Examines the concept of adapting industry models to higher education, with specific reference to the idea of an educational supply chain, in which employers, students, university staff, schools and colleges work in collaboration to ensure that the needs of all are satisfied. The empirical research was undertaken as part of the University of Strathclyde's Department of Marketing's review of the undergraduate programme. It involved both students and employers in the decisionmaking process and gauged the reaction of both sectors to the idea of becoming more integrated into the university planning structure. Results show that both student and employer markets welcome the idea of further integration and collaboration and that there are some valuable lessons to be learned from industry in the arena of strategic planning.

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This paper reports on the results of empirical research undertaken among small Scottish companies who participated in the DTI’s Marketing Initiative. This scheme enabled many small firms to take advantage of expertise in all areas of business through a grant‐aided programme. The key objectives of the research were to understand better the attitudes held of marketing in the small firm sector in order to identify if there were perceived barriers in accepting marketing techniques to aid a firm’s development. Secondly, the research focused on the specific benefits derived from the Marketing Initiative in an attempt to identify the educational benefits of participating in such schemes. The research findings indicated that there were considerable attitudinal barriers to implementing marketing among the sample firms. They key issues were marketing being perceived as a costly, time consuming to manage, lacking relevant skills to implement marketing and lacking understanding of the relevancy of marketing to development needs. This was in addition to a general misconception of what being “marketing oriented’ actually meant. This general lack of understanding and misconception highlighted the need for such schemes to help in part overcome such perceptions. As for the benefits of the Marketing Initiative, the results were more encouraging, with all respondents perceiving the scheme and its aims as very worthwhile and relevant to their needs. Main benefits derived by participation in the scheme included a greater understanding of marketing and its relevance in the small firm, new market opportunities identified through expert research advice and a detailed plan of action to follow for future development.

We assessed the efficacy of Lactobacillus nodensis CSK964 as an adjunct culture in Gouda cheese under various industrial conditions. We set up 4 different systems: a direct vat inoculum with and without adjunct using the calf rennet Kalase, and an undefined bulk starter culture with and without adjunct using the microbial rennet Milase (both rennets from CSK Food Enrichment, Ede, the Netherlands). During ripening, we subjected the cheeses to the following analyses: viability of starter and adjunct cells, composition, proteolysis, and flavor development by detection of sulfur compounds and descriptive sensory analysis. In general, the presence of Lb. nodensis increased secondary proteolysis and influenced cheese flavor, particularly in relation to volatile sulfur compounds; hydrogen sulfide and methanethiol were present in higher abundances in cheeses containing Lb. nodensis. The primary starter also influenced the range of volatile sulfur compounds produced. Methanethiol and dimethyl disulfide were more abundant in the nisin-producing direct vat inoculum cheese with adjunct; hydrogen sulfide was more prevalent when bulk starter culture was used with Lb. nodensis. Sensory analysis revealed that the direct vat inoculum cheese with adjunct scored significantly better in terms of smell and taste than the direct vat inoculum cheese without adjunct and lacked the dominant sulfur flavors of the bulk starter cheese with adjunct. Subsequent analysis using lead acetate paper and modified motility broth as indicators of hydrogen sulfide production confirmed that Lb. nodensis produced hydrogen sulfide in broth and in the cheese matrix. This study suggests that the inclusion of Lb. nodensis as an adjunct culture can significantly alter the flavor profile of the final cheese. However, the selection of a suitable primary starter is imperative to ensure a desirable product.