$100 Bills on the Sidewalk: Suboptimal Investment in 401(k) Plans

We identify employees at seven companies whose 401(k) investment choices are dominated because they are contributing less than the employer matching contribution threshold despite being vested in their match and being able to make penalty-free 401(k) withdrawals for any reason because they are older than 59?. At the average firm, 36% of match-eligible employees over 59? forego arbitrage profits that average 1.6% of their annual pay, or $507. A survey educating employees about the free lunch they are foregoing raised contribution rates by a statistically insignificant 0.67 percent of income among those completing the survey.     

Team‐based learning and training transfer: a case study of training for the implementation of enterprise resources planning software

While traditional models of training such as behavioral modeling (BMT) have been found to enhance training transfer, research suggests that more active learning strategies such as error management (EMT) and team‐based learning (TBL) may be more effective. This paper analyzes BMT, EMT and TBL strategies to train employees on new enterprise resources planning (ERP) software and discusses which training leads to successful procedural and declarative knowledge transfer, knowledge retention and application, and tangible business outcomes. TBL was predicted to be the most effective training type, as it models several components needed to use ERP software in the actual job setting. Overall and procedural knowledge as well as knowledge application scores improved most for TBL participants, while declarative knowledge improved the most in the EMT condition. During training, all conditions showed significant improvement in knowledge application; however, the TBL condition showed the highest knowledge application gains. This paper discusses the elements of TBL that support its use as an effective strategy to increase knowledge transfer in an organizational context.     

Behavioral effects of fairness in performance measurement and evaluation systems: Empirical evidence from France

The measurement and evaluation of employee performance are crucial aspects of the management accounting system because of their effects on employee motivation. It is therefore important for management accountants to understand how such effects occur. Fairness may be a key explanatory factor. This study proposes that the effects of the fairness of employee performance measurement and evaluation procedures on employee job satisfaction and organizational commitment are indirect. The results, based on a sample of 60 French managers, support these expectations. For the relationship between procedural fairness and job satisfaction, the effects are indirect through trust and fairness of outcomes. For the relationship between procedural fairness and organizational commitment, the effects are indirect through fairness of outcome, trust and job satisfaction. The results also indicate that affective effects through trust and satisfaction are substantially stronger than that through fairness of outcome. Fair performance evaluation procedures therefore do more than the mere provision of equitable outcomes among French managers.     

Shifting Paradigms in Carbon Pricing

The first pillar of the old paradigm of carbon pricing is the assumption that an emissions trading scheme is the most cost-efficient way to achieve a certain emission reduction target. However, it has become obvious that the old paradigm is unable to solve a number of challenges, e.g. market participants’ myopia.     

Vom „Zürcher“ Banking zur exquisiten Privatbank — Schärfung der Value Proposition und der entsprechenden kommunikativen Umsetzung dargestellt am Beispiel von Bank Leu

Was soll man tun, wenn die eigene Marke vom Kunden in zentralen Markenpositionen anders wahrgenommen wird als man eigentlich beabsichtigt? Wie soll man reagieren, wenn die Marke kein klares Profil hat und die aktuelle strategische Ausrichtung nur mangelhaft unterstützt? Wie kann man von einer eher generischen Positionierung mit unterdurchschnittlicher Markenperformance wegkommen und seine Value Proposition entscheidend st?rken?     

World real interest rates: a global savings and investment perspective

Over the past 15 years, long-term interest rates have declined to levels not seen since the 1970s. This article explores possible shifts in global savings and investment that have led to this fall in the world real interest rate. There are several key findings. First, the authors identify the relative weakness in investment demand as more important than the relative increase in desired global savings to explain the decline in global interest rates. Second, the results indicate that the key factors explaining movements in savings and investment are variables that evolve relatively slowly over time, such as labour force growth and age structure. The conclusions suggest that over the coming years, world real interest rates are likely to continue to adjust slowly, reflecting long-term trends.