An upper bound for the correlation ratio of records

We obtain an upper bound for a measure of the performance of the least squares predictor of the jth record of a sequence of continuous i.i.d random variables as a function of the ith record. We show also that such bound is attainable, except for location and scale parameters, by exponential distributions. This work was supported in part by Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia through Grants PB96-1416-CO2-02 and HA 1997-0123.     

Economic drought management index to evaluate water institutions’ performance under uncertainty*

Reservoir management and intertemporal water allocation are critical issues in semiarid regions where agriculture has to confront highly variable rainfall patterns. In this paper, we derive and propose an economic drought management index (EDMI) to evaluate water institutions’ performance to cope with drought risk. The EDMI is based on the optimal conditions of a stochastic dynamic optimisation problem that characterises reservoir management. The index's main advantages are its ease of interpretation and breadth of scope, as it incorporates information on hydrological processes, structural constraints, water institutions’ rules, and the economic benefits of water use. An empirical application is developed to assess the institutional rules governing water allocation in two different supply systems in Andalusia (southern Spain).     

The Labour Market Impact of Adult Education and Training: A Cohort Analysis

Education boosts individuals' productivity and wages. Yet many individuals leave school with minimal skills and qualifications. One way for these workers to catch up might be lifelong learning. We find that a particular form of lifelong learning, work related training, does have a positive impact on earnings. However, firms tend only to train those workers who will gain from training. Training does benefit those chosen to receive it but if all workers received training, the average impact on wages would be low. Hence, this form of lifelong learning is not necessarily an effective way of raising wages.     

Training as a generator of employee capabilities

In the current global economic environment, companies aiming to obtain lasting competitive advantages must be aware of those abilities that differentiate the company from its competitors. In this sense, personnel training may stimulate the development of certain capabilities related to the company's human resources, which could support this differentiation and hence the desired competitive advantage. For this reason, we have considered as an aim of this work to analyse personnel training as a policy for the development of the organisation's human capital, and its influence on the impulse of three differentiating capabilities, namely the employees' knowledge or know-how, the generation of a collective mind and the organisational commitment of personnel. In this article, we shall first analyse from a theoretical point of view the influence of the company's training policies on the development of certain differentiating capabilities. Then, we shall empirically prove this theoretical relation within the framework of the different business units of a financial institution.     

Does downsizing improve organisational performance? An analysis of Spanish manufacturing firms

The objective of this study is to examine the effect of downsizing on corporate performance, considering a sample of manufacturing firms drawn from the Spanish Survey of Business Strategies for the 1993–2005 period. No significant difference in post-downsizing performance arises between companies that downsize and those that do not. Likewise, we find that substantial workforce reductions through collective layoffs do not lead to improved performance levels either. Downsizing may not, therefore, be a way for managers to enhance performance. This is particularly true of Spain, where the labour market is characterised by the ring-fencing of employees' rights and substantial severance costs.     

Clustering of Angolan entrepreneurs: an analysis of their entrepreneurial posture

This paper aims to contribute to the debate concerning whether entrepreneurial posture (consisting of innovativeness, risk taking, proactiveness, competitive aggressiveness, and internal locus of control) is a unidimensional or multidimensional construct. Furthermore, it identifies the profile of Angolan entrepreneurs in terms of their entrepreneurial attitude, and investigates how this profile enhances business performance. The findings suggest that entrepreneurial posture is a multidimensional construct. However, they also suggest that the three entrepreneurial clusters behave differently. Implications for Government and decision-makers, and suggestions for future research are given in the concluding section.     

Meta-Analysis of the Long- and Short-Term Effects of Sales Promotions on Consumer Behavior

ABSTRACT

This article presents a meta-analysis aiming to assess the short- and long-term effects of sales promotions on consumer behavior. We found 221 studies addressing this relationship. Our final sample provided 139 observations. First, the results revealed a significant relationship between sales promotion and both purchase intentions and sales volume. Second, we identified significant and positive connections with brand loyalty, perceptions of quality, consumer attitudes, and switching costs for consumers. Third, we noted that the sample type, the number of promoted products and sample size partially moderated the relationship between sales promotion and short/long-term effects.     

The Student Retention Puzzle Revisited: The Role of Institutional Image

This study aims to develop and test a student retention model that includes system and institutional dropout as outcome variables, examining differences in factors that affect them. We also model the image of the institution as influencing institutional commitment and drop/stay intentions. Using structural equation modeling to test the hypotheses, we found that both initial personal and institutional characteristics (such as students' goal commitment and the higher education institutional image), as well as the institutional experience and integration of the student into the academic environment, will have an effect on the level of student performance and institutional commitment, which in turn influence stay/drop decisions. Higher education administrators need to manage not only conventional factors—such as instructional effectiveness, peer interaction, and academic integration—in order to reduce attrition. They also need to manage brand associations with regard to the positioning of their institution in prospects' minds.