Product choice for a firm selling related products: A parimutuel application

This paper provides a framework for analysis of product choice by a multiproduct firm selling several products whose demands are interrelated. The decision making process of a racetrack-racebook regarding the parimutuel wagering products (both number and which ones) it should supply is illustrated. A racetrack-racebook is a business entity, which offers its patrons the opportunity to wager, not only on live horse racing conducted at the racetrack but also on races simulcast to that racetrack from a variety of racetracks, from both in-state and out-of-state locations. The demands for these wagering products are interrelated and these interrelationships play a key role in determining the number (and which ones) of these wagering opportunities that will be supplied. Based on the experience of a specific racetrack-racebook, these demand functions are estimated econometrically and the role of these interrelated demands in the supply decision is explored. An algorithm is developed to search over all possible product portfolios to determine that combination of products yielding the highest sales, revenue, or profit.     

Farmers’ motivations,risk perceptions and risk management strategies in a developing economy: Bangladesh experience

Aquaculture farmers’ risk perceptions and risk management strategies have still received little attention in agricultural research. Therefore, an exploratory study has been undertaken to provide empirical insight into Bangladeshi coastal shrimp farmers’ risk perceptions and risk management responses. Data from our study show that 95% of farmers have no formal training in shrimp aquaculture. Shrimp farmers’ cooperative societies operate in only 13.3% of the studied areas and only 15% of shrimp farmers are involved with these cooperative societies. The results reveal that shrimp diseases, price and availability of quality shrimp seeds, exploitation by intermediaries and uncertainty about the future demand for shrimp in foreign markets are perceived as the most important sources of risk. On the other hand, prevention of disease, timely supply of shrimp seeds, elimination of middlemen from the supply chain and farm management training are considered among the best methods to manage the risks in the shrimp‐farming business. We also observe some disparities in farmers’ perceptions. For instance, farmers mentioned that removal of influence of middlemen from supply chain is essential for the betterment of their business. However, they did not consider market monitoring, direct contract with processors and improved marketing facilities as important risk management strategies, although these factors play a significant role in reducing the influence of intermediaries and private money lenders.     

Earnings quality,bankruptcy risk and future cash flows

Prior research suggests that the quality of accruals may be compromised where the magnitude of accruals is abnormally high, due to the presence of errors in the accruals‐estimation process (Dechow and Dichev, 2002; Richardson, 2003). A consequence of this is that abnormal accruals may not map into realised future cash flows to the extent that would normally be expected of accruals data. Indeed, the association may be insignificant if abnormal accruals consist primarily of estimation noise. Our study investigates whether abnormal accruals for UK firms provide incremental insight into future cash flows. In particular, our paper may be viewed as a development of Subramanyam (1996). We find a significant positive association between abnormal accruals and one‐year‐ahead operating cash flows. This provides a rationale for the pricing of abnormal accruals by the market (Subramanyam, 1996; Xie, 2001) and suggests that abnormal accruals are not merely the products of noise in the accruals‐estimation process. However, our results are conditional upon the probability of one‐year‐ahead bankruptcy risk (Charitou et al., 2004). We also find that abnormal accruals possess small but significant explanatory power for future cash flows even when controlling for the disaggregation of accruals into individual items (Barth et al., 2001).     

Transfer of Marketing Knowledge Within Business‐Nonprofit Collaborations

Companies often develop collaborative joint ventures with nonprofits, and sometimes help their nonprofit partners with the marketing activities associated with these projects. Often, the assistance furnished is embodied in a transfer of knowledge from a firm to a nonprofit and involves knowledge about marketing techniques, strategies and methods. This article presents the results of a survey concerning the extents, natures and effectiveness of marketing knowledge transfers taking place between 291 UK enterprises and their nonprofit partner organisations. The survey covered the knowledge transfer methods that companies employed, the scope of the knowledge communicated, the factors that encouraged or impeded marketing knowledge transfer, and the considerations that determined which partner completed most of the marketing tasks associated with a project. It emerged that knowledge transfers occurred mainly through face‐to‐face communications, though with little formal teamworking. Both the extent and the effectiveness of transfers depended on the degree of marketing knowledge within the nonprofit partner, on levels of knowledge specificity and project complexity, and on the financial importance of the collaboration. The extent of knowledge transfer was additionally influenced by cultural and organisational distance. Similar considerations affected commercial partners' decisions to do most of the marketing work required by a collaboration. Such decisions were especially likely if anti‐marketing bias existed within the nonprofit organisation and if the nonprofit's staff knew little about marketing.     

Implicit Leadership Theories of Bruneians

A leader's effectiveness is affected by the followers’ acceptance of the leader as their leader. Followers rely on their cognitive schema to judge whether someone deserves to be considered a leader. This cognitive schema is the implicit leadership theory (ILT) individuals have on the qualities of a leader. When leaders are perceived as conforming to this ILT, they are seen as leaders, and followers accept their influence attempt. This study examined the ILT of Bruneians. The findings indicate that Bruneians are associated with a distinct ILT and shows that gender and personality variables predict the variation in ILT.     

The Impact of Social Influence on Individuals' Adoption of Innovation

This article empirically examines the impact of social factors (peer and social network) on attitudes toward innovation and the impact of that attitude on individual employees adopting innovation in their workplaces in Australia. This research uses quantitative research methodology and specifically multivariate statistical analysis. The research framework is based on the theory of reasoned action, the technology acceptance model, Frambach and Schillewaert's conceptual framework, and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology. Data were collected from employees of a tertiary institution in Australia using a structured questionnaire. The results of multiple regression analysis show that social network impacts significantly on attitudes toward an innovation which, in turn, affects the innovation adoption behavior of employees. Furthermore, social network has been found to directly influence the innovation adoption process. This outcome has strategic implications for organizations in the effective management of innovation involving employees. These implications are highlighted in the article. This research has focused on only one organization in a particular region in Australia. Future research can explore the relationship between variables by including a number of organizations across Australia and beyond to provide a deeper insight into the issues explored in this article.     

Linking Human Resource Development Practices to Counterproductive Work Behaviour: Does Employee Engagement Matter

ABSTRACT

Although there is strong evidence in the literature to support the relationship between human resource development (HRD) practices and counterproductive work behavior (CWB), little is known about the psychological processes underlying this relationship. The present study examined whether employee engagement mediates the relationship between HRD practices and CWB. Participants were 271 employees enroled in a part-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) program at a large public university in Nigeria. After controlling for demographic characteristics, results showed that HRD practices were negatively related to CWB. The results also indicated that employee engagement plays a role in mediating the relationship between HRD practices and CWB.     

Sarbanes-Oxley Act and corporate credit spreads

Stock market reaction suggests that despite improved disclosure and increased accountability, Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) is too costly and not beneficial. Noting that bondholders are likely to reap the many potential benefits of SOX without bearing the brunt of costs, we examine how SOX affected corporate credit spreads to better assess its benefits. SOX has led to a significant structural decline in spreads of at least 27 basis points. Riskier firms (low rating, long maturity, high leverage, and small size) and firms closely related to SOX major provisions (earning variability, managerial trading, and corporate governance) experience greater declines in spreads.     

A partial race to the bottom: corporate tax developments in emerging and developing economies

This paper assembles a new dataset on corporate income tax regimes in 50 emerging and developing economies over 1996–2007 and analyzes their impact on corporate tax revenues and domestic and foreign investment. It computes effective tax rates to take account of special regimes, such as tax holidays, temporarily reduced rates and increased investment allowances. There is evidence of a partial race to the bottom: countries have been under pressure to lower tax rates in order to lure and boost investment. In the case of standard tax systems (i.e. tax rules applying under normal circumstances), the effective tax rate reductions have not been larger than those witnessed in advanced economies, and revenues have held up well over the sample period. However, a race to the bottom is evident among special regimes, most notably in the case of Africa, creating effectively a parallel tax system where rates have fallen to almost zero. Regression analysis reveals higher tax rates adversely affect domestic investment and FDI, but do raise revenues in the short run.     

Leveraging Virtual Attribute Experience in Video Games to Improve Brand Recall and Learning

This article extends the concept of virtual direct experience (VDE) from a product to an attribute as video gamers can virtually experience an attribute within a gaming environment. Using a 2 (VAE: present versus absent) x 2 (order of brand presentation: first or second) between subjects experimental design, we find that associating a brand with virtual attribute experience (VAE) by exposing consumers to the brand name and the virtual experience simultaneously has a positive effect on brand recall, brand extension acceptance, overall attitude, and purchase intention. In addition, our results demonstrate a significant interaction between VAE and telepresence on brand recall.