Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: V. Bečvářová Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Regional and Business Economics, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Title: Issues of competitiveness of the present agriculture Abstract: The paper deals with the crucial phenomena of changes of the entrepreneurial environment of agriculture caused by the globalisation processes in the agrarian sector and their connection with the criteria of competitiveness of the present agricultural enterprises. It examines the influence of forming agribusiness and the demand driven terms of commodity chains functioning on the position of agricultural companies and the directly related segments in the field of the processing of agricultural products from the perspective of achieving competitive advantage. In this connection, the methodological approach to competitiveness is discussed according to the horizontal level, i.e. the particular stage of production or processing of the final product, and the vertical level, i.e. the interconnection of the individual stages of the vertical and their share in the value added in the final product as a prerequisite of the successful participation in forming competitiveness. Keywords: agricultural enterprise, agribusiness, competitiveness, economic costs, commodity chain Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 399-405 Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Year: 2008 DOI: 10.17221/2698-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/2698-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-200809-0001.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:54:y:2008:i:9:id:2698-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: E. Svoboda Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Title: Strategic decision-making of the company management using the findings of knowledge management Abstract: This scientific paper shows the results formulated in the author's research focused on strategic decision-making of the company management in a new entrepreneurial environment resulting from changes caused by integration processes, the development of information technologies and globalisation factors. The goal of this paper is to publish the changes in behaviour of the management of the selected entrepreneurial entities resulting from new factors of changes affecting the entrepreneurial environment. This is reflected in the process of strategic decision-making of entrepreneurial entities in the necessity to use new methods of decision-making of the company management as a reaction to factors of the external as well as the internal environment. Rapid changes in particular in the external environment require the company management to select new approaches and methods of decision-making and to have a well conceived algorithm enabling a flexible response to customer wishes using the findings of knowledge management. Keywords: business management, decision-making, entrepreneurial environment, strategic management, information technology Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 406-412 Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Year: 2008 DOI: 10.17221/2699-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/2699-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-200809-0002.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:54:y:2008:i:9:id:2699-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: D. Kudová Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Author-Name: H. Chládková Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Title: Barriers to the entry into the fruit producing industry in the Czech Republic Abstract: The contribution is focused on the analysis of barriers to the entry into fruit production. The branch is identified as a fruit growers branch and the threat to new entries in the branch will concern especially the establishment of a new firm or the expansion of an existing firm's plant production by some fruit species production. The methodology is based on the Porter model of competitive forces in the industry. In fruit production, there have been analysed the following entry barriers: economies of scale, differentiations, capital intensity, transfer, access to distribution channels, cost disadvantage independent of scale, government policy, anticipated retaliatory measures from existing firms. The analysis proves that the barriers to enter the fruit production are rather high nowadays, which should discourage the potential new firms from entering this branch. Keywords: branch, barrier to entry, fruit production, economies of scale, capital intensity, access to distribution channels, government policy, anticipated retaliatory measures from existing firms Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 413-418 Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Year: 2008 DOI: 10.17221/2700-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/2700-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-200809-0003.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:54:y:2008:i:9:id:2700-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: M. Záboj Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Marketing and Trade, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Title: Agricultural and food wholesale and retail trade in the intra-community trade Abstract: The paper focuses on the evaluation of the contemporary situation of two economic sectors in the frame of the European Union, namely the wholesale and retail of agricultural and food products. For these industries, the structural profile with the indicators of turnover, value added and employment was elaborated. Hereafter the costs, productivity and profitability indicators ranking of the top 5 Member States were compared to the EU-25 averages. After a 3.1% increase in the turnover index in 2000, the evolution of sales for the agricultural wholesaling sector recorded a series of small increases and decreases in the turnover, ranging from - 0.6% in 2002 to 1.5% in 2004. Between 2000 and 2005, the agricultural wholesaling sector generally recorded a slower rate of expansion for turnover than the wholesale trade average. The specialised in-store food retailing sector generated EUR 120.4 billion of turnover in 2003. The wealth creation of the specialised in-store food retailing was valued at EUR 23.8 billion; equivalent to 6.5% of the retail trade and repair total, while this activity employed 1.4 million persons, some 9.0% of the retail trade and repair workforce. Half (49.9%) of the turnover in the specialised in-store food retailing sector in the EU was generated by enterprises selling fruit, vegetables, meat, fish or bakery products. Keywords: trade, wholesale, retail, European Union, turnover, value added, costs, productivity, profitability Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 419-430 Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Year: 2008 DOI: 10.17221/2701-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/2701-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-200809-0004.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:54:y:2008:i:9:id:2701-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: I. Živělová Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Regional and Business Economics, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Author-Name: J. Jánský Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Regional and Business Economics, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Title: Analysis of life quality development in the administrative districts of South Moravia Abstract: : The equable regional development and mitigation of disparities among the individual regions are main objectives of regional policy not only in the Czech Republic but in the whole European Union. The paper presents an analysis of life quality disparities among the administrative districts of the South-Moravian region (Jihomoravský kraj): Blansko, Brno-City, Brno-Province, Břeclav, Hodonín, Vyškov and Znojmo. The region of South Moravia belongs to the regions with a significant economic potential. However, not all districts contribute to this potential equally, the reason being their size, population and life quality. Life quality is affected by the environmental, social and cultural resources and by the region's economic performance. It can be viewed from various aspects. The work is focused on the life quality indicators of social and cultural resources, which assess demographic development, age and intelligence structures, employment, unemployment and labour market, health care standard and civil amenities. The statistical analysis of the acquired data was made by using the methods of regression and correlation analyses and the cluster analysis. Keywords: region, regional disparity, life quality, social aspects, South Moravia, district Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 431-439 Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Year: 2008 DOI: 10.17221/2702-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/2702-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-200809-0005.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:54:y:2008:i:9:id:2702-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: K. Ryglová Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Marketing and Trade, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic Title: Destination management Abstract: This paper deals with the problems of destination management. It focuses on describing the crucial principles of destination management and consecutively on proving the functionality of these principles in practice in an area with a high potential for tourism development. In the selected South-Moravian region (JMK), we have explored whether an existing organization of destination management can be found in this region (DMC Destination Management Company) and to which extent it participates in the management and efficient development of tourism. To reach the set targets, we have used a secondary analysis of current data, a depth interview with a destination agency manager and an orientation questionnaire survey among business subjects. The results have shown that the level of cooperation between the destination agency in the JMK and the subjects of tourism is not on such a level and not as intensive as proclaimed by the South-Moravian Tourist Authority (CCRJM - the organization established with the aim of destination management in the JMK). For example, 50% of the addressed subjects have not been aware of the existence of this organization and only 10% of the companies have been addressed to cooperate with the CCRJM. The insufficient cooperation of public and private sectors appears to be the weakest segment. This causes an inconsistent presentation and isolation in preparing projects for the region development. It is the task for destination management, a new organization of tourism, to find the way how to cope with these difficulties and how to make the JMK a unified and quality destinations that would be attractive for tourists. Keywords: destination management, tourism, partnership, destination management company Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 440-448 Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Year: 2008 DOI: 10.17221/2703-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/2703-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-200809-0006.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:54:y:2008:i:9:id:2703-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Ľ. Szabo Title: Prof. Hutník's 80th birthday anniversary Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 449 Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Year: 2008 DOI: 10.17221/2704-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/2704-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:54:y:2008:i:9:id:2704-AGRICECON