Board diversity in the United Kingdom and Norway: an exploratory analysis

This paper examines the evolving pattern of gender diversity of the boards of directors of leading Norwegian and British companies on a longitudinal basis. The period covered by the study covers the run up to proposed affirmative action legislation in Norway and, as such, affords an insight into corporate actions in this emerging institutional context. The findings demonstrate that, while board diversity has grown substantially in both countries in recent years, it has done so considerably more rapidly in Norway than in the United Kingdom. The analysis highlights the sectoral variation between the countries in the pattern and growth of board diversity and suggests that the vast majority of the overall growth in board diversity is the result of changing firm behaviour rather than sectoral shift in the United Kingdom or Norwegian economies. It is also shown that as diversity has increased there has been no fall in how experienced female directors are; neither is there evidence of a rise in the number of boards that female directors sit on. This suggests that the rapid growth in board diversity has been achieved without any fall in the quality of female directors.     

Financial programming in the framework of optimal control

Zusammenfassung Finanzprogrammierung im Rahmen optimaler Kontrolle. — Dieser Aufsatz ist eine Darstellung der Finanzprogrammierung, verstanden als Formulierung eines Bündels von quantitativen und koordinierten wirtschaftspolitischen Ma\nahmen zum Erreichen bestimmter ?konomischer Ziele innerhalb einer relativ kurzen Zeitspanne. Es wird postuliert, da\ ein Modell mit simultanen Gleichungen auf der Basis eines Flow-of-funds-Systems die Voraussetzung für Finanzprogrammierungist. Das in diesem Aufsatz dargestellte Modell teilt die Volkswirtschaft in die Sektoren privater Sektor, ?ffentlicher Sektor, Ausland und Banken-system und enth?lt daher vier sektorale Bilanzgleichungen, die Verhaltensgleichungen und die Definitionsgleichungen. Als Zielvariable werden das Produktionsniveau und die Ver?nderungen der Netto-Devisenreserven gew?hlt. Die Transmissionsmechanismen und die unterschiedlichen Auswirkungen von Geld- und Fiskalpolitik in Form von ?nderungen der heimischen Nettokredite des Bankensystems und der ?ffentlichen Kapitalausgaben werden in diesem theoretischen Rahmen diskutiert. Es wird hervorgehoben, da\ zwar die erforderliche Ver?nderung des heimischen Nettokredits in einem Finanzprogramm ann?hernd ermittelt werden kann, indem man die ?nderung der heimischen Liquidit?t voraussch?tzt und davon die angestrebte ?nderung der Netto-Devisenreserven abzieht; die genauen Gr?\en für beide Instrumente müssen aber gemeinsam bestimmt werden, da beide Instrumente beide Zielvariablen beeinflussen. Der Schlu\teil des Aufsatzes behandelt die Anwendung der Kontrolltheorie in der Finanzprogrammierung unter der Bedingung der Sicherheit. Es wird gezeigt, da\ dann, wenn die Zielfunktion quadratisch und das Finanzprogrammierungsmodell linear ist — so wie es in dem Aufsatz dargestellt wird — die optimale Politik die Form einer linearen Rückkopplungs-Kontrollgleichung annimmt, d. h. die erforderlichen wirtschaftspolitischen Instrumente k?nnen als eine lineare Funktion der verz?gerten endogenen Variablen und der exogenen Faktoren ausgedrückt werden, zu denen auch die Zielwerte der Zielvariablen z?hlen. Zur Illustration werden die Parameter des Modells mit Daten für die Philippinen gesch?tzt, und die optimale Kontrollgleichung wird abgeleitet.

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Résumé La programmation financière dans le cadre du contr?le optimum. — Cet article est une exposition de la programmation financière définie comme formulation d’une série des mesures politiques quantitatives et coordonnées avec l’intention d’arriver aux certains buts économiques dans l’espace d’une période future relativement brève. Nous proposons qu’un modèle d’équation-simultanée construit sur la base d’un schème ?flow-of-funds? est essentiel pour la programmation financière. Dans le modèle spécifié dans l’article, l’économie est subdivisée dans un secteur privé, un secteur de gouvernement, un secteur étranger et un système bancaire. La forme structurelle du modèle, c’est pourquoi, comprend quatre restrictions de balance sectorielle ensemble avec les relations de réactions et les identités de définition. Nous choisissons le niveau de la production et le changement des réserves de change nettes pour les variables de but. Dans le cadre théorique nous discutons le mécanisme de transmission et les effets de différentiel des politiques monétaires et fiscales en forme du changement du crédit local net du système bancaire et, respectivement, des dépenses de capitaux du gouvernement. Nous soulignons que — bien que le changement nécessaire du credit local net dans un programme financier puisse être approché en predisant le changement de la liquidité locale et en soustraisant le changement de but des réserves de change nettes de lui — les magnitudes exactes des deux instruments doivent être déterminées jointement parce que les deux instruments affectuent les deux variables de but. La part finale de l’article concerne d’application de la Théorie de Contr?le sur la programmation financière sous les conditions de la certitude. Nous démonstrons que dans le cas où la fonction de but est carrée et le modèle de programmation financière est linéaire comme le modèle présenté dans l’article, la politique optimum prend la forme d’une linéaire équation de contrℓe de réaction, c’est-à-dire, les instruments nécessaires de politique peuvent être exprimé comme fonction linéaire des variables endogènes retardées et des facteurs exogènes en incluant les valeurs de but des variables de but. Pour l’illustrer, nous estimons les paramètres du modèle en utilisant les données pour les Philippines, et nous dérivons l’équation optimum de contr?le.

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Resumen Programación financiera en el marco de un control óptimo. — Este artículo consiste en una expositión de la programación financiera, definida como la formulatión de un set de medidas de política cuantitativas y coordinadas con el fin de alcanzar ciertas metas económicas dentro de un período futuro relativamente corto. Se propone, que un modelo de ecuaciones simultáneas construido sobre la basis de un esquema de flujo de fondos es esencial para la programación financiera. En el modelo especificado en el articulo, la economía se ha sectorizado en un sector privado, un sector estatal, un sector externo y un sector hancario. La forma estructural del modelo comprende, por lo tanto, cuatro restricciones de equilibrio sectoriales junto con relaciones de comportamiento y las identidades deficionales. El nivel de productión y el cambio en reservas extranjeras netas se eligen como variables de meta. Dentro del marco teórico se discuten los mecanismos de transmisión y los efectos diferenciales de politicas monetarias y fiscales en las formas de variatión del crédito doméstico neto del sistema bancario y gastos de capital del gobierno respectivamente. Se subraya, que a pesar de que el cambio requerido en el crédito doméstico neto en un programa financiero puede aproximarse pronosticando la variation en liquidez doméstica y sustrayendo de la misma el cambio programado como meta para las reservas extranjeras, las magnitudes precisas de ambos instrumentes deben determinarse conjuntamente, ya que ambos instrumentes afectan las dos variables-metas. La parte final del articulo se ocupa de la aplicación de la teorfa de control en la programación financiera bajo condiciones de certeza. Se muestra que el caso donde la función objetivo es cuadrática y el modelo de programación financiera es lineal, como aquél presentado en este artículo, la política óptima toma la forma de una ecuación de control lineal de realimentación, p. ej., los instrumentes de política requeridos pueden expresarse como una función lineal de las variables endógenas retrasadas y de factores exógenos, incluyendo los valores-meta de las variables-meta. Con el propósito de ilustración, los parámetras del modelo se estiman utilizando dates de las Filipinas, y la ecuación de control óptimo derivada.

     

Accountable Management Reforms: Why the Norwegian Hospital Reform Experiment Got Lost in Implementation

There is an international tendency to replace governmental funding based on fixed grants by different reforms implying accountable management methods. In this article we focus on the implementation problems of New Public Management reforms in the Norwegian hospital sector. These reforms are built on a belief that more accountable methods will improve efficiency and better resource allocation. The term New Public Management includes different cost-improvement programmes like Prospective Payment Systems, which were introduced as a new basis of funding in four Norwegian hospitals during a three year experimental period. The studies presented here support the findings from similar reforms in other countries, stating that there are very few, if any, documented efficiency gains by these reforms. The explanation may be that the reforms have disregarded the importance of internal organisational processes, like high quality management, communication and participation as parts of the implementation phases.     

Combining work and informal care: the importance of caring organisations

Population ageing and rising costs of long‐term care mean that organisations will be confronted in the future with a growing number of employees who combine paid work with providing informal care to a relative or non‐kin. Combining work and informal care successfully partly depends on job and care‐related features, but more information is needed on the importance of organisational aspects in this regard. The impact of organisational support on work outcomes (work–care balance and perceived need for job adaptations) was studied among 1,991 employed informal caregivers in 50 different organisations. Multilevel logistic regression analyses revealed that a heavy care burden decreased the odds of combining work and care successfully. Caregivers who felt supported by colleagues and supervisors, and who worked in supportive organisations had higher odds of good work outcomes. The findings imply that organisations should be explicit about their concern for informal caregivers and be particularly aware of colleagues with heavy care responsibilities.     

Doing by learning: Embedded application systems

We argue that the computerized information system should not look like a system on its own. Rather, it should be conceived as an inherent part of the work of its users. We therefore introduce the concept of an embedded system, which describes work tasks and organization. Computer‐supported information tasks are embedded in this environment: They are not parts of a system separated from other activities. This concept is based on the experiences gained during the development of a user‐interface prototype, derived from a theoretical frame of reference, called act orientation, to information systems, in which all computerized tasks are interpreted as acts performed by the actual user. Our suggestion continues the tradition of on‐line help and support, reaching radically deeper than usual in related approaches. We expect that our suggestion will, when applied, improve the control, productivity, quality of the outcome of work, and quality of working life, assessed from the user's point of view.     

Televised Consumption: Women,Advertisers and the Early Daytime Television Industry

This article looks at ways in which the US broadcasting and advertising industries conceptualized the female consumer in the immediate Post War period. It explores the emergence of daytime television and discusses broadcasters' views of their predominantly female audience. The article argues that by grasping the underlying principles that were developed in the early daytime television industry, one can gain a better understanding, not only of the manner in which female audience members were addressed in the 1950s, but also, to some extent, of the ways mass media address women today.     

Managerialism and Profession‐Based Logic: The Use of Accounting Information in Changing Hospitals

The hospital sector has undergone significant management reforms over the last decades. These reforms include more use of accounting information. This paper focuses on the kinds of logic that guide clinical managers’ perception of their management control practices when including accounting information in decisions. A survey study was undertaken among clinical managers, and it was completed by interviews to go deeper into the management control processes in three large hospitals in the middle and northern parts of Norway. We found that there is a triangle of logic which may change and form different patterns, according to different contexts and variations in professional background.     

The effect of public ownership and deregulation in the Scandinavian airline industry

We analyse why deregulation resulted in a temporary strong reduction in prices in Sweden, whereas in Norway the prices did not change significantly. SAS and Linjeflyg merged when the Swedish market was deregulated, whereas attempts to merge SAS and Braathens SAFE did not succeed. Upon deregulation in Sweden some of the carriers operating charter markets or regional secondary routes decided to enter the main routes. This put pressure on prices. Similar entries did not take place in the Norwegian market. We analyse whether the duopoly between SAS and Braathens SAFE is characterised by tacit collusion.     

Appetizing learning in Swedish comprehensive schools: an attempt to employ food and tasting in a new form of experimental education

The word taste has several meanings: biopsychological, and cultural and social. Taste also influences food choice, though there is a widespread belief that tasty food is not synonymous with healthy eating patterns. In Sweden compulsory school daily meals are provided and Home Economics is a compulsory subject, while tasting lessons form an additional experimental form of education. The aim of this study has been to make a general evaluation of tasting lessons in four fifth‐year classes. The focus of the results is on pupils’ learning about, and interest in, food, and the opinions and reflections of teachers, catering staff and school heads. The participants were three professional focus groups comprising staff from four schools, and 48 pupils (eight groups with boys and girls in separate groups) from the same schools. Results showed that the children were prepared to be exposed to different foodstuffs, and the adults were prepared to be exposed to new educational methods. Two stages of children's learning have been described in connection with tasting: practice and experience, and verbalization and reflection.