Labor Unions as Shareholder Activists: Champions or Detractors?

We examine the impact of labor union shareholder activism through the submission of shareholder proposals during the period 1988–2002. We examine the effect of labor union‐sponsored shareholder proposals on announcement period returns; on the corporate governance environment of the firm including shareholder rights, board composition, and CEO compensation; on changes in unionization rates and labor expense; and on long‐run shareholder wealth. We do not find any observable patterns for the overall sample of proposals. However, subsets of proposals associated with union presence at the target firm and shareholder voting support for the proposal are associated with significant effects surrounding and subsequent to targeting.     

Access to and Utilization of Flexible Work Options

Many workers do not utilize the flexible work options to which they have access nor do they necessarily have access to all options officially provided by their organizations. This study sheds light on these gaps using probit models with sample selection to predict access to and utilization of fourteen flexible options. The findings highlight the roles of supervisor support, occupation, and work‐life culture. The influence of each of these factors on access and utilization differs.     

Agriculture in the EEC: Two scenarios to the year 2000

The nine-member EEC, soon to be enlarged to 12 countries, is a major agricultural producer and trader. The author describes the assumptions behind two scenarios: high agricultural-commodity output (protectionist), and low output (liberalisation). After examining the pressures for change, he concludes that some measure of liberalisation is likely, possibly with new adjustment mechanisms (eg farm-income support rather than price intervention). However, the complexity of present EEC agricultural policy and the prevailing interests of current member countries make radical change unlikely.     

Understanding the alliance data

A considerable body of research utilizes large alliance databases (e.g., SDC, MERIT‐CATI, CORE, RECAP, and BIOSCAN) to study interorganizational relationships. Understanding the strengths and limitations of these databases is crucial for informing database selection and research design. In this study I conduct an analysis of five prominent alliance databases. Focusing on technology alliances (those formed for the purposes of joint research or cross‐technology transfer), I examine the databases' consistency of coverage and completeness, and assess whether different databases yield the same patterns in sectoral composition, temporal trends, and geographic patterns in alliance activity. I also replicate three previously published alliance studies to assess the impact of data limitations on research outcomes. The results suggest that the databases only report a fraction of formally announced alliances, which could have detrimental consequences for some types of research. However, the databases exhibit strong symmetries in patterns of sectoral composition, alliance activity over time, and geographic participation. Furthermore, the replications of previous studies yielded results that were highly similar to those obtained in the original studies. This study thus provides some reassurance that even though the databases only capture a sample of alliance activity, they may yield reliable results for many—if not all—research purposes. This information should help researchers make better‐informed decisions about their choice of database and research design. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessing the relationship between loyalty program attributes, store satisfaction and store loyalty

After a decade of research there is still much to understand about the relationship between loyalty programs and whether they deliver on their promise of building customer loyalty towards a store and understanding the mediating role of store satisfaction. Our results suggest that loyalty program as a summary construct, explains a significant proportion of the variance in store satisfaction and store loyalty. However, disaggregation of the construct into hard versus soft attributes, promotes greater specificity, precision and accuracy in uncovering the differential impact on store satisfaction and store loyalty.     

An empirical examination of the pricing of exchange‐traded barrier options

Actively traded barrier options were introduced on the Australian Stock Exchange in 1998. This market provides a unique laboratory in which to empirically examine their pricing. This is particularly so given that, for a number of these options, otherwise identical standard European options were simultaneously traded. As a result, the pricing of barrier options may be compared both with their theoretical valuations and with the pricing of otherwise identical European options. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Jrl Fut Mark 24:1049–1064, 2004     

The Influence of Knowledge Accumulation on Buyer-Supplier Codevelopment Projects

This article investigates innovation across a supply chain and considers how knowledge accumulation as a consequence of buyer‐supplier codevelopment projects can influence the projects' specifications. The setting is the semiconductor industry, and the players are chip producers who cooperate with their suppliers to modify their manufacturing equipment used to produce new semiconductor devices. Two detailed case studies were undertaken to determine the tradeoffs encountered by the buyer and supplier when setting the parameters that govern codevelopment projects. The findings from the case studies inform a conceptual framework that outlines the net payoffs to buyers when deciding whether to “make” or “buy” their production equipment. If buyers pursue the “make” option, they then have to decide the degree to which they sponsor modifications tailored to their production processes or modifications more generally applicable across the industry. More generally applicable modifications likely would prompt suppliers to invest relatively more in follow‐on knowledge creation for upgrades and field support while leading to lower equipment costs due to economies of scale from larger production runs of the new equipment. The framework suggests that when making this sequence of decisions, an innovative buyer also weighs the importance of codevelopment for securing intellectual property rights, guaranteeing early access to new equipment enabling early product launch, and achieving high production yields quickly due to “previewing” the equipment. The conceptual framework leads to a multi‐period model that focuses on the importance of knowledge accumulation for project parameterization. As captured by the model, buyers may prefer generally applicable modifications to customized ones, because generally applicable modifications may lead to greater knowledge accumulation at the supplier. This knowledge accumulation may be either “embodied” in equipment upgrades or “unembodied” in improved field support. In addition to shaping the nature of particular codevelopment projects, knowledge accumulation also may have profound implications for long‐run industry structure. As seen in the semiconductor industry, knowledge accumulation at equipment suppliers has contributed to the rise of contract manufacturers, because these manufacturers can outfit their production facilities with equipment that embodies the accumulated knowledge. These findings suggest that for both short‐run and long‐run reasons, the dynamics of knowledge accumulation merit thorough attention when members of a supply chain cooperate during the course of new product development.     

FARMERS' ATTITUDES TO RURAL ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE: RESULTS OF A SURVEY IN JEMALONG SHIRE,N.S.W.*

The Australian Government has provided adjustment assistance to the rural sector since 1970 under several schemes. The demand for assistance has been lower than expected, given the alleged size of the problem, particularly for the 'welfare' oriented provisions. The results of a survey of farmers' attitudes to the current Rural Adjustment Scheme are examined in an attempt to explain this phenomenon. Measures designed to ease financial difficulties or to facilitate on-farm adjustment were much preferred to those designed to assist farmers to leave agriculture. Considerable confusion about the scheme was evident and many farmers thought that information about the scheme was inadequate. Better extension and counselling is suggested to improve information flows to farmers. The formulation of a more structured set of eligibility criteria is also suggested to reduce the complexity and uncertainty which farmers face when they are considering lodging an application for assistance.     

Peritoneal fluid in children with intussusception: Its sonographic detection and relationship to successful reduction

A retrospective review of the abdominal/pelvic ultrasound (US) examinations in 21 consecutive children with intussusception proven on barium enema was performed to determine what is the incidence of US detected peritoneal fluid in this population and to see if the rate of reduction was different in this subset. Twelve of the 21 children (57%) had free fluid demonstrated with US. Eight of these 12 (67%) had successful reduction. Six of the nine children (67%) without free fluid were also successfully reduced.