After the merger: now what?

The advantages of undertaking a linkage strategy are compelling; as more hospitals consider such, the material manager should be poised to capitalize upon strategic advantages afforded by such an occurrence and implement them. The very actions undertaken by this vital position within the organization could very easily determine the degree of success realized by a linkage strategy.     

Empowered to do what? Why?

This article reviews an approach to leverage business process reengineering and employee empowerment for not only cycle time and cost reduction opportunities, but also a more exciting and expanded role for the employee. It promotes the reduction of simple, routine tasks, and refocusing the improved skill level of today's employees on higher value adding activities.     

Donors: how much do they give in a lifetime?

In a relational approach to fundraising, nonprofit-making organisations have the task of developing profitable relationships with their supporters. This approach requires the definition of ‘lifetime value’ in order to assess its performance. Yet the paradox of calculating a lifetime value is that the only accurate definition of any particular individual's value can be made once they are no longer a donor – when they have died or have stopped giving. At this point they may appear of no use. However, it is by understanding past donors that present donors can be understood in terms of their existing and potential ongoing value. This paper, building on recent debate and research within the sector,[Sargeant, A. and McKenzie, J. (1998) ‘An Investigation of Donor Lifetime Value’, Paper presented to ICFM Conference, University of Warwick.] refers to the practicalities of creating and using not one, but a variety of measures from information sources that exist within such organisations. The paper specifically explores the way measures can be created and used. It raises a number of the practical issues involved in terms of accounting definitions and information availability. Understanding and using the value measures of supporters are key to ensuring that this relationship is dealt with in the most effective way for the organisation. Copyright © 1999 Henry Stewart Publications     

Customer delight and demand management: can they be integrated?

This article will supply methods of becoming trading partners in today's global market and will provide world-class approaches to improved responsiveness and customer satisfaction. Guidelines and actual how-to's for implementing and managing a customer-driven supply chain will be offered. Examples will be given of how both large and small organizations have increased profitability by eliminating non-value-added paperwork, improved their ability to respond to customer demand, and reduced procurement cycle times along the entire supply chain.     

大数据时代：要知道what，不是why

“什么是大数据？”、“跟我有什么关系？”很多人第一次听到大数据，心中一定会有这样的疑问。据《30杂志》报道，麦尔·荀伯格在千余名想了解未来趋势的观众面前。做了一场精彩易懂的演说，告诉了企业及民众。什么是大数据。     

Technology and Indian industry: what is liberalization changing?

This paper examines the process of liberalization in India, focusing on the implications for technology and industrial competitiveness. India's industrial and technology policy regime in the sixties and seventies was among the most inward-looking and protectionist anywhere outside the socialist bloc. Dilution of this restrictive policy regime began in the eighties but change has been relatively dramatic since 1991. The paper argues that firms have responded to liberalization by improving efficiency, importing technology and by increasing in-house R&D. However, viewed in comparison with other countries rather than its own past, India still has a long reform agenda pending.     

Regionalism in the nineties: what effect on trade?

We apply a gravity model to 1980–1996 annual nonfuel imports data for 58 countries to quantify the effects of recently created or revamped PTAs on trade. We modify the gravity equation to identify separate effects of PTAs on intrabloc trade, members’ total imports and their total exports and to test for significant changes in trade patterns following the creation of trade blocs. We find no indication that ‘new regionalism’ boosted intrabloc trade significantly and we find trade diversion only for the EU and EFTA. The latter also exhibit ‘export diversion’, which could indicate their imposing welfare costs on other countries. Latin American trade liberalization in the 1990s had a positive impact on bloc members’ imports and, usually, exports.     

Skill and value perceptions: how do they affect entrepreneurial intentions?

This paper starts from Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior to test the role of different perceptions on the individual’s intention to become an entrepreneur. Support has most often been found for this theory in the field of entrepreneurship. However, little is yet known about the way in which perceptions are formed. It may be argued that social values regarding entrepreneurship, and also personal skill perceptions, would both affect entrepreneurial intentions. Our objective, therefore, is testing the existence and reach of both effects. Empirical analysis has been carried out on a sample of 249 university students. Structural equations models have been used to test our hypotheses. Results generally confirm them, since values and skills do play a significant role in explaining intention. However, the role of perceived skills seems to be more relevant. Implications may be derived in several areas, and especially regarding entrepreneurship education.     

A healthy bottom line and quality patient care: can they coexist?

In summary, it is the writer's opinion that a healthy bottom line and quality patient care can coexist. With today's economic pressures and with more and tighter controls and regulations being imposed by the government and regulatory agencies, providers (especially hospitals) need to be cost efficient and cost effective. Will the cost-containment measures necessary to maintain a healthy bottom line reduce the quality of patient care? They needn't. In point, such measures might actually increase the quality of care by avoiding wasteful clinical practices. Quality patient care comprises three basic elements: value, service, and compassion. To omit any one of these ingredients is to remove the quality from patient care. Should this happen, no cost-containment measure will be enough to sustain a hospital. Financial accountability is essential; quality care is imperative. Blended together thoroughly, they are the recipe to survival--for the hospital and for the patient.     

Carry-trades on the yen and the Swiss franc: are they different?

Using monthly data from 1986 to 2009 for 11 major currencies against the U.S. dollar (USD), we find that interest rate differentials between nine of these currencies are generally positive (sample mean of 0.86%) but are strongly negative for Japan (mean of ?2.78%) and for Switzerland (mean of ?2.22%). Investigating empirical models of nominal exchange rate changes we find for all panels that about 2% of real exchange rate misalignments are corrected in the following month. We also find important differences across samples and for the two carry-trade currencies the key results are as follows. First, interest rate differentials have a negative impact on exchange rates: higher paying currencies should appreciate, contrary to the ex-ante uncovered interest rate parity (UIP) condition. We find that this result is very robust to money supply (M1) differentials serving as instrumental variables to inflation rates. In addition, these two currencies depreciate slightly when money supply (M1) differentials increase. Second, dummy variables for periods of market turmoil suggest a particularly strong appreciation of these currencies against the USD, consistent with the unwinding of carry-trade activities.     

Why do employees hold their vested stocks while they can sell them?

We proposed an integrated model of risk-balancing arguments and the emergence of psychological ownership to investigate employees' propensity of holding awarded stocks under a broad-based stock incentive plan. Analysis was conducted using a sample of 391 employees of a semiconductor foundry located in Taiwan. The results provided strong indication that psychological ownership motivation contribute to explain employees' willingness to hold vested stocks from broad-based stock plans. This study provide stimulating insight into the psychological mechanisms through which the individual's risk-aversion and wealth effects influence employees' intentions to hold vested stocks and further extends our understanding on how broad-based stock plans can develop an employees sense of ownership.     

Sovereign rating changes—Do they provide new information for stock markets?

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of sovereign rating changes on international financial markets using a comprehensive database of 42 countries, covering the major regions in the world over the period 1995–2003. In general, we find that rating agencies provide stock and foreign exchange markets with new tradable information. Specifically, rating upgrades (downgrades) significantly increased (decreased) USD denominated stock market returns and decreased (increased) volatility. Whereas the mean response is contributed evenly by the local currency stock returns and exchange rate changes that make up the USD returns, only the foreign exchange volatility was behind the USD denominated return volatility. In addition, we find significant asymmetric effects of rating announcements. The market responses – both return and volatility – are more pronounced in the cases of downgrades, foreign currency debt, emerging market debt, and during crisis periods. This study has important policy implications for international investors’ asset allocation plans and for regulatory bodies such as the Basel Committee who increasingly rely upon Moody's, Standard and Poor's and Fitch's ratings for their regulatory regimes.     

Is what you see what you get? Investigating the relationship between social media content and counterproductive work behaviors,alcohol consumption,and episodic heavy drinking

Abstract

Employers are increasingly using social networking website (SNW) content to screen applicants for employment despite the absence of much empirical support for this practice. The purpose of this study was to examine the validity of using SNW content to predict employee behavior. Specifically, we investigated the relationship between SNW content and counterproductive work behaviors (CWB), occurrence of workplace accidents, alcohol consumption, and episodic heavy drinking. Participants (N = 146 MBA and upper level undergraduate business students) self-reported demographic information and information about workplace counterproductive behavior. Participants also provided access to their SNW profile, which the researchers subsequently accessed in order to assess potentially compromising content. Results indicate SNW profiles are not associated with CWB or involvement in workplace accidents, while SNW profiles containing alcohol and drug content are associated with alcohol consumption and episodic heavy drinking. Our study is among the first to examine the relationship between SNW profile information and CWBs of interest to HRM personnel and provides evidence that practitioners should exercise caution in drawing inferences about workplace behaviors based on SNW profile information.