About the seminar

About the seminar

ABOUT THE S E M I N A R DEVELOPMENTSthat are occurring today in the T HE study and practice of marketing are both promising and exciting. In the Unit...

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ABOUT THE S E M I N A R

DEVELOPMENTSthat are occurring today in the T HE study and practice of marketing are both promising and exciting. In the United States, much new literature is being produced that deals with the marketing management concept and with new tools for analyzing marketing problems. Interesting applications are being developed from both the behavioral sciences and the formal studies of quantitative analysis. A t the same time, we are experiencing dynamic organizational changes brought about by such movements as decentralization and an upgrading of the marketing function in the firm; these developments are especially conspicuous in American industry. In Europe, also, dynamic changes are occurring in both institutions and practices. The dramatic development of the supermarket, the growth of formal marketing research, and added emphasis to the study of marketing are only a few of these changes. All this is happening in the new setting of the common market and the free trade area. With this ferment in marketing, not only in the United States and Europe but in other parts of the world, it is understandable t h a t attention should turn to the exchange of information concerning marketing practice, research methods, and research findings. Teams of businessmen have traveled from the United States to discuss marketing with their counterparts in many European countries and to study practices abroad. Likewise, several European executives have visited companies in the United States with similar intentions. The European Productivity Agency has helped a r r a n g e for consultations and study groups; although these have dealt

with many concepts of business, a g r eat deal of attention has been given to marketing. Obviously, there existed a need for an international seminar on marketing management, a forum in which leading marketing executives from many parts of the world could join in seminars to share their knowledge and experience and to formulate ideas for new ways of marketing goods and services. The first such seminar was held on the campus of Indiana University in February, 1961 under the cosponsorship of the School of Business at Indiana University and the European Productivity Agency. Participants included twenty major executives from twelve countries in Europe and fourtoen top marketing executives from various industries in the United States. This group was joined by members of the marketing faculty, who served as seminar coordinators, and several other members of the School of Business. In addition, nine professors and nineteen businessmen joined the group for brief periods and, as either a seminar leader or a consulting faculty member, contributed to the discussion of specifically assigned topics. The seminar centered upon a study of marketing management, not foreign trade. The first session was devoted to problems of organizing for marketing, and was followed by a study of markets, with attention to both behavioral aspects and problems of measurement and forecasting. One session was reserved for examining problems of coordinating production in marketing. The second week of the semin ar concentrated on marketing strategy with careful consideration of an exchange of the latest and most advanced thinking on product development and adaptation, pricing, promotion, and channels and institutions. Special attention was given to indus-

trial marketing and to selected problems of importing and exporting. The composition of the seminar group naturally contributed to the breadth and international flavor of much of the discussion. Traditionally, students of marketing in the United States have been inclined to study American practices and to ignore what is going on in other parts of the world. The discussions in the seminar clearly revealed many advanced ideas and practices in other countries; indeed, in some phases of these activities, Americans appear to be followers rather than leaders. F o r example, Europeans have long been forced to follow marketing practices based upon a concept of marketing segmentation because the numerous European countries, in and of themselves, form market segments for their products. Many of these practices are adaptable to the American scene. Conversely, with the advent of the common market and the free trade area, the many practices suited to mass markets in the United States are becoming increasingly relevant and applicable in Europe. In addition to the r e g u l a r seminar sessions, the participants met on several occasions for informal discussions, referred to as "fireside chats," with a number of leading American businessmen. On the opening evening, John Barr, Chairman of the Board, Montgomery Ward & Company, discussed "The Changing N a t u r e of Retailing." A second informal evening discussion was led by Basil Walters, Editor of the Chicago Daily News. Others included W. W. Tongue, Economist, Jewel Tea Company, who discussed, "Trends in Self-Service Retailing"; A1 N. Seares, who spoke on "Developing Marketing Manpower"; and John K. Langum, who analyzed the balance of payments problem. In addition, His Ex-

cellency Fernando Berckemeyer, Ambassador of Peru, joined the seminar for a luncheon and spoke to the group at t h a t time. The Honorable Matthew E. Welsh, Governor of the State of Indiana, also attended one of the closing sessions and discussed problems of mutual interest. For the European participants, the seminar program included a carefully planned schedule of visits to a number of American firms. The entire group held conferences and discussions with some of the executives and leading officers at the Chicago Board of Trade, the Inland Steel Company, the A. C. Nielsen Company, the Ford Motor Company, the Watchmakers of Switzerland, Time-Life International, General Foods Corporation, Stewart Dougall AssoMates, and McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, Inc. In each case, there was a mutual exchange of information on common problems and marketing practices. In addition, each of the European participants followed a private itinerary for several days and was enabled to exchange views with company executives in industries similar to his own, or in companies with somewhat common problems of product and general distribution methods. At the close of the seminar, the participants organized an International Markeiing Council. Procedures were established for exchange of information on a regular and permanent basis and for future meetings. Thus, the seminar served as a starting point for a long-range program of study f o r members of the group. SCHUYLER F. OTTESON

Chairman, Marketing Department Indiana University

OPENING ADDRESS

RESIDENT WELLS,Members of the Faculty, p Ladies and Gentlemen: There have been many occasions when I have had the opportunity to be here at Indiana University to talk on European economic affairs, but none has ]~een quite so special as today. I feel, in fact, that the seminar we are inaugurating is an occasion for special rejoicing in that it represents a landmark: a point of arrival and a point of departure. And this not only for the organization which I have the honor to represent, but for the countries, the nationals of which are gathered here today. This event is a point of arrival because it is an undeniable fact that, after a decade of economic cooperation, Europe is today fully recovered, indeed economically stronger than it has ever been before. The realization of this fact, and the realization that economic recovery carries with it responsibilities as well as advantages, is the point of departure for the work which lies ahead of us in the sixties. The Organisation for European Economic Co-operation has been the central coordinating body to which much credit is due for European recove~T. Its task is now accomplished and we are undergoing a reorganization, which will culminate in a new Atlantic rather than European body, geared to the problems which face this free, democratic Western world to which we all belong. The new Organisation for Economic Co-operation

and Development, with full United States and Canadian membership, is now being born. I t will no longer be a question of t r a n s f e r r i n g American technological advances to Europe, but r a t h e r of creating a common pooI of knowledge from which all the p a r t n e r s in this Western endeavor can benefit. This seminar represents the first of such new activities. I t brings together students of market economy from thirteen of the member countries, so t h a t they may exchange their knowledge, consult on the present situation, and study what trends and possible action are foreseeable for the future. I consider it highly appropriate that the first of such joint Western seminars should be held at Indiana University. This institution has played such a great role in the past and has so generously helped Europe in the development of its new management during the decade of reconstruction that it seems fitting, not only by virtue of the past but of augury for the future, t h a t it be chosen to inaugurate this new program. I t gives me g r e a t pleasure, therefore, to pay tribute to I n d i a n a University and, at the same time, declare open the F i r s t International Seminar on Marketing Management. OTTINO CARACCIOLODI FORINO

Head, Organisation for European Economic Co-operation, European Productivity Agency Mission