Transcript prezentacija_vucic_mihanovic_bubalo

APPLYING MARKETING RESEARCH IN
MARKETING STRATEGY FORMATION:
THE CASE OF SECONDARY
EDUCATION IN CROATIA
•Mario
Vučić mag.oec.univ.spec.oec
Agency for Vocational Education and Training and Adult Education, Zagreb,Croatia, e-mail:
[email protected]
•doc.
dr. sc. Zoran Mihanović
University of Split, Faculty of Economics, Split, Croatia, e-mail: [email protected]
•Ana
Bubalo, univ.spec.oec.
University Sesvete – adult education institution, Zagreb, Croatia, e-mail: [email protected]
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The 21st century is characterised by significant and rapid changes in
all spheres of social life, as well as in education as one of the most
important bearer of these changes. Today, knowledge on a global
scale doubles in a year, and monitoring these changes implies the
existence of adequate systems which are ready to accept and use these
changes and to keep pace with them for the purpose of growth and
progress.
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In the priority plans and activities of Ministry of science, education
and sports and relevant national and European documents in the field
of constructing knowledge society, school system in general has to
assert itself as a place of education and training, but also as an
organisation that continuously learns and adapts to demands and
needs of its customers.
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The role of marketing approach, which has been neglected so far,
needs to be asserted in the mentioned framework, even though
certain secondary school institutions successfully implement it on an
intuitive level by applying ad-hoc measures and marketing
management activities.
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Public sector, and education as its part, cannot remain outside of
modern trends in management and performance methods if their goal
is to achieve better results, and the adjustment to concrete customer
needs certainly has a special significance in mentioned processes.
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Namely, education needs to be oriented towards the development of
sustainable human capital, as is expected by European priorities of
organisational development for educational sector in Croatia.
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Therefore, it is of special importance to assert marketing research
activities in order that forming performance strategy of educational
institutions, defining stakeholders, processes and implementation
elements is based on clear priorities and concrete needs of Croatian
citizens, economy and other relevant participants.
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The unreadiness of participants in secondary education process, who
are supposed to apply new methods of management and marketing
performance, can have harmful effects on the success of previously
described processes, monitoring new knowledge and approaches and
efficacy in the market of “public“ institutions.
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On the basis of stated starting points of research, this paper addresses
the following goals:
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(1) the analysis of existing practice of marketing research and its systematic
implementation in the formation of marketing strategies of secondary schools in
Croatia has been theoretically and empirically established;
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(2) model formation of systematic application of marketing research in the integral
process of secondary school marketing;
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(3) empirical assessment of the previously mentioned model.
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Methodology
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Afore-mentioned goals were empirically assessed on the sample of
secondary school headmasters in Croatia.
Primary data gathering was performed by a method of deep interview
with experts and a survey method, which used a specially designed
survey questionnaire as an instrument for implementing the empirical
part of the research.
Secondary school headmasters in the Republic of Croatia were chosen
as the examinees.
An appropriate sample was used for the research, it included 34
examinees
The instrument of the research included closed and (to a lesser extent)
open questions, formed and structured in a manner adapted to be
analysed by a statistical package SPSS.
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The research started from the following hypotheses:
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(1) existing practice and marketing research tools in Croatian secondary schools
are partial and based on intuitive and ad-hoc approaches;
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(2) there is a need for clear and systematic implementation of marketing research
which has a significant potential for improving the success of strategic and operative
performance of secondary schools and its remote units as the determinants of overall
potential for achieving marketing efficacy
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Research results
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The conducted research has shown the existence of the unreadiness
of participants in the process of secondary school education to apply
new methods of management and marketing performance which can
have harmful effects on the efficacy of all described processes,
monitoring new knowledge and approaches and efficacy in the
“market“ of public institutions.
Significant contribution of this work lies in empirical assessment of
marketing research model which confirms the stated hypotheses.
Marketing research model suitable to conditions in the environment
has been formed and optimised for individual implementation in
secondary schools in Croatia. This model was empirically evaluated
on the sample of all secondary school headmasters in Croatia,
therefore confirming the hypotheses on the basis of the research.
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Research results
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The results suggest that the existing practice and marketing research
tools in Croatian secondary schools are partial and based on intuitive
and ad-hoc approaches.
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The research also provided results which imply that in the field of
marketing research in secondary school education there is great space
for improvement which should eventually contribute to significant
enhancement of capacity and more quality activity of schools.
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Research results empirically substantiate a great potential for applying
marketing research in marketing strategy formation.
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Conclusion
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This paper states the need to adapt and assert marketing in secondary
schools by using modern trends where school should be recognised as
a place of education and training, but also as an organisation which
continuously learns and adapts to the demands and needs of its
customers.
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Marketing is not only advertising and sale as we often perceive it, but
it is associated with understanding and satisfying customer needs
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Conclusion
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In the future, secondary schools will have to use marketing tools
increasingly. Every improvement in marketing knowledge and skills of
all school employees, including management, teachers and technical
staff, represents a prerequisite for it.
Therefore, there is great responsibility on decision makers like the
Ministry, state agencies and other stakeholders on one hand, and
school management and guilds on the other hand.
Possible areas for the improvement of marketing activity are relations
to internal and external public, which include different information
activities, improving communication with students, teachers,
employees, decision makers and especially local community.
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Conclusion
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Second possible area of marketing activity is a display of results of
external evaluation and school self-evaluation which can represent an
excellent basis for creating information and communication activities
with the environment.
Third important area is the promotion of new and modernised
curricula compatible to the needs and demands of labour market.
Promoting new curricula can have a long-term effect on school image
which thus can be recognised as a bearer of change and new values
required for the development of an individual and society.
All this has a purpose of attracting the best students from elementary
schools, school positioning and consequently improving the quality of
the institution itself, but also contributing to the development of
society and local community where the school operates.
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Thank you for your attention
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