Logic paradox under current corporate finance

The current corporate finance is based on the theory framework of new classical economics. Therefore, the main contents such as free cash flow, NPV method and capital structure decision-making are still based on the balanced price of product and capital markets, they still can＇t reflect the essential character of corporation. The logic paradox, causes the current corporate finance study under a more and more embarrassing circumstance in the front of enterprise financial management practice, with the feature of value management.     

Theories of punishment and empirical trends in corporate criminal sanctions

Economists who have studied crime and punishment have long advocated imposing an ‘optimal penalty’ equal to harm divided by the probability of detection. Recent theoretical advances have augmented this theory in the context of corporate crime, by examining the role of individuals within an organization convicted of crime. This revised theory takes into account the principal-agent relationship inherent in the employer-employee contract. This paper reviews optimal penalty theory as it applies to corporate crime, and derives its testable implications. These empirical implications are then tested against a sample of organizations convicted of federal crimes in the USA. It is shown that current prosecutorial and sentencing practice is consistent with optimal penalty theory to the extent that it calls for (1) increased sanctions with increased harm, and (2) increased individual liability when the organization cannot afford to compensate for the harm imposed. Several other empirical issues are examined, including the penalty for going to trial and the ‘deep pocket’ effect.     

Employment equality programmes in South Africa: current trends

Using data from a longitudinal survey the authors critically evaluate how equal opportunity programmes in South Africa have led to changes in internal labour markets of medium and large organisations. The article identifies factors associated with superior performance in this area, examines proposed legislation, and makes recommendations for public policy regarding regulation of employment equity.     

电子政务的现状与趋势

在我国,“电子政务”从一个只有某些热衷于网络经济的IT人士把玩的概念演变为如今一场轰轰烈烈的“市场运动”也就是两年的时间。2002年可谓是中国的“电子政务年”,这一年无论在电子政务的理论、政策、实施还是在其市场与技术的发展方面都取得了巨大的进展,获得了许多有益的经验、涌现了一些成功的经验。但毋庸讳言,在这种快速发展的背后,也伴随着不少的障碍和问题。对我国未来电子政务的发展进行深入地思考,并从中理出切实可行的观点与措施,则是当前的一大课题。本刊特此选载《中国电子政务报告》的部分观点,诸如:提升政府门户网站在电子政务建设中的战略地位,以门户网站作为弥补“金”字工程的“条块分割”弊端的工具;要按照系统工程的思维方法去实施、操作和实践等。这些观点对完善和优化电子政务的建设将无疑起到重要的指导作用。     

Informing or obfuscating stakeholders: Integrated reporting and the information environment

The global development of integrated reporting (IR) is underpinned by the recognition of increased complexity of businesses and stakeholder demands for information relating to financial performance, management, corporate governance, and sustainability being provided in a single, coherent document which facilitates stakeholder decision making. This paper examines the lexical properties of IR following the introduction of the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) Framework. Using an international sample, we find that when adopted voluntarily, IR are lengthier, use more complex language, and contain more boilerplate statements. Our findings suggest that without regulation, firms may continue to produce long and difficult to understand reports in fear of being perceived as omitting “bad news.” This fear might be justified as we find loss of analyst following and greater analyst uncertainty when voluntarily adopted IR is concise. In the regulated setting of South Africa, however, we find IR has become more concise, and firms that produce longer and more complex documents suffer from a deterioration of their information environment. Our findings suggest that regulators and practitioners need to be cognizant of the potential for an increased volume in reporting to obfuscate the message rather than inform stakeholders.     

Determinants of corporate borrowing: Some evidence from the Indian corporate structure

In contrast to previous empirical work on capital structure, which is mainly confined to the United States and a few other advanced countries, this paper attempts to study the capital structure choice of developing countries through a case study of the Indian corporate sector. The paper shows that the optimal capital structure choice is influenced by factors such as growth, cash flow, size, and product and industry characteristics.     

Financial constraints and corporate investments during the current financial and economic crisis: The credit crunch and investment decisions of Slovenian firms

We investigate the effect of financial constraints on the investment decisions of Slovenian firms during the current financial and economic crisis. By estimating the error-correction model and the Euler-equation specification, we found that corporate investments were significantly affected by financial constraints during the crisis. The effect of financial constraints intensified in 2009 and alleviated slightly in 2010, although still being significantly more intense than before the crisis hit the economy. By estimating a switching regression model with unknown sample separation that enabled us to address the problem of judgemental sample separation, we were also able to estimate the error-correction model separately for financially constrained and financially unconstrained firms. The results indicate that financial constraints have a significant effect on both financially constrained and financially unconstrained firms, although corporate investments were more severely affected in financially constrained firms.     

城市要科学发展--当前城市发展值得注意的几个倾向问题

我国城市发展建设进入一个充满机遇和挑战的新阶段.城市化、生态城市、宜居城市、紧凑城市、旧城改建等成为热门话题.作者就城市发展中的几个倾向问题提出一些看法:城市化不等于大城市化;生态城市不等于森林城市;宜居城市不等于富人城市;紧凑城市不等于高层化城市;旧城改建不等于重建城市.     

Internet use for corporate environmental reporting: current challenges—technical benefits—practical guidance

The huge opportunities of using the internet for corporate reporting are arranged in a comprehensive system of technical benefits. In order to give a tangible example and describe practical use thoroughly, the benefits are focused on environmental reporting but they can be transferred in major parts also to financial, social or sustainability reporting—seen as a currently emerging trend towards integrated financial, environmental and social reporting. In more detail, the system of internet‐specific benefits is illustrated by four main categories: benefits concerning the underlying purposes of publishing reports, benefits concerning the entire reporting process, benefits concerning the report contents and benefits concerning the report design. In terms of corporate reporting, professional internet use will enhance the way in which companies give information, communicate and manage their business internally and externally, benefiting all members involved that are reporting companies, addressed key target groups and other stakeholders such as standard setting institutions and benchmarking organizations. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment     

Institutional investors,corporate governance and the performance of the corporate sector

Proportions of equity held by institutional investors—pension funds, insurance companies and mutual funds—are rising across all OECD countries. Meanwhile institutions are becoming more influential in corporate governance, even in bank-dominated countries, inter alia due to international investment, pension reform and EMU. We provide two forms of evidence on the effects of institutional corporate governance on corporate performance. First we offer a literature survey on micro evidence, the outcome of which is mixed, but on balance suggesting a positive effect on equity returns. We contend that these micro studies face a difficulty that they cannot capture effects of governance initiatives whose effects go wider than “target firms”. Accordingly, we present results for the reduced form empirical relationship between institutional share holding and corporate sector performance at an economy-wide level. These are consistent with significant effects which differ between “Anglo-Saxon” and “relationship banking” countries. For example, institutions appear to accompany lower investment and higher dividends in the former.     

Spirituality and leadership: Engaging both in higher education

“Although American higher education can justifiably take pride in its capacity to develop the student's ability to manipulate the material world through its programs in science, medicine, technology, and commerce, it has paid relatively little attention to the student's “inner” development—the sphere of values and beliefs, emotional maturity, moral development, spirituality, and self‐understanding.” —from the Foreword to Encouraging Authenticity and Spirituality in Higher Education by Alexander W. Astin and Helen S. Astin     

Engaging the professional: organising call centre agents in India

The extremely challenging external environment poses numerous challenges to union formation among call centre agents in India. Complicating matters is the acquired professional identity of call centre agents. In this scenario, the union organising call centre employees envisaged that partnership with employers was the only possibility acceptable to call centre agents, employer organisations and society at large, enabling them to regain some acceptability and credibility for the heretofore tainted Indian trade union movement.     

Enhancing NDPB accountability: improving relationships with upward and downward stakeholders

This paper examines the relationship between Northern Ireland Non-departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) and two key stakeholders, sponsoring government departments and service users, and outlines how this relationship can impact on a NDPB discharging its accountability responsibilities effectively. After discussing the concept of accountability, the paper presents the findings of a survey of, and interviews with, NDPB board members. Whilst the consensus was that NDPBs were effective in discharging accountability, there was frustration with an apparent absence of an arms’ length relationship with certain sponsoring departments and limited engagement with service users.     

从生态学看企业文化的生存与发展

企业文化的生态圈 企业文化与自然生态系统一样,是由众多因素构成、具有多层次结构及关联错综复杂的动态系统.如在自然生态系统中,有构成生物群聚的植物、动物,众多的群聚相互联系、彼此依存,植物从萌芽开始要适应周围的土壤、气候等环境才能成长.这些,共同创造出一个适于大多数生物依存的生态环境.而在企业中,企业文化不是封闭和孤立的,而是开放的,是与周围环境、氛围相融合、相联系的.企业文化的创建和发展也与植物一样,它的周围也需要有适合成长的土壤、环境、气候.这些因素关联密切、相互依存,共同形成一个能满足彼此需求的生态系统.     

企业利益相关者财权配置研究

传统的“股东主权”治理关注的是股东利益保护,而公司财务治理主要关注股东和经营者的企业内部财权配置。随着利益相关者理论的发展,现代企业的利益相关者都应有平等机会,享有企业剩余索取权和剩余控制权,企业的财权配置应不仅是内部财权配置,还应扩展到包括外部利益相关者在内的外部财权配置,以及为保证利益相关者财权配置实现的相机治理机制。     

Migration: the trends converge

Formerly, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the US have served as permanent destinations for immigrants, while Europe's migrants have moved to more northerly countries to work for a time and then returned home. From 1973-1975 Europe's recruitment of foreign workers virtually ended, although family reunion for those immigrants allowed in was encouraged. Problems resulting from this new settlement migration include low paying jobs for immigrant women, high unemployment, and inadequate education for immigrant children. Illegal migrants from Latin America and the Caribbean enter the US and Canada each year while illegal North African immigrants enter Italy, Spain, and Greece. North America, Australia, and Europe have all received political refugees from Asia and Latin America. Increasingly, these foreigners compete in the labor market rather than simply fill jobs the native workers do not want. All the receiving countries have similar policy priorities: 1) more effective ways for controlling and monitoring inflows and checking illegal immigration; 2) encouraging normal living patterns and accepting refugees; and 3) integrating permanent migrants into the host country. Europe's public immigration encouragement prior to the first oil shock, has left some countries with a labor force that is reluctant to return home. It is unlikely that Europe will welcome foreign labor again in this decade, since unemployment among young people and women is high and family reunion programs may still bring in many immigrants. Less immigration pattern change will probably occur in North America, Australia, and New Zealand since these countries' populations are still growing and wages are more flexible. Immigration, regulated by policy, and emigration, determined by market forces, now are working in the same direction and will likely reduce future migration flows.     

Business model innovation in corporate entrepreneurship: exploratory insights from corporate accelerators

Corporate accelerators are a rapidly growing entrepreneurial phenomenon occurring in different business contexts and business models within corporate entrepreneurship. Corporate accelerators are considered as an innovation fostering approach within new ventures provided by start-ups. The aim of the paper is twofold: firstly, to explore the motives behind corporations’ engagement with start-ups in launching corporate accelerators, and secondly, to identify the corporate benefits and challenges of this business model innovation. The research design is based on a qualitative interpretative approach exploiting a triangulation of methods by using in-depth interviews (IDI) with corporate managers involved in development of corporate accelerators as well as a focus group interview (FGI) with industry experts. In addition, secondary data were applied to strengthen the exploratory research. The study demonstrates that a wide range of benefits stem from the accelerator activities which can ultimately can initiate changes in large companies. Our research expands on prior findings and suggests that corporate accelerators are driven by internal and external push and pull motives. The study contributes to expanding the scope of corporate entrepreneurship research in regard to the challenges and benefits of corporate accelerators. It provides evidence that corporate accelerators are a source of innovation that can be used to foster entrepreneurial-market logic and entrepreneurial learning.

     

Comparative HRM: European views and perspectives

The US originated notion of HRM has been widely accepted across the world – and also widely criticized. The underlying features of the European economy are different from those of the USA and it is argued that these have led to a different approach to HRM being developed in Europe. Differences in features such as more limited individualism, a greater role for the State, different patterns of consultation and patterns of ownership, are linked to these different practices and have led to more varied patterns of research and a more critical literature.