Purpose This paper aims to explore buying decision factors and approaches of companies operating in manufacturing industry in Croatia. Design/methodology/approach The data collected by company survey were analysed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, cluster analysis and cross-tabulation analysis. Findings Results show that manufacturers are influenced by six distinctive factors when making purchasing decisions. These are supplier’s flexibility, supplier’s reliability, interdepartmental communication, top management support, routine purchases and buyer’s price sensitivity. Manufacturers can be classified in four different groups according to their buying decision-making patterns. Practical implications This paper provides a set of factors and approaches which might help selling companies and sales representatives understand the purchasing practices of buying company better, and develop adaptive selling approaches accordingly. Originality/value Based on a literature review and field research, an instrument of organizational buying behaviour was developed and tested in the Croatian manufacturing industry. The factors of organizational buying behaviour patterns were identified, and the typology of buying decision approaches applicable for manufacturing industry was developed.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the knowledge, awareness and concern of young consumers towards avoidable and “edible” food waste, and identify groups of individuals based on their attitudes. In addition, this study describes demographic and behavioural characteristics of each group. Design/methodology/approach The data were collected by a questionnaire conducted among university students in Croatia. Factor and cluster analyses were applied to identify the groups of individuals with similar attitudes towards food waste. Findings Results show that there are five factors that represent the knowledge, awareness and concern about food waste of young people – awareness of food waste problem; concern about economic aspects of food waste; health concern; concern about environmental impact of food waste; and awareness and concern about expiration date. Based on those factors, four groups of consumers were identified: consumers concerned about economic effects of food waste; unaware consumers neglecting food waste; well-informed consumers; and fully aware consumers, but not ready to take health risk. Practical implications The results of the study can be used by marketers and policy makers when planning food waste reduction activities to focus their campaigns towards consumer niches, based on the typology of young consumers. Originality/value This study provides a typology of university students based on their knowledge, awareness and concern about food waste in Croatia, as an example of a transition and new EU member state, where the issues about food waste are relatively new and underexplored topic.

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This paper examines the impact of EU enlargement and the global economic crisis on the relative development of the EU countries. This effect is assessed by applying multivariate analysis to the whole set of 28 European countries at three representative points in time. The cluster analysis for the years 2002, 2007, and 2012 grouped the countries according to the range of economic development indicators showing within-EU cohesion before the EU enlargement, after the enlargement wave, and after the crisis. The findings show that a decrease in the development differences after the enlargement was replaced with an increase in these differences after the crisis, thus contributing to the existing debate about the success of cohesion and future of European integration. These results are somewhat worrying for the new member states of the EU as well as for EU membership candidates and their prospective development within the integration.

Background: Industry clusters and their relationship with the organization’s success, competitive advantage and innovations have been gaining research interest for decades, with the recent focus on defence industry.Objectives: The aim is to investigate how Croatian Defense Industry Competitiveness Cluster (CDICC) fosters the knowledge management and innovation performance of its members.Methods/Approach: Survey has been performed on a portion of CDICC members, and responses have been analysed using the factor analysis and the correlation analysis.Results: The results indicate that CDICC actively contributes to knowledge creation and acquisition, innovation performance and market performance of its members. However, the analysis revealed that knowledge storage and knowledge dissemination are not sufficiently supported by CDICC.Conclusions: The current problems with the various aspects of knowledge management within a cluster provide a direction for overcoming possible obstacles for further development of industrial clusters.