Profitability and investment‐based factor pricing models

Ex ante predictors of stock returns must exhibit explanatory power across the feasible set of investments. But empirical results of factor pricing models that incorporate firm investment and profitability cannot explain the apparently high returns of US small stocks with very high investment levels and very low profitability. Whilst these stocks comprise only a small fraction of US data sets, this is not the case across global markets. Using a data set that is concentrated with stocks that exhibit high investment despite low profitability, we demonstrate that such factor models are limited in their explanatory power over these stocks.     

Fit,Bias, and Enacted Sensemaking in Data Visualization: Frameworks for Continuous Development in Operations and Supply Chain Management Analytics

Data visualization has a critical role in the advancement of modern data analytics. Visualization lends assurances to data validity and completeness, as well as to the effectiveness of cleaning and aggregation tactics. It provides the means by which to explore and discover relationships otherwise hidden from default assumptions in statistical modeling. Strong visualization is also fundamental to end‐result conveyance and audience interpretation. But how can one ensure that strength? How can one avoid developing representations that are marginal in value, or worse misleading? In this paper, I will discuss theory, evidence, and practical approaches to managing data visualization development, viewing data visualization not simply as an outcome but as a continuous process and facet of organizational culture.     

Public–Private Partnerships and the Design Process: Consequences for Architects and City Building

Governments are increasingly using public–private partnerships (PPPs) to deliver public infrastructures and facilities. The prime motivation to embark on these partnerships is often to deliver products and services on time and on budget. It is generally assumed that by transferring project risks and responsibilities to private‐sector actors, governments can achieve better value for money. This article provides a novel perspective on the standards applied in PPP endeavors as it examines the tensions between the public management rationale behind value for money on the one hand, and conceptions of design and city building on the other. We focus on planning practice in the Canadian province of Ontario to show that governments apply different understandings of value in PPPs which, in turn, affect the way the design process is run. Architects, who are used to playing the role of master builder in a traditional public infrastructure project, are shifted into a less influential position and struggle with their new role. Furthermore, a different set of priorities applies in the new procurement process. The increasing use of PPPs can thus have significant consequences for city building.     

The Growth Effects of the Bulging Economically Active Population in Sub‐Saharan Africa: Do Institutions Matter?

This paper examines the importance of good institutions in harnessing the growth effects of the bulging economically active population in sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA). The paper utilizes a panel dataset comprising 39 countries over the period 2002–13. Based on the system generalized method of moments estimator, this paper finds that an increase in the relative size of the working‐age population has no direct significant impact on growth, except through the presence of strong and high‐quality institutions. The paper also finds that control of corruption, rule of law and political stability are the specific aspects of institutions that matter the most in reaping the dividend. These results do not only highlight the primacy of strong institutions but also shed light on the key institutional pillars that need to be strengthened to rake in the positive effects of an increasing working age population on economic growth in SSA.     

Measuring mortgage credit availability: A frontier estimation approach

We construct a new measure of mortgage credit availability using a technique developed for production frontier estimation. The resulting “loan frontier” describes the maximum amount obtainable by a borrower of given characteristics. We estimate this frontier using mortgage originations data from 2001 to 2014. We find a substantial expansion of mortgage credit for all borrowers during the housing boom, not only for low‐score or low‐income borrowers. The subsequent contraction in credit was most pronounced for low‐score borrowers. Using variation in the frontier across metropolitan areas over time, we show that borrowing constraints played an important role in the recent housing cycle.     

The past,present, and future of customer management

Marketing Letters - For decades, researchers in customer management have demonstrated the business importance of firm-customer relationships, developed models for understanding customer behavior...     

Drivers and outcomes of open-standard interorganizational information systems assimilation in high-technology supply chains

In recent years, firms in high-technology supply chains have established internet-based electronic linkages with their trading partners. As a result, they have improved their ability to coordinate and synchronize shared business processes by using more complete, accurate, and timely information. These electronic linkages are based on open-standard interorganizational information systems (OSIOS), which are fundamentally different from traditional electronic data interchanges. OSIOS capture not only the technical specifications for data interchange but also the sequential steps for the execution of shared business processes. Because OSIOS are still at an early diffusion stage, it remains unclear why firms would assimilate such an innovation and whether assimilation provides firms any benefits. In this research, we develop a framework grounded on the economics of standards, institutional theory, and strategic interorganizational information systems literatures to investigate the drivers and outcomes of OSIOS assimilation in a focused context. In order to test our hypotheses based on this framework, we used data from a high-technology supply chain and employed econometrics techniques. We found that both competition asymmetry across supply chain echelons and OSIOS assimilation within supply chain echelons predict individual firms’ OSIOS assimilation. The results also suggest that firms’ supply chain dominance is both a driver and an outcome of OSIOS assimilation, highlighting a mutually reinforcing process. In addition, our study reveals boundary conditions of the hypothesized relationships. The use of multiple theoretical perspectives, a unique dataset, and innovative statistical techniques to investigate OSIOS assimilation in high-technology supply chains contributes to the body of knowledge in both the supply chain management and management of information systems disciplines.     

Does the quality of institutions enhance savings? The case of Sub-Saharan Africa

Over the last three decades, there has been increasing disparity in savings across regions and income groupings globally. In this paper, we investigate whether the quality of institutions explains the saving disparities in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Utilizing comprehensive panel data and spanning the period 1980–2015, we estimate a savings model using the two-step instrumental variable generalized method of moment (2SIV-GMM) estimator. Our results show that the impact of institutions on savings behaviour differs across regions and income groupings, and in SSA, in aggregate. We find that the level and growth of per capita income and terms of trade enhance savings whereas government consumption expenditure, financial sector development and the elderly dependency rate are savings impeding. The findings are robust to alternative model specification and highlight the importance of institutions in influencing savings behaviour in SSA.     

INFORMATION FRICTIONS AND HOUSING MARKET DYNAMICS

I examine the effects of seller uncertainty over their home value on the housing market. Using evidence from home listings and transactions data, I first show that sellers do not have full information about current period demand conditions for their homes. I incorporate this type of uncertainty into a dynamic microsearch model of the home selling problem with Bayesian learning. The estimated model highlights how information frictions help to explain the microdecisions of sellers and how these microdecisions affect aggregate market dynamics. The model generates a significant microfounded momentum effect in short‐run aggregate price appreciation rates.