Pernicious pests and public perceptions: Wilding conifers in Aotearoa New Zealand

With significant favourable natural resources, New Zealand has excellent growing conditions for certain exotic conifer species. Although these species have been used for erosion control, and commercial and shelter/amenity plantings for many decades, they do have a high propensity to spread into undesirable locations around the country through natural means. These wilding conifers have become pests. Over the years, these pests have been controlled by landowners, government and community members using various methods, including mechanical and chemical means. Further, new ways of control have also been proposed, including the use of fire, genetics and other technologies. In this paper we examine survey and follow-up focus group data to understand public acceptance of these control methods. Overall, mechanical and selective chemical means were most accepted, while widespread chemical spraying and novel or alternative methods were less acceptable. The survey results and focus group discussions highlight the local, contextual nature of the challenges and opportunities.     

Worktime control and work stress: the moderating effect of self-comparisons and social comparisons

Abstract

Perceived work-related stress has increased notably in recent years, reducing individuals’ well-being and increasing organizations’ and economies’ costs. This study focuses on worktime control as a key approach to reducing work stress, as the extant research on its effects reports inconsistent results. The study argues that comparisons play a major role in how work stress, conceptualized as effort-reward imbalance, occurs. Ordinary least squares is used to test hypotheses with a sample of 1721 employees from Germany to determine whether employees’ prior worktime control and employees’ referents’ worktime control affect the relationship between worktime control and work stress. Results show that (1) worktime control is negatively associated with the experience of work stress, (2) employees’ prior worktime control moderates the relationship between worktime control and work stress, and (3) there is no moderating effect of employees’ referents’ worktime control. The results are discussed in light of gift-exchange theory and related empirical findings.     

Market drivers of sustainability and sustainability learning capabilities: The moderating role of sustainability control systems

This study examines (i) the impact of market drivers of sustainability on the adoption of sustainability learning capabilities and (ii) the moderating role of sustainability control systems (SCS) on the relationship between market drivers of sustainability and sustainability learning capabilities. Drawing on the levers of control framework, stakeholder theory and organisational learning literature, survey data were collected from 175 large scale local and multinational companies operating in Sri Lanka. Findings reveal that market drivers of sustainability have a significant positive impact on sustainability learning capabilities. Whereas the interactive use of SCS shows a positive moderating impact, the diagnostic use of SCS shows a negative impact. The study enhances our understanding of (i) the influence of market drivers of sustainability on the adoption of sustainability learning capabilities and (ii) the use of SCS in enabling sustainability learning capabilities. The study reveals novel insights for managers responding to changing market drivers of sustainability, on how to (re)align different uses of SCS to enable sustainability learning capabilities.     

基于两阶段法的多车型卷烟配送路径优化研究

在烟草商业企业中,物流是其重要的环节,是连接客户与烟草企业间的纽带,其卷烟配送线路设计的合理与否直接影响到卷烟的配送效率和配送成本,就如何合理的规划线路成为卷烟配送的关键问题。文章以Q烟草公司为例,运用先分组后路线的两阶段法对问题进行求解,先利用K-means聚类算法对区域进行划分,再考虑工作量均衡的条件下引入遗传算法对区域进一步调整,最后利用混合遗传算法对各配送区域进行线路优化,通过实例从线路数、车辆数、空载率、配送里程及总成本等指标上可以看出两阶段法的配送效果更优。     

基于粒子群算法下的交叉口信号配时优化

为了合理地优化交叉口信号配时,通过分析交叉口的评价指标,建立了以车辆的平均延误、停车次数最小、交叉口整体通行能力最大、各相位有效绿灯时间和交叉口周期时长作为约束条件的数学模型。并通过改进前人研究基础上的动态加权系数,将多目标的非线性优化问题转化为单一目标的非线性规划问题,为了得出更科学稳定的解,提出了改善粒子群算法系统稳定性的2种方法,并将其与粒子群算法结合起来。然后以Matlab为求解工具,结合临邑市某一交叉口实例进行求解分析。最后的结果表明,在使用改进后的粒子群算法进行优化后交叉口通行能力较之现状提升了9%,延误下降了28%,停车次数下降了9%,且各项优化结果均优于Webster,改进后的算法在程序中运行300代,到216代才开始收敛,而未改进的算法稳定性较差,优化结果和收敛曲线则随着实验次数的变化而变化,最后的结论证明了该算法和模型的可靠性。     

告成煤矿水文地质特征分析及防治水措施

分析了告成煤矿的矿井充水水源等水文地质特征,针对性地提出了矿井防治水措施。针对顶板水治理的主要措施以疏排为主,对底板水的治理主要是进行注浆加固,将底板由含水层、导水层改造为相对隔水层。     

Accounting change and value creation in public services—Do relational archetypes make a difference in improving public service performance?

Evidence points out that the outcome of accounting change in local governments is not simply a matter of ‘corporate’ resource investments and change management activities to accounting system replacement. This paper examines the link between such corporate-level interventions and the patterns of value creation at street-level. It emphasizes a resource- and capability-driven approach to explore processes and consequences of an ‘embedded agency’-effect assigned to the street-level rationale of public service improvement. Considering a logic chain of cause-and-effect sequences, the data analysis provides evidence that corporate and street-level interventions are unique dimensions to signify the multiple patterns of accounting change in local governments. The supplementary effect of cross-functional relationships is also distinguished, considering the relational archetype as a mechanism to explain the emerging outcome state. Recognizing the distinction and the sequential effects of relational archetypes induces a refined typology of accounting change according to its processes and outcomes in local governments. The analysis is based on a comparative case study design to explore accrual accounting introduction in six German municipalities.     

The effect of external audits of internal control over financial reporting on financial reporting for clients of Big 4, Second-tier,and small audit firms

The external audit of internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) is a very expensive and contentious aspect of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act (SOX). Larger public firms were first required to file a management report on and have an external audit of ICFR in 2004. Smaller public firms were first required to file a management report on ICFR in 2007 but are exempt from the audit requirement. Whereas most related prior research investigates the combined effect of management and auditor reports on financial reporting, this study examines the distinct effect of auditor reports on reporting quality. For companies audited by small auditors, we find evidence that financial reporting quality improves with an auditor report on ICFR. We find no evidence that auditor ICFR reports improve reporting quality for clients of Big 4 or Second-tier audit firms. Our study adds to the debate on the applicability of SOX Section 404 to smaller firms.     

Do management reports on internal control over financial reporting improve financial reporting?

Sections 404a and 404b of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act require management and external auditors, respectively, to report on the adequacy of a company’s internal control over financial reporting (ICFR). Larger public firms were first required to file a management report and have an external audit of ICFR in 2004. Smaller public firms were first required to file a management report on ICFR in 2007 but are exempt from the attestation requirement. We investigate the distinct effect of management reports on financial reporting quality. We find that management reports on ICFR improve reporting quality and demonstrate that there are financial reporting benefits from the management report requirement on its own without attestation.     

物流中断风险分析与对策研究

物流企业运营过程中会遇到很多种风险,某些风险会导致物流中断。这些风险不仅包括一些导致物流中断、财产损失和人身伤亡的纯粹风险,还有经营风险、财务风险、投资风险、客户流失风险、人力资源管理风险等。由于风险管理主要关注的是纯粹风险。文章用风险管理的思想来研究物流中断的风险,包括物流中断的风险识别、分析、评价和风险的控制措施和持续改进的建议。