Benefit of Employees and Motivation for Earnings Manipulation—— A Case Study of Employee Shares

The employee shares of Guilin Jiqi became tradable in stock exchanges from June 2000. The firm coincidently made up her profit disclosed in the semi-annual report. After ruling out other explanations, we find that the fraud of Guilin Jiqi seems to be intended to help her employees （not including top managers） to reap profits at the expense of misled investors. Our findings offer a potential insight into relating employee shares to insider selling.     

Co-Production and the Co-Creation of Value in Public Services: A suitable case for treatment?

Co-production is currently one of cornerstones of public policy reform across the globe. Inter alia, it is articulated as a valuable route to public service reform and to the planning and delivery of effective public services, a response to the democratic deficit and a route to active citizenship and active communities, and as a means by which to lever in additional resources to public service delivery. Despite these varied roles, co-production is actually poorly formulated and has become one of a series of ‘woolly-words’ in public policy. This paper presents a conceptualization of co-production that is theoretically rooted in both public management and service management theory. It argues that this is a robust starting point for the evolution of new research and knowledge about co-production and for the development of evidence-based public policymaking and implementation.     

Marketing social missions—adopting social marketing for social entrepreneurship? A conceptual analysis and case study

• In aiming for voluntary behavioral change, social marketing may be particularly attractive for social entrepreneurs, but conversely, they may not have the resources or knowledge for conducting full-blown social marketing campaigns. In response to the growing importance and role of social entrepreneurship in tackling social problems and the lack of research concerning how social marketing may play a role in such organizations, the purpose of this paper is to develop a deeper conceptual understanding of how social marketing may be of use to social entrepreneurial organizations. The research reports on a case analysis of One Drop and its Aqua expo and the utilization of social marketing in pursuit of its goal to achieve water conservation in the Northern Hemisphere. The research shows the adoption of elements of social marketing but not a conscious adoption of social marketing as a strategy.

Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Informativeness of experiments for MEU—A recursive definition

The well-known Blackwell theorem states the equivalence of statistical informativeness and economic valuableness. Çelen (2012) generalizes this theorem, which is well-known for subjective expected utility (seu), to maxmin expected utility (meu) preferences. We demonstrate that the underlying definition of the value of information used in Çelen (2012) is in contradiction with the principle of recursively defined utility. As a consequence, Çelen’s framework features dynamic inconsistency. Our main contribution consists in the definition of a value of information for meupreferences that is compatible with recursive utility and thus respects dynamic consistency.     

Luxury products for the circular economy? A case study of Bang & Olufsen

This paper examines whether luxury products can support a circular economy. This is done through a literature review of luxury products and the links to circular economy, as well as a case study of Bang & Olufsen (B&O). The literature review revealed links between some of the core characteristics of luxury products and the circular economy. This included aspects such as the high quality, durability, service schemes, extended warranties, and large aftermarkets. The case study supports the links between the inner circles in the circular economy (maintenance, repair, and reuse) and some of the core characteristics of luxury products. B&O produces products with a long lifespan, has extended warranties, repair and service schemes, spare part availability for 8 years, an aftermarket, and leasing schemes. B&O also does reconditioning of components for its repair loop, conducts dismantling tests, marks plastic parts, and has a negative list that excludes certain hazardous components.     

Islam and Human Rights: A Growing Rapprochement?

Can Islamic thought provide a basis for a fully developed theory of human rights? This article begins with an examination of the tensions between religion in general and the secular framing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). From a historical perspective, it then delves into the history of the relationship between Muslim political and religious leaders and the UDHR. With that background in mind, the author analyzes the positions of three influential Muslim scholars on human rights: Khaled Abou El Fadl's emphasis on ethics and law; Abdulaziz Sachedina's recent book Islam and the Challenge of Human Rights (2009), in which he urges the traditionalists to develop a “public theology”; and finally, Abdullahi An‐Na'im's focus on shari'a and the secular state. He concludes that the majority of Muslims worldwide remain more conservative than these authors, and yet they overwhelmingly support the notion of human rights. This bodes well for the growing influence of such reformist thinking and, as a result, for the retooling of traditional Islamic jurisprudence in addressing human rights.     

Integration of strategy, budgetary management and internal control system： A case of Sinochem Corporation

How budgetary management as a tool for planning and controlling of business operations is aligned with strategy and internal control system may not be problematic to American firms but is the most challengeable to large corporations in China. The case of Sinochem Corporation demonstrates the ways that budgetary management is linked with 3-year strategic planning at corporate level via yearly operating plans at business levels, and that budgets are integrated with internal control system into a device of task control to monitor whether business operations are on the track toward strategy. It is learned from the case that Chinese corporations have initiated different practices than American firms in solving the same issues.     

The implementation of the Wroclaw taxonomic method for the identification and evaluation of problem areas in the Warmia and Mazury Region in Poland – A case study

Problem areas are targeted by regional policy. The type and scope of spatial conflicts are analyzed to determine the most appropriate spatial planning measures. In this study, a problem area was defined as an integral spatial unit which is characterized by growth barriers, accumulation of negative phenomena, untapped resources and potential, and where support measures are required to promote growth and eliminate the existing obstacles to development. This study identifies and analyzes problem areas in the Region of Warmia and Mazury in Poland based on counties as the main taxonomic unit. For the needs of the analysis, it was assumed that problem areas are characterized by a high prevalence of adverse demographic and/or socioeconomic phenomena which constitute growth barriers and prevent these areas from harnessing their potential and the local resources. Spatio-functional parameters were taken into consideration to comprehensively describe spatial conditions in the analyzed region. Spatial variations were analyzed with the use of the Wrocław taxonomic method, where demographic, socioeconomic and spatio-functional criteria were evaluated separately. The Wrocław taxonomic method has never been described in English-language academic papers. According to research, areas with the greatest accumulation of socioeconomic and demographic problems in the Region of Warmia and Mazury are situated along the Polish border. The results can be used in the process of setting directions for development and implementing remedy measures at the regional level.     

How can we correct for contingent valuation bias? A case study of the Macau Orchestra

The long‐standing contingent valuation method (CVM) is one of the most controversial techniques in economics. But it still remains the main means of assisting policymakers in understanding the preferences of ordinary citizens in valuing a range of non‐market goods believed to have positive external benefits. In the absence of viable alternatives, it is necessary that this method continues to be refined. This is especially important as CVM is increasingly being applied outside the area of environmental economics and outside the Western socio‐political context where theoretical advances have previously been made. This article examines three sources of bias in CVM in the context of valuing cultural goods: information, mixed good, and payment vehicle bias. A small case study of a publicly funded orchestra in an Asian city, the Macau Orchestra, is used to provide a preliminary exploration of the issues discussed.     

The collective bargaining of flexicurity: A case for sector‐level analysis? The Italian chemical and metalworking sectors compared

Although employment relations in Europe have long been seen as a factor of rigidity, limiting managerial discretion and adaptability, in the last 30 years, they have witnessed a trend towards decentralisation of collective bargaining and negotiations increasingly centred on flexibility–security trade‐offs between employers and employees. Research on the contribution of collective bargaining to the so‐called flexicurity has mostly focused on national‐level institutional arrangements. In this article, we contend that meso‐level differences need to feature more prominently in the debate. Our comparison of two sectors in the same country (chemicals and metalworking in Italy) shows that decentralisation has divergent effects on flexicurity issues depending in particular on differences in market structures and on depth of bargaining. The interplay between these two factors affects what we refer to as procedural security, which we view as important in ensuring sustainable trade‐offs between flexibility and security.     

Collection of recyclables from cubes – A case study

Collection of recyclable materials is a major part of reverse logistics and an important issue in sustainable logistics. In this paper we consider a case study where paper and glass are collected from recycling cubes and transported to a treatment facility and processed for reuse. We show how outsourcing the planning and transportation of this service may result in conflicts of interest and unsustainable solutions. Finally, we suggest an alternative payment structure which can lead to a common goal, overall financial sustainability, and an improved financial situation for both the public company and the logistics provider.     

Globalisation and monetary policy—A FAVAR analysis for the G7 and the eurozone

We assess the significance of global shocks for the world economy and national central banks and governments. More specifically, we investigate whether monetary policy has become less effective in the wake of financial globalization. We also analyze whether there is increasing uncertainty for central banks due to globalization-driven changes in the national economic structure. A FAVAR framework is applied to identify structural shocks on a world level and their effect on other global and national variables. To estimate our macroeconomic model, we employ quarterly data from Q1 1984 to Q4 2007 for the G7 countries and the euro area. According to our results, global liquidity shocks significantly influence the world economy and also various national economies. But common shocks driven by real estate prices and GDP also turn out to be significant at a global scale. These results prove to be robust across different specifications.     

Human Resource Controlling and Human Resource Management： Practice of Small and Medium-Sized Building Companies in the Czech Republic

The aim of this paper is to define the nature, present the possibilities, and discuss the problems of using human resource controlling in small and medium-sized building companies. This paper is based on the assumption that expedient human resource controlling is an effective human resource management tool that achieves the required performance of employees and expected competitiveness of a building company. This paper uses the results of a questionnaire survey conducted in November 2013 to analyze human resource management in building companies in the Czech Republic and specify the organization and conditions of human resource management. Some 81 small （less than 50 employees） and 66 medium-sized （50-249 employees） building companies operating in the Czech Republic took part in the questionnaire survey. The results of the questionnaire survey showed the lack of concept and random nature of human resource management in most small and medium-sized building companies. Of course, in terms of the present economic trend, it is above all important for small and medium-sized companies to develop their adaptability to the building market and to be able to deal with a variety of construction works. It is effective human resource management supported by expedient human resources that serves this purpose.