Coining societies: an inter-functional comparative analysis of the Euro

The present analysis of the Euro looks for the marks that function systems make on what we commonly take for the European money. Clearly distinguishing between coins and currency, the Euro coins and banknotes are not taken for economic tokens per se but for storage devices that contain both economic and noneconomic information. A systemic analysis of the function system references on these storage devices shows that the economy has left fewer marks on the Euro than politics, art, and the mass media systems have. We, hence, argue that “the Euro” “is” not just money with a political second mission but rather can be understood as an indicator of the relative relevance that specific function systems do or do not have for the European societies and the European society.     

The (Cuban) Voice of the (Curaçaoan) People: The Making (And Taking) of a Collective Memory

At the turn of the 20^th century, Afro-Curaçaoans developed an affinity for Cuban culture that influenced the manner to which they came to define their own collective memory. Cuba was raised to mythological status, appropriated and adapted to fit Curaçaoan daily life, enabling a new and inventive sense of belonging. This essay speaks to the intricacies involved in memory-making , with the Cuban-inspired memory of memories on Curaçao introduced as a relative category. It points to the variegated and tenuous nature of memory, showing how the past, when negotiated with the present, can shape group goals and demarcate membership.     

Strategic Design Responsiveness: An Empirical Analysis of US Retail Store Networks

This study uses a service operations management (SOM) strategy lens to investigate chain store retailers' strategic design responsiveness (SDR)—a term that captures the degree to which retailers dynamically coordinate investments in human and structural capital with the complexity of their service and product offerings. Labor force and physical capital are respectively used as proxies for investments in human capital and structural capital, whereas gross margins are proxies for product/service offering complexity. Consequently, SDR broadly reflects three salient complementary choices of SOM design strategy. We test the effects of “brick and mortar” chain store retailers' SDR on current and future firm performance using publically available panel data collected from Compustat and the University of Michigan American Customer Satisfaction Index databases for the period 1996–2011. We find that retailers that fail to keep pace with investments in both structural and human capital exhibit short‐term financial benefits, but have worse ongoing operational performance. These findings corroborate the importance of managers strategically maintaining the complementarity of design‐related choices for improving and maintaining business performance.     

Les formes d'emploi atypiques et leur effet sur les comités d'entreprise en Israël: une liminalité permanente

En Israël, les comités d'entreprise s'adaptent à l'économie néolibérale et aux évolutions qui en découlent sur le marché du travail en admettant de plus en plus le recours aux emplois atypiques, tout en essayant de lutter contre ce nouvel avatar de l'économie capitaliste pour protéger les droits des travailleurs. Tiraillés entre ces deux positions, ils sont pris dans un transitoire qui dure, une «liminalité» permanente, qui réduit leur rôle à la recherche de compromis et de solutions circonstancielles. La résistance aux effets pervers des formes d'emploi atypiques reste donc circonscrite et dispersée, ce qui conforte encore les pratiques en question.     

国有商业银行资本市场业务研究

本文首先从国际金融界混业经营 ,国内银行、保险、证券三业互相渗透共同发展 ,我国资本市场发展对银行传统业务的冲击 ,以及加入 WTO挑战的需要等方面论述了国有商业银行拓展资本市场业务的客观现实性。其次 ,从资本市场规模、银行和证券公司、基金、保险公司的业务合作领域 ,以及合作的层次和市场发展潜力等方面阐述了国有商业银行进行资本市场业务创新的动因及其目前在资本市场业务方面存在的问题和解决办法。进而分析了进一步拓展资本市场业务从建立战略同盟、壮大资金实力和实现综合经营有效切入的问题     

民族法制的中国经验及其贡献

在中国，平等、团结、互助的社会主义民族关系已经建立并进一步巩固发展，这是实施民族区域自治制度的结果，它为当代国际社会解决民族问题提供了有益的经验。这些经验是对民族团结概念作宪法安排以建构公民认同；以少数民族干部制度作为沟通的制度性安排；自治权作为发展权的制度设置以实现各民族的共同繁荣发展；设立少数民族聚居区的独特安排，保证了民族关系历史与现实的统一；以多元与一体并存的发展形式，保证各民族语言文化的平等共同发展。