatics applications, have as their objective to maximize the degree of customer satisfaction as
[IVSA08] states. The other applications serve the purpose of solving problems of the organization for which they are developed. If the effects of classic informatics applications reflect in other areas of the beneficiary, the citizen oriented applications bring in profit for the owners directly proportional to the degree in which the citizens that use them solve their problems. COIA are integrally at the customers disposal, which can solve its problems using it while the classic applications interact with citizens to solve problems for the organization, the citizen being only the operator, not the beneficiary. The essential differences between citizen orientated and classic informatics applications are, by [POIV08]: COIA are created in order to solve citizen problems, while classic applications are created to solve the companies problems; COIA offer the citizens for use a succession of steps to solve their problems, while the classic applications focus on the steps for solving the company problems; within COIA the information which is presented is that in of which the citizen is directly interested, while classic applications focus on promoting the company and its products and services; the application is developed only after the target group is studied and all steps of the developing cycle are realized taking into account the target groups characteristics; COIA are free applications, the owners revenue being dependant of the number of users the application has; classic applications have acquisition and running costs; COIA are online applications to be available regardless of time and space; COIA are characterized by high security level compared to classic applications for witch security is not an important issue. Considering the advantages of COIA it is necessary that all applications be characterized to a certain degree by citizen orientation. Classic application are replaced with citizen orientated ones, which come with solution for their problems. The quality characteristics system Considering the fact that COIA means resource allocation and working independently of the owner and developer, they must be gifted with the following quality characteristics: coverage, meaning if the citizens need to solve within problem P, for which COIA is built, the sub problems SP1, SP2, ..., SPN the application must implement components that correspond to all the N sub problems; correctness establishes the measure in which perfect correspondence is achieved between the results from the test data sets and the effective results obtained inputting them; a test data set SDTi contains inputs, intermediary results, and final results; in the testing process data is inputted and intermediary SDTi results are compared with the intermediary results returned by the application, respectively the final results from the test data set and the
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application returned final results; correctness is relevant when there is no doubt regarding the quality of the test data sets; completeness ensures that all processing made in all possible situations, to solve a sub-problem, that any of the target group members comes across; reliability gives the measure in which the application executes without incident the necessary processing for solving citizen problems; this characteristic depends also on the hardware components on which the application runs on; a reliable COIA must execute processing without incident for the citizen even if in the computer network it runs in machine defects are present; COIA maintenance measures the effort level necessary to update; knowing COIA characteristics, their update is frequent to fulfil citizen requests, thus a high level of maintenance must characterize this kind of applications; the maintenance costs must be low to allow updating the application and avoiding redesigning it; auto-configurable; COIA must auto-configure itself according to the most frequent citizen problems; for this the application must record the frequency of problems which it solves, at a certain time interval, by auto-configuration it shortens the time needed to solve the most frequent problems; the reconfiguration must take into account the data sets recorded in the past for a higher level of efficiency; user friendly; COIA addresses a large and diverse target group compared to a classic informatics application, this leads to the need of developing a easy to use interface;; as the majority of citizens that use the application are not IT specialists, the friendly GUI must characterize COIA and allow all users to solve their problems; flexibility represents the ability of the application to adapt to messages received from the environment; when in use by the citizens the application must be able to adapt their demands and give adequate solutions to their problems; easy to return to previous steps; input data refresh must be done in a easy and logical way, messages must be clear; time memory which assumes storing citizen data, activities, and input data such that the users will not be required to input them again when using the application in the future, only to update them if needed; portability refers to the possibility of running the application with no regard to the hardware platform used; taking into account the large number of application users and their diversity considering the used hardware platform, it is vital that COIA will run on as many hardware platforms as possible; with no regard to the platform COIA offers its users the same functionality, a function is not allowed to be available on a platform and unavailable on another one; [BOPO08] ranks portability as a very important factor of the applications success; computation precision refers to the number of decimal places stored during computation; for COIA it is important the computation precision is at its
highest level because at a large number of users errors are propagated and precision is reduced; security represents the applications ability to ensure users data and actions protection against criminal attacks. Citizen oriented informatics applications security is a vital quality characteristic that must be fulfilled to the highest degree. The application must guarantee that the users data and actions are protected against criminal attacks. COIA security Taking into account the high number of users of COIA, the security is a very important aspect. Each user must access only his data and must realize actions only on his account. The users access to COIA must be granted based on username and password only if the application implies economic activities. For COIA designated to expose information the access must be free, only paid services being subject to authentication. Authentication is defined as the process of establishing if an object is authentic. For COIA this means to establish if a user is the one he claims to be. The functioning mechanism of informatics applications authentication procedure is presented in figure 1. The user launches a request of authentication or password reset. The authentication service verifies if the user supplied the password associated to his account and grant access to the applications components if it checks. If a password reset request is received, it is forwarded to the password reset service. If the request is authentication type but the password doesnt match the account, the user is requested other credentials. For COIA, the knowledge based authentication assures a high degree of security and offers the users a comfortable authentication method. Knowledge based authentication is used as a primary system or as sub-system for authentication in citizen orientated applications. Offering the possibility to select a simple and comfortable authentication mechanism is vital for the COIA. As [CHLI08] states, the selection is the easiest way of data input. The possibility of selecting the knowledge based authentication mechanism must be implemented by all citizen oriented informatics applications. This type of authentication is based on a set of factoids which represents knowledge possessed by the user used to identify him from a set of users. A factoid is represented under the form of a pair: f=(k,v) where: k is the key given by the user; v is the value associated to the key k. The factoids have the following characteristics: memorability represents the ease with which the users remembers the data he entered; guessability is the ease through which one is able to guess the information given by the user without having any prior knowledge which relates to him;
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simplicity represents a characteristic which is closely tied to memorability, is the factoid is simpler then memorability increases; usability is the characteristic that allows an easy use of the factoids registered in the system; unicity is the characteristic that guarantees that one factoid will not resemble another in the set; portability insures the correct behaviour of the knowledge based authentication system regardless of the platform; familiarity is a sub-characteristic of guessability which regards the personal character of knowledge within the factoid.
START
Insert credentials New credentials Authentication/ Password reset request
Incorrect username/ password
Password reset service
Authentication service Password reset request
Applications components
STOP Figure 1 Authentication mechanism
In order to increase the security level a set of factoids F = {f1, f2,, fn} is used where the factoid fi= (ki, vi) and the factoid fj = (kj, vj). The elements in the set F have the following properties: fi fj meaning (ki, vi) (kj, vj) meaning ki kj and vi vj, i,j are randomly chosen from the [1;n] set; fk F, if and only if fk is related to the user U which has ownership over the factoids included in set F; they have a finite number set by the administrator with regard to the optimum security level.
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In figure 2 the environment of the factoids is presented, it is composed from 2 major elements the user and the system. The user supplies the factoids to the authentication system which after running a cross reference with the factoids stored by the user beforehand accepts or denies access to the privileged resources.
User
Interference
Key
Value Factoid
Interference
System
Figure 2 - Factoid environment
Interference is caused by network communication issues between the user and the system or by deliberate attacks meant to intercept the user credentials in order for the attacker to be able to impersonate the user and gain access to his resources. Considering the user set SU = {U1, U2,, Um} where each user Ui has associated a factoid set SFi = {Fi1, Fi2, Fin} which identifies him in the user set SU an identity matrix, M, is generated and presented in (table 1).
Identity matrix Table 1 Users U1 U2 Un Factoids F11 F21 Fn1 F12 F22 Fn2 F1m F2m Fnm
Each user Ui from the M matrix is identified using any factoid from the set SFi. The user is identified upon providing a valid value for a random key picked arbitrarily by the system from the factoid set assigned to the user. In figure 3 the process of defining factoids for the application available at the address kba.dragospalaghita.ro that implements a knowledge based authentication model. First, the user introduces the desired username and the number of factoids. After the factoids are supplied, they are stored in the applications database. The
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authentication is made through the comparison of the stored factoids with the ones supplied at the authentications time.
Figure 3 - Factoid defining
Figure 4 - Factoid based authentication
In figure 4 a sample of the knowledge based authentication interface is presented. The user supplies the number of factoids. Dynamic controls are generated for the user to supply the factoids. When the user presses the Verify button, the supplied factoids are compared with the ones stored in the database. If the user supplies a correct set of factoids he is allowed to use the applications resources. If the supplied factoid set is not correct, the authentication process repeats. The knowledge based authentication is very important for the citizen oriented informatics applications as it offers the users the possibility to authenticate using already know information. Conclusions Citizen oriented informatics applications redefine the concept of informatics application to correspond the target groups requirements. These fulfil a set of quality characteristics that the classic applications dont fulfil or do it in a low degree. Security is an important characteristic for the COIA the overall quality of the application being strongly influenced by it. The usual authentication method the informatics applications use is the one that uses an username associated to a password. Using knowledge based authentication in citizen orientated applications has the following advantages: the degree of failed authentication attempts is reduced, considering the fact that the factoid set is large and they all contain knowledge that the user is familiar with; the degree of risk involved by dictionary attacks is reduced because the factoids contained in the set associated with the user are randomly picked and they have a personal character which is unknown to third parties , as the knowledge contained by the factoids must only be known by the user and partially by third parties. Disadvantages of knowledge based authentication are related to the public character of the knowledge in the factoids and their availability in the virtual space.
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This is why it is recommended to use information as diverse as possible and with reduced availability. The future development of the method and its implementation in the citizen oriented applications so that the users select the desired authentication method leads to an increase in the applications quality and the users satisfaction degree. Future aspects of the development are ensuring the factoids characteristics, developing new facilities. Acknowledgements This article is a result of the project Doctoral Program and PhD Students in the education research and innovation triangle. This project is co funded by European Social Fund through The Sectorial Operational Programme for Human Resources Development 2007-2013, coordinated by The Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies. References [BOPO08] Ctlin Boja, Marius Popa, Iulian Niescu 2008 Characteristics for Software Optimization Projects, n Informatic Economic, vol. 12, nr. 1, Inforec, Bucureti, pp. 46 51 [CHLI08] Ye Chen, Divakaran Liginlal 2008 - A maximum entropy approach to feature selection in knowledge-based authentication, Elsevier Science Publishers B. V. Amsterdam, The Netherlands, The Netherlands [IVDO08] Ion Ivan, Mihai Doinea, Drago Palaghi 2008 - Aspects Concerning the Optimization of Authentication Process for Distributed Applications, Theoretical and Applied Economics, Bucharest, Romania [IVSA08] Ion Ivan, Leonard Scuiu, Daniel Milodin 2008 - The development of computer science oriented towards the citizen, The Proceedings of Journal ISOM Vol. 2 No.2 / December 2008, ISSN: 1843-4711 [KRSM08] E. Kritzinger, E. Smith 2008 - Information security management: An information security retrieval and awareness model for industry, Computer Security 1 - 8, Elsevier Science Publishers B. V. Amsterdam, The Netherlands [LIZH08] Jia-Yong Liu, An-Min Zhou, Min-Xu Gao 2008 - A new mutual authentication scheme based on nonce and smart cards, Computer Communications 31, Elsevier Science Publishers B. V. Amsterdam, The Netherlands [NIMC07] Andrea Di Nicola, Andrew McCallister 2007 - Existing Experiences of Risk Assessment, Eur J Crim Policy Res (2006) 12:179187 DOI 10.1007/s10610-007-9034-7, Springer Science + Business Media B.V. [POIV08] Marius Popa, Ion Ivan, Drago Palaghi, Bogdan Ctlin Vintil 2008 Quality metrics of citizen oriented informatics applications, Forth International Conference on Applied Statistics ICAS4, Bucharest Romania, November 20-22
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